Under a Gibbous Moon

I really should have a more definitive plan when I go to the gym, but I really do wing it more than I should. I pretty much decided this weekend that I am going to change my lifting schedule, so we will see how that turns out.
Squat
135 x 10
225 x 10
315 x 7
410 x 5
500 x 3
add suit straps down
600 x 3
straps up
705 x 2
I was planning for more. Either just doing 1 with 705 then going to 750 or doing 3 with 705. This didn’t work because on my second rep I got forward out of position and I really had a grinder getting up and decided to not go for a 3rd. Luckily it is still light enough that I can muscle it up as long as I don’t screw it up too bad. We got to the gym late and it was already 11 pm, so I didn’t do any accessories except for unloading the barbell by myself.

Ok, Wednesday I went over to Macomb and benched heavy. I decided to wear my tight shirt. It wasn’t a great session, but it lets me know that I am going to have to lose 2-3 lbs if I am going to use it effectively. Warm up was shoulder circles as well as waving 10 lb dumbells around in various directions.
bar x 20
133 x 10
220 x 10
308 x 6
407 x 1
add shirt and 1-board
565 x 1 x 2
full range
585 x almost, missed at top
add 3-board close grip
585 x 2
remove shirt, close grip
308 x 13

I’m still too big for this shirt at my strength level. I was having a really hard time touching the 1-board and then the full range. About 3 lbs lighter and I should be able to touch the 565 if I am patient. When I touched the 1-board I pressed it easy enough.

Thursday- easy day. I just went in and did box jumps again and then some accessory work. I don’t remember exactly what I did, but I worked up to a 41 inch box for two sets of 8 jumps. For accessories I did the GHR and leg extensions back to back for 3 rounds.

It seems  like a little bit of a misnomer. It basically involves exercising in a fashion to help aid in recovery from the other workout. For this I did sled dragging. I don’t use a traditional sled because they are expensive and I can improvise. What I have is a old tire from Jamie’s Ranger and a 3/8 tow chain hooked onto the lip. For weight I have a rear end that was cut out of an old 1/2 ton truck. As you can see, it still has part of the frame attached and shocks. I pulled the center section out and put it in my chevelle, which is why there is a hole in the center. It probably weighs around 300 lbs.

I usually drag it the length of the driveway, but today I was feeling lazy and stopped about half-way before turning around. I measured it out to be about 17 yards to turn-around. I dragged it going backwards down and then forwards coming back. I did about 6 round trips, and despite the exhausting feeling, I do feel a little better.

I was pretty tired going into this one. No real reason that I can confirm. I’m pretty sure I went sleep walking last night. Usual signs were random things were moved around, my feet and knees hurt (when I sleep walk, I don’t walk down stairs, I jump them). I don’t remember the exact reps I did, so I’ll just guess on some of the warm-ups.
I did some PVC rolling and stretching before I went to the gym.
Squat-
135 x 10
225 x 10
315 x 8
410 x 6
500 x 3
add single-ply suit bottoms
600 x 3
straps up
700 x 2
My lower back was feeling pretty bad at this point. I debated not doing the last set, but I went for it anyway. I finished up with 3 sets of 10 on the GHR and called it a night. Took about 2 hours. Weight and strength seem to be on track for Nationals.

Tonight was a little lower body speed work. That typically involves some sort of dynamic effort squat or deadlift, but not tonight. At first I was thinking of doing some power cleans. That’s a good movement that requires a lot of speed to do right. I pulled one at 225 lbs and my aforementioned shoulder that feels like a smashed bag of assholes still hurt. So instead I did seated box jumps

Seated box jumps are exactly what they sound like. I am seated on a bench that is about 16 inches tall. From a seated position I jump onto a wooden box of varying height.

10 jumps on 27 inch box x 3
8 jumps on 34 inch box x 2
6 jumps on 36 inch box
6 jumps on 38 inch box x 2

Not a lot of stuff and I took about an hour. Way too long with too much rest in between sets but I was talking too much. The jumping is a lot more challenging as it sounds and I am not good at jumping.