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.