6/10/21 - Circuit
Just wanted to get up and move a bit since I’ll be spending a lot of time in the car on the drive home later today.
Rounds of 4 format - 10 rounds with 30 second intervals:
Jump Rope
Push-ups x 6
Chins x 3
Goblet Squats - 50 lb dumbbell x 5
This left me feeling good and fresh.
6/9/21 - Great Bear Recreational Area Trail Walking
Drove down to the Great Bear Recreational Area in Fulton, NY. I walked for about an hour on a hot and humid day. This is a beautiful spot, but the bugs were certainly out.
6/8/21 - KB Work at Breitbeck Park
I’m up in Oswego, NY, for work this week. I was bummed I didn't go to jiu-jitsu yesterday morning but my groin was killing me after stupidly doing box squats last Sunday. The weather was beautiful and sunny in Oswego today, so I headed to Breitbeck Park to get in a workout. The view of Lake Ontario was wonderful.
Two-Handed Swings - 32 x 5 x 10 (OTM)
One-Arm Presses - 32 x 3 x (2, 1, 3)
Complex with 32 kg KB - These were done left side then right side every minute - 8 rounds OTM of:
One-Handed Swing x 1
Clean x 1
Snatch x 1
6/6/21 - Box Squats, GMs, and Bench
My groin felt off after yesterday’s bike ride so I decided to be as stupid as possible and hit some wide stance SSB box squats.
DE SSB Box (16”) with 50 lbs chains - 140 x 12 x 2 (OTM)
SSB GMs - 80, 100, 120, 140 all x 8
Swiss Bench - 195 x 5 x 3
This may not have been the smartest thing to do for my right leg.
6/5/21 - Bike Ride with Cali
Today was a beautiful hot sunny day so Cali and I headed out on the Perkiomen and Schuylkill Trail at about 1130. We rode from the Collegeville Diner to past Valley Forge and back. This was 20 miles in ~1:32:00 on a wonderful sun-soaked summer day.
6/4/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 44
A good-sized crew made for a really fun Friday morning class. We worked on starting from some unfavorable positions and got lots of rolls in. There’s talk of a tournament on July 17th. We’ll see what happens.
The instructors put out a message today to not instruct anyone unless you’re a purple belt or higher or the person specifically asks for guidance. I think this was directed at something that happened on Wednesday. This one blue belt, who is a great guy and wants to help, never really goes hard against me. He always just kind of stops and talks me through what I should do next. It comes from a place of caring, but it’s not really helpful. It would be much better if he just went all out and tried to kick my ass. Sure we might have some short rounds where I look like a tackling dummy, but I would learn a lot more and could ask about what moves he was using after the fact.
Onward and upward.
6/2/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 43
I felt like I worked hard this morning. Anthony coached us through a great class and I got some good rolls. Instructor Ryan was there as an added bonus. He’s such a beast. Onward and upward.
6/1/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 42
There was no morning class today so I hit up the 1130 no-gi class with Tom. This was a small group of six but I learned some basic techniques and got a few good rolls in. A great workout overall. Looking forward to training tomorrow morning. Onward and upward.
5/31/21 - Army Combat Fitness Test
I think it’s really cool that a lot of folks do the Murph workout on Memorial Day, but I just don’t have any interest in doing that many air squats. Cali and I invited some neighbors to do the ACFT with us, and a few actually showed up. The test is six events that are scored with a minimum pass of 60 and a maximum of 100 points.
3RM Trap Bar Deadlift - 340 - easy max score
10-lb Med Ball Standing Power Throw - 12.5+ meters - easy max score
Sprint-Drag-Lateral-Carry-Sprint - This is like a 25m shuttle run with a 90-lb sled and 40-lb kettlebells - 1:28 - easy max score
Hand Release Pushups - two minutes running clock - 42 reps completed
Leg Tucks - hang from a pull-up bar with an alternate grip and bring right knee to right elbow and left knee to left elbow - 20 reps - easy max score
Two Mile Run - My GPS watch was all jacked up so I ended up running ~2.4 miles. I think I can conservatively say my two mile time was around 17:00.
Cali did great, as expected, and I was really happy a couple neighbors came out for the event. This is one of those things that many people say they are going to do but then find an excuse to skip it. Heather and Nick both showed up, gave it their all, and did some events that were very foreign to them.
I’m pleased with my score and not surprised with how the events went.
5/29/21 - Grad Workout and Swings
We’re having some crappy rain so I did this in the garage.
10 Rounds of 2 Format - EMOM:
Odd Minutes - 24s x 2 clean, 1 press, 3 front squat (Grad Workout)
Even Minutes - Two-Handed Swings - 36 x 10
This turned out to be way more of a gasser than anticipated. Probably because I’ve been drinking way too much during this long holiday weekend.
5/28/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 41
Really great class with an awesome group today. Training on a Friday morning is the perfect way to kick off a long weekend. I enjoyed every part of this class and left feeling refreshed and strong.
5/27/21 - Valley Forge Hike
My in-laws were in town for a visit so we went for a five mile hike at Valley Forge on an absolutely gorgeous day. It was upper 70s and sunny. I ran into a guy from jiu-jitsu who was out walking with his beautiful Irish wolfhound named Wallace. Just a great day all around.
5/26/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 40
There was a great crew at the gym this morning. Lots of fun people to learn from and roll with. At the end, I rolled with Tony with the whole gym watching. I completely got my ass kicked including two arm-bar taps and a choke. Fuck it, I had fun and had a great day of training. Onward and upward.
5/25/21 - Swings, Chins, and Push-ups
Just wanted to move a little bit and get a sweat going.
Rounds of 3 format - 45 seconds per interval - 10 rounds of:
Two-Handed Swings - 32 x 10
Chins - BW x 3 (various grips)
Push-ups - BW x 7
I can tell I haven’t been swinging much lately. Good session overall though.
5/24/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 39
Great no-gi class with some awesome people. Jay was the instructor today and we worked on takedowns and throws. This was a lot of fun and I got some good rolls in. Onward and upward.
5/23/21 - Squats, Carries, Presses
Got some decent training in on a nice Sunday morning.
SSB Squats - 220 x 3 x 6 - no belt, barefoot
100-lb med ball carries - 4 trips to the hoop and back
One-Arm KB Press - 24 x 3 x (2, 3, 5)
Pretty good all things considered.
5/22/21 - Bike Ride with Cali
Cali and I went for a bike ride on an absolutely beautiful 90 F and sunny day. We rode from Gravel Pike to Oaks and back. This was 16 miles in about 1:16:00. Just a wonderful time with my hot wife.
5/21/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 38 and Some Lifting
Great Friday class with some awesome people. I got some excellent rolls in with Jess, Zack, and Scott. Scott is a 47 year old purple belt and started training from scratch when he was 42. He’s basically my hero. Onward and upward.
Got a chance to lift later on this morning.
Bench - 165 x 5 x 5 - Pathetic weight, shoulder felt just okay - superset with
Barbell Rows - 60 kg x 8, 70 x 4 x 8
Quad Mace Swings
360s - 10 + 10, 10 + 10
10-2s - 15, 15
Good quick lifting session.
5/19/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 37
This was a great Wednesday morning class. Scott got his purple belt and Ryan got his blue belt. So happy for both of those guys. They’ve both helped me a lot in the short time I’ve been training.
This class was pretty intense and I was fried by the end of it. My first stretch of three days in a row, but it’s been a great week so far. Looking forward to Friday. Onward and upward.
5/18/21 - Jiu-Jitsu Day 36
I just found out that there was a Tuesday morning no-gi class so this was my first time attending. We drilled some new skills, worked on a few things from yesterday, and rolled with the instructor’s insistence that we be more intense and really get after it. Great workout with some wonderful people. Bryan from work was actually there so we got to drill and roll together. He kicked my butt. Onward and upward.