Week 7 of Chest

Mowed the lawn yesterday but didn’t workout since I’d done 4 days in a row already. Got a lot of stuff done at B’s house this morning before it got too hot and was out in the garage by 12:30 for our workout. Will be the hottest day of the summer I think and with humidity will feel over 100° this afternoon.

Warm-up

  • 20 PVC Passes
  • Bench Press
    • 10×45
    • 8×95
    • 6×135
    • 4×165
    • 3×185
    • 2×205

Chest

Final week of the 7 week program!

MAX Bench Press (225#)

Got through 8 reps and the positions weren’t feeling great so I stopped before I pushed it too far.

MAX Perfect Push-ups

I had done 32 on the 7th and managed 36 today.

3 Sets

  • 8 Seated DB Shoulder Press (elbows out, 60#)

Really wasn’t sure about this so I had written down 6-8 reps. It wasn’t easy, but I got all three sets.

100 DB Bench Press (30#)

I went 6×15 and 10 to finish in 2:23 On July 31st. Today I went for it starting with 20s. Did 3×20, 2×15, 10 for a 17 second PR in 2:06.

Conditioning

4 Rounds

  • 2:00 TrueForm Run
  • 1:00 Rest
  • 2:00 BikeErg
  • 1:00 Rest

Nice easy sweat session I did 0.32, 0.35, 0.38, 0.41 km on the run and 977, 1,007, 1,018, 1,025 meters on the bike.

Upper to Lower

Guess what. Hot again!

Warm-up

  • 80′ Lateral Monster Walks
  • 80′ Monster Walks
  • 10 Monster Squats
  • 10 Monster Toe Touches
  • 10 Walking Lunges
  • 10 DB Walking Lunges (35s)
  • 6 DB Walking Lunges (50s)

Legs

4 Sets

  • 10 Double DB Walking Lunges (60# DBs)
  • 10 Glute Bridges (2s pause)

3 Sets

  • 15 Banded Hamstring Curls (red)
  • 20 Banded Frog Reverse Hypers

Pretty sure my back side is going to be sore from this.

Conditioning

7 Rounds

  • 40s Seated DB Shoulder Press (15# DBs)
  • 20s Rest
  • 40s cal BikeErg
  • 20s Rest

It was nice going back and forth from arms to legs, but each one really burned after three rounds. I got 25-27-29-30-28-28-28 pressing and 15-16-17-18-19-19-20 riding.

So. Much. Sweat.

Still Struggle with Hand Release

Another brutally hot and humid day. My back was much better through the night and it was tons easier to stand up out of bed this morning.

Warm-up

  • 20 PVC Passes
  • Bench Press
    • 10×45
    • 8×95
    • 6×135
    • 4×165
    • 2×180

MAX Bench Press (200#)

One better than Saturday with 16 reps.

100 HR Push-ups

We decided to switch it up for the final two weeks and try hand releases. I’ve never been good at this and can’t beat the time I set way back in 2013. Today was not the day either. I did threes through 54 and then had to go to doubles. It took me 6:03! Probably halfway through or more I realized that putting my arms above my head to rest at the bottom was probably a bad idea. I need to rest with arms down to sides.

Incline Bench Press

  • 3 Sets @ 3 Weights
    • MAX Reps
  • 3:00 Rest between sets

12-11-11 @ 135#
16-15-15 @ 115#
20-20-21 @ 95#

I don’t really like the feeling of incline on my shoulders.

6 Sets

  • 12 EZ Bar Skull Crushers (56#)
  • 1:00 Rest

Back and Bike

Not the worst back tweak I’ve had, but it’s definitely affecting me. Was still able to get a lot done at B’s house yesterday, but with heat affecting us and all the work we skipped our workout. I wasn’t able to golf today due to my back, so we got in some exercise.

Back

3 Sets

  • 12 Incline DB Back Fly (25#)
  • 12 Incline DB Row (25#)
  • 12 Face Pull (rope, 60#)

3 Sets

  • 12 Incline Straight Arm Lat Pulldowns (71#)
  • 12 Incline Forward Facing Lat Pulldowns (104#)

Conditioning

30:00 BikeErg

Easy aerobic pace at 2:10.0 / 1,000m for a total of 13,846 meters.

Tweaked Back

I walked 18 holes on the golf course Friday in the heat and humidity. Took a lot out of me for the rest of the day.

Warm-ups

  • 20 PVC Passes
  • Bench Press
    • 10×45
    • 8×95
    • 6×135
    • 4×160
    • 2×180
  • 5 Deadlifts (45#)
  • Power Cleans
    • 4×45
    • 5×95
    • 5×135

Chest

MAX Bench Press (200#)

Got 15, which I’m pretty happy with.

MAX Decline Push-ups (12”)

Busted out 50 to beat the previous 40.

3 Sets

  • 10 Seated DB Shoulder Press (elbows out, 50#)

75 DB Bench Press (40#)

Went 5×10, 8-7-5-5 to finish in 2:26 and beat the 2:48 from 4 weeks ago when I did 5×10 and 5×5.

Weightlifting

E2M – 7 Sets

  • 6 Power Cleans
    • 3@155
    • 3@165
    • 1@175

Was feeling pretty good so did a couple of increases.

Conditioning & Midline

2 Rounds

  • 400m Run
  • 50 Bicycles
  • 40 Hollow Flutter Kicks
  • 30 Side Crunches
  • 20 Leg Lifts
  • 10 Hollow Rocks

Heading out for the first run my back did not feel good and it didn’t get better with the movements. Took me 9:42.

Mowed the lawn and did a bunch of work on Brandi’s house. My back is not happy.

Humid Summer

This summer has been over-the-top humid almost every day.

Midline

  • 50 Leg Lifts
  • 50 DB OH Crunches (50# DB)
  • 50 Oblique Heel Touches
  • 50 V-ups
  • 50 Hollow Rocks
  • 50 Plank Hip Dips

Today I went 30-20 on the leg lifts, felt myself slowing a lot on the v-ups, and was able to do sets of 10 for the hollow rocks. Finished in 7:31, which smashes the 9:13 from a month ago.

Conditioning

25:00 AMRAP

  • 400m Run
  • 20 Box Jumps (24″)
  • 5 Strict HSPU
  • 5 HSPU

I got through five rounds, the run, and 12 box jumps. I rested between the types of handstand push-ups each round except the fifth one where I stayed on the wall because I knew I needed some time to finish the sixth run, but then I ran so fast I had enough time for a lot of jumps. Really sweaty from the heat and humidity, but a great workout.

Still Got Bar Muscle-ups

My shoulders and elbow area are feeling the chest program.

Warm-up

  • 80′ Lateral Monster Walks
  • 80′ Monster Walks
  • 10 Monster Squats
  • 10 Monster Toe Touches
  • RDLs
    • 10×45
    • 5×95

Legs

  • 12-10-8-6 Lateral Step-ups (L, 45-50-53-62#, 20”)
  • 15 Side Lunge with knee up
  • 12-10-8-6 Lateral Step-ups (R, 45-50-53-62#, 20”)
  • 15 Side Lunge with knee up

Still not sure those the side lunge movement does much here since it’s not a deep lunge.

4 Sets

  • 10 RDLs (145#)
  • 1:00 Rest

Conditioning

15:00 EMOM (alt)

  • 6 C&J (95#)
  • 10 DB Walking Lunges (45# DBs)
  • 6 Bar Muscle-ups

I did a single and a double bar muscle-up before the workout and didn’t have the hesitation I did a couple of weeks ago after putting up the bar. Once I got in to that first set the feel started coming back to me and I was able to do all five sets unbroken. Looking back, I haven’t done real bar muscle-ups in over a year and a half, back before COVID started. I did those fucked up reps during the AGOQ on the low bar in my garage, but I can’t really count those since they all had to be singles. Exciting I was able to pick them back up without a problem. My grips were a bit of an issue though and several times I could really feel my palm skin getting stretched, so I was worried about ripping. I think I used to wear a different set of grips for the BMU.

All Chest PRs

Yesterday I walked 18 yesterday and mowed B’s lawn in the evening.

Warm-up

  • 20 PVC Passes
  • 10 PVC Shrugs
  • Bench Press
    • 10×45
    • 8×95
    • 6×135
    • 4×160

Chest

MAX Bench Press (180/85#)

I was able to do 23 today to beat the 18 reps from the early Friday session.

100 Push-ups

All threes wasn’t great for me last week so I planned to go back to all fives with limited rests. I was struggling as I got to 70 so I changed to threes the rest of the way. It ended up being 14×5 and 10×3 to finish in 3:21, which is an 18 second PR and 1:27 better than week one! Brandi hit a huge PR by 1:04 by doing threes, which is over two minutes better than week one.

Bench Press

  • 3 Sets @ 3 Weights
  • MAX Reps
  • 3:00 Rest between sets

I figured increasing 20 pounds on each weight, compared to week one would be a good test. I got 16-14-12 with 175#, 20-17-17 with 145#, and 24-22-23 with 120#. That comes out to 2,980 more total pounds than week one with 155-125-100!

6 Sets

  • 12 Triceps Pushdowns (bar, 60#)
  • 1:00 Rest

Went up six pounds over what I used in week two.

Strict Improvement

Yesterday I went down to my brother’s and helped install flooring all day. Didn’t get home until almost midnight and was exhausted! Cut the lawn this morning, made a step for B to get up to the outdoor pull-up bar, and we got to the workout around 1pm I think.

Warm-ups

  • 20 PVC Passes
  • 5 Pendlay Rows (65#)
  • 5 Pendlay Rows (95#)

Back

4 Sets

  • MAX Strict Pull-ups
  • 1:00 Rest

Still rough, but felt better than recent strict work. I didn’t wear grips until the final two sets. Got 10-8-7-6.

4 Sets

  • 10 Pendlay Rows (115#, supinated)
  • 1:00 Rest

3 Sets

  • 10 Underhand Lat Pulldowns (126#)
  • 30s Rest

3 Sets

  • 10 Inverted Bar Rows (wide)
  • 30s Rest

2 Sets

  • 10 Seated Cable Row (107#)
  • 10 Seated Cable Row (96#)
  • 10 Seated Cable Row (85#)
  • 90s Rest

We used the homemade, really wide bar today and I really tried to squeeze my reps and hold for a split second.

Conditioning

5 Rounds

  • 24 Side Crunches
  • 20 Plyo Lunges (20# DBs)
  • 50s Sandbag Hold (100#)
  • 12 Burpees

Didn’t run a clock for this one and kind of ran it as a partner workout, so B started with lunges, I did crunches, and then we switched. Then I held the sandbag while she burpeed and we switched. It was really hot out behind the house and it took a lot out of me.