Back and calves

Wow - Paul Walker, dead at 40. Not meaning to be glib,
but I always admired his physique.

Chin-ups - amrap 60 seconds, with 60 seconds rest
24, 13, 12

Deadlifts
135lb x 10
185lb x 10, 10

Lateral pull downs
90lb x 12, 12, 10

Cable row, rope handles, extended rom
50lb x 40 (burn)

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45 degree calf raises
110lb x 40
110lb x 20 single leg, per leg
110lb x 40

Barbell calf raises on a step
135lb x 10, 10, 10, 10

Chest and biceps

Incline bench press
100lb x 8, 7, 6

Alternate sets - dips/push-ups
12/18, 8/13, 7/14

Machine chest press
90lb x 6, 6, 5

Machine flies (burn)
55lb x 40

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Barbell curls
65lb x 12, 10, 8

Drop sets - curls @ 22s/hammer curls @ 17.5s
10/8, 10/8, 10/10 per arm

Chin ups - 10, 8, 7

Barbell curls @ 50lb x 3 sets

Biceps, triceps and forearms

Dumbbell curls - 35s x 6, 6, 6

Dumbbell one-arm tricep extensions - 22lb x 12, 25lb x 10, 10 per arm

Hammer curls - 25s x 10, 10, 27s x 10 per arm

Tricep cable extensions - 30lb x 15, 40lb x 7, 35lb x 8, 7

Machine preacher curls - 50lb x 12, 10, 7

Barbell curls, 21s x 3

Chin-ups - 8, 7, 6

Wrist roller - 2, 2, 2

Back and biceps

Damn sweaty bike ride to and from the gym today. I was soaked before I'd even started stretching! Great news, though: Both my daughter, Kristen, and my son-in-law, Neil, became members at ABsolute fitness this morning.

Deadlifts - 190lb x 10, 10

One arm dumbbell rows - 55lb x 12, 9, 8 per arm

Chin-ups - 9, 6, 5

Barbell row - 70lb x 13, 11, 10

Cable rows - 5 minute burn

Standing EZ barbell curls - 50lb x 13, 11, 10

Supersets:
Alternating dumbbell curls - 20lb x 20, 20
Alternating hammer curls - 15lb x 20, 20

Cable curls - 5 minute burn

Back and biceps

I really wasn't looking forward to the first part of my workout today, as my hams are still stiff from the traveling lunges and straight leg deadlifts on Wednesday. Lots of stretching and warming up to start the session.

Deadlifts @ 225lb - 2 x 5

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One arm dumbbell rows @ 55lb - 12, 11, 8 per side

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Wide grip pull-ups with knees raised - 5, 5, 4

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Barbell row @ 70lb - 12, 10, 8

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Machine row @ 40lb - 5 minute burn

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EZ bar preacher curls @ 45lb - 12, 9, 7 (+3 after a very brief rest)

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Chin-ups with hold - 7, 5, 4
I was supposed to concentration curls, but I forgot to Google it before I left home, so I didn't know what these were.

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Seated dumbbell curls @ 20lb - 5 minute burn

Full body: Conditioning

Personal training with Paul.

Bloody hell, I've got to stop suggesting workouts to Paul. Today's was a killer. I stumbled across a metcon on a Guelph box's website and sent it to Paul because I thought he might like to try it. But no; he made me do it instead (I'll be bloody pissed if he doesn't give it a go!)

2 rounds of max reps:

Burpees: 40 + 29 = 69
Chin-ups: 37 + 27 = 64

Push presses @ 95lb: 27 + 23 = 50
Back squat @ 45 lb: 52 + 40 = 92
Knees to elbows: 27 + 27 = 54

3 minutes per station; 30 seconds of "rest" to transition to the next station.

3 minutes of rest between rounds.

Total reps = 324

Score = 383

There's an option of doing knees to elbows or sit-ups instead, but the k2e reps count double, hence my total score is higher than the total reps.

The presses were the toughest, simply because of the weight. I was pleasantly surprised that my second set was only four reps fewer than the first. The back squats were surprisingly hard because they took my breath away. I took some long breaks during the second set because my head was spinning so much. There was only one failed rep in the whole routine - a chin-up - and the k2es, which were the last movement of each round, were done on auto-pilot. I shut off my mind and just concentrated on getting through the next rep. I've never know 30 seconds pass so quickly nor 3 minutes go so slowly.

I finished off with some sit-ups, none of which was timed.

Full body

I wanted to do some conditioning work today, but I had the most godawful headache. I don't know if it's related, but I decided to cut way back on my caffeine intake. For the past few weeks I've been having some heartburn in the morning, and I couldn't figure out why. I haven't changed from my usual breakfast - oatmeal, 1% milk, flax seed, raisins and apple sauce - so I didn't think it could be that. Then a couple of days ago I read a blog post where the writer said that he'd stopped drinking caffeine because it was causing GERD (Gastroesophageal reflux disease), and one of the symptoms is heartburn. Decaf coffee is fine, so I've been only drinking that for the past two days. However - and I don't know if this is the cause - I've had a thumping headache for about a day and a half. Perhaps I shouldn't have gone cold turkey, so I'm going to allow myself some caffeine first thing in the morning, but a greatly reduced amount.

Anyway, I took an ibuprofen before I headed to the gym, and that helped somewhat, but there was still a residual ache at the back of my skull that I found distracting more than anything else, so I opted to do some weight work instead of some fast-paced metcons.

Back squats
135 x 5
155 x 5
165 x 5
175 x 5
185 x 5
195 x 4

That's one rep more at 195lb, plus I think my form was much better today (full rom).

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I copied part of Paul's workout from a short time ago, just to see how I measure up. Paul's scores are in brackets.

Push-ups - 34, 22, 16 (40, 21, 20)
Paul beat me by nine reps in total, but at least I managed one rep more in the second set!

Chin-ups - 15, 10, 9 (15, 10, 9)
I shouted the loudest "Shit!" when I tried and failed to get a 10th chin-up in the last set!

And to finish off...

Leg raises - 21, 17, 12

Upper body

I ate a hell of a lot of food yesterday, but it was all "clean". I would have treated myself and eaten some apple pie IF SOMEONE HAD BOTHERED TO BRING SOME!

Push press - 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
85, 95, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125 (2)

I've put that I managed two reps at 125lb, but - to be honest - they weren't great. I got the bar overhead, but it came down pretty quickly both times. I was doing pretty well up to that point, too, and I felt like I got plenty of power from my hips and shoulders up to 120lb.

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5 rft:
5 power cleans @ 115lb
10 dips
Time = 8:59

All of the cleans were unbroken, although they weren't all t&g. About halfway through this routine I found that my form improved significantly by keeping the bar close to my body during the cleans. However, this new-found knowledge came at a price; when I brought the bar up my shins, I ripped off the deadlift scab on my right leg from a couple of weeks ago. I could feel the blood dripping down and pooling on my top of my sock! Also, I noticed that there were spots of blood on the carpet by the dips station. Ew!

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Chin-ups (strict), max reps
10, 7, 5, 5

Last flex of 2012!

Death by...

I felt a bit meh today - no idea why. I'd planned on doing either Angie or Barbara today, or even Cindy Max, but when I got to the gym, the pull-up rack was being used. I must admit I was secretly pleased because it meant I couldn't do kipping pull-ups. Yeah, I know I was being damn lazy, but hey, I'm being honest here. I did a few shorter routines instead.

Alternate sets
Incline dumbbell curls - 25s x 10, 27s x 5, 5, 5, 4
Skull crushers - 22s x 12, 25s x 9, 7, 7, 8

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Death by military press @ 65lb
Score = 8 rounds + 7 reps
1 round increase.

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Death by chin-ups (strict)
Score = 8 rounds + 5 reps

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Death by sit-ups x 2
Score = 12 rounds (24 sit-ups) + 14 reps
Another 1 round increase.

I got to the end of the 12th round and immediately started the next one, as there wasn't even time for one second's rest.

Full body

Personal training with Paul

Complex: 1 power clean + 5 front squats
115, 125, 135, 140 (4 squats), 140 (3)

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Alternate drop sets

Weighted pull-ups - 25 x 9, 5, 4, 4
Pull-ups - bw x 3, 4, 3, 3

Military press - 65 x 9, 7, 7, 5
Push press - 65 x 7, 8, 6, 6

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Death by burpees
11 rounds + 9 reps

Pulling

It's been a long time since I did a pure pulling day. This felt good.

Hang power snatches 5, 5, 5, 5, 5
65, 70, 75, 80, 80 (4)

In the fourth set, I resorted to pressing out a bit with reps 4 and 5, and I'm really trying not to rely on that at all when getting the weight overhead. My last set was much better, but I dropped a rep. I used the 25lb straight curl bar, rather than my usual 45lb longer bar (of course, making up the weight with plates). I think that definitely helped with my stability, and there wasn't so much staggering around when I got the weight up, which I think was due to the width of the bar and weight outside my grip.

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Dumbbell row 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 per arm
70s, 75s, 80s, 85s, 90 (4)

I haven't done dumbbell rows since November 2011, at which time I PRed at 85lb. No twisting around in order to move the weight, though; just good rowing movement.

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Purple resistance band chin-ups, max reps
4, 4, 3, 3, 3

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12-10-8-6-4-2 reps for time:
Hang cleans @ 95lb
Inverted rows
Time = 9:07

Full body (mostly upper)

Jessica Zelinka, who recently qualified to represent Canada in the 100 metres hurdles at London 2012.
Why do all these women have better arms and shoulders than me?!

Dumbbell snatches for time (5 per arm, alternating)
30lb = 24s
35lb = 24s
40lb = 27s
45lb = 37s
50lb = 1:17

I should probably have used a heavier weight in the later sets. My time with 50lb in the final set might make it look as if I was approaching a more challenging weight, but I inadvertently did 6 reps per arm instead of 5. A I was halfway up with my left (first) arm I thought, "Oh crap - that's #6!", but I decided to balance it out with a 6th rep with my right arm. I didn't video this routine, but I think I managed to maintain decent form without resorting to pushing out the bar overhead.

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Bear complex x 3 (1 power clean, 1 front squat, 1 push press, 1 back squat, 1 rack jerk)
65, 85, 85 (failed the second rack jerk), 85, 85

The last time I did this - with Paul - I aimed for a touch and go between sets. I couldn't manage that today as I had to reset quickly after the rack jerk in order to get the correct grip for the power clean. I couldn't figure out why I had a problem with this until I realised that my grip for the back squats and jerks was too wide for the clean. In the last set, I kept my grip the same width - just wider than my shoulders - and that seemed to help.

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Alternate sets:
Dumbbell military press @ 25s - 12, 11, 10, 8, 9
Chin-ups - 12, 9, 7, 7, 6

Pushing and Pulling

Power snatch:
65 x 5
75 x 5
85 x 4
85 x 4
85 x 3

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Alternate sets, relative max reps:

Bench press @ 105lb - 11, 9, 8, 6, 6
Chin-ups - 11, 9, 8, 7, 7

Cable rows @ 110lb - 10, 10, 9, 9, 8
Push-ups - 18, 16, 15, 15, 11

Full body

Personal training with Paul

Power snatch - technique work

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Bear complex x 3, t&g (1 power clean, 1 front squat, 1 push jerk, 1 back squat, 1 rack jerk)
65, 85, 85, 85, 85

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Alternate sets:
Dumbbell military press @ 25s: 10, 10, 12, 8, 11
Chin-ups: 12, 11, 7, 7, 7

Full body / Conditioning

About three weeks ago, I did a CrossFit Heroes WOD with Paul - The Six - but that was shortly after my return from England, and I was still feeling jetlagged. It was bugging me that I didn't feel like I'd given my best, so I was eager to try again. So glad I did.

6 rounds for time:
6 power cleans @ 115lb
6 box jumps @ 26"
6 dumbbell swings @ 55lb
6 over-the-bar burpees
Time = 20:31

That's 3:03 quicker than last time. I think there were two major differences today: (a) More consistent cleans. In the first round they were unbroken; the second, third and fourth rounds were three and three; and the last two rounds were 3-2-1. (b) My rest breaks were much shorter. I think I was a bit tougher mentally today, compared to three weeks ago, so I was talking myself into moving again every time I stopped.

I glanced at my watch at the end of the third round, and the time was 9:47. I thought the second half of the routine would be much slower and I wouldn't beat my previous time. However, the final time shows I was pretty consistent throughout.

In my blog from earlier this month, I noted that I felt nauseous, thirsty and crampy (is that a word?). Today, I was an exhausted puddle of sweat at the end - which is to be expected - but other than that, relatively good!

Feels like a monkey off my back.

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Chin-ups, max reps: 10, 7, 6, 4

Not great, but after my performance with The Six, I don't give a shit!

Pushing and Pulling

Holmberg and Khalipa

Man, my upper back hurts like a beeatch, following yesterday's trap bar deadlifts. I keep forgetting about that.

Alternate sets, max reps

Bench press @ 100lb (small bench, 6 holes): 13, 11, 10, 7, 6
Chin-ups: 12, 9, 8, 6, 5

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Push press @ 80lb: 9, 11, 9, 9, 7
Inverted row: 3 (aborted)

My left shoulder, which I injured while doing dips a couple of months ago, started to cause problems again while I was doing the rows. I had a burning sensation that began with the first rep and got worse with each one. It didn't actually hurt, but I could feel that it was about to. As soon as I stopped, so did the burning, and the pain never materialised. However, it looks like I still need to be careful not to injure my shoulder again.

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Preacher curls @ 55lb: 10, 7, 6, 5

Legs and CrossFit Open 12.5

Hell, I ride a bike - why don't my quads look like
Chris Hoy's?

My last workout for a few days as I'm heading off to England this evening. Jet-lag will probably knock me off track for a while, so I haven't decided if it's worthwhile signing up with a local gym for a week a I may only get three days use of it (£30.00 for a week!). It might be better if I go for a few runs instead, especially as the New Hamburg 5K Classic is only a couple of months away.

Front squats:
135 x 3
145 x 3
150 x 3
155 x 3
160 x 3
165 x 3
170 x 2
170 x 3
175 x 2

I used the correct grip throughout this routine, which I'm going to stick with now. 2 reps at 175lb equals my PR, which was using a crossover grip, so I'm very pleased that I seem to have got the hang of it now. Still, it frigging killed my wrists. I concentrated on keeping my had and chest up, which made it much easier to balance the bar correctly, Still, you can see my elbows dip slightly on a few reps. Overall, I'm pleased with today's front squats as my technique seems to be improving, including keeping my weight in my heels.

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I only had enough time for a short metcon today, so why not do this week's CrossFit Open routine? I wanted to make this a quick-moving workout, so I used the women's weight for thrusters. Hell, that's what Kristan Clever used - are you going to argue with her? Also, I opted for chin-ups rather than pull-ups, which is acceptable, according to the demo. I didn't kip too much as I was using the unsecured pull-up rack.

Complete as many reps as possible in 7 minutes following the rep scheme below:
65lb thruster, 3 reps
3 chest to bar chin-ups
65lb thruster, 6 reps
6 chest to bar chin-ups
65lb thruster, 9 reps
9 chest to bar chin-ups
65lb thruster, 12 reps
12 chest to bar chin-ups...

Score = 12 thrusters and 7 chin-ups (55 reps)

Kristan Clever got 137 reps at this weight - bloody hell! Thrusters aren't a strong move for me, so I think I made the right choice for what is only a 7 minute workout. The men's RX weight is 100lb, which would have been a serious struggle for me. A fast, fun routine that took my breath away really quickly.

Here's my latest flexin' photo. 

Full body

Seriously, dude?

Personal training with Paul.

I was about to type that this is my first day back at the gym after a short break, but I only missed 1 day due to illness! Physically, I feel almost 100% back to normal, but my head felt a bit groggy at the start of today's session. However, that cleared up pretty quickly and I was able to stay focused.

Sumo deadlifts:
225 x 3
255 x 3
275 x 3
285 x 3
295 x 3
305 x 3

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Alternate sets:
Push press: 85 x 3, 95 x 3, 105 x 3, 110 x 0, 110 x 0
Chin-ups (weighted): 25 x 3, 35x 3, 40 x 3, 45 x 3, 50 x 3

Okay, now I'm really getting frustrated at my lack of progress with push presses. At 110lb I was able to just about lockout overhead, but then the bar came straight down again. This is going to require some serious work to start improvement. It's compounded by my consistently increased strength with leg and posterior chain exercises. Some tips here that I might try.

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Amrap 5:
5 x dumbbell hang clean and push press @ 35s
5 x pull-ups (strict)
Score = 5 rounds exactly

Bloody hell. Only 5 minutes, but it killed my forearms.

Full body

Gym was busy today, so my planned workout went out the window. The first 2 routines were made up on the fly, based on what was available at the time.

Alternate sets:

Cable rows:
120 x 5
130 x 5
140 x 5
150 x 5
160 x 4 (actually did 5, but form was crap on the last one)

Dips - max reps: 11, 9, 9, 8, 8

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Alternate sets:

Dumbbell piston press - max reps @ 35s (per side):
12, 12, 11, 10, 10

Chin-ups - max reps:
10, 8, 7, 6, 5

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"Rahoi" - Amrap 12:
12 x box jumps @ 24"
6 x thrusters @ 75
6 x burpees

Score = 4 rounds exactly

As RXed this would be 95lb thrusters and bar-facing burpees. However, the gym was a bit crowded so I didn't really have room for that type of burpee, only regular ones. Also, 95lb thrusters would be more of  strength workout for me and I wanted this to be just conditioning, hence the lighter weight. Even then my arms were knackered from the earlier routines and I found these lighter thrusters tough. On more than one occasion during the third set I seemed to chicken out while doing box jumps. No idea why.

Full body

Photo time! January 21, 2012. Can't really see much difference over the past 4 months.

Personal training with Paul

Elizabeth: 21-15-9
Squat cleans @ 95
Dips
Time = 14:25

I didn't fail on a single rep, which I was pleased about. I felt like I could tell when my body needed to rest and when it was good to go. However, at the back of my mind I wonder if I should have failed on at least 1 rep so I would know I'd pushed myself to the limit. Maybe I'm just being harsh on myself because I know these two moves so well I can accurately pick up the cues from my body.

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Alternate sets:

Bench press (6 holes, small bench, starting from the top): 95 x 5, 115 x 5, 120 x 4, 120 x 4, 120 x 3
Chin-ups: 11, 8, 8, 8, 7

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75 sit-ups for time: 3:25
I've done these quicker before, but even though I started pretty quickly I simply ran out of steam.