My way towards (next) OCR

[Mortimer]

How do you fool around monkey bars for 10 min=P

 

Also urm, rest a day and see how your bicep feels tomorrow? 

[aramis]

3 hours ago, Mortimer said:

How do you fool around monkey bars for 10 min

going one way and the other, using different "strides" (every single one, every other etc), using side beams, throwing feet on bars and crawling underneath etc.

 

3 hours ago, Mortimer said:

rest a day and see how your bicep feels tomorrow

Decided to asses the damage right away in the evening.

 

Turns out I can deadhang, can do push-ups etc (edited prev. post). Only activating the bicep hurt. 

 

But today morning is already better. I still feel it a bit, but I can pick things up, use my arm normally. Later I will try to do assisted pull-up (slowly and gently). Gotta be testing the muscle, but remember to do it gently. 

[aramis]

Feb. 13th

 

Jump rope: 15min

Stair climbing with ~21kg/55lb sandbag (two steps at once) : 10 stories up and down

20 x squats with said sandbag

[aramis]

Feb. 14th

 

Burpees: 15min, 90 reps. 

 

WOOHOO! I can do burpees despite my pulled bicep! That's the best example of selective muscle activation

[aramis]

Feb. 15th

 

Running: 5.3km, 27'40'' (5'13''/km pace) 😮

 

Wasn't expecting THAT much of improvement. 36 seconds better than last week!

 

I think it's because this time I focused on maintaining quite long stride (and thus speed), and only shortening it for times when I needed some rest. Probably earlier I shortened my stride too much too often.

 

I consider getting HR monitor (for running and other conditioning like KB swings or burpees), so I could track in which zone I run. 

 

P.S.

I tested what I can do with my damaged bicep.

 

First, what I CAN:

- upper half of unassisted pull-up

- full ROM band assisted pull-up - max 3 reps until bicep reminds about itself

- vertical rope climb using feet (wrap&lock)

 

What I CAN'T because bicep starts to ache:

- full ROM pull-ups - bicep hurts most when engaged while extended, like when I try to go from deadhang into bicep flexion

 

- monkey bars. Theoretically I should be able to do it without engaging bicep, but then it's way too much load on the shoulder joint.

 

- mundane tasks that require pulling with extended arm (or rotated internally).

[aramis]

Feb. 16th

 

rest day

[Mortimer]

Heart rate monitors are useful especially for long runs. But take the wrist ones with a pinch of salt. Burpees usually I'm too busy doing burpees to bother about Heart Rate, besides if you take min long breaks like me your heart rate probably won't go up too much. 

 

For shorter distances, you can sort of mind over matter things but once you get to longer distances then heart rate monitors are very useful. As a rule for anything >5km, I try to avoid hitting past 150 for my own heart rate, except if I am going uphill. You see my mistake for great eastern half marathon was starting the race too fast and I paid for it later. 

 

The trick to increasing speed is to widen your stride, also if I am really pushing at max speed, I do single inhale and exhale. That is not to be done for anything >5km, or I'm going to die =P

[aramis]

14 hours ago, Mortimer said:

take the wrist ones with a pinch of salt

Nah, I'm thinking chest strap type, with watch acting only as a display. Electric sensor in a strap is more precise than optical one, and for activities other than running (like kettlebell swings or jump rope) it will be easier to just put watch on a stand and still have HR measured. 

[aramis]

Feb. 17th

 

Burpees: 15min, 80 reps

Wasn't my day, I felt poorly. 

 

Feb. 18th.

 

Jump rope: 15 min

Rope climbing: 5 min (learning the foot work) 

 

I start to reintroduce pull exercises as a makeshift rehab for my bicep.

 

- unassisted upper half pull-ups 5 x 5 (in Grease-the-Groove pattern)

- band assisted full ROM pull-ups 1 x 6

[aramis]

Feb. 19th

 

5 x 5 half pull-ups

10 assisted pull-ups

 

Simple&Sinister Kettlebell program (16kg bell):

3x warm up circuit:

- 5x goblet squat

- 5x glute bridge

- 5x halo (each side)

 

10 x 10 One arm swing (50 per side)

10 TGU (5 per side) 

[aramis]

Feb. 20th

 

Well, my impatience took the best of me. I wanted to try if I can do unassisted, full ROM regular pull-up. Turns out I can. So I did 8 in a row  As my bicep didn't hurt (it felt more like stiff or tight), I decided to go all out and resume FPP just where I stopped. 

 

So I did sets of 8,7,7,6,5 reps. It's evening now and arm seems OK. I might have gone overboard or not. I'll see tomorrow.

 

After coming home I did:

10 min monkey bars and rope climbing

15 min jump rope

[Kestrel Grey]

Wow... it is fun to jump back on a battle log that you haven't looked at in a while.  You have gotten really good!  What are your 2020 OCR plans?

[aramis]

OCR plans? Rather lame. Only two events. Debut in April, in Runmageddon Recruit formula (6K, 30 obstacles), and then in July with wife and two kids (5 and 9) will run the Family formula (2K, 15 obstacles). Clearly second run is purely for fun  

[Mortimer]

Yay glad to hear that your bicep is okay now =D I think Spartan sprint on 28 March 2020 is still going on for us here, though I expect I'll end up doing a lot of burpees =( I don't have many obstacles to practice with - the best I can get are some rocks and boulders, and my pull upishness is still...iffy.

[aramis]

11 hours ago, Mortimer said:

I expect I'll end up doing a lot of burpees

Nah, you'll be good. With all the climbing you train real moves, and that's what counts  

 

Feb. 21st

FPP 8,8,7,6,6.

Some reps were done using leg kick mid air, so I wouldn't call them strict. Gotta work on this bit more.

 

Burpees: 15 min, 87 reps

Those were harder than usual. Actually don't know why, but my legs felt weak. I spent like 3+ hours behind the wheel at work, maybe that's the cause? 

 

Out of curiosity I tried to climb the rope using only arms. Was hart do get two meters up, but doable  HOLY CRAP! I would never suspect I can do it!

 

And another set of 8 pull-ups in the evening. This time I focused on doing them slower and avoid using inertia to kick myself up. Six reps went okay, but last two were hard. Almost failed at eighth one to be honest.  

[aramis]

Feb. 22nd

 

Run: NONE. 

Unfortunate circumstances happened (extra work shift), so no running for me today. Tomorrow's forecast says temps around 5-8 C and heavy rain, so I don't expect any good time, but on the other hand, there will be extra mud and puddles. YAY!

 

I think I'll go and horse around a bit with rope and monkey bars later in the evening.

[Mortimer]

On 2/22/2020 at 4:57 AM, aramis said:

Nah, you'll be good. With all the climbing you train real moves, and that's what counts  

 

Feb. 21st

FPP 8,8,7,6,6.

Some reps were done using leg kick mid air, so I wouldn't call them strict. Gotta work on this bit more.

 

Burpees: 15 min, 87 reps

Those were harder than usual. Actually don't know why, but my legs felt weak. I spent like 3+ hours behind the wheel at work, maybe that's the cause? 

 

Out of curiosity I tried to climb the rope using only arms. Was hart do get two meters up, but doable  HOLY CRAP! I would never suspect I can do it!

 

And another set of 8 pull-ups in the evening. This time I focused on doing them slower and avoid using inertia to kick myself up. Six reps went okay, but last two were hard. Almost failed at eighth one to be honest.  

 Rope climbing I doubt I can pull myself up with only arms alone  - the closest I got was that water theme park where there were 3 knots on the rope otherwise it was rooted to pool floor. It took 3 attempts and I did use the knots. I actually had to learn how to climb a rope and got to a height of a double decker bus when I was doing it for Spartan downtown. The fun part was getting down =P Little kitten me can climb up but have no idea how to get down lol. 

 

Mud and puddles >< lol. 

[aramis]

Feb. 23rd

 

Running: 5.3 km (3.3 mi), 27'50'' - 5'15''/km (8'27''/mi) pace 

Only minimally slower than last time, which is great given conditions: temp was 5 C (41F), soft, but constant (for last 12+ hours) rain and occasional gust of wind. 

 

My route is in figure eight, with crossing the muddy ~600m (0.35mi) section twice. Other sections are dirt/gravel/rock, but today were full of puddles as well. And slippery, especially rocky ones.

 

But mud... or maybe I should say The Mud®™

This time it was brutal! One false step and one could end up shin deep in it (soil thawed and it rained for 12+ hours straight). Just see yourself. Lots of fun  Slippery, uneven, very demanding. My targeting computer had lots of work to do figuring where to put my feet. 

 

You can actually se the ripples from raindrops on the puddle on the lower right.

 

After the run I was splatter with mud up my knees. And I thanked myself for the shoes I use - every step in the puddle was a splash of cold water on the foot (which was quite nice and refreshing), but after 10-20 steps the water was squeezed out from the shoe. Now I understand why waterproof shoes aren't advised for OCR - if the water would get inside (e.g. from the top), it couldn't be drained out. And my shoes, even being entry level, deal with draining water perfectly. Not to mention proper (non-cotton) socks  

 

[aramis]

Feb. 24th

 

FPP: fail

I was about to do ladder of 9,8,7,6,5 reps. Couldn't pull the ninth though.

 

Did 5 x 8 instead, in GtG style (lots of rest between sets).

 

Later at home:

3 x 5 weighted pull-ups (+4kg)

15 min burpees: 87reps

As a dessert tried how heavy I can go with single pull-up. Managed (barely) to do +20kg/44lb (~25% Bodyweight) as my 1RM!

[aramis]

Feb. 25th

 

GtG pull-ups: 6 x 7

 

Jump rope: 15min

[aramis]

Feb. 26th

 

GtG pull-ups: 6x7

 

S&S 16kg

10x10 one arm swings

10x1 TGU

 

3x5 weighted pull-ups (+4kg)

[Mortimer]

Aramis - if you are interested in improving timings then you'll need a training plan consisting of speed intervals, long runs, and hills. If you're just interested in finishing the race, then if I were you I would test for the distance and also run some hills off road in case the run requires it. If possible try to get a map of the run route and practice running on the route itself to familiarise yourself with it,so on that day you know what to expect. 

 

Here is an example of speed interval training:

 

Run 800m at say 5 min pace(if it's not challenging enough for you go and do 4:30 =P) , rest 1 min then rinse and repeat 4x more. 

 

Or you can do pyramid training - 200m, rest 30s, 400m, rest 60s, 800m, rest 1 min 30s,then 400m, rest 60s, 200m, rest 30s. All run distances are as fast as you can for the distance. 

 

Of course I outsourced all this speed interval training to the local run group so I don't really have to remember what to do. 

[aramis]

Feb. 27th

 

GtG pullups: 6x7

 

Jump rope: 15min

[Mortimer]

On 2/23/2020 at 10:23 PM, aramis said:

Feb. 23rd

 

Running: 5.3 km (3.3 mi), 27'50'' - 5'15''/km (8'27''/mi) pace 

Only minimally slower than last time, which is great given conditions: temp was 5 C (41F), soft, but constant (for last 12+ hours) rain and occasional gust of wind. 

 

My route is in figure eight, with crossing the muddy ~600m (0.35mi) section twice. Other sections are dirt/gravel/rock, but today were full of puddles as well. And slippery, especially rocky ones.

 

But mud... or maybe I should say The Mud®™

This time it was brutal! One false step and one could end up shin deep in it (soil thawed and it rained for 12+ hours straight). Just see yourself. Lots of fun  Slippery, uneven, very demanding. My targeting computer had lots of work to do figuring where to put my feet. 

 

You can actually se the ripples from raindrops on the puddle on the lower right.

 

After the run I was splatter with mud up my knees. And I thanked myself for the shoes I use - every step in the puddle was a splash of cold water on the foot (which was quite nice and refreshing), but after 10-20 steps the water was squeezed out from the shoe. Now I understand why waterproof shoes aren't advised for OCR - if the water would get inside (e.g. from the top), it couldn't be drained out. And my shoes, even being entry level, deal with draining water perfectly. Not to mention proper (non-cotton) socks  

 

Arrrgghhh the mud!!! *runs away screaming* I only has cotton socks but given that kind of terrain I would take it slow and probably run on the side of the path? Looks less muddy. 

[aramis]

1 hour ago, Mortimer said:

the side of the path? Looks less muddy.

There's mud under the leaves. I prefer run over the mud I can see. Almost tweaked my ankle when I stepped on a rock that was covered in leaves, rotating my foot inwards. I remember I twisted both my ankles as a kid this way (several times). Lucky for me, this time my body knew better what to do. Muscles in stepping (one about to get hurt) leg instantly lost tension, so other foot just caught up and took over body's weight.