Great Weekend

Finished the month of August with another PR! I was pretty excited about coming into the gym today in hopes of following up Wednesday's Clean PR. Things went very well. September 1st marks the time of the year when things start to get a little crazy for me...HUNTING SEASON IS HERE!! It's a gonna be tough to get my workouts in during the next few months, especially once Oct.-Dec. come rolling around and the hunting gets good, but I'll do my best not to fall off. Stay tuned!

OWOD

Snatch - est. a new 1RM
bar progressions
75(3x3)-95(2x3)-135(3)-155(2) --- 175 - 185 - 205 - 215 - 215 - 225 - 225 - 235 - 245 - 245
- My hips and timing felt great from the start. Felt really fast and smooth the entire night. I kept my long sleeve on to keep the body temp up and I always think that helps to stay nice and loose. I was feeling really confident after hitting the 235# because it felt very fast. My bar speed on my lifts now compared to the beginning of the Summer is night and day. All the time spent in the gym and dissecting youtube clips of great lifters, reading this and that, and being super critical of myself is really starting to pay off. I should've stopped at 235#, but I was just too tempted. I'll just say 245# is very close!!

Snatch 235#

245# Miss

went home and got about 5 hours of sleep...walked to the bathroom and my hands and shoulders were just aching...laced up my boots and grabbed Mya and my shotgun...God rewarded me with this great morning!!

Lots of action, lots of laughs...can't ask for more!!

Snuck in this little at home WOD on Monday evening after some fun in the water...

WOD

3 rds FT:

 400m Run

 15 C2D Push Ups

 30 Squats

= 9:26

-  Nice little WOD to get me moving after a beer & meat filled night the evening before. Thighs were burning a bit on that last run. Those last 30 squats didn't feel good either! Gotta get a lot better.

Not As Good As I Hoped

Going on my 6th day in a row here. I had every intention on resting this morning. I went in to coach Oly and saw some great lifts this morning by Tiny, Tara, & Kir. Tiny is a big man who has been working his butt off to lose some weight and get better at his lifts through technique and mobility. He hit some great looking snatches this morning! It's hard to describe, but watching a 350+ pound fella hit full catch in the snatch is pretty stinking cool! Huge strides for him! Tara & Kir have been working real hard at technique and strengthening their squats. Both ladies hit some solid PRs today. As I was coaching I kept working on some shoulder mobility and I was pretty jazzed up by the time they were done so I decided to give it a go.

OWOD

Snatch - est. a new 1RM
bar progressions & drilling
75(full, hang, hang - 2 x 2) - 95(3 pos.- 2 x 2) - 125(3 pos. x 1) - 135(2) - 155(2) - 165 - 185(2) - 195 - 205 - 215 - 225 - 225
- I was slightly disappointed in how this turned out. I was feeling very good all the way up to 185#. I was staying nice and warm and had a good groove going. Timing was on, everything was feeling good. Then, I had to take an unexpected break to help with some drop ins that were checking things out that took a little longer than expected. By the time I got back to the bar my body was already shutting things down. I tried to pick up where I left off at 185 and I was starting to stiffen up. I tried to take it back down to 135 and start from there again, but nothing felt how it did. My shoulders were starting to ache every time I dropped the bar. I eventually got up to 215 and stuck it. I gave 225 two cracks and called it a day...I just had lost my mojo man. Bummer, but it just wasn't meant to be today...that's all.

Fine Tuning...

Woke up early to get my last Oly session in before the competition on Saturday. KG & Alex joined me to get their final prep work in as well. Brandon showed up to break in the jerk boxes we just built. He PR'd in his jerk the first time on the boxes. We agreed it defnitely made them worth it as it was a well earned PR.

OWOD
Clean & Jerk - 3 x 1 @ 75%
bar progressions
135(2+1)-155(2+1)-175-185-205-225 --- 235 - 235 - 235
- Started with the C&J today because I was having some jerk issues on Monday. Wrist is still a little tight from last Saturday's work, but nothing a little extra mobility over the next few days can't fix. Cleans felt solid, but the jerks felt a little slow still. Will need to stay focused to get this done right on Saturday. Thought this would be my stronger of the two lifts, but my mind is changing after the last two sessions.


Muscle Snatch - 3 x 2
95 - 115 - 135
- Wanted to make sure my turnover was sharp so I through these in just to drill some muscle memory transitioning to the OH position.

Snatch - 3 x 1 @ 75%
135-155 --- 175 - 175 - 175
- Snatch felt sharp again...very fast at the hip and strong on the 1st pull. Looking forward to this one on Saturday. I walked out each lift at 175 a step or two, but nothing too far on the toes.

I'm as ready as I'm gonna be so let's get it on!!

Here We Are...

Monday before the comp. I felt a little drained from being out in the heat yesterday at the race track, but it was for a great cause so I'm not gonna sweat any lingering affects from it. Got in early for my first Oly session this week and after we got started on CF Prevail's newest equipment addition...Jerk Boxes!!


OWOD
Snatch - 3 x 1 @ 85% [195#]
bar progressions
95(3)-135(2)-155-155-165-175-185 --- 195 -195 -195
- Feeling a little stiff from the weekend in my back. Wrist was a little tight from the heavy loading Saturday so I was dealing with some weird twinge in my right arm, but otherwise felt good. I had some small walkouts on all 3 working singles, but nothing major. Still felt very good about the lifts in general.

Clean & Jerk - 3 x 1 @ 85 [265#]
225-245 --- 265 - 265 - 265
- Wrists were pretty tight from the beginning. I missed the first lift because my fingers rolled off on the clean and I lost the bar when I tried to pop and re-grip. Second lift was solid. Third lift my fingers rolled off again, but I was able to get them back on barely. I caught my wrist wrong on the jerk and fought it out a bit to stabilize, but let it go before I would call it a good lift.

Back Squat - 4 x 2 @ 85% [390]
315(5)-365(3) --- 390 - 390 - 390 - 390
-Felt strong and fast on these. Good adaptation to weight.


After the OWOD, we started building these beauties....

... it took all day (12+ hours), but they will be well worth it when it comes to building speed under the bar and power overhead!

Love It When a Plan Comes Together

As usual I headed into the gym early to get my Oly session in. I'm really starting to enjoy these early Saturday morning sessions. Rolling up the bay doors and lifting with the Sun coming up being solo in the gym has a pretty sweet vibe to it. Took yesterday completely off and just hung out with the family. Still feeling a little the squats from Wednesday a bit, but I got loose pretty easily. Time to get to work.

Mock Meet
Snatch - warm up and take your best 3 attempts
bar progressions
95(3) - 135 - 155 - 175 - 185 - 195 - 205 --- 215(93%) - 220(96%) - 225(98%)
- Right away I knew this was gonna be one of those sessions where everything goes right. I felt fast through the middle and solid at the bottom. No problems in front. In fact, I stapled my feet to floor all and held a short pause at the bottom before standing each one up on all three attempts. Cleanest attempts I've made to date. Has me very excited about the possibilities of next Saturday.

Clean & Jerk - warm up and take your best 3 attempts
225-245-265-275-285 --- 295(93%) - 305(96%) - 310(98%)
- Rushed through this in about 20 minutes. Felt real good with weight. 295 was a little sloppy on the jerk, but passable. 305 I failed the jerk. I lost focus on the dip to fatigue I think. The clean felt strong so I decided to move past it because I know I've got it in the tank. Took a little longer to rest before attempting 310, initially I planned on 315. Clean was good. Jerk was the strongest and fastest of the 3...probably would have been fine with 315.


Closing Thoughts
 My last meet I totaled 215 (S:90; C&J:125). If I hit the numbers I did today I will be extremely pleased with the results regardless of where I finish. Depending on how I feel that day I may bump my first attempts up to 95-96% and possibly chase some PRs on my 3rds if all goes as planned.
 I'm extremely pleased with the Oly program I've put together over the last few weeks. I've never felt this comfortable at 90+% of my 1RMs, much less made this many successful lifts this often at these higher percentages. I had my doubts after a few bad sessions in the last two weeks, but held tight to the programming. I came out of today feeling great and exactly how I hoped I would. Very excited to see everything come together next weekend!

Lots and Lots of Legs

As I write this tonight I can feel the DOMS creeping into my thighs. Last two days I've put a lot pressure on em. Gettin' a little tight, but I'm recovering well. Golfed for the first time in 2 years yesterday...it reminded me why I don't try to get out anymore...I'm terrible. I'm pretty content being terrible that way though so it's okay. I have my shots here and there, but I do enjoy a good cart ride in the sun. It'll be a long time before I ever play 18 holes again though. My ADD can't handle being on the course that long. Here's the run down of the last two days.

6.26.12
Hill Work @ Hart's Hill
5 bounds x 5 (roughly 48' covered)
50yd Sprints x 10 (:75 Rest)
- Stayed with the same volume this week because of the comp coming up. I probably will skip the hill next week altogether until the comp is done. Took the rest time down to see how my lungs and legs would respond. Still felt real good. Actually, I think I recovered faster and better than last week when I gave myself more time.


6.27.12
OWOD
Snatch - 20:00 to a heavy single (more like 30)
bar progressions
95(3)-115(2)-135-155-165-175-185-195-205- 215 - 215 - 215 -215 - 215 - 215
- As I headed North on this one I was feeling really good. I actually thought til 215 that it might be a PR type of day. 207 is 90% so I'm still working in the range that I would like to be in. I would like to be a little more consistent heading into the comp, but we'll see. Turnover is killing me right now. I was supposed to some Snatch pulls, but with all the misses today I figured I would skip them. I recorded my 3rd attempt, but of course I made it easy so the vid wasn't much help. I used straps today once I got above 200 because my forearms were just fatigued...maybe from golfing...I don't know.

Back Squat - Doubles; 10:00 EMOM @ 80-90%
135(8)-225(8)-315(5) ---
365 - 365 - 365 - 385 - 385 - 385 - 405 - 405 - 405 - 405
- Needed some nice heavy lifting to blow some frustration off from the Snatch work. Been wanting to do some ME work on squats for awhile now. Looking back I would have done 365 x 2, 385 x 2, 405 x 3, and 415 x 3. Don't get me wrong those last 4 sets of 405 were well earned, but I would have like to have gotten to 415 for at least 2 sets. Not gonna get back to 500 taking the easy way out. I have to keep that in mind when going under the bar more consistently.

WOD
10-1
  KB Swings (53#)   (All UB)
1-10
  Box Jumps (30")   (yep..I had some misses and pauses)
= 5:27
- I've never done tall box jumps before and now that I've done em...I don't get all the fuss about em. If any thing they seemed a little easier to rebound off of them because you had to slow down and step off correctly. Once you get used to the drop, I don't think it's any different than a regular 24" box. KB swings were money tonight, usually they tear my POC up. I should have used the bigger bell, but I was more focused on working the box jumps than anything else.

Rough Morning

Been feeling a little tight, but good energy wise. I got some running work in yesterday and woke up early for an Oly session today. Getting my body moving early in the morning is proving to be pretty difficult.

6.21.12
Endurance WOD
200m x 10 (:90 REST)
*keep splits within 2-3 seconds
Runs 1-5 = :39-:42
Runs 6-10 = :40-:41
- This started off as a mess. I really wanted to get on a track to do this WOD so I wouldn't have to deal with any sharp turns or down and back business., but it didn't work out that way. I took a tour of 3 local high schools and arrived at each one to find the PE classes or football programs using them or it was under construction. After all that, I ran at home. Recovered well between runs. Solid effort.


6.22.12

OWOD
Snatch - 20:00 to establish a 1RM
bar progressions
115(3)-135(3)-155-175-185- 195 - 195 - 195 - 195
 5:00 REST
Power Clean & Push Jerk - 20:00 establish a 1RM
135 - 185 - 225 - 245 - 275
- Late night at the drive in made for a rough morning. Visited my buddy down at TIU for this session. I remember the equipment being in slightly better shape and I'll leave it at that. It was different and that was probably good. I've gotten pretty comfortable lifting at Prevail and using the same equipment all the time.  I think it was good mentally just to adapt to a different place and equipment. I had a poor attitude from the beginning and that carried over into my lifting. Cashed in my chips early.


 WOD
50 DUs   [UB]
10 Cleans (135#)   [UB]  
40 DUs   [1 MISS]
8 Cleans (145#)   [5-3]
30 DUs   [3 MISSES]
6 Cleans (155#)   [3-3]
20 DUs   [1 MISS]
4 Cleans (165#)   [UB]
10 DUs    [UB]
2 Cleans (175#)   [UB]
 = 6:35
- Frustrated about this morning's Oly session I snuck in to Prevail this afternoon to do yesterday's WOD. Heard some times from friend's and wanted to see what I could do with it. The clean ladder was supposed to start at 115# and end at 155#, but I felt that was too light for me, plus I'd rather just start with a plate on the bar.
  Transitions were fast. I used clips for the round of 10 only. Lost my grip on the bar in the round of 8. Dropped the bar in the round of 6...legs were starting to burn!! Had some misses on the rope, but it never took me long to get it together again and start swinging. I was pretty winded after the first two rounds. Happy with this one. Definitely allowed me to get some frustration out!

Cash Out
GH Raise - 3 x 8
Hip Exten. - 3 x 10 (25#)

Not Fast Enough

Got up early today for some Oly work at Prevail. Felt a little stiff, but well rested. Need to get my morning mojo back because I sure didn't have it today.

OWOD
Snatch - 7 x 1
Bar Prog.
95(3)-135(3)-155-175 ---
185 - 195 - 205 - 215 -215 -215 - 205
- Wheels just fell right off this morning. I felt good through warm ups and solid on the ladder up. I stuck 205 clean and at that point thought I'd be moving up to 225-230ish again today....insert SCREECHING BRAKE NOISES. I got to 215 and fell apart. I don't know if my back just started to fatigue or what. My pull started coming out and when I tried to bring it back in on the next two reps everything just felt off. Following my 3 strike rule, I brought it back down to 205. I got it, but it was UGLYYY!! Some days you got it and some days you don't. Added some more volume to the body this week probably just needing some time to adjust.

Back Squat - 5-3-1+@75-85-95% [425]
225(8)-275(5) --- 320 - 365 - 405(6)
- Surprise Surprise!! I got under the bar at 225 and thought 405 was gonna be pretty rough today. Thought the same thing after hitting 365 for 3. The bar felt light at 405 for some reason and I hit 3 without pausing and gained some motivation for 3 more. I found a nice bounce out of the bottom and called it at 6. 7 or 8 was a definite possibility!

Snatch Pulls - 4 x 3 (heaviest possible)
225 - 235 - 245 - 255


WOD
"Jackie"
1000m Row   [3:43; 20 s/m; damper@6]
50 Thrusters (45#)   [all UB]
30 Pull Ups   [15-5-2-2-2-2-2]
= 7:21 (:54 PR from Dec 11)
- Real happy about this one! Last time I blew everything I had in row and died on the thrusters and finished with a time of 8:15. A took this one on a little smarter this time. Took my time on the row, I think it was probably still a little too fast. Very pleased I pulled the thrusters off UB. I had a lot of pauses to shake my legs out, but I never dropped the bar (CT made sure of that). Got to the pull up bar and was hoping to get 20 on the first set, but couldn't. I probably could have gutted out a 3-3-2-2 on the last 10 to shave off a few more seconds, but oh well.
 I was real happy to see this one come up for two reasons. Two of my best friends did it recently and they both beat me, so I was anxious to settle the score (I lost to the small one by 6 seconds and smoked the big one by about 40 seconds). The competition I will be participating in has a modified Jackie as one of the WODs I will have to do on day 2, so this was a good practice session.

Oly Work

Grindin'! Got up early to get my Oly work in before everyone else showed up. Love my alone time in the gym. Less talk, more work. Reminds me of the old days in Pat's garage with Greg. Feeling refreshed and ready to get back to work. I only got a few more weeks before competition so I really got to get it in gear.

OWOD

15:00 to establish 1RM
bar progressions
95(3)-135(2)-155-175-195-205-215-225-235-235
- I enjoyed working with the time cap. Made me work on a couple of things: staying focused, dealing with bigger jumps, shorter rest periods, and NOT chasing weight. I didn't have a single miss until 235#. I stuck the 225# cleaner than ever...even held it at the bottom for a three count because it felt so good. I went for 235# as time ran out. First miss was terrible...swung it way out in front, but had plenty of pull though. Time ran out, so I told myself I would only take one more shot at it. Big pull, had it overhead, but just couldn't hold on....very very close!! Time to move one...purpose of the time cap!

Snatch Balance - 4 x 2 (heaviest possible, rest 60-90 seconds)
205-225-230-240
- I actually lost my first rep at 205. Regrouped and everything got a lot easier. 240 was a probably more of fast descending OHS, but being able to control the weight and stabilize once hitting bottom is a big confidence builder.

Snatch Pulls - 4 x 2 (heaviest possible, rest 60-90 seconds)
240-245-250-255
- Solid pulls. Good overload. Positioning and speed felt good through out.

Quick Game of Catch Up

The last two weeks of school have been hectic. Been pretty busy shutting down shop around the school and cleaning things up for the Summer. This is just gonna be a quick run down of what has transpired since my last post...

5.29.12
Strength
Floor Press - no 1RM on this one so I just tinkered with some weight. FPs have been causing some weird elbow twinge/pain so I'll probably be laying off of these from now on.
bar(12)-135(12)-175(10)---225(8)-245(8)-265(5)

DH Pull Ups + ME Kip (in between sets of Floor Press) --- 8+5 - 6+5 - 4+7

Back Squats ---
   bar(10)-135(10)-225(10) --- Banded Squats - 225 + reds (6) - 225 + blues(6) [both were too light]
   Squats w/ hanging KBs --- 3 x 5 @ 225 + 24k bell
-Pretty tight from the Stars and Stripes WOD the day before. Deload week so I was playing with some ideas for the squats. I really like banded squats so I was playing with them a bit, but we just don't have the right equipment to keep the proper tension on the bar to make it worth while. Hopefully, we can get some chains in the gym this Summer.

TGU - 3 x 3 @ 24k


5.31.12
Strength
Push Press - supposed to be deload, but my gym appearance has been sporadic so I went heavier
bar(10)-95(8)-135(5)-155(5) --- 165(5) - 175(5) - 185(5)

WOD
5 rounds of:
   40 DUs (UB, 1 miss per round after that)
   10 Push Press (95#) (all UB)
= 3:59

5:00 REST

2 BONUS rounds
= 11:40
- We did this one a while back, but the movements were in reverse order. I was pumped...I PR'd by :13 seconds. I was a lot calmer with the rope despite the miss each of the last 4 rounds. I was only gonna take a 4:00 minute rest at first, but something happen and I lost track of time. I had planned on doing 3 rounds, but my shoulders were burnt out. I had 6-7 misses on the rope in the second bonus round so I called it.

6.2.12
OWOD
Snatch - 8 x 2 @ 80%
bar progressions - 95(3POS. x 2) - 135(2) - 155(2) - 165(1x1) - 175(x11) ---
80%=185# (1.1 - 1.x - 1.1 - 1.1 - 1.1 - 1.x - 1.1 - 1.1)
- Two misses were out in front. I had several sloppy stand-ups in between the misses, usually on the second rep. Last set of the day felt fantastic...solid pause at the bottom, stable. Good work all together. It took me a while to remember some of the things I changed during my PR night, but once I did everything fell right into the groove.

BTN Sn. Grip PP - 4 x 3 (heaviest possible)
185 - 205 --- 225 - 235 - 245 - 255
- Next time I should start at 245 and ladder up from there.


6.4.12
Andy's Bday WOD
3:00 AMRAP KB swings (24k)   (70)
   3:00 REST
3:00 AMRAP Row for Cals *damper@10 (60)
   3:00 REST
3:00 AMRAP 20m Prowler Push (95#)   (8)
   3:00 REST
3:00 AMRAP Hang Power Cleans (60k)   (28)
= 166
- My wife and I WOD'd with my bro in law tonight for his birthday at his place. It's nice because he has a ton of equipment. It was tough. This WOD put me on my butt when I finished. My traps were sore for a few days afterwards. Always a good to time though WODing with family.


6.5.12
Strength
Back Squat - 5-5-5+@65-75-85%
bar(10)-135(10)-185(10)-225(8) --- 275 - 320 - 365(12)
- Squats felt solid. On the 12th rep my back started to fatigue. I felt like I was in good posture until the end, but I was told otherwise once I put the bar down. My legs felt these for a while to come. Reps felt good though. I was originally shooting for 8ish, but I POC was firing real good and my speed was about the same start to finish.

WOD
4 rounds of:
1:00 AMRAP Power Snatches (75#)   [15-15-15-13]
1:00 AMRAP Box Jumps (24")   [20-20-15-24]
= 137
- I got to class late and was in a rush from the beginning. I had to do the WOD on my own after everyone else finished. I didn't realize this was "Hope" practice til after the 1st round. My original plan was to just go and burn out, but after back squatting...pacing became a better option. I had some goals going in and just tried to stay with them through out.


6.6.12
OWOD
Clean & Jerk - ladder up to a heavy single
bar progressions
135(3)-185(3)-205(2)-225-235-245-255-265(x.1)-275-285
2 x 2 @ 255 (90% of 285)
- My back was pretty fatigued from the start after yesterday's back squat work and my legs were real stiff from the work as well. Felt uncomfortable in my jerk tonight. Right wrist was sliding into place and it was causing some discomfort as weight got heavier. 285 was a good stop tonight. Added some doubles of my heavy single at the end for a bit more volume.

Clean Pulls
4 x 3 @ 315

The Difference A Day Makes..

I was feeling extremely sore yesterday and I was expecting today to be even worse. I woke up feeling pretty good, about the same as yesterday. I didn't get a whole lot of sleep last night due to being uncomfortable and hot. I have Oly class tonight and after seeing some pretty big lifts at Regionals this past weekend, I'm pretty excited to get under the bar.

OWOD
Snatch --- work up to a heavy single
Bar progressions
95(3) - 135(3) - 155(1/x/1/1) - 175(5) - 185(1/x/1/1/1) - 195(1/1/1/1) - 205(x/1/1/1) - 215(1/1) - 220(1/x/1) - 225 PR - 230 PR - 235(x/x)

- YEA BUDDY!!! This one has been a long time coming!!! I got 220# for the first and only time on May 14th 2011. I've changed just about everything in lift since then trying to get more efficient. I've come close to 225# several times in the last month...failing every single time! I didn't expect tonight to be a PR night when I started.
  I took a different approach than usual tonight. My goal was to go as heavy as possible and get some volume, but don't bump up unless I felt solid. My bumps were much smaller than usual. At 195# I started to think this might be the night. Everyone was gone, I was alone in the gym. Everything just sank in. I could hear the roll of the bar as I hit the punch at the bottom of each rep. That noise started to give me confidence because it meant I was under clean. I hit 220# on the first try, but walked it out. Lost it in the front on the second rep. Took another shot and hit it clean. 225# felt just like the rest. To say I was thrilled...relieved...all kinds of things as I stood the bar up. It felt awesome, but way too easy! 230# was icing on the cake!

225#

230#

Oly. Work - Snatch

Had no idea I was heading to the gym tonight when I woke up. I had a track meet after school, which usually means no gym, but the wifey wanted to make it in. Luckily, the track meet was a fast one and we both got to Prevail. My shoulders and hands are pretty fried up still from previous WODs in the week. So I'm just plan on getting in some Oly work and seeing where that takes me.

OWOD
PVC & Bar progressions

Snatch --- 5 x 2 @ 75-85%
95(5) - 135(3)  --- 165 - 165 - 175 - 185  - 190
- No misses. Focused on hitting my positions and a more vertical pull. My first set was all forward and off the heals. Second set got a little better. I had a real nice pull, which led to a solid catch on my 2nd rep at 175. 185 was good. I thought I was good at 190, but I was told that my heals were still hovering a bit. I can't explain that one because it felt like I was on the ground. My pulls are still too far out front and bringing me with them often. I can feel the difference in my catch when ever my pull is good or not. My mobility in my left ankle is I believe is causing some issues as well. I just can't seem to gain ROM in that thing.

Heavy Singles (supposed to be Snatch Pulls, but time was running out)
205(miss) - 205 - 225(fail) - 225(fail) - 225(fail)
- First attempt at 205 I was out in front. Second at 205 was great, deep catch, shocked myself a bit. First two attempts at 225 were so close. I was under both times, but couldn't get it done. First time I was out in front. Second time I lost lock out in my left arm and lost it. Third time I was shot, my speed was burned out.

Next time!!!

Oly. - Snatch / C & J

Feeling pretty sluggish and very tight today. Surprisingly, no pain after the foolish thing I did last night. Gonna ease into it today and see how I feel. Plan is to work both lifts through ascending percentages.


OWOD


Descending progressions with PVC and bar

Snatch --- 60%x3 - 70%x2, 75%x2, 80%x2, 85%x1x3
95(3) --- 135 - 155 - 165 - 175 - 190 (F-1-F-F-F-1-1)
- SLOW. That is the easiest way to describe today's OWOD. I felt like I had no speed in my hips to get the bar up and I felt very slow during my pull to get under the bar. I had no misses til I got to 85%. My flexibility was an issue today. I noticed that early as I was having to turn my feet way out at the bottom of my catch. I used straps for most of the reps as well since my grip was pretty raw and fatigued from the night before. My misses were caused from swinging the bar out instead of pulling it up. Couldn't get everything to sit back. CT caught it for me and mentioned it. That was definitely the issue because the last 2 reps were solid, except for the flexibility issues at the bottom.

I bailed on the C & J work due to time restraints and fatgiue. Another day.

Double PR!

4/22/12

WOD
3 rds FT:
 500m Row
 50 DUs
= 8:27


Woke Tuesday morning with nothing, but squatting on mind! Wasn't sure what to expect as far as PRing goes, but I knew I had improved. I PR'd 2-3 weeks in to the cycle. If you look back I tried to change to those numbers and that didn't work out well so I've been working off of a lower max this entire cycle. I know my back has gotten stronger and my form has gotten better so I was pretty sure I was gonna PR again tonight.

Strength
Find new Back Squat 1RM
bar(10)-135(10)-185(8)-225(5)-275(3)-315(2) --- 365 - 405 - 430 - 460 PR - 475
- Kept my hoodie on the entire time so I would stay warm and keep a good sweat going. I felt really solid. Trying to eat clean these days and I think that may have hurt me just a bit. On the way to the gym, my energy was dropping so I slammed a few protein bars for a boost. Got under the weight and I didn't have that "pop" I've had for the last few weeks. Bar felt heavy at 365 :( Made it to 430 and felt good. Went to 460 and it put up a pretty good fight. I knew I might have one more good push in me so I made the jump to 475 and started out of the hole and bailed because I just slowed down too much. The goal was to close the 500 gap as much as possible. Chipped away at it a little more today and I'm happy with that. It'll come!

Back Squat 460#

5:00 REST

Find new Press 1RM
bar(10)-95(10)-135(5) --- 165 - 185 - 205 - 225 PR - 230
- Had to pull double duty because I was a day behind in maxes. I knew I blew through a lot of energy in squats so I just wanted to get this one done. I knew from the past few weeks of the cycle where I was gonna end up at anyway. I haven't PRd in press since last June so I was well over due here! I used a false grip and drove it straight through. Went up so easy I was convinced I may have another 5#...hahaha...I was wrong! Extremely happy with the start of the week...2 PRs...solid!!

WOD
15 Snatch (125#)
15 Ring Push Ups
12 Snatch (145#)
12 Ring Push Ups
9 Snatch (165#)
9 Ring Push Ups
= 6:51
- I was pumped for this WOD when I saw it on the schedule. I enjoy ladders. If I would do this one again I would change the weights to 135, 155, 175 just for the sake of the weight change. Having to deal with the 5# plate became a pain chasing around. Really focused on being as fast as I could while keeping my technique as sound as possible. It worked well. I made sure my set up was square every time and it paid off. I didn't miss any reps the entire ladder. I caught a few early ones on my toes rushing through a little faster than I should have. The ring push ups were cake all were UB. The only thing I noticed the push ups do was burn up my thighs and core from staying in the plank.

Great night at Prevail!!

Cash Out
30 GHD Back Ext. (25#) (20-10)
30 GHD Rev. Hypers

Snatch

Came in to coach Oly class and managed to get some work in myself too.

Strength
Snatch --- 70-80% x 3 x 5
155 - 155 - 155(2) - 155 - 175

Snatch Pulls --- 4 x 4 (w/ straps)
225 - 225 - 225 - 225
- Felt good tonight. I lost the first rep in the 3rd set in the front, but other than that weight felt great in all lifts. I jumped to 175 for the last set and hit all three easy. Really tried to focus on hitting my positions and keeping a good tempo from the floor to the knee. Best session I've had in a while.
 I continued to work tempo and positioning on pulls. Really focused on keeping my core tight and moving hips and shoulders together.

225# Snatch 3 - Bear 0

Enjoying the opportunity to sleep in on Good Friday. It's always a good morning when I get to stick around long enough to be there when my wife and kids wake up. Feeling a lot more relaxed than yesterday when I woke up. Picked up a portable STEM machine and had a nice 30 minute session last night to help relax my back a bit. I love that machine! Felt great rolling out of bed.

Even though I felt great, it still doesn't make my warm up any easier. I got into the gym and it took me something around 30 minutes to finally feel comfortable enough to touch a bar. Once I was done feeling old (reminded me of training with my old Coach back when I was 21...all I needed was a heavy dose of Tiger Balm to fill the air) I felt awesome! I was a lot looser than I thought would be possible.

SWOD
Snatch --- 1-1-1-1-1-1-1
PVC pro. - Bar pro. - 95 Snatch + Hang Snatch (2) - 135 - 135 - 155 - 175 - 185 - 195 - 205 - 210 - 225 - 225 - 225
- AARRRGGG! I've attempted 225 in three different sessions since I got 220 last Spring and all 3 times I've failed. Today was the first time I've attempted it without some sort of ailment (back and shoulder issues) and it happened to be the closet I've come yet. It still evades me, but I'm getting closer. Positioning is getting better throughout. Still need to be more consistent on my tempo through my knees. Punch is getting better, but I think that was my fault today. Right arm is strong, but on 3 attempts my left arm couldn't get locked out. Good progress and enough to keep excited about working towards the next time.

Fail #2

More Snatch

Had the day off today and felt pretty good. I was pretty tight throughout the morning. Found some time to do some rehab exercises and ice and started to feel a lot better. Got some things done around the house and spent some much needed time with the family. Off to Prevail with the family for the evening...

Strength
Snatch 1-1-1-1-1-1-1
PVC pro.-Bar pro.-95 pro.- 135 - 145 - 155 --- 165 - 175 - 185 - 195 - 205 - 205 - 215 - 215 - 215
- Wasn't expecting much after the Open WOD yesterday. Lockouts still felt good. Shoulders feel good still, but pretty fatigued. My legs were pretty stiff just going through the progressions with the bar and PVC. I was forward on the miss at 205. The make at 205 felt great in the catch. My first miss at 215, my right elbow couldn't hold out. The next one was the same. The last one I compensated on the pull and pulled the bar way back and myself forward. Three strikes...I'm out!

WOD
(was supposed to be a 1000m ME Row)
4 rounds of:
250m ME Row (46.2 - 47.1 - 46.7 - 47.0)
1:00 ME Muscle Ups (1-1-0-1)
1:00 Rest
= 3:07.1/1000m; 1:33.5/500m; 31 s/m
- Just didn't have the mental capacity to sit in front of rower for a straight 1k today so I got the mileage in, but just did it a little differently. Smoothest I've felt on the rower in a long time. Those were pretty good pulls for me. Tried to keep the s/m at or under 30 as best I could. I wasn't expecting a huge number on the MUs, but I was hoping for better than 1s and Zeroes. My pull was pretty shot and the ones I did get were pretty ugly. I have to work on some progressions to really seal my handwork in better when I'm fatigued.

Getting out of the funk...

After a few rough nights of sleep my prayers were answered! I couldn't believe it...I finally got a solid night of rest without any wake ups from the kids, Mya, or my body. It felt great! A solid night's rest also meant I felt good enough to make it into the DP. I'm still in a post-competition funk I guess is what it is. The announcement of the first Open WOD didn't help me any mentally either. Trying to work out of it and get back into the swing of things. Hamstrings are still pretty tight from the back squats and that is making the lower back a little tender, but nothing bad. Wrist is finally feeling good again so the few days off really helped. Time to hit it...

Strength
Press  4 x ME UB @ 65% of 1RM(140#)
bar-95(8)---10-8-8-5

Old Fashioned Chin Ups  4 x ME UB @ BW
11-9-9-7
**alternate sets and recover, not a race**
- Another Push/Pull day, which I really enjoy. Press felt solid. Shoulder was a little tight, but loosened up rather quickly. Feeling better and better every week. Threw the chin ups in there just to change things up a bit to hit the pulling muscles a little differently.

WOD
4 rounds FT:
15 OH Walking Lunges (45#) (all UB, 1-2 no reps during the last 3 rounds)
10 Hang Power Cleans (135#) (UB, UB, UB, 6-2-1-1)
5 C2B Pull Ups (UB, UB, 3-F-2, 1-F-1-F-1-F-2)
= 7:31
- Not very happy on this one! I paced this one a little too slow between movements. Plan was to do everything UB. Arms were pretty roasted from strength, but I still thought it was doable. My walks to and from movements were used to catch my breath...I may have walked a little slower than I thought. Sub 7 I thought would have been a solid time for me. I got to the bar for pull ups at 6:44 and the no reps killed me. My grip just gave out on me during the last round of HPCs and never came back. I was moving pretty fast on lunges, but kept missing the floor once or twice within the first 4-5 steps...very frustrating. I don't know...just frustrated. Gotta figure out a way to battle back here and get fired up again to WOD. This whole pacing thing just puts me in a weird place mentally...I'm not a fan!

Catching Up...got some work in waiting around for Oly class to start
RDLs 4 x 5 *work up to a heavy 5*
bar-135-225---275-295-315-325
- I used straps. Felt good. I've missed these the last few times they came up in programming so I wanted to make sure to get some good work in on my POSC.  Trying to do everything I can to make sure the back issues are taken care of for good.

**Snuck some Snatch singles in as well. Working on a better receiving posture and lift off. Posture is getting better, which is taking the stress of the shoulder a ton. Last night the reps felt great on my shoulder. My lift off is still to forward though. Vid is 155# (70% of 1RM)

Struggles

After feeling great for so many days in a row, I was due for a rough one. Tried to wake up for DP this morning, but it just wasn't happening. Sat up in bed when the alarm went off and my shoulder was in knots. Today was Snatch singles and I knew it wasn't going to go well. I skipped out on DP and hit up the last evening class of the day.

I worked on trying to loosen my shoulder up all day at school. I rolled out. I did my rehab routine. Just wasn't happening.

Strength
Snatch 1-1-1-1-1@70-77-85-93-101%
bar(pro.) - 95(3 pos.) - 115 - 135 --- 155 - 170 - 187 - 205 - 205 - 225 - 225 - 225
- Broke into a really good sweat during warm ups. Shoulder was still tight, but felt a little better. There is no pain, but it just won't sit back. ARRGGG! Everything felt pretty rough. I was doing reps cock eyed (one arm higher than the other) because I was thinking about it so much.
- I hit 205 and actually felt solid about it. My arms were even in the catch. It felt strong. I thought about stopping there, but since I had time I decided I would give a PR a try. Mentally, at this point, I was pretty blown. I was starting to get cold from helping a friend out with his lift, add that to the frustrations with the tightness and I knew it would be a tough chance. That last lift felt good enough though to tempt me.
- Pulled too hard too fast on the 1st attempt at 225 and never made it under. Slowed down the lift on the 2nd and I was under it, but just couldn't stabilize. The 3rd attempt was a joke...should have stopped while I was ahead. I guess I never was ahead though. :/

WOD
Kristina's Bday WOD
10:00 AMRAP
33 cal Row (only to start)
3 HSPUs
6 Russian Twists (20#)
9 Power Cleans (135#)
= 6 + 11
- Had plenty of frustrated energy to take out on this one. The row I got done around 1:15ish. Good strong hard pulls. Surprise to me, my shoulder felt good enough to do HSPUs. Every round was unbroken. The first round I was a little slow as I struggled to find my balance. All my other rounds were fast and easy. Pete's tips on the kip have really helped speed those along and allow me to hold serious fatigue off a longer. The twists were a bit of a joke to this WOD. All they allowed me to do was catch my breath before the cleans again. I believe I went unbroken for the first two, possibly 3 rounds. Then it was 5-4 and 4-4-1 mixing for the remainder of my rounds. That 135 got a lot heavier than I anticipated.

Lift Off

Woke up pretty excited this morning to hit the DP! I knew Snatch was the strength and I was eager to work on some things I learned over the weekend. Went bed early in hopes to get a good night rest, but my little buddy had other plans with midnight interruption. I felt good and rested still though.

Strength
Snatch 3-3-3-3-3@63-70-77-85-93%
bar (5 pos) - 65 (5 pos) - 95 (3 pos) - 120 - 140 - 155 - 170 - 187 - 205
- I'm starting to feel like old man river. Everyone is usually on their 2nd or 3rd set by the time I'm starting my first. I'm having to rush through my last sets so we can start the WOD or I have to start later. Gotta get their a little earlier and hit the platform a good 10 minutes before everyone else.
- During the cert, Pat worked with me on my Snatch lift off and bar path during a break. I felt the difference in the changes instantly and how much smoother everything was on the light bar. I was very curious to how it feel over some weight today.
- First 4 sets went up real smooth. Had no problems getting on to my toes. Made every rep clean and they felt easy. I was excited to go to 205, but I lost everything in front. Bar came up easy still and I got under everything no problem, but just couldn't settle it in and lost them forward on two attempts. I used straps for the first two attempts and I felt the straps just weren't letting me set my shoulder back properly. Took em off for the 3rd attempt and made one rep and called it...I basically did the rep out frustration of the straps with no intention of doing all three because Cannons had already been waiting to start the WOD. I dropped a knee, but still stood it up. I think part of the reason as well was just weakness overhead still. Singles next week so I better figure it out.

WOD
500m Row
3 rounds of:
5 Ring Dips
10 T2B
15 Wall Balls
500m Row
= 9:53

- Pretty taxed before starting this WOD. I had to let Cannons start on her own so I could finish strength. I jumped in at 4:00. I rushed up to the rower right after my last rep of Snatch.
- First row was 1:51. Not blazing, just steady. All ring dips unbroken and strict. T2B were 8-2, 6-4, 5-5. Wall Balls I was hoping to do all unbroken. I felt fine, as I should, through all the rounds. I went unbroken, missed the 9th rep, missed the 6th rep. On each miss, the ball literally missed the wall. DOH!! I let it drop and picked it right back up and continued.
- Forgot to check the time on the 2nd row. I was more focused on making sure I finished under 10:00. Which I did barely, but I'll take it. That last row took a lot out of me.
- All in all...good day at the DP!!