Yesterday evening:

Log clean and press

142.5 x 5

175 x 5

202.5 x 8 (PR)

Close-grip bench press

240 x 3 x 10

205 x 7

Chin-ups

4 x 15, 1 x 12

In uncharted territory here and making log PRs every session. To be clear, these weren't all rapid fire reps and I rest-paused a little, but still reasonable enough to be a set. It'd be interesting to start going for time.

I would have liked to do curls but it was getting late so this morning before breakfast and work I hit a 15 rep set of kettlebell double cleans and presses (basically, ABCs without the squat portion) to get some bicep work in.

Currently listening Teddy Atlas' memoir as an audiobook and it's one of the most engrossing audiobooks I've ever "read". Just got to the part where he met Mike Tyson.

 Squats

340 x 5
395 x 5
445 x 5
315 x 20

Reverse-hyper single leg curls
270 x 30

First weak-feeling day in awhile. I had actually set-up the evening before but saved this for the next day since my left knee was bugging me from standing still at work for a period of time in the morning while engrossed with something at my standing desk. Knee felt better after a night's rest, but only slept for 5 hours before I couldn't go back to sleep. Come gym time, I was tired and let out a big yawn just before the top-set while I was trying to excite myself. 445 felt incredibly heavy and I did the minimum 5. A good showing of "bad day strength". 

I started to feel a little bit better later in the day. I planned to do some home boxing but ended up having to deal with a plumbing situation with our dishwasher leaking. Turned out to be the best-case scenario and it was just the P-trap coming loose so it cost $3 to get a replacement washer and tighten the pipes. But diagnosing it and researching dishwasher leaks ate into my evening time. I managed to get in a 5 minute round on the bag, which still felt awesome.

The leak turned out to be a blessing in disguise. When I went to Home Depot I randomly stumbled across some gym flooring and decided to ritz up my patio gym with them. Definitely going back for more. I still have plans to extend that indoors, but for now the free space is remaining as a memorial to my dad with his old desk still around so my siblings can visit and sit there.

 Bench press

225 x 5

255 x 5

290 x 6

Axle clean once and strict press

142.5 x 4 x 10

Super-set with  lying dumbbell rows

115s x 4 x 10

Dumbbell curls

50s x 10, 10

Super-set with lateral raises

15s x 10, 10 

Steady 5 lb gain on bench press every month, but notably, these 6 reps felt much stronger than 285 x 6 last go around. Last rep wasn't a total grind this time. My shoulders and connective tissue have just been feeling much better under the bar lately, too.

I really like the strategy of pairing different assistance work from the main lift. It has me benching and pressing overhead twice a week but with more variety per session and my joints feel better that way.

 Deadlifts

Work-up to 550 x 1

Sandbag squats

200 x 20

I missed the first few attempts at 550 but after tightening my belt, which was feeling loose, I had the mental confidence to fully commit and pull a strong rep. I thought about putting 575 on the bar but since it's been several months since I've pulled over 500 and I forgot that bumper plates quickly take up all the barbell space, I didn't feel like unloading and reloading that many plates after I'd already hit my goal.

Later in the evening I went on a 2-mile run.

 Log clean and press
167.5 x 3
187.5 x 3
212.5 x 5 (PR)
Last set super-set with 15 chin-ups 

Close-grip bench press
235 x 4 x 10
Super-set with chin-ups: 4 x 15

Band pressdowns: 20

Axle curls: 40 x 50

Pretty significant PR. The 5 reps went up far stronger than last month's PR of 207.5 x 4 and none of them were a grind; the weight just kept shooting up overhead.

Boxing was another good class on Wednesday. Didn't do sparring but did the shoulder touching drill, which I always find fun. Did partner combos the rest of the class based on what the coach calls out. Afterwards the coach gave me a fist bump and said it was good to see me, as it's been awhile since I've been here on Wednesday.

It's been a wild time since Thursday morning. At about 5:30 AM I woke to my cat messing around by my head and trying to get at the window. This was unusual because he’s on my sleep schedule and usually sleeps through the night until my alarm goes off. When I picked him up to to take him outside of the room, he immediately started writhing around in my hands, which is even more unusual because he always goes limp when I pick him up before settling in my arms as a perch. As soon as I set him down outside the room, he sprinted back in before I could close the door. Finally, when I closed the door fast enough to keep him out, he started yowling loudly from behind the door, which is completely unprecedented, and that’s when I realized something is in the room he’s fixated on.

That something turned out to be a bat that slipped in through a gap in the window screen. The cat ended up chasing the bat out of the room and I found it flying in circles in the kitchen. I quickly emptied the last remnants of a protein tub and managed to catch it after it stopped to rest.

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Animal control picked up when I rang them and said an officer would be out later to pick it up if I leave it outside, which led to this funny scene of a live bat trapped in a jar of protein left out on my porch.

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In my haste to get through all of this and make it to work, I realized I hadn’t even marked that there was a live bat inside. I joked that any porch pirates were going to get a nasty surprise… And then realized shit, that WOULD be really effing bad if the bat has rabies and we couldn’t test for it, which is the whole point of trapping it and not just releasing it outside. Luckily at around 3 PM an officer left a message on my phone that he was at my property and he wasn’t sure if the bat was in the protein case because dispatch hadn’t left detailed instructions: “I see a creatine or protein container and don’t want to steal your delivery by accident.” We got it cleared up and he ended up taking it for testing.

The next day we got the very good news that it was negative for rabies. The officer still wanted to meet with me on Saturday to fill out paperwork. Meeting him in person, I found him to be a very nice guy but holy shit, the process is wack! I ended up having to pay $130 for the county’s services, which one would assume is what tax dollars are for and and is a great way to encourage people NOT to undergo the proper process and report rabies exposure incidents. Throughout this whole conversation, the cat in question came next to me and the officer and sat down as if he was part of the meeting and he totally charmed the guy.

At least I got an interesting story out of it. The officer also mentioned that the bat was completely covered in protein dust when they took it out.

Also, kudos to my cat, who would not give up. If he hadn’t woken me up, I’d have been sound asleep with a possibly-rabid bat messing around in my bedroom. But what’s shitty is I found out they were on the verge of taking my cat away to quarantine him and “decided” not to, which is infuriating. How is that a decision after the test came back negative? The officer was real nice personally, but the process left a very bad taste in my mouth

 Squats

365 x 3

420 x 3

470 x 4

Strip-sets of 405x5, 315x8, 225x8

Reverse-hyper leg curls

270 x 30

Came into the gym feeling like crap (tired with a headache) and told myself I'd set-up, warm-up, and if I bailed after that then I really needed it. I was dragging during warm-ups and working-up to the 300s, but by 365 I got a burst of energy and sailed through the actual workout.

 Boxing was a big class yesterday. I notice that class size swells when the weather gets a little cooler. 

Although I don't log the 3 rounds of jumping rope every single class, I have to mention something really interesting. My back has grown from doing more strongman training this year while I've gained weight, and as a result my arms are further out from my sides. This is making me miss more from the rope not clearing my feet. I can easily adjust the handles to give me more rope to skip with, but it's an awesome problem to encounter.

We dove right into light sparring next. I had just watched a video of Dmitry Bivol so I practiced circling constantly while keeping distance control via a constant jab and an outstretched arm. This seemed to flummox people and they'd block the first jab or two only to get caught when another one landed. I'm also getting proficient at tracking people side-stepping or pivoting to my left and having them run into my left hook. And I threw more bodyshots this time because I noticed that I was headhunting last week. 

Rest of the class were partner combos. I partnered with a friend who's on the master's boxing team and he likes to drill hard and fast, which is great. My conditioning was getting tested during these drills, although I didn't gas out.

In work news, we hired a new driver so I will not be running deliveries except on Fridays. I'm back to being a desk jockey.

Bench press

240 x 3

275 x 3

305 x 4

240 x 13

Axle press (clean once to get in position)

140 x 10, 10, 10, 8

Kroc rows

125 x 30

Axle curls

40 x 30

I would have been fine with 3 reps of 305 given that I did an upper-body workout the day before yesterday and have been doing a lot of lifting at work, but 4 reps came strong.

I've been continuing to run the delivery routes at work in lieu of our normal driver, who's on medical leave, and it's eaten into my normal downtime at the office to write log updates. I see this as a positive: it spurs me to write during and after the workouts, which I'd fallen off from doing. We are interviewing for new drivers this week so this is a temporary gig, but I've been enjoying the screen break. 

On Friday I delivered protein shakes to an old-school bodybuilding gym about 2 hours away in Santa Rosa complete with framed pictures of Dorian Yates, Ronnie Coleman, Arnold, Mike Mentzer, and others on the wall. I offered a compliment about the gym to the lady at the front desk and she told me a bunch of their lifters just did a local bodybuilding show. I told her I'll come take advantage of their day pass next time I'm in the area.

I've been delivering to Gold's Gyms and they have pictures of Arnold and Franco on a mosaic of the front wall of every gym, which has been cool to encounter while working, but it's not quite the same: it looks corporate and samey. Still dope, but something about seeing framed pictures someone actually took the time to hang on a gym wall really appeals to me.

I've got boxing later in the evening today. Looking forward to the light Monday sparring.

Found my last log workout from Thursday in the Drafts section of my writing app without it being uploaded. It was a good workout, so here it is.

Log clean and press
177.5 x 5
197.5 x 3
217.5 x 3 (PR)

Weighted dips
80 x 3 x 10

Weighted decline push-ups
80 x 8, 7, 6

Kroc rows
125 x 30

Got to shadowbox spar or make spar with light contact in boxing on Monday across 3 rounds with 3 different people, the second partner being a complete beginner whom my gloves barely touched while the first and third were skilled and we let ourselves make contact. Blocked a few bodyshots with my lead elbow, which is always satisfying. My defense and in-fighting feels worlds better than last year, but it will take hard sparring to really test that. Rest of the class was standard partner combo drills, with footwork drills on the floor ladders and then some medicine ball work at the end.

Tuesday deload workout:

Bench press

135 x 5

185 x 5

225 x 5

Close-grip bench press

205 x 3x 8

Super-set with lying dumbbell rows

80s x 3 x 15

Reverse hyper

270 x 2 x 15

Carter curls

35s x 3 x 10 

Deadlifts

475 x 8

ABCs: 50s x 16 in 5:05

Bar hit the gnarled tree root twice again despite moving the set-up forward to avoid that. Ended up pulling from a deadstop for the last 2 reps. Interesting that this was never a problem when deadlifting regularly in this spot but when pulling touch-and-go the bar moves in a path that hits it. Happy with this all things considered: I didn't lose any reps between pulling from 7 mats and the floor.

ABCs after deadlifts were a special kind of hell. I let myself off at 16. I'm looking at another week of lifting drink boxes (Gatorade, energy drinks) at work since our delivery driver is out for the week again and I'll be doing his deliveries to help out, so my back will be getting lots of work. I also have boxing later today. I haven't gone running in a long time, which is by design to let my foot heal, but the conditioning I've gotten from skipping rope and ABCs has helped ensure I don't get gassed at the gym. 

Work has been hectic. Our delivery driver unexpectedly called out due to a medical issue that he may not recover soon from, so I've been running his routes. Monday in particular had me driving the big truck, but I killed it for the most part. Lots of light but repetitive back lifting throughout the week but my body has held up well.

Yesterday we went to Chinatown for a meet-and-greet + viewing of Big Trouble In Little China with James Pax, who played Lightning - the inspiration for Raiden in Mortal Kombat. He couldn't have been nicer or cooler.

I also did not know that Bruce Lee had his first acting role here as an infant in 1941.

Did a lot of walking around Chinatown and little Italy afterwards and decided to get Italian for dinner.

Friday ended up being quite manageable. Boxing was surprisingly chill - mostly bagwork with some calisthenics mixed in. The Blade Rave went awesome, and I invited the crew to my favorite breakfast the next day where I had a Bloody Mary and some divine fish tacos.

On Sunday, I was feeling a bit rundown so rather than my log workout I did:

20 ABCs in 6:07

50 push-ups and 50 chin-ups total (broken-up in sets of 10)

I've been feeling sick this week, and our delivery driver at work suddenly called out for the week at the last minute so I've been temporarily running his routes. It's been a fun change of pace being away from a computer, but lifting and carrying boxes in the heat while feeling under the weather has driven me to allow myself 2 days of rest at home. 

Squats

385 x 5

435 x 3

485 x 2

Strip-sets of 405x5, 315x8, 225x5

Reverse hyper single leg curls

270 x 30

I had more squat reps in me, but I've been feeling redlined the past few days and this is a singles week so I'm still exceeding the minimum work. 

My set-up was feeling a little wonky. I had my squat stands a little closer together than normal so my hands were brought in more, which put more stress on my elbow. Somehow this subconsciously translated to standing slightly narrower, too. Minor differences and it's great that I was still game, but something to remedy next time.

Today is going to be a helluva long one. After work, I've got boxing, and then the Blade Rave at The Ritz going on. Fuck it, we ball. I'll have coffee and Red Bull after destroying myself in boxing if necessary. 

 Bench press

250 x 5

280 x 3

320 x 2

250 x 10

Axle strict press (clean first rep)

135 x 4 x 10

Kroc rows

125 x 30

I actually set-up my bench area yesterday but withdrew when my left shoulder felt pain while warming up with the bar. I'd also been very tired all day despite getting good sleep.

I still felt like I was sleepwalking when walking into the gym today but my shoulder was better, so it was on. Still, I couldn't believe how heavy the bar was feeling, especially 280. I reckoned with myself to just hit a nice, strong single of 320, but that ended up feeling good enough to bench an easy double. 250x10 was also a strong set.

 Started off boxing yesterday with shadowbox sparring, which many of us interpret as light contact sparring. First partner was a big guy who was out of shape and new to boxing, so we went no contact. Second partner was an older dude who immediately starts hitting hard enough to piss me off before I realized this level is what I actually want. It's also not bad for me to get a little pissed off as I need to practice aggression. He's slow but has a habit of hitting and then continuing to walk forward and push the punch in for a long time rather than retract so it's easy to uppercut him under his extended arm. Third partner is always a fun dude to dance with because he's skilled and quick so we both move around a lot.

When we partnered up for drills with the shield, I asked the big guy if he wants go because he was closest to my size. I actually found out he was 18, which kind of blew me away for no logical reason. I gave him some pointers on holding the shield, but when we were throwing hooks there was still no firmness to it and it was like punching hard at a piece of paper, which is far more tiring but also something I take as an endurance exercise when paired with beginners. Ended with heavy bag rounds and then some quick partner exercises of throwing a medicine ball at each other and then getting push-up position and rolling the ball toward one another.

 Mat pulls (2)

475 x 8

Sandbag front squats

200 x 15

Bar kept hitting a gnarled tree branch that extended from my patio frame down to my feet. Had to pull dead-stop a couple of reps as the bar got bumped out in front of me. Great showing of brute strength and IDGAF spirit. Earlier in this cycle, when I was still very tentative about pulling touch-and-go, it would have killed the set for me by losing momentum. For my next week when deadlifting from the floor, I may do it inside on flat ground to eliminate mishaps.

I was content with just one set of sandbag squats (chosen due to their lack of set-up requirement). Pulling touch-and-go with a narrow stance works the legs more than traditional deadlifting and I'm a 210 lb guy doing hill sprints and bodyweight squats in boxing, plus I want to fit in ABCs somewhere this week, so my legs are getting worked plenty outside of my dedicated squat day.

Also wanted to mention that I was in San Francisco on Saturday for a birthday and we went a vintage game and arcade center by the water that had a collection of games from the 1920s and '30s, including this grip test machine. There was also Pong and some 90s arcade cabinets, so I got to end the night with X-Men vs Street Fighter

 Walked into a packed boxing gym on Thursday, which I later found out was due to another gym coming over for sparring. Got to glance at some good matches in my peripheral vision during training. This session was mostly striking the shield that our partner held up, starting with a jab, then a 1-2, and then a jab-uppercut and a straight right-uppercut. I complimented my partner for his power and when it was my turn he said that my right hand hit hard as hell. Ended with 2 rounds of bag work and then a drill doing side-to-side shuffles in and out of a ring, squats/lunges depending on the round, and a 30 second plank, going 3 rounds of that little circuit.

Friday evening:

Log clean and press
147.5 x 5
172.5 x 5
197.5 x 5

Weighted push-ups: 80 x 10, 10, 10, 6
Weighted chin-ups: 80 x 7, 7, 7, 7

Hammer curls: 35s x 10, 10

Made use of my 80 lb weighted vest and it was a fun change to assistance work. Chest got really blasted.

This morning, I strapped on the vest again and went for a 19 minute walk. My traps are killing me after all this, which is awesome.

 Bench press

217.5 x 5

250 x 5

285 x 6

Axle clean once and strict press

132.5 x 4 x 10

Super-set with lying dumbbell rows

115s x 4 x 10

Dumbbell curls

50s x 3 x 10

Super-set with lateral raises

15s x 3 x 10

6th rep of 285 was a grind. Thought for a second that failing the rep might happen which gave me a surge of energy.

Went out to a barbecue dinner after work and had a feast on tri-tip, hot links, ribs, and various sides. The carby sides went fast while people left plenty of meat, which was just fine with me. I still got some potato salad, but the majority of my dining was protein.

Squats

365 x 3

405 x 3

460 x 4

Drop-down sets of 405x5, 315x8, 225x8, 135x8

Reverse-hyper single leg curls

270 x30

Kettlebell swings

50 x 50

I actually attempted this yesterday but stopped at quarter-squatting 315 because I felt so beat. Had stayed up late the night before, which was worth it for the social time, but my sleep schedule is so locked-in during the week from consistent sleep and rise times that I ended up getting a very poor 5 hours with constant wake-ups. 

Warm-ups this time still felt heavy, but better than the day before. 460 caught me off-guard by feeling light and I had to make a split-second decision whether to squat a 5th rep or not, but the nagging voice of moderation in my head had me call it at my original goal of 4.

Log clean and press
160 x 3
182.5 x 3
207.5 x 4 (PR)

Swiss bar bench press
235 x 9, 8, 8

Chin-ups: 3 x 12

Super-sets:
Incline chest flyes: 35s x 12, 12
50s x 12 (10 second squeeze at the end of last 2 sets
Alternating across-the-chest curls
50s x 20, 20, 18

Sandbag carry: 200 lbs x 1 minute

Failed the 4th rep at first (clean was very weak and set the log low on my chest), but a redo with extra intensity got it up.

Went to boxing Friday night. After skipping rope and 3 rounds of dumbbell shadowboxing, there was the very familiar Friday circuit of medicine ball burpees, plyo pushups, and lateral dumbbell holds, 1 minute each. Repeat for 3 rounds. That nuked my inner chest, and I want to get a medicine ball to do medicine ball push-ups and burpees at home. Finished with bagwork and then an ab circuit: crunches, Russian twists, leg raises, and a minute plank.

My 80 lb weight vest arrived today. Props to the delivery guy who walked up the stairs with it instead of just leaving it at the bottom like so many packages end up.

 Monday boxing again started with light sparring. 1st partner was the older dude who is game but doesn't have great technique or speed, 2nd guy was a rail-thin guy who barely makes contact, but third was an interesting match with a skilled partner who wasn't afraid of in-fighting. Volume output from both of us was almost non-stop for the 3 minute round. Those always make my day. Next were partner combos, which I know are necessary but are my least favorite part of training because of their repetitiveness, followed by bagwork and a minute plank. 

Foot is feeling better. Still at its base level of pain where I can feel discomfort if I stretch it a certain way, but better than after that run. 

Yesterday:

Mat pulls (3)

475 x 3, 9

Experienced a very unexpected blood sugar crash just from loading plates and warming-up. I'd eaten oatmeal and tuna pre-workout, but waited longer than normal due to this particular lift causing acid reflux. I ignored it and drank water, but it caused me to experience a blackout sensation on the first set and I lost balance. A few minutes later I was feeling more stable, as this effect tends to go away on its own even without refeeding. The redo was a completely different experience and my breath pattern was also more locked-in.  Adding a rep while going closer to the ground was sweet. Was out of time so called it a night here.

I mentioned previously that I opted to change plans for fireworks viewing from the Golden Gate Bridge to instead having a wonderfully serene time barbecuing at the local park. Turns out that Independence Day in San Francisco was such a disaster it's been making the news rounds here. Extremely heavy fog totally obstructed the entire show and there were apocalyptic traffic and public transit conditions. My coworker who was there said that people were leaving their vehicles in the street because traffic wasn't moving for hours. I'm experiencing a strange form of regret where I wisely made the right decision in the end but am kicking myself for even entertaining the thought in the first place, haha.

Bench press 

235 x 3

270 x 3

300 x 4

235 x 13

Last set super-set with dumbbell rows: 115s x 10

Axle clean once and press

130 x 10, 10, 10, 10

Super-set with dumbbell rows 

115 x 10, 10, 10, 10

Sandbag carries: 200 x 30 seconds, 1 minute

Bench press is progressing slow and steady, going up 5 lbs a month. Biffed the first round of sandbag walks because I forgot to remove my lever belt and the bag was causing it to dig into my lower abdomen.

Had a great 4th of July. Cancelled our tentative plans to drive into San Francisco to see fireworks from the Golden Gate Bridge because of fog forecasts and remembering what traffic is going to be like so we went to the local park instead and had a barbecue, which was actually my first time working a charcoal grill myself. I've only grilled with propane (and electric, but we don't count that). It's a huge park with a lake and it was almost completely empty. It was definitely the right call. Most of my feasting ended up being an unopened pack of grass-fed hot dogs from the camping trip that I wanted to finish before they expired, but I managed to finish with an amazing-tasting bison burger.

Went on a 2 mile jog on Sunday and my left foot is feeling a little pain for it. That barefoot run at the beach really did it in. I'll take running on flat ground off the menu for awhile, which sucks because I love zoning out to music on a long run. I'll resume short hill running rounds once the pain is gone and go from there. Skipping rope at the boxing gym is going to suck a little today, but it's not too bad. 

Didn't play any games on the 4th, as I was still digesting the Xenoblade 2 ending, but on Sunday I resumed Tales of the Abyss and immediately got into it and started progressing the story.

Bench press 

235 x 3

270 x 3

300 x 4

235 x 13

Last set super-set with dumbbell rows: 115s x 10

Axle clean once and press

130 x 10, 10, 10, 10

Super-set with dumbbell rows 

115 x 10, 10, 10, 10

Sandbag carries: 200 x 30 seconds, 1 minute

Bench press is progressing slow and steady, going up 5 lbs a month. Biffed the first round of sandbag walks because I forgot to remove my lever belt and the bag was causing it to dig into my lower abdomen.

Had a great 4th of July. Cancelled our tentative plans to drive into San Francisco to see fireworks from the Golden Gate Bridge because of fog forecasts and remembering what traffic is going to be like so we went to the local park instead and had a barbecue, which was actually my first time working a charcoal grill myself. I've only grilled with propane (and electric, but we don't count that). It's a huge park with a lake and it was almost completely empty. It was definitely the right call. Most of my feasting ended up being an unopened pack of grass-fed hot dogs from the camping trip that I wanted to finish before they expired, but I managed to finish with an amazing-tasting bison burger.

Went on a 2 mile jog on Sunday and my left foot is feeling a little pain for it. That barefoot run at the beach really did it in. I'll take running on flat ground off the menu for awhile, which sucks because I love zoning out to music on a long run. I'll resume short hill running rounds once the pain is gone and go from there. Skipping rope at the boxing gym is going to suck a little today, but it's not too bad. 

Didn't play any games on the 4th, as I was still digesting the Xenoblade 2 ending, but on Sunday I resumed Tales of the Abyss and immediately got into it and started progressing the story.

Did a later boxing class on Thursday evening because I have Friday off and don't have to pay heed to preparing for work and getting to bed early. Right away we start with light sparring, so this class is a win already. Only one partner instead of rotating every round. I did a lot of infighting with my partner where we crouched down and touched shoulders while throwing tight combos. Blocked a lot of body shots with my elbows. 

Moved on to partner combos using mitts and the shield. The shield round in particular had us punching as hard as possible. As soon as the round ended we dropped into a minute-long plank and I felt awful, not because the plank was hard on my abs but because I was catching my breath while remaining still and tense. Recovered before the plank was over, though. When class was over, I stayed after to work the bag. It’s the last class before the 3 day weekend and I wanted to put in the extra work.

I also picked up paperwork to have my doctor sign-off on so I can do hard sparring, which is required for those sessions.

As for today:

Deload

Squats

205 x 5

255 x 5

305 x 5

255 x 3 x 8

Reverse hyper single leg curls

270 x 30

Kettlebell swings 

50 x 50

Swam some leisurely laps in the pool afterwards. Great start to the weekend.

I ALSO finally beat Xenoblade Chronicles 2 tonight. Only took 7 years. What a journey. The ending was alright. Good, really. I just found myself getting taken out of how cringe I found elements of it. The voice acting, the outfits, Rex's age. But it was touching at the same time. I am pretty glad Pyra survived. I just wasn't exactly brought to tears like some online were and I WISH I felt that strongly while watching the end. I'm actually bummed that the game is over though, which tells me it was a great game in the end despite its many warts.

What's next in RPG land? I have Takes of the Abyss awaiting my return, and I'll get around to starting Torna soon. Already I want to dive into Xenoblade 1 and see how Klaus fits in there.

The calm before the storm:

Rex looked stoned as hell here:

 

Hokey.

I'll admit the title screen after the ending is nice.

Deload

Bench press

135 x 5

165 x 5

205 x 5

Axle clean once and press

120 x 3 x 10

Super-set with chin-ups:  3 x 12

Done on Tuesday. Yesterday I just did Fist of the North Star boxing.

No sparring in yesterday's boxing class, but still got some good work in by taking 30 seconds turns with a partner defending jabs, 1-2s, and hooks (separate rounds for each). I dig any kind of dynamic work with a partner like that. Mondays are a boon for it.

I am really feeling my weight gain while skipping rope. On the plus side, my first partner made mention of my size by requesting that I not knock him out. My girlfriend also commented later that night that my back "looks huge now, like a tiger", which was fucking rad.

 Deload

Mat pulls (4)

475 x 8

SSB box squats

290 x 3 x 5

Sandbag carry: 200 lbs x 40 seconds

Strongest-feeling touch-n-go mat pulls yet. Pushed up with my quads, then hinged as the bar rose. No blackout sensation, either. I was set to do more than 8, but the bar bumped my leg on the 8th rep in a way that it misgrooved and I lost balance. Instead of getting braced again, I remembered that this is supposed to be a deload week so I left it at that.

Ordered an 80 lb weight vest. First had my eye on a very swank Rogue Echo vest, but right as I was about to hit buy I noticed that its max capacity is 40 lbs. That should be fine for a walk, but I also want a vest for doing weighted push-ups and wish to go heavier than 40. Went with the cheaper CAP Barbell vest instead.

Played much Xenoblade 2. So much Tiger Tiger, but it's fun. Used the NES controller with it for authenticity and the d-pad is ace. I have screens now.

Got in more shadowbox sparring on Thursday, followed by some simple combo practice rounds with a partner and ending with medicine ball work and intense abs. I had taken a complete rest day the day before and the difference it made while skipping rope was huge - few misses and much more bouncy on my feet. Despite that, I just about keeled over when we did medicine ball squats - my previously fine legs suddenly revealed horrendous soreness from barbell squats 2 days prior.

I recently weighed 208 in the morning before breakfast, in all making it a solid 9 lb gain since April. Still looking pretty lean.

Friday evening:

Deload

Log clean and press

85 x 5

115 x 5

135 x 5

Incline dumbbell press

80s x 4 x 10

Super-set with chin-ups

4 x 12

Dumbbell curls

50s x 10, 10, 8

We went on a fantastic 3-hour hike through the woods at Sanborn (Walden West) the next day. Brought along Vietnamese sandwiches. Much uphill terrain. Only stopped because I was feeling nauseous from something and it was getting a bit late.

Played PSO before bed, enjoyed playing through Temple since we so rarely select it.

Squats

370 x 5

425 x 3

475 x 2

Strip-sets of 405 x 4, 315 x 8, 225 x 8, 135 x 8

Reverse hyper single leg curls

270 x 30

Yesterday I took a total break. Played a little Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and after training my party up a bit I tried to beat Malos the final boss again...but died. I'm having fun with the game at this late stage many years after purchase, though. Even just exploring the world doing nothing is a lot more fun now that my party is actually strong and I don't feel like I'm constantly failing at the game's mechanics. Eli was interested for a little bit watching me explore first-person around Gormott and Morytha.

Just found out: adding a dark orb to the boss will seal his reinforcement summons, hell yeah.

 Got in more light sparring on Monday. First partner was an older guy who tends to get tired and third partner was a short girl, but second partner I went up against was fairly skilled and a volume puncher who threw almost nonstop. He seemed skilled but tended to leave his body open so I took the opportunity to throw a lot of jabs and straights to his midsection, which interrupted his rhythm. Body hooks missed at first but once I found my range and committed to infighting, I was landing them (albeit lightly).

Ended doing some medicine ball slams. People were dying from this despite my medicine ball being 14 lbs vs everyone else's 8. I did downgrade to the 8 when we had to move around in a circle with directional changes called out and exercises like holding a squat stance for 30 seconds. 

 Bench press

250 x 5

280 x 3

315 x 3

Dumbbell press

115s x 8, 7, 7

Super-set with bent-over dumbbell rows

115 x 8, 8, 10

Incline dumbbell press

80s x 10, 7

Super-set with shrugs

80s x 12, 15

Alternating across-the-chest curls

50s x 20, 20

35s x 20

Very good session. It's been awhile since I've benched 315 and doing it for a triple is a longstanding personal standard I've always liked to have for myself. It's a "comfort number", if such a thing can even exist when you're fighting not to get crushed by several hundred pounds.

I'm willingly sacrificing a little bit of reps on paper by focusing on the dumbbell press chest contraction and not letting the bells go down too fast. 

I took the rest of the day pretty easy after this and went on a walk with Elizabeth to our favorite ice cream spot and back. It was early enough in the day where we had plenty of sunlight. 

Was originally going to do this on Saturday but I was recovering from a lack of sleep due to going out with George to The Ritz for Satori on Friday night. That was an alright time and George seemed to (mostly) enjoy it, but I worry about him. I think it would be beneficial to invite him out for non-drinking excursions: hikes and the like. 

Got to play Xenoblade 2 Saturday while I was resting, but died at the final boss despite doing well. Taking some time to travel around the world, train, and even just casually explore. After so many hours and years, knowing just WHERE the exact end goal is has me feeling more enthusiastic about wasting time, oddly enough.

Tragically lost a long write-up I had completed, but the top set of the workout was hitting 210x3 on log clean and press, which is a PR. I actually went for a 4th but I didn’t like the way my back felt on that 4th clean and the log ended up sitting low on my chest, so I let it drop. Wore my Cerberus grip shirt for the first time training the log and I couldn’t turn my belt around with it on, so I opted to leave it facing forward and it definitely contributed to the weak 4th clean rep - the log was further out on my legs than normal before rolling it up. In the future, I’d rather stick with the backwards lever belt and no grip shirt. I can always bust out the shirt in competition and have someone from my entourage clasp the belt from behind. I prefer not to wear it backwards under the shirt as the lever digs into my back.

Boxing yesterday started with partner shadowboxing, but this time it was without gloves so it truly was contactless and not light sparring like Monday. Traded some basic combos, did 2 rounds on the bag, footwork drills, and ended with ab work. Quite a lot of varied things in 1 hour.

Knees seem to be complete pain-free now, although the real test will be squat day. Have been doing backwards treadmill walks on a broken treadmill at work during my lunch break for knee rehab.

 Mat pulls (5)

475 x 8

Just hit this and called it a night, as I ended up training late and decided I could skip the squat assistance work to give my achy knees a break and since log cleans the next day will provide some squat movement. 

Started seeing stars and feeling light-headed around rep 4 but I held on. No acid reflux this time, thankfully.

Realized afterwards that I had been holding the bar a little further out than I should have; I should wear pants next time so I'm not subconsciously attuned against scraping up my legs.

This weight is light enough that I can move it while not paying attention, but I need to remember to start the pull with my quads and then hinge once the bar is high enough. Didn't really feel my quads working on this set the way I have in recent sessions.

 Went to boxing and managed to survive with my injured foot on the jump rope rounds. Went a little slow and gingerly, but I was even able to do high knees for the last 30 seconds each round. 

Spent the rest of the class doing light sparring. Ostensibly it was "shadowbox sparring" but everyone took it to the point of light contact. Since I "officially" can't spar until I get a new physical on file, I felt like I had hit the jackpot in picking this day to go to class. The first round was freestyle, but we soon changed it up by doing jabs only, then 1-2s only. Different partner each round. One of my sparring partners encouraged me to try a high jab, low jab, right body hook, and left head hook combo, which I'll continue to drill on my own.

Worked with the coach on the final round due to there being an odd number of people and having no partner. We had 30 seconds each to throw hooks at each other. I noticed how much better I am at throwing explosively but light. My hooks started fast but landed soft.

Ended with rounds on the heavy bag mixed with push-ups, mountain climbers, and jumping lunges. I was tired by this point, but not gassed. I was able to recover between rounds. A 60 second plank concluded class.

While walking out, I noticed the sparring coach sitting on the bleachers. I said hi to him and mentioned that I want to get back into hard sparring. He said good because they could use me.

Came home and had an awesome homemade dinner of Thai red curry with salmon and brown rice that my girlfriend cooked. She had also prepared 6 meal prep bowls of it for my week. I already made ground bison bowls to last me this week, so that makes a ton of good food ready to go in my fridge.

 Bench press

215 x 5

247.5 x 5

280 x 5

Incline dumbbell press

80s x 12, 8, 6

Lying dumbbell rows

115s x 3 x 8

Felt very tired and weak, like I was coming down with something. At one point during warm-ups my skin felt hot and tingly. I hit the minimum rep requirement on 280 and I don't think I had more in me than that for this session. My endurance was also shot while dumbbell pressing; 12 reps was easy on the first set, but it felt like I had no gas left on sets 2 and 3.

Went to lie down and watch the UFC White House event afterwards. Felt better after lying down. The fights were all excellent. I seem to have sweated a lot in my sleep, but it was good, deep rest.

Last night after work:

Squats
325 x 5
375 x 5
425 x 6
Strip-sets of 405x3, 315x8, 225x8, 135x8

Reverse-hyper single leg curls
270 x 25

Standing band crunches: 30
Full-contact twists: 45 x 20 (10 turning left, 10 turning right)

My knees felt a little achy tonight, but whatever overtraining that did that also made the weight feel stupidly light. I'm thinking of giving them a break by swapping out the narrow stance SSB squats I've been doing for sets of 10 after mat pulls for box squats with heavier weight for sets of 5.

Today was a good mix of activity and leisure. Went on a 1 hour fasted walk in the morning and actually found a new hiking trail close to my house. After coming back and eating a big breakfast of 8 eggs, 3 slices of Canadian bacon, oatmeal with berries, and coffee, I did a few rounds of shadowboxing with the Fist of the North Star boxing game and then swam laps in the pool.

I'm dealing with left foot pain from that barefoot run a week ago. I can run and skip rope, but I'm trying to let this heal up so I'm doing both activities a bit less.

Returned from our camping trip on Sunday. Lots of non-exercise physical activity done from carrying items and went on a beachside partner jog next to the water on Saturday morning. We ran a little under 2 miles in one direction, came across a dead whale, turned around after getting a good look at some distance while researchers took samples/cut up steaks to take home, and ran back for a total of 3.71 miles. Farthest I've run barefoot and wet sand is actually pretty hard and compact; I seem to be paying for it with pain on the side of my left food now. It didn't rear itself until the next day when I was carrying stuff from the campsite to the car while wearing sandals, but it feels like something that wouldn't have happened otherwise.

Ate a ton of grass-fed hotdogs and they taste so good prepped on my camping stove that I'm not tired of them after eating 3 packs myself.

Hearing coyotes howl and cackle close to our tent at night was beyond cool. Overall, this was the best camping trip I've ever been on.

Was still able to work my lower body yesterday:

Mat pulls (6)

475 x 5, 8

SSB squats

280 x 3 x 10

Reverse hyper single leg curls

270 x 25

The pressure combined with compression from my belt made me experience the worst acid reflux of my life on that first set of pulls. It got worse as I ignored it and caused me to lose tension from feeling like lava was about to burst from my chest. It reared its head again on a retry but not as severe. I usually prefer to lift an hour after eating, but for touch-and-go pulls, I'm finding that I need my stomach more clear.

Very pleased with how my back has been feeling. Left knee pain that I previously noted is also completely gone.

 Bench press
230 x 3
265 x 3
295 x 4

Dumbbell press
115s x 7, 8, 8
Super-set with bent-over dumbbell rows
115 x 3 x 10

Incline dumbbell press
80s x 10, 8
Super-set with across-the-chest curls
35s x 20, 16

Hit the numbers I expected. Getting reps of 4 across the board for this triples week.

Going on a 4-day beach camping trip today and will be back on Sunday.

Wrote this yesterday but neglected to post:

Squats
350 x 3
405 x 3
450 x 4
Strip-sets of 405x4, 315x8, 225x8, 135x8

Reverse-hyper single leg curls
270 x 20

Great session. 450 felt light and I left some reps in the tank, but still wanted 1 extra for my 3 week on 3/5/1. I haven’t done those strip-sets in awhile because there was one notable time when I had baaad back pain after doing them combined with bending over the reverse-hyper afterwards. The insidious part was the pain occurring an hour later, giving me no warning signs during the workout. I was cautious with the leg curls this time, keeping my torso more upright than when I do reverse-hyper extensions and only going for 1 set instead of 3. I also made sure to work my back with a massage gun during and after the workout. I feel great after all that.

Had a little bit of left knee pain once I started going over 225, but it was minor. I hadn’t felt it feels like it was caused by a week of squatting slow and narrow during my deload, both with the SSB and during front squats.

Also, before work I did a 3 minute jump-rope round, but I did high knees for the last 15 seconds at the end of each minute until the final third, which was 30 seconds of high knees. Did the high knees faster than normal, too.

Morning: 5 minutes of skipping rope, including 30 seconds of high knees at the end

40 decline push-ups

Home boxing: 2 rounds, 5 minutes each on the heavy bag

10 min jog

Using headgear and a mouthguard on the bag so I'm used to it when I spar again.

I'm currently drinking 7 eggs in the morning with bone broth and 7 more eggs with broth in the late morning again, meaning I've had 14 eggs by the time it's 10:30 AM at work. Putting on quality pounds and looking to compete weighing around 220 for my next competition. And boxing? I'll just be big but conditioned for awhile.

Log clean and press

155 x 3

177.5 x 3

200 x 4

Weighted dips

75 x 3 x 10

Super-set with wide-grip chin-ups 

Bodyweight x 20

50 x 10, 8

40 second chin-up

20 second chin-up

(Note that this is not 40/20 seconds of chin-ups, but a single chin-up rep)

1st and 3rd log reps were slow and sleepy. 4th was the strongest after really getting my head in the game. Love that anything with cleans keeps you honest.

Experimented with wearing my lever belt backwards and it was a win. Going to do this while log pressing from now on. Didn't think at the time to try my grip shirt with it, but I will next time.

Went to Fuel Fest over the weekend with George, which was fun but a little boring this second time around. Felt like I had seen everything after a couple hours. Afterwards, we played Ninja Saviors on Switch, which I'd gotten on sale for $7.99. It was badass but brutally hard, surprisingly. I did just find out there's a block button I knew nothing about so that's something to try again while using. We then watched Rage of the Wind, which was awesome. 

Been playing a lot of PSO with Eli, too. Currently at level 41 with my HUcast.

 Went to a food truck festival with George and Azzy on Sunday (w00t for 3 day weekends). The food was OK but not worth the drive to Daly City. And the cinnamon roll at the end was a cold disappointment. Went to Stonestown Mall nearby afterwards and didn't pick-up anything from the Gamestop we visited, but George went home with Persona 5 Tactica.

Deload

Squats

195 x 5

245 x 5

295 x 5

Front squats

225 x 10

245 x 10

265 x 10

Good mornings

185 x 3 x 10

Weighted Swiss ball crunches

25 x 20

New Cerberus grip shirt is amazing for front squats. No slippage whatsoever. Did the clean rack rather than arms crossed, but wrists didn't have any issue with it.

I don't aim to get sore from a deload workout, but my inner quads were really feeling it the next day even though the sets weren't challenging.

 Started a deload cycle nice and early on Saturday morning:

Axle press

70 x 5

110 x 5

140 x 5

Weighted dips

50 x 3 x 10

Super-set with chin-ups

15, 15, 10

Curls

Afterwards, my girlfriend and I went out for a nice brunch date at a cafe inside a computer history museum before going to see Mortal Kombat II, which was a lot of fun. They did Scorpion right in this movie but no Sub Zero was a bummer.

 Got to practice lots of in-fighting technique yesterday at boxing by getting with a partner and practice throwing/defending 1-2-3 in close range. Did 5 minute rounds. Ended with rounds on the bag, footwork drills around a plastic ring, and then shadowboxing. Thursdays are really nice; class isn't crowded and it's always technical in contrast to Friday's typical calisthenic bombardment.

I've been eating more to put on some weight. There are some competitions I'm considering in fall and I want to come in at a higher weight class. Eating big in summer weather always sucks, but I'm dealing so far (it may not be summer yet but it's still been 90+ degree weather this week).

 Mat pulls (7)

475 x 8

SSB squats

270 x 10, 12, 12

Reverse hyper single leg curls

270 x 2 x 15

Rather than decrease the amount of mats, I opted to increase the weight. This felt like a good amount to settle into for a cycle. Going out of my comfort zone with this touch-and-go style. I felt myself approaching the shadow  zone even with taking quick breaths at the top of each rep, but I resisted the urge to shut it down to see how far I could keep going and I managed to hold on.

 Bench press

240 x 5

275 x 3

305 x 3

Swiss bar bench press

215 x 4 x 10

Super-set with lying dumbbell rows

115s x 4 x 10

Giant sets

Banded chest flyes: 3 x 12

Banded tricep pressdowns: 3 x 12

Alternating dumbbell across-the-chest curls

35s x 3 x 20

I've put on a little weight and am feeling stronger. I'm due for a weigh-in this weekend. Left shoulder that was previously bugging me seems healed. Pleasantly sore in the chest and shoulders the next day.

Boxing on Friday started off with jabbing a partner while moving backwards, then adding a 1-2. Moved on to bag work for the rest of class. Less physically intense than usual for this day's class, but jabbing non-stop for 3 minutes was a decent challenge. It's always a little harder when your partner is limp wristed while holding mitts so you don't get a rebound effect too.

Went out with family for Chinese lunch on Saturday and then spent the rest of my day at my aunt's, spending time with everyone. Wonderful time. In 2008 I wrote a log entry that's still up about how I went to my aunt's and boasted about bringing along a science book to read so I wouldn't be bored. I'm the polar opposite of that attitude now. Didn't really train on this day, but I went down and set everything up to squat the next day and did 2 sets on the reverse hyper, going from 180 lbs to 270 lbs x 10 for each.

My low back did not like sitting on her couch for prolonged periods of time so I had a plan B of doing belt squats the next day, but it was feeling better by the time I stepped into the gym.

Squats

365 x 5

415 x 3

465 x 2

315 x 20

After a split-second decision I went for the 20th rep and felt my back straining to keep the weight up, but no pain. That remained true the rest of the day. Great sign.

 Axle strict press

160 x 5

180 x 3

205 x 1

Last set super-set with chin-ups x 10

Weighted dips

50 x 10

65 x 10

100 x 9

Super-set with weighed chin-ups

50 x  3 x 10

Behind-the-neck press

110 x 2 x 10

Super-set with Carter curls

35s x 2 x 10

It felt good to strict press 205 overhead again after my press performance dropped from cutting weight for the contest. Left shoulder is feeling much better. And everytime I come back to weighted dips I'm reminded that they rule.

Went to a metal show last night so got about 6 hours of sleep. Worth it. I could use a nap but I'm still game to die in a Friday boxing conditioning session at the gym after work.

 Mat pulls (7)

455 x 2, 10

SSB squats

260 x 3 x 10

Standing ab wheel: 10

50 crunches

Side plans (30 seconds each side)

Got 2 reps while holding my breath, stopped as I started to black out, and then did another set while taking breaths at the top like a squat. Still, I'm getting the hang of this. I also stood narrowed than I ever have and really felt what people mean when describing enhanced leg drive this way. 

 Bench press

205 x 5

240 x 5

275 x 6

Swiss bar bench

210 x 10, 10, 9, 8

Super-set with bent-over dumbbell rows

115 x 4 x 10

Giant sets

Banded chest flyes: 3 x 12

Banded tricep pressdowns: 3 x 12

Alternating dumbbell across-the-chest curls

35s x 3 x 20

Pressing strength is definitely down, but I didn't push this hard either and probably had 1 rep in reserve with 275. Got a monstrous pump on the giant sets and my chest and shoulders were pleasantly sore the next day. Really activated some bodybuilding-style mind-muscle connection visualizing by flexing my pecs and biceps during their respective exercises. 

Next day I went on a 3.46 mile run in 38 minutes, averaging 10:59 per mile.

 Boxing was a small but disciplined class yesterday, which was a nice contrast to the large class sizes typical of Wednesday and Friday. After jump rope rounds, we did 2 rounds of weighted shadowboxing, followed by nonstop 1-2s, overhead presses, uppercuts, and 1-2s again, which torched the shoulders. Next, we used the plastic rings to practice footwork drills around them, which I always appreciate Thursdays for. 

The latter half of class was partner drills, just taking turns defending the jab, then facing each other with with one partner holding a shield and the other either jabbing or throwing 1-2s as we moved laterally back and forth. Ended on using noodles to swing at our partner so they could duck and throw either a 2-3-2 or 3-6-3. We were supposed to be striking air here, but my partner took my blocking gestures that I was practicing while holding the noodle as a sign to hit me, and twice he bent my ungloved arm back too far into itself by punching my forearm with his glove so I ceased blocking to get him to stop. I gave it back to him reasonably enough by making him stumble back during the lateral movement striking drills when I'd throw right crosses at the shield he was holding.

Had someone I know who acted as my cornerman during sparring one time come up and say he was glad to see me, asking where I'd been for the past few weeks. He thought it was cool I did a strongman show. It's been great having people welcome me back. I haven't been signing up for sparring because my physical expired last year and I am the worst about going to the doctor, but I'm due for a routine check-up anyway. There is also something I want to get checked out: I've had a bump on my upper abs for about 13 years now that's largely invisible but can be felt and is slightly uncomfortable if I touch it, but not so much that a meathead like me couldn't ignore it all this time.

 quats

315 x 5

365 x 5

415 x 6

Strip-sets of 365x5, 315x8, 225x8

Feeling better energy-wise compared to the day despite a mediocre night of sleep (kept dreaming and waking up, including a sleep paralysis episode). I was expecting a pissed off back waking up in the morning, but it felt pretty good. I've been doing a new back rehab routine that includes cat-camel stretches against a band, which I picked-up from a Georges St. Pierre post on Instagram. My back REALLY likes how that feels afterwards.

Axle push press

140 x 5

162.5 x 5

190 x 5

Seated Arnold press

80s x 6, 8, 8

Chin-ups

Bw x 10

15 x 3 x 10

Carter curls

35s x 2 x 10

Felt astonishingly run down. It caught me by surprise, as I was looking forward to training and I had no perceivable soreness until I loaded some weight on my body. Left shoulder was being pissy at me, which made me glad I had chosen to push press rather than strict press. Mid back felt tender supporting the axle lowering back down. And when I went to do pull-ups, my lats were aching, especially my left side. Elbows were also clicking during the Arnold press so on the second set, I donned elbow sleeves.

Boxing on Friday was exactly what I expected and wanted from that class. I have this session memorized by now. Skip rope, stretch, 3 rounds of dumbbell shadowboxing while the coach comes around and holds pads for everyone, then the following circuit:

1 minute of medicine ball burpees
1 minute of plyometric push-ups
1 round of isometric dumbbell holds
x 3 rounds

End with rounds on the heavy bag, followed by ab work and more stretching. My shoulders and chest were blasted from the calisthenics by the end. There's something special about suffering through this class knowing the weekend lies ahead.

Coach is a former bodybuilder and asked me about my strongman competition. It was cool that he wanted to catch up.

Saturday was a planned rest day. I began to notice one of our cats having balance issues. This guy has always been the weaker and less athletic of the two and tends to have a wobbly gait in general, as he was an abandoned kitten rescue from a ranch who had preexisting health problems, but now it was like he couldn't even turn around without tripping and falling on his side. I cleaned his ears after reading that waxy build-up can mess with their balance and then kept an eye on him, but the next day he seemed a lot better which prompted us to hold off taking him to the vet, although he became more unbalanced and lethargic again on Sunday night. Due to his sneezing and running nose, he hopefully just has a cold that's affecting his balance.

Sunday:

Mat pulls off 7 mats
505 x 6
405 x 15 (touch-n-go)

SSB narrow stance squats
240 x 3 x 10

10 ab wheel reps, kneeling
30 crunches

Couldn't keep tension for more than 2 touch-and-go reps with 500. That's a weight I'll have to earn with that pull style. This was still a fun session, as it's been awhile since I've pulled 500 and used the SSB.

Later, went on a 2 mile run in the evening.

 Returned to boxing yesterday and got some warm greetings from the front desk lady as well as one of my coaches who was working out there and whom I'll be training with on Friday.

Class size was big, which made me especially grateful for the gym's new, larger location that we moved into in January. Sadly, it was full of teens who were dicking around and the coach had to yell out some disciplinary reminders. I was the only person I could see in the class who was fit enough to skip rope for all 3 rounds, despite being the oldest.

After shadowboxing we did rounds on the heavy bag, which I was really happy about because it's been awhile since I've hit the bag hard. We ended with partner drills, and after my first choice involving someone I knew had good technique fell through, I ended up asking an incredibly skinny guy who was at least my height to pair up. I was pleasantly surprised that he had good boxing fundamentals, though. We each took our own rounds of someone throwing a high jab and a low jab, then a 1-2, then a 1-2-3, and finally a 1-2-3-2. After that cycle, it reset but with the defender responding with a 1-2-3 counter. Then we switched.

Ended with ab work. Russian twists and butterflies are dicey on my low back. Anything that has me holding my legs suspended a few inches off the ground puts pressure on the pain-susceptible area. I made it through most of the exercises but opted to keep doing crunches by the end instead of any leg lifting.

Felt great to be back in the gym. Back is a little stiff but that's about it right now.

Also wanted to add that in strength training news, I ordered a Cerberus grip shirt. Looking forward to trying it out with squats and sandbag shouldering.

 Had a plan yesterday to do mat pulls and SSB squats, two lifts I haven't done in awhile and which excited me to think about, but time ended up being very short so I pivoted to this trusty time saving super-set. I lowered the weight and then changed several factors up: no knee sleeves, narrow squat stance, and touch-and-go deadlifts. 

Squats: 275 lbs x 20
Deadlifts: 275 x 20

Finished with 275 x 10 Romanian deadlifts after a brief rest.

TNG deadlifts really made my glutes feel it compared to regular deads. I also think the constant tension was rehabilitative for my back.

 Started the weekend off on Friday right after work:

Squats

340 x 5

390 x 5

440 x 4

I had another rep in me of 440 if I fought for it, but my back had just started feeling better and the juice wasn't worth the squeeze. Didn't want to grind any reps.

Called it a night here to make it out to Costco before closing time.

Saturday:

Axle strict press

140 x 5

160 x 5

180 x 4

Seated dumbbell overhead press: 80s x 7, 6, 7

Super-set with weighted chins: 15 x 3 x 10

Dips: 20, 15

Super-set with alternating cross body curls: 35s x 2 x 16

Felt a little sick and rundown coming into this workout. Fell short of 5 on the press, but I knew I'm on the upswing from rapid weight loss and illness so that will get stronger soon. Back felt "tender", but not in pain and it has only felt stronger since Saturday.

I have boxing on Wednesday and Friday this week. Really looking forward to those sessions.

The day of and after the comp, my mid back was trashed and it felt like someone had wedged a knife in the middle of my spine, probably from leaning too far back on one particular rep during the log press. Come Monday, that sensation and region felt completely healed and now it's a familiar discomfort in my low back which wasn't present after the comp. Very interesting.

Have just been doing non-exercise physical activity like walking and did a 6 minute partner's round of Fist of the North Star boxing. I'm thinking I feel like hitting a bench workout today after workout, but we'll see. Diet has been more lax but not completely astray, either. I ordered a pizza on Sunday and at work I saw a bag of Ghirardelli dark chocolates so I ate one. I'm actually completely satisfied from allowing myself these moments of mouth pleasure and feel like getting back on my routine again.

 

Yesterday I competed in my first strongman competition in 9 years, which is just mindblowing for me to think about. The last time, I ended up tearing my bicep on a 700 lb tire flip and then taking an unplanned strongman hiatus, competing in a few powerlifting meets and getting into boxing the next few years. Then one day I started thinking about how I once spontaneously signed up for a strongman contest just a few days before its event date, that I missed being that eager to compete in the sport, and that I for sure want to commit to a competition by or before summer, which ended up being this one 2 hours away. The events mostly involved equipment I already had except for the timed Dinnie stones hold, which wasn’t something that really required technique practice. I ended up not working with my sandbag as much as I would have liked due to my back and it came back to bite me in one particular event.

When I signed up, I weighed 208 and decided to shed the pounds necessary to make the 198 weight class, which was easy enough given the time I had to prepare. Did the usual carb control measures, limiting myself to veggies except before and after training, with some cheat meals here and there. The weight came off without noticeable strength losses, but the morning of the event, I did have to lose 3 pounds of water weight by putting multiple layers on, amping up the hotel heater and shower, and just hanging out along with doing a few jumping jacks in the hour I had before morning weigh-ins. I barely made it by the time I stepped on the scale, but the relief when that was done was immense. I immediately started munching on one of the offered donuts and then ate a turkey sandwich.

After getting set-up and going through the rules, we got started pretty quickly. My warm-ups just consisted of some band pull-aparts and a few reps with the empty log. I was feeling a little fluttery from the water loss (my hand was shaking when showing my strongman corp membership) and knew that filling my belly up would help.

Log Clean and Press - 200 lbs

Right off the bat I forget both to roll my knee sleeves up from my ankles and to put on my wrist wraps. Nothing important. The log weight felt so light at first that I wondered if someone messed up and put me in the Novice division instead of Open. However, stability was worse than in training and I was shakier than normal holding the weight up, which I blame on my weight loss (both the smaller waist and earlier dehydration). I got 4 reps, and then lost a 5th when the weight strayed too far out in front of me. This was 2nd place to the guy who got 5.

Sandbags Floor to Shoulder - 175, 200, 225 lbs

I had practiced this at home a few times with a 200 lb Rogue bag, but I would have liked to have done more of that. The 175 went without a hitch, but the 200 lb Cerberus bag was rounder and more densely packed than my Rogue and I had trouble keeping it situated on my shoulder because it wouldn’t sink in. I’d get it up and hold it momentarily only for it to roll away, at one point even rolling behind me over my back. The organizer called to me while I was walking away to apologize and explain why he couldn’t give any of those attempts a pass and I told him I understand. He seemed a little surprised that I didn’t press the issue, going “Oh, so you know?” I took last in this event with just the first bag successfully held under control.

50 Foot Yoke Walk to Deadlifts - 375, 315 lbs

I trained high rep deadlifts by doing a 20 rep squat and 20 rep deadlift super-set. It was overkill for how easy this was, which is by no means a bad thing (“Strength is never a weakness”, as Mark Bell says), but I should have given more thought to the straps situation to maximize time: practice strapping up quicker? Or not even bother because it’s friggin’ 315 lbs? I should have done either but in retrospect, less than 60 seconds is not enough time for me to have trouble holding 315. I took way too long to strap up and ran out of time at 17 reps, which tied me for 1st in this event. I also should have respected the yoke weight less and moved faster instead of being careful. If we’re talking something actually heavy then yes, take the lesson from Franco Colombu’s mistake and don’t sprint with it, but I’ve lurched down the walkway with a 610 yoke like Frankenstein’s monster on roller skates with his rectum on fire so I should have been more aggressive barreling forward with just 375.

Sandbags Wine Barrel Loading - 200, 225, 250 lbs

I totally got in my own head over this event due to my poor performance with the sandbags prior and thought I’d have a hell of a fight waiting for me, not quite remembering that I was able to LIFT the bags fine and it was balancing them that I shit the bed on. I went down the line and got everything up on the wine barrels without issue, taking 2nd place for time.

Dinnie Stones Hold: 225, 250 lbs+

Right before the final event, it was announced that the weights for this would be increased. Therefore, I’m posting the original weights with a plus to indicate they were something higher. I was hoping these would be replicas using actual stones but alas, they were plates on pins. I practiced the staggered stance using my backpack in one hand and my gallon water jug in the other while waiting my turn. I was shocked that most of the men I watched could barely even deadlift the pins. They’d just barely clear the ground and then drop down. It got to the point that the organizers started allowing second attempts. I commented aloud how I noticed that most people weren’t getting their torsos centered into their hips and staying balanced, and one of the women asked me to repeat that so she could remember when she went up. Come my turn, I picked them up and it pretty much felt like I expected. I got some shouts of “BREATHE!”, but I WAS breathing, albeit short breats, but I was also bracing hard to protect my back and stay upright. Got 18 seconds, 2nd place to someone who was trailing me overall in 3rd but who managed 25 seconds. I was shaking once again, which was a theme throughout the day.

When all was said and done, I finished the meet in 2nd place and got my first ever podium finish, a helluva return to the sport after leaving the arena injured 9 years ago.

I felt physically good afterwards but it was like my body began to realize I wasn’t going to demand anymore of it because the further into the day it got the more I began to feel like I’d been hit by a truck. My mid-back and upper-back near my neck are sore as hell, my middle back slightly concerningly so (I leaned back farther than usual on one of the log press reps, which is what did that), but my low back is actually feeling great, thankfully.

Went out for drinks and food at a favorite Irish pub in the area and feasted on red ale, oxtail soup, grilled cheese, mashed potatoes, and coffee ice cream.

Where to go from here? I’m going to take a week break from dieting before continuing, albeit at a slower pace than before. Going to spend more time in the boxing gym, which I’ve been neglecting. And I want to compete again this year, either in this same weight class or one above it, but no more water weight cutting. I’m hungry for more strongman, but I also enjoy training the powerlifts and they’re easy on my body, so I’m game to knock out any powerlifting meet I find that’s close by, as well.