Wednesday. Complex, clean + clean + push jerk (up to 90kg). Front squat 6x2 @ 110kg. Metcon, 10rds of: 3 bar mu, 10 back squat @ 50kg. Gymnastics, 50 t2b.
Oly.
Build up to a heavy complex of:
Squat clean + squat clean + push jerk
60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95kg (failed at the jerk)
Felt pretty good until some point. From then on the jerk wasn't that cool anymore. Didn't drop enough on the last attempt @ 95kg. After that I took some lighter clean and jerks @ 85, 90kg
Strength.
Front squat 6x2 @ 110kg
This is part of the program at weightlifting101.
Metcon. TIme, 12.16
10 rounds of:
3 bar muscle-ups
10 back squats @ 50kg
Skills and leg burn. Nice combo. My legs are sore now in the evening. I guess this one worked.
Focused today lots on clean complex. Afterwards I was tired of moving the barbell so it was time to move just the body. Calisthenics in the metcon.
Oly.
10 sets of the following clean complex:
1 hang cleans
1 cleans
2 front squats
Barbell at 90kg each set
Built up to this moving barbells in different combos at 40, 60, 70 and 80kg's. Then started the first set @ 90kg. This was not a timed workout. It was pretty cool to understand that this load was very much under my control. On the video you'll see the last set of the 10 completed ones. I believe all the sets looked alike.
Metcon.
5 rounds of:
15 toes-to-bar
20 push-ups
Not a timed workout either. Focus was on getting the push-ups done unbroken. Those got very tough on the last 2 rounds but I'm really happy on completing them ub every round. The last maybe 6-7 reps were miserable on those rounds.
Toes-to-bar's were unbroken on the first 2 rounds. Then I had to start breaking them up. Third was maybe something like 8-4-3, then maybe 4 attempts to finish the round. This hurt more in the muscles than lungs.
Friday. Snatch balance 5x3 (50-60kg). Karhureiret. Time, 14.35. Conditioning, 7rds of: 2min row, 2min bike.
It was a notch longer workout session today. Tried some snatch balances in the beginning to get a feeling of those after a long break. Then some old school stuff from Finland's championships some years ago. That sucked. Then conditioning piece in the end.
Oly.
Snatch balance 5x5 (50, 50, 60, 60, 60kg)
These have been rare in the past months. I had that wrist issue earlier in the year and that caused I haven't done either these nor overhead squats with proper weights at all. It still felt kind of funny even though I have no problems in my wrists and haven't had in a long time.
It was cool to get these done. I'm looking forward to doing more of these accessory stuff for snatch in the future. I'm certain these will build up the confidence for the actual snatch too.
The video is unedited for couple of min
Karhureiret. Time, 14.35. Compare to 15.5.2013
10 back squats @ 100kg
50 kettlebell swings @ 32kg
20 front squats @ 80kg
40 box jumps
30 overhead squats @ 50kg
30 toest-to-bar's
The reason is unknown but I was done already on the swings. Literally I was trying to create excuses not to finish this workout. Luckily didn't but for some reason my body refused to work ideally, even though I had lots of passion to attack this workout.
Yes I got through this faster than before with heavier weights but I can't be satisfied of the effort fully. Especially the kettlebell swings and box jumps stayed to haunt in my head. Had to break both of them. Kettlebell swings more than once. No reason for that. And this was probably the first time ever pausing on the box jumps. Body was just completely in shut down mode. Somehow I got through this and maybe the last two elements went better than I assumed at that point of the workout. Back squats were unbroken, front squats were 5's and overhead squats were 10-8-7-5 reps.
Conditioning. Total of 28 minutes
7 rounds of:
2min row
2min bike
Damned I was over and out after that metcon. Yesterday my gym turned 1 year old so they had a birthday party. There was some leftover cake at the lobby. Once I saw it after the metcon I felt weak in my body and needed to fuel up. That felt like a perfect idea =) Huh, it was delicious!
After some recovery I jumped on the rower and bike combo, 2 minutes each with a running clock for 28 minutes total. That was a good end to the session!
Sunday. AM: Complex, hang snatch + snatch, build up to a heavy set (62kg). Heavy Grace @ 70kg. Time, 4.30. PM: Metcon, 4rds of: 10 thruster @ 40kg, 10 ring dip, 10 t2b, 10 burpee. Time, 10.45.
I really needed a rest day on Saturday. Body felt very tired after a busy week. It was action from morning to evening every day and I tried to struggle to get some good sessions in the schedule. Succeeded in that too but it took its taxes during the week. Today I felt great again after a relaxing day spent with the family.
Oly.
Complex, hang snatch + snatch
Build up to a heavy set (40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 62kg)
Couple of sets snatches to start the day. This was a rather short session so I took just a few sets and focused on those lifts. I'm happy on all of the lifts this time. Bar path was okay all the way. Everything over 60 kilos starts to get heavy pretty soon but today those were good. I took 62kg and left it there.
Grace. Time, 4.30
30 clean @ jerk @ 70kg
This is a benchmark workout that gets me nervous every freaking time! Somehow Grace and Fran are the most classical benchmarks for me. Every now and then this pops up in my program and then it's time to go. I walked around the gym for a while and tried to find excuses to postpone this one but couldn't find any =)
It was a little heavier workout than normally. Rx'd version is at 60kg but this was 70kg. That means it's gonna burn my shoulders and legs much more than normally in a way. On the other hand on the regular version I'm able to go faster which makes it more intense, thus resulting in probably even more pain in the above mentioned areas, plus the lungs.
My strategy was simple. Go singles all the way from the very beginning. Don't keep too much rest between reps, just grab the bar and put it overhead. First reps were quite easy but somewhere between 5-10 the reality hit me and I recognized it's gonna be an awkward ride to the finish line. And it kind of was.
It got heavy but somehow still manageable. My legs started to get fired up and shoulders too. My jerks were quite good though and the technique stayed right on the point. Steady work through the finish. I'll take this one with a pleasure. It's over 2min improvement compared to the previous 70kg Grace.
Grace @ 70kg
Metcon. Time, 10.45
4 rounds of:
10 thrusters @ 40kg
10 ring dips
10 toes-to-bar's
10 burpees
After couple of hours I returned to the gym as this metcon needed to be completed. I wanted to do this in the morning but didn't have enough time. Plus I was done after 30 clean and jerks. I kept the thrusters light in order to keep the intensity high. That means I was able to go unbroken on them all the way. It sky rocketed my breathing every time and on the last round my shoulders needed to work big time as they started to go numb.
There were three elements that pressured shoulders. Basically everything but the t2b's. Ring dips were the most challenging part. Those have always been challenging for me. First round was unbroken, then I had to start breaking them up. I guess my shoulders are tight and that has an effect on the dips. T2b's were unbroken. Usually burpees keep the breathing up (this was no exception either) but today they mostly shot my shoulders. It felt heavy to push myself up from the floor because of all the shoulder pressure in this workout. Good metcon.
Sunday. CF Open 14.4. Result, 184 reps. Accessory, 5rds of: 40m farmer's walk (135kg), handstand.
Old school benchmark which I have somehow been able to avoid this far. It was about time to attack it. After couple of minutes rest it was time for accessory work in the form of strongman meets skills. Farmer's walk set for 40 meters and handstand practice between carries. It's been months since being in freestand handstand.
CF Open 14.4. Result, 184 reps (4 muscle-ups)
14min amrap of:
60 cal row
50 toes-to-bar's
40 wall ball shots
30 power cleans
20 ring muscle-ups
The thing that got me terrified on this workout as I was thinking about was basically the power cleans and muscle-ups. Everything prior to that is just basic conditioning, and I kind of think that's in okay shape in my part.
Rowing was kind of a cool ride and I kept a smooth breathing throughout that stage. It was quite accurately 800 meters of rowing with a 1.48 pace. It's rare to complete a big bunch of t2b's in a row so I decided to go by feeling on this one. Took 10 reps to begin with, then 5's from then on.
Wall balls were the easiest part of this workout, took them in two sets, 25 at first and then 15 to reach a total of 40 repetitions. Those power cleans at this stage of the workout with a rather good heart beat was interesting. The bar felt good in my hands all the time and the weight wasn't too heavy. But it just gets heart beat a lot heavier. Took these in singles for all 30 reps. First a 10 rep stint, then 5's till the end. My heart was racing pretty wildly after these.
Got to admit my body wasn't eager to jump on the rings after working for 12 minutes of rowing, t2b's, wb's and cleans. Damn it felt heavy to get myself on top of the rings. Got a double at first attempt, then two singles. They look easier than they felt and this got me thinking should I have forced myself to jump on the rings earlier with less recovery.
CF Open 14.4
Strongman / Skills.
5 rounds of:
40m farmer's walk @ 135kg
Handstand
Strongman meets skills. Very different type of elements. There were 2x25kg bumper plates on each handle so that means the total weight was 135kg for the farmer's walk. This was not a timed workout, more of an accessory work. It's been months since doing handstand so it was fun to get upside down and attack this skill. It was a good combination of movements.
Friday. Metcon, 21-15-9 of: power snatch @ 40kg, box jumps, pull-ups. Cashout lunges @ 60kg. Time, 9.40. Gymnastics, every 3:00, perform 20 t2b.
Great session at Crossfit Kehä. Both of the owners threw down with me. We created this one with Toni on our way to the gym. It was supposed to be pretty much about lungs. And it was. Intense workout with bodyweight stuff and some barbell action.
Metcon. Time, 9.40
21-15-9 of:
Power snatches @ 40kg
Box jumps
Pull-ups
Right into lunges @ 60kg
Doing a workout as a competition is something I'm not used to as I've been training by myself the past three years. The first year we did most of our workouts together with Toni. So today's composition was a bit nerve racking prior to the 3-2-1-go command =) And once the barbells started to cling and clang on the floor it felt like I need to keep my arms on the bar, and at least not drop the bar first.
On the other hand, you should play your own game and not get confused by stuff that happens next to you. But then again, in competition you need to know where you are at and know if you got to step up your game. On this one we finished the first snatches with Toni about the same time (I went 12-5-4). Second round was 3x5 and last one 5-4 reps.
Box jumps were my active recovery piece on this wod. Of course they kept my breathing high and legs burning but somehow I'm able to go through them without having to break them down. Maybe they are rather efficient. They were unbroken each round.
On the pull-ups I had my mind on the game. Decided to break them down in order not to shoot my forearms on the snatch / pull-up combo. First round was 10-7-4, second was 11-4 and last one unbroken.
The grande finale on this workout was lunges with a barbell on back rack position. We didn't measure the distance but I'd guess it's somewhere about 10 meters back and forth, that is a total of 20 meters. Had to change the plates on the bar after the 21-15-9 so that took some time but I tried to get my hands on the barbell right after that and start moving.
This went pretty smoothly even though I haven't done 60kg lunges like ever. It stayed there nicely and legs took the burden well. Yes, my legs hurt after it was all done and felt greatly relieved as I was able to drop the bar away. Awesome workout to say the least. My lungs hurt hours after this one!
Gymnastics.
Every 3:00:
20 toes-to-bar
Toni had written this one in his head for accessory kind of work for core. It was a good one and these were surprisingly challenging. Went unbroken for 2 rounds but then the last one was a big battle. Had to break it after 10 reps. Grip, hip flexors and core were the issue. It was odd that both of ours lungs started hurting on the first round like we were still doing the metcon =)
I continued to rock the squats to start Friday's session. Need to feel my legs getting stronger so more volume needs to be in the program. Then I took a longer workout, 20min amrap of bodyweight movements and deadlifts. Felt a bit dizzy in the middle of the workout for some reason but it was a good workout anyway.
Strength.
Back squats 5x5 @ 125kg
Couple of days a go I did 7 sets of 5's with 120kg. That was a good starter and reminder to get squats back in the game for real. Today I added some weight on the bar for same rep scheme. However, there was 5 sets this time.
These felt good too. Tried to get these also done pretty quickly without pausing too much on top. Got to keep adding weights in the near future. Then I might have to take more time to finish per set but we'll see.
Metcon. Result, 270 reps (5 rounds + 5 t2b)
20min amrap of:
5 deadlift @ 130kg
10 handstand push-ups
15 toes-to-bar
20 cal row
Got the first round very nicely completed unbroken each element. Then on the second round somehow my heart was pumping awkwardly fast so I needed to take a short break after the second round, and water my head and face with cold face. It wasn't like the metcon was too bad ass. It was something else so I figured I'd better take care of this one. That also resulted me taking the entire workout a notch easier. The rest of the wod went alright though.
Deadlifts were fine all the time. My hands were a little sore so I stayed conservative on this one. On the course of the workout it turned out to be a good call anyway. Maybe those handstand push-ups had an effect on the pump. Felt very exhausted after every set. That was a bit funny as usually these are my strong part nowadays but this was not a normal day by any means regarding the metcon.
T2b's got heavy. I'm not sure if I went unbroken on the first round or did I intentionally break it down already in the beginning. It was mostly 10-5 for first rounds, then 8-4-3 towards the end. I have no idea what the pace was on the rower but it was 270-300m to get to those 20 calories needed to finish the round.
Wednesday. 10min amrap: 20 squat, 10 db snatch @ 25kg, 10 t2b. Result, 226 reps. Every 2:00, perform 10 tng power snatch @ 40kg. Wod, 5rds of: 30 du, 10 s2o @ 40kg.
It was a nice session indeed, 3-piece action where I had two metcons - in the beginning and in the end - and some barbell cycling in the middle. Had a running clock that took me 37 minutes to finish these wods.
Metcon. Result, 226 reps (5 rounds + 6 snatches)
10min amrap of:
20 air squats
10 dumbbell snatches, 25kg, alternating
10 toes-to-bar
It was possible to jump into this without much of a warm-up. I've done this type of solutions lately every now and then. But the first metcons must then be mostly bodyweight stuff. It also works as a warm-up workout. This burned my legs definitely, especially on the snatches.
Barbell cycling.
Every 2:00, perform:
10 touch'n'go power snatches @ 40kg
This was absolutely beneficial for me. I have rarely done longer sets of snatches so this came in handy for sure! I felt comfortable with the movement itself. That was a positive feeling after having a good break of snatch work.
It felt consistent with the bar path and I was able to bring the bar up to the hips before the last pull. That satisfied me big time.
Metcon.
5 rounds of:
30 double unders
10 shoulder-to-overhead @ 40kg
On this one I didn't follow the clock that much. As such the workout is rather light and short. After those earlier pieces and after not having worked my shoulders that much lately this burned shoulders pretty well. Even with just 40kg on the bar. Du's went pretty well too. I foam rolled my shins prior to jumping around, that seems to be the key to success on these.
Friday. Oly lifts emom: sdhp's and hang snatches. Wod, 5rds of: 40m farmer's walk @ 113kg, 40m lunges, 10 t2b. Cashout, 200m walking lunges wearing a weight vest. L-sit pull-ups, 4 sets.
Friday night training session. As I entered the gym, the owner told right away that he's ordering jerk blocks from Rogue. That was sick news! I've been drawling over those for a year now. Hopefully someday I'm able to put some weight overhead because those will definitely make a difference for jerks.
Oly.
Every 30 seconds: 1 sumo deadlift high-pull @ 80kg, for 10 minutes
Every minute on the minute: 3 high hang power snatch @ 40kg, for 10 minutes
Two different emom style workouts. There was a 3min break between these. Damn I'd like to do cleans. Sumo deadlift high-pulls are my substitute for those. There aren't many bar movements I can smash right now so I went heavy on the sdhp's. Never have I gone over 60kg before today.
It was a positive thing I was able to do power snatches. Can't put real weight on the bar though but the movement was okay this time. Focus was on extending my hips properly and being powerful. Towards the end it got better.
Metcon.
5 rounds of:
40m farmer's walk @ 113kg
40m walking lunges, bodyweight
10 toes-to-bar
Great one. That farmer's walk was a nice piece to throw in the mix. That's definitely not too light. Haven't gone beyond this weight on this movement either before. That's obviously an entire body movement
Bodyweight burned quads big time, especially right after the farmer's walk. That was purely bodyweight stuff but it was definitely sufficient. T2b's were there to bring more pressure on the core. Great workout. Didn't time this at all but worked with same determination as normally.
Cashout.
200m walking lunges
Wear a 9kg vest
Went back and forth that 20m length of grass matt, wearing a vest that weighs 9-10 kilos. Went unbroken for each leg of the distance, then shook my legs before continuing the journey. This was bad ass on lower body.
Gymnastics.
4 sets of:
L-sit pull-ups
Result: 10, 10, 9, 5 reps
In the end I decided to do this old fella I haven't said hi to in ages. L-sit pull-ups, max sets for for 4 sets. First two were 10 reps each, third was close but on the 4th set my arms were so pumped that I could only go for 5. These were no-reps by a long shot but I'll take it. Didn't come to a dead hang in the bottom position. I'm still happy to being able to do these sets nicely.
Saturday. Metcon, 10min amrap of: 10-15 kb oh lunges (2x16kg), 10-15 push-ups, 10-15 t2b. Metcon, 3rds of: 5 back squat @ 125kg + max set of hspu's. Accessory, 4rds of: 15 back rack lunges @ 50-60kg + ghd accessories.
It was a busy day on Saturday and I really got to the gym only at around 7-8pm. That was kind of a weird feeling getting there that late. Anyway, the session was a success even though my wrist is killing me. Have to think about the movements a lot now in order not to stress it too much.
Metcon. Result, 5rds
10min amrap of:
10-15 kettlebell overhead lunges @ 2x16kg bells
10-15 push-ups
10-15 toes-to-bar
This was my warm-up metcon. Every time I have programmed one with the same ideology they still make me feel heavy. I started by doing 15 reps each movement and then after 2 rounds changed it to 10 reps on every element. It was probably the first time doing overhead lunges with two kettlebells. At least with this weight. Spectacular movement for sure! It would be nice to try heavier too if I found some bells for that purpose.
It came as a surprise how much that static pressure burned my shoulders. Or maybe that was not the surprise part but doing push-ups right after turned out much more challenging than normally. And the amount of reps was very modest on that one. T2b's went nicely but had to drop the amount there too to get them ub.
Wod.
3 rounds of:
5 back squat @ 125kg
Max set of handstand push-ups (15-11-11 reps)
Rest 2min between sets
Decided to mix heavier squats with gymnastics movement. Very good combo. Never have I done this type of stuff. Pretty much like a strength set and bodyweight moves right away. I thought about doing 10 hspu's on each set, then at some point I figured 12 reps. It turned out I went for max set on each round. First was 15 reps, then 11 on the last 2 rounds.
Accessory.
4 rounds of:
15 back rack walking lunges @ 50-60kg (2 sets each)
Ghd accessories, 10 reps with weights + 10 reps bodyweight
Rest as needed between sets
Lunges are great. Rarely do I get a chance to walk straight forward with a barbell on my back at the gym. There are always people doing their work. During the weekends the probability to get an empty grass matt. Lunges felt good. The second element of this accessory stuff is easier to show in video. Take a look at the clip above. I did bunch of reps with a barbell, then dropped it and finished with 10 bodyweight reps.
It was an early morning workout to kickstart the day. As I'm on a holiday right now my program looks pretty similar each day. I drive my lovely wife to work, then head to the gym right after that at 9.00 in the morning at latest. Then a good warm-up takes place and about 2h session is ahead of me. There's no rush at all. At 11.00 I go back home, eat, relax and take a nap. That's a life changer. I feel alive again after sleeping for a while. Then another session in the afternoon and then get Pauliina back home. Then more food inside of me and recovery for the next day in the best company.
Bodyweight.
Every minute on the minute x 20 minutes
Odd min, 10 pull-ups
Even min, 10 handstand pull-ups
I needed a lot of warm-up to get to this point that I was able to move my body properly. Felt very stiff in the morning. Did rowing for 1k and mobilized a lot, played around with a light barbell for a while before hopping on the pull-up bar.
This was supposed to be a 10 minute emom workout but once I started moving my body woke up nicely and both pull-ups and handstand push-ups started feeling good. It felt only suitable to keep on going and it turned out to be a 20min workout in the end. Pull-ups were too easy. That was a very positive thing now as I think about it.
Hspu's got tougher through the end. Last 2-3 sets were clearly heavier. I'm still very happy on that I was able to complete 100 reps of both pull-ups and hspu's. On pull-ups that's a good volume but for the handstand push-ups it's huge. No matter in what kind of sets it's being done, 100 hspu's is a lot for me.
Oly / Core.
Every minute on the minute x 10 minutes
Odd min, 3 squat clean @ 80kg
Even min, 12 toes-to-bar
There was quite a proper time of recovery between the emoms. Had to make sure my body's ready for the second piece. Considering my legs were done already when I woke up today I didn't know how they would react on the cleans. Taking that into consideration this felt great. Went down in 3 x singles each minute. Not an actual break in between. Just dropped the bar and took it up again.
T2b's were surprisingly hard. Well there wasn't a chance I wouldn't do them unbroken but going for maybe additional 2 rounds it would have probably got challenging. Had to adjust my grip and core was also feeling it. Good workout.
Some accessory work in the rmoning. Bicep curls 5x10 reps
Metcon. Result, 162 reps (7 rounds + 6 jerk)
15min amrap of:
2 ring muscle-ups
6 push jerks @ 60kg
14 box jumps
After nap time this was ahead of me. Wanted to have muscle-ups in the game. I thought about what's going to match nicely with this movement. Needed to have some barbell movement. Squats were out of question because my legs are so sore. Shoulder-to-overhead's seemed like a good idea, and they were. Box jumps sealed the deal.
This went very well. In the warm-up jerks felt heavy but then I stopped listening to my head and put the timer on. This weight is not super heavy for sure. Went unbroken on the muscle-ups. That was my goal, and the reasoning behind writing only 2 reps per round. Had I put 3 reps per round they most likely would not have been ub all the way. Actually jerks and box jumps were unbroken too. Just as planned.
Round times were consistent. About 2 minutes per round. First one was 90 seconds, the rest of them about 120 seconds. I finished the 7th round at 11.59, and got enough time to still go after muscle-ups and jerks. As I dropped the barbell overhead clock turned 15:00.
Tuesday. AM. Push press 2x8 (70kg). Metcon, 5rds of: 15 cal row, 11 front squats (2x15kg db's), 7 hspu. Time, 10.30. Gymnastics, 100 pull-ups. Accessory, upper body strength.
PM. Metcon, 50-35-20 of: t2b and push jerk (40kg). Time, 15.05. Accessory, lower body strength.
Drove Pauliina to work in the morning and headed right away to the gym for a 2h session. Felt a bit scared how my back would handle it. I wrote the programming considering that issue. Only some light front squats were in play today and those didn't feel too good. Everything else went smoothly. In the afternoon I hit another session at the same place. High rep metcon was in main role. Then lower body strength.
Overhead.
Push press 2x8 @ 70kg
Part of the progression for bigger shoulders. Or actually I don't really care whether they get bigger or not but the functionality of them is the main goal. Getting stronger on upper body in order to master olympic lifts better in the future. This was a total of 2 sets at a pre-determined weight at 70 kilos.
Built up to 80kg for warm-up as it has been some sort of tradition this far. Soon I'm supposed to hit sets at around that weight so maybe I'll have to change my approach in the near future. I was still able to go touch'n'go on both of these sets. Felt really good on hitting the sets well.
Presses and pull-ups
Metcon. Time, 10.30
5 rounds of:
15 cal row
11 squats, holding 2x15kg dumbbells in front rack
7 handstand push-ups
This was going to be a great workout. Those squats kinda ruined the purpose of the workout. I should have known better that it puts too much pressure on lower back. But the combination of the elements is great. Let's say my body would have felt fresh, then I could have done this for a 20min amrap with maybe something like 24-16-8 reps of the same movements. Rowing felt like a short distance, that is something to be added somewhat. Squats hurt my back so it hindered me from going at full throttle. Hspu's were good all the way.
Gymnastics.
100 pull-ups
Need to keep the volume on pull-ups high because this is a movement that goes downhill if it's not worked on continuously. This was not for time. The sets were 20-10-20-15-15-10-10 reps. I thought about just working on finding a smooth rhythm and keeping my feet together. It got heavier somewhere after 70 reps. Lats took these well. It was only my hands / palms that felt the burden. There is something funny in these hands as it's sometimes the thing not letting me do more reps or go heavier =)
Accessory.
Bent over row, 4x10, both right and left hand
Now as I'm on vacation and there's not rush out of the gym it's good to utilize the time and do some accessory strength movements. Bent over rows are something I rarely do but I guess these are okay movements anyway. I went 10 reps on right hand, then 10 reps on left hand, and kept a break after those. Repeat for a total of 4 rounds.
Metcon. Time, 15.05
50-35-20 of:
Toes-to-bar
Push jerk, 40kg
Once I got home, it was meal and nap time. These really make a difference for recovery. Body felt fine in the afternoon, better than in the morning. Main thing on this session was the metcon with which I began the session. It was a high rep workout. Total of 105 reps of both jerks and core work. It makes the nature of the wod different when you throw a good bunch of reps in a row.
50-35-20
First set of t2b's were 10-10-5-5 and then triples to the end. Jerks were 5x10 on the first round. Then number of reps for t2b is not huge in this workout but doing them this way really made it feel in my core. Same with the jerks. Load is light, just 40kg but doing them for a long time without real rest is a nice test of muscle endurance.
Second round of t2b's were 5-5-5-5, and then triples till the end. Jerks were 15-10-10. Was able to do bigger sets on jerks all the way. Last round of t2b's were 5-5-5-3-2 reps. Jerks were 13-7. Damned that bar felt heavy on the last reps. Shoulder felt the burn. This was a fun workout.
Accessory.
Lower body strength (quads, hamstrings, glutes)
I took my time to work on leg strength afterwards. Lots of sets on different stations of the gym. More like traditional meathead type of action. I needed this anyway because I wasn't able to squat which was the original plan.
Thursday. Back squat triples / doubles / singles (up to 145kg). Metcon, long chipper. Time, 15.30.
Huh, today was as sentimental day as it could possible be. I'm about to change my employer after working for this current company for 10 years. I've grown up to a man within that building's walls around me. It has not been just a job, it's been something close to a second home. From the beginning of next year I'm about to build similar confidence and society with another company. Today was my farewell party and it was a really touching event to say the least. I appreciate those guys tremendously. They've affected me in more ways I could ever imagine.
Jasper after the chipper
Strength.
Back squat
Triples (60, 70, 80, 90, 100kg)
Doubles (110, 120, 130kg)
Singles (135, 140, 145kg, fail at 150kg)
After work I hooked up with Jasper and we agreed to get some strength in our lower bodies and then get a good sweat together. This session was supposed to be identical to the one I just did earlier this week with front squats. That was every 90 seconds for a set of front squats, with climbing weights and descending reps, up to a heavy single.
There were not more than one rack available so we shared it with Jazz. that's the reason why I didn't take a look at the clock at all. Point was to go for a set once the bar was available. This was a good workout and the tempo was good. We did the sets alternating. Triples were light, more like warm-up sets. Doubles were easy too. It was great to see that also 2x130kg was ways.
It was kind of funny to witness that singles were under very good control all the way up to 145kg. That last successful one was a bit tight in the end but there was no doubt in my mind it would come up. And I felt strong on that lift. Some doubt still crawled in my mind about hitting the 150kg lift, and that must have affected the last attempt. It went down smoothly, small bounce there and coming back up. Just didn't have enough to bring it all the way up so I had to let it go. Still happy on the 145kg. It's been a while since going this heavy on back squats.
Got this sandbag from Toni and couple of colleagues today =)
Chipper. Time, 15.30
15 pull-ups
20 kettlebell swings, 20kg
30 medball slams, 9kg
30 air squats
15 toes-to-bar's
600m row
30 push-ups
20 lunges
25 ghd sit-ups
15 dips
20 box jumps
10 handstand push-ups
20 overhead squats, 20kg
30 burpees
This is something Jasper had written down some months ago. He's had some issues with his hips so we haven't been able to go after this one. Today he was well rested and body felt fresh so it was time to see what this is all about.
The ideology behind this is a chipper. Every movement exists there only once so you just chip it away. All the movements and reps were designed so that you don't have to stop and lean your elbows on your knees but just keep moving.
I was able to obey that plan pretty well. Only two elements had to be broken down. Those were dips and push-ups, a.k.a the pressing movements. Push-ups were 20-5-5, and dips were 8-3-2-2. They got spicy. However, my breaks were not that long as I wanted to keep moving all the time. There was not a single movement that would have been too much to handle. It was more like the continuing agony of having heart rate up and muscles working.
Okay, the last element of 30 burpees was disgusting. At that point of the wod it was just awful. My strategy was just do them one by one, without thinking too much about it. I went up and down without stops. I'm proud of this one.
Tuesday. Back squat 4x8 @ 120kg. Emom x 21min: 1st min 5 hang power clean (50kg) + 5 burpee, 2nd min 10 reverse lunges (50kg), 3rd min 10 push-up + 10 t2b.
It's December c'mon! Time to start waiting for Christmas. Our house is already looking like it and work place too. Yesterday's session feels in my body for sure. Entire upper body is smashed. The volume of pull-ups made a big difference. And somehow also legs had taken a hit. Had to warm-up up properly to get fluids flowing in my body and legs ready for the upcoming task.
Strength.
Back squat 4x8 @ 120kg
When doing these sets I wanted to get a feeling of a little heavier weights before starting the first working set. Built up to it by doing 6x60, 5x90, 3x110, 1x120, 1x130kg. The last rep was still easy and I thought about doing 140kg too but for some reason decided to start working already. That wasn't much heavier than the work set but it sure helped to go a bit higher in kilos. Bar felt much lighter on the way down than on the way up. Funny but it's true.
On the first set I went 4 reps straight away touch'n'go without any pause. From then on the latter half were "singles", and then a breath taking moment on top. Last 2 reps were not nice. On the 2-4 sets it was possible to get only 3 reps tng style before knocking them one by one.
On the last set I had to ask for a spotter because my legs were jello already on the second set. Third set was brutal, and a real battle for the last reps. Last set was horrible. My legs went noodles big time. It felt difficult to stand after those final repetitions. At least that made good to lower body!
Metcon.
Every minute on the minute x 21 minutes
1st minute: 5 hang power clean, 50kg + 5 burpee
2nd minute: 10 reverse lunges, 50kg
3rd minute: 10 push-ups + 10 toes-to-bar
This was tough as well. Okay first and third minute work were easier but with these legs those lunges weren't that cool. Those also made the clean/burpee and push-up/t2b sets worse. Breathing was under control even though it started to get heavier but legs and hip flexors started to get tight in the course of the emom wod. It was kind of like a whole-body meltdown and recovery started to become an issue. It took me equal amount of time each round but mentally this got tougher by the round.
Sunday. Build up to heavy clean. A - triple (Result, 110kg PR). B - single (Result, 117kg PR). Front squat singles (up to 125kg). Metcon, 12min amrap of: 8 squat clean (70kg), 10 t2b, 12 box. Result, 150 reps.
Got to say it's great to be back!!! It's been so damn busy I haven't had a chance to throw down at all. On Friday we had pre-christmas party and it was a hullabaloo from morning till night. On Saturday we had a gathering with family in Eastern Finland as we went to see my sister's new house. Finally today I got to put on some gym clothes and got to work!
Oly.
Build up to heavy cleans
A - Triples (60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 105, PR 110kg)
B - Singles (115, PR 117kg)
At first my joints felt very tight from all the laziness and driving in the car, and it was a mystery how this session would turn out to. However, my legs didn't feel tired at all on the warm-up cleans, and the cleans also felt very natural and light.
Plan was to go heavy for a triple and single. Especially to build up to a 3 rep max. I was hoping to pull 105kg which is the heaviest I've pulled, ever. Once I tried 107.5kg and my right wrist popped, and hurt like hell for about 2 months. With that on mind it was a huge success today to being able to get all the way to 110kg. This is actually huge because I have lifted that number for singles only, and just for a couple of times. So going for 3 reps was sick!
Original plan was to go for a max of the day after triples. Didn't know I was going this heavy in the triples so there was room for only couple of singles at max. Singles at these weights are intimidating. The only thing preventing me to go heavier is my head. Both 115kg and 117kg were high enough for sure, and most likely I'd be able to clean more if I only had the balls to drop under the barbell. Fails on cleans are always just clean pulls. Not for a single time have I racked a bar, and not being able to stand it up. These +110kg lifts are mentally very important to build up confidence for heavy lifts.
Squat.
Front squat singles (90, 110, 120, 125, fail 130kg)
After all the cleans my hip flexors were gone, and front squats didn't go as planned. For some time there was 7x3 front squats in my notes but that was not gonna happen. Bar was heavy already at 120kg so it was no surprise 130kg didn't come up.
Metcon. Result, 150 reps (5 rounds sharp)
12min amrap of:
8 squat clean, 70kg
10 toes-to-bar
12 box jump
Freaking awesome metcon! It's been hours since the metcon now as I'm writing this, and my lungs are still feeling it. Or throat. Anyway, the number of squat cleans in a row made the difference. Legs were burning, and lungs were gasping for air. Not for a second did I think about linking the reps together. Singles all the way.
First 10 minutes
Toes-to-bar's and box jumps unbroken. T2b's were surprisingly nasty after all the squat clean. Box jumps didn't feel any easier in the process. But the thing in this metcon was definitely the cleans. In the beginning they were 8 singles in a row. Then at some point it was 4-2-2. That seemed like the quickest way to get over each round. Awesome wod.
Wednesday. Clean complex, 5 sets of: tall clean + mid-thigh + full clean. Intervals with partner, 14 rounds of: 4 hang power clean (70kg), 8 t2b, 12 box. Result, 12.49.
Another loooong day at the office but this time I was able to move around much more and prevent body from total system failure =) It was a huge positive surprise as my main man Toni threw me a message in the morning that he could come and train with me after work. He also had the agenda ready. I got a tetanus vaccination in the morning so that kind of disturbed my plans so Toni's suggestion was right on point!
Toni working on his clean complex
Oly.
5 working sets of the following clean complex:
Tall clean
Clean from mid-thigh
Full clean
Every clean as squat clean (80, 85, 85, 85, 85kg)
The first repetition of this complex is by far the most challenging for me. I haven't used to finish the "tall cleans" in this way. Luckily Toni was there to coach me through it. This really forced me to go under the barbell faster than normally. I'm very happy on the way I was able to carry through each tall clean.
The second and third reps were easy. The weights were so light that there were no issues whatsoever. But I had to stay with these weights because the first one wasn't that easy. That one was more like technique training. First set was at 80kg, the rest at 85kg. Maybe 90kg could have been there too. This time I just wanted to learn how to do this.
Recap of complex
Pair workout. Time, 12.49
14 rounds of:
4 hang power clean, 70kg
8 toes-to-bar
12 box jump
Interval style, you go 1 round, I go 1 round. Rest while the other one works
The point of the workout was to do each round as fast as possible. Go all out every round, which means it is 7 rounds per athlete, total of 14 rounds as a team. Total time was 12.49. For me, there was a bit too long recovery between rounds or then the work load put in was too low as I didn't get too gassed. I was hoping the stimulus to be so that I'd be leaning on my elbows after each round. Then recovering just enough for the next round.
The end of our partner wod
Anyway, I believe this kind of intervals have a lot of potential. When doing them solo, the key is to define fixed rest times between sets / rounds / intervals. That allows you to put 100% effort on each round, then recover, and repeat that for a certain amount of rounds. There were about 40 seconds per round on my behalf and rounds were pretty consistent.
One thing is for sure. It was a blast training with Toni. We started our crossfit journey together back in the days, and it's always quality time to train with my best friend. These are rather rare occasions as we workout in different gyms regularly.
Great session! My legs were out of control due to yesterday's training session. I took couple of push jerks to get used to heavier weights before the metcon, then hit one benchmark workout from the 2012 Crossfit Open. In the end it was just some extra work to flush my legs from that tough workout.
This is something I've done maybe 3 times or so. It's gone to my guts every single time. Today it was tough because my legs were burning after the first round. Monday's training session had its effect for sure. But hey, actually something good happened before the timer went on. I took push jerks up to 85kg which is heaviest I've ever done this style. It was 5x40, 50, 60kg, then 3x70, 1x80 and 85kg. And that last rep felt very good and stabile, no problem whatsoever. There was room for record for sure.
Back to the workout. Box jumps and t2b's were unbroken each round. Boxes definitely take care that breathing is sky rocketing throughout the workout. But the burn came just after the box jumps had been completed. They went fine and I got a good rhythm every round.
T2b's were unbroken too. My grip started to slip on the last rounds but there was no doubt of hitting them in a row every round. Core felt great on those. But the beef of this wod is the part where barbell action takes place, hands down. I've tried both styles: unbroken and breaking it to two sets. Of course unbroken sounds good but that takes a bit more recovery between movements.
Today I went on by feeling. First 2 rounds were unbroken, then I started to complete it in 7-5 for most of the rounds. At some point I did 8-4. Damned I was sweating a lot, and heart beat was heavy for probably the last 15 minutes. There was some mental strength though as I was able to still keep moving, and keeping the transitions modest. End result was a PR which is always good news.
Workout. Not for time
5 rounds of:
300m row
15 ghd sit-ups
My tank was pretty much empty after the main workout of the day and legs didn't recover enough to hit another metcon with full force. So this portion was more like to do some extra work, and recover so tomorrow I'd be back in action. And legs especially. Pace was slow on the rower but ghd's unbroken. There I tried to engage hip flexors more than before.
We had a training session ahead of us with Jasper. Agenda was pretty open and free but the thought was about doing deadlift, bench and a conditioning piece. Thursday is usually a classic meathead day strength-wise and today was exactly that.
Strength.
Bench press 5-5-5-5-5 (80, 90, 90, 90, 90kg)
We actually started with deadlifts. Barbell was light, back and legs felt great but my hands couldn't take the burden. My palms and fingers seem to be the part which determine whether pulls are going to be good or bad in any given day. Today it felt like my fingers will get cut off. Hurt like hell. Already at 130kg it felt painful on the fingers and palms. 150kg was nightmarish.
I took sets at 60, 100, 130, 150, 150, 130kg for different amount of reps but I don't count this as a strength portion at all. It was a disappointment that I wasn't able to pull heavy. Jasper did his part of the real as planned.
Bench was kind of lame after those deads but little by little I got excited about this movement and got good sets in the books at 90kg. Warm-up was 10x60, 5x70kg.
Pair wod.
2 rounds of:
40 shoulder-to-overhead, 60kg
50 toes-to-bar
60 burpee
Just before we started our metcon I realized I'm in a bit of a rush so it was time to put the clock on and start working. Plan was to do the jerks by changing after every 5 reps, and we stuck to that on the first round. On the second one I did a bit more of the work as I did these as push jerks, and Jazz went with push presses. T2b's were the easiest part of this for me, and I used it more as recovery.
Beforehand we thought burpees would be a walk in the park as we planned to do them in sets of 6 reps, then change. This was not the case though. Yes, we went in sets of 6 reps all the way but they were surprisingly hard on the second round. And the jerks right after these burpees were not tempting but still doable. I felt good on this workout but it surely brought a lot of tension on shoulders. Nice burned with a training buddy.
Tuesday. Emom x 8min. Odd min 10 hspu, even min 10 c2b. Metcon, 15min amrap of: 7 s2o (50kg), 12 t2b, 7 ohs (50kg), 12 box. Result, 190 reps. Accessory, 5rds of: 10 ring dip, 20 ghd.
So we spent a long weekend in Berlin, Germany the past days. We came home yesterday at midnight after a great mini vacation! There was simply no time to do workouts as the tour leader (read: my wife) had arranged so much action and activities around the city. Plus we walked around all day, everyday so our feet were destroyed after wandering around for 10k per day. One huge highlight was when we went to see Bundesliga soccer with Kari between Berlin and Hamburg. The atmosphere was spectacular! One evening I had the change of throwing down for burpees, thrusters and some dumbbell work.
Got these little guys for new training shoes, Nano 5's
Gymnastics.
Every minute on the minute x 8min
Odd minutes, 10 handstand push-ups
Even minutes, 10 chest-to-bar pull-ups
I decided to start with more like bodyweight movements instead of killing the barbell. I believe this was a good plan after couple of days more or less chilling. I went unbroken on both movements each round but I got to admit it started to get tough on the c2b's. Next round would have been a huge battle to go unbroken. Hspu's weren't light either. Okay, to mid-workout it was alright but the latter half was challenging. My lats were burning after this and I had to stretch out for a while to get them ready for the upcoming metcon.
Watching Bundesliga with Kari, c'mon!
Metcon. Result, 190 reps (5 rounds)
15min amrap of:
7 shoulder-to-overhead, 50kg
12 toes-to-bar
7 overhead squat, 50kg
12 box jump
The worst part for me of this was one definitely overhead squats. I had thought about jerking 60kg but there would have been change of plates between jerks and ohs so that might not have been the best solution time-wise.
All these elements were completed unbroken according to plan. Only exception was the t2b which was ub for first 2 rounds. Next 2 rounds were 8-4, and the last one was 7-3-2 because I had to rush to jump on the pull-up bar to finish the last round before the buzzer.
Each element had its own twist in the game, and breathing was rather high all the time. None of the movements allowed the possibility to drop heart beat down and recover energy. So I'd call this workout a success in programming. It was great to do ohs with 50 kilos as it is probably the first time I've had this weight in a metcon. Not sure but most likely so. Usually it's been 40-43kg.
Accessory.
5 rounds of:
10 ring dips
20 ghd sit-ups
This was not a timed workout. Just needed to get some extra workout done because there was no need to rush away from the gym. Ring dips are always a good call for me as there's plenty of room for improvement. Main focus on this one was rhythm and good range of motion. Goal was met.
Ghd's were good for core. I got a little headache for some unknown reason so maybe ghd's were not the best option because I had to go upside down on every rep, and hold breath when having head downwards. Still, this was a good cashout.
Friday. Squat (up to 2x140kg). Metcon, 5rds of: 10 right hand kb snatch (20kg), 10 left hand kb snatch (20kg), 10 burpee, 10 t2b.
There was a bit of a rush today but I found a spot to get a training session done. In the evening we went to see some friends at a restaurant for some quality time. Session included squats and conditioning.
Strength.
Back squat
3x90, 107.5, 122.5, 132.5kg
2x140, 140kg
Even though the deadlifts felt and looked pretty good yesterday I can feel there was some work being done. My back was tight big time so squats were not something I was looking forward to. That stood in my calendar and I didn't have time to think this over so I stuck to the plan. Triples in the beginning and the doubles in the end. Those doubles were supposed to be triples too but today that 140kg barbell weighed more than normally. On the other hand, all these reps came up pretty nicely so I'll take this for now.
Metcon.
5 rounds of:
10 right hand kettlebell snatch, 20kg
10 left hand kettlebell snatch, 20kg
10 burpee
10 toes-to-bar
This was freestyling as there wasn't a strict plan how to work on my conditioning. Burpees were on the table, and snatches came to accompany them in the form of kettlebells. This session took place at my old gym where I used to do lots and lots of t2b's. That came to my mind and I threw it in the mix too.
Good wod for sure! Total of 20 kb snatches, 10 per hand in a row, then change hands. Everything was completed unbroken. It was mostly tough in general. There was no single piece that felt the worst or most challenging. Breathing was heavy all the time, and there is really no need to stop because the movements were either at bodyweight or then the kettlebell was only 20kg.
