Back Squat

Molasses Monday

Moving slow this morning. Lats are still sore and biceps are sore too now. Quad feels a little off. Out in the garage shortly after 8am. Did a quick 3:00 Air Dyne (1.44km).

Jumping Back Squats

10×45#
5×65#
5×95#
5×115#

Only took 1:00 rest between sets. Figured I’d try something new with the jumps. I’ve only done it with an empty bar before. Felt OK.

Back Squats

6:00 EMOM

3×135#
3×165#
3×185#
3×205#
3×225#
3×245#

Not much time left after changing the plates. Felt really heavy. 8th day in a row.

In the afternoon I did:

Crossover Symmetry Activation
P90X YogaX
Crossover Symmetry Plyometric

Hadn’t done any yoga in about 10 days, but felt more comfortable in a lot of the positions. Still a big struggle though, don’t get me wrong.

Hit the quad with e-stim a couple of times today. Willing to try anything so it doesn’t become an issue.

I missed out on shoulder press at CFi today so did a quick little session out in the garage (in sandals) in the evening.

Shoulder Press

5×45#
5×50#
5×55#
5×60#
5×65#
5×70#
5×75#
5×80#
5×85#
5×90#
5×95#
5×100#
5×105#
4×110#
5×105#
5×95#
5×85#
5×75#
5×65#
5×55#
5×45#

Tried something different. haha I only rested long enough to change the weights and record a few things on my board. As you can see, I didn’t write down much. 21 sets in about 13 minutes. I have a feeling I may regret this for the next couple of days. Maybe not the best idea with the max bench press test coming Wednesday night.

Return to Super Sunday

My lats are sore from the pull-ups yesterday. Chest is a little sore too. Out in the garage early again. Warmed up with 5:00 Air Dyne (2.38km).

Coffee Squats

2 Front + 5 Back

45#
95#
135#
155#
175#
195#
215#
235#

Far cry from the most I’ve done for this squat complex, but it’s the most weight I’ve had on the bar in over 2 months. Coming back slow and steady.

After missing the last couple of Sundays, I was glad to be back.

Warm-up

1,000m Row (4:20)
CS Activation
Bottom Squat Hold
Shoulder mobility with band

Helen

3 Rounds

400m Run
21 American KBS (53#)
12 Pull-ups

First run was about 1:35 so I knew I was on a solid pace. Was able to do each set of kettlebell swings and pull-ups unbroken though I had to dig deep to stay on the bar for the last 4. Got slower on the runs, but held on ok. Finished in 8:53, which is a 37 second PR and probably the most legit 400m runs I’d done with Helen as far as distance. Must have been the Pumps, which I wore for the first time. Have had running in a workout the last 3 days and it has felt decent, which is a nice surprise. Walked 200m to cool down.

4x NFT

50m Sled Pull between legs (145-190-220-235#)
5 Strict Deficit HSPU (2″)

The sled pull was done walking forward bent over with the straps coming through your legs.

5 Rounds

10 V-ups
20 Push-ups
30 Plyo Lunges

I split up the push-ups into 10-10 every round and did the v-ups and lunges unbroken. Every round of lunges was a deep burn, but the last two rounds were a fight to keep going. Finished in 8:42. Walked another 200m to try to flush out the legs some. My ass is going to be sore tomorrow!

Did Crossover Symmetry Iron Scap before leaving and will do some stretching tonight. Need to get outside and do some raking if the rain holds off.

Double Partner Work

Legs aren’t sore. It’s a miracle! Feel some tightness in my low back. Day 6 of morning squats. Warmed up with 5:00 Air Dyne (2.23km).

Coffee Squats

Back Squats (Pause 3s in the bottom)

10×45#
4×135#
4×145#
4×165#
4×185#
4×205#
4×225#

That right quad still isn’t quite right. WTF! I had planned an 185-195-205, but was feeling solid so I increased.

Went to the 10am class.

Warm-up

Crossover Symmetry Activation
Bottom Squat Hold
Calf Stretches
Squat Jumps

Conditioning

5,000m Partner Row

* Switch every 500m
* Run 200m after rowing

I partnered with Jason and went first. I was done with my run at 18:02. Forgot to look at the clock when he finished us off. Was pulling about a 1:50 on my first few rows, then about 1:45 on the 4th one and low 1:40 on my last one.

42-30-18 w/ Partner

C2B Pull-ups
Thrusters (95#)

We did sets of 7s in the 42. Jason did something to his shoulder with 1 thruster left. So then I did 24 of the 30 chest-to-bar pull-ups. We went sets of 5 on the 30 thrusters, I did 14 or 15 of the 18 pull-ups, and then each did 5-4 thrusters. Finished in 10:44 but with Jason getting hurt there was a lot of extra rest time. Not sure why he tried to keep going. 😦

I walked 200m to cool down.

Accessory

5 Sets

10 GHD Sit-ups
10 Back Extensions (45#)

Finished off with Crossover Symmetry Plyometric. I’ll do some stretching tonight. Time to get some work done on the garage and clean up the yard.

On the 4th Squat Day

Now my hamstrings are wrecked from yesterday. I was looking forward to walking normal today, but guess not. Out in the garage by 8am. Did 3:00 on the Air Dyne (1.35km).

Back Squats

20×45#
10×135#
10×155#
20×175#

Over the last couple of days I made so many adjustments to what I was going to squat this morning. Had mostly been air squats or goblet squats, but at the last minute I wanted a bar on my back. Still keeping things light. Was pretty stiff throughout that warm-up set of 20 with the empty bar. That’s 4 days of squatting in a row now.

Accessory

100 Walking Lunges
2:00 rest
100 Walking Lunges (20# vest)

Took me 4:03 for the first 100 and 9:49 total. I guess I wanted to get it over with since the weighted ones were faster.

Closed out with Crossover Symmetry Plyometric and 15 minutes of back, hip, and leg stretches.

Coffee and Squats

Legs are still sore as fuck. Won’t stop me from squatting though. So happy to be under a bar again! Quad seems to be fine with it so far. Out in the garage shortly after waking up.

Jumped on the Air Dyne (AD2) for 5:00 and went 2.25 kilometers.

Back Squats

20×45#
8×135#
8×145#
8×165#
8×185#
8×195#
8×205#

Oh my, those first couple of reps felt terrible with the empty bar. Everything loosened up by the end of the 20 though. Put a focus on driving through with the hips today. I took a 2 minute rest between sets. Did a round of back stretches after finishing up. I’m enjoying these morning squats to get the day going.

Had a chiropractor appointment and then went to the 5:30 class.

Warm-up

Crossover Symmetry Activation
3×15 Reverse Hypers (210#)
Bottom Squat Holds
Jump Rope & DU practice
Banded Walks (red band, monster, side shuffle)

A strand of the cable came loose on my RPM rope again. 😦 Guess I’ll have to switch to their coated cables. So I had to use my backup Rx rope.

Conditioning

25-20-15-10-5

DU (unbroken)
Sit-ups

Holy shit did I screw up a lot. I missed 3 times trying to get the 5! Took me 3:41. Terrible.

15:00 AMRAP
2-4-6-8…

Deadlift (75#)
OHS (75#)
Burpee

Kept it light and just used the one bar. It was enough. Got through the round of 16 plus 18 deadlifts and 11 overhead squats. I broke up the 14 OHS 8-6 and the 16 as 9-7. Everything else unbroken.

No B.S. Bench

10×45#
5×135#
2×185#
2×205#
2×225#
2×235#
2×240#
2×245# (PR)
2×250# (PR)

Last week before testing a max. With doubles and heavier weight it was perfect to get an idea going into next week. That 250# is my previous max and I didn’t struggle hitting it for a double. BOOM!

Knocked out Crossover Symmetry Iron Scap before heading home and will hit some stretches tonight. I may start doing some other stuff on the days I stretch twice to mix it up.

Back To It

Worked on the garage all weekend with my Dad. It’s a long day standing on the concrete for so long. I did do a round of back stretches last night though. Back to the grind today after 2 weeks away from CFi classes. Looking forward to it. I got up and had my coffee at the squat rack instead of sitting down for a half hour. Warmed up with 3:00 on the Air Dyne (1.24km) and then got right to it.

Back Squats

20×45#
10×135#
10×145#
10×155#
10×165#
10×175#
10×185#

I haven’t had a bar on my back in over 2 months, trying to rest the right quad. Wanted to keep it light but get in some volume. I don’t plan to get too heavy for a few weeks and see how it all feels.

Went to the 9am class. After taking a break from creatine for the last couple of weeks, I mixed it in my workout drink again today.

Warm-up

Crossover Symmetry Activation
Bottom Squat Hold
PVC Pass-thrus

Strength

Shoulder Press

10×45#
7×75#
7×95#
7×105#
3x7x115#
7×120#

Conditioning

2:00 AMRAP
- Jump Squats
Rest 1:00
8:00 AMRAP
- 6 Push-ups
- 8 Sit-ups
- 10 MB Cleans (20#)

I did 63 jump squats at a pretty decent pace. Then I got 7 rounds plus 6 push-ups. Everything unbroken but the cleans got slow because it was such a burn in the legs.

Midline

4 Rounds

20s Hollow Hold
10s Rest
20s Superman Hold
10s Rest

Was sweating more than during the AMRAP. Can’t remember ever doing a superman hold; those are tough!

It felt good to be back at it. Knocked out Crossover Symmetry Iron Scap before I left the gym. Will do some back stretches tonight.

Max Reps Set

Had a dentist appointment this morning, so went to the 5:30 class so I could squat with Alex.

Warm-up

3×10 Reverse Hypers (210#)
Bottom Squat Hold

Strength

Back Squat

10x20kg
5x60kg
5x90kg
3x105kg
3x117kg
3x133kg
6x149kg (PR)

Alex has been doing some cycles of 5/3/1, so I jumped in with his program since our squat numbers are really close. My goal was 6 reps since I did 5×325# about 2-3 weeks ago and that’s about 328#. Didn’t think I was going to make it about half way through. I lost my tightness on the 3rd rep and it was ugly. Concentrated harder and had to grind out that 6th rep, but made it! Estimates my 1RM at 380#.

Oh, I didn’t mention that I created a Rep Max Calculator site. Give it a try.

Accessory

6 Sets

5 Ring Rows
8 Push-ups

Did them pretty much back-to-back since I was catching up to the rest of class. Not hard though.

Conditioning

7 Rounds

3 Curtis P (95#)
6 Push Press (95#)
30s Rest

Hot damn! Shoulders were burning up in the 4th round. Had to drop the bar in the 6th and 7th rounds, but was averaging about 30 seconds per round until then. Finished in 7:14.

Schedule Switching

Due to the quad I’m switching up my schedule so that I can squat heavy on Mondays and then be able to rest it on Tuesdays. We got a nice storm yesterday so I spent the morning getting the snow blower running and then clearing the driveway. Out in the garage in the afternoon.

Warm-up

1,000m Ski Erg – 4:36.4

10×45#
5×135#
5×185#
3×225#
3×265#
3×285#
EMOM 10:00 – 2×305#

Haven’t done these in a long time. Used to call them rapid fire squats if doing a single or double. Was a good weight to use.

Accessory

5 Sets

5 Good Mornings (135-155-165-175-185#)
10 Strict Ring Dips
~2:00 Rest

I had thought about doing some hard conditioning work, but since the schedule is something new I figured I’d take it “easy”.

Rough Morning, Solid Night

Got plenty of sleep, but had a hard time getting out of bed. Made it for 9am though.

Warm-up

Bottom Squat Hold
Arm stretching
Band pass-thrus
2 Rounds
- 20 Mountain Climbers
- 20 Jumping Jacks

Strength

Shoulder Press

6×45#
6×95#
6×115#
6×125#
6×130#
6×135#
6×140#
6×145#

Meh. Would have liked to get 150 or 155.

Midline

4 Sets

5 Evil Wheels
10/10 Side Bends (62# KB)

Conditioning

12:00 AMRAP

50 Burpees
50 Wall Balls (20#, 10′)
50 American KBS (53#)
50 Air Squats

Settled into a pace of 15-16 burpees per minute, which got me finished around 3:15. Did my wall balls in sets of 10. Too much rest between the sets. Moved on to the swings around 6:10. Did two sets of 15 and two sets of 10. Then the air squats unbroken but slow. Had about a minute left and managed 15 burpees for 215 total reps. Not sure why, but I did not feel very good after this one; I didn’t even push hard. Maybe it’s a nutrition thing or having a hard time waking up was a sign.

Break at night to get in some work in the garage. Warmed up with an easy 5:00 on the Air Dyne for 2.63km.

Back Squat

10×45#
5×135#
5×185#
3×225#
3×255#
3×275#
3×295#
3×315#
3×330#
3×340# (PR)

After 100 squats this morning I was unsure how I’d feel tonight. Wasn’t feeling very good as I worked up and even at 315#. Knew I had to change my attitude after that and just attack each rep. Could definitely feel my quad, though it obviously didn’t hold me back. Hopefully I can walk tomorrow.

Accessory

5 Rounds

30s OH Holds (15# Training bar w/ 15# plates on bands)
30s Rest
30s Hollow Rocks
30s Rest

Big difference from using the earthquake bar, but not a bad substitution. Still get some movement out of the bar and weight. Was able to go non-stop through each set of hollow rocks, which I wasn’t expecting.

Up and Over the Bar

The plan was to get to the gym early this morning to back squat and work on bar muscle-ups before the 10am class. But I didn’t wake up until 8:20. I must have needed the sleep.

Warm-up

Dynamic warm-up with butt kicks, high knees, running, arm circles, and arm stretching. Then 30 American KBS with 44#.

Gymnastics

Worked on bar muscles-ups. Was doing all singles, but did one double towards the end. I lost track, but did about 16 total reps, which is way more than I’ve done total in my lifetime. Felt pretty good and didn’t have any misses. Might have to try an EMOM with doubles next week.

Conditioning

4 Rounds

1:00 Ball Slams (25#)
15s Rest
1:00 Thrusters (45#)
15s Rest
1:00 Sandbag Clean and Throw (~40#)
15s Rest

Tried to keep a steady pace. Had 101 reps after 2 rounds and 210 total reps.

A few hours later it was time to lift heavy in the garage. Warmed up with 1,000 meters on the ski erg in 4:09.9.

Back Squats

10×45#
5×135#
5×205#
5×235#
5×265#
5×285#
5×305#
5×315#
5×325# (PR)

The plan was more sets, get to at least 320 and maybe try more. After warming up I was feeling a little tired so adjusted the game plan. Fewer sets and new goal was 325. Made it, but had nothing left. I’ll take it.

Did 3 sets of 15 reverse hypers on the GHD, no resistance.