Tapering for Tough Mudder

Nothing really to report except that I continue to plug away and keep as close to my diet as possible. 

This week i am respecting the taper and am reducing my sets to 3 from 5 and keeping Ba Duan Jin to the minimal stretching and 5 stances. 

Here is my Monday morning photo. Every Monday it seems as though I am getting worse.Maybe I am thinning out, I don't know but it seems as though there is less definition. 

Went to a Dietitian

Workout wise everything is on track. My long run included 3 laps of stairs, went for 1 hour and 32 minutes and took almost 7.5 miles. Next week we go for 3.5 laps. 

Big news of the week is that I went to a dietitian. Take aways:

1 - I weigh 220 pounds. 

• I weighed 195 for the Beast last year. 
• I gained 25 pounds
• I need to get to 200 pounds to be better at body weight exercises

2 - Lose 10 pounds between now and Jan 1.

• Still concentrate on strength since I don't have time in my training schedule to do it at another time
• Tracking calories with MyFitnessPal
• Add carb to breakfast (whole grain toast)
• No fruit on the bottom in smoothie - just plain yogurt
• Fat free milk in smoothie
• Don't eat late - try to stop at 8 or the earlier, the better

3 - Get from 210 to 200 Jan - March with conditioning

• New split: Lower / Conditioning / Ba Duan Jin / Upper / Conditioning / Ba Duan Jin **with heavy carry endurance on weekend
• Use Milk bottles (quart, 1/2 gallon, gallon) with sand for kettlebells - get back to my kettlebell routine
• Ba Duan Jin to Kung Fu workout DVD

4 - Increase athleticism April - June (nothing to do with weight loss but thinking out loud)

• Strength 3x5 with conditioning finisher
• Power day: Keg toss, Weighted sprints, burpee long jumps, loaded carries
• Explosive Calesthenics
• Explosive Kung Fu book / DVD

 5 - Kung Fu training in July - should be able to put some foundation work to good use

Tough Mudder Philly & Week 3 of Diet

Quick notes from this week are:

1 - I am not sure if this diet is going to work. Something does not make sense about increasing calories though protein. I scheduled a meeting with a dietician at our supermarket. It sounds silly but hopefully she will be able to give me guidelines as to what and how much I should be eating in order to support strength gains while not gaining weight.

2 - Did the Philly Tough Mudder on Sunday. I am disappointed still in my upper body strength and grip but I continue to work on it. What really stood out to me is my lack of explosive strength. This is in the plan to work on, along with conditioning, after the new year and into the summer.

3 - I am finding great success and am very happy with my new interest in learning how to move. My hips and shoulders are really opening up and I felt a lot better at the Tough Mudder. I felt as though I had more control over my body. 

Finally, here is a Monday morning picture of results from my diet and exercise program. I don't feel as though I am making progress but I am just starting out.

Oct 12 Update

I am doing more on this diet and getting used to meal planning and tracking my macros. It is not too much different from what I was normally eating but planning and tracking helps me pay attention to what I am doing which should lead to results. 

My workout routine is coming along well and I feel like I have a lot more flexibility and mobility. This week was a great week for pistol squats but I have a lot of work to do with getting my opposing leg forward and straight. This will also help me with L-Sits. 

My run was excellent. Although I started getting pain in my shins in the beginning, I walked a couple of times and once I hit the stairs that pain went away. I did 2 & 1/2 laps of the stairs this time. Pace was great since it didn't take me much longer than doing it twice. 

Here is my weekly selfie:

10/5 - Weekly Update

Since I am not giving day by day accounts of my workouts, maybe I will give a weekly progress report. 

First, this has not been the best week for me working out. Last week my brother and his family was in town and we were all in Ocean City NJ with y parents. A lot of resting and eating. This was followed by my daughter having surgery this week which meant no sleep, more rest days and more poor diet. 

I think that I am putting on weight in the wrong places so I am going to try to tackle my nutrition. I bought a $40 program with recipes, a calorie calculator and a tracking sheet. Simply, I set a 2,500 calorie per day target and will now write down what I eat. This can be easy if I plan things correctly. I won't graze since I will know when my next meal is coming. Good in theory, now need to execute.

To measure my progress, I will be taking pictures and posting them on this blog weekly. Hopefully I will see some progress.

As far as workouts go, I am focusing on less killer workouts but being able to work out every day. This starts with Qigong warm up, stretches & the 5 Stances and then is finished off with either:

Upper:

• 5x10 Rows
• 5x10 Sandbag Push Press
• 5x10 Pull Ups - assisted to make sure that I get 5 full sets of 10

Lower:

• 5x5 (each side) Pistol Squats - assisted for balance
• 5x10 Single leg Deadlift / Front Squat circuit

or

• 5x10 Single Leg Squat / Good Morning circuit

On the weekend, I do a long run using the Port Imperial stairs. This week:

• 5.94 miles
• 1 hour, 12 minutes
• 12:07 pace

My improvement came in duration and the fact that I did the set of 2 staircases twice as opposed to 1 &1/2 times. 

Workout Update - Going Zen

Quick note so that I have a record of what I am doing. Here is what has transpired over the past couple of weeks with thoughts into the future:

1 - I backed out of Killington Beast because I couldn't afford the trip and I am not sure that I was prepared. In hindsight, I could have done it but that doesn't mean that I can't improve upon my training. I plan to get my life back together to do it next year. I am disappointed that I couldn't do it but am satisfied with my 2015 Trifecta.

2 - My new workout plan from September to January is to work out in my basement every day. This means that I can't kill myself on any particular day so that I can make it back the next day. Every day will start with Qigong to improve my flexibility, mobility and balance. This takes about 30 minutes leaving the remainder of my time for upper or lower body routines. 

• Upper Body - I have rings to use for pull ups, rows and dips. Including pike push ups, push ups. 
• Lower Body - Still working on Pistol Squats. Now I am doing them full range of motion holding on to the rings for assistance. After that I am doing 5 sets of 10 of a front loaded then back loaded exercise. Day 1: Single Leg Deadlift & Back Squat superset. Day 2: Front Squat & Split Squat superset. Starting out I am using a 40# top soil bag, can only do 5 per side on the Split Squats and have not gone past 2 & 1/2 circuits. I will improve.

3 - One day on the weekend is devoted to distance running which will be running to Port Imperial, running the hill and staircases for as long as possible, then running home. My success will be determined by my endurance times. Baseline is 53 minutes and 4.25 miles. 

4 - In the office I am doing 20 Push Ups/Dips/Sit Ups/Back Bridge/Squats every hour. I hope that this helps with anything that I am missing at home. If more of my home workout is flexibility & balance then this should make up for what I am sacrificing.

5 - I am shifting from dedicated training to working out and taking a zen like approach. I am going to do what I can do and do it every day. It is why I am not going to update the blog as often.

I have a lot to work on and I hope, without measuring, that I can improve my conditioning, relative upper body strength, mobility and balance. I want to kick into high gear with conditioning after January to prepare myself for the NJ Beast and Massachusetts Bone Frog, then train for martial arts in the summer. Killington Beast and a Tough Mudder for fun in the fall. Maybe a Hurricane Heat in Tuxedo. Plans are subject to change.

Leg Day - Week 8/8 - Lots of Adjustments to Schedule

I am making a lot of adjustments on the fly here but I expect they will work out well for me. 

Thursday rained and I knew it in advance so i was going to do Leg Day on Wednesday instead of resting but I rested since I needed it and then did my first full day of Qigong complete with the 5 Stances and a upper body finisher. I felt good going into today and was able to do 10 full rounds of Leg HIIT. 

The Qigong Warm Up & Stretching really does do me good and I have been doing it everyday and plan to stick with it. It most probably will replace my Yoga days. So, Qigong every morning with a Leg day, Upper day, Kung Fu split. October will be 5/3/1 Mondays, Wednesday and barbell 250s on Fridays with Kung Fu & Body Weight circuit Tuesdays, Thursdays and a weekend day with an endurance day (run or ruck) also during the weekend.

Time: 7:37

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time 7:45

• 5x5 Pistols or 1 Legged Squats - Getting better. More progress to be made

Time: 7:58

Leg Conditioning Circuit - 30/15 x10

• Lunges
• Squats
• Step Ups
• Jumps

* Glad to have gone through 10 rounds here. The jumps and eventually the squats were tough to do the entire 30 seconds for 10 rounds. 

Upper Push/Row, HS/Pike - Week 8/8

This is supposed to be my last full workout week with progressions but since I really killed myself last week, I am doing more 3x10 and not pushing it for the remainder of the training period. This also means less taper. 

Started with the Qigong warm up & stretch. I really like it and am glad that I have added it to my workout routine. 

With a reduced workload, I was also going to to Pull/Dips & Back Bridge/HLR but decided not to opting for a 30 burpee finisher which is probably a good idea.

Looking around the park, I have to compliment myself on my range of motion and mobility. There are other guys going what looks like more but it also looks like they are half repping. I am confident in my routine and how I perform my exercises. 

Time; 7:28

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time; 7:37

• Handstands against fence: 30 seconds, 22, 15
• Pike Push Ups: 4, 5, 3

Time: 7:51

• Push Ups: 10 side toside, 2x5 1 arm bench high
• Row: 10 straight, 2x10 side to side

Time: 8:01

30 Burpees

Time: 8:06

Monday Legs - Week 8/8 - 1st Day Qigong

Still recovering and making sure that I will be 100% for Vermont. I ditched the sandbag for the remainder of the training period. 

Today, I started with the Qigong Warm Up and Stretching before running to the park and doing my Leg Day for conditioning. I am making great progress on the 1 leg/Pistol squats but a bit disappointed in my leg conditioning as I wanted to do more. Walked home. 

For the remainder of my training until Vermont, I just have to give it my best every day, do less weights and switch more to a 3x10 set / rep scheme. I think that it will burn me out less.

Warm Up: Run to park

• 5x5 Pistol Squats

Leg Conditioning Circuit - 30 seconds on, 15 seconds rest:

• Lunges
• Squats
• Step Ups
• Box Jumps

Did 3 &1/2 circuits.

Upper Body - Saturday - Readjusting Plans

I think that I hurt or strained myself on Wednesday's Leg Day so I took off on Thursday and Friday. Today I go a good workout in and added a run to the park. I planned on running home but it was not meant to be. 

Since I strained myself and I don't want to take the risk of more injury, I eliminated the weight vest today and going forward. 

I also did not time the workout but kept a good pace. 

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

5 Sets:

• Pull Ups - Mixed Variety in the 2 - 4 reps per set range
• Dips: Mixed variety  (front and L-Sit) in the 4 - 6 range

• Back Bridge: 15 - 20 - 30 second range with a set of 5 push ups & 10 second hold
• HKR/HLR/T2B: Not as happy with these as I need to get my HKR to 20, HLR to 10, T2B at 5 is fine.

Leg Day - Week 7/8

When I was warming up I saw myself writing about how I didn't feel good to start but ended up doing great. That was not the case. Got 1/2 way through my second sandbag circuit and ended it. My lower back was hurting through my hamstring. Better to cut it short and come back 100% rather than have something lingering. 

Now I am thinking that I may have to do a leg conditioning day on Friday to try to make up for it. We shall see.

Time: 8:02

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 8:10

5x5 Pistols

Time: 8:21

Sandbag Circuit:

10 Backsquats
10 Step Ups
6 Front Squats
**Rested
10 Lunges
10 Backsquats
10 Step Ups

Time: 8:32

Push/Row, HS/Pike - Week 7/8 - 12# Weight Vest

Getting closer to the VT Beast. I can't believe that I am up to 12# on the vest and week 7 out of 8 in my program. The vest is starting to get heavy.

I was supposed to do this yesterday but decided to rest instead since I knew that it was not going to be good. I was still dragging after the Sunday run. Glad that I did it even though I had to cut one leg day out of training this week. Quality over quantity.

Time; 7:53

Warm Up: 

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 8:03

• 1 Arm Push Ups - 1st side to side, 2nd 1 arm assisted, 3 - 5 elevated on the top of the bleachers
• Rows: 5x10. Although there were a couple of 9s in there and its tough to get the bar to my chest every time

Time: 8:24

• Handstands Against Fence (seconds): 14, 20, 26, 21, 23
• Pike Push Ups: 5, 5, 5, 5, 5

** My left shoulder was really feeling it on the handstands but I improved on the Pikes. 

Time: 8:50

Sunday Trail Hill Run

I'd like to call it a mountain run but I am not sure it is a mountain and I don't run 100% of the time. 

I pulled up a little early but most probably could have made it to the end. Only two tenths of a mile so I won't beat myself up over it. I tried to push myself harder this time but ended up with the same time, pace and distance as last time. 

I am confident that I can handle Vermont. One more sandbag carry up and down hills and staircases this weekend and one more trail run the weekend after that before the VT Beast. After that, I am done with hills until next spring and the NJ Beast.

Distance: 10.53 miles
Time: 2:22:49
Pace: 13:34

Leg Day - Week 6/8

Really surprised at what I was able to do today. Third day in a row working out, little rest and I kowcked out a session that was better than Tuesday's leg day. Maybe because it was a little cooler or maybe because my body is readjusting to working legs with load. Nevertheless I continue to make progress. 

Time: 7:59

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 8:07

Sandbag Circuits with mixed order each time:

• 10 Step Ups
• 5 Front Squats
• 10 Back Squats
• 10 Lunges* 

• 10 Front Squats*
• 10 Step Ups
• 10 Back Squats
• 5 Lunges

• 10 Back Squats
• 6 Lunges
• 10 Front Squats*
• 10 Step Ups

• 5 Lunges
• 10 Back Squats
• 10 Step Ups
• 10 Front Squats*

Time: 8:51

Upper Push/Row, Pike/HS - Week 6/8 - 10#

Nothing too exciting except that I am planning my next periodization phase that will start in October. This will include getting back on the 5/3/1 in the gym on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays while setting up a home gym in my basement with a rubber mat and rings. I am starting to learn a lot about ring training and starting to get excited about it. I will also be incorporating Kung Fu exercises so programming will be fun.

Time: 7:58

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 8:10

• 1 Arm Push Ups with 10# vest: 5x5 each side
• Rows with 10# vest: 5x10 with 4 sets varying side to side

• Pike Push Ups: 4, 3, 3, 2, 4
• Handstand against fence: 15 seconds, 22, 18, 25, 13

• Upright hold on Rings: 5 seconds, 4, 5, 6, 3

Time: 8:57

Leg Day - Week 6/8

Got my 4 circuits in. Good day. Need to work on reps for Lunges & Front Squats. At first I thought that it would rain today so I would have 2 rest days in a row but since it didn't rain I got my work in.

Something that Al Kavadlo talks about is not programming deload or rest weeks since life will many times take over and decide that for you. Point here is to work out when I can.

Time: 7:45

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:54

• 5x5 Pistols / 1 Leg Squats on a bench

Time: 8:07

Sandbag Circuit - 4x, reversed order every other circuit

• Lunges: 5, 5, 5, 5
• Back Squats: 10, 10, 10, 10
• Step Ups: 10, 10, 10, 10
• Front Squats: 5, 5, 5, 5

Time: 8:35

Sunday Upper Body - Week 6/8, 10# Weight Vest

Deload week is over and I was able to get a head start on my week 6. Took my time since it was a Sunday and enjoyed getting my work in.

Time: 7:50

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 8:04

Time: 8:08

• Pull Ups: 3 regular, 3 Rope w/ vest, 3 underhand w/ vest, 3 Rope w/ vest, 2 Regular
• Dips: 10 (no vest), 8 vest, 6 vest, 7 vest, 10 vest

• Back Bridge: 20 seconds, 30, 30, 30, 30
• Hanging Raises: 20 Knee, 10 Leg, 5 T2B, 5 T2B, 5 T2B

Time: 8:54

Saturday Hill Run & Sandbag Carry

In preparing for the Vermont Beast I decided to make my endurance workout a sadbag carry at Port Imperial. This includes the set of steps I have done in preparing for the NJ Beast along with a new found set of stairs. Lots of incline and decline with load.

Since much of the Beast is strength after you are exhausted, I did a warm up run up and down hills before my sandbag carry. This stretched out the duration of my workout and upped the challenge.

I don't want to get over confident but I am not nervous about the Vermont Beast. I did it last year and I am noticably stronger with my upper body and up to the challenge when I test my lower body and legs. As long as I run my race I am going to do just fine.

Hill & Stair Run:

• Distance: 4.07 miles
• Time: 50:09
• Pace: 12:20

Sandbag Carry Hill & Stairs:

• Distance: 2.45 miles
• Time: 1:10:57
• Pace: 29 

Total Workout:

• Distance: 6.52 miles
• Total Time: 2 hours

Leg Day Deload - Challenge Accepted - Week 5/8

Something that has been missing in my workouts are challenges. Challenges are things that you know you can do but have to muster up that something extra to do it. It can't be done every day otherwise you burn out or you are not really challenging yourself. Vermont is a challenge. It will test me. I need to practice the #Unstoppable mindset. 

Last workout, Tuesday, I said I wanted to do 10 circuits of my leg routine and I only accomplished 6. Today, I challenged myself to complete all 10. Challenge accomplished. 

Tomorrow is an all around upper body workout and I will do 3 rounds instead of the 2 I did last time and Saturday I will challenge myself to a run with a heavy and long sandbag carry at the end. Next week will be back to my progressive overload routine.

Time: 7:59

Warm Up: 

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 8:05

Circuit 30/15 - 10 Rounds with a couple of rests. Straight through this should take 30 minutes. Total time was 36 minutes.

• Squats
• Lunges
• Step ups
• Box Jumps

Time: 8:41

Leg Day Deload - Week 5/8

My hamstring was bothering me last week and then I went for a 10.7 mile run up and down a mountain on Saturday. I was exhausted afterward and one would think that my hamstring would hurt. Funny thing is that it didn't and that pain has gone away. Good test today with leg day although I am not using weight this week. The results will be tomorrow if I am sore.

Time: 7:47

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumpig Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:55

6 Circuits with 30 seconds on / 15 seconds rest for each:

• Squats
• Lunges
• Step Ups
• Box Jumps or Burpees

Time: 8:18  ( rested then decided I was not going to go on)

Upper Body Taper - Week 5/8

This week is for tapering so I had fun going through the motions and getting my exercise in. Total time was about 45 minutes and I did a little of everything including trying a Dragon Flag for the first (& 2nd) time.

Time: 7:42

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Burpees
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:54

Random Circuit x2

• Dips
• Rows
• Push Ups
• Pull Ups
• Hanging Knee Raises / Hanging Leg Raises
• Handstands
• Pike Push Ups
• Back Bridges
• Dragon Flags

Time: 8:27

Saturday Mountain Trail Distance Run / Hike

Did this again with the full intention of power hiking up the hills and running the rest. Mission accomplished. 

Distance: 10.7 miles
Time: 2:25:30
Pace: 13:36

I did the same run as last time and many other times but last time the pace was better adn the distance was longer. Double checking, I did this week in the same time as last week so I think that last time the distance was off by 1/2 mile which gave me a better pace. 

Legs & 50 Burpees - Week 4/8

Cut the circuits off at two since I was hurting on Monday, woke up with a twinge this morning, and was starting to ache. Its okay, making progress and I will be strong enough for Killington in five weeks.

Time: 7:35

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:43

5x5 Pistols: Still doing one leg squats on a bench. Need to progress to ground with leg straight out.

Time: 7:54

Sandbag Circuit:

• Step Ups: 10, 10
• Front Squats: 6, 7
• Lunges: 10, 10
• Back Squats: 10, 10

Time: 8:14

50 Burpees in 5:38 - much better time than yesterday. Shaved off a minute.

Time: 8:22

Pike/HS, Row/Push, 50 Burpees - Week 4/8, 8# Weight Vest

Felt great today and really improved upon my numbers. It is due to the rest that I have provided myself. Good to know.

Time: 7:49

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 8:01

• Pike Push Ups: 5, 5, 5, 5, 3
• Handstands: 30 seconds, 30, 21, 23, 30 * on the 3rd & 4th set I did more to balance on my own as opposed to holding myself up against a wall.

Time: 8:25

• Row: 10, 10 side to side, 10s, 10s, 10s
• Push Ups: 10 side to side, 5/5, 5/5, 5/5, 5/5

Time: 8:53 (? - working off memory and not my card)

50 burpees in 6:35 - Terrible time but a finisher nonetheless

Time: 9:01

Sandbag Legs - Week 4/8 - Cut short

This weekend I had an 8 mile run planned but did less than 1 mile since my legs did not have any strength. I did swim about 8 laps in an Olympic pool. Sunday was a planned rest day and travel day and I was exhausted. Today I was ready to go but stopped my workout after the first sandbag circuit since I felt an ache in the back of my left leg and right above my left glutes. Better to cut it short than hurt myself. I am now wondering what to do going forward with resting and training for the Killington Beast. We shall see.

Time: 7:42

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:49

• 5x5 Pistols - Getting better with this doing one leg squats on a bench. Balance is improving. Kept a good pace. Did all 5 sets on one leg.

Time: 8

Sandbag Circuit:

• Step Ups: 10
• Good Morning: 10
• Lunges: 10
• RDL: 10/5

Time: 8:11

Push/Row & HS/Pike - Week 3/8 - 6#

Disappointed that my main work sets took an entire hour. I need to speed things up and make the time for conditioning.

Time: 8:01

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 8:12

• Push Ups: 5x5 working toward 1 arm push up
• Rows: 5x10 alternating between sides - like Archer Rows

Time: 8:34

• Fence Handstands: 20 seconds, 14, 28, 17. 27
• Pike Push Ups: 3, 4, 3, 3, 3

Time: 9:00

Sandbag Leg Day - Week 3/8

Yesterday was supposed to be leg day but due to thunderstorms, became a yoga day which was good for me since I think that I needed the rest. Friday is supposed to rain and then I am supposed to run on Saturday morning in St. Michaels but since I am seriously reconsidering the importance of running for the Killington Beast I may do a leg day on Friday (assuming no rain) and still follow through with the run on Saturday but not kill myself if it isn't all that I planned. 

When I woke up I was feeling sore in my legs but if you look at teh results you will see that this is my best leg day ever with this routine. 

Kept a good time today since I needed to be in the office a little earlier than usual. Was planning on a 50 burpee finisher but didn't wan't to push things.

Time; 7:15

Warm Up: 

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:34

Sandbag Circuit x4:

• Step Ups: 10, 10, 10, 10
• Front Squats: 5, 6, 7, 8
• Lunges: 5, 10, 10, 10
• Back Squats: 10, 10, 10, 10

Times for Circuit: 7:34, 7:41, 7:49, 7:58

Finish Time: 8:08

Upper Body - BB/HLR, Pull/Row - Week 3/8, 6#

I really didn't feel like working out today since I had another exhausting weekend. I did it and I did the whole thing. I really considered skipping the 30 burpees at the end but manned up since I really do need some kind of conditioning. 

I need to stop listening to my head and start just doing. 

Time: 7:30

Warm Up

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:40

Back Bridge / Hanging Leg Raises

• BB: 10 seconds, 3 BB Push Ups +10 seconds, 2 BB Push ups + 13 seconds, 3 BB Push Ups + 20 seconds, 3 BB Push Ups (foot slipped & I fell).
• 18 Hanging Knee Raises, 10 HLRs, 10 HLRs, 5 Toes to Bar, 6 T2B

Time: 8:12

Pull Ups & Dips w/ #6 weight vest

• Rope Pull Ups: 4 (no vest), 3, 3, 2, 2
• Dips: 7 side, 3f, 5f, 8s, 8s

Time: 8:28

30 Burpees in 3:07

Time: 8:32

Mountain Trail Long Run - Week 2 of 8

Great workout. I changed my mindset this week when I read an article about preparing for the Beast and the guy plainly said that there really isn't a lot of running but rather power hiking up the mountain. This adjusted my approach so that I focused on distance and endurance and not time. I disciplined myself not to run hills and the result is that I did the same as the last time when I was trying to attack the hills.

I also had a lot of gas left in the tank so I really feel that I will be able to handle the distance in 7 weeks. Great confidence booster. 

Distance: 11.19 Miles
Time: 2:24
Pace: 12:52

Last Time:
Distance: 10.63 miles
Time: 2:16
Pace: 12:53

First Time (there were many pauses of Run Keeper for rest periods)
Distance: 10:81
Time: 2:15
Pace: 12:33

Upper Body - Cut a Little Short - Week 2/8 - 4# Vest

I cut today's workout a little short much like yesterday's leg day. I think that it is just my body adjusting to going 4 days in a row as opposed to 2, rest, 2. I am actually going to do an long run tomorrow so its 5 days in a row before a rest. It will all work out. This is a push toward the Beast. 

Time: 7:36

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push ups
• 10 Burpees

Pull Ups/Dips with 4# vest

• 4 Underhand, 3 overhand, 2 overhand, 3 in line, 3 overhand
• 7 side, 5 front, 7 side, 4 front, 8 side

Time: 8:08

Back Bridge / Hanging Leg Raises

• 20 seconds, 5 BB Push Ups + 5 seconds, 3 BB Push Ups + 15 seconds
• 19 Hanging Knee Raises, 10 Hanging Leg Raises, 5 Toes to Bar

Time: 8:26

Wanted to do 2 more sets on BB/HLR and then a finisher but just didn't have it. Saving something in the tank for tomorrow's long run.

Leg Day - Week 2/8

I am feeling the breakdown in my glutes and low back. This is good as I am building my posterior chain. That said, I did do as much as I wanted to do today although I did get a good workout in.

I will also note that I read an article on preparing for the Vermont Beast for a beginner and it talked about practicing power hiking. Now, I have been avoiding going to Ramapo Reservation (last week and trying to back out of it again this week) but I need to do it. It trains me for the terrain. What I have to keep in mind is that I don't have to run it. I have to complete it. That is my plan for Saturday. Get there early and just get out and do it without worrying about time or what percentage of the trail I actually run. That will do me more good than anything else. That and lunges.

Time: 7:34

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:43

Sandbag Circuit:

• Lunges: 5, 5, 10
• Back Squat: 10, 5, 5
• Step Ups: 5, 10
• Front Squats: 5, 5

** Did 2 & 1/2 circuits until I crapped out. 

Time: 8:16

Tried to do a full body circuit but it just was not meant to be. Called it a day.

Upper - Push/Row & HS/Pike - Week 2 of 8

Got good work in today and really killed my chest. I like these apps for quick finisher routines but continue to fall back to basics with full body tabata and burpees. I guess there is nothing wrong with that.

Time: 7:34

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:42

5x5 1 Arm Push Up Progressions & Rows with 4# Weight Vest

• I tried a negative 1 arm push up and didn't come close. Did 5 sets of 1 arm with the other arm on a low bar.
• Going side to side with Rows I wasn't able to do 5 reps on each side on the 5th set. I guess that means that I am making progress since the exercises are getting harder

Time: 8

Handstands & Pike Push Ups

• Handstands up against a fence: 30, 30, 22, 18, 30 - not going for balance but for stabilization. Tried a little balance and am getting better at it but I am not there yet.
• Pike Push Ups: 4, 4, 2, 2, 3

Time: 8:23

• 1 minute of Spartan Chest exercises. 20 seconds on / 10 seconds rest. Tough after an upper body workout

Kung Fu Tabata (30/15 for 10 rounds)

• Squats
• Lunges
• Archer Squats
• Push Ups
• V-Ups

Time: 8:36

Leg Day - Sandbag in Park - Week 2/8

Sunday I recovered from my run and it rained on Monday morning so I was well rested for today. Traditionally, I would start with an upper body routine but kicking the Monday upper body to Friday may rest my lower body better for a long run this weekend. 

I pushed myself hard today and maybe I could have pushed harder but I did make progress going from 5 reps to 10 although I cut the number of circuits in half. I will continue to progress with either circuits, reps or load.

Time: 7:32

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:40

• 5x5 Pistols

Time: 7:53

10x Circuit x2

• Lunges
• 1 Leg RDLs
• Step Ups
• Front Loaded Good Mornings

Time: 7:19

Conditioning Finisher:

• 10 Crunches with legs in air
• 10 Seated Crunches
• 10 Cross Legged Seated Raises
• 10 Left & Right Side Isolated Crunches
• 10 Seated Leg Scissors

• 30 Burpees in 4 minutes

Time: 7:30

Weekend Long Run - Week 1/8

Disappointed in my numbers but I guess that since I don't feel like I have really been working on long runs, I guess that this is what I should expect. I have 7 more weekend to fix it.

Since I wanted to do more I will use the unused energy for a body weight strength /conditioning workout tomorrow.

• 6.08 miles
• 1 hour, 5 minutes
• 10:46 minute/mile pace

I need to get this to 2 hours, +12 miles. 

Legs 2 - Week 1/8

Took the sandbag weight down from ~80 to ~60 (you never know exactly how much these bags of dirt weigh). Also took down the number of reps per set from 10 to 5 but did 4 circuits as opposed to 1. I got a good workout in. No complaints.

Time: 7:40

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:48

Circuit 5x per set - 4 circuits

• Lunges
• RDL
• Step Ups
• Good Mornings (switched between front loaded & back loaded each circuit)

Time: 8:32

50 Burpees in less than 5 minutes

Time: 8:38

Upper Body 2 - Week 1/8 - #2

Main takeaway from today is that I took too long with my work sets. I ended at an hour and had no time for assistance work or conditioning. This makes Saturday's long run critically important. 

Time: 7:13

Warm Up:
50 Jumping Jacks
40 Squats
30 Sit Ups
20 Push Ups
10 Burpees

Time: 7:21

• Handstands: 5 sets - tried to get to a combined 30 second hold each time. Max hold was 20 seconds
• Pike Push Ups: 5 Sets. Having trouble getting 5 sets of 5. Working on negatives
• Finished with 5 sandbag push presses quickly followed by 20 reps of 10# push presses

• Push Ups: Working toward 1 arm. Incorporated elevated feet and going side to side on 4th & 5th set
• Rows: 10 regular, 2 sets side to side x5, 1 set explosive up & slow down, 1 set side to side

Time: 8:13

Week 1/8 - Leg Day with Sandbag

Today I actually felt like I had some POP in my legs and body for the first time in a long time. My burpees were less laborious and I really had some energy. I also had a lot of pop in my conditioning at the end. Good start and maybe I can extend the 7.5 minutes into 10 and then 15. Hopefully this is the turn around that I need.

I want to be careful and keep this energy so I am going to make sure that I take my rest and periodization so that I peak for Killington. 

Also, this is my first day with weight on a leg day. It is part of my Killington push. One part of the push is splitting leg day with upper body day. The other part is adding load to my workouts. I started with an 80 pound sandbag but cut it down to 60 half way through since I was not going to make it. 

Last note is that I ran into the guy that won the 2014 Spartan Super last year and got to talk with him. The key takeaway was that a lot of racing and training is mental. If I feel that I need to work out in a certain way to prepare myself for Killington then I need to listen to myself and do it. If I feel as if I do my best by running by myself, whether the person starting with me sticks with me or not, then I will do better by running by myself. 

Time: 7:50

Warm Up:

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats 
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:57 

Pistol Squats 5x5 - Mix of Archer squats, 1 leg squat on bench, full ROM Pistol with assistance, Pistol Squats on ground. I think that my butt is at or below my knee on regular Pistol Squats. Time to focus solely on that.

Time: 8:12

Leg Circuit:

• 10 Lunges each leg 80# sandbag
• 10 Back Squats 80# sandbag
• 10 Step Ups each leg 60# sandbag
• 10 Front Squats 60# sandbag

Time: 8:28

Kung Fu Conditioning - 30/15, 2 rounds no rest:

• Squats
• Knees to Palms
• Archer Squats
• Push Ups
• Leg Raises

Time: 8:37

I ended this early since I had a late start. Next time I will get to the park earlier and do 2 rounds of the Leg circuit as opposed to the conditioning since I feel I want to work on strength. I can also do this workout at Pizzuta Park if it is open.  

Killington Countdown - Week 1/8 #2 - Upper Body

Adding the Killington Countdown to my workout headlines so that I don't forget what I am training for. I have no idea if I am in better shape than last year so I had better not slack off and really prepare for the battle that lies ahead of me. This will also keep me motivated through the hot, dog days of summer. 

I was supposed to do a long run yesterday but my legs were killing me after Saturday's Kung Fu workout. The 100 body weight squats + 100 archer squats (each side) + 40 body weight squats as part of my warm up really killed my legs. I was still hurting today and it was tough to get going. I am hoping that this is all due to the rest I gave myself and that I will be fine once I get back into the groove.

The new workout routine is going to include more conditioning work at the end of the strength workout. I am keeping track of time and finding my warm up to be about 8 minutes which gives me about 35 minutes for strength training and 15 minutes for conditioning. Since I am eliminating conditioning days I will see if I can get more sessions in overall during the week. 

I am also adding a weight vest to my pulls & dips and my push & rows. I want to continue to improve my upper body strength game. I have made improvements but still have a lot of work to do.

Start time: 7:30

Warm Up: 

• 50 Jumping Jacks
• 40 Squats
• 30 Sit Ups
• 20 Push Ups
• 10 Burpees

Time: 7:38 - 8 minutes

• Pull Ups: Was in the 2 -3 range with different grips. Finished each set with 4 second negatives
• Dips: Had a problem the first couple of sets with the bar in front so I did parallel bar dips of 6 reps. Finally got back to 5 reps on forward bar

Time: 8:03 - 25 minutes

• Back Bridge: Got up & into it easily the first 4 times and sets 2 - 4 even did 2 - 3 push ups from bridge position. Couldn't get into position for 5th set
• HLR: I had no grip strength. 5, 6, 7 reps on Hanging Leg Raises was all that I could muster

Time; 8:21 - 18 minutes

Full Body Conditioning 30/15:

• Push Ups
• Hill Climbers
• Burpees w/o Push Up
• Squats
• Sit Ups
• Rows
• Jump Squats
• Plank
• Jumping Lunges
• Knees 2 Elbows

Time: 8:30 - 9 minutes