Fo Serial

Great Job Natalie B!

12th place at Senior Worlds

Awesome Day

Today was PR day. I went 3/4. Here's a recap
Back Squat - 440# - 415 was heavy but I decided to put 425 on the bar. I hit it. Much easier than 415. I had 430 on the bar after that which would have been nice but I figured, "Hell, I've got my PR, let's go for 2x BW." And that's that.
Bench - 275# - I'll take a 10# PR without a spotter. Might have been able to get 5-10 more pounds out of it if I wasn't so worried about crushing my larynx.
DL - Fail - I failed at life on this one. Could hardly get 455 up. I decided that I'd rather save my back then try and lift something that just wasn't there. 560 will come eventually (so will 600, I hope)
Press - 185# - Another 10# PR. I started feeling a little obnoxious pressure in my trap so decided to call it quits before 195. I was kind of hoping for 200 but at this point I was gassed and was happy with my efforts.
I'd call that a successful 6-week cycle. Will I try it again? Maybe. Probably not with so many exercises at one time.
It was a good experiment on my body. I would recommend it to anybody as well so long as they have proper technique, can handle the volume and have taken their progressional gains to what they think is their max (basically, not for beginners).

Almost There...

This is huge... Koklyaev returns to weightlifting
The Inuit Paradox
Fish Oil is Legit

This is a tad late but Monday was a nice day to lift:
Squat 2x2 @ 415# (former 1RM)
Bench 2x2 @ 265 - fail 2nd set, 2nd rep
DL - couldn't budge 535 - pretty gassed
Press - 2x2 @ 175

With the 6x2 recovery done yesterday, frisbee tonight and then a rest day (with lots of food) tomorrow, hopefully I'll be able to hit some good poundages on Saturday. We'll see. I'm optimistic. At least about the squat. I may tire out.
I've been doing a lot of thinking about what to do next. I've narrowed my choices down but I'm still not 100% sure. I know, for a fact, that it's going to be an oly-cycle. I need to Snatch again but how long, what kind of training volume and does the cycle revolve around the lifts or squatting. Hmmmmm.
Hopefully this weekend I'll be able to give a recap of my 1RM efforts.

More Kroc

Skills

Training Montage

Oh, Kroc

1 week left for my training cycle. It's been tough but the 3x3 day went really well. I was able to pull 508 fairly cleanly and the back squats, while tough, were handleable (it's a word, just not in english, yet). Next Saturday should be interesting to go for new maxes. I'm looking forward to what's after this. Definitely an Oly cycle, not sure on the duration though. I'd like something with Friday's off because of Frisbee on Thursdays. We'll see what's up when we get there. For now, I'm happy with where I am with my training. The #'s keep creeping up and hopefully next week I'll be able to stand back with some new PR's.

Random Reading

Intensity (in Ten Cities)
"Secrets" to Gaining Muscle
T-Nation on Getting Ready for the Oly-Lifts
Is Exercise Important?
The Role of Post-Exercise Nutrition
Uni-Lateral Leg Strength
The Squat: It could be good for your vertical jump
Does Exercise Keep Kids Off of Drugs?
The New Yorker: Mark Zuckerberg

Enjoy!

Slip Up

Whoops. I’ve been doing pretty well with my clean eating project. Only eating desserts at appropriate times and not daily. But today was a slip up day. Free donuts and an ice cream sandwich. Let’s see if I can stop myself before I get started.

In other news: 2 weeks left on this cycle. Still going strong. 4x4 day sucked, especially in the Larchmont NYSC. Because of my ADD I’m getting antsy to start a new cycle but I have to be patient for 2 more weeks so that I can test my new 1-RM’s.

Update

I'm 3 weeks (half way) through the 6-week Russian Program. I'm beat and a little sore but I feel great. The 6x2 recovery days at 80% are feeling light and easy. Next week starts the increased weight portion. Should be interesting. I'll try to give updates as I go along. Big thanks to Tanner yesterday for showing up and keeping me motivated. He didn't have to do any yelling and hollering, just showing up and keeping me accountable was necesssary. It's amazing how a head ache can go away when you actually want to do something.

So far, the "better" eating is going fairly well. No desserts as of yet. Banana Nut Bread French Toast with some bacon, sausage and eggs for breakfast this morning.

30-Day Plan

Lately (or for the past 25 years) my diet has been crap. This is no secret. I enjoy DQ Blizzards, I enjoy awful burgers (the Vandross) and on occasion, a donut. All of these are facts. But recently, mostly over the course of this summer, I have been enjoying these a little too much. I know how I should eat. Lean meats, lots of veggies, fruits… But that just hasn’t been happening.

So, I’ve decided to do a 30-day clean diet challenge. From 9/2 to 10/2 I will be eating much cleaner. It’s a sad day, really. This isn’t so much for a body composition transformation (although, admittedly, I should probably start wearing a B-Cup) as much as it is a project to make me feel better. I’m becoming lethargic, practically falling asleep at work. I don’t have as much motivation around the house or to do fun things with my wife.

Rules:

1. Quantity of food is immaterial, only food quality

2. Dairy is OK. I need to replace the lost calories from potato chips

3. I will have dessert during “couples night”

4. No soda, not even diet

That’s about it. Stuffing myself to the rafters with shrimp and asparagus cooked in coconut milk (quite possibly tonight’s dinner) is A-OK.

I will try to keep an accurate food journal to see how progress goes.

Testosterone Rises When Lifting Weights

Denise Minger on 'The China Study'