I don't even know if I am improving

So, it has been weeks. Let's not even play catch up. I'll just tell you what I did this morning.
Close grip Bench - 265x3
Decline DB Bench - 65x10, 3x8x70
Bent Over DB row - 4x10x70
Seated DB Clean and Press - 2x12x35

I swear I have been doing other work outs.
Also, I get to play football. I have two tackles, a forced fumble, 3 carries for 10 yards or so, and a catch for 15 yards. I am also on O-line for punts and field goals. I love it!

I'm really starting to suck at this.

Wow. Almost two weeks since I posted last. Here is a quick update for everyone.

June 27th

Front squat 225x5

Bulgarian squats, 3x6 60lbs

Swiss ball reverse hypers 3x12, clench on last 6 of each set

Wrist roller, 2x1 minute

June 28th

Swiss ball bench press 60lbs Dbs (25, 13)

DB tri ext 40lbs, 3x10

Lat pull downs, 4x10, 150

DB shoulder press, 3x10 40lbs

Hammer curls, 3x10, 40lbs

June 29th 

Pull ups (20,12)

Rock throws 10x2

Tire flips 10

Tire slams 10x2

Bent over rows 10 40lbs

Pull ups (12, 8)

June 30th

Football practice

10mile run, 75 minutes

July 1st 

3x225/2x265 close grip bench

3x10 60lbs DB decline bench

2x12/2x13 165lbs cable row

3x5 185lbs slow explode bench/10 push ups

5 3 point decline bench crunch 25lbs DB

2x15 50lbs cable swiss ball crunch

3x5 155lbs slow explode bench/10 push ups

2x15 25lbs DB leg raises

July 2nd 

29:36 5 mile time trial

July 3rd 

DL 3x325

2x10 40lbs DB lunge with sprinters leg raise

July 4th 

Failure in freedom (32:00)

July 5th

Warm up bench 185x8, 10 push ups

Bench 225x12/1 minute/225x6

2x12 floor presses 70lbs DBs

3x3 DL 325

Pull ups 16/14

3x10 Seated DB shoulder press (40, 45, 45)

8x 60 EZ barl slow curls

8x 60lbs EZ bar curls

3x 5 185lbs explode bench/10 push ups

July 6th

Tire drags/broad jump/tire jumps

Tire flips/Clean and press/Burpees

Renegade rows/tire throws/gavins

Push up & dips/15 push ups/tire drags/exploding push ups

July 7th

Football practice

Playing from behind

With 8 days until the Freedom Run, I feel woefully unprepared! But there is little I can do about it now except press on and hope for the best (a a huge kick from adrenaline to push me to run 45 seconds faster per mile). Any way...
6/22
Mark and I mostly just shot bows all morning for our Saturday morning workout. I just thought of a great adaptation for it though to make it an actual workout. Oh, and we threw rock, too.

6/23
Football practice! lots of sprints, but that's about it.

6/24
3x265 narrow grip bench
4x10 55lbs DB incline bench
4x12 165lbs seated cable row
2x10 35lbs DB seated power clean
15x40lbs DB swiss ball crunch
15x20lbs DB 3 point decline crunches
15x20lbs DB knee raises
15x myotatic crunch

6/25
Mark and Liam could not make it to Vollrath, but Jason and I did a lot of sprints, only about 12 up hill, but about 15 football drills, and 25 routes each, so we each ended up sprinting about 50 times each, and we also did push ups, squats, and mountain climbers in the last set.

I ate none too healthy Saturday, cheat day Sunday, pretty good Monday and Tuesday (but I need to cut down on the trail mix).
And that catches you up! Tata!

Ummm, I need to play catch up.

It has been too long since I last posted here (over a week by now). I will add in all the workouts I have done since then in one post.

6/13
5k from home, 10 minute rest, 5k to home. Both medium speed.

6/14 Upper Body Repetition (90 seconds rest between sets unless otherwise stated)
185 bench press, max reps (18), 1 minute break, then max again (10)
3x10 60lbs EZ bar skull crushers
Pull ups, 10/10/8
3x12 20lbs DB lateral raises
3x10 35lbs DBs hammer curls

6/15, back at the farm, Mark and I went through a relaxed workout.
5 laps of the orchard/10 Gavins/15 Pull ups/20 tire throws/25 shrug to upright row (75lbs bar)/30x40lbs KB swings/35 push ups/40 stump jumps/35 push ups/30 swings/25 shrug rows/20 tire throws/15 pull ups/10 Gavins/5 orchard laps

6/17 Max Rep Upper
Back at PF with Maryl, we went through another DeFranco work out. (90 second rest between sets unless otherwise stated)
Incline bench, 3 reps x235lbs
3x10 Decline 50lbs DB bench
4x15 bent over barbell row, 135lbs
3x10 80lbs cable rope pull to throat
15 reps of 40lbs swiss ball cable crunches
15 reps of 20lbs DB 3 point decline bench crunch
15 reps 155lbs floor wipeers

6/18
Back at Mark's barn, he was still burned out, and Liam survived a fire that day, so we took it pretty easy on our body.
We ran a lot of football receiving routes... lots
Circuit- 10x75lbs BB squat press/40lbs KB swing/push ups
more routes
circuit again
more routes

6/19 Max Lower Body
Box Squat 3x310lbs
15/12/12 bulgarian squats w/ 50lbs DBs
4x10 reverse hypers
2x45 seconds 10lbs plate pinch
I then hung around PF for a while and did a quick upper body workout of
bench 5x235lbs/10 push ups/1 minute break/2x285lbs/10 push ups/1 minute/ 10x135 slow descend, explode up bench

6/20
I decided to get back to the tabata workout with only two weeks until the Freedom run, so I showed up at PF at 10pm and jumped on a treadmill. I set the incline to 7.5 and the speed to 9.5. Once it was up to speed, I simply ran 20 seconds on/10 seconds off. It is a really simple workout to understand. I did 15 cycles.

6/21 Upper Body Repetition (90 seconds rest unless otherwise stated)
Max reps 185 bench x23/1 minute rest/x9
3x10 55lbs DB floor press
2x10 165lbs lat pull down/x10150lbs lat pull down
x12 25lbs DBs lateral raises/3x12 20lbs Dbs lateral raises
10x30lbs DBs alternate curl/x10 35lbs DBs/x10 40lbs DBs/x10 35lbs DBs
15 myotatic crunch
5x4 seconds ab twist hold/5x4 seconds ab twist holds
Then I came home, did some overhead presses, a little bench, and some pull ups.

So that catches everyone up to what I have done up to this point, but I am sure I will do more today. I feel it!

Also, I want to point out that as of this 9:15 this morning, I had taken in 70 grams of protein to 25 of carbs. It will be a good day today.

I just need to post this stuff the day I do it.

Monday morning, a friend joined me at PF for a workout. I got this workout from the website of Joe DeFranco, considered one of the 5 best trainers in the US, and brought up NFL players like Miles Austin and Brian Cushing as well as Triple H. I thought he could help me. Each set was done with 90-120 seconds rest between.
-3*225 incline bench
-3 sets of 10 db bench 70
-4 sets of 12 db bent over row 60
-2 sets of 15 rear delt machine 80
-3 sets of 15 weighted abs (swiss ball crunch with machine (40lbs), decline ab twists w/ 20lbs DB, floor wipers with 135 lbs bench)
I also ran to and from the gym giving me a little over 6 miles on the day.

Tuesday I went pretty easy, because I felt like I needed another day with only one workout. Mark, Jason and I met up at Vollrath at 840 and did
-3 hill sprints
-5 foootball drills (total 4 change of direction, 50 yards of running/3 CoD, 25 yards/5 burpees)
-Broad jump half way up hill, then sprint/back pedal halfway up hill, then sprint/back pedal up hill with hip flips
-3x sprint up hill, turn left or right and sprint through on command
-2x 40 yard sprint
-5 Defensive back coverage/receiver drills
-2 fartleks around the bowl
-2 hill sprints
It was muggy and damp and humid, and the bugs were out. Not that pleasant, but a good workout.

Two a days are getting exhausting!

Friday morning, I slept in a little late, then realized how late and barely had time for a new work out. With hardly 15 minutes, I set a time limit of 1 minute rest between sets (2 of each exercise except squats).

-Max Dips 29/16

-Skull crushers 50lbs EZ bar, 15/15

-Chin ups, 15/8

By this time, my arms were very wobbly, and I was surprised at how quickly I got worn out.

-Seated Dumbbell Press, 25lbsx15/35lbsx14

-Hammer Curls 35x12/12

-Parallel squats 235x7

My arms felt like fabric by the end. It was so much tougher than I thought it would be.

Saturday, Mark and I tested 300 again. I completed the routine in a new PR of 17:39, nearly a minute faster. Mark finished it this time, instead of puking, in a time of 19:12, so his name now goes up on our Champion Scroll.

Feeling tired, but good, I went on an hour long run after work, just to shake out and feel alike. I ran out to Rangeline Road from Festival, cut through Kohler, came down Indiana, and then up the big smaller of the Taylor Drive hills, and back to Festy. Good run! I had also had nothing to eat but a dozen doughnuts and a half gallon of milk at work... it was a peculiar run.

mornings are rough

I ran again this morning. I dropped Tyner off, and set up to run 4 laps; a 5-mile time trial.
My time (and splits) after each lap...
8:22(8:22), 16:47(8:25), 24:52(8:05), 32:30(7:38). I was very surprised with the final outcome, running the last 2 1/2 miles in an average of about 6:10/mile. Not bad for being rather out of running shape. Given a month, I should be able to improve that to maybe as low as 5:50. Whoot!
My morning was not done, however. I headed over to PF, and, with a mere 7 minutes to work out, going.
-Squat, 235x10/toe raises with 15lbs DBs x 50/15lbs DB 3 point curls x 15
-shallow squat, 185x25/35lbs DB Bulgarian squats x 5 each leg
And that was it. Time was up. I feel a bit worn, but good, too. I like it.

A month to go

After my mile time trial debacle, I reflected. Tuesday, I realized I only had a month until the Freedom Run. I needed to get in shape. I found a city block that was about a mile and a quarter around, so...
-after dropping my sister off at church, I ran the block fast in 7:31.
-a five to seven minute rest later, I ran it in 7:18.
-Another rest, then I sprinted the parking lot, which is maybe 160 meters., walk a half lap, sprint, etc. I did it 7 times.
-When I arrived home, Iwent and benched 225x4 wide grip.

I didn't work until 11, so I had about 4 hours to kill, so I slouched around for a bit, then got ready to go to work by doing...
-80lbs EZ-barx5drag curls+5curls
-225lbs BP Wide grip
-80lbs EZ upright row

I then walked to PF, and upon arrival...
-Squat 255x3/3 point decline crunchesx10
-255x4
-275x3
Brief break
-Bench press 255x3
-275x2/floor wipers x10/windhield wipersx6
-295x1
-295x1
-255x1 narrow+2normal
-20lbs DBs 3 point curlsx10

After work, I had an hour and a half of Rugby practice from 6-730, and then headed out to Marks barn for Sparta. George started with us, and then Patrick, Liam, and their brother in law John joined us when we were almost done with set one, so sets 1 and 3 were the pacers.
-Step up knee raises x15 per side/weighted oblique crunches/alternating squat rows with 40lbs kb
-overhead squat (80lbs barbell) or clean and jerk/table top crunches with 7.5lbs weight/push ups
-40lbs KB swing/10lbs dbs dumbell raises (front and lateral)/plank twists, cheek to cheek
-tire throws/reverse lunges with jump kick/80lbs barbell curls
-7 driveway sprint relay
-max push upsx2 (61/39)

I was exhausted, so I took Wednesday off. Cheerio!

Take the good with the bad.

I started off my morning with some jump roping, simply to get back into it. I was doing a lot of jump roping for a while, and I thought I could feel the effects of it, and I got out of the habit. I also did some wide grip bench press (4x225) on the bench in my basement, and then I took my sister to morning church, where I ran some agility tests in the gym for about 20 minutes, then did push ups (25 decline, 30 incline, 16 walking). By that time church was over, so I took my sister back home, got ready for work, and ran to PF in 21:16. so far, not a bad start to the day.
1- I set up the squat rack with 235x5/10 myotatic crunch/25 dips
2- squat 235x5/I held a 15lbs DB with my feet raised them 4 inches off the ground and did 25 crunches/a useless tricep extension workout
3-squat, 245x5
I considered running home, but the weather was too beautiful, and I decided to simply walk home.

Bad food- I had dinner at a friends house, and we downed 4 pizzas and 3 bottles of soda and a half gallon of chocolate milk.

Gotcha!

The plan today was for a workout that went by quick, so Mark and I decided that the first one we did that first weekend in April was the best option; the pyramid. We were joined by Liam and Patrick, so I was teamed with Pat, Liam with Mark. I would do a workout, then Pat would do it, then we would record our time. Then I would do the second, etc. Mark and Liam started once we had finished our first workout.

1- 5 laps around the orchard

2- 10 Gavins (burpee with clean and press, 35lbs DB)

3- 15 pull ups

4- 20 clean and press with feed bag

5- 25 90lbs DL

6- 30 40lbs KB swings

7- 35 push ups

8- 40 alternating jumping lunges

9- see '7'

10- see '6'

11-15 see '5'-'1' respectively.

It was a bit difficult going through, but it was on the way back that things got really hairy. We got hung up on DL, and that was after KB swings. Mark and Liam caught us at swings, passed us when we were on DL, and then Pat took a vomit break (Liam had one earlier). then Mark's neighbors showed up, so we stopped for about 8 minutes, so we cut everything else out (we only had Gavin's to do) and finished with the run. 

All in all, good workout. Two people to puke. EXCELLENT breakfast provided by Abbie afterwards (french toast, snausage links, a kale, spinach, peach, orange, yogurt, and healthy seed concoction smoothie), but at work I could feel fatigue in my legs, and I have muscle soreness through out my body. And I have football practice tomorrow!

So what's the plan? Hmmm... let's do something else!

I wanted to go for a 6am run. I wanted to go to Planet Fitness and work out before work. I then wanted to run home. Instead, I slept in, barely had time for breakfast, and hit traffic so I was a couple minutes late. I just worked out a little bit after.
I did some squat (2*3@275), incline bench (1*3, 1*2@225), narrow bench (2*5@225), 3 point curls (25@12.5)seated row (8@165), bent over row (15@65), and then the lazy kicked in, so I went home to eat dinner, but on the way, I remembered a friend was moving. So I helped her move for 2 hours or so. Good work out.

I lost, that Runnin' feeling!

I started out my day with a challenge from my brother; as many push ups as I can in 10 minutes. I started with a set of 50, and I couldn't do more than 30 in a set after that, and after the 30 I couldn't do more than 20. I floundered my way through for 265 push ups. I'm going to try it again with a better pace next time.
Then my friend Brian and I met up at the High School track and he ran a mile time trial. I ran the first two laps, but lactic acid already started building up in my legs, so I stopped, then ran the fourth lap to pace him through it. I was so upset that I dropped out that I went to Vollrath and ran the half mile loop there 3 times. No idea what my times were, but I was tired. Ummmm, yeah, that is it... have a good day!

Hiatus

I swear I've been working out. I just didn't get on a computer.
Saturday morning, my cousin Andrew was visiting, so I asked him to join us for our morning workout. He accepted. After about a half mile warm up, I started the cycle, then Liam followed, then Andrew, then Mark.
1- 75 jump ropes or double jumping jacks.
2-wall sits until the jumper is done
3-35 push ups
4- 40 abs
5- 10 alternating lunge step ups, each leg
6- 30 kettle bell swings
7-25 dips
8-myotatic crunch
9-15 pull ups with knee raise
10-20 35lbs DB squat press
11-25 push ups with twist (at raised height, twist your hips and bring your knee to the opposite elbow)
12- 20 inverted push ups. These were hard to do in the barn, but we tried a variation I found where you put your feet on a chair, and make your body into a scissor while doing them. I did not like it. I'm going straight and using a wall next time.
Sunday and Monday just had tinkering type workouts as I had no time to fit in any other actual workouts.
Tuesday night, we did sprints at Vollrath again. We were joined by some youth from the church, and Jason again. There were 7 of us.
1-Alternating sprint jogs 160-175 yards (5 sprints per lap) while you were waiting your turn, you did push ups, squats, burpees, abs, whatever you wanted, and switched any time the next person started their sprints. 4 laps each.
2- High knees sprint drill. There were 8 cones set up around the person, each about 5 yards away. At command, you sprinted to a cone, then sprinted back, then did high knees. 6 reps. The 'rest' period was running up and down the hills.
3-Line drills. Cones were placed 10,15, and 20 yards. We split into two groups, and the first person sprint to the first cone, stop, back pedal through the beginning. Person two is doing goblet squats (with either 40lbs KB or 35 lbs DB) drops the weight and sprints. Person three was doing push up[s, switches to squats. Person one is now doing push ups. Second run was to the second cone, and third to the third.
4-Shuttle. Same thing essentially, but we side shuffled to the cone, then turned and sprint through. The second rep was shuttle the other way, still to the first cone. Then the second, then third.
5-Sprint relay. Adults vs teens. Mark, Jason and I were one team, and Liam led the other team. I set up two cones per team 30 yards apart, and Mark ran to Jason (at cone 2) and handed off a football to him. He sprinted through to me, then I to Mark, etc. First team to get 12 reps wins.
After I got home, I decided I wanted a run was in order, so I ran a 5k.
That is basically what I have done this weekend... oh, and ate like crap. I haven't mentioned my diet recently. When I do it, it works. If I don't it really doesn't work out well for me. I can drop to 175 pretty easily, but graduation parties really kicked my plan in the teeth, and we ran out of eggs. I will attest to the importance of a high protein breakfast immediately upon waking up. Two days of absolute crap did less to lose my ab definition than 2 days of normal eating but without a good breakfast. Use cheat day effectively, avoid most carbs (keep it under 75grams daily), and DO NOT DRINK CALORIES!!!

try and keep up... AND DON'T PUKE!!!

Turns out that Mark had to put his son to bed, so we tried to go hyper speed, but too much deliberation led to too much delay, but Mark, Patrick, Liam and I tried our best.
1- 10 of the push up-burpee-clean and press combination called Gavin's/Myotatic crunch/135lbs Dead lift/jump rope
2- 5 reps of 4 point jumps (an agility drill of sorts)/25lbs weighted push ups/seated russian twists/75lbs clean and press
3- push ups to failure/air squats/hold 5lbs weights straight out to the side/rest. We did set on repeat until we hit 300 team reps, and we did the second and third time through with the weight on our back. (I did 52 reps, 20, 18)
Then, we parted; Mark to his children, and the rest of us hit Festival foods for some quick noms, then home.

It wasn't supposed to be this wet!

Today I ran. I did some other things; drag curls, cat vomit, pull ups and some bench press, but the running was the main event. I ran to Maywood through Evergreen park, via the Quarry disc golf course, by traversing Eisner. I will admit it took longer than I had expected. I ran for nearly an hour and a half, about 12 miles or so if my calculations are correct. I did have to take a break; Maywood was a much muckier place than I had assumed  it would be. I ended up slipping and falling to the ground, splashed and covered with muck and mud, sandy grime. My socks got soaked and within a mile or so of exiting the puddles, I had developed quite the blister on my right foot. So I had to remove my sock, and then commenced to run back home. It was quite the ordeal, but one I look forward to repeating in the future. I felt wonderful to leave behind so much and just run, to feel the wind on my face and the heat surround me, cocoon about me. I developed a slight sunburn, adding to this weekends burn from football practice, but nothing too bad. I feel, apart from the soreness, so much better already for the run.

SPARTANS!!!

I did it. This morning, Mark and I gathered at his barn. We stretched. We warmed up. We got psyched. Then we set to work. We threw ourselves into the daunting task of completing the 300 workout used for the popular movie 300; 25 pull ups, 50 dead lift of 135lbs, 50 push ups, 50 2ft box jumps, 50 floor wipers with 135lbs, 50 clean and press with 36lbs weight, and 25 pull ups just to kill you at the end, and all with a 20 minute time limit. We modified it slightly (we only had 133.8lbs, or so on the bar, our 'box' was a stump measuring 22 inches (if you jumped form the correct angle), and our 36lbs kettle bell was a 35 lbs dumbbell. Tough tit!
Any, Mark had me go first, and I shot out of the gate. I did the 25 pull ups in two sets (20, 5) then did the dead lift as fast as I could (25, 15, 10) pausing to stretch my hammies because they were tightening up fiercely. I pumped out my push ups without pause, then headed out to the stump, where It took a number of sets with some brief pauses betwixt to finish, but I was on pace to smash the time as I headed to the floor wipers and got the weight up at 7:39. I started to lift my toes to the left weights, then down, then to the right, and immediately I could feel the lactic acid building in my static shoulder and arms. The twist in the core thrust the weight side to side, and in my weakened state it nearly toppled me time and again. We realized a spotter was necessary. Mark placed himself in ready position to seize the weight when a drop was immanent. I was able to struggle through them in about as much time as it took me to do the previous 175 reps. I grabbed the DB and pumped out ten reps on my right arm, put it down, sucked air, then did ten left, sucked air, then ten right, ten left, five, five. All that remained was the 25 pull ups from Hades own cesspit. I did 12, and dropped. I did 6, then dropped. I did 3, dropped. 2, and dropped, then, with Mark pushing me on, I threw my body up to the bar to do my final two reps, and finished with a time of 18:29. The only actor from the movie to complete the test did it in 18:11. Craig Ballantine, a contributor form Men's Health magazine, was able to complete it in 19:07. He said "I don't plan on that any time soon, or, really, ever again." Boss.
Then it was Mark's turn. He was slower on the push ups and pull ups than me, but he pumped out the DL faster, and was consistent on the stump jumps. He got down for the wipers at about 7:20, ahead of me. He worked through at 5 reps, break, 5 reps, break, until he started rep 41, where he pumped them out all the way to 50. 6 minutes to go. He was going to break my time! But then, something terrible happened; he paused, he huffed, and he puffed, and he went behind the barn to toss his cookies. That is the first time in about 20 years that a workout has caused him to throw up.
Mission accomplished.

easy on the knees, now!

I decided to do my workout before work today, but I did not need to run due to last nights running workout.  I warmed up with 15 pull ups, then benched 225 on a normal bench in my basement 3 times, then hopped in my car. I arrived at Planet Fitness and seized a bench where I did 225 4 times, then 265 3 times. I grabbed a 50lbs DB, did 5 side lunge squats in each direction, then 295 once, dropped it to 285 and did it once, then 245 3 times, then 185 25 times. Satisfied with my benching, I grabbed a 60lbs ez bar and did 60 curl/rows, hopped over to do 12 myotatic crunches, then did 20 curl rows again before running out of time and having to call it a workout. Short, sweet, and simple. Boom, baby!

The gods give their pleasure

As I arrived at Vollrath for our bi weekly hill workout, I could see off in the distance, hazy at best in the fast fading light, a light caramel stain on the green grass of the disc golf course. I paused and looked more intently, but the cones in my eyes were losing their ability to see the detailed color in this darkening world, so I looked just off to the side, allowing the blur to fall where my rods could activate. Standing there, still as a statue, was deer. With the shape confirmed, I turned to look directly at the animal 200 meters away. After a short time, it turned and slowly and gracefully sauntered away. Artemis, the Greek godess of all things wild, of the hills and the forests, gave me her blessing!
Mark was a touch late, and he brought Jason and Liam with him. Patrick was with an old friend, I guess, and Dylan had already done a long run, so it was just us. We warmed up with a light jog, some static stretching, and then 3 runs up the hill at about 80% speed. As we headed down to the base of the hill, there was a flash of lightning. Thor was giving us his approval as well.
1- 3 sprints straight up hill.
2- Fast feet until command, then sprint uphill/pushups, sprint on command/mountain climbers, sprint on command.
3- lateral jump left, sprint on command/lateral jump right, sprint on command/broad jump, sprint on command.
4- 3 backpedal, sprint at the first cone
5- resisted sprints. Partner pulls back with a resistance band as you drive uphill focusing on good form, when they release it you sprint through to the top of the hill. 2 times each resisting and sprinting
We the moved to the flat ground.
6- 2 35 yard sprints
7- 2 8 yard post routes, with 'run after catch' (turning and sprinting up field)
8- 4 8 yard square routes with 'run after catch'
9- 2 back pedal, turn and run lateral on command, back pedal on command, lateral on command, back pedal on command, sprint through on command.
10- The cycle! The pacer ran from the base of Vollrath's stairs to the flag pole, then turned and ran back./run up and down the hills/air squats/pushups.
To wrap up, we did 3 relay sprints, straight up hill. Then we called it a night, and went our separate ways.

just like riding a bike

I decided that since Monday is my pseudo off day (Sunday is the only day I am always off) that I would try something semi challenging, but go easy with it, so I went back to the stationary bike. I did 4 reps of bike sprints. I bike 1:30 at 85-92rpm, the I pedal as fast as I can for 30 seconds (125-133rpm). I did it four times. This workout is like the team sprints we do at Mark's driveway, or the hill sprints, or the route running I did at Vollrath Park last week, as well as the cross training circuit lifting we do. It falls into the category of "Tabata" training. This training is the concept that by doing high level anaerobic activities continually, it will increase your aerobic levels faster than doing standard and common place aerobic training. Anyone that has run distance in high school knows that they will do 400 meter, 800 meter, and even mile repeats. Every now and then, they will do 200 repeats. But most runs are simply long slow runs. According to studies by Japanese scientists, these bike sprints 3 times a week increased aerobic capacity by a greater amount over a two week study than a control group that ran 75 minutes a day over the same period of time. Ergo, I will do my bike sprints and wind sprints and hill sprints.

So many calories!

Our computer decided it hated us, so it slowly broke down over the course of 2 years. The sound card fried, it would randomly reboot itself, it would freeze up if you tried to type a word with more than 6 letters, and then it came to the conclusion that internet was overrated, so it didn’t allow it. Cool, computer, cool. You suck, you’re done now. Because of this, I have not been able to post my workouts, so here comes a longer than normal post.

Friday, May 3^rd

I did a random assortment of bench pressing and other arm workouts, but I went fairly willy nilly around PF, so I don’t rightly remember what I did. There was some bench, some tricep extension, some 3 phase curls, and an ab workout or two.

Saturday, May 4^th (May the 4^th be with you!)

I sought inspiration for this workout from the web (thank goodness for work computers) and I came upon a 15 minute workout from Huffington Post that was supposed to be ‘intense’

Set 1- Front plank (60 seconds)/side plank (30 seconds each side)/squat hold (60 seconds)/lunge holds (30 seconds each leg)

We then got a 1 minute rest. Liam, Mark and I solved all the world’s financial problems during this period.

Set 2- 30 seconds high knees, 10 seconds rest, 30 seconds jumping jacks, 10 seconds rest. Repeat 4 times.

The monotony and lack of challenge that this set gave us caused us to forget our solutions for the economic quandary of the world. We decided a change of pace was in order.

Set 3- A football drill. We started with me as the ‘receiver’, Mark as the ‘quarterback’ and Liam as the ‘defender.’ At Mark’s call, I tried to run forward, but Liam opposed me with a ‘tackle pad’ or ‘kick boxing pad’ of sorts (it is really a LARPing shield, but don’t tell anyone). The ‘receiver’ pushed against the shield, then pushed it aside and ran the route, including sprinting through, then he would quickly jog to the throwing position as the defender had switched to receiver and thrower to defender. GO!!! We each got in 10 sprints. We were now breathing a little harder than before.

Set 4- Pushups with a twist… actually it was with a jump. Each pushup was down and when you got to the apex of the pushup you would throw your hands off the ground and ‘jump’ up, landing with your feet where your hands were. Drop back down, repeat. 15 reps/10 seconds rest/15 squat jumps/10 seconds rest. Repeat once.

Set 5- We went back to the cycle. Gavin-10 pull ups, Mark on pushups as fast as you can, Liam on squat jumps as fast as you can. 3 sets.

We finished with max pushups on a decline, and then max pull ups. Ces Viola! (forgive the lack of accent marks)

Monday, May 6^th

I started with running a couple routes. I would set up, get comfy, then do a 10 yard square route, including turning up field ‘after the catch.’ My follow through would take me to the second station; a 10 yard post route (and follow through). It would take me to the quick slant route (and follow through) which took me to the 8 yard hook route. That was one set. I did a total of 4 sets in 5 minutes. Then things got fun

Set 1- 10lbs DB Renegade Rows which is a walking pushup with a DB row included. I went 10 yards.

Set 2- 4 broad jumps with 10lbs DBs. This was kinda fun, to feel the resistance when trying to swing your arms forward, but then to feel it carry you when your arms reached their peak… I think I’m jumping wrong, though.

Set 3-15 yards of walking lunges with core rotation. The first 7.5 yards I would rotate away from my forward leg, and the second 7.5 I rotated toward it.

Set 4-Side walking pushups. Simple; diamond pushups, widen your arms to wide pushup, do it. Bring the trailing arm into diamond formation, do it. 5 yards leading with each arm.

Set 5- 8 yards walking squats with 10lbs DB lateral raises. Essentially, sidestep just wide enough to allow the  DBs to fit between your knees, squat rise, pause, then so a forward DB raise, rotate your shoulders so the weights are pointing straight right and left, lower, pause, raise, rotate to forward, lower, repeat the whole process.

After this was over, I went through the running of routes again, but acting as a defensive back, so I back pedaled to the break (the cone where you turn), then I turned and sprinted through as well. I went through twice.

At this point, I decided to head to Planet Fitness, CAUSE I CAN!!! I wanted to use a bench press, but they were all taken, so I used free weights instead. They were all done with Super sets, so no break between the exercises. They were performed with 50lbs DBS, except for the curls which used a 60lbs EZ barbell

Set 1-5 DB flys/10 DB bench press/15 bent over rows/10 EZ bar curls/10 seated shoulder shrugs/drink

Set 2-Same lifts but 4/8/12/8/8/drink

Set 3 same but 3/6/9/6/6 then immediately 2/4/9/4/4 then immediately 1/2/6/4/4

Fun times. I drove home, then decided it was a beautiful day, so I went for a 4 mile run, and got plastered but bugs in the process.

Tuesday, May 7^th

This was a fun one. Liam was home sick, and Mark had decided to cancel Thursdays for our workouts, so we are going to try and make the two a weeks more intense. Well, Tuesday fit the bill.

Set 1- 4 yards Renegade Rows forward, then backwards. 10lbs DBs/40lbs KB swings

Set 2- 4 yards Walking Squat 10bs DB raises, 4 yards back/ 55lbs DL

Set 3- 35lbs DB Clean and Press, 15 each arm/We simply held the 55lbs barbell overhead

Set 4- 4 yards side walking pushups, 4 yards back/feed bag squat press

Set 5- 20 55lbs barbell upright row/alternating lunge jumps

Set 6- Bicep burnout. We used the 10lbs DBs and did the 3 point curls 10 times while our partner did a clean and press variation, then we switched. We did 2 sets of each of these, but it wasn’t burning us out, so we switched the clean and press to 55lbs barbell curls, max out. We did 2 more sets.

Set 7- Back to running in the driveway. I ran first, at half way Mark ran, when I got back, I did air squats until Mark came back. I told him the number I did, then he did air squats while I rested. Once he matched my air squats, I ran to the half way while he rested. The runs went as follows

1-standard run, there and back

2- standard run there, side shuffle to the left 10 yards, turn and run

3- standard run there, side shuffle right 10 yards, turn and run

4-see 1

5- see 2

6- see 3

7- see 1 or 4

8- see 2 or 5

9- see 3 or 6

10- see 1, 4, or 7

Set 8- Time to max out pushups. We used the stump to make them decline pushups again, and Mark decided we would get not rest period. As soon as you can’t do one, you’re done and it’s your partner’s turn. However many more I did than him, he had to do that many (minus five), and any more than that number, I had to do.

1-30/48

2-27/27, at which point we said screw the rules, one more set

3- 13/13

That was the night. We gave the workout a difficulty of 4 to 4.5 out of five. The running was bad, but we couldn’t get to full speed because of fatigue, so next time we will run first, lift second. That will REALLY suck.

Wednesday, May 8^th

I ran to PF (22minutes even) where and ambulance and fire truck had arrived. Something went down in the ladies room, I guess. Once I got in, I…

Set 1- claimed a bench and did 225 (5 narrow, 5 wide)/15 dips/12 myotatic crunch/ drink

Set 2- 225 (5 narrow, 5 wide)/25 ab crunches on one of those machine sin the stretching room

Set 3- 225 (5 narrow, 5 wide) At this point, I weighed 174.4lbs.

I was short on time, so that was all I did, but then I ran home after work (22:41).

Friday, May 10th

Just 75 or so pull ups. Taking it rather easy.

Saturday, May 11th

We invited a new member to join Liam, Mark and me at the barn; Patrick. He was a right chipper chap, and did rather well for himself as well. We did was a variation of "Spartacus 2.0" this morning, a workout developed for the toning of the bodies of the actors in the Starz series 'Spartacus.' Each set of exercises was 40 on, 20 seconds off.

Set 1- DB Hand Pull/Reverse Lunge with twist/Single Arm DB Swing/Feed Bag Squat Press/Single Arm Single Leg underhand DB Row

Set 2- See Set 1.

2 minute rest

Set 3- DB Chop/Plank Walkup to Pushup/Rotational DB Straight Leg DL/Burpees/Squat Jump

Set 4- see set 2

Set 5- One of the four would do 6 sets of 3 pull ups and 6 pushups while the rest of the group would do a fartlek run around Marks yard. We each ended up doing about 6 to 10 sprints and ran about a mile total.

Set 6-Max Pushups: Mark 49, Liam 50, Patrick 68, Gavin 76.

We then went in for breakfast at which point Pat almost threw up. We did well, my lads!

I needed to shower for work, so I headed over to Planet Fitness where I did

Set 1- 225(5 narrow, 7 wide)/ 7 Squat press w/ 45lbs DBs/20 3 phase 15lbs DB curls/ 225 (5 narrow 6 wide). 

That is the end of my last week and some. Eat right, work out, live long!

Welcome, New Face. Sorry we didn't puke.

Today's course de jour was hill sprints. Not a ton of them, but enough that Liam tried to quit more than once. I also met Jason, a friend of Mark (who was also there). He seems cool. I liked him.
We started off with a simple jog with plyos for a warm up. Then, we started the sprints.
- 3 sprints up the Vollrath bowl.
     30 second rest
-3 sprints up the bowl, but on a flat the next person can yell left or right and you have to change direction and get up to a full sprint.
     1 minute rest
- 2 back pedal to the first crest, turn and sprint
-bear crawl until the next person yells sprint, then through to the top
-jump up hill until the next person yells sprint, then through to the top
-bear crawl, sprint on command

We then moved to the flat portion where I set up 4 cones, each 8 yards apart. What we performed here are essentially football routes.
-flat sprint (go route)
-sprint 8 yards, turn 45 degrees for 3 yards, turn back to the middle of the field and sprint (double move, post)
-3 cut 90 degrees at the 8 yard cone (square route)
-2 run to the 8 yard cone, stop and turn around , then turn back around and sprint through the 30(ish) yard cone. (hook and ladder)

We then went back to the hill where Liam and I partnered against Mark and Jason. I raced Mark to the top of the hill, whereupon we called to our teammates and Liam raced Jason up the hill. Their team one the first 'relay,' so then Liam and Jason went first and Liam got to call go. I raced Mark up, and we won the second, so for the third, we all ran up at the same time, and the last one to finish had to run another hill sprint, and so did their teammate. I pushed Liam through it (literally. I had my hand on his back the first 2 hills), and we won! Barely 20 sprints, but it was taxing and challenging, and I need to keep doing it, but with shorter breaks so that my cardio really gets good, like what Chip Kelly is doing with the Eagles!

I either need to work less or prioritize better

I did not post yesterday's workout yesterday, so it will be posted today.
Mark and I were without Liam this time, but we made do. We decided another speed round was in the works, so we put together our workout.
1- 5 laps of a cone drill. Run 5 yards forward, turn to your 4:30, run 3 yards, turn to your 9 o'clock, run around that cone, then turn what would be about 5 o'clock to run back to the first cone.
2- 10 burpee/pushup/dumbbell raises that Mark calls Gavins. 5 of each arm with the 35 lbs DB.
3- 15 pull ups
4- 20 corn feed bag clean and press
5- 25 hang cleans with 55lbs barbell
6- 30 40lbs KB swings
7- 35 pushups
8- 40 stump jumps (like box jumps, but we don't have a good box)
9-15 reverse order (pushups, kb swings... laps)
Mark went first, and I started once he had completed the first two exercises. There was only a slight hold up as I was finishing my first set of pushups and he was about to start his second, but it was only a couple seconds, so it went very well. We completed the 320 reps in about 13:30 minutes each. We both really need to get better at the pull ups, though.
Then there was today. I got a sun burn today. It stings. I had 2:30 hours of football practice, and I will freely admit that I dropped some catchable balls. I need to work on my hand eye coordination, but I grasped the offensive schemes fairly well, and learned some new plays and formations. I need to drastically improve my short area quickness and explosiveness, though. When I stick my foot in the ground to turn up field, there is nothing there to suggest that anyone not on greased wheels would miss me. So, we will do more sprints, jumps, and reaction/explosion drills at our workouts. Let's hope Mark and Liam are game.

Aaaaaand strip!!!

First shirtless run of the year, and it is nearly May. Bah! Bloody weather.
So, to start things out, I ran to PF. It was a lovely evening, and I found that my legs seemed weaker than my lungs. Okay, fine. I got to PF, and immediately went to get a drink, then headed over to the tricep extension where I did 10 reps of 140. Then I headed over to the DBs and picked up the 12.5's, and did 20 3-way curls. Drink. 165 on the seated row machine, then 12 reps of 15lbs DB front and lateral raises. Drink. 10 reps 170lbs lat pull down machine, 30 overhead presses with 20lbs DBs, drink. 10 myotatic crunch, 10 45lbs DBs flies, drink. 10 35lbs DBs swing press each arm, 5 weighted (2 35lbs DBs) lunges with sprinters knee raise each leg. Drink. A purple tootie frutie later I was running back home. All in all, 6 miles of running, 20 minutes of 'lifting' and an hour gone from my night. what to do now? Oh, go to bed because I have another workout in 8 hours and a charity auction tomorrow night. Ta-ta!

its all about speed!

Last night's workout was somewhat intriguing. We were looking forward to having 5 people, but Jason wanted to watch the NFL draft, and Jayson was home sick, so it was Liam, Mark, and me again. We attempted to do as many reps as fast as we could again, but there was far too long a break between the running and the start of the workout to make it really tiring. Oh well. That is some knowledge to be used next time.
Our warm up was a very simple.1- a) 15 air squats b) high knees c) pushups.
We then went outside to the driveway. Mark was worried about me running on a possibly broken foot, so he cut out the cycle sprints, and instead we did resistance runs. A partner wrapped a resistance band around your waist and pulled while you ran forward. Very important; we wanted good form. Forward lean, knee drive, on the toes, powerful arm swing, and quick feet. The cycle was the resistor switched to the runner, the runner rested, and the rester resisted. We did 5 each.
We came back inside and deliberated and came up with a 4 set workout that we would go through quickly
1- a) 25 squats with the corn feed bag. Clean the bag to the left shoulder, down, clean to the right, and that is one rep. b) flutter kicks for lower abs. c) skull crushers with 35lbs DB
2- a) 35 squat press with corn feed b) one legged airplane rows with 40 lbs KB c) pushups
3- a) 50 KB swings b) standing oblique crunches c) seated Russian twist. You sit with you butt a the end of the bench, lock your feet under the rack bar, and then twist to one side and hold it for 3 seconds. Twist to the other side and hold it for three seconds.
4- a) 25 lateral hops over feed bags b) straight leg crunches with feet raised 6 inches c) 35lbs lunges with sprinter knee raise
at the end of what was supposed to be the final set, Mark and I agreed we were not worn out, so we picked what we deemed to be the hardest set and came up with
5- a) 35 squats with feed bag to shoulders b) flutter kicks c) Russian twists
Once that was concluded, we did our max out (M-47, L-30, G-67) and called it a night.
Things I am finding out; I no longer know what sort of shape I am in. I need to figure out how to increase my aerobic without simply running. I like the effect the workouts were having originally. I could feel that I could breath better and noticed an increase in lung capacity. We may have stagnated at this point, so I think we need some workouts to shake things up. I will spend today brain storming some new compound techniques and see what I can throw at us for Saturday morning.

a day late and a pound off

I have been moderately surprised at the successes of these farm house workouts at Mark's house, but I still feel like I need to do more, so yesterday I went back to Planet Fitness for the first time in about 2 weeks. I haven't bench pressed in a while, so I decided to give that a go. I warmed up with 5 reps of 235, then 2 of 260. After a brief break where I went and change the direct payment for my Planet Fitness monthly payment, I came back and did a rep of 290, then after a shorter break, I did 305 once. I could tell while I was doing it that I was definitely weaker in the shoulders than I used to be, so I grabbed the 50 lbs DBs and pumped out ten wide chest presses. After that, I was somewhat just making things up as I went along, so I did 20 3 point curls with 12.5lbs DBs, went and did 20 dips, put the leg press machine to 290 and did 50 toe raises, then went back to the bench and did 5 reps of 225 wide grip, and I think I may have called it quits after that, but I do not remember.
I weighed myself afterwards, and after a week of eating absolute crap for 6 straight days (probably 32 donuts, 7 cans of pringles, 9 bags of M&Ms, 3 big boxes of Fudge Rounds, and maybe 2 meals with eggs, 1 of spaghetti, and a slice of ham in there), I weighed 178.8, down 3 lbs from a week and a half ago. I also looked somewhat big and intimidating in the mirrors (but I don't know about in real life). I do have a bit of a spare tire which gives me some slight love handles, but the workouts I did very effectively kept me in good visual fitness considering the crap I was ingesting. This stuff works!

Just one bite? Nope, my body isn't ready for food.

I was close today. real close. Close enough that a single bite of nutty bread french toast almost tipped the entire internal balance I had. It was a tough one this morning.
Back in the barn, Liam, Mark, and me.
Warm up - a) 15 slow and controlled deep squats. b) Double jumping jacks or jump roping c) upright row with 55lbs barbell.  Repeat.
1- Driveway sprints again. 10 reps each for 30 as a team. Hoorah!
2- a) 10 burpee/jump/pushups that Mark affectionately calls "Gavins" where we hop over a feed bag, then a second, turn around, drop down and do a pushup, back up, over, over, turn around, back down, pushup, up, and that is one rep. b) bent over row with 40 lbs KB c) goblet squats with 35 lbs DB.
3- a) Pull ups (20 for Gavin, 16 for Mark, 12 for Liam) b) Squat press with the bag of corn feed c) Myotatic crunch
4- same as 3 except pull ups were 16, 12, 8
5- a) 35 KB swings b) a jump then lateral jump cone agility thingy c) weighted shrugs with 5 gallons of wheat
6- see '5'
7- a) feed bag power clean x35 b) 38lbs barbell curls c) standing zumba oblique/ab crunch with rugby ball
8- '7' but 30 reps
9-13 as the previous set, but 5 reps fewer of KB swings
14- driveway sprints. 5 each, 15 team reps, BUT we did back pedal at the turn around point starting with team rep 4. It sucked!
15- MAX OUT!!!
Pushups (1 break of 5 seconds allowed) Mark- 54 pushups (good depth, tends to not lock out on top) Liam- 50 (terrible depth, tends to lock out) Gavin- 62 (I try to focus on getting depth and locking out, but I don't know how good I am at it)
Pull Ups (no breaks allowed) M-10 L-5 (40 degrees to start, 15 by the end) G-10 (did not fully extend on the descent)
the workout took over an hour, which is far too long. We need to shorten it up and stay explosive the entire workout. Any suggestions from the 1 person who read this post?

We'll make'em puke yet!

First, a news update from Rugby; we won our first match 21-8, then lost 24-0. I thought they were all one game, but it was split into 2, so we are now 1-1. Awesome! Also, Liam and Mark are now in the process of joining the team, which I am very excited about.
Speaking of those two, we worked out again tonight. We started with a nice rotation of...
1- a) 15 air squats b) push ups c)and a third workout I just bloody can't remember... poo.
2- We then did rotation sprints, which meant you ran twice as long as you rested. A set of 10 each for a team total of 30 sprints.
3- a) Sprinter lunges with 35lbs dumbbell, 10 on each leg. b) myotatic crunch c) flutter kicks.
4- repeat '3'
5- a) clean and press corn feed bag 30 times b) lateral hops over the feed bag c) bent over row with 40lbs KB
6- repeat '5', but with 14 'speed reps' for the clean and press
7-  As a rester set, we did trunk twist rotations combining standing ab workout with a rugby pass. 15 reps.
8- a)full burpee, which is a pushup to burpee, then grab the 35lbs dumbbell and clean and press it, down, pushup, burpee, other hand clean and press, and that is one rep. 10 reps. b) 38lbs curls c) 40lbs KB swing
9- shoulder shrugs with 40lbs jugs in each hand, 30 reps. b) goblet squats with 35lbs dumbbell. c) overhead press with 56 lbs barbell. repeat, but with 25 reps shrugs, then 20, down through 5 reps.
10- that is it... time to sprint again! 21 team reps.
11- time to max out. We were given one 5 second break to complete the max out.
Liam-50 (new PR)
Mark- 67 (new pr)
Gavin- 78 (new PR, new Barn Record).
Then we said our goodbyes, and called it a night.
One more thing; during the max sets, I chose Gaelic Storm songs for each person. Liam worked out to Marching Free (Chicken Boxer), I had Scalliwag (Wellies), and Mark did Alligator Arms (Boxer), just ofr the irony.

Watch the knees, watch the knees!! OH!!!... is it supposed to just hang there like that?

First, I posted this a day late. Forgive me!

We lost our first rugby match of the season, but we were out muscled, out disciplined, and their whole team is far more experienced and just plain bigger. It all fell apart when Blazen, our backs Captain, sat out the final ten minutes. They took our 13 point lead and crushed it into the dust without him on the field and we fell 21-32. I had a try, a couple good tackles, and took contact pretty well, but the pitch was really, really in not good condition. My knee and ankles got torqued to Bemidji State University and back as 12 guys dove right into my legs whenever there was a pile up, or twisting an ankle on a poor form tackle, then I punched a team mate by accident as I flew into a tackle, took a wicked stiff arm into the throat, and everyone was bleeding out their nose or from their lips. It was tons of fun!
Not to be a pansy (I limped off the field after the defeat to the after party Brat fry), that night, less than 6 hours after the conclusion of the game, I was back in Mark's barn, and we had a guest with us this evening. Liam joined us for our workout. Liam is 17, 6 feet tall, 175 lbs, and in not overly good shape because he punctured his lungs falling out of a tree two years ago. We decided to go upper body heavy on the evening because of my swollen ankle and knee, so we warmed up with...
1- a)15 pull ups b)jump roping and c) fast push ups. The rest of the night went somewhat slow as we determined which workouts to do with Liam, and which to avoid with my twacked to Hades leg, so their was quite a bit of breaking between sets to deliberate, but we did...
2- a) 40 shoulder shrugs with 5 gallon buckets of feed in each hand b) myotatic sit ups c) air squats.
3- This set was the same as the previous
4- a) 40 pushups b) squat press with the bag of corn feed c) jump roping for me, double jacks for the other guys.
5- same as 4, but the pushups were as fast as you could go (Liam did 16 of his allotted 17, so I made up for him by doing 31, then Mark finished with the 25)
6- a) 10 band assisted oblique crunch/chest fly each side b) KB swings with the 35lbs dumbbell c) bent over row with the 40lbs KB weight.
7- same set, but with 12 reps of the bands each arm
8- after some slight deliberation, we decided to head into the black of the night and run Mark's driveway in a relay. We went about 90-95% (or as fast as sprained ankles could control, sorry for being a pansy) and ran the U-bend he has for a driveway. When we got to the other end of it, we stopped, turned around and ran back. As soon as the first person (Liam, in this case) turned, the second person (Mark) took off. Once 1 (Liam) returned to the starting line, 3 (Gavin... oh, that is me!) ran. When 2 finished, 1 went again, then 2 went when 3 came back, etc. It was a good workout, and we spent twice as much time running as resting. We did a total of 15 sets between the 3 of us (it was to be 5 each, but Liam didnt go past 4, so Mark ran an extra one to make up for it). We went back into the barn and finished off with our standard...
9- Max outs! Pull ups (M-15, G-21, L-6) then pushups (M-57, which was a new record!!!, G-76, which broke Marks record... sorry! L-30). We called it a night, had a drink, and went home. What a night!

Last sprint before the games begin

My first rugby tournement is this weekend, so Mark and I went to town tonight. We did...
1- a)25 reps of 110lbs deadlift while the other person did b) pushups (I did 40)
2- a) 35lbs DB squat press variation, 10 reps each arm or b) push a 75lbs feed bag across the floor as fast as you can.
3- a) 35lbs DB bent over row, 20 each arm or b) plyo jumps
we did these with minimal rest between (maybe 15 seconds), then waited about 45 seconds to a minute and repeated the whole thing (i did 36 puhsups the second time)
After quite a break, maybe 7 minutes of talking and deciding what to do next, we did...
a) 40 KB swings or b) corn feed bag clean and press. Whoever did the most reps of the clean and press, got to rest first for the ab workout. Mark got 36, then I did 37, so he did the ab workout first. We did a myotatic crunch variation.
To finish off, we did a) slow pushups to failure (i did 31) or b) jump rope, then stretching to kick the lactic acid in the face. It was tough, it was fun, and I can't wait for Saturdays games!

just rugby

Today's main workout involved and hour and a half of hitting other men at full speed while tossing a rather egg shaped ball back and forth. My neck hurts rather a lot. Due to the lack of overall 'workout feel' I got from rugby practice this evening, I added some resistance training with bands and will conclude my night with 2 sets of 20 pull ups, one set overhand, the second set underhand. That is all that I did today, aside from eat like a pig. My self control got kicked in the face this month.

Just a normal day at the office.

Tonight, my mom and I worked out. Not really together, but we encourage each other to be there by going there, so essentially, we worked out together.
Tonight, I performed minimalist workout plan B.
1) 1 leg Romanian Deadlift (50 lbs, 10 reps each leg)
2) Lat pull down (165lbs, 10 reps)
3) Swiss ball hamstring curls (10 reps of each both legs, right, left)
4) plank holds (60 secs front, 45 each side)
5) KB swings (50lbs,40 reps).
I performed it straight through, got a drink, then did it again. there were pauses for cleaning equipment between sets. I finished off the night with some bench press, cause I am a bit of a lunk.
1x3 255, 1x2 275
1x2 295, 1x5 225 narrow grip
Then, I came home and ate a bag of snickers... frick my self control!

The 300 workout!!! well, actually we only did 245 reps...

Mark and my plan for this morning was simple; 25 pull ups, 50 dead-lifts of 135 lbs, 50 pushups, 50 box jumps, 50 wipers with 135 lbs, 50 clean and press with 35lbs, then 25 pull ups again, all within 20 minutes. Well, we figured we wouldn't be able to do it, so we decided 15 pull ups and 35 of everything else in 15 minutes should push us very well. By the time I showed up at Mark's house, I was informed he did not bring his weights into the barn, so we did another farm workout, but this one we timed!
5 laps around his orchard, 10 overhead squats with a bag of corn feed, 15 pull ups, 20 squat presses with the feed bag, 25 kettle bell swings, 30 pushups, 35 stump jumps, then the pushups again, then the swings, then the press, then pull, squat, laps. I did it in 15 and a half minutes. and I was pretty nigh dead. But I did it in my new Nike Frees, so I felt better. Maybe by next week we will do the actual 300 workout, but still toned down to the lower reps for now.
Keep pumping everyone!

Drat! Lost it again!

I have noticed an interesting trend at Planet Fitness; any time I wear my earrings while bench pressing, no one has removed my weights and seized control of my bench. If I don't wear them, my bench is usurped about half the time. I did not wear them tonight. I lost my bench.
To the workout! I got to PF and right away headed to the benches, but they were all in use, so I went to the machines where I set up the tricep extension low to the ground with 65 lbs on each arm. I did 12 reps of a standing forward pushing lift to work my chest, shoulders, and triceps. I did an ab workout, 15 reps of Myotatic crunch, then headed back over to the machine and did 10 reps at 80 lbs. After this, I went over to a free weight bench and did 10 reps of 70 lbs dumbbell bench after a slight break. By this time, a bench press station was available, so I set up 245 and did 4 reps, then immediately did 275 twice. After a 5 minute break or so of drinking and an ab workout, I did 1 rep of 295. After another long break of just stretching, I did 1 rep of 305. Another break, more stretching, I did 1 of 305 again, dropped it to 275 and did it once, then dropped it to 225 and did 5 wide grip. I went and stretched again, but upon coming back my bench had been taken, so I went and did 15 dips, and called it a night.
Decently easy night, took my time, and just tried to take up my measurable weight. Good day in the 'office.'

I have never puked from a workout...

... but I could feel it coming up tonight.
Mark and I were at it again tonight. After an hour of rugby practice where we ran and hit, shuffled and leaped around, I took two hours to go to a meeting, then headed back out to the farm for another round of workouts. We didn't have a pull up bar because he had to corral his calf in the pen so we did...
...1- a) 50 jumping jacks while the other person did b) squat press with the 35 pound sack of corn feed (I did 15).
2- a) 35 kettlebell swings with a 40 pound weight and b) hop over the feed bag, then hop over the second feed bag, then turn around, drop down and do a push up (I did 10).
3- we were a little tired, so we did 2 minutes of Russian twists handing off a 10 pound weight, 1 minute in each direction.
4- Our next workout was a) 70 pushups, as fast as you can manage while the other person did b) squats while holding the corn feed bag (I did 60 squats).
5- a) we lateraled over the feed bag, lateraled over the second, then backed up half a step, crouched down and lateraled the other direction hitting the feed bags as we went past, stutter stopped, and did it again in reverse a total of 10 times while the other person did b) 10 lbs dumbbell front and lateral raises to exercise our shoulders (I did 8).
6- We decided to call it quits by having a friendly competition; last one to do 50 squat jumps had to max out for push ups first. I lost and did...
7- 50 pushups. Mark followed and did 46.
I once again forgot to time the workout, but we will try and remember for next time!

Is your Mummy your Buddy?

Tonight's workout was compliments of my mother. I was told that if I worked out with her at Planet Fitness, then she would take me home for a wonderful dinner of beef enchiladas. how could I resist? My I performed fitness plan A tonight, with a slight variation. Fitness Plan A is rather simple; I do dumbbell squat press, the a one legged bent over row, then lunges with knee raise, then wide grip push ups, then kettle-bell swings. I do 10 reps of each, then move directly to the next exercise. At the end of the set, I take my time to get a drink, then I do it again. Tonight my variation was doing bench press after my KB swings. Well, I did the DB squat press with 45 lbs dumbbells, the row with 70 lbs each arm, 40 lbs DBs for the lunge, 40 reps of the swings with a 50 lbs DB, then I did 4 reps of 265 on the bench. After the break, I did it all again, but only three reps on the bench. Then I did some ab workouts, then did 4 reps again on the bench. After another set of abs and tome toe raises, I did 8 narrow grip bench presses with 225 and called it a night.
I have also changed my dieting ideas. Since I know my methods for last month worked, I will be far less limited in my carbohydrate intake this month, but I will do air squats before my meals (about 30), as well as 60-90 minutes after them (about 45 reps). My hope is that the increase in activity will spark my body to send the food directly to muscle processing instead of sitting in my stomach simply waiting to be absorbed. I;m hoping this works out as well for me as last month.

Buddy Up!

I have a friend named Mark. He is awesome. He has a farm. He and I are both trying to get into shape. Well, we decided we are going to wok out at him farm. We did a cycle workout. I will tell you what I did, and Mark simply did the other exercise.
1- a) Jog a quarter mile to the base of a hill, turn around, and sprint the 200 meters to the top, then run the other 200 meters back into the barn where b) I did 2 pulls ups, then dropped and did 10 push ups until over and over until Mark got back from his run.
2- a) hop over a feed bag, then over another feed bag, then turn around, drop into a pushup with your hands on the feed bag, pop up and over the feed again to pushup until Mark had finished b) 35 squat press' with a feed bag of corn.
3- a) 50 jumping jacks then b) squats holding the feed bag.
4- a) 10 pushups to squat then a) 20 inch box jumps.
We finished it off with maxing out on push ups and pull ups. I did 46 pushups, then Mark did 44. Then I did 12 over hand pulls ups and switched to under hand and did another 4. Mark did 10 under hand pull ups.
We both felt so worn out and tired. It was so exhausting, but in the future we are going to time how long it takes us to do the set rep exercises with also recording the number of reps we do of the other workouts to gauge how well we are improving.
Here is to all the Saturday's Warriors!

Starting... NOW!

4 weeks ago, I was 185 lbs. I had a 33 in waist and only 4 abs visible when I flexed. This morning, I was 172, had 6 abs and obliques, veins stood out in my arms and even a few in my abs, and a 31 in waist. 12 hours later, I am 180 lbs before I have even eaten dinner. Within 2 days, I will be back to nearly 170.
This blog is going to be strictly about the body; exercises, lifts, weight and rep count, body weight, appearance, etc. It will be about how effective certain diets, work outs, or other weight loss strategies work for me and maybe a few friends of mine. This blog is about change your body.
To begin; today is my cheat day. A cheat day is the one day a week designated to eat as much junk food as I want. I started my day with a frozen pizza, a box of gummy Crabbie Patties, a flavored carbonated water, and 8 fudge brownies. I then drank a protein shake and lifted. I did 5 reps on an assisted bench at Planet Fitness at "225" (i dont know the actual weight amount, but I had 2 plates on each side, so I will do all my weights relative to that formula) for 5 reps, then 275 for 2. I did an ab workout (Myotatic crunch, 15 reps) then came back and did 1 rep of 295. I went and did 15 reps of an ab machine, then went to a leg press machine, and did 50 calf raises at 290lbs. I went back to the bench, and lifted 305 once, dropped to 275 and did it twice, then dropped to 225 and did it 5 times with a wide grip. For a cool down, I did seated row at 135, then 150 at 10 reps each with a 3 minute break between, then 20 three way reps of 12.5 lbs dumbbell curls and called it a day. I headed to work and proceeded to eat 10 fun sized Snickers, half a gallon of milk, a Cousins BLT, fries, 32 oz lemonade, and 2 homemade donuts. I have gained 8 lbs so far today, and I have another pizza in the oven and half a bag of Snickers to go.
Skills!