Leg Extension
150 x 15
165 x 15
180 x 15 Leaned the seat back more to extend my hips. Felt good.
Ab Wheel
3 x 10
RDL
135 x 10 x 3 sets
RFESS
50s x 10 ea x 2 sets
Hack Squat
90 x 10 x 2 sets I feel very weak at the bottom end of this movement. It also pulls on my back indicating I have some severely shortened muscled in my posterior chain that need attention.
DB Incline
70 x 10 x 5 sets Cable Row
140 x 10 x 5 sets lumbar stretch on each rep
I’m at work so no sled today. The fitness center is very humid anyway. I’m already soaked in sweat.
Welcome back, Duke! I saw a few posts in your revived log.
I don’t really have anything to complain about in the grand scheme of things. I have complaints, of course, but if I look at life as a whole, things are great.
In the training world, I’m okay. Bench and sled conditioning are great. Everything is is ‘meh’ at best. I’ve been trying to let my back heal but it seems to be getting more and more fragile. I think it’s time to suck it up and get back to work. I’m just about to review 5/3/1 Krypteia (the original) and put together a more structured plan than what I’ve been doing.
I see that you hit a 150kg front squat a while back - that’s ridiculous to a lanky guy like myself. Well done! I also saw you’ve been doing more fighting than lifting which is still very useful stuff.
I’m working full-time as a high school teacher at a school with over 2400 students. I teach Health Foundations to 9th graders 1st and 2nd hour and my remaining four classes are Weight Training & Conditioning. The Health class challenges me because it’s in a classroom with students who don’t want to do anything. The Weight Training classes are a breeze. My only complaint is that our schedule has 50 minute class periods every day instead of block scheduling. With block scheduling, I’d see my students for 80-90 minutes every other day. We’re the only high school (out of 9) in my district that don’t follow block scheduling. 50 minutes is more like 35 when you account for time for the students to change at the beginning and end of each class. We also shorten Wednesdays and class periods are only 38 minutes. It kills a traditional MWF split so we’re kind of stuck with following a traditional 5/3/1 structure where we have a day for squat, bench, deadlift, and OHP and it’s treated like an upper/lower split. I’d like to work in circuits for conditioning but it just doesn’t hasn’t worked well. I’ll keep trying, though.
In addition to teaching, I work part-time for a small town police department. I only have to work 16 hours a month, but I can work more if I want. Even though I could use the money, I find myself not wanting to work a second job. I get to work out on duty and go to the shooting range if I want, so it’s not a bad gig. Back in my full-time policing days, it was easy to pick up extra work on days my family wasn’t home. I think that’s why I’m struggling now. My wife and I both teach and my kids are kids, so we all live on the school schedule. It used to be “Well, no one is home so I might as well go make some money.” Now it’s “I’d rather stay home with everyone else.”
What else do you have going on besides training like a fighter?
Leg Extension
15 reps with 150, 165, 180, 190 I leaned back again and it felt good on my knees. I should’ve put the backrest upright to compare. Next time.
Hack Squat
90 x 10
140 x 10 I need the back rest to extend a bit lower. It stops in the middle of my back and my lower back is going into hyperextension if I go to full depth. It hurts, so it’s not fun. And the pain I’m experiencing these days is muscular. I guess that’s better than joint pain, but it still sucks.
Split Squat
50s x 10 ea x 2 sets
Cable Row
140 x 10 x 3 sets w/ full lumbar stretch each rep superset with DB Incline
70 x 10 x 3 sets
Man now that I’m older I wish I always kept it simple. Simple is best. I’m not old I’m 23. Just not a testosterone fuelled teenager. Or stubborn testosterone fueled teenager I should say… Testosterone still plenty high lol
Man some of my lifts were getting there hey. My favourite lift was a 135kg per hand farmers carry, I was going to try beat the wr 165kg per hand u90kg division, injury got in the way and life happened and I stopped training I guess.
It would be rewarding I can imagine when you get kids into it who stick to it. You’re changing lives dude. That’s a cool job
That’s weird. Here in Australia classes are an hour each typically 5 periods a day
At least you have the option though, also it seems your schedule is pretty full. I wouldn’t want to work a second job either lol. Shooting range would be cool too
I’ve started a cut as well as tactical barbell fighter full body program twice a week (starting the program this week) so boxing every evening, weights 2 a week and then rest of time getting my steps up/ walks until I’m fit enough for more cardio.
I’m to the point where maintenance is pretty cool. In the gym, you can measure progress by adding weight, adding reps, adding sets, or reducing rest times. In life, I think we can measure it as maintaining gym stats while adding more crap to our plate. I’m sure some disagree with me and think I’m throwing in the towel or slacking off, but I don’t care. I turned 40 last year and my kids are involved in more things than ever. We’ve finally hit the point where sports are a thing and we have practices and games throughout the week. I still have plenty of time to train; I just don’t want to do it the way I did 10 years ago. I’d say it’s a matter of my mental gas tank more than anything. I guess my point for all this is that less isn’t necessarily worse. I’m training three times per week and according to Jim Wendler, the program will still develop size and strength. For you, TB twice a week with other stuff should be sufficient.
I started doing sled work a few months ago and it’s been great for my fitness. My resting HR is in the upper 40s which is as good as it gets for me. I like the sled for my leg work since my back has reduced my leg training. I also like that it’s short and to the point. I do 10x25m and the goal is 10 minutes. If I beat it, add weight and repeat. There are a lot of other approaches, but that’s mine for now. It also doesn’t make me sore since there’s no eccentric loading like a squat or even with running.
Didn’t do the sled Thursday due to being at work and not having it. I’m working again tomorrow, so I’ll take advantage and work out on duty again. I decided to hit the sled today and ended up doubling the work, but I did decrease the load a bit.
Tank M4 Sled L2
Alternate pushing 25m and pulling 25m
Total Time: 20:36
I know it was probably lighter, but I’m happy with 20 trips in almost 20 minutes.
I agree with this 100%. Majority of the population is too lazy to even train because they’re tired from work or shitty diet, which then makes them feel even worse in a never ending cycle. Three times per week is plenty and I’m excited for this tactical program. I burn myself out easily so I think I’ll gain size and strength as well as continuing improving at boxing.
Sure, we’ll officially call this the start of a new cycle of training because deadlifts are back…and they’re weak!
Deadlift
135 x 5
185 x 5
205 x 5
225 x 5
245 x 5 I’ve been babying my back and I think it’s made things worse. My lower back (erector muscle) feels like it wants to strain/cramp with very little loading. It feels weak. Lighter deadlifts seem like a good solution. I also can’t be injuring myself deadlifting 225 in class once school starts. I’ve always been able to lift 3 or 4 plates cold during class.
Hanging Knee Raise
5 sets of 10 reps
Circuit - 5 Rounds
Rev DB Lunge: 50s x 5 ea
Seated DB OHP: 55s x 10
Chin-Up: BW x 8
It’s a good thing I didn’t eat prior to this. My stomach is trying to purge what little coffee and water is in it. I’m not sure if my conditioning has dropped due to not pushing these circuits, I’m fatigued from yesterday’s sled work, or if it’s just a fluke, but I had to slow down today. My HR and breathing were spiking pretty good with those lunges.
Well, C1 W1 D1 might get a redo. I could have trained today but it was First Responder Day at the zoo so we got to go for free. After that, we hit up a Mexican restaurant for lunch. I got the Grande burrito off the LUNCH menu and was still stuffed.
My daughter had a softball tryout at 6. I just bought her a new bat and you’re supposed to break them in so we hit some balls off the tee before the tryout even though the heat index was over 100. Needless to say, I didn’t train.
I planned to train tomorrow because I was going to be working. It turns out I screwed up when I looked at the calendar. I’m working to fill the gaps in the schedule because my Chief broke his leg and had ankle surgery. I thought today was covered and tomorrow wasn’t, but it was the other way around. And since I’m not needed tomorrow, we’re going to the lake a day early. We’ll come back next Monday. Looks like training will be walking up and down the hill to the water, slalom skiing, and wakeboarding.
5 pull-ups using the exposed roof trusses in the garage
10 push-ups
15 BW squats 8 rounds in 12:51. It sucked but I feel slightly less awful about the copious amounts of chocolate cake I ate last night. Now it’s time to jump in the lake to rinse the sweat off.
Back from the lake. It’s time. It’s time to pull my head out of my rear and get to work. Lately, I’ve had quite a few moments where I felt like a sausage stuffed into its skin. Like, my skin is tight because I’m filling it out. I know that I need to lose weight for the sake of my joints. I know my knees will like me more if I weigh 220 instead of 235-240. I know the things I tell myself I like to do will be easier if I weigh 220. I’ve been slalom skiing on a ski rated for 220 lbs and less. I’m a beginner skier and having an aggressive ski that’s too small isn’t making my life any easier. And lastly, I just don’t like where my body is headed. I’m older and things are distributed differently. My dad’s dad and my dad have the same physique (grandpa died from COPD about 20 years ago). They have skinny legs and a belly, but it’s not a fat looking belly. It’s like a pot belly where the fat is behind the abs and it sticks out, but doesn’t jiggle. It’s strange, and it may be paranoia, but I fear that’s where I’m headed if I don’t do something. My dad doesn’t even look fat; his belly just sticks out. He’s 67 and still skis aggressively and works his tail off, so it wouldn’t be bad to turn out like him. But he’s also 6’2" and weighs 190 lbs where I’m 6’5" and 235 lbs. It’s go time.
I stopped obsessing over my physique when I broke my MyFitnessPal addiction years ago. I decided to do an official check-in today with measurements and a photo. I also like to compare to the stats to previous check-ins. I’m sharing the numbers from my last four measurements and a photo from the last one where I was at my goal weight of 225.
Photo on the left text says ‘12.15.23 - 224.6’. Today’s photo says ‘7.29.25 - 243.2’. This is the heaviest I’ve been in a long time and some of the numbers don’t look so bad. And I was shocked by my photo. I really feel that I look much worse in the mirror.
I looked at my training plan and i initially set Tuesdays to be bench day. I want to keep my Sunday workout as deadlift day because it fits my work fun the best. So instead of starting over with deadlift day, I decided to pick up where I left off. Bench felt like I didn’t even skip a week of training. I guess those numbers above have helped my bench strength.
Bench Still following my step progression. If I hit the prescribed reps and load, then I move to the next step for the next workout.
135 x 8
180 x 6
215 x 4
250 x 2
275 x 2 Moved great. Gaining weight still helps bench. This was the second step for a 305 max. I’ll be on the first step for a 310 max next week.
Lying Leg Raise
5 sets of 10 supersetted with bench
5 Rounds
DB Bench: 80 x 5, 90 x 5, 5, 5, 5
KB Swing: 45 x 10
Rear Delt Fly: 25 x 10, 10, 20 x 10, 10, 10 Rear delts and lat origins (where they attach in the armpit area) are sore from wakeboarding and skiing. By the time I left, it felt like someone tried to rip my arms off.
Carry 90 lb DBs 50m (sets 3 and 4 were not unbroken) 4 Rounds: 13:56 You could probably add a couple carries to the workout considering I had to carry the DBs about 30m from the rack to my workout area. Carrying them back at the end really sucked.
I figured my legs could recover during carries so it wouldn’t be bad. And it wasn’t. I picked the heaviest dumbbells of which the gym had two pairs. I knew I’d have them for over 10 minutes and didn’t want to hog them. It turns out that 90lbs per hand was tougher than I’d hoped, so I’m glad I didn’t go heavier.
The times on the sled pushes and pulls were good but I attribute that to fresh legs. I’m sure they’ll slow down on days I do leg training.
The whole “Sled and Famer’s Walks” thing really struck me because I’ve pretty much always done one or the other—and not for any particular reason, other than the fact that it just never really occurred to me to do both.
Fresh legs or not, I’m definitely going to have to give this combination a try—I can see definite value in pairing them.
I guess you could say it was inspired by what I’ve seen in the logs of @T3hPwnisher (over the years) and @alex_uk (recently), and yourself. Strongman has medlies where they carry different things and I’ve seen sandbag carries lately. The sled has become my go-to implement but carries are great, too. I just decided to create my own medley with two types of sled movements and and a carry.
I remember the double front KB carries from my CrossFit workouts felt awesome on my upper back and they were great for bracing, breathing, and moving. You might see those in tomorrow’s workout.
