Thursday, 24 April 2014
Space mace - 2 min.
Mace - 5-6 min.
kb swings -
20/20 x 6 single-hand
100/10/10 double-hand/single-hand
db snatch -
5/5 x 3 @ 35 lbs.
kb swing -
120 double-hand/single-hand
My traps felt nice and toasty afterwards. A little DOMS from the Shurg Rush. Nice.
Also, the kb swings fried my grip. Also nice.
Tomorrow:
Even Keel 1B
DL: 5,3,2,1 @
pullover-press: 10, 10, 10 @
FSQ: 5x5 @
Pendlay row: 5x5 @
bb guillotine: 12, 9, 6 @
spider curl: 12, 9, 6 @
Showing posts with label Mace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mace. Show all posts
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Fitness update...
Strongman training
30 min., 227 lbs.
Mace: 30 lbs. - 10 min.
kb: 35 lbs. - 10 min.
mb: 12 lbs. - 5 min.
Grip:
CoC #1.5 - 6, 6, 6 / 6, 6, 6 L/R
Eagle loop hangs - 10, 10, 10 sec. (4, 3, 3 fingers)
Felt out of shape, uncoordinated, slow. I miss strongman training like that. Gym time is going to have to give. I think I should just do Wendler's 5-3-1. It's "there", proven, not too time-consuming, and perfectly allows for other cross-training/skill-training days. Why reinvent the wheel? We'll see. I admit that last night, despite my brainstorming, I was feeling the addictive urge to hit the weights M-F next week. :)
Gotta get my grip strength back. I used to be able to close the CoC #2 about three times, but now I can't even get 10 closes on a #1.5 Pitiful.
I did discover that KB swings standing atop Ferdinand are much harder than on a firm surface!
I'm planning to make some DIY strongman tools (thick grip db's, farmer walk handles, etc.). Stay tuned.
30 min., 227 lbs.
Mace: 30 lbs. - 10 min.
kb: 35 lbs. - 10 min.
mb: 12 lbs. - 5 min.
Grip:
CoC #1.5 - 6, 6, 6 / 6, 6, 6 L/R
Eagle loop hangs - 10, 10, 10 sec. (4, 3, 3 fingers)
+ + +
Felt out of shape, uncoordinated, slow. I miss strongman training like that. Gym time is going to have to give. I think I should just do Wendler's 5-3-1. It's "there", proven, not too time-consuming, and perfectly allows for other cross-training/skill-training days. Why reinvent the wheel? We'll see. I admit that last night, despite my brainstorming, I was feeling the addictive urge to hit the weights M-F next week. :)
Gotta get my grip strength back. I used to be able to close the CoC #2 about three times, but now I can't even get 10 closes on a #1.5 Pitiful.
I did discover that KB swings standing atop Ferdinand are much harder than on a firm surface!
I'm planning to make some DIY strongman tools (thick grip db's, farmer walk handles, etc.). Stay tuned.
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Catching up…
Fortunately, the title refers to my posting here, not my fitness goals! I even managed to rope some friends into working out with me at my home back in June. There are far too many detailed workout records to present now (or perhaps ever) that I've done since my last post here, but basically: these days I'm training exclusively at home, I canceled my gym membership, and I've settled on three basic kinds of workouts through which I cycle each week. Until I get a bicycle, an ergometer, and/or regular access to a pool, or decide to get back into weightlifting full-time again, I don't see these routines changing any time soon. They are what I think are long-term, well rounded fitness routines for maintaining a high metabolic rate, cardiac fitness, speed, power, and neuromuscular coordination.
First, a boxing/calisthenics day (heavy bag, double end bag, speed bag, jump rope, kettlebell, medicine ball, battling ropes, mountain climbers, Hindu squats, etc.). It's been great to get back behind the gloves. It was simply too hot to do much boxing over the summer, since I box outside under a tree or in my garage with no fans or A/C.
Second, a tire and sledge hammer day––that's right, I finally got a GIANT TIRE! It's a Michelin 23.5 R 25 that weighs in close to 900 lbs. I call it Ferdinand. I use it for sledge hits, box jumps, med ball slams, moguls (or donkey hops), kettlebell, flips, tire tennis, etc. Here are some videos I made not too long ago about this. I would like to upload other videos I made in the past highlighting other exercises, but when will I find the time? Stay tuned! Errmmm...
Third, a gymnastics and bodyweight day (dips, rows, pullups, pikeups, jack knives, pushups, L-sits, pistol squats, etc.) using my Jungle Gym XT. I'd like to get a set of wooden gymnastic rings, so that I can have all four points suspended for the motions, but I need to hold my horses. Budget. (And I know I could get another suspension trained for about $20 but I want to get rings, since they enable different maneuvers than standard trainers, and, apparently, "just feel better."
I also mix in grip training during the week with an Ivanko-style multi-grip crusher, Captains of Crush, eagle-loops hangs, rotations, gyro ball, etc. How I miss my spinning flail!
On truly "off days" I at least try to get in 20–30 minutes with the Bodyblade or brisk walking, or even just some intermittent planking.
I began focusing a lot on my core and abs a few weeks ago, after a couple years of taking my abs for granted (not taking their beauty for granted––as if!––but taking their development for granted as a result of squats, deadlifts, and other full-body exercises). As they say, "Your waistline is your lifeline," and I can't deny it's been invigorating and calming to have a tighter, flatter stomach again.
Also, without even really noticing it, I dropped below my goal of 206 lbs. I'm now about 204 lbs, but expect I will gain a few pounds of muscle once my gymnastic and sledge/tire wourkouts add up over the winter months.
Let me close with two specific workouts, to give you an idea of how I'm training. Granted, these were mini-workouts, but you get the idea.
Yesterday my workout was this:
sledge/tire
15 min., BPM 150-180
5/5 sagittal hits
5/5 low baseball hits
20 med ball slams (inside Ferdinand)
10 abduction jump-ups (from inside Ferdinand)
10 box jumps*
short REST
repeat 3 more times
* My friend told me that the best way to do box jumps is from a low platform onto the floor and then up onto the box. Since, however, I find that jumping backwards off of Ferdinand onto cinder blocks is too dangerous, and jumping onto the ground and then stepping onto the blocks for a new box jump is too low-intensity, I discovered a good semi-solution: jump off of the box (Ferdinand) into a wide stance and then immediately hop a couple inches forward to bring your feet closer together and then immediately explode up into the box jump. This not only keeps the intensity high and approximates the low-ground-high routine that my friend recommends, but also incorporates adduction and abduction into an otherwise one- or maybe two-plane exercise.
Tonight I "took it easy" and only trained:
grip and core
20 min.
Bodyblade and crusher warm-up, forearm stretching
loop hangs -
2-finger 5 sec.
3-finger 8 sec.
4-finger 11 sec.
REST
repeat 3 more times
multi-crusher (4th from bottom notch) -
10 R/L
8 R/L
6 R/L
4 R/L
2 R/L
(then I inverted the gripper so the handles form a V instead of the normal A shape)
2 L, 2 R...
(pretty much until I couldn't do anymore)
dip-sits -
(I slowly press up from a hanging dip into an L-sit, hold it for 10 sec., and slowly dip down)
short REST
repeat 6 more times
First, a boxing/calisthenics day (heavy bag, double end bag, speed bag, jump rope, kettlebell, medicine ball, battling ropes, mountain climbers, Hindu squats, etc.). It's been great to get back behind the gloves. It was simply too hot to do much boxing over the summer, since I box outside under a tree or in my garage with no fans or A/C.
Second, a tire and sledge hammer day––that's right, I finally got a GIANT TIRE! It's a Michelin 23.5 R 25 that weighs in close to 900 lbs. I call it Ferdinand. I use it for sledge hits, box jumps, med ball slams, moguls (or donkey hops), kettlebell, flips, tire tennis, etc. Here are some videos I made not too long ago about this. I would like to upload other videos I made in the past highlighting other exercises, but when will I find the time? Stay tuned! Errmmm...
Third, a gymnastics and bodyweight day (dips, rows, pullups, pikeups, jack knives, pushups, L-sits, pistol squats, etc.) using my Jungle Gym XT. I'd like to get a set of wooden gymnastic rings, so that I can have all four points suspended for the motions, but I need to hold my horses. Budget. (And I know I could get another suspension trained for about $20 but I want to get rings, since they enable different maneuvers than standard trainers, and, apparently, "just feel better."
I also mix in grip training during the week with an Ivanko-style multi-grip crusher, Captains of Crush, eagle-loops hangs, rotations, gyro ball, etc. How I miss my spinning flail!
On truly "off days" I at least try to get in 20–30 minutes with the Bodyblade or brisk walking, or even just some intermittent planking.
I began focusing a lot on my core and abs a few weeks ago, after a couple years of taking my abs for granted (not taking their beauty for granted––as if!––but taking their development for granted as a result of squats, deadlifts, and other full-body exercises). As they say, "Your waistline is your lifeline," and I can't deny it's been invigorating and calming to have a tighter, flatter stomach again.
Also, without even really noticing it, I dropped below my goal of 206 lbs. I'm now about 204 lbs, but expect I will gain a few pounds of muscle once my gymnastic and sledge/tire wourkouts add up over the winter months.
Let me close with two specific workouts, to give you an idea of how I'm training. Granted, these were mini-workouts, but you get the idea.
Yesterday my workout was this:
sledge/tire
15 min., BPM 150-180
5/5 sagittal hits
5/5 low baseball hits
20 med ball slams (inside Ferdinand)
10 abduction jump-ups (from inside Ferdinand)
10 box jumps*
short REST
repeat 3 more times
* My friend told me that the best way to do box jumps is from a low platform onto the floor and then up onto the box. Since, however, I find that jumping backwards off of Ferdinand onto cinder blocks is too dangerous, and jumping onto the ground and then stepping onto the blocks for a new box jump is too low-intensity, I discovered a good semi-solution: jump off of the box (Ferdinand) into a wide stance and then immediately hop a couple inches forward to bring your feet closer together and then immediately explode up into the box jump. This not only keeps the intensity high and approximates the low-ground-high routine that my friend recommends, but also incorporates adduction and abduction into an otherwise one- or maybe two-plane exercise.
Tonight I "took it easy" and only trained:
grip and core
20 min.
Bodyblade and crusher warm-up, forearm stretching
loop hangs -
2-finger 5 sec.
3-finger 8 sec.
4-finger 11 sec.
REST
repeat 3 more times
multi-crusher (4th from bottom notch) -
10 R/L
8 R/L
6 R/L
4 R/L
2 R/L
(then I inverted the gripper so the handles form a V instead of the normal A shape)
2 L, 2 R...
(pretty much until I couldn't do anymore)
dip-sits -
(I slowly press up from a hanging dip into an L-sit, hold it for 10 sec., and slowly dip down)
short REST
repeat 6 more times
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Fitness and gym update – April 2013
Monday 22 April 2013 work out
50 min.
Speed bag - 3 min.
Double end bag - 3 min.
Jump rope - 3 min.
Speed bag - 3 min.
Double end bag - 3 min.
Jump rope - 4 min.
Continuous kb movements - 3 min.
[I've wanted to try this for a while: just keep the kb moving for a fixed amount of time; once one motion becomes too tiresome, switch to another; very acrobatic.]
--------------------------------
Rest between sets to gear up, hydrate, stretch
This is the first time in several weeks (four? six?) that I've been able to jump rope without any pain or debilitation from my ingrown toe! Apparently my boxing, kettlebell/mace conditioning, and weightlifting has kept me in good shape, too. I was able to jump longer than I used to, with less soleus/shin pain, and, though it's nothing spectacular, a four-minute streak is a personal record for at least the past three years. My pulse was easily at 180 bpm while jumping, and just as high for the three-minute kettlebell "loop" I did at the end. I think working past my shin splints from a few months ago, and doing foam roller massages every couple days, had really restored my lower legs. Now I'm tempted to buy a unicycle, since I sold my bicycle a while back.
Wednesday, 24 April 2013
50 min., 217 lbs.
warm-up: motions, stretching
SQ: 5 x 5 @ 205, 210, 215, 220, 225 lbs.
BP: 5 x 5 @ 195, 185, 185, 185, 185 lbs.
PU: 5 x 5 @ bdw+35, +25, +15, +10, +5 lbs.
"box squat" db curls: 5 x 5 @ 80 lbs.
[I think I made these up. Begin seated, stand up, curl, lower the db, sit down, repeat. Really liked them. Will try them with a bb next time.]
50 min.
Speed bag - 3 min.
Double end bag - 3 min.
Jump rope - 3 min.
Speed bag - 3 min.
Double end bag - 3 min.
Jump rope - 4 min.
Continuous kb movements - 3 min.
[I've wanted to try this for a while: just keep the kb moving for a fixed amount of time; once one motion becomes too tiresome, switch to another; very acrobatic.]
--------------------------------
Rest between sets to gear up, hydrate, stretch
+ + +
This is the first time in several weeks (four? six?) that I've been able to jump rope without any pain or debilitation from my ingrown toe! Apparently my boxing, kettlebell/mace conditioning, and weightlifting has kept me in good shape, too. I was able to jump longer than I used to, with less soleus/shin pain, and, though it's nothing spectacular, a four-minute streak is a personal record for at least the past three years. My pulse was easily at 180 bpm while jumping, and just as high for the three-minute kettlebell "loop" I did at the end. I think working past my shin splints from a few months ago, and doing foam roller massages every couple days, had really restored my lower legs. Now I'm tempted to buy a unicycle, since I sold my bicycle a while back.
Wednesday, 24 April 2013
50 min., 217 lbs.
warm-up: motions, stretching
SQ: 5 x 5 @ 205, 210, 215, 220, 225 lbs.
BP: 5 x 5 @ 195, 185, 185, 185, 185 lbs.
PU: 5 x 5 @ bdw+35, +25, +15, +10, +5 lbs.
"box squat" db curls: 5 x 5 @ 80 lbs.
[I think I made these up. Begin seated, stand up, curl, lower the db, sit down, repeat. Really liked them. Will try them with a bb next time.]
Monday, April 15, 2013
Fitness update – April 2013
Friday, 12 April 2013
60 min.
Coached a student on how to squat and deadlift. Helped me focus on and improve my own technique. He's coachable; only thing that matters.
warm-up: motions, stretching
SQ: 5 x 5 @ 205 lbs.
db slight-incline press-and-squeeze: 5 x 5 @ 55, 65, 65, 70, 65
[Felt pain in right posterior shoulder, hence I dropped back to 65 lbs.]
DL: 5 x 1 @ 305 lbs.
[Felt great!]
EZ bb standing curl: 5 x 5 @ 80 lbs.
Saturday, 13 April 2013
20 min.
3 min. mace drills (10-and-2's, 360's, King Arthurs)
kb swings: 30
kb shotput swings: 10/10
kb high pull / snatch: 5/5
3 min. speed bag
REPEAT
Monday, 15 April 2013
40 min.
mowed lawn…
3 min. speed bag
3 min. kb drills
3 min. speed bag
3 min. kb drills
3 min. speed bag
60 min.
Coached a student on how to squat and deadlift. Helped me focus on and improve my own technique. He's coachable; only thing that matters.
warm-up: motions, stretching
SQ: 5 x 5 @ 205 lbs.
db slight-incline press-and-squeeze: 5 x 5 @ 55, 65, 65, 70, 65
[Felt pain in right posterior shoulder, hence I dropped back to 65 lbs.]
DL: 5 x 1 @ 305 lbs.
[Felt great!]
EZ bb standing curl: 5 x 5 @ 80 lbs.
Saturday, 13 April 2013
20 min.
3 min. mace drills (10-and-2's, 360's, King Arthurs)
kb swings: 30
kb shotput swings: 10/10
kb high pull / snatch: 5/5
3 min. speed bag
REPEAT
Monday, 15 April 2013
40 min.
mowed lawn…
3 min. speed bag
3 min. kb drills
3 min. speed bag
3 min. kb drills
3 min. speed bag
Monday, April 8, 2013
Fitness update -- April 2013
Mostly just greasing the groove today.
I've got some "good soreness" from my 5x5 workout Saturday. My right hand felt better on the speed bag, only some residual soreness. I've still fighting my ingrown left big toe. Very hobbling as far as cardio exercises go.
Anyway, today…
Monday, 8 April 2013
30 min., 216 lbs.
[Rest the bar on your hip with the weight behind you. Fling it forward around your waist as if drawing a sword, catch it with the leading hand, and reverse the vector.]
spear - 10/10, 10/10
[Thrust the mace as you sidestep with it.]
Excalibur - 5/5, 5/5
[Yank the mace up like a sword from the stone, thrust it skywards, kneel (lunge) down, and stand to replace the mace into the stone.]
360's - 10/10, 10/10
[Here's a nice little mace swinging video, too.]
swing - 30
high pull snatch - 10/10
[Swing up to a high pull, swing down, then snatch up.]
speed bag - 3 min.
I've got some "good soreness" from my 5x5 workout Saturday. My right hand felt better on the speed bag, only some residual soreness. I've still fighting my ingrown left big toe. Very hobbling as far as cardio exercises go.
Anyway, today…
Monday, 8 April 2013
30 min., 216 lbs.
speed bag - 4.5 min.
mace drills...
sword draw - 10/10[Rest the bar on your hip with the weight behind you. Fling it forward around your waist as if drawing a sword, catch it with the leading hand, and reverse the vector.]
spear - 10/10, 10/10
[Thrust the mace as you sidestep with it.]
Excalibur - 5/5, 5/5
[Yank the mace up like a sword from the stone, thrust it skywards, kneel (lunge) down, and stand to replace the mace into the stone.]
360's - 10/10, 10/10
[Here's a nice little mace swinging video, too.]
speed bag - 4 min.
kb drills...
clean - 10/10swing - 30
high pull snatch - 10/10
[Swing up to a high pull, swing down, then snatch up.]
speed bag - 3 min.
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Fitness update - April 2013
Thursday, 4 April 2013
30 min., 215 lbs.
speed bag – 3 min. x 3
kb swings – 30, 35, 40
pull-ups – 5, 8, 11
dips – 5, 8, 11
[I lost a lot of time dealing with the tire-made heavy-bag––I'm still working on how to hang it––and trying to eradicate the stench that's been coming from two giant dead rats that my neighbor tossed in his back yard next to my garage. I used gasoline, fire, and then bleach. Win!]
Friday, 5 April 2013
25 min., 215 lbs.
warm-up: mace drills ––> 5–10 min.
speed bag – one round for as long as I could keep up cadence ––> 5'26"
[Actually, I could have gone longer, but I was distracted by the pain in my right hand. I had an intense speed bag session yesterday, and the bones feel a bit bruised. So I'll be icing my hands, or at least my right hand, laying off the speed bag for a while, and maybe not even filming my progress video this weekend.]
kb swings: 20, 20
kb shotput swing: 10/10, 10/10
kb hoist and shove: 10/10, 10/10
[I also did some raking under the back tree to make the ground more level. Getting ready to hang my tire-made heavy bag...! I've already got two friends "on board" for training at my "gym laboratory" once or twice a week this summer, and on the way home from Home Depot today I saw a guy running backwards in the street and I immediately knew, "This guy needs to train with me." His name is James and he lives maybe a mile away. We exchanged numbers and hope to hang out when he gets back from a visit home to Michigan in a couple weeks. He's got a degree in sports science, also motivates/trains his wife, and is way more cut than I am heheh!
Why did I go to Home Depot, you ask? I try to limit myself to one DIY project a month, if it costs me money, so this month I decided to make a mace. I made one in Taiwan, and I've been missing it lately. My mace in Taiwan was about 3' of 1/2" steel pipe, a cap to stop the weights, and some rubber gaskets and a U-bolt to lock the weights up at the top. My new mace is much more ambitious: 3' of 1.5" steel pipe for the weight plates, a bushing to join a 1' long handle of 3/4" pipe, a cap for the top and a U-bolt to lock down the weights. I added a modest 6 lbs. of plates to the head, but, honestly, the mace by itself, even without weights, is quite a challenge after a hiatus, so for now I may just use it as a massive Indian club. For a shorter homemade mace bell, I could try this awesome DIY method. Here's another ingeniously simple method for a homemade mace bell/gada. ;p
Tomorrow I will be back in the gym. I originally wanted to cancel my membership, but they talked me into a 25% lower monthly fee and I'm staying. I figure I need a gym for 1) squatting, 2) deadlifting, 3) db shrugs, flyes, and presses (the Big Three, basically), and 4) farmer walking. Otherwise, I'll stick with my kettlebell, mace, boxing, jump rope, medicine ball, bodyweight conditioning.]
30 min., 215 lbs.
speed bag – 3 min. x 3
kb swings – 30, 35, 40
pull-ups – 5, 8, 11
dips – 5, 8, 11
[I lost a lot of time dealing with the tire-made heavy-bag––I'm still working on how to hang it––and trying to eradicate the stench that's been coming from two giant dead rats that my neighbor tossed in his back yard next to my garage. I used gasoline, fire, and then bleach. Win!]
Friday, 5 April 2013
25 min., 215 lbs.
warm-up: mace drills ––> 5–10 min.
speed bag – one round for as long as I could keep up cadence ––> 5'26"
[Actually, I could have gone longer, but I was distracted by the pain in my right hand. I had an intense speed bag session yesterday, and the bones feel a bit bruised. So I'll be icing my hands, or at least my right hand, laying off the speed bag for a while, and maybe not even filming my progress video this weekend.]
kb swings: 20, 20
kb shotput swing: 10/10, 10/10
kb hoist and shove: 10/10, 10/10
[I also did some raking under the back tree to make the ground more level. Getting ready to hang my tire-made heavy bag...! I've already got two friends "on board" for training at my "gym laboratory" once or twice a week this summer, and on the way home from Home Depot today I saw a guy running backwards in the street and I immediately knew, "This guy needs to train with me." His name is James and he lives maybe a mile away. We exchanged numbers and hope to hang out when he gets back from a visit home to Michigan in a couple weeks. He's got a degree in sports science, also motivates/trains his wife, and is way more cut than I am heheh!
Why did I go to Home Depot, you ask? I try to limit myself to one DIY project a month, if it costs me money, so this month I decided to make a mace. I made one in Taiwan, and I've been missing it lately. My mace in Taiwan was about 3' of 1/2" steel pipe, a cap to stop the weights, and some rubber gaskets and a U-bolt to lock the weights up at the top. My new mace is much more ambitious: 3' of 1.5" steel pipe for the weight plates, a bushing to join a 1' long handle of 3/4" pipe, a cap for the top and a U-bolt to lock down the weights. I added a modest 6 lbs. of plates to the head, but, honestly, the mace by itself, even without weights, is quite a challenge after a hiatus, so for now I may just use it as a massive Indian club. For a shorter homemade mace bell, I could try this awesome DIY method. Here's another ingeniously simple method for a homemade mace bell/gada. ;p
Tomorrow I will be back in the gym. I originally wanted to cancel my membership, but they talked me into a 25% lower monthly fee and I'm staying. I figure I need a gym for 1) squatting, 2) deadlifting, 3) db shrugs, flyes, and presses (the Big Three, basically), and 4) farmer walking. Otherwise, I'll stick with my kettlebell, mace, boxing, jump rope, medicine ball, bodyweight conditioning.]
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)