Bench press
240 x 3
275 x 3
312 x 2
240 x 8, 8
* Yikes, I need a deload. Things are hurting that shouldn't. Yesterday when doing 115 lb dumbbell lunges my left tricep started feeling fatigued and was shaking. And when I do any kind of lat exercise I feel my triceps hurting a little. There's more beyond that, too.
-
Super-set with bent-over dumbbell rows
100 x 8
115 x 2 x 8

Iron Woody band press
12, 1w
-
Super-set with bent-over dumbbell rows
115 x 8, 8

Curls, rear-delts

Squats
275 x 5
315 x 5
375 x 5
275 x 10
285 x 10
-
Last two sets super-set with band leg curls

Front squats
225 x 8
-
Super-set with band leg-curls

Russian twists + leg raises

Hip flexors are feeling a little tender. Should bring in box squats to give them a break.

Muay Thai last night was chill but productive. We worked uber basic combos, starting with jab + right low kick, then adding jab + cross + left low kick. Eventually did this southpaw. Moved on from partners to heavy bag.

Coach Payam really emphasizes stepping into kicks and I found out that I'm breaking down the motion of step and kick too distinctly. It's really closer to a hop into the kick, though not quite that.
Front delts got really tired especially from the non-stop 1-2 rounds on the Thai pads. Need to do more rear delt work to balance this out.

Bench press
225 x 5
260 x 5
290 x 5
225 x 13
* 290 was a struggle, butt came off the bench on the last rep. Running on 5 hours of sleep and feeling shitty so I'm still happy about it. First set last was a pretty bad RE but I was drained at that point.
-
Super-set with Meadows rows
1 plate x 8
1.5 plates x 6
2 plates x 8, 10

Iron Woody band press
10, 10, 10
-
Super-set with Meadows rows
2 plates x 10, 10, 10

Curls

Mat pulls (7)

550 x 7

Dumbbell lunges

50s x 20

115s x 8

Dumbbell split-squats

50s x 10

Axle strict press
160 x 5
185 x 3
205 x 2
-
Last 2 super-set with chin-ups
8, 10

Axle push press
205 x 4
-
Super-set with chin-ups
11

Axle incline bench press
205 x 6, 8
160 x 10
-
Super-set with weighted chin-ups and pull-ups
50 x 8, 8, 8

Front squats
Work up to 275 x 5
315 x 3
325 x 3
-
Giant-set with walking dumbbell lunges of 50s x 20 and dumbbell RDLs of 115s x 5

Walking dumbbell lunges
115s x 6, 8

Dumbbell RDLs
115s x 10
125s x 8

Leg raises

Back from Wasteland Weekend, a Mad Max-themed excursion in the Mojave Desert. Camped from Wednesday to Sunday afternoon. Will do a report in another post with pictures; I really want to get back to regular training recording. Using a different blogger app so my posts don't get deleted.

Axle strict press
140, 160, 185 x 5
-
Super-set with chin-ups
10

Axle push press
185 x 7
-
Super-set with chin-ups
11

Incline bench press
185 x 9, 9, 9
Super-set with chin-ups
13
50 x 8 + bodyweight x 2 for 2 were

Band pull-aparts x 20

Decline push-ups x 17

Been training regularly but got flustered with several long entries getting deleted so I haven't posted in a while. Doing the last bench press workout before Wasteland Weekend (hit 305x3) right now. Will be gone until Sunday. Bringing protein, vitamins, and lots of canned food. Also bringing my weight belt as part of my costume and the Iron Woody band for some workouts.

Bench press max video from last week:

Currently deloading.

On Tuesday I did hill sprints followed by an aerobic workout in my room.

Wednesday was a good day. Went on a 45 minute run after work. Took a short nap and then in the evening went to Muay Thai where we sparred the whole session.

One particular thing I want to note is how I'm getting a little flaily when defending as if I'm trying to parry every single shot that comes my way. Keep that guard tight and move.

Someone got into my car last night. thankfully no windows were broken. It appears they forced the front passenger window down and unlocked the door. Stole my broken dash cam, tire repair kit, and air pump. Total value of stolen goods is about $60. Idiots didn't even steal my awesome Austrian Death Machine CD.

Been watching some Muay Thai tip videos and learn some new ways to locate. Took a cue from the Dutch style by dropping my hips back and it makes the swing come much more naturally. Going to be practicing this.

Was planning on going to Muay Thai tonight but Tuesday is the one day of the week where someone at the office isn't working late and I need to take the calls from home in the evening. Looks like I'm going to have to train at home.

Really good leg day yesterday. Worked up to 335x5 low-bar squat (315x5 now included).

Bench press
235 x 3
275 x 3
305 x 4
225 x 10, 10
235 x 10
-
Super-set with pull-ups
12, 14, 14, 14

Iron Woody band chest press
17, 20
-
Super-set with keg curls
160 x 10, 10

50-second chin-up

Band pull-aparts
15, 20

Good performance on the bench press. Session took pretty long but at least it was because I was taking work calls so there was a reason for it.

Mat pulls (9)
Up to 500x5
* Not hard, just working my way back up. Found my touch-n-go groove on the fifth rep but suddenly felt my belt dig hard into my ribs so I stopped there. Probably didn't need to but it was a startled reaction I had in the moment. Will go for 535x5 next week and evaluate whether I should set that as a weight to go for reps with or keep moving to 550.

Walking dumbbell lunges
50s x 14, 16
100s x 4, 8

Dumbbell split-squats
50s x 10, 10

Hanging leg raises
15, 15

I've confirmed that my blogger app is indeed erasing my log entries and it's not due to me resetting my phone. Ate up a bench press workout I was 90% done with editing yesterday. The lowdown: benched 285x5, 225x3x10, and did some Iron Woody band presses afterwards. Super-setted with pull-ups x 15. Terrific pump.

Did 6 straight minutes of skipping rope and shadowboxing (1-minute "rounds") followed by 20 minutes of an industrial dance-type workout afterwards.

Had a bit of a lousy squat day yesterday. The good news is I did my goal of a 325x5 lowbar squat. However, my upper spine was in more pain than usual and getting under the bar at 225+ required several attempts and psych-ups, which resulted in me being idle too long between sets. At one point doing assistance work with 275 I thought I heard a cracking sound but I was in no additional pain so I don't know if that was my imagination or just something totally benign akin to when people crack their knuckles or back.

I also came the closest to a catastrophe on the squat I've ever encountered. With the 325 on my back one of the patio pavers under my feet slid and my legs widened. Somehow I stopped it and was able to prevent myself from doing the splits, but barely. Kind of impressive I was able to stay balanced but if I had been squatting in the 400s or especially 500s this could have been bad. Will make sure to secure them from now on.

Enough mopiness. I slogged through and will attack again.

Strict press
170 x 5
190 x 3
215 x 1
-
Super-set with chin-ups x 10

Dumbbell press
50s x 12
115s x 8, 8
125s x 5 drop-down to 50s with Fat Gripz x 12
-
Super-set with chin-ups
10
Pull-ups of 50 x 8, 8, 8

Went to work after this. Will do some isolation exercises in the evening.

Deadlifts
Up to 500 x 1
* Very easy. I don't think I've lost any strength on this to be honest. Upper spine still hurts like usual but deadlifting doesn't aggravate it so whatever.

Walking dumbbell lunges
50s with Fat Gripz x 10
100s x 4, 8
50s with Fat Gripz x 20

Dumbbell split-squats
50s with Fat Gripz x 10

Trained in 102 degree weather today. It doesn't really make a difference to me. I'm always hot when I train in California outside. The heat is really only annoying at times of relaxation.

Benched 315x3 on Monday. Happy to be back at that level.

On Tuesday, did 3 hill sprints and an aerobic workout in my room afterwards.

Went to Muay Thai yesterday. 4 other people, 3 of them inexperienced girls and the other a very young boy. Good on them but not having comparable training partners sucks. Hate to say it but I may switch gyms due to price and class size. First half of the class was just conditioning which I usually don't like to do it since I do it at home. The rest of it was partnering up and throwing a mid left kick followed by any two punches. My first partner was the coach, thankfully it. I need to practice my body kicks more so this was a welcome drill. Ended with everyone getting in a rope and playing tag where we had to leave as soon as we got kicked without checking. Pretty fun and helped me focus on maintaining balance while multitasking. I landed plenty of kicks and people did not acknowledge them by leaving, however. The little boy in particular would come up with a reason why the kick I landed didn't count.

Squats (low bar)
Up to 315 x 5

Front squats
225 x 8, 8
275 x 7 super-set with dumbbell split squats of 50s x 8

Slow good mornings
135 x 10, 10

Axle strict press
165 x 3
180 x 3
200 x 3
-
Super-set with chin-ups x 10

Dumbbell press
50s with Fat Gripz x 15
115s x 8, 8, 8
-
Super-set with chin-ups x 12
50 x 8
Pull-ups 50 x 8
Chin-ups 50 x 10

Went on a 40-minute run last night. Pretty fast pace, definitely more than what I would call a jog with short bursts of sprint attempts (I say that because my hips were sore and I didn't go full blast).

Low-bar squats
135, 185, 185, 225, 275, 285, 295 x 5

Touch-and-go deadlifts
315 x 5 (overhand)
405 x 5 (mixed grip)

Getting back in the powerlifting game. Low-bar squats (which I've never done before) don't seem to hurt my I injury area.

Did 39 push-ups in Muay Thai yesterday (was going until the timer ran out although I was getting pretty tired; never been good at push-ups).

Bench press
235 x 3
265 x 3
300 x 4
235 x 12
-
Super-set with barbell rows
3 plates x 12
4 plates x 10

Iron Woody band press
10, 10, 12, 15
-
Super-set with barbell rows
4 plates x 10, 10, 10

Slow pull-ups x 8

Band pull-aparts x 10

Keg curls
160 x 8, 9

Band curls
10

A previous version of my blogger app has been continuously erasing posts I type into it, hence the week-long hiatus. Installed a different version that I hope doesn't have the same issue.

I did my front squat workout yesterday and then went to Muay Thai. Too much to report that's not fresh my head anymore.

Bench press
215, 250, 285 x 6
215 x 15
-
Last 2 super-set with T-bar rows
3 plates x 12
4.plates x 10

Iron Woody band chest press
10, 10, 10, 12
-
Super-set with T-bar rows
4 plates x 10, 10, 10, 12

Keg curls
160 x 8, 8

Band pull-aparts
10

20-second chin-up

Front squats
245 x 5
285 x 3
315 x 5
275 x 1, 7
225 x 10
*Set up issue on that first set of 275. Using a narrower stance. Just feels better with the front squat.

One-legged RDLs
3 plates x 8, 8

was planning on going to Muay Thai tonight but they're doing fence work in the backyard and I don't have a chance to lift in the early afternoon. Have to lift in the evening when the workers are done for the day.

Just did 15 minutes of skipping rope alternated with shadow boxing rounds. One minute each round with no rests.

Got home from work early today and am waiting for George so we can hangout and thought I'd squeeze quick update. After work yesterday evening I did HIIT for 15 minutes.

Strict press
165 x 5
190 x 3
210 x 1
-
Super-set with chin-ups
10

Incline bench press
205 x 7, 8, 7
160 x 10
-
Super-set with chin-ups
11
50 x 9, 10
30-second Chin-up

Slow wide-grip pull-ups
8

Iron Woody chest-flyes x 12

Curls

Blogger app ate up a long and detailed entry for my bench press workout. Quick rundown is I front-squatted 300x6 on Monday and benched 310x3 on Tuesday.

Went to Muay Thai yesterday. Class size was bigger than normal. Partnered up with someone who smelled really bad with Thai pads. Did a really simple combo of 1, right kick, 1-2, left switch kick. When I was holding, this guy would suddenly stop after awhile and look down. Confused, I asked, "Need a break?" No answer, just looking down. I thought he didn't hear me so I asked louder, "Taking a break?" Still no answer. I actually find it annoying if my training partner is too quiet during training and doesn't provide me feedback or doesn't acknowledge feedback I give them, but this was another level. Weird. Happened 4 or 5 times, too.

Axle strict press
155 x 3
175 x 3
200 x 3
* Not being a barbell it's always a guessing game where hand placement needs to be in order to have even weight distribution. On the final set it was definitely lopsided in my grip and I tried to adjust on the fly. That's why I was so suspicious of my math in adding the weight up; this felt like air. Did have to rest-pause for a second on the third rep but that usually kills my strict press momentum and is grounds for failure.
-
Super-set with chin-ups x 10

Incline bench press
200 x 8, 8, 8, 8
-
Super-set with chin-ups x 10
50 x 8, 9
Pull-ups x 50 x 8 drop-down to bodyweight x 3

Iron Woody tricep pressdowns, curls, band pull-aparts

Working early this Friday, so training will be in the afternoon. Cool shot of me at Muay Thai on Wednesday. Gonna try and make it to sparring this evening.

Strict press
145 x 5
165 x 5
187 x 3, 3
Super-set with chins x 10

Incline Bench press
110 x 8 followed immediately by 160 x 8
200 x 5 drop-down to 180 x 3
200 x 7, 7 drop-down to 160 x 3 and 110 x 3
Super-set with chins x 10
50 x 8, 8, 10

External rotations with a band

Preacher curls
35 with Fat Gripz x 8

Concentrations curls
35 with Fat Gripz  x 9

Pretty weak day. Remembered how tired my shoulders got at Muay Thai yesterday. Incline bench started out poorly but got better. Crazy pump at the end though.

I've noticed that when I'm feeling weak I rest longer to try and make my sets stronger. It rarely works out that way and I end up taking way too long for a non-impressive amount of weight lifted. So this ended up being a 2-hour session even though these poundages were not worth that. Been doing a good job of pushing the pace until now, gotta keep that up.

Made it to Muay Thai last night. I'm at the point where I'm good enough at skipping rope that I never trip up and my shoulders start to get tired. Good problem to have, just have to keep building stamina. Paired up with a partner and worked on 1, 2 to the body, 3, right leg kick, dodge the right hand, then angle back and throw a 1-2. Happy to work on angles and footwork. We did variations of this throughout the session and switched up partners.

Coach announced that one of the most prominent female Peruvian Muay Thai fighters was seated and watching and to go say hi. By the time I was ready to leave though she was gone. Damn, really wanted to meet her. Don't remember her name.

Bench press
215, 245 x 5
280 x 6
Super-set with T-bar rows
3 plates x 10, 10

Dips
50 x 10, 10, 10
Super-set with T-bar rows
4 plates x 10, 12
5 plates x 10, 10

Wide-grip Bench press
135 x 12
Super-set with wide-grip pull-ups x 10

Curls, band pull-aparts

Mediocre bench, but got a good pump. Running on 5 hours of sleep.

Front squats
300 x 3 x 5
* Now that I have some OK weight I'm going to settle in to a front squat routine of 3x5 twice a week.

One-legged RDLs
165 x 8, 8
190 x 8
* This is definitely a hamstring exercise I'm going to keep once I'm healed.

Leg raises

Did 3 hill sprints and a 10 minute jog later in the evening.

Deload

Bench press
135, 165, 200 x 5

T-bar rows
3 plates x 10
4 plates x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10

Dips
15
50 x 10, 10, 11, 11

Facepulls

Been getting much better at front squats. Currently doing 275x5 and 295x3. Have noticed wrist pain when I bench press now as a result, though wrapping them fixes the issue for that given session.
My bench and strict press seem to have switched statuses. The latter is on the way up while my bench sessions have been mediocre. The last two times I did 300x3. My front delts and pec tie-ins felt sore which I believe is from doing heavy flat benching on bench day and incline benching on press day, so I'm going to back off and replace one of those with dips to see if that improves things.

Have also gained quite a bit of weight since my break from Muay Thai. Currently at 198; last time I weighed myself in May I was 189. Ain't a bad thing, my undersized arm could always use the energy surplus.

Been training consistently, just not updating. Unjustifiably feel less inclined to now that I'm not squatting or deadlifting.

Went to Muay Thai for the first time in over a month. Am able to punch now without extra pain. Coach said it was good to have me back and he notices when I'm gone. He said he won't have me doing any hard impact striking as I heal. I have to note that after all the slightly awkward living room jump-roping I've been doing and dealing with carpet, I was able to have the best rope session ever on the mats. Skipped for around 5 minutes without missing a beat. Since I've never skipped rope straight for that long my shoulders got pretty tired.

After that we shadowboxed and then did ab exercises before moving on to the heavy bag. Combo was jab, right leg kick, left hook to the body, right leg kick again.  Transferred this to a partner with each person taking turns, and then adding a 1-2 at the end. Finally, we ended with heavy bag rounds using any combo of 3 punches and 2 kicks.

Pretty weak bench day yesterday. Hit 300x3. Was feeling hungry and I was also 2 days late with this session. Was also supposed to deload but I didn't BECAUSE of that and I reasoned I needed to move some heavy weight to make up for that. Did BBB sets after, 245x3x8 and 225x10 and x8, so those were some pretty heavy sets at least. Also increased T-bar rows to 5 plates (have nixed dumbbell rowing until my back is better because bilateral pulling just feels better and offers more stability).

3 rounds of hill sprints followed by a 20-minute jog yesterday evening. Second time this week doing that.

Worked on front squats today. Set-up is challenging for me since it's been years. Have been trying the clean set-up but my wrists can only handle a couple of reps. Today I used straps, which were comfortable but the bar kept falling forward. Still, it was the most solid out of everything I've tried, though I still sucked. Managed 1 rep of 275 for 2 sets; couldn't get more than that without the bar rolling forward into my arms. Also did 8 with 225 and 10 with 135.

Since the weight there was so light I did belt squats for a PR of 7 full plates and a 25. 8 reps.
Have also been doing one-legged RDLs this week with a Meadows row barbell set-up. Did that with two 45s and a 25. Very effective, legs are burning after 8-10 reps. Glad I found a viable hamstring exercise. It's good enough to keep after I'm healthy again.

Speaking of which, I'm continuing to feel a little better. Hope I can squat and deadlift again soon. I want to make it to an August powerlifting meet, but if things are just healing too slowly my back-up plan is a November one.

Back injury is slowly getting better. Emphasis on "slowly" though. Am able to run and throw punches with less pain than before. Really miss Muay Thai so I'm happy I can start going back soon. Will have to take it easy during sparring though.

Axel strict pressed 180x5 yesterday, an improvement from 3 the week before.

Dealing with a long term injury on my vertebrae here so my training has adapted as a result. Good news is it seems to be slooowly recovering. Doing those heavy squats a week and a half ago was a dumb idea.

Have been doing belt squats instead, combining them with lunges and front squats.

Been dealing with a strange vertebrae injury between my shoulder blades. Has persisted for about 2 weeks now. Originally thought it was very sore traps from doing Hise shrugs. The pain originated after I did deadlifts and box squats but I have no idea what actually caused it. It was managable until Friday when I did squats like a dummy. Completed the whole workout but it was slow going because of discomfort. Squatted 445x3. Shouldn't have done that, but goddamn did I feel strong. Had a weak bench day only managing 295x4, failing a 5th. Got trapped under the bar and everything, but that's not a big deal.

Felt some nerve damage happening by rep 6 on my assistance squats with the SSB (straight bar and SSB both hurt even with cushioning). Big toes have some slight numbness after that.

Gonna have to settle in for a longer-term healing process and not anticipate this going away soon. I can't squat and probably can't deadlift, but I have some ideas for legs this afternoon.

Never updated how Fanime went, but it was an awesome 3 days. I brought a shaker bottle to sip on protein throughout the day. It was pretty funny bringing it to a hotel bar. Could have actually eaten more carbs, though, with the amount of walking I was doing. I'd had an intense few days of lifting before that.

Bench press

215 x 5

245 x 5

280 x 7

215 x 15

* Was hoping for 8 but still good. As I lose weight I've noticed while my 1RMs continue to climb my strength-endurance feels challenged. By about rep 7 or 8 my muscles really feel it. Not declining, though.

Dips

50 x 10, 10

35 x 10

Bodyweight x 11

Super-set with wide-grip pull-ups and chin-ups x 10-11

* Back-work was all over the place - did weighted reps with 50 and dropped off to bodyweight when fatigued. Kept rest times pretty short for me, 2-3 minutes. 

Curls and rear-delt work

Last workout before Fanime weekend. Will update with pictures.

Went to Muay Thai on Wednesday. Worked pads with a timid new guy. Did a long string of combos and finished off with bagwork.

Thursday:

Squats
320 x 5
370 x 5
420 x 5
340 x 8
315 x 10, 10
* Core started to give on the last rep but I made it. Legs were strong. An expected result of getting so light (I weighed 189.6 today, haven't been close to that since I was 18) but still, more ab work!

Deadlifts
405 x 9

RDLs
315 x 9
* Pronated grip.

Abs

Aerobic workout in the evening.

Went to Muay Thai in the evening and met with George there. Mostly pad work. Didn't pace myself well and was throwing bombs early on, then got tired after awhile. Note that me getting tired just means I'm uncomfortable and I slow down a tiny bit to ration myself, not that I'm huffing and heaving or that I have to stop.

Deload

Axle Strict press
85, 110, 130 x 5

Dumbbell press
50s with Fat Gripz x 15
115s x 8, 8
50s with Fat Gripz x 14

T-bar rows
4 plates x 5 x 10

Curls

Three rounds of shadowkickboxing in the evening followed by an aerobic workout in my room.

Good sparring session on Friday. Opted for the open face head gear over the caged one which makes me overheat like crazy. I'm going to pick and choose depending on the physical state of my nose. Stung with my jab all night and by the end of it he commented that he was eating it non-stop. to his great credit he caught me twice with big swinging hooks. He confessed to me that he closed his eyes for one of them. Also told me that he had trouble reading my movements. That's good to hear but I dodge almost 100% and Don't really make use of a tight guard. I practice it on my own but in the heat of battle I op to move out of the way or parry. He also jacked my leg up from kicking it and though I hid it well I was limping about 30 minutes after class. I did check very vigilantly so it would have been worse had I not.

Didn't go out on the weekend. Took advantage of this by waking up and going on fasted runs both Saturday and Sunday with only a little bit of a protein shake from the night before as sustenance. And then on Sunday I did an aerobic workout in my room in the evening. Very relaxing yet productive two days. It was good to take a break from alcohol and not drive anywhere.

Deload

Mat pulls (8)
135, 315, 405 x 5
500 x 3
* All double-overhand except for 500, which was a mixed grip.

SSB box squats
300 x 5, 5, 5

Walking dumbbell lunges with fat gripz
50s x 20

SSB good mornings
150 x 10

Two deload days to record. Squatted 295x5 yesterday and benched 195x5 this morning. Yesterday evening did 3 hill sprints and a 20 minute jog afterwards.