Wednesday

I was feeling sore today, so I kept it relatively low intensity for the day.

Prasara Forest Flow x 2
Prasara Spider Monkey x 2

TacFit Israeli Challenge/ 4 reps each at top of minute x 8 minutes

FOAM ROLL

That's it, nice and light and mobile for a good recovery day. I worked up a light sweat and got my joints moving ad called it a day. My nutrition has been pretty good for the past few days and my sleep has been at least 8 hours a night. I started taking fish oil supplements today, so I will see how that works.

Training for Past 3 Days

Ok, I need to keep a consistent training schedule and journal, and I really like the online blogging. Here we go, today is Wednesday.

Sunday 10-9-2011

with Double 24kgs:
Snatch+MP+Front Squat, one rep on the minute = 22 minutes

I plan to increase this next time, after I cycle through the training routine.

Monday 10-10-2011

Fell's Point: 11:32

Tuesday 10-11-2011

AMRAP 12
32kg High Pull x 5 R/L
100m Run
HSPU x 10

= 6 rounds, disappointed. I have got to increase my ability to run. I feel like the run should be more of a recovery than anything, especially only 100m. Did this one outside at Mountain View Park.

March 4, 1944

This is the day that my Jajji (grandpa in Polish) was shot down in his B-17 bomber on a mission to bomb a ball-bearing plant in Germany. He was the left waist-gunner on the aircraft called "Spare Parts". He was part of the 8th Air Force, 381st Bombardment Group, 532nd Bomb Squadron. They flew out of Ridgewell, England. He and his crew were shot down and taken prisoner by the Nazi's. Jajji was a POW at Stalag Luft VI and Stalag Luft IV (the Stalag Luft's were German prison camps especially for captured aircrew). He spent over a year at those camps, getting fed a starvation diet and given no amenities. In March 1945, he and his compatriots were marched out of Stalag Luft IV and force marched for 3 months across Europe. It was one of the coldest winters Germany had ever seen. These men were given even less food than in the camp, forced to march despite illness and injury, forced to sleep in barns or in fields, and infected with dysentary and pneumonia. They were shot if they lagged behind. This is the famous "Black March". Next to the Bataan Death MArch, it is considered the worst crime ever committed against American POWs. They were eventually liberated by the British and Americans, in what was to be a sad day for the Germans.

Jajji is still here, and he is the greatest man I know. He is endlessly selfless and will do anything to se a smile on your face. He is caring, kind, generous, and compassionate to everyone. He proudly wears his "Air Force Veteran" hat and displays his "Prisoner of War" license plate. I am so proud to know him and can only hope to emulate the kind of man he is.


Jajji is in this photo with his crew. He is in the back row, second from the right, with a huge smile on his face.

ETK Medium Day

Clean and Press

28kg/ 4 x (1,2)

L-pullups/ 4, at top of each ladder

2x24kg Front Squats / 5 at top of each ladder

Swings
32kg/ 6+6 at top of minute x 12 minutes

Next time I think I will try to move to 7+7 with the 32kg swings. I felt really good at the end of the 12 minutes and I think I can progress this. Watched Band of Brothers during the workout. Probably had something to do with my great session.

VO2Max Day

Snatches with the 16kg

15 ON:15 OFF x 55 sets

I did 7 reps per set. I wanted to hit at least 60 sets, but my lower back was trashed. I feel Like I should have loosened a bit more before going into it, because I was really tight from school all day. Sleep was OK, nutrition was OK.

ETK Heavy Day

Clean and Press

28kg/ 4x (1,2,3)

alt. with

L-Pullups/ 4x (1,2,3)

2x24kg Front Squat x 5 at top of each ladder

24kg Swings/ 9 minutes @100%

=187 swings

I felt good with the pressing and the pullups. I'm not sure what was going on with the 24kg swings at the end. I feel like I should have gotten at least 1.5 times that amount, but my body just wasn't having it. Nutrition has been crap for the past few days because its my birthday. Maybe that has something to do with it. Sleep is the usual school schedule.

ETK Medium Day

Clean and Press
32kg/ 3 x (1,2) r/l

Alt. With

L-pullups
3 x (1,2)

Front Squat at top of each ladder
2x24kg / 5

Swing
32kg/ 6+6 at top, x 11 minutes

I went a little heavier on this one today. I think I might find a happy medium somewhere between the 24 and the 32 for the clean and presses. The 32 was ok for only 2 reps, but I think as the reps get higher I will have trouble progressing. The 28kg might be just perfect. The 24 felt a little light, and I think that I would not be utilizing my full potential by only pressing that.
The swings were actually more difficult than I thought. If my math is ight, I did 132 swings with the 32kg in 11 minutes. I am pleased with this performance. I wanted to go heavier on the swings at least one day per week, because I want the 24kg to start to feel like a baby weight, which will help my progress with the SSST.
My nutrition was pretty good today and my sleep was ok.

VO2 Day

This day takes the place of my ETK Light Day.

Snatches with the 16kg:

15:15 ON:OFF

7 reps per set, alternating arms

This is from Kenneth Jay's Viking Warrior Conditioning book. I highly recommend this book if you want to learn some really good cardiovascular training. I think this protocol developed by KJ will benefit anyone in achieving excellent cardio health. It would be especially good for endurance athletes, either in the off season or as an adjunct to their normal training. He gives an excellent, semi-periodized plan for getting you to increase your VO2Max, Lactate Threshold, and Power Output, among other things. Check it out over on www.dragondoor.com.

ETK Heavy Day

Ok, this protocol is really awesome. Pavel is a real genius. This is my first day of ETK (again). Only had the 24kg with me while traveling, so it was all done with the 24kg:

Clean and Press L/R 3 x (1,2,3)

L-Sit Pullups 3x(1,2,3)

Pistols 5/5, at top of each ladder

Swings/ 10 minutes: 225

I warmed up and cooled down with prasara yoga flows. This was a good session. I want to see how my left shoulder holds up with the high volume of presses that is to come in the next few weeks. The tentative plan is to increase the ladders by 1, in each of the next two weeks. On the fourth week, I will test my max Clean and Press. I will also swing the 32kg on the medium day, instead of the 24kg. I will only perform the Medium and Heavy days, replacing the Light day with the VWC 15:15 protocol. Variety days will be just that.

For this day, my lower back was tight after the swings, but I balanced it out well with some prasara at the end. Nutrition was OK today. It's the weekend and we are traveling, so it could be better, but I'm not disappointed. My sleep last night started late, but also ended late, totaling about 9.5 hours.

Training 110120

0930:

Tiny Murph:
400m run
50 Pullups
100 Pushups
100 Air squats
400m run
18:36

This took me a lot longer than it should. I have never really been good at training in the AM. It's not because I don't want to, its just that my schedule for the past years has logistically made it easier for me to train in the evening. That is a gap in my fitness that I need to remedy. The 400m sprint in the beginning took a lot more out of me than I expected. Surprisingly, the hardest part was the air squats. I will progress this one and reduce the time for sure. My nutrition for the morning was pretty good. I tried a new meal that I am still experimenting with for breakfast. Egg Beaters with salsa and lentils, all mixed in a bowl. It was good but I'm not sure how it will work for training purposes.

1730:

Snatches w/ 24kg Kettlebell

5+5 at top of minute for 15 minutes

I did this one with Kris. He did 15 swings at the top while I did snatches. It was a pretty good session. For the first ten sets my rep speed was off the chart. I was getting the 10 snatches with a hand switch in about 22 seconds. The last five sets the speed slowed to about 30 seconds per, but I was happy with the initial rep speed. Overall, a good training session. My nutrition prior was a turkey bacon sandwich from Starbucks a few hours after lunch of a bagel sandwich. Followed this up with dinner of shredded beef cheesesteak sandwiches (the quality beef, not SteakUmms). I will work to increase the number of minutes and then the number of reps per minute with this workout.

Training 110119

After class at about 1415:

Run 500m - 2:06

Deadlift
3x335/3, 1x345/1

That's it. The gym was crowded and for whatever reason I wasn't feeling it. Maybe it was the early morning to class and the 5 hours of sleep. Nutrition for the day was OK, but not awesome because I got hungry more than I should have. Went out at night and had two beers, which is OK but overall not conducive to training goals.