31 July 2012

Push press + team training.

PR-day4real!

Push press max attempts.
One of my strength goals for this fall is push press and I have not tested it since I set the goal in June, so I decided to do a 3RM and 1RM test before team training today. Previous 3RM was 85 kg and 1RM was 90. My 1RM goal is 100.

Sets of 3: 20, 40, 60, 80, 90 (PR by 5 kg). Stopped and went for 1x95 and got it (PR by 5 kg).

Got a much better sense of my dip and drive than I have ever had. It felt really strong. Could probably have done more, but stopped here because the rest of the day was full of overhead work.

Hand stand walk practice.
My best result was 4-5 steps. Not very impressive, but when I started focusingon keeping my feet together it felt more controlled. Still a lot of work to do in this skill.

1RM jerk from behind the neck.
20, 60, 100, 110, 115, 120, 125(!).
Split jerked all the way and nailed them all. I have never tried jerking behind the neck before but my best jerk (and the most weight I have ever had over my head before) was 107,5 kg so I guess this can also be considered a PR :)

WOD - open wod 12.5.
7 min AMRAP, 3-6-9-12-15... of:
Thruster 42,5 kg
C2B pull up.
Result: 101 reps (improved my open score by 3 and got the best score of the day).

I was COMPLETELY wasted after this WOD. Took me 5 minutes just to be able to talk to anybody. It felt horrible, but I was happy about the result. No doubt about my ability to push myself to the limit!

All in all this was a surprisingly good day. I still have a bit of a bad stomach and have generally felt drained all day, so I definitely was not expecting to put up such good numbers.

30 July 2012

Unplanned rest day due to a stomach infection. On my f***ing birthday! Crap.

Literally.

29 July 2012

Beach day.

WOD - 2-man teams.
One partner works while other does a 2x30m sand shuttle run. Team must complete all reps at a station and then buddy carry 30m to the next station. Finish with a 90m buy out.

Station 1: 100 HR push up
30m buddy carry
Station 2: 150 sit up
30m buddy carry
Station 3: 200 ait squat
30m buddy carry
90m sand sprint

Time: 13:30

Then we did some swimming technique and I did 2x150m open water swim. Went really good, next time I will do same distance but increase speed (and time it).

REALLY sore in glutes, adductors and quads from squatting yesterday. Feels gooooooood.

28 July 2012

Clean+jerk max, snatch volume, squat volume, press and pull up volume.

Clean+jerk max attempt.
40, 40, 40, 60, 60,60, 80, 80, 90, 90, 100, 105(F), 105(F), 105(F).
Disappointed that I did not get 105, but the others felt very safe, so that was good.

Snatch volume.
1 x 60 kg EMOM 15 mins.
Failed the fifth, got the rest. Good weight, and I got good speed under it once it started to get a bit heavy on rep 8-9 and forward.

Back squat volume.
Inspired by Mainz' crazy 75 rep EMOM from strongmanwod.com I did the following 25 min EMOM:
5 rounds of 5 x 75 kg each minute.
5 rounds of 4 x 85 kg
5 rounds of 3 x 95 kg
5 rounds of 2 x 105 kg
5 rounds of 1 x 110 kg
Had planned to do 115 kg in final round but started to feel kind of cramped in my adductors, so I chose to play it safe and get through the last five rounds in good form. This is a total of 6.6 tonnes squatted in 25 mins. I have squatted 100 x 60 in 20 mins before and I was sore for days so I am curious to see how I feel tomorrow from this session!

OH press + strict c2b superset.
4 rounds of
ME shoulder press @ 50 kg
ME strict c2b
Press: 10, 9, 8, 9.
C2b: 10, 9, 9, 10.

Good day, although I did not get 105 kg in clean and jerk a I had hoped. It's bound to happen one day soon, but my jerk gets really weak after I have cleaned. I would be able to stick a 105 jerk most of the time if I did it from the rack.

27 July 2012

Rest day.

26 July 2012

Good old fashioned crossfit workout.


Warm up: run 1k.

WOD - 5 rounds for time of:
5 deadlift @ 120 kg (UB all rounds)
10 HSPU (UB all rounds)
15 pull up (UB butterfly all rounds)
20 sit up (UB all rounds)
25 wall ball (UB first 2 rounds, then 15-10)
50 DUs (broken up in all rounds)

Time: 27:30. Actually I did 4 rounds in 21:22, then took a 2 min break and did the last round in 6:08. I was DESTROYED afterwards. The gym was hot as hell and the wall balls were killing my lungs. Great to do a good old fashioned long mixed modality metcon though.

Warm down: 1k run.


All done within one hour from leaving home to being back. Nice and efficient. Actually that's what I really liked about crossfit when I started last summer. Have not tried training less than two hours for months it seems, haha.

25 July 2012

Snatch variations, c+j variations, short WOD.


8x2 hang snatch @ 50 kg.
Focused on getting speed under the bar. Did a couple of really good ones.

Snatch 1RM attempts.
70, 75, 80(F),  80(F),  80(F), 80(F), 80(F).
Still unable to stick the 80 kg snatch, but I was very close today. A bit faster under the bar than usual, but still not quite there. Video shows that I need to focus on keeping the chest up and then getting under the bar. I pull the bar way high enough, but half the time I lose it forward, the other half I'm just too slow to get under the bar.

EMOM full clean + jerk. aka. C+j-ing 1.65 tonnes in 15 mins.
5 mins of 2 reps @ 80 kg
5 mins of 1 rep @ 80 kg
5 mins of 1 rep @ 90 kg
Cleans were the limiting factor (because they were full cleans and not power). Stuck the jerks securely every time.

And then a small finisher (inspired by Brandt's Curls for the Girls WOD):


5 rounds for time of
7 ring dips
7 barbell curls @ 40 kg
7 toes-to-bar
Time: 5:08.
Rediculous workout, but good fun.

24 July 2012

Tuesday: Double conditioning with the competition team.

WOD1 - Team CF Total II.
Three attempts to establish 1RM in OH squat, power clean and bench press. 40 minutes including warm up.
OH squat: 90, 100, 105 (F). Tied my PR. The 105 was very close, definitely within reach.
Power clean: 100, 105, 107.5. PR'ed by 2,5 kg. Felt like 110 was also possible so I'm very hapy about that.
Bench press: 110, 117.5, 120. Pr'ed by 2,5 kg. At my absolute limit on that one. Butt lifted from the bench but it still counts in CF :-)


Total: 100 + 107.5 + 120 = 327.5 kg.


WOD 2 - Track couplet.
4 rounds for time of:
Run 400m
15 c2b pull up


Time: 11:07. Did not do any butterfly c2b as I was afraid to get out of rythm and thus get overly tired. Kipping all the way, only able to go unbroken in the first round.


2 PRs today! So good to be back training with the comp team. Makes me a better crossfitter to train with them. And makes me confident that I will reach my needed progressions towards my oly lifting goals.

23 July 2012

Rest day. Sore traps from hang power cleans saturday. Feels goooooood.

22 July 2012

Morning: Bar work.
Squat 3x5 @ 75% (100kg).
Made some shots for a video for Owen to take a look at my squat. Hopefully he can give me some advice on how to overcome my sore hips.

Clean and Jerk max attempt.
20, 20, 40, 40, 60, 60, 80, 80, 90, 90, 100(F), 100(F).
Decided to call it. Pissed that I couldn't even jerk 100 kg.


Did a couple of snatches at 50 and 60 kgs but it didn't feel right so I stopped for the day.



Afternoon: beach work @ Amager Strandpark.
3 man team chipper.
Run 400m (all three at same time)
100 HR push up (one team member works at a time)
200 ait squats (one team member works at a time)
Run 400m (all three)

Time: 10:12.

Open water swimming technique.
Did probably about 200m in small incremements. Spent my time looking at the technique of the other guys.

Great day at the beach! I will try to go every week up until Classics.

21 July 2012

Back in the gym! Oh, how I missed those plates and bars :)

Saturday: C+J variations, Pull volume, conditioning.

Warm up
3 rounds:
5 burpees
10 pull up
10 push up
10 sit up

Did not time it. Burpees felt heavier than usual... go figure!

Hang power clean 5x5 @ 80 kg.
5, 4, 4+1, 5, 5. Lost the bar a cope of times when lowering from the rack position. Got tires towards the end, 3-4-5 were only good when I took time to get my technique right and really get some hip drive into the bar.

Pendlay row 5x5 @ 90 kg.
5, 5, 5, 5, 5. Felt heavy and good.

Chin up weighted 5x5 @ 25 kg.
5, 4, 5, 4, 3+1+1. Ouch, these were heavier than normal, too. Gotta weigh myself one of these days.

Bench press 5x5 @ 95 kg.
5, 5, 5, 5, 5. Close grip. Felt heavy but not to the max. My close grip bench is almost where my wide grip was 1 month ago so that's nice. I'll do 97,5 kg next time.

Biceps curls 50 kg + shoulder press 50 kg SS.
8+10, 9+10, 8+10. Finished with 10+10 @ 40 kg.

Nice to be back...

13 July - 20 July 2012

Drastically dropped my training level during the holiday. Also drastically increased alcohol intake and moderately increased calorie intake, primarily from simple carbs :)

Only did two workouts during the last 8 days:

Swim 1.5k in olympic size pool. 
Time 26 mins. Very happy about this as I have not been swimming distance for 12 months.

5 runds for time of
5 rounds of (
5 pull up
10 push up
15 sit up / 15 air squat* )
run 400m

* Alternated between sit up and air squat in each macro round.

Did not time, but was sore in triceps, pecs and lats for 2-3 days :)

Looking forward to getting back in the gym with the bars and plates!!

12 July 2012

Vacation WOD 2
10k run (roads, forest paths and beach mixed)

Time was approx. 50 mins.

Fantastic run, around the outskirts of Øer near Ebeltoft in high noon sun across fields, along forest paths and along the shoreline with amazing views everywhere I looked.

11 July 2012

Vacation WOD 1
5 rounds for time of:

run 400m
10 HSPU
20 body rows
20 sit ups
20 push up

Time: 30:00

HSPUs were my only goat in this one. Did the first round unbroken, then 5+5, then sets of between 2 and 5 for the rest of the rounds.

10 July 2012

Rest day.

First day of vacation, too.

9 July 2012

Monday: Snatch variation, Back Squat volume, Press volume (OH, bench, dips).

OH press 5x5 @ 62,5 kg.
5, 5, 3. Went to 60 kg. 5, 5. F***ing ridiculous. Almost feels like my press is going backwards.

Squat 5x5 @ 120 kg - 2 min break.
5, 5, 4, 3. Went to 110. 5, 5. Need to deload and reset. Back is strong as ever but my posterior chain is weak and my hip joints are stil all Smolov'ed up.

OH Squat heavy 3 + 2 x 3 @ 90%.
40, 60, 70, 80, 90(F on third), 80, 80. Felt like I should have gotten the third on 90 and I would have if I hadn't back squatted just before.


EMOM 15 mins1 hang power snatch + 1 hang snatch @ 60 kg. I (heart) EMOM. Got a couple of really speedy turnovers on the full snatches in the final 4-5 minutes. Wonderful how fatigue forces good technique.


Bench 5x5 100 kg.
5, 5. 
Decided to play with the weights, so we took off 20 kg each round and maxed out on reps. 85 kg: 12 reps, 8 reps. 65 kg: 20 reps. 45 kg: 30 reps. 25 kg: 60 reps.

Another day that felt less than optimal. I think I need to reset my weights and reduce the volume a little bit. Seem to be getting a bit too eager. Luckily vacation away from the gym will automatically do this...

8 July 2012

Rest day.

6 July 2012

Friday: Snatch max attempts. Front Squat or DL, Auxiliary exercises (GHR, RDLs, sleds).

4-frame of 77,5 kg PR snatch.

20 mins to establish 1RM snatch.

40, 40, 50, 50, 60, 60, 70, 70, 77,5 (PR by 2,5 kg), 80(F), 80(F), 80(F), 80(F), 80(F). 

Felt good, I was very confident that the 77,5 would be a breeze, and it was. I had actually also expected to get 80 up, but as the video shows that just didn't happen. Lousy footwork, slow under the bar, and I still get on my toes a bit too early. Well, still making good progress, and I am ahead of my linear progression towards my goal of snatching 90 by Oct 1st.

EMOM 15 mins
Box full clean + box full clean + jerk @ 80 kg.
I... LOVE... EMOM!

5x5 deadlift @ 150 kg.
Got a bit spicy towards the end, think I lost the lower back a little bit on rep 4 and 5 in the two last sets, but I made it through OK.

Was actually done at this point, about to go home, but the my favourite you-go-I-go WOD buddy Mikkel Brandt showed up and we decided on a closer:

4 rounds, you-go-I-go of:
5 TG full cleans @ 70 kg
2 x 15m prowler loaded w 80 kg
10 ring dips

Lap times: 1:12, 1:19, 1:30, 1:43.


Great day: a PR and a massive attack on the posterior chain. That prowler was E V I L. And wonderful at the same time.

7 July 2012

Saturday: Beach WODs

WOD1 - 2 man team amrap 12 mins.

You-go-I-go at each of the first two station, then KB swings simultaneusly.

Suicide run (markers at 10m, 20m, 30m)

Buddy carry 30m

50 KB swings (alternating between 24 kg and 28 kg)

Result: 2 rounds + suicide runs + buddy carries + 4 swings.

WOD2 - 3 rounds for time of

Ocean swim 50m

15 push ups

30 sit ups

45 air squats

Time: 9:55.

AWESOME stuff! I need to go to the beach more often. Next time more swimming, and I can definitely go harder on it too. Nice to know that my swimming has only gotten better from not swimming and only doing crossfit for 12 months.

5 July 2012

Thursday: Gymnastics, auxiliary (DB presses, rows, hip bridges, core work).

Warm up
5 rounds of:
20 DUs
5 HSPU
5 atomic sit ups
10 air squats

20 MUs (kipping, false grip, band assisted - anything goes)
Tried no false grip but my kip is still off, tried four got zero. Changed to false grip, did:
3, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4. Mixed in 5-7 ring dips in each set just for fun when I was up there anyway.

100 hollow rocks.
20, 10, 10, 15, 15, 15, 15.

Box squats 5x5 @ 80 kg.
Felt good, going to go for 85 kg next time. Great exercise for posterior chain focus.

Hip Hinges 5x5 @ 70 kg.


Hip bridges 5x5 @ 90 kg.


Easy day today, felt awesome to be doing muscle ups again, I am very confident that my goal of 10 unbroken by end of september will be reached. Looking forward to max oly's tomorrow, I think there's a snatch PR waiting for me :)

4 July 2012

Rest day,

3 July 2012

Tuesday: Double conditioning

2 WODs with the Buther's Garage Competition Team.

Warm up: Helen (kind of)
3 rounds of:
Run 400m
Do some KB swings 1-1.5 pood
Do some pull ups

Not for time, just for fun.

WOD 1
5 rounds of:
9 C2B pull ups
9 ring dips
9 front squats @ 70 kg

Time: 9:36

WOD 2
2 teams of 5 people, 17 mins of erg rowing for max distance.
Did four stints of 60 seconds all out sprint, approximate average 500, split times: 1:25-1:30.
We won by 130m with a distance of 4,900m.

Was completely DESTROYED after these two WODs. I love the competitive environment and the great spirit in the team. It definitely brings out the best in all of us. Great stuff.

2 July 2012

Monday: Snatch variations, squat volume, press volume.

Back squat 5x5 @ 117,5 kg.
Did 2x5 low bar at working weight but decided to change to 100 kg high bar because my lower back was hammered from yesterday's CF Total. Focused on form and position in the bottom of the squat.

OH press 5xME @ 50 kg.
12, 12, 10, 8, 8. Focused on getting the shoulders back and improving my starting position. Felt yesterdays presses so I stuck to form before intensity.

No snatches due to lower back fatigue. Had planned to do 10 mins EMOM: 3 hang snatch @ 50 kg. Also skipped a 10 mins EMOM: 3 strict HSPU, 5 toes-to-bar.

Easy day, probebly should have taken a full rest day, but I had to go squat, just could not be without it today :)

1 July 2012

CF Total, 50 vest pull ups

CF Total
Squat: 130, 135 (PR), 142,5(F).
130 felt easy, and so did 135 (which was a 5 kg PR), so I went for 142,5 in a fit of over confidence. Disappointing. Went down a bit too fast and lost a bit of tension and had to throw the weights. Had I had the option to do another attempt I am confident that I could have gotten 140. Next time.

Press: 65, 67,5 (PR), 70(F).
67,5 felt good (PR by 2,5) but 70 only got up to my forehead. I am notoriously weak in my press, and have been stuck for a long time. The PR was ok, but I was expecting at least to be able to put up 70.

Deadlift: 170, 175 (PR), 180 (PR).
All lifts felt good but 180 was the slowest deadlift I have ever made :) Very happy about it. My goal for end of september is 190 which seems to be well within reach. Awesome.

Total: 382,5 kg (843 lbs).

50 vest pull ups.
2:40. Felt good, although butterfly only worked for about 12 reps. Did all in 5 or 6 sets, limited by the tear in my left hand that broke almost at the first pull up. Regular kips felt very strong, almost did c2b on all of them just to get some lower trap activation. Generally a good finisher.

Great day, awesome atmosphere at the gym, and a good meeting with the team that gave a lot over things to think about concerning training and how I plan to meet my goals and keep myself motivated.

Old log

30 June

Max oly attempt, front squat, bench.

20 mins to establish 1RM snatch.

40, 40, 40, 50, 50, 50, 60, 60, 70, 70, 75(F), 75, 80(F), 80(F), 80(F), 70(F), 70(F), 80(F), 80(F), 80(F).

Felt like crap today, never really got a hold of the right technique. Was slow in the pull and unstable in the bottom. Got 80 kg way high enough many times but was unable to get under it. My technique went to shit efter a couple of 80 kg attempts so I brought it back down to 70 and went up again, but little did it matter, I never got it up. I am confident that I will make it soon, perhaps I need to be better rested and more mentally focused, but my main challenge is getting far enough under the bar. Everything else works fine. See film below.

Update: Realized as I was editing the film that I was working from the assumption that the PR I set last week was 77,5 kg, but it was only 75! So I tied my PR and my 6 80 kg attempts were in fact PR attempts by 5 kg and not 2,5 kg as I thought. Where's my head today!?

 20mins to establish 1RM c+j.

70, 70, 90, 90, 100(F), 100(F), 105(F), 95, 100(F), 105(F).

This was a complete mess. Started too heavy, so I never really got a good feeling of the bar. Way too many attempts at the snatch had also worn me out. Cleans were a mess, unable to get more than 100 kg in rack pos and failed the jerk which is ridiculous as I jerked 107,5 kg last week. Well, one should not cry over spilled milk. Moving on. I'll get it next week. See miserable film below.

5 front squat - 2s pause at bottom position.

70, 80, 80.

Pausing down there to get more comfortable for both clean and snatch purposes.

Front squat.

5x90, 2x100, 1x100.

F***ing shit.

Bench press.

5x70, 5x90, 5x90, 5x100, 5x100.

Miserable day today. But in retrospect cool to know that the 80 kg snatch is well within reach, only limited by speed under the bar.  Kind of not looking forward to the CF Total tomorrow. CNS is gonna be fried. Lots of fish oil and an afternoon on the couch will hopefully change that. 

29 June

Rest day. Unplanned, but was too exhausted after a week of travelling at work Mon, Wed and Fri. 

28 June 2012

Gymnastics, auxilliary exercises, clean and jerk variations.

Warm up: 5 x ( 30 DUs, 10 pull up, 10 push up, 10 sit up ).

Pull ups were surprisingly hard, hopefully it's just fatigue from Tuesday's interval running.

10 MU attempts.

Did not get a single one. Very disappointing.

100 hollow rocks.

20-20-15-15-15-15. Better than last time, better tension in butt.

Hip bridges 5x5 @ 90 kg.

Weighted pull ups + weighted dips 5 x (5 + 8) @ 20 kg.

Pull ups felt tough today, and actually so did dips. Sucks!

EMOM 20 mins

1 power clean and jerk @ 80 kg

5 c2b pull up

Hands tore after 6 rounds so I switched to 1 power clean 2 jerks every minute. Nice workout, got wider landing stance and quicker feet working well.

All in all not a good day at the gym :) Hopefully I'll be ready for max oly attempts tomorrow.

27 June 2012

Rest day.

26 June 2012

Squat volume, push press, interval running.

Squat 5x5 @ 115 kg.

Back on my linear progression (will stick to high bar from now on). Squats felt good, my lower back is getting stronger. I still need to focus on my ankle and hip ROM.

Push press 3RM.

Got 87,5 kg, thus adding 2,5 kg to it. Went for 90 kg once, but only got 1 rep, which makes for a new 1RM.

Interval running.

4 x 100 m hill sprint + walk back down

2 x suicide run + 20 push up + stair jumps

1 x 100 m hill spint, run back down + 500 m up and down hill run + 100 m hill buddy carry

Serious running volume, running to my absolute max in both the first and third running WOD due to great competition from Nikolaj Mainz. Nice to know that I am in the very top of the team on these kinds of wods in spite of my mass gains.

25 June 2012

Rest day (travelling all day).

24 June 2012

Snatch variation, press volume. Low volume, hanging with a buddy.

10x2 hang power snatch @ 50 kg, 60s break.

5x5 seated snatch grip behind neck shoulder press.

40, 40, 40, 50, 50.

5x5 narrow grip bench press @ 90 kg. 

Easy day, hanging with a friend so intensity was real low. Snatches were focused on getting the bar into the hip and getting under quickly. Felt good, although I felt the last couple of days in my lower back.

23 June 2012

C&J variations, Pull volume (pullup, rows, clean pull), conditioning.

Warm up: 2k row, 28-30-32-34 s/m pr 500m – drag factor 105.

Time: 7:10. Felt harder than the same at drag factor 115 two days ago, but that may be attributed to general fatigue.

20 mins to establish 1RM jerk.

40, 40, 40, 60, 60, 60, 60, 60, 60, 80, 80, 100, 100(F), 105, 107,5, 110(F).

Experimented with my grip with as I had an idea that a wider grip would reduce the distance the bar had to travel and would increase stability. Result is I am gonna try to work on changing my grip after the clean to accommodate a wider jerk grip. 100 failed because of close grip and 105 and 107,5 only happened due to the wider grip. Video below shows the jerks. I need to practice getting lower, landing my feet further apart.

Pendlay rows 5x5 @ 85 kg.

Working to strengthen my upper back between the shoulder blades. I'll go for 90 next time.

Pull up 5x5 @ 20 kg.

Grip was the bottle neck.

6x5 clean shrug @ 90 kg.

Need to go heavier next time.

EMOM 20 mins

Full clean @ 90 kg

3 box jumps, high box

Brandt's 'curls for the gurlz' WOD

7 rounds of

7 bar biceps curls @ 50 kg

7 ring dips

LOL.

22 June 2012

Oly max attempt day.

20 mins to establish 1RM snatch.

40, 40, 50, 50, 60, 60, 60, 60, 70, 70, 72,5(F), 72,5(F), 75, 77,5(F), 77,5(F).

Felt a bit shaky to start out, maybe a bit too focused on getting the bar into the hip, so I actually forgot to fully extend, so I did a couple extra at 60 to dial it in. 70s felt good, still no full extension at the top. Both at 72,5 I got it plenty high but couldn't get under it. But I felt like it should be there and threw on 2,5kg more to go for 75. I really think this was my best snatch ever until now. Got the bar nice and high into the hip before exploding. Nice lift I think. See video below for most lifts.

20mins to establish 1RM c+j.

60, 60, 70, 70, 90, 90, 102,5(F), 102,5(F), 102,5, 105(F).

Felt good today, moved quickly to the PR attempt because I knew it would be there. The clean is weaker than the jerk but I failed at the jerk on the first 102,5 kg attempt because the bar hit my chin. The second attempt I was unfocused and threw the clean. Third attempt I got made it. Clean was only just there and the jerk was easy. See video below for most fo the lifts.

Front squat for 5RM and 3RM.

5RM: 90 kg (Improved by 10 kg from last week). 3RM: 100 kg (improved by 15 kg).

Need to work on ankle flex as I need my knees to frive more forward to not lose the tension in my back. Feeling stronger than ever though, so I'm happy.

21 June 2012

Rest day.

20 June 2012

Gymnastics, auxiliary exercises and a heavy EMOM WOD.

Was really looking forward due to the day off yesterday, so I was fired up (also downed a low carb Monster energy drink right before training to add extra craziness).

2k row @ drag factor 115. 500m @ 28 str/m, 500m @ 30 str/m, 500m at 32 str/m, 500m at 34 str/m.

Time: 7:20.

The row was very easy at first but the last 500m at pace 34 and a 500m split at around 1:40 took it's toll. Funny how much more interesting rowing got after the seminar on Sunday. Great stuff.

Skin the cat, 5x3. Focused on quality movement, slow and under control. I like the way it opens up the joints and really activates the core.

MU practice. Got 4 MUs in 15 minutes. Ridiculous. 

I don't know what has happened but I have certainly lost my MU-jo. The transition is what's the problem. I get high enough and when I get the transition the dip is obviously very easy. I attribute the problems to my added weight on the legs from doing a lot of spuatting the last couple of months. Well, there's nothing to do byt keep practicing a couple of times per week.

100 hollow rocks. Ouch. 

These were nasty! 20-15-10-10-10-10-10-10-5. Need to keep doing a lot of core work.

Hip bridges 4x5 @ 85 kg.

No problem here, feels like a really good posterior chain exercise. Lower back felt t i g h t afterwards, but it loosened up after a couple of minutes.

20 min EMOM

3 power cleans @ 80 kg

3 HSPU

This one really tested me, mostly due to the completely shredded lower back and generaally my posterior chain. Did not miss a single power clean, but then again, they wern't too heavy, and the HSPUs were all kipped and all unbroken, except for two rounds where I lost my balance after the second rep and kicked directly back up for the third.

All in all a good day with lots of fun stuff. Feeling a bit tired now, but tomorrow is another rest day, so I'll be fine.

19 June 2012

Involuntary rest day due to extra stuff that needed to be done at work. Should have been double conditioning with the Butcher's Garage Competition Team. Annoying, but I guess my CNS is happy about it though :)

18 June 2012

Squat volume, press volume, snatch variations.

OH Press 5x5 62,5 kg, 90s rest between sets.

5-5-5-4-4. Really annoying that my press just does not go up. Will stick to pressing for 1 month then change to push presses come July. Shoulders felt tight during first set so I mobilized a bit and they were better. Note to self: mobilize properly! Agile 8!

Squat 5x5 @ 110 kg, 90s rest between sets. 

Starting back on the 5x5 LP once a week. Starting low to be gentle on the hip flexors. Not too much soreness today, still problems with the knees dropping in when I fatigue. Back feels really strong though, the 110 did not feel heavy (except for when I focused on 'knees out').

Halting snatch deadlift 6x2 @ 80 kg.

Focusing on really getting the bar into the hip on the top of the deadlift, pausing for 5 seconds, then back down. Good drill, needs a bit of getting used to. Nice to have time to focus on the 'knees out' part of the snatch pull.

Short conditioning:

5 rounds for time of

5 HSPU

10 power snatch @ 50 kg

15 toes to bar

HSPUs unbroken. Snatches were 5-5 first round, then singles to avoid the concentric load. Focused on elbows up which gave a lot of extra lift. Nice. Toes to bar were horrible because my grip was fucked by the snatches. Good little metcon, I will probably feel it in my lower back tomorrow. Did not time it but beat Mikkel Brandt by a minute or so.

17 June 2012

Erg-rower seminar.

Did 2x200m sprint and some technique rowing. Safe to say I PR'ed my 200m. Will definitely row more in the future, would like to do a 5k just to really get the grip on efficient technique.

200m row 1: 36.8 seconds. Fell off the seat four times :)

200m row: 32.0 seconds. Stayed in the seat.

16 June 2012

Max oly day.

1RM Snatch. Only 3 attempts at each weight, after 2 successful attempts go to higher weight.

40, 40, 50, 50, 60, 60, 70, 70, 75(F), 75(F), 75(F).

Everything felt good and efficient so I decided to jump 5 kg from 70 to 75 which would be a PR by 2,5 kg. Failed all three, dropping the bar forward. The bar was way high enough, I just couldn't get under it. Video below shows one of the successful attempts at 70 kg and the three failed 75 kg attempts.

1RM C&J. Same rules.

60, 60, 80, 80, 90, 90, 95, 95, 100(F), 100, 100, 102,5(F), 102,5(F), 102,5(F).

All cleans were power cleans as my max power clean is 105 and my max clean is 95. Tied my PR, and failed the clean on all of the PR attempts. Same problem as the snatch, I get the bar high enough but can't get under it. Videos below show one of the successful 100 kg attempts and one of the failed 102,5 kg attempts.

Generally felt good today. Took my time with the lifts. Will get the snatch next time. Tied my PR for clean and jerk, but should be able to clean more than 100 kg (power clean PR: 105 kg). Probably had to do with my 5RM PR on the deadlift yesterday. I think my tendency to drop the weight on the cleans comes from lack of trust in my front squat and the bottom of my cleans, as the bar is way high enough. Need to focus more on front squats, full cleans and deadlifts going forward. Jerks felt easy, although it did press out my second 100 kg jerk :)

15 June 2012

Strength day.

Pendlay rows 5x5 @ 80

OH press 5x5 @ 60

Weighted pull up 5x5 @ 20

Weighted ring dips 5x5 @ 20

Lying rows w vest 3xME

Deadlift heavy 5: 70, 120, 140, 160, 160.

Felt good today, had been looking forward to just doing heavy sets of five. Had not deadlifted for a couple of months, felt stronger than usual, but did not push it. PR'ed 5RM by 10 kg. Need to do more DLs in the future. Did a couple of MUs for fun.

13 June 2012

Clean variations, supplementary exercises, snatch variations.

20 mins to establish 2RM TG power clean: 80 kg (power cleans).

Had trouble holding on to the bar after cleaning it which made the seconf rep kind of difficult. Also had trouble holding on to the bar due to tears across ring fnger on both hands.

Heavy single power clean: 100 kg.

Could have gotten more but I am feeling fatigued today and my grip is shot. I would think a 110 is possible on a good day, but I can't be sure until I do it :)

Back extensions in GHD rack: 4x8 unweighted.

Hang snatch doubles: did a lot of 40 kg and two 60 kg. On lighter weights I have a tendency to pause in the hip, so I was trying to be really aggressive and extend fully before pulling under. I feel like I am improving every time, albeit slowly!

Generally I felt fatigued today, probably need to switch my schedule around to have a rest day after the double metcon I have started doing every Tuesday with the competition team. I think I was equally fatigued Wednesday last week. Two in a row is a good indicator. 100% rest day tomorrow.

12 June 2012

Conditioning with the Butcher's Garage Competition Team.

WOD1 - skills test. Partner WOD. First man has 1 minute amrap at each station, then second man has 1 minute amrap and they move on to the next exercise. Six stations, 12 mins total, six minutes of work six minutes of breaks.

Ring dips: 36

HSPU: 19

DUs: 69

Thruster 70 kg: 7

Rope climbs: 4

Pistols: 8

Total: 143

Was quite happy with results, except for pistols. Two things bothered me: 1) I don't have the required range of motion in my ancles to get a good position in the bottom which causes me to either jump up too quickly or fall over backwards, and 2) my (very) sore right hip flexor kept me from getting any reps on my right leg.

WOD 2. For time:

800m run

5 runds of:

10 behind neck push press 50 kg

20 KB swings at 24 kg

30 DUs

800m run

Time: 19:56.

Overall a good day, I was a bit anxious about being fatigued due to the extra metcon we threw in yesterday, but my time was excellent compared to the other guys on the team. Feeling smashed now, maybe I'll move my rest day up from Thursday to Wednesday to recover from this. We will se in the morning.

11 June 2012

Snatch variations, squats, press and conditioning.

Smolov Jr. squats (week 2, day 3). 7x5 at 115 kg. Felt ok, hip flexors are still sore, knees kept dropping in on me. No muscle fatigue, just the sore flexors. Back feels strong.

OH press: 4x5 at 60 kg. Missed the last rep of the last set, but press felt stronger than usual.

Snatch off high blocks: 5x2 at 80% (60 kg). Felt good, got good speed, but failed to extend my hips fully on half of the reps. Like the exercise, will add more weight next time to force myself to have more speed shrugging under the bar. Video below shows the first set of block snatches.

Bench press, narrow grip: 5x1 at 110-117,5; 5x5 at 95-100 kg. Just having a bit of fun. Could have done 120 I think, but was not going for 1RM.

Conditioning, team WOD:

3 rounds, one athlete goes at a time, the other two rest, of:

Airdyne 20 calories

10 burpees

2x20m prowler push

15 toes-to-bar

A good day, felt like working out :) Went a bit over the top though, considering tomorrow is my high-volume conditioning day with two WODs on the competition team. Hip flexors are really getting sore, I am not sure whether to stop the high volume squatting or go through with the rest of the program. I'll keep at it for a while more, though.

8 June 2012

Gymnastics and BW.

Skin the cat: 5, 4, 3, 3

Felt ok, a lot of stress on the shoulders though. Tried to do back levers was (very) unsuccessful. Tried a coulpe of MUs, couldn't get a sigle one. Probably due to more bodyweight than usual and fatigued shoulders.

Bench press 3 x ME BW (85 kg): 12, 10, 8

Lying rows w weight vest 3 x ME: 12, 12, 11

3 rounds of:
15 lying rows
20 atomic sit ups
15 ring dips

Generally an OK day, feeling a bit fatigued though. No one to train with today, so not too motivated. Didn't get the adrenalin going so didn't push myself in any exercise. Hamstring and hip flexors feeling better, so I'm looking forward to squatting tomorrow.

7 June 2012

1RM Oly lifts and squats. 

1RM Snatch. Only 3 attempts at each weight, after 2 successful attempts go to higher weight.

I got 72,5 kg, PR by 2,5 kg, twice. Got the first, failed, then got the third attempt. Video below shosw the first attempt.

1RM C&J. Same rules.

Got 90 and could have gotten more, but shoulder joints felt like crap from a lot of overhead press, push press and HSPU earlier in the week so I stopped there. A bit disappointing, but it has been a nasty week on the shoulders. Will PR next Friday, I can feel it!

Smolov Jr. squats (week 2, day 2). 5 x7 at 107,5 kg. Felt ok, hip flexors are getting really sore, but form feels better and I enjoy the squatting more and more each time.

Finished off with Pendlay Rows for sets of 5. Weights: 60, 70, 80, 85, 80.