Monday and Movember

Did a quick little workout this morning...

400 yards as fast as I could (1:25)

Handstand Wall Walk Up
x5,4,4
w/
Chins:
3x5

Box Jumps:
3x5
Single Leg Box Step Downs:
3x8

Band Pull Aparts:
4x20
w/
Vertebrae Situps:
3x10

All said and done it took me about 35 mins with the warmup.  I'm probably going to be adding 2-3 of these little workouts in each week on my normal off days.  I like that they are all body wight which doesn't beat me up at all, gets some blood flowing, and helps with my work capacity.  I'll also be able to focus on some weak points that I alluded to in a previous post.

Like last year I'll be donating my face to the Movember cause for the month of November.  Movember is a cause that benefits prostate cancer and other men's cancer initiatives.  A a sign of solidarity all the men that help the cause grow a moustache during November.  When someone says, "Hey, what's with the 'stache?" we get them learned up on the cause and maybe even pull a donation or two.  If you'd like to donate I would greatly appreciate it.  After all you get hours of amusement for free from this blog so five or ten bucks to a good cause isn't too much to ask I don't think.  At the very least visit the links and check out the cause.  Thanks.  Oh, and Happy Halloween!

Movember- us.movember.com
My MoSpace- http://mobro.co/TroyDequaine

Song of the Day:

"In the old days villains had moustaches and kicked the dog." -Alfred Hitchcock

Saturday

Push Press:
95x5x2
135x4
185x3
205x2
225x1
235x1
135x10

Squat Supports:
245x1
355x1
445x1
535x1
625x1
675x1

Wall Handstands:
3x as long as I could hold
w/
TRX Face Pulls:
3x12

Ab Wheel Hand Walks:
3x20 yards

Gassers:
x3

Pretty good day in the weight room.  Push press was only 10 lbs off my all time PR.  I moved the pins down on the squat supports so I did more of a half squat to stand up with the weight.  675 felt heavy as shit.

I've been thinking about my pressing strength or lack-there-of lately.  Part of it is I feel my triceps are weak. This is a biggie.  Without strong triceps lockout strength is greatly diminished.  Part of it is that my upper body structures feel weak as a whole.  My shoulder girdle is tight and full of knots.  My shoulder joints feel weak and unstable.  With these issues present pressing strength in general is never going to be what it could be.  To that end I'm going to take action to increase the strength of the support structures.  This starts with the wall handstands.  These are tough as shit.  I used the wall to balance and just held for time.  I got about 40 seconds on each one but was shaking after about 20 seconds.  I've never really put a focus on improving body weight strength movements.  But I'm going to go into it in earnest once the meet passes.  Should be interesting.

Song of the Day:

"You must have the devil in you to succeed in any of the arts." -Voltaire

Thursday- Upper

Bench:
230x1x3
235x1x3
250x1x3

Shoulder Press:
4x8
w/
Dips:
4x8

Pendlay Rows:
4x8
w/
45' Pull Downs:
4x8

DB Curls:
3x6
w/
EZ Bar Reverse Curls:
3x8

Db Skull Crushers:
3x10
w/
Push Ups:
2x20

Bench actually felt pretty good today.  A big part of it was that I felt really locked in on my technique.  Not sure why today felt so great but I'll take it.

I got some disappointing news earlier this week.  The meet that I was planning on doing in November is full. The meet director capped the full power entries at fifty and by the time I went to register there was no more room at the inn.  So instead Lance and Eric and I and whoever else wants to join in are going to have our own little meet at work the Saturday before.  If I get some PRs they won't be official lifts, but something to hang my hat on nonetheless.  I'm still going to go to the actual meet to handle a woman from the gym who is doing the meet.  This is her first one and she is going to kick some ass.

Song of the Day:


"If we will be quiet and ready enough we shall find compensation in every disappointment." -Henry David Thoreau

Tuesday- Lower

Squat:
135x5x2
225x4x2
315x3
405x2
445x1

420x1x3
435x1x3
455x1x3

Rack Pull (mid shin):
510x1x3
600x1
630x0

Walking Lunge:
3x20 steps
w/
Banded Leg Curl:
3x12

Ab Wheel Rollouts:
3x10

Today was tough.  Squats went well but by the time the 455's rolled around I was starting to fade.  Got through them like a champ though.  Pin pulls were a different story.  Where I set the pin is essentially the toughest spot to do a dead lift from.  You get zero leg drive and therefore zero momentum to pull back and clear the knee.  At its core it's a very heavy RDL.  The 600 pin pull felt harder than when I pulled it from the floor a few months ago.  I gave 630 a few tugs but by that time I was shot.  This one might take a while to recover from.

Song of the Day:

"By persisting in your path, though you forfeit the little, you gain the great." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Thursday and Friday

Thursday:


Bench:
95x1
135x4
185x3
225x2
245x1
250x1
265x1
275x0
225x1x3

DB Bench:
4x8 w/ 80's
w/
Dips:
4x8 @ BW

Sternum Chins:
4x8
w/
45' Pull Downs:
4x8

Drag Curl:
4x10
w/
DB Skull Crushers:
4x12

DB Laterals:
4x8
w/
Band Pull Aparts:
4x25

Friday:


Good Mornings:
135x5x2
185x5x3

Squat Supports:
I set the pins so they were about 4" below the top of my squat lockout.  So I was essentially doing a 4" squat.  Each rep was held for 10 seconds at the top.
265x1
355x1
445x1
535x1
625x1
715x1x3

Push Press:
95x5
135x4
175x3
195x2
205x1
185x3x3

Single Arm Row:
4x10
w/
DB Pullovers:
3x12

My pressing strength continues to be a fly in my ointment.  I know it's because in the past I haven't put as much focus into it because I was bad at it.  Well getting strong doesn't happen by accident.  After my meet I'm going to back off on the squatting and dead lifting and really hammer on the presses.  If that doesn't work then I'll just start doing Zumba or something.

With Halloween coming up I'll be sampling mostly Misfits songs.  This song was actually written about my dog, Saxon.  GOT A HELLHOUND DOG!  THAT HELLHOUND'S GONNA RIP YOUR FACE OFF!

Song of the Day:

"There is something haunting in the light of the moon; it has all the dispassionateness of a disembodied soul, and something of its inconceivable mystery." Joseph Conrad

My First Training Partner

I still, very vividly, remember the first place I ever trained at.  It was a basement gym with minimal equipment.  There was an old treadmill and jogging trampoline for cardio.  There was only one set of dumbbells and they were covered with blue plastic and only five pounds.  The center piece was an old-school selectorized weight machine that looked like an old torture rack.  This wasn’t one of those modern machines with a leg press, chest press, a lat pull down bar and a half dozen bar/handle options.  Oh, no.  The one weight stack was bolted into whichever wall you had chosen.  It came with a flat bench that could be put in front of or moved away from the weight stack.  The bar is difficult to describe.  It was essentially a metal square with a prong on one side that was inserted into the guide rails that could be moved up and down.  On the other side were handles that could be used for bench presses, squats, overhead presses, shrugs and anything that fancied your imagination.  There was also a horizontal row handle at the bottom.  In my mind it was the first failed attempt at a Smith machine.  Needless to say, the gym was pretty bare bones.

My first training partner had taken a weight training class in college where he had worked his bench press up to (at the time I thought this was astronomical) 275 pounds.  I don’t remember much of what we did but I know he probably put up with a lot of whining and a short attention span.  I didn’t make a lot of progress.  In fact, I think he once pitted my sister and I against each other in a test of strength and she came out the victor.

I was about six or so when I finally understood what that equipment in my basement was used for.  My first training partner was obviously my dad and I like to think he just enjoyed my company and so was willing to put up with my whining and being weaker than my older sister.  Neither of us knew it then but those sessions in the basement ignited the spark that lit the flame that has led me to my passion for strength training.  Even though I didn’t take training seriously until high school I look at those moments when it first piqued my interest.

Fast forward to middle school.  Being a chubby kid growing up I’d always been self-conscious of my weight and the way I looked.  I decided that for my birthday I wanted a weight bench and some weights and that I was going to get into shape.  My parents delivered and I got a small weight bench with a bar and weight set. (I once took an informal poll at work to see who had owned a similar set-up when they were kids and every single trainer had the same thing I did.  Definitely more than mere coincidence.)  The weight set had a hundred pounds of weight and a one inch standard bar.  The weights were the old cement weights that were covered with hard plastic.  I had absolutely no clue what I was doing.  I’m pretty sure I benched every single time and more than likely gave squatting a few rides.  I’m fairly certain I was completely ignorant of the Olympic lifts, which was probably a good thing since I more than likely would have hurt myself.  

Down in my basement by myself with absolutely no direction or instruction I remember being beside myself when I had maxed out the amount of weight I could get on the bar with 135 pounds on the bench press.  Sprinkled between the time I started and up to that point there were also a few close calls where I failed on a rep and either had to roll the bar to my waist and stand up or tip it to one side and let the weight fall off one side and then the other.  This is where my survival instincts were honed.  It was either, finish the rep, not get the rep and look like an idiot getting out from under the bar, or perish with 100 pounds on my neck.  It was one of the first two every time.  I don't go quietly just like that.

Once I got into high school my dad pretty much stopped exercising besides the occasional cross country skiing outing or roller blading around our subdivision.  I had been in the high school’s weight program and trained with a buddy’s uncle who was a former bodybuilder and had made some pretty good progress.  I’ve never been the strongest person on any team, but I’ve always described myself as above average in strength.  I took it seriously but never really gave any thought to continuing to train once I went to college.  That changed when I decided to play football at Carroll College.

            

I had my summer workouts that I did and enjoyed seeing the progression from one phase to the next.  I was also going through the student guidebook trying to decide what I was going to do with the rest of my life.  When I showed up on campus I was ready to play and ready to begin my journey to being the most awesome high school English teacher you ever saw.  I ended up playing football all four years and had a pretty good career.  My majoring in English lasted a semester.

            

When I was mulling over the decision to switch my major to Exercise Science it was my dad who took the stance that I may be making a poor decision.  He took the side that I should really figure out how the job market was going to look once I graduated.  I’m eternally thankful that I have a dad that is willing to do this.  Even though strength and conditioning had become a passion of mine he was ever the pragmatic.  Could I make a career out of it?  Would I always be struggling with money issues?  Those were the tough questions that I had to answer before he’d be satisfied with my decision. 

           

Back then I had plans of continuing my education beyond my undergrad and working at a university or for a professional sports team.  Instead I found a great job working at a sports performance center working with kids who are just as hungry as I once was but now have a much better resource for their strength training other than a magazine or their own imagination.

           

I sometimes ponder what my life would look like if I hadn’t been introduced to the physical culture by my dad all those years ago.  Where do I work?  Who are my friends?  Where do I live?  I’ll never know but I wouldn’t really want to.  I owe a lot more to my dad than just starting me on a path to a career that I enjoy.  He set me on a path towards a life worth living.  One filled with hard work, determination, setting and accomplishing goals, and being a useful human being.  Everyday I’m thankful for the attitude towards life and the work ethic he’s instilled in me.  I just wish he’d exercise more and eat better.

Tuesday- Lower

Squat:
135x5x2
225x3x2
315x1x2
405x1
455x1
485x1
510x1

Dead Lift:
352x3
372x2
420x1x3

Walking Lunges:
3x20 steps w/ 88 lbs
w/
Back Extensions:
3x12

Leg Press:
5pps 4x8
w/
Leg Curl:
4x8 w/ 75 lbs

Whoowhee!  This one was more of a grinder than the slutty girl at a high school dance.  For starters I had some "stomach issues" on Monday and hadn't drank my Pedialite.  So I was a little dehydrated going in and at a body weight of 206 I was lighter than I had been in a while.

Warm ups on squat went well.  Little bit of pain but nothing out of the ordinary.  Once I got to 455 that all changed.  As I was going down with it I could feel the pressure in my head building.  Vision was getting blurry and I almost passed right the hell out as I started to come up.  I had to step back to keep from falling back but was able to stand up.  Could have been a lot worse.  Thoughts of packing it in crossed my mind but I hadn't gotten all dressed up for nothing so I pushed on.  485 was OK.  A little easier than the last time I had it on my back but nothing to get worked up about.  I was having some serious doubts about the 510 but knew I had a competent spotter so I decided to give it a ride.  Slow as the kid that ate glue in grade school but it was a good lift.

I'm glad I went for it.  That weight is probably going to be my opener in November depending on how the rest of the training cycle goes.  In the words of Ice Cube, "...today was a good day."

Song of the Day: 

"There is no way to success but to take off your coat, grind, and work like a digger on the railroad, all day and every day." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Friday- Wait, what?

Good Mornings:
135x8x3
185x6x2

BTNPP:
Up to 215 for a single

Leg Press (pps=plates per side):
2ppsx10
3ppsx10
4ppsx10
5ppsx10
Drop Set:
5ppsx10, 4ppsx20, 3ppsx30

Calf Press:
3ppsx 15, 20, 25

Ab Wheel Rollouts:
3x12

I trained Friday morning due to the fact that I'm a busy man and have many going's ons this weekend.  When  it comes to throwing iron around I'm not usually a morning person but today was a pretty decent session.  My shoulder is a little jacked up from the presses but other than that I couldn't be happier than a pig in shit with how today went.  Booyah.

Song of the Day:

"Early morning hath gold in its mouth." -Ben Franklin

Thursday and Saturday and Tuesday

You can call me Dr. Cheeks because when it comes to this blog, I'm a little behind.  Horrible joke I know.  Deal with it.

Thursday


Bench:
95x5
135x4
185x3
230x2
245x1

Dead Bench:
225x3 singles
235x3 singles
245x3 singles

DB Low Incline:
4x8
w/
Dips:
4x8

Bent Row:
4x8
w/
Neutral Grip Chins:
4x8

Saturday


Squat:
worked up to 405x1, 315x3x3

Military Press:
95x5
135x4
155x3
175x2
185x1x2

RDLs:
4x8
w/
Single Arm Row:
4x8

DB Curls:
3x12
w/
DB Lateral Raise:
3x10

Tuesday


Squat:
135x5
225x4
315x3
405x2
445x1
420x3 paused
445x3 paused
455x3 paused

Speed Dead Lift:
352x3
396x2
421x1x3

Walking Lunge:
3x20 steps
w/
45' Back Extension:
3x12

Trap Bar Carry:
After warm up sets, 505x25 yards x2

Training has been going pretty well lately.  I haven't had any bottom 10% sessions in a while and I haven't missed any weights.  Just how a meet prep should go.

I saw these guys at RiotFest this past weekend and they put on a hell of a show.
Song of the Day:



"You either reach a higher point today, or you exercise your strength in order to be able to climb higher tomorrow." -Nietzsche

Tuesday- Lower

Squat:
135x5x2
225x4
315x3
405x2
455x1

405x3 paused
435x3 paused
445x3 paused

Dead Lift (3" deficit)
265x3
352x3
392x2
420x1x3

Single Leg Step Downs:
4x8 ea leg

w/

45 Degree Back Extensions
4x10

Trap Bar Carry:
255x25 yards
345x25 yards
435x25 yards
505x25 yards

Pretty decent session today. I'd definitely put it in the 80% range. The trap bar carries lit my hips up big time. I like them though. I can see myself doing them in the future.

"A great man can bend and stretch." -Chinese proverb

Thursday and Saturday

Thursday:

Bench:
95x5
135x4
185x3
230x2
245x1

Dead Bench:
215x1x3
230x1x3
240x1x3

Low Incline DB Bench:
70'sx8x4

w/

Dips:
BWx8x4

Bent Rows:
154x8x4

w/

V-Grip Chins:
BWx8x4

Arms

Saturday:

Squat: 315x1x10

Military Press:
95x5
115x4
135x3
155x2
175x1
135x8x2

Single Arm Row:
120's x8x4

w/

RDLs:

220x8x4

Thursday was one of my better upper workouts in a while.  The dead bench is where I set the rack pins a few inches from the top of my chest and press the weight from a dead stop.  This takes away the benefit of a stretch response and will build strength from my chest, which is where I've always had trouble.

I'm still trying to find a direction for my Saturday workouts.  Truth-be-told I never really feel that great squatting on Saturday's as I usually have some lingering soreness from my Tuesday workouts.  Doing another bench workout on Saturday has also really lit my shoulders up.  That's why I brought back the overhead work.  Plus, it's the weekend and I don't really feel like doing shit either way.

"When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging." -Will Rogers