T3hPwnisher Dude congratz on the comp. those stones looked brutal.
Congrats on the competition. It honestly looked like fun, even though my back hurts from watching that stone event.
Alpha: I thanked you in your log as well, but once again, your advice on the car deadlift was awesome. I really hope to one day hit this event for some heavy weight, as this was something of a tease, but it was still a blast. Moving forward, I’m looking at an unsanctioned show in San Diego, just because it’s close to home and that way my parents can watch me compete. The weights are super light, but it might be the opportunity I need to finally prioritize speed in my training.
FarmerOwen: Thanks man! The stones weren’t too bad, but they were pretty gnarly by the time I got to them. Each rep felt like a cheese grater up and down my body, haha.
Biker: Much appreciated man. It was a blast. Easily the most fun I’ve ever had at a competition.
Lat pulldown 90
1x10
Bench 220
5x10
Superset w/
Band pull aparts
5x20
Notes: Competed on Saturday, lifting on Monday, going pretty light and easing back in to everything. Bench felt good still, but moving slow and easy.
Fat grip seated cable rows 90
8x10
Shoulder circuit
3 rounds
Notes: Amazingly, lower body is pretty painfree, while upperbody is incredibly sore. Mainly traps and shoulder. Most likely due to car deadlift.
Great job on the competition!! Looking forward to see where things go from here!
Much appreciated jblues. Definitely got the fire still lit after this one. Really want to keep pushing. I’ve got a lot of room to grow in the 200lb class, going to try to make the most of it.
(13) Chain Suspended Safety Squat Bar Squats
3x435+chains
9x345+chains
Notes: Resuming where I left off in my training program. Still feeling slightly beat up from the comp, but strength is still there. Need to remember that trick I discovered right beforehand with my hips on the lockout.
Reverse hyper 360
2x12
1x15
superset w/
GHR sit ups
3x10
Notes: Easing myself back into the heavy stuff. Kept today light and low volume. Will need to work either axle cleans or car deadlifts back in the rotation. Maybe alternate them each week.
FG DB Press 105
1x4
1x5
Notes: Still easing back into training. Going to need to redevelop some proficiency on this movement for my next contest. Focus is on making the clean touch and go to speed up transition time. Left arm wasn’t having it.
DB bench 105
1x10
1x7
1x6
GB lat pulldowns 90
7x10
Axle curls
Band pushdowns
Band pull aparts
Notes: Feeling pretty much recovered, but can tell that my tendons and joints are still a little sore. Going to try to push back to 100% on deadlift day.
Wow, results already posted from the contest.
Turns out there was 15 competitors in my weight class, so I was actually 4th of 15. That’s cool.
Actual time on yoke was 21.12 seconds. Next best time was 19.88. After me was 24.88 seconds. Winning time was 14.60 seconds.
Time on Farmer’s Frame was 29.43 seconds. Next best was 29.02 seconds. After me was 36.41.
Heartbreaking that I was so close on both of those, considering I missed out on placing by 2 points. Despite being “just for fun”, this contest has really made me hungry and lit a fire under me.
Nutritionally, I’m on day 4 of no junk food. I’m feeling much better, and didn’t realize just how terrible and destructive my eats habits had become for this contest. It’s been difficult to not reach for the candy bar at the office snack bar when I’m passing by. I apparently just engrained it as a habit. Weight has dropped a few pounds.
(4) Mat Pulls 570+chains
18 reps total
Notes: Needed 4 pick ups for this. Strength was there, but endurance wasn’t. Could only grind out 8 reps on the first go. Happy with the total, but hopefully can get back to hitting at least 10 on the first pull.
Yoke 480
4x75’
Notes: Really hammering foot speed. The whole time I am thinking “fast fast fast”. There is a clear difference in foot speed when I focus versus when I autopilot, and I really felt like I was flying on these. Plan is to cycle the weight to get some work with speed and some work with weight.
Squats 455
1x9
Notes: Gameplan was to go with my “Zeno Squats”, but “strength and no endurance” was the theme. Those 9 squats took a ton out of me, and I figured I’d play it safe after that. Need to hammer squats later in my training to get my legs used to the volume. Don’t want to fall into my trap of legs being too sore to train for a week after a hard squat workout.
Weighted Chins 50lbs
20 reps
Bench Press 310
3x5
Superset w/
Band pull aparts
3x20
Notes: Had to rack the bar on the 4th rep of the last set before getting the 5th. Funny variable at play: I stomped on a huge spider with my squat shoe before the workout, and the spider guts were making my left foot slippery, so I was losing out on leg drive. Otherwise, my muscles feel strong, but joints and tendons are still a little stiff. Only 2 more weeks of the program, feels like I’m coming out at a good place.
Shoulder circuit
3 rounds
DB rows 105
8x3
1x26
General Notes: A week down of eating better. Bodyweight is now going up, as portion control hasn’t been a concern, just food quality. Definitely notice a general improvement in how I feel. Next step is going to be to start eating less so I can come in lighter for my next contest. Not significantly, but since speed is going to be a factor, be good to get rid of a little fluff.
Just signed up for my next contest. This one is an unsanctioned one, but it’s in my hometown of San Diego, and a chance for my parents/friends to watch me compete.
Gameplan is to compete as a lightweight, but if the show is small I’ll move up into open.
Press Medley: Keg, Log, Circus Dumbell for reps. 60 second time limit. Max effort. Belt, wrist wraps, and chalk are authorized. Suits are not permitted.
Lightweight Men - 100#, 180#, 100# respectively
Open Men - 175#, 225#, 135# respectively
Car Deadlift: As many reps as possible in 60 second time frame. Straps, chalk, and belts are authorized. Suits are not permitted.
LWM - Midsize Car
OM- Pickup Truck
Yoke Walk/ Tire Flip: 90 second time limit for 75 feet with 1 Flip. Max effort with unlimited drops. Suits are not permitted. Chalk is authorized.
LWM- 560# yoke/ 650# tire
OM- 650# yoke/ 800# tire
Stone Series: 90 second time limit. Stone Loading. Tacky, sleeves, and belts permitted. Event is judged by stones completed. Stone weights are as follows in pounds.
LWM- 175, 200, 235, 290, 335
OM- 235, 290, 335,354,405
Never done a 4 event contest before, seems unique. Already built myself a 100ish keg to train with. The press medley looks stupid light for me, so I’m going to need to work on some speed to get the most out of the circus dumbbell. Everything else seems a bit more reasonable. If I end up going to the open, it’s definitely going to be a fun show.
Also, built myself some car deadlift handles, so I’m excited about pushing the weight on that.
(12) Chain Suspended Safety Squat Bar Squats
3x435+chains
Notes: Hamstrings were screaming this morning, so cut out the dead stop sets. Still happy to be able to break this off chains, normally at this point I’m starting from the top.
Reverse hyper 360
3x15
Car deadlift simulator 6 plates per side
3x10
Notes: Built some handles for this over the weekend so I can hold more plates. Still may need to get creative, as I’m running out of plates/room on the sleeve. Still, nice to be able to go a little heavier on these.
Will hit some ab wheel on my lunch break.
Axle Clean and Press (clean once) 210
1x7
1x6
Notes: First time with the axle in about 2 months, I’ve missed it. First set had my hands differently spaces, so not optimal technique. Second set was much more dialed in. Much better leg drive on that set as well: noticed my heels picking up off the floor and a real decent explosiveness. Going to make this my new “rep weight” and work toward 10-12 reps before moving on.
(3) DB incline press 105s
1x10
1x6
1x5
(2) 1x5 w/reactive slingshot
superset w/
GB lat pulldowns 90
5x12
superset w/
Band pull aparts
4x20
Axle curls
4x25
superset w/
Average band pushdowns
4x12
Notes: Always doing new things with arms, mainly because arm training is so boring. Future plan is to do a massive dropset with the axle using all my 5s and 2.5 plates.
GB lat pulldown 90
1x25
Squats 455
1x9
1x1
405
1x1
Notes: Heading to San Diego for the weekend, wanted to get in my squats now so that when I get home on Sunday I can just hit my mat pulls and be done. Think I may need to reset the top set to 8 just to have enough gas to get in more reps later. I can manage that initial set of 9, but it takes everything out of me. Tried for more, and the hips and knees just weren’t having it.
Standing Ab wheel
3x5
Notes: Easing back into this so that I don’t spend 2 weeks in agony.
Neck harness 45lbs
1x50
Sandbag (205lbs) runs
2x120’ (60’ with turn)
Notes: Just a sort of grab bag workout today (get it, grab BAG…I slay me). Hitting the odds and ends that I missed during the week. May not be able to hit the yoke, so I did something that had me moving my feet quickly with a heavy load. Definitely noticed improved footspeed on this.
(3) Mat Pulls 570+chains
15 reps total
Notes: Done with 3 pick ups. 9, then 3, then 3. Context: Woke up at 0200, took wife to half marathon, walked 2 miles to finish line, walked around for an hour having lost her at the finish line, drove 5 hours through LA traffic, came home and did this. Incredibly pleased with this, and honestly the weights felt light. Technique is getting sloppy, gotta work on that.
As I’m nearing the end of my second cycle on the bench program, I’m going to post my next 16 weeks of workouts
Week 1: 5x10x225
Week 2: 5x8x265
Week 3: 5x6x285
Week 4: 5x4x305
Week 5: 5x10x225
Week 6: 5x7x285
Week 7: 5x5x305
Week 8: 5x3x320
Week 9: 5x10x225
Week 10: 4x6x305
Week 11: 4x4x320
Week 12: 4x2x340
Week 13: 5x10x225
Week 14: 3x5x320
Week 15: 3x3x340
Week 16: 3x1x360
In other news, I am nixing my traditional morning poptarts and replacing it with my fruit meal, and replacing my fruit meal with a protein shake. Intent is to lose a little weight and improve the quality of my nutrition.
Weighted Chins 50lbs
22 reps
Bench 325
3x3
superset w/
Band pull aparts
2x20
Notes: Rough day. This was a hard day last cycle too, and it makes sense honestly. Very high percentage triples. Wasn’t quite getting the tightness I wanted in set-up, butt was coming off the bench a bit. Got 1 more week of the program.
DB rows 105
5x4
Band pull aparts
100
Notes: Had to cut the workout short, so threw in the pull aparts right before my shower. If I get the chance, I’m going to try to do some more rows and shoulder work.
PM Workout
Shoulder circuit
3 rounds
superset w/
DB rows 105
3x3
1x30
Band pull aparts
50
Notes: Taking care of the parts I missed in the morning. Really focusing on ensuring that my shoulders do all the moving versus my traps on the shoulder circuit. Also really striving to make sure I don’t add a bunch of unnecessary stuff to my program. I’m getting bitten by the bug to do something stupid, but right now everything is working and there is no reason to change.
AM Workout
(11) Chain Suspended Safety Squat Bar Squats
3x435+chains
9x345+chains
Notes: This is the best sustained progress I’ve had on a squat cycle in a LONG time. Have to credit the backoff set with dead stop work. If I ever transition back to barbell squats, I’ll have to remember to include that. Would really love to get this up to 500 for a single off chains. I feel like that would translate into inhuman levels of strength for a lot of my other movements.
GHR sit ups w/25lb plate
1x6
Notes: Had to cut it short again. Will finish the rest on my lunch break or after work.
Nutritionally, still holding strong, and physique is looking slightly improved. Along with switching my fruit meal to first thing, I’m also trying to cut down on my caffeine intake and drink more water. Just some quality of life improvements.
PM workout
Reverse hyper 410
2x8
1x12
Superset w/
GHR sit ups w/25lbs
3x6
Notes: Running out of room soon on the reverse hyper.
Car deadlift simulator 6 plates
1x15
2x10
Notes: Really loving this movement. Need to buy some more 45s, and thinner too.
Log clean and press (clean once)
2x235
1x235
7x160 (strict)
Notes: Decided that I’m going to spend my heavy training days training for the heavyweight weights for my upcoming competition in case I decide to bump up a weight class. There is going to be a 225 log press in the medley, so I’m not too worried. That said, all the 235 reps were grinders. THAT said, I’m fairly certain I built myself a 14"+ log when I compare it to what I used in competition, as this thing is incredibly tough to press. The strict work was pretty smooth. Right shoulder gets pretty trashed from the log, so I’m not going to hit the log as often as I did in my last cycle.
(3)Incline DB press 105
1x10
1x7
1x5
(2)Incline DB press 105 w/reactive slingshot
1x5
superset w/
GB lat pulldowns 90
5x15
superset w/
Band pull aparts
4x20
Notes: Keeping my hands more neutral on the DB press for the sake of the log and shoulder health. I keep wanting to hit some heavy dips, but this movement just works too well for me.
Axle curl dropset
3x20
Notes: Put 4 2.5lb plates per side and was just stripping them after every 20 reps. Goal was to hit 100, but had to cut things a little short. This worked really well, excited to pursue it further, but I pinched a nerve in my back pretty fierce at one point. Will need to watch out for that.
Walking around at 198ish and feeling/looking learner. Caffeine intake is down, but had a massive headache yesterday.