Tag: Air squat

A PR Morning

Took a rest day yesterday and walked 18 holes of golf. Woke up today feeling more beat up than I should. In at 10am to test my deadlift.

Warm-up

3:00 Row

Olympic Lifting

Snatches

  • 45# Position Work for 5:00
  • 95# x 2
  • 115# x 2
  • 135# E30S 3:00
  • 155#
  • 165#
  • 175# (PR)

My snatch is feeling really good lately. I was planning to do 135# for 5:00 but it was feeling good so I stopped and started bumping up the weight. That was a 10# PR. Looking forward to trying more.

Strength

Deadlift

  • 185# x 8, rest 2
  • 275# x 5, rest 2
  • 325# x 3, rest 3
  • 375# x 1, rest 3
  • 425# x 1, rest 10
  • 475# x 1 (PR), rest 12
  • 500# x 1 (PR)

My old PR was 455# in April, so this was a big jump. The 425# lift hit me hard for some reason, even though I’ve pulled it for 3 several times before. I saw sweating and light-headed, so took a long rest before the 475# attempt. If Kevin and Matt weren’t there pushing me I was going to go for 485# or so next, so I’m glad they talked me into the 500# attempt.

Back to Survival Fitness at 5pm for a class.

Warm-up

  • 30 Air Squats
  • 20 PVC Pass-thrus
  • 30 PVC OHS

Strength

Front Squats

  • 5 @ 115#
  • 5 @ 145#
  • 5 @ 165#
  • 5 @ 185#
  • 5 @ 185#

Kept it light and fast. Didn’t need any more heavy weights after the morning session.

10:00 EMOM

  • Odds: 5 Strict HSPU
  • Evens: 8 Box Jumps (32″)

The HSPU felt good today. Probably should have done a deficit, but I already put in a lot of work and had an idea of how bad the WOD was going to be, so I backed off a bit.

WOD

  • 30 Hang Squat Cleans (95#)
  • 30 Push-ups
  • 30 Thrusters (95#)
  • 30 T2B
  • 30 OHS (95#)
  • 30 Burpees
  • 30 Shoulder to OH (95#)

The burpees were horrible. Slowest ever! Finished in 19:12.

Hotshots 19

Today we did the “Hotshots 19” Hero WOD.

6 Rounds

  • 30 Air Squats
  • 19 Power Cleans (95#)
  • 7 Strict Pull-ups
  • 400m Run

The Rx weight was 135# but I didn’t feel like destroying my body for the week and ruining any of my Oly progress I’ve made. 95# allowed me to keep a high intensity and still use decent form. I did all of the air squats unbroken, cleans as 11-8 (except the last round where I had a mental error and dropped the bar with 3 reps to go), and pull-ups as mostly 3-2-2. Finished in 32:41. Really glad I scaled it.

Long and Brutal

Legs still pretty sore. In at 9am to get lifts done before doing a long team WOD in class at 10.

I warmed up with a 500m row and some PVC pass-thrus.

5/3/1 Shoulder Press – Cycle 1 Week 2

  • 5 @ 60# (40% of Training Max – warm)
  • 5 @ 75# (50% – warm)
  • 3 @ 90# (60% – warm)
  • 3 @ 105# (70%)
  • 3 @ 120# (80%)
  • 3+ @ 135# (90%)

Felt better than the first “wee”. I managed to get 7 reps at 135#, which puts my estimated max at 166#, over my current PR.

5/3/1 Back Squat – Cycle 1 Week 2

  • 5 @ 115# (40% of Training Max – warm)
  • 5 @ 145# (50% – warm)
  • 3 @ 175# (60% – warm)
  • 3 @ 205# (70%)
  • 3 @ 235# (80%)
  • 3+ @ 265# (90%)

Oh boy! I felt horrible going down on that first warm-up set. Only managed to get 4 reps at 265# before dumping the bar. Too much leg work packed into 8 days to get in 2 5/3/1 cycles and it showed. Won’t be hitting strength again until Tuesday and only one strength lift per day, so it should be a better week next week for the 3rd week and then a deload after.

In class, we did a brutal teams WOD in honor of the CrossFit games going on. I teamed up with Brent and Kevin. The events were one right after the other, so keep moving.

Event 1: “Road Grater”

Barbell/Plate carry one mile (Guys: 45# bar, two 45# plates; Ladies 30# bar, two 35# plates)
One member must carry the bar and the other two must carry a plate. Members can switch implements at any time.

We took about 13:10 (forgot to look at the clock) and got smoked by Ron, Matt, and Ryan who did it in 10:35.

Event 2: “Hippie Hop”

Load weights on barbell. Each member must complete 50 lateral hops over the bar while the other two members hold the bar. The holders can hold the bar at any height but cannot set it down until the 50 hops are completed. Penalty for letting the bar touch the ground was 10 reps.

This was easy. We had 2 guys lay on their side on the ground and set the bar on our hips. The 50 hops were like a rest period for me and I knocked them out like nothing. We started our comeback here, crushing it in 2:42 to finish at an overall time of 15:52.

Event 3: “Rack of Ribs”

Unload the barbell and complete as a team: 200 Burpee plate jumps and 100 front rack empty bar lunges. Here’s how it works: Two members do the burpee plate jumps, while the 3rd member does the front rack lunges. Every member has to go rep for rep, so one lunge, two burpee plate jumps (one each member with the plate) at a time. Teams can switch out the lungers and the burpee plate jumpers whenever they feel like it with no penalty.

We switched out the lunger every 11 reps, which worked well because it still meant doing 22 burpees in a row. We almost complete caught up here, finishing in 8:46 for an overall time of 24:38.

Event 4: “Ron Morse Mile”

Stop at each turn and complete the following, every member must do this:

  • Turn 1: 50 Air Squats
  • Turn 2: 75 Air squats
  • Turn 3: 50 Push-ups (chest to deck)
  • Turn 4: 75 Push-ups

Suck fest, especially that many push-ups at the end of this WOD. We did 5 at a time with breaks and it worked well. Took us 20:17 to finish the mile for a total time of 44:55 to take down the best time in the last 3 events and the overall. It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.

I did a really slow 10:00 on the Air Dyne after for a cool down to flush things out.

Feeling Wrecked in the Morning

Feeling pretty beat up this morning, especially in the posterior chain. Went in at 10 with Kevin and Ellen for strength lifts though.

Warm-up

5:00 Air Dyne

Strength

Bench Press – 5/3/1 Cycle 1 Week 2

  • 5 @ 85# (40% of Training Max – warm)
  • 5 @ 105# (50% – warm)
  • 3 @ 125# (60% – warm)
  • 3 @ 150# (70%)
  • 3 @ 170# (80%)
  • 3+ @ 190# (90%)

* Working sets completed using the Reactive Sling Shot

In the set with 170# I realized if I came a little lower on my chest I could keep my right elbow in a lot better. I think I was benching too high on my chest, which makes it hard to keep that elbow in. Went on to knock out 13 reps at 190, which is the same number I hit at 180# on Sunday! And I didn’t have a single issue with the right elbow flaring out to cause that arm to lack behind. Estimates my max at 271.5#, which is a joke, but I’m improving!

Deadlift – 5/3/1 Cycle 1 Week 2

  • 5 @ 165# (40% of Training Max – warm)
  • 5 @ 205# (50% – warm)
  • 3 @ 245# (60% – warm)
  • 3 @ 285# (70%)
  • 3 @ 330# (80%)
  • 3+ @ 370# (90%)

Felt good. Pulled 8 reps at 370# and it actually felt better than the 9 at 350# I did on Saturday. New estimated max of 467.5#.

Maybe I should lift more often when I’m not feeling great! Cut the session after those lifts because I’m going to a class this afternoon with a friend who wants to try out CrossFit. Went in at 4pm to a pretty big class.

Warm-up

  • 30 Air Squats
  • 20 PVC Pass-thrus
  • 10 Burpees
  • 300m Run

Strength

Wasn’t too big on doing another big strength lift with 2 already this morning, but I can always use an extra squat session. Front squats on the menu today.

  • 5 @ 135#
  • 3 @ 185#
  • 3 @ 225#
  • 3 @ 245#
  • 3 @ 255#

Fuck it, go big! Matches my best 3RM, but the two sets before were higher than I’ve gone before, and legs got some solid work with the hill sprints last night and deadlifts this morning. When I last did this a couple of months ago I used 155-175-195-225-255, so this is a nice improvement in overall weight moved.

3 Rounds NFT

  • 8 Ring Dips
  • 8 Ring Rows

I still suck at ring rows. Did all of my dips strict and unbroken though.

WOD

12 Rounds

  • 1:00 AMRAP (continue next AMRAP where you leave off)
    • 5 Pull-ups
    • 10 Hand Release Push-ups
    • 15 Air Squats
  • 1:00 Rest

I was getting over a round per minute the entire way. In the 10th round I thought my hand felt a little funny on the bar. I got stuck to some old tap glue and it ripped it right open because I couldn’t slide around the bar on my butterfly. Ugh, just what I needed a few days before the Warrior Dash. I finished with 14+1 rounds, with the push-ups being my limiting factor. Probably could have gone a little faster on the air squats too, but all pull-ups were unbroken.

5/3/1 Begins

Was up early and got back to Saginaw around 11am. In to the gym this afternoon with Kevin to train. I read 5/3/1: The Simplest and Most Effective Training System for Raw Strength (2nd Edition) last week and loved it. Decided to start my first cycle of 5/3/1 today. Really looking forward to see how it works. I like having a program where I don’t have to guess what weights to lift; give me percentages and reps and I’ll do the work and trust the program.

Warm-up

I got a new, lighter/thinner cable for my Rx Jump Rope and tried it out as the warm-up for today. Got a streak of 73 in a row right off the bat. I was hitting the ground a lot with the cable though, which I haven’t been doing with the cable that is one step higher. This would prove to be a big difference when fatigued.

Strength

5/3/1 Deadlifts – Cycle 1 Week 1

  • 5 @ 165# (40% of training max – warm)
  • 5 @ 205# (50% – warm)
  • 3 @ 245# (60% – warm)
  • 5 @ 265# (65%)
  • 5 @ 305# (75%)
  • 5+ @ 350# (85%)

I got 9 reps at 350 before stopping because my grip had been failing since the 5th rep and I could start to feel my low back giving out. Wendler says leave a little in the tank, so I did.

10:00 EMOM

  • Odds: 7 Strict Chin-ups
  • Evens: Snatch Grip Deadlifts (135#)

I should have had the straps on right away, but didn’t until the 2nd round of snatch grip deadlifts. So I only got 4 in the first round, then 6 in the 2nd, and 8 in the last 3 rounds. Was really a struggle in the last two rounds of chin-ups. Working on the snatch grip deadlifts and hitting the hips hopefully will help me out with my full snatches.

WOD

30:00 AMRAP

  • 500m Row
  • 400m Run
  • 100 DU
  • 10 Ring Rows
  • 10 Ring Push-ups
  • 20 Air Squats

Figured we’d do a long WOD, which I haven’t done in at least a month. Kevin smoked me right out of the gate because he kicks my ass on the rower. I couldn’t catch back up. My DU kind of sucked and I think the new cable got me. Felt like it was hitting the ground so much it would either bounce up or lose shape. I could rarely recover from nicking it and I actually got whipped quite a few times, which hasn’t happened to me in who knows how long. Tried Kevin’s cable which looks to be 2 inches shorter after the WOD and I seemed to do better with it. So maybe with the lighter weight it just spins that much different that I need to chop off that much length. Or maybe I just need to get used to it.

Anyway…I finished 3 full rounds and was about 100m through the run in the 4th when the time ran out. I kept going though and completed everything in the round, so it was about a 35 or 36 minute AMRAP for me. 🙂 Had to split up every set of ring rows, but got all of the ring push-ups and air squats unbroken.

A Morning Run

Hard to sleep at the cottage because it’s so hot and there is no AC.

Went for a run before 8am to beat the heat. Wasn’t going for any 5k records, just an easy jog to get the heart beating. Didn’t expect to go as ow as a did, but I’m okay with that because the goal was to build up aerobic capacity, not kill myself for the rest of the day. Ran 3.01 miles in 33:09.

Just before noon I started some OLY work and strength stuff.

Snatches

  • 2 x 3 @ 95#
  • 3 @ 115#
  • 5:00 EMOM of 2 @ 135#
  • 2 x 1 @ 145#
  • 1 @ 155#
  • F @ 155#
  • 1 @ 155#

I felt good early and got a little shaky after 135#. Noticed in the 155s that I started jumping forward. First time ever hitting 155# twice in one fay though! Here’s the final snatch.

Back Squats

  • 10 @ 135#
  • 10 @ 155#
  • 10 @ 175#
  • 10 @ 195#

No rack made this tougher than it needed to be. Having to clean the bar and get it to the back uses a lot of extra energy. Not sure I’ve dropped more than 165 on my back before.

3 Rounds NFT

  • 8 Front Rack walking lunges (135#)
  • 12 Weighted Sit-ups (two 5# plates behind head)
  • 8 Front Rack reverse walking lunges (135#)
  • 12 Air Squats

Solid 2 hours of work without killing myself.

Jumped on the Air Dyne at 8pm for some sprint intervals. Warmed up with 5:00 at a solid pace.

6 Rounds

  • 30s @ 100%
  • 4:30 slow to recover

I was going around 34mph and 110-115rpm during the sprints and 15mph and 50rpm when recovering. Including the warmup I racked up 614 cal and went 9.73 mi in the 35:00 (did the final recovery as a cool down).

I’m definitely feeling much better because that’s 3 hours of training on a day when it was about 90 degrees out.

Morning Air Dyne

Golfed with a buddy yesterday, so took a rest day.

Conditioning

Did 20 minutes on the Air Dyne at about 9am. RPM was steady at an average of 72. Never saw a number lower than 69 or higher than 74. Totaled 520 calories and 11.41km. Felt good!

Went to Survival Fitness at 8pm for open gym and worked out with Brent.

Warm-up

  • 300m Run
  • 2 Rounds
    • “Cindy” round (strict and quality reps)
    • 3/3 Turkish Get-ups (35# KB)

Strength

Super Squats! I warmed up with 8 @ 45#, 5 @ 135#, 3 @ 185#, and 3 @ 215#. Then I used 245# for the set of 20, up 20# since starting 2 weeks ago. That first week was definitely the hardest though. Really taxing today on the breathing. A couple of hours later I’m feeling tight in my lower back and my neck.

Then I did 3 sets of 20 pullovers with a 60# DB to stretch out the ribs, with the added benefit of working on my chest.

WOD

3 Rounds

  • 10 Ring Push-ups
  • 10 T2B
  • 10 Weighted Step-ups (24″ box, 45# DBs)

Originally planned for 5 rounds, but decided to keep it shorter after the super squats which are pretty taxing. Right before we upped to 20 step-ups too, but as soon as we got into them, I quickly made the executive decision that was a bad idea because of the big box. I finished in 4:59. Was able to do all of the push-ups and T2B unbroken, but had to break up the 2nd set of step-ups into 6-4 because of grip, but then powered through the last round. Could barely squeeze my water bottle after.

Back To It

Had an epic weekend attending the Central East Regionals in Columbus. I’ll have more to say in a few days. Went it at 5pm tonight and stayed after for some extra fun.

Warm-up

  • 30 Air Squats
  • 20 PVC Pass-thrus
  • 30 PVC OHS
  • 50 Jumping Jacks
  • 50 Butt Kicks
  • 50 High Knees
  • 50 Mountain Climbers

Strength

Back Squats!

  • 5 @ 45#
  • 5 @ 135#
  • 3 @ 185#
  • 3 @ 225#
  • 3 @ 255#
  • 3 @ 275#
  • 3 @ 285#

Felt solid today, especially after sitting in stadium seating and standing on concrete all weekend, plus about 10 hours of driving.

WOD

10 Rounds

  • 2 Power Cleans (205#)
  • 1 Push Jerk (205#)
  • 5 Pull-ups
  • 10 Push-ups
  • 15 Air Squats

I didn’t rush myself on the cleans and jerks because I didn’t want to fail and I wanted to be able to put a little effort into technique while doing them. Started out hot with only 1:17 for the first round. Too fast. Finished in 21:07.

Finisher

Picked up a S-35E Rogue “E” Sled this weekend and put it to use today. Did some sled drags forward and backwards, starting with 135# loaded on and up to 180#. Then did some sled arm pulls.

It felt so good to workout after 3 rest days and eating all kinds of awesome food and desert and drinking plenty of beers.

Sore All Over

It’s been quite awhile since I woke up feeling sore in so many places. Later today and tomorrow are going to be tough to walk I bet. Went in at 9am because I was not feeling like doing a longer workout today.

Warm-up

  • 30 Air Squats
  • 20 PVC Pass-thrus
  • 30 PVC OHS Squats

Strength

3 rep Front Squats

  • 5 @ 45#
  • 3 @ 135#
  • 3 @ 155#
  • 3 @ 175#
  • 3 @ 195#
  • 3 @ 225#
  • 3 @ 255#

I wasn’t planning on going heavy, but I just couldn’t help myself once we got going. It was a bit awkward since I was paired up with Davy on a rack and he’s about a lot shorter than I am.

WOD

13:00 AMRAP

  • 10 DB Snatches (45#)
  • 20 Sit-ups
  • 30 MB Cleans (20# MB)

Fuck did those MB cleans blow. My quads did not want to cooperate after the first round. I finished 2 reps shy of 4 complete rounds. Rx was only 40# for the snatches, but there were none left, so I went heavier.

Finisher

  • 300m Row
  • 50 Burpees

More suck, but I just kept going on my burpees and never stopped. Took me 4:52 which isn’t too bad for me considering we barely had any rest after the WOD.