The Inevitable Return of the Great White Dope

[matty_mcfly]

Haha good enough reason.  I forget that I'm a slave to the percentages and rep/set schemes and you aren't.

[El Exorcisto]

In a slave to the reasoning behind the percentages. Cookie cutter solutions are never optimal and it seems to be the biggest point of contention with speed work in any conjugate programming. Petrosino wrote a great article about raw Westside that addresses it.

Read a lot about Westside and you'll get a better understanding of what makes The Cube work.

[El Exorcisto]

It's my last weekday at this job and people are getting all teary eyed and shit. Feels, bro...

[matty_mcfly]

Far better, then you leaving and people not giving a shit.

 

Or walking around with a box of your shit and people asking if you are new here. 

[El Exorcisto]

This was the first job where from day one the rest of the staff felt that I was an asset to the facility instead of just another body. It's only because of one worthless cunt and bad administration that I'm leaving. Feelsbadman.

All that said, I miss being an RT instead of just giving meds that aren't doing shit for my patients. I miss dealing with a half dozen crises a day and owning that shit.

This is also the first time that I've actually given notice. Every other job that I've had has ended in an epic way involving my middle fingers in the air as I walk out. Actually watching the clock tick down feels fucking weird.

[El Exorcisto]

Morning weigh-in: 180.8

RE deadlift

Sumo deadlift pyramid: 15@135, 12@225, 10@275, 8@315, 5@365 - rep PR

High box squat: 8x2 @ 225

Roll-out: 3x10

 

My best sumo pull has been 385 and best conventional was 415, so this is really exciting. I got the Parkinson's on reps 3-5 but they all locked out. Box squats were violently fast, like almost lost the bar against the back of my head fast.

 

I'm in week 3 of a cut and getting stronger. When I go back to eating right again I think I'm going to keep this program without any added fluff and just add in my events work. I'm not going to argue with results.

[matty_mcfly]

You're going down in weight and I'm slowly going back up. SMH.  Fucking Oreos and milk

[El Exorcisto]

Morning weigh-in: 181

Assistance day

Incline bench pyramid: 15@45, 12@105, 10@125, 8@145, 4@155

Axle C&P: 8x2@140

DB row: 8@110,130; 5@160

 

Nothing special except the Db rows. My grip failed at 5 reps with my left hand which means my grip is weaker than it was the last time I was doing Kroc rows on the regular. I think I'll stick around 135ish for high reps next time out to get things built back up.

 

Tomorrow is Saturday, I'm not working, and I have some moving implements to work with. What does that all mean? STRONGMAN FUCKING SATURDAY!!! I need to test my best Zercher walk, yoke, and farmer's so I have a baseline to work from with my periodization. My wife is entertaining the idea of doing that contest with me so she'll be testing too.

 

Oh, yea, I got the official offer for my new job. It's a bit of a pay cut but the director seems like a bro, I get vacation days again, work a better schedule, and I get to leave that miserable twat behind. Worth. Every. Penny.

[matty_mcfly]

What's your max weight on farmers?  

 

And after you tell me to just stop being a bitch, what's a good way to get better at them besides just doing them?  I was quickly humbled after attempting (and failing) a carry at 180#.

[El Exorcisto]

TBH when I did them before I never really had any plan and I just did them. I don't remember what my best was but I think around 160 per hand but I wouldn't say I was especially good at them. I haven't picked up a pair of handles in close to a year so tomorrow is testing day for all 3 of my moving events. I'm hoping for 400 yoke and 200 each hand farmers, 50' no drops. I have no idea what my Zercher carry will be but I'm hoping somewhere north of 200.

 

I was going to take Chase's wave setup from 5/3/1 for Strongman but my work weekends might be a bit of a hassle to get to the parking lot in time to get the work in. I'm thinking I might alternate Zercher carry/yoke/farmer's on my weekends off at the lot and do Zercher carry/stones/tire flip for my weekends on since I can do all 3 here in the back yard. If I go that route I think I'll take it back to 75% and add 5 pounds a week to my Zercher and 10 pound every other week to my yoke and farmers until I drop one. I'll figure out what to do about that when it happens but hopefully by then the summer will be over and I won't have to worry about it.

[El Exorcisto]

The circus DB is done...

 

All the cutting and welding is done. It was a royal bitch to get it totally square since I didn't have a flat surface to square off from. It's a little tipped on one end. It was also impossible to ground nicely since there wasn't a tab left anywhere to clamp on. I ended up cleaning up a stub of 1/2" pipe, clamping to that and sliding it in the valve hole.

 

 

Welds cleaned up and painted.

 

 

I'll weigh it once the paint is dry and load it up around 75 pounds to start so I can get some quality rep work in on it. It isn't going to be a focus of my training but I think it would be worthwhile to get comfortable under it sooner rather than later since I'll inevitably run into it again at a contest.

[matty_mcfly]

Nice! I don't know shit about welding but I like the bell. And you'll definitely see it again, it seems to be the in fashion implement these days

[El Exorcisto]

Strongman Saturday

Morning weigh-in: 181.8

Zercher carry: 50' run @ 255

Yoke: 50' run @ 395

Farmer's walk: 50' run @ 165 each hand

 

I surprised the shit out of myself on the 255 Zercher walk, got ridiculously wobbly on the 395 yoke, and nearly blacked out when I finished the 165 farmer's walk. My upper back is feeling like a weakness so reverse ring flyes are moving back in.

[matty_mcfly]

Did you time yourself or just wanted to finish with no drops?

[El Exorcisto]

I just wanted to see what I could do with no drops. I'll start timing next time.

[matty_mcfly]

Think I might try those zercher carries next event day

[El Exorcisto]

They felt pretty awesome. I'm not sure which movement did it but my obliques are feeling absolutely crushed.

 

I got bored and didn't have anything really productive to do after we got back from the lot so I did some more cutting. I made up a pair of fat 2" DBs and a pair of really fat 2 3/8" DBs. They're cut and beveled waiting to get welded in the AM. I ran out of daylight before I could get them all sewn up.

[Rooks]

So... were you concerned at all about welding old propane tanks?  I've always been told anything that held flammable liquid is just bad times and you should stay away at all costs.  It can be done, but takes some no how and some inert gas and a way to seal stuff.  That said, looks pretty darn slick to say the least. 

[El Exorcisto]

So... were you concerned at all about welding old propane tanks?  I've always been told anything that held flammable liquid is just bad times and you should stay away at all costs.  It can be done, but takes some no how and some inert gas and a way to seal stuff.  That said, looks pretty darn slick to say the least. 

 

I pulled the valves and let them blow off for a week, filled them with water, drained them, and left them inverted for a couple days to drain some more. If there was any gas left it certainly wouldn't be enough to explode with any amount of force. The skunky oil in the bottom was much more a problem than any remnant gas. All that said, yea, I was understandably a little concerned with welding on old propane tanks. If there weren't already plans for it on Starting Strongman I honestly wouldn't have even thought of using them.

[El Exorcisto]

Morning weigh-in: 180.8

DE squat

Parallel box squat: 8x2@225

Conventional deadlift: 15x1 @ 365 EMOM

 

This week was supposed to be the highlight of my year. I have an empty house, and I was supposed to meet up with friends two of these 5 nights for some going away festivities. Everyone bailed on me so I'm here all alone in an empty house, sweating my balls off, ready to do something I shouldn't. Fucking demons, yo. I needed to train, and I needed to make it hurt. I deadlifted double bodyweight EMOM til I almost blacked out.

 

The Void

 

Now it's time for some beer. Fuck this cutting bullshit for the night.

[Rooks]

Hate it when people bail on plans.  Seems to happen all too often these days.  It's nobody has any organizational skill anymore.  Beastly workout sir.  That's some hella pulling. 

[El Exorcisto]

Morning weigh-in: 178.6 - very fucking relevant

ME press

Axle C&P: singles @ 160, 170, 180 - PR

Dips: 10, 10, 13

 superset with

Bar chins: 10,8,8 - PR total reps

 

MRW matty is still... well.. Riley will tell you.

 

Now put away the pink fucking dumbbells and stop being a weak bitch. FFS bro, I'm withering away and still crushing you.

[matty_mcfly]

Haha I got great news confirmed today SOOOOO all I'm gonna say is that I'm proud of you and your PR old man.

I hope to still be lifting weights when I'm your age. Heavier, more impressive weights. But weights just the same.

[El Exorcisto]

Only you would try to bust my balls for not dying for longer than you.

[matty_mcfly]

I told you I was proud of you and your PR.

Only you would ignore that and only focus on the negative smh.