Training Journal Entry #1 10/28/13

Currently strength training 3x per week on a Monday, Thursday, Saturday regimen. On Tuesdays I throw in some light conditioning work, with my goal to keep my heart rate at or around 100-120bpm while exercising. Routinely toss around a KB when I feel like it. Gotta keep the technique fresh. Other than that, I play. Maybe some pickle ball when I feel like it.

My primary goals at this moment in time are:
#1 Heal up my neck/shoulder/t-spine injury. It is joint related, and thanks to my therapist I have learned how to manage my symptoms. What I need is time, lots of load and repetition. All in the name of Constant Forward Progress, right?

#2 Increase squatting, deadlifting, and chin-up strength to 2x bodyweight in the two former and 1/2 additional bodyweight for the latter, all for a set of 5.

Reasons:
#1 My training is my lab time. I like to read, then apply what I have read to my work "under the bar". It is a time for me to learn, and the lessons I have learned about how one's body adapts to training load and frequency have been invaluable. Gotta keep it up.

#2 I have personal aspirations of earning a Strongfirst Kettlebell, Barbell, and Bodyweight certification. I appreciate the approach that Pavel and Reifkind are taking in developing their "easy strength training" programs, and believe in them wholeheartedly because I see the results in myself every day. By chipping my way towards those strength goals, I know I will be preparing myself to pass their certifications.

#3 Elite coaches say that "respectable" strength for a male is being able to achieve each of the milestones listed above. Challenge accepted! I would like to be "respectable" in my field. Not only that, but the more strength one has, the more they will be able to understand how to help others reach new milestones safely.

#4 I have personal aspirations to return to competition in track and field. It has been almost 3 years since I last competed, but since then I have overcome some pretty gnarly injuries I was dealing with while competing. When I had a hip impingement and hurt back in 2009-10 I still managed to pop off a lifetime best of 50.78a in the 400 meter dash. The competitor in me is curious to learn what I could do with a healthy, pain free body. If I never do compete again it's not the end of the world, but I would like to feel "prepared". Mark Spitz, 7x gold medalist in swimming, once said that "Failure to prepare is preparing to fail." Wise words from a proven winner.

Program caveat:
-No matter how many reps I do in a set, I will never ever push to the point of muscle failure (goal of leaving 1 or 2 reps in the tank, always). Refer to Pavel and Dan John's Easy Strength if you want to know more on "why". My goal is to feel fresh at the end of each session. Not wiped.
-All squats and chins are strict. Squats are parallel or below. Chins are "tactical" aka fully tensed from my toes up. None of that sissy kipping crap.
-Also, I haven't done any pressing of any kind for almost a full year (push up, overhead, bench, chest) because of my injury... except for a KB floor press, which I introduced about two weeks ago. It's okay to laugh at my baby arms...for now... ;)

Nutrition:
Water: 1/2 body weight daily, minimum
Food: Super shake x2 for breakfast, super shake x1+ protein/veg mix for lunch, super shake x1 afternoon snack, dinner=whatever goes.
I don't overeat, and I don't "cut carbs". My goal is to get stronger, build lean muscle, and I eat accordingly, aka no going hungry! But I'm not a fatty, either. Weight is currently stable, despite increase in strength.

-Current body weight: 156-160 lbs
-Current back squat 5 rep max : 215
-Current deadlift 5 rep max: 215
-Current front squat 5 rep max: 165
-Current chin-up 5 rep max: bodyweight+20lb


Here is my "A" day from Monday, 10/28/13:

Prep: foam roller, primal move stuff, dynamic stretching

FMS corrective stuff: Passive leg lower+Rotary stability plank

Power: 2 arm KB swing with 32kg bell- 3x10 (3 sets of 10 reps), rest 2 min

Workout:

Deadlifts 215x3x3
KB Floor Press 16kgx3x5
Windmill 16kgx3x10
Rest

Front Squat 165x3x3
Chin-up 20x3x3
PT drill N/A
Rest

Finisher: 20m sled sprint "on the minute": 6x75lb Been slowly adding weight to this and cycling reps from 3-7 with every program. Started with just an unweighted sled-took me 4.5-5 seconds to make it 20m. Currently taking me the same time to cover the same distance, but with 75lbs added.

Constant Forward Progress...


Yours in strength,