Rebirth of the Juggernaut: Brute Force and Ignorance (Part 1)

Training Training Logs
121

Holy crap this color scheme is still terrible.

1 legged SSB Box Squats
20x205
10x155
10x115
10x65

Notes: I think I was supposed to put some chains on this, but oh well, still a great workout. Really focusing on arching hard and driving with the good leg. Afterwards, flexed the other leg as hard as I possibly could for a long ass time while visualizing a squat.

SSB Good mornings 75lbs
3x12
1x15

superset in a circuit w/

Neck harness
2x8 of 75lbs
2x20 of 50lbs

Notes: Slowly adding weight to the good mornings, really focusing on the stretch. Went stupid heavy on the neck harness just to mix it up. Next time, Iā€™ll stick with 50lbs.

Blast strap fallout hold
2:30

Notes: Like a plank from hell. Think this will carry over very well into strongman. Great pain tolerance training.

Reverse hyper 35lbs
1x100

Notes: Think this is my limit for this movement. Felt the hamstring tendon twinge again, and the knee cap was sliding around a bit. Meant I wasnā€™t willing to really get the legs high due to fear of re-injury. Think Iā€™ll up the reps and drop the weight and work back up. Did 150 with bodyweight the other day, so Iā€™ll work from there.

123

Please take a video the next time you do these one legged SSB squats. I really canā€™t imagine how this works even though you have described it. It just sounds so crazy!

124

Iā€™d like to see this too. One legged anything for 205x20 is nuts injury or no.

125

Koestrizer/TX: Iā€™ll see if I can get some video sometime. Itā€™s a bit cumbersome uploading things at the moment. Itā€™s really pretty tame.

To give an idea, if you check out this image


You can see how he can grab those support bars with his hands while the bar stays on his back. Iā€™ve got one hand on the squat bar handle, and then the left hand (my injured side) on the pins of the rack, doing the same thing. The other difference is that my left foot it out in front of me rather than under my hips, so that I donā€™t put weight on it.

Iā€™ll still try to get some video when I can.

Seated axle press
10x axle
5x75
5x115
5x140
5x160
5x180
18x140 (rest pause)

Notes: Iā€™m stealing the press programming from the ā€œBuilding the Monolithā€ program, so Iā€™ll be pressing twice as much as I bench, along with some other changes. Always liked the program layout. Iā€™m still being me though, so I threw in some rest pausing on the PR set. The 180 set was tough but managable.

Dips (forward lean)
62-16-10-12
30-15-10-8-8-8-9-9-3

Notes:So, to explain, I did basically 2 big ass rest pause sets, with the goal of getting 100 in as few attempts as possible. The 62 reps in one set was a big PR, and I managed a total of 200 reps as my goal. Really blew up the chest and triceps something fierce. Went without my elbow cuffs, and I think that was a mistake. Right elbow is pissed off. Still, no rotator cuff issues.

Axle curls
1x150

Notes: Did not drop the axle. Just going to keep progressing on this.

Band pull aparts
1x100

Cable rows 130
12x10

Dropset
10x130
10x110
10x90

General notes: Woke up at 188.4 this morning. Going to be taking another mini-vacation next week when my wife runs a full marathon, so Iā€™ll be cramming in as much training as I can.

126

Seated zercher axle good mornings off pins
10x axle
5x75
5x115
3x165
3x205
3x255
2x300

Notes: First, I love how many adjectives this movement has. I have no idea how to properly title it. This seemed really stupid in theory, but it felt great on my knee and really hammered my back. My chains donā€™t go low enough to suspend the axle, but it sets up on pins just fine. Just makes me less cavalier about dropping it. Does a great job allowing for maximal effort. Next time around, I should really be able to cut loose on it.

Buffalo bar good mornings 55lbs
1x100

Notes: Since I canā€™t make this heavy yet, Iā€™m making it terrible. The exact words out of my mouth after racking the bar was ā€œHoly shit that was stupidā€. Keeping the bar on my back the whole time was probably the most difficult part. Got a great stretch in the hamstrings as well.

Blast strap fallouts
4x17

superset in a circuit w/

Neck harness side to side 45lbs
2x25
2x20

Reverse hyper 5lbs
1x125

Notes: After those good mornings, this was a real struggle, but it was hitting the lower back much better than the set of 30lbs I was doing before. Doesnā€™t tax the hamstring tendon or knee, which allows me to focus on keeping my legs straight and really hammering the lower back/glutes.

General notes: Woke up at 189.0. Weight is coming back. Abs are getting a little blurry, but itā€™s all for the best. Only junk Iā€™ve introduced is a pop-tart immediately post workout to play with PWO carbs.

127

t3hpwnisher said Abs are getting a little blurry,

maybe you just need glasses

128

Sam: I already do, haha. My vision is terrible. In my last log, I documented how I ended up tearing my left cornea from sleeping in my contact lenses and then trying to take them out the next morning. I really got to learn a lot about pain in that log, haha.

Axle bench press
10x axle
10x75
115x5
165x5
195x5
225x5
255x13
195x24

Notes: This is one of the reasons I really dig FSL: multiple opportunities to set PRs. That 255 set wasnā€™t the greatest, but the 195 felt amazing.Chest was really swollen up after that. Despite training 4 days in a row, I was feeling really fast today. Whole upper body is terribly sore, but nothing broken.

Dips (upright)
33
25
27
20

3 way shoulder circuit 20lbs
3x10

Notes: Donā€™t have an in between from 15 to 20, so just going to stick with this weight for now and build back up to 20 reps.

Miniband pushdowns
1x50

Notes: Elbows are a little beat up from all of the dips recently, so just did this for blood flow.

NG chins (various grips)
10x20

NG chins 45lbs
8x5

NG chins various grips
1x30

Notes: Sets in between sets of everything. Went bodyweight for the benching, weighted for the dips and raises, then finished off with bodyweight at the end of the workout. Figured a little variety wouldnā€™t hurt.

General notes: Woke up at 188.6. Feel like Iā€™ve really had a breakthrough on knee ROM. I feel like I can match my healthy knee in terms of where/how I can move the knee. Putting on my pants/socks/shoes is effortless, as is getting in and out of my car. There is still some stiffness to work through, but thatā€™ll come.

129

Sweet man, thatā€™s a really inventive solution, haha. Looks perfect

130

Congrats on your progress with your knee. About how long do you think/they say youā€™ll be able to push it to 100% again?

The other day I started reading Jamie Lewisā€™ Chaos and Pain blog from the beginning. I noticed a lot of similarities in lifting and injury philosophy between you and him. Obviously the two of you have very different writing styles, but I was surprised at the overlap. Have you read through it?

131

TxIron: Appreciate that man. I ended up taking some video of it. Iā€™m going to upload it tonight and post it tomorrow.

LoRez: Thanks man. The doc said it would probably be a year post-op before I could compete again. As for being able to lift again, he said 6-9 months. With how creative Iā€™ve been, I donā€™t think Iā€™ll see too much regression, but even if I do, Iā€™m excited about building back up again.

Iā€™m a big fan of Chaos and Pain. Whatā€™s funny is that I had been writing my blog for about 2 years before I started reading CnP, and was pretty amazed at the similarities in philosophy. One of those ā€œgreat mindsā€ sortā€™ve things, haha. I like what Iā€™ve read of Paul Carter as well, and Iā€™d say that Steve Pulcinella and Matt Kroczaleski are my primary resources for dealing with injuries. Lotta good stuff out there.

One legged SSB Box Squats

DROPSET
20x205+chains
20x155+chains
20x115+chains
20x bar+chains

Notes: Iā€™ll post video of this later, but it was a great set. Challenging, but I seem to really be adapting.

SSB Good morning 80lbs
4x12

superset in a circuit w/

Neck harness 50lbs
4x20

Blast strap fallout holds
3:00

Notes: This just keeps becoming more and more awesomely challenging. Really great mental fortitude training.

Reverse hyper 5lbs
1x125

Notes: Much smoother than last time. No stops.

General notes: Woke up at 187.4 this morning. Right hip flexor is a little tender out of nowhere. Wife was eye-raping me after I took my shirt off post training. Really impressed with my physique development. Said youā€™d never know I had a knee injury. Itā€™s the little things really.

132

So before I log, here is the video of the squats

Iā€™m hitting the axle zerchers tomorrow and might try to get some of that on film as well.

Axle strict press 140lbs
10x5

Notes: The second pressing day of the ā€œBuilding the Monolithā€ template. The weight was light enough that I ended up running this like a circuit, chasing each set of presses with a set of 10 of cable rows, and then bouncing right back to some presses. Only resting was walking between stations and picking a good song on my MP3 player. Didnā€™t quite get the pump I anticipated, but I think this extra frequency/volume is going to pay off, and I know at the end of the cycle Iā€™m really going to be hitting some stupid high volume. I was able to stand much more confidently with the weight today. Iā€™m setting the j-hooks really high and racking in my hands rather than on my body, so that I can keep my legs relatively straight.

Dips (forward lean)
55-20-8 (rest pause)

Notes: Was going for 100, but rotator cuff tapped out. Lot of stress on it this workout, I donā€™t blame it. Iā€™m already hitting dips a ton, I might switch this more to some lightweight dumbbell pressing performed for time.

Axle curls 30lbs
1x125

Notes: Not a smooth set, going to stick with the weight and do it again next time.

Band pull aparts
1x100

Cable rows 90lbs
5x20
12x10

Notes: Kept the weight lighter on this because I wanted to have shorter rests with the axle press, but also because itā€™s been putting pressure on my knee to keep upright with the weight of the stack pulling me forward. Used a bunch of different grip widths to play around with it.

General notes: Woke up at 188.0 this morning. Only having 8 hours between workouts sucked, but Iā€™m probably stronger for it.

133

lighting could have been better
not really what i envisioned the 1 legged squat to be
ā€œnormalā€ people would probably say you are nuts,crazy,stupid
your doctor would probably say no refunds
you the man
"juggernaut " definatly fits

134

Sam: The lighting actually couldnā€™t be any better. Thatā€™s as good as it gets in that garage, haha. But yeah, I figured a video would get people to understand that this wasnā€™t the circus act they were imagining. Iā€™m trying my hardest to keep the squats as much like a squat as possible. When I was performing them with one foot on the plyo box, it was just becoming a step-up, which though dandy, never really fit in with my training.

Always appreciate the comments man.

135

Are you at all concerned about ā€œimbalancesā€, and by that I donā€™t really mean one side stronger than the other, but more stuff like your hips or back or torso getting twisted out of alignment over time because things just got stronger at odd angles and your body ending up ā€œcrookedā€?

Also had a question about your ROM squats. Do you hit spots where the number of reps drops off significantly? I lowered 3" today (and then brought it back up an inch), because I couldnā€™t get the bar to budge at all. At least I can progress it by 1" increments as I need to.

136

I donā€™t ever worry myself about imbalances. Itā€™s one of those ā€œout of sight, out of mindā€ sortā€™ve things for me. My thought process throughout this has been ā€œIā€™d rather have one strong leg than 2 weak legsā€, and it just amplifies through out. If Iā€™m imbalanced because one side is so strong itā€™s compromising the other side, Iā€™ll take pride in being that strong and just build up weaknesses as they come.

THAT being said, Iā€™m not being totally stupid about this. Iā€™ve tried my hardest to isolate the weakness as much as possible, which at this point Iā€™m really trying to contain it all in my left quad. This is why Iā€™ve searched for as many movements I can use that still train the whole body, and have just hammered the absolute crap out of them. The seated good mornings are hitting everything, as are the standing good mornings, reverse hypers, ab work, etc. The squats are probably the only real movement Iā€™m doing that are throwing things outā€™ve whack.

As for ROM squats, absolutely. I would always start from the bottom, but once the weight gets heavy enough, I didnā€™t have the ability to break the bar off the chins at about the halfway point of the cycle or so, and would have to start at the top instead of from the bottom if I wanted to get in any reps. I feel like the trick is to start with a lotta reps, but I was never smart enough to do that.

137

Seated zercher axle good mornings off pins
axle x 10
75x5
115x5
165x5
205x3
255x1
300x4 (2 rep PR)

Notes: Forearms were apparently still tender from last time, because this was rough going. Shaved off some reps on the final warm-up to make room for a PR on the 300 set. Took some video, will upload tonight and post tomorrow, but these actually had more ROM than I anticipated. Really think these will pay off for deadlifts and strongman stuff.

Buffalo bar good mornings 60lbs
1x100

Notes: These still suck so much. Biggest challenge remains keeping the bar on my back. Just cuts through me. Got a great stretch and pump from this today.

Blast strap fallouts
4x18

superset in a circuit w/

Neck harness side to side 45lbs
4x25

Reverse hyper 5lbs
1x50

Notes: Cut it short. Between how much I had already hammered my lower back and knowing I had physical therapy coming up an hour post workout, it seemed like the smart move.

General notes: Woke up at 188.0. Trying to work out M-F this week since Iā€™ll be on vacation from Sat-Tues, so really hammering my body. Trying to eat enough to compensate.

138

Thanks for the video. It was really less of a circus act as I imagined. It looks like a pretty normal squat. Range of motion looks good in your knee. If it doesnā€™t bother you I would also like to see those good morning variations, especially the seated ones. :smiley: Best of luck with further recovery! I think if anyone is going back to competition after injury it is you!

139

with what you do in your workouts
what are you doing in physical therapy that has an effect on your recovery?

140

Koestrizer: Iā€™ll be uploading the video after work today and should have it posted tomorrow. When this is all said and done, assuming I fully recover, Iā€™m thinking about releasing a manual detailing how I went about training post ACL tear/repair, to help others in a similar situation. I appreciate the support.

Same: No real impact on my recovery from PT. I have the opposite problem. Iā€™ll go and blast my lower body during an early morning workout, and then trying to peddle a stationary bike or do a bunch of single leg raises is just agony, haha. The biggest issue is time. Iā€™m training 2-3 hours a day now, which, with a full time job and family obligations is becoming a hassle. Iā€™m trying to maximize time by working out in the early mornings and spreading my PT through the day, but itā€™s just getting old.

141

Grippers

Dropset
16x#2
16x#1
32xTrainer

Dropset
30x#1
20xTrainer

Notes: Just a real quick one before my lunch break.