12/15/08

Crossfit WOD:

5 Rounds For Time of:

-5 275# Deadlift
-10 Burpees

I tried the 275#, needed a rest after two, went down to 245# instead, still couldn't finish without breaking up sets for the last three rounds. Burpees suck. Nice workout.

Time: 15:24

12/14/08

For Today

Crossfit 'Nasty Girls' (Modified)

3 rounds for time of:
-50 squats
-20 pull-ups
-20 dips
-10 65# hang power cleans.

Time: 25:54

Result: Ouch. Despite my thinking that the cleans were more form practice than workout, well, I was wrong. Be sore tomorrow.

Hittin' it again

For Today (12/13/08):

3 rounds of:

50 box jumps
21 165# deadlift
20 pullups

I modified this one down a bit from the CF WOD it orignally came from. Still couldn't finish it; being off a week and then being on the final leg of a nappy little illness took it all out of me. I feel shame. But anyway, it was nice to just be bakc moving again, feeling good and ready to roll.

Wednesday 12/10

So I haven't been totally loafing while recuperating. Today I did some light work; I did some Monday as well, but I forgot what that was.

Today:

Jump rope/Situp Mix-up:

100 Jumps/50 Sit-ups
80 Jumps/40 Sit-ups
60 Jumps/30 Sit-ups
40 JumPs/20 Sit-ups
20 Jumps/10 Sit-ups

I also worked on my Clean form using a 24# body bar. I'm bound and determined to learn some of these Oly lifts, even if I have to look like a total sis throwing a bodybar around.

An Unfortunate Dose Of Reality

Once again I'm out injured for a week. At first I felt angry about this, since I've been making some outstanding gains in recent weeks. I soon got over it, and figured I can use the time I'm taking to recover from a overzealous Fran attempt on Wednesday to contemplate my Crossfit experience.

I love the Crossfit philosophy, and while some would blame my bum groin and shoulder on a bad program, the fault is all my own. Despite the obvious fact that prescribed WODs are developed for guys who are significantly stronger than I am (watch any of the videos on the website, then compare their solid physiques to the 172# pencil that I am), I continuously attempt to push my WODs to match the website WOD. The problem with this is obvious; if I can bench press, shoulder press, and deadlift half of what the Crossfit rockstars can do, I probably should not be attempting to Fran anywhere near 95# yet. Not that this isn't a reachable goal for me, but I'm guessing I will need to be able to shoulder press 135# comfortably, and front squat 135# ten times easily before I should even attempt a full Fran. For me, 21-15-9 thrusters would probably make more sense at 55 or 65 pounds, rather than the 80# I settled on after a futile first attempt at 95#.

To shorten a 10K story, while resting my bum body for a week, I'm going to reconsider what weights I should be attempting to do some of these workouts at. Obviously any single modality heavy day, or any bodywieght exercise can still be done as prescribed. It's only some of the mixed modality WODs with prescribed weights that are tearing the crap out of me.

Here's to a week on the couch. :(

12/3/08

For Today:

'Fran'

3 rounds for time:

1. 21 95# thrusters, 21 pull-ups
2. 15 thrusters, 21 pull-ups
3. 9 thrusters, 9 pull-ups

I modded this one to 80# thrusters, and did jumping pull-ups. Tried 95#, no way jose. I increased my time by 2 minutes over my first effort, but I added some weight to the thruster, and did a harder style of pull-up. Overall, am pleased with effort.

Time: 16:42

12/1/08

Today:

Doing a double to get back on track

Heavy Metal: Shoulder Presses

-7 sets of 1RM

105#
115# -oops, not quite
110#
110#
110#
110#
110#
110#

Rested for 20 min, followed with:
Evil Dr. Tabata:

8 rounds per exercise, 20 secs on, 10 secs off; no rest in between exercises

Pullups
Pushups
Situps
Squats

Whew. Was grinding each one for at least the last 3 rounds.

11/28/08

Today:

After two days off from workouts (I did go pheasant hunting all day wednesday, which was a whole lot of tromping through cattails), it's good to be back at it.

Crossfit WOD from Wednesday:

Joshua

5 rounds for time of:
-Run 400m
-30 GHB situps (I don't have a GHB rack, so I do typical situps on the situp bench thingy)
-15 250# deadlifts (I subbed in 205# deadlifts - I'm getting stronger, but 250# lifts would've taken all day. Maybe in another month).

Time: 41:38
Not too shabby, rounds 2-4 were brutal, then I got moving again for the last round.
Tomorrow: A big old game of football. Should be fun.

11.25.08

For Today:

Crossfit WOD:
5 sets for max reps:
Bodywieght Bench Press
Pullups

I deviated from the WOD a little, out of bench strength curiousity.

135# bench x 10
10 Pull-ups

155# bench x 4
10 pull-ups

175# bench x 2 - Finally can lift my bodyweight, yet another personal barrier broken down this week.
10 pull-ups

155# bench x 3
10 Pull-ups

155# bench x 3
10 pullups

I keep blowing through my strength records, yet I haven't gained a pound since I recomitted to the crossfit methodology. The shit works awesome, I love you Greg Glassman.

11/24/08

For Today:

Single Modality x 7 (aka Heavy Metal)
No WOD today, so going my own.

Deadlifts:
Warm-up lifts to 275#

275#
285#
Going so well, let's push it:
295# (almost there!)
300# - Hellz Yeah, new PR, and met one of my primary goals. Felt like god, time for new goal!
285# (Tried another 3 hundo and failed)
285#
285#

Another breakthrough this week, CF is paying dividends, plus I can almost see my abs.
Time to push for 350# (2x bodyweight)

11/23/08

For Today:

Crossfit WOD: No Name - I will file it under the general category of Met-Con Hell.

21 Knees to Elbows
21 55# DB Swings
21 Pushups
15-foot rope climb, 3 ascents
21 20" box jumps
150 ft walking lunge
21 back extensions

For Time.

Time: 43:38
This was hell. I subbed 40# DB's for the 55#, not really up to that yet. I also subbed 12 towel pull-ups for the rope climb. Also subbed 55# good mornings for the back extensions (no back extension thingy at local gym). Barely completed this workout, wanted to quit after round one. Body was just not in it today, not sure why. Was dizzy and light headed from time to time, had to rest between nearly every exercise. Had some sort of bad gastrointestinal pressure that I couldn't relieve. Otherwise a good workout. And I still finished, woo-hoo!

Saturday 11/22/08

For Today:

Seven set, Single Modality (aka 'Heavy Metal')

Warmup:
5 min jog
50 squats
30 pushups
Light stretching

Workout:
Thrusters
Warm up sets (bar,65# 95#,105#)
Follow with 7 one-rep max sets:
115#
125#
125#
135#
135#
135#
135#

This was a milestone day for me: First time I've ever held two plates overhead (135#).
Sweet, sweet progress.

11/19/08

Today:

Warmups:
-2 x 20 Air Sqauts (Really trying to nail that squat form still. Noticeably improved)
-Bar shoulder stretches

Deadlifts:
warmup to 250#

3 sets x 3 reps, 250# deadlift

Follow with:
Crossfit WOD 'Nicole'

As many rounds as possible in twenty minutes of:
-Run 400m
-Max Rep Pull-ups

Score: 7
I think I did seven, but I might've blacked out there for a little while. I made sure I did at least 10 pull-ups; I do them jumping since I haven't nailed the kipping, but I definitely got closer today as a result of trying to hammer out 10 jumpers. Had to break pull-ups into 2, 3 sets by the end, but definitely felt them most in touch with a full-body pull-up today.

As usual, finished workout on all fours, although I didn't make 'the heaving dog' today, although this might be as close as you can get without actually going there.

11/18/08

For Today:

Modified WOD

Today's WOD is a 1 rep by 7 set heavy day. Crossfit called for Push Jerks: I've never pushed jerked before, and only started practicing split jerks about a week ago. I warmed up by practicing the push jerk, but it's a little akward yet, so I subbed in the split jerk (less powerful movement than the push jerk), and was still able to get some good weight up while working my jerk form.

7 round split jerk:

105#
115#
115#
115#
115#
125#
125#

I could get a little heavier on this for sure, but I wanted to keep form up. I will practice some more of this as part of my warmup routine.

I also spent some time working on the dread squat: the overhead squat. My goal is to hit a bodyweight overhead. Them things are no joke, it will be a long road.

11/17/08

For Today:

WOD 'Helen'

For Time:
Run 400m
21 55# DB swings
12 pullups

Never having done DB swings before, I subbed in 40# DB's for 55#.

Time: 15:23
It looked easier on paper than it does in reality. Ouch

11/14/08

For Today:

Modified WOD:

5 Rounds for time of :

-Bodyweight deadlifts x 15 reps
-Run 400m

Time: 16:40

A note on the time: Went to new Anytime that is closer to home than regular joint. Unfortunately, like most modern gyms it has 50% more cardio crap and worthless strength training machines than anyone needs, and 50% less weightlifitng equipment than people need. In place of a rubberized floor or mats, there is a stylish polished concrete, and a 'deadlift' nautilus machine for those who want to do some serious strength training. Yes, such a thing does exist. It wasn't horrible to use, but nowhere near as effective as a heavily loaded Oly bar. While I'm glad to have a gym closer to home, are you kidding me with the pussy BS that passes for a fitness center today? It's like weåring designer jeåns to fix the combine. Idiotic.

Tuesday 11/11/08

Thank you Veterans. For Today:

Fight Gone Bad (CF WOD)

This is my first run at a FGB. Fortunately I was able to do everything as prescribed, minus the wallball and sub-in some 10# DB thrusters. I also subbed in some rows on a cable pulley low row bench because we don't have a rowing machine, and I tallied reps instead of calories. Otherwise weights and times are the same. I can't keep the clock running continously because I need to stop and write down my scores from time to time, otherwise I would lose track.

Here's how it works:

Each exercise gets as many reps in one minute as possible, moving as quickly as possible between exercises.

-Wallball (DB thrusters with a 10# db in each hand)
-Sumo deadlift high-pull (75#)
- Box Jumps (I use the highest flat bench at the gym)
-Push Presses (75#)
-Rowing Machine for Calories (30# rows on a cable pulley low row machine)

Do 3 rounds, with a one minute rest in between rounds. Add up total reps at the end for score.
Score: 281

Foght Gone Bad is a CrossFit legend, and deserves the notoriety. Can't wait to top the score next time.

Monday 11/10/08

For Today:

The Evil Dr. Tabata

I wasn't interested in today's WOD, so I decided to try something that I've used to some degree with training clients, but never actually messed up on myself with. It's called the Tabata Protocol and was invented by some Japanese minister of pain. The theory is that exercising in intense intervals of 20 seconds on/10 off will give you a good mixture of both strength and cardio benefits, and burn some mad fat. Here's the recipe:

Warm up:
-Light jog
- 4 sets x 8 reps sumo high-deadlift

Tabata:
-8 20/10 intervals of 135# deadlift (Total body movement)
1 minute rest
-8 20/10 intervals of shoulder presses (Upper body movement) - started at 25#, quickly decreased, ended up at 7# db's by the last two rounds. Ideally you use the same weight throughout; I was a bit overconfident on these - and it was a brutal minute with the 7# db's.
1 minute rest
-8 20/10 intervals of 24" box jumps (Legs) - I uses the tallest flat bench we have, not sure on actual height.
1 minute rest
-8 20/10 intervals of situps (Core).

Thrown in a lot of sweat and you're there. You can also score this by tracking the lowest # of reps in a given interval for each exercise, but it's hard enough to track the time and interval # as it is. A partner would be nice for this one.

Saturday 11/8/08

For Today:

4 Rounds for Time of:

-400m Run
-50 Squats

Oh Yeah, buckets of sweat.
Time: 17:18

Was able to give maximus effortus on this one, felt good. Once again I ended on the floor. somebody has to show these folks at Anytime Fitness what effort looks like.

Friday 11/7/08

For Today:

Crossfit 'Lynne'

5 rounds of:
-Bodyweight Bench Press
-Pull-ups

Not for time.

I scaled my BP to 135#.
Was thrilled to rip off 8 the first run, could've hit ten probably, but gym was empty so no spot.
Was bummed that by 4th round, shoulder hurt so bad I had to throw in towel. Something about the bar bench just doesn't agree with me. Dumbells are fine, but the bench really jacks it up.

Anyhow, 4 rounds:

135 x 8 10 Pulls (can't get the fing kipping yet)
135 x 8 10 pulls
135 x 8 9 pulls
135 x 4 4 pulls

Tuesday 11/4/08

For Today:

No WOD, but my schedule disagrees. I borrowed some of the ideas from yesterdays 'Michael':

3 Rounds for time of:

-800m run
-10 pull-up/squat countdown
(10 pull-ups, 10 squats. Then 9 pull-ups, 9 squats. Try to minimize transitions between the two.)

Time: 38:46. And a gallon of sweat. The pushups were much easier for me than the last time I ran this countdown.

Monday 11/3/08

For Today:

Crossfit WOD 'Michael':

3 rounds for time:
Run 800m (1/2 mile)
50 Back Extensions
50 Sit-ups

Yeah Baby. I finished this one sans modifications in a clean 30:41. Not bad for the first time. That's what she said.

I wasn't even too far off the average pace of people posting comments on the fit site, although some loser did ring in with a 12:46 or something like that.

Saturday 1/1/08

Fun with Thrusters:

1 heavy rep x 7 sets of Thrusters

I'm not a master of the Thruster yet, so I capped my effort at 100#s. I worked up to the weight as a warm-up, which helped me practice the move as well.

Friday 10/31/08

Happy Halloween.

A frightening piece of work for today:

CF's 'Angie':

100 Pull-ups
100 Push-ups
100 Sit-ups
100 Squats
For Time

So much sweat. I finished it at 35:45. Thought I was going to the graveyard early. I look forward to shaving at least 10 minutes off of this SOB over the next month.

10/27/08

Clubber Lang (Crossfit 'Cindy' I think)

Do as many rounds in 20 min as you can of:

5 pull-ups
10 push-ups
15 squats.

I hit 9 rounds today, but I took more time on the squats trying to master and maintain a perfect form. Still took about 3 minutes to get up off the ground when I was done.

Sat 10/25/08

So I've been going through a bit of an existential workout crisis. I took a break from my crossfit-style program for a while because it was burning me out. I switched over to a more traditional style workout for a couple of weeks, but that was kind of lame. It didn't make me feel as mean as the crossfit, and I'm a glutton for self-inflicted punishment. I did some fact checking, and some measuring, and some research, all of which led me to the hypothesis that I was shortchanging myself nutritionally while crossfitting to the tune of about 1,000 calories and a lot of protein per day. I think this might have led to my physical deterioration, so I'm upping my eating and giving it a whirl again.

Today:
Modified 'Fran' (From Crossfit.com)
3 rounds (21,15, & 9 reps) of Thrusters and Pull-ups.
I modified the Thruster from 95# to 75# after nearly killing myself on the first few tries.
I did the pull-ups on an assisted machine, starting at 50% body weight for the first round, and then dropping it by 10% each of the following rounds.

Even with the mods, it still took me 14:47 to complete. Some of the superfreaks at crossfit complete the full workout in just over two minutes. I've got a lot fo work to do...

Today

Back n' Shoulders

Bent Over Rows:
4 x 12 x 80#

Pull-ups
4 x 12 x Bodyweight/Jumping Pull-up when needed to finish set.

Rows (On seated row machine)
Start with as much as you can handle for 15 resp, then 'run the rack'.

One Dumbbell Milt Press
4 x 12 x 30#

Front DB Raises/Lateral DB raises superset
4 x 12 x 15#

These might seem sparse, but I'm not used to this traditional style workout at this point, so I'm just getting back into it.

Yesterday

Late Post. For Yesterday:

Partial Squats (Use safety bars in Power Rack to limit ROM to about 3/4 of full squat. This allows you to handle more weight through the pushing phase, while supporting weight on the bars at the bottom. Allows you to handle more weight, but be sure to do full ROM reps as well to develop full leg strength).

4 sets x 12 reps x 185# (could've done more I think, but it took a while to figure out the partial reps thing)

Dumbbell Bench Press:
4 x 12x 50# DB's

Tabata Step-ups/DB Fly's
20 seconds on, 10 off. Did 4 minutes of step-ups with 30# DB in each hand. 4 minutes of fly's with 15 lbs in each hand. The Tabatas are a pain due to trying to work out while keeping an eye on my watch...

Bench Dips:
4 x 12 x 25# plate held in lap.

Today

I've grown a little stale with my previous workout style. Not that it isn't awesome, but I get bored and need to mix it up every now and then. I'm switching to a little bit more of a traditional program, with a sprinkle of good old butt-whipping thrown in. I'm going to hit this plan for six to nine weeks.

Today:

Warm-up

Seated Calf Raises - 4 sets x 20 reps by 65# dumbbell on each knee

Standing Calf - 4 x 14 x 90

Military Press - 4 x 10 x 65

Bent Rows - 4 x 10 x 95 

Tabata-style Lateral DB raises/rows - 6 minutes

(Tabata style means doing intervals - 20 seconds of highest intensity, 10 seconds of rest. Do four minutes one exercise, then switch to the next. I messed up counting and ended up with six minutes instead)

DB Hammer Curls - 20 reps at 20 pounds, then immediately switch to next lowest DB, do 20 reps, continue until you've 'run the rack'.

 

Again, negligence

Sorry for not maintaining my postings, my workout regime has been uninspired the last couple of weeks, so I'm changing it up for a little while. Here's my workout from yesterday.

Warm-up
Deadlift:
3 x 6 rep sets of warmup (bar, 135#, 225#)
4 x 3 rep sets of work (275# x 2, 250# x 2) - Still working towards the 300# mark.

Bench
Partials: (use safety bars in power rack to limit movement to upper 10 inches or so of press)
4 x 6 rep sets (155#)
Full reps:
3 x 6 rep 135#

Abs:
Lay on decline bench, hold a weight plate or med ball against chest. Contract abs to lift your back off of bench. Maintain position, press plate up 10 times.

It must be working...

Today (10/6/08)

Sorry, forgot to log my last few workouts, but today I present proof that my plan is working:

Clubber Lang (As many rounds of 5 chinups, 10 pushups, and 15 squats as you can do in 20 minutes)

Previous record: 9
Today's Mark: 10

I thought I was going to shatter it for a moment (see section 8 portage for other vindication of my program), but I dropped off hard after round 7.

9/29/08

Section 8 Portage

Todays Time: 16:03. I blew it's doors off. Sweet.

9/23/08

Texas Hold-em

An interesting number I stole from Ray Lewis. Figured if it works for him, it might be good enough for me. I wasn't sure exactly how he does it, but here was my first attempt.

Supplies Needed: 1 deck of cards, 1 copy of Cowboys From Hell, 1 pull-up bar.

Take deck of cards. Flip top card over. Do that many push-ups, followed by that many squats. Flip a new card, repeat. Face cards worth 11, Aces worth 1.

I made it through about 12 rounds of this before switching the face cards to 5.

I made it a couple of more rounds before realizing I was never going to finish the deck, so I added this in: Every other card, do pull-ups instead of push-ups, and lunges instead of squats. Switched face cards back to 11.

This was much more manageable, but I still didn't finish the deck. After 35 minutes I couldn't go anymore. KILLER WORKOUT.

Next time, I'm going to flip a card for each exercise. So I will flip 1st card, do push-ups, 2nd card, do squats, 3rd do pullups, 4th do lunges. I could probably make it through a whole deck this way, doing 13 sets per exercise. Maybe even get through it twice, who knows.

The brutality of this workout is that it's different every time you shuffle the deck. I swear the first 10 minutes was all face cards.

Follow with leisure 2-mile jog.

Monday 9/22

A Pretty Little Ditty

Back to the deadlift, kick ass!

5 Rounds for time of:

10 Deadlifts x 135#
10 Dumbbell Shoulder presses
10 Bench jumps

Time: 20:34

Followed by 4 minutes of 10 second stationary bike intervals (10 seconds to the max, 10 easy, repeat).

Sunday, 9/21

Right Back at It

Finished the yard today, finished up a Sunday of cleanup with this light workout:

Three Rounds of Push-ups, Squats, and Pull-ups:

Round 1 = 21 reps
Round 2 = 14 reps
Round 3 = 7 reps

Not too taxing, but I'm still sore form it today (Weds).

Followed with 1 mile run for speed.

All Apologies

I took the last two weeks off from workin' out in order to spend every spare minute of my time laying sod in yard. I spent the last few days getting back in the swing, I'll post my workouts in a short while.

9/3/08

Heavy Metal:

Warmup, building to:

Deadlift: 3 reps for 5 sets

Shoulder Press: 3 reps for 5 sets.

-This is a good time to do some Ab rockin. Two of my favorites are:

-Lie down on decline ab bench. Hold 10 or 25# plate against chest. Contract ab muscles until your shoulder lift off of the bench. Hold this position while press the plate straight up off of your chest.

-Not sure what to call this one: Using a standing cable tower, put a light-medium weight on the stack. Set the handle at chest height. Grab the handle with two hands, facing on a line perpendicular to the stack (as if you were doing a cable-fly). Hold the handle in front of you at arms length, you should be using your ab muscles to fight the rotational force of the weight stack. Keep contracting your abs, and move the handle in tight to your chest, then push it back out again. It should be significantly more difficult to hold yourself facing forward when the handle is pushed out from your chest. I will try and get a video of this, it is a great gut buster.

My Effort: 265# x sets deadlift, 85# x 3 sets, 90# x 2 sets for shoulder press.

Mission Fulfilled

I've been training for this for a while:

9/2/08

Back to school was enough of a workout.

But here's the real deal, not too tough today.

Countdown:

10 Pushups/10 Jump Squats/Rest for 10
9 Pushups/9 Jump Squats/Rest for 10
etc....until
5 pushups/5 Jump Squats (no rest)
4 pushups/4 jump squats
etc.....

Do 2 rounds. Follow with 1 mile run.

Time: 23:57

8/29/08

Not sure what to title this one yet, maybe something will come to me as I go; it promises to be a bear though.

Workout:
1 mile run
75 pull-ups
125 push-ups
175 squats
1 mile run

For time.

I jacked this workout from crossfit.com, but I admittedly cut it nearly in half from the original 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, and 300 squats. I'm not up at that level yet, but it's good to have goals.

Time: 59:10
Whoa. Whoa. That was brutal. My hands are still shaking. That's a whale of a workout, and since I listened to almost all of Led Zeppelin II while struggling through the pullups/pushups/squats, I christen this thing Moby Dick. I broke up the pull-ups and push-ups by doing 25 squats here an there. the pull-ups were killer, I probably had to do negatives for half of them, but hopefully I get better as a result.

8/28/08

Apollo Creed:

Warm-up

5 rounds for time of:

20 single leg squats (10 per leg)
10 Box Jumps
10 Shoulder Presses (60#)

Yee-haw.

Today's Time: 15:33
Slaughtered my previous time of 19:56, with heavier presses even.

8/26/08: Mason Dixon

I've did this workout a couple of weeks ago as a light gap filler, but after some input from Jayson at nevergetsoft.blogspot.com, I've adapted it and worked it into the regular line-up.

Warm up: 5 min light to moderate cardio, light shoulder presses, 15 'air squats'

Workout:
4x10 Reps Deadlift, 195#. Rest for 120 sec. in between sets.

4x10 Shoulder Press, 60#. Rest for 120 sec. in between sets.

Strenuous ab workout of your choice.

Run 20 min.

This is a good strength workout, the challenge being to perform the workout once every two weeks, adding 5# to the shoulder press and 10# to the deadlift each time.

Getting My Oil Changed

The bloodmobile was at our school today, so I took the opportunity to donate (and get free food). As usual I was completed fascinated by the proceedings, including the accidental blood squirtage I achieved when she stuck me with the needle. Gross, I know, but I think this stuff is cool, so bear with me. I also asked the nurse if their were any known health benefits to the occasional bloodletting; she responded in the affirmative by comparing donating blood to getting a cars oil changed.

This confirmed my previous suspicion that similar to muscles, lungs, etc., other body elements such as your kidneys can benefit by being forced to work a little overtime now and then. I'm not sure how long an individual blood cell lives in the body, but it can't hurt to let some of the old ones go every now and then in order to make room for some fresh ones.

8/25/08

Today's Workout Plan:

Do as many rounds in 20 minutes as you can of:

5 pullups
10 pushups
15 body-weight or 'air' squats.

20 minute run.

Nick's Rounds: 8
I'm trying to switch to working out in the morning at least two or three times a week. It's not something I'm used to, so I think that's why I declined from my typical 9 rounds. I did feel as strong in the pullups and pushups as ever, I was just moving a little slowly at the start.

A different approach to training

I've been carefully nurturing a nice little Bhut Jolokia bush on my deck for the last three months. For those who don't know, the Bhut Jolokia is the world's hottest pepper plant. Twice as hot as your garden-variety Habanero or Scotch Bonnet pepper. Mine are almost ripe.

To prepare for the test of eating them, I've been consuming a whole Habanero every-other night for the past two weeks, sans water or any other thirst quencher. My taste buds have acclimated; alas, my digestive track has not.

Anyway, I promise some video of me eating the first pepper, it should be entertaining.

Today

Comfortably uninspiring. Just went to the gym and made this up as I went, didn't feel like putting too much thought into it.

Warm up: The usual cardio and light weights.

Workout:

4 sets x 10 reps of close-grip bench press

Alternates with:

4 set x 10 reps bent-over rows

Switch to:

4 sets x 8 reps military press

Alternate with

4 sets x 8 reps of wide-grip chin-ups.

I've been dealing with what I think is an infection of the fluid in my knee. It's almost better now, but I've been living easy this past week. Still managed to play volleyball and softball though. Dumbass.

8/18/08

Homebrew:

Because I don't feel like heading to the gym.

5 rounds for time of-
20 pushups
10 pullups

Thank god for rafter beams.

Nick's Time: 22:24. It was a tough fight, I definitely wasn't feeling it today. But I finished.

Take it easy

I hate The Eagles.

Anyway, this workout was fairly relaxed, I''m still a little wiped from a tough week last week, and a busy work schedule this week. I did want to get in to the gym and start tuning it back up again, so here's today's action:

Warmup - moderate cardio, light squats, bent over rows, and push presses.

Workout-

Deadlift - 4x10x185#
Push Press 4x10x70#

Not too tought, the presses got to a fairly taxing level, and the deadlifts started to burn pretty good at the end. Just enough to start getting the body back into work mode.

A Little Beat Up

I'm a little beat up (or down) from an arduous week of training and playing last week, including 5 hours of softball on Sunday afternoon, followed by two hours of sand v-ball on Sunday evening. I'm doing a little recoup for a couple of days while attending the Will Steger Foundation's Summer Educator's Institute for Climate Change Research. I did get to meet the intrepid and renowned explorer himself. I was surprised by the fact that he's maybe 5'9'' and about 140lbs, but as they say, big things come in small packages. The guy is pretty amazing. I'm hoping to get a post together on the 7,000 calorie per day nutrition plan that these arctic explorers adhere to while on the ice.

Monday 8/11/08

For Today:

Warm-up - 5 minutes light to medium cardio, low weight bench press, assisted or negative pull-ups. Until you're warm, duh.

Workout:
5 rounds of 10 rep benchpress at as close to bodyweight as you can handle.
Alternate with 5 rounds of pull-ups.

You want to push yourself; it's okay if you take a break midway through a set, but you should be able to get through the first couple rounds without breaking, and if you need more than one break, you should scale it back a tad next time. Or not, I'm not the boss of you. On the pullups, if you need to take more than one break, you can finish with negatives (jump into the 'up' position and then slowly lower yourself back to starting.

Oh yeah, this is timed.

Nick's Time: 18:48. A little slow, but it was a long day and I'm beat up from a physical week.
I switched from the bar bench to dumbbells, just for variety. It's a good idea to rotate between bilateral movements (olympic bar) and unilateral movements (dumbbells) every now and then. More on this in a later post.

Today: Crossfit Total

The Crossfit Total is a good workout thought up by some folks at Crossfit, and makes a good test of overall strength. To find your total, you combine your one-rep maximum weight in the backsquat, deadlift, and shoulder press.

Warm up - 6 minutes of medium-light cardio.

Workout - Crossfit total.

1. Back squat: Start small and work your way up for some warmup reps. If you've never tried to 1-rep max a back squat, get to a weight you know you can do three times, and slowly build from there. After you're warmed up, you get to take the highest score of three attempts as your 1-rep max.
2. Deadlift: Same routine as the back squat, only deadlifting instead. You shouldn't need as much warmup here, since you just finished squats. Best of three 1RM attempts is your score.
3. Shoulder Press: Same drill, only with shoulder presses.

Add up your scores in all three to find your total.

Nick's Total: 600
220# squat + 275# deadlift + 105# shoulder press = 600. My near term goal is to hit 300 in the deadlift, 250 in the squat, and 130 at the shouders.

Today

Pretty Simple:

Run 5k. As fast as you can.

Nick's time: 27:56
I used my Nike ipod deal to figure my time and distance, so they might not be too accurate. When I tested it last summer was fairly close, but I have no way of telling for sure. Either way, I'd like to get my time on this down to 25:00 flat.

Ivan Drago

Ivan Drago (Back-squat count-up)

A revisit to the count-up style workout:

Warmup -
6 minutes of light to moderate cardio

10 squats w/bar

5 squats @ 95#

Workout -
The Drago is a count-up style workout. Set up a stopwatch somewhere near the rack where you can see it. Load the bar with 135#. Start the watch, when it gets to 1:00, do one squat. Rest. When it gets to 2:00, do two squats. Rest. Etc. Obviously, the higher the time, the more squats you do, the less rest you get. It gets tough fast, you'll truly feel like a Soviet killing machine when you're done. Or you'll feel like you just got your ass whooped by a puny American capitalist. Either way, it does the trick.

Nick's Effort: 9 (one better than last time, woo hoo!) I didn't even think about trying for ten. I basically ripped off 17 135# squats in a row, which is a lot of effort for my skinny legs.

Clubber Lang, Round 2

To refresh the memory:

Warm up: light stretching

Exercise:
5 Pullups or Chin ups
10 Pushups
15 Squats

Do as many rounds as you can in 20 minutes.

Finish with 20 min run

Nick's Effort: 9 (again)
I really hit a wall after 8, the 9th is a real struggle, although I did finish with enough left on the clock this time to struggle through 4 more chin ups. Could be all the crappy food I ate this weekend. Well, it tasted good, but not so nutritious. On the run I busted out my Nike deal that goes with my ipod. Not sure how accurate, but it clocked my run at 2.12 miles in 20:15. Ouch. I know I'm long past the 5:30 miles of my Jr. High days, but that's really bad. Looks like more running for me.

Monday Work Out- Something New

After feeling like crap all last week I am finally feeling better and not so sore. I must have had a cold or something.

For today I wanted to try something different. Taking some advice from the Crossfit website I put this together.

Pull ups, Dips, Sprints for time

Jog 200m- Slow pace- Warm up time

10 pull ups
10 dips
run 200m- Moderate pace

10 pull ups w/chair assistance
10 dips
run 200m- Moderate pace

10 pull ups w/chair assistance
10 dips
run 200m- Moderate pace

10 pull ups w/chair assistance
10 dips
run 200m- Fast pace

I did this in my garage and it is wicked hot and humid today. Just over 19 minutes. I would like to be able to more pull ups without having to use a chair to get to done. Pull ups are by far my weakest area so I am going to focus on that for the next 5 weeks. I want to be able to do 25 in a row.

For Today

Fun for Today:

Warm-up:
5 minutes of moderate cardio
15 squats
15 shoulder presses with light dumb bells

Workout:
5 rounds for time of:
10 single-leg squats (10 per leg)
10 bench or box jumps
10 shoulder presses (as much weight as you can hit 10 times; you would ideally fail on #11)

Nick's Time: 19:25 with 55# shoulder presses.
I could have gotten away with 65# presses, but I was really trying to test the limits of my shoulder. Made it the whole way, no pain, no soreness, no problem. Next time I'll go 65#. Not sure what to label this workout. It's not Nietzsche hard, but definitely taxing. I just finished watching all 6 Rocky movies over the last 6 weeks or so, most of them for the first time. I'm a huge fan of the franchise now, (except for that lame dog Rocky V) so I think I'll start naming some workouts after Rocky characters. This lucky workout gets the moniker Apollo Creed.

Trust me, the Rocky Balboa is going to be painful once I invent it.

Heavy Metal

Sammy Hagar fans, rejoice. Heavy metal in the forecast for today. This is a strength building beauty here.

Warmup: 5 to 6 mins of moderate intensity cardio

Deadlift: Build to - 3 reps of all you can lift x 5 sets

Bench Press: Build to 3 reps of all you can lift x 5 sets

No time here, it's okay to take a couple of minutes between sets, you're trying to challenge limits of strength here, not endurance. Eat some serious food tonight.

Nick's Total Effort:
Deadlift: 225# x 3 + 245# x 3 + 255# x 3 + 265# x 3 + 265# x 3 = 3765 total poundage

Bench: 135 x 3 + 145 x 3 + 155 x 9 = 2235 total poundage.

I can't remember the equations for work and power, etc. I know if I had the time I could figure out either total work or power, or one of the two. I'll have to bust out the textbook. Now I have to go eat so I have some energy for softball tonight. I am working towards hitting 300# on the deadlift and 200# on the bench for this workout, it's nice to have this journal going so I can actually track myself a little easier now.

For Today

Clubber Lang:

Do as many rounds as you can in 20 minutes of:

5 pull-ups
10 push-ups
15 squats (bodyweight)

Follow with a 30-minute cycle ride or 20 min run.

Nick's Rounds: 9
Dude, this was more intense than I thought it would be, which just goes to show how smart I am. I'll be sore tomorrow. Kudos to the crossfit.com peeps who can rip off 30 rounds, those guys are crazy.

Monday 7/28/08

Today's Workout:

18 Holes of Golf, Preferably while walking.

Sorry, no workout for me. On Sunday I took in 10 hours of fairly intensive manual labor, followed by two hours of sand volleyball. I feel kind of rickety, no gym workout can duplicate the actions and efforts of actual work and sport, although in my program I try to do so the best I can. So today is basically a rest day, with only 72 (that's a damn lie and you know it!) swings between myself and the couch.

My Workout Slurry

Because getting some good nutrition is especially vital right after a workout, I follow my busters with these options:

1. More cardio intensive days:
24 oz. Water
2 Scoops Fruit Punch Gatorade Powder
1 Scoop Strawberry Whey Protein

2. Heavier Lifting Days
12 oz. Water
2 Scoops MRP Shake. I'm into the Cytosport Muscle Milk at this time, although one is probably as good as the other.

Today's Workout:

Today I added a longer route to my cycling. It's about 15 minutes longer with a bit more incline than my other route. I will bust this one out on some of my non-workout days. Not sure of the mileage.

Today's time: Not sure, I stopped it at a stoplight and forgot to restart it. Rats

One of the workout bonuses of living where I do: I leave from home and roll straight down to the Minnesota River, than turn around bike uphill for about five miles coming back. Extra fun.

Nick's Friday Session

Sorry for the delay, I was lazy after this:

Warm-up

Squats: Warm up to: Five sets of all you can handle for three reps.

My limits: I did all five at 185#

I haven't been religious about doing squats like I used to be, I think I can get this up to 200# pretty quickly. I'll try and work in at least one brutal squat session a week.

My shoulder is feeling good, but I'll give it a little more time.

Rest Day

I was super sore this week and I had to rest two days in a row. I will hit it hard again tomorrow. I never want to get soft.

crossfit!!

Tuesday work out

6 minute warm up

3 minute stretch of just legs and back.

I used two 15 lb dumbells for this:

Left leg back:
1x1
1x2
1x3
and so on to 20.

Rested 4 minutes

Right leg back:

1x1
1x2
1x3

and so on to 12.

I stopped because of my leg hurting.

Woo-hoo!

Rest Day. Actually, I've been beating myself down pretty hard all summer, so I've decided to take the week off in order to let some nicks and dings heal up. It's always a good idea to incorporate some 'off-loading' into a fitness plan so that the body can fully recuperate. This is an important time to watch what you eat.

Major Squatage

Todays Workout: Squats

After my sorry showing last week in the Back Squat Count-up, I decided I definitely need to improve my leg strength and conditioning. As luck would have, I hurt my shoulder a little bit about a month ago, and it apparently isn't one of those injuries that clears itself up as I go, so I need to take some time off from strenuous overhead lifting. My next series of workouts will be leg intensive, and there might be some lower back and ab work thrown in. I will try not to fall back into the traditional 'leg day' mentality, so it will be a challenge to make things interesting.

For Today:

5 Rounds of Back Squats, 3 Reps a round. If you have back issues or are afraid of heavy squats, do one-legged squats instead, and do 7 reps per leg a round.

3o Minute intense bike ride.


When doing the back squats, warm up to the 3 rep weight with a 3 set scaffold. Do the bar, then do something you can hit easily about 8 times, something a bit tougher 6 times, and then begin the 5 round set.

My current squatting goal: 3 reps at 1.5 x my bodyweight, which = 261 lbs. I assure you I am nowhere close to that (I should take some pics of my legs :)); I guess I'll know for sure where I'm at tomorrow.

Jayson's Training for Today:

Bench Press- Body weight

10x185

10x185

10x185

7x185

6x185

I am hoping next week I can finish this. It seems so easy but the last ones get super hard and I struggle to get the last ones up.

Situps

100 situps with 9lb medicine- this in on a decline bench going all the way down and back up.

5 sets of 20.

Next week I am going to do 5 sets of 30. My abs have always been strong from the Army. If I could just kick the good food and beer habit they might actually show up! :)

Oh jeeze...

Today I bring you: The Section 8 Portage. I created this baby after my recent Boundary Waters Canoe Area excursion. The 173 rod portage between Section 8 Lake and Upper Slim Lake gave me the realization that my prior workouts were not getting me in shape, so upon returning I embarked upon the crazy plan that I am now sharing via this blog. In honor of the meanest walk I've ever taken (ANY walk sucks with a 60# backpack and a canoe on shoulders, but this one was especially bad, including one spill in a mud puddle, numerous switch-backs up and down treacherous and slippery rock faces, several downed trees to climb over, and plenty of mosquitoes) I created this 173 rep workout. Enjoy. Oh yeah, don't forget it's for time as well.

"Section 8 Portage"

25 - Pushups

20 - 20# Dumbell Push-presses

30 - 135# Deadlifts

25 - Bench Jumps (Use a typical workout bench, make sure it is stable)

40 - 25# Dumbell Clean and Press (Do 1 side to 20, then switch and do the other side)

10 - Pullups or Chinups

23 - Pushups

If you finish by emitting the loudest, most soul-cleansing string of profanity that you've ever heard, you've successfully navigated the Section 8 Portage

Nick's Time: 20:15
It wasn't as bad as I remembered it being the first time I did it, so my intensity training might be working. The 25# DB Power Cleans were mean, but I could add a little more to the push presses.

For Today: Vertical Push/Pull

I really need to name some more of these workouts so that I can organize them more efficiently. For today's go round, I was originally going to do a plyo-pushup/jump squat countdown, but seeing as it still hurts to walk after Wednesday's fling, I switched up the schedule. Instead, do 5 rounds for time of:

10 Chinups
10 Dips

If you can't do 10 chinups or 10 dips for five rounds, use an assisted machine, or do negatives to help complete the required number of reps. A negative pullup is when you use a bench or partner to get into the 'pulled-up' position, and then you slowly lower yourself using a 5 count until your arms are extended. You can do the same with dips, starting in the extended position and then lowering yourself slowly using a 5 count.

Nick's Time: 15:07
I set the assited dip/pull machine at 80. I started out fast the first two rounds, but by the fourth round I had to split them into two sets of five with a rest in the middle. It was fairly strenous, I can hardly type this my hands are shaking so bad. The beauty of it: I'm on my way out of the gym after 20 minutes, and I still feel like I got a pretty strenuous workout in. I might follow it up with a bike ride or some cardio if my legs weren't so friggin' sore.

Jayson's Daily Hammer Plan

Workout today!

Counts up seated row:

1x70lbs

2x70lbs

3x70lbs

4x70lbs

5x70lbs

6x70lbs

7x70lbs

8x70lbs

9x70lbs

10x70lbs

11x70lbs

12x70lbs

13x70lbs

14x70lbs

15x70lbs

16x70lbs

17x70lbs

10x70lbs

13x70lbs

12x70lbs

I could not make it to 20 without cheating the movement so I stopped. Great bicep workout, along with back. All together a tough but really good workout. I enjoyed it!

Yesterday

Sorry, Thursday the 17th was a rest day. We were to friggin' sore from Wednesday's leg torture, plus we had to get our softball on. Yes, we are pathetically near-middle aged men re-living our childhood fantasy by acting like we own MLB on some softball field every Thursday night. It's awesome. We got killed again, which sucked.

Point being: It's possible but boring to stay in shape just by running, biking, and lifting weights. Playing a sport or two throughout the year gives you some competitive fitness and fun that can't be replicated. I play softball all summer and fall, and then I play volleyball year round.

Also, you should try learning or playing at least one new sport every year. Even if you don't stick with it forever, it's still good fun, and your fitness will benefit greatly from the new experience. This year I'm aiming to do some sort of martial art (Karate, Taekwondo, etc.), Hooverball, and maybe do some climbing.

Jayson's Regimen 7/16/08

I did one legged squats where both feet are one the ground and you squat back with either the left or the right while holding dumbells at your side. I don't know what they are called but I used to do them in the Army to help with our run times.

Here is my workout:

6 minute warm up

3 minute stretch of just legs and back.

I used two 15 lb dumbells for this:

Left leg back:

1x1

1x2

1x3

and so on to 20.

Rested 4 minutes

Right leg back:

1x1

1x2

1x3

and so on to 15.

I ran out of time as I only have an hour at lunch but I don't think I would have lasted very much longer. Sounds easy with this low weight but go ahead and give it a try. My legs feel like jello and I can barely walk up stairs.

I plan on taking a long bike ride tonight to keep my muscles in my legs loose.

Breakfast:

Coffee

Peanuts- 330 calories and some good fat.

Lunch:

Roast beef, ham, turkey, salami with cheese sandwich- NO MAYO -509 calories

Milk 125 calories.

I will probably down a protein shake later and eat a nice meal tonight.

and most important! 4 oz of water every hour all day long to stay hydrated. Drink more if you feel thirsty!!

Today's Agenda: Count-Up (Back Squat)

I'm going with another count-up again today; yesterday I actually did nothing, the deadlift workout was a post from last Friday's torture. I really enjoyed the count-up method though, so I am going to apply it to a different compound movement today: the back squat. Back squats tax every system in the body, so it should be a lot of fun!

To explain the count-up again: Start your watch and let the timer run to 1 minute. Once it hits the 1:00 mark, do 1 back squat. Rest until the timer hits 2:00, then do 2 back squats. Rest until the timer hits 3:00, then do 3 back squats, rest until the timer hits 4:00. Continue this pattern until your squat reps fail to match your minute count (say between 12:00 and 13:00 you only get ten squats in). Obviously, the more reps you do, the lest time you have to rest in between. Record the last minute that you were able to get all the reps in, that is your score for the workout.

I'm doing these at 135#, if you get to the 20:00 mark, end the workout. Next time, increase your weight.

Nick's # of Successful 135# Rounds: 8
Again, this gets brutal fast. Apparently I haven't been doing my squats lately. When I finished the 8 minute 8 reps, looked at the clock, and saw I had about ten seconds of rest before it got to 9:00, I knew I was in trouble. I got 6 reps in before the clock hit 10:00. I was wiped, except I went for a twenty minute run after that. Going to hurt tomorrow.

Jayson's Journal, Day One

I managed to recruit my budy Jayson into this program; we're inventing it as we go. Here's his first day:

3 minute strectch

5 minute warm up

Five rounds for time of:
1. 10 reps x 185
2. 10 reps x 185

3. 9 reps x 185

4. 5 reps x 185 brutal almost passed out. Rested 5 minutes and did abs

5. 6 reps x 185

No pull up bar so I did lat pull downs

5x120 10 reps each

100 situps with 9 lb medicine ball

5 sets of 20.

RESULTS:

My abs are done! my hands are shaking and I am now super hungry.

I have about 670 calories in my body right now. Chicken and bread and coffee.

This is going to get rough.

Today's Menu: Count-up

Today is actually a rest day, but I wanted to throw in a workout I did last Friday so that it can be remembered for posterity, and so that I may kick the crap out of it next time I need an idea for a workout to do.

A count-up is another simple but sadistic (the theme of my program) workout. All you need is one stopwatch and a compound exercise. A compound exercise is one that works the body across multiple joints. A bench press is a compound exercise because it works the muscles across the shoulders (pecs, delts,) and across the elbow (tri's and bi's), plus you use your legs and abs for stability. A bicep curl is a simple exercise in that you are only working one muscle group across one joint. Quite frankly, unless you're starring in the latest rendition of Pumping Iron, doing simple exercises are a waste of your time. A Pull-up or a heavy bent over row will do more for your biceps than isolation curls.

I digress. To run the count-up, pick a compound movement (I choose my favorite, the deadlift, for this round). Take a stopwatch and hang it where you can see it. After warming up, start the stopwatch. When it gets to the one minute mark, do one rep of your compound movement. Rest. When it gets to the two minute mark, do two reps. Rest. When it gets to three minutes, do three reps, rest, etc. As the minutes go up, the reps go up and the rest goes down. It sounds easy, but by the twelve minute mark with the deadlifts I was almost crying, and failed to complete the 12th round, so I scored at an 11.

Score: 11

Bench Press/Pull-up + Hill Run

Today's Menu: '104'

5 Rounds for time of:

10 reps of Bodyweight Bench Press (I'm not there yet, still only pushing 115; my skinnyness couldn't come close to benching my bodyweight 10 times, but I'll get there.

10 Reps of Pullups

Run 'block hills' behind the gym in Jordan, 4 laps, in a run/rest for 1 min/run/rest pattern.

Time: 20:16 for the bench/pull combo. Suprisingly painful, but the pumptitude is spectacular.

I skipped the hill runs in exchange for some softball practice with some of the guys from my high quality D rec squad. We need all the practice we can get.

Ex Post Facto: Countdown/Timed Ride Combo

...I think it means 'after the fact'. Been a while since any of my legal classes, so my Latin is rusty. I just wanted to post my Saturday workout in here, even though it's Monday and I am just starting this journal. It's a killer 50mn routine involving:

- A pushup/jump squat countdown
- A timed bicycle ride around Shakopee

The countdown is simple, brutal, simply brutal. Do this:
- 10 Pushups (do plyo-pushups for as long as you can: push off the ground explosively, clap hands in mid-air before returning to ground).
- 10 Jumpsquats

Rest for 10 seconds, then do 9 pushups, 9 jump squats. Rest for 10, then do 8 and 8, 7 and 7, etc. When you get to 5 pushup/5 jump squats, eliminate the rest and go right to 4 and 4, etc. Keep going until you get down to 0!

Do two rounds of this. I'm working towards three rounds, but right now two are sufficient to put me on the ground for a while.

-Follow the countdowns with a bike ride on a planned loop. Try to aim for about a 30-min ride, which is a good length to be able to push hard without totally killing yourself. TIME THE RIDE! Putting yourself on the clock and then trying to beat yourself the next time you go out is a great way to challenge and push yourself. I use a stopwatch in almost all of my workouts.

This combo is pretty tough, eat a solid meal the morning of and a solid meal afterwords. Try and keep it healthy, duh.

Cycle Time on 7/12/08: 32min 55sec, which topped my prior time of 34:06.

Welcome

This site is created for the purpose of tracking my workout program. It's mainly for my own personal useage, but if you find my methods compelling, feel free to rip them off, I know you'll pay for trying.