Updates too numerous to number

So the last ten days just melted into a flurry of work and crap and other stuff. Got my workouts in though, which is worthy of a pat on the back. Will try to sum up in this post.

Sunday Feb 22. Stronglifts #17

Did an hour-and-a-half of Taekwon-Do first (mostly teaching, so not too hard) then headed straight for the gym to get some lifting done. Was extremely short on time, so did the lifts only this time, no auxilliary stuff.

Squats: 1×10x20 – 2×5x40 – 1×5x50 – 5×5x60kg – YAY! Big Plates(tm)

Bench Press: 1×10x20 – 2×5x40 – 5×5x50kg – Ok

Went a bit short on the warmups so the first work sets felt heavier than the last. I hate having to hurry in the gym.

Tuesday Feb 24. Stronglifts #18

No stress today, so back to the regular warmup. 5 minutes elliptical, hip and glute exercises. A bit of power cleaning and overhead squatting. Once again I credit the overhead squat for my strong form and good depth on the regular squats. Recommended.

Squats: 1×10x20 – 2×5x40 – 1×5x50 – 1×3x60 – 5×5x62.5kg – Heavier and heavier. I’m looking at a stall here soon, although it could be down to my diet, this week wasn’t all that good eating-wise.

Overhead Press: 1×10x20 – 1×5x30 – 1×5x32.5kg – 3×5x37.5kg – Quit after three sets due to back pain.

Deadlift: 1×10x20 – 1×5x60 – 1×5x70 – 1×5x80kg – Strangely there was no back pain on the deadlift. Felt good and went up easy.

Chins: 1-1-1 1×5 neg.

Plank: 3×30seconds. Didn’t feel like doing more.

Wednesday Feb 25. Taekwon-Do

Did all my patterns and focused a bit extra on Joong-Gun and Toi-Gye. Worked up quite a sweat too. Also worked extra on getting the correct height on punches. I’m going for a grading at the end of march and this stuff needs to be down pat.

Oh, and I did the 360deg jump in Chong-Moo nearly perfect.

Thursday Feb 26. Stronglifts #19

Same warmup as last time, although I put in some of Brad’s infamous halos to work the shoulders a bit extra.

Squats: 1×5x20 – 1×5x40 -1×5x50 – 1×3x60 – 5×5x65kg - Good stuff

Bench Press: 1×10x20 – 1×5x30 – 1×5x40 – 1×3x50 – 5×5x52.5kg – Getting heavy

Inverted Rows: 9-6-2

Push ups: 11-4-3 – knuckles as always.

Reverse Crunches: 2×12/5kg counter – 1×8 no counter.

Friday Feb 27. Taekwon-Do

Did about 45 minutes of patterns going hard and working up a decent pool of sweat. Excellent dynamic even if I do say so myself. Need to keep focus though, when I go hard I have a tendency of starting one pattern and slipping into another without noticing until the end.

Sunday Mar 1.

Wifes birthday.

Monday Mar 2. Stronglifts #20

5 minutes on the rower, no hamstring pain, YAY! Regular stuff for the rest of the warmup.

Squats: 1×10x20 – 1×5x40 – 1×5x50 – 1×5x60 - 5×5x67.5kg – This felt really heavy. Wasn’t too happy with my form either.

Overhead Press: 1×10x20 – 1×5x30 – 2×3x35 – 5×5x37.5kg - Third time’s the charm. Never thought I would get this up, but it seems the glute activation stuff is working, because this time I actually felt I got some help from that  body part as well.

Deadlift: 1×10x20 – 1×5x60 – 1×5x70 – 1×3x80 – 1×5x85kg – Ok. I can go heavier on this, but forearms and grip will probably give in first.

Chins: 2-2-1-1-2-1 – Weeee…

Plank: Bah, didn’t feel like it, so I did  Ab wheel rollouts instead. Kneeling and fumbling and looking like a giraffe caught in syrup, but got through 5×5.

Tuesday Mar 3. Taekwon-Do

Patterns again. Full power no mercy and a bucket of sweat. Drew a bit of a crowd at the gym too, which always makes me go a bit harder

Since the hamstring is healing nicely I might start doing some kicking drills soon.

So that was a monster update. WordPress clocks me in at just over 600 words, but it feels more like 6000.

Stronglifts #16

Took an extra rest day, as I went to a Taekwondo class on tuesday night that was rather more taxing than I expected. I really felt it wednesday, and thursday was only slightly better. Did an easy session of TKD forms and light stretching thursday which felt good. Hamstring is behaving itself well, so it’s clean clear to Flag Town.

Today was a cold day, so I spent plenty time warming up. Beginning to enjoy the elliptical, at least it’s a lot better than the treadmill. I still want to go back to the C2 though.

WU: 5 min elliptical, hip/glute/squat stretches. Romanina deadlifts and hang cleans w bar. Overhead squats – I love these, fantastic stretch.

Squat: 1×10x20 – 2×5x40 – 1×5x50 – 1×3x52.5 – 5×5x57.5kg – Lousy form on the first work set improved for the next ones, but sort of collapsed again at the end. This was a workout! And woah, big plates next time!

Overhead Press: 1×10x20 – 1×5x30 – 1×5x35 – 37.5kg 5-5-4-4-5 - Sheesh, this was heavy! Second set every rep was a pain. Third set the first four rep were rather easy but the last one refused to go up. Same thing on the fourth. Fifth went well. Looking at some serious DOMS around the shoulder area tomorrow… This weight is going up next time.

Deadlift: 1×10x20 – 1×5x60 – 1×3x70 -  1×5x75kg – Ok. Good form as well. Had somebody watch me on the 70kg warmup set and everything looked as good as it felt. Really happy about this.

Chin ups: 5×1 – No negatives, and the ohp probably interfered. No chance of a second rep on any of the attempts.

Plank: Miserable failure. Finished one set of 40 seconds then collapsed halfway through the second. Thought f**k it and hit the showers.

Stronglifts #14

All alone in the gym this afternoon, the luxury….

Messed up my hamstring again on friday  when I went skiing and… well let’s just say I’m not as good as I used to be. Still a little sore this morning but decided to go lift some weights anyway, and now it feels a lot better.

Regular warmup of treadmill then hip/glute-stuff and a few overhead squats, air squats and something that looks slightly like power cleans.

Squats: 1×5x20 – 2×5x30 – 2×5x40 – 1×3x50 – 5×5x52.5kg – Some extra warm up sets to make sure the hamstring was ok, then a good work set of 52.5 which is my best lift so far on SL. It feels a little heavier now, but there’s still some room for improvement.

Overhead Press: 1×10x20 – 2×5x30 – 1×3x34 – 5×5x35kg – Nailed it! Heavy, but forced it through. looking forward to next time.

Deadlift: 1×10x20 – 1×5x40 – 1×3x70 – 1×5x80kg – Can’t read, can’t count… Workweight was supposed to be 70 tonight, but put on the 25kg plates instead of the 20s on the last warm up set. I thought it felt rather much heavier than last weeks 65, but figured the ohp had drained me. The weight is typed on the plate and they’re different colours too! Oh well. Will count this as 70 then go back to 75 next time.

Chin ups: 2-1-f 3×5 negs – Was rather shot after the deadlifting but forced through it. Still seems to be the forearms that’s the weak spot.

Planks: 4×40 + 25secs/15 second breaks. – Couldn’t finish the last set, just collapsed. Try again.

Stronglifts #12

Skipped the third SL day last week as I had a full weekend of Taekwon-Do events. Did it this morning instead, even though I was still tired both mentally and physically.

5 minutes treadmill  followed by hip mobility and glute activation excercises. Practiced power cleans and overhead squats for a bit.

Squats: 1×10x20 – 2×5x30 – 1×5x40 – 5×5x47.5kg – Last set was low bar, am getting there. Can still put some more weight on anyway.

Overhead press: 1×5x20 – 1×5x25 – 2×5x30 – 35kg: 5-5-4-5-5 – F*n. Poor form ruined the third set. Too wide grip and messed up the breathing as well. Last two sets were ok. I’ve done 5×5x35 before, so I was fairly sure I could do this. Oh well, one more time with 35 and proper form.

Deadlift: 1×10x20 – 1×5x40 – 1×5x60 – 1×5x65kg – Felt much better than last week. No hamstring pain and excellent form.

Chin ups: 2-1-1, 3×5 negatives – Coming along ok. No elbow pain either.

Plank: 4×40 seconds/15 sec break – Man that fourth set was hard. I dread 5×40 at the end of the week…

Late again, Stronglifts #10 and 11

Forgot to blog mondays workout. Felt like crap too, so no wonder. Here’s a roundup of the week so far.

Monday 2009-02-02

Had to rush this workout as I had a doctors appointment.

5 minutes on the rower, not too clever as I agitated the hamstring again. Some light air squats and overhead squats to start off.

Squats: 1×10x20 – 2×5x30 – 5×5x42,5kg – First workout with miniplates. Light and easy, but felt good technically.

OHP: 1×10x20 – 1×5x30 – 5×5x32,5kg – This was heavy, but I hope that was mostly due to me cutting short the rest periods. I still need to work on grip and arm placement on this one.

Deadlift: 1×10x20kg – Hamstring didn’t feel like deadlifting today so I stopped after the first set.

Chin ups: 2-1-1-1 – 2×5 negatives

Plank: 3×40 seconds/15 sec break – Harder than last time…

Wednesday 2002-02-04

5 mins treadmill. Squats/ohs/shoulder dislocations

Squats: 1×10x20 – 2×5x40 – 5×5x45kg  – Focus on breathing this time.. Still easy

Bench: 1×10x20 – 2×5x34 – 5×5x42,4kg – Still fairly easy.

Inverted Rows: 8-5-4 – Slight improvement!

Push ups: 10-7-5 – Knuckles again.

Reverse Crunch: 3×12 with 10kg counter. Think I might go for 5kg next time as this was surprisingly easy.

Stronglifts #8

5 minutes treadmill – hip mobility – glute activation – air squats – overhead squats – shoulder dislocations – hamstring stretches.

Decided to repeat weights from last time, so I won’t get to far ahead of the program. Still don’t have the small plates either.

Squats: 1×10x20 (low bar) – 1×5x30 – 5×5x50 – Low bar still not good, so returned to high bar for the loaded sets. Would probably do well with another warm up set somewhere, as the first work sets were harder than the last.

OHP: 1×10x20 – 5×5x30 – Again could use another warmup set. First three sets were hard, and I couldn’t get my elbows forward. Then I figured my grip was way wide. narrowed it down to slightly wider than shoulder width, the elbows came forward and the last two sets flew up.

Deadlift: 1×10x20 – 1×5x40 – 3×5x60 – Slightly heavy, but not too bad. First warm up set technique was all over the place, but it settled nicely for the second set. Felt some stiffness in the injured hamstring here.

Chin ups: 2-1-f, 3×5 negatives – Wohoo, set of two! Should have had a single on the third set too, but cut short my rest time between the sets. I think it’s actually forearm strength that keeps me back here.

Plank: 3×40 secs, 15 secs rest – Much harder than 5×30 actually. 4×40 next time.

Stronglifts #6

Yesterdays magic 50 brought me sore quads, glutes and obliques, but a fairly fresh and pain free hamstring. Throat is all cleared up as well, so it’s dawn in paradise at last.

Dropped the rower today and went five minutes on the stationary bike, which was useless, and then five minutes on the treadmill. Put up a steep incline and moderate pace so I had to stretch the glutes properly. Felt good. Then went on to the regular preparation stuff with ohs, shoulder dislocations and et cetera. No halos anywhere.

Squat: 1×10x20 – 1×5x40 – 5×5x45 – The ten reps with bar only were vital to get deep enough today. Quads screamed for the first three then were slowly silenced. 45kg was more of a challenge but still easily doable. 50 kg next time.

OHP: 1×10x20 – 5×5x30 – For some reason the first set on 30 was the hardest, it got easier after that. I’ll soon need to drop to smaller increments here. Have ordered up some 1.25 kg plates, but no idea when they arrive. Might have to be a bit clever in the meantime.

Deadlift: 1×5x20 – 1×5x30 – 1×5x60 – Ok, that might not have been so clever. Last time 40 kg for 3×5 was easy, and the 30kg set tonight flew up, so I figured what the hey lets put on the big plates. I got them up well enough but there’s no way I’d want to do 3×5 of those, at least not tonight. I think I’ll repeat same weight next time.

Chinups: 1-1-f, 3×5 negatives – I think the deads and ohps took a bit out of me, and I wasn’t quite in it for the chins. Oh well.

Plank: 5×30 seconds, 15 seconds rest – EASY. Didn’t really feel it until the last few seconds on the last set. Moving up to 40 seconds next time.

Gym was crowded tonight, and a few people had brought their kids along. Didn’t bother me, I just put in the earplugs and zoned out. It’ll be quieter tomorrow and monday.

Tonights soundtrack: Sonata Arctica – Collection

There’s a banana in my pineapple

Still sore throat, still feeling the hamstring a bit, but nevermind.

Early start today, dropped the kids off at their respective educational institutions then hit the gym. Not quite empty, so no blazing Wagner, but still a good time. I was probably not at my best, having had just a quick breakfast of yoghurt and bananas, and needed a bit more warmup than usual. Did the usual five minutes on the rower to get the blood flowing, then practiced squats, overhead squats and shoulder dislocations with the aerobics bar. My shoulders need more work. Havent done the dislocations for a week or so, and I’m back to square one.

Squats: 1×5x20kg – 1×5x30kg – 5×5x35kg – Needed a bit more warmup before putting the weight on. Used 2.5kg collars to make proper weight changes. That’ll work on squats and Dl’s but I’m going to need something smaller for OHP later. 35kg is still not heavy in itself, but heavy enough that I need a little rest between sets.

OHP: 1×10x20kg – 5×5x25kg – Again easy enough set for set, but some rest needed for the final two. I’m actually not sure whether I did five or six sets with 25. I can still go up 5kg next time, but after that I’ll probably need to ease it, else I stall too quickly.

Deadlift: 1×10x20kg – 3×5x40kg – Supposed to do only 1×5 work set but it feels light and I need the practice. Very happy with my back today, straight as you want it all through. Need to work a bit on proper breathing, but that’ll come.

Chinups: 1-1-1 then 3×5 negatives.

Plank: 4×30 seconds, 15 second rest.  The first three sets were “easy” so I added a fourth. It wasn’t. Will try to work up to one minute planks by first increasing sets to five then dropping to three adding time.

Spent a lot of time in the gym today. First this woman wanted me to show her how the leg press machine worked. She basically had no quads in her left foot? She pressed all the weight with her right, and with about 5 cm rom. Well, it’s not my business to train her, but I’d see a physio if I were her. Then a pensioner started asking me about chinups, which turned into a long discussion about the importance of back strenght, then somehow ending up with me promising to help him with his wireless network. No idea how that happened. Then there was a gaggle of nice older ladies coming in for their 10 o’clock aerobics workout/tea party who waylaid me on my way out with the regular ten minutes of chatter. I’m too nice. Reminder to self: Be out of the gym by 9:30 on tuesdays.

Feeling quite good right now, like I could go again for another similar workout. This is good because there’s taekwon-do tonight, so better be ready.

Pulling and pushing.

So I pulled my hamstring doing rising sideways kicks on monday. Pah!
Was stiff and sore all day Tuesday and Wednesday, but seems to have miraculously healed today.
So I decided to go for the second stronglifts workout this morning.

Warmup was 5 minutes light rowing to try to feel out the hamstring. Then did some air squats and leg raises. The latter weren’t as good as usual, so a bit of a setback to flexibility there.

Squats: 26 kg 5×5 – Had trouble finding small enough weights to make the appropriate increase, so ended up using some collars I found that weighed 3 kg each. Later on I found some 2kg plates that I might use next time. So far it’s n0t heavy so no problem with the increase.

Overhead Press: 20 kg 5×5 – Easy enough and I felt I had decent technique as well. Practiced these a bit earlier in the week also, and made sure the bar moved in a straight line. This one will be hard fairly quickly I think.

Deadlift: 30 kg 1×5 – Had to put on some weight to get the bar to a useful height, instead of starting bar only. Still fairly light so no problem. Focused on keeping a straight back and felt pretty good afterwards.

Chinups: 1 proper then 3×5 negatives. – Hah. First time I’ve done a proper full ROM chinupwith no kipping since I was on simplefit last year

Plank: 3×30sec – Went well, althoug the last set was a bit shaky. Used 15 sec breaks between sets, might go for 10 next time.

Deadlift Donkey

Rx: Deadlift 5-5-5-5-5 reps

I haven’t done any deadlifts for years, so worked mainly on form with dumbbells (2×11kg) Weight was easy, but form was horrible, so did a few extra sets to try to get it right.

Oh, and yesterday was rest day. Apart from the two+hours with the lawnmower.

My sister celebrated her birthday today, so not exactly clean eating either