Fran

Workout 30 January 2010:

"Fran"
Time for 21-15-9 reps of:
95lb Thruster
Pull-ups

Results: 11'30
Previous best: 8'40 (6 Oct 08)

Fran sucks, but today's Fran sucked much worse than normal. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but I just could not get through the thrusters today. The pull-ups went well and I did the full set of reps uninterrupted each round. The first round of thrusters went reasonably well with a 12 and 9 split. From there, the rest of the workout was just a disaster. It's been a long time since I've taken over 10 minutes to complete this workout. The good news is that it would take quite a bit to do worse next time.

Power Cleans

Workout 29 January 2010:

Power clean, seven sets of one rep

Results: 135-140-145-150-155-160-165lbs
Previous best: none

I haven't done any max-effort power cleans in a very long time. The last time I did something similar was a 1x7 hang power clean workout almost a year ago where my max rep was 165lbs. I should be able to power clean a reasonable amount more than a hang power clean, however, I lose a lot of momentum through the second pull due to sloppy form. Once cleaned up a bit, my power clean numbers should jump, as should my standard clean.

Shoulder Press

Workout 26 January 2010:

Shoulder Press 1-10-1-20-1-30 reps

Results: 140-90-145-75-147.5-60lbs (Total 657.5lbs)

Here's the new rep-scheme once again. My previous PR on the shoulder press was 145lbs which I held for well over a year, so it's about time I was able to go up in weight. The 147.5lbs was a struggle to get up, but not so much that 150lbs shouldn't be attainable reasonably soon. The 20- and 30-reps sets were painful and though I had to shoulder rack the bar a couple times near the end, I was able to put up each rep without having to set the bar down.

As with the previous heavy lifts with this rep-scheme, half of the difficulty of this workout is determining the best weights to use. See my recent posts for suggested weights.

Muscle-ups and Squats

Workout 24 January 2010:

Three rounds for time of:
10 Muscle-ups
50 Squats

Results: 16'44
Previous best: none

New workout today which hits just about every major muscle group in the body. This workout nicely combines a strength movement with a high-rep metabolic challenge. I had to break the muscle-ups into sets of 2-4 reps each round but I was able to do all 50 squats consecutively each time. My pull-ups have been weak recently so with more time and practice, my time on this workout should drop dramatically in the future.

If you don't have rings and/or can't do muscle-ups, do 2-3 (as you are able) pull-ups and dips each for each muscle-up.

Angie

Workout 23 January 2010:

Modified "Angie"
For time:
50 Pincer grip chin-ups
100 Push-ups
100 Sit-ups (Abmat)
100 Squats

Results: 27'00
Previous best: 30'31 (standard Angie, with Abmat, 15 May 09)

I slightly modified the traditional "Angie" workout (as above except 100 kipping pull-ups) since I had to do this workout without a pull-up bar and instead used the ledge on a rafter. I can't compare the pull-ups, but the rest of the workout felt better and went faster than the last time I did Angie in December. Once I work back up to being able to safely do 100 pull-ups (due to a set-back from injury) my time should show an improvement over my best standard Angie time.

5K Row

Workout 20 January 2010:

Row 5K

Results: 22'02, damper 5
Previous best: 20'44, damper 6 (13 Jan 08)

I haven't done a 5K run or row in awhile, so I finally broke down and did a much-hated endurance workout. My time was actually significantly better than I was expecting since my goal was to finish in less than 25 minutes. With a bit of work, it's entirely possible that I will get back down to the 20-minute range later this year.

Contrary to popular belief, that lever (aka the "damper") on the side of the rower that adjusts from 1-10 does not actually affect the "difficulty" of the rower. You do not get a better workout, nor are you more of a badass, for rowing on a setting of 10 compared to, say, a setting of 4.

In very simple but not wholly accurate terms, the damper setting affects the strength needed to row a certain distance. On a damper setting of 1, there's little resistance when pulling the chain, but you also travel a shorter distance with each stroke. On a setting of 10, it takes a significantly higher amount of strength to pull the chain, but you travel a longer distance with each stroke. Most people row with the best efficiency at a damper setting of 4-6. Bad things happen over a setting of 7 with little benefit to the average person. I personally prefer rowing at a setting of 5-6.

Nice Snatch!

Workout 19 January 2010:

Snatch 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

Results: 65-70-75-80-85-90-95lbs
Previous best: 45-65-65-70-75-80-85lbs (20 Feb 08)

The gym where I did this workout does not have bumper plates or allow a barbell to be dropped from overhead, so I'm a bit limited in how heavy I can go on the snatch. I still have a long way to go as far as having decent form with the biggest limiting factor being my overall hip and shoulder flexibility. Despite all these limitations, I was able to add 10lbs to my previous best snatch attempt.

Deadlift

Workout 18 January 2010:

Deadlift 1-10-1-20-1-30 reps

Results: 285-205-290-185-315-135lbs (Total 1415lbs)

Previous best: none

Today is a repeat of Saturday's rep scheme. Again, I'm a big fan of this new scheme since it allows work on a 1RM and it builds muscular endurance. In deciding the weight for the rep sets, I used the same approx 70-60-50% of 1RM formula. Although I'm thrilled to have pulled 315lbs for the last 1RM, I had no intentions of going that high. I did this workout after working nearly 30 hours and just added up the weight wrong when loading the bar. I was actually going for 295lbs. When doing the rep-sets for this workout, a very brief pause is allowed between reps as you start to fatigue, especially if needed to re-grip. Resting more than just a couple of seconds counts as failure.

See my 16 Jan post for strategy for this workout.

Bench and Squat

Workout 16 January 2010:

Bench Press 1-10-1-20-1-30 reps

Front Squat 1-10-1-20-1-30 reps

Results:
Bench: 190-145-195-110-190-85lbs (Total 915lbs)
Squat: 205-145-210-105-215-65lbs (Total 945lbs)

Previous best: none

Today and Monday I'm trying out a new rep scheme that combines max effort with varying reps for endurance.

Overall, I'm a big fan. It's been a long time since I've gone heavy on the bench press and I'm very happy with the weights I was able to press. I probably could have gone 5lbs heavier on each of the one-reps, but didn't risk failure since I was benching alone. One of the hardest parts of this workout is figuring out the best weight to use for the 10-20-30 rep rounds. Go too heavy, and you end up failing before all the reps are complete. Go too light, and you're disappointed you could have gone heavier. Fortunately, the weights I used were just about perfect.

The squats went equally well. Again, figuring out the proper weight for the rep-rounds was tricky but again I guessed well.

For this workout, ensure plenty of rest between sets. For the 10-, 20-, and 30-rep rounds, you must do all reps in a row without setting the bar down. For the bench press, you can "rest" momentarily with the barbell locked out overhead. Likewise, you can rest on the front squats with the bar on your shoulders. Of course, if you have to put down the weight, do it, but it doesn't count towards your total. As said above, the difficulty in this workout is picking out the proper weight for the rep-sets. If anything, air of the side of going too light. You can always add more weight the next workout. For most people, the 10-rep weight should be 70 +/- 5% of your 1 rep max, 20 reps should be 60 +/- 10%, and 30 reps should be 50 +/- 10%.

Muay Thai and Cleans

Workout 15 January 2010:

Muay Thai training and conditioning, 30 minutes

Cleans, bar-only training

Today's Muay Thai training involved several high-intensity 2ish-minute rounds of pad and bag work. Some specific training was also done on the jab and cross as well as some rapid-fire leg kicks. Good stuff.

Afterwards, I had about 20 minutes of 1-on-1 training improving my technique with cleans. We focused on the second pull. Unfortunately, I have several bad habits that are going to require some work to fix. Ideally, with some improvement in technique, I should easily be able to clean over 200lbs.

Hopper

Workout 12 January 2010:

Three rounds for time of:
10 Towel Pull-ups
21 Ring dips
50 Squats

Results: 19'45
Previous best: none

This was a challenging workout that smoked my upper body, especially my grip. Towel pull-ups require a lot more forearm and grip strength than any standard grip pull-up. I had to break the pull-ups into sets of 2-5 or risk losing my grip. The ring dips went reasonably well and I broke them up into sets of 5-10. I was able to do the full 50 squats unbroken each round.

Ideally, this workout is done with rope climbs instead of the towel pull-ups, but I don't have a tall climbing rope available. If you can't do rope climbs or towel pull-ups, do 10-20 non-kipping pull-ups, or as you are able, per round instead.

Diane

Workout 11 January 2010:

"Diane"
Time for 21-15-9 rep-rounds of:
Deadlift, 185lbs
Handstand Push-Ups

Results: 15'17
Previous best: 14'06 (200lb DL, 26 May 08)

I haven't done this workout in almost eight months due to the high rep deadlifts. I was actually anticipating a time closer to 20 minutes thinking the handstand push-ups would significantly slow me down and I purposely did not go all out with the deadlifts. I did not feel very strong doing them and had to break them up into sets of 3-5 reps, but I think I made up some time by keeping my rest periods relatively short. I should be able to go up on the deadlift weight next time I attempt this workout.

If you can't do handstand push-ups, substitute an equal number of reps of a relatively heavy shoulder press.

Thrust and Run

Workout 8 January 2010:

Four rounds for time of:
85lb Thruster, 15 reps
Run 400 meters

Results: 18'50
Previous best: none

I originally intended to do five rounds of this workout, but came close to meeting Uncle Pukie at the end of the fourth round, so I decided to call it quits. This workout sucks and you have almost nothing left in your legs by the end. I can't wait to try it again and go for five rounds and possibly add a few pounds to the thrusters. As usual, I ran on a treadmill with a 1% incline.

CrossFit Total

Workout 5 January 2010:

"CrossFit Total"
Back squat, one rep max
Shoulder press, one rep max
Deadlift, one rep max

Results: Squat 255, SP 140, DL 295 = 690lbs
Previous best: 265 / 145 / 335 = 745lbs (20 Feb 09)

Even though I'm still down quite a bit from my best effort on this workout, I did add 30lbs since my last attempt in November. Of that 30lbs, I added a solid 20 to the squat with the remaining 10 on the deadlift. I wasn't able to go up on the shoulder press so next time I'll shoot for 145 but be happy with 142.5.

I encourage everyone (especially women) to make this workout a regular (once every 1-3 months) part of your training. Plenty of instructions and guidance are provided in the PDF linked above.

Cleans

Workout 4 January 2010:

Clean, seven sets of one rep

Results: 135-140-145-150-155-160-165lbs
Previous best: 125-130-135-140-145-150-155lbs (17 Nov 08)

Another PR for a max-effort day. However, I have in the past done a clean and jerk at 165lbs, so I've matched my best clean. Unfortunately, I did the latter at a lower bodyweight (back when I was about 145lbs). Regardless, my overall strength is getting close to what it was prior to my accident back in March. The lifts went well today and I probably could have gone heavier, but I wasn't doing the lifts on a lifting platform and am hesitant to drop the weights from much more than a foot or so off the ground. I plan on getting some coaching in the Olympic lifts soon, so hopefully my clean will continue to improve in weight and form. FYI, these are full squat cleans. No cheating doing hang cleans or power cleans!

The key to a clean is not pulling the bar up, but rather pulling your body under the bar. Your arms play a minimal role in this lift; they are essentially "straps" that tether the bar to your torso.

Split Jerk

Workout 2 January 2010

Split Jerk, seven sets of one rep

Results: 150-155-160-165-170-175-180lbs
Previous best: 145-150-155-160-165-170-175lbs (11 Jan 09)

Only two days into the new year and already a PR! I actually didn't expect to hit these numbers, but each lift felt good, so I kept going. I actually did a total of nine singles, but I took the last seven to be the ones that ended up counting. I'm slightly stronger and faster with my right leg forward, so I made sure to alternate legs with each rep.

The key to a split jerk is not pushing up on the bar, but rather pushing yourself explosively down under the bar.

Squats

Workout 1 January 2010:

Back Squat, five sets of three reps

Results: 205-215-220-225-230lbs
Previous best: 215-225-235-245-255lbs (21 Mar 08)

What better way to start off a new year than heavy squats? I probably could have put up another 10lbs but eased back a bit since I did this workout right after waking up from a 3 hour nap after a 30 hour shift at work. Although I did a good warmup, I didn't want to test my limit with a back that had just come from being in bed.

New Years Resolutions 2010

I'll come back and update this once I have time.