Starting Back From Anxiety Attacks

Training
602

Hey everyone,
Just got back from the gym and had a great workout. Here’s the stats:

  1. Front Squat, work up to max of 3 reps: 195 (could’ve done more but have a knot in my left shoulder that was pinching on a nerve when I did my last set, so I stopped. Hopefully I’ll get that worked out today).

  2. BB Bench Press, work up to max of 3-5 reps: 225x5 (felt good on these)

3A. Seated Rows, 3x4: 190
3B. Hindu Squats, 3x12: BW

4A. Preacher Curl, 3x5: 100
4B. Rope Pressdowns, 3x5: 125

  1. Farmer’s Walks, 2 laps around track: 70

  2. Plate Pinchers, 2 sets max. time: 25 lb. plate in each hand; 45, 35 sec.

  3. Wrist Curls, 2x6: 70

Workout was 45 minutes. Tomorrow going to get in an endurance workout.

Update on some things: sleeping has been good this past week, checking in at 7-8 hours of solid sleep each night. Been nearly a month now since I’ve been off Ambien and I feel I’m sleeping better now with the ZMA-Melatonin mix than I was with Ambien. If things continue to go well I might try a few nights w/o the Melatonin to see what the difference is.

Been slowly tapering off my Xanax, going w/o a pill once every 3 days. I’m also going to be cutting the remainder of my pills in half, to try and get used to having a lower dosage in my system for a couple of weeks, and then try and go once every two days w/o meds.

Well, think that’s all for now. Going to try and get a quick nap in.

Take care,
Dan

603

Hey everyone,
…and, I’m out! My endurance workout today wiped me out. Did CW’s new Full Throttle workout and by the third circuit, I was spent.

Loaded walk for 10 steps forward and backward with a load AHAP: 90

Rest 25s

Clap push-ups for AMAP: 15, 15, 14

Rest 10s

Elevated wide-out drops for AMAP: 25, 20, 15 (hips were sore by 3rd set)

Rest 25s

Quadruped run for 20 feet forward

Rest 25s

Plate abduction for 10 reps on each side with a load AHAP: 25-pound plate

Rest 25s

One-arm DB row on each side for 5 reps with a load AHAP: 80

Rest 10s

180 lunge on each side

Rest 25s

Run sprawl for 10 cycles (5 with each standing leg forward)

Rest 60s and repeat twice more

Tomorrow is a home boxing workout. Now off to get some rest.

Take care,
Dan

604

Just finished up my home Muay Thai workout. Started off with 6 minutes of jumping jacks, followed by 3 minutes of shadowboxing. After throwing on the 4 oz. gloves, I went to work on my portable heavy bag (I wear my 12 oz. gloves on Saturday and when I’m using my regular heavy bag that hangs from a chain on my deck). I did 8 rounds, working different combos, first 4 rounds were mostly punches and last 4 rounds were punch-knee and punch-kick combos.

I’ve definitely noticed some improved flexibility in my hips, as my kicks are getting better every workout. At least after I get them warmed up. It takes me 3-4 min. of throwing kicks to properly warm up and get full explosiveness behind them, but that’s an improvement from before when I had no power AT ALL in my kicks, no matter how hard I tried.

Before I go, I want to give a big shout-out to Jen Heath. Jen, thanks so much for all of your help today, I appreciate it.

Tomorrow it’s back in the gym for another endurance workout.

Take care,
Dan

605

Hey everyone,
Just got back from the gym and had a really good endurance workout.

Started off with 5 min. of rope work. First jumping with both feet as fast as possible, then skipping rope AFAP, then doing some double-jumps (which are hard, but fun).

After that, went into CW’s circuit and did 2 rounds of that. Took a couple minutes of rest then hit the track and ran for 1-mile at a pretty fast pace. Checked in somewhere around 5:20, which is a huge improvement for me.

Workout was around 45 minutes total. Finished up with some stretching. Tomorrow I’ll be back in the gym for my second strength training workout and Saturday’s Muay Thai class.

Take care,
Dan

606

Hey everyone,
Just got back from the gym and had a really solid workout. Here’s the stats:

  1. Rack Pulls: 135x5, 185x3, 225x3, 275x3, 315x1, 355x3 (straps)
    2A. Machine Shoulder Press, 3x3: 230, 240, 240
    2B. Hindu Squats, 3x12: BW
  2. Decline DB Triceps Ext., 3x3: 35 (6), 40 (4), 40 (4)
  3. BB Biceps Curl, 3x3: 90
  4. Plate Pinchers: 25 lbs. hold for 65 sec., 60 sec.
  5. Deadlift Holds: 225 lbs. x 2

Did 10 min. of stretching afterwards, focusing mainly on loosening up the hips, which felt real tight today. I think that was due to the wide jump sit down box squat exercise I did yesterday in my circuit training.

Feels nice to have the rest of the day off from work. I still have a story I need to write, but it shouldn’t take too long. I’m planning on spending the afternoon reading a book and the newspaper and possibly getting in a nap.

Tomorrow the wife and I have planned to spend the entire day together. With our work schedules, we haven’t been able to spend much time together lately, so tomorrow we’re going to go out, take the dog for nice, long walk; go grab some lunch and ice cream and just enjoy each other’s company.

I hope everyone enjoys their weekend!

Take care,
Dan

607

Just a quick note on Saturday’s Muay Thai workout: Only 6 of us were there since there were a bunch of guys competing in a submission grappling tournament out of town.

So, without an instructor, we kind of just threw together our own stuff and ended up going 10 straight rounds before changing off. First five rounds were with focus mitts and second five were with Thai pads. Finished up with some conditioning and stretching.

Taking the day off today.

-Dan

608

Things are looking solid with you Dan. I am glad it is going well. Nice to see that you are making family time a priority too.

Keep it up
Michelle

609

d

610

[quote]Bittabit wrote:
Things are looking solid with you Dan. I am glad it is going well. Nice to see that you are making family time a priority too.

Keep it up
Michelle[/quote]

Thanks Michelle. Good to hear from you.

611

Hey everyone,
Just got back from a great workout. Here’s the stats:

  1. Front Squat, 3 reps of: 95, 115, 135, 155, 185, 195
  2. BB Bench Press, 3 reps of: 135, 155, 185, 205, 230 (felt good and could increase weight)
    3A. Hindu Squats, 3x15: BW
    3B. Seated Cable Row, 3x3: 200
    4A. Preacher Curl, 3x5: 105
    4B. Rope Pressodwn, 3x5: 130
  3. Reverse Wrist Curls, 3x12: 60

Finished off with some stretching. Really happy with the bench press numbers…they seem to be climbing each week and I’m actually a bit lighter now (183-185) than I was a year ago (194).

Also pleased b/c I worked out w/o any meds. I’ve been taking an “off” day every 4th day with Xanax and so far, haven’t noticed any side effects. In another week, I should drop down to every 3rd day and so on, until I get to taking 2 days off in a row.

Tomorrow’s an endurance workout. Should be fun.

Take care,
Dan

612

Hey there,
Just finished up a brutal endurance workout. My stamina was a little low today, likely due to not getting a full night’s rest last night, but I still managed to get in a good workout.

Started off with 6 minutes of rope skipping, then did 2 of CW’s circuits, followed by 6 rounds of sprints. Workout was around 35 minutes.

Tomorrow I’m going to get in a home Muay Thai workout.

It’s like 70 degrees here today and thankfully I get to be outside and cover a baseball game for work. Perhaps I’ll get a bit of a tan going. This is one of the perks of not working a desk job.

Take care,
Dan

613

Hey everyone,
Just finished my Muay Thai workout. Decided to change things today and instead of doing the usual of jumping jacks and shadowboxing, I decided to take advantage of the nice weather and went for a 2.5-mile run. I checked in around 17 minutes, which isn’t too bad of a time.

Part of the reason I did the run was because I wanted to pre-exhaust (did I just use a Weider term?) myself before doing my Muay Thai work to see what effect that would have on my performance.

I did notice that for the first few rounds I was slow moving and my hands were dropping; but once I started to recover from the fatigue, I picked up the intensity the last 3-4 rounds and felt like I was pretty sharp with my striking.

I also threw in an extra round of ground and pound work. I took the heavy bag down and used it as my dummy, throwing elbows, knees and strikes from side mount and full mount positions.

Workout was around 50 minutes total.

If it stays nice tomorrow I might do my endurance work outdoors. There’s a nice hill by my house that I’ve been itching to do sprints up and then I can throw some rounds of bodyweight circuit work.

Take care,
Dan

614

Hey everyone,
Just got back from the gym and had a really good endurance workout. Started with 3 min. of jump rope, then did 3 rounds of CW’s circuit. Was panting like a dog at the end but I was able to make it through, which was good because I’m trying to get my body used to being tired and still performing.

When I move into sparring (I do it off and on now but will be doing this more frequently after I recover from having my wisdom teeth removed) and advanced jiu-jitsu classes, this is going to be key b/c you don’t want to let the other person know you’re tired, or else you’re going to get popped in the face or submitted quickly.

Started taking creatine again yesterday. Using the German Micronized stuff from the site. So far, so good. I’ll let you know in a few weeks what I notice different from taking it.

Tomorrow’s a strength workout.

Take care,
Dan

615

Hey everyone,
Well, nailed a new PR in the deadlift today! Hit 335x2 and quite honestly, it felt pretty light, so I’m sure I could’ve done more had I gone for another set.

I’m really starting to fill out and what’s crazy about that is that I’m only lifting 2 times a week! Obviously the endurance work is helping strip off some bodyfat, as are the Muay Thai workouts, but still, to see myself becoming more dense is always a pleasant site.

I’m going to keep up the intensity through next weekend, then I’m off to Vegas for vacation. When I come back, I’ll make some modifications to my strength workouts; as I’d like to try and add a bit of size to my calves and quads.

Here’s the stats from today’s workout:

1A. Jumping Box Squat, 5x3: BW
1B. Clap Push-ups, 5x3: BW
2. Rack Pulls, work up to 3-rep max: 365
3. Deadlift, max of 2-3 reps: 335x2 (new PR!)
4A. DB Shoulder Press, 3x3: 65
4B. Hindu Squats, 3x12: BW
5. Decline DB Tricep Ext., 3x4: 40
6. DB Curls, 3x4: 50
7A. Reverse Wrist Curls, 2xmax: 50 (15), 60 (12)
7B. Wrist Curls, 2xmax: 50 (15), 60 (12)

Did stretching and foam roller work afterwards, trying to loosen up the hips for tomorrow’s Muay Thai workout.

Best part about today was that I did all this while off my medication. Always feel a bit better about my gym efforts when I’m not on Xanax, as I know that I can go in the gym and give it the same effort and intensity as when I do take Xanax.

Well, that’s it for today.

Take care,
Dan

616

Hey everyone,
Well, had an interesting Muay Thai class today. Only 4 of us there and had a new instructor as the gym owners were off helping a fighter make weight for his fight tonight; and I’m sure the nice weather (sunny, 70’s) kept a lot of people away.

My partner was in his first-ever class and I tried to teach him as much as I could, as unfortunately, the instructor wasn’t doing much instructing.

The one part of the class I did enjoy is that we worked on our clinch and towards the end of class myself and the two other guys broke off and did a nice little circuit of rotating in 2 guys every 30 seconds for 5 minutes on one guy as we both worked to secure the clinch and then throw light knees from there (since the instructors were gone, we didn’t have the stomach guards to wear).

That was fun as the guys I worked with have both fought before so it was cool to see how I fared againt them, and I have to say, I did quite well. My clinch was solid and tight and I was able to land some good knees and my defense was also good; I received several comments from both after stating they were impressed.

So, all in all not a bad class. Taking tomorrow off. Hopefully by then my eye will be better. The left one has been kind of blurry all day today; must’ve gotten something in it and scratched something. Hopefully nothing too serious.

Take care,
Dan

617

Hey Dan,
Nice work on your PR! That’s a great lift and even better that you are finding solid grounding as your meds fall into the past.

Hope that eye feels better soon - eye injuries always bother memost as I’m trying to fall asleep!
High quality eye drops make a big difference. The more expensive ones (in my experience) are worth the price.

Hope you enjoy your Vegas trip and glad things are going well with your workouts and sleep. Those two inprovements alone can make a world of difference, eh?

Take care!
J:)

618

[quote]proxy wrote:
Hey Dan,
Nice work on your PR! That’s a great lift and even better that you are finding solid grounding as your meds fall into the past.

Hope that eye feels better soon - eye injuries always bother memost as I’m trying to fall asleep!
High quality eye drops make a big difference. The more expensive ones (in my experience) are worth the price.

Hope you enjoy your Vegas trip and glad things are going well with your workouts and sleep. Those two inprovements alone can make a world of difference, eh?

Take care!
J:)[/quote]

Proxy,
Great to hear from you. Sorry to read you’re leaving your thread for a while, but I understand the reasoning. You better stay in touch, though, or else I’ll have BGB rough you up! :slight_smile:

Seriously, thanks for the congrats on my PR’s. I’m very pleased. My neck is a bit sore today from yesterday’s Muay Thai class, but on the good side, my eye is better.

Take care,
Dan

619

Hey everyone,
Just got back from the gym and had a great workout. Set another PR on the bench press, as I nailed 235x3. The third rep went up a little slow, but still got it with no assistance.

Here’s the stats from the rest of the workout:

  1. Front Squat, work up to max. of 2-3 reps: 205x3
  2. BB Bench Press, work up to max. of 2-3 reps: 235x3
    3A. Seated Cable Row, 3x4: 200
    3B. Hindu Squats, 3x12: BW
    4A. Preacher Curl, 3x5: 100
    4B. Rope Pressdowns, 3x5: 130
  3. Reverse Wrist Curls, 4xmax. (30 sec. rest between sets): 50x15x15x12x10
  4. Wrist Curls, 4xmax. (30 sec. rest between sets): 50x15x15x15x12

Did some stretching and foam roller work afterwards.

When I return from vacation, I’m going to change out flat bench for inclines and front squats for box squats.

Tomorrow’s an endurance workout.

Take care,
Dan

620

Hey everyone,
Just got back from the gym and had a really good endurance workout. Started off with 3 min. of jump rope work, then moved on to a barbell complex.

For the complex, I did 4 sets of 6 reps of:
Bent-over rows
Close-grip upright rows
Hang cleans
Good mornings
Squat then directly into behind the neck press
Lunges

Took a 1 min. break between each complex.

After that I did 3 sets of a bodyweight circuit:

1 min. of jump rope
20-25 push-ups (any variety)
20-25 squats (any variety)
crunches

Also took 1 min. rest between these.

Then it was on to sprints. Did 6 sets of sprints around the track, resting on the short corners, then sprinting a full lap around.

Total workout time (including stretching) was 35 minutes.

Tomorrow’s a Muay Thai workout.

Take care,
Dan

621

Just finished my Muay Thai workout. It was great!

Started off with a 20-minute run. I know that will cause some people to gasp, as it seems like the popular trend in programs for combat sports seems to frown heavily on running/jogging; but for me, I think it’s important. I feel like I have better endurance when I get a run or two in a week than when I don’t. I also do sprints and think they are valuable, but I also see semi-long distance running to also be important in training your body to deal with fatigue. OK, end of rant.

After the run I went to work on the portable heavy bag. Did 6 rounds, mostly consisting of various punch combos and threw in some punch-knee-kick combos as well. Final 2 rounds were ground-and-pound rounds, where I take the bag off the stand and work my strikes, elbows, knees and passing guard on the ground. The key is to never stop moving during the entire 3 minutes. Definitely a good finisher to the workout.

Workout time was 45 minutes.

Tomorrow’s another endurance workout.

T-minus 3 days until I leave for Vegas. I have a lot of work to do before I go, but I’m not too worried about it. I know I’ll get it done.

Take care,
Dan