FeistySurgeon

10/17 Update. Goal 1: No questions 10/16. 20 SCORE questions 10/17. UWorld questions when I get a break later tonight. (1/2 total days) Goal 2: Gym yesterday. Workout below. Last PT session tomorrow 10/18, which I'm counting as the gym for tomorrow. Last session will be Saturday at 10. (1/3 this week so far) Goal 3: Went to sleep at 9 yesterday. Tonight I'm on call so meh for sleep tonight but will get 6 tomorrow. (1/1 total nights) Goal 4: So far 2/2 days of sticking with it. I'm having mega sugar cravings, which I'm occasionally giving in to, but whatever because my goal is just to hit the specific meals which I'm doing. (2/2) 10/16 Workout Deadlift 45x10, 65x5 75x12, 12 DB Shoulder Press 15x12,12 Wide grip Lat Pulldown 65x12,12 KB Lunge 10x12,12 Side Plank (Incline to a bench) 2x25s, 25s Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk

Well. Owning the boards will be its own reward. As will getting enough sleep. Lol. But for the gym stuff, maybe a trip somewhere fun for the weekend! Haven't decided yet, but I should figure that out for sure. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk

Long/short: Did a challenge back in June, did reasonably well until I hurt my back and fell off the face of the Earth while I rehabbed/got used to a new job/got used to a new bf/got used to a new state. So, rehab is done, time to pick things back up (while properly bracing my spine). Basics here, more details to follow. Bare bones goals: 1. Do 10 SCORE practice questions, and 20 USMLE Step 3 practice questions every day. Basically, study. Because I want to beast these tests. 2. Post gym schedule weekly, go to sessions. Acceptable reasons to RESCHEDULE include getting out of work so late I won't get at least 6 hours of sleep if I gym (rarely under my control if it happens). Acceptable reasons to cancel include being so sick I think I'm dying. (I'm a doctor now, I should know). This is being left intentionally strict because I come up with a lot of dumb reasons to skip. Drive straight to gym from work, keep gym bag in the car. 3. Go to bed to facilitate at least 6 hours of sleep each night. Try to get 6 hours when post-call. Generally, aim for bed by 8:30, stop using electronics at 8, tonight excluded of course. Environmental control with closed blinds/sleep mask when post-call. 4. Eat prepped smoothie, and EITHER lunch or dinner every day. At least 2 prepped meals daily. All would be better but might be too much of a reach right now and let me fall into the "well, if one is bad let all of them be bad" mentality.

Goal 1: No more days of textbook reading. Finishing up online things for orientation. (7.5/28 so far) Goal 2: June and July are planned, working on rest is still in progress. (2/12 so far) Goal 3: See below. (11/14 so far) Goal 4: Today was another caving day. I stopped by CVS to pick up a prescription and bought a bag of candy, I got about half-way through then realized it was WAY too sweet for me and stopped. Not a success goal-wise but a success in that I stopped when I wasn't enjoying it anymore, rather than stuff the rest of the bag into my face just because. (20/31 so far) 6/16/17 Conditioning Notes Prowler intervals 100ft/90s rest x 8. Work intervals were 23-28s long. First interval was 23, then pretty consistently in the 26-28s range until the end. 6/17/17 Strength Notes SQUAT 45x5,5 85x5, 115x3, 145x2 165x2x5 @ RPE 8. These felt really solid. I noticed a slight low-back twinge towards the end of the sets, but wasn't a huge problem. BENCH 45x5, 75x4, 95x2 110x1, 115x1, 120x1 @ RPE 9. 100x3, 90x5. New bench PR! And it went pretty well. Felt a little slow on the way up, but not like a total grind. Power Clean 45x3, 65x3, 75x3x3 @ RPE 7. Coach programmed some power cleans after SEVERAL weeks off. My technique here might have been a little rusty. 75 felt WAY light, but technically these seemed kind of average.

Goal 1: Two more days of textbook reading. Still doing some online things for orientation. (7.5/28 so far) Goal 2: June is planned, working on finishing June, July, August, September, October, November by the end of this week. Goal 3: Forgot to post Tuesday, but still going strong. See below for Tuesday videos and Thursday just workout summary. (10/14 so far) Goal 4: Was doing the occasional Jolly Rancher. The bag is gone now so back to satisfying my sweet tooth with fruits/lemon water!! 6/13/2017 Notes SQUAT 45x5,5 95x5, 135x3, 165x2 185x1, 195x1, 200x1 @ RPE 9.5. 145x5 @ 8. I hit 200!!!!! That was pretty sweet. I think my torso lagged a little but otherwise no issues. PRESS 45x5, 60x3, 75x2 90x1, 95x0, 0 @ RPE 10, 75x5. I failed the first set t 95, and the retry set. I think I just kept letting the bar get too far in front of me. I'm putting a video of 95 and 75. First one is 95, second is 75. DEADLIFT 230x1, 245x1, 255x1 @ 9.5. I think I may have been a smidge short at the lockout at 255, but for the most part it went well. 6/15/17 Strength Training Notes SQUAT 45x5,5 70x5, 95x4, 115x2 135x5,5,5 CLOSE GRIP BENCH 45x5, 60x4, 75x2 85x3,3,3,3 LAT PULLDOWN 85x7,7,7

Goal 1: No more days of textbook reading, but mostly because I've had a lot of online training things to do before orientation starts this week. (5.5/28 so far) Goal 2: No additional progress so far, microgoal is to plan June, July, August, September by the end of this week. Goal 3: Still going strong, see below. (8/14 so far) Goal 4: Back to no candy. I've been satisfying my sweet tooth in other ways, while sticking to this goal!! 6/11/17 Workout Notes SQUAT 185x1 @ RPE 9, 165x3x3 @ RPE 8.5. No real issues. These felt pretty strong. BENCH 115x1 @ RPE 9. 102.5x3x4 @ RPE 8. Same, no issues. No wrist pain. DEADLIFT 135x5, 185x3, 210x1 @ 8. Tried that hook grip technique from @Grumble's vid. I LIKE IT. 210 is still in my double overhand hook grip range, but I'll definitely keep trying at heavier weights. Conditioning - Sled Pushes I was doing intervals on the rower/treadmill, coach switched it up with a new gym, and it got piggy-backed on with lifting because of gym closure yesterday, which made it kind of rough. It was supposed to be 2 round trips (200ft on the turf)/2 min rest x 8. 2 round trips/2 min rest x 4, 1 round trip/2 min rest x 4, empty sled. I started with 2 round trips/rest with round trips being 60-70s long. About half way through I was slowing down to 85/90s per trip even with the empty sled, and my quads were pretty torched after 1 round in the 5th work interval so I backed off to single round trips.

Goal 1: 2 more days reading as planned! (5.5/28 so far) Goal 2: Meeting yesterday was super helpful. It helped me get a better idea of what my time frames are for making decisions/seeking out research positions, so I can generate an outline for each month, and by the end of the challenge have a rough SMART goal for each month in terms of identifying opportunities, reaching out to program leaders or drafting documents. Plus now I have an arsenal of questions to ask about any position. Goal 3: See below. (7/14 so far) Goal 4: Back to no more than single Jolly Ranchers daily to satisfy the sweet tooth yesterday and today, so success not only for sticking with goal generally, but for not throwing it all away because of one hiccup!! 6/8/17 Strength Training Notes General note for today, my left wrist has been a little painful. It just started today, and is pinpointed to the back/pinky side. Pain is worst when I bend the wrist back with my forearm facing up. I only noticed it getting worse at the bottom of the bench on a few reps, otherwise wasn't a huge issue during today's workout. SQUAT 45x5,5 70x5, 95x4, 115x2 135x5x3 @ RPE 7. Took a chance and tried squatting without the belt. I think it went okay, but I'm maybe not keeping it as tight in the very bottom of the squat. CGBP 45x5, 60x4, 75x2 85x3x4 @ RPE 8. No issues except a little left wrist pain at the bottom. LPD 85x6x3 @ RPE 7.5. No issues.

Definitely interesting, I'll give it a try when I deadlift again later this week! HELLO @MikeWazowski!!!!!! (Love the name btw). It's so hard, but so far going much better than expected!!

Yeah, I'm constantly torn between hook gripping and having better balanced muscles and building grip strength, and needing to save my thumbs a little for operating. I can comfortably hook to about 225/235, and beyond that my grip starts to slip even with the hook. I'm just paranoid about hand/finger problems so I mix it all in. Generally speaking I'm with @Grumble on this though. Hook grip > mixed.

Update on Goals: Goal 1: Read from textbook for 1 hour Monday and it's scheduled it into my days for the upcoming week to prevent backtracking. (3.5/28 so far) Goal 2: Meeting tomorrow, 6/7. Goal 3: See below. (6/14 so far) Goal 4: Days were going pretty well. Today hasn't been the greatest (candy in apartment's leasing office when I had to take things there) and I had several small things. Not awful, but still a little more than I was aiming for. Today is going to count re: breaking my candy curtailing habit, but even 10/11 days is an improvement on previous habits, and I'm not throwing today away because of one moment of weakened discipline/willpower/habit. (10/31 so far) 6/6/17 Notes No major issues with lifts today, everything felt pretty solid. SQUAT 45x5,5 75x5, 105x4, 135x2 150x4, 4, 4 @ RPE 8. Feeling strong. Stll a little torso lag, but getting better each time. PRESS 45x5, 57.5 x4, 67.5 x 2 77.5x4, 4, 4, 4 @ RPE 9. DEADLIFT 135x5, 175x4, 190x4 @ RPE 7.5. Still solid, though I have to figure out angles in this new place to stop chopping off my torso/head.

Spent the last two days building furniture. Update on Goals: Goal 1: Read from textbook for 30 min Wednesday, but yesterday and today Been preoccupied with moving furniture assembly still, so no more progress on this front because I haven't set aside time for it. I've scheduled it into my day for the upcoming week. (2.5/28 so far) Goal 2: Meeting next week, 6/7. Goal 3: See below. (5/14 so far) Goal 4: Had 1 Jolly Rancher today, no candy the day prior. Still no binges, and no full bags of anything. I have been tempted, but I've stuck with my goal pretty well, and the Jolly Ranchers were my compromise to make sure I DON'T go on a candy binge. So far so good (10/31 so far) 6/4/17 Strength Notes SQUAT 45x5,5 95x5, 125x3, 155x2 175x3,3 @ RPE 8. Still probably a little torso lag towards the end, but otherwise I didn't feel/notice anything that was off. BENCH 45x5, 70x4, 90x2 110x1 @ RPE 8, 100x4,4,4,4 @ RPE 9.5. The last rep at 100 was pretty tough. DEADLIFT 135x5, 185x3, 205x1 225x1, 240x1, 250x1 @ RPE 9. 135 and 185 with hook grip for practice/development. 205 with reverse alternating grip (right hand palm up) 250 felt a little slow, and I wasn't convinced I locked out all the way at the top when I first did it, but the video looked pretty good.

I'm relocated to CT now, with most of my stuff. Waiting on some furniture to arrive but otherwise just getting settled and oriented to the area. Tried out the new gym today that seemed pretty awesome. Update on Goals: Goal 1: Read from textbook for 30 min Wednesday, but yesterday and today got kind of preoccupied with moving so they were skipped. (2.5/28 so far) Goal 2: On hold until meeting next week. Goal 3: See below. (4/14 so far) Goal 4: Had 2 Jolly Ranchers each of the last two days when I was craving something small and sweet. No binges, and not even a full individual serving bag of anything yet. So far so good (8/31 so far) 6/2/17 Notes SQUAT 45x5,5 70x5, 95x4, 120x2 140x5,5,5 @ RPE 7. Maybe still a little torso lag on the way up, but these felt pretty solid. Still probably don't need the belt, but will keep using on light days until I stop working with this coach or he says otherwise. Close Grip Bench 45x5, 65x4, 80x2 92.5x4,4,4 @ RPE 8. No issues for me. It was nice working in a bench that didn't make the liftoff a pain in the ass. Lat Pull Down 95x8x4 @ RPE 10. These were supposed to be an RPE 8, and this was an unfortunate case of ego/stubbornness. The first few sets went fine, 3rd set was okay, but I didn't want to admit to myself that it was more a 9, and then the last set I did all 8 reps but the last one was a bit of a fight. Will keep in mind for future and scale more appropriately.

Yep, will definitely keep that in mind. The 200s is right around where my grip starts to go. What I've been doing is hook gripping for all warm up sets except last one before working. Then doing the reverse alternate (left hand prone, it's my non-dominant) for the last warm-up, and right hand prone for working weights. I try to flip a little and also use a hook grip with chalk when I can to not get stuck in one grip/imbalance pattern.

5/30/17 Updates! All my stuff is moved out of NYC. Will be driving it up to CT on Thursday. Goal 1: Read from textbook yesterday and today. (2/28 so far) Goal 2: On hold until meeting next week. Goal 3: See below. (3/14 so far) Goal 4: Had some jelly beans at a BBQ on Sunday at my best friend's house, but not that many, we were really just digging through the container of Jelly Belly to find the fun flavors. Given my history of eating bags at a time, I'm counting this as success. (6/31 so far) Okay, officially moved out of NYC today. Moving up to CT Thursday, then hopefully everything will settle down for a little bit. 5/30/17 Strength Training Notes SQUAT 45x5,5 85x5, 115x4, 145x2 165x4,4,4,4,4 @ RPE 9 (Goal was < 10). These felt pretty good. I watched the video and I can see my torso dropping a little on the way up, which I felt a little during the rep. Still a little bit of a moving target. PRESS 45x5, 60x3, 75x2 85x2,2,2 @ RPE 8.5 (Goal 8.5-9). It's a little wild to think this used to be more than my max press and now it's moving fairly smoothly. DEADLIFT 135x5, 175x3, 195x3, 215x3 @ RPE 9. No problems. My deadlifts have been pretty strong and consistent, from the feedback I've gotten, but if anyone sees anything out of whack I'd love to know!

Yeah. Candy is my kryptonite. I'll eat it when I'm sad, or just bored, so trying to tackle that is a big step. Thanks! Yeah, I should stop doing that. Accomplishments are awesome no matter how simple they may be.

General issues: left ankle has been acting up. Doesn't bother me while squatting, but I noticed it feeling a little wonky when I set up for my deadlift and kind of screw my feet into the floor. Mostly it's been bothering me when I'm walking a bunch. I've iced it, but haven't really tried much else, so far. I FINISHED PACKING. 100 POINT TO GRYFFINDOR. I also made it 3 days with no candy. Which feels like a dumb accomplishment, but is still a good thing. 5/27/17 Strength Training Notes SQUAT 45x5, 5 95x5, 135x3, 165x1 190x1,1,1,1,1 @ RPE 9 across. Last set was a little wonky form wise, my torso dropped a little on the way up, but otherwise these felt pretty good. BENCH 45x5, 70x4, 95x2 107.5x1 @ RPE 8, 97.5x5,5,5,5 @ RPE 8.5. These felt super solid. DEADLIFT 135x5, 165x3, 195x1 215x2,2 @ RPE 8. First set I was a little off-balance backwards on the descent of the last rep. Otherwise these felt strong.

I'm ready!

Aww, thanks! It's hard, but gotta prioritize what matters to me, right? Hello! And thanks! Thanks! Yep first time here, I briefly did a challenge or two as a Ranger several years ago. Then I got my head on straight and realized my one true calling.

Hello! Thanks! Well, it's a surgery residency, so I'm sure SOME torture might be involved. Hello! Thanks! Med school was fucking rough, but I remind myself that graduating at all and getting into a surgery residency is a huge accomplishment. Trying to focus on that. Yeah, the chest collapse has been an on-off problem. Seems to come out on lighter days more than heavier days for some reason, probably because lighter days let me get away with more form wise. I'm trying to be more consistent about perfecting form for every rep regardless of weight. Pretty sure yesterday's was because I'm a little run down from life craziness, but definitely something I'm actively working on. Re OPED: Yeah, probably not since I warm up with this weight on heavier days and don't use the belt then. It's a relatively new addition (1 ish months) so for now my coach wants me to use it for working sets every session, except deadlifts < 200lb where I can choose. Mostly to get me used to using it at all. For now I'm going with what he says, and maybe after the 2 month mark when I'll have to stop coaching anyway and will likely change up my routine a little, I'll transition to keeping it only for heavier days/sets. Hello back! Yeah, the chest drop is an on-off problem I'm working on (see above). Good to know two people thought my knees looked okay! Hello and thank you!! Good to know there's people on here to keep me in check.

5/25/17 Notes SQUAT 45x5,5, 75x5, 100x4, 125x2 145x5, 5, 5 @ RPE 7.5. These weren't feeling super strong. Think it was just an off day amidst endless packing and moving. This video was probably my worst set, because the lighting wasn't great for the other sets. Coordination on the way up wasn't great, and it looks like my knees were coming forward a little at the bottom too. CGBP 45x5, 60x4, 75x2 90x5x3 @ RPE 8. LPD 105x5x4 @ 9. No issues. Haven't been filming these of late.

Hi all! First challenge in a while. Backstory: Just graduated medical school, which was rough. Gained a bunch of weight trying to deal with personal and family stressors, stress/emotional/mindless eating, and inconsistent training. Working on bouncing back from all of these things. Where I'm at:Personal/family stressors are being actively managed and I've been doing Starting Strength Online Coaching with someone since October, so training has been consistent. Eating is still all over the place and very inconsistent. Where I'd like to be: Because of budget concerns I'll have to stop online coaching after June, so I'm using this challenge to build the habit of logging my workouts/getting feedback elsewhere. Also to get into a study habit and work on SLOWLY improving my eating patterns rather than doing everything at once and having none of it stick. Over aching intention of this challenge is to develop/maintain some routine and consistency to training, eating, studying help me succeed in residency long-term. So, on to goals. QUEST: Residency Beast Goal: Read from text book 1 hour per night, 6/7 nights per week. (Starting 5/28, 24 chances over course of challenge) QUEST: Peds Surgery Goal: Develop monthly timeline for research position application process from June 2017-May 2018. For each month identify goal to be achieved by end of month after meeting with advisor on June 7th. (12 months to schedule) QUEST: Get Stronger, Do first pull-up Goal: Continue online strength coaching, post training videos to NF forum for one working set per lift starting tonight. (14 sessions, get at least 12. Might be lighter sessions towards the end for 1RM testing). QUEST: Eat for Life Goal: Starting with a REALLY small change. Tackling my candy/sweet tooth demon. Eat less than/equal to 1 "individual" size bag of candy per day. (31 days starting 5/25 night). To be completely upfront I may not comment a ton on other people's threads because time constraints of reading through, so feel free not to comment here if you'd prefer to reciprocity, etc. I totally understand. I'm posting because the semi-public nature of my posts should keep me accountable, and for the chance of some form checks/feedback on technique. For anyone that does join me, welcome!!

5/9/17 Conditioning C2 Erg Intervals 8x20s row/80s rest @ RPE 7, 8, 9, 9, 8, 9.5, 9.5, 8 Total M: 822 Watts/Interval: 178, 186, 215,202, 193, 253, 255, 189 5/10/17 Strength Training SQUAT 45x5x2 70x5 100x4 120x2 140x5,5,5 @ RPE 7.5. Focused on keeping hips, knees, torso coordinated throughout. Close Grip Bench Press 45x10 60x4 75x2 90x5,5,5 @ RPE 8.5 LPD 105x5,5,5,5 @ RPE 9.

5/8/17 SQUAT 45x5,5 80x5 110x4 140x2 160x4,4,4,4 @ RPE 8.5. Focused on moving hips/knees together at beginning of the squat. During warm-up sets did a few quarter-squat jumps from squat stance, and during work sets I thought "knees first". Reps moved pretty fast. PRESS 45x5 65x3 80x1 95x1,1,1,1,1 97.5x1 @ RPE 9.5. Focused on keeping bar over midfoot, and pressing "back" off shoulders. A couple reps where there was a sticking point half-way up that I had to grind through, but otherwise reps went well. DEADLIFT 135x5, 175x5, 190x5 @ RPE 7. These felt super solid, moved pretty fast.

5/5/17 Strength Training SQUAT 45x5,5 95x5 125x3 155x1 177.5x2,2,2 BENCH 45x5 70x3 90x1 110x1,1,1,1,1 DEADLIFT 135x5 165x3 190x1 210x2 230x2

5/2/17 Conditioning Rower Intervals 7 x 20s row/80s rest Watts/Interval: 160, 180, 239, 193, 245, 247, 160 Total M: 729 5/3/17 Strength Training SQUAT 45x5,5 70x5 100x4 120x2 140x5,6,5 A little short on depth. Close Grip Bench Press 45x10 60x4 75x2 87.5x5,5,5 Still getting used to lifting belt and how to use on Bench. Narrow Supine Grip Lat Pulldown 95x8,8,8,8