Snodgrass Strongman Log

Training Training Logs
81

THURSDAY 6/19/14

Safety Bar Squats → Pullups:
warm up → BW x 5
145 x 3 → BW x 5
195 x 3 → BW x 5
235 x 3 → BW x 5
285 x 3 → BW x 5
305 x 2 → BW x 5
325 x 1 → BW x 5
305 x 3 → BW x 5
325 x 2 → BW x 5
345 x 1 → BW x 5
325 x 3 → BW x 5
345 x 2 → BW x 5
365 x 1 → BW x 5

14" Deadlift w/ Dead Stop Pauses:
135 x 5
225 x 1
325 x 1
405 x 1
515 x 1
515 x 10 (AMRAP in a minute)

Axle C+P:
193 x 11

Log Viper:
230 x 1

SATURDAY 6/21/14

on my lunch break went across the street to hang with the guys.

Dips:
Bw x 5
70lb x 5
140 x 3
210 x 3 <–PR

Random stuff which included ring pullups and 1 arm BB snatch. Tied my PR of 135 1 arm BB Snatch.

SUNDAY 6/22/14

Hit the garage after work for a little pressing:

Incline Bench:
warmup
185 x 10,9,8,…,2,1 with minimal rest between sets.

82

Dude, I think I met you at the Santa Cruz strongman comp in Sep 2013. Saw you’re doing Reno again this year. I’ll be seeing you there.

83

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
Dude, I think I met you at the Santa Cruz strongman comp in Sep 2013. Saw you’re doing Reno again this year. I’ll be seeing you there.[/quote]

I was at Santa Cruz last year. Competing in the 200lb class. I’ll be in Reno also in the same class. What weight division are you competiting in?

84

WEDNESDAY 6/25/14

Had just got back from a two day trip to Tahoe with the girlfriend and family. We got home and she wanted to squat so I decided to do some work behind her.

BB Row → Clean → Strict Press:
135 x 5, 5 x 2 sets
185 x 5, 3
185 x 5, 4
205 x 5, 2
205 x 5, 1

Clean and Push Press:
205 x 5 x 4 sets

Pretty light day, but some decent work.

THURSDAY 6/26/14

High Bar Squat:
135 x 5 x a few sets

Jump Squat (same olympic stance):
135 x 3 x 2
185 x 3 x 2
225 x 2
275 x 1 x 2
315 x 1

High Bar Squat:
315 x 3
365 x 3 x 5 sets

Clean pull:
225 x 2 x 3 sets

Clean and Press:
225 x 1 x 5 sets
235 x 1 x 5 sets

Farmers w/ Fat Gripz (2.5" thick handles after gripz applied):
110 x 100ft
160 x 50ft
160 x 100ft
200 x pick x 2 <–couldn’t walk with it. Just not enough grip to move it at that point

Stones to 56" bar:
225 x 4
225 x 2 <-hit head on bar on 3rd
225 x 4
225 x 2 <–second one went over bar and bounced into a tire and took us a few minutes to get it out haha

MONDAY 6/30/14

Went camping Friday-Sunday so I didn’t think I was going to have much energy to do this session, but it turned out surprisingly well since the rest of the gang brought enough energy to boost me up.

15" Deadlift (Reno wil be 16"):
225 x 5
315 x 5
405 x 1
455 x 1
495 x 1
545 x 1
645 x 1
685 x NO x 2 <–got it moving but my back would round horribly and put me out of position so I couldn’t get past knees
585 x 3
545 x 3 (fast)

Box Squat:
225 x 3 x 3 sets
315 x 3 x 6 sets

really working on pushing the feet out to engage the hamstrings

Atlas Stones to 56":
225 x 1 x 3sets
275 x 1 x 2 sets
335 x No
275 x No <–hamstrings and glutes are toast at this point

WEDNESDAY 7/2/14

A little bit of pressing in the morning at the garage gym.

Incline:
45 x 10
95 x 5
145 x 5
195 x 5
205 x 5
215 x 5
225 x 5
235 x 5
245 x 5
255 x 2

Bench:
255 x 5
265 x 3
275 x 3 <–wasn’t feeling good so shut it down there and had breakfast :stuck_out_tongue:

85

The squat video above is awesome!

86

[quote]SnodgrassStrong wrote:

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
Dude, I think I met you at the Santa Cruz strongman comp in Sep 2013. Saw you’re doing Reno again this year. I’ll be seeing you there.[/quote]

I was at Santa Cruz last year. Competing in the 200lb class. I’ll be in Reno also in the same class. What weight division are you competiting in?[/quote]

I’ll be the same. Be good to see/compete with you again. Best of luck.

87

[quote]usmccds423 wrote:
The squat video above is awesome![/quote]

Thanks man! Thought it might be a little long, but it really shows the short rest breaks that were taken between those sets.

88

FRIDAY FOURTH OF JULY!!!

Got an early morning session in at the gym with the crew before the days festivities. We did some Circus DB. I worked up to an easy 150 single on my right. Then I decided I wanted to do something theatrical for the occasion and this happened:

1 Arm Deadlift and Beer Chug

My training partners got into the spirit and then this happened:

275lb Atlas Stone to shoulder and then beer drink.

After that we decided to do some real atlas stone work.

Stones to 52" platform:
275 x a few singles
300 x a few singles
335 x no

MONDAY 7/7/14

Axle Clean and Press Away (30 second time limit):
warm up
215 x 11 <-had a few more in the tank, but my goal was as many in 30 seconds as possible
215 x 11
215 x 10 <–pretty gassed after the first two and couldn’t get the 11th rep in the time limit

Farmers:
200 x 60 ft
250 x 60 ft
300 x 20 ft (failure) x 2 sets

Stones to 56":
300 x NO x 2 <-my height was good, but couldn’t coordinate height and moving forward with the stone
225 x 2
225 x 2
275 x 2
275 x 1
275 x 1

WEDNESDAY 7/9/14

Bench → Fat Gripz Pullups:
45 x 10 → BW x 5
95 x 10 → BW x 5
135 x 10 → “”
185 x 10 → “”
195 x 10 → “”
205 x 10 → “”
215 x 10 → “”
225 x 10 → “”
235 x 10 → “”
245 x 10 → “”

Log Incline → GHR Abs:
170 x 5 → x 10 x 3 sets
220 x 1

Concentration Curls:
40lb x 10 each arm
40lb x 6 each arm

89

WEDNESDAY 7/9/14 PM

Roommate wanted to do Safety Bar Squats so I agreed.

Safety Bar Squats:
55 x 5 x 2
145 x 5 x 2
195 x 5
235 x 1 x 2
285 x 1
325 x 1 x 2
375 x 2
395 x 1
415 x 1
435 x 1
455 x 1
475 x 1 <–PR

I think it was a little high though, but I’ll take it

THURSDAY 7/10/14

16" Deadlift:
warmup
405 x 1
495 x 1
545 x 1
585 x 1
635 x 1
675 x NO
585 x 3 x 2 sets <–felt really good on both sets

Stones to 52":
275 x No
275 x Yes
300 x 1 x 2 sets
335 x NO
275 x 2 missed 3rd
300 x 3

My stones are really hit and miss right now. I need to get to the point where every rep is the same and I’m loading in a groove.

SATURDAY 7/12/14

On my lunch break I went over to the gym with promise of there being beer there, but there was not :frowning: Decided to hit some axle anyways

Axle C+P:
203 x 8
203 x 9
203 x 3 <–strict

SUNDAY 7/13/14

Hit some snatch grip DL while my girlfriend squatted in the garage.

Snatch Grip DL:
135 x 5
135 x 3
185 x 3
225 x 3
275 x 2
315 x 1
315 x 3 <–straps at this point
365 x 3
405 x 1
455 x 1
475 x 1 <–PR

Good Morning → Ab Wheel:
145 x 8 → 10 x 2 sets

MONDAY 7/14/14

Axle C+P:
warmup and helped a crossfit guy at the gym learn to continental
205 x 10
215 x 10
225 x 8
235 x 6
245 x 5
255 x Clean but didn’t feel like pressing

Power Cleaned on all sets even the 255 which is a PR. My goal is to be able to Power Clean 275 axle by the time Nationals comes around then i won’t have to fuck around with the continental which I suck at.

The guys were Deadlifting so I decided to try that also barefoot and sumo.

Sumo Deadlift:
575 x 1 <–PR I believe
605 x 1 <–Even BIGGER PR and felt pretty easy

My training seems to really be coming together lately. I’m feeling really strong and healthy. Trying to keep this going into Reno. Then after that it will be some hard work until Nationals just trying to get my axle C+P up enough to hit the 275 and my circus DB reps up for the 150. Also need to start throwing in more medleys with Kegs and sandbags.

90

Been awhile since I updated this so here goes:

TUESDAY 7/15/14

Bench:
45 x 10
135 x 10
155 x 10
175 x 10
185 x 10
195 x 10
205 x 10
215 x 10
225 x 10
235 x 10

Not as good as last week, but that is okay. This is just some volume work on my days off. Trying to just increase my weight at sets of 10 with 10lb jumps.

WEDNESDAY 7/16/14 AM

Safety Bar Squats → Fat Gripz pullups:
55 x 5 x 2 sets → none
145 x 3 → x 5
195 x 1 → x 5
195 x 1 → x none
245 x 1 → x 5
245 x 1 → x none
295 x 1 → x 5
325 x 1 → x none
385 x 1 → x 5
325 x 1 → x 5
325 x 1 x 5 with 15 second rests between → x 5
325 x 3 → x none

Front Squat:
warmup to get the wrists warm
135 x 5 x 2
185 x 3
250 x 12 (40 sec)
250 x 16 (55 sec)

Getting used to going for a minute with 250 on my chest because of the 250 atlas stone in Reno.

THURSDAY 7/17/14

Axle High Pulls:
123 x many
173 x a few
203 x a lot

Bench:
warmup
215 x 1, 2, 3…,8,9,10 <–Very minimal rest between each set. Increase reps by 1 each set

SATURDAY 7/19/10

Ran a Strongman/Crossfit hybrid contest at the gym we are at. Didn’t compete.

Events were car deadlift (car was a miata), sled push w/ increasing weight and farmers walk medley, press medley with strongman implements and barbells/dumbells, squat/pullups for sets of 9,7,5 and double under/overhead squat ladder.

Event was ran by our strongman crew and ran REALLY well. Makes us want to run our own Strongman contest really bad. We are getting the plans together to try and put one on in April.

SUNDAY 7/20/14

Lunch Break walked over to the gym since people were in town to train with our crew.

16" Pull:
worked up to 635 x 1

Farmers w/ 2.5-3" grips:
couldn’t pick up 220. They told me the grip was 2" and I got really worried about Reno, but later realized the grips were RIDICULOUSLY fat.

MONDAY 7/21/14

Axle C+P:
worked up to 263 x 1 x 2 sets <–PR weight!!
283 x clean (continental), no press
263 x clean, no press
213 x 10 in 1 minute. 6 in first 30 seconds and 4 in the last 30.

Worked on my continental. Adjusted my belt higher since my continental only goes well when I clean the bar up to my sternum. Hit 263 really easily on both the continental and press which are both PRs. Then tried 283. Continentaled really easily, but no press.

Dropped down to 213 to see what I could do in a minute. My strategy at Reno is probably to hit as many reps as possible without putting the weight down. My training partner seems to think that bursts of 20 seconds would be better so I tried his idea and hit 6, set it down and then power cleaned at the end and hit 4.

That way didn’t seem better to me, but I was pretty gassed from the heavier sets. Will try again next week and see which way I like better.

Farmers:
200 x 80
275 x 80
320 x picked. no walk x as many times until I couldn’t even budge them.

Stones 52":
300 x 1
300 x 2
300 x 2
300 x 2
300 x 1

Stones felt really good, but I really want more reps with the 300.

TUESDAY 7/22/14

Bench:
45 x 10
95 x 10
135 x 10
185 x 10
195 x 10
205 x 10
215 x 10
225 x 10
235 x 10
245 x 9 <–wasn’t going to hit the 10th one :frowning:

BB Row:
245 x 5 x 5 sets

150 DB Row x 12 each hand

WEDNESDAY 7/23/14 AM:

Safety Bar Squat:
55 x 5 x 2 sets
145 x 5 x 2 sets
195 x 5
235 x 5 → Axle BB Row: 215 x 5
235 x 5 → Axle BB Row: 175 x 5
235 x 5 → Axle BB Row: 175 x 5

GHR Abs:
BW x 10 x 2 sets
15lb x 10
25lb x 10

THURSDAY 7/24/14

Deadlift (FROM THE GROUND!!! It has been long time since doing these):
quick warmup jumps + taking a shit a couple times between
495 x 1
545 x 1 x 5 sets <–not feeing great and it was feeling heavy. Also haven’t pulled without straps in awhile due to training for the 16" pull in Reno. After a few sets I felt much better. Probably should have taken more warmup pulls, but I was shitting while people were warming up :frowning:

16" Deadlift:
545 x 1
635 x 1 <–missed 2nd
635 x 2 <–PR

Stones 52":
300 x NO x 2
300 x 1
300 x NO
300 x 1
275 x 1

Stones didn’t feel good after all those deadlifts.

Feeling strong still, but also cutting back the food a bit to try and drop some pounds before Reno so I don’t have to cut hard. Was about 210-212 two weeks ago. Sitting at 206.5 this morning.

Going to train contest weights and times this next week and then minor prep the next week before the show.

91

MONDAY 7/28/14

Front Squat:
45 x 5
95 x 5
135 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 1
250 x 17 in 1 minute

Axle C+P:
213 x 12+ (no one counted, but they knew it was over 12)
213 x 12
263 x clean, no press, wasn’t feeling it
213 x 14 (8 in 20 sec, 20 sec rest, 6 in last 20 sec)

Think the 2 burst sets with a rest pause is what I will stick with for Reno. With the lighter weight I think I might be able to do 10 without getting burnt out. Then drop the bar and rest for 15-20 seconds and then re-clean and press out 6-8 more. I’m shooting for 15-20 in that event.

Rested that week and then had a family/friends camping trip to Fort Bragg, CA from 7/31-8/3. My weight was at 204 before we left. Spent the weekend playing on the beach (even did some strongman as in found a giant rock that my roommate and I picked up off the ground. Seemed about 300+ pounds. Also “circus dumbelled” a log on the beach), drinking, eating and having fun.

Came back from the camping trip at 214. Took a shit and was 212. Now I’ve cut out the carbs for the week before Reno and am on a water cut of 3 gallons Mon, 2 gallons Tues and 1 Gallon Wed to get back down to 200.

Monday morning: 210
Tuesday morning: 206
Wednesday morning: 204

Expect to be pretty close to goal on Thursday morning and then I will eat my first two meals and have a couple protein shakes. Might hit the hot tub to sweat out some extra pounds. Then we will wake up early Friday to drive to Reno and weigh in. ALL you can eat sushi will be my first stop after weigh-in.

SUNDAY 8/3/14

Axle Press from rack:
warm up to
213 strict x 1 and then push x 1
233 x 1 push press

Didn’t feel great after camping so decided to foam roll and do mobility work instead.

MONDAY 8/4/14

16" Deadlift:
warm up to
495 x 1 (double overhand)
495 x 5 (straps)
585 x 1 (mixed grip)

Called it quits there. Feeling really good about my deadlift. Shooting for 15-20 reps at 500lbs from 16".

No more training days until Reno. Just rest and recovery and cutting weight.

92

AUGUST 8th and 9th: Northern Nevada’s Strongest Man III in Reno, NV

Friday morning we left the house at 5am. I woke up and stepped on the scale showing 199. My scale isn’t the best, but usually is good within 1/2 a pound so I knew I would make weight. I wasn’t feeling too bad. A little thirst and hungry, but nothing horrible.

Got to Reno in really good time. Actually arrived at 7:45; 15 minutes before weigh in. Contest promoter, Gary Montoya, arrived shortly after an weighed our group in. I was 199 with clothes on.

Then we went out for breakfast, hung out by the pool, ate some more, gambled and ate some more all the while hydrating and loading creatine. Went to bed early and got about 9-10 hours of sleep.

Saturday: Woke up early. Made sure all the contest equipment was in the gym bag and we headed over to the contest. My training partners ate, but I did not. I can’t usually stomach anything pre-contest so I had a protein shake which I choked down and was okay.

Setup our spot and listened to the rules meeting. Contest started and we were on our way. First even was the Axle Clean and Press Away. Since there were two spots going at once, I was after my heavier training partners and could watch them. That was nice since my stomach was acting up due to nerves (I always get pre-contest nerves that upset my stomach and cause me not to be able to eat).

My group is up. Couple guys I was watching because I thought they would be the ones to contend with. One of them got 14 reps and then another guy got 16 reps! I really wanted the win on this even so I had to do more than 16 and luckily I was second to last so I had time to see what other people were doing.

I repped my presses out quickly until the last few. I hit 16 to tie for first, but just couldn’t seem to hit the last rep for the win.

Second Event: 16" 500lb Tire Deadlift

Had never deadlifted on the tires. It looked like if you set the bar down too quickly it would bounce and put you out of position and since I got to go last in this event I got to analyze the event. By the time I was up these numbers had been hit; top 20 reps and second highest 16 reps. I really wanted to at least get 20 since I was only beating that competitor (Adam Norris) overall by a point and a half and he was on my list of contenders for the win.

I went up and repped the first 10 out really quickly trying to focus on lowering the bar slower so it wouldn’t bounce and also to load up my hamstrings to pull it back up quickly. I got to 16 and slowly ground out 17reps. Time ran out while I was sadly attempting an 18th rep. Second place in that event and now in 1st place by a half point.

3rd Event: Farmers Walk with 230lb 2" thick handles

This was the event I was dreading since I didn’t have access to 2" thick handles and Farmers are not one of my good events. I was also DEAD after the Deadlifts. I had been walking around and laying down for about 10-15 minutes after my deadlifts went before the 200lb weight class had to go do the farmers. My training partners kept telling me I was almost up but I just wanted to lay down.

When I was in the hole to go, I put some chalk on my hands and walked over to the starting position. I was feeling HORRIBLE. The deadlifts just took it out of me and I had hoped to have about 30 minutes to recuperate. I didn’t have that luxury. I was up.

The farmers got set, I bent down, took as tight a grip as possible and picked them up. I was very slow at first. Much slower than I usually am, but slowly built speed up near the end and accelerated through the finish line. I ended with around 13 seconds and actually got the exact same time as Adam who was in 2nd place. The 3rd place competitor Kawika Henderson (who I tied in the press) did amazingly and ended up earning enough points to take 1st place by a half point. Now the top three competitors were all within a point of each other.

4th Event: Truck Pull

I hadn’t trained this event before. Only trained pulling a tire with rope assist so this was a wild card going in. I talked with the other top 3 guys and neither had trained it either so we were all in the same boat. Luckily for me this event was one at a time with the woman all going first and me near the middle of the pack for the 200s (order determined by order of last event).

I got plenty of time to rest, try to eat, and rehydrate. By the time I was up, I was feeling much better. I asked Professional Strongman Nick Best for some pointers before I went and then strapped in and went. The semi had a big ford truck attached behind it, but the start wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be. I leaned forwards and kept pushing my feet into the ground. Quick, short steps.

I tried to pick up speed near the end, but the closer I got to the tire the looser the rope was and I missed my handing a few times which probably cost me time. Overall I had a pretty fast time of 34.something which was in the top 5 of times. I beat Adam Norris, but lost to Kawika Hendersen which meant he was even further ahead of me going into the last event; stones.

Last Event: 250lb Atlas Stone over a 52" bar.

Stones are usually not my strongest event and in training they were hit or miss. I did not train stones for reps though since that usually beats me up too bad and just trained loading heavier stones for 2-3 reps over the same bar height or higher.

Going into the event quite a few of the guys had hit 10 reps. I was 2nd to last since I was currently in 2nd place. Adam Norris went right before me and hit 12 reps! I had to at least get 12 to secure 2nd place, but Adam set the bar high.

I started and just tried to one motion every rep since I had no room for error and no time to set and regrip. I hit the 13th rep right before time went out!!! I was exhausted, but made my way back to the area to watch and cheer for Kawika. He was fast and explosive. He easily was throwing the stone over the bar, but had a couple stones that went up but didn’t go forward enough to go over the bar which cost him time and reps. He ended under 10 reps and that gave me the win.

I was excited about the win. It was time to celebrate with a beer (after I watched by training partners go). Offered beers to my fellow competitors/new friends and drank to a good day and a great show.

The award for first place was a short blade samurai sword with the second and third place trophies being combat knifes.

Here is a video of my events:

93

Congrats on a well earned win! Awesome job!

94

[quote]Mighty Matron wrote:
Congrats on a well earned win! Awesome job![/quote]

Thank you very much. Very tough contest which makes it even more worth it to get the win.

95

MONDAY 8/11/14

Two days after the contest. Went to the gym to get some light work in.

Log Press:
155 x Viper x a few
205 x Viper x 1
225 x 1
245 x 1
265 x NO
205 x 3
205 x 2

SATURDAY 8/16/14

My birthday. On my lunch break went over to the gym to get a b-day bench in and hopefully a PR.

Hadn’t really benched heavy in awhile.

Bench:
Worked up to
345 x 1 (PR)
355 x NO <-just dropped straight down, but happy with 345 for a PR

SUNDAY 8/17/14

Squats (Olympic high bar):
Worked up to 445 x 1 <–PR with that stance

MONDAY 8/18/14

Starting to hit events for Nationals. I hadn’t ever pressed a keg so the 230 keg at Nationals is the thing I’m most worried about and training hardest for.

Keg Overhead:
warmup
200 x clean x ALOT
missed the press x 4 or 5 times

Circus DB:
90 x 3R
120 x 1R
120 x 1L
150 x 1R

Medley (60ft keg over bar, run back, 240 farmers 60 ft., run back, 240 sandbag 60ft and over bar) x 2 sets

WEDNESDAY 8/20/14

Sumo DL:
135 x 3
225 x 2 x 2
275 x 2
315 x 2
265 x 2
405 x 2
455 x 2
495 x 1
515 x 1 x 2
545 x 1
565 x 1
495 x 1

DB Rows:
150 x 6each x 2 sets

Pullups (210lbs):
BW x 5
10lb x 5
20lb x 5
30lb x 5

THURSDAY 8/21/14

Keg Press:
Warmup
200 x 1 x 4 <–much better than the previous week. Easily hitting singles.

Medley (200 keg 60ft and over bar, run back, 240 farmers 60ft, run back, 240 sandbag 60 ft and over bar) x 1 ← very slow and grip was gone. Dropped the 240 farmers about 40ft in.

SUNDAY 8/24/14

Moved gyms from a crossfit gym to my mom’s 3 car garage. It is a large place and holds all our strongman equipment. We feel like it will be a better training environment for the group and it’s free.

Press warmup

150lb Slater Circus DB w/ ridiculously thick grip 2.5-3"
150# x 1 x a few with many no reps inbetween

200 Keg x 1 x a few

230ish Keg x NO x a few <–hard to clean and by the time I could clean it on my successful attempts I couldn’t press it.

Messed around:
-235 front squat x 3
-345 slingshot bench x 1

Tricep Pulldowns:
10 reps x 3 sets

WEDNESDAY 8/27/14

Went to San Francisco Monday night through Wednesday morning to see Jack Johnson with my girlfriend and check out the Exploratorium. Got back Wednesday and wanted to squat.

Squat:
45 x a few x a few
95 x 5
135 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 3
275 x 3
315 x 3
365 x 1
405 x 1
425 x 1
455 x 1
485 x 1
515 x 1 (a little high. about an 1-1.5" but I’ll count it for a PR).

THURSDAY 8/28/14

Yoke (on gravel):
250 x 60 ft
430 x 60 ft
520 x 60 ft
610 x 60 ft
700 x 30 ft
700 x 60 ft <–faster than the 30 ft run and actually started to feel good by the end.

We were going to do a medley with Keg run, Farmers, Duck Walk. Tried to make a duck walk out of an old firehydrant, thick chain, and a handle, but the carabiniere broke. Just did Farmers instead since they were already out.

Farmers:
275 x 60 ft dropped at the 50ft mark about and had to repick.

96

Yo, man. Happy birthday!

97

[quote]spar4tee wrote:
Yo, man. Happy birthday![/quote]

Thank you!

98

Been a little lax on my training schedule recently. Not very motivated for nationals since I know this isn’t my year to take one of the top 3 positions. Maybe next year, but not this one. I’m still going to do Nationals for the experience so I’m still trying to train with the kegs to get better aquainted with them and be able to transfer my power through them.

MONDAY 8/31/14

Girlfriend was squatting so I hit some press in between her sets:

Strict Press:
warmup
165 x 5 x 5

WEDNESDAY 9/3/14

Deadlift:
Warm up
405 x 1
455 x 1
505 x 1 <–feeling real slow
475 x 1
525 x 1 <–felt better than the 505 set
495 x 1
525 x 1
515 x 1
545 x 1
495 x 1
575 x 1 ← pretty fast off the ground. Stalled right after the knees but I grinded it out without hitching too bad.

Keg Clean and Press:
185 x 1 x 3 sets
200 x 1 x 2 sets
225 x No x 2
225 x 1 clean, but no press

275 Keg air load to test how heavy it is since we just made a keg that heavy.

Pretty good day considering it had been 2 weeks since I had last deadlifted. The going up in weight then dropping down worked really well to get me warmed up once it got heavy. It made the heavier weights feel lighter.

Felt good on my Kegs, especially considering I deadlifted for 45 minutes prior. I will get the 225 keg in the next week or two. The strength is there, just need to hone the technique. 275 keg didn’t feel too bad when air loading it. I will try over a bar in the next week and see how it feels. Not too worried about that part of the contest. Just need to practice running with it.

99

Oh No… It has been awhile since I last posted so this will be a big long one :frowning:

Been preoccupied at work with an interview process to move up to a managerial level position, but in the end I got the job and have been in it for 2 weeks now! That has definitely taken up quite a bit of my time, energy and focus while training has taken more of a backseat. It is unfortunate that this happened right around Nationals, BUT I think it is a good thing since it has given me more time to rest and recover :slight_smile:

THURSDAY 9/4/14

Keg Press:
185 x 1 x 2
200 x 1 x 2
225 x NO x ALOT <–Just can’t seem to get that 225 over my head at this point

275 Keg Over 56" Bar x a few singles <–height and weight don’t seem to be a problem for me so just need to practice doing it quickly and with a 10 foot carry before hand.

SUNDAY 9/7/14

Keg Press:
185 x 1 x 2
200 x 1 x 2
225 x No x 2
225 x YES x 3 singles <–switched my gripping technique so the light side of the keg was on my strong side which helped me with the lockout!

Axle C+P:
205 x 1 x 2
265 x 1 x 2
275 x NO <–a little upset since this will be contest weight at Nationals, but I know I will get it before the time comes.

Fire Hydrant Duck Walk:
loaded chain through and around a fire hydrant we had plus 100lbs of steel weight on the sides to be between 300-400lbs. Then attached a row bar attachment, picked it up and waddled with it like a duck. Did that quite a few times for varying distances to mimic the duck walk in Reno.

275 Keg Load over 56" bar x 3 singles

MONDAY 9/8/14

Squats (with my roommate in the garage):
45 x 5 x 2
135 x 3 x 2
185 x 3
185 x 1
225 x 3
225 x 1
275 x 3
275 x 1
315 x 3
315 x 1
365 x 3
365 x 1

Olympic Squats:
315 x 5 x 3

WEDNESDAY 9/10/14

Axle Press (out of rack):
35 x 3 x 3
105 x 3 x 3
175 x 3 x 2
225 x 2 x 2
275 x No x 2
225 x 1
245 x 1 x 2
255 x 1
265 x No
265 x 1
275 x No x 2
225 x 3

Crunches and Tricep Pulldowns x 2 sets of each

SATURDAY 9/13/14

Pressing!

Warmup
Keg:
160 x 1 x 3
180 x 1 x 2
200 x 1 x 2
225 x 1 x 3

Axle C+P:
125 x 5 x 3
175 x 3
215 x 3
245 x 1

Circus DB:
90 x 3R
110 x 3R

Medley:
200 Keg x 1 → 245 Axle x 1 → 130 Circus DB x 1
225 Keg x 1 → 265 Axle x 1 → 150 Circus DB x 1
225 Keg x 1 → 265 Axle x 1 → 150 Circus DB x 3

Feeling pretty good about my press recently and this was the best pressing day I have ever had. Everything felt good, quick and powerful. Feeling much more confident about the first event at Nationals.

Yoke:
100 x 60ft
280 x 60
370 x 30
460 x 30
550 x 60
640 x 60
700 x 60 x 2 sets
800 x 15ft
800 x 35ft

MONDAY 9/15/14

Axle out of rack:
worked up to
265 x 1
275 x 1 <–PR
285 x 1 <–PR!!!
295 x NO <–had to try it because “it’s not a PR until you fail”

Circus DB work

WEDNESDAY 9/17/14

Deadlift:
warmup
worked up to
495 x 1 <–double overhand
545 x 1 <–double overhand
585 x 1
605 x 1/2 didn’t want to hitch and grind it up so let it down after an easy first half of the pull.

Sumo DL:
405 x 5 x 5

MONDAY 9/22/14

Olympic Squats:
135 x 5 x 2
225 x 5
275 x 5
315 x 5
365 x 5
405 x 3
405 x 1
425 x 1
455 x 1
475 x NO <–would have been an Oly Squat PR

Circus DB:
worked up to 150 x 3

I haven’t trained since Monday due to that Squat session really frying my quads and ass more than anticipated. Might have been due to a lack of food due to me being preoccupied with my work. I plan on hitting a litter neural activating day after work today and then a really hard and heavy event day Sunday. That will be the last real training session before nationals other than just some pump/moving to stay focused and get blood flowing.

I’m feeling really good about Nationals. My goal is a top 5 finish. That is a VERY tall order because I know of quite a few of the people who will be there and how strong they are. I also have my own training partner to compete against who is very strong also.

I have really hammered my press in the last 6 months and have taken my axle from 245-285 in that time. I am comfortable that I will hit all the implements in the press medley which was originally a fear for me. The other events should be much better. I love to Yoke and am usually very fast with it for my weight class. Car Deadlifts are good for me. The only things that might give me trouble are the farmers during the medley and the wheelbarrow because I’ve never done one before and my grip is always my week point.

I’m excited!

100

That’s a lot of training! When are nationals?