I spent the last two seasons of triathlons riding 3″ too high in the saddle which hurt my hips, numbed my back, on occasion made it so I couldn’t feel my nether regions after the bike ride (!!!) and always slowed me on the run portion of the race.
Yesterday I went to the nice folks and Scoot Skate and Bike at 18th and Biscayne, got myself a great tune up and today it was like riding a new bike. I broke the hour barrier with a 58:09. This was something that I tried to achieve for two years without success and a simple equipment tweak was all the difference.
Many people feel that they have their workout, they can do it on their own and no one can tell them different or better. I still seek out trainers and learn from them through working out with them. Some use heavy lifting and slow movement, some fast and brutal circuits, others controlled movement focused on bio mechanical correctness. Every one that I have hired has had something to offer. Never underestimate the power that an informed and educated outside perspective can have. I’d still be doing sets on machines if I hadn’t been taught better. Everyday is still a chance to gain knowledge.
Wednesday was a rest day, with a few pull ups in slow motion, along with a warm up in order to do some solid stretching routines. The Fight Gone Bad really took its toll leaving my hamstrings sore for the whole week.
Thursday I had the opportunity to play basketball at the home of Bee Gee great Barry Gibb. A full court, 15 guys and games until no one could keep going. A great way to spend an evening. I left sweaty, tired and smiling.
Friday was another light day as Sunday is the first in the Key Biscayne Triathlon trilogy. Did some of the morning class core work as well as the evening class warm up and leg/glute/core work.
Today, no work out. A full rest day and carb loading, as well as a much needed bike tune up, goggle test and gear readying. Time to see how these newly explosive legs put up with an hour of straight GO!
Monday was a nice mix of back and chest.
Machines, free weights, cables, bodyweight.
I used some good functional movements such as finger tip push ups as well as some ‘vanity’ movements such as cable crossovers. A nice solid workout at a different pace after Sunday’s Crossfit style beatdown.
For me, variety is greatly needed. I cannot do 20 minutes of puke inducing work everyday, just as I cannot do muscle isolation everyday. Exercise must be fun and interesting….
Which moves us on to today…
Peter and I met up at the local sausage party gym spot and worked out on cables, free weights and more, mixing in dips, curls, pushes, etc. We then took it to the upstairs floor and worked on deck squats, some ball pushes, more bicep curls and finished it all with the Panos4Time drill. It was my first time through it and this is a real killer. If you are not familiar with the protocol, scroll down a few posts and check it out.
I hit it in 1:35, setting a new mark.
The jacks are no problem, the burpees hit you, the kb swings almost knock you out and the lateral drills finish you to the floor. It felt a lot like racing a half mile. Fast and painful but full of benefit and a good measure of mental toughness.
Modified Fight Gone Bad (My fathers day gift to myself)…
5 rounds for rep total.
Do all exercises consecutively for one minute each, resting exactly one minute in between rounds for a total of 25 lactic acid filled, on the edge of puking fun filled minutes.
1. 75 lb. sumo dead lift with high pull (weight goes to floor, dead lift up and pull weight to chin)
2. 24″ bench jump (get a solid 2 foot object, jump up to it, hop down, repeat)
3. 75 lb. overhead push press (bar goes from chest straight up over head and back down)
4. Burpees (yes, really…)
(The full version of this starts with an exercise called ‘Wall Ball’ where you take a 2o lb. and toss it up to a mark at a height of 10′ on a wall, catch, squat, stand and throw. The gym didn’t have either a good wall spot nor a 20 lb. ball. Also, in place of burpees, Crossfit uses one minute on a rowing machine. I think burpees kick the behind a bit more and since I only included four exercises, I opted to kick the tukus.)
Sumo-28, 22, 20, 15, 15
Jump-28, 22, 32, 19, 22
Push-25, 22, 22, 15, 20
Burp-11, 10, 10, 10, 12
Total-380
I had the idea going into this that I was going to do ‘a little more’ after I was done…funny one tough guy. Legs were shaking, lunch was begging to come up, and I was doing the trademark waving off motion that happens involuntarily when things get ugly (usually a side effect of burpees).
Round 1-‘no problem’
Round 2-‘O…….kay?’
Round 3-‘O……..#$%^!!!’
Round 4- ‘WHY?’
Round 5- ‘BECAUSE!!! THAT’S WHY!!!’
It’s almost an hour gone and I’m still high off of it, still shaking a bit. My walk through the grocery store was veeeeery mellow as the endorphine rush kept right on going. Chugged down a Naked protein juice smoothie in less than 5 seconds. Time to relax and enjoy game five of the NBA finals.
Here is a link to my favorite new protein.
Jay Robb Whey Protein
I had cut whey out of my diet for a while as almost all of it contains some sort of artificial sweetener. Acesesulfame Potassium sounds like something that might be good for you. It is in fact an under tested artificial sweetener that has led to cancer in mice. Check your protein, you are more than likely getting this or sucralose in your product.
FRIDAY
ONE
29 lb. weighted back pack pull ups x5
rest one minute
29 lb. weighted back pack chin ups x5
rest one minute
29 lb. weighted back pack mixed grip pull ups x5
rest one minute
29 lb. weighted back pack mixed grip pull ups x5
(mixed grip is one hand palm facing away, the other palm facing toward)
TWO
“Five Rounds with Baggy Boy”
Rounds are 3:30, whatever time you don’t use is rest. Total time 17:30
You will need a 100 lb. object. We use a heavy bag.
-Bag flip to wall is the first movement. The heavy bag rests about one foot from the wall. Trainee grabs the bag and flips it with a squat up and push out motion, bag hits wall, trainee grabs bag and flips if back to the ground, repeat x10
-Bag squat is the second movement. Bear hug the bag and sumo squat to thighs parallel position.
repeat x10
-Bag hop are the third action. Get up and over the bag with feet facing parallel to the bag.
x20 double leg
x10 right leg
x10 left leg
-Knees is the next action. Hands and elbows on the bag, drive knees into bag at full force
x20.
-Last, quickly mount the bag and drive forearm blows into it as hard as you can
x20
My times ranged between 2:20 and 2:30, will shoot for 2:10 next time and cut it to 3:00 minute rounds.
THREE
Pull Work
10 Tennis ball pull ups
10 side pulls (grab bar like a baseball bat, with body perpendicular to bar pull up, bringing inside shoulder to bar)
Tabata Burpees
What’s a Tabata?
10 rounds, 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off for a five minute total.
50 burpees total.
FEEL THE BURN!!!
Jumped in the car and went to Legion Park and played three games two on two, managing to sprain my right big toe in the process when the slow guy defending me stuck his foot right in front of mine as my foot landed in a full blown sprint.
As Peter says, “Basketball is a dangerous game.”
I think he means that in a bad way?
SATURDAY
Eat, Sleep, Repeat.
