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Thread: zen and the art of strength training

  1. #261
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    • starting strength seminar april 2024
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    Monday September 19

    Squat 5 x 2 x 215
    Dumbbell Press 5 x 6 x 160

    I was feeling pretty sore from the hike the previous day.

    Thursday September 22

    Ruck: 1 hour; 4 miles; 20 pounds

    I had to drive about 4 hours on Wednesday for work. On Thursday, on my way back home, I stopped at Colonial Williamsburg and hiked for about an hour. I tried to map out my distance using google maps after I got home, and it was about 4 miles, give or take. Felt pretty good overall.

    Saturday September 24

    Squat 5 x 3 x 215
    Kettlebell Press 3 x 7 x 60

    Everything felt good. Solid lift.

    Sunday, September 25

    Ruck: 2:20; 5.7 miles; 20 pounds

    A significant part of this hike was through on the "Billy Goat" trail along the Potomac River in Maryland. It was extremely rough terrain over rocks and boulders. In other words, we could only go about 1-2 mph safely over a considerable portion of the trail. There were also long stretches along the C&O Canal that were flat and even. During those portions we tried to keep a 15-16 minutes per mile pace. This was really enjoyable, I felt great through the entire hike. No blisters, joint pain, or anything else that gave me concern.

    Overall this was a great week, I feel really good.

  2. #262
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    Mar 2010
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    Wednesday September 28

    Squat 215 x 5,3,3,3,3,3
    Carries
    Pushups

    Thursday September 29

    Ruck: 3 miles, 48 minutes, 20 pounds

    This was in a park near my house in the middle of the day. I've had early morning work calls this week that prevented me from going in the morning. Thursday was the last nice day before Hurricane Ian drenched my part of the country, which made any further hikes this week impossible.

    Sunday October 2

    Squat 4 x 5 x 215
    Carries
    Pushups

    The squats today were good, but on the last rep of the last set I got sort of imbalanced. Not a big deal but I decided to not push it given that my goal is to only do perfect reps.

    This has been a really busy week at work. To make matters worse my kids have terrible colds and have been both waking up throughout the night and getting up early. So I'm feeling really sleep deprived and generally at the end of my rope.

  3. #263
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    Mar 2010
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    Wednesday October 5

    Deadlift 10 x 1 x 305
    Dumbbell Bench Press 160 x 7,6,6,6,6

    Deadlifts were on the minute, so they only took about 9 1/2 minutes after warming up. Most were double overhand though 2 or 3 were mixed grip. One of the personal trainers came over after I was done and said the deadlift form looked perfect, so that was good to hear. They felt very solid throughout. I progressed a little bit on the bench, adding another rep to the first set compared to last time. Slow progress, but progress nonetheless.

    Thursday October 6

    Ruck: 3 miles; 48 minutes; 20 pounds

    This was a lunch break hike in the park near my house. We've been cooped up inside as a result of Hurricane Ian, so it was nice to finally get outdoors and have a nice day.

    Saturday October 8

    Squat 5 x 5 x 215

    Only had time to do the squats. These were pretty challenging, though I felt pretty good throughout. My hamstrings were very sore beforehand, but they loosened up throughout the workout. I think I'll stay at this weight 1-2 more workouts and then jump up to 225.

    Sunday October 9

    Ruck: 7.6 miles, 2 hours, 20 pounds

    This was, by a wide margin, the farthest I've gone. Kept a pace between 15:30 and 16:00 per mile, which is moving pretty quick for a walk. The first 2/3 of the ruck I felt great, but toward the end my hipflexers and groin muscle started feeling pretty tight. Tried to stretch out afterward and use the massage gun, but I'm pretty sure I'll be very sore tomorrow. The good news was no blisters, no joint pain, and minimal discomfort in my shoulders and back.

  4. #264
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    Thursday, October 13

    Squat 10 x 3 x 215

    On Wednesday I did some kettlebell presses in the evening. My left arm started killing me, so I had to cut it short. This has been an issue for a few weeks now. On the right arm, I was able to press the 70 pound kettlebell for six reps, which I was happy with. On Thursday I only had about 40 minutes to workout, including warmup. I decided to get as many perfect squats at 215 in as I could. I'd do a triple, wait a minute or two, then do another rep. The ten sets took a total of 25 minutes, and I think were all good form.

    Sunday October 16

    Ruck: 10 miles, 2 hours 50 minutes, 20 pounds.

    I did this with a friend in Washington DC, early in the morning. We hiked two loops around the National Mall, and then did a little extra to get to 10 miles. Feeling pretty wiped out. My feet hurt and my hip flexers and quads were pretty stiff. But no back or shoulder pain, no joint issues, no blisters. So pretty happy overall. We would have gone a little faster but had to stop at a dozen or more crosswalks, which slowed us down. For the hiking, I'm going to buy another 20 pound goruck weight, and will bump these up to 40 pounds. When I increase weight I'll dramatically decrease the distance until I get used to it, and then hopefully build back up to 10 miles by the end of the year.

    This was another brutal week at work. Very stressful, very busy. And the kids have terrible coughs, so haven't been sleeping well.

  5. #265
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    Mar 2010
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    Wednesday October 19

    Squat 5 x 2 x 225
    Deadlift 5 x 2 x 275
    Pushups x 20, 10, 10, 10, 10

    Thursday October 20

    Ruck: 3 miles, 20 pounds

    Forgot to start the timer for the first half. The second 1.5 miles took about 23 minutes.

    Sunday October 23

    Squat 3 x (1,2,3) x 225
    Pushups x 22, 10, 10, 10, 10

    Ruck: about 30 minutes, 40 pounds

    Did the hike immediately after squats and pushups. First one carrying 40 pounds, so didn't push distance or try to go too fast, just wanted to see how body acclimated to the heavier weight. Felt pretty good, though I could definitely tell a difference.
    Last edited by kopp; 10-30-2022 at 10:53 AM.

  6. #266
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    Mar 2010
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    Thursday October 27

    Rowing machine
    Kettlebell Swings
    Pushups

    On Tuesday i must have slept funny because I woke up with seriously sore neck and shoulders. I could barely turn my head. Then I travelled for work Wednesday through Friday. On Thursday evening I did a short circuit in the hotel gym. Didn't keep too close of track of what I did, just needed to move, warm up, and then get in a good stretch. This didn't really move the ball forward but I felt pretty good coming out of it and my neck felt a lot better.

    Saturday October 29

    Squat 6 x 3 x 225
    Jump Rope
    Pushups

    On the last rep of squats I got a little off balance and basically did a good morning. Afterwards my lower back was pretty sore. I felt pretty irritated by the whole thing. My form has been for the most part rock solid, but I had one bad repetition and was in a decent amount of discomfort. I also learned that I suck at jumping rope.

    Sunday October 30

    Wasn't sure how I was going to feel as a result of the squats yesterday. Went out for a walk and felt pretty good. Then I added 20 pounds for about 20 minutes, and then 40 pounds for another 10-20 minutes. Tried to keep a good but not grueling pace. Ended up going probably 3-4 miles, back felt really good throughout.

    This was overall a crappy week as a result of 1) neck pain; 2) traveling for work; 3) straining lower back. I'm not going to let it get me frustrated and will keep moving forward.

  7. #267
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    Wednesday November 2

    Ruck: 40 pounds; 1 hour

    Not exactly sure how far I went, but I think it was around 3.7 miles. Felt pretty good. Lower back was feeling a lot better.

    Friday November 4

    Squat warmup
    Tire Flips 5 x 5
    Pushups BW x 26, 10, 10, 10, 10

    This is the first time squatting since tweaking my lower back last weekend. I did four or five sets at 135, with a lot of stretching in between each. They felt good, no discomfort in lower back at all. Then I went to the gym's outdoor area and did a superset of tire flips and pushups. After each set of pushups I took 3-4 minutes to stretch out. My first set of pushups I did pretty close to a max set of 26. All in all this was a good lift. I got my heart rate up, felt pretty strong, did a lot of good stretching, finished feeling energized.

    Saturday November 5

    Ruck: 1:14, 5 miles, 40 pounds

    This was a great session. It was the first time, at any weight, that i've managed to go at a pace faster than 15:00 per mile. I managed this by doing a decent amount of shuffling, in addition to just walking at a fast pace. On the back half I had some pretty bad stitches in my side, but actually managed to go faster on the second half than on the first. Ended completely drenched in sweat and feeling good. No joint or muscle pains, and my feet felt really good.

    Now that my back is 100% I'm going to get back to progressive squatting this week.

  8. #268
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    Wednesday November 9

    Deadlift 5 x 2 x 295
    Kettlebell Press 5 x 7 x 60
    Weighted Carries

    This was a really good lift. I did the deadlifts and kettlebell presses in a superset, with a few minutes of stretching in between each. Felt really good throughout. Deadlifts were all double overhand, no issues.

    Thursday November 10

    Ruck: 3 miles; 40 pounds

    This was the standard mid-week hike. Kept a good pace but didn't time myself.

    Saturday November 12

    Squat 4 x 3 x 225
    Turkish Getups

    Squats felt good. Last few reps were a grind so decided to stop while I was ahead. It was a beautiful day outside on Saturday, so I decided after the squats to do some turkish getups with a 35 pound kettlebell. These were a mainstay during the pandemic but haven't done any recently. They felt good. Not sure how many I did. Went slow, lots of stretching. All in all left feeling refreshed.

    Sunday November 13

    Ruck: 1:44; 6.5 miles; 40 pounds

    Did this hike along the Mt Vernon trail with a friend, early morning. It was perfect hiking weather, sunny, high 40s. We ended up doing about a 16 minute mile pace. Felt really good throughout.

    Overall this was a great week. Feel really good - fit, no joint or other significant strains or issues. Glad I'm back to trying to progressively squat, and feeling really good about the rucking.

  9. #269
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    Wednesday November 16

    Squat 5 x 3 x 225
    Carries 180 x 5
    Pushups BW x 26, 10, 10, 10

    Great lift. The squats felt good. I then did a superset of weighted carries with 90 pound dumbbells in each hand, then pushups. On the first set I managed 26 pushups, which was about as many as I could do. Might have been able to squeeze out 1 or 2 more. I intended to do four additional sets of ten pushups, but I had basically nothing left by the end. I gave myself a few minutes rest between the carries and pushups to recover, but found doing these back to back to be challenging.

    Saturday November 19

    Squat 3 x 3 x 225

    This was a fail. Friday I was feeling under the weather all day, and ended up going to bed around 8 pm. Got a full night of sleep and woke up pretty early, decided to go lift around 7:30 in the morning. I just ran out of gas, and had pretty significant discomfort in my neck, shoulders, and elbow. Not sure what the issue was, but decided not to push it. I'm not a morning lift kind of guy. And the weather has become very cold the past few days; I feel like every year I get stiff when the weather changes.

    Sunday November 20

    Ruck: 4.5 miles; 1:07; 40 pounds

    Great session. Started around dawn along a trail near my house. The first 1.5 miles the outside of my knees were really tight and pretty uncomfortable, as were my shins. But once I warmed up I felt really good. Went with my father in law and a friend, and kept up a good pace. This was the same stretch I did on September 18. Since then I've shaved about 7 minutes off the time, and added 20 pounds. So pretty decent progress.
    Last edited by kopp; 11-20-2022 at 10:12 AM.

  10. #270
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    starting strength coach development program
    Thursday November 24

    Kettlebell Press: 60 x 10, 10, 10, 7
    Kettlebell Swing: 5 x 15 x 44
    Plank

    I had initially planned to go the gym and do a normal workout on Wednesday, but ended up spending the evening in the emergency room with my toddler who had stuck a raisin up her nose. Not the way I wanted to spend a Wednesday night before a long weekend, but at least they got it out with no permanent damage. Thursday was thanksgiving. My in laws were in town. I had a free hour around noon when the house was clean, the food was made, and the kids were napping, and decided to bust out some presses. 3 sets of 10 with 60 pounds was my end of year goal for pressing, so pretty pleased. I was a little surprised these went so well, given that I don't press overhead all that often.

    Saturday November 26

    Ruck: 7 miles; 1:47; 40 pounds.

    Great hike along the C&O canal near Harper's Ferry. I went with my siblings and brother in law. I was the only one hauling any weight. Felt really good throughout, kept a steady brisk pace, was not in pain, and not sore today. I think I'm ready to go for 10 miles the next time we have a nice weekend.

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