Sam Ashen the PRs - The Daily Grind

[Sam Ashen]

Hello everybody!  Welcome to my daily grind!  Here I will be posting what I accomplished in my workouts, and maybe how I felt - and eventually what I have been eating.  Most of what I have been doing recently has been lifting.  Over the past year, I put on a lot of weight, but put up a lot of numbers.  Here is my most recent routine:

 

First of all, I mentioned weight.  I was putting on so much weight so fast, I was afraid to check the scale.  I had not weighed myself since American Thanksgiving.  Since I knew I was going to posting, and I knew that people will read numbers and might ask how much I weigh.  Well, it's time to weigh myself.

 

I checked in this morning at 199 pounds.  (90kg)

 

My workout started rather late in the evening.  There is a raid going on in the game I am currently playing and I got a start on it, then decided to go do weights.  So I arrived at about 6:30pm.  Here is my workout:

 

5 sets, 5 reps, pull-ups.  This has been my warmup for some time.

 

Squats: (I estimate my range of motion to be 45% of my height.)

1x10, empty 45 pound bar, warmup.  Two reasons I can think of:  1. I get to remember how it is done. 2. If I set my rack wrong, I will know right away.

1x5x135 pounds - another warmup.  The rep count is low because I am lazy.  

1x5x185 pounds - ramping up.

5x5x245 pounds - This is actually a personal record for me.  DING!

1x10x185 pounds - cooldown.  I do this as an effort to remember better form in case my form is getting compromised above.  I also see it as an indicator of how energetic I feel.

 

Bench Press: (The range of Motion is 25% to 30% of my height, or the distance from my chest to the center of my fist.)

1x15, empty 45 pound bar, warmup

1x5x135 pounds, warmup

2x5x185 pounds

3x5x190 pounds - Next time around I will try 5x5x190 pounds.

1x15x135 pounds cooldown

 

Bent-Over Row:

1x10, empty 45 pound bar, warmup

1x5x135 pounds, warmup

5x5x165 pounds

 

Done with workout, now trying Power Cleans, one rep at a time:

4x1x135 pounds, warmup, gut check

1x155 pounds

1x175 pounds

1x185 pounds

2x195 pounds - The first one was a fail - but I did succeed in getting out of the way!  So we ride that success to get back there and do it right!

2x205 pounds - The second one was really ugly.  Save versus stone, please, if you saw it.

 

Then I decided I was done for the evening.

 

Thanks for reading this!  I welcome feedback.  I will work on adding more and better information.

 

Oh yes, a goal!  A quest!  Right now, there is something about getting that bench press routine to equal my body weight.  That is the near term goal.  I am not overly concerned about where those meat, but that they meet.  I think I will hit 5x5x190 pounds next week and it is probably easier to lose ten pounds then to gain ten pounds.  However, I will be optimistic about this and shoot for 195 pounds for both numbers.

 

When this happens, I will revisit my goals and set new ones.

[Sam Ashen]

Day Two, Saturday, Yesterday.  February 7.

 

Visited the Ranger Trainer.  He likes core work and agility work and we mix in some weights.  We do not yet have a squat rack at his place, so front-squats are the only option.  Bench Press workouts are also a little trickier.  It is harder to record exactly what we did since we do such a mix of things.  My energy level was a little lower because I had a late night and an early morning and this marks the sixth day of the week where I made it to work out.  But I made it!  WOOT!

 

We did some funky core drills and then warmed up with a few light sets of front-squats, then decided this was a good day to go over technicalities and relatively new movements.  So it was on to overhead squats.

 

After that, I warmed up some deadlifts.  I thought this was a good time to work with a double-overhand grip and see if I can get a hook grip to work.  With double-overhand grip, I worked with 135, 205, 255, and got one rep in at 300.  WOOT!

 

The double-overhand grip did not seem to like my callouses and the bar seemed to push them the wrong way.  (The rest of my hands are soft.)  That particular bar is very rough too.  Hmm.  Let's see if I can link a picture of what that bar does to my hand......

 

 

 

So it was a slower day, today, but I can pull out two WOOTS! out of it.

 

WOOT!  6 times in a week!

WOOT! 300 pound deadlift with a double-overhand grip

 

Sunday, day off.  Visit the Priest trainer.  Go shopping for the next week.  What goes in the shopping cart goes in the mouth.  It is a pretty good indicator on what I will be eating over the next week.  Do laundry.  Go to bed at a reasonable time.  Quest list:

 

Quest 1: The Shopping List.  Give some account of what went in the shopping cart.  It is time to be very embarrassed, right?

 

Quest 2: The Food Log.  When I do a food log, I succeed.  Then I stop the food log.  Then I stop succeeding.  It is time to fire up that food log again.

 

Quest 3: The Exercise Log.  I just started it here!  For those of you who are following, see you next week!

[Sam Ashen]

Monday morning.  Day Three.  In bed 10:30pm.  Radio goes of 6:30am.  It takes me a while to settle down and I should read before going to bed.  Getting up takes a while.  I drag myself out a little after 7am, at exactly the last moment.  I can measure my weeks performance based on how well I get out of bed during the week, how well my laundry gets done, how many days I make it to the gym, how many days I go home and eat first, how many days I go home and take a night off.  I still feel groggy at this time of morning and my energy low-point is mid-afternoon.  Being more disciplined about a slightly earlier bedtime and some reading time is in order.

 

From the quest list above, I forgot to mention one:  Boil three eggs.  I remembered that I forgot last night and posted while boiling the eggs.

 

I said I was going to re-start a food log.  That means going to a certain site I used a while ago and so much of what I do is repetitive that maintaining the log is stupidly simple.  Here is what I did so far in the day:

 

Breakfast is still done on the run.  I am not a morning person.  I throw in a bag what I am going to eat during the day, then fix myself a peanut-butter sandwich and grab some nuts on the way out the door.  So far I am at:

 

Breakfast: Handful of mixed nuts, Peanut-butter sandwich, Fage low-fat Greek yogurt, (plain) and one hard-boiled egg.  It is 10:15am and I am still feeling fine and will make it to lunch.

 

The bag now contains: 2 Hard-boiled eggs, 2 Apples, 1 Balance Bar, and 1 Smart-Ones box meal.  The measures of my mid-afternoon energy crash are how I feel, relatively, and if I need to drive home before going to the gym to eat something.

 

Tonight's work-out plan is:

A. 1 set of pull-ups, from fully extended arms and shoulders to the chin over the bar, up to and including the rep that does not quite make it.  This is the mock pull-up challenge.

B. 4 sets of 5 pull-ups to complete the warmup.

C. 5 sets of 5 squats at 255 pounds. (:yuck:)  This will also include warmup and cooldown sets.

D. 5 sets of 5 overhead presses at 120 pounds.  I have not specifically tried this before, so I will record where the forced (push-press) reps occur.

E. Sets of 5 deadlifts.  I am not trying hook grip this time.  I am going to try put the weight down and re-grip the bar and see how that affects my reps.

 

I will check in later tonight and let everybody know how I am doing.

 

EDIT:  I forgot to mention Monday morning weigh-in.  I checked in at 202 pounds.  Based on tape measurements, my lean mass is approximately 160 pounds.  The body-fat calculation based on tape measurements is very sensitive, so I think the lean mass based on the tape measurements is ±5 pounds.

[Sam Ashen]

Snacks got me to the end of the day just fine.  I went straight to the gym instead of straight home.  Uh oh!  What day is it today?

 

It's DEADLIFT DAY!  RAWR!

 

1x9 Pull-ups, warmup - This is my benchmark for the pull-up challenge.  9 is the rep that did not quite make it.  12 is my PR.

4x5 Pull-ups [edit - It was 5 reps per set, not 9.]

 

Squats

1x10x45 - warmup with the empty bar.

1x5x135 - lazy warmup

1x5x205 - warmup

5x5x255 - DING

1x7x205 - gotta be kidding cooldown

 

Overhead Press

1x10x45 - warmup with the empty bar

1x5x95 - warmup

5x5x120 - Last rep of last set had to be forced.  Gotta be kidding me!

1x7x95 - cooldown

 

Deadlift

1x10x45 - warmup with the empty bar

1x5x135 - lazy warmup

1x5x225 - warmup, last set with a double-overhand grip

1x5x315 - mixed grip, right over left, release and grip between each rep.

1x5x335 - mixed grip, left over right, release and grip between each rep.  Took too long getting around to the last two reps.

1x3x355 - mixed grip, right over left for the rest of the sets.  Now going for singles.

1x365 - smooth

1x375 - not so smooth.  Felt brutal.

1x385 - Say the Lord's Prayer and pull for the Glory of GOD!

1x395 - Say the Lord's Prayer and pull for the Glory of GOD!  Oh, and - DING!

At that - stick a fork in me.  I'm done!

1x7x315 - Oops.  I finished of with one more set.

 

Here is what I think I learned from these sets:  If you want it, you gotta pull!

 

Some massage therapist was trying to hit me up for business.  So ya - I am sure it looked pretty brutal.  We will see how I feel in the morning.  I should have tried to get a free sample.

 

EDIT:  Pounds here, not kilograms!  I'm not a monster!

 

Entered food log for the rest of the day.  The final score is:

 

2349 Calories

254 grams of Carbs - 133 grams of Sugar - I finished off one of the culprits.

86 grams of Fat

152 grams of Protein

3.478 grams of Sodium - There are three places I can look to fix that.  I will experiment a bit.

 

I closed the log.  It says if I do this every day for the next five weeks, I will lose 2 pounds.    I was not sure how to fill out their weight training part.

[SpecialSundae]

I use my own calculations for strength training because the MFP calculations tend to be based on a grandmother doing bicep curls. ;-)

[Sam Ashen]

I use my own calculations for strength training because the MFP calculations tend to be based on a grandmother doing bicep curls. ;-)

 

You use MFP too?  It is interesting that you picked up on it right away.  I just fired it up again yesterday because it is a pretty easy to use tool for keeping a log.  But ya - That is why I have not filled in their strength training log.

 

What do you use for calculations?  When I try to figure out the calories burned, I know the weight and can measure the distance, but have to guess at the efficiency and mechanical advantage.  So for one of the sets of squats, I get:

 

Body Weight: 200 pounds

Bar Weight: 255 pounds

Range of Motion: 28 inches

Number of Reps: 5

Assumed Efficiency: 10%

Mechanical Advantage: 100% (The weight is going up.)

 

Effective total weight: 255 + 0.5 x 200 = 355 pounds

 

So the energy burned is 5x2x28x355/0.1/36940x1 = 26.9 kCal.  I can compare that number to how hard I am sucking wind after the set - I suspect I was optimistic about the efficiency.

 

EDIT: Added in the effective total weight which is 355 pounds.

[Sam Ashen]

Okay.  I made it today.  Not quite as successful, but we tried to make new numbers.  Um.  Maybe look up three posts and see why.

 

1x10 Pull-ups, warmup - This is my benchmark for the pull-up challenge.  9 is the rep that did not quite make it.  12 is my PR.

4x5 Pull-ups

 

Squats

1x10x45 pound empty bar

1x5x135 lazy warmup

1x5x205

1x5x265 - Last round was successful, so I went up ten pounds.  Stood on the last two and sucked wind.

1x3x265 + 2x255 - Did not attempt the last two.  Stripped 10 pounds and went back in there.

1x5x255 - Stood on the last two and sucked wind.

1x5x255 - Better.  Did not stop to suck wind this time.

1x3x255 + 2x205 - Stripped 50 pounds and went back in there

1x8x205

 

Bench Press

1x10x135 - Warmup - Somebody else was waiting for the same bench so we worked in and I had a spotter!  

5x5x190 - First round successful.  Next three took a little touch from the spotter.  Last round was pretty good.

1x15x135 - Cooldown

 

Bent-Over Rows

1x10x45 pound empty bar warmup

1x5x135 warmup

5x5x175 - First round was good.  Last round had trouble completing the last rep.

1x10x135 cooldown

 

I was going to try some Power-Clean to Front Squat, but my wrist said no.

 

Now it is on to enter my food log and see what MFP has to say about me today.

 

Score for today is:

2219 Calories

231g Carbs / 108g Sugar - One culprit is all drained.

89g Fat

156g Protein

4.248g Sodium - Opened up a new can of culprit!

 

Oh.  MFP says I will lose 3 pounds in 5 weeks if every day is like today.  This time I recorded the main sets I did.  It does not take a calorie count for strength training exercises.  Um.  Maybe I am supposed to fill in weight lifting in the list of activities.

 

Added 90 minutes of strength training.  It says 412 Calories.  I will compare that to my stupid calculations and see how it does.  Now it says I will drop 7 pounds in 5 weeks at this rate. [i got 323 for my conservative calculation and 634 for my not so conservative calculation.  412 might not be that far off.  90 minutes of sucking wind should replenish 1350 calories, so that is a hard limit.]

 

Tomorrow I see my Ranger Trainer.  He likes to feed me Monsters among other things.    I can print the full details of the two-day log and he probably has stuff that I can use to fill in the diet.

[SpecialSundae]

You use MFP too? It is interesting that you picked up on it right away. I just fired it up again yesterday because it is a pretty easy to use tool for keeping a log. But ya - That is why I have not filled in their strength training log.

What do you use for calculations? When I try to figure out the calories burned, I know the weight and can measure the distance, but have to guess at the efficiency and mechanical advantage. So for one of the sets of squats, I get:

Weight and distance moved never came into my calculations.

I (controversially) used a heart rate monitor to begin with and the numbers it spat out seemed to correspond well with the weight lost whilst using them so used them as a basis for calculations.

Roughly works out as 5-6 calories per minute for powerlifting style sessions (heavy weights, low to moderate reps and long rests) and 7-9 calories minute when I'm doing higher volume with less rest (or being yelled at by coach).

That's for a 60kg woman so would be higher for a heavier man. Other lifting friends have just added 500-750 calories per day on lifting days with decent success.

Competition days are just a white wash.

[SpecialSundae]

And there are loads of Nerds on MFP. Loads of other lifters from elsewhere too.

[Sam Ashen]

I (controversially) used a heart rate monitor to begin with and the numbers it spat out seemed to correspond well with the weight lost whilst using them so used them as a basis for calculations.

Roughly works out as 5-6 calories per minute for powerlifting style sessions (heavy weights, low to moderate reps and long rests) and 7-9 calories minute when I'm doing higher volume with less rest (or being yelled at by coach).

That's for a 60kg woman so would be higher for a heavier man. Other lifting friends have just added 500-750 calories per day on lifting days with decent success.

 

Weight is not the only consideration and it is possible for the numbers to work out the same.  You might be in much better shape than I am.  You can measure that - and that measurement is V0₂ max.  Here is my best (imperfect) understanding of V0₂ max:

 

1. It is given to you as a number.  The units are mL/kg/min.

2. Multiply this number by your weight in kg and divide by 1000 get L/min.

3. This will correlate to how many calories per minute you can burn aerobically.  I think the number is a little more than 4, but I have not pin-pointed a source.

 

There are calculators out there.  A run that takes more than 10 minutes should work.  A 5k run would work -well- if you are a runner.  If you just stink at running (I am talking out of my assumptions again) then your inefficient stride will skew your VO₂ max number downwards.

 

So I see cardiovascular exercise as working to bring up that VO₂ max number, just like strength training is about bringing up your lifting numbers.

 

Wikipedia Article

 

Another article from Shapesense I will read later

[Sam Ashen]

Energy-wise, yesterday was pretty rough.  It felt like I rolled an 11 - barely made it on the Save versus Hunger roll.  Today I felt awesome, like I rolled a 20!  The numbers are skewed a little bit today because I was visiting my Ranger trainer and he likes to feed me.  I told him I was starting a food log and will be getting his advice, so we scrapped the cookies.  

 

I was also reading and participating in an online argument about squat rack etiquette and doing overhead presses and needing a squat rack to do overhead presses and listening to somebody say he presses a little more than a wheel on each side for sets of 5, but he can barely clean that weight.

 

Um, what??!?

 

What??!?

 

Here we go.

 

Set 1. 45 pound bar.  Power Clean.  10 Front Squats.  10 Overhead Presses.

Set 2. 95 pounds.  Power Clean.  10 Front Squats.  10 Overhead Presses.

Set 3. 115 pounds.  Power Clean.  5 Front Squats.  5 Overhead Presses.

 

Set 4.  135 pounds.  3 Power Clean to Front Squat to Overhead Press.  Last rep was a Push Press.

Set 5.  135 pounds.  3 Power Clean to Front Squat to Overhead Press.  Last rep was a Push Press.

 

Set 6. 135 pounds.  5 Power Clean to Front Squat to Push Press.

Set 7. 155 pounds.  5 Power Clean to Front Squat to Push Press.  The last Push Press was a fail.

Set 8.  165 pounds.  1 Power Clean to Front Squat to Push Press.

Set 9.  175 pounds.  1 Power Clean to Front Squat to  Push Press.

Set 10. 185 pounds.  1 Power Clean to Front Squat to Push Press.

 

Set 11.  185 pounds.  Power Clean.  5 Front Squats.

 

Set 12.  135 pounds.  Power Clean.  Front Squat.  3 Overhead Press, 2 Push Press.

 

Somewhere I am going to keep record scores so that I have something to compete against in the dietary off-days.  One goal on such an off-day might be to go to Buffalo Wild Wings and smash their Sampler Platter and Desert Sampler.  

 

My Score for Today

3348 Calories

302g Carbs / 114g Sugar

147g Fat

224g Protein

5.157g Sodium - That Sub Sandwich was - Holy Cow!!!

 

At this rate I will gain 4 pounds over the next 5 weeks!  Tomorrow I am meeting up with the Warrior Trainer!  We will see what his ideas are.

[SpecialSundae]

How many trainers do you have? Do they all know about each other? Not in a jealousy way, in a "gonnae no fuck your client up" way.

I can press more than I can clean because clans have never been part of my programme and presses always have. Lots of people are the same!

[Sam Ashen]

How many trainers do you have? Do they all know about each other? Not in a jealousy way, in a "gonnae no fuck your client up" way.

 

One day I might think of one for every character class, on either a formal or informal basis.  In the summer, I might take up running again because I like running outside when it is 35°C and I will call the leader of that group my Scout Trainer.  If I ever take up martial arts again, then I will have a Monk Trainer.  Currently, I have been oriented towards Warrior-style training since this 5x5 Stronglifts bug bit me.  (Also known as screw the weight - Let's up up some numbers!)

 

I have worked formally with trainers over the past fifteen years.  It helped a lot when I started because it gave me accountability for being at the gym.  I had a cycle of showing up and doing a routine for a couple of months, then falling off the wagon.  That cycle turned into trainer dependence - where I would show up at the gym just to see the trainer.

 

The first gym I went to sold memberships based on whether I was using the gym on Monday, Wednesday , Friday - Or Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday.  That was interesting.  When I paid for those days, I had a strong incentive to show up on those days.  When I upgraded my membership to any day, there was not so much incentive.

 

Since then, I have changed towns three times and joined a new gym.  I had a long cycle of doing very well, then stagnating.  The last time I moved was five years ago.

 

The last person I worked with got to see me go through that cycle of doing well, then stagnating, then suddenly dropping 30 pounds in a year, (I gave up beer.) then stagnating again, then discovering the joy of lifting.  He does not work there anymore, but he is now a friend of mine and we hang out.

 

Six months ago, there was an Alpha class, which is related to Crossfit training.  It started with a ten or fifteen minute strength drill, then conditioning drill.  They went through a couple of instructors for the class, then ran out of people available and qualified to instruct.  However, I have a couple of surplus sessions.

 

 

 

I can press more than I can clean because clans have never been part of my programme and presses always have. Lots of people are the same!

 

I only worked on technique within the past year.  On my phone, there is a video of a very ugly power clean.  I used to call them power-nasties because the technique could not be called "clean" by any stretch of the imagination.  I never tried a front-squat until about six months ago.

 

Over the same six months, my Overhead Press 1RM increased by about 10kg.  It might be related to a 5kg gain in body weight.  Or it might be related to learning how to do a front squat and power clean.

 

ADDED:  My achievement for today is turning down ice cream cake, telling everybody this is how much I dislike Valentine's Day.  

 

Oh - Speaking of being bit by the Stronglifts bug, in the Recruit Challenges, I saw a kid get bit by the bug for the first time.  I might suggest she check out some Warrior challenges and logs - or send her to your daily log.

[Sam Ashen]

Given yesterday's record score, getting through today on my rations was not really a problem.  Save 18.

 

Today, of course, was slightly different.  I warmed up with a 10-minute run, nothing killer.  Then:

 

Front Squat

1x10x45 pound empty bar

1x10x135

3x8x155

 

Backwards Lunges

1x10x45 pound empty bar - 5 each leg, 10 total

1x20x95 - 10 each leg - had to pause a couple of times for a breather and lunges are pretty new to me.

1x20x95 - This round went better.  Part of it is coordination.

1x16x95

 

Incline Bench Press

1x15x45 pound empty bar

1x10x115 - with 4-second negative - had to take breaks to get through it

1x10x115 - with 4-second negative - as above.  I did not record where I had to pause.

1x10x115 - with 4-second negative - as above.  More pauses

 

Bent-Over Row

1x15x45 pound empty bar

1x10x135 - with 4-second negative.  Form got sloppy in late reps.  Dropped weight for next set.

1x10x115 - with 4-second negative

1x10x115 - with 4-second negative.  Form got fatigued by rep 7 or so.

 

Dumbell Step-Up This was alternated with the Bent-Over Rows above

1x20x2 55 pound dumbells - Pause in the middle of the set.  I was getting wtfpwnt.

1x20x2 55 pound dumbells - Same as above, but got a little further in the reps.  It is 10 each leg for 20.

1x16x2 55 pound dumbells - Pause in the middle of the set.

 

Ab work.  Knee raise up to Leg raise down.

 

MFP says I would have burned the same number of calories by running for 15 minutes at 10 km/h.  My body is telling me otherwise.

 

The score for today:

2369 Calories

236g Carbs / 105g Sugar

92g Fat

161g Protein

4.438g Sodium

 

The pattern should be pretty consistent for on-days, and pretty random for off-days.  If I can keep Sunday under control, then the pattern should look like a heartbeat.  The best place to make a change would be at the grocery store.  In the next weeks, I will be coming up with stuff to do with this.  All I have posted here are numbers, so it is kind of hard to talk about what to take out and what to insert.  A grocery bill would make this very obvious.  I might still have my grocery bill.  Otherwise, I have to go by recollection.

 

Tomorrow is going to be an off-day.  Some people I know emailed and they are looking for help to move furniture around so they can get their carpet cleaned.  Hmm.  Maybe they are supplying pizza.  If I have to show up already fed, then I will be arriving later.

 

Saturday I will get some stuff done.  So I will be 5/7 days doing the weights.

 

Today marks Day 7 of this log and I still have not shown any before pictures.

[Sam Ashen]

All I really did today was help a couple of people move some furniture around so that they could get their carpet cleaned.  One had back surgery recently and the other had foot surgery and only one person answered the call to help.  It was pretty light work, anyway.  They did, in fact, order pizza, so I will take this as an opportunity to chalk up a record score in the food log.

 

I am going to call this my benchmark for biggest meal, but should not count because it was two sittings in three hours:

2650 Calories

352g Carbs / 106g Sugar

91g Fat

120g Protein

5.54g Sodium

 

It looks like one of my typical days!    And my hormones are still telling me to eat!     You suck, Little Caesar's!

 

The grand total for the day is:

4123 Calories

503g Carbs / 180g Sugar (Over a pound!)

153g Fat

204g Protein

6.9g Sodium

 

If every day were like today, I would gain 16 pounds over the next five weeks.  There was another cake at the office and I passed on that one, too!

[Sam Ashen]

Saturday.  Over at my buddy the Ranger Trainer's house doing what is pretty much Warrior training.  Showed up with a couple of extra plates and knew exactly what I intended to use them for.    I had written down what we did, but misplaced the paper and have to go by memory.  We had lots of time - no hurry anywhere.

 

45 pound empty bar - 10 Front Squats, 10 Overhead Presses

45 pound empty bar - 20 Bench Press - Okay.  Almost warm.

 

I decided at this point to work the Squats in with the Bench Press.

 

135 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Front Squat

135 pounds - Power Clean to Front Squat to 5 Reps Bench Press

 

155 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Front Squat

155 pounds - Power Clean to Front Squat to 5 Reps Bench Press

 

175 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Front Squat

175 pounds - Power Clean to Front Squat to 5 Reps Bench Press

 

185 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Front Squat

185 pounds - Power Clean to Front Squat to 5 Reps Bench Press

 

185 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Front Squat - Two attempts at Power Clean.  The first attempt was wtf?

185 pounds - Power Clean to Front Squat to 5 Reps Bench Press - Two attempts at Power Clean.

 

185 pounds - Clean to 5 Reps Front Squat - Again.  Two attempts to clean the bar.

185 pounds - Clean to 5 Reps Bench Press - Found the foot movement this time.

 

185 pounds - Clean to 2 Reps Bench Press

 

190 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Front Squat - Again.  Two attempts to clean the bar.

190 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Bench Press - The bar went up the first time.

 

195 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Front Squat - Not catching it low anymore, but the bar went up.

195 pounds - Power Clean to 5 Reps Bench Press - My buddy had to help me out on the last rep.

 

If you're poor and do not have a squat rack, then Front Squats are your friend.  If you're poor and don't have a bench with a rack, then either you get your friend to hand you the weight or you have to clean the weight up somehow.  I have not tried a roll of shame out of that position yet.  We are still working on the setup.  

 

The extra plates are for deadlifts, of course!

 

10 x 135 pounds - Double Overhand

5 x 225 pounds - Double Overhand

5 x 295 pounds - Mixed Right over Left

5 x 315 pounds - Mixed Left over Right

5 x 335 pounds - Mixed Right over Left

3 x 345 pounds - Mixed Right over Left - This bar really eats my hands.  See the second post way above.

2 x 355 pounds - Mixed Right over Left

1 x 365 pounds - Mixed Right over Left

1 x 375 pounds - Mixed Right over Left

1 x 375 pounds - Mixed Right over Left - Could not hold it long enough for a picture.  

1 x 385 pounds - Mixed Right over Left - Save versus Willpower 7.  Grip failed half way up and I set it back down.

1 x 365 pounds - Mixed Right over Left - Tried to get a picture, but did not hold at the top long enough.  Grip was shot.

1 x 345 pounds - MixedLeft over Right - Finally got the picture.  

 

Here is the 345 pound deadlift.  No belt.  No shirt.  Nice motivational picture.  Don't want to look like this fat guy!

 

 

And here are the other pics.  I will call this Week 1 - Before.

 

Front side, relaxed.  A bit blurry.

 

Front side.  Flex.

 

Back side.

 

 

Tried to beat the meal record, but did not quite get there.  The final score for today:

 

3760 Calories

408g Carbs / 131g Sugar

144g Fat

214g Protein

3.765g Sodium

 

Probably moving those peoples furniture back tomorrow, so that might not look so good.  Otherwise, on-days and off-days look about even.  Shopping tomorrow - The list is going to be pretty much a carbon copy of last week.

[Sam Ashen]

Sunday.  Rest day.  Mostly.  The same people who needed help Friday needed the same but opposite help Sunday.  They moved furniture around so they could get the carpets cleaned .  The carpets are cleaned and now the furniture needs to be moved back so the place can be lived in again.  Quest complete.  +1REP.  

 

The other days quests:

Shopping: Check

Laundry: Check

Boil 3 Eggs: Need to start that soon.

 

Today's score:

2210 Calories

283g Carbs / 122g Sugar

76g Fat

126g Protein

5.537g Sodium

 

The shopping list was pretty much a carbon copy of last week's, so next week's log should be a carbon copy of this week.  Next week is a week between challenges, so I will be setting up my list of goals for the week after and be ahead of the game for the next Challenge!

 

So far I am thinking:

Smash those glass ceilings that get between me and new PR's.  It's as easy as 2-3-4!

Get my bodyweight and 5x5 working bench press to match.

 

The first one, I should theoretically be very close to achieving.  The second one is a weight loss goal disguised as a strength goal.  A third goal would be to maintain this food and exercise log.

[Sam Ashen]

Monday morning is my time for weigh-in.  This morning I checked in at 200 - a little less than one week ago.  It takes a few weeks to establish a trend.  Most of our body weight is water, so I think the variation of weight from one day to another is mostly water and poop.  Since I follow a somewhat consistent weekly cycle, a weigh-in at the same time of week every week should establish a trend pretty quickly.

 

Looking above the goal I just set my sights on is 2/3/4 - so today I decided to work at one-rep maximum.

 

1 Set of Pull-ups this evening.  Got 9 reps in.

 

Squats

1x10 with a 45 pound bar - and we dinged the precise reason why I always warm up with this.  I lowered the bail-out bar one notch.

5x135

5x225

2x245

2x265

2x275 - I think my face turned several shades of red on the second rep.  Going one-rep now.

1x285

1x295 - And this I am calling my PR.  I will have to work on low-rep sets to improve on this.

 

DISCLAIMER: Until we see some videos, this all means SQUAT!

 

Bench Press

10x135 warmup

5x185

2x195

2x205

2x215 - Been a while since I tried this, so was shooting for a single rep which felt so good, I grabbed a second rep.

1x225 - DING!

1x225 - Put on the big plates just to show this glass ceiling has been shattered!

 

Several years ago, I was having amazing psychological trouble with this weight.  220 might be easy, but 225 just was not happening.  These reps were crushed!  The spotter backed away when he saw I had it.  This opens up new territory!  

 

Dead Lift

10x135 - Somebody left that bar lying there since I started.  Don't people rack weights anymore?

5x225

2x315 - This is still where I switch to a Right over Left mixed grip

2x335 - Going up slowly

2x355

1x365

1x385

1x405 - DING!

 

Slowly but surely, the weight went up.  4 plates!  Ironically, what I learned last week was if I want that lift, then I have to pull.  And I had to decide I want that lift.  Does this make sense?

 

Grip was no issue.  I held the weight at the top for a couple of seconds or so.

 

So in the quest for 2/3/4 I am just missing the 3 by 20 pounds.  A little bit of practice and psychological preparedness should get me there.  It was a good night!

 

The score for today:

2397 Calories

259 Carbs / 108

95 Fat

140 Protein

3.535 Sodium

[Sam Ashen]

Tuesday.  Messed up day at the office.  Back to the routine.

 

Pull-ups

1x9 - First set is AMRAP until my chin does not quite make it over the bar

4x5

 

Squats

1x10 45 pound empty bar

1x5x135

1x5x225

1x5x265 - Still ugh.  Get through it.  Try not to die.  Need healz.

1x5x245 - Decided to back off and go a little lighter

1x5x255 - Pause at the 4th rep, get some breaths in and do the last rep.

1x5x255 - Same as above.  Trying to not where the form starts coming undone.

1x5x255 - Wait until I get videos!

1x5x225 - Not really a cooldown weight.

 

I will give 255 another go in the next round and if I don't like it, I will drop to 225 and work back up.

 

Overhead Press

1x5x45 pound empty bar

1x5x95

5x5x120 DING! This marks a goal I set about two years ago.  Of course, I have gained 20 pounds since, but still.  

1x5x95

 

Deadlift

1x10x135 - Double Overhand Grip

1x5x225 - Double Overhand Grip

1x5x315 - Mixed Grip Right over Left

1x5x315 - Mixed Grip Left over Right

1x5x315 - Mixed Grip Right over Left

1x5x315 - Mixed Grip Left over Right

1x1x315 - Double Overhand Grip - It went up and the grip held!

1x6x315 - Mixed Grip Right over Left - Trying for AMRAP but got lazy.

 

Score for today:

2397 Calories

260 Carbs / 107 Sugar

89 Fat

149 Protein

3.906 Sodium

 

Pattern should be pretty consistent until I work on substitutions.  Managed to avoid cake and donuts at the office.  People are wondering what is up.  Time will tell if I feel OMG so hungry tomorrow.

[Sam Ashen]

Wednesday.  Tried to intermix bench press with core work.  I got the impression it just works out better either before or after, preferably after, but in between.  Harder to focus on the lifts.  The front-squats and bench presses from Saturday worked together nicely.  In the future I might insert something that I generally neglect, such as step-ups and lunges.

 

1x10x45 pound empty bar

1x5x135

1x5x155

1x5x175

1x5x192.5 - with help on the fifth rep

1x5x192.5 - with help on the fifth rep - This is when I found out I had a five pound plate on one side and two and a half on the other.

1x2x205

1x1x215

 

Core work was inserted between sets, but it is harder for me to define core work.

 

Score for today:

3103 Calories

257 Carbs / 84 Sugar (new low - go figure)

145 Fat

204 Protein

4.53 Sodium

[Bekah]

weight stuff I dont understand....

OMG YOU HAVE A BOSU and you are pretty solid in my opinion, not as fat as you might think

.....more weight stuff I dont understand

hi

[Sam Ashen]

weight stuff I dont understand....

OMG YOU HAVE A BOSU and you are pretty solid in my opinion, not as fat as you might think

.....more weight stuff I dont understand

hi

 

Hi!  Your profile says you are a Druid Ambassador.  If that means I get to call for diet advice, then I should post more specific information about what exactly I am eating.  The good part is breakfast, lunch, and day snacks are consistent like building blocks.  Most dinners are blocks, too.  I'm out once a week or so.  That's when I try to smash a high score on the log.  It gives me some purpose of keeping the log on off-days.

 

Where I struggle is cooking my own stuff.  More convenient to go out and meet people.  More convenient to throw a box in the microwave and hit the five-minute button.  So far, I have succeed in boiling eggs so that I have some eggs to take to work with me to go with my lunch.

 

What the building blocks mean is it should be pretty simple to pull X out and put Y in.  When I started this food log, I put the eggs in the weekday lunches.  I replaced a couple of yogurts with a single Plain Greek yogurt.  (Not paleo.  I know.)  I need some fruit in my diet, so I picked up a bag of apples.  I need some vegetables in my diet, so I picked up some celery, then celery and carrots.  I knew the V8-Fusion and diet Sierra Mist had to go, so I am trying the regular V8, then the low-sodium variety.

 

I think what I need to do is pick one day to be creative and make something.  So if I need more vegetables, I should go pick up some salad stuff and make a salad.  Do the same for a spaghetti.  I have done it successfully.  I did not die from it.  Pick a recipie from somewhere around here and give it a try.

 

You would probably tell me a druid's advice would be wonderful!  You might also tell me I can do this stuff, but just don't know it yet.

 

Thanks for checking in!    I will return the favor tomorrow.

[Bekah]

Me being a Druid ambassador means that I am here to help with whatever I can or point you to someone who can help if I have no clue, and I'm specifically tasked with doing that for potential/new members of the Druid guild, but can and will help anyone I am able.

I need to sleep but will address your question tomorrow

[Sam Ashen]

Thursday.  Surprise!  The new Challenge threads are up and I can join the Recruits for real!  I posted my Challenge and declared which boss fight I am going to participate in.

 

Hogger must die!  I remember the old days of playing World of Warcraft, this was one of the quests near the end of the Human starting zone.  For anybody new the the game, it was a very rude initiation to Elite mobs.  They are much tougher than regular mobs.  Might figure I'm Level 11 and he's level 10.  No problem.  Oops.  Okay.  Looking for Group:  Hogger must DIE!

 

For a long time, that was a two-plate bench press to me.  It weighs 225 pounds.  Loading up 220 pounds might be no problem, but forget about 225 pounds.  Monday night, I did it and it was no problem at all!  A glass ceiling has been shattered!  Now, I am trying to get a 3 plate squat.

 

The work tonight:

1 mile treadmill run as a warmup

 

Deadlifts:

1x10x135 pounds

1x5x225 pounds

5x5x315 pounds

 

Squats:

1x10x45 pound empty bar

1x8x135 pounds

1x5x185 pounds

5x5x225 pounds

 

A little bit lighter.  Go over some technicalities.  Identify the mistakes I make and when I make them.  Got a prescription for some remedial work on the med glute.  My knees wibble too and I try my best to fight it.  I think if I can remedy this, the squat will be much more powerful.

 

Deadlifts make me hungry.  I get home and start feeding my face with both hands.  I talk about eating so much, my auto-correct thinks my email address ends with ".nom"  I had to figure out an emergency pack to bust open to get me through to the end of the day.  The crust of bread at the end of the loaf and two glasses of water seemed to do the trick.  I have enough bread to make peanut-butter sandwiches all the way through Sunday.

 

I also noticed I have under-represented the calorie count of a peanut-butter sandwich in MFP.  Oops.  Check the labels.  2 slices of bread, plus supposedly 2 tablespoons of peanut butter.  Hmm.  How many tablespoons are there on a heaping butter knife?  If I really want to know, I could check if that jar lasts one month or two.  If I was really energetic, I could look up when I bought that jar of peanut-butter.  It is almost time for another jar.

 

Score for today:

2187 Calories

198 Carbs / 100 Sugar

95 Fat

153 Protein

3.385 Sodium

[Sam Ashen]

Friday.  Sluggish day at the office.  Somewhat under-rested.  The 3pm crash kind of hit.  But we made it!  Back to the routine.

 

Pullups:

10 - Same as benchmark.

4x5

 

Squats

1x10x45 pound empty bar

1x5x135

1x5x185

5x5x235 - Working back up to 265.

1x10x185 (88% of body weight by the way)

 

Bench Press

1x10x45 pound empty bar

1x5x135

5x5x190 DING  The spotter managed to grab a sixth rep out of the last set with a bit of assistance.  Those are the reps I feel the next day.

1x10x135 - because I felt lazy

 

Bent-Over Rows

1x10x45 pound empty bar

1x5x135

5x5x175 - A little bit of assistance at the last reps of the last sets.  One more here should do it.

1x5x135 - because I felt lazy

 

Normal routine is over.  Time for messing around.  

1x10x45 pound empty bar - cleans.  whatever.  Just get the wrists loosened up.  The right one is giving me grief and telling me where to go.

 

Power Cleans

5x1x135 pounds - Just singles.  Getting the motion loose.

1x155 pounds

1x175 pounds

1x185 pounds

1x195 pounds

1x205 pounds - Took two attempts

1x215 pounds - DING!  Took two attempts.  Caught it low.  The rep was pretty ugly.

 

Fixed the glitch with the peanut-butter sandwich.  I could not find generic peanut butter sandwich made by a glutton on MFP, so I just used two slices of break and assumed one serving of peanut butter.  I have to pick up some more over the weekend (or starve) so in a month or so I should have a better idea how much I really use.  I am thinking 1.25 to 1.50 servings.

 

Score for today:

2192 Calories

211 Carbs / 92 Sugar

95 Fat

144 Protein

3.219 Sodium