Photos now, logs later
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@LoRez In general I am a big fan of direct neck work. A big, strong neck NEVER goes out of style. And if thereās a part of me that can get bigger and stronger: I wanna do just that. Iāve been lazy with my own, but bridges and neck harness are always awesome. And absolutely so in terms of fighting. Being able to get out of a clinch because you have a strong enough neck is huge!
Ok, now some context. I actually kinda like this approach to the log: leave behind clues of the day for people to figure out and then come back later to explain them, haha
Got up at 0700 because the dog was being a total pain. She didnāt sleep well with all the fireworks going off. Took her downstairs to let my Valkyrie get her much deserved rest, did some Tabata squats and push ups while the dog had breakfast, and then went on a fasted walk. Longer than usual: Kentucky Windage it to 2.5 miles.
Got home, Valkyrie whipped me up a warriorās breakfast of 2 omelets (2 eggs, 1 white) and lots of meat, and then we sailed off for adventure. I sampled coffee at various locals for the majority of my hydration and caffeination, and we acquired many steps. At some point through it all, I got in more push ups and bodyweight squats to reach daily goals.
I effectively fasted between my morning and evening meal, rather than my typical protein sparring modified fast. As an aside: was listening to a Carnivore podcast the other day from a carnivore bodybuilder that spoke to a conclusion I drew: traditional fasting is popular in the carnivore community because most there are actively using the approach FOR fat loss because theyāre coming from it in an obese state. For a lean athlete: PSFM is the preferred style of fasting. A carnivore based one works (egg whites and lean cuts of meat), and my shake based one answers the mail as well. Honestly good to close the chapter on that, and proof of concept regarding why itās usual to be accumulating info/perspectives. That was one piece of info buried in 40 minutes of conversation, but a big piece.
I actually had a similar one in a Dan John podcast I was listening to while walking the dog: āLOADED carryā means carry WHILE under a load. Wearing a weight vest would be ābeing under a loadā. Hell, Iāve RECOMMENDED carries with a vest, and even done them before, but TOTALLY forgot about them while looking at Easy Strength. Definitely going to feature that in. I plan to do a write-up of my intended approach for this mash up soon.
BACK ON TOPIC
While out, we hit up a used bookstore and I scored an AMAZING find of Jack Dempseyās āChampionship Fightingā, along with a āViking Warrior Operations Manualā and a $3 book on Scandinavian Mythology. Thatās just plain olā Kismet. Literally buying that book re-light a fire in me to get back onto hitting a bag again. Iāve got plans on working that into the training.
I also obtained a stupidly cheap single waffle maker. Itās made by the same company that makes the little griddle I bring on work trips, so I know itās legit. One more attempt at chaffles is ahead of me.
We eventually obtained all the plunder we needed from our raiding and voyaging, so we feasted. I discovered that the tavern of Buffalo Wings and Rings was offering SMOKED WINGS. They sold them in 5s and 10s. I asked if they could do 15. They did 15.
I ate 15. And the tips of the bones and all.
We eventually returned from our voyage as heroes, warmly greeted by our beloved animal companion as we unloaded the vessel with our loot. At some point, I performed 25 burpees in celebration and the entire family engaged in a 3 mile walk outside in the warm sunlight, observing explosions of color and stardust all around us.
Upon my return, I prepared part of the next dayās feast (the short ribs of a bovine rich in muscle) by using a sharp weapon to remove itās silver skin
At one point, during the day, I told my wife that, flat out, if you were to ask me to describe a perfect day, yesterday would have been it. Some training, amazing food, lots of family time, some retail therapy, a lot of walking and a lot of peace.
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Quick context, will expand later perhaps, butā¦
Woke up at 0630 because dog was going nuts, got in a Tabata squats and push ups workout while it ate, and then pushed to get in the rest of the 300 before going out for a fasted 2.5 mile walk with the dog. Valkyrie was making me breakfast when I returned, so I returned to the smell of bacon cooking. Thatās just absolutely amazing.
Made deviled eggs for the first time as an appetizer while we worked through the day and for our cookout meal at home. Did them āmexican styleā, using 1/4 cup of salsa, 1/4 cup of grassfed sour cream and some taco seasoning mixed with the yokes. It was Valkyrie approved, which is huge. I have a new side in my cookbook: thatās clutch. I LOVE deviled eggs, and this is very much inline with how I eat. The salsa is technically ānot-carnivoreā, but whatever, Iām no martyr over this stuff, itās all quality nutrition.
Made a TON of meat for the 4th of July. In total was 4 chicken thighs, 3 beef back ribs, 2 beef chuck bone-in short ribs, 2 bison burgers, 2 hamburgers, 1 grassfed burger, 4 polish sausages and, 2 hot dogs, all of it done on a Ninja Woodfire Outdoor grill, the majority of it smoke, with just 1 3 sausages, 2 hot dogs and 2 burgers grilled.
Somewhere in the middle, I got in a workout to celebrate independence day.
Posted the thread for it here
Had my Rampage Meal. It was āonlyā 1 plate, because I put enough on it. 2 beef chuck bone-in short ribs, 1 chicken thigh, 1 double bison burger with goat cheese on homemade sour dough with a slice of raw local tomato and some raw local avocado alongside some zero sugar BBQ sauce, 1 smoked polish sausage, 1 local sweet potato with raw local honey on it, 1 homemade cornbread muffin (just the top), a bit of local sweet corn, some local apples and cherries and 3 āmexican styleā deviled eggs.
Not pictured was dessert, which my kiddo made all by themselves. It was a mini-chocolate pudding pie inside of a cute pie dish. I ate the whole thing and told my kid what an awesome job they did making it. I loved being able to be that dad at that moment. This kid also got to learn the best part about smoking meat: watching youtube videos while you wait! They were a champion at that, as we watched āErik the Electricā take on American themed food.
After the meal, I felt like Erik in one of his videos, so we all went on a 3 mile walk out in the sun. I moved from my third back down to my second trimester of food baby in time for us to watch some fireworks. Brings the evening to a close. 2 BIG meals, and probably like 300g of protein in that last one. Might actually be fun to tabulate sometime. My Mass Made Simple/Easy Strength mash-up begins tomorrow. Plan is to call it the āMESSā program. āMass-Easy, Strength-Simpleā. Simply because the acronym fits it well, but, in truth, the more I listen to Dan, the more I think this is totally inline with how heād structure things. Either way, this will be exactly what I need, because Iām still pretty damn sick and my strength is down. Time to swallow my ego, even MORE food, learn and grow.
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Ha this reads like that scene in the movie Friday where his mom lists all that stuff she made for breakfast and he sits down like āHey wheres all the food?ā and shes like āI didnt say I made any for youā
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@Lonnie123 Itās not TOO far off, haha.
AM WORKOUT (0420 natural wake up) FASTED
MESS (Mass-Easy, Strength-Simple) Day 1, Workout 1
Axle clean and strict press away
3x3x141
Weighted chin
3x3x30lbs
Deficit double overhand axle deadlift
3x251
2x251
3x191
Standing ab wheel
1x10
Reverse hyper
75x180
COMPLEX A (row-clean-front squat-press-squat-good morning)
3xBar
3x95
3x115
High bar Squats
30x95
1.5 mile run
Notes:
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Day 1 of the mash-up. I was too heavy on just about everything, which is expected from being a meathead. I have to be at peace with how light of a bodyweight I am these days, and the impact thatās going to have on maximal strength. Itās why this is going to be a good program for me: developed strength at THIS size, and also try to IMPROVE this size. I specifically picked a very difficult deadlift variant so I could get out of my head with weights, although thinking about it I might even throw some chains into the mix next go round to really get my head out. It will also make loading simple. I really want to streamline this program and make it smooth, fast, simple and easy to execute, so I can leave the weights on the bar/platform between workouts and be able to just roll into the garage and nail a workout should the need arise.
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Dan says multiple times in his book that, if he had to do it all over again, heād only do 3x3 with the program, so I am going with that for now. If the need arises, there are other ways to go about Easy Strength, but right now Iām appreciating keeping it simple.
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Sticking with the underhand grip on chins because I need to really keep stressing those biceps. Lesson I learned from tearing it.
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Iāve also decided to use a squat style Iāve literally never done before for the Mass Made Simple portion of this. I feel like thatās an excellent challenge and way to really make this program interesting. I could feel it too! 30 reps of 95 was a challenge. Getting my bodyweight for 50 by the end of the program will be a fantastic goal.
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My schedule is going to be tricky today, so I got in a run vs my dog walking so I could cover some ground. Iām starting my new (and hopefully final before retirement) job today, and learning the hours and expectations. Exciting times ahead.
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That Rampage meal I had may very well serve to be THE ideal model of what works for me, because my body has responded the best to that approach compared to any of the others. I woke up this morning GRAINY. My wifeās exact words were āYou could be a statueā. Iāve never seen that before. And I actually had an appetite when I went to bed, and was ready to eat after my workout (and still had my wake and shake in the middle of the night). I wasnāt bloated to the point of discomfort, I wasnāt sweating Crisco and grease during the workout or feeling like I needed a cleanse, but Iām ALSO not flat from a lack of carbs and my energy feels strong. There was no junk in that meal, as even dessert was something from home made with quality ingredients. I ate meat to the point of bursting and had carbs from a lot of sources, but NOT to a point of absurd excess. Iāll definitely need to remember this and model after it. Itāll be a great working way forward. Iām enjoying this nutritional discovery so much. The tinkering is the best part.
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On the above, meal prep after that huge BBQ is pretty awesome. My lunch today is a smoked chicken thigh and 5 deviled eggs. Dinner will be leftover beef ribs. This is living.
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Tang Soo Do later today. Iāll get in some push ups and squats too.
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Not sure Iāve said it lately, my dude, but your back is looking gnarly. Always inspiring!
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@SvenG Thanks so much man! Always been my strong point, and as Iāve leaned out itās really shined through.
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YouTube is acting up for me today so I canāt see your video, but looking forward to seeing how this goes dude!
The double overhand axle deadlift is such an equalizer. On the reps my grip failed it was so funny how light the weight felt on my body, but the complete inability to move it because I was actively dropping it.
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@mr.v3lv3t Thanks man! I imagine the only real unique thing will be real live footage of me doing high bar squats, haha.
Dan spoke so highly of thick bar DOH deads in his write-up I felt like a sucker if I didnāt do them. These days, the trap bar calls to me whenever itās time to pull, but Iāve already written to myself about the necessary disruption of harmony: this is the followthrough!
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INTENT AND WAY FORWARD
Iāve got SO many thoughts swirling around in my head about training that I want to get them down here in one spot, but Iām sure Iāll inevitably forget some of them. My mind is always idling on this stuff and coming up with/rediscovering ideas.
MESS: Mass-Easy, Strength-Simple
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Again: I like the cute acronym, even though itās supposed to be EASY strength and SIMPLE Mass. But the more I think, listen, and read Dan John, the more I think this makes far more sense as an approach than it initially seemed. Dan says that the point of the upper body work in MMS is to build strength, and that the complexes and high rep squats are what build the size. If you look at the layout of the upper body work in MMS, itās pretty much a STRUCTURED Easy Strength, which is WHY I never cared for it: I either need it ALL spelled out or ALL left to me. Easy Strength does exactly as advertised: it builds strength, and it keeps it easy. So it fits as far as āwhat do I do OTHER than the complexes and squats in MMSā. Meanwhile, regarding Easy Strength, Dan talks about how the point of ES is to ātake careā of the strength portion of an athleteās training so that they can DO that āother stuffā and not try to figure out what to do for strength. Part of that other stuff INCLUDES ābringing up weak areasā, which WOULD include hypertrophy. Itād be totally reasonable to do Easy Strength to build strength and then ābodybuildingā to build size, so in that regard, MMS is a great fit onto Easy Strength. And Iām taking a risk writing ALL of this after having done exactly ONE workout in this style, but I honestly feel like Iāve discovered something special here. This is duality in action. Harmony. Balance.
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As far as structure goes, my intention is to let MMS dictate the schedule as far as WHEN the MMS workouts happen and how recovery occurs. So Iāll be getting in 14 MMS workouts over the next 6-ish weeks. Iām in a period of time where travel, family visits, and life will be happening, which drew me to having a much more free-form flowing approach to training for the foreseeable future, which is why I have that all important āishā in there. In turn, Iām also not handcuffing myself to 40 workouts in 8 weeks on ES, nor the 5 days a week of hitting the weights. Some weeks might be 7s, some 3s.
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Iāve already logged a MMS day, and on that day my 5th lift was reverse hypers. Dan is big on using the swing as his hip hinge, and his background suits him there, but being totally honest with myself Iām still absolute garbage with KBs, even after the 10k swing challenge and other time spent swinging, and the reverse hyper has been good to me for quite a while, so I wanna use it when I can. But on non-MMS days, I plan to make the 5th lift a loaded carry. Iām NOT doing loaded carries on MMS days because the complexes will get me some conditioning and a metabolic hit, but on the non-MMS days I can achieve that with a loaded carry 5th lift. Plus, I really dig the āprescribed chaosā of the loaded carries Dan has with the program. The goal is to not repeat the same loaded carry workout: roger that.
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LOADED carry. Had to read and listen to Dan a few more times to realize this meant a carry UNDER load: not simply carrying stuff. It makes sense: you necessarily HAVE to have a load to carry in the first place, so you need a load on TOP of that for a āloaded carryā. The immediate solution will be for me to wear a vest during my carries, but on days when I can really cut loose Iāll look into carrying while hooked up to a sled, playing around with the SSB, and other alternatives.
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Still training at Oādark stupid, so I donāt want to be clanging and banging too much outside when it comes to the carries. My basement is pretty spacious, so Iām planning on throwing my adjustable KB handles down there so I can have some days where I do some carry workout there. When out and about in the neighborhood itāll be more keg and possibly sandbag work. When Iām feeling particularly froggy, Iāll need to break out the sled and prowler. In truth, one of the newer x-factors is that, now that my sleep has improved, I had less training time than I did when I had greater insomnia. And Iām embracing this new sleepy part of me, so thatās not going to change, but it limits prowler and sled work due to travel time. Might be something that I take up on the weekends, but in that situation it would be OUTSIDE of an Easy Strength workout, because I donāt intend to lift on weekendsā¦although given that an ES workout can last only 10-15 minutes if done right, maybe that option IS opened up now. Weāll see.
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And in THAT regard we still have the conversation of what is the āeverything elseā that gets done on those non-MMS days. Getting that copy of Jack Dempseyās āChampionship Fightingā reminded me that I miss boxing. Tang Soo Do, unfortunately, isnāt scratching that itch. Itās been a great family activity, but not a good aggression outlet. The biggest thing is, Iāve always felt like there was a āSophieās choiceā when it came to hitting the BAS (Bas Ruttenās āBody Action Systemā, basically a well designed standing heavy bag), because time spent doing that was time I could have spent doing some sort of weighted conditioning workout instead. Now that I have carries in the program, I feel like there can be days where Iāll be down in the basement hitting the carries and then, from there, I can transition straight to some combat rounds on the BAS. Itās still excellent conditioning, and itāll be a good way to vary up my training. Plus, I need to āregain that edgeā of being dangerous again. Iām really feeling that warrior spirit returning as I continue to heal, and I DO attribute the change in diet to that as well. My body is CONSTANTLY eating the flesh of another previously living organism: it is re-learning that it IS, in fact, a predator and not a scavenger. I want to lean into that as much as I can.
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And in regard to all of THAT, there also isnāt a Sophieās choice here BECAUSE ES workouts are short enough that I CAN still do the BAS work AND some sort of weighted conditioning. I can do carries, go hit the BAS, and then go finish up with a shorter style WOD and just cover all of my bases. Think about what an excellent day of training that is: Strength work with ES, loaded carries, combatives training and conditioning with the BAS, and then some hard, heavy and short conditioning to finish it up. Thatās absolutely building someone that is āmore trouble than they are worthā.
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For non-MMS days AND Non-BAS days, those seem like excellent days to employ the āEasy Strength for Fat Lossā approach of hit the Easy Strength work and then go out the door for a walk. I figure I can use the weighted vest and get in my 2+ miles on those days, and I also want to use my rower once I can figure out how to get the goddamn thing to set-up correctly. Iāll need to grab the instruction manual for it online one day when Iām not suffering from a fever in 100 degree heat and actually see what Iām supposed to do. I feel like itād be a great tool. But otherwise, I can also make these days ālong WOD daysā for the sake of variety. Always an option to just do some flat out old school bodybuilding shoring up of weaknesses as well.
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Iām keeping nutrition the same, since it works: simply going to focus on eating MORE food at meals, or dense foods. As weāve observed: I can put away food. Iāve put the brakes on for so long: releasing the Kraken wonāt take much. Whatās funny, though, is that I was SO big on small-frequent meals from all my 90s throwback stuff (shoutout to @TrainForPain with the BEST decade ofā¦everything really), but Iām finding that I am fairing MUCH better these days with infrequent MASSIVE meals. I really dig the term āintermittent feastingā thatās been popularized there, because Iām not NOT eating because Iām trying to fast: Iām not eating because Iām NOT HUNGRY. Thatās been so mind-blowing from someone who has literally ALWAYS been hungry. That SHOULD have been a sign to me for 30 years to eat. My biggest issue was that I was hungry, and what I was eating WASNāT F- -KING FOOD. How wild. Once I started eating real, actual human food to a point where I wasnāt hungry, the hunger went away. Ok ok, Iāve soapboxed that point enough. Let me reconcile this in another bullet.
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In ākeeping nutrition the sameā, this INCLUDES still having a famine and feast protocol. Iām CLEARLY in the feast right now. The x-factor is going to be that my āfamineā will be happening in the last 2 weeks of the program, which would stand to reason are the HARDEST weeksā¦so weāll see what happens there. Chaos is the plan, so perhaps weāll learn something, but the Famine continues to prove to be more valuable than the feast itself. Being primed to grow is crucial FOR growing.
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I wrote about this previously, but to capture it all in one place: traditional fasting with a carnivore approach is popular BECAUSE many people take on carnivore to lose weight. Thatās not what Iām doing, and it would take a LOT of consistent bad decisions over a long period of time before I find myself in a state where I am āfatā, so itās not going to be what Iām doing ever. I listened to a Podcast with Dr. Kevin Stock that spoke to how a lean athlete should employ a carnivore style protein sparing modified fast vs traditional fasting, and similar to Jon Andersen with Deep Water, it was a moment where someone who has ābeen there and done thatā re-affirmed what I knew and āgave me permissionā to continue. Velocity Diet answers the mail perfectly there, alongside Apex Predator, alongside use of egg whites and lean proteins to achieve the goal. Iām finding significant success with āfastingā until the midday meal or beyond during my weekdays. When I finally eat, I eat big, and then resume the PSFM until the next mid-day meal. Weekends keep calories higher but ALSO carnivore stricter by reducing use of shakes. Itās a solid balance.
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I wrote in another post, but regarding that nutrition angle, definitely struck some gold with my most recent Rampage comprised of primarily BBQ with local fruits, veggies and homemade bread/dessert. With summer here, that can happen more and more often. Itās good fuel, I feel good eating it, I enjoy making it, and the look on my kidās face when I ate the entire dessert they made for me AFTER polishing off about 4lbs of BBQ brought me about as much joy as it brought them. BUT, all that said: if weāre out somewhere with an awesome menu of yummy food, Iāll eat that. I really dig being able to use that meal for social leveraging.
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Iām still keeping Jamieās daily work of 300 push ups and 300 squats alongside a 2 mile walk. With me not doing any heavy horizontal pressing for a while, itāll be good to keep that up. That also speaks to what I should considering leaning into when it comes time for the āanything elseā portion of this. WODs that include push-ups, burpees and dips will go far. However, Iām also going to make a point to NOT āneed toā get those reps in. Iāve broken free of those shackles and have no intention of going back.
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Once again: I am excited about my future, about training, eating, and living. Iām still keeping my eyes open for competitions, because when they are fun: theyāre fun. But thatās my rule: Iām doing these things for fun. Iām not going to do something thatās not fun. Thereās no time for that in my life. Itās part of the reason Iām walking so much these days: itās what I want to do. I dig being out in the sun, away from technology, and just living.
Really appreciate those of you that read all the way through all of that. This journey is wild, but where itās heading is amazing.
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I felt the exact same way after reading the Omni-book haha. It was a good call, my grip definitely improved and I think I mightāve snuck a little forearm size in there too.
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So many things I could comment on. Thanks for your input re: neck training.
But the most important things first.
VĆkingr stuff that may be interesting:
- Thereās a podcast called Saga Thing where they talk about and review the various Icelandic/Norse/Viking epics
- My copy is MIA right now, but I liked the Jackson Crawford translation of The Poetic Edda
- The guy who made my ādamascus steelā wedding ring plans to forge a sword with all of the leftover scrap metal from his ring-making business, in the vein of Gram, SigurĆ°r/Sigurth/Siegfriedās sword
And thereās this quote I came across the other day:
Actually, the bone is stronger after the injury than it was before. That is providing the bone has been set right at the time. Under X-ray examination, the bone will be found much thicker at the broken part than elsewhere. The knitting process of the bone when healing is much like a weld upon iron where the smith generally leaves it slightly thicker. A smith will tell you that the iron will always break elsewhere, providing he made a good weld. So it is with the bone.
It is a matter of interest to know that pugilists of the bare fist age were known to break their arms on purpose, so that shock from hard striking would be better absorbed.
The famous prize fighter, Tom Sayers, was only a light man, but his great hitting powers enabled him to knock out much bigger opponents than himself. Both his arms had been frequently broken - mostly in fights - and many boxing followers of the present time, who do not know of that former practice, and wonder how that little man could stand up and batter big men and stand it, as he did in his memorable battle with Hennan, caused by the breaks. They also used to pickle their hands in brine to toughen them and make them so hard that the hand was less inclined to be knocked out of joint or broken.
George Jowett - The Key to Might and Muscle
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Thereās a podcast called Saga Thing where they talk about and review the various Icelandic/Norse/Viking epics
I finally ordered myself one of their Norwegian Companion redshirts because the joke there is just too good haha.
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Congrats!
I was wondering why you were doing these. 95 seemed especially light (for you). Iām at a love-hate relationship with high-rep squats right now. At first I didnāt see the point of high-rep light weight squats, but Iām following the plan and now seeing actual size changes. My current plan involves a lower-rep set of āheavyā squats followed by a billion light ones from different angles.
(Monday, with that unnecessary goblet squat challenge, was 127 training reps of squats.)
Similarly, the unstrapped double-overhand axle deadlift also seemed light, given what you can deadlift. Whatās the intended training goal with those? ā besides that Dan John speaks highly of them and youāre validating that. Grip endurance?
Ditto. Iāve never made them myself, probably because I eat two dozen every time Iām around them.
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@LoRez Appreciate the viking hook-up and the congrats!
The reason for 95lbs on the squat is simple: thatās what the program calls for. Iām doing Dan Johnās āMass Made Simpleā program, and this was Day 1 of it.
Iām surprised you think those axle DOH were light. You can see in the video Iām struggling pretty good on them. I actually had to lower the weight on the final set because I failed a rep on the second, which is one of the few rules of SS (donāt fail a rep). Otherwise, I wrote about it here in the log
I specifically picked a very difficult deadlift variant so I could get out of my head with weights, although thinking about it I might even throw some chains into the mix next go round to really get my head out. It will also make loading simple.
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Oh, it just seemed relatively low compared to your max deadlift, and your high-rep axle deadlifts, strapped and unstrapped. Obviously DOH and deficit throw a wrench in things. (Especially DOH). To me, it seems that the main training effect would be grip/forearms for you, personally. But I wasnāt sure if I was missing something.
You may be missing that I lost 31lbs of bodyweight, haha. And that this is a deficit pull.
I have zero experience of more bodyweight ā bigger lifts 
Someday, somedayā¦
Have you experienced the opposite before?