Sun 1/29 - Upper

Workout: Golds
(85#DBInc)11,8
(70#DBInc)3x9
(210#PullDn)2x8,180x10,10
(120#Shldr)3x10
(175#Row)3x10
(80#Skulls)2x10
(50#PCurl)2x12
(35#HCurl)2x10
(120#RopeExt)13,10
(20#ChestRaise)2x12
(10#CircleCrunch)2x10
(130#RDeltFly)2x15
(CircleCrunch)2x10

76 + 11 = 87 mins

Upper WO today after a hike at South Mountains State Park yesterday. Started with DB Incline and pulldown superset. First set of incline was good, but R shoulder felt a bit unstable. Second set shoulder got a bit worse, so I raised the angle of incline and went lighter for 3 more good sets. Couldn’t risk another heavy set of incline. I went heavy on first 2 sets of pulldowns, then backed off for 2 more. Good work on both movements. Then we did shoulder press and seated rows.

Next we did skull crushers supersetted with preacher curl/hammer curl combo. I wanted a little more volume on triceps, so did 2 sets of rope extensions on short rest.  Then we did chest raises with weighted circle crunches. Finished up with rear delt fly’s and body weight circle crunches. Good WO.

Weight: 
I weighed 181.0 this morning.

Thu 1/26 - Pull Day

Workout: Golds
(165#BOR)3x8
(#14PullDn)3x8
(95#CableRow)3x10
(28#Crunch)3x10
(40#RDelt)3x10
(40#HCurl)3x10
(95#RDeltFly)3x13
(10#CircleCrunch)2x10/10

46 + 6 = 52 mins

Pull day today. Started with bent over rows and increased weight from what I’ve done recently. Then I did pulldowns on the machine I like and upped the weight to #14. No idea what the weight equates to, but sets of 8 were hard.  Next I did standing cable rows with the whole stack. Like these and supersetted them with weighted crunches. Next I did rear delt rows and hammer curls with 40#DB’s. Planned on 2 sets, but was feeling pretty good so I added a 3rd. Finished up with some machine rear delt flys (3 sets) and 2 sets of weighted circle crunches.  Good amount of volume for a mid-week WO. Kept time short by keeping rest periods fairly short. Started every set on 3 min intervals.  Good WO.

Weight: 
I weighed 175.4 this morning.  Don’t want to go much lower than that right now. Trying to eat above maintenance, gain strength and be able to recover/grow. Won’t be too long before I want to start thinking about leaning out for the spring/summer.

Wed 1/25 - Push Day

Workout: Golds
(80#DBInc)2x10
(25#Crunch)2x12
(70#DBInc)2x10
(CircleCrunch)2x10/10
(50#DBShldr)9,45x8
(20#ChestRaise)2x12
(80#Skulls)11,9
(65#RopeExt)2x9

40 + 9 = 49 mins

Push day today.  Started with DB Incline for 2 good controlled sets supersetted with weighted crunches. Raised angle of incline and did 2 more sets with 2 sets of circle crunches. Raised the incline to 90 degrees and did shoulder press supersetted with chest raises. Finished up with skull crushers and rope extensions.  Good WO.

Weight: 
I weighed 176.2 this morning.

Mon 1/23 - Upper

Workout: Golds
(DBInc)70x13,75x10,10
(160#SeatRow)3x10
(60#IsoShldr)12,10,10
(#13PullDn)3x8
(73#RopeExt)2x10
(CircleCrunch)3x10/10
(40#HCurl)2x10
(45#RDelt)2x10
(20#ChestRaise)2x10
(100#RDeltFly)2x10

52 + 7 = 59 mins

I went heavy on Friday so today was a moderate weight pressing day. I started with steep angle incline and 70 was a bit too light at 13 reps so I bumped to 75#DB’s after the first set and had two more really good sets. Supersetted these with seated rows. Then I did iso shoulder press and pulldowns which were both good.

Next I did rope extensions, circle crunches and hammer curls superset. Then I did rear delt DB raises with chest raises. Chest raises are something new. It’s like a front delt raise, but you raise and pull across your body to work the upper chest more than front delt. Liked them.  Finished up with rear delt fly machine.  Good WO.

Weight: 
I weighed 178.2 this morning.

Sat 1/21 - High Knob hike

We woke up at 4am and drove to JMU to spend the weekend with Gregg. On the way, we realized we were going to be there early (probably before Gregg would wake up), so we detoured onto the Blue Ridge Parkway and saw an amazing sunrise. Clouds were below us in the valley as the sun came up.

We got to JMU and picked Gregg and Angie up and drove to George Washington National Forest 30-45 mins away and did the High Knob hike to the fire tower at the top of the mountain.  It was steep, and the gates to the park where the trailhead is located were locked. So it ended up being longer and steeper than I anticipated.  Gregg and Angie were troopers and did a great job. The 4 of us had lunch at the top by the fire tower.

About 8 miles and 4 hour round trip.

We all got cleaned up and went for a sushi dinner, then a game of Phase 10 back at our hotel room.  Great day all around.

Fri 1/20 - Upper (awesome DB Incline w/ 85#DB's)

Workout: Snap Fitness
(85#DBInc)10,8,8
(70#DBInc)10,9
(205#PullDn)4x8,160x10
(120#ShldrPress)11,10,8
(160#SeatRow)3x8
(CircleCrunch)3x10/10
(140#RopeExt)10,10,9
(40#RDelt/HCurl)2x10/10

62 + 8 = 70 mins

Rare Friday evening WO. Started with DB incline and went heavier than I have in quite a while. I was hoping to get between 8 & 6 reps for 3 sets. Killed that! Felt awesome and reps were all controlled, even slightly paused last rep. Then we raised the angle of incline and did 2 more sets. These were really good controlled reps and worked hard on these sets. Best pressing in a long time. Need to back off because shoulder can’t handle this with any kind of frequency. We supersetted incline with heavy pulldowns for 4 sets, plus a back-off set.

Next we did shoulder press machine with seated rows. I was done by the 3rd set here. Next we did circle crunches with rope extensions. Circle crunches start easy, and get HARD quickly. Finished up with rear delt and hammer curl combo.  GREAT WO!

Weight:
I weighed 176.2 this morning.

Wed 1/18 - Upper

Workout: Golds
(70#DBInc)3x11
(75#DBRow)3x8
(30#IncFly)2x10
(PullDn)3x10
(ShldrPress)2x12
(25#Crunch)3x15
(73#RopeExt)11,8
(10#RDelt)2x10

33 + 7 = 40 mins

Quick Upper WO today. Started with steep angle incline. These felt really good. Very controlled reps with paused reps last rep or two of each set. I’d like to go heavier here, and certainly could, but it’s really tough on my R shoulder getting heavy DB’s into place. Supersetted these with DB rows. Again, controlled reps. They got heavy quick when not cheating the weight up. Then I raised the angle of the incline further and did 2 sets of DB fly’s. I haven’t done these in forever, and probably shouldn’t have. They’re really hard on my shoulder.  They felt good through 8 reps, and I should’ve stopped there. The last 2 reps were a bit painful.

Then I did 2 sets of shoulder press supersetted with 3 sets of pulldowns.  Finished up with rope extensions, abs and rear delt work.  Done in 40 mins including warmup. Solid work for such a short WO. I’ve been really pleased with pressing lately. I’ve got to fight the urge to go heavy and frequent.

Weight: 
I weighed 175.6 this morning.

Mon 1/16 - Upper

Workout: Golds
(80#DBInc)10,10,10,65x10
(155#BOR)3x8
(55#IsoShldr)3x12
(PullDn)3x10
(68#RopeExt)3x11
(CircleCrunch)3x10/10
(10#RDelt)3x12


45 + 7 = 52 mins

Started with DB Incline and wasn’t planning on going to 80#DB’s today, but warmups felt good. Thought I’d do 3x8, but got 3x10. Very nice. Raised the incline and did a back-off set of 65#’s for good paused reps. Supersetted incline with bent over rows (2 sets underhand grip, 1 overhand). Next I did iso-shoulder press and pulldowns. Finished up with a superset of rope extensions, circle crunches and rear delt fly’s.

The circle crunches are a new twist that I liked a lot. They start off easy, but got really hard. You crunch in a circular motion, 10 reps clockwise followed by 10 repscounter clockwise. Keeps tension on abs longer throughout each rep.

Weight: 
I weighed 182.2 this morning.  Whoa! Things got a bit out of control this weekend.

Sat-Sun 1/14-15 - Hiking in the Smoky Mountains

Sat - Hike up Alum Cave Trail to Mt. LeConte. Sarah and I got engaged at LeConte lodge.
-5 hours, 11 miles.

Sun - Hike on Abrams Falls hike in Cades Cove. Also did side trail to Elijah Oliver place/cabin. 6-7 miles.

Great weekend.

Fri 1/13 - Push Day

Workout: Snap Fitness
(75#Inc)10,10,9,8
(115#ShldrPress)4x9
(RopeExt)140x8,130x10,10
(30#SideInc)10,25x10,10
(25#Crunch)3x10


45 + 8 = 53 mins

5:30am Push WO this morning. Started with DB Incline. Set the incline steeper than normal starting position. I planned on 70#’s and when I warmed up to that weight, it felt light, so I bumped to 75#DB’s.  Very pleased with 4 good sets here. All reps were very controlled. Felt great once I got the DB’s into position. I still have problems getting the R DB into place when they are heavier because of my shoulder. Then I did machine shoulder press for 4 good sets. Next I did rope extensions and went heavier than usual. Finished up with side incline and weighted crunches.  Very pleased with incline.

Weight: 
I weighed 176.4 this morning.

Thu 1/12 - Pull

Workout: Golds
(130#SeatRow)3x10
(PullDn)3x10
(25#CrunchTwist)4x10
(115#IsoRow)2x10
(45#PCurl)2x10
(40#RDelt)3x10
(RevCrunch)15,12,12
(30#HCurl)2x12

48 mins

Quick Pull day today. Started with seated row machine that was a bit awkward. Then I did a pulldown machine I like, supersetted with crunch twists with a 25# plate on my chest. Then I supersetted 1-arm iso rows with machine preacher curls. Curls felt a bit awkward too.  Then I did rear delt with reverse crunches. Finished up with 2 sets of hammer curls. Hadn’t done these in forever. Nothing felt “great” today. Got it in…

Weight: 
I weighed 175.0 this morning.

Tue 1/10 - Upper

Workout: Golds
(70#DBInc)2x12
(Pullups)15,11
(60#DBInc)2x10P
(135#BOR)2x10
(45#DBShldr)2x10
(65#DBRow)2x10
(25#Crunch)15,10
(RopeExt)10,9

38 + 7 = 45 mins

Quick Upper WO at lunch today. I didn’t want to go real heavy today or push to failure after big WO’s this weekend. Started with low incline supersetted with pull-ups for 2 sets. Lots of reps on incline and very good pull-ups. 15 on first set is very good right now.  Then I raised angle of incline and did 2 sets of paused reps, supersetted with BOR’s. Then raised angle of incline to 90 degrees and did shoulder press supersetted with DB rows. That was the meat of the WO. I’m really enjoying the different angles of incline, and hoping it keeps the wear down on shoulders with some variety. Finished up with some ab and triceps work.  Good work in short time.

Weight: 
I weighed 175.6 this morning.

Sun 1/8 - Pull Day (Volume)

Workout: Snap Fitness
(25#Pullups)3x6
(135#BOR)4x8
(160#PullDn)3x10
(65#DBRow)3x10
(70#SLDL)3x10
(RevCrunch)23,18,15
(60#PCurl)2x10
(35#RDelt)2x12
(BandPull)2x20
(15#CrunchTwist)3x10/20

72 + 5 = 77 mins

Pull day today started with weighted pull-ups. These were OK, but thought I’d get more than 6 reps with this weight. Worked hard for these though. Then we did underhand BOR for 4 good sets. Then pulldowns and DB rows. Back fried by this point. That’s a lot of volume for me!

Then we did DB SLDL supersetted with reverse crunches. Then Preacher Curls with rear delt work. Finished up with band pulls (more rear delt) and crunch twists. Great WO! Very taxing.

Weight: 
I weighed 179.6 this morning.

Sat 1/7 - Pull Day (Very good DB Incline)

Workout: Snap Fitness
(80#DBInc)10,9,9
(65#DBInc)10,10
(50#DBShldr)7,45x8,8
(ButtRaise)20,15,15
(80#Skulls)9,9,8
(Crunch)3x12
(25#SideInc)2x10
(110#RopeExt)2x10

54 + 8 = 62 mins

Sarah and I did a push WO today. Tomorrow will be a pull day. I started with incline and since my pressing and shoulder has been pretty solid lately, I bumped the weight to 80#DB’s. Very pleased with the three sets here. Weight was controlled and was able to slightly pause the last rep in each set. Feel really goodwhen I can fully control the heavier weights…and it’s a hell of a lot safer. Then I raised the angle of incline and did 2 sets with 65#’s. These were great! Very controlled. Then raised the incline to almost 90 degrees and did 3 sets of DB shoulder press. Started with 50’s and had to drop.

Then we did skull crushers with butt raises (ab work). Crunches, side incline and rope extensions.  Great push day! Very pleased.

Weight: 
I weighed 176.4 this morning.

Thu 1/5 - Pull Day

Workout: Golds
(135#BOR)4x10
(20#CrunchTwist)4x10
(PullDn)5x9
(90#IsoRow)2x12/12
(35#RDelt)3x10
(60#PCurl)2x10

43 + 5 = 48 mins

Pull day today. I started off with under hand grip bent over rows. Could have gone a bit heavier, but first time doing BOR underhand grip in a long time, so I didn’t want to start too heavy. And, this grip can be a bit hard on my elbows. Supersetted these with weight crunch twists on a decline bench. These got hard.

Then I did pulldowns. I did a set of high row pulls, then a set on another plate loaded pulldown machine.  Neither one felt great. Then I got on a machine that was very similar to the pulldown machine I loved at Ironbound gym. I was only going to do 3 sets of pulldowns, but after I got on this machine, I did 3 more sets for a total of 5.  Note: golds is re-doing the gym with lots of new equipment, but the cable pulldown stations are in the back and not available right now. Next I did 2 sets of 1-arm rows on the plate loaded machine.  Went light here with higher reps and short rest between the 2 sets.  Finished up with some rear delt work and preacher curls. Decent WO.

Weight: 
I weighed 176.2 this morning.

Wed 1/4 - Push Day - Golds

Workout: Golds
(70#DBInc)12,11
(60#DBInc)2x10
(45#DBShldr)2x10
(RevCrunch)20,16,16
(63#RopeExt)13,11
(Crunch)3x10

33 + 10 = 43 mins

Back to work and back to Golds Gym for a quick push WO at lunch. Started with DB Incline for 2 sets. Paused reps, very good.  Then I raised the angle of the incline bench and did 2 more sets. Very good. Raised the incline to almost 90 degrees and did 2 sets shoulder press, supersetted with 3 sets reverse crunches.  Finished up with rope extensions and crunches. Nice work in short time.

Weight: 
I weighed 177.2 this morning. Planning on keeping my weight up a bit for a while. See if some extra food throughout the week might help my shoulder heal up. My normal pattern has been eat a lot on weekends, diet fairly hard all week. I don't think this is conducive to recovery.

Mon 1/2 - Pull Day - Birthday Pull-up Challenge!!

Workout: Snap Fitness
(Pullups)13,10,10,8,5
(InvertedRow)3x10
(80#SLDL)3x8
(RevCrunch)20,15,13
(75#DBRow)2x9
(60#PCurl)11,10
(35#RDelt)3x11
(CrunchTwist)3x10

65 + 5 = 70 mins

Today was Sarah’s birthday and pull day. That means, the birthday challenge! The challenge is to do the number of pull-ups for how many years old you are in the least amount of sets possible. Sarah had to do 33 and I had to do 45.  Sarah did 33+1 (1 extra for good luck).  I did the same, 45+1=46.  Great way to start a pull WO!

Next we did inverted rows. Sarah’s back was fried from pull-ups, so she did seated rows after the first set.  Then we supersetted SLDL with reverse crunches. Next we did DB rows with preacher curls. Finished up with rear delt and more ab work.  Awesome pull day, and great pull-ups for both of us.

Weight: 
I weighed 178.8 this morning.

Sun 1/1 - New Year Push WO

Workout: Snap Fitness
(75#DBInc)10,10,10,9
(55#DBInc)10,9,9
(100#ShldrPress)3x10
(ButtRaise)3x15
(80#Skulls)10,9
(Crunch)10/10,8/8
(30#SideInc)2x10
(Crunch)2x10
(110RopeExt)2x10

55 + 10 = 65 mins

Back home for a new year’s day WO. Great way to start the year.  We did a push WO today.

Started with DB incline and had 4 good sets with 75#DB’s. 1 more rep than last WO with this weight. Then we raised the angle of the incline and did 3 more sets. The were very good. Next we did machine shoulder press supersetted with butt raises (ab work).  Then we did skull crushers with crunches. Finished up with some side incline, more crunches and some rope extensions. GREAT push day!

Nutrition: 
Weight was 180.0 this morning. Back home on my scale

12/31 - 12 Mile hike in Uwharrie National Forest

Sarah and I drove to Uwharrie National Forest this morning. Only about an hour away.  We started at the 109 Trailhead and hiked on the Uwharrie Trail to Dutchman's Creek Trail. Out and back 12 miles in 5 hours.

Fitting way to end 2016 with Sarah.

I weighed 177.2 this morning.

12/29 - Upper Mix-it-up WO

Workout: Ironbound Gym
(105#Clean/Press)5x8/3
(65#Inc)3x10P
(50#IsoShldr)15/+3,3,3
(90#PullDn)15/+4,4,4
(150#RopeExt)2x10
(40#RDelt)2x10
(ButtRiase/Crunch)12/10,10/6,10/6

55 mins

Today was an interesting, and fun, workout. We started out with clean and press. Sets were of 8 power cleans with 3 overhead presses at the end. These got tiring. Supersetted these with medium-weight DB incline.  Next we did myo-rep sets of shoulder press and pulldowns. These were brutal. We finished up with some triceps, rear delt and ab work. Fun and hard, WO.

Nutrition: 
Weight was 181.0 this morning. Using the scale I left at my Mom’s.

Wed 12/28 - Hike at Freedom Park

My Mom, Sarah and I went for a hike on a mountain bike trail in Freedom Park near my Mom's neighborhood. Great trail. Pretty day. Great company with the two most important women in my life.  Very nice time walking in the woods with them.

I weighed 179.2 this morning.

Tue 12/27 - Upper at Ironbound

Workout: Ironbound Gym
(75#DBInc)10,10,10,8
(90#T-barRow)4x8
(IsoShldr)80x8,70x9,9
(90#PullDn)3x10
(PCurl)70x9,65x11,9
(150#RopeExt)3x10
(35#RDelt)3x12
(ButtRaise)25,22,15
(15#CrunchTwist)3x9
(BandPull)3x25

77 + 10 = 87 mins

Another upper body WO at Ironbound. Bumped up weight on DB incline and had 4 really good sets again. Supersetted with t-bar rows, a bit heavier than last WO since it was first back movement. Next we did iso shoulder with pulldowns.

Next we did preacher curls with rope extensions. Finished up with rear delt and ab work.  Very good WO.

Nutrition: 
Weight was 178.6 this morning. Using the scale I left at my Mom’s.

Mon 12/26 - Walk 5.5 miles

Walked 5.5 miles in the morning

Weighed 181.4 this morning. Whoa!

Sun 12/25 - Christmas Morning Run

Ran 4 miles in 40 mins, walked 2 in 35 mins.
45 min walk in the afternoon after brunch.

Weighed 176.4

Sat 12/24 - Upper (Ironbound Gym)

Workout: Ironbound Gym
(70#DBInc)4x10
(115#PullDn)4x8
(70#IsoShldr)10,8,8
(70#T-barRow)3x10
(Curl)75x8,65x10
(150#RopeExt)10,10,8
(30#RDelt)3x12
(CaptChair)3x12
(15#CrunchTwist)3x12

77 + 10 = 87 mins

Spent the week in Williamsburg with family and worked out at Ironbound Gym. Love this gym.  Started with DB incline and it went really well. 4 sets of controlled reps with this weight is promising given the last couple of WO’s. Supersetted with pulldowns on a plate loaded pulldown machine that we really liked. Great movement and back activation. Worked hard for 4x8.

Next we did iso shoulder press supersetted with t-bar rows. Had to go fairly light on rows after hard pulldowns. Next we did preacher curls with rope extensions, then finished up with some rear delt and ab work. Very good WO.

Nutrition: 
Weight was 172.8 this morning. Using the scale I left at my Mom’s.