Wednesday, June 19, 2013


4x [2m on, 2m off] run
medium pace (~8:00/mi)

3 rounds:
5 L hamstring curls (35)
5 R hamstring curls
max pull ups (10, 6, 5)

Trying to stay steady with G and my plan to run more this summer. 2 minute intervals felt pretty rough by the end, pace was where I wanted it but it was getting hard to keep it up.

Not as fancy (or precise) a readout as G's super new Garmin watch, but managed to extract my pace data from the RunKeeper app on my phone (if you're interested, I use either GPSVisualizer or uTrack to visualize .gpx file data). The periods in the profiles likely correspond to the corners in the track...

Monday, June 17, 2013

A plan

Warm-up:
1/3 mile jog

6x [1m on, 1 min off]
fast pace, on track at Coles (~7:00 pace?)

3x5 shoulder press (5x45, 5x65, 3x75, 1x85 then 1x5x95, 2x5x90)

G and I are trying to stick with a scheduled run-heavy workout for the summer, in preparation for the a go at a Tough Mudder event in October. Right now, just trying to build a base of cardiovascular endurance with some structured running: short/medium/long distances at hard/moderate/easy paces. Will likely tweak the plan as we go...

Tough today, went out a bit too hard at the start; HR ~190 after last interval. Press heavy but okay, mistakenly went up to 95 the first work set.

Friday, June 7, 2013

Warm-up:
dynamic squat stretching

3x5 bench press (5x45, 5x95, 3x115, 1x135 then 3x5x145)
3x5 low-bar back squat (5x45, 5x95, 3x135, 1x185 then 3x5x195)

After a little break, stepped down slightly with the squat weight. Felt heavy at first but nice and solid by the end, focused on a tight core and a solid push from the hips. Bench weight heavy but went up, close to slowing.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Warm-up:
court jogs

3x3 deadlift (5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x275 then 3x3x285)
3x5 shoulder press (5x45, 5x55, 3x65, 1x75 then 3x5x85)

3 rounds:
2x5 hamstring curls (L-R; 40)
30 s weighted deadhang (45, 45, 55)

Realize now that I mistakenly increased the deadlift weight by a good bit (previous lift @255 rather than 275 like I had thought). Still, deadlifts felt solid, and I really like the 3x3 vs the 1x5. Can ramp from here, take to 295 next.

Been a long time since I pressed, took it easy on the load - felt allright but definitely heavy as well.

Monday, May 20, 2013

Warm-up:
dynamic squat stretching

3x5 low-bar back squat (5x45, 5x95, 3x135, 1x185 then 3x5x200)
3x5 bench press (5x45, 5x95, 3x115, 1x125 then 3x5x140)

Definitely a little slowing on the squats today, partially due to the increasing load and partially to a sore right knee from running on Saturday. Close to failing on the bench too, but glad to get the session in today.

Saturday, May 18, 2013

Seven minutes of fun


Since M was back in town (briefly) from her international travels, we got up early and went to the East River Park. Wanted to try G's recent suggestion of a simple bodyweight high-intensity circuit (mentioned in the Times, original article in an ACSM journal).

30 secs each of:
jumping jacks
wall sit
push-up
crunch
step-up
squat
triceps dip
plank
hi-knee running
lunge
push-up + rotate
side plank

4x running intervals (30/90 s sprint/walk)

Not a bad bodyweight routine, though not novel - similar circuits have been in vogue for a while now (e.g. P90X). Took just enough time between exercises to transition, probably ~10 s. Nice way to keep intensity up (HR in the 160s afterwards). 

Friday, May 17, 2013

Warm-up:
5 min run (10:00 min/mi)
Burgener warm-up

Crossfit WOD 130510
Five rounds of:
5 Dumbbell deadlifts
5 Dumbbell hang cleans
5 Dumbbell push presses
5 Dumbbell squats

Increase the load each round. Rest as necessary between rounds. 
KL: 25, 3x35, 40

3 rounds:
2x8 hamstring curls (L-R; 35)
30 sec weighted deadhang (25, 35, 45)

Nice to get a little more metcon workout in once in a while. The DBs were much tougher on the shoulder and elbow so I kept the weights relatively light (probably should have started lower and kept increasing). Could have gone a tad heavier but not much more.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Warm-up:
dynamic squat stretching

3x5 low-bar back squat (5x45, 5x95, 3x135, 1x185 then 3x5x195)
3x10 shoulder press (45, 55, 65)

3x8 hamstring curl (per leg, 35)

Squats felt heavy off the rack today but okay once I got into the reps. No real pausing, focused on a very tight core and shoulders - the steadiness really helps control at the bottom of the squat. Haven't worked shoulders in a while, felt reasonable at low weight.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Cinematic

Holy cow, E was on fire tonight!

With G out of town, it was up to E to wave the Frechette banner at BKB and boy did she do the job right. Since it was a movie-themed night - with Sesame Street filming on the street outside the gym and a film crew following Ashima around inside - I'm going to sum up our night as films.

E's night was the climbing equivalent of Aliens: a little warmup to start but soon enough nonstop action, with a lone female slaying monsters left and right. Out to prove that her recent V4 wasn't a fluke, she sent three V3s (including last week's super reachy yellow up front), came close to a fourth, and worked another stemmy V4 in the back corner. Seriously good effort, smart climbing, and job well done.


My night was more like The Abyss: long slow buildup leading to a prolonged fall by the protagonist into the dark depths and certain doom, only to be uplifted at the end for a quick redemption (SPOILER ALERT: no aliens though). Warmed up on V0, V1, V4 then spent the rest of the evening working the moves on a V6+ in the back (crimpy crossover moves to a big balancey move up to the arĂȘte, then feet high to move left to a pinch before the top). Struggled for a long time on the move to the big pocket on the arĂȘte, losing the left hand and getting pulled off by swing. Eventually took a hint from Will and rotated my left hand the slightest bit, which provided just enough lateral pull. Finally got the dynamic high step hop above on the last try of the night. Whew!

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Warmed up with an easy stroll to BKB: ~4.5 miles in 70 min or so. Wanted to put in a good solid base of relatively easy climbs today:

1xV1, 1xV2, 8xV3

Didn't work a route more than once or twice so I could keep a steady pace - V3 is probably a tad hard to be steady-state level right now. Pretty burned out by the end, but felt like solid effort.