Me

2016-08-08 training log

/ hsoi

It just keeps going… but I have to admit, it’s playing with my mind.

It’s “3-week” and you generally expect that on the top set you might get 5-8 reps… but I continue to get 10 reps — my semi-self imposed threshold — and I shut it down. Every session it’s like this, which is of course pretty awesome. But it throws me. I mean, last week I did 240 for 10 and that felt like work… so a 15# jump today and I thought “well, I might only hit 8”, but I keep telling myself “1 rep at a time, and just keep reppping until it’s time to stop repping”. And I hit 10 reps pretty nicely.

But it is messing with me because this can’t keep up. I want it to keep up, and I keep thinking “ok, is this the time?”. I really need to just stop it and let be what will be.

I did a little video of my squats. Form is good, depth is good. I’m feeling happier with my setup and general approach, but I do feel at times I’m losing my upper-back tightness — something to work on.

Leg curls, instead of propping up on my elbows I’m laying totally flat and that is making it harder.

Hypers, I think about just contracting the glutes, as if I’m trying to contract them so it pushes my hips forward. Totally different feel to things.

Anyways, it’s good. Continuing to be happy with progress.

Oh… and I’m working on cutting back on my carbs because I’m getting bloated. 🙂 I spent all that time trying to de-fat myself, and while I accept a little fluffy, I need to keep it in check. I’ve even thought about doing 4-6 weeks of “cutting”, which shouldn’t affect my strength work but should helep me keep my fluff in check. TBD.

5/3/1 Simplest Strength Template

  • Squats
    • bar x whatever
    • 115 x 5
    • 140 x 5
    • 170 x 3
    • 200 x 3
    • 225 x 3
    • 255 x 10
  • Straight-leg Deadlift
    • 185 x 8
    • 215 x 8
    • 245 x 6
  • Leg Curls
    • 30 x 20
    • 30 x 13
    • 30 x 10
  • Hyperextensions (superset with crunches)
    • BW x 15
    • BW x 15
    • BW x11
  • Crunches
    • BW x 20
    • BW x 13
    • BW x 11
  • Standing Calf Raises
    • 50 x 20
    • 50 x 15
    • 50 x 12

2016-08-04 range log

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

On the road to USPSA “B” class.

I’m pretty sure I’m solidly there.

In dry work I’ve been focusing on two main things:

  1. draws at 10 yards
  2. reloads

Again, I’m trying to focus on dry fire as the time where I put in the work, and live fire where I evaluate how the work is going and where work need to go next.

So live time today showed that in fact my 10 yard draw work is panning out. I’m still not as fast or consistent as I’d like to be. I smoked one in 1.2 seconds — one — but found myself more in the 1.7-1.8 range on a consistent basis. That’s still a strong improvement, but certainly a ways to go (I’d like to be CONSISTENTLY around 1.5).

Reloads were better as well. Whereas I’d be hitting in the mid-3’s, I was hitting in the low-2’s, and that’d be at 7-10 yard distances. I did some “4 Aces” work at 3 yards and was hitting 1.7-ish reloads there. So all in all my reloads have improved strongly, but still a WAYS to go. I can tell for sure this is about smooth mechanics because I’d be trying to move quickly and be “jittery”, and just not being smooth with it all — a little bump trying to get it into the mag well, a little hesitation getting back on the gun, a little pause to reacquire the sights and ensure a settled in shot, etc.. Smoothing things out and being reliable and consistent here should take me where I want to be.

And while I wasn’t working on it, split times were getting better too at closer distances. For example, on the “4 Aces” runs I’d hit .15 splits. At around 5-7 yards .25-ish. But back at 10+ yards, because I’d be more worried about accuracy, I’d be maybe 0.4-ish. So again, improvement, but a ways to go still.

One cool thing was a drill I ran at 10 yards really became all about “calling your shots”. Having that front sight crystal sharp, tracking it, and based on what I saw THERE knowing what happened (or what I need to do) and knowing from that where to go. It was a bit of a magical moment. As I let myself go and trusted my sight picture more, things really improved. I still suck in the grand scheme, but today was some pretty cool improvement.

As for what to work on next, I think it’s the same: keep working on my 10 yard draws and my reload mechanics. Work on my eyes being properly focused where they need to be, so even in dry work I’m calling my shots more.

That said, I’ve also got some classes coming up soon, so I’m probably going to shift gears a little bit in both dry and live work to prep for class. Get out of the competition mindset and more into the defensive mindset.

Good stuff. Good stuff.

2016-08-05 training log

/ hsoi

Good day for the most part…. especially how I came home, ate breakfast, then napped for an hour. 🙂

That’s the biggest thing I’m having trouble with right now is getting enough rest. Things are getting better, I’m sleeping better, but it’s just going to take time to get back on track. Day by day.

Anyways, Pressing went well… tho I had a weird groove on the top set and almost lost the bar coming down from rep 1. It’s still with my setup. I thought I had things going in a good direction, but all day today things felt off. Press is the hardest lift for me to make progress on, but I’ll keep working at it.

Pull-ups are certainly happier on my joints than chin-ups. I’m still not going to 100% extension AND I’m letting my feet touch a little right at the bottom to relieve a little weight/stress. It’s not ideal pull-ups, but if it’s better for my joints and longevity, I’ll take the slight modification.

5/3/1 Simplest Strength Template

  • Press
    • bar x whatever
    • 65 x 5 (warmup sets superset with band pull-aparts)
    • 80 x 5
    • 95 x 3
    • 100 x 5 (work sets superset with pull-ups)
    • 120 x 5
    • 135 x 10
  • Close-Grip Bench Press
    • 110 x 10 (sets superset with pull-ups)
    • 130 x 10
    • 150 x 10
  • V-Bar Pulldowns
    • 110 x 20
    • 110 x 18
    • 110 x 13
  • Face Pulls
    • 100 x 20
    • 100 x 20
    • 100 x 14
  • Lying Triceps Extensions (superset with curls)
    • 60 x 20
    • 60 x 15
    • 60 x 10
  • Close-grip EZ-bar Curls
    • 55 x 20
    • 55 x 13
    • 55 x 10

2016-08-04 training log

/ hsoi

I had to be somewhere early today, so it was a “jack shit” day. I actually wanted to front squat as well, but time ran out.

That’s all there is to say….

5/3/1 Simplest Strength Template

  • Deadlift
    • 135 x 5
    • 170 x 5
    • 205 x 3
    • 220 x 5
    • 255 x 5
    • 285 x 10

2016-08-02 training log

/ hsoi

Melatonin. What fun.

My sleep has been really bad the past some weeks. Life stress, primarily. I started taking melatonin a few days ago to see if it might help. First few days, nothing, but last night I actually slept pretty well — not sure if it’s the melatonin or other factors (had a good day), but for sure I didn’t want to get out of bed this morning. But to the gym you go.

Pressing went fine. As has been the norm, everything continues to go up, so I have zero complaints.

Well, maybe a couple.

First, I am debating what to do about pull-ups. They are putting some stresses on my body that aren’t doing well, which really annoys me. I think the hard part is that it’s just right into lifting my bodyweight — no real way to ramp up and warm up to it, so those first sets really kill me. I’m thinking I may do something like let the first 3 sets be some medium-weight pulldowns, then 3 sets of full-body pull-ups. I dunno, just thinking about what to do.

Second, I did switch up triceps work. Instead of the overhead extensions, I am going to use the v-bar and do pushdowns. I want to see how well this still gives me work yet takes some stress off my elbows.

So in general, keeping with the program, just fine-tuning so it’s all gain and no (bad) pain. 🙂

5/3/1 Simplest Strength Template

  • Bench Press
    • bar x whatever
    • 95 x 5 (warmup sets superset with band pull-aparts)
    • 120 x 5
    • 145 x 3
    • 155 x 5 (work sets superset with neutral-grip pull-ups)
    • 180 x 5
    • 205 x 10
  • Incline Press
    • 110 x 10 (sets superset with neutral-grip pull-ups)
    • 130 x 10
    • 150 x 10
  • Cable Rows
    • 100 x 20
    • 100 x 20
    • 100 x 18
  • Shrugs
    • 205 x 20
    • 205 x 20
    • 205 x 15
  • V-bar pressdowns (superset with curls)
    • 45 x 20
    • 45 x 20
    • 45 x 12
  • Hammer Curls (alternate, across body)
    • 25e x 20
    • 25e x 14
    • 25e x 10

2016-08-01 training log

/ hsoi

And the next cycle starts off pretty well.

Today was pretty cool. A little stiff to start out. I had a lot of weird chest pain over the weekend — it’s from posture problems (been slouching too much). Spent a bunch of the weekend stretching, foam rolling, and other things to help out. So I was a little stiff this morning but everything settled in really well by the time the work sets came up. And again, don’t think of it as 1 set of reps, but rather multiple sets of 1 rep. When I do that it makes such a positive difference — just keep going until you can’t, and every rep is focused instead of blending into the next.

Again, hit the 10-rep threshold and shut it down. Progress is good. Frankly, I find myself getting a little nervous about every session. I’ve been nailing the threshold almost every session, almost every everything, and I know it can’t last forever to be like this. I’m just waiting for it to end, and it plays with my head a bit. Gotta let it go and just let be what will be. I’m not getting weaker, I’m just settling in.

But even better was feeling really dialed in on the squats. Things just felt in the right groove and moved well. Technique is improving, which is always good.

I did really do a number on my lower back, glutes, and hams today. The straight-legs I did with less rest between sets. On leg curls, instead of propping up on my elbows I laid my chest flat on the bench — so no chance of hip extension or anything. It really brought up the stress on things back there, tho in a good way.

All in all, a good day. Happy to be back to the cycle, tho the deload was certainly good for me.

5/3/1 Simplest Strength Template

  • Squats
    • bar x whatever
    • 115 x 5
    • 140 x 5
    • 170 x 3
    • 185 x 5
    • 215 x 5
    • 240 x 10
  • Straight-leg Deadlift
    • 155 x 10
    • 185 x 10
    • 215 x 10
  • Leg Curls
    • 30 x 20
    • 30 x 12
    • 30 x 10
  • Hyperextensions (superset with crunches)
    • BW x 12
    • BW x 12
    • BW x 12
  • Crunches
    • BW x 20
    • bw x 13
    • BW x 10
  • Standing Calf Raises
    • 50 x 17
    • 50 x 15
    • 50 x 12

2016-07-29 training log

/ hsoi

Huzzah! Deload is over. 😉

I’m happy for it, as it really was a good break and recovery time. But one thing that comes out of it? I really am not sure I can keep doing pull-ups. The amount of stress it seems to be putting on my shoulders and elbows is a lot. Frankly, that bums me out as it’s been so awesome to not suck (as much) at pull-ups any more. I’m going to keep going for a bit as I already have some changes planned to try to reduce some of the joint stress, so I want to see how those go before I make a full switch. But it’s on my mind.

anyways, that’s that.

Feeling energized and ready to get back into it.

5/3/1 Simplest Strength Template

  • Press
    • bar x whatever
    • 60 x 5 (warmup sets superset with band pull-aparts)
    • 60 x 5
    • 75 x 5
    • 75 x 5 (work sets superset with pull-ups)
    • 90 x 5
    • 90 x 5
  • Close-Grip Bench Press
    • 85 x 5 (sets superset with pull-ups)
    • 105 x 5
    • 125 x 5
  • V-Bar Pulldowns
    • 110 x 12
    • 110 x 12
  • Face Pulls
    • 100 x 12
    • 100 x 12
  • Lying Triceps Extensions
    • 60 x 12
    • 60 x 12
  • Close-grip EZ-bar Curls
    • 55 x 12
    • 55 x 12

2016-07-28 training log

/ hsoi

Again, it’s deload week.

And you know what? I’m really glad I took it. My joints and everything are feeling really good. I can only wonder how I’d feel if I did go the additional 3 weeks.

So, huzzah.

Nothing else much to report. It’s just a deload day.

5/3/1 Simplest Strength Template

  • Deadlift
    • 135 x 5
    • 135 x 5
    • 165 x 5
    • 165 x 5
    • 195 x 5
    • 195 x 5
  • Front Squat
    • 95 x 5
    • 115 x 5
    • 140 x 5
  • Elevated Glute Bridges
    • BW x 12
    • BW x 12
  • Crunches
    • BW x 12
    • BW x 12
  • Seated Calf Raises
    • 35 x 12
    • 35 x 12

The Cost

/ hsoi / 1 Comment

…our priorities should always be:

  1. Avoid,
  2. Escape,
  3. Confront,
  4. Resist

When we jump to Confront and Resist before we absolutely need to, we’re being emotionally hijacked by the situation, our pasts, our current influences, and our egos. Allowing an emotional hijacking is no more a recipe for success than going along with any other kidnapping attempt. There’s always going to be a very high cost.

Internet common-taters take note; it’s not you who will pay the cost, so STFU.

Claude Werner once again nails it. There’s a cost involved in killing someone – and it goes far deeper than you may have ever considered.

The cost is not only borne by the individual who does the shooting but also by their family. At some point their children are going to go to school and one of their classmates is going to taunt them with ‘my daddy says your daddy is a murderer!’ No matter how justifiable the shooting may be, someone in the community who feels that self-defense is an unacceptable concept will express their feelings to their children and the children will pass it on to your children.

Yup.

There are legal costs. There are financial costs. But there are also personal, emotional, psychological, reputation, jobs, social, relationships… there are many costs.

Going to guns should be the last resort. We should do all we can to avoid, deter, deescalate, escape. When you truly consider the costs, those are all far cheaper options.

2016-07-26 training log

/ hsoi

Deloading. Not much exciting to say. 🙂

But a few comments:

Accidentally tucked my feet more than usual while benching. That’s been a problem for me in the past because it really caused my butt to lift, but not so today. I think because I’m finding the direction of my drive is different — more up into my head, instead of up off the bench. That said, I’m not sure the tuck gets me as much. Still, was interesting to play with and I’ll probably continue to play with this a bit.

I am wondering if I may need to stop pull-ups for a bit. I think above all things they are what’s making my elbows hate life. Ugh. But that said, today I found that if I pulled my elbows in — as if I was trying to touch them together while pulling myself up — that seemed to make my joints not feel as stressed. I need to explore that a bit more. It’s not a huge change, not actually trying to touch them, just not letting them flare out, y’know?

To that, I also think I may ditch the overhead extensions for the same reason. Stupid elbows.

5/3/1 Simplest Strength Template

  • Bench Press
    • bar x whatever
    • 95 x 5 (warmup sets superset with band pull-aparts)
    • 95 x 5
    • 115 x 5
    • 115 x 5 (work sets superset with neutral-grip pull-ups)
    • 140 x 5
    • 140 x 5
  • Incline Press
    • 85 x 5 (sets superset with neutral-grip pull-ups)
    • 105 x 5
    • 125 x 5
  • Cable Rows
    • 100 x 12
    • 100 x 12
  • Shrugs
    • 205 x 12
    • 205 x 12
  • Overhead Triceps Extensions (superset with curls)
    • 60 x 12
    • 60 x 12
  • Hammer Curls (alternate, across body)
    • 25e x 12
    • 25e x 12