10/14/21
Cardio
Running: ~30 minutes
Hit some trails with the pup this afternoon. Wasn’t the most productive run as she was just totally distracted and lazy today. Normally she’s a ball of energy but she didn’t have the juice today. Decided to just enjoy the nice weather and take what I could get and let her sniff whatever she found interesting.
10/15/21
Bench workout
GIANT SETS (row - bench - core)
DB row:
70x4x6
70x1x5
Axle bench:
50x10
120x5
145x5
165x5
185x5
Band ab crunch:
5x10
GIANT SETS (bench - band - hang)
Axle bench:
150x5x10
Band face pulls:
5x10
Hang board shrug:
5x10
SUPER SETS (band - skull)
Band pushdowns:
3x10
EZ bar skull crushers:
45x3x10
Solid bench workout. Last rep of the last supplemental set was the only truly challenging bench rep, I’ll take that. Plate change rests between the main work, 90s between supplemental, and 30s between assistance exercises.
Got a long run planned for this weekend, probably Sunday.
10/17/21
Cardio
Running: ~10 miles (4.35 trail + 5.8 road)
I’m writing this log entry after laying on the floor and drinking half a beer. Needed a delicious pain reliever after running the farthest I’ve ever ran in my life.
This wasn’t particularly challenging on the lungs as I didn’t push the pace much, today was more about surviving the distance.
I had my fiancee drop me off at a trail head, then took the trails north for a while, and when I reached the northern end of the nature preserve took the road back home.
Had a few short stops on the hike to gather my bearings and do a tick check after tall grass, and a couple spots where it was steep enough to become a brisk hike, but mostly kept moving. No stopping once I got to the pavement.
I’ll never love running, much the same way I’ll never actually love lifting, but I get the appeal it has to some folks.
10/21/21
Leg workout
SUPER SETS (squat - core)
SSB box squats:
45x10
95x5
135x5
185x3
205x4x6
Ab wheel:
5x6
SSB Hise shrugs:
205x8
SUPER SETS (pull - core)
Mat pulls: (7)
135x5
225x5
275x5
315x5
355x5
Dip bar leg raise:
5x6
BB shrugs:
275x6
Pistol box squats:
x25/leg
Mondays workout happening on Thursday. Work has been wild this week and I’m just getting to this now. Planned to get a regular lifting week in, then deload next week leading up to the race. I’ll just finish this week slowly until then and call it good.
10/22/21
Press workout part 1
GIANT SETS (chin - press - core)
NG chins: (super close grips)
5x14
Axle press:
50x10
80x5
105x5
115x3
125x4
105x8
Band oblique crunch:
5x10/side
Just got the main work done tonight, will finish the rest tomorrow. Discovered a new grip for chins that I hadn’t seen as an option before tonight. Those went pretty well and got a hell of a lat pump. Volume PR for sure. Press was pretty whatever today, not much to give there this time around.
8/23/21
Press workout part 2
GIANT SETS (press - raise - band)
Axle clean and push press away:
80x10
105x4x8
Lateral raise:
15x4x10
Band pull aparts:
4x25
Lateral raise:
10x50 rest/pause
Second half of the workout. Going to get the assistance portion in later today or tomorrow. Not in a big rush to do much of anything lifting wise lately.
10/25/21
Assistance
SUPER SETS (dips - curls)
Dips:
3x20
Axle curls:
40x3x20
Cardio
1 mile treadmill run @ 7mph
Slow rolling through the week still. Realized I have another full week before the race, had myself ahead of schedule thinking it was this coming weekend. Hate the treadmill but it’s dark and raining now so figured I’d just get something quick and easy in.
10/26/21
Cardio
1 mile treadmill run @ 7.5mph
Dark and raining again, so just hopped on the nightmare machine for a quick run. Pretty easy again, could definitely run a mile faster than this if I wasn’t concerned with the beating my joints take on the treadmill. Even running on the pavement feels better. I’m curious what I could do if I tried pushing my mile time. Best I ever ran one was in high school at 5:3x (upper 30s).
10/27/21
Back workout
Overhand pullups:
BWx6
+15x6
+35x2x6
+35x7
SUPER SETS (row - pull)
BB row:
185x3x8
EZ bar pullover:
45x3x10
Chest supported DB rows:
60x4x10
Band pulldowns:
x100
Solid pump from this workout, but starting to get bored of it. Going to run it for 6 more weeks after my race then programming is going to shift a bit.
10/28/21
Bench workout
GIANT SETS (row - bench - core)
DB row:
70x5x6
Axle bench:
50x10
120x5
155x5
175x5
195x5
Band ab crunch:
5x10
GIANT SETS (bench - pull - shrug)
Axle bench:
155x4x10
155x8
Band face pulls:
5x10
Hang board shrugs:
5x10
SUPER SETS (band - pjr)
Band pushdowns:
2x failure
PJR pullovers:
55x9
45x10
Solid workout. Bench felt pretty good today. Top set was hard but not brutally so, and supplemental was going well until the last set. First five reps weren’t so bad, but every one after that was harder and harder and I actually got stapled for the first time in ages today.
Pecs and triceps were beyond pumped after the bench work, and I wanted to skip the assistance so I just condensed it and ripped through it quick.
10/2/21
Shoulder stuff
SUPER SETS (press - band)
Axle press:
50x10
80x5
100x3x3
120x3x1
Band pull aparts:
8x10
SUPER SETS (press - band)
Seated axle press:
80x14
80x11
Band pull aparts:
2x10
Incline Y raise:
10x3x10
Band x failure
Nothing to special here, just something quick so my body remembers that one day I’ll lift with some gusto again. Want to be as fresh as I can heading into the race though so not doing much this week.
Played around with a couple movements now that I have an incline bench. Seated press is solid, though my chin paid the price on the first couple reps before I figured out how to dodge the bar.
The Y raise, I just don’t get it. Felt better with the band for sure. My traps actually got decently pumped from it, but as a shoulder movement I couldn’t get the feel for it. Maybe need to lower the weight and really focus on using the delts if I take another crack at it.
I forget - do you go to a gym or workout at home? The cable Y raise is where it’s at for the side delts. Also, dropping the incline a bit and getting a bit closer to a T than a Y helps not involve the traps quite as much.
Think reaching “out” to make a wide arc, rather than up
@flappinit Hey man, I’m at home so no access to cables. Can definitely see how they’re the business for that move though. Thanks for the advice.
@j4gga2 Thanks for the tip man!
I’ll probably throw these in once in a while, but lateral raises will probably remain my go to for that stuff.
11/3/21
Back workout
Over hand pullups:
5x10
Neutral grip chins: (widest to narrowest grips)
5x10
Chest supported EZ bar row:
105x4x10
Nothing too crazy today. Certainly one of my best chinning efforts ever. Last few sets got challenging towards the end but it was mostly drama free with 90 or so seconds between sets. Sweet pump afterwards.
Messed around a little more with chest supported rows on the new bench. Used the EZ bar and bumper plates. The angle I’d like to do them at results in dead stop rows, so if I use a bar at all I’ll have to load it up with 25s it seems. Can also use some mats to raise the bench, but I’ll start entering territory where the setup isn’t worth doing the exercise for me.
11/4/21
Barely Benchin’
SUPER SETS (bench - band)
Axle bench:
50x10
120x5
170x2x3
190x2x2
210x2x1
Band pull aparts:
8x10
That’s really all I did. I messed around a little with decline DB bench and flies after but nothing worth logging. Decline DB bench is out for sure, but the flies may be viable. Might be worth experimenting with a bar out of the rack too. Just too much of a hassle to get the DBs setup and the bench is a bit unstable.
11/6/21
White Lake Ultra
25 miles in 6 hours of trail running around a small lake.
This was a hell of an experience. Coming into this, the longest I’ve ever ran was about 10 miles. I’ve hiked 14 in a day, and the longest I’ve ever recorded just walking was 18 while sight seeing in Europe. I’m pretty sure this is the farthest I’ve travelled on foot in a day.
As far as trails go, this was a very pleasant one to run on. Not much in the way of elevation change, and it wasn’t heavily rooted or rocky. There were some, and plenty of leaves covering the track, but for the most part it was tame.
A little less than halfway through the race I completed a half marathon distance. During this lap, both of my quads started to cramp up pretty good. I was eating and taking in fluids between each lap, but I think since the temperature was in the high 30s and low 40s throughout the day I didn’t take in enough drink. I tried to just copy what my friends were doing for the most part since they’ve all been down this road before.
The next lap I started playing games to keep myself running. The body was hurting, but my cardio was holding up well enough. Some folks were shooting off in the distance, so I started pretending I was in an action movie and do my best “hero won’t die” impression.
On the lap that gained me my 19th mile, I started breaking down. My quads were going back and forth between full on cramps and searing hot burning, the latter of which was preferable. Despite that discomfort, it wasn’t overly limiting. My hips on the other hand were quitting on me. I started losing the ability to lift my feet high enough to maintain a decent running form. This meant more roots being kicked, which was brutal on my mangled toes and took everything out of me to stay up when I caught myself. This was the first lap I started having to walk between bouts of running, and also when the conversations with myself started.
I got pretty mad at myself for not being able to run any more, and the first thing my mind went to was “you little b****, why are you so soft?”. I went back and forth for about a mile, having those thoughts and forcing myself to start running again, only for one of my feet to drag behind me and halt progress. At this point, I remembered a bit of advice from my friend I was running with that basically amounted to “take care of yourself out there”. So I made a deal, I’d walk through the sunny parts of the trail and run where it was shaded. This brought a moment of clarity. Of course I’m fucking struggling, I’m about to double the amount of miles I’ve ever ran. I haven’t quit yet. Every step forward is just adding on to the win. This might be miserable, but you haven’t given up, you’re still moving forward, even if it’s just a bit slower now.
By the end of that lap, I had a noticeable limp as my hip flexors were taking turns just completely shutting off. I made it back to our table, smashed some food and fluids, put on a hoodie, and just set out on foot again. I figure if I can’t run anymore I can still rack up some miles, and this is a beautiful walk through the woods that I haven’t really gotten to enjoy. I felt like I was almost kind of drunk meandering through the woods, still trying to walk as fast as I could hoping to get two laps in.
I rounded the corner to the aid station where we checked in after each lap, and they informed me I had 40 minutes left. It took a lot longer to walk the lap than I thought, and I immediately thought “fuck, I have to run another one”. I waddled over to our table, slammed a few sips of a drink, and just took off. This last lap was the type of shit you read stories about. I won’t try to romanticize it. It was ugly, sweaty, I sounded like I was in agony during my breathing, but I knew I had to haul ass for as long as I could because any mishap would take so much to recover from. I tripped on two roots, and not hitting the deck was a feat in itself.
By the end of the lap I was basically doing a controlled fall out of the woods, and I hit the short section of pavement that led to the aid station and just let it all out. I rounded the corner where a few people were catching times and through heaving breaths asked if I made the lap. They said yes, and with time to spare. It was a pretty unreal feeling. I didn’t reach “ultra mileage” but I never thought I’d even do something like this in my life.
I’m sore in a way I’ve never experienced today. My legs are completely shot. Hips and quads are thrashed, ankles and lower legs are wrecked. I’m going to lose several toe nails and I have some sweet blisters. Somehow my knees feel completely fine aside from some extra clicking in one of them. My mid and upper back are pretty jacked up too. Any time I shut my eyes I’ve fallen asleep today, only to wake up and focus on hydration and stuffing my face. I didn’t have much of an appetite last night and forced what I could into my stomach before I passed out.
Ultimately, I wound up finishing in the middle of the pack of this race. To have been a non-runner as recently as 3 months ago, I think that’s pretty decent. I’m proud of my effort and it’s definitely an accomplishment. Unfortunately, I think it’s also something I can build on haha.
Some extra notes because I’m just rambling at this point.
This was supposed to be a 24 hour relay race, but got switched to individual races when we couldn’t field a full team. Made things easier and harder in some ways. Less time spent at the race and didn’t need to try to manage staying warm during rest periods. But also meant running straight out the entire time.
My teammate also ran a six hour, and we wound up with the same mileage. I was pumped to have matched him, because he’s a much more experienced runner. He battled his own demons this day, and we actually had a very similar last two lap story and finished that lap relatively close to each other. He was pumped for me on my performance.
I had another friend there that did the 24 hour solo race. He won, with 105 miles completed. An unreal effort and truly mind boggling.
I think I’ve typed enough now.
Brutal and amazing, dude. You’re a champ!
Haha man, I was absolutely losing the fight. But I was at least making it go to decision.
11/9/21
Press workout
SUPER SETS (press - chin)
Seated press: (bench setting 5)
50x10
80x5
100x5
110x5
120x5
NG chins: (widest to narrowest grips)
5x10
DB press mechanical drop set: (lone digit represents bench setting)
40x9 - 4
40x5 - 3
40x6 - 2
Band shrugs:
x50 rest/pause
Lateral raise drop set:
15x10
10x20
5x30
Hands x40
Band pull aparts:
x100 rest/pause
SUPER SETS (curl - curl)
Incline curl:
20x11
20x7
20x6
Spider curl:
20x7
20x5
20x4
Dips:
x50 rest/pause
Looks like more than it really was on paper, mostly because I’m used to how concise my notations are haha.
Opted for the seated press today since my lower body is still in pretty rough shape. My hips are mostly back to normal but my quads are still crazy sore, which is fine. Left achilles is beyond tight and feels just wrong, the ball of my right foot is tender as hell, and my toes are all jacked up. I’ve got a wedding next weekend so I’m hoping those things heal up by then so I can hit the dance floor.
Last rep on the top set was a real grinder. I think I can lift more weight for more sets on the seated press based on todays workout, which might be something to keep in mind.
Everything after that initial work was just drop sets and rest/pause work, performed back to back. Wouldn’t really call them super sets since each lift only had one extended set.
Tried something new with the curls just because. Real solid pump but it’s nowhere near as agonizing as axle curls can be.