Training Day 20121227

Another view of my new gym

In Gates of Fire, Pressfield writes: “Nothing fires the warrior’s heart more with courage than to find himself and his comrades at the point of annihilation, at the brink of being routed and overrun, and then to dredge not merely from one’s own bowels or guts but from one’s discipline and training the presence of mind not to panic, not to yield to the possession of despair, but instead to complete those homely acts of order which Dienekes had ever declared the supreme accomplishment of the warrior: to perform the commonplace under far-from-commonplace conditions.”  The reason I bring up this quote is because I found myself screaming profanities due to the cold on the walk to the gym from my apartment as I was dressed in shorts and a hoodie.  I realized how soft I've gotten the last few years, might as well call me Kleenex 'cause I'm softer than tissue haha.  Anyway, the quote reminds me that the point of enduring training sessions, exposing yourself to the elements, and stepping outside of your comfort zone is primarily about building mental toughness.  Strength and all those physical capabilities are the bonuses that come with training, but the mentality to keep pressing forward no matter the circumstance is the true reward.

With that said, I haven't taken a rest day in a few days, so I took it down a notch this session.  Tomorrow, I'll take a full rest day yet will still be active as I roam New York City, taking pictures... weather permitting.  Though mainly by myself, it's been a really good vacation so far to step back, have this time to think and prioritize my life.

PART I.
OH Presses
5/65#, 5/75#, 3/95#, 5/115#, 3/135#, 1+/145# (I hit 5/145#)

PART II.
EMOM For 6mins
5 Power Cleans @ 105#, then

500m slow, recovery row (I completed at 2mins 23sec)

PART III.
Cleans & Jerks
5/75#, 5/95#, 3/115#, 5/140#, 3/155#, 1+/175# (I hit 2/175#)

PART IV.
For Time
Row 200m
2 Pistols each leg
Row 200m
1 pistol each leg
Row 200m

I finished in 3min 6 sec

PART V.
I cashed out with:
15 T2B
20 Airsquats

Couplet
Calf Raises- 25/135#, 25/135#, 25/135#, 25/155#
10 Dumbbell Thrusters - 20# each hand

AMAP KB Swings @ 70#

Notes
- I know that after vacation, I'm going to have to drastically shorten the workouts and consider more frequent two-a-days if I want to squeeze in a lot of things.
- PART I: Although I knocked out 5/145#, according to strength standards, my 1RM decreased by 4# haha! Ugh!  I should've went for 6 or 7 haha.
- PART II: Loving the EMOM work.  The more I do it, the more I feel like I'm getting better at the movements I incorporate EMOM with.
- PART III: According to strength standards, my 1RM should increase by 10#.  I'll take that!
- PART IV: I went out too fast on my first 200m, so luckily I only programmed low reps of pistols haha.  I could barely feel my legs after this.
- PART V: T2B and Air Squats felt smooth.  It also was nice to do calf raises with a loaded barbell.  I also haven't attempted 70# at KB Swings in awhile and will need to work with that weight more!  I ended up doing 11.

I didn't end up going out last night, so my roommate, a couple of friends, & me are probably going to hit up Brother Jimmy's BBQ for happy hour and perhaps watch the Rusell Athletic Bowl... go RU!

Training Day 20121226

RWJ Fitness & Wellness - New Brunswick

The thing that stinks about belonging to a gym that just opened up is that sometimes your friends/regular training partners may still belong to your old gym... meaning, you have to workout alone until they switch or until you find new, reliable training partners.  I like having benchmarks and people to motivate me, so fortunately for me, although not ideal, my cousin (as I've mentioned in my previous post) has decided to follow my programming and compare results long distance.  Haha, hopefully he's not cheating, because it is a disadvantage to post my times first.  Anyway, I was a little hungover (not an excuse), but once I started deadlifting, my body responded well I think... we'll just have to see if my efforts were good enough to beat Geoff haha.  Definitely check out Geoff's blog, his setup is way better than mine haha (I'm pretty jelly).

PART I.
Deadlifts
5/155#, 5/185#, 3/225#, 5/275#, 3/315#, 1+/350# (I did 2 and according to strength standards, my 1RM went up from 370# to 388#... I definitely thought 2 would be piss poor and was beating myself up that I couldn't get 3- it bothered me the rest of the session haha)

PART II.
For Time
11 Power Snatches @ 65#
50 Single Unders
11 KB Swings @ 30#
50 meter shuttle run
3 Bar Facing Burpees

8 Power Snatches @ 65#
50 Single Unders
8 KB Swings @ 30#
50 meter shuttle run
4 Bar Facing Burpees

5 Power Snatches @ 65#
50 Single Unders
5 KB Swings @ 30#
50 meter shuttle run
5 Bar Facing Burpees

I finished in 6mins 16sec.  I should've used the roller to stretch out my lower back a bit before I did this metcon, oh well.  The snatches smoked me and my legs felt like jello!

PART III.
OH (Overhead) Squat
5/65#, 5/70#, 3/85#, 5/105#, 3/120#, 1+/135# (I ended up doing 4, pretty stoked about that)

PART IV.
3 Rounds
Row 250 meters
15 HRPU (Hand-Release Push-ups)

I finished in 4mins 15sec.  Surprisingly, I went unbroken... wish my row was better, but I'll take it.

PART V.
I cashed out with:
15 GHD Sit-ups
10 Weighted Sit-ups w/35# plate
AMAP Hammer Strength Abdominal Machine @ 60#
Tricep Rope Extension Drop Set: 5/70-60-50-40-30# (25 reps total)

Notes
- PART I: Like I said, would've like to get 3/350#, but just as long as I'm progressing, I'll take it.
- PART II: Was pretty surprised the 65# power snatches smoked me.  I would like to incorporate more EMOM work so I get more efficient at the Olympic Lifts.
- PART III: After the first met-con, I honestly was not in the mood to do 5/3/1 OH Squats haha.  I'm glad I pushed through and hit 4/135#.  Can't wait to see what that plugs into for the strength standards calculator (for front squats and oh squats, I plug the numbers into the "squats" section haha).
- PART IV: Was smoked, my thighs were on fire, but it was good.  Got the blood flowing.
- PART V: I ended up doing 17 for the AMAP.  I think I fell in love with that machine... Also, tricep extensions... yeah, I know I've incorporated a couple bodybuilding exercises the last couple of days... but, whatev haha.
- I know I put a lot on my plate for today.  With my vacation days slipping by, just feel like I have to sneak everything in before I go back to work in a week!  Can you blame me for maximizing my playground time?

Not sure if I'm going out tonight... my roommate has off tomorrow so he may want to go out, but 12+ hours as an ER resident can make a man tired.  And if I do go out tonight, I definitely earned it!  Will let you know in the morning.

Last Night...

Antonio is back from Cali!  Sunny is also in the background.

So I went to the Ale 'N 'Wich Pub for the first time last night with a few of my friends... And I ended up going a little harder than I expected haha.  I was pretty surprised with the bar and think that I'll be frequenting it more than my usual watering holes in New Brunswick.  We got to watch Jamal Crawford play out of his mind against the Nuggets and we also received gifts from a random Santa Claus.  I wish I took pictures of this, but some guy was dressed up and handing out wrapped presents, ranging from adult magazines to framed pinup girls.  I don't know how he can afford to do stuff like that in today's economy or perhaps he robbed an adult entertainment store?  All in all, the holiday specials at Ale 'N 'Wich were pretty good and the bar definitely warrants a revisit and my recommendation to friends.  Lastly, we ended up making a boo boo by getting fat sandwiches at the Grease Trucks and playing pool at my apartment until 3/4ish... ugh.

Courtesy of The Wine Chateau in Piscataway

This morning I woke up 4 hours later than I usually do and had a headache haha.  I immediately went into survival mode, ran to the kitchen, pounded some water, and scarfed down some lasagna.  I managed to run some errands- drop off dry cleaning, bought some chalk for the weights, and picked up some spirits for the "snowstorm" or impending writer's block this evening... I've been working on the great American Novel for the last decade or so and obviously haven't finished it.

I'm about to supp-up and knock out some deadlifts at the gym.  My cousin, Geoff out in Arizona, and I are comparing times for the workouts.  A decent way to stay competitive and motivated.  He just started a blog as well, so check him out.

Be back in a bit.

Training Day 20121225

So I managed to get Hero to go out tonight... not sure for how long, but just in case, I ended up working out on the 9th floor again at 7:30pm.  I honestly can't wait for the regular gym to open back up tomorrow morning!  Anyway, of course the only channel that worked at the gym was CNN and I had to listen to Piers Morgan interview Barbara Streisand.  I have no problem with either one of them, it's just that hearing clips of her singing from Yentl wasn't quite motivating haha.  Moreover, I wasn't too enthusiastic to perform what I wrote up, but once I got going, everything felt fine.

PART I.
For Time
Treadmill- 5min @ 7mph, 1.0%incline, then
7 Dumbbell Push Presses (30# each hand)
14 Inverted Row (just like you see in the picture), then
Treadmill- 5min @ 6.8mph, 1.0% incline, then
11 KB (Kettlebell) Swings 25#
11 T2B (Toe-To-Bar)
8 KB Swings 25#
8 T2B
5 KB Swings 25#
5 T2B

I finished in 13mins 8sec.  Before even conducting the workout, you know that you're running for 10 minutes no matter what (came out to roughly 1.15 miles).

PART II.
I cashed out with:
15 Dive Bombers
AMAP Alternate Bicep Curls w/35# Dumbbells
100 Single Unders
AMAP Supinated Hammer Curls w/25# Dumbbells
15 Diamond Push-ups
16 Pistol Squats (8 each leg)

Notes
- PART I: Despite feeling sore prior to hopping on the treadmill, about a minute into it, I loosened up and the rest of the movements felt good.  Went unbroken with everything, but glad I didn't try to increase the speed, weight, or repetitions.  I have deadlifts tomorrow and don't want to overdo anything & at the same time, not cheat myself out of a good workout.
- PART II: Yes, I did bicep curls... haha, I hang my head down in shame.  No one was at the gym and I figured why not?  It's not like a dedicated a whole session to them.  For the alternate curls, I did 10 reps and for the supinated hammers, I did 15 reps.  I'm loving my pistols and feel them getting better as each day passes.

Time to get showered and hit the bar(s) for a couple of hours.  Not going to go blackout all-stars tonight because I'm excited for what I wrote up for tomorrow, which uses a good amount of space.  Perhaps I'll have a late night recap later on or tomorrow morning.  Happy holidays and hope all of you are safe!

Merry Christmas

St. Peter's - New Brunswick this morning

Being that this is my first Christmas alone... ever, haha, I went to the 11am mass at the church less than a block away from my apartment.  I wanted to be around a familiar community and surprisingly, Christmas mass didn't turn out to be the way I remembered it.  It was like a ghost town and those who attended weren't lively.  I felt like they were just checking off a box of a list of numerous things to do today.  It was a little saddening, so I left right before communion.  I didn't want to meet anyone new or shake anyone's hand because of the dampened mood.  It reminded me of how I felt when I was in my 'tweens, I always wondered why there were so many unhappy people around during the holidays. Aside from my relatives, whom I love to death, sometimes I just wanted to be alone and curl up into a book or watch the movies I wanted to watch during my "winter vacation."  Well, Don... haha, you got what you always wanted.

And I'm not gonna lie, it is lonesome, yet in my solidarity I am stress free.  There's so much time at the tip of my fingers, I don't want to waste it on sleeping or doing nothing.  I have to maximize this time to see something new, go somewhere, work out, read something, write something, etc.  Upon returning to my apartment, I popped in some leftover lasagna in the microwave, then searched through Netflix for a movie that was going to get me into a livelier mood, not necessarily the Christmas spirit.  I found Tropa de Elite 2 – O Inimigo Agora é Outro (sold to Americans as "Elite Squad: The Enemy Within"), a Brazilian film from 2010 that received high ratings.  It didn't disappoint and what I found out later was that it's a sequel, a backstory Americans wouldn't know existed unless they dug deeper on the Internet . Furthermore, it reminded me of why I love foreign films more than American films- because they're original!  The film's grittiness and storytelling quality also reminded me of Cidade de Deus ("City of God"), a 2002 Brazilian film that also highlighted the drugs & violence in Rio de Janeiro.  Researching further, it turns out that Bráulio Mantovani wrote the screenplays for both films... bravo, he's an excellent writer and a talent I aspire to be like.  My final note on Elite Squad- Wagner Moura is an outstanding actor!  He plays the lead- a divorced no-nonsense militant type that is passionate about his work & struggles with his purpose in life and what the actual fruits to come from his labor are...

I'm undecided on what to do at this point- I may workout in an hour or so, but will definitely start reading.  I have a lot of books to choose from on my shelves...  Talk to you soon.

Training Day 20121224 - 2nd Session

After running errands, I ended up working out on the 9th floor of my apartment complex.  It's a decent set up, enough equipment to get the job done.

PART I.
Treadmill 
for 20mins @ 1% incline
20-15min: 6.3mph
15-10min: 6.6mph
10-6min: 6.9mph
6-1min: 7.2mph
1-0min: 7.7mph

Total: 2.26 miles

PART II.
5 Rounds
5 Pull-ups
15 Abmat Push Throughs
10 Air Squats
5 High Upright Rows w/30# Dumbbells
50 Single-Unders

finished in 6mins 58sec

PART III.
I cashed out with:
AMAP HRPUs
6 pistols - 3 each leg

Notes:
- PART I: It felt good to get a decent run in.  I think the last time I ran was a week and a half ago.  I definitely want to incorporate running into my future workouts, logging in at least 10 miles a week.  I know it's no where close to the miles of my high school cross country days, but it's enough to get my body used to the movement.
- PART II: Surprisingly, my lower back felt pretty stiff and it was somewhat difficult to go deep on my air squats.  Everything else felt fine.
- PART III: I ended up doing 25 HRPUs.  My pistols felt strong and I went deep on each leg.  I think it's time to also incorporate this movement into a few met-cons.
- The gyms are closed tomorrow, signaling a super Euro-Christian centric culture haha.  I may just go for a run outside then do a quick metcon/work on double unders on the 9th floor tomorrow.  What I really want to do, is knock out a few episodes of Band of Brothers or the Pacific for Jesus' Birthday!

Coincidence or Irony?

I was texting her about how the location of her lawyer's office is confusing because I had to drop off some documents.  A few seconds later, Taylor Swift comes on:

Me: you figure lawyers could figure that out
Her: Lol I think the entrance is on...
Me: anyways, merry christmas. if you guys are bored later on, i'll be by myself for the time being in nb. tell everyone i say hello.
Me: and taylor swift's song just came on to 95.5.  irony?
Her: Ha maybe

So she's saying there's a chance?  Just kidding.  But that's the type of relationship we have, a good enough one to joke about it on Christmas Eve.

Since this is literally my first Christmas Eve without any family member in sight, I went to the Fresh Grocer to pick up an 18 of Miller Lite and a glass of white wine.  I still have 3 days of lasagna left as well.  In order to lessen the effects of alcohol & lasagna tomorrow, I'm off to work out now in my apartment complex' community gym.  Will post afterwards.

Training Day 20121224

I hate going to the gym by myself, but I did a couple of hours ago... I told my cousin Geoff last night, who lives out in Arizona, that I started blogging again and he was pumped to just follow my programming.  Haha if you beat my times, I had an off day today, so that's my excuse Geoff.

PART I.
Bench Presses
5/115#, 5/135#, 3/165#, 5/205#, 3/235#, 1+/260# (without a spot, I only felt comfortable doing 1/260#)

PART II.
Two quick met-cons:

7minute AMRAP (as many rounds as possible)
7 Decline Bench Presses @ 155#
7 Box Jumps

I did 7 Rounds flat

Rest 5 minutes

3 Rounds
15 HRPU (hand-release push-ups)
10 Power Cleans @ 75#
5 Burpees

finished in 4mins 30sec

PART III.
Snatches
5/65#, 5/65#, 3/80#, 5/100#

PART IV.
I cashed out with:

1600m row (recovery pace)
AMAP T2B (toe-to-bar)
AMAP Dips

Notes
- PART I: I hate to dump weight & it makes me look foolish for not asking for a spot.  I think I'm just going to repeat the same percentages for bench presses for the next cycle of 5/3/1.
- PART II: Have a feeling Geoff is going to destroy my numbers haha.  I felt strong on my box jumps and surprisingly, 155# was challenging on decline.  I felt funny doing power cleans afterwards and going into burpees after that definitely got my legs sluggish.
- PART III: I had to start with #65 for the snatches because that's the lowest w/bumpers my gym has.  I originally programmed for 6 sets and was going to 5/3/1 this, but was too smoked after 5/100#.  My lower back and right shoulder said, "no mas."
- PART IV:  Row felt good and went on a good, slow pace.  Finished under 7mins 20sec.  For T2B, ended up doing 12.  My right shoulder felt a little funny and didn't want to push it.  Lastly, banged out 20 dips.
- I made myself lasagna and it was waiting for me in the over when I got back from the gym.  I think I may have to go for another session later this evening haha.

Training Day 20121223

PART I.

Squats

5/125#, 5/155#, 3/185#, 5/225#, 3/255#, 1+/285# (ended up doing 3 this set)

PART II.

Then we did two quick met-cons:

11-8-5

Deadlifts @ 155#

HSPU (hand stand push-ups)

finished in 1min 34sec

8-6-5

Thrusters @ 95#

Pullups

Box Jumps

finished in 2mins 16sec

PART III.

Then back to:

Front Squats

5/105#, 5/125#, 3/145#, 5/185#, 3/210# 1+/230# (ended up doing 1/245#)

PART IV.

We cashed out with:

EMOM (every minute on the minute)

6 Clean & Jerks @ 95# for 5mins

then transition into

1000m row (recovery pace)

AMAP (as many as possible) weighted sit-ups w/25# plate

AMAP GHD (glute-ham developer) sit-ups

Notes

- Went to the gym with Thy, one of many workout partners, around 3:30pm

- PART I: Thy said that I was barely breaking parallel on my 6th set

- PART II: Went unbroken for both met-cons

   - Thy had trouble with handstand pushups

   - You'll notice that my programming includes a lot of half-WODs so that I sneak in a lot of movements

   - My main fitness goal for now is to work on my strength numbers

- PART III: I bumped the weight up to 245# because 265# is my 1RM (one rep max)

   - Taking fatigue into account, I wanted to push past 230# and get a little closer to my 1RM

- PART IV: I love the EMOM stuff and think I'll be programming more of that stuff in.

   - I might be making this up, but I think Rich Froning said that EMOM training is the best way to build efficiency.  The man is legit, so why not incorporate his advice?

   - Ended up going 20 weighted sit-ups and 15 GHD sit-ups and called it a day

The Embed - Initial Thoughts

I remember the last run we went on together... not necessarily the date, but how it went down.  Perhaps it was days or weeks before I left for a training evolution in the Mojave Desert and at that point we've already been sleeping in separate rooms for a few months.  We were always cool with each other and I believe we still are and will always be.  Before I digress further, she was helping me acclimate to the conditions of the desert.  I put on a 40# vest, Banana Republic cargo pants, and a rugged pair of Timberland boots.  She put on light running garb and agreed to do a 2 miler with me.

_____________

You see for the past few months, she'd been training for the Rutgers Half Marathon, which I think took place in April.  I remember when she came up with the idea of wanting to train for it and wanting me to train her.  We trained briefly, yet all the credit goes to her, because she mainly trained herself for the few months prior to the race.  I remember being so proud of her (and still am) for being pro-active.  A few weeks before the race, I remember feeling like dog sh*t when I found out I couldn't show up to the race because of military duty.  And I basically think stuff like that would characterize the last 7 years of our relationship- me picking the military over her.  It wasn't fair, it isn't fair, and that's part of the reason we are where we are now.  I'm glad we're on good terms, perhaps friends, and I'm glad she chose not to entirely shut me out of her life.  I remember her breaking down and balling when I told her the news that I couldn't be there, I felt like dog sh*t then too.  And in April, when I was following her progress on base through her friends' Facebook statuses and pictures, again, I felt like dog sh*t.  

_____________

So we went off in the middle of the night on our usual "hard" route, which had a challenging incline for about a 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile.  Leaving from the bottom of our condo stairs, we started striding into the darkness dimly lit by steady street lights.  Even a few weeks after her race, she had quick feet and trying to keep pace with her with the extra weight almost smoked me into the first mile.  When we hit our turn around, I told her to leave me behind as I slowed down, because I didn't want to ruin her work out.  I'm not a fan of metaphors, but I think, in essence, our last run was one.  In general, she told me that she felt like she slowed me down from my ambitions in the world... debatable yes... but I think in the scheme of things, I slowed her down from reaching her full potential.  She's such a great woman, has taken care of me a great deal, and I've truly learned a lot of things from her that have only added to my future survivability.  All the things she used to do for me last year, I do them myself now, which can be crazy to think about some days.  Many things can happen in 365 days, unfathomable at times, especially when things/situations are left unguarded or are not addressed for months, even years.

This initial post is in no way an attempt to get her back.  The paper work has already been filed and I think we're content with how our relationship as friends is.  I've understood for quite some time that it was meant to be this way.  And she's stated to me that she's truly happy having it this way.  I've been wondering for the past few days how I was going to kick this thing off and I think the best path was to pay tribute to this great woman.  All of my positivity and faith in humanity have stemmed from her and my mother.  Despite being alone for the holidays, I think having this time to make this retrospection can only lead to good things.  I would consider this blog successful if one person learns from it, does something positive, and vice-versa.

Happy Holidays All,

Don