Shoulder Press

Workout 28 October 2009:

Shoulder press, seven sets of three reps

Results: 105-115-125-125-130-130-132.5lbs
Previous best: none

I wanted to do a heavy lift day and stress some muscle groups I didn't work earlier this week doing squats and pull-ups. I'm actually reasonably pleased with today's results since I haven't gone heavy overhead in awhile. My previous best for a one-rep max shoulder press is 145lbs, so being able to do a set of three reps at 132.5lbs is good. I probably could have hit 135lbs, but decided to ease back a touch, especially since I now have a pair of micro (1.25lb) plates that I wanted to use.

Pull-Ups and Squats

Workout 25 October 2009:

Five rounds for max reps of:
Pull-ups (strict, pincer grip)
Back squat, 135lbs

Results: 48 pull-ups, 57 squats
Previous best: none

I was very tired going into today's workout, so I wanted something that I didn't have to do for time since I knew I'd disappoint. Even with this workout, where I could have plenty of rest between sets, I couldn't put up any decent numbers. I should have had more than 50 pull-ups and at least 60 squats. Despite the lackluster results, it was a good workout.

Annie

Workout 22 October 2009:

"Annie"
50-40-30-20-10 rep rounds of:
Double-unders
Sit-ups (Abmat)

Results: 14'40
Previous best: 14'40 w/ Abmat (13 Apr 09), 13'40 w/ standard sit-ups (3 Jan 09)

I was hoping to break my previous best time on today's workout but ended up with a tie. The sit-ups went very well but the double-unders slowed me down today. I was only able to string 10 in a row, and not all that frequently. For some reason, I kept hitting the back of my head with the rope and was getting irritated, which messed up my timing. Hopefully next time the jumps go better.
Oddly, out of the six times I've done this workout, my time has ended with exactly 40 seconds in three attempts.

Deads

Workout 20 October 2009:

Deadlift, seven sets of one rep

Results: 185-185-205-235-235-245-245lbs
Previous best: 235-255-275-295-310-320-330lbs (5 Mar 08)

Slowly, my deadlift is progressing since my back is able to tolerate more stress without difficulty. I could probably add another 25-30lbs and still have a technically sound deadlift, but I'm not ready to risk it yet. As it stands, the 245lbs is 20 more than my last 1x7 in July. Hopefully by the end of the year I'll be able to pull close to 300 again.

One good thing coming from my back injury is that I am paying particular attention to my form. Whereas before I used to round my back a bit (never a dangerous amount, but more than I should), now I am slowly learning to better activate my hamstrings for the pull and keep a proper lumbar curve in my lower back.

Thrust - Clean - Pull

Workout 19 October 2009:

Rounds in 20 minutes of:
65lb Thruster, 5 reps
65lb Hang Powercleans, 7 reps
65lb Sumo Deadlift High-pull, 10 reps

Results: 9+5,7
Previous best: 8+5,7 (65lbs, 20 Jul 09)

This is one of my favorite, least favorite, workouts. You walk away knowing you pretty much worked every muscle in your body. The next day isn't bad, but then the DOMS hits everything the second day after. It's great! I did this workout a month ago with 70lbs, but decided to scale back five pounds simply because I haven't worked out much. By going lighter, I forced myself to go faster and hoped to get in 10 rounds. I came just short, but still beat my previous best (at 65lbs) by a full round.

Chase the Cat

Workout 11 October 2009:

Five rounds for time of:
400 meter run
9 Skin-the-cats (on rings)

Results: 21'32
Previous best: none

I wanted to do something a little unusual today. My shoulders are a bit sore from yesterday's workout, so I decided to do something that would help stretch them a bit. It's also been a little while since I've run, so I added that in too. Overall, this was a surprisingly tough workout. I can tell my overall conditioning is down since the runs didn't go particularly well. I should have been able to do them a bit faster.

Push and Pull

Workout 10 October 2009:

Time for 15-12-9-6-3 rep rounds of:
Handstand Push-ups
Ring L-pull-ups

Results: 18'30
Previous best: none

This workout is a disaster for the upper body and core. I was originally going to do this workup with standard L-pull-ups but decided to increase the difficulty by doing them on rings. By the end of the 12-rep round, my shoulder had about given up on the handstand push-ups, but I was able to get through by breaking up into small sets of 2-4 at a time. Good stuff.

Barbara

Workout 4 October 2009:

"Barbara" (four rounds)
Four rounds, each for time of:
20 Pull-ups
30 Push-ups
40 Sit-ups
50 Squats
Rest three minutes between each round

Results: 5'47 / 7'20 / 8'55 / 8'36 (with AbMat)
Previous best: 5'30 / 7'00 / 7'05 / 8'15 (with AbMat, 22 Jun 09)
5'06 / 5'29 / 6'39 / 6'07 (without AbMat, 21 Jan 08)

I started off reasonably well but then just hit a wall. Despite the rest periods, I just felt drained for the remaining rounds. The two slowest exercises were the push-ups (mostly because I was fatigued from yesterday's workout) and the sit-ups, especially the latter. Hopefully next time things will go a bit better. Regardless, good workout.

Push Split-Jerk

Workout 3 October 2009:

Push Split-Jerk, five sets of three reps

Results: 135-140-145-150-155lbs
Previous best: none

Since I haven't been able to work much on my hamstring flexibility, I decided to do a set of split jerks instead of standard push jerks. The split jerks require a little more coordination, but let someone with tight hammies get deeper and thus catch heavier loads. I probably could have gone about 5-10lbs heavier but eased up to make sure I didn't hurt my back.