Training 12/29

I've decided to change things slightly, basically adding a bit of volume and changing the "split" slightly to possibly allow for a bit more recovery. The 4th weekly session has been garbage, so I'm going to cut back to 3 for the time being, since my recovery is unlikely to get any better for now (i.e., I'm not going to start getting 8-9 solid hours of sleep every night). I've also switched to using Paul Carter's "Base Building" model for now. It's nothing groundbreaking or even particularly different from what I've done in the past, but it is a different setup. We'll see how training body parts 1x per week does in terms of strength, size, etc. I'm dubious, but the results will be what they are.

Close-grip bench - work up to 215x1, then 185 5x8
Incline DB flyes - 40s - 4x10
A. Hammer curls - 25s - 4x10
B. Band tricep pushdowns - gray - 4x10

Training 12/26

Finally felt like I could get a "normal" training session in - didn't have to worry about athletes coming in in the middle of it, I actually felt decent coming off being sick, just a decent day overall.

Military Press - 120x13
A. DB flyes - 60s 1st set, 50s last 4 - 5x10
B. T-bar row - 100 on bar - 5x12
A. Band pushdowns - gray - 5x10
B. Fat bar curls - 60 - 5x10

Like I said, a decent session. Nothing special, but decent enough.

The frustrating thing is, as I continue to try to learn and assimilate as much as I can, that it seems the more I learn and do in my own training, the answer to the best way to train/program is simply "train hard." At least until you get to a pretty high level. What you find is that a lot of different things work. And hell, even at the highest levels you'll find drastically different methods of attaining world-class performances. Steven Francis' methods are dramatically different from those used by Dan Pfaff and Charlie Francis. Certainly facilities, weather, culture, and more will dictate the specifics, but you would think physiology would be the final arbiter.
I say it's frustrating because it seems like there has to be a better way. Note that I'm not talking about shortcuts - hard work will always be a part of the equation - merely that there must be a way of organizing things such that your hard work will garner the optimal results. I'm sure there is, I just haven't found it. Ugh.

Training 12/23

Close grip bench - 100x5, 130x5, 155x3, 165x5, 190x5, 215x10
DB incline bench - 2 mins b/w sets - 70s - 22, 12, 9
Kroc row - 100 - 20 per arm
Lateral raises - 15s - 20; 7 breaths; 10; 10 breaths; 6
Poundstone curls - 70

Was a little disappointed in the 10 reps on the last set of bench, but oh well. I think the weight lost during being sick is at least partially to blame, as I was down to 192 Monday. Probably similar on the DB incline, although the weight just felt heavy as hell. Next week should be better on that.

Training 12/18 & 12/19

Whatever the hell I came down with was still wrecking me last week so training was thrown off a bit. That said, the training itself went decent.

Thursday
Power snatch - worked up to 190x1
Deadlift - worked up to 285x5, then 315x1 and 345x1; all double overhand
A. Glute ham raise - 5x14
B. Hanging leg raise - 5x10

Friday
Military press - worked up to 130x10
A. DB flyes - 3x12
B. T-bar row - had 100 on the bar - 3x12
A. Band pushdowns - gray - 3x12
B. Fat bar curls - 60 - 3x12

Training 12/15

Actually felt decent enough to not only train, but get a pretty decent session in. I slept like shit the night before due to coughing, but it was a night and day difference in terms of how I felt overall Monday compared to feeling like I was on death's door Sunday.

Close grip bench - 100x5, 125x5, 150x3, 190x5, 215x3, 240x5
DB incline bench - 2 mins b/w sets - 65s x30,15,10
Kroc row - 100x35 each arm
Lateral raises - 20sx17, 15sx12, 10sx10
Poundstone curls - 60

All in all, especially considering how I felt on the weekend, I was not at all disappointed with how it went. I went into it kind of figuring I would see how the bench went and decide what to do from there, but everything went pretty well.

Lord knows I'm probably not the one to dispense advice on how best to get shit done. I'm probably the worst procrastinator you'll meet and struggle daily with getting the shit done that I need to. With that said, I'm at least aware of it and am trying to get better. The simplest thing to keep in mind is that it really comes down to just doing what you need to do when it needs to be done. Even if you don't know exactly what you have to do at any time, you probably know that there are certain things that you can do, so do them. It will work out better for you down the road.
The other best advice I can give is to plan your day. What you'll do, why you'll do it, when you'll do it. And then stick to it.
I remember reading something from Dan John (who had read it somewhere else) to the effect of "people who get more done, get more done." It seems like a "no shit" statement, but essentially the act of completing something basically makes it more likely you will get something else done. Each success compounds on the next, and before you know it, even more is done than you thought. It's akin to people who make a lot of money making even more. They take the money they make, they reinvest it, it makes them more money, they reinvest that money, it makes more, etc.
With that in mind, I try to adhere to a few principles when planning the day:
1. Start with a few "checkables" (relatively easy tasks that get the ball rolling in regards to accomplishing things). These shouldn't be menial tasks that you'll do no matter what (brush your teeth, eat breakfast, etc.), but should be things that need to be done.
2. Never wonder "what do I do next"
3. Try to be achievement based when possible, time-based when necessary

Training 12/12

Felt like pretty much ass today. I came down with something overnight Wednesday and felt pretty shitty all day yesterday. I was feeling slightly better today, although tired from mediocre sleep, then as the day progressed I just started feeling worse again. However, when I trained I was feeling decent enough.

Military - 55x5, 70x5, 80x3, 95x3, 110x3, 120x12
A. DB flyes - 50s - 4x10
B. T-bar row - 90 on bar - 4x12
A. Fat bar curls - 50 - 4x10
B. Band pushdowns - 4x10

All in all not a terrible session. I can't help but think I need more stress, however. I have a few ideas about how I want to structure my training, but the power snatch goal throws a bit of a monkey wrench into things. It doesn't have a perfect spot to fit into an upper/lower split (due to the stress on the shoulders and upper back), and it affects everything else after it to the point that performing total body sessions in a respectable time may be difficult as well. That said, maybe I just need to nut the fuck up and get it done. We'll see, I'll ride this out for about the next 4 weeks and see where I'm at.

Training 12/10

Weighed myself today (Thursday), sitting at 198. Gotta up the intake, intelligently.

Power snatch - 80x3, 100x3, 120x3, 140x3, 160x3, 180x3, 195x1, 205x1
Deadlift - 120x5, 150x5, 180x5, 210x3, 240x3, 270x6
GHR - 5x12
Forearm curls - 95 - 1x25

The 205 snatch felt better than 200 last week, though certainly not easy. I recorded a few of my attempts to check technique and I was pretty pleased. I still need to speed up my transition from pull to drop/catch, but overall I like how it looks. I've been playing with trying to start my hips a little lower, but my femurs are so damn long, I feel like I'm low then watch the video and it doesn't really look any different. In any event, it still feels decent, and I feel like I'll be able to hit 225 again pretty soon.

Training 12/6 & 12/8

Saturday:
Power snatch - 100 - 12x2, 1 minute between sets
Squat - 125x5, 160x5, 190x3, 205x5, 235x5, 270x10
A. GHR - 3x10
B. Stability ball pike - 3x12
C. Barbell forearm curls - 65 - 3x25

The 270x10 was a bear, a lot harder than I thought, but I got it done. The power snatch was mostly for warmup purposes, but also to get some technique practice in.

Monday:
Close-grip bench - 100x5, 125x5, 150x3, 175x3, 200x3, 225x9
Incline DB bench - 60s - 30, 15, 10 - 2 mins b/w sets
Kroc rows - 100x32/arm
Lateral raises - 20s x16, 7 breaths, 15s x11, 10 breaths 10s x10
Poundstone curls - bar x55

Bench went pretty well, felt pretty good. Curls were ugly as shit, but oh well, it's just work to get the pump, so no big deal.

Training 12/5

Military - worked up to 115x12
paired with band pull-aparts
A. DB flyes - 50s - 5x10
B. T-bar row - 90 on bar - 5x10
A. Thick bar curls - 40 - 5x10
B. Band pushdowns - gray - 5x10

Training 12/3

Neck & rotator cuff work in warmup
Power snatch - 80x3, 100x3, 120x3, 130x3, 150x3, 170x3, 185x1, 200x1
Deadlift - 120x5, 150x5, 180x3, 195x5, 225x5, 255x5
A. GHR - 5x10
B. Hanging leg raise - 4x8
Forearm curls - 95x25

The back actually felt pretty good so I performed the deadlifts conventional, not with the feet offset. In fact, the feet offset felt a little wonky on the back. Work capacity for lifting heavy, especially on snatches, is in the shitter, but I think it will come back quickly. I didn't do any cardiac output work or stretch at the end, which isn't a huge deal, but is helpful.

Training 12/1

Close-grip bench press - 100x5, 125x5, 150x3, 165x5, 190x5, 215x10
paired with band pull-aparts
DB incline bench - 50s - 35, 17, 12 - 2 mins b/w sets
Kroc rows - 100x30
Lateral raises drop set - 20sx15, 10 deep breaths, 15sx10, 7 deep breaths, 10sx8
Poundstone curls - 50 reps

Overall not bad. I didn't drink my Gatorade/protein/Rockstar mix, so I didn't feel like I had a lot of "go," likely due to the lack of caffeine. I also think the carbs would have helped me recover a bit faster between exercises, but alas. Not bad for the first day back to higher volume work.

Your body is the one thing you have complete control over. What you do with it, what you put in it, etc. Obviously you have control over your actions, but you have certain things that you have to do everyday, particularly if you are employed by someone else. But your time is yours, and you can have such great influence over how you look and feel.
Don't misunderstand me, I'm not perfect. I still miss training sessions, don't eat the best sometimes, and am way too lazy. But I also know where I need to get better, and truly am working to improve it. I also know that, the more attention I pay to one area, the better I get in others, for the most part. And of course the converse is true - when I let one area slip, the rest are likely to as well. Wendler made this point in a post a while back about his warmup sets - if it says 150 pounds, he puts 150 on the bar, not 155. Sure, it's easier, and it seems trivial, but as soon as you start slacking on one thing, it gets easy to slack on the rest. If you're one of those people who can manage to indulge without much problem, more power to you. Unfortunately, I am not one of those people. So it's back to business and doing what I need to do to get shit done.

Training 11/29

This week has been a bit of a mashup, with the combination of the fact that it was basically a max out week and that it was Thanksgiving week. Unfortunately, I didn't hit the numbers I'd hoped on my squat, although again, if I had actually carried out a transmutation and realization cycle, I'm sure I probably would have gone well above. I did manage to hit 2 PR's, however, with 225x12 on bench and 315x5 on a box squat (admittedly, I'd never done that for a rep PR before, but a PR all the same). I will start up a few cycles of 5-3-1 on Monday. While I feel better and better about my programming abilities, and I like doing it, sometimes I think I get a little too cute with it. I like running 5-3-1 when I'm looking to just get back to some simplicity and get after it.

Training 11/24

After concentration, I'm maxing out this week. This isn't ideal, as I should use this week, as well as the next few, to intensify and accumulate fatigue, then follow with realization. However, that isn't my plan at the moment, so I just want to see where I'm at. Unfortunately yesterday went about as well as one could expect - a giant failure. Hit 275 on close grip (had more in me, but didn't have a spotter), and failed at 365 on squat. I could have set up the safety bars in the rack to attempt more on the bench, but I was too self-conscious about hitting them, so I just played it safe. I will go again tomorrow to see what happens, as it really shouldn't be expected to nail a PR that shortly after a concentration week, but we'll see.

Training 11/19

Continuing concentration

Bench - 235 - 2x2
Squat - 320 - 4x1
Circuit 1x through, 10-20 each, I don't remember the exercises

The squat still feels heavier than I would like, but it went better today than Monday. Bench feels good. If anything, I would guess I underestimated my bench and overestimated my squat.

Training 11/17 - Bench/Squat Concentration

weight - 197
I will concentrate the squat and bench press this week. I have utilized block "style" training before, but I feel I have a much better grasp on what it actually entails and requires, and I think I will be much more successful this time than last, although I do think I've also made some mistakes with it already this time around. Also, after this week of concentration, I'm simply going to test out next week, as opposed to actually intensifying/transmutating the load for a few weeks. Therefore, the results likely won't be quite what they would otherwise, but alas. That said, we'll see what happens. Weights felt OK, but not as light as I had hoped (especially the squat).

Close grip - 220 (80%) - 3x2
Squat - 300 (80%) - 3x2
Circuit (1x12-20 each):
Band pull-aparts
Box jumps (5)
Back extension + row
Band pushdowns
Barbell curls

Definitely have realized a few things as well:
- Need much more work on focus. Mindfulness, concentration practice, etc.
- No energy drinks on days I'm training (at least before). I knew that beforehand but today just cemented it. I just feel like I've got no juice. As well, I need to get accustomed to less caffeine.
- No matter how much I don't want to, I NEED to do my extended warmups. I think that was part of the reason it didn't go as well as I hoped today. I probably wasn't actually warm and ready to go until just before my first set at 80% on bench.
- Wednesday will be another day. One foot in front of the other.

Training 11/14

Continuing the deload, though I did a far better job of focusing today.

A. DB bench - worked up to 95s x8,6,5
B. Blast strap inverted rows - sets of 8 between every set of DB bench
A. Band tricep pushdown - gray - 3x12
B. Lateral raises - 15s - 3x12
C. Band pull-aparts - orange - 3x20

In and out. On to bench and squat concentration next week, with a test out the following week.

Training 11/13

Deloading at the end of the week here before concentrating squat and bench next week. It was kind of hard for me to "get into it" as a result, although I kept the intensity fairly high, so I did have to focus, but focus was definitely off. Still need to work on that, a lot.
I decided to play around a bit with foot position after watching some Klokov videos in which he was deadlifting with one foot forward (I think his right). I found out that he actually does it due to a leg length discrepancy, and therefore it actually feels better for him to do it that way, as opposed to merely doing it that way for variety's sake. Interestingly, I found that it actually felt better for me having my right foot slightly (about a half a foot length) forward. Obviously mechanics were changed and I don't think I was necessarily stronger that way (although submaximal weights during the warmup did feel a little lighter that way than conventional). Once I got to my working weight, I didn't really notice much difference in terms of how heavy the weight felt, but I may have to start incorporating that into warmups from here on out.
As always, there must be some balance between trying to "even out" imbalances and attempting to drive the movement itself up, which is why I think I'll probably stick with the conventional stance for my heavier work. That said, I think as I move forward and try to drive my power snatch up, the deadlift and its variants may begin to take more of a secondary role, meaning there will be more leeway for me to play around with it. In the end, I'll just have to experiment and see.

Deadlift - worked up to 315x3x3
A. Calf raise - 225 - 2x10
B. Ab wheel - 2x10
A. 1-arm DB RDL - 2x6/leg
B. 4-way neck - 15 lbs - 2x10/direction

Training 11/10 & 11/11

Weight - 198. Getting there, although again, the fat gain seems like it's coming a bit faster than I'd like.

Monday
Squat - worked up to 315x6. Wanted 10, but I suppose I'll take it. Felt heavier than I expected, though the reps actually looked decent on video, though none of them felt good at all while doing them.
A. Calf Raises - 225 - 3x8
B. Ab wheel - 3x8
A. Back extensions +25 lbs - 3x10
B. 4 way neck - 15 lbs - 2x12 each

Tuesday
Neutral-grip pullups +20 lbs - 3x5
A. Close-grip bench - 205x5, 4, 3
B. 1-arm DB row - 100 - 3x10
A. DB shrug - 100 - 3x10
B. DB hammer curls - 30s - 3x10
Pushups - 61 total, 50 without stopping

Behind the Neck from Friday:

Monday photo:

Training 11/6 & 11/7

Thursday:
Deadlift - worked up to 355x4 (ugh). Was way damn heavier than I thought. A bit disappointing, but the deadlift isn't really one of my targets, so I'm not going to get too broken up about it.
A. Single-leg calf raise - 60 pounds (chains) - 2x10/leg
B. Ab wheel - 2x10
A. 45 degree back raise - 45 lbs - 3x10
B. 4-way neck - 10 lbs - 2x12/direction

Friday:
DB bench - worked up to 100s x15 (ugh). Again, a bit disappointing though I wasn't surprised, considering how the pressing went last week. However, again, it's just another day.
Barbell inverted row +40 pounds x20
Then did a behind-the-neck press challenge from Jamie Lewis at Chaos N Pain. Body weight on bar, bar goes from behind the neck to overhead in any manner desired (press, push press, push jerk, power jerk, jerk, etc.) as many times as possible in 10 minutes. 195 pounds, 32 reps. I'll post video once I get it up.

Training 11/4

Neutral-grip chinups +40 lbs chains - x9

Close-grip bench - 195 - 5, 5, 4, 4

Kroc Row - 100x25

A. DB shrugs - 80s - 4x15

B. DB hammer curls - 25s - 4x10

Pushups - 46 without stopping, 61 total

Training 11/3

Weight - 195ish. Trending up, but not necessarily happy with what the body comp looks like. Keep moving forward.

Squat - 295x10. Ugly as shit, but I got it
A. Calf raises - 205 - 3x10
B. Ab wheel - 3x10
A. KB swings - 5x10
B. 4 way neck - 2x12 each direction

I do feel like the neck is getting at least a little bigger. Still a pencil neck, but a slightly larger pencil.

Training 10/30 & 10/31

Thursday:
Deadlift - worked up to 335x8 (blah. Wanted 10, but whatever)
A. Single-leg calf raise w/ DB - 50 - 2x12/leg
B. Hanging Leg Raise - 2x10
A. KB Swings - 6x10
B. 4-way neck - 2x12 each

20ish minutes on the bike, HR ~120

Friday:
DB Bench - 90x21 (wanted 25)
Inverted row w/ 20 pound chain - 25 reps
A. PJR pullovers - 4x12
B. Lateral raises - 20s - 4x12

Something jacked up with my tricep tendon near the insertion. Not sure what it is, but it started bothering me randomly the other day. Pressing didn't feel particularly good, but wanted to push through it. Did the pullovers instead of pushdowns to keep from aggravating the triceps. Really hoping for 20+ with the 100s next week.

Training 10/27 & 10/28

Didn't weigh myself due to a long night of little sleep and bit of a hectic morning as a result. However, I did weight myself today (Tuesday) - 193. Yuck.

Monday training:
Squat - 95x10, 135x8, 185x5, 225x3, 275x10
Went about as I had hoped in terms of how the weight "felt," however, I didn't focus nearly as much as I needed to, and technique suffered as a result. Gonna have to be on my game next week for 295.
A. Calf raises - 195 - 3x12
B. Ab wheel - 3x10
A. KB swings - 10x10
B. Neck - 2x15 each direction

Tuesday training:
Neutral-grip chinups (w/ 20 pound chain added): 1x13
Close-grip bench - 180x6,5,4,3
Kroc rows - 90x30
A. DB shrugs - 100s down to 60s x15 each
B. Hammer curls - 25s - 15, 12, 10
Pushups - 1x60 (45 without stopping)

Training 10/24

DB Bench - 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s each x5, then 80s x26

Inverted Row - 5x5, then 1x25

Tricep pushdowns - 4x25

Lateral Raises - 15s - 15, 15, 10, 10

Training 10/23

Decent day. Nothing special. The deadlifts were a bit ugly at the end, and it felt like after about rep 5 my legs just died. Like it just felt like they had no juice. Got the work done anyway.

Deadlift - worked up to 315x10
A. Calf raises - 185 - 3x12
B. Ab wheel - 3x10
A. KB swings - 10x10
B. Neck

Finished with 20 minutes on the bike with HR around 120.

I've been trying to finish each session with 20 minutes of cardiac output work. I must say, I feel outstanding afterward. Obviously it adds some time to the session, which is hard if you're time crunched, but again, the work is well worth it.

Training 10/21

Felt pretty good again today. Some of the lifts didn't go as well as I had hoped, but oh well. I have pretty much mapped out the next 4 weeks of training, so that has me feeling a bit more upbeat as well.

Neutral-grip chinups - 18 (PR, although my previous best was done at about 210 pounds I think)

A. Close grip bench - 3x6 @ 165

B. 1-arm DB row - 50, 60, 70, 85 x5 each, 80 x30/arm

Hammer curls - 25x15,12,10

DB shrugs - 100, 90, 80, 70, 60 - each x20

Pushups - 50 (43 without stopping, only stopping position was top of pushup position)

Bike - 20 minutes, HR around 120

I was feeling the shrugs more in the levator than the upper traps, so next week I need to either drop weight or reps or perform them a bit differently to hammer the upper traps.

Training 10/20

Weight - 191.8. Ugh.

275x15. No excuse for the failure. Body felt good, mind felt good. Just didn't get it done. Finished with calves, abs, swings, neck.

Trying my best to just flush it. I have to remember that it is no more an indictment of anything than I simply failed on a lift. But I can't help but feel like it's just a further incrimination of myself as a failure in, well, everything. I know the answer - pick yourself up and work toward success - but I can't help feeling like I don't have time for it. But alas, there is no other choice. Moving forward.

For the next few weeks, while I don't have it totally mapped out, the plan is 4 lifting days with an upper/lower split. It will finish the accumulation phase of training, moving into a transmutation block. While I feel like I have a decent grasp on the concepts of block training, we will see if I am actually able to make it work. I feel like, especially lately, the training has been so sporadic that it probably won't work the way it is supposed to. I also haven't managed to put on the weight I was hoping, which only adds more fuel to the failure fire.

10/17

Shit show. Not even worth writing about. I thought that I was ready to give it a go, but I wasn't ready. It's hard to tell if it was entirely psychological (that was at least half of it) or physiological (I know I wasn't at full strength, but not sure if I was in the right place to do it or not). What's frustrating is I feel like I was ready to do it last Friday, but again, a confluence of factors in life got in the way. Combine that with the stress of the next 4 days, and I think the accumulation of it all made for just too much to overcome right now. I feel like some good restorative work over the next few days, combined with good sleep should put me ready to go Monday. If not then, it's not going to happen anytime soon I'm afraid.

Training 10/13

Failed on rep 17 at 275 today. Everything after sucked. Bench is in the shitter. Life is in the shitter. Give it a go again Wednesday or Thursday.

Training Update

Really this should be a lack of training update. Had every intention of hitting 275 yesterday on breathing squats, however, sometimes life gets in the way. I would say the stress incurred was equal to or greater than the 275 would have been, but alas, we cannot count that. Assuming I can get some sleep in before Monday (admittedly a bit of a grand assumption), 275 WILL go down then.

Training 10/8

Pull day. I did no deadlift or RDL work today in order to spare my legs for Friday. I want there to be no excuse (not there would be otherwise). Decent session, nothing special.

Band pulldowns - gray band - 17+4+5
Barbell shrugs - 225 - 15+8+8
Chest-supported DB row - 50s - 15+5+5
Preacher curl over bench - 50 - 12+5+6
Wrist extension, arms on bench - 10s - 1x20
Barbell wrist curls behind back - 95 - 1x35

Training 10/6 & a note on breathing squats

Body weight - 190. Ugh.

I've picked up the eating, and abandoned my previous approach in the hopes of increasing muscle mass a bit more rapidly. Not that I'm going to become a mass monster overnight, but the fact that I'm at the same body weight 4 weeks later is quite discouraging. I'm attempting to perform a "clean" bulk to the extent that I can - mostly whole foods, with a mix coming from protein (1+ g/lb per day), carbs and "good" fats (olive oil, nuts, etc.). We shall see how it works out. I do feel like I'm not as lean as I was before, so who knows.
Finally got 265 on breathing squats today. To say I was happy would be a vast understatement. I racked it after 5 reps on my first attempt, deciding I "didn't have it," then reminded myself that this was exactly the type of shit I'm trying to get away from. Then I also reminded myself, "it's only a little bit of pain. It goes away." The same shit I talked about last week. So, I got under the bar again, and away I went. The only real issue was that after I got to 15 without too much trouble, I started looking ahead to 275, and how great it was going to be after I accomplish that. The thing that had gotten me to 15 reps - focusing on each individual rep as it came - went out the window, and with it, I damn near failed the last rep or two. Sun Tzu has a quote about that type of thing in Art of War; I don't remember it exactly, but it's something about letting your guard down after a victory. Basically, don't count your chickens.
The rest of the workout was a bit mediocre in that I didn't come close to beating my reps on incline bench because I was so wiped, but I really didn't care. Upright rows and tricep pushdowns were being done with higher resistance, so I was just setting new numbers with them anyway.
Finally, a note on breathing squats. After perusing videos on YouTube of "breathing squats," it occurred to me that I'm the only one who's read the fucking book. Breathing squats are not just a set of 20 rep squats. It is performed with 2 deep breaths, then a 3rd (holding it during the descent, exhaling on the way up) between EVERY REP. As it says in the book (Super Squats by Randall Strossen), a good set should take 3-5 minutes. Note that I'm not shitting on people doing 20 rep squats - they're hard as hell, and good on people for doing them. But they're not breathing squats.

Breathing squats - 265 - 1x20
Incline bench - 155 - 12+3+3
Upright rows - 75 - 15+6+6
Gray band tricep pushdowns - 16+6+8
Face pulls 2.0 - 1x50

Training 10/1

After the failure on Monday, my course of action was to retry 265 Wednesday, succeed, and hit 275 Friday. Unfortunately, that plan hit a bit of a snag. I felt good going into the session - sleep was not what it needed to be, but nutrition to that point in the day was on point, I was feeling good going into the warmup, all seemed poised for success. I went back to what I was doing for warmups a few years ago - lots of movement, animal walks, calisthenics, and added in some box jumps to wake me up a bit more. After some good warmups, I got under the bar and started going. At 9 reps I decided I "just didn't have it" and racked the bar. As I sat on the bench contemplating jumping off a bridge, I decided to rest a few more minutes and give it another go. Feeling fully rested, I tried again, but failed on rep 16. While it was a solid try, it was the same psychological failure as last time. While I tried to think positively, I basically told myself before descending that if it was tough, I wasn't getting back up. Sure enough, that's what happened.
So I've decided these next 4 days will be a restorative mini-block. I've had quite a bit of stress in my life lately, and as we know, stress is cumulative. So I'll use the next 4 days to perform quite a bit of aerobic work, contrast showers, catch up on sleep, and use some heating and anti-inflammatory ointments if need be to prepare for Monday. Friday I will still lift, though more along the lines of a "typical" bodybuilding-type day.
Note that none of this is to excuse what happened. It was a psychological failure, and I will continue to beat myself up for it. But 265 will come and go, as will 275.

Training 9/29

Body weight was only 188 today. Ugh.

Military Press (to top of head only) - 135 - 13+4+4
Floor DB Flyes - 50s - 18+6+6
Skullcrushers - 60 - 18+6+6
Breathing squats - 265 - 1x16 (failed on 17)
Face pulls - 1x100

An otherwise really good session ruined by the failure on breathing squats. If it had been physiological, I would be OK with it, but it was mental. I told myself after the 16th rep I wasn't going to get the next one. That I would descend and not get back up. Lo and behold, guess what happened. I'm so mad because I was psyching myself out the entire time. I had so much confidence coming in, and then when it came time, suddenly I had so much self-doubt. I'll redo it Wednesday, succeed, and then hit 275 Friday. So it is written, so it shall be done.

The Pain is a Mirage
I realized after 255, as I was walking around trying to catch my breath and wait for the pain to leave my body, that it was all a mirage. All the huffing and puffing, all the pain faces...it wasn't real. Because as soon as I thought about it, I was able to slow down my breathing, and while the pain was definitely still there, I was able to maintain a calm face. It all told me that it's all fake. I don't know who I was trying to prove the pain to, but I need to realize I don't need to prove it to anyone. Does it hurt? Absolutely. Does it suck? Hell yes. But do I need to carry on like I just carried the weight of the world? No.
I also realized after the "failure" today that I really wasn't that tired. My legs were, yes, but my shoulders, chest, even low back, where I usually am screaming after breathing squats, all felt pretty good. Again, that only reaffirms to me that the "good stuff" comes beyond the pain barrier. As with most things in life, the hard parts are there to keep out the people who don't really want it. I have to decide if that's me.
And I think that's what pissed me off the most about the failure. That it was entirely mental. That it seemed like such a perfect metaphor for my life. So full of piss and vinegar, and even able to push through a little bit of pain, but when the going gets really tough, I fold. Again, I have to decide if that's how I want to be defined. Every day needs to be a step in the direction I want.

Training 9/26

What a difference a day of rest and intelligent programming will do. Finally actually performed restorative work yesterday (as I should be doing between all my sessions), and, combined with a decent night of sleep, I felt like a new man today. The soreness that was pretty tough yesterday was nearly gone today. I still felt a little run down before warming up, and even my first few warmup sets didn't feel particularly easy, but everything after that went great. The pullups felt so easy I felt like I might not have been controlling the eccentric enough (always possible) and I felt like I probably could have ground out a couple more reps on the rack pulls. A true +10% session.

Band-assisted wide-grip pullups (orange band) - 15+5+4
Rack deadlift from knee - 405x10
Pronated cambered bar curls - 40 - 17+8+8
Chest-supported rear delt flyes - 5s - 1x50
DB wrist extension (arms resting on bench) - 15s - 1x16
Barbell wrist curls - 95 - 1x30

Training 9/25

Used today for restorative training. I'm still sore as shit from Tuesday, so combined with not getting sufficient sleep to recover the way I need to, I decided to push the training to tomorrow and then aim for M/W/F next week. That way breathing squats won't fall on a Saturday. In any event, did some bike, abs, kettlebell swings, neck, and some rolling out.

Training 9/23 & progress pic

Well, this session didn't start out any better than Saturday's. I was able to get 1 extra rep on the first set (cheating my ass off with my butt WAY off the bench to grind it out), but still only matched total reps from the last time. Which means I have to find a new exercise to slot into that spot next time around. Although, by then I will have moved into my heavier training, so maybe I should keep it? Not quite sure, I'll ponder it in the meantime.
Lateral raises and flyes went very well. However, I still felt like I had no "go," and my warmup sets for squats were doing nothing to instill confidence. Everything felt heavy, and my over warmup at 295 felt like shit. But, I managed to grind it out somehow and I must say, it felt good to do so. I felt (and still feel, to some extent) like shit afterward, but it was good to complete it. This was the first time doing them, however, where I felt like my legs were the limiting factor. Generally, my low back/upper back/shoulders want to give out first. In this instance, while they were definitely shot, my legs didn't seem like they were going to hold up. But hold up they did, and I'll try my damndest to rest up for 265 come Saturday.

Close grip - 185 - 14+2+3 (equaled last time - have to change exercise)
Lateral raises - 15s - 17+8+6 (31 total - bump up weight)
DB flyes - 50s - 16+5+5
Breathing squats - 255 - 1x20
Face Pulls - 1x75

Weight - 191 yesterday (don't judge my dirty mirror)

Training 9/20

Close grip bench - 185 - 13+3+3

At that point, I decided not to continue with the plan for the day. While it is quite possible that I wouldn't have been able to beat my reps regardless, the lack of sleep the last 3 nights definitely caught up with me and I decided to pull it back and try again Monday or Tuesday. Obviously some may call this a case of vagitis, and they may well not be wrong. However, the job of the smart coach or trainee is to do what is necessary to further results. In this case, that is allowing recovery to occur by sleeping. So, I finished up with a short circuit (minimal to no rest b/w exercises, 5x thru):

Lateral raises (5s) x10
Pushups (elbows flared to ~70 degrees) x10
KB swings x10
Face pulls x20

A little biking and I hit the door. Looking forward to giving it another go on a good night's sleep.

Training 9/18

Neutral-grip Chinups - 14+4+4
Deadlift - 325x8
Cambered Bar Curl - 60 lbs - 18+6+6
Chest-supported Rear Delt Fly - 5s - 1x45
DB Wrist Extension - 15s - 1x50
DB Wrist Flexion - 50s - 1x50

I feel like I may have cut reps a bit short on the chinups, but I beat the log book so I suppose I'm happy. Overall a pretty good session considering I'm going on about 2 2-hour blocks of sleep last night and a 15 minute nap prior to lifting.
I can tell I'm probably putting on a bit of pudge, likely due to going overboard on my "high" days, as well as not getting in my aerobic work on non-lifting days. Still lean enough to see abs, but not as lean as I'd like.

Training 9/17

Incline bench press (roughly 45 degree - pinky on ring) - 155 - 13+4+3
Upright rows with straight bar - 65 - 20+8+5
Band pushdowns w/ gray band - 1x30
Breathing squats - 245 - 1x20
Face pulls - 1x65

Breathing squats still suck. However, it does give me some hope that I can get 275. It's still a ways off, and I feel like I probably rushed my breathing a bit today. That said, 275 is still the goal.

Update 9/15

Weight - 188

Ugh. I thought for sure I would be in the 193-195 range, particularly considering how shitty I ate yesterday. That said, I told myself I would give this "bulking" strategy 6-8 weeks and reassess, so I will stay the course and see what happens.

Training 9/13

Band pulldowns (orange band) - 1x30 (vastly underestimated how easy they would be)
RDL + shrug - 275 - 1x8
Chest-supported DB row - 50s - 13+4+4
Preacher curl (used bench as preacher seat) - 50 - 13+5+6
DB wrist extension - 15s - 1x45
DB wrist curl - 50s - 1x40
Chest-supported rear delt flye - 5s - 1x40

I can say Arnold and I do not share the same affinity for "the pump" (watch Pumping Iron to understand what I'm talking about). That said, it is a necessity. I am adapting to the training, such that it does not wreck me the way it did at first. Today's session, for instance, took me roughly 55 minutes, including a fairly extensive warmup and 5 minute bike cool down at the end, compared to over an hour the first time I did this training a few weeks ago with a rather abbreviated warmup. And today would have been a few minutes shorter, but I had to wait for some of the blood to exit my forearms so I could do the rear delt flyes. (Note to self - flyes before forearms from here on out). Of course, it still induces quite a bit of residual soreness, which is fine and expected. I've already begun formulating my "long-term" plan, at least pushing it out a few months. After running a few cycles of the training as-is, I will modify to heavier weights and more of the DC template as Dante originally laid it out, aiming for 11-15 total reps on many exercises, as opposed to the 20-30 I am currently doing. However, I must be careful not to get too far ahead of myself and overlook what is right in front of me - the training itself.
Focus is not where it needs to be - I have definitely discovered that I cannot train while I have athletes in, it is simply impossible to focus the way I need to. However, even today, training with no one around, I was not focused in my execution the way I need to be.
Onward and upward.

Training 9/11

Upper body work was rest-paused as has been customary

Military press (shoulders to top of head) - 135 - 12+4+4
Floor DB flyes - 50s - 16+5+5
Skullcrushers - 60 - 15+4+4
Breathing squats - 235 - 1x20
Face pulls - 1x60

Breathing squats are the devil. However, they do remind me that, while I am still a giant vagina, I can push forward to be a slightly smaller one. Every day just trying to get NOV (to borrow a phrase from Wendler).

Training 9/9

Pull day. Again, it is a modified version of Dante Trudel's DoggCrapp training. Sets for most work are rest-paused, with 7 deep breaths after the first set and 10 after the 2nd. However, deadlifts and rear delts/forearms are just straight sets.

Band-assisted wide-grip pullups (orange band, hands outside curve) - 13+4+4
Rack deadlift (from knees - lowest safety pin setting) - 405x8 (terrible job of keeping my back tight)
Straight bar curls - 65 - 15+5+5
DB wrist extension, arms at sides - 15s - 1x40
Chest-supported rear delt flyes - 5s - 1x35
DB wrist flexion, arms at sides - 50s - 1x36

I definitely need to make midsection training a priority on non-lifting days. Far too weak. I will attempt to update with pics every Monday, as that is when I weigh and take pics.

Training 9/4 & 9/6

After hitting 190 on Thursday, I decided the "cut" was over. 190 was kind of my line of demarcation - either I would get to a point I was happy with, or 190. Once I hit either one, it was time to start working my way back up. Thus, here is the "final" pic, along with the starting one again for reference:

2-3-14 - 222 pounds

9-4-14 - 190 pounds

Consistency and staying the course. Admittedly, if I had done that from the beginning, I'd have likely gotten there sooner. But alas.
In any event, I will start working my way back up, attempting to add muscle with as little fat as possible. For the time being, I will be using some DoggCrapp-inspired rest-pause training (modified for higher reps), an idea taken from James Smith's training log over at EliteFTS from a while back. The general setup of a set is that each rep is performed with a slow, controlled eccentric, with an explosive concentric. I try not to rest at all between reps. Once you reach basically failure, stop and take 7 deep belly breaths, go again until basically failure, stop and take 10 deep belly breaths, and hit one final set. Therefore, I will simply note reps + reps + reps to indicate the 3 sets. I don't have my log right in front of me so I don't remember exactly what I got for reps on all of them, but most are right and the others are damn close.

Thursday (pull)
Neutral-grip chinups - 13+4+3
Deadlifts - dead stop each rep (straight set, no particular tempo) - 315x8
Cambered bar bicep curls - 60 pounds - 15+4+4
DB wrist extension - 15s - 1x35
DB wrist curls - 15s - 1x35
Chest-supported rear delt flyes - 5s - 1x30

Saturday (push)
Close-grip bench - 185 - 13+3+3
Lateral raises - 10s - 1x30
DB flyes - 50s - 15+4+4
Breathing squats - 225 - 1x20
Face pulls - 1x50

I will perform ab/rotator cuff/neck work on non-lifting days 2-3x per week.

Training 8/21

Obviously doing a horseshit job of updating. Training today was pretty much hot garbage. Lack of sleep is killing me and training is definitely suffering as a result. Fat loss seems to have stalled a bit, though possibly moving forward ever so slowly. Submax effort upper body work today, forgot to do med ball throws, though it was probably for the best, as I had nothing today.

SE DB Bench Press - 3x8 - 100s x2, 80s x1
Circuit (2x15 each):
Trap Bar Bent over row - 110
OH Band Tricep Extension
Band Shrugs
Barbell curls

Progress pic from last Monday:

Training Update & Progress pic

Obviously I haven't been updating, well, at all lately. The basic outline, for now, is a modified Westside split, with sprints, jumps, and medicine ball throws worked in as well. This will continue until I reach my desired body composition goals, at which point the upper body training will switch to a DoggCrapp-inspired template, with the lower body remaining as-is. Essentially, training the upper body for "show," and the lower body for "go," dependent upon time of year, i.e. speed in the summer, strength/power in the winter. Thus, the volume of the different aspects will vary based upon the goals. For the time being, speed and power are the goals, and as such the volume of sprint work will be highest. Also for now I am basically using assistance work as time to fuck around and think of new movements and how they feel/affect me.

Saturday - DE Lower

Sprints - 5x10 yds, 5x20 yds

Box jumps - 6

Snatch pull w/ pause at knees - 3x2 (1 min b/w) - 135, 155, 185

DE Trap Bar Deadlift (1 min b/w sets) - 250 (60%) - 9x2

A. Suitcase DB RDL - 3x8 - 80 lbs

B. Neck - 2x12/direction - 10 lbs

A. RFESS - 50 - 2x6/leg

B. Ab wheel - 2x12

Progress pic (198 and flexing)

Training 7/21

Forgot to weigh myself this morning, though last week I was right around 200.

Warmup:
A/B/C skips + Rolling jumps - 20 yards down/back each w/ abs in between - went through twice
KB windmills & variations - 3 reps each
McKenzie pressups - 10

Box Jumps - 12
Muscle Snatch - 95 pounds - 3x3
Squat - worked up to 295x3 (probably could have hit 315x3, but saving some for the next few weeks), then dropped to 255x4x4
        Shoulder prehab & neck (2x10 each direction) in between
A. Good Mornings - 115 - 12, 10, 8
B. Hanging Leg Raises - 3x10
A. Walking Lunges (BW) - 2x8/leg
B. Wide-grip Pullups - 10, 8

I haven't fully decided what the training will look like, though I have a pretty good idea. Definitely more work overall than I've been doing, but I'll adjust fairly quickly.

Training 7/11

Deadlift:
140x5
175x5
210x3
265 - 3x5
300x3
335x5

Not as many as I'd hoped, but a lack of sleep in the preceding days made it unsurprising.

A. Good mornings - 135 - 3x8
B. Hanging Leg Raises - 3x10
A. Walking Lunges - 95 - 2x8/leg
B. Pullups - 10, 8

80% session

Training 7/9

Bench -
warmups:
bar x10
110x5
135x5
160x3

All warm-up sets are performed sub-maximally, with band pull-aparts in between.

205 - 3x5
235x3
260x2

8 inverted rows after each set

205 actually felt decent (a welcome change, since my lighter sets lately have been feeling heavier than I feel they should). However, 260 didn't feel very light at all. Thought about just hitting 1 and calling it good, but I knew I had another one in me, so I went ahead and hit it. After 250x6 last week, it's a bit of a letdown, but sleep has been far harder to come by, and the 250x6 and 300x6 squat Friday likely are at least somewhat responsible for it as well. It's OK though, I wasn't expecting much today (wasn't really feeling it).

Assistance:
A. 1-arm row - 60, 70, 80, 90 x10
B. Band pushdowns (fast) - 4x25
A. Hammer curls - 3x8 (50, 35x2)
B. Random rotator cuff

Finished with plank, McKenzie pressups, bike, and spinal decompression. Low-end 80% session.

Diet Update

Figured I would give an update on the current diet. I've been making good progress and it's pretty easy to follow (though I've been a bit too lax). I eat pretty much the same thing every day, due to the fact that it makes it easier for me. I don't necessarily eat at the same time every day or the same foods at the same time (sometimes I change the order depending on what's easiest at different times).

Feeding 1:
2 eggs
1 container egg whites (comes from Costco, I think there's like 2 cups egg whites in there)
bit of salsa
2 slices reduced fat cheddar cheese

Feeding 2:
1 pound deli meat (generally turkey, sometimes roast beef)
2 slices reduced fat cheddar cheese
1 cucumber

Feeding 3:
1/2 Jenny-O pork roast
veggies (usually broccoli)

Occasional feeding:
protein shake - 2 scoops (Musclepharm Combat Powder)

On training days, I also add:
Drink during training - ~3.5 tbsp powdered Gatorade mix, 1 scoop whey protein, 1 Rockstar Recovery
Post-training - 10-12 ounces chocolate milk
Then I'll usually have one of the other meals, with some cereal as well.

Procrastination

“Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.”

Procrastination is a filthy bitch. I know because I’ve fought her my whole life. Regardless of your best intentions, you can always find a reason not to do things.

Then one day you decide, “no more.” Of course, it doesn’t work that way. Much like addiction, it is merely a day-to-day battle to improve. While I don’t think it is specifically addiction, I do think it shares a lot of similarities. In fact, I’m sure if they were to test it, the brain profiles, in regards to centers of the brain activated, are similar to addicts.

In fact, many times you will hear addicts (or recovering addicts) talk about the fact that it’s not even the substance itself that causes the problem in regards to relapsing. It is the activity. The habit. All the things that surround the act itself which they seek. There is a saying that “we first make our habits, then our habits make us.” Never have truer words been spoken. Habits become very hard to break, and we’re caught in a vicious cycle. Suddenly, you must become cognizant of everything you are doing in an effort to change it. While it is a necessity, it is not conducive to long-term success. Attention means focus, focus means effort, and effort means more energy expenditure. The body in general doesn’t like that. We must make action automatic for it to become repeated over a long period of time.

I’ve often noted, however, that Newton’s first law absolutely applies to activity in life. Objects at rest stay at rest. Objects in motion stay in motion. This is why, if you just get started on one thing, you often end up getting about 5 other things done. Dan John has said that people who get more done, get more done. Simple action leads to more action.

I have most often found my barrier to action is figuring out where to get started. Depending on what it is you are doing, you may be best suited just jumping into the middle. It’s what I’ve started doing with writing – just start writing. You can go back and change things later. You don’t have to have the perfect beginning to get started. Fortunately, a lot of things are that way. Don’t misunderstand me, planning ahead and doing legwork beforehand can certainly speed the process for a lot of your tasks. And you should absolutely take the time necessary to make sure you are doing things correctly. But once you’ve done that, attack it, get started.

Make a list of things to do (I know some people will say not to make To Do lists; I say fuck them, you need a road map). Put a few things at the top that will be fairly simple and/or easy to complete. Something more difficult than “breathe” but less difficult than “replicate the statue of David.” These don’t need to be the most important things on the list – just the easiest/simplest. After a few of those, put the most important. Keep making the list, sprinkling in easy/simple with important. Some may be one and the same. Now start on the list.

I hesitate to make blanket recommendations like “do this.” Because we’re all different and operate differently. What works for me may not work for you. In fact, the more I look at how I operate/think, I’m pretty sure I’m just wired differently than a lot of people. Not in a quirky/unique/I’M SO SPECIAL type of way, I just visualize things differently I think. As such, the way I approach problem solving is different from how a lot of people do. And so I have to figure out solutions that are repeatable for me.

Hopefully, what you will find after a time is that the reward of finishing is so much greater than whatever short-term pleasure you derive from putting off the doing. Often, we don’t actually derive any pleasure – and in fact, we feel worse after the fact because we know what we’re not doing. I realize I’m not breaking any ground with any of this – it’s only in pretty much any self-help book you’ll read, or any successful person, period, will say it. But it bears repeating.

Training

Training is going OK, and the scale is continuing to move downward (just under 210 this week). I will say the lower body work has been feeling heavier than I would like it to, but the upper body work has been going well. I would really just like to get down to the leanness I desire so I can get back in a caloric surplus! One thing this has shown me is just how small I am! Need to put on some mass, stat!

Respect

How to fix the mess we’re in? Everyone is to blame, don’t misunderstand me. But I think we have to get a few things out of the way first.

The problem is that you cannot legislate people’s actions. The way people treat one another. The desire to treat others as people, and not merely numbers or cogs in your machine cannot come from a person dictating to you. You must desire to do so, and set out to do so from the start. This, I feel, is the fundamental disconnect along party lines in America.

I should also note that “party lines” reflect, perhaps, how the parties sell themselves – however, the further one digs, the more you realize that the politicians themselves are essentially all on the same side (money). With that said, I would say the prevailing attitudes of the populace perhaps, rather than party lines.

One side feels that it is on the individual to make their lot in life. While this is the side I tend to agree more with, it also operates under the assumption that everyone is starting from the same spot on the track. Unfortunately, we also know this isn’t true. Some people are starting so far behind as to not even really be part of the race, while others start out so far ahead they can stumble as many times as they feel and still get to the finish line well ahead of everyone. Don’t misunderstand me – I have no problem with those who have built their wealth through hard work. But those who were merely born into it and have done nothing to contribute, I have a major problem with.

The other side feels that those who have wealth (whether they started out ahead or not) owe it to those who don’t to help them out. They feel that the way to do this is to dictate to them how to spend and distribute their money. The problem, as I have noted, is that this only creates resentment, because they don’t want to be told how to spend their money, run their business, etc. They want to decide what to do with it.

And unfortunately, many who have managed to get well ahead of the pack, have done so through a mindset of always wanting more. This is not inherently a bad thing (it’s likely what got them there in the first place), however, at a certain point, when is enough, enough? Additionally, if they want more this is understandable, but why not do something with that “more” in order to raise other boats.

Listening to Dan Carlin recently, he talked about a woman who has built tremendous wealth through mining (her name escapes me). She has made her way onto the Forbes richest whatever list, and I believe is somewhere in the top 20 or so. She also has said that Australian miners (she is Australian) need to be more like African miners, working for $2 per day, or the mining industry will go under. WHAT?!?! A woman who has more money than she could ever hope to spend, telling those who are likely scraping by that they need to be willing to take less. Unbelievable.

That also brings up the point of the way money is distributed – who is more important, those who broker the deals and sell the goods, or those who produce the goods? Without the broker, seller, mastermind behind the technology, there are no goods to produce. On the other hand, without the producers, there are no goods to sell. Therein lies a great disconnect. The producers (the miners, the builders, the factory workers, etc.) are seen as interchangeable because, to some degree, the labor is “unskilled.” That is, it is not overly difficult to learn (regardless of how physically difficult it actually is to perform). Therefore, the rationale is that they are easily replaceable and are not particularly valuable. Of course, that is without factoring in the cost of training new workers and so on.

The brokers, the owners, are seen as irreplaceable. Without them to mastermind the whole operation, who will take charge and determine how things should be run? Who will ensure that the greatest profit is made on the goods? I can’t say that this dichotomy (“unskilled” labor vs. what most would view as “skilled” in some sense) is entirely incorrect – you often can simply replace the laborer and continue on. However, this is a limited view that I don’t wholly agree with, either. Because it fails to take into account that happier workers likely produce even more, and willingly, than one who is essentially a prisoner.  Thus, I think it behooves both owner and laborer to ensure that a fair wage (or more) is paid. There is more than enough to go around, this we know.

“We’re fucked.” Shane Smith’s words ring in my ears on a daily basis. Recently, a NASA-backed study was released which states that, in essence, the human race is likely headed straight for irreversible collapse. This is based on a number of things, climate change and wealth disparity among them. For those unaware, Shane Smith is co-creator of Vice, a magazine of sorts, which goes around the world covering a plethora of stories you simply won’t find anywhere else. Recently, he went to Greenland to talk to the top climate scientists in the world. Of the many things he learned, he found that we are currently 60 years ahead of the worst-case projections which came out, I believe, 10 years ago in regards to climate change. Essentially, he was confirming everything that you read.

It’s easy to dismiss the study – while I haven’t read it much, or seen the details and methodology, it’s likely pretty well done – as basically a doomsday prophecy we’ve heard many times before. It’s also likely that most feel that we as humans are too big to fail. There’s no way that civilization will crumble – we’ve got so many safeguards in place! Well guess what, I’m sure the Romans, the Ottomans, the Soviets, and any and all empires you can think of before this, thought they couldn’t fail either. But it’s absolutely possible.

I can’t help but think just what will happen. The fact is, no one can actually predict. But I think we owe it to ourselves to try.

A culture of love and respect simply can’t be legislated. It must be desired by all who are a part of the culture.

This is why I get so pissed off, and actually offended, by those who peddle bullshit. They care not what impact it has on others – so long as it lines their pockets, that’s all that matters. It aggravates me to no end, especially because you know those same people wish to be treated with respect. Despite the fact that they clearly don’t respect others.

And in the end, I suppose, all we can do is take it upon ourselves to act in this way. To constantly respect others, and realize that everyone has their hopes and dreams and wishes. That some of them started well behind the 8 ball. That we weren’t all given the same opportunities. And certainly, we won’t all succeed. It just isn’t going to happen. But I do think that the opportunity is vital. If someone fucks up their opportunities? Hey, that’s their problem. We don’t constantly need to pick someone up and spoon feed them. But I think we do at least owe them that first or second chance. In the end, I think it’s the only chance we’ve got.

Training 4/18

Solid session. A little sluggish, but otherwise fine.

Barbell Inverted Row w/ feet elevated - 17, 16
Bench - 165 - 3x6
Circuit - 4x10 each:
Band Flyes
Band Curls
Diamond Pushups
Barbell Shrugs
DB forearm curls & reverse curls
Band lateral raises