Quest for Fire

[Erok]

Sat., 2/17. Time to get after it.

Log C&P: 90x..., 115x3, 125x3, 135x3, 145x3, 155x2,2,2, 125x3,5. Weak point - the middle part, where the log is transferred from the lap to the shoulders. If I don't use enough hips, it wears down the wrists & brachioradialis. If I use too much hips(is that possible?), I start going backwards.

Stones: 150x1,1, 175x1,1,1,1,1. Weak(est) point - the first part, where the stone is transferred from the ground to the lap. My elbows want to pull apart, and my lizard brain does not want my lumbars to round.


steak, mushrooms, mashed cauliflower with many cheeses. Maker's Mark. A perfectly serviceable bourbon, as long as you don't put ice in it.


Sun.,2/18. 219.4#. Sunday is just as crazy in here as Monday, but it's a totally different crowd; all the pros train on Sunday. I saw a guy bench 475 (in a shirt, to a board, but still.) Also saw a guy who looked like a 5' 8" Ronnie Coleman. Wow.

F Squats: 135x5, 155x5,5,5.
Pullups: 3,3,3,3. Surprised myself there.
Rows: 159x8,8, 109x21 (wife was DLing, unloaded the bar)
Plate Flips, with a nice grippy 10# Hi-Temp. Saw a guy doing these the other day, his forearms were big, so...
Dips: 5,8,8,8,10. More surprises.
Wrist Roller: 50x2,2,2.
Rev Hyper: 35x12, 45x12,12,15,15.
Stairbastard: 5 min, 17 Floors.
Finally bought a Captains of Crush Trainer! did 3x5.


All Hail The Rotisserie Chicken! With avocado, fried eggs, cheese, cucumbers, all on a bed of greens with olive oil and lemon juice drizzled over it... hey, wait a second... That's a SALAD!
Well, it was still really good.

[Erok]

Wed,. 2/21. 217.4#.

DL: 135x8, 225x5, 305x8,8,8.
Gym Daddy asks to work in - it's his speed day, so in the time it takes me to do two work sets, he's done 8 sets of 2. This guy's back is huge: watching him set up to pull, I'm reminded of a Great Plains Bison. In our chatting, I find out he used to lift with Dr. Squat himself, Fred Hatfield! "He was a little nuts, but if you were strong enough, you could hang with him."

OHP: 45x..., 135x8,8,8. In walks Amanda Hall - no, not the actress. Local strongwoman done good. Her performance in the local 2016 comp was instrumental in getting wife to train for the 2017 comp. She's very nice & friendly, and can clean & press the log like a boss.

Stairbastard: 5 min, 16 Floors

CoC: 3x5, with a hold for time at the end.


Chicken Tikka Masala


Thurs, 2/22. 219#. Finally got wife some real squat shoes! Adidas Powerlifts, in that bluish green color. She likes them, and they work.

Squat: 45x..., 135x8, 225x5, 285x8,8,8.

Bench: 45x..., 95x8, 135x5, 175x8,8,8. Talking grip & office chair sitting with Cory, the local strongman prodigy. It'd be cool to train with him.


Menudo with steak & broccoli.

[Erok]

Sat., 2/24.

Log C&P: 90x..., 145x2, 165x1, 185x-,-. good clean, but no press there.

Stone: 200x-, 150x2. Elbows. Goddamn elbows.

Tire Flip: 600# x 3,3,3,3.

Farmers Walk: indoors, so 45', set it down, turn around, then 45' back. No idea what the bars weigh, so: 90x1, 110x1,1,1.

DB Hammer Curlz: 20x12, 25x8, 30x6, 25x8, 20x12, 30x8.


fried eggs, Lemon Chicken de Mayo with cauliflower. Logan Lucky is a fun heist flick.


Sun., 2/25. 220#. Eating below maintenance for three days, then eating for recovery for four days. Not optimal, but what is?

FSquats: 45x..., 95x8, 135x8, 185x8,8,8.
-superset-
Pullups: 4,3,3,3,3,3. If my beard touches the bar, it counts as a rep. No more decimals.

Circus, I mean, Circuit: (not necessarily in order)
Chest supported Tbar Rows: 35x15,15,18. really for the stretch.
Dips: 8,8,11. need more strategery to warm these up properly.
Wrist Roller: 35x2, 50x2,2. CoC fatigue is real.
Rev Hypr: 45x15, 55x12,15.

DB Curlz: (20x8, 25x8, 30x6)x2, then I see a tiny football bar on the floor, loaded with 15#: x12,12,12.

CoC: 3x5, with holds.


Fried chicken, sweet potato, and finally Thor: Ragnarok. My favorite Marvel movie so far. Chris Hemsworth has some fine arms, but then he turns around, and he's got the teeniest little spinal erectors! Gotta keep that Hollywood waist, I guess. Damn funny movie.

[Erok]

So, you've hit rock bottom: you've bought a chicken breast. You poor, poor slob. Here's how to make it taste:

2T mayo
1T mustard
1T preserved Meyer lemon. what's that? you don't preserve your own lemons? shame. use lemon juice, you Philistine.
salt, pepper

Mix it all into a thick, disgusting sludge. Slather it all over the chicken breast, which you've placed in a small roasting pan. Take care to cover the breast completely.

Shove it in the oven at 350 for about 45 minutes, or until the crust is the proper color. Stop complaining.

[Erok]

Wed., 2/28. 218.4#. Snacks, coffee, coffee, snacks, and coffee. There was also coffee.

DL: 135x8, 225x5, 315x2, 350x5,5,5. I can pull with my belt at 4, so that's cool.


OHP: 45x..., 95x5, 135x3, E5MOM: 150x5,5,5,5,5 Sweet Jesus, I Love Caffeeinne! fuck you, spellchek.

Farmers Walk: 90# x 45' x 4,4. those I-Beam handles are about 5 feet long, so when you turn around, they keeeep turning.

Sledgehammer Gada Swings: 4x5. big grip pump.


riced cauliflower with mushrooms, eggs, eggs, eggs.


Thurs., 3/01. 217.6#.

SQ: 45x..., 135x8, 225x5, 275x3, 325x5,5,5. Rattling plates at the top, so I know they're great.

HiBar Squat: 260x8. WTF? I don't have the bar-shaped callus on top of my traps, so the bar hurts there; can't figure out if I should put my thumbs around the bar or not (I didn't); my body expects me to use low-bar mechanics coming out of the hole, when my brain thinks I'm doing front squats. Good burn in the quads, tho.

Bench: 45x..., 135x5, 165x3, 195x5,5,5.

CGBP: 155x8,8.

Sled Drags (Backwards, always backwards): 250x75' x 1,1,1,1. Quaaaaaadz.


Pizza, Chicken Waaangs! X-Files was worth waiting two weeks for. Stupid Olympics.

[Erok]

3# chicken wings
salt
pepper
red pepper (I got this awesome shit from Cameroon - Asian food market, man, I'm telling you.)
garlic powder
ginger powder
a pinch of Lawrys seasoning salt - or a shitload, I don't care.

oven to 400, line a pan with tin foil or parchment paper.
mix all ingredients in a big bowl and spread them out on the pan.
shove it in the oven, flip over every 15-20 minutes, should be cooked with crispy skin in about 40-50 minutes.
Serve with sauce of choice - creamy sauces are king with spicy waaangs. We like plain sour cream.

[Erok]

Sat., 3/03. Three months out.

Log: 90x..., 115x3, 135x3, 145x2, 165x2, 170x1, 175x1, 180x1, 145x3,3. These went well, but I tore a big hole in my Katz' Deli shirt.

Stones: 125x3, 150x2, 175x1,-,1,1. Better.

ChestSupportTBarRows:45x..., 80x7,8,8. for the stretch.

CoC: 3x5 + holds.


Indian buffett. Goat curry, chicken wings masala, tandoori chicken, chicken 65, chicken curry, saag paneer, coconut soup. I even had a little rice. Doesn't matter how 'low carb' you try to go, though, because the sodium levels are outrageous. Food coma for the rest of the day - the kind where your eyes dry up, and you're so thirsty, but you can't physically fit any more liquids into your stomach. God Bless America.


Sun., 3/04. 217.8#. Well, that worked out okay.

Front Squats: 45x..., 115x5, 205x3, 225x3, 235x3, 245x3,3.
-superset-
Pullups: 4,4,4,4,3.

DB Hammer Curlz: 30x8,35x8, 30x8.
Preacher Curlz: 20x..., 25x..., don't like these. Anterior shoulder feels pinched.
DB: 20x..., 25x...

Circus:
Rev. Hyper: 45x12, 55x15,15, 65x15,21.
Wrist Roller: 30x4,4,4,4.
Dips: 5,10,10,10.


There's a semblance of spring in the air, so we fire up the grill. cheeseburgers, andouille, bavarian weiners, onions, zuchinni, meyer lemon.

[Erok]

Tues., 3/06.

CoC: 3x5 + holds. this is much harder without having a workout to warm up the grip.

[Erok]

Wed., 3/07. 216#.

DL: 135x8, 225x5, 315x2, 365x1, 390x2,2,2.

OHP: 45x..., 95x8, 135x5, 155x3, 170x2,2,3. hey, my belt goes to 5 now.

Farmers Walk, 45': 90#x 2, 110x2, 120x2,2, then a slow 15' over to the plate tree, with a hold for time - felt like a minute, so it was probably actually 5 seconds.

cheese quesadillas & eggs.


Thurs., 3/08. 216#.

SQ: 45x..., 135x8, 225x5, 315x2, 365x2,2. so slow, so grindy.

Bench: 135x8, 175x4, 205x2, 225x1, 235x1, 245x-, stuck an inch off the chest. Just as well. I need to replace the Bench slot with something more, um, strongman-y. Strongmannish? Taking suggestions.

CoC: two awful sets of 5. yesterday's Farmers Walks inflamed my old elbow injury.


bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers, cream cheese stuffed mushrooms, beef bolognaise, chicken tomato soup.

[Erok]

Sat., 3/10. 219#. Cheese, sausage, booze. Redemption Bourbon is really good. light & sweet, with just a hint of leather.

Log, push press from rack, since all the platforms are full: 90x..., 115x8, 145x3, 165x3, 185x1,1,1, 145x5,5.

Tire: 600x3,3,3,3. never gets easier.

Sled, on turf, so very slidy, 45': 320x4, 365x2, 410x4.

Farmers Walk: found out the handles weigh about 35#, so add that to all my previous numbers: 125x45'x 2,4.


porkturkey burgers, over cauliflower, with eggs & hollandaise.

Phantom Thread. oh, man. I did not see that ending coming.
Then X-Files (which reminded us a lot of Supernatural), with a bag of pork rinds. Mmmm.


Sun., 3/11. Damn theater seat made my L knee janky, and there's too many little projects to get done, so deload week starts tomorrow.
Carb refeed! pancakes & pizza.
Coc: 3x5 + holds.