Wolf's Log: From Cub to Direwolf

[Walter Palmer]

Looking good and no mention of injury or pain!

[Michael Wolf]

Looking good and no mention of injury or pain!

All squats and pulls feel fine now. My left trap is not 100% yet but after a month of struggle, seems to be headed back in that direction. Might it be, maybe possibly, that for the first time since Fall 2012, I have my entire body cooperating at the same time?!? Stay tuned to Wolf's Log to find out!

[Michael Wolf]

Today was a rough day at the gym. Trap was feeling great Saturday, seemed to have a relapse of pain and discomfort Sunday. Had a second session Sunday with the soft tissue guy recommended by Ellen Stein, and I think it helped some, but overall I feel like this has not gotten better in the past week. Bench was slightly affected and press was more than slightly affected today.

Bench Press
45x8x2, 135x5, 185x5, 225x5, 275x5, 315x5, 345x1
Notes: Felt the twinge and weakness a bit beginning at 275, a bit more at 315, and more at 345. Not bad, but definitely present.

Press
45x5, 85x5, 125x5, 155x5, 175x5, 195x5, 175x5
Notes: The trap/shoulder really felt weak at, and just out of, the bottom here today. 195 was quite hard; 205x5 was probably my 5RM today. Which is not cool. At all.

Chins
9,9,9,7
Notes: Could have done 9s across no problem, just easing up the volume more slowly. At least these still felt fine.

EZ Bar Curlz
Bar + 70lbs x 10 x 2
Notes: For the Gurlz.

Sarah had a rough pressing day today too. Maybe it was something in the Equi-air.

[Michael Wolf]

Trap felt much better today, so I was able to power clean (huzzah!). I went light, so as not to disrupt it's favorable disposition today, and because I haven't cleaned in a few weeks. Squats were also pretty good. Feel much better today than I did yesterday.

Squat
415x5x3
Notes: Not yet up to previous weights, but close enough that I feel justified bolding now. 4 months since I bolded a squat workout. Feels good. Rested about 5 minutes between sets, so rest is getting longer but still not too long.

I have a tendency to let my intensity drop a bit and struggle through the 5th rep of squat sets. Rep 4 might go up really strong, yet rep 5 is a grind or at least much slower. I did this on the first two sets so I yelled "Let's GO!" at myself before the 5th rep of the 3rd set. It helped.

There was also some knee slide today, more than I'd like, but overall I feel good about how today's squats felt.

Power Clean
95x3, 115x3, 135x3, 155x3, 175x3, 185x3x3
Notes: Started light to make sure it wasn't my imagination that traps were ok. Felt ok, so added weight slowly. Got better as I went in terms of timing. The 185's popped pretty good, but held it there to see how I feel tomorrow.

C2 Erg
30s row / 1:45 rest x 6 @ 1:47, 1:38, 1:33, 1:32, 1:30, 1:28
Not going all out, but ramping up the intensity bit by bit. Today was probably an 8.5 on these.

[Rob Israel]

I have a tendency to let my intensity drop a bit and struggle through the 5th rep of squat sets. Rep 4 might go up really strong, yet rep 5 is a grind or at least much slower. I did this on the first two sets so I yelled "Let's GO!" at myself before the 5th rep of the 3rd set. It helped.

I can relate to this. I like the self-expressed verbal cue. I do this sometimes at the beginning of a set. I'll try it as the set starts to get tough.

Looking good Wolf!

[Michael Wolf]

I can relate to this. I like the self-expressed verbal cue. I do this sometimes at the beginning of a set. I'll try it as the set starts to get tough.

Looking good Wolf!

Thanks compadre. Ya, it actually did work. I'm going to try it as needed from now on.

[Niki Sims]

Trap felt much better today, so I was able to power clean (huzzah!).

This is muy exciting.

Squat
415x5x3
Notes: Not yet up to previous weights, but close enough that I feel justified bolding now. 4 months since I bolded a squat workout. Feels good. Rested about 5 minutes between sets, so rest is getting longer but still not too long.

There was also some knee slide today, more than I'd like, but overall I feel good about how today's squats felt.

It did look like you could stay in your hips more throughout the rep.

I did this on the first two sets so I yelled "Let's GO!" at myself before the 5th rep of the 3rd set. It helped.

This is good. I may try this. Or I may just blurt "HODOR".

[Michael Wolf]

This is muy exciting.

It did look like you could stay in your hips more throughout the rep.

Yes that's something I need cued sometimes when the weight is heavy. Where were you on Tuesday??

This is good. I may try this. Or I may just blurt "HODOR".

Hodor could probably squat 850x5, belt only. I'd go with that.

[Michael Wolf]

This has nothing to do with training but just happened and simultaneously amused and annoyed me so I'm putting it here.

I'm fortunate in that most of my business is doing what I want to do: barbell coaching people who want to train, not exercise, and who sought me out specifically for this purpose. However, I do have a few people I see, mainly people I've been seeing for many years who are holdovers from earlier periods in my own development as a coach, people who were just looking for a personal trainer and happened to find me, but just as easily could have ended up with someone who did Pilates or 1/4 squats or whatever else. They're all good people, loyal, and consistent from month to month so even though it's not *exactly* what I love to do, or my specialty, it still works and I keep them on in my coaching practice.

I just finished up a session with one. A really great guy who, not shockingly, is a recreational road cyclists. Anyone who's been to a seminar and heard Rip talk about road cyclists knows where this is going.

He has an arthritic hip that been flaring up and we haven't been able to do any of the usual lower body focused stuff we usually do (Which is modified anyway, because he doesn't really want to work all that hard - exercise not training). So it's been all upper and bro work for two weeks.

At the end of the session today he tells me that he's gained some weight but most of it is muscle. But he's not happy because he's getting too big for his shirts. This is a man about 5'8" 170 who had to start bench pressing with 10 lb dumbbells when I started with him. He's now up to 60s. (Doesn't like the way the barbell feels so we do DBs - again the training/exercise thing.)

But he's not happy about it because his suits and shirts - bespoke for his former 38" chest - are now too tight for his 41" chest. When I told him 38" is more of a bra size than a suit/shirt size for a man, I don't think he was thrilled about that. But he did take the point.

Anyway, that just happened and, like I said, both amused and annoyed me. How did we get to the point where a man with a 38" chest is more concerned with not outgrowing his shirts than with getting the hell bigger right the fuck now?!?

[Patrick Stroup]

Because he isnt interested in purchasing new suits? I mean I obviously dont agree with that mindsight, but different folks different strokes.

This is part of the game of any business, and there is an art to toeing the line of staying true to yourself and providing the customer with what they truly desire.