I decided to tackle event 4 today so I can re-do the snatch workout and possibly the muscle up and clean one since it is short and not too taxing. Plus, I would love to get to 50 on that one.
MQ4 21-15-9 Deadlifts 225 lbs. (Unbroken) Box Jumps 24" (Rebounded first two rounds, step up and down third round) HSPU (Done in sets of 3) 9:59
This went WAY, WAY better than I expected. I had a good strategy and was able to stick to it. I had one miss on the HSPU in the round of 9, but it was due to not hitting the wall with my feet with a big, solid kip and not muscle fatigue.
I was hoping to cycle the deadlifts a little faster, but I moved them well enough.
My humble goal going into this was not to drop any spots in the final rankings. I hope I have done enough.
Day two and it was a pretty miserable day at the gym. Pure chaos. Too many people with absolutely no manners. To say the least, it was struggle to stay focused. Always fun to have some pushing a prowler directly in front of you when you are going for a 1 RM. Oh well.
MQ Event 2 Snatch 1 RM 188 lbs. (3 lbs. PR)
Not my best day snatching. Got a PR, but on a regular training day I would not have counted this one. It was ugly to say the least. The snatch I hit at 185, which tied my previous PR, was a decent lift. However, it took me several attempts to hit 185 and by the time I got to 188 I was mentally and physically drained.
Row 4:01 (includes the 0:10 it took for my monitor to come back on)
Transition 0:16
Thrusters 2:55 (10-10-10-10-10)
Transition 0:30 (Ouch!)
Pull-Ups 2:29 (3-3-3-3-3-3-2-Singles)
Although I am pretty pleased with this outcome, I definitely left some time out there and definitely should have come in closer to 8:30. I am very happy with my CTB strategy. If I was in contention for a top 20 spot, I probably would have rigged something up so it made it easier to do singles, but I really need to be able to string these together better under fatigue and I felt like I did this pretty well today.
The good news is, at least, I got one more rep on the second attempt. Realistically, I was shooting for 50+. My goal was to get through the fourth round of muscle ups with, maybe, 10-15 seconds left and hit some quick touch and go cleans. On both attempts, I set myself up to do just that, but the muscle up efficiency is just not there for me.
After the first attempt, I was barely even breathing hard. Second attempt was a different story.
This is the first attempt (47 reps). The second attempt looks just like this, but the rep I fail at the end of this one I got on the second attempt. Just don't have the time or patience right now to fight with YouTube.
Last day of training before the MQ. Body feels good and training has been great. Let's hope it translate into some good performances this weekend. At least, I know going in that I have done everything I can to prepare myself.
Clean (Full) Build quickly to a heavy single in the 80-90% range 255 lbs.
I am not going to lie. I felt really good today and thought I could hit 275 so I went for it. I was wrong. Good pulls, just slow elbows.
255 lbs.
For Time @ 90%
30 Wall Balls 20 lbs. (Unbroken, but a few no reps)
30 CTB Pull-Ups (10,5,5,5,3,2)
40 Alternating DB Snatches 60 lbs.
30 Calorie Row
6:36
First the bad, no reps on wall balls. Really?!?! Watching the video, I think I might have been a little harsh on my judging, but I need to leave no doubt. I have a few housekeeping things (wall ball accuracy, double under counting) I need to clean up.
Now, the good. I am super please with my pull-ups. Technique wasn't quite as good as I want, but I was able to gut check through some reps that I don't normally think I would get. To get these done in 1:30 was a huge win for me.
The eh: the row was not stellar (1:35 total time and 1:21 pulling time). I need to do a little better here.
We have only one 70 lbs. dumbbell at our gym so in order to have a fair competition with my workout partner, we both used 60 lbs. dumbbells for the snatches, but we did 40 instead of 30.
These were a little more unpleasant than I expected and felt like they were never going to end.
Rowing
8 sets
0:30 high aerobic effort / 0:30 easy
Kept the splits around 1:35-1:37. Probably should have measured output by calories, but I did meters. Each round was around 150 meters.
Row 3k at 85% Every 500m get off rower for 3:00 and do mobility of your choice
Kept the rows between 1:45 and 1:47 splits. Did some general mobility each round starting at my ankles and moving up to my shoulders. I am knocking on faux Swedish wood (Ikea desk) here, but my body has not felt this good in a really, really long time.
One of our fantastic gym members purchased Crossover Symmetry and allows anyone to use it. I have been utilizing it every day and my shoulders have not felt so healthy since I was 13 years old.
Hit 175, failed 185. These actually felt pretty good. I think I could have hit 185, but ran out of time and had to move on.
Back Squat Work to a heavy, not max, single 365 lbs.
Nice to have some heavy weight on my back. Not bad. I am really looking forward to chasing 400 in the off-season.
EMOM 12 M1: 10 Burpees over the Bar M2: 50 Double Unders (Unbroken)
About 0:16 for the burpees and right around 0:30 for the double unders. Burpees felt nice and speedy. Double unders have been really good lately (thank you Double Under God).
EMOM 5
7 Clean & Jerks 135 lbs.
I went unbroken the first four minutes. My forearms were on fire in minute five. Went 4-2-1. Eh, not too disappointed with this. I felt like I moved the bar pretty efficiently.
Funny story...I finished this and I was royally pissed. I really gave this thing my all. When I finished and looked at the clock, I was 0:08 off my PR. I felt like this was, by far, my best "Jackie" effort. I really didn't know what I did wrong. I slowed down the thrusters just a tiny bit to save some energy for big sets (for me ) of pull-ups and I was super stoked at getting 13 pull-ups right out of the gate feeling like I still had some gas in the tank. The singles at the end seemed to take FOREVER, though.
Good reason, I did 4 extra pull-ups as singles. I REALLY, REALLY need to learn how to count or I need to come into a large sum of money so I can hire someone to count for me because this is getting silly.
Good news: I have a Jackie PR. Bad news: I am a moron.
A week out from the MQ and this is really the best I have felt physically in a really long time. My training the last few weeks has been great. I have a ton of job stress right now, and training has really been a positive outlet.
I wish I would have done better in the Open so next week would be a little more exciting, but I have to live with that now and use next week as an opportunity to work on my "game day" performance.
Clean Build to a tough single in no more than 15:00 264 lbs.
Not great. A little slow with my elbow and maybe a little jump forward, but I am happy with my recovery out of the hole.
OHS Moderate single from the ground 225 lbs.
I still need to work on my depth at this weight. At least, I didn't try to crack my vertebrae like I did last week!
Power Clean 10 x 1 @ 855 of A Begin a set every 0:30 225 lbs.
I am getting a lot more comfortable power cleaning this weight. I felt like these got better as I went.
For Time 10 Box Jumps 24" (Step Down) 20 TTB in Singles 30 Wall Balls 20 lbs. (Unbroken) 40 STO 115 lbs. (10-10-5-5-4-F-3-3) 50 Double Unders (Unbroken) 5:23
I am not special. The STO buried me, almost literally on rep 35. Very close to braining myself. This was really fun.
I don't practice these enough, but I think with some practice I could get this down.
Here are some highlights. Please note the shortness of the clip.
EMOM 12 M1: 12 KBS 70 lbs. (Unbroken) M2: 4 Muscle Ups (4,4,4,3-1,3-1,3-1)
This got a little spicy at the end. The first three rounds felt great.
For Time 100 Double Unders (100) 25 Burpees 100 Double Unders (See below) 25 Burpees 4:18-ish
I SUCK at counting double unders. I was so happy about this workout until I watched the video and counted the doubles. I always try to do 5 extra just in case I miscount. I think I was right at 100 on the first set and I thought I went 50-47-3 on the second set. Don't think so. Not even close. Argh!
Also, I am not super happy with the quality of my burpees. I moved through them well, but the range of motion at the top (hinged hip) is lacking more than what I would consider acceptable.
I had it in my mind to go 1200 cal/hr in the first round, 1300 in the second in the second and 1400 in the third. I actually went 1300, 1500, 1700. So the rows felt good.
Thrusters went about as I expected. I was hoping I could bust out the last ten unbroken, but I decided to break the last round mid-flow. It was probably the right decision.
Round 3
EMOM 6 9 Wall Balls 30 lbs. 6 TTB
Did this backwards. I really need to learn how to read. This was actually pretty fun. It had been a while since I tossed the 30 so I gave it a whirl. Also, the 6-8 rep range on TTB is so deceiving. I feel like I could do these all day, but of course, I can't...
Snatch
Work to a heavy single with perfect technique
185 lbs.
Well, it wasn't perfect, but I was pretty happy with my footwork. Definitely some early arm pull and the catch was a little shaky. However, this weight has BEEN a huge hurdle and I was happy to get it.
Back Squat
Work to a heavy double
355 lbs.
This felt really heavy, but I was happy to get it.
EMOM 10
M1: 7 Bar Facing Burpees
M2: 50 Double Unders
This went well. Burpees felt speedy and no breaks on the doubles.
EMOM 5
5-7 HSPU 2" Deficit
This went well for two rounds and then went to crap pretty fast. Very frustrating.
I had to go five day straight this week because my wife and I took a well-deserved and much needed weekend away.
OHS 2 RM from ground 205 lbs.
Hit 205 pretty easily and went for 225. Tried it twice and was only able to get one rep each time, but I WAS able to crash the weight down on one of my neck vertebrae on both attempts!
I really don't remember how many rounds. I know I kept moving at a decent pace and the runs felt really good, but I certainly was not setting any records.
Rest 4:00
AMRAP 8 @ 80% 200m Row 15 KBS 70 lbs.(9-6 the whole way) 10 Fat Bar Pull-Ups (10,10,8-2) 3 Rounds
This felt pretty good. I was surprised that my grip held out so well on the fat bar, particularly after the KBS. I did the first round of pull-ups strict and butterflied the next two rounds.
For time 50 Calorie Row 40 TTB (10,10,5,4,3,singles) 30 Wall Balls 20 lbs. (30) 20 Power Snatches 135 lbs. (Singles) 10 Muscle Ups (Singles) 14:23
Well, that was not good. Everything felt pretty good until the snatches and for reason, those suckers felt much heavier than usual. Maybe, I pushed the wall balls a little harder than I should have, but I definitely felt overwhelmed on the snatches. Just happy I didn't miss any muscle ups.
Trained solo for the first time in a long time today. Not nearly as much fun. 3 RNFT 3 Squat Clean Thrusters 185 lbs. 3 Bar Muscle Ups 10 Alternating Pistols
We don't have any heavy stones or slam balls so I subbed a somewhat heavy squat clean thruster. Don't know if that works or not. This felt pretty good.
HSPU felt pretty good, but by the end of the third round, my shoulders were pretty smoked so I peeled it back to 6.
Double unders went well (still can't count these for sh!t).
21-15-9
Sandbag over Shoulder 100 lbs. to start; maybe 95 lbs. at the end
Burpees
7:56
NEVER have I been so happy to do burpees just so I didn't have to pick up the MRSA bag full of rat poisoning for a minute. Our bags are absolutely miserable. An hour later and I still have a nice coating of whatever is in that bag all the way down my throat. Miserable!
Power Clean Clusters 3x1.1.1 Rest 0:10/2:00 216 lbs. across
These went pretty well, but the weight felt a little heavier today than expected.
Split Jerk Work to a moderate and crisp single 253 lbs. (115 kg)
The last one was the best one. I always get a little claustrophobia in the jerk boxes when I haven't done it in a while.
Front Squat 5-5-5 Rest 2:00 225, 255, 285 (4)
Went big on the last set and couldn't quite squeak out five. Still felt really good though.
For Time 1000m Row 30 Power Cleans 135 lbs. 50 Burpees to Plate 8:59
Row was right at 3:40, cleans were all singles and I just tried to keep moving on the burpees, which I did pretty well today. I am not sure what the standard is on the burpee to plate, but I jumped to the plate and stepped off the other side.
This was about where I expected to be. I got 2 reps at 215 before I bailed. If I had to do this one again, I would make bigger jumps in my warm-ups sets. By the time I got to 215, my shoulders were pretty smokey!
95, 115, 135, 155, 185, 205, 215(2)
For Time 50 Calorie Row 40 Wall Balls (40) 30 Pull-Ups (15,6,4,5) 20 Alternating KB Snatches 70 lbs. 200m Run 9:44
Well, this was fun, except for the KB snatches. We only have one 70 lbs. dumbbell in the gym so I took a KB. SO MUCH HARDER! Those things ate me up. If I was able to get my grip just right without it slipping off due to sweat and general body slime, they weren't bad, but the ones where my grip slipped or I was just too smoked to get my grip right were ugly, to say the least!
Also, I subbed a 200m run for the Airdyne because our Airdynes have fallen into a state of disrepair.
I am hoping that HSPU come up in the MQ. I am looking for redemption! I also hope pistols come up because these are a surprisingly good movement for me. The double unders were just for fun.
Clean & Jerk Gauntlet 1 C & J every minute starting at 135 lbs. Add 20 lbs. every minute up to 225 lbs. and then add 10 lbs. every minute 245 lbs. (135, 155, 175, 195, 215, 235, 245, 255F)
This was fun and pretty challenging just to get the weights figured out and on the bar within the minute. I was hoping to hit 255 lbs. on this, but I just missed the jerk. Video starts with the lift at 175 (we got a little off the clock).
After two days of business travel, some awful food options (did my best, but exit 152 off of the Florida Turnpike was NOT cooperating) and getting to the gym very late, I probably should have taken a rest day, but today looked so fun (on paper) that I wanted to give it a shot. Uh-oh...
Rest 4:00 AMRAP 8 (80%) 8 Clean & Jerks 95 lbs. 10 KBS 70 lbs. 300m Row 2 Rounds + 8 Clean & Jerks Rest 4:00 AMRAP 8 (80%) 40 Double Unders 20m Overhead Carry 165 lbs. (Axle Bar) 4 STO 165 lbs. (Axle Bar) 2 Rounds + 40 Double Unders + Overhead Carry
This all felt really, really bad, even at 80%. During the second AMRAP, I came the closest I have ever come to quitting a workout.
On the bright side, by the third AMRAP, I did start to feel a little better and even had the desire to finish the last 4 STO after the time expired.
Wow! It has been a long time since I have had any weight on my back so I am really happy I was able to hit 315.
Snatch Build to a max for the day 176 lbs.
This started out rough. My body just did not want to get into position, but things started to loosen up. The lift at 176 felt so good that I thought I might hit my dreaded nemesis today (85 kg), but I just missed it.
Push Press 3 x 6 (165 lbs.) Rest 0:10 Weighted Pull-Up 3 x 6 (35 lbs.) Rest 2:00
This felt really good. Happy about the push press and should have gone a little heavier on the pull-ups.
This got rough pretty fast. By the end of the second round of burpee box jump overs, my quads were screaming. I guess they haven't quite recovered from 15.5 yet.
