Quest for Fire

[Erok]

Fri., 3/04. 220#. Wife hit a DL PR of 160x1.

OHP: 95x5, 115x5, 135 x 5, 155 x 3, 160 x 2, 165 x 1, 170 x 1.

Push Press: 170 x 3, 180 x 2, 185 x 2. Wanted to hit the wall. Felt like I did.

Incline DB Bench: 30x10, 35x10, 40x15,15.
Incline DB Row: 30x10, 35x15,15.

Wife says it's time to go - last minute curls with the 20s!

Lamb Leg Roast.

[Erok]

Mon., 3/07.

Deadlift: 135 x 5, 225 x 5, 275 x 5, 295 x 5. could have done more, but I wanted to -

Farmer's walk: 50 x 1, 70 x 1, 90 x 2. about 50' between the chalk lines, down and back counts as 1. after, I pick up the Milk Cans and hold for ten breaths x 2. Could have done more, but I wanted to -

Stones: 150 x 1,1,1. 175 x 1,1,1, then some hugging practice with the 225 and the 250. Got a pair of leather sleeves to keep the skin on my arms. black, lace-up. verry sexy.


leftover lamb roast becomes split pea stew with sweet potatoes.

[Erok]

Wed., 3/09. Oy, it's so humid. Like a sauna in here. Reference:




Log Cleaned Presses (1 clean per set): 90x 5, 110 x 5, 130 x 5, 140 x 5,5,5,5,5. Wife calls these 'log rolls' because of the way the log rolls up the chest. supersetted with:

Pullups: 3,3,3,2,2. Hey, I'm just as surprised as you.

Z press: 45x10, 85 x 8, 115 x 8,8.

Shoulder 3-ways: 20 x 8, 10, eh, I'm done.


Lamb stew with fried eggs on top.


Also relevant:

[Erok]

Fri., 3/11. 219.8#. Hm. I find my lack of bodyweight disturbing.

F Squats: 95 x 8, 135 x 5, 185 x 3, 225 x 3,3,3. Okay, I've done enough of these; I can say it now. Front squats are just weird. My body is confused. Every set, it says "Hey mane, this is light effin' weights. WHy you havin so much probemz? YOu so inefficent." supersetted with:

Pullups: 3,3,3,3,2.5

Squats: 265 x 3, 305 x 8,8. These suck just the way squats are supposed to. Feels like home.

Sled - on the pavement now, 75 feet each rep: 150# x 2, 195 x 2, 240 x 2. My quads get that intense, numbing fire, like those asian peppers that make your tongue lose feeling, yet burn hot at the same time, so you can't breathe without weeping tears of bliss. Yeah, like that.


Deep dish pizza with extra pepperoni & cheese. Lots of other snacky things. The Quest for Calories continues.

[Erok]

Mon., 3/14. 220.6#.

OHP: 45x..., 95 x 5, 115 x 5, 135 x 5, 145 x 3, 155 x 3, 165 x 3.

Wife squats 135 for 3 sets of five. I'm pulling her in.

Push Press: 185 x 3,3,2-, -. dang. shouldn't have waited so long before the last set. Wife is getting in good volume on the bench press, tho: 85 for sets across.

Pullups (superset!): 3, 3, 2.7, 2, 2, 1.5, 0.9.

Mustache rides: 30x20,20,25, 40x20,20.

Z Press: 45x10, 95x4, 120 x 8,8. I'm starting to like these, as long as my quads don't cramp.

BB Curlz: 45x12, 55x12, 60x12.
Tri pulldowns: 100X15,15,20.


Bacon cheeseburgers & arugula salad. (the secret to a successful salad is to use the burger pan drippings as the dressing.)

Yeah, I like arugula. Mostly, I like saying it. Sounds like one of those old-timey car horns: ArrUUUUUUgulaa!

[Erok]

I haven't made any official announcements to the world-wide-series-of-tubes-that-comprises-the-internet, and I'm only gonna say this once. (big breath, valsalva, exhale)

I will be competing in the 17th Annual Capitol City Strongman Challenge, to be held Saturday, June 4th. There. No going back now.

Okay, here's what I'm dealing with:

Strongman Event descriptions for Men’s division – there is both a light weight (200lbs and under) and heavy weight division (over 200lbs) (I think it's pretty obvious what division I will be in):

Cast Iron Log Lift – Competitor gets three attempts to clean and press an Iron Log from the ground to overhead; scoring for this event is based on the maximum weight. (Pure fun - not scared at all.)

Sled Pull – Pull a 500 lb. sled for 75 feet; scoring for this event is based first on time and second on distance completed. (I don't even know how to fit 500# on the training sled. Gonna be hard, but I'll just embrace the suck.)

Atlas Stones – Lift from the ground onto barrels, round stones weighing 225, 250, 275, 300, 325; scoring for this event is based first on time and second on number of stones lifted. (More pure fun - I'll get a few of these.)

Tire Flip – Repeatedly flip end for end a 600 lb. tire for 75 feet; scoring for this event is based first on time and second on distance completed. (Too much like cardio, needs work.)

Farmer’s Walk – Competitors carry two 175 lb. milk cans, 75 feet down and 75 feet back; scoring for this event is based first on time and second on distance completed. (Also suspiciously like cardio. And the handles on these cans are all beat up; gonna need gloves.)


So, yeah. That's what I'm doing this spring. The plan is to eat, sleep, practice the events, and get stronger somewhere in there. And bring a big cooler full of chocolate milk.

[ithryn]

Dang, nice! That sounds like fun.

[Erok]

Wed., 3/16. 222.8#. Alrightalrightalriiiighht! GainzZz Train is leaving the station!

Front Squat: 115x8, 155 x 5, 185 x 5, 225 x 5, 245 x 3, 265 x 3. that 265 was supposed to be a single, but the first rep felt too good. Second rep felt better than I expected. Third rep was fugly - back bent forward slightly, and I ground up slow. The bar went up, though.

Pullups: 2,2,2,2,2. Yes, they're supersetted. I'm not the kind of guy that just hangs around the pullup bar. I got shit to do.

Squat: 310 x 8, 8. Okay, that second set was the hardest in recent memory. You know those scenes in submarine movies where they have to dive as deep as they can to avoid depth charges, and they're just waiting there, silent, in the dark, while the whole sub creaks & groans under the pressure? Yeah, that was reps 6, 7, and 8.


smoked beef brisket. so rich and unctuous. I love you.

[Erok]

Fri., 3/18.

Deadlift: 135 x 12, 230 x 8, 280 x 3, 320 x 3, 340 x 3, 360 x 3.

Rows: 140 x 8,8,8, switch to supine grip for 15.

Chicken curry, chicken curry, chicken curry.

[Erok]

Mon., 3/21. 221.6#.

Log Press: 90 x 5,5, 110 x 5, 130 x 5, 140 x 5,5, 145 x 5. I really like these. I really, really do. Wife can clean the empty log just fine, although rolling it up the chest is a little, um, different for her. I bet she could push press it if we worked on that. Come to think of it, I should work on my push presses at some point.

Pullups: 3,3,3,3,3. How do you bang these out for reps without swinging uncontrollably? I always have to pause after the second one to let the oscillation dampen.

Seated DB shoulder press: 30 x 10, 35 x 10, 40 x 10, 45 x 15.

Wife squats 140 for five sets of three. At one point, the girl in the next rack strikes up a conversation with her and asks her for advice. She handled it very well. I couldn't be prouder.

Spotted in the wild: A double date of bodybuilders. Two males, two females, all jacked to the gills. The guys are both well over 6'4" and ginormous. The girls are, well, girl-sized, but made entirely of meat & tank tops. It's shoulder/arm day, and they're all doing heavy-ass rows, pullups, cable stuff, etc. Wife sees the girls doing curls: "Wow, look at her arms! How much weight is that she's using? 40? 45?" She walks into the nearest rack and does a quick set with an empty bar. "That's good, right?" "Yep," I tell her, "just do about four more sets of those." "Oh, maybe later." Yes, I guess I could be prouder after all.


Chicken curry over rice, some kind of carrot/raisin/sunflower seed/cashew salad (trust me, it's good), and milk. Finished season 1 of The Americans. What a damn good show.