1000% - good on you!
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You’re a good dude.
I think about this article frequently, especially this anecdote:
When I give seminars I usually end them by talking about balance. I relate a story once told to me by a very experienced lifter who was about to walk out of the house to go squat. His young daughter came up to him and said, “Daddy, would you have a tea party with me?” He said, “I dropped my bag and missed that squat session because in twenty years I’d never remember that workout. But I’d always remember the tea party with my little girl.”
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Never read that - great contributions from everyone.
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Week 1, Day 3: Pull
Farmer’s Walk
55# KB’s - 2 min
Complex A
Snatch Grip High Pull
185x5, 175x5
Dumbbell Shrug
50s 2x15
Farmer’s Walk
50s 1min
Complex B
Pendlay Row
205x5, 185x5
Chest Supported Rear Delt Raise
20# db’s 2x15
Zercher Carry
60# sandbag 2x1min
Chin-Up Top Position Hold
6 sets to reach 2min
Pull-Up Hang
3 sets to reach 2min
I should probably have brought straps for this workout, my grip was fried by the end. I will next time for the SGHP and farmer’s carries. Still though - I know I’ve seen CT emphasize the yoke so many times, and despite me always thinking I give my traps and shoulders adequate love, I really felt the yoke pump today - shoulder to shoulder, all across the upper back. The sandbag zerchers, on the other hand, left me with a nasty mid-back pump. I think that’s probably because my scaps had to pronate more than they would if I was zercher’ing a barbell. The hardest part of the workout was undoubtedly the chin-up hold - I started each rep with a full chin from deadhang til my chin was over the bar, and then stopped once the bar was about even with my forehead, paused the clock, shook my hands out, started it again and did another rep. The pull up hangs were way better only because I do a LOT of dead hang holds when I warm up. If not for my grip I’d probably be able to knock it out in 2 sets.
Great workout again.
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100%. I’ve actually turned down many potentially lucrative seminars because they were too far away from home and I’d have to leave my wife alone with the kids (and dogs) for 10 ish days.
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Week 1, Day 4: Physical Labor
Deadlift @ 275 x 3 reps
Single KB Biceps Walk @ 45 x 20 steps
DB Clean + Press @ 50#s x 5 reps
DB Suitcase Carry @ 50# 10 steps / arm
x 9 rounds.
This was tough! The misery is obviously in the clean and presses, and the deadlifts aren’t fun, but I think the key to getting the most out of this workout was focusing a lot of my attention on every single part of the biceps walks and the suitcase carry. They’re such easy exercises to sandbag the shit out of. Anyone can quick-step 20 steps or lumber 10 steps leaning to the side with a suitcase carry, but there’s only so much weight I can keep repping and pressing, and so going super-duper-ultra strict on these seems like the thing to do.
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Agree completely. I found it to be friendlier on my back to hold the dumbbells to the side of my feet in a ‘neutral’ position rather than treating them as if they were a barbell. Got a bit more biceps activation from this too FWIW.
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Yesterday:
Week 2, Day 1: Push
OH DB Carry
20s x 2 min, got it in 2 sets this time
Complex A
Standing OHP
140 2x5
Lateral Raises
20s 2x15
OH DB Carry
20s 2x1min dropped to 90 degrees once on second set
Complex B
Bench
215 2x5
Pushups
2x15
Bear Crawl
2x1min
Dip ISO Hold
Still 3 sets this time, but the last set was super short so an improvement
DB Loaded Stretch
20s x2 min went to a hold on the top position once
Was pretty conservative with upping weights. Focused more on form. Feeling good, but it can always be better.
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Today, at a beach house we rented I must have run several hundred stairs continually volunteering to run the ridiculous staircase all the way back up to the house from the beach. Steep hills at the top of the stairs which I biked a few times too.
Sausage and peppers for dinner, a bottle of surge halfway through the day, a bottle of light beer at the beach and one at dinner. Nothing terrible, more than made up for it with activity, enjoyed myself and didn’t need any more.
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Still visiting family in NY - have access to a sweet gym though, will log my Leg and Push workouts either today or tomorrow when I get back. Everything is going great, feeling great - haven’t weighed myself here but visually look leaner.
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Thursday:
Week 2, Day 2: Legs
Prowler Push:
+4 plates x 2min.
Complex A
Squats on squat wedge
185 2x5.
Bodyweight sissy squats
2x15 (kept BW sissy squats - even this gym had the leg extension super far away, and it was more packed than my usual gym)
Backwards sled drag
2x1min +4 plates.
Complex B
RDLs
245 2x5 3 second negative.
Leg curls
90 2x15 finished both sets with good form - improvement from last time…
KB Swing
Upped to 65# KB for this time, was unsurprisingly far more miserable.
Goblet Squat 90 degree hold
50# DB, 2 breaks this time.
BSS hold
Left leg first, took 3 breaks, same with the other leg - same as last time.
I know I got this done quicker than last time, and I was able to up a couple different weights and still finish later sets. I feel like I’ve dialed in weights properly for this now.
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Saturday:
Week 2, Day 3: Pull
Farmer’s Walk
55# KB’s - 2 min
Complex A
Snatch Grip High Pull
185x5, 180x5 (2nd set +5# from last time)
Dumbbell Shrug
55s 2x15 (+5# from last time)
Farmer’s Walk
55s 1min
Complex B
Pendlay Row
205x5, 185x5
Chest Supported Rear Delt Raise
20# db’s 2x15
Zercher Carry
95# BB 2x1min
This gym didn’t have a sandbag. More of a traps and shoulder pump than the sandbag carry, which was all mid-back seemingly.
Chin-Up Top Position Hold
5 sets to reach 2min, 1 less than last time
Pull-Up Hang
3 sets to reach 2min, same as last time
Didn’t bring my straps on vacation - forearm pump through the roof again. Oh well - great workout, and ate grilled steak afterwards.
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Today upon arriving back from vacation:
Week 2, Day 4: Physical Labor
Deadlift @ 275 x 3 reps
Single KB Biceps Walk @ 45 x 20 steps
DB Clean + Press @ 50#s x 5 reps
DB Suitcase Carry @ 50# 10 steps / arm
x 9 rounds.
Didn’t quite make it to 10. Would really like to next time, but I’m not surprised to not see some immediate improvement, nor would I have been surprised to see mine or anyone else’s #s dip a bit on week 2 and then improve in weeks afterwards.
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Especially since you just got back from vacation, which might have affected work capacity a bit. But honestly, those physical labour days do not have the same “burden of improvement” as the other days… they are as the name implies about “just doing work”, if you get more, awesome, but it won’t make or break your results.
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Yesterday:
Week 3, Day 1: Push
OH DB Carry
20s x 2 min, all in 1 set
Complex A
Standing OHP
140 2x5
Lateral Raises
20s 2x15
OH DB Carry
20s 2x1min dropped to 90 degrees once on second set - same as last time
Complex B
Bench
225 1x5, 215 1x5
Pushups
2x15
Bear Crawl
2x1min
Dip ISO Hold
Almost got it in 2 sets. I credit it mostly to the fact that I found a dip bar in the gym with outrageously thick handles that is super comfortable to sit on, but at the end of my second set my triceps cramped BADLY and I had to do a short third. I wanna try for 2 sets but really, it’s just a finisher and if I keep upping my work capacity during the workout then just getting a total of 2 minutes in at the end - whether in 3 sets or 2, is all I need to worry about.
DB Loaded Stretch
20s x2 min went to a hold on the top position once - same as last time
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Today:
100 burpees followed by a 2000m row.
I haven’t logged them all but I’ve been doing many 100-burpee quick workouts on my off days and the movement is starting to feel really natural and strong again, like when I used to do them all the time. Also, a 2000m row for time is one of the most miserable under-10-minute workouts there is.
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Week 3, Day 2: Legs
Prowler Push:
+4 plates x 2min.
Complex A
Squats on squat wedge
195 2x5
Bodyweight sissy squats
2x15 (kept BW sissy squats - even this gym had the leg extension super far away, and it was more packed than my usual gym)
Backwards sled drag
2x1min +4 plates
Complex B
RDLs
245 2x5 3 second negative.
Leg curls
100 1x15, 90 1x15
KB Swing
65# kb 2x1min
Goblet Squat 90 degree hold
50# DB, 2 breaks still.
Unfortunately, stress continues to plague me - was difficult to get myself motivated for the workout, but getting through it helped a bit.
I’m at a pretty pivotal point in my life - an investment of mine paid off and gave me a nice cushion, job stress was so through the roof that I was having trouble sleeping and eating, and when my job flat out refused to change anything about how they were doing things (which was absolutely ridiculous), I put my notice in. I have some options for what I want to do next, but two are leading right now: one is a sales position paying decently well (~6 figures) in the same trade I’ve been in the past 6 years and I’d be good at it, but it’s a decent amount of travel (1 week/month), and probably a decent amount of stress as well. The other is hopping in as the #3 man in a startup construction company that two of my friends from the Marines started a few months ago that needs a project manager to work remotely for them.
The “safe” option is to go with the sales position at the long-established company, and the risky option is going into the startup company and working with/for guys I like and am cool with, one of whom is like my brother. Most people are telling me to go with what’s safe, but I kind of feel like Neo trying to get out of Trinity’s car on the way to see Morpheus:
I just feel like I keep making safe moves that make me miserable, and the few risky moves I’ve made are solely responsible for the financial security that I have for myself right now, but this is a real tough one. This sales position is not something I can come back and ask for again. If the startup continues to do well on its current trajectory, I’m set, but if it crashes I’m in a tough position.
This weekend is going to involve a lot of discussions with my wife and friends about where I go next. We’ll see.
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Not sure how I feel about that. I think it depends on your level of physical conditioning. I normally don’t like when people add training to programs I design.
But it’s your training, your Surge, etc. I’m only here to help. My worry is that it could interfere with the effectiveness of the program by increasing central fatigue (which is the most impacted by hard conditioning work… basically the more uncomfortable/painful something is, the more central fatigue it will cause). And that central fatigue, if it’s still there for your next workout, can negatively impact performance and thus progress.
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I’ve just been treating it as active recovery. I’ll cut it out - I apologize, I didn’t think about the implications of doing that in terms of adding stuff to a workout program you designed. Wasn’t even really thinking of it as adding anything, I just have always done little stuff like that on non-lifting days for years now.
With the stress I’m going through, a bit less fatigue would probably help as well. I can just replace it with longer walks with the dog and keep the level of activity down.
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Lot of walking today, but it was a true rest day. No burpees or other stuff. Always a good reminder - following a program is as much about what you don’t do as it is what you do. Not saying I won’t go back to some daily work eventually, but if the idea is to follow someone’s plan to the T, I should do exactly what’s prescribed, nothing more.
Also, it’s tough to break my Marines programming sometimes, wherein if you don’t do something every day you’re useless. Brainwashing works, y’all.
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