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.

A Short Summary of TBT Week 7

Wednesday, pulled a mid/upper back muscle doing lat pulldowns and DB Reverse Lunges . . . WTF!!! Managed to get through almost everything but ditched the DB RDLs and sprint intervals as a precaution. Then I took two days off.

Saturday, did the Abs Class and vest walking. Took Sunday off.

Monday, I more than made up for not doing the RDLs on Wednesday, and completed the third workout of week 7. Pulled 260 (130 lbs DBs) in the dumbbell deadlift, so I'm 20 lbs away from my goal of pulling the 150s. Did my two intervals at the end. But my biggest highlight happened out of the gym. While leaving the office at night after blogging this, I got on the chinup bar outside of the building and finally got one (just a tad bit of kipping). The last time I did a chinup was at around 178, around 1994. I'm around 218-219 now.

Week 8 begins today.

TBT Week 7 Workout 1

Memorial Day, as was this whole weekend, was spent being lazy and easy. Woke up at 2PM feeling super refreshed, went to hit the weights, ate probably more BBQ than I should have, then kicked back for 45 minutes before going to Ab Class and running intervals.

Bench Step Ups: BWTx18x3

Hammer ISO Row (Lat emphasis): 60x18x3 each arm

Inverted Hamstring Stretch: BWTx18x3 per leg.

Close Grip Pushups: Set of 17, 13, and 11 reps

DB Preacher Curls: 15x18x3

Hammer Calf Press: 200x18x3

DB External Rotations: 8x18x3

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 2 intervals of 2 minutes at 8.2 MPH and 1 minute at 3.0 MPH. I did it, and this time it was only the last 20 seconds that sucked. I was afraid of the second interval but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, so my recovery was quick.

Oh, and my weight today was 219. Ka'chow!!!

Last Two Days

Thusrday:
Ab class, 75 minute walk with body armor on.

Friday:

This is how I made up for not doing the intervals on Wednesday, plus a bonus for mobility's sake:

Walked 2 laps around the field
Reverse 90/90 Stretch@4
Inverted Hamstring Stretch@4
Forward Lunge, Elbow to Instep@4
Inchworm@4
Jogged one lap around the field
Shoulder Complex
Leg Cradle@4
Glute Bridge (Marching)(Knee Extension)@6
Knee Hug@4
Drop Lunge (6@)
Side Shuffle for 30 Yards and back
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, front to back)
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, side to side)
YTWL@10
60 percent sprint 40 yards, backpedal back
Drop Squat and Stabilize@3
Squat Jump – Non Countermovement@3
Scorpions (8@)
Iron Cross (8@)
85% Sprint for 40 yards, backpedal back
Low Pogo Jumps: 3 sets of 20 seconds
High Pogo Jumps: 3 sets of 20 seconds
Full Sprint, 100 yards

Pistols: Managed to do a complete one in each set, then BWTx11x2 (descent only)

V-handle Pulldowns: 90x12x2

DB Deadlifts: 140x12x2.

Incline Bar Pushups: BWTx12x2

DB Preacher Curls: 20x12x2

Hammer Calf Press: 200x12x2

DB External Rotations: 10x12x2

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 2 intervals of 1.5 minutes at 8.2 MPH and 1.5 minutes at 3.0 MPH. Week 6 of TBT down, 10 more to go.

TBT Week 6 Workout 2

Yesterday, I got back to my room at 5:30 PM and took a nap (skipped dinner, I was so sleepy). For 4 hours!?! As you could imagine, I couldn't go to sleep anymore after that. So after getting up, I got dressed in my PT gear (not really wanting to work out), went to the gym, took off my shoes, jumped on the scale, and headed to the office to talk to my wife for a bit.

220 lbs. If I could have taken off my clothes just to see 219, I would have. OK, maybe not!

After talking on the phone, I went to the gym at 11:30. I felt tired so I saved the intervals for today. But to make up for it, I did next week's workout: 3 sets vice 2 of everything (Notation: weight x reps x sets).

Reverse Deficit DB Lunges (Total Weight Shown): 90x8x3. I set the deficit a little higher, and got more of a workout. The weight felt heavier this way, too, so I might lighten it a tad next time for better form on all reps, not just the first 4 or 5.

Hammer ISO Rows (Lats, Elbows In, Weight per movement arm): 92.5x8x3

DB RDL (Total Weight): 160x8x3

DB Incline Laterals: 10x8x3

DB Preacher Curls: 25x8x3

DB Extensions (Tates): 25x8x3

DB External Rotations: 15x8x3

Now, I can sleep.

It Ain't Always The Heat

I thought that, maybe, it was because I hadn't walked in the body armor in about 4 days. Or, maybe, it was the increasing heat. Whatever it was, today's walk was kicking my ass. I could barely take in a full breath. Halfway through, I realized that it was neither of these things exactly. I had adjusted my vest before the walk and made it too tight, and the chest plate wouldn't let my chest expand. So I took off the IBA, layed it out, loosened the straps, and it was better than ever. Now I could breathe again. That, and it was cooler.

TBT Week 6 Workout 1

Ab Class - 30 Minutes

Bench Step Up: BWTx18x2

45 Degree Hyper: BWTx10x4

Inverted Hamstring Stretch: BWTx18x2

One Armed Neutral DB Press: 25x18x2

DB Preacher Curls: 15x18x2

Hammer Calf Press: 175x18x2

DB External Rotations: 8x18x2

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 2 intervals of 1.5 minutes at 8.2 MPH and 1.5 minutes at 3.0 MPH. Actually, the first interval was 1 minute and 45 seconds. This was the week I was gonna try 2 minutes fast and one minute slow, but the first interval put the kibosh on those plans. It was too difficult. Maybe next week, or I'll try to hit the mark on at least one of the intervals.

I weighed in at a hair under 224 on Sunday. The waist is getting smaller, the legs are getting leaner but harder, and I'm getting stronger in all my lifts, so about the only fine tuning besides keeping an eye on my diet is maybe making sure I'm not doing too much. After all, I won't be in Africa forever, so what I do here I must be able to do at home.

The Past 3 Days

Thursday:
1 hour of walking in my body armor and Ab Class.

Friday:
Day off. Just felt like taking one. . . . usually, it's Sunday.

Today, I made up for Friday but cut out walking in my body armor.
30-minutes on the elliptical trainer at level 10.

Ab Class.

Pistols: Managed to do a complete one in each set, then BWTx11x2 (descent only)

V-handle Pulldowns: 90x12x2

Split Good Mornings: 115x12x2. One set for each leg.

Incline Bar Pushups: BWTx12x2

DB Preacher Curls: 20x12x2

Hammer Calf Press: 200x12x2

DB External Rotations: 10x12x2

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

Week 5 done, 11 more to go.

TBT Week 5 Workout 2

Straight after dinner:

Dynamic Warm-up Phase (@ means reps each side):
Walked 3 laps around the field
Reverse 90/90 Stretch
Quad Stretch
Combination Hamstring/Calf Stretch
Forward Lunge, Elbow to Instep
Leg Cradle
Jumping Jacks
Seal Jumping Jacks
Jog One Lap Around the Field
Shoulder Complex
Inchworm
Glute Bridge (Marching)
Front Skips 100 yards
Backpedal to starting position
Drop Lunge (6@)
Sideways Running: 20 yards down and back
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, front to back)
Stationary Leg Swings (10 reps, side to side)
60% Sprint (arm& posture focus)(20 yards down and back)
Squat Jumps (10)
75% Build Up Sprint (Knee Drive)(20 Yards Down and back)

Ground Based Mobility:
Scorpions (8@)
Iron Cross (8@)
Inverted Hamstring (8@)
Rollovers into V-Sits (10)
Birddogs (10@)
Fire Hydrant Circles (10@, forward and backward)
Mountain Climbers (10@)

Showed up at the gym, sweaty and pumped. Took off my shoes, jumped on the scale and weighed in at 225 lbs. I think my dietary changes plus the addition of the intervals have pushed me past my plateau. Notation: Weight x Reps x Sets

Reverse Deficit DB Lunges (Total Weight Shown): 90x8x2

Hammer ISO Rows (Lats, Elbows In, Weight per movement arm): Worked up to 115x3, then did 90x8x2

DB RDL (Total Weight): 150x8x2

DB Incline Laterals: 10x8x2

DB Preacher Curls: 25x8x2

DB Extensions (Tates): 25x8x2

DB External Rotations: 15x8x2

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 2 intervals of 1.5 minutes at 8.2 MPH and 1.5 minutes at 3.0 MPH. Yes, I still had enough left for those - - - that's why I cut one or two sprints from the warmup. Weight upon leaving the gym was 223 lbs. Yes, I drank a few bottles of water to put it back - - - but it was nice to see.

Why Sandstorms Can Be A Great Thing

I was at a meeting while this thing was brewing in Djibouti. When I came out at about 5:15 PM it looked strangely foggy, then I figured it had been a sandstorm - - - my roommate later confirmed this. So my 80 minute walk with the body armor on found me looking like a bandit with my mouth and nose covered but with the sun blocked, the temperature was a lot cooler.

TBT: Week 5

Started dropping the 1-2 Gatorades a day thing. My weight is plateaued at 226 and this I'm sure is not helping. I drink more than enough water and I'm pretty sure I get enough salt from the food. Don't need more carbohydrates.

Did Ab Class for 30 minutes. Considering it's a lot of repetitions/static/twisting work, my abs are still adjusting to the workload. But I'm not sore in the hip flexors, so the adjusting plus after-workout stretching and mobility work is helping too.

Step Ups: 2x18@BWT

45-degree Hyper: 4x10@BWT. 10 is about the most reps I could do with this.

One Leg RDL: 2x18@BWT. In actuality, it's an inverse hamstring stretch as seen in the Core Performance book.

One Arm Neutral DB Press: 2x18@25 lbs

DB Preacher Curls: 2x18@15

Hammer Calf Press: 2x18@165 lbs

DB External Rotations: 2x18@8 lbs

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 2 intervals of 1.5 minutes at 8.2 MPH and 1.5 minutes at 3.0 MPH. To gradually improve my endurance as well as to push the fat loss along, I am cutting 30 seconds a week from the walking and adding it to my running. Hard but doable, and at only 2 intervals it doesn't leave me for dead. After the 4th week, I'll add an interval and start anew at 1 minute running.

Mobility work and static stretching finished me up.

Last 2 Days

Thursday, I did the Ab Class here on base. So for 30 minutes, I let someone torture me into turning my abs to mush - - - it was like boot camp all over again! Didn't get to do the vest walking because I had last minute stuff at work I had to do and didn't leave at 5PM like I normally do.

Friday:

Woke up at 9:30, slathered on the sunscreen, put on my boonie hat and walked on mostly gravel for 75 minutes with my vest on. With nothing in my gut, this walk was taking it out of me. On the way down, I checked the thermometer and the temperature (humidity and all accounted for) read 121.8 degrees. I'm sure that was taking it out of me, too. You know how they tell people to have at least 8 glasses of water a day? That's just about how much water I drink when I walk.

In the evening, I joined one of my co-workers for a step aerobics class. Yeah, yeah - - - laugh all you want!!! Only 4 people showed up, including the instructor. No, I don't have video!!!! But I'll admit, as uncoordinated as I was in the beginning, it was 30+ minutes well spent. I got my heart rate up and broke a solid sweat. A perfect warmup for my light weight day. So, week 4 is done and there's 12 more to go.

Step Ups (Bench): 3x15@BWT

Hammert ISO Rows (Lats): 3x15@65 lbs each arm

DB RDL: 3x15@100 (50 in each hand)

Pushups: 3x15@BWT (done at a gradual cadence)

DB Preacher Curls: 3x15@15

Hammer Calf Press: 3x15@165

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

Ende Neu

BTW, I'm the guy on the left. This was taken at U.S. Navy Individual Augmentee Combat Training (NIACT) at Fort Jackson, South Carolina in February.

I got the blog title from an album from one of my favorite bands, Einsturzende Neubauten. It means "ending new."

I'm currently on a trial separation from my wife, and I'm thousands of miles away from just about everything and everyone I know. It doesn't matter if we told each other that the playing field is even until I get back and we decide where to go from there. My life is pretty much a mess. Except for work, because in the military, in this place, I had better have my head together. And in the gym, where I always focus my energies on the task ahead: a number, a weight, a sign that the last rep is at least one last push away.

I think on Monday's workout, I pushed too hard. Then I walked in the vest for about an hour and 15 minutes on Tuesday in blistering heat. Then add the other stresses. I felt really edgy and drained. I kept trying to find excuses to just not work out.

I have a mission in all of this. I may just give the December 9th Virtual Meet a shot and get my thousand pound total. The other goal is to do so at 206 lbs: I'm about twenty pounds away from that.

So I dragged myself into the gym, because I don't need more delays. And for me, it's also the one place where I can focus on just one thing. Everything else stays at the door.

My legs and glutes were sore all over (the lunge max and heavy DB deads on Monday saw to that), so I was trying to dodge doing the Pistols (Descent only). So I did the Hammer ISO High Rows for 4 sets of 85 first, instead of that. The 4 sets of 8 of pistols were a grind but once it was over, the rest was Ok. I was almost too leasurely about the workout, but that was fine because I was really relaxed and content. After that:

DB Shoulder Presses (Weights is per dumbbell): 4x8@45 lbs

GHR: 30 reps (sets of 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 reps)

DB Preacher Curls: 4x8@25 lbs

DB Extensions (Tates): 4x8@25 lbs

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

I'm not gonna turn this into a personal blog but I just had to put it out there. Because while I'm not always gung ho going into a gym, it's always important for reasons that go beyond pure numbers or strength. And that keeps my head screwed on straight!

It Has Arrived!!!

The heat I have been getting told about has finally arrived. Holy shit, it's like taking a deep breath of nothing. Right now (11:28PM, 08MAY05) it is about 81 degrees, with a heat factor that makes it fell like 95.

Weight yesterday morning, shorts and shirt with no shoes: 226. A day off and some more food always does the trick.

Early yesterday afternoon, I did the dynamic warmup and mobility and change of direction drills. I did about 2/3 of it and had to stop, because I felt the lactic acid burn in my chest, I couldn't catch my breath no matter how long I waited. It was so sticky! So I got into the shade, drank 4 bottles of water, and hit the showers. Probably didn't help that I was doing this on the Astroturf on the soccer field, which radiates about 20 more degrees than the surrounding temperature.

Today, since it was even worse, I took the dynamic warmup indoors and shortened it, no sprints. Better idea. Since I hadn't done weights in a week, I was gonna make my last heavy day of this eight week cycle special. Then, afterwards, I started to do the interval stuff on the treadmill a la Afterburn.

DB Deficit Reverse Lunges (weight is each dumbbell): 25x5, 35x5, 45x5, 55x5, 60x1

V-Handle Pulldowns: 75x5, 90x5, 105x5, 120x5, 135x2

DB Deadlifts (weight is each dumbbell): 60x5, 70x5, 80x5, 95x5, 100x3

Incline DB Bench (weight is each dumbbell): 35x5, 45x5, 55x5, 65x5, 75x0

DB Preacher Curls: 15x5, 20x5, 25x5, 30x5, 35x1

Hammer Calf Presses: 200x5, 220x5, 240x5, 260x5, 290x5

Intervals on a Treadmill (1.5 Degree incline): 2 intervals of 1 minute at 8.0 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.0 MPH. I'm doing 4 weeks of this just to get prepped. No rush.

230 No More

This week, I haven't lifted much. Maybe the stress from personal issues zapped my motivation a bit. But since I didn't want to catch up by lifting 4 days in a row, I at least walked with my body armor for an hour plus everyday since Wednesday. Today, I went to the gym in the morning and with just the tee-shirt and uniform pants on, I finally dipped below 230 lbs.

Mind you, I've done this before. This is the first time doing so without resorting to a sauna, or not eating the day before or over-aerobicizing. For me, it's a great sign. Between the weighted vest walking and the weightlifting, I still seem to be maintaining muscle but my waist is starting to get smaller. Now, I just need to schedule out everything. The long energy systems work at the beginning of the weight lifting workouts didn't kill my workouts, but it didn't leave much for recovery.

The only thing I lifted after Monday was a cold 1RM pull of 220 total pounds in the dumbbell deadlift (2 DBs of 110 lbs each) . That's 80 total lbs more than I did on April 13th. Part of that increase was learning the skill, the other was adaptation, the other was the one leg work. I have 13 weeks before this phase is over and I can begin WSFSB III. But it doesn't take a genius to figure out what my goal at the end will be. One is 220 lbs bodyweight. The other? The biggest dumbbells in the gym are 140 lbs, and I'll wear the body armor to get the rest;)

Last 2 Days

Sunday, I did what I usually do for a warmup with some shoulder work, extra mobility stuff, suicides, and a jog around the field thrown into the mix. My flexibility is getting better and my knee pain is gone. My shoulders are really feeling good, too. And a good side benefit is that my weight has begun to drop even steadier. I'm now weighing in at 232 lbs in the evening even after dinner, so 220s should come in about another week. All without tricks. After that, I played my Sunday volleyball games.

Today, was the end of TBT week 3, 13 weeks to go.
Bench Step Ups: 3x15@BWT
Hammer ISO Row (Elbows in Close)(each arm): 3x15@60 lbs
DB RDL (Total Weight): 3x15@90 lbs
Pushups: 3x18@BWT
DB Preacher Curls: 3x15@15 lbs
Hammer Calf Press: 3x15@160 lbs

TBT Week 3, Session two

I didn't work out at all Wednesday or Thursday, and my diet could have been better (far from a bender but definitely not too sensible.). Today, my reward for that was showing up two pounds lighter in the afternoon than last week. Maybe aside from the new warmup or this routine, this was what I needed.

Warmup

One Leg Sit to bench: 4 sets of 8 (both legs) with bodyweight

Hammer ISO High Rows: 4x8@80 lbs each arm

GHR: 28 reps (sets of 8, 6, 6, 4, 4 reps)

DB Shoulder Presses: 4x8@45 lbs each DB

DB Preacher Curls: 4x8@20 pounds

DB Extensions (Tates): 4x8@20 pounds

Volleyball games for a cool down

TBT Week 3 Day 1

Warmup was different today. Got my care package from home with my copy of Core Performance Endurance, so I tried out some new things when I warmed up. Made the warmup longer but it left me feeling really loose and raring to go.

DB Reverse Lunges (weight is each dumbbell): 35x5, 40x5, 45x5, 50x4

V-Handle Pulldowns: worked up to a 135 lbs single

DB Deadlifts (weight is each dumbbell): 4x5@90 lbs. I'm improving really well with this lift. Maybe because of the single leg work, too: I don't have to rock a little to start the first rep anymore and I'm lifting more weight.

Incline DB Bench: worked up to 4 reps with 75 pounders.

DB Preacher Curls: worked up to a 30 lbs triple.

Single Calf Raises: 6 sets of 5

Because of the warmup, didn't have much left to do the elliptical at the end. So I walked around for twenty minutes.

Walking and Volleyball

Walked with the body armor on for 75 minutes this morning, and was reminded by the sunburn on my shoulders why I need sunscreen here in Africa. Ouch!!!

Then I played volleyball in the evening.

Making Up is Not Always The Best Part

Should have done the weighted vest walking yesterday. But I felt like doing nothing. Ok, I drank some beer and played Nintendo Wii Sports with the office. No guilt here.

So, to make up for it, here was todays workout:

Warmup
Walked with the body armor for an hour
Played some volleyball for another hour
Step Ups (armor on): 2x15@BWT+32 lbs
Wide Grip Pulldowns: 70x15x2
Single Leg RDL: 2x15@BWT
Pushups: 2x15@BWT
Calf Raises: 2x15@BWT
DB Extensions (Tate's): 2x15@15
Walked back to the CLU (Container Living Unit)

TBT Modified: Week 2

The Warmup (Until I write otherwise):
Body squats x 10
Jumping jacks x 15
Seal jumping jacks x 15
Front skips — 20 yards down & back
Stationary side lunge x 8 each leg
Side shuffle, 20 yds. down & back
Stationary leg swings (front & back) x 10 each leg
Stationary leg swings (side to side) x 10 ea. leg
60% Build-up sprint (arm & posture focus) — 30 yds. down and back
Lunge walk x 10 steps down and back
Backpedal x 20 yds. down and back
Squat jumps x 5
75% Build-up sprint — (knee drive focus) — 40 yds. down and back. I did all of this at the soccer field before walking to the gym for the workout. A lot harder than doing 15 minutes on the elliptical for a warmup but more effective. While I'm not trying to do anything intense for aerobics right now, this may help.

The Workout:
One Leg Sit to Bench (Pistols): 3x8@BWT
Incline Laterals: 6x8@10
DB RDL: 3x8@140 (70 pounds in each arm)
Incline Pause Pushups w/Pushup Bars: 3x8@BWT
DB Curls: 3x8@25
Assisted Dips: 3x8@117 (120 lbs of assist)

15 minutes cooldown (Elliptical) and mobility work

The Last Couple-A Days

Yesterday:
15Minutes on the elliptical plus the Parisi Warmup.
Reverse DB Deficit Lunges: worked up to 70 (35x2) for 5 reps, then 2 more sets
Hammer ISO High Rows: 90x5x3
DB Deadlifts: Worked up to 170x5 (85 in each arm).
DB Push Press: 55x5x3
DB Hammer Curls: 35x5x3
Hammer Calf Press:290x5x3
20 minutes on the elliptical to finish


Today:
1 hour walk with the body armor on.

Easy Like Sunday Morning

Just about everyone today had the day off. Not sure why, I don't read as much official e-mail as I should, I guess.

So, I woke up at 2:30PM (12+ hours of sleep), got my PT gear on, then my body armor, then my sunglasses. Then I stepped outside. It was nice and quiet, with a good sea breeze. I walked for an hour at a good pace, on sidewalk, gravel, and 3 laps around the soccer field (artificial turf). After that I took a shower and shaved and brushed my teeth and when I got back to the room, I felt so blissfully tired and relaxed that I almost took a nap. Then on to dinner. That was my PT for the Day.

BTW, here's my weight workouts from last week. Since I don't like backblogging, I'll keep it simple:

Monday:
Reverse DB Deficit Lunges (Basically, front foot is elevated): worked up to 50 (25x2) for 5 reps.
Hammer ISO High Rows: Worked up to 100x1 per movement arm, then 90x5 back off.
DB Deadlifts: Worked up to 140x5 (70 in each arm).
DB Push Press: 50x5x3
DB Hammer Curls: 35x5x3
Hammer Calf Press:290x5x3

Wednesday:
One Leg Sit to Bench (Pistols): 3 sets of 8 with bodyweight
DB Upright Rows: 20x8x3
DB RDL: 120x8x3 (60 pounds in each arm)
Incline Pause Pushups w/Pushup Bars: BWTx8x3
DB Curls: 25x8x3
Assisted Dips: 3 sets of 8 with 120 lbs of assist

Friday:
Step Ups: BWTx15x2
Wide Grip Pulldowns: 60x15x2
Single Leg RDL: BWTx15x2
Pushups: BWTx15x2 (gradual cadence, medium grip)
Calf Raises: BWTx15x2
DB Extensions (Tate's): 15x15x2

Each session begins with 15 minutes of elliptical, then the Parisi Warmup, then 20 minutes on the elliptical to finish. Except Friday: warmup was 4 games of volleyball. So week one is done, 15 more to go.

Back in The Habit

It's been a bit hard to get in a habit of working out here in Djibouti. Not because of the heat. Mostly, it's a lack of motivation (I'm even getting emotionally adjusted now being away from my wife and child). Last week, it was injuries. The day after walking around for an hour with my body armor on, I was doing jump training and a jump that I had made the week before, I missed and skinned my left shin. After that, I just decided to squat and since I hadn't done so in a long time, I pulled muscles on the inside of both thighs. Day after that, I was playing basketball when I tried to stop on a dime at full speed and I pulled both calves, then a glute later on. Some would say that I'm getting old. But after much thought, I thought that I've never been a big stretching person. And I've never put in the amount or regularity of mobility work that I should.

Three articles really got me thinking. One was Eric Cressey suggesting 3 days of single leg work a week for 2 months. Another was Cardiovascular System Training Principles, Part 2 by Joel Jamieson on the Elite FTS site. Another was an article on Sports Illustrated about how the Phoenix Suns are fixing up Shaquille O'Neill (I think the Suns have the most injury free team in the NBA).

Then this week, I started Chad Waterbury's Total Body Training but substituted the single leg work for the squats, dumbbell work for barbell work. I'm doing the body armor walking sometimes but have found myself playing a lot of volleyball at night and some basketball. Aerobically, I've been keeping it low intensity. And I've started to do the Parisi Warmups every time I go to the gym. Probably after 2-4 months of this, aside from being in pretty good shape, I'll start to slowly ramp things up. The single leg work is humbling, especially the pistols - - - I can't squat up, and going down is hard. The DB Deadlifts were a real eye opener: 70 lbs dumbbells for 5 reps, and my core was tiring out right when my glutes and low back were. Give me a few weeks and I'll say if this workout is effective. But so far, I don't feel really beat up and I'm having fun with the volleyball habit. Don't know how this will affect my lifts but right now, that's not on my mind.

Stay Tuned.

RE Upper Body

DB Shoulder Press: 30x12x4

Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns: 60x12x4

Rear Delt Machine: 50x10x4

Lying Incline Laterals: 8x9x4

Db Shrugs: 45x10x3
Hammer Curls: 20x10x3

Hex Holds w/25 lbs DB: 3 15- second holds

DE Lower Body

Box Jump: 8 sets of 3. Really, it was jumping onto a section of wall outside that was 6-7 inches above the knees. Really got my blood pumping.

Step Ups: 3 sets of 10 to a bench that was at knee level.

ProMaxima GHR: 1 set of 6, 1 set of 5. That was all I could do. This machine did not have anywhere the feel of my EliteFTS GHR at home, but it will do. The early leg work left me little for anything else.

Leg Raises: 4 sets of 4

Incline Situps: 4 sets of 15, 12, 11, 10 reps

ME Upper Body

Hammer ISO Shoulder Press: Worked up to a 65 lbs 5RM, then did one back-off set of 55 lbs for 5 reps.

Pec Deck: 70x12x3

Hammer ISO Super Incline Press: 45x12x3

Hammer ISO Row: Worked up to a 100 lbs 4RM

Rear Delt Machine: 45x15x3

Trap Bar Shrugs: 144x8x3

Hammer Preacher Curl Machine: 45x9x3

I'm trying to follow the WSFSB III template. Since it's a small gym, I can't really superset anything.

News From The Other Side of The World

I arrived in Kuwait today at 2300/08FEB29 (their time), and will soon find myself in Djibouti. My training was done on the 27th. Since I haven't posted in a while, a little catch up this will be.

On January 25, I weighed in for the PRT at 228 in the morning, no clothes and nothing extraordinary done other than not to eat the day before - - - good for a temporary 5 lbs loss. My bodyfat finally dipped below 20% for the first time in almost a decade. Of course, I'll credit the workout: it paid off for me to do more repetition work than speed work, and have the other day be a heavy day. But not having to go in the sauna or overdo the aerobics was the trick for me. And on the 29th, I passed the actual PRT with a good medium and reenlisted the next day.

On February 9th, I sadly kissed my family "good-bye" (I always tell my wife it's really a "see ya later") and headed off to Fort Jackson in South Carolina to begin training for my deployment to Djibouti. My days were so busy and spoken for that I did not touch a weight the entire 3 weeks I was there. Actually, that's not really true: with full body armor, M16, Kevlar helmet, and Camelback I was probably walking around with 60-70 extra lbs most of the week which wears on you in a whole different way (Good thing I was not big enough for the extra large body armor!!!). We did PT 3 days a week sans gear, too, shot around a lot (I qualified Sharpshooter), and learned urban warfare, IED detection, and other things. Then we ran a convoy scenario complete with ambushes along the way and fighting our way through a city house to house, on our last day.

As soon as I get to Djibouti, I'll start to train again. That's all for now.

ME Upper Body

Woke up this morning with a bad cough, which is what I get for dragging a sled in the cold without a coat. Didn't have to work today because of Martin Luther King Day and my son wanted to go practice basketball with his friend, so off I went at 11: 45 - - - no rush.

Flat Bench Press w/One Pair of Chains: 55x3, 75x3, 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x3, 195x1. The 175 triple was smooth and the 195 was, too. Just not fast enough to go for a 195 double.

Close Grip Bench Press w/One Pair of Chains: 125x10, 125x9

Superset:
T-Bar Row: 80x3, 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 160x1 (1RM), 95x12x4.
DB Lateral Raises: 9 sets repped out with 6 lbs. Top set was 16 reps and low set was 9 reps.

Nautilus Nitro Front Pulldown: 105x12x4.

EZ Bar Curls: 80x6x5.

I was gonna do snatch grip deadlifts, 270x6x5, but after yesterday I just didn't feel it in me. So for 30 minutes I just played Around the World. My shot has become really effortless, so much so that I have to adjust it or I'll overshoot it. In the back of my mind, I kept thinking of the deadlifts and measurement on Friday and whether I should bag it or not. I decided to go for it but only up to a 3rm, and just take my time to get there. I felt as if the previous plan might be too much.

Snatch Grip Deadlift: 165x3, 195x3, 225x3, 255x3, 295x3, 325x4. That last set had me stoked: I hit a 4RM with 275 on December 20th, so this was big for me. And my grip was like glue. My wheels are turning and I'm very seriously thinking of gunning for a 400 lbs snatch grip DL before I leave for Djibouti. That's 5 weeks, if my body lets me.

ME Lower Body

Since there were things I did not do last leg workout, I made up for it today.

14" SSB Box Squat:
Set 1: Bar only (75 lbs, 155 at the top, about 115 at the bottom) for 5 reps
Set 2: 105 lbs (185 at the top, 145 at the bottom) for 5 reps
Set 3: 135 lbs (215 at the top, 175 at the bottom) for 5 reps
Set 4: 165 lbs (245 at the top, 205 at the bottom) for 5 reps
Set 5: 195 lbs (275 at the top, 235 at the bottom) for 5 reps
Set 6: 205 lbs (305 at the top, 265 at the bottom) for 0 reps. I just didn't have anything left to lift it.

Triset:
Trap Bar Shrug: Barx5, 74x5, 94x5, 114x5, 144x5, 164x5, 184x4 (Calculated a max of 204 using Brzycki's formula to compute a 204 max, then multiplied it by .6 for the next 4 sets), 124x10x4

Calf Raises: 11 sets for a rep max

GHR: 11 sets of 10 first with no bands assistance, then purple bands for assistance, then purple plus monster mini, then average (green) band for assistance.

Forward Sled Drags: 65 lbs for 6 trips

Backward Sled Drags: 65 lbs for 6 trips

RE Upper Body

I weighed myself yesterday morning at 234 lbs. When you consider that the Navy allows a maximum weight of about 192-196 lbs for someone my height, you wonder why I even bother to measure it.

Last time, I tried to drop 10 lbs in 24 hours to get down to the 229 where I easily make measurement and gave up too much for the effort and barely made measurement. So my goal was a much easier 5 lbs drop. Even with all the deadlifting and squatting and repetition work that I have been doing plus the elliptical, my weight is dropping gradually but I am starting to lean out and get thicker. I'm hoping that on Friday, the day I measure, I can come in at 233 before I drop anything.

My last week and I'm pouring it on, then I'll take it easy for three days before the PRT on the 29th.

Friday: Lunchtime:
Cybex ArcTrainer Elliptical: Level 6 Cardio, 30 minutes. Next week, it will be Level 7.

Evening (All notation: weight x reps x sets):
Incline Bench Press: 125x12, 11, 10, 9 reps

Nautilus Front Pulldown: 155x3, 165x3, 175x3, 155x3x3.

T-Bar Row: 145x3, 150x3, 145x3x4. I'm improving slower on this lift than the pulldowns, so next time this will be first then the pulldowns second.

DB Lateral Raises: 5xrepoutx6. Top set was 18 reps with a 12 rep low.

Incline Situps: 6 sets repped out. Top set was 20 reps with a 14 rep low. I think all the snatch grip deads have helped this, oddly enough. Did these while waiting for the deadlift platform.

Snatch Grips Deadlift: 185x10x2, 185x12, 185x11, 185x8. Could not find 2.5 lbs plates, so I lifted 185 instead. First two sets should have been 12 reps but I thought it was 10 reps, and I tried to make it up somewhat. My forearms were gone on the last set.

EZ Bar Curls: 60x12x3

Test: 14" SSB Box Squat w/80 lbs of Chain (ME/RE Setup)

Lunchtime:
Cybex ArcTrainer Elliptical: Level 6 Cardio for 30 minutes

Evening:
Since I am training for muscle and strength, not for speed, I will differentiate the setups. In a speed setup, I set the chain so that all of it is on the floor at the bottom position of the squat. In a setup for strength or Repetition, half of it is still on the bar at the bottom. This of course means I have to squat with more control since it is completely off the floor at the top and I don't want it to swing. It also means that the negative is taking something out of you towards the bottom and the change as you rise is tougher. Thus, you will see a notation for the bar weight, top weight, and bottom weight. The effect is very noticeable:

Set 1: Bar only (75 lbs, 155 at the top, about 115 at the bottom) for 3 reps
Set 2: 105 lbs (185 at the top, 145 at the bottom) for 3 reps
Set 3: 135 lbs (215 at the top, 175 at the bottom) for 3 reps
Set 4: 165 lbs (245 at the top, 205 at the bottom) for 3 reps
Set 5: 195 lbs (275 at the top, 235 at the bottom) for 3 reps
Set 6: 225 lbs (305 at the top, 265 at the bottom) for 3 reps
Set 7: 255 lbs (335 at the top, 295 at the bottom) for 0 reps (Couldn't rise with it, spent)
Set 8: 255 lbs (No chain) for 1 rep: felt super light (Probably since more muscle was still firing just to stabilize everything as if the chain was still connected), almost like half of what was on the bar.
Set 9: 285 lbs (No Chain) for 1 rep: Felt good but I was spent, and that's where I stopped.

Using Brzycki's formula for the 6th set (265 from the bottom) gives me a 280 max. About 5 lbs off from actual with no chain, even with 4 attempts above 94%.

ME Upper Body

Flat Bench Press: 95x5, 115x5, 140x5, 165x5, 185x4. Bitchin'!!! Two more reps than last week.

CG Bench Press: 125x10x2.

Nautilus Front Pulldown: 105x10x4

T-Bar Row: 100x10x4

Snatch Grip Deadlift: 165x15x3.

Barbell Curls: 40x18, 40x15x2

RE Upper Body

Lunchtime:
Free Squats: 115x15, 125x15, 135x15, 145x15, 155x14

Evening:
Incline Bench Press w/One Pair of Chains: 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x3, 185x1 (Test)

Incline Bench (No chains):185x2, 115x15, 115x10x2

T-Bar Row: 85x15x3

Nautilus Nitro Front Pulldown: 90x15x3

DB Lateral Raises: 12x7, 12x6x2, 12x5.

My back was a bit sore, so I'm saving the deads for another day.

Squat Test Gone Bad

I've been tossing around the idea of a just doing rep work with regular squats with no box so instead of my normal lunchtime aerobic workout like I've been doing, I just tested on raw squats.

Free Squats: 95x3 (I had a belt I borrowed from the gym and it blew out!!! Old, cause I didn't get that big over the holidays.), 125x5, 155x5, 185x3, 215x3, 245x1, 275x1, 305x1, 325x0 (Got to the bottom and the weights started sliding off the right side, I'm trying to keep from killing my back and letting the bar whip out and hurt someone. A closer inspection of the mess reveals that the slide on collars WERE on, but were defective and slid off.), 325x0 (My load was blown).

Barbell Curls: 70x8x3.

I walked to the front counter and handed the lady the collars and told her what happened. She looked shocked and apologized, and said that she thought that the equipment was inspected that morning. When I got home, I inspected my collars and showed my wife and kid how to do the same. Now I know.

ME Upper Body

Lunchtime:
Cybex ArcTrainer Elliptical: 30 minutes, Cardio setting, Level 5

Evening:
Flat Bench Press w/One pair Chains: 55x3, 75x3, 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x3, 185x2. Will alternate doing these for threes and a week of doing these for fives with no chains.

CG Bench Press w/One pair Chains: 115x10, 8, 6 reps. These were all rep maxes.

Nautilus Nitro Front Pulldown: 120x8x5

T-Bar Row: 115x8x5

Snatch Grip Deadlift: 165x5, 195x5, 225x5, 255x5, 285x5. After all the back work, I had to really work hard for these. On the set of 255, I was lifting with gloves on and the bar started slipping out of my right hand, I lost my concentration for a moment and windmilled slightly causing a right side mid-back pull. On the 285, I used my bare hands and chalk and that went better. I just stopped there: I could have given 295x5 a shot but played it safe.

EZ Bar Curl: 70x8x5

ME Lower Body (Short Version)

Why do 4 workouts in 4 days? I have 5 weeks until I leave for South Carolina to train. 4 weeks until PRT. I might be able to do the Virtual Meet from Djibouti, but we'll see. I don't want to waste any time, I want to stay on track. Even today, when my legs were really sore from not having squatted in a while, when my son and his friend wanted to go to the basketball court I took that as a hint. I just abbreviated it a bit.

Hoist Compound Motion Leg Press: No weight for 20 reps, 50x15, 100x12, 150x10, 200x8, 250x6, 300x5, 350x5, 445x5, 490x5, 535x4

Cybex Leg Curl: worked up to 130x4.

Thank God, tomorrow is a lazy day!!!

RE Upper Body

Incline Bench Press: 75x10, 95x10, 115x10x3

T-Bar Row: 95x10x4

Nautilus Nitro Front Pulldown: 100x10x4

DB Lateral Raises: 12x7, 12x6x2, 12x5.

Snatch Grip Deadlift: 175x10x4.

Biceps Death: 3 sets, descending from 90 lbs to 20 lbs in 10 lbs increments.

The bench and lateral raises were done as rep maxes, everything else was 4 sets of 10. My rep days are done with different rep schemes for most of the main movements. The snatch grip deadlifts went pretty good despite really sore legs from not having squatted in a while. Don't know how tomorrows leg workout is going to happen but I'll think of something.

RE Lower Body

14" SSB Box Squat: Barx10, 100x10, 125x10, 150x10, 175x8. I came so close to 10 on that last one and it just about blew my head off.

Calf Lifts: Failure at 15, 12, 12, 10, 10 reps.

Lateral Step Ups: 15x10x3

DB Side Laterals: 35x15x4

GHR: 40 reps (Sets of 10, 8, 6, 6, 5, 5 reps)

ME Upper Body

Snatch Grip Deadlift: 155x5, 185x5, 225x5, 255x5, 285x5, 315x2 (2RM). The first two sets were done with a double overhand grip, the others with a staggered grip, the last with straps and a double overhand grip.

Flat Bench Press: 55x10, 75x8, 95x5, 115x5, 135x5, 155x5, 175x4, 165x5x2.

CG Triceps Death: 2 sets with 115 lbs to failure with no boards, 2, 3, 4, and 5 boards (no rest between board changes)

Nautilus Nitro Front Pulldown: Worked up to a 160 lbs single, 135x5x2.

T-Bar Row: Worked up to a 155 lbs single, 130x5x2

Reverse Curl: 50x7x4

RE Lower Body

Lunchtime:
Cybex ArcTrainer Elliptical: 30 minutes at Level 4

Evening:
Hoist Composite Motion Leg Press: 335x10x4

Arched Back Good Morning: 145x10x4

Cybex Leg Curl: 80x10x4

22" Step Ups: BWTx10x4

Hanging Leg Raises: 4 sets of 5

Incline Twisting Situps: 4 sets of 10

The Best Laid Plans II

The why's would be a little much to get into here, but my orders have changed. Instead of Bahrain, I am now headed to Djibouti in the Horn of Africa. Also, instead of leaving in May, it's now the first week of February. Instead of extending in the Reserves like I've been doing for PRT purposes, they are letting me reenlist if I could pass my third PRT in a row - - - On January 29th. Good thing a message came out allowing me to automatically be on the Chief's board without taking an exam, a one-time perk if one is in, leaving, or going to Iraq, Afghanistan, or the Horn of Africa - - - I have a lot to do in even less time than before. All while also taking my son to basketball practices and working on his game, since his season has begun.

That busy-ness is why I haven't blogged much but I'm trying. I've basically been experimenting with different weightlifting approaches, even the lactic acid stuff. I am using the Cybex ArcTrainer elliptical on my off days, since it's more challenging. And I've been playing a lot of basketball scrimmage games. My weight is down to 232 lbs (Morning Weight), and my conditioning is coming along. I've decided to just stay with the heavy stuff, and twice (each) squatting and deadlifting since that has always worked best in a pinch - - - last time I lost too much mass for so little gain that I don't want to go through that again.

This was today's workout.

Lunchtime:
LifeFitness Treadmill: 4 rounds of 1 minute running at 8.0 MPH and 2 minutes walking at 3.8 MPH, using a 1.5 degree incline. When I started Afterburn (modified), running at 7.7 MPH had me at a heart rate of 170. I had to up the speed to 8.0 to get close to the same effect.

Evening (ME Upper):
Close Grip Triceps Death (No Board, 2 thru 5 boards, no rest) 3 sets to failure. 2 minutes rest between sets.

Snatch Grip Deadlift: Worked up to a 275 4RM.

T-Bar Row: 115x5x5

Hoist Assisted Neutral Grip Chinup (BWT 237): 117x5x5

Biceps Death: 3 sets to failure. Essentially, 1 rep with 90 lbs then failure with 80, 70, 60, 50, 40, 30, 20 lbs. Rest two minutes each set.

Grace's Big Squat Day

Two days ago, my wife Grace asked what was on the menu for Leg Day. I told her to "get Gung Ho" because we were going to test her on the free squat. I also told her that it would be filmed for training purposes. She also asked me to post it on my blog, since she does not want to post it on her Myspace page. Feel free to comment.

A few notes. I tried to dial in her depth, even going so far as to do the second rep touch and go from a 14" box. She hated it, because it tempted her to relax upon touching it. Her descent is pretty fast, and I didn't teach her that. Her speed is noteworthy, probably from those huge hams she inherited from her dad. Will have to do some work on depth and her lower back but I think before I leave, she may be ready for 225.

And I'm still trying to persuade her to do a Virtual Meet, Kris:)

ME Upper Body

Lunchtime:
LifeFitness Treadmill: 3 rounds of 1.5 minutes at 7.7 MPH and 1.5 minutes at 3.8 MPH, at a 1.5 incline. This was definitely tougher: at this speed, 30 extra seconds was long.

Evening:
Incline Bench Press: 75x3, 95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x2. Not my best bench day, but there's next time.

Assisted Pullups (Monster Mini/Light Band): 5 sets of 5

Close Grip Triceps Death (2, 3, 4, 5 Board Progression): 2 sets with 125 lbs. Basically, 15 reps with the 2-Board, quickly continue to failure with the 3-Board, then keep failing up all the way up to the 5-board.

Superset:
DB Rows (Elbows In): 45x10x4
Band Pullaparts w/Monster Mini: 4 sets to failure (4 sets of 5)

Trap Bar Shrugs: Worked my way up to a 204 triple.

DB Curls: 25x8x4

ME Lower Body

Lunchtime:
LifeFitness Treadmill: 3 rounds of 1 minute at 7.7 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.8 MPH, at a 1.5 incline.

Evening:
Arched Back Good Morning: 95x5, 120x5, 145x5, 170x5, 195x5, 205x5

22" Step Ups: 4 sets of 10

Cybex Leg Curls: 115x5x5

Ab Circuit (4 sets): Plank, Lying Leg Thrusts, Woodchopper (Downward), Situps, Woodchopper (Upward), 45-degree Hyper.

That was Friday. Next day was spent playing basketball and walking around with 54 lbs for a few laps.

The New Cardio

I took my son to the gym for two hours so that we can practice basketball. For me, this is a great way to work out without the monotony. I get to run, jump, move laterally, change direction a lot, everything. What I also did today was that every 15 minutes, I jumped rope for 1.5 minutes at a good clip. Then I grabbed two weighted bars like the ones they use for aerobics and walked around for 5 laps around the court holding them behind my back, in front, and overhead: I used a 30 lbs and a 24 lbs bar, for a total of 54 lbs. Then I put down the bars and ran around the court for 3 laps as fast as I could stand. I did 5 of those.

The bars didn't feel heavy, per se. But walking around at a brisk pace with the extra weight really taxed my breathing, and the runs just finished me off. Makes me wonder how much better off I would feel at a much lighter weight. I'll be doing these on my off days when I'm in the gym, maybe even on the track.

I had my son run with a Jump Stretch green ("average")band around his waist, both forward and backward, to improve his running speed and push off. Basically he ran for dear life while I trailed behind him at a much slower rate of speed. He loved that so much (hard as it was) he wanted to see me do it. I thought what's one more killer thing (you should have seen his face turn beet red). Problem was, he couldn't hold me back or the band for long, so I got smacked across the back real good when the band snapped right into me. He wants to try this with the sled, so expect to see me doing those real soon, too.

RE Upper Body

Lunchtime:
LifeFitness Elliptical: Hill profile at level 7 for 30 minutes.

Evening:
Incline Close Grip Pushup (Feet Raised 12"): Failure at 9, 8, 7 reps.

Superset:
Hoist Neutral Grip Chinup (Bwt 240 lbs): 80x12x2, 80x10x2
T-Bar Rows: 80x12x2, 80x10x2

DB Lateral Raises: 10x10x4

Superset:
DB Shrugs: 55x10x3
Hammer Curls: 25x10x3

Wrist Roller: 3 sets of 3

5-Board Press: 145x3, 170x3, 195x3, 220x3.

RE/DE Lower Body

Lunchtime:
Treadmill: 3 3-minute rounds of 1 minute at 7.7 MPH and 2 minutes at 3.8 MPH.

Evening:
14" SSB Box Squats: 75x5, 105x5, 135x5, 165x5, 195x5, 225x5, 255x1. I was going to stop at 225 but just had to know how close was the formula to actual 1RM. The predicted max (Brzycki) was 253 and I got 255.

16" Lateral Step Ups: BWTx10x3

Sumo DL: 175x1x10. Strictly speed work.

GHR: 31 reps in 4 sets (10, 10, 6, 5 reps)

DB Side Raises: 35x10x4

The Best Laid Plans

Lest anyone think that I have been lazy, It's been quite the few weeks.

I got my synthesizer back repaired after a long time of not using it and I've been messing around with a program made by Steinberg called Sequel (A loop based music program that can also record MIDI and instrument sounds). I feel like a music hobbyist again.

The biggest thing for me right now is that I am being recalled to the Middle East next year for a while. This alters some plans. About a month of that is to be spent in South Carolina training Army style which means a lot of running and moving around with an extra 50-60 lbs of gear. I've been messing around with the Westside for Skinny Bastards 3 program, Afterburn for fat loss (I'm at 236 lbs right now, so I've dropped some weight from the last PRT) but now, aside from March's Virtual Meet and PRT 3 weks later, I have to prepare my body for that, too (a lot of people come back from the Middle East with shoulder or knee problems because of the added weight of bulletproof gear, weapons, and other flotsam). Lastly, I have to get things in order so my family has little to worry about while I'm gone - - - my to-do list is being drafted.

But since this is a training blog, not a life blog, let's talk training. I love this template and plan to keep it but since I've changed a few things in it, I'll just blog the workout with no name for the template. The Elite Beginners Manual and WS4SB3 are so similar that I've been using a bit of both, essentially bastardizing them.

The first thing to go will be any sort of speed days. I feel that I've done speed work for so long but my squat and bench should be bigger than it is. I think I've gotten as fast as I could get at my existing level of strength that more speed won't make me stronger. So I will be doing more repetition work on those days.

Second, I feel like my squat should be a lot bigger than it is and even with a big deadlift, my back got humbled with 340 at the bottom. So I'm putting more effort into GMs and front squats and sled work. The repetition days for squats will be done exclusively with 14-inch SSB Squats with a different rep scheme each week, some high and some low. I will do speed work for deadlift, like the Elite manual, but using the sumo, which is my weakest deadlift. Historically, 14" has been best for my overall squats - - - thus the choice.

In the bench, and in particular my shoulders, I'll keep a 3 weeks bench variation/3 weeks shoulder press rotation. The past few weeks, I've been using a DB shoulder press/assisted pullup superset along with some trap work and incline benching on rep days and my shoulders have gotten thicker and been pain free. I will also be using pushup variations on rep days.

As for the fat loss, I'm going to keep NROL's Afterburn setup but will use running instead. I had planned on that 5 days a week using an elliptical AND running in the evenings but I could see where that was headed. I'll just start gradually. If I'm in shape, running at at my usual pace wouldn't be my biggest worry, it's when I start turning to my lactic acid system. I found that a 1.5 incline, and 7.6 MPH speed was a good beginning challenge for me, as was dropping the rest period and increasing the running period each week. On days where I don't run, I'll probably do the elliptical for 30 minutes or go for a long walk. I'll also keep using the heavy bag and jump rope for any other GPP work.

As for milestones or goals, we'll see:)