Old School Calisthenics

I am discovering that my ability to recover from strenuous, and let's face it, not so strenuous exercise, is not what it used to be. I am inclined to think it's age related, which might also explain why I'm not getting much sleep either. Or. . . maybe the two are tied together (sleep & recovery). Riiight.

1-28-11

-VB50

-jumping jacks (4x100)

-knuckle push-ups (4x25)

-sit-ups (4x25)

-fat-grip shrugs w/heel raise (4x15)

-max close grip chin-ups (21)

I thought about recovery as I was chugging through the burpees. Pretty sure yesterday's reverse lunge burpees are to blame for today's anemic VB50 warm up. The jj's, pu's and su's comprise my re-introduction of old school calisthenics. They weren't too challenging, but maybe just the thing to get the blood flowing. I added some fat-grip shrugs w/heel raises to work the grip, calves and traps. I'll be doing more of these until my back feels better and I can get weight higher than my waist. Finally, I finished with a few reps less than max attempt on the chin-ups. Just trying to stay within my limits and avoid strain.

The no-mas-ometer reads 3.1.

5,305/[238]

That which doesn't kill me

makes me older.

Today I revisited the db reverse lunge burpees. The first time I did this, my hamstrings were not pleased with the experience. I neglected to mention that the following day, my back wasn't so happy either. I was sloppy with the form and leaned forward in order to speed up that which should not be rushed. Well, I just about recovered from that. Time for round two.

1-27-11

-40 db reverse lunge burpees (9'17)

-4x10 dips

-4x2 close grip chin-ups w/Fe

This workout took approximately 15 minutes. After the burpees, I hopped right into the dips and chins, alternating without rest. Throughout the routine, I watched out for any hint of strain. Nothing. The plan is to stay within my limits and not push it.

The no-mas-ometer read 3.4.

5,255/[238]

Trigger points- You can touch this

When it comes to pain management, you can touch this (click on the title for a link to trigger point spots).

1st world problems

I hate training injuries, and this latest one has got me angry with myself. Fred, a French expat living in China, brought to my attention the difference between first world problems and third world (or developing world) problems. In the third world you might worry about having access to potable water, primary health care or rule of law. First world problems include not getting a clear wifi signal and your Starbucks running out of cardboard coffee cup sleeves. I would classify my back pain as a first world woe. It's not as if I hurt my back because the water buffalo died leaving me the rice paddy to plow sans draft animal. No, I strained it doing one too many kettlebell swings or not warming up sufficiently before doing some db squat cleans. Sheesh.

Annnyway, my back continues to seize unpredictably so I'll lay off holding any weights above my waist. I am able to chin-with the dip belt so I'll continue those: GTG weighted (69 lbs) chin-ups. I'm pleased that my hamstrings are not sore from the reverse lunge burpees, yay lacrosse ball prophylaxis.

1-25-11

-100 jumping jacks, 10 dips (x4)

-GTG close grip chin-ups w/Fe

Jumping jacks, push-ups and sit-ups are a trio of old-school bodyweight exercises I've ignored. I'm feeling a little nostalgic and plan on getting good numbers once again with these oldies.

blunt force rolla

Just because I've fallen hard for the lacrosse balls as massage tool, it's not time to throw out the foam roller. First, let me say that the lacrosse balls worked like a treat in preempting a hamstring meltdown from yesterday's reverse lunge burpee extravaganza. They did nothing, however, for my erector spinae which were also hurtin'. I've criticized the foam roller for being a blunt tool, but blunt tool was exactly what I needed to roll out the ropey knots along my spine. Foam roller, I can't quit you.

In other news, Jack LaLanne passes away at 96. I thought of doing a 1000 push-up workout in honor of Jack, but will have to save it for another day. RIP.

reverse lunge burpees

This workout is rated E for Eccentric. You will recall I mentioned eccentric training a little while back. I came up with an exercise that will light up your hamstrings like a blowtorch. The idea came to me as I was trying out some db deadlift burpees-they just weren't doing it for me. I was doing these in lieu of the Frankensteins, which I miss. Not wanting to strain my back with the db's at my shoulders, I thought, "hey, let's do a reverse lunge to lower the db's and from there go right into the push-up." Thus was born the reverse lunge burpee. Start with a db dead lift, lower db's via reverse lunge, push-up, repeat.

1-23-11

-40 reverse lunge burpees (8'32)

It takes a while to get used to a new movement pattern. Throwing in a reverse lunge in the middle of a burpee qualifies as new. Like all new eccentric movements, this one hurts. There's no delay. It's ROMS, R for rapid. I'm going to prescribe lacrosse balls for the pain .

The no-mas-ometer reads 3.4.

5,215/[238]

let's Muller

Here's an interesting bit of exercise history. Franz Kafka was a devout follower of an exercise guru who advocated 15 minutes of exercise per day (in addition to bathing, fresh air and nudity).

http://www.slate.com/id/2281699

I thought the article appeared at a good time, as I've been trying to deal with a little back pain. It's nothing too serious, but serious enough to keep me from lifting anything heavy. So no heavy stuff. I've been doing burpees, weighted chinups and dips which don't seem to aggravate the back. I've also been using the lacrosse balls to improve flexibility and mobility. The foam roller is a blunt tool compared to the lacrosse balls.

1-19-11

-50 burpees (3'28, 30+20)

-GTG weighted chin-ups and dips

1-20-11

-50 burpees (3'34, 30+10+10)

-GTG weighted chin-ups and dips

-jumping jacks

1-21-11

-50 burpees (3'26, 50)

-static flies with wheels

-Frog stands

5,175/[238]*

So, not quite Muller, but a little bit of something.

*Looks like Frankensteins are out for a while.

Answers a question I never thought to ask, "What if a comic strip character was an insomniac with daddy issues?" Makes me feel like I was asleep in the back of the class.

1-12-11

-50 burpees (3'13)

-30-26 kb swing breathing ladder (step ladder, really)

-2 mins of frog stands

1-13-11

-1st Frankensteins of the year (21, 6'43)

-GTG weighted 2x chins (69lbs)

There was a reason I'd been putting these off. Aargh. I set up the speedbag interval timer to 30 secs of work/rest intervals for the burpees, with squat clean and press. When you look at it, 3 reps per minute, and 30 secs of rests, doesn't seem so difficult. Bahahahaha.

The no-mas-ometer reads 3.8.

5,025/[238]

chinny, chin, chin

Yesterday I followed a Crossfit WOD which comprised singles of weighted pull-ups. I did close-grip chin-ups and started with 69 lbs on the dip belt, increasing 10 pounds for each rep up to 99lbs, and did doubles back down to 69, where I completed 3 sets of doubles. It was relatively stress free.

1-10-11

-30-24 kb swing breathing ladder

-squat cleans (5x5, 30 secs work, 30 secs rest)

Today's workout took just about 10 minutes and left me beaten. I completed 24 more swings than last time with the breathing ladder. Oh joy!

Eccentric me

I had a bad date with Fran. She was all mean and nasty. I called it off at the 12th rep of the second set of thrusters, and finished with 12 chin-ups.* Felt like a broken down ol' geezer, 'cause I didn't have the energy. Ba-humbug.

The next day, I wondered if it was not so much my fatigue (3 hrs sleep) going into Fran but weak squatting ability. Since I'm limited by the equipment I have at home, I can't do heavy squats. I'd been reading about eccentric training**, and remembered how weighted negative pull-up training helped me increase my max number of pull-ups. I devised different ways to improve my squatting with eccentrics.

1-6-11

-3x20 alternating pistol negative (down on one leg, up on two)

-planche position planks

-50 burpees (3'10)

I have never tried pistols (one-legged squats), but pistol negatives were the first things to pop into my head. Controlling your descent on one leg is a unique experience. I wondered if my knees would explode on the way down. Thankfully, no blow-outs. The planche position planks were done to get my shoulders and triceps prepared for planche push-ups. Still a ways to go on that front. I was pleased that my burpee time didn't increase too much over the holidays. Phew.

1-7-11

-db squat cleans (4 reps/minute, ≈ 8 minutes)

-close-grip chin up negatives (4x5x5 secs, 30 kgs)

-frog stands (sets of 10-20 secs for 2 min)

5,004/[217]

*Since a one-armed chin up is the objective for all my pulling, I decided to stick with close grip chin-ups, and forego neutral and wide grips.

**Eccentric training is elongating a muscle while it is under a load. It is said to activate more fast-twitch muscle fibers than concentric (contracting muscles under a load) and requires less energy.

another kind of ab-rollin

Had to happen. You just don't do 100 L-sit pull-ups and 100 kneeling roll-outs and expect not to experience even a little DOMS. It doesn't even matter if you space out the sets with long rests (OK, maybe a little). The DOMS is still gonna get you. . . so I'm discovering.

There were time when I worked my abs so intensely that a cough or a sneeze would hurt as much as a switchblade stuck into your pancreas. It doesn't hurt that much. One thing that helps mitigate the pain is that I did space out the sets with long rest periods. The other thing is SMR (self-myofascial release). Did you know you can roll-out sore abdominal muscles? Yes you can. Place your trusty lacrosse ball on the floor, lay your sore belly on top and roll. Collect some minutes ungluing your ab business. I also noticed some soreness in the forearm extensors. Direct pressure with the Knobble on this area brought relief.

1-3-11

-10 minutes of db (2x24.7 kg) squat cleans

I was reading on Ross Training about a 100 rep, 1/2 bodyweight Steve Reeves squat challenge. It turns out some beastly folks can easily do this in less than 10 minutes. Yikes. Well, the load I chose was 3/4 bodyweight and I did squat cleans instead of squats. I also didn't get anywhere near 100 reps in 10 minutes (36). I am toast. The no-mas-ometer reads 3.7.

helloooo, anyone there?

It's been quiet here and I apologize for that. It's just that with family over for the holidays, and the house just filled with warm bodies, air mattresses, packages, and a large Douglas fir there was little space and time left over to train much less post about not training.

What I did was shop, wrap presents, cook, eat, drink, watch movies, and walk in a blizzard. This activity did burn some calories, no doubt. I was pretty certain that the calories consumed exceeded the calories expended. There was the osso bucco (actually, ox tail bucco as veal shanks were unavailable), Patsy's pizza, coq au vin, assorted cheeses including the infamous tetilla, Austrian sweets, sushi, Chinese dumplings. It was at least a week of decadent eating. Each dish deserves a blog of its own.

With all that eating and no exercise, I was prepared for an immodest weight gain. Actually, I was looking forward to it. Nothing. I am lousy at bulking. I did notice a dramatic loss in conditioning when I attempted to do 30 minutes of db clean & press burpees on the last day of the year.

12-31-10

-set the kitchen timer for 30 minutes

-db (2x24.7 kg) c&p burpees

I found this work-out grueling. For the first ten reps I incorporated squat cleans (where I caught the db's in a deep stance and stood up with the db's racked). The remaining 55 reps were done utilizing a hang power clean to get the weight up to my shoulders. The no-mas-ometer read 4.1.

1-1-11

-25x4 L-sit pull-ups

-10x10 kneeling roll-outs

This was a low intensity density training day. My intention was volume without pain. No pain, no gain, NOT? We'll see. No-mas-ometer read 2.0

1-2-11

-set kitchen timer for 5 minutes, db (2x24.7 kg) hang cleans w/5 kg backpack (20 reps)

-db frog stands (12x10 secs)

This workout took about 7 minutes. The hang cleans were brutal. I couldn't keep up the pace I had started out with. The frog stands are new and add a bit of isometrics to the workout. The no-mas-ometer reads 3.3