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Thread: Wolf's Log: From Cub to Direwolf

  1. #4231
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    • starting strength seminar april 2024
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    Quote Originally Posted by Michael Wolf View Post
    I know I've made passing comments about a meet but I can't remember if I mentioned that about 3 weeks ago, I did officially sign up for the USPA Texas State meet on March 14. The very next day was the day I tweaked my back doing the tandem DL thing. Meanwhile, since then, my pecs have failed to come back to even near normal, I tweaked the other side of my back a week ago while getting up from the bench AFTER a set, and the tandem DL tweaked side has improved faster than usual but is still not 100%.

    At this point it's 12 days out and I'm seriously considering not doing the meet, and since there may be some speculation about that if I don't do it, I want to explain why.

    tl;dr: With my current training and health status, and competitive nature, it is too likely for my comfort that I will try to lift more than my body is ready for, incurring reinjury and lengthening the recovery process even further, wasting even more time than needed to recover back to normal training status for a future meet.

    Longer version: While I am not good enough to be competitive on the national stage, I'm very competitive internally and have a hard time holding back when in a competitive atmosphere with something I'm decently good at and care about. So I could go to a ping pong tourney and do it purely 100% for fun, but not a lifting meet. I'm too competitive to just chill and have fun and hold back significantly.

    Now, I'm not such a competitive psycho that I can't hold back at all - I did this at the USSF meet last fall when I pressed 275 and pulled 595, both of which moved like somewhere between last warmups and easy openers. But they were both numbers that while submax, I considered respectable and could live with.

    So originally, it was looking like I had an 1800 total on a normal day (600/475/725), with a solid shot at upper 1800s (620/500/750) if I hit my stretch goals in all 3 lifts. But even a somewhat sub-par day would've yielded something like 1740 (585/455/700). My mistake was training for the 1870 as a main goal, instead of 1800 and hitting 1870 if I was having a great day. Anyway, after the hammy strain and then pec strain, I figured that 1800-1870 was out of the cards, but 1700-1800 still doable. OK.

    Then the tandem DL tweak happened and my pecs still weren't healed enough to resume normal benching after a couple weeks, so I was mentally lowering my expectations to the 1600-1700 range. Not ideal, but I could still consider these numbers respectable, if not ideal, for my current strength level (something like 535-565/415-435/650-675) and do the meet.

    Then I had the other side back tweak a week ago - and the pec still not healed - and now it looks like I'd need to keep my total to around 1400-1450 to keep my risk of re-injury low enough to be comfortable with. And I'm just too competitive to hold back that much. Oh, I can go to the meet with a plan to just do 500/350/600 all I want, but I know when I get there seeing guys squat 600 and 700, bench 5, pull 700-800, I won't be able to hold back, knowing that I was "supposed" to be going for 600-620, 475-500, and 715-750.

    And I think the chances of re-tweaking something before it's healed are just too great if I do that. So it seems smarter to not go at all, instead of trying to unsuccessfully resist a temptation that is likely to cause another setback.

    So I haven't decided for certain yet, but I'm leaning against it. If I knew I could go and just have fun, I'd do it. But, like the tandem DL meet, I will see people lifting big weights and get pumped up to do more, before my body is recovered and ready. So I'm thinking better to stay home, and plan better next time.

    While the hamstring strain was inexplicable by anything other than bad luck, the pec strain and back strains in this case were probably avoidable if I'd trained for the 1800 and hoped for a good day with 1870, instead of training for the 1870.

    So that's my lesson for next time - train for the probable, and be open on meet day for the higher possible. Instead of training for the high possible, but improbable, outcome.
    Well the good news is that I think you can still get in this thing:

    Austin Table Tennis Spring Classic Round Robin is now open for registration
    *The 2020 Austin Table Tennis Spring Classic Round Robin is scheduled on Saturday, April 18, 2020. Cash prizes totaling to over $1,600.00.
    Enter early please, as our tournaments generally fill up 1 month in advance and the round robin event is limited to the first 86 entries. We will not accept mailed in entries, no exceptions.

  2. #4232
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ryan Arnold View Post
    Well the good news is that I think you can still get in this thing:

    Austin Table Tennis Spring Classic Round Robin is now open for registration
    *The 2020 Austin Table Tennis Spring Classic Round Robin is scheduled on Saturday, April 18, 2020. Cash prizes totaling to over $1,600.00.
    Enter early please, as our tournaments generally fill up 1 month in advance and the round robin event is limited to the first 86 entries. We will not accept mailed in entries, no exceptions.
    Damn, that's way more money than I could win at the meet ($0) too! Wonder if 6 weeks of training will be enough to get me back to the halcyon days of my peak ping-pong skills of my sophomore year in high school, when my school put in a table in the break room and my class played during every break. I had my own paddle and everything, along with a wicked forehand slam and a decent spin serve. I was still a little vulnerable on quick backhands though. But I'd have a fighting chance!

  3. #4233
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    Another light workout today.

    Sumo Deadlift
    135x5, 225x5, 315x3, 405x3, 455x1
    Standing DB Arnold Press
    30x10, 40x10, 50x10, 60x10, 65x10
    Notes: Wanted to do something that felt more than stupidly easy but also wanted to wait till Friday to DL again and give my low back more of a break, so did some sumo. Went fine. 455 is technically a PR only cause I don't recall ever doing more than 405 before, a couple times messing around.

    Cable Row
    195x10, 210x10x2 - went back to the low cable row, low back was OK with it.

    Assault Bike
    15/45 x8 = 60 cals
    60/60 x 2 = 27 cals

    And that's all she wrote!

  4. #4234
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    Quote Originally Posted by Michael Wolf View Post
    I...So I could go to a ping pong tourney and do it purely 100% for fun...
    You won't be winning the ping pong tourney with that attitude!

  5. #4235
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    Quote Originally Posted by Yngvi View Post
    You won't be winning the ping pong tourney with that attitude!

  6. #4236
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    Damn michael, when did you shave your head?

  7. #4237
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    Quote Originally Posted by Soule View Post
    Damn michael, when did you shave your head?
    I think it was circa 1989, after the 2 slam dunk titles but before my first of 6 championship rings.

  8. #4238
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    I decided not to do the meet, obviously, and even took a full week and a half off from the gym for pure recovery. And I feel way better for it - my left pec still does feel a little tiny bit iffy, but the right side, and my back, both feel much better now. Can't test the right pec with heavy bench right now, but it feels like it'd be fine. And my back is feeling 90-95% as good as before the tandem DL tweak, so that's good.

    Someone on IG asked about taking time 100% off vs deload/low stress and my reply was that it was really just intuition/listening to my body and experience. That's a very unsatisfying answer for me too, cause it's not replicable, but it worked. I don't remember the last time I took a full week, much less nearly 2 weeks, off the gym voluntarily. I've been forced to a few times over the years because of Hurricane Sandy, food poisoning, the flu, or surgery. But just straight up taking 12 days off by choice? Can't remember the last time, may be 15 years.

    Anyway, long story short, I started my car to drive to the gym Monday when I found out my gym was closing and that was that. So no glorious return. I took another day off, and then started back yesterday with a SUPER easy and light workout, with what I have at home: one each 16 and 24kb, and my own bodyweight. I'll be ramping up the reps, overall volume, exercise selection, and difficulty as time goes on but am starting real easy.

    Warmup

    KB DL
    16x10
    KB Low Windmill
    16x5
    Then one set of KB True Snatch Pull 16x10 + low windmills x5.

    KB Swing
    16x10x2, 24x10
    KB Clean + Press (Short cycle)
    16x5x2, 24x5

    KB Snatch
    16x8, 24x8x2,
    into
    KB High Windmill
    16x2, 24x2x2
    Pushups
    BWx10x2

    And that was it for the day. I'll do a little more today, introduce some squats as well.

  9. #4239
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    Apr 2010
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    Weds, 3/19

    Basically just a repeat of Tuesday's workout, just a little harder. I have 2 heavier KBs on order, a 32 and 40kg, that should arrive around the weekend, and adjustable loadable DBs coming in a week or two. And some bands coming in a couple days.

    Warmup
    KB Sumo DL
    16x10x2
    KB Low Windmill
    16x5x2

    KB Swing
    16x10, 24x10x2
    KB Clean + Press (short cycle)
    16 x 1+3 x2; 24 x1+3 x 2

    KB Snatch into High Windmill
    16x8 +2, 24 x8+2 x2
    Pushup
    BWx8x3

  10. #4240
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    Apr 2010
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    starting strength coach development program
    Thurs, 3/20

    Warmup
    KB Sumo DL
    16x10, 24x10
    KB Low Windmill
    16x3, 24x3
    Pushups
    BWx5x2
    KB Goblet Squat
    16x10, 24x10


    KB Swing
    16x12, 24x12x2
    KB Clean + Press (short cycle)
    16x (1+4 x2), 24x (1+4 x2) x2

    KB Snatch Into Low Windmill
    16x 8+2, 24x 8+2 x2
    Pushups
    BWx8x3

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