Creation of an Explosive Mofo - My Training Journal :)

coolcolj · Apr 28, 2006

more quotes from that guy

first off my squat and vert always went hand in hand. my workouts are a combo of cf, elitetrack workouts, westside barbell, a bunch of other sites and sources and my own ideas. check these out and if you want a good squat check out westside barbell.
as for box height it varies. parallel for me is about 16 inches, but i got the best results it seemed, as far as vert improvment, when i used an 18" box. the weight i was able to use was actually more than my squat.
my friend started the summer with a three quarter squat with about 350 at a bw of 190. he did what i did and he squatted 495 to close out the summer, with a full squat. as to what helped my friend acheive the increase, it was probably both the box squat and the squat as we used them in short three week cycles. we also used the dynamic box squat, later on in the week in the offseason with about 50% of our maxes, concentrating on bar speed.
as for my squat and how i got it. the first time i stepped under a squat rack i was able to do 315 (probably a three quarter squat looking back at best) but i was also a skinny 17 year old. i train by myself, always have except for the three months in the summer, and i use everything for motivation and i go balls to the wall. also, i always worked on my weakest link, whatever it was, whether it was hamstrings, butt, back, whatever, and made it my strong points. think about it, if every part of your body can squat 500 lbs but your hamstrings can only handle 400 lbs. than you need to work on your hamstrings.
my core is strong from squatting or is it my squat is strong from doing core work. either way i have always pushed my strength levels for my core like i did any other bodypart. all guys go crazy over the benchpress, but what if they put the same effort into their core training, oly lifts, etc.
i dont deadlift often, i usually do stiff legged deadlifts. for these i vary either using a snatch grip for more posterior chain involvement of just regular grip(using a hook grip of course). the weights i use for sld get over 450 lbs for reps. as for a regular deadlift i really dont know.
my squat was just over 400 lbs not too long ago and my vert not much over 30, so you can make huge gains. hardwork, research, clean diet, and listening to your body will all help you get what you are looking for. but my biggets gains probably came from the oly lifts as i never did them before. dont neglect these lifts as the explosivness in these lifts is just what you are looking for in a vert jump. oh yeah and dont forget the track work !!!!
hope this answers your questions and helps you obtain your goals.

good info

but a 3/4 squat of 350 at a bodyweight of 190lbs to a 495lbs fullsquat and only getting 6 inches on the VJ does not sound very effecient. That's probbaly around 200lb gain, time to hit the reactive work now

coolcolj · Apr 28, 2006

Not sure what the deal is with the waking pulse jumping back up 59 from 55 yesterday. Body feels ok today, with some slight ache in my hammies.

weighed 89kg 195.8lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Finally down on the scale, but not to 195lbs, but not far off. Stomach has been feeling much tighter, so I whipped out the tape measure and it read 34 1/4 inch, down another quarter! Visual changes are becoming more and more noticable each passing week now.
When I get down to a 33inch waist, probably around 12% bodyfat, I'll post up some progress pics. I have some pics from when I was 219lbs with a 39+inch waist and 208lbs with a 36inch waist, which didn't look too pretty...should be a big change from those hopefully

Protobuilder · Apr 29, 2006

Hey -- what's the point behind the dip shrugs and various shoulder-blade manipulation type movements I've seen here? I've jsut never seen anyone do 'em before. Care to share?

coolcolj · Apr 29, 2006

Protobuilder said:
Hey -- what's the point behind the dip shrugs and various shoulder-blade manipulation type movements I've seen here? I've jsut never seen anyone do 'em before. Care to share?

shoulder rehab/prehab, postural and so on.
Helps keep my shoulders down when I run as well. I have tight upper traps and motor issues that cause me to hike my shoulders. That helps that and strengthens the serratus and fixes the motor firing and so on. Helps with shoulder impingement issues too.

Its a pretty complex issues, thats why you need to do more than just external rotations...

info
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=472224

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=535872

--------

Body not feeling as good as yesterday but Ok mood wise.
Strong, thanks to the carb up yesterday, but not snappy and light. Heavier of the 2 lower body days today so maybe not a bad thing.
Slightly tired out from my part-time job though

weighed 90.5kg 199.1lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Quite a jump up from the carb up yesterday. Some of it is probbaly food weight. Muscles have filled out a bit, a lot fuller looking.
I took in about 2700 calories and 300g of carbs. I pretty much had to force feed myself, and felt crappy. My body hates starchy carbs, and I pretty much don't eat much these days. Normally you would pig out on such a day, but I've lost that kind of craving a long time a go...goes it show it's all in the mind and conditioning...

coolcolj · Apr 30, 2006

Sunday 30th April - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 1 - Day 1 - Lower Power - Microcycle 8

Decent workout. Started a new training cycle today.
Right now I'm 2 inches behind schedule in my vertical jump, compared to when I had a 35.5inch waist and weighed 205.5lbs at the gym. Jump today was more or less the same back then. It's probably due to me losing strength and muscle mass recently. So I need to regain that.
I'll keep doing the jumps at the start of the session and in between the warmups to judge progress. Helps get me fired up as well, and I can tell how my system is recovery wise. And it's not an issue now with frequent jumping since I'm leaner and lighter, and have fixed my hip firing and mobility issues.

Right now I'll probably also keep the other lower body day at the park with sprints and reactive work. I'm just curious to see if I can improve my strength, power, speed and reactivity together as I lean down....
If I decide to BBall on a Sunday, then I'll just do an easy session of tempo sprints earlier in the week to keep my form in check

Bodyweight at gym - 201lbs
Workout time - 1.75 hour
Workout rating - 8/10

General warmup -

20sec ISO holds - quarter squat, on toes, on heels (toes pulled up), hip back wide stance squat at parallel, on side of feet (for ankles), narrow fullsquat at bottom on toes

1) dynamic stretches and swings, rocking on side of ankle etc
2) back extension BWx5 + 4 twisting to each alternate side
3) reverse hypers - BWx9
4) situp complex on swissball
5) adductor/hammie stretch into back tumbells x9
6) usual bar complex with 30lbs
7) various hops

8) worked up to a few sets max effort vertical jumps - same as my current best. Then did 1-2 jumps on each round of the warmups for the exercises below

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1-2mins on warmups and 3+ mins between each exercise on work sets

Full Squats - high bar, medium stance - Oly Shoes - no Belt

warmups - Explosive - BWx8, BARx5, 95x4, 135x4, 185x4
Controlled down explode up - 225x3, 255x3, 285x2

Controlled down, driven up hard
Rotation 1) 275lbs x 5 --> felt hard, within a rep of failure
Rotation 2) 275lbs x 5 --> felt easier
Rotation 3) 275lbs x 5 --> moderate strain on last rep
Rotation 4) 275lbs x 5
Rotation 5) 275lbs x 5 --> harder strain on last rep

I was expecting to only do 3 sets with 275lbs before failing to get the same reps as the first set, as that felt pretty hard. But I started to get even more warmed up, and my form improved - stopped relaxing and semi bouncing at the bottom - stayed tight at the bottom and timed the stretch reflex/reversal better with the upward push etc and I was cranking out the sets. Even though all the 5th rep from set 3 onwards were strained pretty hard, I probably could have done a few more sets, but 5 is enough and so I did a 5x5 by accident

Will try and see what I do with 295lbs next workout. Need to get back to at least a controlled set of 315x5. Gonna be sore tomorrow!

CleanPulls - Oly Shoes - HookGrip - no Belt

Warmups - Hang Powerclean Bar x 5
Powerclean + HangPowerclean + highhang squatclean 89lbs, 119lbs
Powerclean + hangpowerclean 155lbs x 2 sets
CleanPull - 205x1, 225x1

Lowered each rep under control RDL style, 10second rest between each rep and reset
Rotation 1) 225lbs x 2
Rotation 2) 225lbs x 2
Rotation 3) 225lbs x 2
Rotation 4) 225lbs x 2 ---> feeling harder

Tweaked form a bit and it was pretty good from what I could tell, more vertical instead of leaning back etc

Standing Single Leg curl

warmups - 3plates x5, 5P x 3

Dead stop one each rep, semi-explosive, left side first - 10 secs rest between each side
Rotation 1) 5 Plates x 12
Rotation 2) 5 Plates x 12
Rotation 3) 5 Plates x 12 --> losing the snap

--------------

static stretches for lower body, traps, lats and shoulders.

coolcolj · Apr 30, 2006

I surprisingly don't feel drained at all! Achey all over as expected, but upper hammies, calves, whole quad area, spinal erectors, and hips/glutes are moderately sore, probbaly will become heavy soreness later today...
Upper traps and back a bit sore too.

weighed 89.1kg 196lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Just like that, almost back to my Friday weight pre carb up! But muscles still look pretty full, strange, and my waist is back up to 34.5inches because of the filled out muscles.
Quads starting to get the hanging over my kneecap effect with the fat melting away there.
Not that big, but thanks to small bones/joints I'm kinda starting to take on a comic book look - shoulders/traps are really looking full and rounded, upperback flaring with more lumps and bumps while my waist and ribcage area is shrinking way down

Just imagine when I get down to a sub 30 inch waist...

12min walk today and some light active recovery and easy stretching

super_rice · May 1, 2006

that guys is freaky - even with "enhancements" none of us could ever reach that level.

you understand that's a 170pc from a man that weighs 90kg. that's national/international level - definately elite. the best 85s in the world do those kind of numbers.

coolcolj said:
this was posted on the CF forum - freak

from a running jump and 5'9" tall...

stats -

5'9"
199-206lbs depending on what time of day.
standing vertical jump- 44"
squat raw and top of thigh to parallel 740
front squat 545
powerclean 380
jerk 365

coolcolj · May 1, 2006

super_rice said:
that guys is freaky - even with "enhancements" none of us could ever reach that level.

you understand that's a 170pc from a man that weighs 90kg. that's national/international level - definately elite. the best 85s in the world do those kind of numbers.

Well he's not really using all his strength even then. He only needs a 600lb squat to get that powerclean with a quarter squat catch. To think that he could actually powerclean 440-460 or so if he was....
Kinda what those big throwers would be doing. That's the thing, powercleaning isn't that hard if you have at least some speed, it's getting the strength to that level to do it, while keeping your bodyweight down

And while being able to go train the other things you need to do like sprints, jumps and stuff

Judging by his traps/shoulders he is probably enhanced

And he posted a frontal pic with just shorts and he has that "3D" look that enhanced people tend have. But you never know

------------------

Late night. Feel ok though.
Quads and calves a bit sore, but upper hammies still extremely sore... makes me wince walking up stairs! Need to get em recovered by Thursday for my speed workout. Traps and upper back still achey too.

weighed 88.8kg 195.36lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Bling, bling. Still going, so far, so good! Legs have blown back up.
Still can grab a whole handful of flab around my gut. Might as well go straight down to 180lbs

Then I'll see how lean I am and decide what to do.

ChinkNasty · May 1, 2006

PROOOVE IT - PICS

coolcolj said:
I surprisingly don't feel drained at all! Achey all over as expected, but upper hammies, calves, whole quad area, spinal erectors, and hips/glutes are moderately sore, probbaly will become heavy soreness later today...
Upper traps and back a bit sore too.

weighed 89.1kg 196lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Just like that, almost back to my Friday weight pre carb up! But muscles still look pretty full, strange, and my waist is back up to 34.5inches because of the filled out muscles.
Quads starting to get the hanging over my kneecap effect with the fat melting away there.
Not that big, but thanks to small bones/joints I'm kinda starting to take on a comic book look - shoulders/traps are really looking full and rounded, upperback flaring with more lumps and bumps while my waist and ribcage area is shrinking way down
Just imagine when I get down to a sub 30 inch waist...

12min walk today and some light active recovery and easy stretching

coolcolj · May 1, 2006

just going by the mirror, which always looks better than reality

pics are coming when I get down to a 33inch waist

coolcolj · May 1, 2006

found a clip of a 4.2 sec 40 yard dash
dunno if its hand timed or electronic, but doing by stop watch I got in the same area. Probably around a 4.4 to 4.5 sec electronic.
But doesn't look quick to me though. What about for you guys?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_R0XovMLRQ&search=40 yard dash

coolcolj · May 2, 2006

Tuesday 2nd May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 1 - Day 2 - Upper 2 Prehab_Rehab - Microcycle 8

Pretty average workout, but I am a bit stronger overall. And lighter too, but hard to tell exactly as my gym has one of those dual sliding weight scales. Today I was too light for the 200 and over setting, and too heavy for the 150 to 200lb setting

Bodyweight at gym - 199-200lb
Workout time - 1.5+ hours
Workout rating - 7/10

General warmup -

1) dynamic stretches and swings
2) bar complex with 25lbs - slow hang clean pulls, press and hang power clean
3) scapular pushups - on bench x 15, on floor x 15

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1min on warmups and 1.5 to 2 mins between each exercise on work sets

All the exercises were stopped when the burn started to get high, form deviated and I started to strain excessively

Shoulder width pulldowns to sternum

warmups - 30kg x 5+hold, 40kg x4+hold, 55kg x4+hold

side of neck and trap stretch before each set - 15secs each

controlled, 2 sec ISO hold at chest, 2 sec pause at top
Rotation 1) 65kg x 7 (+5kg)
Rotation 2) 65kg x 6

Quite a lot harder done this way vs last week. Should have went down to 60kg on 2nd set

16inch grip standing Military Press - pushed behind the head at the top

Warmups - controlled with hold at top - Bar x 5, 65lbs x 5, 80lbs x 5

2 sec pause at bottom, controlled up, 3 sec hold at top, slowish down
Rotation 1) 95lbs x 7 (+20lbs)
Rotation 2) 95lbs x 6

longer hold at top vs last week, quite a bit harder

Steep angle Rows to ribcage - pulling with mid/low traps and delts

warmups - 15lbs x8, 25x5, 35x5,

2 sec hold at top, slow down, 2 sec pause at bottom
Rotation 1) 45lbs x 10 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) 45lbs x 8

Dumbell Bench - arms/elbows by side - neutral grip

warmups - 15lbs x 10, 30 x 6

2 sec pause at bottom, controlled up, slight hold then shoulders pushed up off bench, slow down.
Rotation 1) 40lbs x 10 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) 40lbs x 10 --> mega burn

Felt easier vs last week

Dumbell Curls

warmups - 4kg x 8, 25lbs x 5, 35x3

Rotation 1) 40lbs x 7 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) 40lbs x 6

-----------------------

Cooldown - Restorative - ISO stretches

single arm Face Pulls - 25lbs x 6, 50lbs x 15 each side
Low pulley External rotation - 15lbs x 15 each side

Pushup/Dip stretched ISO hold - knee supported x 30secs
Overhead Pullover/lat stretched ISO hold on dip bar x 30secs

static stretches for upper body and cuffs, plus external hip rotor, quads, upper hammies

coolcolj · May 2, 2006

sleep was fractured, but good as far as total amount goes.
Upper body is not too sore. Upper hammies are still pretty sore, but much better. Should be ok for tommorrow's speed session.
Upper traps and neck feeling way looser. My shoulders always hike up and traps get tight overnight when I wake up every morning. The stretching I did before each set of pulldowns have helped a lot. Will keep that going on every upperbody day from now

weighed 89.2kg 196.24lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Back up, holding a lot of water. Just like that my legs have blown back up big again. I must have Tom Platz type genes....
They only measure 27+ inches now though, vs the 29+ before in my fatter days. Not a bad thing as they don't rub together when I walk now

Some small regain in upper body size too, but legs still dominate.

12min walk, light active recovery and easy stretching today

coolcolj · May 3, 2006

Not sure what's up with higher average waking pulse. Not feeling as good today. Some DOMs in my upper body. Upper hammies are much better, but still some ache and posterior chain is a bit sore from the walking yesterday
Feel good enough to sprint though.

weighed 89.2kg 196.24lbs straight out of bed in underwear

coolcolj · May 4, 2006

Thurssday 4th May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 1 - Day 3 - Speed - Microcycle 8

Pretty good workout overall. Made some decent progress, and best of all no major shin aches.
Also someone left behind 3 orange cones at the park, which I used today in my sprint vids, and have adopted them into a new home

Bodyweight in shorts and t-shirt - 197.5lbs
Workout Rating - 8/10
Workout time - around 1+ hour

General Warmup

warmup at home - 2x15sec ISO holds each - quarter squat, standing on toes, on heels (toes pulled up), hip back wide stance squat at parallel, on side of feet (for ankles), narrow fullsquat at bottom on toes.

dynamic stretches and swings, rocking on side of ankle, standing on one leg with eyes shut, various hops and run in place in bare feet at home.

Warmup at park -
Slow Jog - 56m x 4 - 1.5 mins rest, getting faster on each run - 24, 19, 16 and 13 secs

Run complex increasing in speed each run to 70% speed - 1.5 mins rest

2 sets - trying to stay as smooth, relaxed and fluid as possible
25m prime times (stiffed legged runs), 10m straight run, then into lateral run, right side 5m, left side 5m, into backwards run 5m, then three 360 pivots runs

Rotating sets between each exercise

1.5 mins in warmups and 3 to 3.5mins rest between each on worksets

Alttitude drops/Depth Jumps off steps landing on concrete

Warmup - altitude drops - 12 inch x 2, 18inch x 2
submaximal depthjumps - 12 inch x 2, 18 inch x 2, 26 inch x 1

Rotation 1) Altitude drop - 26 inch x 1, rest 10secs, 34 inch x 1
rest 1min - DepthJump 18 inches x 3

Rotation 2) Altitude drop - 26 inch x 1, rest 10secs, 34 inch x 1
rest 1min - DepthJump 18 inches x 3

As you can see I experimented with my setup a bit, a bit of waveloading of sorts, worked very well. 34inch drop was no problems, strong and stiff

RFI Hops on/off a 12 inch step - 2 mins after the above

Warmup - 6 inch step x 10, 12 inch step x 5

5 on 6inch step and 3 on 12 to warmup before each
Rotation 1) 12 inch x 10 secs - 15 reps
Rotation 2) 12 inch x 10 secs - 15 reps

pretty good on the first set, a bit heavy on the 2nd. ot as quick as I good bee, but pretty smooth. The last vid I had of these on 12 inches I did 14 reps, so a bit faster now. Getting leaner helps for sure.

clip of the first set

Right click on link and save as to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au..._2LeggedHop_12inchStep10sec_15reps_4May06.mpg

Sprints on Grass Rugby Field in spikes - hand timed

warmups - a few sets of 2 acceleration runs, slow buildups and later on 90% effort runs from a 3 point start. Did a 4.16sec 30m here

Did a short burst of fast running on the spot and one vertical jump before each sprint

Rotation 1 a) Flying 30m sprint from 56m out - standing start - 3.57 secs
rest 3+mins
b) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 4.09secs
rest 3+mins
c) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 4.12secs

Rotation 2 a) Flying 30m sprint from 56m out - standing start - 3.59 secs
rest 3+mins
b) 30m sprint from 3 point start - messed up stopwatch
rest 3+mins
c) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 3.84 secs NEW PR!! -0.13 secs

Felt quite a bit stronger and faster today than last week, and the warmup runs had a kind of spring and bounce I never had before,
so I was disappointed when I didn't crack 4 secs on the first rotation through.
On the 2nd one I concentrated on keeping my body at a 45 degree angle as long as possible with head down and really shove the ground behind me hard on each step with ankle locked tight. First 30m sprint then felt much faster and my body was still at an angle and accelerating as I got to the 30m line, but I messed up the stopwatch!! Repeated and finally nailed it, not as fast due to fatigue but probably better form wise and then shocked myself when I looked at the stopwatch a new 30m PR!!!
Finally I'm using my power and accelerating properly! I didn't bother filming those runs as I wasn't expecting to be any faster...hopefully I'll get there again next time and get it on video to confirm the time.

Funny I got the exact same flying 30m sprint as last week, but I think if I accelerate the same way as my new 30m sprint form from a 3 point start they should be much faster than 3.57secs...

Gives me hope now I can get to the top of the table in this article a 3.6sec hand timed 30m...
http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/technique/109-Frank_Dick.pdf
since I have 20lbs of fat to drop and strength to regain. Doesn't mean I'll run a 10.2sec 100m though, but I should get around a 6.8sec 60m time at least

Need a sub 3 sec flying 30m now...

clip of the first 2 30m sprints - even better form this week, but not as good as the last 2

Right click on link and save as to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Movies/CCJ_Sprint30m_4.09_4.12sec_4May06.mpg

duke of angels · May 4, 2006

Higher resting heartrate could be sign of overtraining, but it also could be due to any number of things.

Grats the the PR.

coolcolj · May 4, 2006

duke of angels said:
Higher resting heartrate could be sign of overtraining, but it also could be due to any number of things.

Grats the the PR.

thanks. Not really feeling overtrained at all. probbaly my metabolsim ramping up maybe

-----

Woke up really early, so feeling a bit tired. No drained feeling though, very interesting....
Overall achey feeling, sore hammies and calves

weighed 89kg 195.8lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Look a little leaner

coolcolj · May 6, 2006

Calves, hammies and upper back still sore

weighed 89kg 195.8lbs straight out of bed in underwear

No change, but I think I've gotten leaner this week, just gained some muscle to balance that off. Find out on monday when I measure my waist
Cranking up the calories today and carbing up a bit.

Anthrax Invasion · May 6, 2006

Hey CCJ, do you take any dextrose or whey prior to energy work? I'm incorporating intervals again (cannot wait - Wednesday!), and I know they're to be treated as intense sessions on their own. I was thinking of having a pre- and post-workout shake (1 scoop whey, 2-3 tbsp dextrose). What do you think?

You're lucky (or maybe I am) - I'm going to be taking in about 5k cals for the next few months (lots of activity).

coolcolj · May 6, 2006

Anthrax Invasion said:
Hey CCJ, do you take any dextrose or whey prior to energy work? I'm incorporating intervals again (cannot wait - Wednesday!), and I know they're to be treated as intense sessions on their own. I was thinking of having a pre- and post-workout shake (1 scoop whey, 2-3 tbsp dextrose). What do you think?

You're lucky (or maybe I am) - I'm going to be taking in about 5k cals for the next few months (lots of activity).

I used to, well during the workout anyway, fastcarb+whey drink
caused massive blood sugar crashes for me...made me fat too I think

I don't bother now and I haven't noticed better or worse gains, or recovery etc. Training is better now with a stable blood sugar. And even after training I prefer real food fast carbs and whey - ie cereal+whey mixed together rather than the dextrose stuff

Well if you can eat a lot and still stay lean, then enjoy that

I used to be like that, ate tons, and not get fat, but it won't stay like that forever as you get older.

------

achey upper back from my part time job, achey posterior chain and an overall tired feeling. Feeling a more solid though from the carb filled muscles.
Need to grab a nap before training today.

weighed 90.4kg 199.88lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Up a bit so I'm getting enough carbs now. Read somewhere about more carbs on refeed having a bigger impact on better rates of fatloss etc. You tend to get scared about doing that after a while, so made an effort to take in more carbs and calories, need to jolt my metabolism.
Took in 3000 calories and 300+ g of carbs yesterday. Will probably start to carb/calorie up more frequently as I get leaner. Even if I don't exactly go ultra low carb right now - 1400 to 1600 calories, 70g of carbs on non training days, 1700-1900 calories and 120g of carbs on training days. Maybe just increase the calories/carbs on training days for now

coolcolj · May 7, 2006

Sunday 7th April - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 2 - Day 1 - Upper 1 - Microcycle 8

Crappy workout. Felt tired, worn out, and not too strong. But hung in there and made it work. You know sometimes you bust ass, but it feels good, well today I busted ass, but it felt bad....
But I'm glad I did put the effort in, and now after a postworkout meal, I feel OK. Funny that...

Surprised I only weighed 200lbs today, given that I had carb'ed up yesterday and looked quite a bit puffed up!

Bodyweight at gym - 200lbs
Workout time - 1 hour
Workout rating - 7/10

General warmup -

1) dynamic stretches and swings
2) bar complex with 25lbs - RDL+shrug onto toes, military press and hang powerclean
3) scapular pushups - on bench x 15, on floor x 15

4) Stretched side of neck, traps, quad/hip flexor and external hip rotor on the warmup sets - 15secs each

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1min on warmups and 3+ mins between each exercise on work sets

Chest Supported 45 degree T-Bar Rows - Overhand grip

warmups - 2 sec ISO hold at top on last rep of each set - Bar+25lbs x5, +45 x4, +70 x4, +90 x3, +115 x2, +135x1 (no iso)

controlled, 3sec ISO hold at the top
Rotation 1) Bar + 135lbs x 4 --> very hard
Rotation 2) Bar + 135lbs x 4 (+1 extra full set) --> easier....
Rotation 3) Bar + 135lbs x 3 + 1 partial rep

Up one extra full set vs last week, but these were gut busting hard! Back was pretty tired from my part-time job.

Dip Shrugs

Warmups - lockout hold x 10sec + 4 reps, BW 2x4, 10lbs x4

3 sec ISO at top and bottom
Rotation 1) BW+15lbs x 8 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) BW+15lbs x 6

Elbow On knee External rotation

warmups - 1kg x 8, 3kg x5, 4kg x 5, 5kg x5, 15lbs x2

3 sec Hold at parallel - 1min rest between each arm
Rotation 1) 20lbs x 5 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) 20lbs x 4

Felt stronger, even though my cuffs were pretty trashed up

-----------------------

various static stretches for whole upper body and some lower body

coolcolj · May 7, 2006

Pretty deep continous sleep. Achey all over.

weighed 89.4kg 196.68lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Waist down 1/4 of an inch from this time last week to 34.25 inches. So I did lean up last week, even if my bodyweight stayed about the same, which means I regained some musclemass.

coolcolj · May 7, 2006

some quotes from Elitetrack

Vertical plyos will help top end speed because at MaxV it is actually vertical forces which are most important. Forward momentum is developed through the acceleratin phase and once top end speed is reached the net horizontal force production is actually close to 0 or may even be negative (the cause of deceleration). Once forward momentum is developed maximally (VMax is achieved) the body will want to remain moving forward at the same velocity as long as outside forces (friction, air resistance, braking foot contacts, etc.) don't decelerate the body. Vertical forces are what help maintain the system's forward momentum. Once VMax is achieved, and if vertical force production is great enough, the system will act like a spring-mass or elastic model system. That is, it will keep bouncing along at the same velocity. Deficient vertical force production (or more accurately impulse) will lead to the system acting less perfectly elastic and consequently momentum will be lost and deceleration will occur unnecessarily premature.

The qualities that Kebba and SMcMillan are very specific and can be argued that they are overspecific to sprinting and do not transfer at all. The "general" thought process is that they (the details of the plyos) will help with the only the overall adaptation of the nervous system (example increasing the quanta of neurotransmitter release.) while the "specific" train of thought would debate the carryover of specific motor programs to help with the end performance such as rhythm.

I personally believe in both trains of thought with the specific work being a very nice long term adaptation or skill. For example I feel that hurdle mobility must include great precision as well as the obvious range of motion. This will start leaking into all phases of training if done religiously and many times good coaches are unaware of their own brillance.

Some of the motor skill work can be seen in the weight room such as in the olympic lifts. I feel that power ball throws can improve performance from indirect qualites. The direct would be of course the training stress from the load of the ball and the effort, either elastic or starting strength, but the effort to relase the ball with linking all of the limbs and timing the joints can help improve skill capacity.

But.....just like the skill capacity that develops over time, so can stress injuries to tendons and joints from heavy loads of plyos. I think that this can be eliminated if tempo work(the hypospeed work) is don before and after training to heat the avascular tendons and improve synovial fluid viscosity.

reading between the lines then I can see that you can't have good top speed unless you can accelerate there in the first place. If you don't, then look at your accleration - 30m first

that's my problem, I pop up too quickly and I take short choppy steps. You can't accelerate unless you push behind your body, so your body has to be angled and your feet driving behind you. Although I made a breakthrough last session, so I need to build on that.
Faster people tend to acclerate for longer as well.

Then when you get to top speed, your mechanics must allow you to keep bouncing along without braking. Your upright now with tall hips and stepping over and driving the feet downwards, instead of pushing behind. Then your speed endurance comes in to keep you at that speed for as long as possible

sorta related, but good stuff anyway

here's my thoughts on the question i asked to start this---

i break jumps training into several categories for sprinters:

1) those which have an influence on starting power- explosive in nature, overcome inertia, double leg, require full extension (i.e. slj, stj) as a note, in conjunction with multi throws can provide very strong stimulus.

2) those which have an influence on acceleration- horizontal in nature, longer ground contacts (i.e. alt bounding)

3) those which have an influence on max velocity- vertical in nature, shorter ground contacts (i.e. shorter hurdle hops)

4) i would suspect that kebba would add a 4th category geared towards back end of races/deceleration. kt? things like endurance bounds

is it necessary- to a certain degree yes. providing a bridge between weight room to the track in speed of movement, coupling times, cross bridges, stiffness.

Intensity- doesn't have to be real high in my opinion. Low intensity in place jumps provide a nice base of ancillary strength and should be in the program throughout.
Start power and acceleration to me are the two biggest areas that benefit the sprinter with jumps training. max velocity is hard/maybe impossible to duplicate the ground contact times other than just sprinting, which some do in a loaded situation.

Some sprinters are just down right uncoordinated and the more complex the jump, the more likely it will be done incorrectly.

coolcolj · May 8, 2006

Still achey feeling all over. Legs and hips feel a bit tight, will try and get em foam rolled today before training. Probbaly should have went for a walk yesterday, did a bit of active recovery work and stretched a bit

weighed 88.6kg 194.9lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Sweet not far to go till I hit my short term goal of 88kg 193.6lbs. Might even get it by the end of the week. Then down to 185lbs next.
I've haven't been drinking as much ice cold water lately, so I jacked it back up to the 10 litre range and it should work even better now that it is getting cold. Was butt freezing yesterday and I sure look much leaner today

coolcolj · May 9, 2006

Tuesday 9th April - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 2 - Day 2 - Lower Strength - Microcycle 8

Ok workout, but did not feel hyper, but I am stronger than last session even though I'm much lighter so that's good.

Bodyweight at gym - 198.5lbs
Workout time - 1.75 hour
Workout rating - 8/10

General warmup -

20sec ISO holds - quarter squat, on toes, on heels (toes pulled up), hip back wide stance squat at parallel, on side of feet (for ankles), narrow fullsquat at bottom on toes

1) dynamic stretches and swings, rocking on side of ankle etc
2) back extension BWx5 + 4 twisting to each alternate side
3) reverse hypers - BWx9
4) situp complex on swissball
5) adductor/hammie stretch into back tumbells x9
6) usual bar complex with 30lbs
7) various hops

8) worked up to a few sets max effort vertical jumps - same as my current best. Then did 1-2 jumps on each round of the warmups for the exercises below until I switched to oly shoes on the 225lb fullsquats

Was hoping it would be higher, but did not have the snap today even though I'm light. Probably due to the diet. Landings were much more solid and stable thanks to the altitude drops from my speed workout

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1-2mins on warmups and 3+ mins between each exercise on work sets

Full Squats - high bar, medium stance - Oly Shoes - no Belt

warmups - Explosive in sneakers - BWx8, BARx5, 95x4, 135x4, 185x4
Controlled down explode up in oly shoes - 225x4, 275x2, 315x1

Controlled down, driven up hard
Rotation 1) 295lbs x 4 (+20lbs -1 rep) --> last rep hard, close to failure
Rotation 2) 295lbs x 4 --> last rep harder
Rotation 3) 295lbs x 4 --> easier (!)
Rotation 4) 295lbs x 3 --> 3rd rep felt hard

315lbs in the warmup felt good, so strength is coming back. Went up 20lbs on worksets. Form was not that great today, a bit unstable and my body kept trying to use the back and doing a slight GM. Got better on the later sets by pushing from the heels and forcing the hams to work more.

Didn't go down as controlled as I would have liked. And I should have reset between each rep with a few breaths to recharge and make each rep a quality one, first set was too piston like. That's why the 3rd set felt a bit easier when I expected to only get 3 reps. Thought about doing a 4th rep on the last set, but I had a nagging feeling I would fail judging by how the 3rd rep felt so called it a day there.

Will stay here until my form is solid and I get a few sets of 5. Then onto 315lbs. Will be nice to get to my old strength levels or even higher, when I get to a lean and mean 175lbs

clip of all 4 worksets
Right click on link and save as to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolcolj3/Movies/CCJ_FullSquat295_3x4_1x3_9May06.mpg

CleanPulls - Oly Shoes - HookGrip - no Belt

Warmups -
in sneakers - Hang Powerclean Bar x 5
Powerclean + HangPowerclean 89lbs, 119lbs. Powerclean 155lbs
in oly shoes - powerclean + hang powerclean + highhang squatclean - 155lbs. Powerclean - 205x1, 225x1

Lowered each rep under control RDL style, 10second rest between each rep and reset
Rotation 1) 235lbs x 2 (+10lbs)
Rotation 2) 235lbs x 2
Rotation 3) 235lbs x 2

Form and timing is getting much better, not much arm pulling today. Focused keeping the weight on my heels, toes up in the air at the start and first half to keep tension on the hammies and helps get the back arched, tight and stiff. Controlled off the floor, arms loose and then snap it hard when I clear the knees. Bar popping up nicely. Will film these next time to see if my form looks as good as it feels.

Standing Single Leg curl

warmups - 3plates x5, 5P x 3

Dead stop one each rep, semi-explosive, left side first - 10 secs rest between each side
Rotation 1) 5 Plates x 12
Rotation 2) 5 Plates x 12

--------------

static stretches for hip flexor/quad, glute, addcutor, upper hammie, calves, upper traps, and shoulders

KOArtist · May 9, 2006

hey coolj, I was wondering...is there any ultimate website that focuses on all the various types of "prehab" work you can do for ankles, shoulders/scap, etc???

Also, do you ever do jump/reactive squats in the same workout as some heavy squats? And if so, which ones do u do first??? thanks as always bruh, peace

coolcolj · May 9, 2006

^ Above squat vid should work now

-----

Dry lips, but don't feel trained. Achey all over, VMO is pretty sore. Calves, Abs, upper hammies and back a bit too.

weighed 88.9kg 195.58lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Back up again, maybe its musclemass gain? Thinking about carb loading today.
I am planning to switch to 2 carbloads a week, just a matter of which days.

12 min walk planned today, easy active recovery work and some light stretching

coolcolj · May 9, 2006

KOArtist said:
hey coolj, I was wondering...is there any ultimate website that focuses on all the various types of "prehab" work you can do for ankles, shoulders/scap, etc???

Also, do you ever do jump/reactive squats in the same workout as some heavy squats? And if so, which ones do u do first??? thanks as always bruh, peace

well there are a few articles scattered around the place - some on Kelly Baggett's site, Most of it in Eric Cressey's articles at tmag and just from my life's reading and experience

check the links in the article to previous parts
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=472224
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=535872

http://www.t-nation.com/findArticle...AC34AB7F1D5FF8B.hydra?article=05-183-training

Ian King articles

postural

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do;jsess...titan?id=460268

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do;jsess...titan?id=459716

shoulder issues

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do;jsess...titan?id=459499

knee issues

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do;jsess...titan?id=459259

back pain

I have done jump, and sometimes reactive, all the faster stuff is done first
problem is your trying to tell your body to be fast and snappy and then strain and stable at the same time, tehse are on opposte ends of the spectrum. Which probaly confuses it and dilutes the gains CNS wise. Not a problem muscle wise off course. If you after max power gains do the heavy stuff on another day

Also reactive squats are extremely taxing CNS wise and muscle/tendon wise too....

KOArtist · May 9, 2006

coolcolj said:
Also reactive squats are extremely taxing CNS wise and muscle/tendon wise too....

Ain't that the truth! After first reading about them and trying them, I was dying for days on end afterwards! I think I even posted here about it, lol. Thanks a bunch for all the great links

coolcolj · May 9, 2006

KOArtist said:
Ain't that the truth! After first reading about them and trying them, I was dying for days on end afterwards! I think I even posted here about it, lol. Thanks a bunch for all the great links

new one that just came through

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=1053531

coolcolj · May 10, 2006

Damn nice solid 8 hours sleep, could have had more, but I had to get up early!
All those carbs yesterday helped. I think when I get off this diet, I should have sleep like that every night. Sure helps my recovery and well being. Feel pretty good, have a nice spring to my walk and the small jump and throw I did this morning was snappy and effortless. Although I look tired, sleep debt no doubt from the last year or so....
Still pretty sore though in my quads, upper hammies, glutes and upper body, whole body actually.

weighed 90.2kg 198.44lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Carbed up yesterday, but lightest carbed up bodyweight so far.
Took in about 2500 calories and 300+ g of carbs.

Here is the new diet plan

Low carb day - 70g carbs, 1400-1600 calories
Medium carb day - 150g carbs, 1800-1900 calories
High Carb up day - 300-350g carbs, 3000-3500 calories, I can eat whatever I want basicly

Sun - Training - Medium carb
Mon - rest - Low carb
Tues - Training - Medium carb
Weds - rest - High Carb Up
Thurs - Training - Medium carb
Fri - rest - Low carb
Sat - rest - High Carb Up

Saturday is pretty tiring from my part time job so I sure need the food then

protein is about 100-150g a day, I don't eat much as it's the only way to keep calories down so I can actually get lean, but I have no problems gaining muscle mass when I want to. Probably doesn't help recovery though.

I should get better training gains, recovery, sleep and hopefully lean up faster on this new plan. I have used a 3 day low carb to one day high carb eat anything and as much as you want on day 4 type setup before with very good results, but I was pretty lean back then. Which was based on an article by a female bodybuilder, and the setup had you going down to a 2:1 setup as you got leaner. So more days on low carbs the fatter you are, and then more frequent carb ups as you got leaner. This new setup is more inline with that as the one carb up a week isn't cutting it anymore

coolcolj · May 10, 2006

here is a video of Justin Gatlin 9.95 sec 100m sprint at the Osaka GP

http://folk.uio.no/perel/OsakaGP06.wmv

apart from the hunched start and acceleration, I like the power skip he does in the last 30-40m. Kinda cocky looking

I noticed that Powell does that as well. They seem to scoot away from the others, you can just see the power each stride from the bound.

closeup
http://folk.uio.no/perel/OsakaClose.wmv

coolcolj · May 11, 2006

Thursday 11th May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 2 - Day 3 - Upper 2 Prehab_Rehab - Microcycle 8

Not a bad workout, pretty unexciting, but it must be done.

Bodyweight at gym - 202lbs in winter clothing
Workout time - 1.5+ hours
Workout rating - 8/10

General warmup -

1) whole body dynamic stretches and swings
2) bar complex with 30lbs - slow hang clean pulls, press and hang power clean
3) scapular pushups - on bench x 15, on floor x 15

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1min on warmups and 2 to 2.5 mins between each exercise on work sets

All the exercises were stopped when the burn started to get high, form deviated and I started to strain excessively

Shoulder width pulldowns to sternum

warmups - 30kg x 10+hold, 45kg x5+hold, 55kg x5+hold

controlled, 2 sec ISO hold at chest, 2 sec pause at top
Rotation 1) 65kg x 8 (+1 rep)
Rotation 2) 60kg x 8

Getting tehre, feelinge asier. When I get to 90kg I'll switch to pullups done the same way...

16inch grip standing Military Press - pushed behind the head at the top

Warmups - controlled with hold at top - Bar x 5, 65lbs x 5, 85lbs x 5

2 sec pause at bottom, controlled up, 3 sec hold at top, slowish down
Rotation 1) 95lbs x 8 (+1 rep)
Rotation 2) 85lbs x 8

Damn hard these, will stay here until I can get 2 sets of 8 without excessive strain. Set times are pretty close to 50secs

Steep angle Rows to ribcage - pulling with mid/low traps and delts

warmups - 15lbs x8, 30x5, 40x5,

2 sec hold at top, slow down, 2 sec pause at bottom
Rotation 1) 50lbs x 9(+5lbs -1rep)
Rotation 2) 50lbs x 8

Dumbell Bench - arms/elbows by side - neutral grip

warmups - 15lbs x 10, 30x5, 40x5

2 sec pause at bottom, controlled up, slight hold then shoulders pushed up off bench, slow down.
Rotation 1) 45lbs x 10 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) 40lbs x 10

killer burn

Dumbell Curls

warmups - 2kg x 10, 15lbs x 5, 25x5, 35x3

Rotation 1) 40lbs x 8 (+1 rep)
Rotation 2) 35lbs x 10

LOL, I was only expecting to hit 8 reps on the 2nd set, but got 10! Should have kept it at 40lbs

-----------------------

Cooldown - Restorative - ISO stretches

single arm Face Pulls - 25lbs x 6, 50lbs x 17 each side
Low pulley External rotation - 15lbs x 15 each side

Pushup/Dip stretched ISO hold - knee supported x 30secs
Subscap raises 5kg x 15 + 30sec Pec/Subscap stretched ISO hold
Overhead Pullover/lat stretched ISO hold on dip bar x 30secs

static stretches for upper body/cuffs and some lower body

carlsuen · May 11, 2006

wow.. your knowledge on diet really impresses me.. do u have a link that u could recommend to me? cuz i'd really like to start to work on getting lean.. (i'm a fat boy bf@29%) and becuz of your MEGA thread.. it's hard for me to read from top to toe.. so i'd really appreciate it.. thx in advance..

Introspective · May 11, 2006

Diet plan seems good, you seem to know your stuff. Have you had a diet plan before that consist's of low, medium and high carb days ? are there any extra benefits when compared to just eating the same amount each day, like just having 7 medium days a week ?

coolcolj · May 12, 2006

Late night, crap sleep. Achey all over.

weighed 90.2kg 198.44lbs straight out of bed in underwear
same bodyweight as yesterday, but musclemass looks to be up.

12min walk, dynamic stretches/warmup active recovery and some easy stretching

coolcolj · May 12, 2006

carlsuen said:
wow.. your knowledge on diet really impresses me.. do u have a link that u could recommend to me? cuz i'd really like to start to work on getting lean.. (i'm a fat boy bf@29%) and becuz of your MEGA thread.. it's hard for me to read from top to toe.. so i'd really appreciate it.. thx in advance..

nah I just read and experiment a lot, but main problem things that worked for me years ago don't do the same thing anymore! Your body changes over the years hormone wise :chomp:

I've never been ripped in my life or even close, but I'm hoping to hit 7-8% sometime this year hopefully

at your bf%, you don't have to do anything special, just eat a bit less, and move around a bit more. Gotta drink a lot of water, and make it ice cold water - each glass burns 8 calories to heat to body temp

I guzzle 7 litres a day at least... Take lots of fish oil too.
When you get down to the 14-16% area then you start to get into other issues. Anyway it just takes hard work and dedication over a long period of time.

see links below

Introspective said:
Diet plan seems good, you seem to know your stuff. Have you had a diet plan before that consist's of low, medium and high carb days ? are there any extra benefits when compared to just eating the same amount each day, like just having 7 medium days a week ?

check these links out on carb cycling

http://www.avantlabs.com/magmain.php?issueID=15&pageID=159
http://www.avantlabs.com/magmain.php?issueID=16&pageID=181
http://www.avantlabs.com/magmain.php?issueID=18&pageID=232

well since your body has a lag type mechanism you can take advantage of that. When you cut the cals down your body starts to burn stuff, if you get carbs low and protein high, then more of that is fat and less of it is muscle. You'll drop a lot of water too thanks to the lower carbs and overall insulin levels will be lower which is good for burning more fat. But after a while it starts to think it's starving and down regulate your anabolic hormones and metabolism. You will get more hunger pains too...

So you crank up the carbs back up, and you can go way over maintenance calories and not get fat, because of the lag factor, in that 24 hours, the body is just going to suck every carb and calorie and put it into your muscles and not store it as fat. Your bodyweight will shoot back up but not as high as before, and your muscles fill out and your anabolic hormones come back up and the metabolism gets restores to a certain extent. Hunger pains go away...you feel motivated to keep it going

The medium carb day is just to aid recovery on the training days, and carbs/calories after training aren't usually stored as fat due to recovery needs etc

in a way it's like dual factor training - same concept to get a 1+1=3 effect
bigger disruption to the body over a period creates bigger super comp for advanced trainees, vs the single factor approach that begineers can make big gains on. Same applies here - regular dieting works ok if your pretty fat, but when you get leaner, the body doesn't like it because it starts to get into starvation mode, so you have to juggle things.
Over a 7 day period, the calorie amounts are probbaly about the same as a medium 7 day approach, but the effect on long term fat reduction and holding onto your muscle while still making gains in training is quite different!
Actually weekly calories can be much higher if you cycle carbs due to the lag factor

Dr Squat's zig-zag dieting is a simlar approach -not so worried about carbs, but fluctuating calories
http://www.drsquat.com/index.cfm?action=viewarticle&articleID=58

more stuff
http://www.theministryoffitness.com/mof/library/articles/article18.htm

You can think of leptin as sort of a master controller of metabolism (along with many others systems). Released primarily from fat cells, leptin has both central (in the brain) and peripheral (in tissues such as muscle and fat cells) effects.
Centrally, among other things, leptin controls hormones like NPY (involved very heavily in appetite regulation), thyroid stimulating hormone, leutinizing hormone and follicular stimulating hormone, growth hormone releasing hormone, and corticotropin releasing hormone (I'm probably forgetting something).

At least it does all of this reliably in rat models, there is some debate as to whether leptin controls every system as much in humans (esp. the GH loop). (Ed: GH = Growth Hormone)

Leptin levels are determined primarily by bodyfat percentage (with other effects from distribution, i.e. gynoid vs. android patterns and sub-q vs. visceral patterns, women also typically have three times the leptin levels as men given the same bodyfat percentage) and is heavily determined by caloric flux (more accurately, caloric flux through the fat cell).

Researchers have identified a system that 'senses' nutrient flux (flux = what's going in versus what's going out) through both fat and muscle cells. This affects a lot of process. When dieting, more calories are leaving the fat cell than are going in (negative flux). This nutrient sensing system 'senses' this and affects many processes, one of which is leptin production (decreasing leptin production).

So leptin drops.

When overfeeding, more calories are entering the fat cells than are leaving (positive flux). The system 'senses' this and affects many processes, one of which is leptin production (increasing leptin production).

So leptin increases.

Hence the need for cyclical dieting (which Elzi has expounded on at great length): when dieting, leptin drops and your body fights back.

By refeeding, leptin can increase again and reverse some of the negative adaptations, so that you can lose fat more easily when you cut calories again.

Leptin goes up as fat mass increases and goes down as fat mass decreases, it goes up when you overfeed, and down when you underfeed (note: the increase/decrease happens a lot more quickly than would be predicted by changes solely in fat mass).

When leptin goes down (during caloric restriction/fat loss), you get an increase in NPY (increasing appetite, especially for carbs), a decrease in TSH, a decrease in GHRH, a decrease in LH/FSH, and an increase in CRH. So thyroid drops, GH drops, testosterone/estrogen drop, cortisol goes up (to what extent this occurs depends on a lot of factors such as starting bodyfat percentage, caloric deficit, length of the deficit, etc, etc ; a lean individual will suffer these effects to a greater degree than an obese individual on account of the obese individual having a higher baseline leptin level but that gets into issues of receptor saturation and stuff).

Basically, the negative hormonal effects of dieting seem to be regulated to a great degree by leptin (there are other feedback loops operating of course). At the very least, the leptin system appears to coordinate the adaptations to dieting that occur (that cause the problems). Random note: leptin also appears to 'turn on' all the good hormonal effects that occur during puberty (i.e. it coordinates all of the anabolic hormonal effects that occur), and is a big part of exercise/caloric restriction induced ammenorrhea in women.

Peripherally, leptin is involved in things such as fat burning, glycogen storage, and plays a role in immune system function. There are other effects such as inside the fat cell lipolysis and even fat cell deletion that have been shown to occur in rats but it's at levels of leptin that are basically impossible without injection in lean humans.

As leptin drops, fat burning and mobilization becomes more difficult (both through direct effects of leptin, as well as changes in hormone levels) which is part of why you lose more muscle as you get leaner. Leptin also plays a role in insulin sensitivity/resistance. It also potentiates the appetite blunting effects of CCK (cholecystokinin). Etc, etc, etc.

It won't surprise me if research finds that leptin has an effect on just about every system in the body, which makes some sort of evolutionary sense. Leptin production and levels (along with sensitivity of course) essentially 'tell' your brain how many calories you're eating and how much you have stored, which determines to a great degree what it can't and can't do. [1]

Refeeding?

When they (Ed: plasma leptin levels) decline to a certain concentration, appetite increases considerably. This is also associated with a gradual shift in many mechanisms (both centrally and peripherally) that induce what is known as the dreaded plateau: decrease in SNS activity, slow down of the metabolism, suppression of the immune system, etc. Ideally, you want to prevent that downward spiral before the plateau establishes. But we can't do that without blood analysis. So, as soon as you start feeling a voracious appetite, then do either a full day of refeeding at above maintenance with carbs, low fat (try to derive most of your dietary fat from essential fatty acids, a balance of o-6 and 0-3s). Or eat a eucaloric diet (maintenance calories) for 2-3 days.
The issue is trying to repay much of the energy deficit, to reset leptin levels (they won't return to baseline, but they should discontinue plummeting) and the SNS activity. The leaner you are, the less fat mass you have, the less leptin you secrete and the more difficult it is to keep leptin levels within an operative threshold. If you are really lean, you may have to refeed every 4 days. And make ensure you intake plenty of zinc.

Also, you want to avoid a suppressed BMR. Which is why periodic refeeding, such as in the CKD (Ed: Cyclical Ketogenic Diet), is beneficial. The study demonstrated that when overfeeding (130% TEE) for 3 days, even if the excess in energy intake was stored as bodyfat, the change in fat would only be 0.3 kg, which is less than 2% of the baseline bodyfat. Imagine what would happen to that if the study subjects were exercising. [2]

Introspective · May 12, 2006

Thats some really great info, thanks

silver_shadow · May 12, 2006

coolcolj, i actually posted this on asdf's sprints/5x5 thread... but i would then become a thread hijacker

so i decided to ask you right here. before i do, i've been noticing for some time now that you really know your shit.
do you think it's a good idea for a guy like me: 5'10", 223 at just under 15% to do a few days of sprints for a few weeks? BTW, my CV conditioning is pretty good since i've been doing a bit of high intensity cardio during my bulking phases. also, my goals are to strengthen my CV system between bulking cycles and maybe drop a few pounds of fat as well. during this time, i'd be going lighter with the weights.
the reason i ask is because i've avoided sprints after i crossed 200 because i didn't want to risk my knees, ankles and shins. thanks in advance.

coolcolj · May 12, 2006

silver_shadow said:
coolcolj, i actually posted this on asdf's sprints/5x5 thread... but i would then become a thread hijacker
so i decided to ask you right here. before i do, i've been noticing for some time now that you really know your shit.
do you think it's a good idea for a guy like me: 5'10", 223 at just under 15% to do a few days of sprints for a few weeks? BTW, my CV conditioning is pretty good since i've been doing a bit of high intensity cardio during my bulking phases. also, my goals are to strengthen my CV system between bulking cycles and maybe drop a few pounds of fat as well. during this time, i'd be going lighter with the weights.
the reason i ask is because i've avoided sprints after i crossed 200 because i didn't want to risk my knees, ankles and shins. thanks in advance.

well if you were active before and kept on running as you got heavier then it shouldn't be a problem. But if you were like me who was inactive and a gym rat that decided to start running when he was a fat 219lbs then yeah you will have problems. For a whole year my chins and ankles were trashed every time a ran in a bad way, but it got better as I leaned up and my body started to get used to it. I did a lot of barefoot drills to strengthen my foot muscles and lots of tib work too, but they only go so far.
Knees shouldn't be a problem if your run properly, there is hardly any knee bend, unless your try and "push" run with quads which a lot of gym rats do when they start running. Run on the balls of your feet and use your calves and posterior chain to propel yourself. off course doing that will mean your feet and calves better be up to the task

just keep the volume and frequency low and listen to your body

-----

Sleepy/tired, and still somewhat achey all over. Just gonna chill out and catch up on sleep today

weighed 89.8kg 197.56lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Looking leaner. 2nd Carb up today, but might not be a big carb up as I just don't feel all that hungry or in the mood to pig out...

coolcolj · May 13, 2006

Feeling pretty good mood wise, but a bit beat up from my part time job, upper body wise, lower body is not too bad, but not feeling that snappy.
Speed workout today. Damn cold though, so not sure how things will go.

weighed 90.1kg 198.22lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Carbed up yesterday, wasn't in the mood to eat a lot, so got in some calorie dense foods like pizza and chocolate...funny thing is I actually look tighter and leaner!

coolcolj · May 14, 2006

Sunday 14th May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 3 - Day 1 - Speed - Microcycle 8

Not a bad workout, 2.5lbs heavier than last week thanks to all the carbs in me. The new diet plan seems to be working I felt stronger, so much so I was really trying too hard on the sprints...
Not bad considering how beat up I was earlier in the day, but chilling out in bed turned that around

Bodyweight in shorts and t-shirt - 200lbs
Workout Rating - 8/10
Workout time - around 1+ hour

General Warmup

warmup at home - 20sec ISO holds each - quarter squat, standing on toes, on heels (toes pulled up), hip back wide stance squat at parallel, on side of feet (for ankles), narrow fullsquat at bottom on toes.

dynamic stretches and swings, rocking on side of ankle, standing on one leg with eyes shut, various hops and run in place in bare feet at home. Massaged bottom of feet and arches against side of bathtub

Warmup at park -
Slow Jog - 56m x 4 - 1.5 mins rest, getting faster on each run

Run complex increasing in speed each run to 70% speed - 1.5 mins rest

2 sets - trying to stay as smooth, relaxed and fluid as possible
25m prime times (stiffed legged runs), 10m straight run, then into lateral run, right side 5m, left side 5m, into backwards run 5m, then three 360 pivots runs

Rotating sets between each exercise

1.5 mins in warmups and 3.5mins rest between each on worksets

Sprints on Grass Rugby Field in spikes - hand timed

warmups - a few sets of 2 acceleration runs, slow buildups and later on 90% effort runs from a 3 point start.

Did a short burst of fast running on the spot and one vertical jump before each sprint

Rotation 1 a) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 3.87secs

Rotation 2 a) 30m sprint from 3 point start - standing start - 4 secs --> ran tight
rest 3.5 mins
b) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 4.1 secs --> ran tight
rest 3.5 mins
c) Flying 30m sprint from 60m out - stuffed up and ended up timing a 60m instead

got 7.5+ secs

Rotation 3 a) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 3.85 secs
rest 3.5 mins
b) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 4.15 secs --> ran tight
rest 3.5 mins
c) 56m sprint from 3 point start - 6.88 secs
rest 3.5 mins
d) 40m sprint from 3 point start - 5.5+ secs --> pretty tired now

Pretty pleased when I do things right, but on the 4+ sec runs, I tried too hard and ran them all tight, trying to put effort into pushing off each feet, I even grunted off the line and bit down on my lip, with tensed shoulders, like your powercleanig or something, thinking you run faster, but the stop watch don't lie....

I did a few other longer runs to get an idea of where I was, but any run after the first one in each rotation is pretty slow, as even 3.5 mins just doesn't seem to be enough recovery. When I do that rapid fire running in the spot drill after the first run my legs still feel like jelly even after 3.5 mins rest. Should limit sprints to 2 runs per rotation in the future.
PR in 56m run is 6.64 secs, so a bit slower today. 60m is a PR by default as I have never run one before. Should not have done the 40m sprint at the end, as I was pretty tired by then, no power or pop left. Still it's faster than the 5.81sec run I did a few weeks back when fresh

Clip of the 2 fastest 30m sprints today 3.87 and 3.85secs. I seem to slow down in the last 3m, getting ready to stop the timer....
And 6.88sec 56m sprint, shows better view of the start. Didn't jump out of the start this week like I have before. I don't quite fully extend my my 2nd step off the line.
Right click on link and save as to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au...rint30m_3.87_3.85sec_56m_6.88secs_14May06.mpg

Alttitude drops/Depth Jumps off steps landing on concrete

Warmup - altitude drops - 12 inch x 2, 18inch x 2
submaximal depthjumps - 12 inch x 2, 18 inch x 2, 26 inch x 1

Rotation 1) Altitude drop - 26 inch x 1, rest 10secs, 34 inch x 1
rest 1min - DepthJump 26 inches x 3

Rotation 2) Altitude drop - 26 inch x 1, rest 10secs, 34 inch x 1
rest 1min - DepthJump 26 inches x 3

Went up on the depth jumps this week from 18 inches. felt good, very shallow dip phase

RFI Hops on/off a 12 inch step - 2 mins after the above

Warmup - 6 inch step x 5, x10, 12 inch step x 5

5 on 6inch step and 3 on 12 to warmup before each
Rotation 1) 12 inch x 10 secs - messed up timer...

Only did one set today

ChinkNasty · May 14, 2006

hey colin, are you running to help you slim down orrr for growth in your legs/post. chain?

coolcolj · May 14, 2006

ChinkNasty said:
hey colin, are you running to help you slim down orrr for growth in your legs/post. chain?

I guess it helps you lean up a bit, but not the way I'm doing em with long rest periods. Yesterday was my speed day - helps with power, force absorbtion and getting the CNS to fire quickly to help my speed, reactivity and jumping

just like how WSB powerlifters have a speed day, except mine is on the faster side of the curve. Each foot step in sprints has like 5 times your bodyweight in force acting on your body in a 0.1 secs or less, that's gotta do something

Yeah they help blow up my hammies and calves too, but my legs are already pretty big for me anyway

----

Woah 69 bpm waking pulse! Highest in the last year, 15 above average, but I actually feel ok, zero drained feeling after maximal sprints too! Dunno what that means...
Body is not feeling too bad too, just sore feet, ankles and calves. Some aches in posterior chain and upper back, but hammies don't seem to be that sore.

weighed 90.5kg 199.1lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Bodyweight is up which is unexpected. Waist size is much the same.

12min walk today, light active recovery work and easy stretching

silver_shadow · May 15, 2006

coolcolj said:
well if you were active before and kept on running as you got heavier then it shouldn't be a problem. But if you were like me who was inactive and a gym rat that decided to start running when he was a fat 219lbs then yeah you will have problems. For a whole year my chins and ankles were trashed every time a ran in a bad way, but it got better as I leaned up and my body started to get used to it. I did a lot of barefoot drills to strengthen my foot muscles and lots of tib work too, but they only go so far.
Knees shouldn't be a problem if your run properly, there is hardly any knee bend, unless your try and "push" run with quads which a lot of gym rats do when they start running. Run on the balls of your feet and use your calves and posterior chain to propel yourself. off course doing that will mean your feet and calves better be up to the task

just keep the volume and frequency low and listen to your body

thanks bro. much appreciated. i used to play soccer and sprinted 100m & 200m when i was in school. in college, i continued the soccer but switched to middle distance running. so i guess, i'll have to try to remember how to run from back then LOL

coolcolj · May 16, 2006

silver_shadow said:
thanks bro. much appreciated. i used to play soccer and sprinted 100m & 200m when i was in school. in college, i continued the soccer but switched to middle distance running. so i guess, i'll have to try to remember how to run from back then LOL

let me suggest you start doing fast hops on/off a 6 inch step to start off with. max reps in 10secs. Help you get the timing of firing and relaxing the posterior chain and hip flexors. IF you've been doing weights a while, you will feel really clunky and muscle bound when you try and do it, I know I did

But I got better and so did my running form. When you hit the 16-18 reps area then your good to go.

-------------

Damn late night, only 5 hours sleep. Funny I don't feel or look all that tired!
A bit stiff and tight though - hammies a bit sore in that deep down strained way, more on the right side.

weighed 89.7kg 197.34lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Back on lowish carbs, but protein levels have been upped a bit. Also bigger gaps betwen meals, 3 to 3.5 hours, which seems to improve my insulin sensitivity

Anthrax Invasion · May 16, 2006

Would you count a hop as up and down, or just up, and then the hop down counts as another rep?

coolcolj · May 16, 2006

Tuesday 16th April - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 3 - Day 2 - Upper 1 - Microcycle 8

Surprisingly decent workout given the 5 hours of sleep. Rows didn't kill me like last week. Diet change is probably the reason, better recovery etc.
Veins on forearms and biceps were sticking out more and bigger

Bodyweight at gym - 202lbs in winter clothing
Workout time - 1 hour
Workout rating - 8/10

General warmup -

1) dynamic stretches and swings
2) bar complex with 30lbs - RDL+shrug onto toes, military press and hang powerclean
3) scapular pushups - on bench x 15, on floor x 15

4) Stretched side of neck, traps, quad/hip flexor and external hip rotor on the warmup sets - 15secs each

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1min on warmups and 3.5 mins between each exercise on work sets
and then 4 mins when I dropped some exercises out

Chest Supported 45 degree T-Bar Rows - Overhand grip

warmups - semi explosive and 3 sec ISO hold at top on last rep of each set - Bar+25lbs x5, +45 x4, +70 x4, +90 x3, +115 x3, +135x1 (no iso)

controlled, 3sec ISO hold at the top
Rotation 1) Bar + 135lbs x 4 --> hard
Rotation 2) Bar + 135lbs x 4 --> easier
Rotation 3) Bar + 135lbs x 4 (+1 extra full set)
Rotation 4) Bar + 135lbs x 3 --> last rep pretty hard

Felt much easier this week vs last week. But ISO holds still always make you work real hard, you can't just heave it up. Posterior chain was tensed up too. Work capacity is on the up and up. Will stay here another week I think.
These 2 guys I see each week saw me do the 3rd set from behind, and joked about me only do 4 reps and thought I only had a plate there, but when they saw 3 plates that made em think a bit

I haven't seen too many people at my gym can do 3 or more plates for a few honest sets...

Dip Shrugs

Warmups - lockout hold x 10sec + 4 reps, BW 3x4, 10lbs x4

3 sec ISO at top and bottom
Rotation 1) BW+20lbs x 8 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) BW+20lbs x 6

Even though my triceps are only contracting staticly, the outer part is getter bigger from em

Elbow On knee External rotation

warmups - 1kg x 8, 3kg x5, 4kg x 5, 5kg x5, 15lbs x2

3 sec Hold at parallel - 1min rest between each arm
Rotation 1) 20lbs x 5

really hard so only did one set. Will back off next time.

-----------------------

various static stretches for whole upper body and some lower body

coolcolj · May 16, 2006

Anthrax Invasion said:
Would you count a hop as up and down, or just up, and then the hop down counts as another rep?

up as one rep, then down part as part of the next rep

silver_shadow · May 16, 2006

coolcolj said:
up as one rep, then down part as part of the next rep

so you'd alternate legs... 10 secs one leg and 10 secs the other? you are refering to doing single leg at a time right? i didn't get this: " down part as part of the next rep". does this mean that the down part with the next up part is a rep or down one rep, up one rep? 16-18 in 10 secs sounds alot either way.

coolcolj · May 17, 2006

silver_shadow said:
so you'd alternate legs... 10 secs one leg and 10 secs the other? you are refering to doing single leg at a time right? i didn't get this: " down part as part of the next rep". does this mean that the down part with the next up part is a rep or down one rep, up one rep? 16-18 in 10 secs sounds alot either way.

no 2 legged hop. Just count how many times you land ontop the step, sorted

it is if you try and muscle things, the only way you'll get there is to be smooth, relaxed and reflexive, while going as fast as you can - just like sprinting. I've done 33 reps in 20secs on a 6inch step when I was a fat 219lbs
is pretty tiring :chomp:

right click and save to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolcolj2/Movies/CCJ_RFI_TwoLeggedHopPR_20sec_33hops_11Nov04.mpg

I'm leaner now at around 200lbs and 6inches feels pretty damn easy, I went up to a 12inch step and have done 15 reps in 10secs.

right click and save to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au..._2LeggedHop_12inchStep10sec_15reps_4May06.mpg

once 12inches is really easy and I get up to 16-17 reps, I'll go up to 18inches.
My vertical jump should be in the 40inch area by then hopefully

Then maybe try single leg on a 6 inch step. Single leg ones require you to be
a lot stronger. Pretty advanced unless your really light and lean. Double the impact forces

--------------------
Not great sleep. Waking pulse is coming back down to 64, but still pretty damn high. Moderately sore all over.

weighed 90kg 198lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Medium carbs yesterday, carb and calorie up today.

12min walk, light active recovery work, and easy stretching

KOArtist · May 17, 2006

what on earth is that mystical, invisible step you're bouncing off of homie??? lol....is it a flat step, or a sloped wall like it looks like "down the road" on the camera view? Just wondering, lemme know. By the way, I think you got 34

silver_shadow · May 17, 2006

coolcolj said:
no 2 legged hop. Just count how many times you land ontop the step, sorted

it is if you try and muscle things, the only way you'll get there is to be smooth, relaxed and reflexive, while going as fast as you can - just like sprinting. I've done 33 reps in 20secs on a 6inch step when I was a fat 219lbs
is pretty tiring

right click and save to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolcolj2/Movies/CCJ_RFI_TwoLeggedHopPR_20sec_33hops_11Nov04.mpg

I'm leaner now at around 200lbs and 6inches feels pretty damn easy, I went up to a 12inch step and have done 15 reps in 10secs.

right click and save to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au..._2LeggedHop_12inchStep10sec_15reps_4May06.mpg

once 12inches is really easy and I get up to 16-17 reps, I'll go up to 18inches.
My vertical jump should be in the 40inch area by then hopefully
Then maybe try single leg on a 6 inch step. Single leg ones require you to be
a lot stronger. Pretty advanced unless your really light and lean. Double the impact forces

--------------------
Not great sleep. Waking pulse is coming back down to 64, but still pretty damn high. Moderately sore all over.

weighed 90kg 198lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Medium carbs yesterday, carb and calorie up today.

12min walk, light active recovery work, and easy stretching

thanks, gotta spread some k around

coolcolj · May 17, 2006

KOArtist said:
what on earth is that mystical, invisible step you're bouncing off of homie??? lol....is it a flat step, or a sloped wall like it looks like "down the road" on the camera view? Just wondering, lemme know. By the way, I think you got 34

In the first vid it's a normal set of stairs, it's just cut into the stone wall you see

Well 34 just after the countdown timer went off

--------------------

Pretty tired today. Waking pulse is back down under 60 though.

weighed 91kg 200.2lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Overall musclemass is back up to where it used to be just about by the look of things. I've lost an inch off my waist so that should be a 5lb loss in bodyweight from when I was 205+lbs.

coolcolj · May 18, 2006

Thursday 18th May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 3 - Day 3 - Lower Strength - Microcycle 8

Pretty good workout, stronger all round - squats were hard work in a good way, cleanpulls felt lighter and snappier and leg curls felt much easier.
I even rested only 2.5 mins on the later sets

Vertical jump was up a very tiny bit, which is nice since I'm 4lbs heavier than last week!

Bodyweight at gym - 203lbs
Workout time - 1.75 hour
Workout rating - 8/10

General warmup -

20sec ISO holds - quarter squat, on toes, on heels (toes pulled up), hip back wide stance squat at parallel, on side of feet (for ankles), narrow fullsquat at bottom on toes

1) dynamic stretches and swings, rocking on side of ankle etc
2) back extension BWx5 + 4 twisting to each alternate side
3) reverse hypers - BWx9
4) situp complex on swissball
5) adductor/hammie stretch into back tumbells x9
6) usual bar complex with 30lbs
7) various hops

8) worked up to a few sets max effort vertical jumps. Then did 2 jumps on each round of the warmups for the exercises below until I switched to oly shoes on the 225lb fullsquats

Slightly higher and felt much snappier, landings were very solid and stable.

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1-2mins on warmups and 3+ mins between each exercise on work sets

Full Squats - high bar, medium stance - Oly Shoes - no Belt

warmups - Explosive in sneakers - BWx8, BARx5, 95x4, 135x4, 185x4
Controlled down explode up in oly shoes - 225x4, 225x3, 285x2

Controlled down, driven up hard
Rotation 1) 295lbs x 5 (+1 rep) --> last rep hard, close to failure
Rotation 2) 295lbs x 5 --> last rep harder
Rotation 3) 295lbs x 5 --> harder still
Rotation 4) 295lbs x 4 --> last 2 reps gut busting

Well squats didn't feel any lighter, but form was better, and I powered em up much faster. Pretty hard work, but in a good way. Felt real good. Guess my max would be around 350lbs. Will go up to 315lbs next week and do it all over again. So far so good, squatting once every 9 days. Gonna ride this out while it lasts.

CleanPulls - Oly Shoes - HookGrip - no Belt

Warmups -
in sneakers - Hang Powerclean Bar x 5 + 2 high hang squatcleans
Powerclean + HangPowerclean + high hang squatclean 89lbs, 111lbs, 131lbs, 155lbs
in oly shoes - Powerclean - 205x1, 225x1

Lowered each rep under control RDL style, 10second rest between each rep and reset
Rotation 1) 235lbs x 2
Rotation 2) 235lbs x 2
Rotation 3) 235lbs x 2

Felt much easier than last week, especially in the lowering bit and there was a nice pop to em, going up to 243lbs next week.
205lb powerclean was ok, but the 225lb single was crappy. My form just goes to crap when I go over 90%, I guess that means I should not max out on em...oh well 225lb should be starting to get easy as my squat continues to go up.

clip of 1st worksets of squats, cleanpulls and 205 powerclean. You can hear the crappy curved bar, that hardly spins, squeak on the olys..especially when I rotate the bar to line it up so it doesn't flip in my hands.... One day I would like to experience a proper oly bar

Right click on link and save as to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au...95x5_PowerClean205_CleanPull235x2_18May06.mpg

Standing Single Leg curl

warmups - 3plates x5, 5P x 3

Dead stop one each rep, semi-explosive, left side first - 30 secs rest between each side
Rotation 1) 5 Plates x 15 (+3reps)
Rotation 2) 5 Plates x 15

popping it up up and down easy as you like, time to go up in weight

--------------

static stretches for hip flexor/quad, glute, addcutor, upper hammie, calves, upper traps, and shoulders

coolcolj · May 18, 2006

Crap sleep, mild drained/warm feeling, sore and achey in every muscle in my body! Off course my upper hammies, calves, quads, glutes, spinal erectors and upper back the most. Abs are pretty trashed too.

A few hours after yesterday's workout my quads started to cramp up a bit whenever I got up or started walking, annoying! I always seem to get that after a straining a lot on squats, especially frontsquats, when the volume gets to a certain amount.

weighed 90.5kg 199.1lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Moderate carbs yesterday and fairly high calories at 2000-2200, feel leaner though.

12min walk, light active recovery work and some easy stretching today

coolcolj · May 19, 2006

Woke up too early again. High waking pulse, still over 60. The last year or so I hardly ever cracked 56! I think the jump in waking pulse might have something to do with my higher leptin levels now the weekly calories and carbs are much higher, and change in training, ie my metabolism is cranking a bit more. Certainly feels it, and more testosterone in my system now

Legs and posterior chain still sore and uncomfortable. Feel strong and powerful though.

weighed 90.1kg 198.2lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Carbing up today

Anthrax Invasion · May 19, 2006

coolcolj said:
...and more testosterone in my system now ...

And at the same time, that avatar cycles back...

What's she trying to catch in her mouth, man?

coolcolj · May 21, 2006

Anthrax Invasion said:
And at the same time, that avatar cycles back...

What's she trying to catch in her mouth, man?

I think it was an ice cream :verygood:

------------

Dog woke me up me at 1:30am - grrr. Feeling strong. Legs and posterior chain still quite sore. Upper body a bit beat from part time job

weighed 90.8kg 199.76lbs straight out of bed in underwear

coolcolj · May 21, 2006

Sunday 21st May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 4 - Day 1 - Upper 2 Prehab_Rehab - Microcycle 8

Felt kinda spaced out but I was stronger all round for sure. Even if my upper body was a bit beat up.

Bodyweight at gym - 204lbs in winter clothing
Workout time - 1.5+ hours
Workout rating - 7/10

General warmup -

1) whole body dynamic stretches and swings
2) back extensions x6 + 6 twisting toe each side
3) situp complex on swissball
4) bar complex with 30lbs - slow hang clean pulls, press, GM onto toes, snatch grip press, and hang power clean
3) scapular pushups - on bench x 15, on floor x 15

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1min on warmups and 2 to 2.5 mins between each exercise on work sets

All the exercises were stopped when the burn started to get high, form deviated and I started to strain excessively

Shoulder width pulldowns to sternum

warmups - 30kg x 8+hold, 45kg x5+hold, 60kg x5+hold

controlled, 2 sec ISO hold at chest, 2 sec pause at top
Rotation 1) 70kg x 7 (+5kg -1 rep)
Rotation 2) 65kg x 7

Felt much stronger on these

16inch grip standing Military Press - pushed behind the head at the top

Warmups - controlled with hold at top - Bar x 5, 65lbs x 5, 85lbs x 5

2 sec pause at bottom, controlled up, 3 sec hold at top, slowish down
Rotation 1) 95lbs x 8
Rotation 2) 95lbs x 7

Getting easier, will stay here until I get 2 sets of 8 I think

Steep angle Rows to ribcage - pulling with mid/low traps and delts

warmups - 15lbs x8+hold, 30x5+hold, 40x5+ hold,

2 sec hold at top, slow down, 2 sec pause at bottom
Rotation 1) 50lbs x 10( +1rep)
Rotation 2) 50lbs x 8

Dumbell Bench - arms/elbows by side - neutral grip

warmups - 15lbs x 10, 30x5, 40x5

2 sec pause at bottom, controlled up, slight hold then shoulders pushed up off bench, slow down.
Rotation 1) 50lbs x 10 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) 45lbs x 10

Getting easier

Dumbell Curls

warmups - 2kg x 10, 15lbs x 5, 30x5, 35x3

Rotation 1) 40lbs x 9 (+1 rep)
Rotation 2) 40lbs x 7

-----------------------

Cooldown - Restorative - ISO stretches

single arm Face Pulls - 25lbs x 6, 50lbs x 17 each side
Low pulley External rotation - 10lbs x 17 each side

Facedown one armed subscap rotation with hold at top - 3kg x 10
Pushup/Dip stretched ISO hold - knee supported x 1 min
Subscap raises 4kg x 15 + 30sec Pec/Subscap stretched ISO hold
Overhead Pullover/lat stretched ISO hold on dip bar x 30secs

static stretches for upper body/cuffs and some lower body

coolcolj · May 21, 2006

Interrupted sleep, but ok as far as total amount goes. Look tired though.
Upper body pretty sore - lats, biceps and triceps. Posterior chain and legs still sore, especially my spinal erectors which got nailed a bit yesterday as well.

weighed 90.7kg 199.54lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Waist still the same, musclemass is up, look tighter/leaner. Last 2 weeks have got my leptin levels and metabolism back into better shape. Will tweak things and start get the waist going back down again - move the 1st carb up day from Weds to Thursday, tighten up the low carb days, and start taking some longer walks a couple of hours after training so they don't get in the way of things. They might actually help recovery. Will keep the shorter walks on the off days.

silver_shadow · May 22, 2006

coolcolj said:
I think it was an ice cream

------------

Dog woke me up me at 1:30am - grrr. Feeling strong. Legs and posterior chain still quite sore. Upper body a bit beat from part time job

weighed 90.8kg 199.76lbs straight out of bed in underwear

naw... just some protein shakes

coolcolj · May 22, 2006

Only 6 hours of deep sleep, and then lying in bed for 4...ugh
Still a bit sore all over. Butt freezing cold! Will have to train covered up on the sprints today, and be careful I don't snap something...

weighed 90.2kg 198.44lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Getting back on the fat loss track. The cold temps should help too

Had a 12min walk yesterday and lots of stretching. Especially my left glute/hip, which is a lot tighter than my right side.

coolcolj · May 22, 2006

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dehwang

notice they do a lot more than just olympic lifts and squats

Anthrax Invasion · May 22, 2006

coolcolj said:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dehwang

notice they do a lot more than just olympic lifts and squats

Who are they, exactly?

coolcolj · May 22, 2006

Anthrax Invasion said:
Who are they, exactly?

umm Chinese oly lifters?

Anthrax Invasion · May 22, 2006

coolcolj said:
umm Chinese oly lifters?

It was just kind've random. You tend to find things like that out of nowhere.

Wasn't sure if they were anyone special, like some national team or something.

coolcolj · May 23, 2006

Anthrax Invasion said:
It was just kind've random. You tend to find things like that out of nowhere.

Wasn't sure if they were anyone special, like some national team or something.

Some of them are elite level, off course the kids aren't

coolcolj · May 23, 2006

Tuesday 23rd May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 3 - Day 1 - Speed - Microcycle 8

Ok workout, damn cold so I wasn't really feeling hyper. My usual field was taken over by school kids so i want back to the other field I used to train at. And it was pretty bad, really uneven, and not too much traction. Too much dirt and not enough grass.
Rested a bit longer today, but still dropped off quicker today. Intensity was higher though

Bodyweight in winter clothing - 199.8lbs
Workout Rating - 7/10
Workout time - around 1+ hour

General Warmup

warmup at home - 20sec ISO holds each - quarter squat, standing on toes, on heels (toes pulled up), hip back wide stance squat at parallel, on side of feet (for ankles), narrow fullsquat at bottom on toes.

dynamic stretches and swings, rocking on side of ankle, standing on one leg with eyes shut, various hops and run in place in bare feet at home. Massaged bottom of feet and arches against side of bathtub

Warmup at park -
Slow Jog - 56m x 4 - 1.5 mins rest, getting faster on each run

Run complex increasing in speed each run to 70% speed - 1.5 mins rest

3 sets - trying to stay as smooth, relaxed and fluid as possible
25m prime times (stiffed legged runs), 10m straight run, then into lateral run, right side 5m, left side 5m, into backwards run 5m, then three 360 pivots runs

Rotating sets between each exercise

1.5 mins in warmups and 3.5 to 4 mins rest between each on worksets

Sprints on Grass Field in spikes - hand timed

warmups - a few sets of 2 acceleration runs, slow buildups and later on 90% effort runs from a 3 point start.

Did a short burst of fast running on the spot and one vertical jump before each sprint

Rotation 1 a) short sprint from 3 point start - 4.81 secs
rest 3.5 mins
b) short sprint from 3 point start - miss timed

Rotation 2 a) short sprint from 3 point start - 4.91 secs
rest 3.5 mins
b) short sprint from 3 point start - miss timed

Rotation 3 a) short sprint from 3 point start - 5.13 secs
rest 3.5 mins
b) sprint width of park from 3 point start - 12.6 secs

Not sure of the exact distance of the short sprint, but it's probably longer than 30m or else I ran real slow today....
I should not have done the 3rd rotation of sprints as I was already tired as seen in the single leg hops below,
where I did the 2nd set of hops before hand, and my right ankle was pretty jarred up.

Clip of the 2nd and 3rd run below. I popped straight up today, the lack of traction on the field doesn't help.
I dunno i just ran different today, but it seems that I don't get enough drive/pull from each stride. And I seem to brake
a bit on each foot landing. Gonna can the stiff legged sprints in the warmup, because they are probably part of the problem.
I'm starting to run like that! But when I look at the clip frame by frame in the video editor, my leg is full extending behind...WTF
Seem to be getting slower and slower....

Right click on link and save as to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolco...2_3_23May06.mpg

Alttitude drops/Depth Jumps

Warmup - altitude drops - 12 inch x 2, 18inch x 1
submaximal depthjumps - 12 inch x 2, 18 inch x 2, 26 inch x 1

Rotation 1) Altitude drop off 4 steps (30inch?) x 1 onto concrete, rest 10secs, off ledge - 40 inch x 1 onto grass
rest 1min - DepthJump off 4 steps x 3 onto concrete

Rotation 2) Altitude drop off 4 steps (30inch?) x 1 onto concrete, rest 10secs, off ledge - 40 inch x 1 onto grass
rest 1min - DepthJump off 4 steps x 3 onto concrete

1m drop from the ledge onto grass felt pretty easy. The lower one off 4 steps onto concrete felt a lot harder, due to the forward momentum
since you have to clear the lower steps. 1st set felt good, 2nd didn't feel too powerful

Single Leg Hops on/off a 3 inch step - 2 mins after the above

Warmup - 2 legged 6 inch step 3x10, 1 legged x 5

max reps in 10 seconds - 1 min rest between each side, left first
Rotation 1) Left side - mistimed Right side - 16
Rotation 2) Left side - 15 Right side - 13

The last time I tried these, my shins were hurtin bad. Not so today. Surprised I was able to get as high as 16 on em.
Left felt good, right side a bit more awkard due to my body protecting my old ankle injury.
Ankle not every stiff/solid though, on a few reps where my feet didn't land on the step fully my heel would dip down a lot.
The 2nd set, my form was shot, and that's where I jarred my old right ankle injury, ouch

Didn't land my whole foot on the step and bam the heel dipped and strained it.
I should have called it a day then, as I definitely had dropped off, but stupid me went and did 2 more sprints...

Anthrax Invasion · May 23, 2006

coolcolj said:
Some of them are elite level, off course the kids aren't

You sure? Those poverty-stricken youth seemed badass to me. I swear, I don't understand how toothpick arms hold up any weight. Props to them.

ChinkNasty · May 23, 2006

yea, some of those bros are jacked

coolcolj · May 23, 2006

WOW 7.5 hours of deep sleep and another 2.5 hours of lying in bed. Been a while since I had that. Maybe why I don't feel drained at all after some serious CNS cooking stuff yesterday
Not too sore either, achey all over but mostly in my calves and spinal erectors. My bum right ankle doesn't even hurt WTF....

weighed 90.5kg 199.1lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Bodyweight went up...strange...

12min walk today, easy active recovery stuff and some light stretching

-----

LOL - I ordered a Video Card from an internet store - Gainward 7900gt 512mb agp video card for my PC

paid via direct deposit that night, but I cancelled my order the next morning....

here is something strange - even though I cancelled my order and got the money refunded back into my account. On Friday the shop emailed me saying my order had shipped, and this morning they sent me a receipt of the purchase.....

If the video card actually arrives here today, I guess I can have my cake and eat it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

F*Ck me dead a parcel arrived today after a few days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Opened the package just then and damn that's a Gainward box sitting in there!!!!!

gonna sit on this card for a week and see if they don't ask me to pay for it....

damn, damn damn...!!

Anthrax Invasion · May 23, 2006

AGP? Blahhh man.

asdfzxcv · May 23, 2006

Anthrax Invasion said:
AGP? Blahhh man.

Accerated graphics port,connects the motherboard of the computer to the graphics card or something like that.

silver_shadow · May 24, 2006

asdfzxcv said:
Accerated graphics port,connects the motherboard of the computer to the graphics card or something like that.

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/agp.htm

super_rice · May 25, 2006

no, agp = ancient graphics port

Anthrax Invasion · May 25, 2006

asdfzxcv said:
Accerated graphics port,connects the motherboard of the computer to the graphics card or something like that.

AGP = teh SuX

PCI-E = Where it's at

Gymgurl · May 25, 2006

Keep up the nice work.....looks solid

super_rice · May 25, 2006

Anthrax Invasion said:
AGP = teh SuX

PCI-E = Where it's at

the voodoo2 sli will always have a special place in my heart

coolcolj · May 25, 2006

Time to catch up - been busy with new "free" video card

Late night thanks to me trying out my games with max settings

Hammies have a deep down kind of soreness.

weighed 90.5kg 199.1lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Carb loading today. I will go back to my Wednesday carb load as before, because Thursday feels a day late.

----

getting off topic for a bit -

So I installed the "free" PC video card yesterday

This card is basicly a 7900gt in AGP drag....yes it does have 24 pipelines and 512megs of memory but runs on AGP, and can be clocked up close to 7900GTX specs

But wow, I went back and tried all my recent games like COD2 and Oblivion, and cranked the settings up and damn I have been missing out

SM3 and HDR is a whole new world. The Shaders just add freaky detailing.

COD2 looks so detailed and busy with all the extra fruit. Pretty good frame rates. Oblivion on 1152x864 with HDR, and my Sony monitor set to dynamic brightness setting, when outdoors looks so life-like, the sky/clouds, and the colour temp/glare is like real sunlight landscape!!

Frame rate outside with everything on max goes between 20-45fps on average. There is an area in the main city where the dock is that made my 9800 crawl at 1-5 fps! Here I get 17fps, so it's better but not great, wonder why though...

there are still some annoying jerks, but it maybe due to needing more than 1 gig of ram.

My Radeon 9800 never looked like this, the lighting is fantastic, and not at over 70-140fps indoors. No AA with HDR though...

That semi-transparent effect you see is my staff camo'ed by my Chameleon robe

http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolcolj2/Temp/ScreenShot5.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolcolj2/Temp/ScreenShot0.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolcolj2/Temp/ScreenShot2.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolcolj2/Temp/ScreenShot3.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/coolcolj2/Temp/ScreenShot4.JPG

coolcolj · May 25, 2006

Thursday 25th May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 4 - Day 2 - Upper 1 - Microcycle 8

Had a bit of slight headache going to gym, but the workout wasn't too bad.
Felt semi-strong. Damn bodyweight was up by a lot though

I also did a few sets of neutral grip dumbell presses here and there, pretty easy sets of 10 with 15, 30 and 40lb dumbells

Bodyweight at gym - 207lbs in winter clothing
Workout time - 1+ hour
Workout rating - 7/10

General warmup -

1) dynamic stretches and swings
2) bar complex with 30lbs - RDL+shrug onto toes, military press and hang powerclean
3) scapular pushups - on bench x 15, on floor x 15

4) Stretched side of neck, traps, quad/hip flexor and external hip rotor on the warmup sets - 15secs each

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1min on warmups and 3.5 mins between each exercise on work sets
and then 4 mins when I dropped some exercises out

Chest Supported 45 degree T-Bar Rows - Overhand grip

warmups - semi explosive and 3 sec ISO hold at top on last rep of each set - Bar+25lbs x5, +45 x4, +70 x4, +90 x3, +115 x3, +135x1 and + 150 (no iso)

controlled, 3sec ISO hold at the top
Rotation 1) Bar + 150lbs x 4 --> hard +15lbs NEW PR!!
Rotation 2) Bar + 150lbs x 3 + 1 rep without the ISO

135lbs on the warmup finally snapped up fast enpugh to rattle the plates at the top, so I figured it was time to go up in weight and get me a new PR.
150lbs felt pretty hard, posterior chain was tensing fiercely. Funny that the 2nd set felt easier and my posterior chain didn't tense up, but I was able to rep it as good off course. On my road to 4 plates now!

Dip Shrugs

Warmups - lockout hold x 10sec + 4 reps, BW 3x5, 10lbs x5

3 sec ISO at top and bottom
Rotation 1) BW+25lbs x 7 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) BW+25lbs x 5

That was pretty hard, lots of shaking, extra bodyweight from carbup mae it much harder. Will stay here and build up a base

Elbow On knee External rotation

warmups - 1kg x 8, 3kg x5, 4kg x 3, 5kg x3, 15lbs 2x3

30secs rest between each arm
Rotation 1) 20lbs x 3
Rotation 2) 20lbs x 3 --> hard

took it a bit easier realtively speaking. No ISO hold today, still had to work though.

-----------------------

various static stretches for whole upper body and some lower body

coolcolj · May 25, 2006

Better sleep, but not by much, more gaming

Whole body is achey. Upper back and spinal erectors moderately sore.

weighed 91.8kg 199.1lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Damn big increase!

----

well it looks like my CPU is a bit of a bottle neck, I guess it is getting a bit long in the tooth now, even if it's clock speeds are still very good P4 2.8c overclocked to 3.2 to 3.5 gigahertz

I ran that X3 rolling demo, and not matter how low or high the settings on the video card were, the frame rates didn't change all that much. Especially in the 2nd part of the demo with the combat and stuff, framerate gets really ragged getting as low as 8, averaging around 20-25.

So I probbaly won't bother getting more ram or a new PSU. I'll need to remove the massive Zalman heatsink and fan to get the power supply out, something I'm not too keen on right now...

Plus I can't use DDR ram in my future system so no point in getting more.
Looks like I'll stay put and get a new Intel Conroe system together, with 4 gigs of DDR2 ram to future proof myself and never have to use a disk cache
Just a matter of when to jump onto the new wagon....

I imagine if I had one of the new cpus, the minimum framerates would be doubled up.

Some more Oblivion eye candy - if I said these were ingame screenshots 5 years ago, nobody would have believed me!

Not only that but everything in the scene animates and moves - the clouds, sky, trees grass etc, and the weather, sun, lighting all change dynamicly in real time. CG didn't look much better 10 years ago...

http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Temp/ScreenShot24.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Temp/ScreenShot8.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Temp/ScreenShot23.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Temp/ScreenShot11.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Temp/ScreenShot12.JPG
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Temp/ScreenShot21.JPG

I took a look at HL2:Lost coast with everything maxed yesterday and I was rather unimpressed....

Now to try out more games!

coolcolj · May 25, 2006

Gymgurl said:
Keep up the nice work.....looks solid

thanks

-----

yeah AGP is old, but I'm not upgrading just yet. This "free" video card is gonna keep the wait for a new PC system a bit more sane. Until Windows Vista, the new Intel Conroe processor and the next wave of direct X 10 videocard come out

My 380w powersupply is maxed out with this card though....

maybe I should sell this videocard for 100% profit...

Anthrax Invasion · May 26, 2006

Bah, you go Intel? Try out AMD man. I used to be a Pentium fan-boy. Got myself a nice Venice Core Athlon - won't ever go back. Even when you do the formula to find the equivalent Intel CPU, the AMD runs smoother.

I got a big power supply ahead of time. I think I'm running a 500W unit. NUUO or something? I forget, something with an N. This stuff just slips my mind once I put the PC together.

Oblivion is great. My girl loves watching me play it - she did anyway. I stopped now, 'cause it got old. It was a beautiful game.

I'm still partial to F.E.A.R. It was an enthralling game, although I picked out a few problems with it rather quick, and there went a lot of my joy.

Show us some damn progress pics, by the way. Let's see how lean your ass looks.

silver_shadow · May 26, 2006

yep AMD dual cores are the way to go... blazingly fast compared to those crappy intels

michaellapeer@hotmail.com · May 26, 2006

silver_shadow said:
yep AMD dual cores are the way to go... blazingly fast compared to those crappy intels

A Mac guy myself — PC's always seemed too slow.

Anthrax Invasion · May 26, 2006

silver_shadow said:
yep AMD dual cores are the way to go... blazingly fast compared to those crappy intels

I'm not even running a dual-core. Too new for me. I'll let the price dip a little.

coolcolj · May 26, 2006

you guys must be out of the loop, older and current Intels are slower in games...

but the new Intel Conroe, even the lower speed 2.66 ghtz one is 20+% faster than the fastest AMD right now and even the new AM2 chip! And the top of the range 3 gigahertz version is even faster...

http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=5692&page=3

as for progress pics, when the time is right I'll post em. I'm still fat as hell!

---------
8 hours of sleep, but it felt disturbed. Spinal erectors a bit gimpy, upper back still sore. Looking forward to squatting tommorrow

weighed 91.4kg 198.88lbs straight out of bed in underwear

carbing up today. Not losing much fat, but I'm not getting fatter either. Man I still feel really bloaty even after then 20lb drop so far
Musclemass is going up though

coolcolj · May 27, 2006

Feel worn out and tired. Upper body beat up from part time job.
Need a good nap before training today

weighed 92.4kg 203.28lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Bloated

Anthrax Invasion · May 28, 2006

AMD will regain top place again. And I was referring to what's available on the market now.

coolcolj · May 28, 2006

Sunday 28th May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 5 - Day 1 - Lower Strength - Microcycle 8

Not a bad workout, considering how crappy I felt this morning. I also felt a bit queezy during the workout like a low blood sugar type of feeling, but different, so power wasn't at peak, but I'm stronger than last time.
It's been 10 days since I last squatted too, and maybe I have lost some gains, but I'm still making progress in any case.

Vertical jump was the same as last week, my current peak at the gym, but I'm 4lbs heavier due to the carb bloat. So that's not too shabby, power is increasing. Now if I can get my gym weight back down to 198lbs, I should be jumping 3 inches higher....

Bodyweight at gym - 207lbs in t-shirt and track pants.
Workout time - 1.75 hour
Workout rating - 7/10

General warmup -

20sec ISO holds - quarter squat, on toes, on heels (toes pulled up), hip back wide stance squat at parallel, on side of feet (for ankles), narrow fullsquat at bottom on toes

1) dynamic stretches and swings, rocking on side of ankle etc
2) back extension BWx5 + 4 twisting to each alternate side
3) reverse hypers - BWx9
4) situp complex on swissball
5) adductor/hammie stretch into back tumbells x9
6) usual bar complex with 30lbs
7) various hops

8) worked up to a few sets max effort vertical jumps. Then did 2 jumps on each round of the warmups for the exercises below until I switched to oly shoes on the 225lb fullsquats

Same as current peak, landings felt very good, even more solid and stable.

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1-2mins on warmups and 3.5 mins between each exercise on work sets

Full Squats - high bar, medium stance - Oly Shoes - no Belt

warmups - Explosive in sneakers, first 3 reps more controlled down, then the rest divebombed - BWx8, BARx8, 95x6, 135x6, 185x6
Controlled down explode up in oly shoes - 225x5, 265x3, 295x2

Controlled down, driven up hard
Rotation 1) 315lbs x 4 (+20lbs -1 rep) --> last rep hard, close to failure
Rotation 2) 315lbs x 4 --> gut busting grind on last rep, just barely made it!
Rotation 3) 315lbs x 3 --> hard strain on last rep

Up we go again. Damn that last rep of 2nd set was an all out strain, I was that close to getting buried by it! But I got it, and form was rock solid while doing it. It's good to see that even with all the explosive and speed work I'm doing, I am straining better than ever.
Dropped off real fast today though, compared to the previous weeks. Will stay here like before until I get a few sets 5, and then onto 335lbs.. and just keep bumping it up.

clip of the 1st and 3rd work set with 315lbs, camera didn't record the 2nd set due to it being in the wrong mode

Right click on link and save as to avoid errors
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Movies/CCJ_FullSquat315x4_x3_28May06.mpg

CleanPulls - Oly Shoes - HookGrip - no Belt

Warmups -
in sneakers - Hang Powerclean Bar x 5 + 2 high hang squatcleans
Powerclean + HangPowerclean + high hang squatclean 89lbs, 111lbs, 131lbs, 155lbs
in oly shoes - Powerclean - 205x1, CleanPull + eccentric RDL 225x1

Lowered each rep under control RDL style, 10second rest between each rep and reset
Rotation 1) 243lbs x 2
Rotation 2) 243lbs x 2

Up from 235lbs last wrokout. Felt good.
Warmup complex sets were all banged out like nothing

Standing Single Leg curl

warmups - 3plates x5,

Dead stop one each rep, semi-explosive, left side first - 30 secs rest between each side
Rotation 1) 6 Plates x 10 (+1 plate -5reps)
Rotation 2) 6 Plates x 10

--------------
Lat machine situp - BW x 8 - 2 sec pause at the bottom of each rep

static stretches for hip flexor/quad, glute, addcutor, upper hammie, calves, upper traps, and shoulders

coolcolj · May 29, 2006

Late night. Mild drained warm feeling. Achey all over - Quads, calves, glutes, spinal erector inner groin are and upper back pretty sore. Leg curls hammer my calves! I wonder if this is the reason why my shin splinty pain when sprinting or hopping single leg is now gone?

Damn quads wanted to cramp up last night after training again!

weighed 92kg 202.4lbs straight out of bed in underwear
Went to a birthday party last night so lots of food and drinks in me...

20min walk, active recovery work and some easy stretching. Also did some scapular wall slides - can finally do em without discomfort.

coolcolj · May 29, 2006

Better sleep - 6.5 hours of deep sleep and another 4 hours of half sleep. Quads, spinal erectors and upperback still sore. Achey feet from walk.
Legs have blown up!

weighed 91.3kg 200.86lbs straight out of bed in underwear

Waist was half an inch more yesterday, today it's back to my current lowest - odd. The bodyweight drop is consistant with my waist drop too....maybe the walking is much more effective now that my leptin levels and metabolism is in better shape.
Took in about 2200 cals and 150g of carbs - so more cals and carbs than I normally take on my low day. Don't want to go to extremes right now, as musclemass, strength and hormones are more important than I thought. Just a matter of getting the right balance. So I'll play it by ear and experiment a bit.
Been only taking in 5 litres of ice cold water, need to crank it back up to the 9 litre area, but it's harder now since its cold and stuff....brrr

coolcolj · May 30, 2006

Tuesday 30th May - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 5 - Day 2 - Upper 2 Prehab_Rehab - Microcycle 8

Ok workout, average I guess, but still progressing steadily.
Did shoulder dislocates at the end of the workout. Tendons inside my shoulder no longer get torn up when doing em. Damn did my pecs get a mega stretch!

Bodyweight at gym - 206lbs in winter clothing
Workout time - 1.5+ hours
Workout rating - 8/10

General warmup -

1) whole body dynamic stretches and swings
2) back extensions x6 + 6 twisting toe each side
3) situp complex on swiss ball
4) bar complex with 30lbs - slow hang clean pulls, press, GM onto toes, snatch grip press, and hang power clean
3) scapular pushups - on bench x 15, on floor x 15

Rotating Sets between each exercise

Resting 1min on warmups and 2 to 2.5 mins between each exercise on work sets

All the exercises were stopped when the burn started to get high, form deviated and I started to strain excessively

Shoulder width pulldowns to sternum

warmups - 35kg x 9+hold, 45kg x5+hold, 60kg x5+hold

controlled, 2 sec ISO hold at chest, 2 sec pause at top
Rotation 1) 70kg x 8 (+1 rep)
Rotation 2) 70kg x 7

Surprisingly easier, time to go up in weight.

16inch grip standing Military Press - pushed behind the head at the top

Warmups - controlled with hold at top - Bar x 5, 65lbs x 5, 85lbs x 5

2 sec pause at bottom, controlled up, 3 sec hold at top, slowish down
Rotation 1) 95lbs x 8
Rotation 2) 95lbs x 7

Much easier, may or may not go up to 105lbs next time, well see.

Steep angle dumbbell Rows to ribcage - pulling with mid/low traps and delts

warmups - 15lbs x8+hold, 30x5+hold, 45x5+ hold,

2 sec hold at top, slow down, 2 sec pause at bottom
Rotation 1) 55lbs x 8( +5lbs -2reps)
Rotation 2) 55lbs x 7

Dumbbell Bench - arms/elbows by side - neutral grip

warmups - 15lbs x 10, 30x5, 45x5

2 sec pause at bottom, controlled up, slight hold then shoulders pushed up off bench, slow down.
Rotation 1) 55lbs x 10 (+5lbs)
Rotation 2) 50lbs x 10

Dumbbell Curls

warmups - 2kg x 10, 15lbs x 5, 30x5

Rotation 1) 40lbs x 10 (+1 rep)
Rotation 2) 40lbs x 8

time to go up to 45s

-----------------------

Cooldown - Restorative - ISO stretches

single arm Face Pulls - 25lbs x 6, 50lbs x 20 (+3reps) each side
even the strength gains from the chest supported rows are leaking into there - way easier!

Low pulley External rotation - 10lbs x 20 (+3reps) each side - killer burn!

Face down one armed subscap rotation with hold at top - 3kg x 12 (+2)
Pushup/Dip stretched ISO hold - knee supported x 1 min
Subscap raises 4kg x 17 + 30sec Pec/Subscap stretched ISO hold
Overhead Pullover/lat stretched ISO hold on dip bar x 30secs

Shoulder dislocates with wooden staff - did lots of em working up to my snatch grip width (bar sitting in hip crease). Pecs felt very tight, and not able to get my arms locked out straight. So will keep at em until I can do so, and swing the bar around real easily and then move my hands in a bit and repeat to give me some ROM breathing space.

static stretches for upper body/cuffs and some lower body

coolcolj · May 31, 2006

Mild drained feeling, which i normally get after a lighter workout like yesterday..hmmm..high waking pulse too. Sore all over, damn my rear delts are trashed. VMO and posterior chain pretty sore too

weighed 91.1kg 200.4lbs straight out of bed in underwear
carbing up today.

20 min walk and light active recovery work, plus some easy stretching

Anthrax Invasion · May 31, 2006

I carb-up Thursday night.

I can't fucking wait.

Pancakes, cap'n crunch, tons of milk (skim, but hey, I can deal), white rice w/soy sauce, and maybe some ice cream if I can swing it.

coolcolj · May 31, 2006

Anthrax Invasion said:
I carb-up Thursday night. I can't fucking wait.

Pancakes, cap'n crunch, tons of milk (skim, but hey, I can deal), white rice w/soy sauce, and maybe some ice cream if I can swing it.

meh I have to force myself to eat usually

------

Upper back still sore, legs and hips feel strong though. Achey/stiff feet though
see how I run today, damn heavy though....

weighed 92.3kg 203lbs straight out of bed in underwear
had to force myself to eat yesterday - interesting

didn't walk yesterday like I had planned.

coolcolj · Jun 1, 2006

Thursday 1st June - Cycle 3 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 5 - Day 3 - Speed - Microcycle 8

Pretty darn slow today. Quite a bit heavier today than last time, 5lbs, even then I don't think it would make that much of a difference. I felt ok, but not really hyper, and right ankle was bugging me a bit too.

Looks like I'm overreaching a bit - getting stronger in the gym, but speed is down. So it's time to unload and reap the gains in speed and power.
I have a basic plan of whaat the next couple of weeks will be like - I'll put it up tommorrow

Bodyweight in t-shirt and long pants - 204.6lbs
Workout Rating - 7/10
Workout time - around 1.5 hours

General Warmup

warmup at home - 20sec ISO holds each - quarter squat, standing on toes, on heels (toes pulled up), hip back wide stance squat at parallel, on side of feet (for ankles), narrow fullsquat at bottom on toes.

dynamic stretches and swings, rocking on side of ankle, standing on one leg with eyes shut, various hops and run in place in bare feet at home. Massaged bottom of feet and arches against side of bathtub

Warmup at park -
Slow Jog - 56m x 4 - 1.5 mins rest, getting faster on each run

Run complex increasing in speed each run to 70% speed - 1.5 mins rest

2 sets - trying to stay as smooth, relaxed and fluid as possible
25m prime times (stiffed legged runs), 10m straight run, then into lateral run, right side 5m, left side 5m, into backwards run 5m, then three 360 pivots runs

Rotating sets between each exercise

1.5 mins in warmups and 3.5 to 4 mins rest between each on worksets

Alttitude drops/Depth jumps off steps landing on concrete

Warmup - altitude drops - 12 inch x 2, 18inch x 2
submaximal depthjumps - 12 inch x 2, 18 inch x 2, 26 inch x 1

Rotation 1) Altitude drop - 26 inch x 1, rest 10secs, 34 inch x 1
rest 1min - DepthJump 26 inches x 3

Rotation 2) Altitude drop - 26 inch x 1, rest 10secs, 34 inch x 1
rest 10secs, tried one more drop from 34inches, bounced forward
rest 1min - DepthJump 26 inches x 3

ok, not great

2 leg Hops on/off a 12 inch step - 2 mins after the above

Warmup - 6 inch step x10, x5, 12inch step x5,

15 reps
Rotation 1) my form and balance was all over the place!

Lost my countdown timer so I was going to just time how long it took me to do 16 reps, but my form was horrible! They were ok during the warmups though...

Sprints on Grass Field in spikes - hand timed

warmups - a few sets of 2 acceleration runs, slow buildups and later on 90% effort runs from a 3 point start.

Did a short burst of fast running on the spot and one vertical jump before each sprint

Rotation 1 a) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 4.29 secs
rest 3.5 mins
b) 30m sprint from standing start - 4.31 secs

Rotation 2 a) 30m sprint from 3 point start - 4.35 secs
rest 3.5 mins
b) 60m sprint from 3 point start - 7.71 secs
rest 3.5 mins
c) 40m sprint from 3 point start - 5.66 secs

Damn, half a second slower over 30m!!! That's a lot. Current PR is 3.84 secs, and other runs were slower across the board too, although I was tired in em, and there was some headwind too.

coolcolj · Jun 1, 2006

While I don't feel drained like when I do weights, I do feel sapped out. Slight dryness in my lips and my throat was sore this morning when I woke up, but it's not as bad now. Neck area feels kinda slightly inflamed/swollen.
Yeap definite signs of advanced overreaching....
Achey feet/ankles, hamstrings a bit strained, overall achey feeling in my whole body.

That's the thing with intense plyos and max effort sprints, they don't smash you like weights do, they just creep up on you and by the time you notice it's too late. Anyway I've been overdoing things too, been doing to many sprints even after I have dropped off on the plyos and sprint times. I need to get more disciplined!
I guess the signs were there a week ago, with the drop in work capacity on squats and the fact I felt drained after my light low volume upper body session a few days ago. But you can never be really sure until it happens...

Next 3 weeks will be unloading.
Max effort sprints and plyo day will be ditched - will BBall instead on that day I think. All the ISOs will be dropped - very intense on the CNS. Heavy Upper day will be switched to low volume explosive regular reps. Volume cut in half on the lighter upper body day, and regular reps.
No more jumps on the lower body strength day, just squats and maybe some light clean complex in the warmups and core work. Heavier Cleanpulls and leg curls will be dropped.

some 60-70% effort tempo sprints an hour before my upper session to maintain running form as before.
May revert to a weekly cycle. In that case, will only do one upper body session a week.

weighed 92.2kg 202.84lbs straight out of bed in underwear

12min walk today, active recovery work and easy stretching

coolcolj · Jun 3, 2006

Damn late night, not much sleep 5 hours, but don't feel too bad. Throat still sore, feet/lower legs pretty trashed up too.

weighed 91.3kg 200.86lbs straight out of bed in underwear

carb loading today.

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