Slept until 0630 and got in fasted “Comrade Fran”, strict chins and going 21-15-9-5 to get my 50 daily work chins knocked out too. Time for 21-15-9 was 6:12, final time was 7:14. The snow hit last night, so shoveling will be today. My lats are on fire from that little surge I got on my deadlifts: interesting feeling. Starting to get some physical breakdowns that come when there’s no surplus of calories to heal off of. Riding the razor’s edge on the break here, which should mean a solid response when I jack up the volume and the food.
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Shoveled a lot of wet heavy snow today, then…
PM WORKOUT (1500)
Buffalo Bar Squat 20x320+Axle deadlift 20x316+Keg Grace (155lb keg one motions)
50 dips
50 pull aparts
20 standing ab wheels
40 reverse hypers
25 pushdowns
Neck work
Notes: This was a faster workout than throwing Fran on at the end, but it sucked WAY more. I definitely felt chow wanting to come back up on Grace around the halfway point. I do think the next evolution will be Grace and Fran together.
Got my “No Bull” trainers. They are going to make great prowler shoes, but no dice on the deadlifts. They elevate me pretty high off the ground. Seems pretty goofy really. Gonna stick with my Crossfit LTRs with the holes in them for now, but might get the Mark Bell deadlift slippers.
Weekend is treating me well. Lots of sleep and recharging. Definitely needed this. Got a bison pot roast on deck for tomorrow night’s dinner.
Seemed to have cured that lat issue too.
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Man, if anyone is ever questioning some crap about RPE, or if they are putting enough intensity into their training, all you gotta do is show them your face at 9:48 in that video. That look of just absolute “oh f#^% me” is priceless. Keg grace by itself is an intense workout, crazy to see you hoping straight into it after squats and deads. Full body workout in 10 minutes, just awesome work
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@atlas13 Very much appreciated dude! That look is the SAME look I give whenever I read someone saying they’ve been going to RPE 10 for every workset, haha. Effort is magic. It brings such great rewards.
Slept until 0620 and got in 34 rounds of burpees over bar at 20 seconds on/10 seconds off. Ideally I’ll get in a press workout today, but we’ll see.
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the $100 pair or the $400 pair? I got the cheaper ones for the wife and she loves them… couldn’t justify the $400 pair at the time, curious if you indulged in the extravagant version
Didn’t even see a $400 pair on their site. I got the ones that look like Chucks
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just looked over their site and couldn’t find them - they must have done away with them since I last looked (got the wife’s gym shoes like 18 months ago). Those chuck looking ones are clean though - will be keeping an eye out for a pair myself!
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@Andrewgen_Receptors I’ll always be a sucker for anything that looks like a Chuck Taylor, haha
PM WORKOUT (1430)
Axle from the floor and push press away
5x156 (clean)
2x1x231 (continental)
Axle clean and strict press each rep 161lbs
22 reps in 4:50
GIANT SETS (press-dip-raise-pull): sets 1 and 4: BtN, sets 2 and 5: DB, sets 3 and 6: axle
BtN press 125
2x10
(3) Incline DB bench 85s
2x10
Axle flat bench 236
2x10
Dips
6xF
Lateral raise 10s
2x16
4x15
Band pull aparts
6x15
Poundstone curls
193xAxle
Notes: My push press is still pretty awful, which isn’t a shock considering how I don’t train it. I lose a good amount of energy on that continental. It’s worth noting I still go double overhand with it, because of course I do. Nice to get the training in. Pressing was strong where I needed it to be. This is my least exciting day of the programming, but it’s like taking my medicine.
Will get some chins in later, possibly as part of Comrade Fran.
Edit: 5:20 for Comrade Fran
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Question for ya. Found out I’m getting a bonus at work for finishing up this school, going to take about $1000 from it to get some new gym toys. Any recommendations? I’ve got the standard barbell and rack, along with a trap bar and axle. Thinking maybe an SSB, multigrip Pullup Bar, and some dumbbells? Or maybe an incline bench? Any toys you’ve found were more worthwhile than others?
Sandbags are inexpensive and lots of fun 
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@atlas13 First 2 things that I go to there is a log and a prowler. I’m of the belief that, with those two things, I wouldn’t need anything else. Do you have some way to do dips? If not, a dip attachment, power tower or dip stands would be a great addition. SSB is an awesome pick for sure. If you’re really looking to be baller, you could do one of those reverse hyper/GHR combos. Kettlebells wouldn’t be a bad choice either.
Woke up at 0600, knocked out 4 minutes of Burpee chins fasted to get a total of 42 done while the Mrs was getting ready, got the kiddo up, had a few breakfasts and did this
AM WORKOUT (0800)
GIANT SET (jump-squat-row)
Box jump
5x3
This high
That’s 2 35s, 2 45s and a 25 on top of a bunch of mats and stuff. It’s the highest I’ve been so far
Buffalo Bar Squat
5xBar
5x140
3x230
1x320
1x370
T-bar row
15x100
12x125
3x10x150
ZENO SQUATS (12 deep breaths between sets)
9x410
5x410
3x410
2x410
1x410
9x370
5x370
3x370
2x370
1x370
16x320
Belt squat stripset (no lockout)
32x200
Reps of 175,150,125,100,75,50,25,axle
Later in the day, 2 mile walk with the dog
Notes: Mrs and I had the day off together, so abbreviated, hit the highlights, got in the daily work and rolled. The Zeno squats are feeling right now. This was a taxing workout. It makes since: getting to the 9 rep threshold at the top adds QUITE a bit of total reps. It’s fun how this workout shakes out in general that way. Feeling strong. Hitting that belt squat stripset right afterwards was legit. Put in some solid effort. Got the prowler tomorrow before the weather turns on me.
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Oh you.
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No other way to live!
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I read your recent blog post, which is very reminiscent of The Man in the Arena. I really liked it. The timing was good for me as I’m settling into the “what have I done” phase after moving my family for a new company. I guess just throwing out that it speaks well beyond the weight room, as sports/ hobbies are supposed to do.
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@TrainForPain Very much appreciated dude. Absolutely true: it applies universally. Without risk, there is no reward. Those who are satisfied with the status quo are fine to go without risks, but those who aren’t will be getting messy.
AM WORKOUT (0308 natural wake up) FASTED
DEATH AND TAXES ON ICE
10 rounds in 52 minutes
POST WORKOUT SHAKE
50 dips
40 reverse hypers
20 standing ab wheels
50 pull aparts
25 pushdowns
Neck work
50 burpee chins in 5:50
Notes: So here is what my prowler space looked like this morning
You can see the solid sheets of ice out front, and then all that sparkly stuff is a base layer of frost. I was thankful to have a long enough spot to work, but low handle pushes weren’t happening. Simply couldn’t get a grip.
So the workout went: 5 KB clusters-run 60 paces to prowler loaded w/90lbs-backwards drag to KBs-3 front squats-high handle push 60 paces-run back to KBs and do 3 front squats-run back to prowler and forward drag while holding the tow rope 60 pages-3 front squats-high handle push 60 paces. That’s 1 round.
After it was done, got home with enough time to tack on that mini conditioning on the end as well. Back to work today, and a 12 hour shift tomorrow.
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That update was a bit of a driveby. A few details left out.
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On the berserker front, I didn’t even make it 10 minutes into the workout before I had to shed all the top layers, and at the end sweat was running in my eyes. This was really gassing me, despite the fact I had to move slower due to the ice.
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I actually forgot that, at the very end of the workout, I front rack lunged the KBs back to my truck. It was a great finisher on top of a gnarly workout, and suddenly made walking lunges VERY viable. That might be what I do for Deep Water my next go round.
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My work trip at the end of the month got canceled. My training will be uninterrupted, which is pretty awesome.
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I’m liking how that forward drag worked out. I’m used to using a harness or a belt, just holding it behind me had a different training effect. I may end up using that for some future training.
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My No Bull trainers were pretty legit for today. I don’t fault them for not gripping the floor: pretty sure nothing was up for that task today. But doing KB squats with it felt awesome, I could run between implements in them without issue, and the toes were flexible enough for lunging.
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Still reverse Mass Made Simple-ing the nutrition. Down to half an avocado a day, reduced egg white intake in my shakes, slightly less meat in my meals, etc.
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Got some dark chocolate powder yesterday. Something I can add to my yogurts when I gain again. Also been taking to have a square of dark chocolate before my workouts on the weekends. I’m thinking that might be a helpul “in case of emergency” pre-workout meal.
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But the ice = lower resistance, so surely it was ‘slightly’ easier
Insane workload and workrate as per the norm her mate, brilliant.
Ice and snow in usa, 40deg C summers (100+ F) here in peak summer…
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Much appreciated dude. Sleds are funny that way. Same way how being heavier makes it easier. Some dudes wear a weight vest to pull better.
These are still mild winters to me. I miss -60 with windchill, haha.
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Have a dip attachment, good to go there. Honestly didn’t even consider a log, may have to. Would be a good way to change up pressing. A sled is a great idea, really leaning towards that. I didn’t know they made combo reverse hypers/GHDs… that’s a pretty tempting combo.
Tried trap bar overheads today, remember you talking about them before. Awesome movement. It’s kind of odd to get the hang of, and the ROM is just crazy, but definitely a great way to hit overhead presses from a different angle, and it feels great on my shoulder
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