Well. I have been visiting this forum for a while. Sometimes I put my 2 cents in, other times not so much. So I decided, being motivated by Stingo, to start a training log here. I will start with a the story of my training life and then get into how I structure my training, then follow up with the last weeks worth of workouts so, if interested, you can get a feel for how things work.
History -
I've been training for the past 19 years. I started as an Olympic weightlifter. Solely because, when I went down into my school weight room, there were 2 coaches who trained O-lifters there. One was a great coach who knew a lot, the other had been in the Olympics a few times. Not a bad crowd to start with.
So, my school years of training involved training and competing in OL. As it turned out I was pretty good and even set the Michigan record in the clean and jerk for my ager group. (that record stood for about 5 minutes. My arch nemesis of the time was the son of on of my coaches. He was a pretty good lifter )
Then I went to college. Didn't know what I wanted to d, but I liked training. So I decided to major in exercise science. I applied at Western Michigan (that was the only school I applied to) and was off on my education path.
There I did not have access to platforms. That was OK. Since I met a great guy who was into powerlifting. So now I was a powerlifter. That went pretty good to. Made it to junior worlds. Did not place. But was happy about how things were going.
Then I met another guy, he was a grad student and had access to the football weight room. So I had platforms again, and, after a lot of range of motion training to be able to do a clean again, I was an OL. That was fun too.
Did an internship, graduated, moved to Columbus Ohio with my then girlfriend. Started personal training. Found the Columbus OL club and started training. Something was wrong though. OL was not really that cool anymore. Strongman sounded fun, there was a guy at the gym who did strongman, so I was a strongman.
I was good at strongman, after a couple of years I qualified for nationals. Then was winning more and more. At the time I was competing against people like Don Pope. Once that crowd turned pro. I got stronger and was pretty good. Got my squat over 800, my bench to 625, and my deadlift to 600 (I guess I was not meant for a great deadlift)
Went to a Pro-Am in California. this were going well. The I injured my back pulling a 500lb chain. So I rethought things.
MMA must be my thing. I got into it, loved it, cut 130lbs in 9 months. Hit between 6% and 8% bodyfat at 200lbs. Felt pretty good. Being small also means being weak. But, I was training like crazy, doing JJ 2X per week and MT 2X per week and having a great time.
Then Something happened, I got kneed 3X in the head from a clinch. As it turns out, I am not that tough and do not want to take any blows to the head.
I stopped training.
My wife got a call from here dad (a developer in SC) wanting her to come down and work with him. So I am from SC now. I was not training.
After about a year, I felt like training again. It just happened that a guy I used to train with in college ran an athletes training center called Athletes Arena. So I had a place to train. It also just happened that his training center was in the showroom for Sorinex Exercise Equipment. It just happened that I got along well with the Sorinex guys. So now I work with them. It is a lot of fun.
This is where I met Bert Sorin, a pro in highland games. So I says, "I would like to try this highland thing." So I compete in highland games now. It is a lot of fun and I have great people to train with. So I get better.
Now my strength is coming back pretty good. I can say the athleticism from throwing is something that is not attainable in OL, PL or strongman. It is really great, I can move better and am more athletic than I have ever been.
Now you know the basic story. I would like feedback in my journal, so feel free to post anything you would like. That will make things a lot more fun.
The following posts will be from the last week of training. You know, to keep things easier to read.
4. 1st Turn Weight Drills - Used the KB. 5 reps on each side. 35lbs, 50lbs, 70lbs, 80lbs.
5. Bench Press w/ Log Training Bar - This is a tough bar. It is harder than the regular bar, the log bar and the E-Z Curl bar. Did triples up to 295lbs.
6. Ring Push-Ups - 3 sets 10 reps. I am as close to parallel as I can get without putting my feet on something. I guess it is time to put my feet on something.
7. Ring Rows - 3 sets 10 reps. These are going very well also. I really like the upper back stretch I get when I relax at the bottom. Very Cool.
8. Lat Pull-Downs - 190lbs. 2 sets 10 reps.
Thoughts -
Everything is feeling pretty good. I like the way these days are going. I am confident my press will start going up with this whole "actually training it on a regular basis" thing.
I really like the ring work as well. I believe that is really helping with shoulder strength and stability.
Woooosh. This day was an emotional roller coaster day.
1. Dynamic Flex
2. Overhead Stone Heave - 15.5lb stone. Mid 40's.
3. Heavy Weight Turn Drills.
4. Heavy Weight - Hit 24 feet on the first throw. Then I hit 29 FEET on the second throw. I thought it was fake for a minute. But it actually happened. Of course I could not duplicate that performance the rest of the day. Hitting 22-25 feet.
Big PR though. I know it is in there. Just a couple of things need to happen to get that 30 foot mark. It feels like I could hit 30 on my next throw if everything lines up right.
5. Light Weight - Here I was not doing well either. Hitting 38-40 feet over and over again.
Then Bert and I decided to have a contest. He was throwing the heavy weight and I was throwing the light weight. He spotted me 5 feet on the throw. So if I hit 40 feet he would have to hit 35 with the heavy to match it.
My first throw I woke up and hit a 46 footer. My second throw I hit 50 feet for a PR. (this was the first 50 foot throw with the light weight) Followed that up with a 49 foot throw. So it ended up being a big PR day.
6. Reverse Hypers - 3 sets 10 reps. 140lbs.
Thoughts -
I learned about the follow through with the weight throws. It seems that, no matter how bad my turns are, I can hit a much farther distance if I have a good follow through. I did some drills in the mirror when we got back into the gym and saw how I have been making my radius much shorter.
Good day all in all.
Wednesday
I woke up this morning pretty sore from throwing last night. The high volume of the day was a big deal. So today the volume is lower.
1. D-Flex
2. Power Skips
3. Hammer Winders
4. 3+1 snatches - 6 sets at 135lbs.
5. KB Snatches - sets of 5 reps each side. 45lbs, 52lbs, 70lbs, 80lbs.
Thoughts -
Lots of soreness from throwing. Took it lighter today so I can really get after throwing on Thursday. The most important thing is getting better at the throws right now. So focusing on being recovered for the throwing days is important.
2. Overhead Stone Heave - The last time DuffMan was in town we were having a head to head battle that I was not winning all the time. Things were different today. I had the upper hand (read, a lot more practice time) and took it with a 44 foot toss.
Though Duffy has some serious "bring it" and hit a 40 footer. With no practice or training at all. Props to the DuffMan.
3. Stone Throw - Average throws 33-35 feet. Dave (The Sehuda) was really helpful with some advice on setting the stone in the right position. That was good and made my throws more consistent.
4. Stone Throw off the Toe Board - The was another good Idea that Duda Sehuda Dave brought to the table. It was a great drill that helped me learn to really follow through and get more use out of my front leg.
5. Stone Throw - Things were a lot better here. With a lot less effort I was able to hit the same 33-35 foot throws using the sweet new follow through I have.
Props to Dave.
6. Hammer - 22lb. Not a ton of throws here, Hit some in the mid 60 foot range. Hauled off 4 throws at 70, 71, 71, and 74 feet. Things are going better.
To the gym.
7. Deadlift - Worked up to a 507lb pull. Low motivation. Then did a few singles at 460 and a set of 5 at 460. Felt pretty good.
Thoughts -
The stone has come a long way. I have the ability to hit 40 feet on any throw coming up now. It is just a matter of lining things up right.
Drill are helping. I like having a good stone drill now. Hammer winders as a drill on off throwing days are going to be a great thing. The turn drill with the weights is great as well. I am learning that doing more drills will help me get a better understanding and feel for the throws.
I decided I am going to bring it with one good exercise after throwing on Tues and Thurs. Having Bert there is better than just doing things on my own in the mornings. Hitting a couple of exercises really intensely will be of great benefit.
Friday
1. D-Flex
2. Power Skips
3. Squat and Press - Worked sets of 5 up to 185lbs.
4. Log Bench Press - worked up to 276lbs for a few sets of 5 and a couple of sets of 10.
5. Log Row - 3 sets 10 reps. Worked up to 211.
6. YTM - 3 sets 15 reps.
Thoughts -
These work days are dong wonders for my recovery. I feel a lot better as well. Sooooooo........ good, good, good.
3. Ninja Fighting - I was using a piece of PVC pipe and Bert was using a rope with a knot on the end of it. We ran around trying to take each other out with extremely "athletic" moves that only the true ninja could even understand. That was a lot of fun.
Tex was in today. That means stuff was happening that most people can't even dream up. He was doing Man Makers (single arm high pull) with the 132lb and 158lb inch dumbbells.
So I tried my hat at picking up the 132lb inch. In the past I have been able to get it to the knee. Today I hoisted it all the way up to hip height. A big feat for me. That was cool.
On to the throwing.
4. Overhead Stone Heave - a bunch of throws. Hit a PR at about 46 feet. Then Tex and I had a contest. Best out of three throws. He hit a 49 footer and I hit a 47 footer. I lost.
To be clear, this was the first time Tex has dome the overhead stone heave. And he was really pretty god at it.
Having a contest with Tex is kind of like having a contest with the Incredible Hulk. It is a lot of fun though. It is always cool to have 'ol Tex around. He is motivating and a lot of fun to be around.
5. Weight Over Bar - This was another good thing. Ended up setting the bar at 12 feet 4" and doing as many reps as I had to do to get it over the bar 10X. It took me 14 throws. Pretty good really since the most times I have hit 12 feet in practice is once. Better is better. My last rep was 6 inches over the bar. Really Great.
6. Sheaf - This was a lot better than last week. Used the 20lb sheaf. We need to set the higher standards up so we can measure the hight in this event.
Back to the gym for some training.
7. Vertimax - 4 sets of 4 or 5 reps of straight vertical jumps with the gray cord pulled out 4 notches. This went well. The jumping is going a lot better for me. Which is sweeeeet.
7B. Vertimax - Alternating step-up jumps. Did these with a jump box. 4 reps each leg. 4 sets.
8. Log Curl and Press - a few reps at 146. Nothing crazy. Did pressing yesterday.
9. KP Single Arm Overhead Press - Nothing heavy here either. 45lbs. 4 sets 5 reps. I held it for a bit at the top and focussed on getting a good lat stretch. The kettle bell stuff has been great for the old shoulders.
PWO - Firehouse subs. Tea.
We then got into organizing the gym and the hallway and the office. Lots of fun, lots of work. Everyone got after it and things are looking great.
The recovery meal after that was brownies and beer.
We decided that it was a good idea to smash a scanner. With my head. So I put on my sweet Ax-Men helmet and let Josh practice hitting me in the head. I noticed that my teeth were a little clinky. So I rolled up a towel and put it in my mouth.
Then Josh and Richard held the scanner up and I charged it like a bull, striking it with the top of my head. The glass broke, people in the parking lot were looking at us like we were crazy people.
We decided that it was a good idea to smash a scanner. With my head. So I put on my sweet Ax-Men helmet and let Josh practice hitting me in the head. I noticed that my teeth were a little clinky. So I rolled up a towel and put it in my mouth.
Then Josh and Richard held the scanner up and I charged it like a bull, striking it with the top of my head. The glass broke, people in the parking lot were looking at us like we were crazy people.
A good time was had by all.
I was with you until this point. The purpose of this was? At the clinky teeth point, I'm like "you know how much dental work costs?"
__________________ Just because your mother thinks you're special doesn't mean I do
Yea. Beverages have a tendency to build courage. (read, reduce the quality of decision making skills) Of course there does not always need to be a purpose. Sometimes it is good to blow off some steam.
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At the clinky teeth point, I'm like "you know how much dental work costs?"
I rolled up a towel and put it between my teeth. It worked out perfect. Stopped the teeth clanking thing anyhow.
Don't worry. Next time it will be somebody else who gets into something dumb. Everyone takes a turn.
Actually, I know 3 people who injured themselves arm wrestling in a bar this year. 2 rotator cuffs and one broken arm. THAT is something you will not catch me doing.
Another guy cut his hand punching through a window. They stitched him up with fishing line and a fish hook they straightened out. Another couple of things you will not find me doing.
Actually, I know 3 people who injured themselves arm wrestling in a bar this year. 2 rotator cuffs and one broken arm. THAT is something you will not catch me doing.
This is why I fear that perhaps arm-wrestling with my students is not an appropriate middle school teacher - student activity. But it does shut them up!
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Another guy cut his hand punching through a window. They stitched him up with fishing line and a fish hook they straightened out. Another couple of things you will not find me doing.
I can tell that this is going to be a really interesting log to read! Welcome to the forums
I'm walking 60 miles for a breast cancer cure, September 11-13, 2009! Please support my walk and help me raise funds for cancer research by donating to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day: http://www.the3day.org/site/TR/Walk/...nal&fr_id=1300
^^^^^^^ I will try to keep things entertaining and interesting.
Yesterday........ Was a pretty good Monday morning workout.
1. D-Flex
2. Power Skips
3. Repeat Broad Jumps
4. Single Leg Repeat Broad Jumps - these felt awesome.
5. KB Weight Drill - sets of 5 on each side. 35lbs, 50lbs, 70lbs, 80lbs.
6. Incline Bench Press - Used the E-Z bar. worked sets of 3 up to 305lbs.
7. KB OHP - 1 set 10 reps. 60lbs.
8. Single Arm KB OHP - Had to go single arm since there are only one of the bigger KB. 2 sets 10 reps. 72lbs.
9. Pull-Ups - 3 sets 5 reps.
10. YTM's - 3 sets 15 reps. 60lbs.
Thoughts -
Inclines felt good. I really like the E-Z bar. Much easier on the shoulders and elbows. The kettle bells went good. Looks like 80lbs is going to be next on the OHP.
My shoulders are feeling great. The KB work really helps keep them healthy.
How many of these jumps are you doing in a row? And what's a D-Flex?
I love reading logs with stuff I don't know. If it sounds interesting, I test drive the exercise.
I've been eyeing KBs ever since I read about them in someone's log. I tried one out in the store and thought how cool but couldn't come up with enough reason to make a purchase. Tom (Stingo) has been using them, and I read his log regularly, so I'm leaning more toward a purchase now. I never thought of them for shoulder health though.
__________________ Just because your mother thinks you're special doesn't mean I do
DanceDiva, sorry it took so long to reply. Been out of town (reason is in the wed-sat section below) Time to answer questions.
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How many of these jumps are you doing in a row?
I do not count. Our indoor turf is 15 or 18 yards. I do the jumps down and back sometimes and just down sometimes. If I do down and back I focus on a quick rebound between every jump. If I just go down I focus on distance. I will usually do 3 or 4 sets.
The single legs I do down with the left and back with the right.
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And what's a D-Flex?
Dynamic Flexibility. It is a series of movements and exercises that I use for warming up. I do not have a specific routine, just whatever it feels like needs to be done. Some of my favorites are -
Lunge w/ rotation
Power T Walk
Power T and single leg squat
Frankensteins (walking with my hands straight out and kicking them with my feet as I go)
Elbow to Instep (lunge down and place the elbow at the instep of the front leg
Knee Grabs
Mountain Climbers
Burpees
There are a lot more exercises. There is a whole 45 minute dynamic flexibility workout. (I don't really know where it all came from, some of it is our own additions, other stuff came from different coaches and trainers that come through) That has been one of the hardest workouts I have done.
I will go up and down the turf, choosing exercises (usually based upon what got trained the day before or what is sore/tight) as I see fit for that day, for as long as it takes to be warmed up.
If I have training partners, sometimes we will play Harlem Globe Trotters with a 4lb or 8lb med ball. Running around in chaos passing the ball around in every imaginable way.
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I've been eyeing KBs ever since I read about them in someone's log. I tried one out in the store and thought how cool but couldn't come up with enough reason to make a purchase. Tom (Stingo) has been using them, and I read his log regularly, so I'm leaning more toward a purchase now. I never thought of them for shoulder health though.
KB are some of the coolest things ever. There are a million simple exercises that can be done with great results. I highly recommend getting some. You will be more than happy.
I had never thought of them for shoulder health either. There is a girl at the gym who is a Russian Kettle Bell Level 2 certified training. (on top of just being incredibly smart) She is the one who really got me thing how to use them for shoulder and back health and general conditioning.
That has been one of the single best things I have added into my training. Not a week goes by where I don't do some sort of swing, press, or drill with the KB.
Thanks for the interest in my log. It is much appreciated.
Tuesday
I am not going to get into the specific things in this workout. Tuesdays are Heavy and Light weight days. I did about 15-20 throws of each. Everything was garbage.
I fell down, got pulled out of the box, threw sideways, traded places with the weight.
Pretty much I had no feeling at all for the weights.
After a PR in every throw, consistently, for the past few months, I guess it was time for an off day. I'm not going to read anything into this. Just that it was an off day and I will be better next time.
Wednesday-Saturday
We left Wednesday morning for Lafayette, LA to put in a weight room for the Ragin' Cajuns. WOW, they got a nice place.
I worked under the head strength coach there when at the University of Miami back in the day. It was great to see him, hang out and have a great time.
Louisiana is a really cool place. Lafayette is a great town. It was awesome to taste the Cajun food there. (I had not been to Louisiana)
I had a crawfish dinner. That was really good, they are like little lobsters. I also had rabbit. That was pretty good too. The crown jewel of the food was Cajun Power Sauce. That was great. I have ordered a case. It is one of the best sauces I have had.
So, Wednesday was a travel day. Thursday we spent the day installing the weight room. They got 10 platforms with attached Base Camp power racks, 6 lat pull-downs, 4 reverse hypers, a belt squat, and 6 glute hams. The room looks awesome, the colors make it look even better.
On to training.
After finishing off some finer points of the install on Friday we got to training, I was excited to use the Big Baby Bar. (this was the first prototype, the Ragin' Cajuns got 5 of them) It is a "cambered" type bar where the weight hangs down about a foot and a half or so. IT FELT GREAT. I was very excited to use it, so -
1. D-Flex - still gotta start with a good warm-up.
2. Parallel Box Squats w/ the Big Baby Bar - This was better than I could have imagined. The swing of the bar creates a lot more work for the core in order to stabilize things. The swing of the bar really hits the spinal erectors, glutes and hams.
Worked sets of 3 up to 390lbs. Then hit some singles with 430lbs. I stopped going up there since I was not used to the swing and stabilizing of the weight.
So, I backed it down to 340lbs and hit a set of 10. WOW, talk about lighting up my spinal erectors in the middle of my back!!!
3. Belt Squats - This was really cool and a lot harder than I thought. I use the belt squat machine. Worked sets of 5 up to 360lbs. THAT, was a LOT harder of a weight than I would have thought. Great work though.
4. Good Mornings w/ the Big Baby Bar - Again, a lot of work for the back and hamstrings. I did the good mornings with my feet close together and leaned down to about parallel. This was really hard because the bar swings out making the lever arm a lot longer.
After all that we talked training for a while and how to do all kinds of different stuff with the new weight room set up. They are going to get really strong in that place.
We traveled back and got back Saturday evening, and it's now, now.
This was a great trip, I will definitely try to make it back to Louisiana. It is a great state with some really awesome food and people.
That is the story for now. Will log again after the workout tomorrow.
KB are some of the coolest things ever. There are a million simple exercises that can be done with great results. I highly recommend getting some. You will be more than happy.
I had never thought of them for shoulder health either. There is a girl at the gym who is a Russian Kettle Bell Level 2 certified training. (on top of just being incredibly smart) She is the one who really got me thing how to use them for shoulder and back health and general conditioning.
That has been one of the single best things I have added into my training. Not a week goes by where I don't do some sort of swing, press, or drill with the KB.
Thanks for the interest in my log. It is much appreciated.
Tuesday
I am not going to get into the specific things in this workout. Tuesdays are Heavy and Light weight days. I did about 15-20 throws of each. Everything was garbage.
I fell down, got pulled out of the box, threw sideways, traded places with the weight.
Pretty much I had no feeling at all for the weights.
After a PR in every throw, consistently, for the past few months, I guess it was time for an off day. I'm not going to read anything into this. Just that it was an off day and I will be better next time.
Wednesday-Saturday
We left Wednesday morning for Lafayette, LA to put in a weight room for the Ragin' Cajuns. WOW, they got a nice place.
I worked under the head strength coach there when at the University of Miami back in the day. It was great to see him, hang out and have a great time.
Louisiana is a really cool place. Lafayette is a great town. It was awesome to taste the Cajun food there. (I had not been to Louisiana)
I had a crawfish dinner. That was really good, they are like little lobsters. I also had rabbit. That was pretty good too. The crown jewel of the food was Cajun Power Sauce. That was great. I have ordered a case. It is one of the best sauces I have had.
So, Wednesday was a travel day. Thursday we spent the day installing the weight room. They got 10 platforms with attached Base Camp power racks, 6 lat pull-downs, 4 reverse hypers, a belt squat, and 6 glute hams. The room looks awesome, the colors make it look even better.
On to training.
After finishing off some finer points of the install on Friday we got to training, I was excited to use the Big Baby Bar. (this was the first prototype, the Ragin' Cajuns got 5 of them) It is a "cambered" type bar where the weight hangs down about a foot and a half or so. IT FELT GREAT. I was very excited to use it, so -
1. D-Flex - still gotta start with a good warm-up.
2. Parallel Box Squats w/ the Big Baby Bar - This was better than I could have imagined. The swing of the bar creates a lot more work for the core in order to stabilize things. The swing of the bar really hits the spinal erectors, glutes and hams.
Worked sets of 3 up to 390lbs. Then hit some singles with 430lbs. I stopped going up there since I was not used to the swing and stabilizing of the weight.
So, I backed it down to 340lbs and hit a set of 10. WOW, talk about lighting up my spinal erectors in the middle of my back!!!
3. Belt Squats - This was really cool and a lot harder than I thought. I use the belt squat machine. Worked sets of 5 up to 360lbs. THAT, was a LOT harder of a weight than I would have thought. Great work though.
4. Good Mornings w/ the Big Baby Bar - Again, a lot of work for the back and hamstrings. I did the good mornings with my feet close together and leaned down to about parallel. This was really hard because the bar swings out making the lever arm a lot longer.
After all that we talked training for a while and how to do all kinds of different stuff with the new weight room set up. They are going to get really strong in that place.
We traveled back and got back Saturday evening, and it's now, now.
This was a great trip, I will definitely try to make it back to Louisiana. It is a great state with some really awesome food and people.
That is the story for now. Will log again after the workout tomorrow.
Agreed about the kettle bells! I love them and can't wait til I can get back to them.
Your Tuesday session sounds like a wash, but you seem to have a really great attitude (can I borrow some of that?).
The trip to set up the weight room sounds like fun. I used to be a DI rowing coach, and after I quit I went back to campus (they named a boat after me) and the new indoor facility was AMAZING. I was so jealous.
I'm walking 60 miles for a breast cancer cure, September 11-13, 2009! Please support my walk and help me raise funds for cancer research by donating to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day: http://www.the3day.org/site/TR/Walk/...nal&fr_id=1300
Your Tuesday session sounds like a wash, but you seem to have a really great attitude (can I borrow some of that?).
It was. When I was younger I would take every workout seriously. If things did not go right one time I was always looking for reasons it happens and how to fix it.
Then, over time, I learned that a single workout is not the measure of how well things are working overall. It is the trend. Right now, the trend is good.
Borrow away.
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and after I quit I went back to campus (they named a boat after me) and the new indoor facility was AMAZING. I was so jealous.
Pretty cool having a boat named after you. It is incredible the training facilities college athletes get these days. It is a mixture between getting results and a recruiting tool that makes it happen. In my eyes, if a school is going to have sports, the might as well put everything into them to be great.
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Your trip to Louisiana sounds fantastic. Good workout and good food. Looks like a slice of heaven to me.
Oh, and "big wave," hi, I'm Tracey.
Install trips are always really cool. Traveling is fun.
Hi, I am Jeff. (my last name is my "forum name")
On to the workout -
Monday-Monday.
Slow start, still stiff from all the traveling. More warm-up Stuff.
1. D-Flex
2. Power Skips
3. Sideways Broad Jumps - 3 sets each direction
4. Kettle Bell Weight Drill - 3 sets
5. Push Press - Used the E-Z Bar. Did sets of 3 up to 235lbs.
6. Kettle Bell Push Press - 60lbs. 2 sets 15 reps. The third set was a contest. Josh and I went for the most reps in 45 seconds. I used 60lb kettle bells. He used 40lb kettle bells. I got 24 reps, Josh got 32 reps. I did not win.
I am pretty happy with 24 reps with 60lb kettle bells. Pretty sweet.
7. Ring Push-Ups - 3 sets 10 reps.
8. Ring Rows - 3 sets 10 reps.
Thoughts -
This was a pretty good day. I am very excited about the KB press. I am better than I thought.
This one was a disaster workout that turned out to be a great learning and work day.
1. D-Flex
2. Overhead Stone Heave
3. Heavy Weight - Threw this a lot of times. Everything was off. I threw a range of -3 feet to 20 feet. Then I stopped thinking about technique and kept my head facing the flags. (we have flags every 10 feet) That worked a lot better, had a bunch of throws at 25 and 26 after that.
My footwork, and everything else was really bad. I was basically turning twice and doing a stand throw. Not bad for a stand throw. If I can get my feet and head doing the right things at the same time things will start getting sick.
4. Light Weight - Lots of throws here as well. Started off pretty bad, 12 feet under my PR. Just had to get things feeling better. By the end I was hitting a bunch 2 feet or so from the PR range. That was good.
Again, if I can get my feet and head to get things right at the same time, we'll be hitting a whole nother level.
Wednesday
Not a ton of work today. Just some basics.
1. D-Flex
2. Power Skips
3. Hammer Winders
4. High Pulls - Pulled the bar as high as possible, then let go. I really like these. I did 3 rep cluster sets up to 289lbs.
5. Power Shrugs - Did these the same, pulled them as high as possible and let it drop. cluster sets of 3 reps. Worked up to 339lbs on these.
Overall Thoughts -
We have been discussing the throwing. I have noticed a trend.
1. Throws start getting better
2. I am excited about getting better
3. I start thinking and focusing on how to get even better
4. That slows the speed of my throws down
5. I get frustrated
6. Technique goes to crap
7. Throw gets better again
8. I learn one new thing
9. That finally integrated into the other stuff I was doing well
10. I am consistently better
I am calling this my 10 step throwing program. That is how things have been going.
On another note, I have been hitting the weights with a higher volume, jumping with a higher volume and doing one heavier exercise per week. (as opposed to one heavy exercise per 2 or 3 weeks) We noticed that my legs have less "spring" with this higher volume. So I will be backing down the non-throwing training for a bit.
I have noticed that the throws take a lot out of me. Maybe it is that they are more intense than I think they should be. Maybe it is throwing 2-3 hours out in the heat that is taxing. Maybe it is that I have an average of 60+ total throws on any given day.
Any way you slice it, that is a lot of work. I believe the speed and power output of throwing is what causes most of the fatigue. (everything else being a factor as well)
This has been an interesting learning experience because I am used to weight training being the only thing I have to worry about. Now I have this throwing as well.
Being a "weight trainer guy" for so long, it is easy to think that I can train in the gym as much as I always have and just add the throwing in on top of it. You know, because the throwing implements are so light and they must not be very taxing.
Alas, that is not true. So I am having to learn more about how to spread weight room work out over longer periods of time. It is good to know.
I will get my Thursday training up now. We had the Open House on Saturday. A lot happened and I have to collect my thoughts before I post about that day.
1. D-Flex
2. Overhead Shot Heave
3. Stone Toe Board Throw - Popped out a 36' throw right away. Pretty good.
4. Stand Throw - 30-34 feet on this one. Good work day. After watching some video I have pinpointed a couple more glaring technique points to fix. That was good.
Lots of throws here.
5. Heavy Hammer - This took a minute to get rolling. Have not done it in a while. Hit a lot of high 60's and a bunch of 70' throws. Not bad. Especially considering how much I slow the hammer down before my release. More winders are in order.
Thoughts -
Bert and I discussed it. We need to get back to some more basics, more drilling. We were drilling a lot about 6 weeks ago, then started letting things slide. Of course there was not a problem initially. Then the basic feel for the throws starts to fall off. (for me anyhow) It started hitting me about 2 weeks ago. It appears that my loss of feel in the throws is directly related to my lack of drilling.
An easy fix. More drills.
I will get some info up on the "Day of Ridiculous Stuff" that was our Open House. So much impressive stuff happened that day. There were a lot of great athletes there.
Saturday was Open House day. I am going to stick with what I did on that day for now. I am sure I will be posting some more cool stuff up over the next few weeks or so.
1. Set-Up Stuff
2. Yoke Walk all over the friggin' place
3. Pea-Stone Bag Lifting - a bunch of different stuff. Cleans, presses, all kinds of coolness.
4. Stone Poppers and Run - a couple of sets here. 5 of each. 230lb stone.
5. Deadlift - Josh and I had a bet. He was going to max, and I will do his max 12X. I was feeling pretty good about it since a couple of weeks ago he pulled a pretty tough 375lbs and did not get 427lbs off the ground. So I figured he would get 427 or so and I would be good to go.
Josh actually pulled 458lbs. SO I was going to have to bring it for the 12 dang reps.
At 8 reps I was getting pretty tired. But hey, who can't do 4 more reps. It was tough.
I feel like Josh and I bonded a little.
Thoughts -
The Open House was awesome. More cool stuff happened that I could have imagined. It turned out great. Everyone that came was great. A good time was had be all.
Well....... I am not sure if it was the deadlifts, the yoke, the sandbag lifting, the stone lifting, or the keg throwing. But man, my right lower ribs are killing me. The throwing day was affected.
1. D-Flex
2. Pud Overhead Heave - Have not done these in a while so I used the 22lb Pud. It went well. I had a bunch of throws around 35 feet. which is the best I have done with that Pud.
3. Heavy Weight - OUCH. Every turn I took my ribs hut and took my breath away. So I decided on 2 warm-up throws and a 3 throw compy with myself. It went well. I had a 25 footer and 2 at 27 feet. My most consistent day ever.
4. Light Weight - about now it was getting hard to breath. I took 1 warm-up throw and had a 3 throw compy. Again things went very well. I hit one 49 foot throw, a 50 foot throw, and a 50 foot 6 inch throw. I was pretty happy with that.
Thoughts -
Yea, my ribs hurt. Bit I learned something. When my ribs hurt I can't tighten up as much. Because it hurts. That kept my throws longer and my radius better. That was good.
I threw by myself today. I think that is good sometimes as well. I did not think about cues or anything. Just the one basic thing I need to do to get better. Follow through. That was good as well.
It was. When I was younger I would take every workout seriously. If things did not go right one time I was always looking for reasons it happens and how to fix it.
Then, over time, I learned that a single workout is not the measure of how well things are working overall. It is the trend. Right now, the trend is good.
Borrow away.
True-- I rarely have a workout that doesn't result in something good, but when I do, I feel really crappy! I'm learning now, to recognize the pattern AND the attitude that makes for a bad workout, and to either fix it before I go, or stay home and allow myself some rest. I'm getting there, in my old age
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Pretty cool having a boat named after you. It is incredible the training facilities college athletes get these days. It is a mixture between getting results and a recruiting tool that makes it happen. In my eyes, if a school is going to have sports, the might as well put everything into them to be great.
Hi, I am Jeff. (my last name is my "forum name")
It was cool, thanks! I coached there for a long time, and some of my former athletes got together after I left and donated the money for the naming rights. It was an overwhelming gesture. The facilities I've seen are mindblowing (you should see what these colleges will pay for a boathouse! MILLIONS!), but yes, a huge recruiting tool. And they work, too. I have to say, though, one of the reasons why I got out of DI athletics was because I had a few too many mothers asking me how much their daughter was worth. Yuck.
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On to the workout -
Monday-Monday.
Slow start, still stiff from all the traveling. More warm-up Stuff.
1. D-Flex
2. Power Skips
3. Sideways Broad Jumps - 3 sets each direction
4. Kettle Bell Weight Drill - 3 sets
5. Push Press - Used the E-Z Bar. Did sets of 3 up to 235lbs.
6. Kettle Bell Push Press - 60lbs. 2 sets 15 reps. The third set was a contest. Josh and I went for the most reps in 45 seconds. I used 60lb kettle bells. He used 40lb kettle bells. I got 24 reps, Josh got 32 reps. I did not win.
I am pretty happy with 24 reps with 60lb kettle bells. Pretty sweet.
7. Ring Push-Ups - 3 sets 10 reps.
8. Ring Rows - 3 sets 10 reps.
Thoughts -
This was a pretty good day. I am very excited about the KB press. I am better than I thought.
Man, I am missing my kettle bells and so hoping that I can safely get back to them soon. I've been doing a lot of ring push ups and rows, though, and aside from the funny looks I get at the gym (have to bring my own suspension trainer in), I am loving them! (ok, I kind of like the funny looks, too!)
I'm walking 60 miles for a breast cancer cure, September 11-13, 2009! Please support my walk and help me raise funds for cancer research by donating to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day: http://www.the3day.org/site/TR/Walk/...nal&fr_id=1300
I'm walking 60 miles for a breast cancer cure, September 11-13, 2009! Please support my walk and help me raise funds for cancer research by donating to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day: http://www.the3day.org/site/TR/Walk/...nal&fr_id=1300
Man, I am missing my kettle bells and so hoping that I can safely get back to them soon. I've been doing a lot of ring push ups and rows, though, and aside from the funny looks I get at the gym (have to bring my own suspension trainer in), I am loving them! (ok, I kind of like the funny looks, too!)
Pretty funny. I have really been liking the ring work. It is very good.
And yea, kettle bells are awesome. Did you get injured? That is why you are not back to the KB?
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Oh, and I'm Kate. My screen name is my childhood cat, who ran away in Cooperstown, New York, when I was 7.
Hi Kate. I can't believe you remember the name of your cat. I can't remember most of my friends names half the time.
My name is Jeff. (can't remember if I said that already) My screen name is my last name with a 1 after it.
Things were great on the 4th of July layoff.
The BBQ was awesome. On of the best spreads yet. I was very happy with myself on that one. ()
After relaxing, training started again on Monday.
1. D-Flex
2. Power Skips
3. KB Turn Drill.
4. Log Clean and Press - went up to 236lbs for a triple. Not Bad.
5. KB Squat and Press - I added in the squat since the push press was going well. This was a lot harder. I really felt my middle working to stabilize at the bottom of the squat. 3 sets 10 reps. 60lb KB.
6. Bench Press - Worked up to 315lbs. Did 5 reps. Shoulders were pretty tiered after the log and KB.
7. Ring Push-Ups - 20 reps.
8. Ring Rows - 15 reps.
Upped the reps on the ring stuff. Time to get better.
9. Band Rotations - 3 sets of 10 reps on each side. Started with the green band. When I rotate to the right that is where the pain in my ribs comes from. and, WOW, does it hurt.
Thoughts -
Dealing with the ribs thing. I am not sure what caused this but I am dealing with it now. I will throw only lightly this week to try to heal. We will see how things go for the game this weekend. It is definitely feeling better. Just a matter of time.
On a training note. After the game this weekend things need to get back to a more basic situation. GPP needs to get a lot better. I also need to train my middle more. Those two things are going to take priority over other training. I will get into more detail about this next week.
2. Band Rotations - 3 sets 10 reps each side. Mini band. Just warming up the 'ol rib area. It worked really well.
3. D-Flex
4. Overhead Stone Heave - 5 throws or so. Pretty good. all in the 44-45 range.
5. Heavy Weight - 3 throws. Just wanted to get a feel, the protect the ribs. It went well. 2 throws at 27' and one at 25'.
6. Light Weight - 5 throws here. All at 50'. Hit about 52 feet. That was goo. A little PR before the game this weekend.
7. Stone Stand Throw - Used the 21.5lb stone. Needed to get used to this since the one at GFM this weekend is going to be a heavy one. Did 12 or 15 throws. Walked it up from 25 feet to 29 feet. Not bad. I am hoping to break 30 at the game.
Hindsight, probably should have played with this stone over the past few weeks. The heavier stone is a LOT different than a 15lb or 16lb stone.
Today was the last practice before Grandfather Mountain. I am really looking forward to it. This is the most relaxed and ready I have felt. Which is a good thing.
1. Overhead Squats - even did some with a clean grip. Josh likes to bet that I can't do stuff. As it turns out, he is wrong a lot.
2. Dynamic Flex
3. Overhead Stine Heave - Duffy was in today. That means I was up for a contest with a 155lb man who does not practice throwing and whose workouts consist of pulls and cheat curls. (maybe I should learn something from that. )
Duff brought it. When it came to compy time he hit a 46 footer. I had to dig deep to get 47 feet. I thought he had a chance to beat me. But no. He choked.
I was relieved. Up until now I thought the Duffman was infallible. I makes me happy to know that he is human after all.
I always feel like I have to do a lot better than him. On account of the fact that he is so much better looking than me.
4. Heavy Hammer - WOW. The ribs are not feeling good on this throw. Still hit 66 feet. We will see how it goes. It looks like that is going to be the only throw significantly effected by the rib thing. Did 3 throws.
5. Weight Over Bar - Only 2 throws. Set the bar at 12 feet. Hit it twice and called it on this one. Feels good.
6. Sheaf - Things are looking up. Hit a 23-24 footer with the 20lb sheaf. That is the best this has felt. Bert is working on a different style and it seems to be the route to go. I can't explain it. I was not thinking, just throwing.
Thoughts -
So the Grandfather Mountain Game is Saturday. I plan on making the cut and getting some PR's in a bunch of my throws. Time will tell, but I feel ready.
I'm walking 60 miles for a breast cancer cure, September 11-13, 2009! Please support my walk and help me raise funds for cancer research by donating to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day: http://www.the3day.org/site/TR/Walk/...nal&fr_id=1300
Thanks for the luck K-to-the-8. It must have worked, since I had a pretty good day.
The game was awesome. Even big Richard showed up in a kilt. No sleeves, and pretty much making every competitor feel small and weak. (I am used to that by now)
We got there, Bert was kind enough to drive my wife and I up the mountain since he had the Pro VIP Parking Pass.
Here is how the day went.
1. Heavy Weight for Distance - I hit 25'7" Don't worry. I fouled a 28 footer. just a matter of time. This was about a 4' PR over my last game.
2. Stone - Hit 31' 3.5" with a 20lb stone. I was happy with that. This was the best the stone has felt. Photo evidence says I need to follow through better and not "swipe" my arm down. This was a 2' PR over my last game. (the last stone was 16lbs too)
I MADE THE CUT. This was pretty cool. Having been a B guy and making the cut in an A game was pretty fun for me. Especially since the field at GM was pretty tough. Definitely the best group of guys I have competed with yet.
That was good.
3. Light Weight for Distance - 51' even. After looking at pictures I see that I have some stuff to work on. I can't really remember what that is right now. But I can assure you that it will show up in another journal entry. That was about a 2' PR over the last game.
4. Weight Over Bar - Stupid knock off bar. The whole aiming thing got me a little bit. Got 11'. Then threw 6" over the bar at 12'. Of course I knocked off the bar and it did not count.
Things to work on. Not hitting the bar in practice.
5. Sheaf - I had a learning experience with this one. The bag was really sticky. Like when I tried it in warm-up I threw it, and it did not come off the fork. I actually had to turn the fork upside down and shake the thing off.
I hit 18' on the first try. At 20' The bag stuck a little and I missed. On the second try the bag stuck a lot and only weight 10 feet.
The third attempt was the learning experience. I figured out that if I stuck the fork in and romped around with it a bit it made the bag slide easier. I did not romp around enough this time and I still had sticking issues.
Nevertheless. I know what to do the next time the bag is really sticky.
That is a good thing.
6. Caber - Got it to 80. Here is the thing about the caber. We need to practice it outside of a game. It does not feel heavy, I just do not have a good grasp of what to do with it once I have it up.
I ran out from under it once. Let it fall too far and pulled too late once. I don't remember the third try. It was the best. I should be flipping every caber I have tried. A little practice and I believe everything will be a lot better.
7. Heavy Hammer - Hit 69' 4.5" on this one. My ribs hurt pretty bad, but the throw felt pretty good. That was a foot and a half PR since the last game I think.
All in all I tied for 7th place. So it is the best I have done in the midst of A people. That is good.
I will get into my changes in training tomorrow after my workout.
On Sunday my wife left GM to go to Ohio to visit some friends. I was riding home with Bert. So we went Zip Lining.
That was cool. We rode in these sweet Swiss Army 6 wheelers up the mountain and took 7 Zip Lines down. I was roughly 5-25lbs over the weight limit. But they said I would survive. Hey, If you cant trust what a 16 year old kid tells you, who can you trust.
Now, I am sure Bert has said someting about me being a sissy or wimp or something to that effect when it came to this Zip Line thing. Let em tell you this.
I am secure in my manhood and do not need to put on false courage to talk myself into doing things. I am perfectly willing to admit that it was a little intimidating to start running and have the world fall out from under me whilst only hanging from and inch and a half strap.
Not to mention that I sagged the line a little bit and hit a tree branch.
Anyhow, this was a lot of fun and well worth the trip. The long Zip was 2000' plus and we reached about 70mph (so the kid said) I yelled at the top and they heard me nearly 1/2 mile away. They said that was the first time that the they had heard someone from that far away. So, you know, another badge of honor.
This was a great weekend and I look forward to the the next game.
Until then I look forward to training, learning, and getting better.
Thanks stingo, you were my motivation to start a log here. I appreciate the grats.
Training has been going on. So I will start writing about it.
Tuesday
Tuesday was good.
1. Reverse Hypers - 3 sets 10 reps. 90lbs.
2. Land Mine Rotations - Warm-Up style, a few sets of some reps.
3. D-Flex
4. Overhead Shot Heave - This was a good day. We called out the distance we were going to throw, then seeing how close we could get to that distance. My first distance was 42 feet.
So Bert put a pine cone at the spot he thought I would hit. I hit the friggin' pine cone. That was cool. Walked it up to about 47 feet.
5. Weight for Height - We started learning the spin, that was interesting. We started with sideways throws over the bar. That went well. Then it was time to spin.
The spin is fun. I got a lot of reps over 11 feet. I suppose that is good for starters. I have a lot to learn on this one, since it made my biceps pretty sore.
On to the weight room. As it turns out. I forgot my training shoes. So I did everything in socks.
6. Squat - worked up to 505lbs.
Super-Set
7. Box Jumps - We used the rubber blocks. Did sets of 5 between the squats. Worked up to 30". That went pretty good too.
8. Squat - We then decided to drop the weight to 325lbs and do some reps. The plan was 4 reps, so I did 10 reps. Then stupid Bert does 20 reps.
I can not live in a world where Bert does more than me in the weight room. So I got myself back together and did a set of 20.
Me - 30 reps
Bert - 20 reps
I win. (though he did spin the WOB 15' earlier. I am not counting that)
A pretty good day. I think the spin could end up being a pretty cool thing.
Wednesday
Today was just a little work day.
1. General Strength Circuit - 8 reps each exercise. push-ups, v-ups, clapping push-ups, throw downs, mountain climbers, leg scissors, burpees.
2. Hammer-Robics - I am now going to call this type of thing robot exercises since it is all about rhythm and staying in time with a weight. We did behind the back robots with a 26lb weight.
This is something I need to do more of.
SHEAF TOWERS
Yes, we extended the towers and now have a 27.5' height we can throw to. That is good since we need to get better at the sheaf.
I'm not sure if the new subforum was around when you started your log, but there is a strongman/oly lifting/powerlifting subforum if you wanted to keep your log there.
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
A Calamity of Coincidence and Success
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Stopped the teeth clanking thing anyhow. 
SO I was going to have to bring it for the 12 dang reps.
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