Tag: Front Squat

From the Front

I was up early this morning, so was able to get in some squat holding. Also did the Crossover Symmetry Activation before heading to the gym. The 90/90 movement was almost no issue for me today with the super light band, so huge improvement already!

Warm-up

  • 3:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • Wrist Stretch
  • Leg Swings
  • 15 Air Squats
  • Zombie Kicks

Strength

Front Squats

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 3×225#
  • 3×245#
  • 3×270#
  • 1×280#
  • 3×270#
  • 1×290#
  • 3×270#
  • 1×305#
  • 5x2x225#

Weird percentages again today (I forget what they were). I went off a PR+ again to up the ante. The waves are actually pretty cool though. The triples at the same weight feel easier as you go. Everything felt pretty solid. The 305# squat is just 5# under my old PR. The doubles at the end were supposed to go with a jerk as well, but not for me.

Conditioning

10 Rounds

  • 1:00 AMRAP
    • 5 Burpees
    • 2 Broad Jumps
  • 30s Rest

Joe and I did it outside, so jumping was sketchy. Didn’t keep track of anything because it would have been way too hard to. Some days you just want to do work.

Went right into a 5:00 squat hold with little rest.

Skill

300 double unders took me 4:14, a new best.

Did a final 5:00 squat before leaving. I’ll be up to 28 total minutes today. Pulled in to the garage at home and knocked out Crossover Symmetry Recovery.

Leg Limits

My shoulder feels back to “normal” again, meaning that it’s feeling like it had been for the last month and more. Low back is sore from deadlifts, maybe some from the bottom squat holds and GHD sit-ups. Hit up the 9am class.

Warm-up

  • 2:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • Leg Swings

Strength

Front Squats with 3s pause on 1st and 5th reps of 5 working sets

  • 5×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×185#
  • 4x5x225# (w/ pauses)
  • 5×235# (w/ pauses)

Holy shit balls! When I did that first set with 225# I wasn’t sure I’d even be able to do all 5 sets with that weight. My upper back starts to round when I come out of the hole, especially as I get deeper in a set. Hopefully the bottom squat holds will help my positioning and strength in the upright position.

Front Rack Lunges

  • 6/6 @ 135#
  • 6/6 @ 135#
  • 6/6 @ 155#

The prescription was to use 50% of our heaviest from the front squats, but that would have been way too light. Gotta push it!

Conditioning

20:00 EMOM

  • Odds: 12 Box Jumps (30″, no rebounding)
  • Evens: 15 cal Row

I was finishing the box jumps at about 37 seconds each time and maybe a little more on the rower. I could really feel my calves on fire after that was over. No surprise with all of the double unders I’ve been doing. I still need to get 300 more before Saturday though!

Cool down

  • 3:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • Calf Stretching

After lunch I said screw it, time to get those dubs out of the way so I can rest tomorrow.

Every 15 seconds for 8:00

  • 10 DU

Something a little different with just short sets, but figured it would be good after all of the box jumps this morning. When I didn’t miss it was a 1:2 Work:Rest, which was good. I probably missed during 8 of the sets. Not good, but my calves have had a rough couple of days. Week 3 of DUBS is in the books with 1,346.

I gutted out a 5:00 bottom squat hold, so only need to get in 5 more minutes tonight.

Is Spring Here?

With the forecast calling for highs around 70° Sunday and Monday I think spring may finally be here! My traps are still really sore. My weight was down to 194.3 pounds, which was surprising with all of the fried fish and beer I had yesterday for lunch. I’ve lost all of the vacation weight and more in less than 2 weeks. Onwards to 185-188 now!

2014-04-19-withings-chart

I hit a workout in the garage around 10:30.

Conditioning

5 Rounds

  • 200m Run (20# Weight Vest)
  • 10 GHD Sit-ups (20# Weight Vest)

Damn, running really sucks with that extra weight. When I took off from the garage my body really wanted to heel strike. Kept up a pretty consistent pace and finished in 7:50.

Skill

I rested 5 minutes and then did 300 double unders for time. Took me 4:30, which is 5 seconds slower than the last time. I contacted RPM about the cable issue and they are sending me a replacement. I was able to remove the loose strand and the cable didn’t seem to act any different, so I’ll probably keep the replacement until I need it. Good start to week 3 of 1,000+ DU.

Midline

5:00 E30S

  • Hollow Hold Feet/Hands

Much harder with only that 30 seconds of rest.

Accessory

3×50 Band Pulls (Red)

Trying to get a little scap work in.

Went to Survival Fitness at 1:30 for weightlifting club.

Muscle Cleans

  • 3x3x95#

Cleans

  • 2×125#
  • 2×155#
  • 2×185#
  • 1×195#
  • 1×205#
  • 5x1x215#

Concentrated on getting the bar to the power position, which I completely missed with that hang power clean this week. Took all cleans into the full squat too so I can get comfortable dropping under the weight again. Should have taken a video or two.

Langford Couplet Squats

Do 2 front squats, rack it, and immediately do 5 back squats. I did 205-225-245-265-275. I chickened out and didn’t go for 285 on the last set like I planned. Probably a good thing though because it was rough to finish as it was.

Clean Deadlifts

  • 2x3x285#
  • 3x3x305#

Lost feeling in my left thumb on the final set. That has never happened before.

Fish Fry-day

My traps have never been as sore as they are today from all of the hang cleans. I must have been shrugging the shit out of that bar.

Was planning to make today a rest day, but after going to a fish fry for lunch and having a few beers, I figured I’d better pay a little, so I went to open gym.

Tempo (3-5-X-1) Front Squats

  • 5×45#
  • 2×115#
  • 2×155#
  • 2×175#
  • 2×205#
  • 2×215#
  • 2×225#
  • 1×235#
  • 1×245#

I really suck at these, but that tempo is pretty rough. I’ll squat something heavy tomorrow.

Sled Drag

I put 95# on the 25# sled. Went about 0.75 miles in 15:25 according to RunKeeper. It was 3 wide laps in each direction around the parking lot.

Mobility

I grabbed a 35# KB and did 2 rounds of 1:00 hold with each arm, while laying on the ground. For the second round I grabbed a couple of 45# plates and butterflied out my legs with the weight on top to help open up my hips.

Short Test Thursday

Back to the 9am class today. It just has a different vibe. I like working out in the mornings.

Warm-up

4 Rounds

  • 15s Air Squats
  • 15s Zombie Kicks
  • 15s Mountain Climbers
  • 15s Arm Circles

Snatch Positions

I worked on the positions of setup, an inch off the floor, above the knee, and pockets (power) with the 3-position snatch deadlifts. Did several reps along with holds at each position with each weight. Used lifting straps too. Went 45-95-135-165-185-195-215.

MAX Unbroken DU (3:00)

I screwed up after 29 took a break, calmed myself down and then went crazy! Was feeling a little fatigued when I got in the 60-70 range, but got a second wind somehow and fell into a better rhythm. Blew past 100 reps (my old PR) and ended up with 139. BOOM!! Got an instant headache after that. There was probably a minute or so left on the clock but there was no I was beating that.

Conditioning

21-15-9

  • Front Squats (95#)
  • Burpees

Broke up the set of 15 front squats into 8-7, did everything else unbroken, and pushed hard through the 9 burpees. Took me 4:26.

Test Wednesday

Third day of test week. I went to the 5pm for a change today to workout with Brent and a different crew.

Warm-up

  • Air Squats
  • Star Jumps
  • Arm Circles
  • Zombie Kicks

1RM Front Squat

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 3×185#
  • 2×225#
  • 1×265#
  • 1×285#
  • 1×305#
  • Fx320#

Damn! Wish I had done 315#. Got stuck not far above parallel and had to dump it. 305# was no problem.

MAX 45# Barbell Curls in 1:30

It was ring dips, but all of other stuff from this week has aggravated the shoulder a bit. Managed to get either 36 or 39, so I guess I’ll say 36.

MAX V-ups in 2:00

We were also supposed to start with a max effort set. I did 27 to start and 50 total. Hips just shot by the end. Couldn’t even lift my legs.

1,000m Row

I rowed 3:25.3 in February, so was shooting for close to 3:20. My goal was to keep my pace at 1:40-1:42 until the last 100-150m and then give it everything left. I managed to hold that until I got inside 400m to go and then it was a battle. Ended up with a 3:21.7, so almost a 4 second PR. We were absolutely destroyed after that.

Back Felt Good with Deadlifts

Went over to Survival Fitness Bay City for open gym at 4. Legs are sore from getting back into squatting.

Warm-up

  • Bottom Squat Holds
  • 3×20 Band Pulls (red)
  • Various stretching

3 Position Snatch Deadlifts

Did some reps with 65#, 95#, 135#, and 185#. Getting better with the positions. If I keep at it, hopefully it’ll be automatic when I can get back to the lifts.

Strength

Deadlifts

  • 5×185#
  • 5×225#
  • 5×275#
  • 5×315#
  • 5×335#
  • 5×365#
  • E2M 10:00 – 3×365#

Felt good. No issues with my back.

Front Squats

  • 5×135#
  • 5:00 EMOM – 5×185#

Might as well call it a metcon! I was out of breath and had a nice sweat worked up.

Conditioning

4 Rounds

  • 400m Run
  • 15 Burpee Box Jumps (24″)

I really need to work on some running intervals. First run felt good, but when my heart rate shoots up I just can’t hold a pace. Was able to speed through the last round of burpee box jumps at a good pace though. Finished in 14:25.

I walked 400m to cool down and took a few more minutes of rest.

300 DU – Took me 6:13! Not very good.

Predicting 14.5

My legs aren’t even really sore. I can’t believe it. I figured I wouldn’t be able to walk today. 100 box jumps at 30 inches on Monday, back squat triples and 100 ascending weight front squats on Tuesday, and 89 medicine ball cleans yesterday. Let’s hit those legs some more!

Warm-up

  • 10 Burpees
  • 30s Wrist Stretch
  • 20 Air Squats
  • 1:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • 10/10 Hurdlers (forward, backward)

Strength

Front Squat

  • 5 @ 60% (195#)
  • 3 @ 80% (255#)
  • 1 @ 90% (290#)
  • 5 @ 75-80% (255#)
  • 5 @ 80-85% (265#)

Different from the expected 5×3 @ 80-90%. This one came from a workout Michelle Kinney did the other day. The big jump up to 290# was a new feeling. The 3rd and 4th reps with 265# at the end were a grind and then I couldn’t get up the 5th one. I think I kind of gave up on it before even dropping down into the squat to be honest. Not saying I would have gotten it, but my mind wasn’t right. Just last week I got 260×5 for the first time, so I’ll take this after everything done so far this week.

Looking forward to a week without weights next week. My body needs a break.

Conditioning

10 Rounds

  • 150m Row
  • 20s Rest

The metcon had OHS and T2B, which I couldn’t do anyways. After the last two days of thrashing the legs, I had already planned on rowing when I walked out of the gym yesterday.

I went too slow on the first round and only my 9th ended up being slower. Splits were 30.0, 29.1, 29.3, 29.3, 29.6, 29.8, 29.5, 29.9, 30.2, and 29.4. Everything within a 1.1 second range. Total work time of 4:56.1 with an average pace of 1:38.7/500m.

How about a 14.5 prediction?

We’re all thinking burpees and thrusters. With the shit Castro has been coming up with this year, I’m not sure we can expect anything.

We haven’t seen a triplet or a single movement workout. There has been a barbell in all 4 workouts. The live announcement will showcase 5 awesome athletes who have won the The CrossFit Games. I find it hard to believe Castro is going to take it easy on us in the final week, especially with these beasts doing the workout.

My initial guess was:
12:00 AMRAP

  • 10 Thrusters (100/70#)
  • 15 Bar-facing Burpees
  • 20 DU

Maybe we’ll see something we’ve never seen before. How about this?

7:00 AMRAP of Thrusters

You choose your weight (45/35, 75/55, 100/65, 135/95, 165/110), but you can’t change it once the clock starts. Your score is reps x weight. If you did 50 reps with 100# your score would be 5,000.

Three Wheel Triple

Slept late-ish again this morning. Still made time to get a protein+coffee and pre-workout shower though.

Warm-up

4 Round Tabata Mash-up

  • Air Squats
  • Zombie Kicks
  • Shoulder stretching
  • Rocket Ships

Strength

Back Squat 5×3 @ 80-90%

  • 10×45#
  • 5×155#
  • 3×225#
  • 3×275#
  • 3×285#
  • 3×295#
  • 3×305#
  • 3×315#

I’ve been bumping up all my numbers over the percentages. Last time I did 2 sets with 275# to start, so I replaced one of those with the 315# set. Not sure, but that might be a 3RM. Though I have done 5×305, so probably not a true 3RM at this point, especially with all of the heavy sets. Felt great too! When squats are going well, it’s a tough feeling to beat.

Conditioning

  • 40 Burpees
  • 40 Front Squats (45#)
  • 30 Burpees
  • 30 Front Squats (95#)
  • 20 Burpees
  • 20 Front Squats (135#)
  • 10 Burpees
  • 10 Front Squats (155#)

100 more burpees. YAY!! Something that really surprised me in this workout was how fatigued my front rack got, even in the first set of front squats. 100 burpees yesterday and 40 to start today, really fried the front delts. After doing 25 I had to go 8-7 to finish the 40. Then I went 12-10-8, 8-7-5, and an unbroken 10. Took me 16:19 to finish.

Growing Tree Trunks

My front delts are still sore from 180 burpees. Doesn’t take much pressure when pushing on them to feel the pain. Hamstrings are sore from the good mornings too.

Warm-up

  • 10/10 Hurdlers (forward, backward)
  • 20 Air Squats
  • 10/10 Leg Swings (F-B, S-S)
  • 2x30s Wrist Stretch

Strength

Front Squat 5×5 @ 70-80%

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×205#
  • 5×225#
  • 5×235#
  • 5×245#
  • 5×255#
  • 5×260#

Up in volume from last time when I did 2 sets at 225# and up to 255#. Today the 255# felt rough, so I only took the 5# jump at the end. Last set actually felt better, so should have done 265#.

Conditioning

  • 50 Weighted Lunges (30# DBs)
  • 40 Pendlay Rows (95#)
  • 30 Goblet Squats (53# KB)
  • 20 Burpees
  • 10 Squat Cleans (135#)

Finished in 9:21 with legs on fire.

14.4 is announced tonight and it looks like it’ll be a chipper, as I predicted. Rest day and massage tomorrow for me and will plan to hit the workout on Saturday.