The Inevitable Return of the Great White Dope

[El Exorcisto]

It needs to be able to hold sand or gravel. Ommegang rents their kegs and Cooperstown brewing uses the old style kegs with the cork in the side that don't have any nice way to get your hands on them. I'll call around to some liquor stores and bars to see what they might have laying around.

 

I wanted to box squat this morning but it's time for a day off. Three days on, one day off seems to be about right.

[El Exorcisto]

Log C&P singles: 3 @ 130, 3 @ 140 PR

18" deadlift singles: 365, 375, 385, 395, 6 @ 405 PR

Bench press singles: 185, 195, 4 @ 205

 

I wanted to just bench today but I need to spend more time under my log. My clean is getting a lot more explosive but my rack still needs work to get my elbows higher. I lost my last rep out ahead of me and took forever to get it back and locked out. Now that I've hit contest weight on my axle I think I'll stick to strict pressing and working on my log. I still hit a PR for three singles. That's always good.

 

My 18" deadlift is flying and my hams are ripped up. Pulling from blocks takes less out of me than from the floor and since that's what's in the contest, that's what I'll be doing the most of.

 

Since I didn't hit the reps I wanted on the log I did some more on the bench.

[matty_mcfly]

Happy to see you under the log again! 

 

You don't stop at the bottom like I do right?  You go "straight" from the floor to the rack position?

[El Exorcisto]

I lap it first.

[El Exorcisto]

Incline bench triples: 1 @ 165, 6 @ 170 PR

Weighted ring chin triples: 1 @ 10, 6 @ 20

Straight bar curl 5s: 1 @ 75, 4 @ 85

     superset with

Roll-outs: 5x15

 

Incline bench is getting a lot tighter. 165 flew and 170 felt right. The last rep of the last set almost landed in my teeth so the weight was right where it needed to be. My incline and flat bench have basically been stuck for months except for one fluke flat bench PR when I benched 3 times that week. The only new movement that I've done has been weighted dips. They apparently need more attention to see if they really are a silver bullet for my upper body.

 

Weighted ring chins feel completely different than ring or weighted bar chins. I didn't feel shit in my biceps but was getting pretty torn up in my upper back. They'll both see some play in my training.

 

If 3x15 roll-outs make me hurt for days then I wonder what 5x15 is going to do to me. It might be a rough weekend at work.

[El Exorcisto]

Box squat doubles: 1 @ 275, 6 @ 295

Slingshot bench, varying rips: 1x3 @ 185, 2x3 @ 205, 2@225, 1@ 225, 3x3 @ 205 - all paused

Shrug triples: 7 @ 365

 

Box squats felt heavy as fuck and the last rep was a bit of a grinder. After doing some reading on Starting Strongman I've decided box squats need to get done weekly. I can't pull like I did the last couple weeks without putting myself out of commission and making it hard to walk for a couple days. I can box squat and get a similar effect without getting so beat up.

 

I bought a slingshot with some of my Xmas loot. I started flat-footed and it felt awesome. Then I set up on my toes and went for another double at 225 and it felt awful and fell out of the groove on the second rep. I dropped back to 205 flat footed and did a few more triples. The slingshot is fun and it really grooves a perfect bench stroke. I'm going to stick with it on flat bench for a while and see if it carries over. It was awesome to have 225 in my hands even if it was equipped.

 

I needed to pull something but didn't want to trash myself too bad after benching heavy. Shrugs felt good and my traps are pretty ripped up right now.

[matty_mcfly]

Nice work with the slingshot.  I've been toying with the idea of getting one, but wasn't too sure how helpful it would be with my poverty bench.

[El Exorcisto]

Gimme some time to see what carry over I get out of it. It really helps to groove a better stroke.

[matty_mcfly]

and who doesn't want a better stroke...lol

[El Exorcisto]

I could live without grooves though... Sounds like a terrible overuse injury.

[matty_mcfly]

Haha I could keep up this juvenile stupidity for way too long so I will save your thread my comment about overuse injuries concerning strokes.

[El Exorcisto]

Weighted dip triples: 1 @ 25, 1 @ 35, 5 @ 40

DB row 5s: 1 @ 110, 1 @ 130, 3 @ 140

 

I slept through my alarm so the morning started a little fucked. It was 7 degrees outside this morning so the gym was pretty cold and I just wasn't feeling it. Dips felt good once I got the groove back on them and DB rows trashed me. There wasn't anything really remarkable. My legs are pretty trashed from yesterday which is always nice.

[El Exorcisto]

Power snatch up to a single @ 60kg (132 lbs) - PR

Power clean doubles: 3 @ 155, 2 @ 165

Zercher squat from pins singles: 3 @ 240

GHR, hands behind back: 1x5, 2x10

DB side bends: 4x5 @ 80

 

My power snatch was a 20 pound PR from a few months ago when I did them last. I'm catching them damn near upright with no squat, too. I did cleans but for some reason when the bar gets heavy I start pulling with my arms and my biceps let me know it. I can clean an axle and log without issue, the same with snatches and high pulls. I think I'll drop power cleans in favor of high pulls. They require less technique and seem to carry over just fine.

 

I brought my feet in on the Zerchers and they got hard... really hard. I did a bunch of triples wide before the singles but they didn't even rate compared to the singles. These were set a few inches lower, too.

 

I made a trip to the old house today to turn off the water and put some antifreeze in the drains with the cold snap we're seeing. While I was there I grabbed my sandbag so I could get back to glute-ham raises. They're a lot harder than they used to be. Side bends because ab work.

[El Exorcisto]

Log C&P singles: 2 @ 130, 1 @ 140

Strict press: 2 @ 135, 2 @ 145, 1 @ 145; 10,5,3 rest-pause @ 95

Close-grip Slingshot bench: 10,3 rest-pause @ 135

Hammer curl: 10,5,5 @ 35

 

I think I've taken what I can from this block of max effort work. I ran it out for about a month like last time and got some solid strength gains but things are either slowing down, stalling, or sliding back when it comes to brute strength on upper body. I think it's time to accumulate some volume again. I had great results with rest-pause assistance on 5/3/1 last time around so I might go closer to Doggcrap on my upper body work. My squats, pulls, and high-pulls are still moving along fine so I'll stick to going heavy on them.

[El Exorcisto]

Squat doubles: 1 @ 275, 6 @ 295

Snatch high pull triples: 7 @ 205 PR

 

I haven't put a bar on my back and squatted without a box since before I moved and it showed. 295 felt like I was coming out of the hole with my truck on my back. My box squats earlier in the week saw my knees shooting forward more than I'd like so I'll probably just stick with free squats. I feel them in all the same places and my ROM is a lot longer. I wanted to hit 8 doubles but my last rep almost dumped off over my head.

 

High pulls felt awesome today. I didn't slow down until my last set and I am feeling them from the back of my head down to my calves.

[El Exorcisto]

I tried to bench today and failed on 185. I'm taking today and tomorrow off.

 

I downloaded Cube for Strongman a few months ago and forgot all about it. I just blew the dust off it and read through it again. I wrote up a 3 week cycle with assistance work similar to what I used to run on 5/3/1. I'm dropping the event day in favor of Cube Powerlifting's bodybuilding day since pressing is a big weakness and putting time into conditioning this far out doesn't make much sense. Besides, it's fucking cold out.

[El Exorcisto]

DE squat day

Speed low-bar squat: 8x2 @ 225

Snatch high pull: 3 @ 155, 4x3 @ 205

Hip thrust: 10 @ 205, 2x10 @ 225

GHR razor curls: 3x7

  superset with

Roll-outs: 3x15

 

I tried going high bar for the first time in ages and it felt like shit. My wife told me I was rounding in the hole, too, so I quit them and went with what I know. The last couple sets got slow but in general they were pretty fast. 30-45 second rest between doubles.

 

High pulls, yea, awesome.

 

I haven't humped a bar in too long. These ripped my ass up like something out of Oz. It seems my right glute is firing harder than my left. Hopefully that works itself out over the next couple weeks.

 

I made a new pad for my GHR and it's just fucking evil. I was doing them off my sandbag and some bumpers and was able to hit a set of 10 neutral-hip GHRs. I can hit two with the new pad. I let my hips flex and did razor curls instead and got 7 in before my hamstrings just couldn't contract any more. Roll-outs after all this were pretty bad. I'm gonna hurt tomorrow morning.

[El Exorcisto]

ME press

Axle C&P: singles at 160, 2 @ 165 PR

DB row: 5 @ 110, 4x5 @ 150

Weighted dips: 2x5 @ bodyweight, 5x5 +25

Hammer curl: 12,11,9 @ 35

   superset with

Band pushdown: 3x25 with EliteFTS light band

 

Work is turning into a fucking nightmare and my head was not in the game when I walked out into the gym. Add the -7 degrees to the mix and I debated putting off training til tomorrow since it'll be my first scheduled rest day in months. I needed to get out of my head and the only way that was happening was pouring my soul out on the platform.

 

Axle C&P went awesome. I hit a 5 pound PR with a power clean that almost knocked me over on the catch. I tried the continental on the next rep and it took a lot out of me. I need to do some sub-max work on the continental fa sho. It's just so fucking awkward.

 

DB rows were nasty. I tore something in my left palm. It looks like kind of like a blister but it's under all the meat. It doesn't hurt unless I put a lot of pressure on it. Hopefully it clears up quick. My lats are tore apart and I love it.

 

I didn't know where I'd be on dip weight after throwing the axle around so I went conservative. I'll be putting some more on the belt next week.

 

Bro superset. Swole. That is all.

[matty_mcfly]

Yea I've seen vids of the continental and it looks awkward and kind of hard to wrap your head around. I'm doing a Strongman-esque workout this week and I was looking for another upper body lift besides the log clean and press.  I might throw these in there at a lighter weight.

 

Those rows look beastly by the way.  I was hitting 3-4 at 100 months ago, I don't do these nearly enough anymore.

 

Just posted the longer version of this from tnation in Gainsdalf's Letter of Intent thread, but seemed fitting here too...

 

"There are no ailments that iron can't help cure. A hard, teeth gritting, grimacing, sweat-flying workout is the best therapy of all, and pushing something heavy so hard that it makes you cry out in pain is better than all the tears in the world."

[matty_mcfly]

So apparently its 100% times easier to find Strongman contests near me as opposed to PL meets.

 

How is the training going so far?  Still most worried about the carry and load events being that you haven't had the chance to work those due to the weather?

[El Exorcisto]

Training is going great. I've put contest weight up with the axle for a triple and I know I won't zero the deadlift. I'm concerned about the log, but I've done some measuring and found out that my log is unbalanced as a motherfucker which explains why it is so hard to progress on. I'm gonna be calling around for steel prices to see if I can afford to build a new one or not. I'm still the most concerned with the moving events, though. I'm going to maybe have a month to get outside and put some time in with weight under motion. The keg load might not be too terrible if my Zerchers have any carry over to them.

[El Exorcisto]

The hunt for a keg is coming up empty so I just ordered an old Army duffel from eBay. I can fill it up and load it over a bar in my rack in the comfort of my refrigerated gym and not worry about beating the piss out of my platform.

 

I'm hopefully building a new wood log tomorrow. I'll be able to get some quality rep work in and not deal with my steel log being such a bitch.

[matty_mcfly]

I forgot, why is getting a keg from a liquor/beer store a no go? Too lazy to look back at the moment. How much did the army duffel run you?

The wooden log is kind of more bad ass than the steel log anyway.

[El Exorcisto]

I called around and they're all being dicks, wanting $75 instead of deposit. The duffel ran me $22. I have 100 pounds of gravel in my little bag so I'll have another $15 or so to bring the big bag up to 200 pounds.

 

The new log is going to be an octagon made out of 2x6s, some 3/4" plywood, and some pipe scraps I have laying around. It'll do for the next few months and come summer I'll find a proper tree to tip over for a legit log. Right now I just need something balanced that I can work with and not just get pissed at.

[matty_mcfly]

Post pics when you get it done