Back Squat – Page 32 – Nick Momrik's Fitness Logs

Know When to Fold ’em

Still not getting a full night of sleep and night sweats seem to be getting worse. Going to see my Doctor this afternoon and hopefully figure out what is wrong with me. Went it at 10am to workout with Kevin and Ellen.

Warm-up

500m Row
2/2 World’s Greatest Stretch
Various other stretching

Strength

Hadn’t done Super Squats in nearly two weeks, but today was the day to get back on it. With a week off I decided it made sense to still go up 10#. Warmed up with 10 @ 45#, 5 @ 135#, 3 @ 185#, and 3 @ 225#. Took a nice rest and then went for it with 255#. Right out of the gate, I could tell the reps were way too hard. I started leading with my ass, sort of doing some type of good morning squat. I got through 8 reps, and then coming out of the hole on the 9th, I decided to bail before I got hurt. Dropped to 225# and did a set of 5 for some extra work.

Disappointing, but not surprising with the week I’ve had. I should have been smarter and maybe went for 235#.

Did 3 sets of 20 pullovers after with 45# dumbbells. I’ve been using a 60#, but didn’t think that would be a good idea.

Core

3 Rounds (NFT)

10 Evil Wheels
45s/45s Side Plank

It’s been so long since I’ve done side planks I don’t even remember.

Conditioning

1/2 Mile Sled Drag/Pull (135#)

I did half walking forward dragging the sled behind, and half walking backwards pulling it along. At the gym it’s 6 laps, so I alternated each lap.

Heading to the Doctor this afternoon to hopefully figure out what’s wrong with me. Just want to get back to normal.

Dive Back In

I started to feel so much better last night after going to hang out for the fireworks in Bay City. Feeling pretty decent today too, so went in to workout with Kevin and Ellen at 3pm.

Warm-up

3:00 Air Dyne
20/20 Band Walks (purple)
10 Band Presses (purple)
10/10 Flamingos
Squat Hold

Strength

I wanted to get in some light squats to easy my legs back into things and hopefully get back on track for Super Squats this week.

2-3-X-1 Tempo, 90 seconds between sets

5 @ 45# to warm-up
5 @ 105#
5 @ 120#
5 @ 135#
5 @ 165#
5 @ 180#

Wow, was it humid in the box today. I was sweating buckets after only a few sets. These weren’t particularly easy or hard, so solid work for me coming back. Three seconds in the hole is deceiving and I recommend everyone try some. You can’t use the bounce to come back up at all, so it’s all drive.

WOD

10:00 EMOM

Odds: 20 Wall Balls (20# MB, 10′ target)
Evens: 10 Over the Box Jumps (28″)

Did all of the wall balls unbroken without any trouble. Was a bit wiped out for the box jumps though, which is my specialty, so you know I’m still fatigued.

Conditioning

1/2 Mile Sled Drag (135#)

Stopped for water every 2 laps (1/3 of the way). Should have maybe mixed in some backwards pulling, but just wanted to keep going.

Finisher

10:00 Row

Nice and slow. I think I was at 16-17 spm most of the way. Not trying to kill myself, just sweat and get the heart beating.

Was there about 2 hours and felt so much better than the “Hope” WOD yesterday. I bet I lot at least a few pounds through sweating, so tried to keep drinking water.

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.

More Super Squats

I went golfing this morning and then went in to open gym at about 5:30pm.

Warm-up

5-10 minutes of DU work. I got a streak of 65 and some others over 40.

Strength

Back Squats

Warmed up with 45#, 135#, and 185# for 5 reps each. Last week I did 225# for a set of 20 and originally was just going to try 230# this week, but figured I might as well make it tough so went for 235#. It actually felt easier than last week and I didn’t get that pass-out feeling. Maybe I can try 245# next week!

Pullovers

I did 3 sets of 20 with a 60# DB and they were tough.

WOD

Row 5k

Kept a consistent pace at 20s/m and right around 2:05-2:10 per 500m. Finished in 21:13.8 by upping the pace a bit in the last 1,000m. Good aerobic work heading into the weekend and the competition on Sunday.

Wall Balls Have Become My Bitch

Feeling good. Had a rest day yesterday after a big volume weekend. Walked 18 holes of golf for some active recovery though. In at 10am today.

Warm-up

5:00-10:00 DU Practice

Strength

Back Squats

5 @ 45#
5 @ 135#
3 @ 185#
3 @ 225#
3 @ 255#
3 @ 275#
3 @ 295# (PR)
3 x 3 @ 265#

The idea was to work up to a heavy triple in 5 sets and then take 90% and do a 3×3. Was seeing stars after the set of 295# and then the next 3 sets were not easy.

Push Jerks

3 @ 135#
3 @ 155#
3 @ 175#
3 @ 185#
3 @ 205# (PR)
3 x 3 @ 185#

Same thing as back squats, work up to a triple and then 3×3 at 90% of that.

Set 3 reps PRs for both movements, after just hitting 285# for 3 last week on the back squat. 🙂

Core

5 Sets

30s Weighted Plank
30-40s Rest (switch with partner)

Worked with Brad. Stacked plates on our backs. Used 25-45-70-70-95 for the weight. Pretty brutal there in those last three sets, but concentrated on keeping everything tight and focused breathing. Figured this would be good work leading up to the competition this weekend which has us doing a bunch of planks while other teammates are rowing.

WOD

5 Rounds

2:00 for 250m Row & then MAX Wall Balls (20# MB, 10′ target)
2:00 Rest

Felt pretty solid here. Was able to keep a pretty consistent pace on my rows and did unbroken wall balls every round. I got 30-30-29-26-26. Wall balls used to be a weakness, but now they don’t bother me at all. Usually my legs would start to give out, but it was my lungs that wanted to quit today. Whenever I wanted to stop I told myself I couldn’t have more than 15-20 seconds left and just kept pushing.

Two and a Half Hours

Had a well-deserved rest day yesterday and walked 18 holes on the golf course, playing one of my best rounds ever. Went in at 2:30pm today for some open gym time.

Warm-up

3:00 Air Dyne
3:00 DU
PVC Pass-thrus

XWOD

5:00 EMOM

3 Hang Snatches (95#)

Working on speed of getting under it and warming up the CNS.

Olympic Lifting

Did the jerk footwork drill for a few minutes.

Split Jerks

3 @ 95#
3 @ 115#
3 @ 135#

Again, working on speed and really driving down under the bar.

Then Casey and I decided to try out part of the lifting WOD from the team competition we’re doing next Sunday. We did an I go, you go for 5:00, increasing the weight by 10# each set for clean and jerks. Started at 135# and got up to 225# just under the time limit. No misses and had to change our own weight, so will be fun to see how fast we can get the girls done and then on to us. Maybe we can get up to the 250#, which is the max weight we’ll have for the workout. Will be fun!

Strength

Back Squats: 20 @ 225#
Pullovers: 2 x 20 @ 45# DB and 20 @ 60# DB

Little something from the Super Squats program. Pretty brutal taking a 10 rep weight and trying to go for 20. Was not easy and thought I was going to pass out on those squats.

Did some more DU, getting a streak of 73 before my rope hit the Air Dyne behind me! I wanted to get that 100.

WOD

Ladder, not for time. Go through once until failure and then start over from 1 and do it to failure again.

1 Strict Chin-up, 2 Strict Ring Dips, 3 Sit-ups holding 10# plate
2-4-6
3-6-9
…

I got through the 5th round plus 6 chin-ups and 6 of the dips and then only got through round 3 plus 4 chin-ups and 6 dips. Not as intense an a normal metcon but great strength work and still got the heart pumping.

Solid 2.5 hours in the box. 🙂

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.

Central East Regionals Week

Heading down to Columbus on Thursday to watch the Central East Regionals this weekend. It’s going to be so much fun!

Walked 18 holes of golf on Sunday afternoon and yesterday morning. Feeling refreshed today. Went in at 10.

Warm-up

500m Row
10/10 Leg Swings (f-b, s-s)
PVC Pass-thrus

Gymnastics

12:00 EMOM

Odds: 5 Strict Deficit HSPU on 35# bumpers
Evens: 7 Strict Pull-ups

First time doing strict HSPU on 35s and survived all 6 rounds! That might be the most strict pull-ups I’ve ever done in a day too.

Strength

Back Squats

8 @ 45#
5 @ 135#
5 @ 185#
5 sets of 8 @ 225#

Wanted to try something with a little higher volume and this definitely did the trick. 225# is about 70% of my 1RM.

Core

3 Rounds

10 Ab Roll-outs / Evil Wheels (on knees)
10 T2B

Not for time. Aimed for good quality on the roll-outs and did all sets of T2B unbroken.

Conditioning

10 Rounds

50m High Prowler Sprint
50m Low Prowler Sprint

Used the wooden prowler and loaded it up with four 45# bumpers.

Max Test Week

Since the 6 week squat program ended last week, it’s a good week to do some max effort lifts. In at 10am with a bigger group of folks than we’ve had lately.

Warm-up

400m Run
PVC Pass-thrus
Hip flexor stretch

Strength

Back Squats

5 @ 45#
5 @ 135#
3 @ 225#
2 @ 275#
1 @ 300#
1 @ 320# (PR)
1 @ 315# (we messed up, thinking it was 325#)
1 @ 325# (PR)

That’s a 10# PR. I’ll take it. My ability to do more volume has really increased with the program too.

Weighted Pull-ups

5×3 E2M – I used 25#, 30#, 35#, 44#, and 49#.

OLY

I did 6 sets of 2 snatch deadlifts, using 185# with wrist straps. I really wanted to work on rising with my hips and back at the same time instead of my hips first like I tend to do in my Olympic lifts.

WOD

3 Rounds (Road Circuit, so keep a low heart rate)

1m Russian KBS (35# KB)
1m Jump Rope
1m Box Jumps, Step down (14″)
1m Air Dyne
1m Hang Clean & Press (25# DBs)
1m Ball Slams (15#)
1m Rest

Was supposed to be 5 rounds, but I was there long enough and suggested we cut it short.

Last Week of the Squat Program

Had a couple of rest days, so feeling good. Went in at 10:30 and trained with Kevin and Monica. Matt did his own thing.

Warm-up

500m Row
3/3 Turkish Get-ups (35# KB)
2/2 World’s Greatest Stretch

Strength

Back Squats

Last week of the 6 week volume squat program and it’s a challenging one. Warmed up with 5 @ 45# and 5 @ 135#.

6 @ 235#
6 @ 250#
4 @ 265#
3 @ 280#
2 @ 300#
6 @ 235#

Just like last week, those first sets were harder than the end. After the 3 with 280# I didn’t think there was a chance I’d hit both with 300#, especially since I’ve only ever done it once and 315# once. I even asked Matt and Kevin to spot me on the ends of the bar, but I got both reps no problem. This program is working!!

Push Jerks

Worked up to a heavy triple. I went 135#, 145#, 165#, 175#, and 195#. Knocked out each triple fast except for the last one where I reset on each rep instead of going right into the dip.

WOD #1

8:00 AMRAP

5 C2B Pull-ups
10 HR Push-ups
15 Wall Balls (20# MB, 10′ Target)

Push-ups held me back, but I did all C2B and WB unbroken. Finished with 5+15.

WOD #2

5 Rounds

20 Unbroken DU
20 Wall Ball Sit-ups

Messed up on my first round of DU, but then was solid. Those wall ball sit-ups added up fast after a couple of rounds. Finished in 7:27.

Some solid strength work and a couple of short WODs, which were a nice change of pace after doing a bunch of longer metcons last week.