Olympic Lifting/Conditioning

My shoulder's still a little dodgy, so I didn't punish it too much today. Also, I woke up at 4:15am and couldn't get back to sleep! For some ridiculous reason I kept thinking about some of my favourite TV shows that got cancelled ("Human Target" and "Lie To Me"). Dumb reason for insomnia!

Hang cleans 5 x 5 @ 115
4, 3, 3, 4, 3 = 17

3 reps less than last week. There's something about doing hang cleans in the cage that I find off-putting. I never hit as many reps as when I do them at the squat rack, which was already being used today. Oh, well...

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Deadlifts 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
175, 195, 210, 220, 230 (2)

All of these were done using the wrist straps, which make a tremendous difference to how comfortable my grip feels. Last week I PRed with 1 rep at 220 without the straps. This week's performance was much better.

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For time:
20 x squats
20 x burpee box jumps
20 x chest to floor push-ups
15 x burpee box jumps
20 x tuck jumps
10 x burpee box jumps
20 x jump lunges (per leg)
5 x burpee box jumps
20 x squats

Time =  11:20

That's nearly 3 minutes quicker than the last time I did this routine way back in January, and that time I did them at the start of my workout. However, Liliana pointed out I was doing the burpee box jumps incorrectly. I did a burpee, then a box jump, so 2 separate movements. She suggested I should be going straight from the ground to a jumping position, but I'm pretty sure I did this as 2 movements in January, too, simply because I don't/can't lift my legs 24" high when I do a burpee.

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Incline bench curls @ 20s
12, 8, 6

Conditioning

20 x squats
20 x burpee box jumps @ 24"
20 x push-ups
15 x burpee box jumps
20 x tuck jumps
10 x burpee box jumps
20 x jump lunges per leg
5 x burpee box jumps
20 x squats

Time = 14:12 [PR = 15:33, December 13, 2010]

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For time:
Cycle 1 mile @ 8 resistance
50 x box jumps @ 24"
Cycle 1 mile @ 8 resistance

Time = 12:39 [PR = 12:16, January 6, 2011]

I tried a different strategy this time, which didn't pay off. For the first cycle I went flat out this time, whereas before I'd paced myself a bit more. When it came to the box jumps today I had to take three or four rest breaks - last time I only took one - not because my legs were exhausted, but because I was so out of breath. I tried but couldn't make up the time with the second cycle.

The last time I did this it was preceded by a less challenging routine, but I don't think that would account for the different scores. I rested for three minutes before I started the first cycle, which should have been enough time for me to recover.

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50 x squats
50 x push-ups
50 x pull-ups
50 x sit-ups

Time = 17:30

Nothing to compare this to, although I was aiming for a sub-20. As expected, the pull-ups were the most challenging. I opted for neutral grip because I did so many pull-ups and chin-ups yesterday.

And a partridge in a pear tree

Personal training with Paul.

Today I had my last personal training session before Christmas, for which Paul had me do the same 12 Days of Christmas routine as last year. (Think of the song, but substitute an exercise for each of the gifts.) However, he made this year's version more challenging with heavier weight for the thrusters and power cleans, plus I used a heavier kettlebell for the swings (last year I used a dumbbell that was a couple of pounds lighter). I think the box jumps were higher this year, too.

1 x push-up
2 x knees to elbows
3 x box jumps to 24"
4 x pull-ups
5 x air squats
6 x kettlebell swings
7 x mountain climbers (per leg)
8 x dumbbell snatches (per arm)
9 x tuck jumps
10 x thrusters @ 95 lb
11 x burpees
12 x power cleans @ 95 lb

I completed the whole "song" in exactly 40 minutes; last year's time was dead on 50 minutes.

Really pleased with the greatly improved time, especially since the whole routine is a bit more challenging. It shows that my fitness has improved in the past 12 months, as has my mental strength.