Thanks, it was indeed. I’m not nearly as sore today from it as I was from squats, Bulgarians, and elliptical a couple weeks ago 
Are you feeling ready for your comp?
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8/18/23, Friday
Rower - 5:00, 1,044 m
Plate-loaded chest press
- 1 pps x 10
- 1.5 pps x 5
- 2 pps x 3
- 2.5 pps x 6.5
- 2 pps x 10
- 1.5 pps x 11 → 1 pps x 10
Slow negatives and pauses at bottom on last set. Still feels better than DB presses.
Seated cable rows, wide-neutral grip
- 100 x 10
- 130 x 5
- 160 x 10, 10, 8
- 130 x 15
Face pulls - 40 x 3 x 16, supersetted w/
1-arm DB triceps ext - 25 x 3 x 12
Pec deck rear delts - 60 x 3 x 20
BB curls → EZ bar curls
80 x 5 → 40 x 10, 3 sets
Assault runner
- 26:07, 2.0 mi
More like an Assault Brisk Walker, but it was 6+ minutes faster than a treadmill. Felt great.
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If beat up and sore from training is ready, then Yes.
I have another week to work off some soreness in my back, and hope my right wrist improves. I’ll be good on the day but feeling rusty right now
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I reckon you’ll get an adrenaline dump that helps you power through the day. Hopefully your wrist and back get sorted before, though.
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8/21/23, Monday
Trap bar deadlifts
- 135 x 10
- 185 x 5
- 225 x 4
- 275 x 3
- 315 x 1
- 345 x 1
- 365 x 3
- 365 x 3
- 365 x 5
- 315 x 10
Single calf presses
- 90 lbs x 70 / leg
Pull-ups - bw x 10, dead hang at bottom
Dips - bw x 15
Backwards sled drags - sled + 90 x 4 laps
Sled pushes - sled + 225 x 4 laps
I’m convinced doing pull-ups after deadlifting is synergistic. After repping 315, pulling my measly 200 pounds (ok, 208) isn’t super tough. In fact, I probably haven’t done 10 strict pullups in four or five years, so that’s a middle-age rep PR for me. Sweet. In fact, this whole workout was sweet. A Smith machine never opened up for Bulgarians (awww, so sad! Haha) so i just went to sledding. The last two deadlift sets wiped me out in a way I suspect will help me sleep soundly tonight.
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Got to find a PR any way you can mate.
could you use dumbells ?
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I have to rebuild some ankle mobility and balance first. The next step, so to speak, is lunges then walking lunges. Yuck.
Yep! It helps with motivation. For years, I spun my mental wheels in the rut of trying to reclaim former abilities. I’m pretty sure @TrainForPain made an astute observation about not making the Ghost of Workouts Past into one’s training partner. When i was younger, of course i could do xyz more, faster, stronger, and better. But here I am, thank God, able to keep moving forward.
Do you ever compare your current and past abilities, or are you solidly planted in the here-and-now?
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Perhaps the concept, but there’s no way I ever said anything that eloquent
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I have been lucky that my training has varied greatly over time. In my 20’s I did bro splits, so no real PR’s to note. Just trying to move more weight or more reps every session. But form would definitely not meet comp standards for the big lifts back then.
In my 30’s I started running and given I had no running history nearly every run was a PB.
In my mid 40’s I got back in the gym and focused only on getting stronger. I had no delusions I was going to bodybuild again. So pretty much all my lifts were new PR’s. Now I have been doing this for 6 years it is getting a lot harder to hit a PR. But that’s where clever coaching comes in. @wiseman83 will switch up the movements and or reps ranges often enough that there is always a new PR to be had.
Don’t really compare myself with my former self, just living my best life.
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I don’t know mate, you have a way with words sometimes.
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Amusingly, I did sever a bunch of tendons in my left hand once doing exactly this
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Quite right. TfP’s day-to-day writing is some of the most engaging on this site, and that includes the article authors.
I think that’s a key to longevity in physical pursuits. Of the different training types and styles, which have you most enjoyed, and what about it do you like more than the other types?
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That is a great question. I actually enjoyed all types of training for different reasons .
Back when I did more bodybuilding training, I trained with a couple of different training partners over the time, the camaraderie and motivation at this time was really high, and training with like minded person was really fun. I was younger back then and going to the gym was both hard training and like hanging out with friends.
Running gave me the most peace and the convenience of being able to just get up throw my shoes on and hit the streets for an hour was great. I felt the fittest I have ever felt when I was a runner, light, fast, really low resting heart rate. I was also a lot lower body weight and whilst I was still sore most days, I was way more mobile.
The training I do now which is primarily strength is the type of training I actually enjoy the most and feels the most primal. Picking up heavy things and carrying them or putting them over head just feels like something we were meant to do. The training itself is tough and at times during the session it is the worst, but the feeling of being strong is the best.
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You gents have made my day.
For favorite training, I’ve found it’s kind of like jobs: I’m always looking for the next thing no matter what I’m doing currently, but I’m always nostalgic for something I’ve previously done.
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8/24/23, Thursday
Laterals, curls, triceps ext, rear delts, ohp x 10 lbs x 20
Plate loaded chest press
- 1 pps x 10
- 1.5 pps x 5
- 2 pps x 3
- 2.5 pps x 6
- 2.5 pps x 5
- 2 pps x 7 → 1.5 pps x 7 → 1 pps x 10
Seated cable rows, wide neutral grip
- 100 x 10
- 130 x 5
- 160 x 11
- 160 x 11
- 160 x 8
- 130 x 12
Superset, 3 rounds:
Single triceps DB ext - 25 x 15, 15, 14
DB curls - 25 x 3 x 12
Face pulls - 40 x 3 x 18
4 rounds:
- 500 m row - > 20 pushups x bw
ETA - my arms were absolutely pumped after the rows and push-ups. My shoulder is feeling incrementally better, so I’m staying the course with the machine-based, bodybuilding-style workout. My back is sore today (Friday, the day after) and i feel good overall, so it appears the conditioning portion can stay.
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8/26/23, Saturday
Lying leg curls
- 80 x 3 x 9
Squats
- 45 x 15
- 135 x 5
- 165 x 3
- 195 x 1
- 225 x 1
- 245 x 6
- 215 x 7
- 185 x 14
Bulgarian split squats on 3D Smith
- 75 x 2 x 6
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now that’s a workout. Quality
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9/2/23, Saturday
Rower - 5:00, 1,077 m
Trap bar deadlifts
- 135 x 10
- 185 x 5
- 225 x 3
- 275 x 2
- 315 x 1
- 345 x 1
- 365 x 4
- 365 x 4
- 365 x 4
Sledding
- Backwards drag - sled + 90 x 4 laps
- Pushing - sled + 225 x 2 laps
Walking - 31:23, 2.0 mi
Last week, a coworker had a sinus infection, and the week was high stress and low sleep, so I took an unscheduled deload.
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Another example of your way with written words. This describes my experience very well; my current training program attention span is around two weeks, all the while thinking back to past programs I liked and considering new ones i want to try.
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These are my kinds of workouts! They look awesome
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