Saturday, March 16, 2024

easy strength as a base

Easy strength was built for athletes to train a single quality, strength, then spend the majority of their time on their sport. It's a minimalist program by design that can exist in isolation. As a non athelete I'm finding it's value in other ways.

Easy strength value points
- time efficient: even days that are fucked at work mean nothing. I already got my workout in. I'm low key prepping for become a father when I know I'll have even less time.
- scratches the itch for working from home. Days off when I work from home are unbearable. I need something to feel sane and easy strength provides an outlet to lift daily without excess stress 
- increases walking around strength. When you respect 'only increase weight when it feels too easy' the poundages creep up without a ton of effort.

I'm a little more than halfway into a round of easy strength and can confirm there is HIGH value with never pushing sets close to failure or even struggle. As Dan says, this feels like you are 'not doing anything'. I promise you, it is. 

So far, easy strength has NOT been something I would use to peak strength. It's been great for slowly raising the floor of what I consider light weight. A weight that was a hard single a few weeks ago (I e. Before the institution of don't struggle fuck me standing) is an easy double. I fully expect to add another 10lbs to what is 'easy' on this lift before this 40day cycle is over.

The fun surprise is that I've been slowly growing. Not a ton, but a little. For a program that is not hypertrophy focused this has been pretty damn cool. When you think about it, it makes sense. None of my reps are grinders, but they are definitely within the threshold for hypertrophy (within 5ish of failure if the science doesn't change in the next 10min). Compound that by 6-10 effective reps per day every day and you can see how you can get a little meat with your strength.

Fun surprise 2 is my mental state. If I'm pushing reps close to failure I tend to get down in the dumps and lethargic. Meticulously avoiding failure has been a great workaround.

All in all, I'm very much enjoying this round of easy strength. It's sustainable long term and opens the door for so much more. 

The everlasting schedule 
- easy strength as a base
- carries, kettlebells, and sprints to stay bouncy
- extra grease the groove upper pulls for fun
- small body parts for work breaka

Tuesday, February 27, 2024

Mini Workouts: high frequency and low time

I accidentally had two great workouts yesterday. In both instances, I was low on time and had a specific goal. In both instances I walked away feeling better than I started. In other news, I had the best night sleep I've had in weeks. IM SURE ITS UNRELATED.

Striking while the iron is hot on this concept. I've been gravitating away from longer (60+min) workouts for a while now. Partly because I've got things to do with my wife, friends, and job. But mostly because I just don't have the patience anymore. What can I do in 60min that I can't do in 20min? When I keep my workouts shorter but more frequent, I can scratch the conditioning itch I have multiple times a day without burying myself in fatigue. Some ideas below.

The only consistent variable (with a notable exception) is working to failure. It's ravenholm, and we don't go to ravenholm. Your notable go to ravenholm exception is for small body parts (neck, calves, tib, forearms). Go nuts on that shit.

Strength 
(1)easy strength workout. This is the base.
(2)one movement. Work up to a rep max (5-10). 

Bodyweight, kettlebells, sandbags 
(1)Juarez valley method.
(2)Dan John ladders (1,2,3 / 2,3,5 / 2,3,5,10).
(3)Downs.
(4)Straight set circuits.

Notes: 
- bodyweight only: Progress the movement if you can bang out too many reps.
- choose 2 movements from one or multiple implements, set a timer for 10-20min and go to town.
- all method top sets are NOT using your max possible reps. You should avoid hitting a set you can't complete or need multiple attempts.
- movement VARIETY is your friend. This is not a programmed section, this is candy land. If you keep rolling the dice you will get to what you want regardless of the stops on the way.

Carry implements: farmers, swing straps, leg
(1)distance and weight vary 

Small body parts
1-2 sets to failure. Use drop sets, rest pause, whatever. Think outside of the box! There are tons of angles you can use for forearms and the neck. Calves and ribs are a little more streamlined.

Stretching and Mobility
Didn't think this would be here eh? Well fuck you Elmo this is the coda to this story. There are a billion outlets to get you started. Do what you can and do it consistently.

I fully allocate my good nights sleep to stretching before bed. I did not go to bed tight and in pain and WEIRD I slept better.




Thursday, January 25, 2024

Accepting injury. Sticking to the plan.

It's important I log mental paradigm shifts. I've written about doing what you can in the midst of injury multiple times. What I have not talked about is becoming numb to setbacks.

The gift of injury

Last week my knees were feeling great for the first time in a long time. I decided to take a light sandbag (50lbs) and take it for a walk. By that evening both of my knees were on fire. It didn't hurt necessarily, but everything was screaming DONT DO THAT STUPID. I lay in bed with my wife and vocalized my frustration. Phrases like 'I didn't deserve this' and 'I set myself back weeks' poured out of my brain. As always she was empathetic to my frustration. We passed out and that was that.

Days later, my knees still feel like shit. I've done nothing physically with my lower body other than go on long walks. I'm objectively in worse shape than when I first complained a week ago, but my mental state is MILES ahead. 

This is the gift I received from a set-back:

  • Realizing I'd been shirking the mobility courses I purchased. My body will not heal unless I give it a reason to heal.
  • Remembering my catastrophic neck injury in 2021. What used to be the inability to feel or pull with my left arm is now barely a numb buzz. Through persistence and strength training, I will recover.
  • Refocus my goal on brutalizing my upper body. There is a mountain of progress I can make that is unrelated to my knees.  

Tuesday, January 2, 2024

2024 Goals: Ring Muscle Up, Shoulder a 150lb Sandbag, Snatch a 24kg KB for 20

First day back at work for 2024. Fresh in my brain are the physical goals I have for 2024. 

GOALS:

  • One(1) Ring Muscle Up.
  • Shoulder a 150lb Sandbag.
  • Snatch a 24kg KB for 20.


Given my current strength levels and progress in my program, these are extremely achievable. I'm actively working towards a ring muscle up daily, and I'm laying the bricks that will allow my body to safetly murder the other two(2).

The why behind each goal is easy. I've always thought I was too heavy for muscle ups. The change was a mindset shift on bodyweight training. A heavier starting point means each rep has more muscle building potential. If I build my upper body back up while simultaneously practicing the skills tied to muscle ups, this 

Shouldering a 150lb bag is likely doable now, but not without aggravating my knee. I want to be able to throw this bag around pain free. Then do it again and again and again.

Snatching a 24kg KB is weirdly the biggest reach goal. A full KB snatch scares me even with 16kg, and 24kg is generally considered the minimum 'working weight' most men should be using before you can see much in the way of results from KBs. This is entirely arbitrary of course, but I want to throw around a weight that scares me a little now.


Saturday, December 30, 2023

ring muscle up before I'm 40

Game fucking on y'all. My.nerve damage has diminished to the point where I can train my upper body safety again. In the same way I hit a 500 dead after herniating multiple discs (immediate thought after was oh nooooo I'll never be strong again) I'm going to hit the target I thought was lost to me the moment I injured my neck.

Context. In a single day in 2021:
- I hurt my neck doing handstand pushups (d'oh).
- Hurt it more trying to do a muscle up with no training (why).
- Then made the problem 10x worse by doing farmers walks later in the day (I thought it would stretch me out!).

What resulted was my neck hurting so badly I couldn't move without assistance, my entire left arm going numb, and my body losing all ability to pull (the nerves literally didn't connect). Am I 100% better? Nah. My strength isn't what it was, and there is always some residual numbness. But I'm smarter now. Maybe. Active daily mobility and actually training my neck is mah friend. You probably can't compete at the highest levels of (fill in something) with nerve damage. But a muscle up? Bitch please. This is doable.

The system
Full body every other day. 
- heavy focus on upper body.
- lower body is super light via rehab and acclimation.
Daily practice with false grip. That shit hurts.
Off days.
- neck and foot strength.
- mobility.

The only thing that will change once my lower body is cleared is extra conditioning sessions. I want a larger engine, not necessarily to directly strength train my lower. This means kettlebells and sandbags. Together at last.

Wednesday, December 27, 2023

shower thought biceps on biceps

The pelican curl is the Nordic hamstring curl for the arms. Extremely high tension and high difficulty ceiling. 

Training elements are mostly the same. Slow negatives, full range of motion with bands 


calisthenics progression (still vetting)

Every once in a while a fun idea comes across your brain. It's too good to ignore sonit gets put into immediate action.

Concept 
Prioritizing calisthenics via both weights and leverage progressions 

What it looks like
Shoot for a rep goal
Add weight when the rep goal is achieved 
Repeat until stale
Deload movement
Replace movement with a more difficult variation.

Example
Pushups 3x15, increase weight
+2.5lbs Pushups 3x12
+2.5lbs Pushups 3x15, increase weight
+5lbs Pushups 3x10
...weeks later
+25lbs Pushups 3x6, my shit hurts.
Pushups 3x5
Pushups 3x10, switch to new movement.
Archer Pushups 3x7
Archer Pushers 3x9
Etc

staggered rest versus supersets

I read something in Overcoming Gravity (gymnastics training for gen pop, excellent read and reference) that resonated with me and I've since implemented in my own training. 

Concept
Staggering rest periods instead of super setting exercises. 

Example super setting followed by rest
Set of ring pullups
Set of ring dips
Rest 3-5min

Example of staggering rest periods
Set of ring pullups 
Rest 1.5-2.5min
Set of ring dips
Rest 1.5-2.5min

Benefits
- fatigue from the leading exercise does not limit the second exercise.
- grip strength is not a limiting factor.
- rest periods can be used to stretch antagonist muscles, warm up the lower body, or sit and chill.
- overall cycle time of the workout is not extended.

Overall performance will still be better if you chose neither of the options above (pullups, rest 5min, pullups, etc), but the tradeoff is a longer workout. If your goal is to improve conditioning, then this method is not for you. The rest periods in line are geared towards strength development.

I was able to use the stagger method to complete the sets below in 45min. 

Ring pullups X3 stagger bar dips X3
Pelican curls X3 stagger pushups X3
V sit x3 stagger Romanian deadlift X3
Ring wrist curls x1 

Saturday, November 18, 2023

rehab work: don't be dainty

I'm in a bad position and I hate it. My knee has been a problem for years and I'm finally in physical therapy dealing with it. Because that wasn't enough, my neck is flaring up in a major way that promises to hand me another couple of years of pain and discomfort. As with all setbacks, this is a blessing in disguise. 

Over the past few years I haven't been able to give what I would consider high effort to any sets. My body and strength 100% reflect this. The main mission is clear: fix my shit. Strength and conditioning can take a back seat for a few months so long term progress can actually happen.

The plan
- actually purchase and follow someone else mobility plan. The slot machine approach I'm taking is too random to be useful.
- spend 3 months building mobility and joint integrity.
- reintroduce strength training. The mobility train doesn't stop, it just takes a supporting role.

Where dainty matters
My knee physical therapy can be done in my sleep. If the goal is to build up the muscle and tissues that are atrophied, dainty isn't the way to go.

Why not train these movements with intensity? Why not train as if they were main movements? They're all I can do right now! I'm bored because I'm treating them like a chore instead of a goal. I can tell ya, 2x10 of single leg calf raises slaps very different then hitting single leg calf raises to failure, then assisted failure, then double leg calf raises with extended range of motion to failure and assisted failure. 

One of these methods sets off hypertrophic processes. The other isn't garbage, but I'm way less incentivised to follow it. 

Sunday, October 1, 2023

daily training: the importance of light days

Training daily will build your capacity to do work no doubt, but you are not an infinite machine. Sooner or later the fatigue from heavy days will manifest in feeling tired, irritable, or overly sore in key areas (lower back) limiting your overall outputs.

The easiest way to mitigate long term stress is to implement active recovery days. The overall stress should be low while still providing a stimulus.

Ideas
- long brisk walks
- push or pull sled
- kettlebell carries (multiple levels)
- band movements for high reps

Saturday, September 30, 2023

action after injuries!

The worst advice I ever got during physical therapy and chiro post injury was essentially the same: stop doing everything. Cool story bro. I stopped. The pain got worse, not better. I lost muscle and gained fat. Basically all the worst parts of the Bible.

Workaround.
Youre hurt, not broken. There is always something you can do. Injuries are opportunities in disguise to get fucking creative and progress by spamming movements you still have the ability to do. Experiment. If it causes pain or makes the injury worse. STOP! 

Your job is to heal. 
Your affected body part may or may do it on its own. Barring the need for surgery, your job is do everything in your power to recover. This might mean constant walks, light strengthing and mobility of surrounding joints and muscles. You know, boring shit. Embrace it. You can either be back to where you were 4 months from now or just starting to figure it out years later. Don't be the second guy.

Per body part I've injured:
Back
- heal: brisk walks, suitcase carries
- workaround: pullups, dips, single arm presses, chest supported rows, bw Bulgarian split squats 
Neck
- heal: chest stretches (door jam, barbell rollouts), neck and back massage
- workaround: walks, sled pulls (weight around waist)
Knee
- heal: will tell ya when I know. Right now,.weighted carries feel great.
- workaround: upper upper body is in 

Thursday, August 31, 2023

if I had to rebuild from scratch

'What would I do if I could start over' is a fun thought experiment I like to mosey down periodically. This takes into account injury history, current strength and size levels given where I'm at now, and the time investment I've spent driving to and from gyms. Much like my great possession purge of 2019, this experiment forces me to reevaluate the choices I've made and what equipment I really need.

If some random stranger ever sees this, please don't take this as dogma. I only got to where I was by trying a lot of shit and fucking up a million times along the way. Your journey and goals may be very different than mine. All of the words below are powered on the wings of hindsight.

1. Invest in a home gym.
Between 2020 and 2023, I've dropped about $3000 on equipment I will own forever. Some of that equipment (armor fitness sled, the strap) was both not usable and a large chunk of this budget. Even so, my gym memberships from 2009-2019 ran about $30/month.
30*12months*10yrs = $3600.

Surface level this is almost the same amount of money, but it's not even close. Every gym I've ever been to created a fight for equipment, parking spots, and included a lengthy drive for stuff I did not and would never own.

In the next couple of bullets I'll dilute the $3000 I spent event further. A home gym is a long term cheaper alternative for equipment that is free 24/7.

2. Don't buy protein powder.
I'd like to say 'dont but supplements period' but that would be a bit disingenuous. Food should be the primary driver of your protein. It's too easy to fall into the trap of using whey to replace a good meal. 

Supplements I do like and take daily:
- magnesium glycinate 
- zinc (no isotope preference)
- creatine 

3. But Olympic rings first.
This runs under the assumption that you have places to hang them. Alternatively an initial investment of a sturdy Pullup bar followed by rings works as well.

If all you cared about was a build upper body, you can stop here. Even without adding weight, the amount of variation you can add to basic movements means you will never run out of progressions or skills to try for. 

Ring cost: $30/set.
Suggested investment: 1 pair if you are not lazy. 3 pairs of you are lazy (note: I am a lazy fuck and like my rings preset for pullups, dips, and pushups without having to reset them. This is not necessary but I've got the disposable cash to manage).

4. But sandbags second.
This one was a surprise to me. I'm a recent shill for sandbags so a lot of this energy is newbie joy. 

Sandbags check a ton of boxes. They build real world stable strength, can double as a non dangerous squatting tool, are great for carries, and also are great for safe dynamic pulls. Due to their lack of stability, they are not optimal if you're looking to build max strength or size. For my goals, they are absolutely perfect. I'd rather be the guy who can any day throw a 200lb sandbag on his shoulders half a dozen times than the dude who can deadlift 400lbs for reps.

The sandbags themselves aren't cheap (if you buy the nicer strongman bags), but the sand inside them is literally cheap as dirt. Quick side by side given the market today on iron weights versus sand.
Iron 100lbs * $2/lb = $200.
Sand 100lbs * $0.10/lb = $10.

A barbell might only be $150 but getting the weights for what you need will still carry a hefty investment. The major downside to sandbags is also my favorite upside. Unlike barbells, changing weight is a pain in the ass. The shill is talking loudly here, but one of the coolest things about old time strongmen is they did not have access to adjustable barbells like we have today. All of their barbells and implements were fixed weight. It's all they had to work with. What happens when you get so strong with the same weight that it's stupid? You find creative ways to bring the intensity back up and the reps back down until you get better at that variation as well. Sandbags aren't necessarily in the same league because at the end of the day you CAN still adjust them within their carry limit. However, my favorite use of them is to use a weight until it'l feels too light to be challenging anymore.

Sandbag cost: $100-$200 per bag for cerebus bags. You can also build your own for cheap using old bags and bag liners. 
Sand cost: $5/50lbs.

5. Buy kettlebells third.
This can be a single bell, a single adjustable bell, or multiple bells. Unless you plan on being a pure kettlebell lifter, don't stress too much on what to get. 

I definitely stressed over cast iron versus competition. Then adjustable versus regular. In the end, they're all good for different things. If the bell is too light, lift it more or find different ways to lift it that make it more difficult. See my fixed weight ramble in the sandbag section.

Price is wildly different depending on what you want. If I could redo this, I would find the cheapest 16kg, 20kg, and 24kg bells on sale and call it a day.

6. Buy a Nordic stick fourth.
Nordic hamstring curls are the fucking bomb. There are a crap ton of items on the market that range from 300-1000 to assist with glute ham raises or Nordic curls, but I've found the Nordic stick to work just fine for cheap.

Nordic curls are great for hamstring strength and size wrapped in a bodyweight movement. I'm wrapping in bands to this sale as you will almost certainly need them to make the movement easier when first starting.

Nordic stick coat: $30
Bands (rogue - 2 blue, 2 orange): $50

7. Buy a barbell and weights last.
This route obviously won't work if your goal is max strength or size. So again, take with grains of salt.

For me, barbells serve very limited usage. They still reign king for most people, but this isn't a list for most people. 

I mainly use barbells for the following:
- pin squats 
- pendlay rows, one arm rows
- shoulder rollouts (stretch)

I love what I have, but if I could go back in time, a barbell (and rack) would have been the last on my list. Another reason for this placement is I had it stuck in my head for YEARS that I would be unable to make any type of progress without both a bar and a rack. When I finally got both I told my wife it was fucking game time. Little did I know I would end up barely using said rack in lieu for everything else on this list.

Another big driver away from racks and barbells is I work from home. When you are home all day everyday you get stir crazy as fuck. For my mental health, I need daily exercise outside in the sun. Working out in my rack does not support that need.

Saturday, August 26, 2023

more ramblings on a carry based program

To review, my program consists of a few things:
- daily easy strength: dips and chinups.
- daily stretching and mobility.
- 3x week sandbag carries, squats, cleans, and throws.
- 1x week Nordic curls (bb rep ranges), keg carries.

I don't want to undersell how much I love this format. Program ADD is handled by the fact that the main movements have no defined weight. For kegs and sandbags it's just: move it a few times if it's heavy and a lot of times if it's light. Move as fast as possible during carries and never carry the same way twice. My back feels GREAT in a way that kind of surprised me. I'm not expecting to get huge off of this type of training in most body parts (looking at you shoulders, legs, and arms) but my erectors are going to be fuckin columns of steel. Very batman results. 

I'm feeling almost 0 overall fatigue and I can feel my conditioning get better week by week. Hell man, last week post cleans my entire back and traps felt like someone had smashed them with tiny hammers. This week I went harder and my back barely noticed. 

The absolute best part of this is getting 'used' to a weight while still making progress. I can sum up progressive overload like:
- go for more sets in the same amount of time
- add more reps between carries.
- consciously move faster during carries. You should be trying to move at a dead run.
- every 2-4 weeks add a little water (keg) and sand (bags).


Thursday, August 24, 2023

ez strength: step loading weighted calisthenics

Weighted calisthenics is a great AM option for easy strength. This goes double considering the lions share of my actual training is conditioning with sandbags which contains absolutely 0 pressing.

The area where I'm going outside of easy strength is in the daily rep ranges. I start inside the params and end slightly out. The overall daily volume is still EXTREMELY small, and none of the sets build any type of fatigue. Recovery day to day has been a non issue.

Step Loading Easy Strength (3-5min daily) 
Calisthenics press 2-5x2-3
(Super set) Calisthenics pull 2-5x2-3
Rest 1min between super sets 

This works great regardless of whether you need regressed, bodyweight, or weighted versions of a movement.

Every day, add a rep to the daily load. Once you max out the 3's, add a set and regress to sets of 2 again. NEVER STRUGGLE.

Example (each row is a day)
2,2,2
3,2,2
3,3,3
2,2,2,2
3,2,2,2
...
3,3,3,3,3
Increase weight or progress variation
2,2,2

Weight increments should be the smallest possible increment (2.5-5lbs). The goal is to be able.to.comtinually gain strength as long as possible without changing movements or deloading.


Friday, August 18, 2023

sandbag based training program

Tldr if I could rebuild my gym, I would keep the rings, the sandbags, the sled, and a kettlebell. If I move I might leave the power rack behind.

This shit is money. All main movements are based around squatting, throwing, and carrying sandbags. Assistance is a mix of barbell, kettlebell, and calisthenics. There are four(4) mesocycles in a year long macrocycle. 

Each mesocycle is based around three(3) concepts:
  • A calisthenics movement or curl performed daily. 
  • Set sandbag weight(s). 2-4x a week.
  • Kettlebell or barbell assistance. 2-4x a week after sandbag training. The movement patterns should be the opposite of the daily movement.
At the end of every mesocycle:
  • Change your daily movement.
  • Increase sandbag weights.
The goal is to use each three(3) month mesocycle to own the crap out of a given sandbag weight. Your bags should feel like toys when you are done. Progression with sandbags can take the form of adding more reps/rounds, performing more rounds, adding more exercises to each round.

Schedule
AM - Daily
Mobility
10 sets of the daily movement: Dips, Pullups, Pushups, DB Curls. 1min rest between sets.
Stretch

PM - 2-4x a week.
30min sandbag training. Combine different permutations of squats, carries, and throws. 
Assistance:
  • Counter daily movement 3x8. 1min rest between sets.
  • 1x BW reverse lunges to failure.
  • Stretch.
PM - non-lifting days.
Sled, KB Swings, Suitcase Carries. 

Sandbag Parking Lot
Squat: Bear hug squat (1 or 2 arm), shoulder squat, box squat, jump squat.
Carry: Bear hug (1 or 2 arm), overhead, shoulder.
Throw: Over shoulder, slam, push forward. 

Monday, June 19, 2023

high frequency barbell, kettlebell, and calisthenics

Nothing new to say here. It's important I record when I'm doing something I love so when I inevitably forget I have a clear record of the past.

Goals 6/19/23
General 
- improve condition, work capacity, and mobility
- get outside daily
- introduce movement (sprints, bounds, crawls) into the mix for the thought of moving doesn't feel alien
Specific
- half snatch 28kg x 12
- goblet squat 32kg x 12
- floor press 200lb x 12

Schedule
M-F AM: modified easy strength 
M-F PM: alternate upper calisthenics and kb
Sat AM: barbell upper bodybuilding

Modified easy strength: 15min
Jump rope
Ab wheel
Lower barbell movement <= 10 reps
Light kb swing
Stretch and mobility

Upper calisthenics
Strength: weighted or advanced patterns
Afternoon suntan: outside volume, crawls, downs, etc

Kb
Sprint 
Dynamic movement - snatch, swing, jumps, etc
Squat
Deadlift
Leg curls 

Bodybuilding
Press 50 in 5 ss pull 50 in 5
Lats 60 in 4



Saturday, May 27, 2023

abbreviated training + conditioning

I need to stop myself every time I build a program with 4+ days of lifting a week. It's not like that doesn't work. It totally does. But I also walk around feeling like absolute tired shit all the time. I thought this was a bad thing for years and years but really it's a god damn blessing to have 'bad recovery.' I get more out of less work bwahhhhhh. Lifting 2x a week is money when you go hard in the paint on every set then recover.

This is not saying that I'm a couch potato the remaining 5 days of the week. Far from it. Every day has something physical whether it's kettlebell conditioning, sled drags, stretching, and calisthenics. The idea is that the non lifting days do not eat further into recovery.

Example
Monday
Squat or Press 1-5 sets. 50 rep goal.
Nordic hamstring curl 1xbeyond failure 
Carry 10min

Tuesday 
Calisthenics. One push or pull.
Kettlebell conditioning 20-30min

Wednesday
Sled, stretching, or off

Thursday
Deadlift 1-5 sets. 50 rep goal.
Sissy squat. 1xbeyond failure
Carry 10min

Friday 
Same as Tuesday 

Sat
Same as Wednesday 

Sun
Off

Lifting cycle and movement replacement
The same movement variations repeat in a 2 week rotation. Meaning you will only practice a movement one time every 2 weeks. If you fail to increase reps towards the 50 rep goal 2 weeks in a row, swap it out for a different lift.

Squats: Zercher, safety, front, landmine, viking, sandbag
Presses: floor press, landmine, viking, calisthenics presses, one arm javelin, kettlebell 
Deads: snatch rack pull, sumo, hang clean, hang snatch high pull, one arm deadlift 

For squats and deads, work up to a very low max before hitting volume towards your rep goal. Use straps for deadlift volume. Grip should not be the limiting factor on reps but it should on strength.

Increase weight 5-10 pounds at a time. If things are going well, you should not be replacing more.than 1 movement at a time.

Saturday, March 18, 2023

$$$ conditioning tool: sled and kb combo

30min on the clock
Equipment needed:
- drag sled.
- single kettlebell. The weight doesn't matter.

Alternate until time is up
Sled drag
Snatch (left)
Sled drag
Snatch (right)
Sled drag
Swing (left)
Sled drag
Swing (right)

Progression by adding a small amount of reps over time to kb movements. Increase weight of the sled by 2.5-5lbs and the kb by 2-4kg once kb reps reach the stratosphere.

The goal is restoration and conditioning. Avoid failure and fatigue like the plague.

The fast motion of a kb followed by the slow motion of a sled drag makes my butt feel feelings. 

Saturday, March 11, 2023

3 months of kettlebelling : lessons learned

Oh boy here I go brain dropping again.

Fixed weight implements are the fucking bomb. I missed out on 2020 when I 'only' had a 20kg kettlebell and thought I couldn't do anything useful with it. Today, it's the most common implement I use. Times change.

If your back hurts after ballistics, you likely aren't hinging well or hinging at the mid back instead of the hips. Film yourself with a light bell to see where your weakness lies.

Dan John's easy strength program pairs VERY well with kb strength, conditioning, and bodybuilding.

Current program:
M-F morning is easy strength.
M-Sat afternoon is kettlebell work. Two of those days use 5/3/1 progression for overload movements followed by lighter assistance (high volume and movement variety).
Arms are thrown in whenever cause arms.

This may be shit technique, but with one handed movements I've found I like to favor the blastoff force on the opposite glute and hamstring.

Variety is rewarded over specificity. There's nothing wrong with training a specific movement pattern, but where kettlebells shine is just how many ways you can swing, press, squat, whatever them.

If you are using your free arm for balance when using a single bell, you are robbing your obliques of a crazy training effect. Keep your arm out when you need assistance or when you are exploring new weights. For volume or ladder training, let your abs provide your balance. 

If you don't know how kettlebells work your abs, try snatches with a heavier weight. Those fuckers are trying to yank you over unless you provide the counter force in your own body.

Swings are both under and overrated. I can't see them being a great long term minimalism training movement, but they shine for me with the following:
- light swings to prime the pump for heavier work
- heavy swings used to overload the muscles used for snatches and cleans. It's weird AF to relegate a movement as assistance then work it harder than the main movements but here we are.

Kettlebells are a cult of personality for a reason. Im able to work out outside and get some sun everyday without a huge time investment. It cannot be understated how important this is 

You don't have to 'just' do kettlebells. You may end up in that lane, but don't trade one dogma for another.

Kettlebells build muscle like any other tool. Pay attention to the people that are getting jacked with bells. There is no one method that works for everyone, but the through line is consistency and a focus on progression like any other implement. Weight progression will come slower with bells but it still needs to be a part of your plan.

You can bodybuild with kettlebells, but kettlebells will never make you into a competitive bodybuilder. For general strength training, it's just peachy.


Wednesday, November 23, 2022

benefits to kettlebell training: a beginners lense

Don't listen to me. For real man. If you came here looking for sage advice or to feel justified in making a decision on doing X you're in the wrong place. These brain droppings are so I can remember what I like and what works for me when I inevitably veer away from productivity.

I'm a complete kettlebell novice, but not a lifting novice. Back and neck injuries have kept me on the bench for the past few years and I'm grateful to have the chance to build myself back up. With 0 incentive to revisit lifts or numbers I used to produce without an accompany revisit to physical therapy I've chosen kettlebells as my medium.

Schedule
Squat / press
Off: calisthenics 
Dead / pull
Off: calisthenics 

Weights
Oscillate between medium, heavy, and light pairs of days. Increase the weight when it's too easy. There is no rush to increase weight EVER. The focus is on improving control, coordination, power, and cardio.

Kettlebells will always be submaxinal weight, so make them feel heavy. This means:
- slow negative 
- explosive concentric 
- pause every rep
- squeeze the side that is not being directly worked 

Movements
Choose chaos via python script. It should be rare that the same workout occurs twice, but the same patterns will always repeat. 

Patterns 
- lower / lower alt
- upper
- combination lower and upper
- ab focus 

Nuances
45min on the clock.
As many sets as possible under control.
Rep quality > rep quantity. When in doubt do less but do it better.
1 set is the same sequence repeated on both sides (assuming most patterns are unilateral with 1 bell).
Bilateral movements are repeated on both halves of the set.
Lower / lower alt refers to an alternative movement every other set. Example:
- set 1: rack split squats
- set 2: Cossack squats

Body improvement goals
No measurements, just markers.
This is not an aesthetic physique goal. I essentially want to become a cube. Thin waist be damned.
Shoulders and abs should chunk up. 
Lats should get thicker. 
Spinal erectors should get thick as fuck.
Arms will benefit most from the off day dips/pullups. I don't expect kettlebells to do much in that regard.

Calisthenics: why and how
Dip variation is the name of the game here. I may add in pullups down the road, but my back is getting plenty of work on the reg. Likewise, my shoulders will benefit greatly from all things overhead. That leaves chest and triceps. Even if I'm going hard in the paint on dips, it's unlikely my chest and triceps will ever be a limiting factor for kettlebell work.

On the how, I'm stealing directly from swole at every heights method for implementing high ass frequency on 'off' days.

Build base volume
Week 1: 1 exercise x 1x10
Week 2: 1 exercise x 2x10
...
Week 4: 1 exercise x 4x10
Week 5: 2 exercises x 1x10
...
Week 12: 3 exercises x 4x10

Then add in chaos. Never repeat the same variations in the same order. If this gets too easy in any context, add reps or change the variation. Slow reps and pauses are a first line of adding control.


Monday, October 31, 2022

linear gains : chaotic approach

I've been learning python. Fucking, finally. I've always wanted to be able to program, but I've damn near failed every class I ever took. Good news! The reason isnt that my brain is a dud, it's because taking classes on some things is mind numbingly boring. Unless I can make a connection between an actual problem I'm having and what im learning, it ain't gonna stick. Case and point, sql. Nothing stuck in college, but I'm now considered one of the heavies at my company. 

I've got bigger plans for python, but I started on building a workout generator for sword and shield. With the press of a button, I can get weeks of randomized workouts and weights. There is NOTHING wrong with this approach, but I'm finding my neck still isn't up for dynamic movements. And I'll be damned if kettlebells aren't mostly dynamic.

This means I'm sticking with slower exercises for now, even if the goal is to move the bar as fast as possible. I've always been more comfortable with doing a shitton of times sets instead a few sets to failure to drive progress. This is what I came up with.

General
Linear progression push/pull
6 week mesocycles
Pull current: rdl, sdl, snatch rack pull
Pull reserve: rolling thunder dl, Jefferson dl
Push current: floor press close grip
Push reserve: dips, ring dips, pushups, ring pushups

Schedule 
AM (all days) mobility, sled, or suitcase carry 
Pull: 30min EMOM alternating
- pull current 
- kettlebell clean and press 
- (finisher post EMOM) 3x10-20 cable row
Push: 30min EMOM alternating
- push current 
- ring curl variation or ring row variation 
Off - mobility
Off - hill sprints 

Linear progression
The python randomizer pulls a value out of pull current for ever pull workout. Every time that same movement comes out of the bag, add 10lbs.

Example
Workout 1, rdl, 100lbs
Workout 2, snatch rack pull, 135lbs
Workout 3, rdl, 110lbs
...and so on

The weights start deliberately low and can climb deceptively high in a single cycle should their die roll hit several times in a row. 

Number of reps per set
Unimportant. The goal is to get quality work done without introducing a large amount of fatigue (Dan John's ladders anyone?). Leaving 2-3 reps in reserve is a good baseline. Another way to signal a stop is when speed noticably drops.

Swapping stale movements 
Ideally, movements should be swapped out as needed. This can happen at any point of a 6 week cycle, and serves as a mini deload as the new movement is introduced at it's starting weight. 

Progressive overload
Every full mesocycle completed with a movement increases the floor weight by 2.5-10lbs.

Saturday, October 22, 2022

sword and shield variation oct 2022

Ripped this right from bells and bodybuilding. I'm a big fan of a loose program that strives for size and conditioning. As the progenitor puts it - there are bodybuilders who cant move and kettlebellers who look like they don't lift. Why not zoidberg (six: do both).

This program doesn't have scheduled rest days, so intensity and volume have to be pretty heavily monitored and managed. Going too hard on one day could mean sandbagging the next week.

The basics (my variant)
Day1: upper bodybuilding
Press variation 50 reps in 5 sets
Super set
Suspension rows and curls (no goal, just get blood in the body, utilize assisted negatives)
Press variation sets of 8 with 10-30s rest (1/2 main working weight)
Curl 1x100
Neck manual and band resistance x 1 

Day2: AM restore, PM condition 20-60min
Restore - 10min of sled drags or suitcase carries
Condition - alternate movements and loads each session
Explosive hinge : one and two arm swings
Clean and press variations : vary load

Day3: AM restore, PM condition 20-60min
Restore (same as 2)
Condition - (same as 2)
Windmills
Lower : squats, dead variations 

Nuances
I've tried peppering in heavier body building and conditioning days (see: kegs, farmers). I kind of wish I hadn't. These days are definitely possible but they dig a hole you have to eat and sleep out of.

Upper body building days are used both for hypertrophy and for an overall 'rest' for the rest of the body. Specifically, using movements that give your lower back a rest and pose minor danger to your shoulders due to the higher rep ranges.

Overall impression
I don't think I've ever felt better on a program both in terms of how I feel mentally and how well move. It's too soon to evaluate this methodology for strength and size, but I expect time and effort to pack on the meat.



Saturday, October 15, 2022

Saturday, July 2, 2022

muscle up promise and peas and carrots

Muscle up promise
I will not watch YouTube or look at reddit until I can do a muscle up. That time is likely months away due to my neck injury and that is a ok with me.

Peas and carrots
The word is in from physical therapy. No more upper body until she clears me to do so. Until I get cleared, this means my days are filled with:
- bw bss (jumping and normal)
- bw one leg rdls
- sled drags from the waist
- nordics
- walking lunges 
- belt squats 

Thursday, May 26, 2022

what is serving you

Belt squats yesterday were eye opening. It wasn't that I did an insane amount of reps pain free that was the cool part. No, the cool part was I actually felt squats in my legs. Wild, I know. 

I've been a huge front squats guy for the past decade or so. When my front squat goes up everything goes up. Around 2018 I noticed a sharp turn in how much I felt them in my quads. Soon after this turn, I hurt my knee and it took years to feel my legs working again.

Right now my legs are so sore I can barely walk. All the while I'm not really fatigued other than locally (i.e. I ain't touching squats for another 4 days). I know I'm actually getting growth and strength out of a movement instead of going through old motions that don't work.

Tldr
If you don't feel a intended muscle working it probably isn't.

Wednesday, May 18, 2022

brain droppings

Strive to be meek
The weak have no agency in expressing violence
The meek could ruin your day if they wanted to
Build an awful power and choose to be peaceful

Tuesday, April 26, 2022

kettlebell conditioning : one move. simple

1 bell
Dead stop clean and press 100 reps per arm
Or
Dead stop snatch 100 reps per arm

This should take less than 12min and is a fucking beast. Light weight works as well as heavier weight (taper the reps down if reps are less than 10/arm/round).

Saturday, April 23, 2022

kettlebell conditioning : complex

Complex : 1 bell
1 rep of
Row
Deadlift
Dead stop clean and press
Snatch
(Switch hands)

Continue for 10min
Death

Thursday, April 7, 2022

mentally batching reps for higher rep sets

Tldr 
Change your mindset with higher rep sets.

This is not a 'i discovered this thing. Noone else has ever done this before hisssssssss.' Nah brah. This is a I discovered this thing for myself that helped me slog through the nightmare that is higher rep squats.

Early on in my lifting life, I almost exclusively did sets of 3, 2, and 1. This wasn't entirely a bad thing either. I got close to the peaks of my strength with this strategy, but I ultimately got stronger (raised my strength floor) by way of medium rep back off sets. At my strongest, I was striving for new PRs in the 10rm range. Could I hit a better 1RM when I specialized in higher reps? Hell no, but I wasn't trying to. The entire idea was to get stronger via slowly increasing strength in medium to higher rep ranges. Not surprisingly, I mistook trying Bulgarian light as a method for moving my top end strength. Foolish. All that was happening was I peaked the strength I had spent years building. But I digress.

Higher reps suck. And they are awful. And they suck. There is a special hell with higher rep squatting because you can technically rest your legs (at the expense of your back stamina) and pump out more reps. The super squats program relies entirely on this fact with the use of breathing squats. What I found is a way to make higher rep squats suck slightly less without cheating the goal.

My rep goal right meow is 15. That looks a lot like 5 triples to me! Triples are easy and I love them. Instead of saying I'm on rep 13 Jesus please save me everything is awful, I can say I'm ony last triple. I can do a triple no problem. 


Sunday, April 3, 2022

working from home | a unique avenue for powerbuilding

Ten years ago I said something stupid to my girlfriend on the way to a cruise. 

I'm gonna live like an Olympic athlete the entire time we're here. I'm gonna lift a stupid amount of times, then eat and sleep my fill to recover and it's gonna be awesome. 

As with all times when I talked about lifting (and my wife does now), she smiled and nodded and gave 0 shits but wanted to show how supportive she was of my brain droppings.

Weird enough, I'm in a better situation now that I could have possibly ever imagined in my 20s. I work from home, live in a future that has grocery delivery, and I have a home gym with weights I have to work up to lifting again. And dude, it's not getting better than this.

What makes more sense in my situation? Trying to shove a bunch of intense/volume work early before I work, or taking small breaks throughout the day to get in my sets? I accidentally experimented with this about a year ago through intermittent sets to failure of bodyweight pulls. And all it ever accomplished was the most impressive my upper body ever looked.

If you work from home:

  • Your food probably lives with you. Prep ahead of time (my choice is slow cooked stews).
  • Get a home gym. If you can't afford it or don't have the room, you have a multitude of options to move the needle without a barbell (kettlebells, rings, and homemade kettlebells for swings...I'm a looking at you baby).  

Saturday, April 2, 2022

$$$ conditioning idea: booty gauntlet

What you need
1-3 kettlebells of different weights

The skinny
EMOM different variations of pushups. No set rep ranges.
Hit kettlebell movements in the EMOM rest period post pushups.

The fine print on kettlebells
In order, hit sets of the following. Once you fail to hit a complete set, drop down to the next difficulty tier. Once you hit swings, do 1 all out set per weight per round.

Note that you don't rest unless you have to. The snatchesx5 tier means you do that pet arm until it's time for more pushups or you run out of gas.

Example of difficulty tiers (reps per arm)
20kg snatchesx5 
20kg snatchesx3 
20kg cleansx5
20kg cleansx3
16kg snatchesx5
...
16kg cleansx3
20kg two handed swings 1xamap
16kg two handed swings 1xamap

Saturday, March 19, 2022

more conditioning ideas

This entire endurance thing is new for me. Each implement tends to have its own benefit and place in my life. 

Kettlebells so far have been a fun comprimise between strength, hypertrophy, and cardio. Noticable changes to my back and shoulders started cropping up after a few weeks of continued use. 

Dragging sleds don't feel like they have a huge cardio impact, but literally every old injury feels better once I'm done. There's a side benefit of making my butt gigantic.

Kegs are fantastic but a little goes a long way. I've enjoyed both longer timed carries (20min) and shorter carries (5min) post workout, but the fact for me remains that 1x weekly is plenty.

Chaotic ideas that have worked for me
1. (Kb) Xmin non-stop
So many opportunities here. 

Single moves (half snatch, clean and press) work great for the sake of being able to 'rest' in the rack or extended position - switching arms when needed. 

Monster sets work even better from a cardio perspective. It's as simple as adding in reverse lunges or squats between switching hands.

Carries before switching hands is easier on cardio, but great for back health. My obliques have thickened up to meet the demands of this route.

2. (Kb) descending rep ladders
Same dealeo as #1 in terms of how many movements you want to employ. The major difference is work is split into individual sets complete with resting after a ladder is completed.

Increase the top rung number of reps to ramp up the difficulty without increasing weight.

Example single movement
Left hand half snatch 5 reps
Right hand half snatch 5 reps
Left hand half snatch 4 reps
...
Right hand half snatch 1 rep
Rest. Repeat 1-3x

Example monster sets
Left hand clean and press 5 reps
Left rack squat 5 reps
Right hand clean and press 5 reps
Etc

3. (Kb) escalating density 
Similar to #1. You set a clock for 15 to 20min. The difference is each set is not 'as many as possible.' 

Each set is 5 reps per arm. Do as many sets as possible in the time block. Rest as needed. Let reps drop as needed.

4. (Sled) EMOM
EMOM = every minute on the minute
Pick a predetermined path and drag the sled one way at the top of every minute. Try to time the distance and load so your rest works out to 20-30 seconds.

5. (Sled) Xmin until death
This is reserved either for: everything hurts or I have no motivation. Keep the load light, set a clock, and drag until you can't. The speed should be slightly slower than walking, and the pump in your legs will be unreal.