[Gordon]

I can see this log getting awesome in a hurry.

Congratulations on the 425.

With the hack squats I have found I progress in little bursts, will be interesting to see if the same thing happens to you.

You have some good goals as well.

If fat_willhelm reads this: could you do Zercher deadlifts straight from the ground first time you tried them? I gave them a shot the first time the other day, and I could only hook my elbows under the bar when it was 12 inches off the ground, the weight came up fast enough, but i couldn't get any deeper. Is this something thats going to improve or am I stuck doing them out of racks?

[Brandon MacRea]

Awesome work, man. I foresee lots of fun at Finnegan's Wake.

[fat_wilhelm]

Originally Posted by Gordon

If fat_willhelm reads this: could you do Zercher deadlifts straight from the ground first time you tried them? I gave them a shot the first time the other day, and I could only hook my elbows under the bar when it was 12 inches off the ground, the weight came up fast enough, but i couldn't get any deeper. Is this something thats going to improve or am I stuck doing them out of racks?

First time I tried them, yes, I could do them -- I think I worked up to 275 and have gotten up to 325 since then.

It's never easy. I have to take a wider stance and really wiggle and work my arms under the bar. On heavier sets, the bar wants to roll back down my forearms as I come up, so it requires a decent pull speed and concentration on keeping the hands elevated. The payoff is wonderful, though, when you're walking around with ridiculously bruised arms during the following week and everyone thinks your a strung out junkie.

12" isn't bad. That's not so far off from a floor start. Do them like that for a few sessions and then start lowering the bar in small increments. Some good dynamic stretching just prior to Zercher deadlifts seems to help me, too.

[finnegan]

Active Recovery/ Cardio (Bas Rutten 3 min Muay Thai rounds)


Rd 1 Deadlifts 185 x 20 Zercher Squats 115 x 20 Pushups 20
Rd 2 Bas
Rd 3 repeat rd 1
Rd 4 Bas
Rd 5 Repeat rd 1
Rd 6 Bas
Rd 7 Repeat rd 1

Totals:
Deadlift 185 x 20, 4 sets
Zerchers 115 x 20, 4 sets
Pushups 20, 4 sets

Impressions: I like doing active recovery like this. It is a good all around cardio workout and I know this is going to translate well into conditioning. This will be my basic active recovery set up plan. I feel I could go more tonight as the Deadlifts didn't kick my ass nearly as much as the dumbell snatches, but I shall resist.

[Gordon]

Originally Posted by fat_wilhelm

The payoff is wonderful, though, when you're walking around with ridiculously bruised arms during the following week and everyone thinks your a strung out junkie.

Luckily I have the sweet Zercher bruising as an almost permanent fixture on my arms. I just couldn't physically get any lower, if I wanted to lift the bar straight from the ground I would have been hooking it with my wrists.

20 rep Zerchers are wild, thats some pretty interesting circuit training.

[finnegan]

Conditioning
Once again, its Bas time. Some people run, I do Bas variations.

Rd 1:Dumbell Snatches 35 lbs x 20 each arm, rest 15 seconds, complete the round
Rd 2:Burpees x 20, rest 15 seconds, complete the round
Rd 3 Dumbell Snatches 40 lbs x 20 each arm (hate!) rest 15 seconds, complete round
Rd 4 Burpees w/ pushups x 20, rest 15 seconds, complete the round
Rd 5 Dumbell Snatches 35lbs x 20 each arm, rest 15 seconds, complete the round
Rd 6 Burpee-esque movements x 20, rest 15 seconds, complete the round
Rd 7 Dumbell Snatches 35 lbs x 20, rest 15 seconds, complete the round

Totals:
Dumbell Snatches: 35 x 20, 3 sets 40 x 20, 1 set.
Burpees: 60
Impressions: For a better explanation of this: I would start each round with the exercise listed. After completing it, I would wait 15 seconds and then finish the round doing whatever striking combinations Bas was ordering. It was a decent workout, but not as good as the previous circuits I've been doing.
This was the first time I'd done burpees in numbers. Those bastards sneak up on you. More aptly, they come charging at you like a bull who sees red. I'll keep trying out a variety of ways to use the Bas system. I love it as a base, but there is a lot more you can do with it.

[finnegan]

Upper Body pt 1
Bench Press
205 x 5
255 x 5
275 x 5
285 x 5
300 x 5

Dumbell Snatch
35 x 5
45 x 5
55 x 5
60 x 5
65 x 5
70 x 5 (major improvement PR, + 5 reps)

OP (bad idea, got greedy)
135 x 5
145 x 5
155 x 5
165 x 0, two attempts

Leg Raise crunches
15, 5 sets

Impressions: I tried out a couple of new ideas for the OP today. Needless to say, it didnt work. I put my collars on the top set of holes on the bench and tried to press off of it. It was just way to awkward of a position, and I couldn't get the right angles. It didn't help that I got greedy and tried to jump back onto the weights too fast. I was taking about 1 minute rests on this circuit w/ 2 minutes at the end before the next sets. After the failure on the OP, I calmed the hell down and let my muscles recover. Since this is a split workout anyway, I'll pick up the rest of the OPs tonight.

The dumbell snatches are coming along nicely. I've been doing a lot of them, and its paying off with a higher PR.

This 5 x 5 scheme is okay, but I'll probably alternate between it and doing 5 sets of 5 reps at the same weight. It just doesn't feel the same, but I'll give it a try.

[finnegan]

Originally Posted by finnegan

Upper Body pt 1
Bench Press
205 x 5
255 x 5
275 x 5
285 x 5
300 x 5

Dumbell Snatch
35 x 5
45 x 5
55 x 5
60 x 5
65 x 5
70 x 5 (major improvement PR, + 5 reps)

OP (bad idea, got greedy)
135 x 5
145 x 5
155 x 5
165 x 0, two attempts

Leg Raise crunches
15, 5 sets

.

Part 2

Strength Workout

Hammer Curls
55 x 5, 1 set
60 x 5, 1 set
65 x 5, 1 set
70 x 5, 1 set
75 x 5, 1 set

OP
95 x 5, 1 set
115 x 5, 1 set
135 x 5, 1 set
155 x 5, 2 sets
165 x 5, 1 set

15 minute rest

Conditioning Workout/ Active Recovery
Bas Rutten Muay Thai, 3 minute rounds/ lifts
Lifts for this workout:
Bench Press 205 x 15 Hack Squats 185 x 15 Hammer Curls 30 x 20
Rd 1 lifts
Rd 2 instructions
Rd 3lifts
Rd 4 instructions
Rd 5 lifts
Rd 6 instructions
Rd 7 lifts

Totals: Bench: 205 x 15, 4 sets Squats: 185 x 15, 4 sets Hammer Curls: 30 x 20, 4 sets

Impressions Good workout tonight. I was pleased with this second go at the OP. I took my time and let myself recover for it. The hammer curls are coming along nicely. On the conditioning end, I am very pleased. My form didn't fatally break down until rd 6, and I still had some power in my punches throughout. My bench form didn't break, and I'm sore but not thrashed. The Hack Squats were included to hit my legs a little tonight.
For full disclosure, I did start taking Redline tonight. It seemed to give me a decent bit more wind.

[finnegan]

Back/ Legs
Deadlift (wide grip)
225 x 5
275 x 5
325 x 5
375 x 5
405 x 5, (3, 2 singles)

Dynamic Rows
95 x 5
115 x 5
135 x 5
165 x 5
225 x 5
245 x 5

Zercher Squats

185 x 5
205 x 5
225 x 5
255 x 5
275 x 5
305 x 5

Zercher Deadlift
205 x 1 (after 3 failures)

Impressions My hands hurt a lot. Grip was shit. The wide grip Deadlifts were a bit frustrating, but they were okay. The weird leverage at higher weight really nuked my grip today.

Dynamic Rows were just pure hate on my hands. The jump in weight was due to me laying off of them for the last two sets of DLs, and letting my grip recover.

Zercher Squats were good today. I finished up the 5 x 5, and still had a lot left, so I decided to go for a 1RM. I ended up doing 5 reps instead. I've been undercutting the weights on these it seems. 305 was rough, but not horrid.

Zercher Deadlifts are the most difficult lift I've tried yet. I had to elevate the weights about 10 inches to get under the bar. After a lot of wiggling, stumbling, breaks in form, and general chance for grievious personal harm, I got the bar up.

Overall, I'm not too bad off today. Sub grappling (or if it is canceled; another Bas circuit) shouldn't be too bad tonight.

[the_w1se]

does the active recovery seem to help alot with doms? seems like it is. Does it just basically consist of lighter lifting with some conditioningthrown in