And Now I Know . . . .

. . . . . . I truly am burned out.

I am still toast after Thursday's workout. Not nearly as sore but just beat up. With that and about 2 weeks of inconsistency, I'm pulling the plug on this cycle. I will still walk in the mornings and do Abs Class 2-3 times a weeek, and I started doing the Elliptical in the afternoons. But no weights. Better to stop, than be stopped.

Did I hit my weightlifting goals? Small "no" but big "yes". Did not test my numbers and with no deload would have not hit them. The one thing I never planned for was a deload leading up to a test week. But looking back, I got stronger and better and more balanced structurally. From April or whenever I first started doing the lift, to December, these were some of the improvements:

1.) Reverse DB Lunges w/Front Foot Elevated: from 50x5 to 100x5
2.) Can now do 1 Clean Pistol, nice and low
3.) Went from not being able to do a pullup to 7 pullups and 1 pullup wearing 32 pounds of body armor.
4.) Hammer ISO High Rows: 90x5x3 to 95x15x3
5.) Hammer ISO Rows (Elbows In): 65x15x3 to 95x15x3
6.) Bulgarian Split Squat w/Front Foot Elevated: 40x5x4 to 110x5x5
7.) Incline Bench Press: 95x10 to 135x13 and from 185 (3rm) to 195x2x12
8.) From Deadlift off 2" Block of 345 to Deadlift off 4" Block of 365.
9.) Smith Machine Box Squat: 285 max to 285x4x6 to 290x2x12
10) Can now barbell curl 115, old PR was 100

And most importantly, I did this while dropping about 32 pounds tops. And I didn't have to diet too hard to do it. As of this morning, I was 209 pounds which was about 3 pounds more than my lowest weight this cycle of 206. I might get close to that before I go home on Monday but even if I don’t, I have come a long way and I get to also walk away with ideas for next year.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

Didn't do the long walk yesterday, but me and a friend took a long walk at night on the runners trail. Very quiet and relaxing, and no snakes or or desert foxes jumped out of the bushes.

Today, I took the 1.25 hour walk in the morning. In the evening, I had a brainstorm. I haven't been doing any high intensity stuff because I'm bordering on burnout. So I do the long walk at night, too, with a twist: on the way down I stop at the gym and do my workout, then finish the walk as a cool down. which felt great and was doable.

Abs Class

Smith Machine Box Squats (slightly below parallel): 185x15x3. Was supposed to do 175 lbs for 3 sets of 15 but felt like adding 10 more pounds. Walked away with a very uncomfortable pump.

Hammer Machine Calf Presses: 185x15x3. Same deal as the squats. One set was toes out, one was toes in, one was neutral.

Leg Curls: 90x15x3. My hammies were pumped to the point of cramping.

Was supposed to do assisted pistols but my legs were so exhausted that I could only do two instead of the usual 10 so I called it a night and went walking.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Have been walking at 6 AM every morning for an hour and 15 minutes, no body armor.

Evening:
Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: Worked up to a 100 lbs 4 RM.

Hammer ISO Super Incline Press: 70x8x4. Only adjustment was to raise the seat to bring the bars more in line with my mid chest. Couldn't lift as much, but it hit my chest a little differently.

Assisted Wide Pullups (Monster Mini Band): sets of 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 3 reps

Hammer ISO Rows (Elbows In): 95x15x3

Barbell Curls: 65x12+3, 65x9+6, 65x3+3+3+3+3. Based the weight off of a 115 max but all my back work taxed my biceps beforehand. Each pause was 10 seconds long.

Barbell Shrugs: 115x15x3

Skipped the aerobics. Felt really beat, didn't want to push too much harder. The workout went a little better than I hoped.

Burnout

Today was to be my ME Bench Day. But when I was working up to a 5 RM on the close grip bench press, I just didn't have it. 205 for a 5 rm was my goal: I hit a 210 max just over a month ago but even 115 felt heavy and slow. I walked out kinda bummed but reminded myself that I had just come off a very demanding bench session just a week before and a week of 12 sets of 2 in a lot of movements. After just over 20 weeks of lifting heavy stuff, I think it's time to deload. I still have a front squat goal I want to hit, too. What to do?

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

Walked for 45 minutes at 6AM.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:
Deficit Deadlift off 4" Box: 145x5, 180x5, 215x3, 250x2, 285x1, 330x1, 345x1, 365x1. Hit my mark with very good form. Everything fell into place.

Evening:
Bulgarian Split Squat w/Front Foot Elevated: 110x5x5

Leg Curls: 150x2x12

Seated Calf Raises: 110x2x12

Leg Raises/Decline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to failure

45 minute walk in body armor.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

Walked in the morning at 6AM for 45 minutes, no vest.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:
Assisted Dip Machine (Weight=BWT-Assistance): 99x10, 139x8, 179x6, 209x4x6
Rear Delt Machine: 130x4x7

Evening:
Abs Class.

Assisted Chinups (Monster Mini Band): Failure at 7, 6, 5, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2 reps

Hammer ISO High Rows: 137.5x2x12. This was unbelievably hard, especially after the chinups.

Incline Lateral Raises (Rest Paused): 10x14+6, 10x12+4+4, 10x10+4+4+2

Hammer Curls: 35x10x4.

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute at 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.8 MPH

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

Been feeling sick the past few days, like a mild cold. So either the new folks arriving from the United States brought something with them (a few people in the offices have been sick, too) or the heavy stuff is catching up to me. I've been sleeping too much and eating too little. So even though I was about half and half, I went in on Saturday instead of Friday. I was so half and half I went in late to ger it done: 1AM on Sunday. I did cut out most of the accessory work, however, to play it safe.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Smith Machine Box Squats: 290x2x12

Hammer Calf Presses: 290x2x12

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

I slept in most of the day, got up at around 2ish, walked for an hour and a half (no body armor), then went to the galley and pigged out on turkey and other grub. Then after a 3 hour nap brought on by the turkey/sugar coma, I woke up at 10PM and went to the gym. Maybe it was the nap or the eats but I had a ton of energy to spare. Got a lot done. It's now 3:18AM and I just called my wife and kid, and my mom in New Jersey to wish them a Happy Thanksgiving.

And that reminds me, Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Incline Bench Press: 195x2x12.

Hammer ISO Super Incline Press: 60x10x4

Assisted Wide Pullups (Monster Mini Bands): Failure at 6, 5, 5, 5, 4, 4, 3, 3 reps

Hammer ISO Rows (Elbows In): 155x2x12

Rear Delt Machine: 115x6x5

Barbell Curls: 95x4, 95x3, 95x3, 95x2, 95x2

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

Walked for 45 minutes at 6AM.

Lunchtime:
Deficit Deadlift off 4" Box: 135x3, 170x3, 205x3, 240x3, 275x3, 305x3, 335x3. Hit my goal weight, a few things fell into place . Kept my toes pointed forward, had the strength, got the glutes engaged a little sooner. This movement is still rounding my back a little more than I'd like, so good mornings or RDLs will be in my future. Next week, I will go for the 365 single.

Evening:
Bulgarian Split Squat w/Front Foot Elevated: 70x10x4

Leg Curls: 60x30x2

Seated Calf Raises: 42.5x30x2

Leg Raises/Decline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to failure

45 minute walk in body armor. Had no legs for running, maybe I should have done intervals on the elliptical instead.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

Walked in the morning at 6AM for 45 minutes, no vest.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:
Assisted Dip Machine (Weight=BWT-Assistance): worked up to a 203 lbs 6 RM (calculated to about 235 1RM), then did 173x10x4

Evening:
Abs Class. New teacher was a Nazi. Or it's been a while, because it sucked.

Assisted Chinups (Monster Mini Band): Failure at 7, 5, 4, 3, 3, 2, 1 reps

Hammer ISO High Rows: 55x30x2

Rear Delt Machine: 100x10x4

Incline Lateral Raises (Rest Paused): 8x25x2. Most continuous reps of any set was 19.

Hammer Curls: 30x12x4.

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute at 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.8 MPH

30 Days

30 Days until I go home. 30 days until I get away from Africa for a while and enjoy sushi and real wine and beer.

And 30 days to lose 10 pounds.

Today, I dropped below 210 for the first time in almost two months (209) - - - I had let myself gain some weight, some muscle and some fat. The Abs Diet may have been just what I needed. Shame I didn't do it sooner. Now, I am taking up the challenge put up by Alwyn Cosgrove in his article about losing 10 months in a month.

Today I walked in the vest for a long walk. The plan is to keep my weight training days the same. Hell, the next 4 weeks are gonna push me to my limit. So I'm gonna do the metabolic circuit like he proposes, but instead will use bodyweight stuff and calisthenics interspersed with sprints ans other running drills (side shuffles, cariocas, suicides) for the 3 days that I don't lift. I will, however, do 16 minutes of intervals after the lifting. Not too much but enough for a response.

I will be walking every morning before work at 6AM, except for Sunday. That's my day to sleep in. Sunday will be a metabolic circuit and a long vest walk. My weigh in day will be Saturday mornings, since I walk past the gym on the way back to my living unit.

Stay tuned.

Abs Class is back again, so I'll be doing that on Monday, Thursday, and Saturday at 6:30PM.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Since the weight for the squats was going to be light, I did all the accessory work first to make the squats harder. As if they weren't going to be hard, eh?!?

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 11

GHR: 5 sets of 7

Hammer Calf Presses: 120x30x2

Leg Raises/Decline Twisting Situps Superset: 5 sets to failure

Smith Machine Box Squats: 120x30x2. I barely got the 30 reps on the first set, and on the second set I had to stop after the 24th rep and catch my breath for 15 seconds before I got the other 6. I could barely walk afterwards. And to think, it doesn't get any easier in the coming weeks: 290x2x12, 95x50x1, 140x25x2, 330x1x15.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:
Incline Bench Press: 190x3x7. The original goal was 7 sets of 4. That changed after the first set when my fourth rep attempt would not go up. Next week is supposed to be 12 sets of 2, and I'll probably do that with 195.

Evening:
Hammer ISO Super Incline Press: 55x12x4

Assisted Wide Pullups (Monster Mini Bands): Failure at 6, 6, 5, 4, 3, 3, 2 reps.

Hammer ISO Rows (Elbows In): 65x30x2. Actually, I barely got the 30 on the first set. On the second set I got 16 reps, rested 10 seconds, the ground out the remaining 14 reps.

Rear Delt Machine: 85x10x4

Barbell Curls: 90x6, 90x4, 90x3, 90x2, 90x1

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

Deficit Deadlift off 4" Box: 145x5, 175x5, 205x5, 235x5, 265x5, 295x5, 320x3. Not too bad but the extra 2" made today's session tough. Strained my inner thigh on the 1st set, but by pointing my toes forward and focusing more, it didn't affect me much.

Bulgarian Split Squat w/Front Foot Elevated: Skipped it due to the strained inner thigh.

Leg Curls: 75x20x3

Seated Calf Raises: 55x20x3

Leg Raises/Decline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to failure

Since I didn't do the split squats, I took the 1.25 hour walk in the body armor instead.

WSFSB III: Re Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Assisted Dip Machine (Weight=BWT-Assistance): worked up to a 213 lbs 4 RM (calculated to about 222 1RM), then did 128x15x3

Assisted Chinups (Monster Mini Band): Failure at 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 2 reps

Hammer ISO High Rows: 70x20x3

Rear Delt Machine: 70x12x4

Incline Lateral Raises (Rest Paused): 8x30x2. Most continuous reps of any set was 19.

Hammer Curls: 25x15x3.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

I blew off this workout on Thursday, and was blowing it off yesterday with dread until 11PM when I forced my own hand and gave it a go. It went better than I feared it wouldn't. But the squats reminded me of why I was dreading the workout: 3 sets of 20 was really hard work. After that, the rest of the workout felt like cardio. Especially since it was late and I was cutting the rest periods just so I could take a shower and get to sleep.

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): after warmups, 155x20x3

Barbell Curls: 55x5, 65x5, 75x5, 85x5, 95x5, 105x3, 115x1. I supersetted these with the squats. 115 is an all time PR for me, a long rep but I strained like crazy until I broke the sticking point (1/2 way).

Assisted pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 10

GHR: 5 sets of 7

Hammer Calf Press: 160x20x3

Leg Raises/Twisting Decline Situps Superset: 5 sets to failure.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Walked in my body armor for 45 minutes

Incline Bench Press: 55x5, 75x5, 95x4, 115x3, 135x2, 155x1, 175x6x5.

Hammer ISO Super Incline Press: 50x15x3

Assisted Wide Pullups (Monster Mini Band): Failure at 5, 5, 5, 4, 4, 4. For the next 3 weeks, no green bands.

Hammer ISO Row (Elbows In): 80x20x3

Rear Delt Machine: 55x15x3

Barbell Curls: Originally, I was gonna do preacher curls, 80 lbs for 4 sets of 8. Am noticing that as the back work gets harder (or I'm burned out on preachers, or both), I can't do reps with a lot of weight on this now. So I switched to barbell curls, loaded the bar up to 100 lbs, and did sets of 3, 3, 2, 1, 0 reps. Because while my arms were too beat for reps, I could do low reps with high weight.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

Front Squat: 95x5, 115x5, 135x3, 155x3, 175x2, 195x1, 215x1, 235x1, 245x0, 245x0. The lighter sets were not crisp, so I knew I was not recovered from the past few days. The first attempt at 245 went under control but at the bottom I had little pop and I got stuck after the first few inches. Second attempt at 245, I tried to push my glutes back a bit more to use my glutes but I had nothing left. I felt kind of bummed but there will be next time.

Reverse Lunge w/Front Foot Elevated: 100x5x5

GHR: 6 sets of 6. Just didn't have it today.

Seated Calf Press: 95x3x10

Leg Raises/Decline Twisting Situps Superset: 5 sets to failure

Tested rear delt machine to a 100 lbs triple.

Long walk in the body armor: 1.5 hours

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

45 minutes of walking in body armor.

Incline Bench Press: 160x8x4.

Chinups: BWTx3x7. The added bodyweight did not make these any easier. Have to kip a bit. Next 3 weeks, will begin to do rep sets with the monster mini bands only.

Hammer ISO High Rows: 125x3x10. After chinups, these were a struggle.

Incline Lateral Raises: Zilch. Had no shoulders left.

Reverse Curls: 55x10x4

Trap Bar Shrugs: 214x5x5

Today began my six week push before I go home. After a month of inconsistent eating and aerobics, my weight is up to 211. Some of it muscle, some of it not. Need to start sleeping consistently, too.

Felt like my head was in a vice. I think it might have been the malaria medication: I normally never take it at night for just this reason (and because it screws with my sleep).

Started the Abs Diet today, and it's actually pretty good. We'll see what happens. Am experimenting with planning what I'm going to eat in advance and writing it on paper, like I do my workouts.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:
Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 135x3, 165x3, 195x3, 235x3, 265x3x10. Yes, 10 sets of 3 reps. I did it, but it bled me dry. Am not looking forward to the evening.

Evening:
Assisted pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 10

Leg Curls: 150x3x10

Hammer Calf Press: 265x3x10

Leg Raises/Twisting Decline Situps Superset: 5 sets to failure. This time, I tried to bring my legs up higher on the leg raises, like a pike. I think this hit the spot: where I could normally do five sets of 8, I failed at 8, 6, 5, 4, and 2 reps.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

2-Board Bench Press (No Leg Drive): 95x5, 120x5, 145x3, 170x2, 195x1, 225x1, 235x3, 245x1. Target reached.

Wide Pullups: BWTx3x7. Hard today. I felt like I was losing it pretty quick as far as my stamina goes. Did get a flu shot today. Hmmmm. . . . . .

Hammer ISO Super Incline Press: 45x20x3

Hammer ISO Row (Elbows In): 140x3x10. God help me, this sucked.

Seated Overhead Shrugs: 175x5x5

Preacher Curls: 70x0. Had neither the shoulders left to support it nor the bicep strength to curl it. SO . . . .

Barbell Curls: Failure at, 10, 8, 6, 4, 3, 2, 1 rep followed by a cluster set of 6 reps. All with the same 70 lbs.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

Lunchtime:
Front Squat: 75x3, 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x3, 195x3, 215x3, 235x2.

Evening:
Reverse Lunge w/Front Foot Elevated: 70x10x4

GHR: Failure at 13, 11, 10, 9, 9 reps.

Seated Calf Press: 55x10x4

Leg Raises/Decline Twisting Situps Superset: 5 sets to failure

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Yesterday:
1.5 hours of walking in body armor.

Today:
Lunchtime:
Incline Bench Press: 145x10x4

Evening:
Chinups: BWTx3x6

Hammer ISO High Rows: 72.5x15x4

Incline Lateral Raises: 15x7+3, 15x7+3, 15x7+3, 15x7+3

Reverse Curls: 50x12x4

Trap Bar Shrugs: 154x10x4

There was no Abs Class tonight and since someone was coming into the office to work on the LAN wiring and I had to watch, no time for aerobics.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 95x7, 115x7, 135x7, 155x7, 175x15x4. Was supposed to do 165 lbs but felt like doing more.

Evening:

Assisted pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 10

Leg Curls: 90x15x5. Was supposed to be 4 sets only, just felt like hammering them.

Hammer Calf Press: 180x15x4

Leg Raises/Decline Situps Superset: 5 sets to failure

Walked in body armor for 45 minutes.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:
2-Board Bench Press (No Leg Drive): 75x3, 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x3, 205x3, 230x2, 215x2. Goal was 230x3 but after the second rep I ran out of steam. Like last week, it launched about an inch or so then stalled.

Evening:
Abs Class

Wide Pullups: BWTx3x6.

Hammer ISO Super Incline Press: 35x30x2, 40x25x2. Decided to switch to this movement instead of the pushups. Felt like I need more upper chest work. To make up for not having done it last week, I did last week's work and today's. Will feel miserable tomorrow, I'm sure.

Hammer ISO Row (Elbows In): 82.5x15x4

Preacher Curls: 60x12, 60x9+3. 60x6+3+3, 60x6+3+3

Seated Overhead Shrugs: 135x10x4

Walked outside in body armor for 45 minutes.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

Lunchtime:
Front Squat: 75x5, 95x5, 115x5, 135x5, 155x5, 175x5, 195x5, 215x5.

Evening:
Reverse Lunge w/Front Foot Elevated: 60x15x3

GHR: Failure at 13, 11, 10, 8, 8 reps.

Hammer Calf Press: 82.5x8x5

Leg Raises/Decline Situps Superset: 5 sets to failure

Blast Strap Ab Fallouts (Knees on Mat): Failure at 5, 4, 4, 3.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:
Incline Bench Press: 125x15, 125x11+4, 125x9+6. It should have been 3 sets of 15 at maybe 50-55% 1RM but I went with 60%, which I could do for one clean set of 15 on the first try, and clustered the other 2 sets.

Evening:
Abs CLass

Chinups: BWTx3x5

Hammer ISO High Rows: 107.5x8x5

Incline Lateral Raises: 10x15, 10x10+5, 10x10+3+2

Trap Bar Shrugs: 134x15x3

Reverse Curls: 45x5x3

30 minutes on the Elliptical

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:
Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 85x4, 115x4, 145x4, 175x4, 205x4, 235x8x5. This workout was pretty good. A lot of work but easier than expected. I could see why some people squat in boots, they really do feel better.

Evening:
Assisted pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 9

Leg Curls: 120x8x5

Hammer Calf Press: 235x8x5

Leg Raises/Decline Situps Superset: 5 sets to failure

Pallof Press Isometric Holds: 30 x 20 seconds x 3

Walked in body armor for 45 minutes.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Lunchtime:

2-Board Bench Press (No Leg Drive): 75x5, 95x5, 115x5, 135x5, 155x5, 175x5, 195x5, 215x4. Almost had that 5th rep but it stalled a few inches after takeoff.

Evening:

Abs Class

Wide Pullups: BWTx3x5. I'm starting now to transition to no band assist for chinups and pullups. My max in a set is 6, so I cut that in half and did 5 sets of that. Week 2 is 6 sets, week 3 is 7 sets.

Pushups (Feet raised 3"): Maxed out at 26 and 13 reps.

Hammer ISO Row (Elbows In): 125x8x5

Preacher Curls: 55x15, 55x8+7, 55x8+4+3

Seated Overhead Shrugs: 105x15x3

Walked outside in body armor for 45 minutes.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Deficit Deadlifts off 2" Block: 145x5, 180x3, 215x3, 250x2, 285x1, 320x1, 355x1, 365x0.
Bulgarian Split Squats w/Front Foot Elevated: 70x10x4

Leg Curls: 90x12x4

Blast Strap Ab Fallouts (Knees on Mat): Failure at 4, 4, 3, 3.

Seated Calf Raises: 60x12x4

20 minutes on the Elliptical.

355 on the deadlifts was one ugly rep, but I had to give 365 a shot. My lower back started to get tired halfway through the sets so I think maybe I was just overtrained on this movement/pulling from the floor. Afterwards, I dropped the weight to 135 and began experimenting with a setup for the reverse band deadlifts that I want to use the next time I deadlift. My first impression is that I will like these better than rack pulls based on feel alone.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

1 hour walking in Body Armor

Blast Strap Pushups w/Feet Elevated: Failure at 12, 11, 10, 9 reps.

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinups (Monster Mini Bands): 3 sets of 8, 1 set of 7

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinups (Average Bands): 4 sets of 10.

Hammer ISO High Rows: 80x12x4

DB Shoulder Press: 65x4x7

Reverse Curls: 40x20x3

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 175x12x4

Hammer Calf Press: 175x12x4

GHR: Failure at 12, 10, 8, 8, 6 reps.

45 degree Hyperextension: Failure at 13, 12, 11, 10, 9 reps.

Pallof Press Isometric Holds: 25 lbs for 30 seconds for three sets

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 9

20 Minutes on the Elliptical.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Flat Bench Press: 95x5, 115x5, 135x3, 155x2, 185x1, 205x1, 225x1, 215x1. Got my 225 back, and with my feet up to boot. I noticed that while I now have a lot more pop off the chest, I slow down a lot 3-4 inches off the chest. So, time to bring out the boards.

Assisted Really Wide Pullups (Monster Mini Band): Failure at 3, 2, 2, 2, 1 reps.

Assisted Really Wide Pullups (Average Band): 3 sets of 9, 2 sets of 8

Hammer ISO Rows (Elbows In): 90x12x4

DB Shoulder Presses: 60x6x5

Preacher Curls: 50x20, 50x12+5+3, 50x10+4+3+2+1

Behind The Back Shrugs: 120x10x4

20 minutes on the elliptical at Level 10.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Deficit Deadlifts off 2" Block: 145x3, 180x3, 215x3, 250x3, 285x3, 320x3

Bulgarian Split Squats w/Front Foot Elevated: 50x15x3

Leg Curls: 150x4x6

Blast Strap Ab Fallouts (Knees on Mat): Failure at 4, 3, 3, 3.

Seated Calf Raises: 100x4x6

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

1 hour walking in Body Armor

Blast Strap Pushups w/Feet Elevated: Failure at 12, 11, 10, 8 reps.

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinups (Monster Mini Bands): 4 sets of 7

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinups (Average Bands): 4 sets of 10.

Hammer ISO High Rows: 130x4x6

DB Shoulder Press: 55x8x4

Reverse Curls: 35x25x2

Behind The Back Shrugs: 100x15x3

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

Ab Class

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 285x4x6. The weights moved slow each set. Afterwards, I felt crushed in every way. I'll blame the volume and the long warmup.

Hammer Calf Press: 285x4x6

GHR: Failure at 11, 9, 7, 5, 3 reps.

45 degree Hyperextension: Failure at 13, 11, 10, 9, 8 reps.

Pallof Press Isometric Holds: 25 lbs for 30 seconds for three sets

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 9

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

I walked for an hour with my body armor on before the workout.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Flat Bench Press: 85x3, 105x3, 125x3, 145x3, 165x3, 185x3, 205x3.

Assisted Really Wide Pullups (Monster Mini Band): Failure at 3, 2, 2, 1, 1 reps.

Assisted Really Wide Pullups (Average Band): 5 sets of 8

Hammer ISO Rows (Elbows In): 150x4x6

DB Shoulder Presses: 45x10x4

Preacher Curls: 45x18+7, 45x14+7+4

Behind The Back Shrugs: 100x15x3

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Deficit Deadlifts off 2" Block: 145x5, 175x5, 205x5, 235x5, 265x5, 295x5, 315x5.

Bulgarian Split Squats w/Front Foot Elevated: 90x5x5

Leg Curls: 135x6x5

Blast Strap Ab Fallouts (Knees on Mat): Failure at 4, 3, 2, 2.

Seated Calf Raises: 82.5x6x5

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

1 hour walking in Body Armor

Blast Strap Pushups w/Feet Elevated: Failure at 11, 10, 9, 8 reps.

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinups (Monster Mini Bands): 4 sets of 6

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinups (Average Bands): 4 sets of 9.

Hammer ISO High Rows: 110x6x5

DB Shoulder Press: 40x12x3

Reverse Curls: 30x30x2

Behind The Back Shrugs: Worked up to 180 lbs 5RM

I Know . . . It's Only one . . .

Finally, after months of working it and trying different methods to do so, I finally achieved my first one legged squat (Pistol). Not a quarter squat pistol, either, but front foot off the ground and well below parallel. Now, to add more, can't sleep on it.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

Much like last week, I did all the assistance stuff first, then the squats with the planned weight. Unlike last week, however, the weight was a lot heavier and it felt like a ton. Just as well, right?!?

Hammer Calf Press: 245x6x5

GHR: Failure at 11, 9, 7, 5, 3 reps.

45 degree Hyperextension: Failure at 13, 11, 10, 9, 8 reps.

Pallof Press Isometric Holds: 25 lbs for 30 seconds for three sets

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 8

Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 245x6x5

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 5 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

Missed Abs Class, so I walked for an hour with my body armor on before the workout.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Flat Bench Press: 75x5, 95x5, 115x5, 135x5, 155x5, 175x5, 195x3, 185x3. My goal was 195x5 but I just didn't have it, 185 would have been a definite. I tried to prove that after the fact, but the moment had come and gone with the 195. A quick note: all my barbell bench pressing since this cycle began has been done with my feet up, to work my bottom end more.

Assisted Really Wide Pullups (Monster Mini Band): Failure at 3, 2, 1, 1, 0 reps.

Assisted Really Wide Pullups (Average Band): 4 sets of 8, 1 set of 7. Ever do a wide grip pulldown with your hands at the bends in the bar? Yes, that wide.

Hammer ISO Rows (Elbows In): 127.5x6x5

DB Shoulder Presses: 35x15x3

Preacher Curls: 40x20+5+5, 40x12+6+4+4+4. I'm using percentages of what I want to lift at the end of this cycle - - - 110 lbs. This gave me a silly pump, almost painful.

Sunday's Weigh In

Went to sleep so late last night . . . . . woke up so late this evening (4PM).

Stopped by the gym before dinner and weighed in at 206. Not 205 but I will take it.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Front Squats: 80x5, 100x5, 120x5, 140x3, 160x3, 180x2, 205x1, 215x1, 225x1. I took away the box and actually liked it better. Not only did I hit my target of 225 with nothing to spare (giggle), but I did all my reps almost ATG. I don't know if it was all the overhead shrugging I've been doing, but I had a much easier time holding the weight at the top than normal.

Reverse Lunges w/Front Foot Elevated: 50x15x3

Leg Curls: 105x12x3

Blast Strap Ab Fallouts (Knees on Mat): Failure at 4, 3, 2, 1. These suck but if they will help me hold my abs flatter and trim me down then I will do them.

Seated Calf Raises: 55x12x3

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Blast Strap Pushups w/Feet Elevated: Failure at 11, 9, 8, 8 reps.

Assisted Wide Grip Pullups (Monster Mini Bands): 4 sets of 5

Assisted Wide Grip Pullups (Average Bands): 4 sets of 10.

Hammer ISO Rows (Elbows Out): 85x12x3

Incline DB Laterals: 15x6x5

Barbell Curls: 95x4x7. I didn't even need to rest/pause it.

Smith Machine Overhead Shrug: 150x4x7

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

Started my morning with two PB&J sandwhiches, 3 small bottles of milk, a multivitamin, a B-Complex, 3 bottles of water, and a nice cup of coffee. By 11 AM, I felt great.

At lunch , I stopped by the gym, loaded 210 on the bar, and got my close grip bench PR cold that I should have had yesterday. Yeah, it was that important!!!

Took a nap after dinner, got up at 8 PM, then hit the gym. Gym was busy, and the Smith was being used. I was feeling pretty good and thought of doing a little more weight on the squats than planned. But I know here that leads, so I came up with the better idea of doing all the assistance stuff FIRST, then the squats with the planned weight.

Hammer Calf Press: 165x12x3

GHR: Failure at 10, 8, 6, 4, 3 reps. I felt like doing a full GHR (GHR/back extension in the same motion) was cheating my hamstrings, so back to doing them without the back extension part. Harder, without the momentum, but that 's the point.

45 degree Hyperextension: Failure at 13, 11, 9, 7, 8 reps.

Pallof Press Isometric Holds: worked up to 25 lbs for 30 seconds, then worked my way back down when a second attempt at 25 pounds lasted 15 seconds. I like this movement.

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 7

Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 165x12x3. Smith was still being used so I did them regular. Even with tired legs, they were solid reps.

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body - Pyrrhic Victory?!?

I walked out of the gym this evening at 206 which means after some peeing during the night I may just wake up at the target I set for myself in April: 205. It would come 13 weeks early.

I will start by giving Christian Thibodeau credit. I read that article of his on T-nation and have so far tried two control days of extremely low carbs. So this past Thursday and today, I had a sensible breakfast of scrambled eggs with tomatoes, mozzarella, and mushrooms and a chicken breast. The rest of the meals (4 of them) were protein shakes with a couple of spoons of peanut butter for fat.

That said, no more while on this phase.

Considering 3 days of Abs Class, 4 days of weights, 4 days of intervals, and 2-3 days of easy cardio, I don't have the headroom to diet like this. Maybe one control day, but even that sucked. I woke up in the morning poorly recovered. Makes me think that I blinked and let my much better original goal of getting lean and strong be taken over by the one where I just wanted to hit 198 or less. I can eliminate some carbs from individual meals here and there and go low carbs on some days like I've been doing in the past, but not this.

Today I was cranky, irritable, scatterbrained, and running on sheer will.

Abs Class

Close Grip Bench Press: 70x5, 90x5, 110x5, 130x3, 150x2, 170x1, 190x1, 200x1, 210x0, 205x0. Last week, I hit a kinda hard 205. Today, 190 nearly burried me and 200 was like a static rep it was so slow. Even after 5 minutes rest, I couldn't hit any targets. A lesson learned, a bitter pill to swallow.

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinups (Monster Mini Band): Failure at 6, 5, 5, 4 reps

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinups (Average Band): 4 sets of 8 reps

Hammer ISO High Rows: 75x12x3

Seated Overhead Shrug: 140x6x5

Barbell Curls: 85x6x3, 85x5+1, 85x6.

Skipped the intervals. I just didn't have it. I just want to crawl into bed.

Bastardized, So You Won't Have To;)

A lot of people send questions to forums wondering whether they should try something or not, whether it will be effective or not, yada, yada, yada. Essentially, thinking or Internet-ing it to death. I have no problem with a more empirical approach: I read about it or plan it, tweak it, try it for a 6-12 weeks, assess it at the end, save it to Excel (On Tsampa.org, Kris has a very effective PR Spreadsheet you can download that is very effective for that purpose), put it in my toolbox or toss it out. Looking at my blog, one sees that I have almost 4 years of workouts, numbers, injuries, mistakes, PRs, and failures to sort through. I know what works and when because of it.

After success with EliteFTS Beginners Training Manual, the next logical progression for me was the Westside for Skinny Bastards III program. Both programs are very similar: my interest in the WSFSB III stems from my eagerness to get away from speed work for a while: I couldn't break my PRs in the bench or squat doing so, I only got so far. I figured that unless I had more muscle and basic strength first, more speed work was not the answer. For me, this template was a good jumping off point.

With WSFSB III, I kept the basic setup. I looked back at my past training and wants and used that to craft rep setups that would work for me for all the rep work. I wanted more rep proficiency than just sticking to 8-15 reps only.

To start, my goal is to get down to the low 190s while keeping or gaining as much muscle as possible. I weighed in at 207 this morning, down 31 pounds since April so I'm getting there. My back is bigger and wider, shoulders stronger and more pain free, traps thicker, overall everything is more solid.

My second goal is perfomance based. When I started out, I couldn't do a chinup or pull up. Now I could do 6. By the time I go home, I'm gunning for a 265 bench at 198 BWT (My best in training is 245 at 240) and at least 425 for a deficit deadlift. I'm gunning for a 365 squat: I won't be able to test it until I get home so since I've been using front squats as a max effort movement, my goal is 275-285 there (about 75% of my squat).

So, what are the tweaks:

1.) ME work is now 5RM for week 1, 3RM for week 2, and 1 RM for week 3. Who says you can't have it all.

1.) Chinups, Pullups, and Rows: At the time, when I was getting close to doing one I couldn't get close without a lot of kipping (flailing might be more like it). I thought of Prilepin's table for maxes in the 90% range (1-6) and started out with six singles but needed a higher volume of total work. The Monster Mini Band allowed me to do this without kipping, and the Average band let me do more reps afterward. 4 sets of each was a nice sweet spot. This replaced the back/rear delt superset on ME and RE Upper Body days. One of my better experiments. Next year, I will probably keep this setup but drop the mini bands, use bodyweight chins and light bands for the rep sets. Instead of doing a bench variation for 2-3 sets of a rep-out, I'm doing repetition work with rows to back up my chins/pullups, instead.

2.) Squats: improving my squat was a bigger priority than the deadlift. The first thought was to turn speed day into a rep day with the box squats: I wasn't good at all rep ranges and I wanted to change that. So I looked back at Chad Waterbury's programs and the New Rules of Lifting and gathered all the rep schemes I could find - - - 18 of them. I arranged them so that every 4th week, one of the schemes would be heavy and so that all the other ones would build up to something more: 5x5, 3x15, 4x10, 6x3, 2x25, 3x12, 5x6, 6x4, 4x12, 5x8, 4x15, 10x3, 3x20, 2x30, 12x2, 1x50, 2x25, 15x1. Then I set a planned progression: I knew from past training waves that I could put on 15 pounds on a squat in three weeks, so every 4th week, the max I calculate from moves up 15 pounds. The last three workout will be 15 singles at 90% of 365 lbs. Since I didn't want to have to worry about balance and just wanted to push weight up, it's all done on the Smith. When I test at home, I'll tell you if it was worth it.

This setup also solves a problem I had in 2005. Back then, I had done a cycle of nothing but front squats, reaching a PR of 275 but the first test of my regular squat afterwards only yielded 300 lbs - - - a 15 pound loss. Fast forward to 2008 and the end of almost two months doing nothing but single leg work, I was able to do ATG squats and had more control and stopping power but my box squat was a struggle at 275. With this setup now (Front squats every other wave and single leg work each leg day), the RE Squat day will make sure I don't lose the groove of the lift that really matters.

3.) Deadlifts: while I'm not making it a priority, I'd be a fool to give it up. Especially, when it is always a great aid in leaning out. So I made quality a priority. In the past, my heaviest deadlifts were always a bitch to get off the floor. I can't do snatch grip deadlifts here in Djibouti, because all the bars are bench press bars with no knurling at the ends. So I began doing deadlifts off a two inch block, conventional grip. These are proving to be a godsend for two reasons. In testing, it sped up my regular deadlift off the floor and made it easier. And in combination with the RE Squat work, my sumo deadlift has now become the near equal of my conventional deadlift.

4.) Bench Pressing: the RE work so far has proven to be a great help. I have control of the weight at all points, and more confidence. Taking a cue from having used the close grip benches and incline benches for repetitions work to good effect, I am just using 3 movements for ME Bench (in order): Incline Bench Press, Close Grip Bench Press, and Flat Bench Press. The first 3 waves are 5/3/1RM setup, in preparation for a wave load setup of the same movements in the last 9 weeks. No boards, no chains, no bands, no top end work. The RE work is all Blast Straps. We'll see how well simple works for me. The last 4 waves of deficit deadlifts and front squats will follow a similar setup.

5.) The same rep changes being used for box squats is being used for: leg curls, Hammer Strength ISO High Rows and ISO Rows, Seated Calf Raises, and Hammer Calf Presses. There really ain't much in equipment at this gym, and I just wanted to move as much iron as possible for some of the support movements.

6.) If you see a lot of bicep work, it has always been a weakness for me. I'm catching up, though. Same for shoulder pressing and shrugs.

7.) I've dropped using the body armor for aerobic work. When I lost my first bunch of pounds, it was a great help 2-3 times a week. But back then, only one of those days was really heavy and I was doing less work. On this program now, walking for an hour with the vest now leaves me a little TOO beat, sometimes even beat up.

8.) The same problem with the single leg movements. This wave, I was doing both Bulgarian Split Squats and Reverse Lunges plus the two squat days and it was just too much. So, I will use the assisted pistols on RE Lower Body Day after the box squats. On ME Lower Body days, I will use the Reverse Lunge with Front Squats and the Bulgarian Split Squat when doing Deficit Deadlifts.

9.) Calves. Why not? The benefits outweigh the negatives, and they don't take anything out of me. Simple.

10.) I'm working shrugs twice a week, sort of. If I'm deadlifting, I do behind the back shrugs on RE Upper Body day. If I'm front squatting, I use overhead shrugs for both upper body days for different rep schemes: I was going to use the trap bar shrugs for a movement but I've done those, and want to see how well the overhead shrugs work.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Abs Class

Front Squats: 75x3, 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x3, 205x3. Was just gonna try 195x3 but, beat as hell as I was, 175 was easier than planned so I went for the 205 triple. I think I will go for 225 next week for a single.

Reverse Lunges w/Front Foot Elevated: 50x15x3

Leg Curls: 60x25x2. Ouch!!!

Hanging Leg Raises: 5 sets of 10. I'm starting to feel as if these and the situps are pointless. I do ab class three days a week, so this feels like a rehash. And after showing someone how to do those Pallof Press Isometric Holds that Eric Cressey wrote about in T-nation, I'm thinking of taking up his suggestion to do that, and maybe Ab Fallouts with the Blast Straps, on my leg days instead of leg raises and situps.

Seated Calf Raises: 40x25x2. Ouch!!!

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Blast Strap Pushups: Failure at 10, 8, 7, 8 reps. Feet were elevated by an aerobic step.

Assisted Wide Grip Pullups (Monster Mini Bands): 4 sets of 5

Assisted Wide Grip Pullups (Average Bands): 4 sets of 10. I almost forgot to mention. Yesterday, on leg day, I tested out at 6 bodyweight chinups andf came close to a 6th on pullups (all with a little bit of kip), so I knew I was in for a breakthrough.

Hammer ISO Rows (Lats): 65x25x2

Incline DB Laterals: 15x6x5

Barbell Curls: 80x8, 80x6+2, 80x4+4, 80x4+2+1+1

Smith Machine Overhead Shrug: 125x8x4, 105x10x4. Made up a day I should have done.

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

Didn't work out yesterday or Tuesday because I was getting over what we call the Djibouti Crud, so I made up for it today. Probably shouldn't have done so on a very low carb day, cause it was a struggle at the finish.

Abs Class

1 Hr of walking with body armor on

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Smith Machine Box Squat: 125x25x2. Who needs aerobics when you got this . . . . after the long walk.

DB Bulgarian Split Squat: 60x10x4

Full GHR: failure at 12, 10, 7, 6 reps

Twisting Decline Situps: failure at 20, 16, 14, 12, 10 reps

Hammer Calf Presses: 125x25x2

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH. I had visions of going to McDonalds after that, but then remembered where I was:(

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

Close Grip Bench Press: 55x3, 75x3, 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x3, 195x2, 205x1. The original goal was 195x3: I stalled halfway up on the third rep. I tried a single with 205 out of curiosity, to see if I had enough for it. So, now next week's goal will either be 210 or 215 depending on how I feel.

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinup (Monster Mini): 4 sets of 4

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinup (Average Band): 4 sets of 8

Hammer ISO High Row: 55x25x2

Seated Overhead Shrug: 95x12x2

Barbell Curls: 70x10x2, 70x8+2, 70x7+2+1

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Front Squats: worked up to a 175x5, 195x2. Should have tried 185x5 but that's OK. I now have a 3RM target. I did these at lunch, so I could test on Reverse Lunges at night.

Reverse Lunges w/Front Foot Elevated: worked up to a 100 lbs 5 RM and a 110 lbs 1RM

Leg Curls: 135x3x6

Decline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to Failure

Seated Calf Raises: 90x3x6

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

Took two days completely off, slept a lot, ate carefully, and felt great today.

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Blast Strap Pushups: Failure at 10, 8, 6, 4 reps.

Assisted Wide Grip Pullups (Monster Mini Bands): 4 sets of 4

Assisted Wide Grip Pullups (Average Bands): 4 sets of 8

Hammer ISO Rows (Lats): 140x3x6

Incline DB Laterals: 15x5x5

Barbell Curls: 65x12, 65x10+2, 65x9+3, 65x7+3+2

Smith Machine Overhead Shrug: 80x15x3

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

My fifth day straight, and I got it done. Barely.

Last night, a new person came to our department from Kuwait that no one knew was coming. No one was here to receive him and pick him up with his 4+ bags, or to get him a bite to eat. And who should happen to just be around last night? Me. No problem, I was glad to do it . . . gotta take care of a shipmate. Afterwards, I went to work out. After that and a shower, I was in bed by 3 AM.

So, no surprise I was running on fumes. And after the walk in the vest, I felt like the beginnings of a flu - - - an overtraining symptom. So tomorrow, instead of sprinting, I'm kicking back. And I gutted this workout through.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Smith Machine Box Squat: 270x3x6

DB Bulgarian Split Squat: 50x15x3

Full GHR: 5 sets to failure

Ab Roller: 5 sets to failure. Didn't take much, and to think I used to think those infomercials were funny!!!

Hammer Calf Presses: 270x3x6

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

Close Grip Bench Press: 55x5, 75x5, 95x5, 115x5, 135x5, 155x5, 175x5.

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinup (Monster Mini): 4 sets of 4

Assisted Wide Neutral Grip Chinup (Average Band): 4 sets of 8

Hammer ISO High Row: 120x3x6

Seated Overhead Shrug: 55x5, 75x5, 95x5, 115x5, 135x5

Barbell Curls: 60x12+3, 60x9+3+3, 60x6+3+3+3. I have a 105 lbs curl 1RM so 55 percent of that is 60 lbs. After all the back work, this just kicked my ass to do 3 sets of 15 but I was not gonna drop the weight to get the reps. So I went to failure, rested 10 seconds, cranked out more reps, and so on and so on.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Deficit Deadlift off a 2" Block: 135x3, 165x3, 195x3, 225x3, 255x3, 285x3, 315x3. Goal exceeded by 5 lbs, but not easily.

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 5.

Leg Curls: 90x10x4

DB Side Bends: 50x10x4

Seated Calf Raises: 60x10x4

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

Didn't really want to be in the gym last night. Because of having to make up workouts to stay on track, my next day off from the gym will be on Wednesday after 5 straight days in the gym. And after Ab Class and 1 hour of walking in the body armor, I was kinda pooped. So I changed a few things today, to give me an incentive to go but also to gauge where I was at. Not bad, not bad at all.

DB Shoulder Press: 25x3, 30x3, 35x3, 40x3, 45x3, 50x3, 55x3, 60x3, 65x2. I wanted to really test on this lift and since I have had more than enough rest then this was the time. So instead of the Hammer shoulder press. I went for a 3 RM on this lift. I will probably just stick with this movement for all my delt work until December, and just change the rep schemes.

Flat Bench Press w/Monster Mini Bands: Worked up to a 115 triple and a 135 pound single. More to see what I could do right now, and where I can set it up. I found a rack, ran one end under it, and attached both ends to the bar. A little on the strong side but good.

Hoist Assisted Dips (Weight is bodyweight minus assistance): 145x8x3

Assisted Chinups (Monster Mini Band): 4 sets of 4

Assisted Chinups (Average Band): 4 sets of 8

Hammer ISO Row (Lats): 90x10x4

Incline DB Curls: 30x5x5

Trap Bar Shrugs: 144x10x4

Current Photos

These pictures were taken on 08SEP05 in the evening, just before my leg workout.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

My calf was better and my toe is almost there, so into the gym I went for a late evening workout (12:00 AM). Felt good to be back. I had gone on Tuesday for x-rays and was told that there were no fractures or broken bones, just a lot of bruising. They gave me some Naprosyn for the pain and an antibiotic for the cuts, and I was on my way. Took a few days off not just to let the toe heal up but also the calf on the same leg: altering my walk and having taken a walk in the vest that day with said walk strained my calf.

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 175x10x4.

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 5.

Full Range GHR: 5 sets to failure

Hanging Leg Raises: 5 sets to failure

Decline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to failure

Hammer Calf Presses: 175x10x4

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

Funny, I was thinking of how to adjust my sprinting workout to be a lot shorter, and fate had an answer (Cue up the theme to "Jaws"). What is everyone's worst fear in the gym?

I was setting up for a 205 attempt on inclines so I went to grab some 35s. Ever thought it was stupid when people fill the pegs on a weight tree to the rim, like coffee? No sooner do I start grabbing a 35, it drops right on my big toe of my right foot. It was one of those pains that took the breath out of me and made me see stars.

I was too spent for that 205, though I could have blamed it on the injury to save face. Anyhow, as soon as the bench presses were done, I took off my sneaker and it was already red and bleeding. I could barely walk on it but I was a little better after 800mg of Motrin, and went to Ab Class at 6:30PM. I was supposed to jog, but walked in the vest instead for an hour. I may have to reconsider that though, my left hip started to get tired so I knew I was already starting to favor my left leg and that ain't a good thing. After I got out of the shower around 9:30PM I looked at my toe and the top half of it is black and blue but the nail was spared.

So, it's either broken or really badly bruised. But since I don't want to be put on light and limited duty (cause then I would have to stay away from the gym) or be possibly sent home, and there ain't much that could be done with it, I'm going to carefully gut this one out. Everything that requires me to push off the toe is out: calf raises, sprints, jogging, maybe even the walks. We'll see how the front squats go, the smith machine squats and deads are fine. I might do the elliptical but may just use the rowing machine for the time being. I'll adjust my diet if I need to.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Incline Bench Press: 75x6, 105x6, 135x6, 165x6, 195x1, 175x6, 205x0, 135x10, 115x15. Tried to do the wave load thing. I think if I had just worked up to a 1 RM, I might have got the 205: I got it down smooth but did not have anything left to launch it with. In the end, the volume was all good.

Assisted Pullups (Monster Mini Band): 4 sets of 4

Assisted Pullups (Average Band): 4 sets of 8

Hammer ISO High Rows: 75x10x4

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: 90x5x5. These should have been a little easier than they were. Then again, I DID do a lot of incline pressing.

DB Curls: 40x5x5. All done clustered, and it was a struggle. Especially with my right arm, usually the strong arm but today lagging a rep or two behind so I need one more cluster with the right arm each set just to get the five. I want to blame the pullups but I think it has something to do with Friday's deadlift workout. I haven't fully recovered from it (remember, I had done a lot of make-up stuff that week), but I have also switched which hands are staggered. For a long time, I always pondered how my left arm has a slightly peakier bicep but a slightly less meaty upper forearm. I always thought that it was because my left hand is the UNDER hand and my right hand is the OVER hand when I deadlift, as it has been since I've been deadlifting. So I switched hands. Ergo, my troubles today.

Targets

Right now, I'm on the first 3 week wave, which is a 215 lbs Flat Bench Press (The targets are in pink). The numbers I use for the Close Grip Bench on RE day are 60 percent of that target for reps, on the DB Curls I'm ahead of the curve, I'm not doing Preacher Curls this wave but I finished the last wave 5 pounds off. I hit the target for Flat DB Bench Press last wave. For Incline Bench Press, I may end up covered up to the 265 pound mark after next week. The Hammer ISO Rows are just listed, not computed: My goals for the ISO rows are 195 (or target bodyweight for each arm, to help my chinups/pullups), and 175 for the High Rows. The percentages for that spreadsheet were based on the structural balance article by Charles Poliquin, an article by Mike Boyle called So You Think You Know Strong, Jim Wendler's Casual Bench/Max Effort Made Easy articles, and pouring through all my workouts and number crunching and figuring out what my best indicator exercises are. As one looks through my workouts, the bench stuff should now make more sense. That is, why and where the numbers are coming from.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

7:30 PM
1 Hour walking with body armor on.

9:30 PM

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Deficit Deadlift off a 2" Block: 135x5, 170x5, 205x5, 240x5, 275x5, 310x3. Was supposed to work up to a 5RM. On the one hand, I should have used 30 lbs increments and attempted a 5RM with 85% of last weeks total (about 295), which I would have nailed. On the plus side, I have a target for next week, when I go for a 3RM.

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 5. A gain in reps is always in season.

Leg Curls: 75x15x3

DB Side Bends: 70x5x5, 45x15x3. Made up for last week with the 5x5.

Seated Calf Raises: 45x15x3

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

3:oo PM:

Close Grip Bench Press: 120x11x3

Assisted Chinups (Monster Mini Band) : 4 sets of 4

Assisted Chinups (Average Band) : 4 sets of 8

Hammer ISO Row (Lats): 75x15x3

Trap Bar Shrugs: 194x5x5, 114x15x3. Made up for last week with the 5x5 sets.

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: 80x8x5. A grind, since my traps were toast.

Incline Curls: 20x10x4

6:30 PM:

Abs Class, and that's it.

Next Stop, 200!!!

This afternoon, before going to lunch (I've been waking up late since I'm on liberty), I went to the gym and checked where my weight was. I finally did it: after being plateaued for two weeks, I hit 209 today. Woo Hoo!!!

The running on the field and the sprint work was just what I needed, it seems. Today, after this workout, I had two rib eye steaks and 2 slices of pizza for dinner and about two hours later my stomach felt empty.

Today was not all perfect though. it was so humid that after some of the sprints I had to walk a lap to catch my breath - - - it was like breathing next to nothing. And I might have pushed too hard: it's 12:26 AM on Thursday morning here in Djibouti and I can't sleep. Was a bit feverish but the Tylenol fixed it. I'll just do my upper body work and Abs Class today, nothing else.

One more pound and I will have dropped 30 pounds since I've been here. If someone had told me this before I left that I would be here, I probably couldn't have imagined it. Now, for your consideration. I was originally gunning for 205 by December. At this rate, I'm looking at the low 190's. If I can hit 190, I will be 48 pounds lighter which would almost be scary because I didn't think I had this much to lose. But we'll see. I'm not trying to pull a Marc Bartley (F'in amazing, I have to say - - - I couldn't believe that was the same guy) and a six pack ain't really that important. I think I could stop at 190.

Walk 2 laps around the field
Jog one lap around the field
Sumo Squat to Stand x 10
Jumping Jacks x 15
Seal Jumping Jacks x 15
Front Skips 40 Yards down and back
Lateral Lunge x 8 per leg
Side Shuffle 20 yards down and back
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, front to back)Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, side to side)Cariocas: 30 yards down and back
60% Build Up Sprint (arm& posture focus) 30 yards down and back
Combination Hamstring/Calf Stretch
Forward Lunge, Elbow to Instep x 8 down and back
Backpedal 30 yards down and back
Drop Squat and Stabilize x 6
Squat Jump (non-countermovement) x 6
75% Build Up Sprint (Knee Drive) (40 Yards Down and back)
Reverse 90/90 stretch
Scorpions x 6
Iron Cross x 6
Wall Push x6
Full Sprint 100 yards
Calf Stretch x 6
Leg Cradle x 6
Inchworm x 6
Glute Bridge (Marching) x 6
Low Pogo Jumps: 3 sets of 20 seconds
Low Pogo Jumps: 3 sets of 20 seconds
Full Sprint 100 yards
Quad Stretch
Inverted Hamstring x 6
Wall Slide x 6
Neck Stretch
Shoulder Complex

WSFSB III: Re Lower Body

I went to the gym this morning at 11:30 and finally hit the 210 lbs mark. I think I have broken my plateau. The addition of the sprints may have helped, or maybe it was just that time. Then, I went to lunch and chilled out until 3:30PM, when I went to workout.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 145x15x3.

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 4.

Full Range GHR: 5 sets to failure

Leg Curls: 120x5x5. Made up for last week;)

Hanging Leg Raises: 5 sets to failure

Decline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to failure

Hammer Calf Presses: 140x15x3

Afterwards, I went to the field (about 100 yards wide and long) and alternated 1 lap jogging with 1 lap walking 8 times. It was almost relaxing: the sun was slowly disappearing, it was humid but breezy, and there was a spirited soccer game going on that I would watch as I walked. This was so much more entertaining than a treadmill.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

Today begins my 96 hours off, so all my workouts are going to be early for 4 days, and I'm gonna try some new things to try and crack that 210 barrier. I weighed in at 12:30 PM today at 211 lbs.

12:30 PM (All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets)

Incline Bench Press: 180x3x4, 180x2. The original plan was 175 for 5 sets of 3 reps but I felt brave. Could only get that 15th rep halfway up but, overall, it went better than planned.

Hammer ISO High Rows: 65x15x3. All the places I could do the pullups were occupied, so I did these. 15 rep sets left my back toasted, which of course meant the pullups were gonna suck.

Assisted Pullups (Monster Mini Band): 4 sets of 3

Assisted Pullups (Average Band): 1 set of 8, 2 sets of 7, 1 set of 6.

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: 55x15x3

DB Curls: 25x12+3, 25x9+4+2, 25x6+4+3+2

3PM:
Dynamic Warm-up Phase (@ means reps each side):Walk 2 laps around the field
Jog one lap around the field
Body Squats x 10
Jumping Jacks x 15
Seal Jumping Jacks x 15
Front Skips 20 Yards down and back
Lateral Lunge x 8 per leg
Side Shuffle 20 yards down and back
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, front to back)Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, side to side)Sideways Running: 20 yards down and back
60% Build Up Sprint (arm& posture focus) 30 yards down and back
Combination Hamstring/Calf Stretch
Lunge Walk 10 steps down and back
Backpedal 20 yards down and back
Drop Squat and Stabilize x 6
Squat Jump (noon-countermovement) x 6
75% Build Up Sprint (Knee Drive)(20 Yards Down and back)

Ground Based Mobility:
Reverse 90/90 stretch
Scorpions x 6
Iron Cross x 6
Wall Push x6
Calf Stretch x 6
Leg Cradle x 6
Inchworm x 6
Glute Bridge (Marching) x 6
Quad Stretch
Inverted Hamstring x 6
Forward Lunge, Elbow to Instep x 6
Drop Lunge x 6
Sumo Squat to Stand x 6
Wall Slide x 6
Neck Stretch
YTWL
Shoulder Complex

This was as far as I got, the sprints killed me and even some of the movements left me beat. Just when I think I'm in better shape, I find something else.

6:30 PM
Abs Class and 1-hr of walking in body armor.

Past Two Days

This week had been very good but I've pushed stupidly in a few spots and have overtrained myself a bit. Sometimes, it's been walking in the vest for an hour plus on the same day I'm squatting. And up until today, everytime I went to the bathroom, I would go outside afterwards and hit a set of pullups and a set of chinups with no bands. That's a lot of chins and pulls.

So no surprise that yesterday I felt drained and my biceps were sore and my back just had little get up and go.

Close Grip Bench Press: repped out with 135 lbs at 8, 6, and 5 reps. Too much weight, I should have really used 115 llbs but I just had to push it.

Assisted Chinups (Monster Mini Band): 4 sets of 3

Assisted Chinups (Average Band): 4 sets of 8

Hammer ISO Rows (Lats): 120x5x5

Trap Bar Shrugs: Skipped 'em.

Incline DB Curls: 15x15x3. Was gonna do 30x5x5 but as I said before my biceps were throbbing.

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: 50x15x3. Was gonna try DB shoulder presses for 65x5x5 but had no shoulder or back left to stabilize it so I did this instead.

Today, to make up for not doing the shrugs and because I was too beat to do a lot and since I haven't deadlifted in the longest time, I made today almost all deadlift. Rather than go 5x5, I just maxed to see where I was.

Leg Curls: tested to a 135 lbs triple.

Deadlift off a 2" Block: Worked up to a 345 single, failed with 375. I surprised myself with this one.

Conventional Deadlift: 375x0. Legs felt strong, back was not. Not after the deficit deads.

Sumo Deadlift: 315x1, 345x1. I have not sumo'd this much in ages, so I think I'm well on my way to that big deadlift I want. With all the deadlifts, my grip felt really strong and I was really holding a tight upper back arch so it looks like all my back and trap work will pay big dividends.

Seated Calf Raises:70x5x5

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

I felt really tired on Tuesday so right after dinner, I went to sleep.

Wednesday, made up for it. Started with 1 hour and 20 minutes of walking in my body armor. Mostly walked the gravel parts, less shock and more work for my calves.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Mobility work and even did some in between squat sets for my legs and hips.

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 245x5x5.

Assisted Pistols (Average Band): 5 sets of 4. A one rep improvement per set.

Full Range GHR: 5 sets to failure

Hanging Leg Raises: 5 sets to failure

Decline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to failure

Hammer Calf Presses: 230x5x5

Didn't have enough in me to run intervals, so I just took the long way home and walked;)

WSFSB III:ME Upper Body

Saturday:
Abs Class and 1-hr of walking in body armor. 5 walks in 6 days.

Sunday: Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!

Monday:
Before I walked in to work in the morning, tested myself on pullups and chinups outside. Hit 3 with minimal kip. Hurrah!

Decided to do same loading I did last wave for DB Benches. Tested incline bench press at lunchtime: 185x3

Abs Class

Incline Bench Press: 165x5x5

Assisted Pullups (Monster Mini Band): 3 sets of 3, 1 set 0f 2

Assisted Pullups (Average Band): 4 sets of 7. First 3 of those sets were almost 8 reps but just didn't have enough to go all the way to the top.

Hammer ISO High Rows: 105x5x5

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: 65x10x4

DB Curls: 30x10, 30x7+3, 30x5+3+2, 30x4+3+2+1. Didn't know how else to write it, so I'll describe it. Based on what I could lift, I calculated I should have been lifting a 27 lbs DB . . . . not gonna happen. So I rounded up. First set was a clean 10 reps, 10th rep was hard. Second set, I failed at 7 reps, rested 10 seconds, got the other 3. Third set, failed at 5 reps, rested 10 seconds, failed at 3, rested 10 seconds, got the other two. As you can guess, last set was a doozy.

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute at 8.8 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: ME, RE, DE Lower Body!!!

Walked for an hour in my body armor to get the blood flowing, then relaxed for an hour;)

My scheduled workout was 250 lbs for 5 sets of 3. But since I missed a squat workout last week that would have made today my singles day (that, and I was once again really frisky), I skipped all the other shit and just squatted.

All Notation: weight x reps x sets

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel)(ME): 135x5, 165x3, 195x2, 225x1, 255x1, 285x1, 295x0

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel)(RE): 250x3x4. Since I had 2 reps above 90% 1RM in the bag, I just did 4 sets of 3.

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel)(DE): 140x2x10. After set 6, I started to get slower.

And thus ends my five week load. I hit all the numbers I wanted to hit except for weight: last
Sunday I weighed in a pound heavier (214) than the week before but today I weighed in at 212. It ain't the 210 I wanted but I will take it. Since I've been squatting more often or gaining more reps in some lifts, I have probably put on some muscle. But 4 days of vest walking has done it for me again. Next week, it will be 4 days of running, 3 days of vest walking, and deadlifts. 18 weeks to go!!!

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Abs Class, 1 hour walk with the body armor.

Incline Bench Press: 135x13, 135x10, 135x8

Assisted Wide Grip Pullup (Monster Mini): 3 sets of 3, 1 set of 2

Assisted Wide Grip Pullup (Average Band): 2 sets of 7, 2 sets of 6.

Hammer ISO Rows (Lats): Since I felt really warmed up from the pullups (and kinda frisky) I went for the PR first, then dropped twenty pounds each successive set and repped those out: 145x2, 125x4, 105x6, 85x11, 65x9.

Preacher Curls: 35x25x2

Behind The Back Shrugs: Worked up to a 190 lbs single

Rear Delt Machine: 65x10x4

10 minute cooldown on the Elliptical.

WSFSB III: RE (?) Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Took a walk in the weighted vest for an hour. Would learn in the end: until I'm used to it again, or maybe never, don't do this before a heavy leg workout.

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 235x5x5. At the end of it, I just felt bushwhacked. But this could be my victory for the night

Bulgarian Split Squat w/Front Foot Elevated: Skipped it.

Giant Set:
Full Range GHR: 5 sets to failure
Hanging Leg Raises: 5 sets to failure
Incline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to failure
Hammer Calf Press: worked up to a 270 lbs triple.

15 minute cooldown on the elliptical. Barely made it through that!!!

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Yesterday, I did jack shit but tested throughout the day on 3 lifts. Got 2 reps on the chinup with no kipping, a one rep improvement. Got 60x7 on the reverse curl: calculated to a 72 lbs max, good up to 265 lbs bench structural balance-wise. Then tested after dinner at 145 lbs in the behind the neck shoulder press, so I'm covered there up close to a 245 lbs bench. My shoulders felt kind of banged up today, so either I need to build this up slowly and stretch my shoulders better or this lift is best used only as a diagnostic tool only.

Today:
Abs Class. Headed to the gym afterward, and there were a shitload of people and not an open bench in sight. So I walked for an hour in my body armor.

Flat DB Bench Press: Worked up to an 85 lbs single per arm. Structural balance-wise, on target for a 215 bench. Met my goal there.

Hammer ISO High Rows: Worked up to a 125 lbs single per movement arm.

Assisted Neutral Grip Chinups (Monster Mini Bands): 2 sets of 3, 2 sets of 2. Better than last week.

Assisted Neutral Grip Chinups (AverageBands): 4 sets of 7. Ditto.

Barbell Preacher Curls: 75x3x4, 85x0 immediately followed by a 75 lbs single, 85x1 immediately followed by a 75 lbs single. Was going to do 75x3x5, but it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be so I went for my goal. Only got it up half way the first time. Figuring that I may have wimped out too soon on that first 85, I made up my mind to get it the second. Oh, I got it but if it were any slower it would have been a static rep!!!

Barbell Shrugs: Worked up to a 200 lbs single.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weights x Reps x Sets

Abs Class

Incline Bench Press: 135x11, 8, and 7 reps.

Hammer ISO Rows (Lats): 120x3x5

Assisted Wide Grip Pullup (Monster Mini): 4 sets of 2

Assisted Wide Grip Pullup (Average Band): 2 sets of 7, 7 sets of 6. More reps is always good.

Preacher Curls: 70x5x5.

Behind The Back Shrug: 175x3x5

Incline Lateral Raises: 15x5x5

15 minute cooldown on the Elliptical.

WSFSB III: RE Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Warmup: 15 minutes on the Elliptical. Mobility work and even did some in between squat sets for my legs and hips.

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 205x8x5.

Bulgarian Split Squat w/Front Foot Elevated: 50x6, BWTx10x5. The goal was 50x10x5. The reality was that the squats took it all out of me. On the first set, lactic acid buildup was kicking in on the second rep and I just couldn't go past it for much. So I dropped the weights, and even 10 reps was work.

Giant Set:
Full Range GHR: 5 sets to failure
Hanging Leg Raises: 5 sets to failure
Incline Twisting Situps: 5 sets to failure
Seated Calf Raises: 70x5x5

15 minute cooldown on the elliptical. I was starting to fall asleep. This low carb thing is so not easy, especially on this workout. This Sunday will be a reprieve. Next Saturday its back to smart eating WITH carbs.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Abs Class

Flat DB Bench Press: 75x3x5

Hammer ISO High Rows: 105x3x5

Assisted Neutral Grip Chinups (Monster Mini Bands): 4 sets of 2

Assisted Neutral Grip Chinups (AverageBands): 4 sets of 6

Barbell Shrugs: 165x3x5

Barbell Preacher Curls: 65x8x5

Not a cardio killer like the sets of 10 or 8. But I almost felt sleepy walking out of the gym,so I was spent in a whole different way.

213/211

Woke up at 2PM, and went to the gym at 3PM. Weighed in at 213 lbs. When the workout was over, I left at 211 lbs. F'in A!!!

To make up for eating like crap while I was sick (and a bit before that) I dropped the sodas, hot cocoa, candy bars, Gatorade, fruit, toast, rice, potatoes, corn. Drank water by the ton. Started Ab Class again. But I think that the muscle I'm gaining under this program has started to push me past that plateau I had at 216. I'll start adding light aerobics on off days and once I buy my new sneakers (my current ones are being held together with duct tape and Crazy Glue), I'll be running intervals again.

My 5 week wave ends next week, and my mini challenge is to get to 210 at the end. At this rate, the 190s are in sight by December 20 target date. Last time I was 190-anything was January 1999. At a pound a week goal, I might just hit 192, and would never have to rope&choke (Navy BMR measurement) again.

Since I will have been working out for 5 days straight on Tuesday and hammered my legs Friday, I only did box squats. I decided to drop speed squats for the next two weeks and will just be doing the same rep scheme I am doing with the preacher curls (5x10, 5x8, 5x5, 5x3, 5x1). I began using the Smith machine because I want to just worry about pushing the weight, not my balance while tired. The 5 sets of 10 took a lot out of me, because I'm not used to repping out this high (Hmmmm, maybe this should be my new speed work). I'm thinking this might help me knock off some pounds, too.

Smith Machine Box Squats (Slightly Below Parallel): 165x10x5

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Incline Bench Press: Repped out at 15, 13, 10 reps with 115 lbs. Maybe, I'll keep the weight the same and gun for 20 reps. Maybe not.

Hammer ISO Rows (Lats): 115x5x5

Assisted Wide Grip Pullup (Monster Mini): 4 sets of 2

Assisted Wide Grip Pullup (Average Band): 3 sets of 6, 1 set of 5

Preacher Curls: 50x10x5. I'm trying to bring up my structural balance on this lift to 86 lbs (It's an 80 lbs 2RM now), what it should be for a 205 bench. Since my reverse curls is already where I need it to be, I'm just doing preacher curls for the next 5 sessions like so (did session 1 today):
Session 1: 5 sets of 10 reps at 60% 1RM (2500 total tonnage)(Intensity/Number of Lifts of 1.25)
Session 2: 5 sets of 8 reps at 75% 1RM (2400 total tonnage)(Intensity/Number of Lifts of 1.6)Session 3: 5 sets of 5 reps at 85% 1RM (1750 total tonnage)(Intensity/Number of Lifts of 1.6)Session 4: 5 sets of 3 reps at 89% 1RM (1125 total tonnage)(Intensity/Number of Lifts of 1.36)Session 5: 5 sets of 1 rep at 94% 1 RM (480 total tonnage)(Intensity/Number of Lifts of 0.833)

Behind The Back Shrug: 155x5x5

Incline Lateral Raises: 12x8x5

WSFSB III: DE Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Box Squat (Average Band): 140x2x8.

Bulgarian Split Squat w/Front Foot Elevated: 60x8x5

Full Range GHR: 5 sets to failure

Hanging Leg Raises: 5 sets of 8

Incline Situps: 5 sets of 14

Seated Calf Raises: 50x8x5

Felt better today, but skipped the intervals.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

Took some Zyrtec in the morning with a cup of coffee and some Tylenol, still feeling a bit sick with a runny nose. As sometimes happens, I ended up with edginess bordering on anxiety, and an even bigger fever (not good in Djibouti). It being the day I also took my malaria medication couldn't be good either. Haven't slept much in two days. Tried to take a nap today for an hour and was delirious. I think after today's session I'll take a few days off.

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Flat DB Bench Press: 70x5x5

Hammer ISO High Rows: 100x5x5

Assisted Neutral Grip Chinups (Monster Mini Bands): 4 sets of 2

Assisted Neutral Grip Chinups (AverageBands): 4 sets of 6

Barbell Shrugs: 155x5x5

Barbell Preacher Curls: 60x8x5

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

All Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Box Squat (Slightly Below Parallel): 205x8x5

Bulgarian Split Squat w/Front Foot Elevated: tested to a 70 lbs 5Rm and an 80 Lbs 3RM.

Full Range GHR: 5 sets to failure: essentially, a back extension to upright position

Hanging Leg Raises: 5 sets of 8

Incline Situps: 5 sets of 14

Seated Calf Raises: 50x8x5

Was feeling sick before I got to the gym and not much better afterwards so I skipped the intervals, took a shower, and went to bed.

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

Notation: Weight x reps x sets.

Incline Bench Press: 115x13, 11, 10 reps. Increased my reps by one each set. Once my first set hits 15 reps, I'll up the weight by 10 pounds.

Hammer Iso Rows (Lats): 100x8x5

Assisted Wide Pullups (Average Band): 6 sets of 5.

Incline DB Laterals: 12x8x5

Behind The Back Shrugs (Smith Machine): 135x8x5

Reverse Curls: 50x8x5

WSFSB III: DE Lower Body

I did not want to work out yesterday. Not enough sleep, hips were beat from walking in the vest (since I'm lifting heavy and doing bands, I might have to do something else.). I took a nap and watched movies until 10:30 PM, then forced myself to go to the gym.

Did 10 minutes on the elliptical, plus 10 minutes of mobility work for my legs and back. In between sets of squats, I stretched and did leg swings and shoulder mobility stuff to stay loose. So I didn't pull anything and woke up pain free.

Hoist Leg Abductor: Worked up to a 100 lbs 5 RM.

Hoist Leg Adductor: Worked up to a 100 lbs 5 RM. They were mopping the gym floor, so I did these while the floor dried. Considering I pulled muscles along my inner thigh last week, this was as much a preventative exercise as it was an accessory movement:

Box Squat w/Average Bands: 140x2x8

Assisted Pistols: 5 sets of 3

GHR Back Extensions: 5 sets of 8.

Seated Calf Raises: Worked up to a 60 lbs 4RM. Lame, but I'll work on it.

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 8.8 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

WSFSB III: ME Upper Body

Yesterday, I started Ab Class and walking with the vest again. I had taken a week off from weightlifting, diet, and aerobics, then started weights but had to deal with the first week's soreness. Even though the walk sucked due to time away and high humidity (the air smelled of ocean), it was good to be back.

Today's workout (All Notation: weight x reps x sets)

Flat DB Bench Press: 60x8x5

Hammer ISO High Rows: Worked up to a 115 lbs single per arm, then did 5 sets of 8 reps at 80 lbs. This was not the plan originally but the only places I could chin were taken at that time, and I didn't want to wait.

Assisted Neutral Grip Chinups (Green Bands): 6 sets of 6

Barbell Shrugs: 135x8x5

Barbell Preacher Curls: 60x8x5. The first two sets were doable, the third was a struggle for the last two reps, the last wo sets were rest paused.

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 8.8 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH. Yeah, these sucked today, too.

These are my goals by the time December 22 rolls around: 200 lbs bodyweight, 375 lbs squat, 455 deadlift, 255 Bench Press.

WSFSB III: DE Lower Body

Box Squat w/Average Bands: 135x2x8. Didn't warmup with stretches, just warmed up starting with an empty bar. Pulled my inner thigh muscle on the first rep of the warmup. Nothing but stretches and leg swings for rest periods. Sucks. Speed was as good as could be expected.

Assisted Pistols (Green Band): 5 sets of 3 per leg. Can't break the 3 rep barrier.

Hoist Adductor/Abductor Machine: Worked up to 90x9 (both adduction and abduction). After having pulled my inner thigh doing sumos then today on box squats, decided to add these to my arsenal. Actually felt better when I was done.

45 Degree Hyper: 4 sets of 15.

GHR: 22 reps (2 sets of 11)

Seated Calf Raises: 40x15x3

WSFSB III: RE Upper Body

Incline Bench Press: 115x12, 10, 9 reps

Hammer Iso High Rows: 65x12, 10, 8 reps

Wide Pullups: 6 singles with 2-min rest in between reps. Needed a little bit of kipping on most of the reps, but tried to make up for that with a slower negative.

Assisted Wide Pullups (Averge Band): 3 sets of 6, 5, and 5 reps

Incline DB Laterals: 15x5x5

Behind The Back Shrugs (Smith Machine): 135x5x5

Reverse Curls: 20x15. 25x15, 30x15.

WSFSB III: ME Lower Body

It should have been DE Lower Body, but today I learned of the stupid limits of the gym here at Camp Le Monier, Djibouti.

I did Ab Class first, which covered me for abs. So at 7 PM I enter the gym, and I have an open squat rack that I could use for the bands but no bars to use. One would think that whoever maintains the gym would know that for each rack/bench press station, there should be a bar. Plus extras for deadlifting and squatting, and they should suit those purposes. As it is, this isn't the case: there ain't enough bars to go around, and they're all for bench pressing. And there was none available. So I went back to the office for a couple of hours to futz around, drank some coffee to keep me from wanting to go to my CLU and go to sleep, then went back to the gym around 9:30 PM.

One squat rack available, but I couldn't use the bands with it. It was flat to the ground with no space to put the bands underneath it. And I had to grab a bar from one of the benches. So, while waiting for the other rack to open up, I figured I'd do sumo deadlifts just to see where I was at. I worked up to a 275 lbs 5 RM from 135 lbs in increments of 30 lbs. I then tried 305 but just didn't have enough left to pull it.

Whoever was using the rack still was not done. Fuck!!!

So I decided on box squats, slightly below parallel. The safeties had missing pins so I couldn't move them up - - - they were a few inches above my ankles. I managed to get to a controlled but grinding 275 single. I then tried 305 and had complete control of it going down but had nothing left to lift it with. And since the pins were too low, I need two people to get the bar off of me.

After all that, I skipped the single leg work, and did everything else. Kinda bummed, but I'll take it.

GHR: 21 reps in two sets.

Hammer Calf Press: 290x5x5.

WSFSB III Begins

DB Flat Bench Press: Worked up to a 70 lbs 3RM, then 75x0.

Incline Bench Press: 95x11, 95x10

Neutral Grip Chinups: 6 singles

Assisted Neutral Grip Chinups (Green Band): failure at 6, 6, 5 reps

Barbell Shrugs: worked up to a 155 lbs 5RM. Sad, really.

Barbell Preacher Curls: 70x4x3, 70x2x2. The original plan was 70 for 5 sets of 5, but I had no biceps left, probably from the chins.

Weight today was 216, even after a week of doing nothing and being relaxed with my diet.

216

Today, on the 4th of July, a complete day off, all I did was sleep. Not like I could pop off fireworks here at Camp Lemonier, our base here in Djibouti. And yesterday's workout drained me. So except to go pee, I didn't get up until 2PM and even then after a shower, shave and toothbrushing, I went back to sleep until 4:30 PM.

Before I went to dinner, I went to the gym to check my weight because I felt really empty. Weighed in at 216 lbs. I may just hit my mini-goal of 210 before this cycle is over which, after a week off, will give me 18 weeks to see how far I could drop while on a powerlifting program.

TBT Week 3 Workout 3

Yesterday: 1.5 hour walk in the body armor.

Today:
Ab Class

Reverse Band Pistols (Cluster): BWTx6x4. I decided to try these instead of just doing the descent. Much like the reverse band squat in priciple: I just hang the bands over a couple of the pull up handles, put my arms through them as if I was gonna swing, then do a pistol. It gives me just enough lauch to get me out of the bottom but not much else. So three reps was all I could get on one leg, then I did three on the other, and repeated the process.

Hammer ISO High Row: 70x15x4

45 Degree Hyper: BWTx15x4

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: 55x15x4

DB Preacher Curls: 20x15x4

DB Extensions (Tates): 20x15x4

Hammer Calf Press: 200x15x4

DB External Rotations: 10x15x4


Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 8.8 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

TBT Week 3 Workout 2

Yesterday: 1.25 hours walking in body armor

Today:
Reverse 90/90 Stretch@4
Inverted Hamstring Stretch@4
Forward Lunge, Elbow to Instep@4
Inchworm@4
Shoulder Complex
Wall Slide
Leg Cradle
Glute Bridge (Marching)(Knee Extension)@6
Drop Lunge (6@)
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, front to back)
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, side to side)
YTWL@10
Drop Squat and Stabilize@3
Squat Jump – Non Countermovement@3
Scorpions (8@)
Iron Cross (8@)


Reverse Deficit DB Lunge: 80x8x4

Hammer ISO Row (Lats): 110x8x4

DB Romanian Deadlift: 160x8x4

DB Incline Raises (Cluster): 15x8x4

DB Preacher Curls: 25x8x4

DB Extensions (Tates): 25x8x4

Hammer Calf Press: 255x8x4

DB External Rotations: 15x8x4

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute 8.8 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

TBT Week 3 Workout 1

I will begin just by saying that I had a huge dinner last night, a couple of big beers, and after I left the Cantina I had the jones for a hamburger, some fries, and a coke. And when I woke up at 2PM and arrived at the gym at 3PM, I still weighed 217. Just had to say that;)

No, I don't do this regularly;)

Bulgarian Split Squat: 80x5x4. Had no easy time of it, considering that I only had a day's rest between this workout and the last one. Thought of Joe DeFranco's description of this exercise as "the one that will crush your hip flexors, glutes, and VMO" as pretty fucking accurate.

Assisted Wide Grip Chinup (Green Band): BWTx5x6. The groove of this one was better than doing the wide pulldowns: my back gave out before my arms and shoulders did.

DB Deadlift (Total Weight): 200x5x4

DB Shoulder Press: 55x5x4

DB Preacher Curls: 30x5x4

DB Extensions (Tates): 30x5x4

Hammer Calf Press: 290x5x4

DB External Rotations: 20x5x4

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 4 intervals of 1 minute at 8.8 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH

217

Took my weight this morning, and weighed in at 217 for a nice one pound drop. So the diet adjustment is working. And I'm sure the squat sessions probably gave my metabolism a boost. I have 25 weeks left in my plan and am actually doing better than expected. 205 was my goal weight but I might end up in the 190s. Maybe, since my heavy cycle begins in 7 weeks.

All I have today is Abs Class. Since I've worked out for three days straight, I'm gonna have some beer and relax.

TBT Week 2 Workout 3

1.25 hours of walking with the body armor on

Pistols (Descent Only): BWTx15x3

Hammer ISO Row (Mid): 70x15x3

45 Degree Hyper: BWTx15x3

DB Incline Raises: 8x15x3

DB Preacher Curls: 20x15x3

DB Extensions (Tates): 20x15x3

Hammer Calf Press: 200x15x3

DB External Rotations: 10x15x3

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 3 intervals of 1 minute at 8.4, 8.6, and 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

I'm glad that I got this week done, 6 more to go. Motivation-wise, it was my toughest week, maybe because I'm bored and want to really start hitting the heavy stuff but after the last two squat days, I'm gonna milk the benefits of single leg work that much more. While my week didn't exactly go as I planned it, that's also the good news;)

Paid!!!

Tuesday:
Took my usual long walk in my body armor. God, I feel so lazy and unmotivated!!!

Wednesday:
I was gonna do absolutely nothing until I got a care package from my wife that contained sour candy, a Father's Day card, pictures, my Blast Straps, Sting Ray, Manta Ray, wrist wraps, and a pair of average (green) bands. Noiw, all of the sudden, I kinda had the motivation to train.

Then I got to my room after work and dozed off!!!

I got up, grabbed my bands, and though I still did not want to work out I wanted to see what my squat was like. I worked up to a slow but steady 205 single in the box squat with the green bands hooked up. My squat has never been this stable or strong before. I'm stoked. I even experimented with setups for chinups, pullups, and assisted pistols (no more descent only, even if it was only enough assist for 2 reps each leg).

Thursday:

After Ab Class, I went in to do the workout that I should have done yesterday. But first, I had an even bigger squat jones to entertain. I wanted to test my squat, ass to grass. I got up to 215 for 5 reps with a full 1 Mississippi pause at the bottom and smooth ascent each time and just left the rest in the tank. Eric Cressey's article that inspired all this single leg work should have come sooner than it did - - - could this be what I was missing all this time?

Then came the regularly scheduled workout:

Reverse Deficit DB Lunge (weight is total): 80x8x3.

V-Handle Pulldown: 105x8x3.

DB Deadlift (weight is total): 190x8x3.

DB Incline Raises: 15x8x3 (Cluster).

DB Preacher Curls: 25x8x3

DB Extensions (Tates): 25x8x3

Hammer Calf Press: 250x8x3

DB External Rotations: 15x8x3

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 3 intervals of 1 minute at 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

TBT Week 2 Workout 1

Friday: Walked in my body armor for 1.5 hours. Played 4 games of really good volleyball. We played a department that we beat the week before and they came out swinging. We still beat them 3 games to 1, but we had to work for it. Then I ran to the CLU and showered and ran to the Cantina to catch Hinder ("Lips of An Angel"), who were kind enough to do a free concert for the troops. They kicked ass.

Saturday: Same thing. Right after Ab Class.

Sunday: Should have worked out. Slept until 2PM, went to check my weight (now I'm 218), got a haircut, futzed around on the computer at work, ate a really good dinner (Been eating lower carbohydrate diet to stimulate some fat loss, but today was not the day.), took a two hour nap, talked to a friend of mine I've been playing phone tag with for weeks and finally reached her. There went the day.

Today: Made up for not working out Sunday by doing Week 3's workout.

5:15PM:
Reverse 90/90 Stretch@4
Inverted Hamstring Stretch@4
Forward Lunge, Elbow to Instep@4
Quad Stretch
Combination Hamstring/Calf Stretch
Inchworm@4
Shoulder Complex
Leg Cradle
Glute Bridge (Marching)(Knee Extension)@6
Knee Hug
Drop Lunge (6@)
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, front to back)
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, side to side)
YTWL@10
Drop Squat and Stabilize@3
Squat Jump – Non Countermovement@3
Scorpions (8@)
Iron Cross (8@)
Fire Hydrant Circles (10@, forward and backward)
Low Pogo Jumps: 3 sets of 20 seconds
High Pogo Jumps: 3 sets of 20 seconds

6:30PM: Ab Class


7:00PM:
DB Bulgarian Split Squats (weight is total): 40x5x4

Wide Grip Lat Pulldown: 105x5x4

DB Romanian Deadlift (weight is total): 180x5x4

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: 85x5x4

DB Preacher Curls: 30x5x4

DB Extensions (Tates): 30x5x4

Hammer Calf Press: Worked up to 290x5x4

DB External Rotations: 20x5x4

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 3 intervals of 1 minute at 8.4 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

TBT Week 1 Workout 3

Yesterday, I walked for 1.5 hours in my body armor. Weather is now blowing in from the desert so I wasn't dripping wet at the end. Just wet. The nights are starting not to be as cool anymore.

Today, I decided to test my 15RM on some movements rather than bet on the 50-55% of my 1RM last cycle. I ended up surprising myself and having a great workout.

6:30PM-7:00PM: Abs Class for 30 minutes

8:00PM - On

Pistols (Descent Only): BWTx15x3

Hammer ISO Row (Mid): 60x15, 65x15, 75x13

45 Degree Hyper: BWTx15x3

DB Shoulder Press: 30x15, 35x11, 30x15

DB Preacher Curls: 15x15, 20x15x2

DB Extensions (Tates): 15x15, 20x15x2

Hammer Calf Press: 200x15x3

DB External Rotations: 10x15x3


Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 3 intervals of 1 minute at 8.4, 8.6, and 9.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

TBT Week 1 Workout 2

Mobility/Warmup:
Reverse 90/90 Stretch
Inverted Hamstring Stretch
Forward Lunge, Elbow to Instep
Inchworm
Shoulder Complex
Leg Cradle
Glute Bridge (Marching)(Knee Extension)
Knee Hug
Drop Lunge
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, front to back)
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, side to side)
YTWL
Drop Squat and Stabilize
Squat Jump – Non Countermovement
Scorpions
Iron Cross
Fire Hydrant Circles
Low Pogo Jumps: 3 sets of 20 seconds
High Pogo Jumps: 3 sets of 20 seconds

The Workout:
Reverse Deficit DB Lunge (weight is total): 80x8x3. The deficit is now a step higher than the last time.

V-Handle Pulldown: 105x8x3. Used a handle with a wider V with a fatter handle.

DB Deadlift (weight is total): 190x8x3. I didn't have legs for this today. Legs still beat from Sunday, warmup took a bit out of me, the lunges REALLY took it out of my legs to the point where I had no launch. I pretty much muscled it up, saw stars after each set.

DB Incline Raises: 15x8x3 (Cluster). Did not have 12 lbs DBs but this was much better. I could do 4 reps with this weight. So I did 4 reps with one arm, then the other, then back again.

DB Preacher Curls: 25x8x3

DB Extensions (Tates): 25x8x3

Hammer Calf Press: 250x8x3

DB External Rotations: 15x8x3


Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 3 intervals of 1 minute at 8.4 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.

TBT Cycle 2 Begins

Last week,I completed week 8 of TBT: Day one (3 sets of 18),day 2 (3 sets of 8), day 3 (3 sets of 12). Then took off a week from weights and relaxed my diet. So yesterday, I began anew at 220 lbs.

I'm hoping that this will be the workout that gets me to 210. To that end, I made minor adjustments to the cycle and my training week. In weeks 1 thru 4, day 3 had one less set than all the other days; in weeks 5 thru 6, its two sets for each day, and in weeks 7 thru 8, it's 3 sets of everything. I upped the volume for this cycle, and now it looks like this:

Weeks 1&2: Day One (3 sets of 5), Day Two (3 sets of 8), Day Three (3 sets of 15)
Weeks 2&4: Day One (4 sets of 5), Day Two (4 sets of 8), Day Three (4 sets of 15)
Weeks 5&6: Day One (3 sets of 18), Day Two (3 sets of 8), Day Three (3 sets of 12)
Weeks 7&8: Day One (4 sets of 18), Day Two (4 sets of 8), Day Three (4 sets of 12)

In my last week or two of my last cycle, I started using 8 movements vice 6, 4 big and 4 small. Same here. The 4 small ones will be the same all the time: DB Preacher Curls, DB Extensions, Hammer Calf Press, And DB External Rotations. All for structural balance for the bench except the calf stuff. My goal is 40bs in the curls and extensions, and 8 reps of 20 lbs since we don't have 18 lbs dumbbells. There will be no benching or pushups here, just shoulder work: 2 days of presses (one with dumbbells and one on the Hammer ISO Shoulder Press) and one with side laterals to get my shoulders where I want them: 60 lbs DB Presses for 8 reps (I'm 4 reps short). After this, I will take another week off from the weights, then go on my 18-week powerlifting cycle.

My training week now no longer has a built in day off. Used to be that on Sundays, I did jack shit. Now, Sunday kicks off my workout week and Saturday is just for Abs Class and volleyball and a night at the Cantina. That's day off enough for me.

6:00-7:30PM: Walked in my body armor

9:30 PM:
DB Bulgarian Split Squats (weight is total): Worked up to 80x5,90x2

Wide Grip Lat Pulldown: Worked up to 105x5, 120x3

DB Romanian Deadlift (weight is total): Worked up to 180x5, 200x2

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: Worked up to 90x4 each arm

DB Preacher Curls: Worked up to 30x5, 35x1

DB Extensions (Tates): Worked up to 30x5, 35x1

Hammer Calf Press: Worked up to 340x1

DB External Rotations: Worked up to 20x4

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 3 intervals of 1 minute at 8.2 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH.