Jim vs. Pull-ups

Once again, a late start led to this one.

Pull-ups x 5 x 20

It took a little over five hours, because I didn’t always want to drop out of group missions in SWTOR. Yes, seriously.

Jim vs. The “10 Down” Kettlebell Swing/Burpee Ladder

Like I said, I needed to do a metcon. Didn’t mean the kettlebell had to be left out, though.

10, 9, 8… 2, 1 of:
Kettlebell swings
Burpees

Finished up in 7:52. That’s 18 seconds longer than last time, but last time I used a 40lb dumbbell instead of a 53lb kettlebell, so I’m OK with that. And I never needed to break up the sets.

And, truth be told: the swings were harder with the kettlebell, but actually felt better. More natural.

Jim vs. Kettlebell Thrusters

I should have done a metcon today, but somehow I didn’t.

Kettlebell Thrusters
(R) 53 x 3
(L) 53 x 2.5
(R) 53 x 3
(L) 53 x 3
(R) 53 x 3
(L) 53 x 3

I ran into one of the same problems with these that I did with the push presses: it was very difficult to keep the kettlebell properly aligned on my left arm, which made the left hand reps much more difficult. That “2.5″ was when I started to unbalance just before locking out on the third rep, and needed to put my other hand on the bell; the other two left hand sets went better.

That likely indicates the need to do unilateral work with some lighter loads for sets of 5, focusing on the left arm. At least I’ll have plenty of opportunities in the next few weeks to do so.

Jim vs. Kettlebell Push Press, Goblet Squats

More fun with my new kettlebell.

1-arm Kettlebell Push Press
(R) 53 x 3
(L) 53 x 2ish
(R) 53 x 3
(L) 53 x 3

Goblet squat
53 x 5
53 x 5
53 x 5

In the future, I think I’d split these two up, or at least do the goblet squats as a 5×5. The push presses were all about practicing getting the 53lb bell over my head; this went OK on the right hand, but the first set on the left was just ugly. “2ish” is me being generous with myself. The second left-hand set was better, but still far, far tougher than the right.

Yay, unilateral strength work.

Jim vs. the Olympic Lifts

More barbell fun.

Power snatch
115 x 1
115 x 1
115 x 1

Clean & jerk
155 x  1
155 x 1
155 x 1

Used 90% of my maxes for this one. Not sure I warmed up enough, especially for the C&Js, but I got through it.

Jim vs. Back Squats, Shoulder Press

This is my last week with barbells, and I found myself without enthusiasm for the back squat linear progressions. Part of it was boredom, and part was realizing I was about to take three weeks off from it anyway. So, reverse pyramids it was.

Back squat
225 x 3
205 x 4
180 x 5

225 is still my 3RM, near as I can tell; I squatted it four times in August, though. Maybe I could’ve gotten four today, too: this did seem pretty easy.

Shoulder Press
125 x 3
115 x 4
100 x 5

And this is the danger of not checking this blog before I go to the gym: that starting weight is way below my 3RM of 140. So today was far lighter overall than it should’ve been.

Jim vs. Kettlebell Clean Pulls, DB Push Press

Through gracious generosity, I am now in possession of a 53lb kettlebell. It is awesome. However, I am learning that the ability to do certain movements with a 52.5lb dumbbell does not always indicate an ability to perform the equivalent movement with a similarly sized kettlebell. So, I’m improvising, and the first thing I cam up with was this:

10, 9, 8, 7… 2, 1 of:
53lb kettlebell clean pull
25lb 1-arm dumbbell push press

I cannot yet do the “flip” to make kettlebell cleans or snatches happen, and the press from shoulder felt awkward enough that I didn’t want to include it in a metcon.

This metcon felt solid, though. I finished in 4:34, had some muscle fatigue going, and needed to sit down (if not lie down) afterwards. Good start, and with Teagle closing for the winter break soon, I’ll have more opportunities for kettlebell fun in the weeks to come. It was also cool to do more unilateral movements.

Jim vs. Bench Press, 500m Row

Are my workouts sucking because I have less energy, or do I have less energy because I’ve been doing sucky workouts?

Bench press
195 x 3
175 x 4
155 x 5

OK, this didn’t suck, per se. But it wasn’t terribly ambitious, either, and getting three reps on a load 10lbs lighter than my 3RM was harder than it should’ve been.

500m row – 2:08

14 seconds slower than my PR, and I only did the one. This week is done.

Jim vs. the Power Snatch

Didn’t have much time today, and I was working in slow motion. Somehow, my ten minute warm-up took twenty. So, I did a ten minute workout.

Power snatch x 2, on the minute for ten minutes

Used 100lbs this time, a bump over last time. Went well, but I’m still feeling more tired after stuff like this than I should.

Jim vs. Back Squats

Not sure what’s up with me.

Back squats
195 x 5
195 x 5
195 x 5
195 x 5
195 x 5

By set three, I felt a but ill, and was getting cold sweats. When I finished set #5, I knew I was done for the day.

I thought I was feeling better, dammit.