This made me laugh the most.
This made me shudder and go cold to the spine
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Honestly, this is making me want to go get my hormone levels tested. Iām still pretty young, but my shift work, work stress, etc all could lead to some tanking test levels. Idk if thatās the case, but I have been SUPER on edge for a long time now. Car backfires and my hearts at 160 bpm instantly. I hear a loud noise at night, i will wake up swinging, not even at anything, just waking up ready for a fight. Maybe I should get some hormone panels done
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@simo74 Good to know folks are picking up those little gems I am leaving in the write ups, haha. Oh I was SO mad at myself for thinking that at rep 13.
@atlas13 Definitely worth taking in advisement. With the weight loss you underwent there may be something there as well. I feel like my hardcore weight cut may have contributed.
Got in TABEARTA when I got home. Waiting at Tang Soo Do right now
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AM WORKOUT (0438 natural wake up) FASTED
21-15-9-5 of
- 40kg KB swings
- 95lb thrusters
- 24kg devil presses
Followed by 5 minutes of ABCs, going EMOM rounds of 3-4-3-5-3
Notes:
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Came up with the workout this morning as I was getting ready. Something slightly less intense than Teddy Grahams but still getting in full body and decent volume.
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Good to feel my elbows holding up to the devil presses. Theyāre typically in a bad way. In fact, despite squatting 3x a week my elbows are really feeling solid.
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Kept getting all sort of little tweaks in Tang Soo Do last night. Shoulders and knees mostly.
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Appetite remains voracious. Great time to be growing. Will get in another short conditioning workout later, and all set up for Super Squats tomorrow.
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Good to see another individual that squats like me. I literally cannot squat like a piston up and down like other people because Iāll lose my grove and form will go to shit.
Side note: Iām starting Super Squats next monthā¦excited and scared LOL
Iām excited for you dude. Itāll be a great time.
I definitely CAN squat that way if I decided it was my goal, but doing so just isnāt worth the effort. Iām a hinger, rather than a squatter.
I did some tabeartas the other day. I did 3-2-1,3-2-1,3-2-1. Just kept it within a 5 min window before riding the assault bike. I liked them def keep telling myself to get back on the ABC train but if I do Iām starting with like 30-35 pounders the 24kgs are a little much for me right now.
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@jwlake06 Outstanding dude! Both are solid choices. Tabearta is my mobility protocol at this point, haha. Has everything moving. Speaking ofā¦
PM WORKOUT
TABEARTA. Hamstring is really feeling strong again.
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AM WORKOUT (0338 natural wake up)
SUPER SQUATS Workout 15
Axle clean and strict press away/pull apart superset (1 min rest)
3x10x166/50 reps
Weighted dip/axle row superset (1 min rest)
3x12x95/2x15x223
Breathing Squats/pull overs
27x315/20x20lbs
Take a peek at what theyāre serving for appetizers in Valhalla
Axle SLDLs
15x273
Poundstone curls
161xAxle
25 pushdowns
POST WORKOUT SHAKE
ASSISTANCE/CONDITIONING
30 GHRs
20 standing ab wheels
50 KB swings
PM WORKOUT
1:30 of ABCs before getting interrupted, then switched to 30 DKB clean and strict press each rep in time 2:49
Notes:
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Hamstring is almost 100%. I forget that itās hurt at this point, but getting to depth with the heavier squats still triggers some pain. Iām letting the wrap get looser and looser. I can feel my technique getting a little looser as well, which is a balancing act. It allows me to squat faster and to greater depth, but I have to still keep the hamstring tight.
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First workout in the series where I actually NEEDED more than 3 breaths to get through a squat. Took about 5 or 6 on the final squat. Leg muscles are finally starting to show some fatigue. Good sign to eat big in the final week.
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Iām really impressed with how strong my press is moving along. I keep going to the well and thereās still more. Same with those dips. Upper body really seems to be responding.
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PM Workout was rough. My legs are thoroughly trashed.
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We all test for our new belts in Tang Soo Do tomorrow. Thatāll be exciting.
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Got my labs back today, and after 3 treatments my total has one from 31 to 437. Thatās amazing. I really am feeling like my old self again.
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I wanna hear all about it.
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Youāre looking buff as hell in that shirt dude
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@kdjohn Hell yeah dude! It was pretty awesome. Gonna write it up.
@tlgains Thanks dude! Iām definitely feeling bigger. Body seems to finally be responding appropriately to all the stimulus Iāve been giving it. Itās been like having a kink in the hose for 2 years and then suddenly it all comes rushing it.
Slept until about 0630, got up and did a fasted 30 burpees over bar.
Life happened. Got chores done. Part of that included a Costco run, which meant, for lunch, I had 2 drumsticks, 2 wings and a thigh off of a $5 rotisserie chicken. My kid wanted a Happy Meal from McDonalds before belt testing, and I didnāt want to test off McDonalds, so that was the call I made, only to giggle to myself over the idea that MY Happy Meal IS a rotisserie chicken.
BELT TESTING WRITE UP
We spent 5 hours at the Dojang today. My kidās test was 2 hours long, but we got there 30 minutes early so they could take their written test, and once their test was done the Mrs and I took OUR written test and then our physical test.
Belt testing day is the most intense day in the curriculum. We open up with physical testing requirements, which for our belt was a whopping 25 push ups, 25 sit ups and 25 jumping jacks. Itās easy to mock that as a meathead, but I love that our school holds students to a standard, and the numbers increase as the rank goes up. That said: there needs to be a little self-pride about it and an attempt to actually DO a real push upā¦but I digress.
After that was about 40+ minutes of basics. This is where the intensity lives in the day, especially since, the higher up in rank you go, the more you know. We are basically evaluated in every single technique weāve learned, starting with blocks and hand techniques, transitioning to kicks, and then combinations. We march across the floor doing these, and all commands are in Korean, which is a solid test of how well weāre picking up the material. One of our peers legit did not know ANY of the Korean terms, and had to have everything explained to them. That was frustrating.
Early in, I noticed just how enthused I was to be in class. My ki-yup was louder/more spirited and my aggression was there. Iād been sleep-walking for a LONG time. Another sign of healing most likely.
After thoroughly soaking my dobak with sweat, we transitioned to Hyung, or kata if youāre Japanese, or āformsā if you donāt care about any of that. Once again, the higher in rank you are, the more you do, so we started with the white belt hyung and worked all the way up to our current one. The Mrs and I were the lowest ranking in our testing group, yet we were the higher performers, as we were eventually called off the floor while the senior students were forced to repeat a few hyungs before they demonstrated them to a satisfactory level. Thatās a win.
After hyungs, we transitioned to one-step defense techniques, starting with hand techniques, then kicks, then grappling. My wife and I got paired together, primarily because weāre the only two legal-aged adults in the class. We work well together. Biggest issue was my buggy hamstring and shoulder made it hard for me to land softly during the grappling.
From here, we put on the sparring gear for a whopping 2 minutes of sparring. Again, easy to laugh atā¦and amazing how many folks want to do martial arts and arenāt in shape enough to do 2 minutes of sparring. No joke, if youāre at home and on the fence about taking a martial art, sign up, and show up IN SHAPE. You will be SO far ahead of your peers. Youāll spend more time grooving better reps because you arenāt always fatigued, which allows you to progress so much faster. To say nothing of being able to tool someone in a sparring match because theyāre gassed and youāre fresh. However, once again, the Mrs and I were paired up, and sheās a psychopath that has run 37 half marathons and a few fulls, so I had to actually work for this one.
And after that was board breaks. Iām proud of the whole family here, because most of the students picked āsafeā breaks and we all went for some challenging stuff. My kid went with a palm heel strike and step up side kick, the Mrs did a knife hand and jump roundhouse, and I went with an upset knifehand strike and a spinning hook kick. The latter took me 3 attempts. Power was there on all 3, but distancing was off. Once I was in the right spot, it was magic.
In sum, whole tribe absolutely crushed it, and we celebrated with some local BBQ and peppermint milk shakesā¦and Iām STILL putting away food, because Iām in the middle of Super Squats and hungry as well.
Also, when we got back, I did 1 round of Teddy Grahams, and ended up getting 25 ABCs and a TEBEARTA of 3-3-3-1-3-3-1-3. Thatās pretty clutch.
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Amigo, that was a treat to read. Grinning from ear to ear the whole time. It makes me so happy to see an entire family embracing the martial arts. I can only imagine how happy you must be.
Keep crushing it, brother. All three of you.
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Finished watching that last set of 27. I could feel the legs and back tightening up through those last few reps, but loved watching you keep going for another rep. Enjoying your journey deeper into the darkness. Thanks for sharing
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@kdjohn Thanks dude! Been great to have you back along. I still owe you so much for making the connections with my kiddo way back when. Great to be growing together.
@simo74 You know it dude! I have to appreciate the challenges life throws at me. If it werenāt for all the insanity of this run of SS, I never woulda gone down this path of adding reps, and itās been a fantastic challenge.
Slept until 0700, got in tabata Devil presses w/24kg KBs going 3 per round, had another crazy day and did 1 round of 5 minutes of ABCs (23 total) and a Bear complex of 3-2-3-2-3-2-3-2
I know I said āTeddy Grahamsā before, but Iām switching it to āArmor Bearerā. We still get puns, it makes a little more sense, and I dig the dictionary definition of it
Thanks Merriam-Webster!
Got some photos of the board breaks from yesterday
Would preferred to have my hands up on that kick, but Iāll take it for a spin hook kick.
Mrs hit me with the āYour chest and shoulders have gotten hugeā today. Thatās awesome. Sheās been noticing how Iāve been growing. She talked with me about how hard I was working for so little physical reward before. Itās crazy to think about what things are like now that Iām playing on an even biological playing field.
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AM WORKOUT (0340 wake up via alarm)
SUPER SQUATS Workout 16
(3) Incline DB press/weighted chins (1 min rests)
3x12x100s/2x15x20 (11 unbroken in first set)
BtN Press/pull apart (1 min rests)
3x10x130/50 total reps
Breathing Squats/pull overs
28x315/20x20lbs
We just had a near life experience!
Kroc rows
22x115
Axle shrugs against strong short bands
1x33
Reverse hypers
56x180
POST WORKOUT SHAKE
ASSISTANCE/CONDITIONING
20 standing ab wheels
25 pushdowns
20 band curls
Tabata rounds: burpee over bells, double KB clean and strict press w/24kb bells, get 2 of those down each round, then die
Notes:
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Hamstring is close to 100%. I could do more warm-up work without wrapping the hamstring, and the wraps are much looser. At this point, more of a security blanket, so that I donāt blow the damn thing out so close to the end. Same reason Iām sticking with the sweats. Iām moving FASTER through the squats, as a result, and by the time I got to 28 I wasnāt dealing with nearly as much hand numbness. I honestly may have had 30 today. I was too scope-locked on 28 to consider it, but now itās in the calculus. Iām not nearly as nuked post squat, as a result. That said, I got to rep 14, thought to myself āhalfway thereā and then thought āthereās no way that makes any sense, weāve been squatting since before time began!ā I may, in fact, be transcending reality.
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Still love seeing all the work outside of the squats go up as well. Iāll have a plate per side for BtN presses next workout, which is also the last workout. Crazy to think. 1 more of each variant to go.
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Left shoulder still a little buggy. Downtime on my upcoming cruise will be good for it.
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Will do some sorta short burst conditioning later today. That session I came up with this morning was really solid. Thereās something VERY effective about coming right off the floor and putting weight overhead.
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On the nutrition front, Iāve cut blackberries out of the diet. It seems that avocados are the only berry I can handle. Iām also including homemade sourdough bread as my pre-workout meal, because itās awesome.
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Still appreciating HOW my body is putting on weight these days. Much more even distribution, vs all in the hips.
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Sitting at the airport after a handful of days in the woods, and lots of hell yeahs to quote in the last 15 or so posts. Thatās a bear to format on the phone, so just an enthusiastic āyouāre killinā it dudeā.
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@mr.v3lv3t Thanks dude! Always great when you swing by.
PM WORKOUT
23 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kg bells
Happy with that performance the afternoon after Super Squats
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Bruh - great catching up in your log. Took me back to belt test days when I was doing Kenpo in NY. My last belt test was something like three hours. Right on about the sparring. A minute is forever.
Great to hear of the physical improvements. You probably know this, but you wonāt get to max dosage until the seventh treatment due to half lives. You will see improvement in recovery and body composition for a year. Yes, a year!
Rock on!
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Absolute killer blog post my man. Love it
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