I Kicked Ass Tonight

Workout date: 4/6/15

(I probably would never have used that subject line on my own, but two people whose opinions I regard highly encouraged me to roll with it.)

My gym schedule is still not back to normal.  And with a trip to Jamaica on the horizon next weekend, it probably won't be normal again until later this month.  But I went to the gym planning on doing the WOD and following that up with a return to Open Strength.  I've made improvements in several workouts recently, but I haven't felt strong.  When I'm lifting big weight, I have felt shaky, even on successful lifts.  So I think it's time to start up another squat program.  Last summer I did front squats (which I prefer).  This time around I'll be doing back squats (which I am terrible at for unknown reasons).

Before that though, it was time for the WOD, which consisted of a strength portion (2 rep max push press), a metcon (6 minute AMRAP of 15 GHD sit-ups and 10 overhead squats using 95/65 pounds), and a skill portion (muscle-up practice).  Based on what I said earlier, you can imagine how optimistic I was about the push press this evening.  We were supposed to do 7 sets, so I planned on starting at 75 pounds and increasing the weight 20 pounds every time.  My 1 rep max was 185 (and that may or may not have been a slight push jerk).  I didn't know what my 2 rep max was, but I thought 175 was a safe bet.  So the plan was to go 75-95-115-135-155-175-195 if all went well.  I like my second to last set to be pushing the envelope a bit, so that if I fail, I can drop a bit on the last set.  If I succeed, then I can go for a PR.  More than likely, if I hit 175, I'd end up trying 185 or 190, unless I felt really good about my 175 attempt.

Since class was a bit on the crowded side (hello warm weather), we paired up, or in some cases, worked in groups of three.  With the weights being taken from the rack, it is more important to pair up with people who are about the same height as you rather than people who lift about the same amount as you.  Luke and I partnered up, but then Rachel didn't really have another girl to work out with who was her height, so she joined us.  Luke has been having some shoulder issues, so he did the first 3 sets before working on form.  I had been pushing Rachel to get to 155 as that would get her name on the board for the 857th time, but she wasn't feeling it at 135 and ended up dropping down to 125 for a bit before attempting 135 again later on.  When I did 115, Coach Keith noticed that I was coming up on my toes after doing my dip-drive, which could lead to me re-bending my knees (making it a push jerk).  He advised me to really stay in my heels and I focused on that as I progressed in weight.

I got another cue from Keith after I completed my lift at 155.  I was dropping my elbows on my second rep, causing me to lose my front rack and really having to exert to get that second rep above my head.  If I could keep a solid front rack for the second rep, it would go smoother.  Point taken.  I got ready for 175 with mixed feelings.  On one hand, the weight was feeling heavy.  But on the other hand, I was getting good power from my dip-drive, and the front rack tip was likely to help considerably.  I did the first rep cleanly, then as I brought the bar back down to my shoulders, I made sure my front rack was solid.  I drove through my heels and got the second rep over my head.  It was probably the best second rep I had done yet.

Feeling good about myself, I decided to throw caution to the wind and added 20 more pounds for 195.  If you've never done something once, why not try it twice?  I was mildly concerned, but it was my last set, so if I failed, no big deal.  After a few deep breaths, I grabbed the bar off the rack.  In the back of my mind, I was expecting one of these dip-drives to result in the bar going nowhere, but for the first rep, I got a big push from my legs and the bar moved over my head quickly.  Again, I made sure to have a solid front rack when I returned the bar to my shoulders.  Having gotten the first rep, I was determined to get the second one.  This dip-drive was not nearly as successful, but it got most of the job done.  I was able to press out the rest of the way while staying in my heels and 195 was my new 2 rep max.

But wait, there's more!  Being the greedy bastard that I am, I decided to try an 8th set using 205, because breaking 200 sounded really cool to me.  Now if I'm being completely honest, that second rep at 195 was pretty dicey and awfully heavy.  So doing 205 twice was going to be a miracle.  Turns out doing it once was going to require some magic as well.  I got a solid dip-drive again, but I could not press it out the rest of the way.  I think I probably could do it if I was a little fresher, but that will have to wait for another day.

Luke and I partnered up again for the cash-out, with the two of us alternating between the GHD and the overheads.  My love of overheads has been covered frequently on this blog, and I'm not too shabby on the GHD machine, so I thought this was my type of cash-out.  It was Luke's type of cash-out.  Poor Luke had to keep waiting on me to finish up so we could switch.  I thought I was moving pretty fast, but Luke was always done first.  I need to choose slower partners!  I was worn down at the end of round 3 and tried my best to finish round 4, but 3 rounds and 17 reps was all I could handle in 6 minutes.

Muscle up practice?  Since class had run a bit long, I conveniently skipped out on that.  Oops!

For strength, I started my 6 week squat program with a 6x2 (6 rounds of 2 reps) back squat at 220 pounds (80% of my 1RM of 275).  Initially, I will alternate between 6 rounds of 2 reps and 6 rounds of an increasing number of reps using the same weight of 220 pounds.  This goes on until I reach 6x6.  Then it drops to 5x5, 4x4, etc., but the weight increases by 5%, until I reach 2x2 at my current 1RM, with the expectation that I will hit 105% of my current 1RM (288.5) at the end of the program.  There are 18 sessions altogether, meaning I need to squat 3 times per week.

At first, the weight felt heavy, because I don't do a lot of back squats, and because I suck at them.  But by round 4, the weight didn't feel too bad.  And the 6x2 goes by pretty quickly.  After that, I worked on strict pull-ups.  Failed at a strict chest-to-bar, although I did a strict chest-to-bar chin-up.  Then I went outside and pushed the prowler with the guys.  I did 3 rounds out and back with 270 pounds on the prowler.

Tomorrow is Diane, which means deadlifts and handstand push-ups.  Should be uggggh-leeee.