Wed 10/31 - Upper WO

Workout: Garage Gym
(165#Inc)5,5,145x6,6P
(Pullups)3x8
(85#OHP)3x7
(InvertRow)3x8
(30#Curl)10,Hx10
(35#Skulls)10,30x10
(Crunch)15
(10#RDeltFly)2x12
(Crunch)2x10

36 + 6 =  42 mins

Upper WO early this morning. Started with incline and pull-ups combo. This was a bit disappointing, but I think that I'm still not recovered from the heavy volume WO this weekend.  I upped the weight on incline and it felt heavy. I was doing this weight a few weeks ago and getting sets of 8 reps. 5 reps were all I can handle today for 2 sets and then dropped the weight and did paused reps. Pullups for sets of 8 were hard...and they definitely should NOT be. Left trap is still painful/tight from the weekend.  Although I loved the high volume WO's this past weekend, I need to reconsider the benefit if I can't recover from them.

Next was OHP and inverted rows on the new set of rings we hung in the garage. OHP was OK. Inverted rows were HARD. Don't know if my back is still THAT fatigued and/or if doing them on rings is a lot more difficult than a straight bar.  They were MUCH harder than they have ever been.  Next we did skull crushers, curls and crunches. Finished up with rear delt fly's and crunches.  Decent WO. Felt like I pushed fairly hard, but just didn't have it this morning.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 175.4 this morning.

Sun 10/28 - Push Day (Volume)

Workout: Garage Gym
(145#Incline)7x5
(75#OHP)8x5
(50#DBInc)8,7,7
(20#IncFly)10,15x10
(30#Crunch)2x10
(35#Skulls)12,30x8
(15#LDelt)10,10x10
(Crunch)2x12

43 + 5 =  48 mins

Push day with volume and short rests. I enjoyed yesterday's workout so much, I decided to use same format for push day today. I started with incline and did sets of 5 every 2 mins until I couldn't do 5.  Since I didn't have a spotter today, I stopped at 7. I probably could've gotten another set, but didn't want to risk it. Then I did OHP for sets of 5 every 1.5 mins for 8 sets.  Next I raised the angle of incline and did DB incline for 3 sets, every 2 mins. Lots of pressing volume for me!

Then I did accessory work. I had to drop the weight on each exercise for the 2nd sets.  First I did incline fly's with weighted crunches. Then skull crushers, lateral delt raises and crunches.  Very nice WO. Lots of volume, not a lot of time.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 176.8 this morning.

Sat 10/27 - Pull Day (Volume)

Workout: Garage Gym
(Pullups)8x6
(135#BOR)9x5
(30#SealRow)3x8
(Crunch)2x10
(30#Curl)10,Hx10
(Crunch)2x10

40 + 6 =  46 mins

Pull day with volume and short rests. Started with pull-ups and decided to do sets of 6 every 2 minutes until I couldn't get 6 reps. That means about 1.5 mins rest (30 seconds working).  Got 8 sets and was happy with that for 48 total reps.  Then I decided to do the same thing with bent over rows with sets of 5 reps. After 4 sets, I dropped the time from every 2 minutes to every 1.5 mins, so just about 1 min rest (30 seconds working). Got 9 sets of 5 for 45 reps. First 2 movements took 30 minutes, but that's a lot of work in 30 mins.

Then I did seal rows with crunches and finished up with curls and crunches.  Done in about 45 minutes with warmup.  Very nice.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 175.0 this morning.

Wed 10/24 - Upper

Workout: Garage Gym
(145#Incline)8,8,8,7
(105#T-Bar)4x10
(50#DBShldr)8,45x,8,9
(Pullups)7,6,6
(Band)2x12
(Crunch)3x12
(30#Skulls)10
(30#Curl)10

48 + 8 =  56 mins

Early morning upper WO today.  It's not too cold yet, but it was 40 degrees this morning and the steel barbell gets fairly cold. I tried using cheap gardening gloves and they seemed to work fairly well after I cut the tips of the thumbs and pinky finger.

Started with incline and t-bar rows. Incline was decent. Tried for an 8th rep on 4th set and needed help. I should've stopped at 7. I'd like to say this was progress over the last WO, but since we were supersetting with rows, rests were longer between sets so it's not as comparable. I bumped the weight for rows today and it felt good. Then we raised angle of incline and did dumbbell incline/shoulder press with pull-ups. Pullups were a struggle after rows.

Then we did band pulls for rear delts with crunches. Finished up with some quick bi/tri work and another set of crunches.  Decent WO.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 173.6 this morning.

Sun 10/21 - Push Day

Workout: Garage Gym
(145#Incline)8,8,8,6
(95#OHP)6,6,75x8,8
(50#DBInc)3x8
(20#IncFly)2x10
(Crunch)2x10
(35#Skulls)11,30x10,25x10
(Crunch)2x10
(15#LDelt)2x10

48 + 8 =  56 mins

Push day started with incline for 4 sets. Working out solo today, so didn't go near failure.  Felt pretty good about incline. Then I did OHP. I wanted reps to be around 8, so I dropped weight after 2 sets. Then I raised angle of incline and did 3 sets with dumbbells.  Then I did 2 sets of incline fly's with crunches. Next were skulls and crunches. Finished up with 2 sets of lateral delt raises.  Good WO.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 175.8 this morning.

Sat 10/20 - Pull Day

Workout: Garage Gym
(Pullups)12,8,8,7
(90#T-Bar)4x8
(30#SealRow)3x10
(Crunch)3x12
(30#Curl)10,Hx10
(Crunch)2x15
(185#DeadLift)3,3,3,225x3,5
(90#PowerClean)6x3

58 + 8 =  66 mins

Pull day started with pull-ups. Decent, but I think my back is still fatigued from backpacking trip. Next we did T-bar rows for 4 sets. They aren't really T-Bar rows. It's a handle that slides on the barbell on one end and the other end is in a wood block/wedge I made. Then we did seal rows and crunches, then curls and crunches.

Then we moved to deadlift and power clean form work. Deadlifts felt good. Power cleans were a mixed bag of decent cleans and sloppy cleans. Tried one snatch and knees were NOT ready for that yet. Still sore post-backpacking trip.

Decent WO with some fun at the end.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 172.8 this morning. Bloat finally leaving me from all the carbs on backpacking trip.

Sat 10/13 - Wed 10/17 - AT Backpacking Trip - 5 days, 61 miles - Unicoi Gap to Amicalola Falls State Park

Backpacking on the AT with Tom Coleman and Sarah.

Sat 10/13 Unicoi Gap to Low Gap shelter

9.7 miles. 6 hours. 

Started with decent climb, then rolling to down hill. Fire ready for us at the shelter. Stream right next to shelter. Colder than we expected & I think we’re going to be cold the next couple of nights. 

Sun 10/14 Low Gap shelter to Flat Rock campsite

12.2 miles. 9 hours w/ resupply at Mountain Crossings

Plan was to go 13.9 to Blood Mountain but Tom was struggling on climbs. We considered staying at Neels Gap, but pressed on to a campsite .7 up the climb instead of 2.5 to Blood Mountain. Nice campsite and a fire. Not too cold, probably 50 degrees. 

Mon 10/15 Flat Rock campsite to Gooch Mountain shelter 

14.5 miles 9 hours

Started at 8:30 & went up Blood Mountain, totally socked in. Didn’t look like many places to camp/hang. No water. Long day, feet hurt. Waiting for Tom is painful at times. Drizzle in the A.M. with fog, then cleared & got warm. A few nice views on the way. 

Tue 10/16 Gooch Mountain shelter to Stover Creek shelter 

12.9 miles 8 hours

Foggy in the morning, then cleared. Shortly after noon it started raining. Rain let up around 2pm during a break at a pretty waterfall. Shortly after we got back on trail it opened up. Walked up a river instead of a trail to the shelter. Goal was springer today, but we stopped 2.8 short. Supposed to rain until midnight. 

Wed 10/17 Stover Creek shelter to Springer Mountain (2.8) AT Souther Terminus, Springer to Amicalola Falls State park (8.8) 11.6 miles 6 hours

61 miles, 38 hours hiking.  Basically a work week worth of hiking.

Fri 10/12 - Push (really quick)

Workout: Garage Gym
(145#Inc)4x7paused
(50#DBInc)2x8
(Crunch)2x20

19 + 6 = 25 mins

Really quick push WO before heading to the mountains. Just wanted to get some stimulation in. No pulling because I'll have a heavy load on my back the next week.  Temps dropped from a low of 70 to 53 this morning. Nice crisp Fall morning. Just in time.  Perfect.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 174.2 this morning.

Wed 10/10 - Upper

Workout: Garage Gym
(145#Inc)3x6
(Pullups)3x8
(85#OHP)3x7
(70#T-Bar)3x10
(15#IncFly)2x12
(30#Curl)8,25x8
(Crunch)2x10
(30#Skulls)2x10
(Band)2x10
(Crunch)2x10

30 + 6 = 36 mins

Upper WO. Backpacking trip coming up and I'd like to work out today and Friday, AND not feel beat up. So today I kept weight light, and/or reps not near failure, short rests. Incline felt good and controlled. Long pause on last rep each set. Pullups were good. OHP was ok, rows were ok. Then we did incline fly's, curls and crunches. Finished up with DB skull crushers, band pulls and more crunches.

Short rest on everything. A lot of work in 30 mins.  Solid WO.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 175.6 this morning.

Sun 10/8 - Push Day (+ commentary)

Workout: Garage Gym
(145#Inc)8,8,8,8,6*
(75#PushPress)4x8
(50#DBInc)10,8
(20#IncFly)3x10
(Crunch)3x15
(80#Skulls)10,60x10,25DBx10
(Crunch)2x15
(15#LDetl)12

56 + 8 = 64 mins

Push day. Started with incline for 5 sets on about 2:30 rest. Controlled reps with good pause on last rep of each set. 5th set was tough and I needed an assist on last 2 reps. Next we did push press. Basically OHP with some assist from leg drive. This was light weight but felt heavy right after incline. 1:30 rest between sets here.  Then we did DB incline for 2 sets. Paused reps.

Next we did incline fly's with crunches. Fly's felt really good.  Good stretch and contraction.  Then we did skull crushers and abs. 2 sets with EZ-Bar and 1 set with DB's. Finished with a set of lateral delt raises.  Started with 20#BB's, but they weren't moving. Shoulders were fried. Dropped to 15#'s.  Very nice WO.

Overall, great weekend of WO's. Pleased with how things are going and how I'm feeling. Added with to the bar slowly and with very strict form on main movements. Not moving weight for the sake of moving weight. Adding weight to body also. Double edged sword there.  Gotta be willing to eat over maintenance while pushing intensity and volume for a while. Also have to be mindful to schedule n some breaks and keep a watchful eye on my shoulder  and recovery.

I think on of the reasons my shoulder and back have held up is that I've been doing a lot of prehab/mobility work and stretching/rolling. It takes 15-20 minutes every morning, but it's been worth it.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 179.2 this morning.

Sat 10/6 - Pull Day (+Power Clean and Snatch)

Workout: Garage Gym
(95#PowerClean)3x5
(95#Snatch)2x5
(Pullups)15,7,7,7
(80#T-Bar)4x9
(30#SealRow)2x10
(Abs)2x12
(30#Curl)2x12
(Abs)2x12
(185#Deadlift)4x5

68 + 5 = 73 mins

Pull WO this morning - started with power clean technique work. Before starting the 2nd set of cleans, I decided to try a snatch. It felt good so I did a set of 5. Then alternated cleans and snatches for 5 sets.  Really liked snatch more than I thought. By the end of the 2nd set of snatches my R shoulder was starting to feel it a bit, so I'll have to be careful, but really liked doing both cleans and snatches.

Then we moved on to the meat of the WO.  First set of pull-ups was really good with 15 reps, then on short rests I managed to maintain 7 reps. Then we did t-bar rows for 4 sets. Then seal rows and abs. Next was curls and abs. Finished up with 4 sets of deadlift technique work.  Going to work on technique and increase weight slowly.  Great WO and a lot of fun.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 176.6 this morning.

Wed 10/3 - Upper

Workout: Garage Gym
(95#OHP)4x8
(155#BOR)4x8
(135#Inc)3x8
(WidePullups)3x8
(30#Curl)10
(35#Skulls)10
(30#SealRow)2x8
(Crunch)3x11
(Band)12

42 + 8 = 50 mins

Upper WO this morning. Started with OHP and although I got 4x8, each set felt heavier than I thought it should be. Maybe I haven't been doing these as consistently as I thought (after looking at my logs) to show improvement. New hand grip felt good. We did BOR with OHP, and it was fine. Then we did incline and wide grip pull-ups. Wide grip pull-ups were fairly difficult. Incline felt good.  Next we did a set of curls, skull crushers and crunches. Then 2 sets seal rows and crunches. Finished with a set of band pulls because seal rows felt too heavy for good rear delt work.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 175.0 this morning.

Sun 9/30 - Pull Day

Workout: Garage Gym
(95#PowerClean)5x5
(Pullups)10,10,8
(135#BOR)4x10
(30#Curl)11,10
(Abs)2x15
(185#DeadLift)3x5
(Band)3x10

62 + 6 = 68 mins

Pull day today and I wanted to change things up and add some variety.  We started with Power Cleans...or attempts at power cleans. New movement for us and there's a definite learning curve.  There's also some shoulder and wrist mobility issues for both of us. Going to take some practice.  It was almost comical at times, and we have video to prove it :)

Then we did pull-ups. Weight was high this morning, but good efforts. Then we did bent over rows for 4 sets. This bothered my hands for some reason. Switched to a thumbless grip which helped a bit.  Then we did curls and abs and finished up with some deadlift form work and band pulls. More hilarity ensued with deadlift form work. We hadn't done these in a while, and it showed.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 178.8 this morning. Ate a lot yesterday evening.

Sat 9/29 - Push Day

Workout: Garage Gym
(145#Inc)8,8,8,7
(35#Landmine)4x10+10
(20#IncFly)2x12
(Abs)2x10
(35#Skulls)10,30x10
(Abs)2x10

40 + 10 = 50 mins

Started with incline and had 4 good sets. Controlled paused reps. Hit failure on 7th rep of last set, but pushed hard each set. Next we did landmine presses for the first time. Didn't go heavy, but each set got hard by the end. 4 working sets were 1-arm at a time, then right after the 4th set we switched to 2-arm for a burnout set. This felt SUPER easy at first, but by about 6-7 reps it started to burn. Like these and will do them more often.

Next we did incline fly's with abs and finished up with DB skull crushers (triceps) with more abs. Good WO.

Nutrition/Weight:
I weighed 172.4 this morning.