Memorial Day Original Strength and Short Walks

We were travelling Monday to return home from our holiday weekend visits. I got in some Original Strength resets before we got on the road. Walked around at a rest stop and then many short walks throughout the afternoon and evening after we got home. Got nearly 120% of my step goal.

Trying to Get Pain Free

I haven't done much besides walk for a long time. Trying to get my left hip as pain free as possible. I did Original Strength resets & the Dynamic Aging routine semi-consistently for a while. I started on the Gold Medal Bodies Elements program but fell off in week 2. Since then just trying to get my steps up. I managed to average 7138 steps during May while I had a goal of 6K steps. This month I'm upping my goal to 7K.

I got down to my lowest weight on May 28th at 248.0 pounds. That's my lowest weight since August 28th, 2017. In the intervening time, I've gotten as high as 256. I attribute that to a couple of things. First, walking more as for a while I was only getting 3K or 4K a day. Second, I've been trying with maybe only 60-70% success is following the 4S+A diet. That is no Snacks, no Seconds, no Sweets, and no Alcohol except on Sometimes on days that start w/ S. Third I've been trying to get 7 hours of sleep per night. Fourth, one of my aunts sent me some Laird Superfood for my birthday. I've been using it in my coffee in the morning. It fuels me pretty well and I'm able to maintain a 16-20 hour fast most week days. Occasionally I'll have some bone broth around lunch or mid-afternoon.

Now to keep the weight going down. My conservative goal for the end of June is 245. If I get lower that will be a bonus. I'm going to restart the GMB Elements tomorrow. Also the last couple of weeks I've been doing Farmer carries and Suitcase carries with my 35 pound kettlebells a few times a week. I'll probably throw in a couple days of upper body weight workouts as well.

Saturday Morning Kettlebells

Went to bed late. Slept in. Got started training late after a couple of cups of coffee, morning mobility and a little reading. Of course that means it was hotter than when I usually train by about 10 degrees Fahrenheit.

Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 50 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings  6 x 10 x 53 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 53 lbs

Loaded Carries

• Waiter-Rack-Suitcase Carry with 44 lb Kettlebell (left then right)
• 2 x Farmer's Walk with 2 44 lb Kettlebells

As usual did an Original strength reset to warm up. I did more rocking than normal, with some extra stuff for both shoulders and hip flexors. Felt really good. Crawled farther than usual in the same three minutes. I should try some 4 point (hands and feet) crawling soon instead of the 6 point (hands, knees, & feet) crawling I've been doing. Total time 16:22.

Planned kettlebell practice today called for six sets each of swings and get ups. Stuck with that plan but decided to tack on some loaded carries at the end. I haven't done any of those since July 27th. Swings were easy. Get ups were going well. As I was completing my fourth rep my wife came out to take her car to the store so I had to move out of her way and pause for about 1.5 minutes. Then I got right back to it and finished strong. So, what was planned to take 13 minutes took about 14.5.

On to the carries after a two minute break. I started with my left hand. Went down the driveway in waiter's position, back up in rack position, then down and back in suitcase position. Repeated with my right hand. Then two rounds of farmer's walks with two 44s. I took one minute rest between each round of carries. So the total kettlebell time was 25:28. Met my step goal yesterday for the first time since the 27th.

Morning Kettlebell Practice

I didn't train yesterday. I only got 5.5 hours of sleep so I wasn't ready to train. I also had decided to
fast yesterday, and I made it about 18 or 19 hours. Nice intermittent fast. Last night I got over 8 hours of sleep after a good dinner. I woke up ready to go today. It was cool this morning but decidedly higher humidity.













Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 40 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings  8 x 10 x 53 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 53 lbs

Did the normal warm up. Felt good. Only took 13:38. Nice sweat going. Moved on to the kettlebell practice. Only did 8 sets today. Stayed with the 24kg (53 lb) kettlebell. Didn't do anything extra. Needed to get cleaned up and into work for a 1000 meeting. Kettlebell practice took 17 minutes per plan. I forgot to take off my shirt but I did train barefoot. I still have not gotten my goal number of steps since Thursday July 27th. Hopefully I'll get them in today.

Quick Kettlebell Practice

I didn't train yesterday. I only got six hours of sleep the night before. I trained hard the day before yesterday and didn't really feel up to it yesterday. I listened to my body. I ate two good meals, lunch and dinner. I was good to go this morning.

I didn't wear my Fitbit Blaze to bed last night, it needed a charge. So, I don't have an exact measurement of my sleep last night. I estimate I got between 7 and 8 hours of sleep. Like I said, I felt very good when I got up this morning. The weather is awesome...and strange. The low last night was 66°F and the humidity this morning was only 39%. This made for super comfortable training conditions. I trained barefoot and shirtless as normal.

Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings  6 x 10 x 53 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups R, L, R, L, R, L x 1 x 53 lbs

I'm still going to cycle my training for now as follows 10 sets day one, 6 sets day two, 8 sets day three, then repeat. Taking rest days as appropriate of course. Today was a 6 set day. That came in handy as I had an 0900 meeting today for work.

Warm up was as usual, nothing extra. Just enough to get a light sweat going, muscles & joints warm and flexible. Total time 13:49. Kettlebell practice was short and sweet. Nothing much to say, felt good. Total time 13:54. I've not been getting my steps in everyday since I went on vacation. I'll make a more concerted effort to do so from today on.

Back Home Simple and Sinister

Took yesterday off from my kettlebell practice. We cleaned the beach house, packed the Toyota Sequoia and drove home from Isle of Palms, SC to Greenville, SC. Once we got home we of course had to unpack the SUV. I walked as much as I could at rest stops and during the above mentioned process but only got in 6244 steps.

Did my morning mobility (did it yesterday, too) but took a long time to get outside and get to my training. The weather is really nice. The humidity is only 35% here at home versus 64% at IoP. Yesterday it was 76% humidity on IoP! The temperature is only 83°F! That's crazy comfortable conditions for July 30th! But despite the nice weather I still made a sweat angel after I finished my practice session. As usual I trained barefoot and shirtless.

Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 40 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings  10 x 10 x 53 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 53 lbs

Normal warm up. Nothing special to say, except my left hip and glute felt a little achy. Maybe the glute medius? Not sure. Need to get myself an anatomy book. Total warm up time was 13:01.

After six straight and solid sessions using the 44 lb kettlebell at the beach in much hotter and more humid conditions I felt like going up to the 53 lb (24 kg) bell today. I put the  44 lb (20 kg) bell in easy reach in case I needed to use a lighter weight. But I didn't need it.

I cranked out my 10 sets of 10 swings. The first couple of reps of the swings took me a little by surprise as the weight was a little more than I expected. Felt heavier but it made me focus and every rep thereafter was solid. Felt good once I was done.

I was a little more uncertain about using the 53 for the getups. I was a little wobbly in the beginning but got more solid as the reps went on. I did take 11 minutes to get them done rather than the allotted 10 minutes. Felt great, nice challenge. I know I'm getting stronger. total kettlebell time 22:02.

BTW, I haven't eaten since dinner yesterday. I weighed 245 before we left on vacation last Saturday, today I weighed in at 250.4. That's the wrong direction and far outside of where I should be by my plan. At this point I should be between 229 and 240.59. If I was right on target I would be at 234.79. So, I'm nearly 10 pounds over what my maximum weight should be at this point, and about 15 pounds over my target. 

I'm not going to beat myself up though, because I'm still 12 pounds down from the beginning of the year. I do need to get serious about my nutrition. So, I'm gonna see if I can kick this week off w/ a 72 hour fast. After that I need to keep my carbs low and limit consumption of calorie laden beverages like beer and alcohol. Back on track I will be!

Simple and Sinister at the Beach

It's been a few days since my last kettlbell session. My darn hip flared up again. Plus I was on call this week and didn't get adequate sleep. Yesterday I got in over 13K steps. A chunk of that was moving my younger son out of the South Carolina Governor's School of Arts and Humanities. Another big chunk of that was cutting the front yard before we left to drive from Greenville to Isle of Palms.

But today, we're on vacation! We're at the beach! Got up early and hit the beach with my kettlebell. Felt good to be out in the ocean breeze, bright sunshine and sand getting my kettlebell practice on.

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 40 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings 10 x 10 x 44 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs

I did extra rocking for my shoulders and hips during the Original Strength reset. I also paid more attention to stretching my hips while rolling. Overall it was a good warm up. I had done my normal morning joint mobility while the coffee was brewing before I went down to the beach. Warm up time 14:05.

I did my normal kettlebell routine. My hip twinged a little bit during swings but not bad. Like I've said before, it will hurt whether I train or not, so I might as well train. Get ups felt pretty solid, but I was pretty close to being smoked at the 7th rep. I made it through though. Total kettlebell time 21:12.

And once I was done with my kettlebell practice I walked into the ocean and cooled off with a little swimming. It felt magnificent! I'm going to figure out a way to start every day like this. Oh, and of course I trained barefoot and shirtless. And yes people were looking at me like I was off my rocker, but I didn't care. I just happily did my thing!

Summer Sweat Angels

Third day in a row of training. I've got to go to bed earlier and get up earlier so I can train and get to
work earlier. I did get up at 0627 and did my normal 5 minutes of mobility and an additional 5 minutes of walking. However, I didn't get outside to start training until 0827. I should have gotten out there at 0727.

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 40 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings 8 x 10 x 44 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs

Warm up was pretty much as normal except I did some extra rocking targeting shoulder health. I didn't do any extra calisthenics. Warm up took 13:36.

Did normal S&S. Swings were fine. I got wobbly on the last get up with my left hand. I had to reposition myself twice to make it through the rep. I don't recall being unstable with my right hand. I also manage to get through the get ups in 8 minutes, which is the prescribed 1 minute per rep. 

I chose not to do any loaded carries because I swam last night and my core was pretty twitchy last night. Also, I had to get myself ready for a meeting at 1000. Total kettlebell time 17 minutes. Also, I got in over 10K steps yesterday.

Daily Muscle Top Off

One of the principle of Simple and Sinister is to do a "daily top off" of the muscles. The daily training builds resilience in the muscles. Adhering to the daily, or near daily, training schedule makes your muscles almost soreness proof. The program doesn't require max efforts but you'll also get stronger.

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Supersets of Australian Pull Ups and Push Ups 2 x 6, 5

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings 8 x 10 x 44 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs

Finisher

• Farmer's Walk with 2 44 lb Kettlebells

The warm up was good. Took my time with all the resets. Tried to really stretch my hips when rolling. Once I was done with the original strength part I did two supersets of Aussie pull ups and push ups. I increased the reps in the 2nd set from 4 to 5 as compared to last time I did these. Total time 17:25.

Once again I did 80% of the sets for S&S. My left hip was a little sore this morning when I started the swings. But by about the 4th set or so I was fine. I was a little wobbly on the 2nd left handed get up. But the rest seemed solid. The swings were EMOM. I took a little longer than the allotted 10 minutes to do the get ups. Finished S&S in 17:30. 

Having learned my lesson on trying to do the Waiter-Front Rack-Suitcase walks after the extra shoulder work of the Aussie pull ups and push ups, I skipped that series of carries today. After about a 2.5 minute rest from S&S, I just did down and back of the farmer walk, rested a minute and repeated. Kettlebell work done in 23:32.

I actually got in over 10K steps yesterday! I also completed a 24 hour fast.

80 Percent Simple and Sinister

So, as anticipated I did not train yesterday other than getting in my steps and doing a little mobility work as usual. I also did a tiny amount of plank training. I didn't train because I was sore and because I hadn't gotten much sleep Sunday night/Monday morning.

Felt good this morning so right back to training. I also decided to increase my sets of swings and get ups. Headed outside and trained barefoot and shirtless. It's a lot easier early-ish in the morning as the concrete hasn't been heated to foot burning temperatures by the sun.

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings 8 x 10 x 44 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs

Finisher

• Waiter-Rack-Suitcase Carry with 44 lb Kettlebell
• Farmer's Walk with 2 44 lb Kettlebells

Warm up felt good. I wonder if I should start doing some Original Strength progressions from these beginner moves? Or just keep working on my mobility, stability and flexibility with these movements? I'll have to revisit the book to see what the progressions are. Warm up time 11:08.

Increased swings from 6 sets to 8. Still did the swings two handed EMOM. Took a little bit longer for the break between the swings and get ups. Get ups felt strong. I had one wobbly rep holding the ketllebell with my right hand, I think on the 3rd set. Total S&S time was about 19:30.

Took a two minute break then finished with some loaded carries. Started with the left hand. Waiter walk down the driveway, rack carry up the driveway, suitcase carry down and back. Then did the same for the right hand. Took a minute or so break, can't recall exactly how long now, then did farmers walk down and back. My grip was going, so I set my kettlebells down, took a minute break then down and back again. Total kettlebell time 32:26. 

One of the best things about this training routine is that I know I'm getting stronger but I don't feel wrecked afterwards. Instead I feel energized and ready to go. Thanks, Pavel! I also got my steps in yesterday, even after increasing my goal from 7500 to 8000 steps.

Do I Own the 44 Pound Kettlebell Getup

Do I own the 44 pound (20 kilogram) kettlebell get up? Meaning have I completely mastered it so I can move up to the 53 pound (24 kilogram) kettlebell? Not yet. I'll explain more toward the end of this post.

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 3 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Supersets of Australian Pull Ups and Push Ups 2 x 6, 4

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings 6 x 10 x 44 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs

Finisher

• Waiter Carry with 44 lb Kettlebell
• Farmer's Walk with 2 44 lb Kettlebells

So, after the warm up of an OS Reset I decided to throw in a couple of supersets of Australian Pull Ups and Push Ups. Kept the reps low since I haven't done either move in quite some time. Felt good though. Total warm up time including the supersets was 18:00 minutes.

On to the kettlebell practice. Swings were fine. Did six sets of 10 reps EMOM. On the getups I decided to see if I "owned" the 44 lb kettlebell. One method of doing this is to see if you can do press the kettlebell at each of the intermediate positions of get up. I could not keep my balance and press the kettlebell when posted to my hand while half kneeling. Every other position was fine, so I'm close as far as that test goes.

However, those extra presses plus the APU/PU supersets fried my shoulders. I could only make it halfway down the driveway during my waiter walk before I had to put the bell down. I tried ot rack carry back up after finishing the waiter walk but my shoulder was just gone. I switched form my left hand to my right and waiter walked back to my starting point. Since my shoulders were done, and since I was running out of time I didn't try any more single arm carries, I just did one down and back of farmer's carries and called it a day. Total kettlebell time 15:46. 

Yesterday's 60 Percent Simple and Sinister

Yesterday, despite having written about it before, in the middle of my training session I realized I was doing just 50% of the swings required by Simple and Sinister while doing 60% of the getups. So, I upped the swings to 60% to match.

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 3 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings 6 x 10 x 44 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs

Finisher

• Waiter-Rack-Suitcase Carry with 44 lb Kettlebell
• Farmer's Walk with 2 44 lb Kettlebells

Warm up was fine. I finished it in a quick 9:31. Not sure how I managed that! As noted above I realized mid-workout that I should do an extra set of swings. I didn't take the time to change the timer I had set up on my phone. I just did the extra set of 10 swings during the prescribed 1 minute of rest between swings and getups. So, I did the getups with about 15-20 seconds less rest than normal.

Even so, everything was fine. Finished S&S in about 12.5 minutes. Then after a little rest did some carries. Waiter's walk down the driveway, front rack carry up the driveway, suitcase carry down and back. Did left hand first, repeated the whole sequence with right hand. Then down and back farmer's walk, rest a bit, repeat. Total kettlebell time 26:23.  Got in my step goal, too.

Outdoor Training Is Fun(ctional)

Felt a little stiff and sore this morning, particularly the left hip as usual but put my workout clothes on as soon as I got out of bed. Did my five minutes of joint mobility and five minutes of walking while the coffee was brewing and that made me feel better. After some coffee, etc. got outside to start training around 0830.

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 3 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings 5 x 10 x 44 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs

Finisher

• Waiter-Rack-Suitcase Carry with 44 lb Kettlebell
• Farmer's Walk with 2 44 lb Kettlebells

The OS reset felt good. When I was rolling I could feel the tightness and some pain in my left hip. The rocking and crawling helped more. Took 11:52 for the warm up.

Swings were easy. Get ups felt good. Took a little longer on the get ups. Planned to take 13 minutes for S&S, took about 14. Then took about another 9 minutes to do my carries. I decided to not do the waiter walk with the kettlebell in the bottoms up position but rather to use a heavier weight. Total kettlebell time 22.56. Got my steps in yesterday, too.

So the fun(ctional) part of outdoor training. You get fresh air. You get sunshine. You train on possible uneven surfaces. It's not climate controlled so you have to adapt to heat & humidity or cold. Once upon a time, homo sapiens spent their entire lives outside. Now we spend the majority of our lives inside with little exposure to the elements.

Barefoot Shirtless 1/2 Simple & Sinister

My hip was pretty sore yesterday. I didn't get up early enough to train before work and thought it was better once I got home with my sore hip to just wait until this morning. So that's what I did.

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 3 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Simple and Sinister

• Two Hand Kettlebell Swings 5 x 10 x 44 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs

As usual I worked out outside and barefoot. I got started just before 0800 and it was already hot. Once I finished my warm up I took off my shirt and did my kettlebell routine out in the driveway in the sun instead of in the shady carport. I realized I've hardly been shirtless out in the sun at all this summer and it's already July!

Anyway, the session was good. Really sweaty. Felt like I could do the whole 10 sets of swings when I finished the 5 but made myself stick with the plan. I don't want to over do it and set myself back another month. Warm up time 12:38, kettlebell time 12:50. Got all my steps in the last two days.

I forgot to add that after I stopped timing my kettlebell work I did a few carries. I took the 20 kilo bells down to the end of the driveway and back in a farmer's carry. Then I took a 12 kilo bell and did waiter walk - rack walk - suitcase carry combo with each arm. Nice little finisher. I was going to try that last bit with the 16 kilo bell but I didn't think I could stabilize the it in the bottoms up position for waiter walks. I'll have to work on that.

Armor Building EMOM

Got up this morning at about 0645 and immediately put on my workout gear. Went up to the kitchen and put on the coffee. While the coffee was brewing I did five minutes of mobility work based on Scott Sonnon's Intu-Flow. Then I walked around the driveway for about five minutes, came inside and drank a big glass of water then got my coffee.

As I was drinking my coffee I did some reading and put a load of laundry in the washing machine. I also played a bunch of games of Ruzzle and Words w/ Friends on my phone. I eventually got outside for some kettlebell practice at 0830! Got to move faster in the morning, stop playing those games!

Warmed up with an Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 3 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Kettlebell Practice EMOM 12 with a pair of 35 pound kettlebells

• 2 reps Clean
• 1 rep Press
• 3 reps Front Squat

Warm up was good. I haven't done a full Original Strength reset in a couple of weeks. Felt even better because of the earlier mobility work I had done. Crawling got me sweating and ready for the work to come. Warm up time was 10:17.

I intended to do EMOM 20 but I got confused and thought I had an 0900 meeting this morning for work. So, set my EMOM for 12 minutes so considering my late start I could finish in time to dial into the meeting.

Man! Doing this Armor Building EMOM fashion was tough! I don't think I could have made a whole 20 minutes! At most I would have made 15 minutes. I had to lay out on the ground for a minute to catch my breath. I was really still breathing hard when I was done but I forced myself up to make my phantom meeting, LOL! So, obviously, total kettlebell time was 12 minutes.

Also, I was getting sore last night so I did some rolling on my large PVC pipe (my cheap foam rollers tend to smash down under my 240+ pound weight), stretching and mobility to alleviate the soreness. Worked like a charm. And I exceeded my current 7K step goal w/ 7915 steps.

Midday Training

Got started late today. Didn't have to work so it was fine. It is super warm, 73F, for February 20th. After I finished crawling I took off my sweat pants, sock and shoes. I just put on sweatpants on warm days because crawling in the grass bare legged makes my legs itch now. I guess we all change as we age.

Performance Preparation

Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Wide Leg Founder 1

2 Tri-sets of the following, 5 reps each

• Kettlebell Halo w/ 25 lbs.
• Assisted Air Squats 
• Hip Bridge

1 Arm Bar per side, 1 minute each w/ 25 lbs.

Simple and Sinister

• One Hand Kettlebell Swings R, L x 10 x 35 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings R, L, R, L, R, L x 10 x 44 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings R, L x 10 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups R, L, R, L x 1 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups R, L, R, L x 1 x 44 lbs L, R
• Turkish Get Ups R, L x 1 x 35 lbs L, R

Added a couple of moves into performance preparation. Tacked on some squats and hip bridges after the kettlebell halo which is pretty much the prescribed warm up in Kettlebell Simple and Sinister. Felt good all around. Total prep time 23:53.

On to the main kettlebell work. Same sets and reps as yesterday. On the next to last rep of the seventh set swings I lost focus, let me torso get loose and felt a weird sort'a wrench and popping sensation in my mid-back. Wasn't really painful just weird. Made me re-focus and tighten back up for sure.

Getups were good. Felt stronger and more fluid holding the bell in my right hand, even with the 44 lb bell. I'll stay with this same sets, reps and weights combination for a few more days and get really solid before increasing the number of getups sets with the 44. Total kettlebell time 20:37. Only got in 6,821 steps yesterday.

Warm Sunny Day Training

I had been feeling flu-like symptoms most of the last week or so and thus didn't train. Feeling good today. Also, it is warm (64F) and sunny outside! Always a big plus since I train outdoors.

Performance Preparation

Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Wide Leg Founder 1
1 Set of 5 reps Kettlebell Halo w/ 25 lbs.

1 Arm Bar per side, 1 minute each w/ 25 lbs.

Simple and Sinister

• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R x 10 x 35 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R, L, R, L, R x 10 x 44 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R x 10 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R x 1 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs L, R
• Turkish Get Ups L, R x 1 x 35 lbs L, R

Took up where I left off about 9 days ago. Same routine, reps, sets and weights. Felt good. I was glad to get back to training. Don't have a lot to say about it. I got it done. Performance prep took 18:20 and kettlebell time was 20:17. Only got in 3,463 steps yesterday.

Pleasant Afternoon Simple and Sinister

Had an 0800 meeting this morning. Hoped to train right after that as I joined the webex from home
despite it being 30F outside. However, a colleague did some maintenance on the software we run as SaaS for customers last night and there was some fall out that kept me busy for a while after the meeting. I didn't get to training until 1406.

Performance Preparation

Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side 
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Wide Leg Founder 1
1 Set of 5 reps Kettlebell Halo w/ 25 lbs.

1 Arm Bar per side, 1 minute each w/ 25 lbs.

6 Minute Abs

1. Myotatic Crunch 1 x 10
2. Cat Vomit Exercise 1 x 10

Simple and Sinister

• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R x 10 x 35 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R, L, R, L, R x 10 x 44 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R x 10 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R x 1 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs L, R
• Turkish Get Ups L, R x 1 x 35 lbs L, R

It was warmer by the time I got started, probably around 50F with a light breeze. Did my performance prep including some direct ab work that I haven't done for nine days. Was nice and warmed up and ready to hit the main training after prepping for 23:44.

Did two more sets of swings with the 44lb bell. Felt good. In fact it felt easy. I can probably do another two sets at 44lbs but I'll be patient and stay with this set and weight scheme for a couple more sessions. My right arm is still a little shaky holding the 44lb bell on get ups. No increase in sets w/ the 44 for this movement yet. I'll just stay here until I'm solid. Total kettlebell time 20:55. I got in 9324 steps yesterday.

Outdoor Training

It's nice to train outdoors, you get plenty of fresh air and sunshine, usually. However, it has rained the last two evenings which makes crawling in the grass less fun. At least the carport was dry so I could do other stuff without getting wet or falling and busting my ass.

Performance Preparation

Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Wide Leg Founder 1
1 Set of 5 reps Kettlebell Halo w/ 25 lbs.

1 Arm Bar per side, 1 minute each w/ 25 lbs.

Simple and Sinister

• One Hand Kettlebell Swings R, L, R, L x 10 x 35 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings R, L, R, L, x 10 x 44 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings R, L x 10 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups R, L, R, L x 1 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups R, L, R, L x 1 x 44 lbs R, L
• Turkish Get Ups R, L x 1 x 35 lbs per side

I don't know why I didn't workout yesterday except that I went to be late and got up late. Oh, it was really wet in the carport, too. Anyway, I slowed around this morning and had to make my training time short so I only meditated for 5 minutes instead of 10. I also didn't do my planned direct ab work again. Performance prep went fine. Total prep time was 20:17 which was nearly 2 minute longer than Tuesday! I don't know why since I was trying to hurry and I did the exact same movements.

Started my swings with my right hand today. I actually felt strong with the 44lb bell. I could have done a couple more sets at that weight. I think I'll move up on my next training day. I didn't go up today since I didn't train yesterday.

Get ups with the 44 felt better but I don't think I'm ready to do anymore sets at that weight yet. I wasn't wobbly and didn't tweak anything but still. I want to be really solid and easy with the weight before I add more sets with it. Total kettlebell time 19:57. I only got 6517 steps yesterday despite volunteering at the varsity lacrosse scrimmage.

Warm Morning Simple and Sinister

I took Sunday off. After four straight days of training I just wasn't feeling it. Took yesterday off as I got only 6.25 hours of sleep. Got 8.5 hours of sleep last night. And even though I got up later than planned, though still early, I got in my training before heading to the office. I plan on volunteering on the sideline  for Eastside High's boy's lacrosse scrimmage against Clover High tonight so there was no other time for me to train.

Performance Preparation

Original Strength Reset

• Cross Crawl - 20 per side
• Crocodile Breathing - 2 minutes
• Head Nods - 20 reps
• Rolling - 4 reps left and right first leading w/ arms then legs
• Rocking - 20 reps
• Crawling - 3 minutes

Wide Leg Founder 1
1 Set of 5 reps Kettlebell Halo w/ 25 lbs.

1 Arm Bar per side, 1 minute each w/ 25 lbs.

Simple and Sinister

• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R, L, R x 10 x 35 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R, L, R x 10 x 44 lbs
• One Hand Kettlebell Swings L, R x 10 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R x 1 x 35 lbs
• Turkish Get Ups L, R, L, R x 1 x 44 lbs R, L
• Turkish Get Ups L, R x 1 x 35 lbs per side

I had intended to include some direct ab work in today's performance prep but since I was short on time I didn't do it. Prep was good. Nothing new or special. Total prep time 18:21.

Kettlebell practice was good. My right shoulder is still a little bit tweaked from Saturday's training session. I felt it a little on swings, focused on keeping my shoulders packed and retracted. Could feel it a little more on the get ups. But overall it was fine. Total kettlebell town 20:43. Total steps yesterday 7113, 6614 on Sunday, and 10993 on Saturday. Check out the sweat angel, produced even though the temperature was only in the mid 50s Fahrenheit!