Mid December Recap

Eating well has been tough at work. Shit. Cookies and fudge and shit every day. Man. Here's what I've done since the Tuesday, Dec 7th workout with George (in which I failed - quite spectacularly - to lift 3x12 at 175/185/185.

Saturday, December 11th -
Went to the Y with Laura. I wasn't feeling particularly strong...I did 3 sets of 8-10 squats at 175 lb or so. We also did pull-ups, core, and some weight circuits.

Sunday, December 12th -
Went to the Y with Laura and Agan. Went over what I knew about squat form with Agan. Did some squats, dead lifts, jump squats, abductors, adductors, and glute extensions. I didn't go for my squat goals, obviously, having worked out the day before. It was a good workout, though. My legs were a little tired the next day.

Tuesday, December 14th -
Went to the Y with Laura. I tried to rack 175 lbs for the squat but my legs felt weak from the get-go. I barely managed sets of 8, unaided. We did our pull-ups and core as well. We ended with a lower-body focused mini conditioning mile, except we ran 400m each time and only ran that 3 times. My legs were clearly a bit overworked at this stage, so I planned to take 4-5 days off from squat attempts

Sunday, December 19th -
Went on a 35 minute interval run with Laura. We jogged for 4 minutes, then strided out for 1 minute...doing the circuit 7 times. I have done a longer run like this in a while and my legs were feeling it by the end. Laura was pretty much done. We also hadn't really eaten anything and it was already 3pm. The plan was to then go and lift, but we were useless at the Y so we called it.

Tuesday, December 22nd -
Went to the Y with Laura. It'd been a week since I lifted (and, per above, I haven't been eating particularly well), so I wasn't sure what to expect. I started at 175 lbs and did a set of 12. The last one was a bit tougher but I felt good enough to go for my 3x12 175/185/185...which I got. I was very happy, especially since I had not come close two weeks prior. We also did the requisite pull-ups and weight circuits. Laura is seeing some returns from the gym trips too, so she's encouraged as well.

Which brings me to today. Now that I finally got my 175/185/185 workout, I plan to continue as I had originally designed and will increase weight while bringing reps down from 12 to 8...my next workout will be on Saturday and will be 3 sets of 8 reps at 185/195/195. Then onward and upward from session to session. I'm looking forward to jumping into the sprint season with a stronger leg base than in past years. I want to continue to increase my leg strength over the next 5 months and think it will be the difference maker. Also high on my priority list - athletically - is to get more serious longer interval runs in...and do some of the running-type crossfit workouts that seem to challenge folks well. Now is the time to do that, so I'm looking to you, George and Jammin, to lead the running effort, babies! I need to have a better strength endurance base.

On a related note, one of my sports-academic goals over the next month or so is to do some technically-savvy note taking on the athletic books I bought early this year. One thing I just brushed up on, though, and that I thought I'd share, is the difference between strength and power and how/when additional strength yields decreasing returns...

Strength is force exerted...which is closely estimated by a 1RM (maximal force is actually exerted when you exert against a weight heavy enough such that velocity is 0...imagine dropping into a squat and then being unable to move upwards but also not collapsing). Power, though, is actually quite different from strength. Power is force*velocity, and it is power, not strength, that is more highly correlated with athletic performance. Elite strength levels for squats is around 2.5 to 3x body weight. For someone my weight, this translates to 412 to 495 lbs for a 1RM. By my current estimates, I'm somewhere in the high 200s right now, so I clearly have a long way to go. As I increase up to this elite level, strength gains will translate into power gains. I will see both effects (adding stuff like jump-squats, which are more power-oriented, certainly helps). But, the interesting thing is that once you *get* to this elite level, lifting high weight actually doesn't help your power nearly as much as lifting more moderate weight in an explosive manner. Yes, it's true that all the great athletes can squat a shitload. *But that is an end of rather than a means to greatness.* I would bet you a ton of money that even in the average NFL weight room, you'd see explosive, moderate lifts by the runners on the team. You would also see jump squats and plyos...and this is for a strength/power-focused sport, unlike ultimate...as-in, football is at the very high-end of the spectrum. The average foot contact with the ground is less than a second when running. Why would an elite athlete rack 600 lbs and spend 4 seconds on a rep when they can rack 350 and spend 2 seconds...or 300 and do a jump squat? Kantor, it seems like you're the only one on this group who is at or close to this elite strength level. I'd bet that you'd see vast gains in speed and power if you starting squatting more consistently in the high 200 lb range with high reps...and doing jump squats in the mid to high 100s (for starters). That's what I'd do if I were as strong as you, anyway, and there seems to be a lot of evidence for it. I'd still mix in some high-weight days, but I bet those lower-weight lifts are where the gold is.

Have a great break, laddies. See you in the new year.

Squat Strength Strategy and Early December Recap

I just got everyone one of these:
http://www.flexcart.com/members/elitefts/default.asp?m=PD&pid=1422

$300 by check or paypal is fine. Going for the powerlifting world record, baby.

Also, check out the video at the bottom of this page:
http://www.flexcart.com/members/elitefts/default.asp?m=PD&pid=1448

Those dudes look so ridiculous and are squatting 900 lbs. Hahaha.
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Anyhoo, George and I did a lifting session on Tuesday at Georgetown. I also did one on Saturday evening approx 1 hour before the bar run, haha.

Saturday, Dec 4th -
squat - 3x12 @ 165, 175, 175. Again, felt hard but could finish. Last reps were in 3 seconds or so, so still a bit of room on the speed front. I didn't do much else besides pull-ups.

Tuesday, Dec 7th -
With George!
squat - 12 reps @ 175, 10 reps @ 185, 4 or 5 reps @ 185
pull-ups - I actually did a set of 5, which surprised me
abs - physioball crunches, torso stabilization, reverse crunches
plyos - overhead medicine ball exercise involving throwing, jumping, turning, and running
leg extensions
hamstring curls
hip ad/abductors

So my 10 lb increase each session finally saw its breaking point...only a matter of time, by design. 175, 185, 185 was too much for me. My plan is to get strong enough to do the 3x12 at this weight and then move up in weight as I bring reps down to 8 for the next phase of my workout, i.e:

1. try 3x12 @ 175, 185, 185 until I can complete it, then...
2. at my next session move to 3x8 @ 185, 195, 195
3. continue 10 lb increases from session to session until I can't complete the workout...
4. repeat 1 at this new rep/weight combo and continue

Structuring it like this will give me a few lighter sessions at 8 reps before moving up in difficulty. I find this progression appealing and am planning to move from 8 reps to 5 in the same manner. Any thoughts on this?

George lifted well...he was up around 265 and 8 reps or so at the end, I think. Agan, I'm busy Saturday but could meet up Sunday morning if you want. Peace.

December Kickoff

Got back in the gym last night after a week absence due to Turkey Day and a mild illness. I was short on time, so I started with some crunches over a physioball while holding a 25 lb plate behind my head. I did 10 reps with the weight, then dropped it and did 20 or so more crunches, varying between going straight up and across my body to work my lateral core. I did two sets. I then moved to the squat rack and did 3x12 of 155, 165, 165. So far I've kept with my 10 lb increase from session to session while keeping reps constant at 12, but it was definitely harder this week. I was certainly slower on the way up than I was in previous weeks. I will try an increase again on Saturday, but will go with Laura and have her clock my rep time. If I'm taking more than 4 seconds then I'll need to make my first shift down in reps. One thing I noticed yesterday, though, was that I could continue even though my less strong muscles were clearly out of gas...namely, my quads. Engaging those glutes at the bottom were enough to carry me through the last set. I'm a little weak today but not sore.

After the squats, I did a set of abductor/adductor and called it quits. No dead lifts this time. I did them last week and noticeably weakened the backside of my shoulders...to the point that I noticed increased joint movement in my loose right shoulder (the one I subluxed 18 months ago). Have any of you experienced this kind of weakness? It's a little disconcerting for someone who sleeps on that shoulder a lot.

Next squat session is Saturday. I might do some core today and pull-ups tomorrow.