Finally finished 'em, thank god. Should be able to get some much needed order to my training now.
Got in twice more this week, Wednesday and Thursday. Planned on training Friday, but spent the session in another local gym critiquing a friends deadlifting technique. They have no squat rack, and barely enough room to deadlift, nevermind clean or snatch; so I decided not to train.
Wednesday and Thursday weren't great, so I'm not going to log my lifts.
Wednesday was a day of random lifting. I was in with a friend, Reamonn, who I'm trying to get to return to the gym; so just went over some basic stuff. Pull ups, military presses, rows etc. Was nice to get doing some pull ups again, can't remember the last time I did! They were pretty tough though. My strength has really decreased recently, first time it's ever happened this drastically. Little annoyed about it.
I intended on training in Hercs Thursday, but Harry couldn't make it, and I've still to join, so I decided to train in DCU instead. I only got 3/4 hrs sleep the night before, so it was a pretty terrible session. I did some snatches, then some squatting, and left it at that.
I'm joining Hercs next week, and hope to train there 3 or 4 days. I've no lectures, so I can focus on lifting alone, and hopefully get a routine down for the following weeks.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Tuesday's Steady Progress
I trained in Hercs again today. It really is great to be back. The change in environment, improvement in training gear, and coaching from Harry is fantastic to say the least!
I arrived a little earlier than usual, so managed to fit in some of my shoulder rehab work. When Harry arrived I moved on to snatches. These were pretty good for a while. I was still making simple mistakes like not extending fully, as well as other smaller ones. Not staying over the bar, or getting my knees back enough going into the second pull were some Harry mentioned.
After that I did some jerks. These are improving a lot technique wise. That wouldn't be hard though. They really couldn't have been much uglier! Harry got me focus on the drive mainly. I definitely wasn't putting enough power or speed into it before. This made them feel a lot easier. As usual I finished with some squats. Here's what I did-
Snatch - 2*2*40kg, 2*2*43kg, 2*2*47kg, 2*1*47kg
It was intended that all four sets of 47kg would be doubles, but I missed the second in the last two sets. I was pretty annoyed about that. I lost them out front each time. The lock-out really needs improving.
After some jerk skill work with 40kg-
Jerk - 2*40kg, 2*45kg, 2*50kg
Front Squat + Jerk -
2+1*50kg, 2+1*54kg, 2+1*58kg, 2+1*62kg, 4*2+1*65kg
Front Squat - 3*65kg, 3*75kg, 5*3*85kg
These were pretty tough. But I managed to squeeze out the 5 sets of 85kg.
Today's session was very enjoyable overall. I think my strength levels have actually decreased though. I don't mind anyway, technique is the most important thing at the minute.
I have four exams out of five done, so I'm almost at the point where I can completely focus on training for a while. Really looking forward to getting this last one out of the way.
I should be down in Hercs again Thursday. There'll undoubtedly be a session that night though, since it's the last day of exams, but I'll make the best of it anyway. Even if the recovery time suffers. Here's hoping the DOMs aren't too bad!
Hours of sleep - 7/8hrs
I arrived a little earlier than usual, so managed to fit in some of my shoulder rehab work. When Harry arrived I moved on to snatches. These were pretty good for a while. I was still making simple mistakes like not extending fully, as well as other smaller ones. Not staying over the bar, or getting my knees back enough going into the second pull were some Harry mentioned.
After that I did some jerks. These are improving a lot technique wise. That wouldn't be hard though. They really couldn't have been much uglier! Harry got me focus on the drive mainly. I definitely wasn't putting enough power or speed into it before. This made them feel a lot easier. As usual I finished with some squats. Here's what I did-
Snatch - 2*2*40kg, 2*2*43kg, 2*2*47kg, 2*1*47kg
It was intended that all four sets of 47kg would be doubles, but I missed the second in the last two sets. I was pretty annoyed about that. I lost them out front each time. The lock-out really needs improving.
After some jerk skill work with 40kg-
Jerk - 2*40kg, 2*45kg, 2*50kg
Front Squat + Jerk -
2+1*50kg, 2+1*54kg, 2+1*58kg, 2+1*62kg, 4*2+1*65kg
Front Squat - 3*65kg, 3*75kg, 5*3*85kg
These were pretty tough. But I managed to squeeze out the 5 sets of 85kg.
Today's session was very enjoyable overall. I think my strength levels have actually decreased though. I don't mind anyway, technique is the most important thing at the minute.
I have four exams out of five done, so I'm almost at the point where I can completely focus on training for a while. Really looking forward to getting this last one out of the way.
I should be down in Hercs again Thursday. There'll undoubtedly be a session that night though, since it's the last day of exams, but I'll make the best of it anyway. Even if the recovery time suffers. Here's hoping the DOMs aren't too bad!
Hours of sleep - 7/8hrs
Friday, January 22, 2010
Friday's Short Session
I was pretty fatigued today. I had another exam this morning, so I only got 3/4hrs sleep. I'm actually going to start logging roughly how much sleep I get the night before training, just to see how much it's affecting me.
As the title says, I kept it short today. I started with my shoulder rehab work as usual. Spent a little longer on it today, as I hadn't done much during the week. The exercise I'm finding most effective so far is the thoraic spine extension (also called the cobra pose in yoga). I can really feel the scaps moving in to place when I do them. The scap push-ups are really improving too. I hope all this indicates I'm improving.
Disclaimer: This is not me.
Here's what I did today after some bar work-
Hang Clean - 2*2*40, 2*45
Clean - 2*50, 2*55, 2*60, 2*65, 3*2*70
Back Squat - 5*60, 5*70, 5*80, 3*5*90
Glute-ham raises - 1 set of 6
Had to leave it at one set as the gym was closing. They weren't feeling the best anyway, so I wasn't too bothered.
So there you go. Quite an easy session.
I'm not sure when I'll be in next. I've exams Monday and Tuesday, and the last on Thursday. Hopefully I'll get in three times. Not too happy with only 3 sessions a week. But I'm too busy at the minute to increase that. Once the exams are finished, I'll up it to 4 proper sessions a week.
Hours of sleep - 3/4hrs
As the title says, I kept it short today. I started with my shoulder rehab work as usual. Spent a little longer on it today, as I hadn't done much during the week. The exercise I'm finding most effective so far is the thoraic spine extension (also called the cobra pose in yoga). I can really feel the scaps moving in to place when I do them. The scap push-ups are really improving too. I hope all this indicates I'm improving.
Disclaimer: This is not me.
Here's what I did today after some bar work-
Hang Clean - 2*2*40, 2*45
Clean - 2*50, 2*55, 2*60, 2*65, 3*2*70
Back Squat - 5*60, 5*70, 5*80, 3*5*90
Glute-ham raises - 1 set of 6
Had to leave it at one set as the gym was closing. They weren't feeling the best anyway, so I wasn't too bothered.
So there you go. Quite an easy session.
I'm not sure when I'll be in next. I've exams Monday and Tuesday, and the last on Thursday. Hopefully I'll get in three times. Not too happy with only 3 sessions a week. But I'm too busy at the minute to increase that. Once the exams are finished, I'll up it to 4 proper sessions a week.
Hours of sleep - 3/4hrs
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Wednesday's Return to Hercs
Got to train in Hercs today, which was great. I used to be a member there last year, and got in quite regularly, so it was good to be back.
There was some old and new lifters. Wayne Healy was most noteable, as I'd never seen him lift before. Wayne's competition PBs are 112/137.5kg from back in 1999 as a 62kg lifter. He also lifted 115/140kg as a 69kg lifter the same year. He's ridiculously fast under the bar, and is still lifting close to his best. He made, what looked like a very comfortable 100kg snatch today. It was great seeing Wayne lift, as his physique, and weight are very similar to my own. I figure I could learn a lot from him.
I got far more done today than I have in months of training. Having Harry there pushing me to do extra, and being around other lifters really spurred me on. Harry decided what I would do. He knows I'm weakest in the overhead part of the lifts, so that's what I mainly focused on. I didn't get any of my shoulder rehab work done, but here's what I did after some bar work-
Snatch- 2*30kg, 2*35kg, 2*40kg, 6*2*45kg
For these Harry got me to slow down in the first pull, and extend a little quicker in the second pull. Before this I was speeding through the whole thing, causing the bar to swing out in front. It was far more sets than usual, but I need to do this to improve.
Jerk- 2*40kg, 2*45kg, 2*50kg, 4*2*55kg
Here Harry got me to focus on relaxing the back leg a little more. I was basically straightening it, which was causing me to lose the bar out front. I also had to work on getting the front foot out more, and increasing the width of my stance. As it was, it was quite narrow, which made balancing with the weight overhead difficult.
Front Squat- 3*60kg, 3*70kg, 3*80kg, 3*3*90kg
So there you go. That's the best session I've had in months! Doesn't say much for my training. I intend on rejoining Hercs now in semester 2, Harry says he's going to try getting in a few times a week, so hopefully it'll help me progress quicker. I probably won't be training tomorrow, as I've an exam the next day. I'll be training at home on Friday.
There was some old and new lifters. Wayne Healy was most noteable, as I'd never seen him lift before. Wayne's competition PBs are 112/137.5kg from back in 1999 as a 62kg lifter. He also lifted 115/140kg as a 69kg lifter the same year. He's ridiculously fast under the bar, and is still lifting close to his best. He made, what looked like a very comfortable 100kg snatch today. It was great seeing Wayne lift, as his physique, and weight are very similar to my own. I figure I could learn a lot from him.
I got far more done today than I have in months of training. Having Harry there pushing me to do extra, and being around other lifters really spurred me on. Harry decided what I would do. He knows I'm weakest in the overhead part of the lifts, so that's what I mainly focused on. I didn't get any of my shoulder rehab work done, but here's what I did after some bar work-
Snatch- 2*30kg, 2*35kg, 2*40kg, 6*2*45kg
For these Harry got me to slow down in the first pull, and extend a little quicker in the second pull. Before this I was speeding through the whole thing, causing the bar to swing out in front. It was far more sets than usual, but I need to do this to improve.
Jerk- 2*40kg, 2*45kg, 2*50kg, 4*2*55kg
Here Harry got me to focus on relaxing the back leg a little more. I was basically straightening it, which was causing me to lose the bar out front. I also had to work on getting the front foot out more, and increasing the width of my stance. As it was, it was quite narrow, which made balancing with the weight overhead difficult.
Front Squat- 3*60kg, 3*70kg, 3*80kg, 3*3*90kg
So there you go. That's the best session I've had in months! Doesn't say much for my training. I intend on rejoining Hercs now in semester 2, Harry says he's going to try getting in a few times a week, so hopefully it'll help me progress quicker. I probably won't be training tomorrow, as I've an exam the next day. I'll be training at home on Friday.
Tuesday's Logic
Had my first exam today, it was in Logic surprisingly enough! It's probably the easiest of all our exams, but it's good to have one over and done with.
While some people can apply their study to their training, I really don't find I can. Computers, weightlifting, not much there really! Logic is probably the only one with any relevance, especially as reasoning is such an important part of it.
While training today I thought about relationships between my lifting and study. I really couldn't think of any, apart from ones negative impact on the other. I concluded that I need to improve the balance. I leave college work to the last minute all the time. These leaves me working to ridiculous hours in the morning, skipping training, and not concentrating fully when I'm there. All negative! So applying my logic skills, I reason that I should get my college work done earlier, and everything will improve. Genius!
Right, enough of the waffle...
Today's training was mediocre. I started with foam rolling again, and some of the other shoulder rehabbing exercises. Then after some bar work, I started snatching. Initially these felt great, but as the weight got heavier, they got pretty bad. I put this down to confidence more than anything. I'm not getting myself into the mindset that leaves me comfortable getting under the bar. I also noticed I'm driving out with the hips rather than up, going to focus on improving that over the next while.
Afterwards I did some jerks. I was experimenting with different grip widths. I've been trying a wider grip for a while now, as it made sense to me that it would improve my lock out. Today I went back to the normal width, and I felt I was locking them out better than ever. No idea why.
Anyway, here's what I did-
Snatch- 2*35kg, 2*40kg, 2*45kg, 1*50kg(messy power snatch)
Jerk- 2*40kg, 2*45kg, 2*50kg, 2*55kg, 2*60kg
Still Struggling to get the foot forward in these as the weight increases.
Back Squat - 3*60kg, 3*70kg, 3*80kg, 3*90kg, 3*100kg, 3*110kg
Jerk Combo (Military Press + Push Press + Power Jerk) -
40kg, 50kg, 3 sets @ 60kg
Should be training in Hercs tomorrow, if Harry's heading in. Gonna increase the sleep tonight anyway, 3/4hrs last night did not make training easy at all.
While some people can apply their study to their training, I really don't find I can. Computers, weightlifting, not much there really! Logic is probably the only one with any relevance, especially as reasoning is such an important part of it.
While training today I thought about relationships between my lifting and study. I really couldn't think of any, apart from ones negative impact on the other. I concluded that I need to improve the balance. I leave college work to the last minute all the time. These leaves me working to ridiculous hours in the morning, skipping training, and not concentrating fully when I'm there. All negative! So applying my logic skills, I reason that I should get my college work done earlier, and everything will improve. Genius!
Right, enough of the waffle...
Today's training was mediocre. I started with foam rolling again, and some of the other shoulder rehabbing exercises. Then after some bar work, I started snatching. Initially these felt great, but as the weight got heavier, they got pretty bad. I put this down to confidence more than anything. I'm not getting myself into the mindset that leaves me comfortable getting under the bar. I also noticed I'm driving out with the hips rather than up, going to focus on improving that over the next while.
Afterwards I did some jerks. I was experimenting with different grip widths. I've been trying a wider grip for a while now, as it made sense to me that it would improve my lock out. Today I went back to the normal width, and I felt I was locking them out better than ever. No idea why.
Anyway, here's what I did-
Snatch- 2*35kg, 2*40kg, 2*45kg, 1*50kg(messy power snatch)
Jerk- 2*40kg, 2*45kg, 2*50kg, 2*55kg, 2*60kg
Still Struggling to get the foot forward in these as the weight increases.
Back Squat - 3*60kg, 3*70kg, 3*80kg, 3*90kg, 3*100kg, 3*110kg
Jerk Combo (Military Press + Push Press + Power Jerk) -
40kg, 50kg, 3 sets @ 60kg
Should be training in Hercs tomorrow, if Harry's heading in. Gonna increase the sleep tonight anyway, 3/4hrs last night did not make training easy at all.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Friday's sore shoulders
I'm noticing a trend to my posts already. Not a good sign at all. I promise the complaining will stop though, next week hopefully!
Today was a quick session. I trained at home, so I was limited. I started with some shoulder rehab. T-spine extensions, bar hangs, lat stretches, shoulder dislocates, theraband stretching and scap push-ups. These left my shoulders pretty fatigued, but I really think they're starting to make a difference, even if it is small.
I then moved on to overhead squats, and snatch balances. I wanted to push the weight up in these, but it just wasn't happening, so I cut that short. The same happened with the cleans. Here's what I ended up doing-
Overhead Squat + Snatch Balance- 2+2*30kg, 2+2*35kg
Clean- 2*40kg, 2*50kg
My shoulder joints were screaming at me, I had to leave it there.
Military Press- 5*30kg, 5*40kg, 5*42.5kg, 5*45kg
Back Squat- 5*40kg, 5*60kg, 5*70kg, 5*80kg, 5*90kg
There you have it. Twas a fairly embarrassing session to have to log. But I guess it's just one of many steps to greatness!
My exams are starting next week (insert sad face), so I probably won't get in to train until Tuesday. I'm not really sure how much I'll actually get to train at all next week, I've a lot of work to do. Looking forward to next Thursday. I'll have some time off after that to train a good bit.
Today was a quick session. I trained at home, so I was limited. I started with some shoulder rehab. T-spine extensions, bar hangs, lat stretches, shoulder dislocates, theraband stretching and scap push-ups. These left my shoulders pretty fatigued, but I really think they're starting to make a difference, even if it is small.
I then moved on to overhead squats, and snatch balances. I wanted to push the weight up in these, but it just wasn't happening, so I cut that short. The same happened with the cleans. Here's what I ended up doing-
Overhead Squat + Snatch Balance- 2+2*30kg, 2+2*35kg
Clean- 2*40kg, 2*50kg
My shoulder joints were screaming at me, I had to leave it there.
Military Press- 5*30kg, 5*40kg, 5*42.5kg, 5*45kg
Back Squat- 5*40kg, 5*60kg, 5*70kg, 5*80kg, 5*90kg
There you have it. Twas a fairly embarrassing session to have to log. But I guess it's just one of many steps to greatness!
My exams are starting next week (insert sad face), so I probably won't get in to train until Tuesday. I'm not really sure how much I'll actually get to train at all next week, I've a lot of work to do. Looking forward to next Thursday. I'll have some time off after that to train a good bit.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Thursday's battered legs
It must be the slight increase in volume, my legs are really suffering. A return to the ice baths is definitely due!
Today was tough again. My sleep pattern is all over the place, I got damn all last night, and it's really catching up with me. My speed was terrible, everything felt unusually heavy, and the intensity was like a long distance race (without it being that intense at all!).
I was training in DCU's high performance gym again today. Sami was in training some of the Dublin gaelic team, which was great, as he's always got plenty of advice for me. Sami's an 85kg lifter with pbs of 100kg/135kg. He's only lifting a short time, so we'll without doubt see plenty more from him.
I started again today with some foam rolling. It was a little more painful than yesterday as I was a little tight. Afterwards I did some shoulder dislocates, and t-spine extensions, following that I began some bar work, and then moved on to power snatches. Sami informed me that I need to keep the bar in closer when I extend for these. A rookie mistake no doubt!
After that I did some clean and jerks, with two cleans and a single jerk. Sami was quick to point out that I need to get the front foot forward more in the jerk. I've noticed this for a while myself, but when someone else mentions it, you think about it that bit more. I'll have to get some videos up to see if there's any improvement in it. Unfortunately you're not allowed to use videoing equipment in the HPG, I'll have to see if I can find a way around that. Here's what I did today-
Power Snatch - 3*30kg, 3*40kg, 3*42.5kg, 3*45kg
Clean and Jerk - 2+1*40kg, 2+1*50kg, 2*2+1*55kg, 2+1*60kg
Front Squat - 3*60kg, 3*70kg, 3*80kg, 3*90kg
The front squats were ridiculously tough. My 3x100kg last week was far easier than the 3x90kg today. I'm looking forward to adjusting to the current training.
I'm not sure whether I'll be training at home or in DCU tomorrow. May have to head back early. I'd much rather train here, so fingers crossed I can.
Today was tough again. My sleep pattern is all over the place, I got damn all last night, and it's really catching up with me. My speed was terrible, everything felt unusually heavy, and the intensity was like a long distance race (without it being that intense at all!).
I was training in DCU's high performance gym again today. Sami was in training some of the Dublin gaelic team, which was great, as he's always got plenty of advice for me. Sami's an 85kg lifter with pbs of 100kg/135kg. He's only lifting a short time, so we'll without doubt see plenty more from him.
I started again today with some foam rolling. It was a little more painful than yesterday as I was a little tight. Afterwards I did some shoulder dislocates, and t-spine extensions, following that I began some bar work, and then moved on to power snatches. Sami informed me that I need to keep the bar in closer when I extend for these. A rookie mistake no doubt!
After that I did some clean and jerks, with two cleans and a single jerk. Sami was quick to point out that I need to get the front foot forward more in the jerk. I've noticed this for a while myself, but when someone else mentions it, you think about it that bit more. I'll have to get some videos up to see if there's any improvement in it. Unfortunately you're not allowed to use videoing equipment in the HPG, I'll have to see if I can find a way around that. Here's what I did today-
Power Snatch - 3*30kg, 3*40kg, 3*42.5kg, 3*45kg
Clean and Jerk - 2+1*40kg, 2+1*50kg, 2*2+1*55kg, 2+1*60kg
Front Squat - 3*60kg, 3*70kg, 3*80kg, 3*90kg
The front squats were ridiculously tough. My 3x100kg last week was far easier than the 3x90kg today. I'm looking forward to adjusting to the current training.
I'm not sure whether I'll be training at home or in DCU tomorrow. May have to head back early. I'd much rather train here, so fingers crossed I can.
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