ASC LW Pro Strongman Zack McCarley

Sunday 11-4-11
Shoulders and triceps
Strict overhead press (SOHP)/REAR FLY superset (SS)30xgiven reps post each set
45x5
135x5
185x5 tough
195x6 easy til #6
205x4 easy til 4
225x2 tough
happy considering I had a major shoulder inj. 2.5 months ago.

DB skull crushers
50x8easy
60x6
70x4 tough
75x2 TOUGH!

Laterals/Rearfly superset (SS)
30x8,8
30x6,6
40x4,4, 25x4,4
45x2,2

Tri kickbacks
35x8 easy
45x6
55x4tough
60x2tough

Monday 11-5-11
Legs and lower back
Front Squats (FS)
45x8
225x6
275x8
315x6
355x4
385x2 SUPER UGLY!!!
275x5 pause all reps very strict

deficit Romanian DL
135x8
135x8
225x8
315x8
405x8
455x6
495x4
405x5

Single leg leg press (SLLP)
2plates x8
3px6
4px4
4p1(25)px2 hip flexor is giving out and locking up
5px2 very high

Called it as my leg was JACKED!

Tuesday 11-6-11
MISC(forearms, calves, abs, traps)
Abs
Partner leg tosses 3 sets of 20
Partner Russian twists 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1
Heel touches 2 sets of 50
Bridges x2
Gramby neck rolls 10 each side

Forearms
Wrist curls/fingercurl SS 40x12 3 sets
Rev wrist curls 15x12 4 sets

Traps
Shrugs 20 rep shrugs 70,80,80

Calves
Leg press sled calf raises with 90 on 10in,10norm,10out x3sets

Video from a few weeks ago, I am backed up on videos so you’ll have to stay tuned.

I’ll be following

[quote]spar4tee wrote:
I’ll be following[/quote]
Right on, glad to hear it!

[quote]prostrongmanzack wrote:

[quote]spar4tee wrote:
I’ll be following[/quote]
Right on, glad to hear it![/quote]
It’s cool to have all these strongman guys keeping logs here. What’s your background? Any tips for an aspiring strongman?

[quote]spar4tee wrote:

[quote]prostrongmanzack wrote:

[quote]spar4tee wrote:
I’ll be following[/quote]
Right on, glad to hear it![/quote]
It’s cool to have all these strongman guys keeping logs here. What’s your background? Any tips for an aspiring strongman?[/quote]

I was originally a weightlifter turned football and wrestling then strongman.

11-7-11
Upper back and bicep
Bent rows
135x8
185x8
225x8
275x6 tough
315x4 getting sloppy
225x5 super strict

Weighted pull ups
BWx8
45x8 tough!
70x5 +1 bw tough
90x3+1 BW tough
115x1 +.5 crappy set very hard

DB rows
110x8 easy
120x6 easy
130x4 easy
135x2 easy next time I’ll rep it out more

machine rows (focus on rhomboids and serratus)
45x8,8
65x8
100x10,10,10

Concentration curls
45x8 easy til#8
45x6,6,5 all tough

alternating curls
55x6
65x5
my right shoulder and bicep start to go numb from these, not sure why or what exactly is going on with them.

A little bit more on me. My contest history is below.

2006
Oregon’s Strongest beaver, Corvallis, OR
wt class- unlimited (bodyweight-190lbs)
place-11th of 13
Comments-first show and I picked one of the hardest chows in the country.

2007
Golden state’s Strongest man, Fresno, CA
Wt Class-231 (202)
Place-11th of 18
Comments- Another high level show. I showed with an impressive performance and the president of NAS gave me a special invited to Teen Nationals.

Westcoast Strongest Man, Auburn, WA
Wt Class-200 (195)
Place- 1st of 5
Comments-This was the week before Teen nationals.

Teen Nationals, Whitchita, KS
Wt Class-Unlimited (202 in jeans so I could make the 200lbs cut off)
Place-1st of 23
Comments-First and only teen show in my carrier.

2008
Golden State Strongest, Fresno, CA
Wt Class-231 (220)
Place-1st of 25
Comments- Thought I went pro here but there was a misunderstanding and I did not. Beat many people who had beat me a year earlier.

Washington’s strongest Apple, Des Moines, WA
Wt Class-265 (232)
Place-2nd of 7
Comments-First HW show, I had to weight in a second time because the first time I was too light to compete as a HW.

Rainiers strongest Man, Sumner, WA
Wt Class-250 (225)
Place-1st of 20
Comments-Prep for Nationals.

North American Nationals (NAS Nats), SLC, UT
Wt Class-231 (215)
Place-6th of 53
Comments- Very disappointed but Learned a lot at this level of competition.

2009
Washingtons Strongest Apple, Des Moines, WA
Wt Class-265 (255)
Place-1st of 12
Comments-Beat a now top 5 HW pro at this show. Very strong performance. won 3 of 4 events

Rainier’s Strongest Man, Sumner, WA
Wt Class-250 (245)
Place-1st of 17
Comments-Won Every event in the contest.

Rib breaker challenge, Kennewick, WA
Wt Class-231 (231)
Place-1st of 7
Comments- won every event.

NAS Nats, Lafeyette, LA
Wt Class-231 (231)
Place-2nd of 53
Comments-Very tough feild, nationals is always that hardest contest to win because if you have one bad event you will lose the whole show. I won 2 of 5 events.

2010
Snowman invitational strongman, Nampa, ID
Wt Class-265 (232)
Place- 2nd of 8
Comments- won 4 of 6 events, was recovering from torn teres minor so didnt do so well on the overhead pressing event which brought my overall place down. I was 1 point out from first which is VERY close in strongman terms.

Washingtons strongest Apple, Des Moines, WA
Wt Class-265 (235)
Place- 1st of 12
Comments- Decisive victory. Not a very close show.

Sequim strongman show, Sequim, WA
Wt Class-231 (230)
Place-1st of 7
Comments-Won 4 of 5 events and put quite a show on for the crowd as always.

NAS Nats, Reno, NV
Wt Class-231 (228)
Place-1st of 54
Comments-Decisive victory. won 3 of 7 events on a national level. Qualified for Am. worlds @ Arnold Classic.

2011
Am. World championships, Columbus, OH
Wt Class-unlimited (220)
Place- 37th of 60
Comments- Very disappointing show, as can be seen I lost a lot of weight right before the show, I got rather sick but decided to give it a shot anyway, I am not a quitter. I was the second lightest person there and beat some of the worlds top competitors even in a weakened state.

America’s Strongest Man 105kg/231lbs (LW pro nationals)
Tunica, MS
wt. Class-231 lbs/105kg
Place- 1st of 10
Comments- I was pleased to be one of the few that was able to become a national champion at the pro level only a year after turning pro.

Very impressive

[quote]spar4tee wrote:
Very impressive[/quote]
Thanks!

Here is video of Fletcher and myself working clean pulls

12-8-11
core complex

12-9-11
Farmers Slick 1’ and 7/8" handles (weight per hand)
110x220ft
180x110 no chalk HARD!
180x110 Chalk, EASY!
230x220 on drop at 180ft, try again!
230x220 same! DANG THESE HANDLES ARE HARD!
Very happy with how hard these handles are, I am not worried cause I know I have one of the best grips in America. I am excited to have such a challenging piece of equipment to work with!

Snatches
worked up to 100kg, misses 110kg several times, my pull was all wrong, tired.

Last monday’s workout

two typos,

  1. all november dates prior to this entry are actually december
  2. The SOHP and dips video is of last sunday.

12-11-11
Shoulders and triceps
Strict overhead press
55x8
145x5
195x8
205x7
215x4
235x1

Rear raises
30x8,5,8,6,6

Tricep kickbacks
45x8,8,8

Hammer strength bench
2 platesx10,10,10

Laterals/rear raise round 2!
35x8/8
35x6/6
40x4/4,2/2

Slight RC work then called it, I was tired and out of time.

Video from last monday’s leg and low back day

Sunday 12-12-11
Legs and lower back
One of the worst workouts I have had in months, pitiful lifting for me.
Straight leg deadlifts
135x8
225x8
315x8
405x6
315x10,10

Front squats
135x8
225x8 tough!?
275x3 legs all over the place, felt like death!
Called it. Bad day, felt shakey. Everyone has bad days?. Most of mine come the day after awesome workouts.

Monday 12-13-11
MISC. (forearms, calves, abs)
Rev. wrist curls/wrist curls superset
20x12,12,12 / 45x10,10,10

Seated calf raise
140x15,15,15

Abs
Leg lifts w/ partner throwing them back down 20,20,20
Russian twists 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1
Heel touches 50,50
Yoga Ball crunches 20,20,20

Stretch and done. Felt better today.

Farmers from Friday

12-14-11
back and bicep
bunch of stuff, didnt keep up with it cause I have been away from internet for a while.
did not have an excellent first workout so I came back for a second workout that evening.

lat pull downs wide grip
210x10,10,10,10

narrow grip lat rows
225x10,10,10,10

hammer strength low row
90x15,15,15,15

12-16-11
events (log and yoke)
log
180x5
230x5
250x5 all one motion (technical one-mot. PR)
250x5 4 one motion
250x5 4 one mot.

yoke
335x60ft
515x60ft
695x60ft
785x60ft x2
all sets felt good.

12-17-11
shoulders and triceps @ Flex wheeler fitness Tacoma, WA
push jerk
135x8
225x5
275x3
315x4 paused and lost the 5th. eh. felt strong and did well for pressing a lot the day before!

seated hammer strength shoulder press
90x8
180x8
230x8
270x2 my shoulder started to hurt so I backed off
180x8,8

laterals and rear raises
35x8/8,8/8,8/8,8/8

tricep kickbacks
45x8,8,8

narrow grip Bench with Ben Rice
225x6
255x5
275x3-5 donno
315x1
335x1 UGLY! Donno what happened but totally misgrooved.

Stretch, out!

12-19-11
legs and low back
narrow stance squat
135x8
225x8 felt really good!
315x8 back and hips popped a lot!
BELT ON
365x5,5,5
405x5

3.5" deficit deadlifts
225x8
315x8
405x5something in this set felt REALLY GOOD! everything was right.
455x5,5,5
495x4 + 1 hitched My back was TOAST!

12-20-11
MISC (calves, forearms,abs)
seated calf raises
140x15 EASY!
140x20
175x15 better, tough

wrist curls/rev wrist curl SS
45x10,10,10/25x10,10,10

leg lifts w/ partner throwing them back down 30,25,25
yoga ball crunches 20,20,20,20
heel touches 50,50,50
russian twist w/12lbs med ball 11,10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1

bridge to nose touchx5
neck rolls 10 each side

12-21-11
back and biceps
wide grip lat rows (slight cheating)
135x8
225x8
300x8
340x6
360x4
390x2 more cheating/300x8 drop set

med grip lat pull downs
300x8
340x7
370x4
390x2/300x8 drop set

HS low rows
90x8
180x8
270x8
360x8,8,8 (single hand)

Con curls
50x8,8,8

rev grip BB curls
30x8 no pain…
60x8… no pain :slight_smile:
90x8 YES!!!
I am proclaiming my forearm is now better, I had to take these out for over 2 years cause I had done something to my forearm that made me unable to do these even with 45lbs.

norm grip BB curl
90x10 “for funsies”

Was a little bummed I chested on some of my sets so that night i did pull ups

Pull ups
bwx8,20 called it good.

Planning on an early morning imperial session with HIGA 6am tomorrow! WOOOO!!!

I will start putting more vids together, I have been visiting family a lot and forgot my camera at home… HOW DARE I!?

Vid from Stans

Caleb Ralston @ Believe Media does an excellent job editing!

tons of good stuff man

12-23-11 EVENTS
Log
180x5
230x5
260x5 UGLY! 38seconds?
260x5 better 29 seconds
260x5 best 25sec.–> 3 one-motions in this set. technical PR

rear raises here and there, nothing else cause my girlfriend decided to train and she also decided to enter the contest being held Jan 21st @ Imperial Crossfit/Fitness in Kent. I was busy training her.

12-25-11 dumbbell workout
overhead press
15x8
65x8
115x5
115x5

single hand floor press
115x8
115x8
115x12

overhead press(each side)
115x10

Video of this workout will be up in about an hour.

[quote]prostrongmanzack wrote:
Zack McCarley Dumbbell press 115x20 (BONUS SNOW BELLY FLOP) - YouTube [/quote]
I lol’d at the end. Solid stuff as always man.

12-26-11 legs and lower back
DL standing on 3.5" bow
135x8
225x5
315x5
405x5
455x5
505x5x3sets

Narrow stance squats(feet 5-7" apart)
135x5
225x5
315x5
365x5
315x5x3sets feelin pretty toasted

single leg leg press
190x15x2sets just to get some volume

12-27-11 back and bicep
med grip lat pull downs
135x8
225x5
305x8
355x6
375x4
395x2/305x8 SS

Wide grip rows (palms in)
305x8
345x6
365x4
385x2
305x8

low row
270x8x3sets

machine row for rhom.
135x10x4sets

rev grip curl
90x8
100x8
90x8

con curl
55x8x2 sets

12-28-11 events
strict log
180x5
200x5
205x5
210x5
215x5
220x5

Yoke for 80ft.
335
515
695
785
belt on
875x70ft then ran to sandbag and did a 100ft 275lbs sand bag

sandbag carry
275x100x2 more sets

been away from my computer so I will be infrequent until the first of January.

I have an axle tutorial on the way!!!

1/1/12
shoulders and triceps
10" log strict press (at home)
65lbs DB warm up
155logx5
205x5x5sets a little tough but felt good.

Go to gym

rear raises
35x5x5sets

laterals/rear raises SS
25x8,8
30x6,6
35x4,4
40x2,2
felt strong in these today!

single arm french press
40x8
50x6
50x4
55x2

tricep kickbacks
45x8x3 sets

Videos

250x5 log

800 yoke for 60ft

girl friend squating 145x6

1/2/12
legs and low back
narrow stance low front box squats (deep!)
135x5
225x5
stretch
275x5x3sets
315x5 HARD!

Romanian Deadlift
135x5
225x5
315x5
405x8 hams are a little tight
495x6 wow, I didnt think I’d get this!
545x4 last one was a little hitched, my abs are weak in this motion.
565x2 beltless, abs are a little weak.

stretch and spot Ben Rice for a few sets, his bench is coming along!

Video from today!