Incline: 1
Speed: 3.5mph
Distance: 4.5 miles
Time: 1hr 17min
Notes:
Foot and ankle continue to improve slowly but surely. I tell myself that I can get in some sort of resistance training if I really want to, but turns out I don’t want to: I just want to walk. Last night at Tang Soo Do, I noticed how NOT sore I was, and how much better I could move, so the fatigue dissipation is working out well for me.
On the topic of Tang Soo Do, it was exciting last night. We stood in the center of the ring with attackers on all sides, and the goal was to defend with whatever came to mind. It was supposed to be no/light contact, but my Valkyrie got in the spirit of it and fired a straight punch right into my face and split my lip. I was proud of her, but also counseled her on how you don’t want to throw a close fist at a mouth, since my teeth also opened up a small cut on her hand, and I know those cuts can get infected pretty quick.
Also got in a 3 mile walk yesterday after dinner, with the family. Just getting in a lot of good general activity.
Weighed in at 82.1kg this morning after the walk. Dead on for weigh in. Still gonna keep food a little on the light side to give me the guarantee I need for Friday, but I’m in a good place. I also re-examined the steak I have, and it’s a 36oz tomahawk rather than a 32oz, so that’s even cooler.
I’ve got a few ideas swirling around for my next training plan after the competition. One of the ideas I have is to do the bodyweight portion of Murph as my assistance work one day a week. With Zulu, I should have more time for those kinds of workouts. And I can make it like the Crossfit WOD Cindy (20 rounds of 5 chins, 10 push ups and 15 squats) to keep it simple enough. I’m thinking it’s a good year to do Murph on Memorial Day, so that would get me in a good place for it. But, of course, Chaos is the plan.
About 6 hours. Although it’s interrupted, as my 15 year old pug doesn’t make it all the way through the night on most nights. I typically have to get up and mop up poop at some point.
No judgement felt at all. Since this is the bridge week and I’m competing on Saturday, I am doing everything in my power NOT to push too hard and compromise my recovery before competition. These walks are every much just restorative, with a goal of lowering cortisol, promoting bloodflow, and improving nutrient partitioning/keeping weight control before my weigh in.
When it’s a training week, I’ll either chase a higher incline or a faster footspeed, or both, and typically wear a vest. I actually gave myself some plantar fascititis from walking too damn fast on week, that I’m currently dealing with, haha.
So when I had it a few years ago - just before my $10K hiking honeymoon in Tuscany - I was told to do drop-downs (heel-lowering) off stairs, both straight-legged and with knees bent. It helped! I don’t know whether it cured me or whether the PF just ran its course, but I didn’t need to pursue further treatment (e.g. cortisone shot) and hiked Tuscany without issue.
I’m trying to figure out my next steps, and recovery has my attention at the moment, so thanks for explaining your thinking.
Absolutely! Appreciate the shared rehab experience as well! I’m also in denial about the possibility of me having a stress fracture in my ankle right now, haha. But good to hear you were able to continue the hiking without issue. I may steal that if things get desperate.
And yeah, I’m typically not so great at deloads, but having something at stake seems to help.
Oh, I understand. I tolerated the PF for months before going in to see someone about it, and I only did it then because of the afore-mentioned hiking honeymoon, haha.
Foot and ankle continue to improve. I’m at the point where, if I’m in a hurry, I forget that I’m hurt, and can just walk as normal. Good sign. Still keeping this very low intensity and letting the healing and recovery happen pre-comp.
Weighed in at 82.1kg post walk. Exact same weight as yesterday, and dead on for weigh in. However, given I’d prefer NOT to weigh in completely naked tomorrow, my plan for the morning is to throw on my thermals and sweats, hit up the rower to get a sweat going and THEN walk on the treadmill and just squeeze out a little bit of water. After that, I’ll shower and weigh myself, and that outcome will determine if I fast until weigh ins at 1000 or if I eat breakfast and then weigh in. I’m in a really solid spot for bodyweight at this point, it’d be hard to screw up, but I don’t want to trip at the finish line.
In that regard, once the competition is done, I wanna chase a final stage of leanness, which should be easy with the Maximum Definition Diet. I wanna set myself up as a totally perfect canvas to grow when I get back from my cruise. Summer leading into fall is going to be an excellent growing season: SO much good food.
Today marks 3 weeks of gum sobriety. It was hard to break the habit those first 2 weeks, but now my instincts to chew are gone, and that’s been a good thing. That said, I typically employ gum for weight cutting, but will attempt to avoid that this time around.
Tang Soo Do was very low energy yesterday, which is good. Really need to not pick up a stupid small injury at this point.
Despite it being bridge week, I’m still doing the daily sandbag, because it’s honestly been a very positive thing for my development. It gets better every single day, and yesterday was no exception. I’m really able to just rip the sandbag off the ground and load it up at this point, and my throws are feeling more natural. As much as I want to move away from daily work, this seems like a good daily habit. I feel like the difference is compulsion vs desire. I WANT to get in this daily sandbag work, whereas I felt like I HAD to get in the daily work. I feel like some daily sandbag and chins will help with my goal of re-developing my back.
Breakfast was so good I had it twice. First one was the standard. Second was 2 omelets, 3 pastured eggs each, with some leftover burger patty from my kid’s Culvers, a slice of Sargento thin slice swiss (deviation) and some grassfed tallow, topped with grassfed ghee, alongside 4 strips of beef bacon. A little on the light side to make room for my weigh in.
AM WORKOUT (0355 natural wake up: 3 seconds before alarm)
BRIDGE WEEK
5 minutes on rower
Treadmill walk
Speed: 3.5mph
Incline: 1
Time: 65 min
Distance: 3.8 miles
BREAKFAST
Short walk w/dog
Notes:
Woke up at 81.1kg: a full kg lighter than yesterday. However, I wanted to allow myself room to actually have breakfast this morning, so I threw on my thermals, got on the rower to break a sweat, then walked on the treadmill to keep that going. When I was done and showered, I was 79.9kg. I get to weigh in at 1000, after which point hydration will return and I’ll be squared away.
Because I had room, breakfast was unchanged. 1lb of lamb, some liver, and an omelet of 3 pastured eggs, 5 whites, and a tablespoon of beef tallow. These are the rewards of being on point with training and nutrition leading up to the competition.
Got my 36oz piedmontese tomahawk dry brinning right now: couldn’t think of better pre-competition fuel.
Managed to not get hurt at Tang Soo Do last night, and this week the whole family got stripes on our belts. We’re 1 stripe away from testing, which will happen in Aug.
@EmilyQ Thank you! I have such an addictive personality that I’m constantly trying to overcome one, haha. And I know there are so many worse things out there, but it’s nice when you can break free from something that’s holding you back.
And it’s nice to not be spending all my money on gum, haha.
That t-shirt reads “If I wanted a salad, I would have ordered one”. I specifically wore it for the event, haha. The steak is cut up because I shared some with my kiddo, letting them participate in my pre-competition ritual. They said it was absolutely delicious, and that the fat melts in your mouth.
I, of course, ate off the bone, never sullying my hands with silverware. Although the eggs I ate with a fork.
And, again, my bottomless capacity for steak is fascinating, as I could definitely have another few of those, but 2lbs of ribeye is probably enough. I’ve got another ribeye (a meager 14oz one) thawing out for breakfast tomorrow. No better fuel.
Always have been, haha.
