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mjsef88
01-04-09, 3:05 pm
This is not the place for introductions and life stories. All of you that subscribe to this either know me, or will find out along the way. You want to know about me, go look into my old logs…or read on a little later (see next paragraph) for a brief exercise history.

My doctor has green lit me for anything and everything. The shoulder is back to as good as it’s ever going to be. But at that turn, in my 6 week layoff, I haven’t lifted anything over 100lbs, and used my entire body too.

I want more. It’s just that plain and simple. I am not starting this new journey because it’s a new year, that is just plain coincidence. I need more. More from myself, more from my body. I’ve never been one to focus my energy on one specific thing, I spread it out. Interests, hobbies, activities, even my schooling. Why should this be any different from my lifting style? If I sit down and look at my exercise history, I’ve gone from just “working out” for general fitness, to bodybuilding, to MMA/Boxing training, to power-building to Olympic/Strongman movements. Why be so specific? Why not incorporate it all together?

I hate to use cross-fit or P90X as an example, but that’s similar to what I want. Strength, speed, power, endurance, all that fun stuff. Taking classes in a level of higher education has taught me that one trendy style is NOT A CATCH-ALL for every single person
All of this is still on a trial and error basis for me. Some focuses:

- Increased endurance (running/jogging/heavy bag/etc)
- Increased flexibility (stretching)
- Increased “useful” strength (bodyweight movements)
- Increased power (Olympics, once the shoulder is ready)
- Increased strength (Power Building)

I want to be the total package. I need to lose some bodyfat as well, so this is a good time to talk about diet.

Food, clean fuel. I need to “diet” in the sense that I need to watch what I eat. I want to take in clean calories, I’m not putting a high or low cap on them. Carbs/Fats/Protiens…I’ve noticed a trend with me and my diets. When I over analyze, I fail. If I’m hungry, I’m going to eat, as long as it’s clean I’ll be good to go. Focus on the basics, keep it simple.

Money has been tight. Right now I’ll be running on the Pak, my script joint support, and real gains. I need to re-work my budget, Cuts will be first on the list, followed by maybe torrent, or something for intra-workout.

I’m still working on a sort of split, so that will not be up right now I have a week to figure that out. All this week will be a focus on moving again. Getting used to the feel. I know warm-up weights will feel heavy, but hey, this isn’t my first time lifting either.
Another note of endurance: There is a large field/park not even a half mile down the road from me. Once the snow leaves, I’ll be looking into picking up some sand bags, cones for shuttles, and all sorts of other fun things. I’m bringing it back to Varsity Football days.

This is me, No Pity, No Remorse, No Fear.

Themostocles
01-04-09, 3:22 pm
Count me in for the ride, as always. Good to hear the shoulder is getting better. I kinda in the same position as you, and might steal some of your ideas from you. Once spring hits I am going to be out doing sprints, and trying to get my hands on some tires and a sled. Got increase general physical preparedness as well as strength. -T.

Carpe Diem P.T
01-04-09, 4:00 pm
This is not the place for introductions and life stories. All of you that subscribe to this either know me, or will find out along the way. You want to know about me, go look into my old logs…or read on a little later (see next paragraph) for a brief exercise history.



I wouldnt have minded a brief life story. Would have saved me lookng for your old journey to get up to date :)

It sounds like you have your head on straight. one thing i will suggest though is to enjoy the journey. You are at a great age where the world is your oyster. Make it happen, but enjoy it ok.

mjsef88
01-04-09, 4:59 pm
Count me in for the ride, as always. Good to hear the shoulder is getting better. I kinda in the same position as you, and might steal some of your ideas from you. Once spring hits I am going to be out doing sprints, and trying to get my hands on some tires and a sled. Got increase general physical preparedness as well as strength. -T.

great to see you in! Steal away brother, steal away.


I wouldnt have minded a brief life story. Would have saved me lookng for your old journey to get up to date :)

It sounds like you have your head on straight. one thing i will suggest though is to enjoy the journey. You are at a great age where the world is your oyster. Make it happen, but enjoy it ok.

I don't think we'd be doing what we do if we didn't enjoy it. I see too many guys just focus up on lifting. Taking it tooo seriously. Don't sweat it bro, I'm enjoying every second that I'm on this rock.

ghost
01-04-09, 7:53 pm
subbed biatch.

shizz702
01-04-09, 8:04 pm
Man you know I'm in! Glad to have you back and lol love the journey title!

Vaze_06
01-04-09, 9:52 pm
Hey sweetheart,

nice to have u back slacker, hopefully u'll stop messing around and start getting some work done =]. I missed u too =)
u know, im in for the ride

Phil800101
01-05-09, 1:22 am
Definitely subbed bro, I am really looking forward to seeing what you come up with and how it all goes down!

By the way, did you by any chance get the title to this journey from the first "Terminator?" Just wondering, since those are the exact words that Kyle Reese uses when he's describing the Terminator to Sarah Connor. I mean, I know what you mean by the title and what you're going for with it (which is awesome), but I also think that whether or not you did get it from the film that in regards to the usage of those words in the film that the title fits perfectly for you...you are a man on a mission who knows exactly what he wants and who is not going to let anyone or anything stand in the way of achieving his goal.

MRoush
01-05-09, 2:52 pm
Cool, another strong Journey start Matt! I'm in.

mjsef88
01-05-09, 3:46 pm
Holy shit that felt good

I'm not getting into any cardio or OLY movements this week, just easing back into it.

0600hrs: Calisthenics
Stretching for 10 minutes
pushups: 20 x 2
Rangers: 15 x 1
Jumping Jacks: 15 on a 4 count
Burpees: 20
situps/crunches (take the middle ground on these): 20

1630hrs: Chest/Tri's/Lower Back
Barbell Bench: bar x 10, 95lbs x 10, 135lbs x 10
Incline DB Flys (emphasis on super stretch): 25lbs x 10, 30lbs x 10, 25lbs x 10
Pec Deck: 1/3 stack x 12, 2 sets
V-bar pressdowns: 40lbs x 15 x 3 sets
Dips: 2 real ones, 20 x -80lbs from bodyweight broken up over 3 sets

I'll get to all of your individual responses after I eat. Glad to see you all again.

mjsef88
01-05-09, 4:53 pm
subbed biatch.

wouldn't have it any other way homeboy.


Man you know I'm in! Glad to have you back and lol love the journey title!

Good to have you around buddy.


Hey sweetheart,

nice to have u back slacker, hopefully u'll stop messing around and start getting some work done =]. I missed u too =)
u know, im in for the ride

hey lady, good to be back too. I'll get my work done, and in less than 5 pages per workout/dialogue unlike somebody's log...not to name names or anything.


Definitely subbed bro, I am really looking forward to seeing what you come up with and how it all goes down!

By the way, did you by any chance get the title to this journey from the first "Terminator?" Just wondering, since those are the exact words that Kyle Reese uses when he's describing the Terminator to Sarah Connor. I mean, I know what you mean by the title and what you're going for with it (which is awesome), but I also think that whether or not you did get it from the film that in regards to the usage of those words in the film that the title fits perfectly for you...you are a man on a mission who knows exactly what he wants and who is not going to let anyone or anything stand in the way of achieving his goal.

Phil, unfortunately no, I did not get the words from the Terminator. However I do think that the writers for them got the words from where I got my title. Make sense? I hope not. Good to have you around either way.


Cool, another strong Journey start Matt! I'm in.

Thanks Matt! How have things on the homefront been?

Vaze_06
01-05-09, 9:09 pm
Holy shit that felt good

I'm not getting into any cardio or OLY movements this week, just easing back into it.

0600hrs: Calisthenics
Stretching for 10 minutes
pushups: 20 x 2
Rangers: 15 x 1
Jumping Jacks: 15 on a 4 count
Burpees: 20
situps/crunches (take the middle ground on these): 20

1630hrs: Chest/Tri's/Lower Back
Barbell Bench: bar x 10, 95lbs x 10, 135lbs x 10
Incline DB Flys (emphasis on super stretch): 25lbs x 10, 30lbs x 10, 25lbs x 10
Pec Deck: 1/3 stack x 12, 2 sets
V-bar pressdowns: 40lbs x 15 x 3 sets
Dips: 2 real ones, 20 x -80lbs from bodyweight broken up over 3 sets

I'll get to all of your individual responses after I eat. Glad to see you all again.

nice way to start the day! i was still making nightmares with u trying to kill me while u were working out! lol



hey lady, good to be back too. I'll get my work done, and in less than 5 pages per workout/dialogue unlike somebody's log...not to name names or anything.

are u talking about that messed up chick called Vaze?
she should learn to hush cauz must of the time she doesnt make any sense... oh well ;p

Themostocles
01-05-09, 9:17 pm
Burpees FTW! How did the shoulder hold up today? -T.

mjsef88
01-05-09, 9:18 pm
are u talking about that messed up chick called Vaze?
she should learn to hush cauz must of the time she doesnt make any sense... oh well ;p

case in point.

mjsef88
01-05-09, 9:19 pm
Burpees FTW! How did the shoulder hold up today? -T.

good. Instead of carrying around a db through out my entire workout, I only needed to go to the rack two or three times to stretch.

shizz702
01-05-09, 9:23 pm
Off to a good start Matt. So are you still gonna hit up olympic lifting? And I noticed you mentioned dieting, and wanting to cut some body fat. It's best to keep things simple, just be sure to have a lean protein source, some good carbs, and veggies with each meal. Also take in healthy fats.

mjsef88
01-05-09, 9:43 pm
Off to a good start Matt. So are you still gonna hit up olympic lifting? And I noticed you mentioned dieting, and wanting to cut some body fat. It's best to keep things simple, just be sure to have a lean protein source, some good carbs, and veggies with each meal. Also take in healthy fats.

Yep, I'm looking at just one day of OLY lifting. Using it for all of its benifits instead of just to do it. .... and because well....I really do miss it alot, and would hate to not include it ever again.

and yeah, that's the plan with the diet. I've got a Dinner Nook coming tomorrow night on that subject.

THAT'S RIGHT PEOPLE, STILL MORE DINNER NOOKS! (please you guys, try to control your enthusiasm)

Phil800101
01-06-09, 4:29 am
Solid sessions Matt, nice work! Great to see you hitting it again.

Carpe Diem P.T
01-06-09, 4:52 am
lookin solid big guy. good to see

Thrawn
01-06-09, 4:31 pm
Found it and i am SUBBED. Or should i say;re-SUBBED =))
Take this goal by the horns and bring it DOWN. You got the plan, you got the fire. Aint nothing to it but to DO IT. I am with you all the way.

mjsef88
01-06-09, 4:37 pm
Morning:
Nothing. Was so sore I couldn't even get in 3 pushups. Shoulder felt good at this point. Decided to take it as a "rest" and got a good hot shower in.

Afternoon: Back, Bi's, light abs

Low Cable Rows: 60lbs x 10, 80lbs x 10, 100lbs x 10
Lat Pulldowns: 70lbs x 10 x 3 sets
Misc back movements, random weights, random sets, about 25 minutes of work with minimal rest
Deads: 135lbs x 5, 225lbs x 5, 135lbs x 5. Felt good to deadlift again.
Alt Db Curls (Arms always moving): 25lbs x 15 x 3 sets
Decline Ab Bench: 20 x 3 at bodyweight

Shoulder said that's enough. I'll post a DN later tonight.

Thrawn
01-06-09, 5:17 pm
Nice choice of exercises, hitting it with all sorts of angles.
Hope you can nicely ease back into it and keep your shoulders healthy!
Keep it up, big man!

mjsef88
01-06-09, 5:18 pm
Dinner Nook: You Are What You Eat

I hear a lot of shit now-a-days about what to eat or what not to eat. I’m sick of it. Now I’m going to take this to a pseudo-legit level, by throwing out words like pseudo-legit. I’m not some jerkoff whose only diet experience is what I’ve done, thereby opening up a Q&A thread about said diet. Or my experience doesn’t come from what some athlete tells me to eat. I’m actually studying in this field, possibly making it a part of my career and have “worldly experience”.

Let’s pause for a second, “worldly experience”? What does that mean? I’ve tried it all. Bulking, maintaining, cutting, Keto, carb rotation, vegetarian diet/vegan diet (both sucked), caloric overload, and almost every other diet or mentality under the sun, all in the never ending quest to find out what works….FOR ME, AND ME ALONE. If I gained quality muscle by eating pizza and ice cream, do you think I’d stop just because someone else said that was bad for me?

If you haven’t picked up on the hint, I’m talking about most of you, Forvm. Asking for advice is great, hell, I’ve done it, I’ve even followed it. But ASKING for a diet plan? Unless you’re my long lost identical twin, or some sort of bio-engineered clone, do some simple research. Granted, if you’re new to this style of eating, don’t pay attention to my last statement, its tough figuring shit out, especially when you’re a beginner. Ask away, you have amnesty.

If you haven’t been able to figure it out by now, I’m not a fan of “catch-all” ideologies. About six months ago on the boards, Keto was all the rage. I tried it, and I crashed and burned, bad. What did I learn? Keto doesn’t work for me, so I moved on.

“Ok, so you’re talking a lot of mess, what do you do, Mr. Expert?” I eat. I assess my goals, and I eat accordingly. I am NOT an elite caliber athlete, my diet does NOT determine my paycheck or a sponsorship, I am NOT stepping up on a stage, platform, or deck.

I don’t count exact calories, I don’t count carbs, fats or proteins. I eat. I eat clean, and frequently. I eat depending on the mirror. If what I’m doing isn’t working, I’ll eat less carbs, or more protein or fat. Contrary to what I’m saying, dieting is an exact science, but, like genius, it borders on insanity. Think of your training log, you get caught up in the numbers, it fucks with your head, what’s more complex than your training? Your diet maybe?

I don’t know, I’m breaking off into a rant. Moral of the story kiddies, eat. Don’t over eat, don’t under eat, don’t get caught up. If you’re going to do something (show, event), do what you need to do. If you’re just like me, grinding it out for no particular purpose or reason, save yourself a headache and throw away your diet log.

Now I know I may catch some shit for this, and I’m prepared for it. “But Machine said this, or BigAnt/House/Tiny/Etc. said that”. Great, all of those guys know exactly what they are doing, and they do it very well. They are all also what would be considered elite caliber athletes just trying to help, and I’m not knocking that. I’m just saying, pull their jocks out of your mouth, spit, man up and experiment with what works for you.

TL;DR: Figure out a diet for yourself. YOU are the one eating it and don’t tell people how to diet…(mixed signals, much?)

Additional Content: I don’t know if I made it clear enough or not, so I’ll re-emphasize the point. If you are training for a show, by all means, count calories, study, learn, do what you need to do to win. I’m just sick of hearing guys talk about such miniscule things like when to take dextrose in combination with X, Y and Z, while also taking in A but intentionally excluding B when they aren’t competing or anything. Machine said it best, a calorie is a calorie is a calorie.

mjsef88
01-07-09, 4:14 pm
DOMS killed me today. Took today off. Spent all of today at work, came home and sat in a massage chair for a good 30 minutes, followed up by a very hot shower. I did design my split today.

Monday: Morning calisthenics, no cardio
Olympic Variation (clean/clean and jerk/hang clean/same with the Snatch)
Chest Flys
Back Row
Trunk (lower back and abs)

Tuesday: Morning calisthenics. no cardio
Bench
Deads
Chins
Bi's
Accesories (calves, forearms, traps)

Wednesday: Morning calisthenics, evening jogging, heavy bag
Off - weights

Thursday: Morning calisthenics, walking/jogging
Squats
Shoulder Press
Chins
Tri's

Friday: Morning calisthenics, evening cardio walking/jogging
One Arm DB Snatch
Stiff Leg Deads
Trunk
Dips

Saturday: Morning calisthenics, evening running
Off - weights

Sunday: Morning calisthenics, evening walking
Off - weights

I was vague with some lifts, Squats for example could be front, back, zercher or hack. Back rows could be low cable, barbell, dumbell or machine. There's going to be alot of play in this routine. Also, weights are almost secondary to calisthenics and cardio. The goal is fitness and athleticism, not so much gaining more mass. I'm excited to get into it next week.

ghost
01-07-09, 5:44 pm
Your dinner nook made me smile. lol..



oh, and i have your engineered clone in my backyard, ready to pull some stumps outta the ground. hahahahahaha.

shizz702
01-07-09, 6:10 pm
Nice Dinner Nook Matt, it all boils down to doing what works for you, and it's best not to overthink this shit and just act accordingly for yourself and your situation.

Your routine is some serious volume bro. And I'm not going to say it won't work well for you, cause I'm not you. But I know I sure as hell wouldn't be able to keep up with it. Personally though I think you should lighten it up a bit and give yourself at least a day or two off from everything. But as said you got to do what works for you, but always remember rest and recovery are big factors in this game bro.

mjsef88
01-07-09, 6:12 pm
oh, and i have your engineered clone in my backyard

hahahaha well something has to satisfy jen.

ghost
01-07-09, 6:15 pm
hahahaha well something has to satisfy jen.

HA..... another one of you wont do it.

mjsef88
01-07-09, 6:16 pm
Nice Dinner Nook Matt, it all boils down to doing what works for you, and it's best not to overthink this shit and just act accordingly for yourself and your situation.

Your routine is some serious volume bro. And I'm not going to say it won't work well for you, cause I'm not you. But I know I sure as hell wouldn't be able to keep up with it. Personally though I think you should lighten it up a bit and give yourself at least a day or two off from everything. But as said you got to do what works for you, but always remember rest and recovery are big factors in this game bro.

Thats the thing about "active rest", it pyramids. I may be going heavy weights, light cardio, or heavy cardio and light weights. Like I said, the weights in this style really are secondary. The other thing I didn't mention was that depending on how my body feels, I may just do one or two sets of a lift.

Wednesday and Sunday are really my rest days. Evening walking/jogging will be low key, the heavy bag on wednesday is just for fun.

I completely get what you're saying about taking the rest, and belive me, it'll be taken into account.

EDIT: Also, breaking up the lifts and doing a little bit of a bodypart each day has helped me in the past on recovery time.

blueIMlifter
01-07-09, 10:14 pm
been awhile since i stopped in here. glad to see you're gettin back to healthy and all healed up. you know the right way to ease back into things. keep up the good work and good luck with all the school.

ps - if you check your facebook i sent you an invite to a party up at school for ya lol. believe me i havent drank for several months and after this im gonna get back into a 10 week cut. just some food for thought if you have no better way to spend a saturday evening! haha peace

Themostocles
01-07-09, 11:35 pm
Well fuck, Matt, and I was hoping ou help me out with a diet plan. I like the cookie and ice cream approach. Everyone gets caught up in the trends, whether diets or splits, abd forget to keep it simple. The details can help, but you can also get lost in them. Nice split Matt, and the dinner nook was alright lol. -T.

Carpe Diem P.T
01-08-09, 2:02 am
Morning calisthenics - whats that?

mjsef88
01-08-09, 1:35 pm
been awhile since i stopped in here. glad to see you're gettin back to healthy and all healed up. you know the right way to ease back into things. keep up the good work and good luck with all the school.

ps - if you check your facebook i sent you an invite to a party up at school for ya lol. believe me i havent drank for several months and after this im gonna get back into a 10 week cut. just some food for thought if you have no better way to spend a saturday evening! haha peace

hey man, yeah, I got the invite and put myself down as a maybe. Unfortunately, I need to get into that "school mode", so I won't be able to make it. I want to go, I really do, I just wish it was last weekend haha. Have fun and enjoy the night, if anyone's deserved a beer, it's you.


Well fuck, Matt, and I was hoping ou help me out with a diet plan. I like the cookie and ice cream approach. Everyone gets caught up in the trends, whether diets or splits, abd forget to keep it simple. The details can help, but you can also get lost in them. Nice split Matt, and the dinner nook was alright lol. -T.

exactly, the details help, good way to put it. I wish I could get big off of icecream, pizza and cookies haha.


Morning calisthenics - whats that?

Stretching, jumping jacks, pushups, situps, burpees, mountain climbers followed by more stretching.


--------------------

WAS planning on hitting up a shoulder/traps day, but I have to take off to a different branch at work to lead a training session on our new payroll system. So tomorrow it looks like LEGS plus today. Then next week the new split starts. I'll catch up with all of your journies later on tonight

Vaze_06
01-08-09, 4:21 pm
hey fucker! u better kill it tomorrow ;p

mjsef88
01-08-09, 8:08 pm
hey fucker! u better kill it tomorrow ;p

That's the plan.

---------

Got home at about 7:30. I did not want to stay late for work, the people at the training did not want to stay late either. At least we were neutral twards eachother. All in all, it was a good experience for me leading training all by myself. I now have something "official" to put on my resume, as opposed to MMA coaching and Survival school teaching. Becasue hey, technically I've never done either.

Anyways, was upset that I had to miss a workout ALREADY. So I did some work at home.

calisthenics:
Stretching
Ranger Pushups
Regular Pushups
Crunches
Jumping Jacks to get the blood pumping harder
Stretching

The Circut: Did this alot in MMA, put Rob through it one day.
Grab a Barbell (skinny bar), and put some weight on each end...In this case I used 25lb bells.

-Standing upright rows (overhand grip)
-laying floor press
-seated overhead press
-standing bicep curls
-seated overhead extensions
-standing front squats
-bent over rows

Now here's the trick, each movement is done until failure, and you never let go of the dumbells. You have to balance and figure out how to get into each position (standing, seated, lying down)

More stretching afterwards.

Firedrake
01-08-09, 10:18 pm
I think you're getting a good start to your new program -- and your attitude toward the diet thing is really solid -- what works for you is the key.

I'm looking forward to seeing the range of things you do to reach your goals -- I've always been fond of pursuing functional strength and endurance, but I've been a fighter of some sort most of my life (usually in full armor with medieval weapons).

I'll be watching!

Themostocles
01-09-09, 12:14 am
Nice circuit. Like the idea of never putting down the weight, great for the fore arms and the core. And making you adapt and think before moving. Great way to get it done. -T.

Thrawn
01-09-09, 1:56 pm
Nice circuit. Like the idea of never putting down the weight, great for the fore arms and the core. And making you adapt and think before moving. Great way to get it done. -T.

X2! Guess its also a lot of fun of doing things totally different for a change. Outstanding work!

mjsef88
01-09-09, 3:40 pm
Morning: Stretching for 20 minutes

Afternoon:
Legs: Squats
Not going to post sets or reps. I did alot of "feel it out again" work. 135lbs felt smooth, I was expecting it to feel like 315lbs.

Shoulders: Nothing direct. Alot of rehab movements.

Got home...

Circut: same rules apply
standing alt db curls
lying floor presses
seated shoulder press
lying pullovers
seated tricep extension (only with one bell)
Front squats
bent over rows

25lbs dumbells still feel like I'm running with 50lb dumbells. I'm going to do a variation of the circut maybe every other day, and calisthenics on the opposite day in the morning. 25lbs should not feel like 25lbs.

Firedrake
01-09-09, 3:54 pm
Good looking work, feeling your way back into it. That circuit looks . . . entertaining . . . well, if one's name is "DeSade". <grin>

After enough reps, 25 lbs. feels like 50!

Vaze_06
01-09-09, 5:11 pm
Morning: Stretching for 20 minutes

Afternoon:
Legs: Squats
Not going to post sets or reps. I did alot of "feel it out again" work. 135lbs felt smooth, I was expecting it to feel like 315lbs.

Shoulders: Nothing direct. Alot of rehab movements.

Got home...

Circut: same rules apply
standing alt db curls
lying floor presses
seated shoulder press
lying pullovers
seated tricep extension (only with one bell)
Front squats
bent over rows

25lbs dumbells still feel like I'm running with 50lb dumbells. I'm going to do a variation of the circut maybe every other day, and calisthenics on the opposite day in the morning. 25lbs should not feel like 25lbs.

''25lbs should not feel like 25lbs''
sweetheart... u mean 50lbs right?!
at least u know how i felt when i started using the 25lb lol
nice work out and take good care of that shoulder

mjsef88
01-09-09, 6:02 pm
''25lbs should not feel like 25lbs''
sweetheart... u mean 50lbs right?!
at least u know how i felt when i started using the 25lb lol
nice work out and take good care of that shoulder

No I absolutely ment 25lbs should not feel like 25lbs. Those weights weren't even a propper warmup 7 weeks ago. Now doing something as small as flys feels heavy.

Not to worry, nobody said it would be easy.


Good looking work, feeling your way back into it. That circuit looks . . . entertaining . . . well, if one's name is "DeSade". <grin>

After enough reps, 25 lbs. feels like 50!

very true about the reps. Try the circut!!!

shizz702
01-09-09, 6:28 pm
No worries Matt, just get back into the groove and you'll be smashing old PR's in no time.

Themostocles
01-09-09, 9:04 pm
Good looking work, feeling your way back into it. That circuit looks . . . entertaining . . . well, if one's name is "DeSade". <grin>

After enough reps, 25 lbs. feels like 50!

I hear is going to be applying to a french noblemen too lol. Nice stuff M. -T.

mjsef88
01-10-09, 3:31 pm
Morning: Stretching, light circut, maybe 8 reps with the 25lb bells. No calisthenics or anything. Walked on the treadmill for about 30 minutes. No incline, no fast pace, just a nice, easy walk. I started reading my new book.

Ran errands, went food shopping. I think that one thing that will help keep me focused on lifting is re-vamping my diet. I'm going for chicken breasts as my main staple, thrown in buffalo sauce. Becaue buffalo sauce is win.

Classes start next week. This weekend is my last chance to cheat before it starts.

I've also decided that I won't be tracking my bodyweight/fat progress. The whole point of my new set up is simplicity with a touch of sadism. The mirror is the only judge, no scales, no calipers, nothing else.

MRoush
01-10-09, 5:33 pm
That's what I do for my lunches. Chicken breast dipped in Buffalo Wild Wings medium sauce...mmmm, can't get enough!

Themostocles
01-10-09, 6:18 pm
So whatcha reading?

mjsef88
01-10-09, 7:09 pm
So whatcha reading?

African Game Trails by Teddy Roosevelt


That's what I do for my lunches. Chicken breast dipped in Buffalo Wild Wings medium sauce...mmmm, can't get enough!

It doesn't even taste like dieting. The sauce isn't really all that bad for you either.

shizz702
01-10-09, 7:13 pm
The mirror doesn't lie bro, either you're looking better as a result of your training or not. Keep it up and eat well and it will pay off. Probably best to not get too caught up with the scale and just keep it simple like you plan on doing.

Phil800101
01-11-09, 6:35 am
Awesome sessions Matt, nice work! Those circuits look brutal as all hell. Split looks solid as well.

Great dinner nook too, you hit the nail right on the head.

mjsef88
01-11-09, 3:55 pm
Complete Rest.

Today was spent cleaning my room, cleaning my guns, and shoveling snow. Tomorrow starts the beginning of a blur. All I can do really is sit down, study, lift, and try to enjoy it all.

Tomorrow:
Hang Cleans
Incline Flys
Barbell Rows
Trunk

No cardio, I'll be in class from 830-1230, 1600-2000, with the gym sometime inbetween.

Eggs, Beef, Chicken, Shakes. Who said dieting wasn't fun?

Vaze_06
01-11-09, 9:10 pm
All I can do really is sit down, study, lift, and try to enjoy it all.


sweet, i wont be the only one with this schedule!! though, add ''read books'' for me :P
good luck with school sweetheart
u forgot the oatmeal ;p

Phil800101
01-11-09, 10:04 pm
Hope you enjoyed the rest bro, sounds like you're going to need it with the upcoming week. Good luck with school and all that.

Themostocles
01-11-09, 11:47 pm
Hope you enjoyed the rest bro, sounds like you're going to need it with the upcoming week. Good luck with school and all that.

x2. And oh yeah, dieting is a blast lol. -T.

mjsef88
01-12-09, 1:24 pm
Morning: Stretching

Afternoon Gym:
Hang Cleans:
bar to feel it out for x ammount of reps
95lbs x 5
135lbs x 3

Clean and Jerk: 135lbs x 1. Chalk it up to trying to hang onto the last of the stupidity of my youth, but I went for it, not "officially" warmed up. Went up without a hitch. Felt like home

Incline DB Flys: 25lbs x 12, 35lbs x 10, 40lbs x 8. Focused on stretch/contraction instead of weight moved.

Low Cable Rows: 60lbs x 12, 80lbs x 10, 100lbs x 8. I've been hesitant to move back into any other rowing movement yet. I'm still at times pulling with my bis instead of my back. I want to get form back to perfection

HS Plate Loaded Dip Machine: 25lbs per side x 10, 45lbs per side x 10, 70lbs per side x 10, again, focusing on form, keeping elbows tucked, etc.

Roman Chair Hypers: 20 x bodyweight x 2 sets

Now for some baked chicken in buffalo sauce.

Firedrake
01-12-09, 2:13 pm
Sweet looking work. I like being able to focus on motion and contraction rather than just weight for some things. I know what you mean about the rows, though -- I have issues with that, too.

mjsef88
01-12-09, 10:34 pm
It should also be noted that going from a 2 hour Bio lecture to a 3 hour Bio lab, to the gym, then back to a 4 hour (with one 10 minute break in the middle) Stats class sucks hardcore. My sore body was not happy with me sitting there that long.

Themostocles
01-13-09, 1:03 am
That chicken sounds good. On rows, I just concentrate on drawing my elbows back; it seems to help focus on pulling with the lats. Nice workout Matt. That stat class sounds like it sucks bad. -T.

Phil800101
01-13-09, 4:17 am
Solid session Matt! Four hours of stats? Ugh...

ghost
01-13-09, 6:29 am
stats=shiiiiiiiiiiit

we need to lift, and shoot soon.

mjsef88
01-13-09, 8:01 am
That chicken sounds good. On rows, I just concentrate on drawing my elbows back; it seems to help focus on pulling with the lats. Nice workout Matt. That stat class sounds like it sucks bad. -T.

Right, and that's the problem. I mean by know I think I have a good understanding of form, it's just I'm missing a step here. I use the elbow trick too. I think the problem is I'm not keeping by lower back tight enough.


Solid session Matt! Four hours of stats? Ugh...

Sucks balls man, sucks balls.


stats=shiiiiiiiiiiit

we need to lift, and shoot soon.

Shooting hopefully this Thursday, Lifting hopefully next Thursday.

------------------------------------------

Chem, Chem Lab, Gym, visiting an old friend, FENCING. The only thing that sucks is that once I leave the front door at 8:40, I won't be back for a solid 12 hours.

LittleMan55
01-13-09, 8:04 am
Just found this one... Sorry I'm late. You know I'm in the rest of the way though. I like the mirror approah too!

Themostocles
01-13-09, 8:05 am
Have some take a video? I mean I keep my lower back tight, but I also lean forward when I come forward and let my arms extend out before I pull back. But I have to keep it super strict because I don't have a very good mind/muscle connection. -T.

mjsef88
01-13-09, 3:55 pm
Epiphany Day - Will explain later when at home.

Rack Pulls: 135lbs x 5 x 2 sets, 225lbs x 5 x 2 sets, 315lbs x 3, random number of singles
Chins: 2, 2, 2 + 10 second hold
Hise Shrugs: 135lbs x 10 x 3 sets
supersetted with Regular Shrugs: 135lbs x 10 x 3 sets
HS Chest Press: 1pps x 15, 1pps +25lbs x 15
Alt DB Curls, arms constantly in motion: 35lbs x pain drop 30lbs x pain drop 25lbs x pain drop 20lbs x pain drop 15lbs x pain. Was funny to look at myself struggling with 15lbs, and having some pretty young thang next to me blasting away with the 25lbs.

POWER CLEAN: Bar x 1. Epiphany Moment. Will explain later. As well as the new addition to the title.

Now I'm off to my first day of fencing.

Firedrake
01-13-09, 4:08 pm
Well, at least you're not trying to start fencing on leg day . . .

Good looking session, and I know what you mean about struggling with the bottom weight on drop sets. You feel pretty silly sometimes.

mjsef88
01-13-09, 9:06 pm
Broc- Great to have you on board
Drake- I completely know what you mean now. My quads and calves are on FIRE.


So, onto the title addition and epiphany. I was minding my own business at the upscale Powerhouse. It was my first day back there in a good two months. Nothing changed, same staff, same equiptment, same self entitled members, even a group of people learning to be personal trainers, just everything like when I left.

I'm in the corner power cage, maybe the only "hardcore" area. It's a beat up cage, secluded, etc. I'm doing rack pulls. Inbetween sets I walk over to the fountain to get a wash. I turn around, fuckups all around. The core of trainees are learning how to power clean. ... horribly, so much so that I don't even want to go into what they were doing wrong ... I go up to a guy and help him out with his form. He was glad to hear it, really appreciative, really made me feel good about helping. I go back to minding my own business. More rack pulls. MID SET a woman I guess is talking to me. My headphones are on, and I'm not really paying attention. I rack the bar when I'm done. Remove my headphone and say,

"what?"
"what are you doing?"
"uh...Racks?"
"NO, back there, why were you contradicting what I'm telling my students"
...I get pissed...
"Becasue what you're telling them is wrong."
"What gives you the knowledge on it."
I stop. That's where the epiphany hit. Alot of things clicked at that point. What seemed like a good 5 minutes was really more like 5 seconds.
"....well" She goes. Bitch interrputed my moment. All I could do was kind of laugh quickly to myself. I smiled, turned around and did another set without saying another word to her.

After I was changed and walking out of the gym after my workout the guy came up to me. He thanked me for my advice, shook my hand, and said he'd pass on the information to his colleagues.

Now, onto the details of my epiphany. Olympic style lifting is what I do. It's what I'm kind of known around here for, it's what I'm good at. I got injured. Everybody does. I took my time off, and copped out not only on myself, but on you guys too. Moving onto this "general fitness" garbage. I'm not going to lie, I was scared. Scared of getting a more serious injury. Key word being WAS.

I'm going back to Olympic Style. With a touch of Powerbuilding to stay well rounded. If it takes me three months just to get back up to pre-injury warmup weights, then so be it. I miss it too bad, and for some reason I feel the need to do it. To be an example, because alot of Americans suck at OLY lifting. All of my training, wether it being with the Russians, Germans, Americans, personal sacrifice/learning, all of that would be for nothing.

Olympic Style Insanity is back, but this time I'm getting back off the horse after falling off.

Thank you all for your continued support.

blueIMlifter
01-13-09, 10:04 pm
good to see you coming back to the good side man. general fitness is great dont get me wrong (i used to be a cross country runner in high school @ 160lbs) but i finally made the choice sophomore year that serious lifting was my calling. you can still say in decent shape cardiovascular wise and still be a HUUUUGE mofo.

Firedrake
01-14-09, 12:07 am
Don 't you love it when the world conspires to lead you back where you belong?

What you might have said was "Because I've done more of them than you've ever dreamed of . . . "

I don't think that you'll get "unfit" while keeping up the Oly/Powerlifting. As long as you keep doing things like fencing, you'll have a well-rounded "fitness" experience.

I fenced in college -- competitively -- you're going to have to watching your lifting scheduled vs. your fencing schedule. Do you plan to go for particular form, or are you just learning beginning fencing right now? With your upper body strength, I can see you being awfully good at saber.

Themostocles
01-14-09, 1:09 am
You can still do things to increase you GPP when OLY and powerbuilding, and in fact, should. With all things going hand in hand, all will increase together. I working towards powerlifting, and I need to be doing sprints and sled drags and tire flips(if I can find a place to keep it) for overall GPP. Getting back on that fucking horse Matt! -T.

mjsef88
01-14-09, 6:56 am
You can still do things to increase you GPP when OLY and powerbuilding, and in fact, should. With all things going hand in hand, all will increase together. I working towards powerlifting, and I need to be doing sprints and sled drags and tire flips(if I can find a place to keep it) for overall GPP. Getting back on that fucking horse Matt! -T.

Right, that's the problem, storage. and Wilco.


Don 't you love it when the world conspires to lead you back where you belong?

What you might have said was "Because I've done more of them than you've ever dreamed of . . . "

I don't think that you'll get "unfit" while keeping up the Oly/Powerlifting. As long as you keep doing things like fencing, you'll have a well-rounded "fitness" experience.

I fenced in college -- competitively -- you're going to have to watching your lifting scheduled vs. your fencing schedule. Do you plan to go for particular form, or are you just learning beginning fencing right now? With your upper body strength, I can see you being awfully good at saber.

At least the world is conspiring, that means that threre's still something going on, instead of constantly being plugged in. And right, I need to completely work around fencing. Right now the class is just one night a week, and we're supposed to practice on our own. No big deal, I'll just have some work to do on the drawing board.

Oh, and right now it's just general form, focus on Foil, twards the end just a touch of epee and saber. In Fencing II we go more rounded. But the instructor/coach said the exact same thing to me about Saber fencing.


you can still say in decent shape cardiovascular wise and still be a HUUUUGE mofo.

That is the ultimate goal.

Psycho77
01-14-09, 7:14 am
I'm liking what I'm seeing, consider me subbed.

ghost
01-14-09, 7:56 am
matt, i am glad you saw where your true passion lies. stay the course brother, for i shall be next to you every step of the way, driving you further and harder than before. never give up, and there shall never be failure.

Vaze_06
01-14-09, 1:29 pm
always love your story... if rob slacks on doing his work, no worries i'll have your back :)

Thrawn
01-14-09, 3:50 pm
Dont sweat it, Matt. You got a good scare. Nothing wrong about that. I understand that it can lead to some uncertainty and trying to see if things can or should be done differently. Hell, right now with my back i am also having my own scary moments. You are bringing yourself back to where you wanna be and where you, in my opinion, belong. If it took you this time to realize it, so be it. If the injury brought you back to the beginning, so be it. I have no doubt in my mind you will be schooling us in the good old oly lifts pretty damn quick again. And leaving us in the dust with your progress on them.
Oh, and it really takes some good self reflection to admit to yourself (and others) you were scared. Much respect for that.
Now, bring on the plates and make some room. Matt is gonna do HIS thing.
Challenge re-accepted. I will take it a bit easy regarding my back, but i think i should be fine within 14 days.

mjsef88
01-14-09, 8:10 pm
I'm liking what I'm seeing, consider me subbed.

Glad to have you along, I won't disappoint.


matt, i am glad you saw where your true passion lies. stay the course brother, for i shall be next to you every step of the way, driving you further and harder than before. never give up, and there shall never be failure.

Wouldn't have it any other way brother.


always love your story... if rob slacks on doing his work, no worries i'll have your back :)

Thanks lady, the more the merrier.


Dont sweat it, Matt. You got a good scare. Nothing wrong about that. I understand that it can lead to some uncertainty and trying to see if things can or should be done differently. Hell, right now with my back i am also having my own scary moments. You are bringing yourself back to where you wanna be and where you, in my opinion, belong. If it took you this time to realize it, so be it. If the injury brought you back to the beginning, so be it. I have no doubt in my mind you will be schooling us in the good old oly lifts pretty damn quick again. And leaving us in the dust with your progress on them.
Oh, and it really takes some good self reflection to admit to yourself (and others) you were scared. Much respect for that.
Now, bring on the plates and make some room. Matt is gonna do HIS thing.
Challenge re-accepted. I will take it a bit easy regarding my back, but i think i should be fine within 14 days.

And what's all this about you not being an eloquent writer? Thanks for the kind words brother.

mjsef88
01-14-09, 8:16 pm
I did not think that this semester would be this intense. I did not expect to have my quads absolutely fried from an hour and a half of footwork in fencing last night. There is alot of work to be done in the next 16 weeks.

Today was a scheduled rest day. I needed it, and I took it. Sort of. After lecture I went into work. Alot of things went wrong for everybody and weren't really anybody's fault. About 3 weeks worth of work on my part was scrapped today. I am a little upset, but I still get paid either way, so it's just some job security in my book (I've been very optimistic lately...wierd).

Came home, hit up the punching bag for a good 25 minutes. Used my wraps and my MMA gloves, didn't feel like using the boxing gloves today.

And I worked on my AK and bolt .22lr. That was a mellowing experience. I've slowly but surely transformed my desk/space around it into a workshop.

Tomorrow will be a nice mix of leg work, bodyweight work and more back rowing. Friday will be an olympic morning.

Thrawn
01-15-09, 4:08 pm
Matt, i have a different suggestion for the end date. 25th of march is nearing pretty damn fast and i want you to improve as much as you can once the fire is raging again.
How about this. We will see how long i can keep being ahead of you in points. That will set a target for you, there is no real pressure in the sense of a fixed timeline. At it will keep me on edge to keep improving myself.
Can we shake chalked up hands on that one?

mjsef88
01-15-09, 5:39 pm
Nothing worth mentioning.

squats, front squats, rows, calves, abs, lower back, and a little shoulders. Nothing too intense, nothing too over 135lbs. I want to stay ready for tomorrow morning.

Also, did something to my ankle in fencing, I have it braced up. On a scale of 1-10, it's like a 2.5-3 only when I move it to the area where it hurts (e.g. no throbbing pain). No big deal, just doing some extra stretching is all.



Matt, i have a different suggestion for the end date. 25th of march is nearing pretty damn fast and i want you to improve as much as you can once the fire is raging again.
How about this. We will see how long i can keep being ahead of you in points. That will set a target for you, there is no real pressure in the sense of a fixed timeline. At it will keep me on edge to keep improving myself.
Can we shake chalked up hands on that one?

Absolutely. That works well for me. As long as you keep me updated in points.

Themostocles
01-16-09, 1:09 am
Hope the ankle feels better. -T.

Phil800101
01-16-09, 5:10 am
Epiphany Day - Will explain later when at home.

Rack Pulls: 135lbs x 5 x 2 sets, 225lbs x 5 x 2 sets, 315lbs x 3, random number of singles
Chins: 2, 2, 2 + 10 second hold
Hise Shrugs: 135lbs x 10 x 3 sets
supersetted with Regular Shrugs: 135lbs x 10 x 3 sets
HS Chest Press: 1pps x 15, 1pps +25lbs x 15
Alt DB Curls, arms constantly in motion: 35lbs x pain drop 30lbs x pain drop 25lbs x pain drop 20lbs x pain drop 15lbs x pain. Was funny to look at myself struggling with 15lbs, and having some pretty young thang next to me blasting away with the 25lbs.

POWER CLEAN: Bar x 1. Epiphany Moment. Will explain later. As well as the new addition to the title.

Now I'm off to my first day of fencing.

Solid session Matt!


Broc- Great to have you on board
Drake- I completely know what you mean now. My quads and calves are on FIRE.


So, onto the title addition and epiphany. I was minding my own business at the upscale Powerhouse. It was my first day back there in a good two months. Nothing changed, same staff, same equiptment, same self entitled members, even a group of people learning to be personal trainers, just everything like when I left.

I'm in the corner power cage, maybe the only "hardcore" area. It's a beat up cage, secluded, etc. I'm doing rack pulls. Inbetween sets I walk over to the fountain to get a wash. I turn around, fuckups all around. The core of trainees are learning how to power clean. ... horribly, so much so that I don't even want to go into what they were doing wrong ... I go up to a guy and help him out with his form. He was glad to hear it, really appreciative, really made me feel good about helping. I go back to minding my own business. More rack pulls. MID SET a woman I guess is talking to me. My headphones are on, and I'm not really paying attention. I rack the bar when I'm done. Remove my headphone and say,

"what?"
"what are you doing?"
"uh...Racks?"
"NO, back there, why were you contradicting what I'm telling my students"
...I get pissed...
"Becasue what you're telling them is wrong."
"What gives you the knowledge on it."
I stop. That's where the epiphany hit. Alot of things clicked at that point. What seemed like a good 5 minutes was really more like 5 seconds.
"....well" She goes. Bitch interrputed my moment. All I could do was kind of laugh quickly to myself. I smiled, turned around and did another set without saying another word to her.

After I was changed and walking out of the gym after my workout the guy came up to me. He thanked me for my advice, shook my hand, and said he'd pass on the information to his colleagues.

Now, onto the details of my epiphany. Olympic style lifting is what I do. It's what I'm kind of known around here for, it's what I'm good at. I got injured. Everybody does. I took my time off, and copped out not only on myself, but on you guys too. Moving onto this "general fitness" garbage. I'm not going to lie, I was scared. Scared of getting a more serious injury. Key word being WAS.

I'm going back to Olympic Style. With a touch of Powerbuilding to stay well rounded. If it takes me three months just to get back up to pre-injury warmup weights, then so be it. I miss it too bad, and for some reason I feel the need to do it. To be an example, because alot of Americans suck at OLY lifting. All of my training, wether it being with the Russians, Germans, Americans, personal sacrifice/learning, all of that would be for nothing.

Olympic Style Insanity is back, but this time I'm getting back off the horse after falling off.

Thank you all for your continued support.

Hell fucking yeah bro! You know I'll be staying along for this ride.


I did not think that this semester would be this intense. I did not expect to have my quads absolutely fried from an hour and a half of footwork in fencing last night. There is alot of work to be done in the next 16 weeks.

Today was a scheduled rest day. I needed it, and I took it. Sort of. After lecture I went into work. Alot of things went wrong for everybody and weren't really anybody's fault. About 3 weeks worth of work on my part was scrapped today. I am a little upset, but I still get paid either way, so it's just some job security in my book (I've been very optimistic lately...wierd).

Came home, hit up the punching bag for a good 25 minutes. Used my wraps and my MMA gloves, didn't feel like using the boxing gloves today.

And I worked on my AK and bolt .22lr. That was a mellowing experience. I've slowly but surely transformed my desk/space around it into a workshop.

Tomorrow will be a nice mix of leg work, bodyweight work and more back rowing. Friday will be an olympic morning.

Sounds like a good rest day. Working on firearms is a great way to relax, at least I find it relaxing. Fencing sounds pretty intense.


Nothing worth mentioning.

squats, front squats, rows, calves, abs, lower back, and a little shoulders. Nothing too intense, nothing too over 135lbs. I want to stay ready for tomorrow morning.

Also, did something to my ankle in fencing, I have it braced up. On a scale of 1-10, it's like a 2.5-3 only when I move it to the area where it hurts (e.g. no throbbing pain). No big deal, just doing some extra stretching is all.

Nice session my man! Hope the ankle feels better.

mjsef88
01-16-09, 6:47 am
Thanks Phil!

Also:
Gym at 5am this morning was empty. Too bad I was in my own little corner the entire time.

I did NOTHING above bar weight. Clean and jerks, Cleans, split jerks, snatch, hanging snatch, slow snatch, just about everything and anything. The form is still there. That hasn't faded from memory yet. We'll start off with 10Kgs per side next week and see how that feels.

Vaze_06
01-16-09, 9:52 pm
Hope the ankle feels better. -T.

x2


Thanks Phil!

Also:
Gym at 5am this morning was empty. Too bad I was in my own little corner the entire time.

I did NOTHING above bar weight. Clean and jerks, Cleans, split jerks, snatch, hanging snatch, slow snatch, just about everything and anything. The form is still there. That hasn't faded from memory yet. We'll start off with 10Kgs per side next week and see how that feels.

u'll be back in being an olym freak in no-time bro

Phil800101
01-17-09, 1:31 am
Thanks Phil!

Also:
Gym at 5am this morning was empty. Too bad I was in my own little corner the entire time.

I did NOTHING above bar weight. Clean and jerks, Cleans, split jerks, snatch, hanging snatch, slow snatch, just about everything and anything. The form is still there. That hasn't faded from memory yet. We'll start off with 10Kgs per side next week and see how that feels.

Awesome Matt! Glad to hear that you've still got your form nailed down. Sounds like a plan.

mjsef88
01-17-09, 9:21 pm
REST

Yeah, yeah, Sunday hasn't happened yet, I know I'll be inactive. Diet has been pretty sound so far. Still figuring out some quirks with meal times and school.

Monday starts some OLY lifting with a main focus on Clean/Clean and Jerk.

The only minor "cardio" that I might do is footwork for fencing. That's what screwed up my ankle. Long story short, in my football/baseball catcher/lacrosse/boxing/MMA/martial art/lifting/OLY lifting career(s), my feet have always been straight forward, or slightly pointed OUT. In the retreat phase of movement in fencing me base foot needs to point slightly IN. Years of muscle memory finally fucked me over. I need this to be second nature, but only when I have my whites on and am holding a metal stick with chicken wire covering my face.

Also, Bert- For the challenge. I don't know if I'll be just cleaning every week. So I think a fair comprimise would be to just take my Clean AND Jerk number as is. It may be a few kgs lighter, but I can live with that. Extra modivation to go harder.

shizz702
01-17-09, 9:28 pm
Hey Matt,

Glad to see you getting back to your roots.

I got a quick question though since I just started hitting the power cleans again, any tips on fixing early arm bend? I've noticed when I pull from the floor my arms seem to bend too early on the second pull. I don't have this problem when doing them from the hang though, odd.

When the weight gets heavy from the floor it's like my body thinks my arms have got to help curl the weight up, even though I know that's not proper form.

Phil800101
01-18-09, 1:20 am
Enjoy the rest Matt! No doubt you're going to need it with your full plate.

mjsef88
01-18-09, 1:34 am
Hey Matt,

Glad to see you getting back to your roots.

I got a quick question though since I just started hitting the power cleans again, any tips on fixing early arm bend? I've noticed when I pull from the floor my arms seem to bend too early on the second pull. I don't have this problem when doing them from the hang though, odd.

When the weight gets heavy from the floor it's like my body thinks my arms have got to help curl the weight up, even though I know that's not proper form.

Kinda tough to imagine. Any vids? I would say it's a big mental action.

It may seem kind of abstract, but do a combo of a hang and full clean. Start with the bar on the floor, get it to about the knee level, pause (like the hang clean), then rip it.


Enjoy the rest Matt! No doubt you're going to need it with your full plate.

Thanks Phil. I've learned to enjoy the rest while I have it. Although "rest" really means studying my ass off or getting things done around the house...like re-caulking the tub. But it's still nice to think of it as "rest".

Thrawn
01-18-09, 6:24 am
Absolutely. That works well for me. As long as you keep me updated in points.


REST

Also, Bert- For the challenge. I don't know if I'll be just cleaning every week. So I think a fair comprimise would be to just take my Clean AND Jerk number as is. It may be a few kgs lighter, but I can live with that. Extra modivation to go harder.

On the first: no problem, i will calculate the points etc. Lets see how long i can stay in front of you.
On the last: also, no problem. I might as well throw in a few clean and jerks myself. I need to work on my shoulders anyway, they are one of my weak links.

I like the way you are approaching your training right now. Checking form first, going back to a lot of basic movements. NICE one, Matt.
I am also looking forward to us both increasing our numbers and bodyframe on the challenge! My lowerback has been feeling a lot better lately and i wouldnt be surprised if i would throw in the powercleans again this week.

mjsef88
01-19-09, 11:40 am
Was planning on some OLY moves. Got in, and about 12 guys (including some regulars) were doing a deadlifting competition on the platform. Eh, I couldn't get mad. It was fun to watch inbetween sets. Had half a mind to join, but then I realized I haven't pulled from the FLOOR in a good 7 1/2-8 weeks. If I can't change my gameplan on the fly then fuck me.

Chest:
HS Chest Press: 1pps x 15, 2pps x 10, 2pps +25lbs ps x 8 drop to 1pps x pain
Flat DB Fly: 30lbs x 15, 25lbs x 15, took my time, nice and smooth with a huge stretch

Tris:
French Press: 45lbs x 10, 55lbs x 10
Plate Loaded Dips: 1pps x 12, 2pps x 10
V Bar Pressdowns: 40lbs x 10, 4 sec down 2 sec up x 2 sets.

I'll be checking in on all of you after I get some grub.

mjsef88
01-19-09, 12:12 pm
Also, I've found my carb of choice. Bear Creek instant potato soup. 1 package makes a 1/2 gallon, 27 carbs per cup, and good carbs too. High sodium, but since I'm not taking in any extra sodium I'm fine with it.

plus the shit's delicious.

Also, personal dinner nook coming up inbetween studying.

mjsef88
01-19-09, 4:31 pm
Dinner Nook: Bates Enforcer Ultra Lights

These old boots still got a lot of ground,
They ain’t covered yet

You’ll excuse me if I get a little sentimental.

I can be vein at times. We all can be. But for the most part, I’m all for function over fashion. Talk to Rcrott1, I have more flannel, plaid, earth tones and (some) camo clothing than anything else. Yeah, I get dressed up in a shirt/tie, sometimes a suit for work, and I like to look fly while doing so. However, in streets, you’ll see me in a shirt, dirty work jeans and my boots. (Before you even think of asking, NO the holes in my jeans were not purchased that way, the oil stain is not “factory”, my clothing took a lot of projects to turn into what it is now, and I love it all the more for it when kids ask me at the mall where I got those, A&F or Hollister. I say Target or WalMart about 5 months ago. They got styled in my garage. But I digress)

My CAT Steel Toe boots. They have been (or were) on my feet for the past 2 ½ years. Come rain, shine, snow or hail. I don’t usually wear shorts, and almost ALWAYS had these boots on. I’ve trained in them and I’ve worked in them. I’ve done marches, runs and hikes in them. And they are HEAVY shoes.

They bit the dust. I put up with a lot of damage, even fixed them, or had them professionally done. Too much was just too much. They were too scuffed (no matter how much I shined them), just too worn down. The rubber grip was smooth, and the heel was almost non-existent. No joke guys, when I said I wore these for 2 ½ years straight, I’m not bullshitting you. I think I can count on my fingers and toes the only times when I wasn’t wearing them. My dad saw them and said enough was enough. I refused to wear anything else, let alone pay for it. So he took me shopping, and it wasn’t one of those “choices” either.

All of the Cats I looked at just weren’t the same. Too light, too heavy, not the right size…just not the same. Not what I wanted (and had on my feet at the time).

Bates Enforcer Ultra Light boots. They were $120 on sale for $60. They fit well, have a high up lace for ankle support, zipper on the side for easy on/off, and are about as heavy as the socks I was wearing, yet tough as all hell. I like them, I really do.

I got home and shed a manly tear as I threw away my old boots.

By now I’m sure you’ve tuned out, so I’ll wrap this up.

I just wanted to give my old kicks some attention. They were my best friend, we did a lot of things together, and I’ll miss them greatly.

TL;DR: think about your shoes. All of them. Do they whore themselves around your feet, or do you have one tried and true pair that has been faithful, through thick and thin.

Vaze_06
01-19-09, 8:26 pm
nice chest session
making me think of pair of running shoes i had last year... they were finish, like seriously good for the trash but i kept on wearing them cauz they were perfect to jog outside in the rain/snow/.... even for school.. until my parents made me buy a new pair, and my mom thrown them in the garbage. was soo pissed the day i was searching for them and she told me
GRRRRRRRRRR....
lol thanks for bringing back the good old memories Matt ;p

Firedrake
01-19-09, 8:46 pm
Nice chest and tri day, and I -do- sympathize with the boots -- I wear mine till the sole's been re-done so much there's nothing left to re-sole -to-.

Themostocles
01-20-09, 1:12 am
Nice workout and dinner nook, but I don't think I have ever gotten that sentimental about boots(shoes) though. -T.

mjsef88
01-20-09, 5:11 pm
Started this day off right:

Cleans: 135lbs for singles, doubles, triples. Didn’t go above that and kept the weight the same throughout. Felt good, kept my form tight and kept my elbows up.

Shoulders:
Reverse pec deck: 80-100lbs x 10 for 3 sets
One Arm DB Presses: 40lbs x 10 per arm, 45lbs x 8 per arm, 40lbs x 7 per arm
Smith Behind the neck press: 25lbs per side x 10, 10 second break, 9, 9 second break, 8, 8 second break….all the way down to one.
DB Laterals: 20lbs x pain
Hise Shrugs: 135lbs x 10 x 2 sets

Now off to Fencing…

LittleMan55
01-20-09, 5:20 pm
Great work bro. I hit some cleans (hang clean version) the other day moving weight around to re-rack it. Man my form is off!

Themostocles
01-21-09, 1:50 am
Glad to see you hitting the OLYs. How are the shoulders holding up with this work?

Phil800101
01-21-09, 12:42 pm
Was planning on some OLY moves. Got in, and about 12 guys (including some regulars) were doing a deadlifting competition on the platform. Eh, I couldn't get mad. It was fun to watch inbetween sets. Had half a mind to join, but then I realized I haven't pulled from the FLOOR in a good 7 1/2-8 weeks. If I can't change my gameplan on the fly then fuck me.

Chest:
HS Chest Press: 1pps x 15, 2pps x 10, 2pps +25lbs ps x 8 drop to 1pps x pain
Flat DB Fly: 30lbs x 15, 25lbs x 15, took my time, nice and smooth with a huge stretch

Tris:
French Press: 45lbs x 10, 55lbs x 10
Plate Loaded Dips: 1pps x 12, 2pps x 10
V Bar Pressdowns: 40lbs x 10, 4 sec down 2 sec up x 2 sets.

I'll be checking in on all of you after I get some grub.

Solid session bro! Simple, efficient, and effective.


Dinner Nook: Bates Enforcer Ultra Lights

These old boots still got a lot of ground,
They ain’t covered yet

You’ll excuse me if I get a little sentimental.

I can be vein at times. We all can be. But for the most part, I’m all for function over fashion. Talk to Rcrott1, I have more flannel, plaid, earth tones and (some) camo clothing than anything else. Yeah, I get dressed up in a shirt/tie, sometimes a suit for work, and I like to look fly while doing so. However, in streets, you’ll see me in a shirt, dirty work jeans and my boots. (Before you even think of asking, NO the holes in my jeans were not purchased that way, the oil stain is not “factory”, my clothing took a lot of projects to turn into what it is now, and I love it all the more for it when kids ask me at the mall where I got those, A&F or Hollister. I say Target or WalMart about 5 months ago. They got styled in my garage. But I digress)

My CAT Steel Toe boots. They have been (or were) on my feet for the past 2 ½ years. Come rain, shine, snow or hail. I don’t usually wear shorts, and almost ALWAYS had these boots on. I’ve trained in them and I’ve worked in them. I’ve done marches, runs and hikes in them. And they are HEAVY shoes.

They bit the dust. I put up with a lot of damage, even fixed them, or had them professionally done. Too much was just too much. They were too scuffed (no matter how much I shined them), just too worn down. The rubber grip was smooth, and the heel was almost non-existent. No joke guys, when I said I wore these for 2 ½ years straight, I’m not bullshitting you. I think I can count on my fingers and toes the only times when I wasn’t wearing them. My dad saw them and said enough was enough. I refused to wear anything else, let alone pay for it. So he took me shopping, and it wasn’t one of those “choices” either.

All of the Cats I looked at just weren’t the same. Too light, too heavy, not the right size…just not the same. Not what I wanted (and had on my feet at the time).

Bates Enforcer Ultra Light boots. They were $120 on sale for $60. They fit well, have a high up lace for ankle support, zipper on the side for easy on/off, and are about as heavy as the socks I was wearing, yet tough as all hell. I like them, I really do.

I got home and shed a manly tear as I threw away my old boots.

By now I’m sure you’ve tuned out, so I’ll wrap this up.

I just wanted to give my old kicks some attention. They were my best friend, we did a lot of things together, and I’ll miss them greatly.

TL;DR: think about your shoes. All of them. Do they whore themselves around your feet, or do you have one tried and true pair that has been faithful, through thick and thin.

Nothing like a good pair of well-made steel-toed boots. I've destroyed many a pair over the years. Bates makes some great stuff though. I imagine I'll be picking up a pair of Bates of some sort after I get badged...unless I'm lucky enough to be issued some.


Started this day off right:

Cleans: 135lbs for singles, doubles, triples. Didn’t go above that and kept the weight the same throughout. Felt good, kept my form tight and kept my elbows up.

Shoulders:
Reverse pec deck: 80-100lbs x 10 for 3 sets
One Arm DB Presses: 40lbs x 10 per arm, 45lbs x 8 per arm, 40lbs x 7 per arm
Smith Behind the neck press: 25lbs per side x 10, 10 second break, 9, 9 second break, 8, 8 second break….all the way down to one.
DB Laterals: 20lbs x pain
Hise Shrugs: 135lbs x 10 x 2 sets

Now off to Fencing…

Solid session bro! Looking good on the cleans, and you blasted your delts from all angles. How was fencing this time?

ghost
01-21-09, 12:51 pm
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm tactical boots... *drool*

mjsef88
01-21-09, 5:17 pm
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm tactical boots... *drool*

With the inserts it's like walking on a cloud. The fuckers are light as hell too.


Solid session bro! Simple, efficient, and effective.

Nothing like a good pair of well-made steel-toed boots. I've destroyed many a pair over the years. Bates makes some great stuff though. I imagine I'll be picking up a pair of Bates of some sort after I get badged...unless I'm lucky enough to be issued some.

Solid session bro! Looking good on the cleans, and you blasted your delts from all angles. How was fencing this time?

Fencing is an intense sport. Imagine doing a wall sit for 45 minutes, only to go on and run around and jump rope for another 45 minutes.


Glad to see you hitting the OLYs. How are the shoulders holding up with this work?

Excellent. There weren't many times when I went to the rack for some light db's for rehab work. That's a good sign.


Great work bro. I hit some cleans (hang clean version) the other day moving weight around to re-rack it. Man my form is off!

haha just be careful!

----------------------------

Wed Jan 21, 2009

REST

nuff said.

Phil800101
01-21-09, 11:59 pm
Enjoy the rest bro, you have most certainly earned it.

mjsef88
01-22-09, 5:57 pm
Back and Bis

Did all cable or machine work for back. Kept my form tight, kept the weights around 100lbs. Did a ton of different angles. About 45 minutes of work

Bis were db curls. 40lbs x 8 x 3 sets

Done and done, time to rest, tomorrow is Snatch day.

shizz702
01-22-09, 6:59 pm
Nice back session there Matt, look foward to seeing you hit the ol' snatch up again.

Firedrake
01-22-09, 7:16 pm
Back and Bis

Did all cable or machine work for back. Kept my form tight, kept the weights around 100lbs. Did a ton of different angles. About 45 minutes of work

Bis were db curls. 40lbs x 8 x 3 sets

Done and done, time to rest, tomorrow is Snatch day.

WooHOO! Nice day -- playing around with different angles can be a blast!

Good luck with the snatches tomorrow!

Themostocles
01-23-09, 2:36 am
WooHOO! Nice day -- playing around with different angles can be a blast!

Good luck with the snatches tomorrow!

x2. Angles are great for stimulating some new growth. -T.

Phil800101
01-23-09, 5:30 am
Sounds like a solid session Matt! Keep on killing it bro!

mjsef88
01-23-09, 6:49 am
Snatch:
99lbs x 20-30 singles. I did one at 109lbs somewhere in there and it went smooth. I wanted to keep it strictly at 99lbs (bar plus 10Kg plates). Form is there. I'm trusting myself in the fall and not stopping 1/2 way down.

Front Squats:
Took a page right out of BigAnt's book. Used quarters:
bar x 5, 95lbs x 5, 145lbs x 5, 95lbs x 5, bar x 5

Hypers:
20 at bodyweight to stretch out.

Themostocles
01-23-09, 7:03 am
20-30 singles sounds too much like cardio lol. -T.

Vaze_06
01-23-09, 6:38 pm
Snatch:
99lbs x 20-30 singles. I did one at 109lbs somewhere in there and it went smooth. I wanted to keep it strictly at 99lbs (bar plus 10Kg plates). Form is there. I'm trusting myself in the fall and not stopping 1/2 way down.

Front Squats:
Took a page right out of BigAnt's book. Used quarters:
bar x 5, 95lbs x 5, 145lbs x 5, 95lbs x 5, bar x 5

Hypers:
20 at bodyweight to stretch out.

nice, very nice

Firedrake
01-23-09, 7:23 pm
Snatch:
99lbs x 20-30 singles. I did one at 109lbs somewhere in there and it went smooth. I wanted to keep it strictly at 99lbs (bar plus 10Kg plates). Form is there. I'm trusting myself in the fall and not stopping 1/2 way down.

Front Squats:
Took a page right out of BigAnt's book. Used quarters:
bar x 5, 95lbs x 5, 145lbs x 5, 95lbs x 5, bar x 5

Hypers:
20 at bodyweight to stretch out.

Looks good! How's it feel now?

mjsef88
01-23-09, 7:38 pm
20-30 singles sounds too much like cardio lol. -T.

drenched in sweat bro, drenched in sweat.


nice, very nice

Thanks lady


Looks good! How's it feel now?

Good. My body really does feel good. There are still the constant aches and pains, but nothing to complain about at all.

Phil800101
01-24-09, 2:09 am
Awesome session bro! Looks really intense.

mjsef88
01-24-09, 1:32 pm
REST

My ass hurts. Shoulder(s) are fine, but my butt is sore. I looked back over my log and realized I havn't really squatted in a while. Kind of explains it.

Today I'm doing chem lab reports, pre-labs, and other general studying. Fun stuff.

Yesterday started at 4:45am and ended at 11:30pm. Lost track of time studying. I'm going to take it easy tonight, maybe try and escape later and hang with friends.

shizz702
01-24-09, 5:14 pm
Glad to see you training the snatch again Matt, also good to know that you still got the technique down with the catch in squat position and all. I hear you on the studying, I got a play to read for World Lit, and a shit load of math work to do already.

MRoush
01-24-09, 8:39 pm
Looking good Matt!

Out of curiousity, what types of cable workouts did you do for back? I'm assming Lat pulldowns were in there somewhere? I need to work my back more than I have of late.

Themostocles
01-25-09, 4:51 pm
You take all the fun out of cracking on you for your ass being sore when you give us an explanation. -T.

Vaze_06
01-25-09, 5:43 pm
butt hurts and sore... Fuck Matt! i told u to NEVER drop your soap!!!! geesh, see what happens when u dont listen!....
;p hope u had a great weekend sweetie

mjsef88
01-25-09, 6:43 pm
butt hurts and sore... Fuck Matt! i told u to NEVER drop your soap!!!! geesh, see what happens when u dont listen!....
;p hope u had a great weekend sweetie

And that is why I clarified, Seth


You take all the fun out of cracking on you for your ass being sore when you give us an explanation. -T.

Seth see above, haha.


Looking good Matt!

Out of curiousity, what types of cable workouts did you do for back? I'm assming Lat pulldowns were in there somewhere? I need to work my back more than I have of late.

I basically went down the row of back machines. Low cable rows, pulldowns, pullovers, high rows, etc. It's nice, but I'm looking forward to moving heavy weight again.


Glad to see you training the snatch again Matt, also good to know that you still got the technique down with the catch in squat position and all. I hear you on the studying, I got a play to read for World Lit, and a shit load of math work to do already.

School is a pain, but it's one of those necessary evils, huh? I am never setting up a schedule with two lab days back to back again.

mjsef88
01-26-09, 1:45 pm
Felt good today...felt really good

Clean and Jerk (Singles):
99lbs
109lbs
119lbs
155lbs
165lbs

Reverse Pec Deck:
100lbs x 12 dropset to 80lbs x 10 supersetted to 100lbs x 8 dropset to 50lbs x pain

3 Pin HS Shoulder Press:
1 plate in middle x 5, 1 plate in middle plus 25lbs on top pin x 5, 1 plate in middle plus 50lbs on top x 5

done and done.

Phil800101
01-26-09, 1:57 pm
Killer session Matt! That work on the pec deck looks pretty brutal.

mjsef88
01-26-09, 2:21 pm
Killer session Matt! That work on the pec deck looks pretty brutal.

Nathan Explosion Voice: It was totally metal.

Firedrake
01-26-09, 9:39 pm
Felt good today...felt really good

Clean and Jerk (Singles):
99lbs
109lbs
119lbs
155lbs
165lbs

Reverse Pec Deck:
100lbs x 12 dropset to 80lbs x 10 supersetted to 100lbs x 8 dropset to 50lbs x pain

3 Pin HS Shoulder Press:
1 plate in middle x 5, 1 plate in middle plus 25lbs on top pin x 5, 1 plate in middle plus 50lbs on top x 5

done and done.

n-i-i-i-ce session -- totally metal, indeed!

Themostocles
01-27-09, 1:37 am
Glad to see you back on the clean and jerk bandwagon! So when is the next dinner nook lol?

mjsef88
01-27-09, 8:02 am
n-i-i-i-ce session -- totally metal, indeed!

Thanks Drake!


Glad to see you back on the clean and jerk bandwagon! So when is the next dinner nook lol?

Dude between class, work, and a side project on the drawing board (Steampunk .22lr.) I have no time to write.

Maybe if I get a break at work I'll write something up. But uh...I'm kind of out of topics.

ANY IDEAS ANYONE?

Vaze_06
01-27-09, 5:55 pm
well done, and u can write about anything.. i'm crazy enough to be interested in reading it ;p

mjsef88
01-27-09, 8:47 pm
BACK/BIS

Rack pulls, 2nd pin from bottom:
225lbs (jumped right in) x 5
315lbs x 3
315lbs x 3
365lbs x 1

Seated HS Row:
70lbs x pain
ss:
Lat Pulldown:
80lbs x pain

Low Cable Row:
80lbs x 10
60lbs x 10
80lbs x 10

One Arm Low Cable Row:
40lbs x 8
30lbs x 5

HS Preacher Curls:
25lbs x pain x 4 sets

Running the Rack:
30lbs x pain drop 25lbs x pain drop 20lbs x pain drop 15lbs x pain drop 10lbs x pain drop.

shook out some blood and went back UP in reverse order.

Went to fencing. Just got home, fried, tired. It's been a long, long day. I'll have to check in on your journies in the morning, I'm going to go pass out.

Vaze_06
01-27-09, 10:50 pm
nice, u deserve your rest bro! night sweetheart

shizz702
01-27-09, 10:56 pm
Killer session Matt! Way to jump right in on the rack pulls and the guns must have been pumped from running the rack like that!

Themostocles
01-27-09, 11:29 pm
I see pain in your future... god for you lol. -T.

blueIMlifter
01-27-09, 11:32 pm
good to see you getting back into it and starting to go heavy again. i can only imagine the pain from the insane amount of reps on curls.

Phil800101
01-28-09, 2:28 pm
Sick workout Matt! Looking strong there bro, and those dropsets/superset look as brutal as all hell.

mjsef88
01-28-09, 6:33 pm
very tired, very sore. Today was a rest day, and tomorrow will be more of the same. It's not the soreness, it's the chaos of school.

Lost ... er ... misplaced my knife today. I know it's home somewhere, but it could be buried in a snow pile from shoveling...

Thrawn
01-29-09, 5:33 am
I see you put some kg's again, Matt! Looking good! Puts a smile on my face to see you disrespect weights in this kind of fashion again! Hows the confidence right now (after your initial scare when you got injured)? Is it holding you back some or not? Just curious, as i am now in a similar position like you a few weeks ago. I will go back on iron roster next week and i am a bit tense about it.

Losing a knife is like a heartbreak... i hold my own custom Extrema Ratio Harpoon F very close. I have called her Julia; a fatal love =))

mjsef88
01-29-09, 8:29 am
I see you put some kg's again, Matt! Looking good! Puts a smile on my face to see you disrespect weights in this kind of fashion again! Hows the confidence right now (after your initial scare when you got injured)? Is it holding you back some or not? Just curious, as i am now in a similar position like you a few weeks ago. I will go back on iron roster next week and i am a bit tense about it.

Losing a knife is like a heartbreak... i hold my own custom Extrema Ratio Harpoon F very close. I have called her Julia; a fatal love =))

The first week I was nervous. Not really scared, just nervous. I knew that the weight wouldn't be heavy, but I was worried about form. You see, going too light is almost as bad as going too heavy. You get a wrong feel for any form, especially upon just returning.

After the first week I've been fine. You will be too.

...on the knife story....

I can't remember the last day I DIDN'T use a knife. That's the kind of useage it gets from me. I have some nice survival/camping knives, but I don't carry those every day. My most recent one (and still is unless I really can't find it) is a Gerber ....eh.... forget, but it looks just like a Columbia CRKT. Now I'm looking into getting a KaBar TDI.

My rule: Has to keep a sharp edge (I had a great grandfather that taught me ALOT about knives. I still have his (plus) 100 year old sharpening stones that he had when he was a kid.

...and it has to be under 50USD. Because that way I don't feel bad if and when it breaks/gets lost.

That harpoon is a badass knife. Were you in the service? I remember some time ago something about you and the Dutch Marines...

ghost
01-29-09, 8:38 am
Ka-bar Ftw!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Phil800101
01-29-09, 1:57 pm
Sucks about the knife bro. Rest up and grow my man.

mjsef88
01-29-09, 9:36 pm
REST

Didn't intend on it being a rest day, but that is how it went. Drove my grandmother to the lawyer to act on my father's behalf signing wills/etc.

Then I went shooting. and had some kickass pizza at Rcrott1's after said shooting. I ordered a new knife. I just decided why not have another if/when I DO find my knife.

Tomorrow will be a lifting day, as well as Saturday. I think I'll need a break from the books sometime. I have a Bio lecture exam Monday, a Chem lecture exam Tuesday, a Bio Lab exam Wednesday and a Chem lab exam Wednesday. This is the only time this semester that they all fall on the same week, and lucky for me I'm just starting the semester so it's all review stuff anyways.

I ended up buying a Spyderco incase anyone was wondering.

LittleMan55
01-29-09, 9:56 pm
Rest days even if unplanned are a benefit sometimes.

Thrawn
01-30-09, 5:01 am
The first week I was nervous. Not really scared, just nervous. I knew that the weight wouldn't be heavy, but I was worried about form. You see, going too light is almost as bad as going too heavy. You get a wrong feel for any form, especially upon just returning.

After the first week I've been fine. You will be too.

...on the knife story....

I can't remember the last day I DIDN'T use a knife. That's the kind of useage it gets from me. I have some nice survival/camping knives, but I don't carry those every day. My most recent one (and still is unless I really can't find it) is a Gerber ....eh.... forget, but it looks just like a Columbia CRKT. Now I'm looking into getting a KaBar TDI.

My rule: Has to keep a sharp edge (I had a great grandfather that taught me ALOT about knives. I still have his (plus) 100 year old sharpening stones that he had when he was a kid.

...and it has to be under 50USD. Because that way I don't feel bad if and when it breaks/gets lost.

That harpoon is a badass knife. Were you in the service? I remember some time ago something about you and the Dutch Marines...

Hmmm, guess i feel the same. I did not really know the right word for it. Scared is not the word, but precarious? Nervous? A bit on edge? That is how i feel about going back in next week. It will be fine tho. I am not going to stay on the safe side for too long. I will not add a lot of weight, but i will go for compounds the minute i am warmed up. See what it all feels like. Aint nothing to it but to do it.
The Harpoon really IS a beast. It was not under 50 dollars tho =) Especially not since it is a custom one. I have the FIRST Harpoon F with a serrated edge and a different grip. Now Extrema ratio has launched the Harpoon II and yup, it features all the stuff i added on my version =). It cost me around 350 euros.
I used to be in service, yes, The Royal Dutch Marines.

mjsef88
01-30-09, 2:18 pm
unfortunate rest. work is chaotic. really chaotic. After I get out of here I need to run to three banks, two of my own and one of my employers. fuuuuuuun. I have no energy for weights today. I'm going to make the smart call and scrap today instead of halfassing it.

I'm looking forward to Snatch and legs tomorrow.

Phil800101
01-30-09, 5:03 pm
Good call bro. Good luck with all the tests...KILL IT TOMORROW!

mjsef88
01-31-09, 11:44 am
Snatch:
10-15 singles at 109lbs. Form was good and tight. I think I may do some overload training by hitting these up again a little heavier on Monday.

Rest Pause Squats:
5 x 5 at 135lbs for a 5 mississippi count

Done.

Back to studying.

Phil800101
02-01-09, 12:44 pm
Killer session Matt! Good luck with the tests.

Vaze_06
02-01-09, 4:18 pm
damn bro, u already have test?! though i do have some pain in the ass quizzes.... hmmm hopefully u're still in one piece fucker =p

Themostocles
02-02-09, 1:31 am
Nice work. Good luck with the studying, hope life settles down abit for you

mjsef88
02-02-09, 7:20 am
Killer session Matt! Good luck with the tests.

Thanks man! Kill it in the gym and kill it in the classroom....uh....wait....I didn't say anythign about killing and school. That's not PC.


damn bro, u already have test?! though i do have some pain in the ass quizzes.... hmmm hopefully u're still in one piece fucker =p

Lady I already have lab practicals. Shit sux. Good luck with your quizzes.


Nice work. Good luck with the studying, hope life settles down abit for you

Thanks buddy but I don't hope it settles down. That means I either quit something or got fired. I just hope I find a balance. And I shouldn't complain so much, I really am getting starting to get into a groove now.

On tap for today:
Saturdays workout.

mjsef88
02-02-09, 1:14 pm
Snatch:
99lbs/109lbs x a few singles, tripples and doubles. I don't know how many times, a good 20 minutes. Saturday I had a hard time watching myself to make sure I was doing it right. Had the same problem at the start. Closed my eyes for the last 10 minute bout. Went purely off of feeling. I didn't fall or have to bail, so I think I did alright haha.

Incline DB Press: modified 5x5
40lbs x 5, 45lbs x 5, 50lbs x 5, 55lbs x 5, 60lbs x 5

Pec Deck: 1/2 stack x 8 x 3 sets

I think I'm going to stick with the modified 5x5 on the core movements for the rest of this week.

Phil800101
02-02-09, 1:53 pm
Sick workout bro! Sounds like a plan with the core work.

Themostocles
02-03-09, 2:06 am
I love working with a 5x5 rep/set. Lets you really get some good weight while still getting a pump and burn. -T.

mjsef88
02-03-09, 8:32 pm
Well, tonight was going to be unexpected rest...

4 1/2 hour lab today. Took my test, then the prof said "you can either do your lab today and stay late or do two next week in the span of one lab". Bastard. Decided to nip it in the bud today, because next week's lab looks rough.

So, in the 45 minute break I had between class, I got some grub.

Got to fencing. Coach goes "you all suck at staying in the squat position, so we're going to the weight room". Good. We didn't even dress in fencing gear, just lifted. "To those of you who know what you're doing, go do it, everyone else can do what I'm doing". Awesome, legs it was...

Front squats as a warmup:
135lbs x 5 x 5 sets

Light leg extensions:
90 lbs x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5

Squats: Now, I'll admit I let my ego get the best of me tonight. I haven't barbell back squatted in a long time, but 135lbs has been too easy and I miss heavy weights. Plus I was in my Yellow Iconic Animal tee...

Ass to grass squats

135lbs x 3 ...my two buddies dropped out after this point. They don't really work out...
185lbs x 3
225lbs x 1
265lbs x 1 ...at this point the class kind of stopped and just watched. to be honest I didn't think the weight was that big a deal.
315lbs x 1 only a shitty old belt. Again the class just stopped and watched. I was fired up, and the cute Irish girl was watching. Got down, paused for about 3-4 seconds. Thought about bailing out after 2. Took a deep breath, exploded.

I felt good. My legs feel good. I can't wait until tomorrow morning.

shizz702
02-03-09, 8:43 pm
Fuck yea way to hit them wheels Matt! Can't believe you're still squatting 3 pies like that even after such a long lay off and having not gone heavy in so long. Lol bet your coach won't be saying anything to you about having trouble in the squat position now ;)

mjsef88
02-03-09, 9:50 pm
Fuck yea way to hit them wheels Matt! Can't believe you're still squatting 3 pies like that even after such a long lay off and having not gone heavy in so long. Lol bet your coach won't be saying anything to you about having trouble in the squat position now ;)

It was awesome, there was speed metal and the coach was really supportive. He actually spotted me.

To be absolutely upfront and honest, I don't think I'll hit 315 for a while again. It was just one of those "all the stars aligned and god decided to not shit on me" moments.

Vaze_06
02-03-09, 10:17 pm
nice, very nice

Themostocles
02-04-09, 1:45 am
Tell me more about the cute irish girl lol... Nothing like getting an impromptu leg day

Thrawn
02-04-09, 5:02 am
Congrats Matt! Sometimes ego does that and lets you cut loose a bit =)) And when 'the stars are alligned' (as you say it), why not?
Nice workout, big man!
Just between you and me? I KNOW i will be powercleaning again this week. It will be lightweight, but my back feels fine so far.
Just to keep you on your toes, brother =))

mjsef88
02-04-09, 7:27 am
nice, very nice

thanks lady. How have classes been for you so far?


Tell me more about the cute irish girl lol... Nothing like getting an impromptu leg day

a super cutie who I was paired up with for some training exercises two weeks ago. She wasn't there last week, but was back this week. Shit kinda sucked though when I walked by after class and said "see you next week" she just kind of looked at me like WTF?!

I'm chalking it up to just suprizing her because her back was turned. haha.


Congrats Matt! Sometimes ego does that and lets you cut loose a bit =)) And when 'the stars are alligned' (as you say it), why not?
Nice workout, big man!
Just between you and me? I KNOW i will be powercleaning again this week. It will be lightweight, but my back feels fine so far.
Just to keep you on your toes, brother =))

I'll be looking forward to seeing how you do. Take care of business big guy!

Themostocles
02-04-09, 7:29 am
Watch those irish girls Matt, cute as hell and couple probably rule there too

ghost
02-04-09, 10:13 am
should have called, i would have come out and done em with ya.....

LittleMan55
02-04-09, 10:32 am
Great leg work!

mjsef88
02-04-09, 3:01 pm
Watch those irish girls Matt, cute as hell and couple probably rule there too

haha like I said, I got pseduo-shot down, but there's always next week.


should have called, i would have come out and done em with ya.....

If the phone wasn't charging in the car, brother. Next time if it happens, I'll call.


Great leg work!

Thanks Broc!

blueIMlifter
02-04-09, 10:04 pm
so im most likely gonna be making it to the arnold...it wasnt looking for awhile but i think im gonna manage to get myself down there. i'll be coming down with ben and hasan (2 guys that lifted with me before). we should definitely hang out/lift while we're down in columbus.

mjsef88
02-05-09, 7:35 am
so im most likely gonna be making it to the arnold...it wasnt looking for awhile but i think im gonna manage to get myself down there. i'll be coming down with ben and hasan (2 guys that lifted with me before). we should definitely hang out/lift while we're down in columbus.

nope. I was planning on totally avoiding you....haha dude seriously? Ofcourse we'll be hanging out for a good chunk. And we have to show the others how the Detroit boys sling some iron.

B Con
02-05-09, 7:43 am
Just saw this and am definitely SUBBED. Damn what a leg workout!

blueIMlifter
02-05-09, 10:33 am
nope. I was planning on totally avoiding you....haha dude seriously? Ofcourse we'll be hanging out for a good chunk. And we have to show the others how the Detroit boys sling some iron.

lol nice. im pretty pumped cause last year was insane. when it gets closer i'll drop you my number so we can get ahold of each other (i have rob's #, but nobody wants to talk to him.......kidding of course)

ghost
02-05-09, 10:37 am
lol nice. im pretty pumped cause last year was insane. when it gets closer i'll drop you my number so we can get ahold of each other (i have rob's #, but nobody wants to talk to him.......kidding of course)

HAHAHA, no... matt and my wife are pretty much the only people that bother calling/txting me. -shrug.

mjsef88
02-05-09, 1:46 pm
HAHAHA, no... matt and my wife are pretty much the only people that bother calling/txting me. -shrug.

Aren't they the same person? Ba-dum-bum-CHA

...seriously though, I'd be the man.

...seriously though, I need to stop this. Ignore it all.

Thursday Febuary 6, 2009

Back and bis

Deads (RAW): 135lbs x 5, 225lbs x 3, 285lbs x 1, 315lbs x 1, 365lbs x 1 (PR, I'm calling it this, because I have no recolection of ever pulling that much totally raw)

Wide Grip Pulldowns: 150lbs x 5 x 5 sets
Low Cable Rows: 120lbs x 5 x 5 sets

HS Preacher curls: 45lbs x pain x 5 sets

Now it's time to go SHOOTING!

LittleMan55
02-05-09, 1:50 pm
Damn good work! 365 raw is a solid pull...

ghost
02-05-09, 1:52 pm
Thursday Febuary 6, 2009

Back and bis

Deads (RAW): 135lbs x 5, 225lbs x 3, 285lbs x 1, 315lbs x 1, 365lbs x 1 (PR, I'm calling it this, because I have no recolection of ever pulling that much totally raw)

Wide Grip Pulldowns: 150lbs x 5 x 5 sets
Low Cable Rows: 120lbs x 5 x 5 sets

HS Preacher curls: 45lbs x pain x 5 sets

Now it's time to go SHOOTING!

365? I know you have pulled raw higher than that. I can fuckin get 395 raw, i know you can too.

mjsef88
02-05-09, 1:55 pm
365? I know you have pulled raw higher than that. I can fuckin get 395 raw, i know you can too.

Well...I can't really remember. Also, I'm just getting back into heavy lifting from a 7-8 week layover.

Also, just because I'm getting off the computer/phone and will be out of contact...

Korey cannot find any .40 s&w, and I just bought the last box of 50 Stinger .22lr. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is happening to all of the ammo in Michigan?

ghost
02-05-09, 2:01 pm
Well...I can't really remember. Also, I'm just getting back into heavy lifting from a 7-8 week layover.

Also, just because I'm getting off the computer/phone and will be out of contact...

Korey cannot find any .40 s&w, and I just bought the last box of 50 Stinger .22lr. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is happening to all of the ammo in Michigan?

It's michigan. michigan sucks. tell korey to buy at Delta Alpha. tell him i said Golf Foxtrot Yankee. :)

mjsef88
02-05-09, 8:17 pm
Tomorrow: Clean and Jerk at 0530hrs.

I can't think of anything better to be doing on a Friday morning.

This is it for this week. Shoulders and Tris were intentionally left out of the lifting rotation this week, I want to push tomorrow, hard. Time to jump into the deep end.

mjsef88
02-05-09, 9:14 pm
Dinner Nook:

Eh, I don’t know what to chalk this one up as. It’s not directly training related.

In FOUR weeks from today, right now, at the time of writing this (Thursday at 8:43pm), I will be in a gym in Columbus. I’ve never been to the Cage, the expo, or even the state (outside of just driving through). Excited isn’t even one of the words on my mind. There has to be a better word than just “excited”.

We’re all guilty of it. That sense of self inflation when we look in a mirror or stand next to a skinny guy. Hey, it’s good to be big. But can you imagine ALL of us, in one place, CAGED IN together. No matter how much we want to say we’re friends, how we’re a brotherhood, March 5th-8th is one gigantic pissing contest. And I’m here to say that it’s alright. Pros, godfathers and founders will be rubbing elbows with guys like me, and most likely, you too. All of that raw energy, let loose on some poor gym. I personally don’t really plan on bringing any other clothing except for my Iconic tees, and maybe a black T if I can find one. I’m not just excited, I’m so excited that I have to make up a word to express my excitement. I’m megaultrastoked for the weekend.

But, as we all collide together, I still can’t help but feel like an outsider. Two main reasons.

One, I’m an Olympic lifter. While you guys are benching and curling, I’ll be looking for the oldest, rusted out plates and the shittiest bar to train some Snatch. That way if I have to bail out, I won’t get bitched at for damaging the new equipment (one thing all OLY lifters are plagued with if there aren’t bumper plates lying around).

Two, I keep myself in a bubble while on the Forvm. Intentionally. I’ve tried to help, but like Ron White said, you just can’t fix stupid. Ignorance and stupidity have a low flashpoint for me. I guess you can say I’m racist towards ignorance, and it certainly isn’t bliss. I’ve come to know a handful of people here, and they are amazing people. But, this is why I feel like an outsider, I’m not a random poster here, just asking questions and trying to get free shit, but I’m not topping the post count and making my username known, either. I’m that in between guy. I like being a bushwacker and a jack of all trades. For reasons why I won’t say, the nickname has really turned into a deeper, personal meaning for me. Maybe some day when I feel all “emotional” or some shit I’ll write about that.

My training schedule for the Cage ABC’s is as follows:
Thrusday night: Don’t know just yet. May just do a bit of everything
Friday Night: Clean and Jerks. Heavy and Hard
Saturday Night: Snatch. Heavier and Harder still.
Sunday I have to peace out from C-Bus, as I have class Monday morning at 0830hrs.

This brings me to my next point, and I think it’s the most important. There is so much more to life than just weightlifting. If you think that I’m wrong, then you’re ignorant, and I hate you (that was said in a semi-joking manner. If I was speaking, I’d pause for laughs)

I want to get some personalities. I want to pick Phil’s brain about his AK. Talk to Broc about … well … he’ll be interning, so he’ll be batshit busy. But you get my point. We’re not just meatheads. But, like the yang to my anti-lifting talk yin, we are meeting for a WEIGHTLIFTING expo. Do I want to sling a lot of weight, fucking right I do. Am I worried about my physique not being prime and ready to go, of course, we’ll all be judging each other, even if with good intentions in mind.

And as I’m coming up on a 700 word count with real not point or purpose, I’ll end it right there. There is a point and even a purpose to this weekend, and hey, it’s even a good one. I’m just trying to not lose my perspective while getting caught up in the whirlwind.

TL;DR: Cage is going to rock my socks.

Final word: Don’t get me wrong, I really am very, very megaultrastoked for the Cage, and weightlifting, and meeting people. I really am. But I don’t want to just like the cage because everyone else is losing their minds over it. I need to experience it for myself (don’t worry corporate, I’m not doubting you for one second).

Final, Final edit: And don't worry, I will have a full write up the night I get back home from Columbus.

B Con
02-06-09, 5:59 am
The Cage is definitely worth it. I look forward to meeting you there. I agree with you on there has to be a better word that "excited" to describe... it's just one of those things you need to experience, take in, and see. The whole atmosphere there is remarkable. But yes, I do believe there is so much more to life than lifting... :)

Congrats on that 365 pull... that's some solid ass work. Keep progressing big man.

mjsef88
02-06-09, 6:35 am
Clean and Jerk:
89lbs
155lbs
155lbs
175lbs
185lbs
185lbs
Shoulder said stop...so what do I do?

Just the jerk portion:
89lbs x 3 x 3 sets

Feels good, form felt solid.

mjsef88
02-06-09, 6:37 am
The Cage is definitely worth it. I look forward to meeting you there. I agree with you on there has to be a better word that "excited" to describe... it's just one of those things you need to experience, take in, and see. The whole atmosphere there is remarkable. But yes, I do believe there is so much more to life than lifting... :)

Congrats on that 365 pull... that's some solid ass work. Keep progressing big man.

While I don't doubt that the cage will be absolutely positively awesome, I just don't want to go in thinking the world of it without actually seeing it. I hope it is going to be like when I was in Colorado on vacation. Everybody said the mountains would be an eye opening experience. It was, by god it was.

Yes, I know it will be an experience of a lifetime, I just need to keep my heads out of the clouds for another month.

Looking forward to meeting you too big guy.

B Con
02-06-09, 7:31 am
While I don't doubt that the cage will be absolutely positively awesome, I just don't want to go in thinking the world of it without actually seeing it. I hope it is going to be like when I was in Colorado on vacation. Everybody said the mountains would be an eye opening experience. It was, by god it was.

Yes, I know it will be an experience of a lifetime, I just need to keep my heads out of the clouds for another month.

Looking forward to meeting you too big guy.

Agreed. Keep on the path and keep focused. Keep pounding away at it M.

Great clean and jerk day by the way. Solid.

mjsef88
02-07-09, 2:04 pm
Alright, the basic 5x5 went pretty good (i think) last week. I'm thinking dropsets this week.

Mon- Snatch, Shoulders, Traps
Tues- Back/Bis
Wed- Off
Thurs- Chest/Tris
Fri- Clean and Jerk/Legs

Do something like just use 25lbs plates and dropset down on everything. We'll see how this goes. All I know is that I need something to step up my intensity even more.

blueIMlifter
02-07-09, 11:53 pm
HAHAHA, no... matt and my wife are pretty much the only people that bother calling/txting me. -shrug.


Aren't they the same person? Ba-dum-bum-CHA

...seriously though, I'd be the man.

...seriously though, I need to stop this. Ignore it all.

Thursday Febuary 6, 2009

Back and bis

Deads (RAW): 135lbs x 5, 225lbs x 3, 285lbs x 1, 315lbs x 1, 365lbs x 1 (PR, I'm calling it this, because I have no recolection of ever pulling that much totally raw)

Wide Grip Pulldowns: 150lbs x 5 x 5 sets
Low Cable Rows: 120lbs x 5 x 5 sets

HS Preacher curls: 45lbs x pain x 5 sets

Now it's time to go SHOOTING!

haha nice guys. there should definitely be some good times that weekend. im looking forward to it.

mjsef88
02-09-09, 1:44 pm
Too many times school gets in the fucking way.

Training is off today. Prof decided to move up an exam, so I'm going to an "emergency" study session now, then to class from 6-10pm.

Looks like there's going to be a little bit of everything tomorrow at the gym. My time (again) will be short, so I'll just be focusing on main lifts. Get a pump, move some weight, move on.

This is the perfect week to double up OLY movements (e.g. snatch / clean and jerk) on the same day (Fri. Morning).

Adapt and Overcome.

Phil800101
02-09-09, 2:23 pm
Awesome sessions Matt! Looking strong there bro. Hope school is going well.

As for the ammo shortage, all over people are buying up alot of stuff in a panic. I'm sure that has alot to do with it.

I know you're going to love the Cage, and the whole expo weekend. Especially slinging the iron at Metro fitness. Looking forward to meeting you bro, I know we'll have alot to talk about that isn't related to lifting, lol.

Themostocles
02-10-09, 1:53 am
Good luck with the exam. And don't worry about missing a session, it sucks, but you get it when you can

mjsef88
02-10-09, 8:28 pm
Doubled up to make up for yesterday. ...kinda...

Chest:
HS Chest Press: 45lbs per side as a warmup x 25, 240lbs x 7 drop 190lbs x 7 drop 140lbs x 7 drop 90lbs x pain. x 3 sets

Low Incline DB Flys: 40lbs x 3, shoulder hurt, dropped weight. 30lbs x 12 dropset 25lbs x 10 x 3 sets

Back:

Deads (RAW): 135lbs x 5, 225lbs x 5, resetting after each rep (see note 1), 285lbs x 3 (again, note 1), 315lbs x 2 (again again, note 1), 365lbs x 1.

Burned, done.

Note 1: instead of doing continous reps, I would do one rep, stand up without the bar, reset and go. After 2 continous reps I would lose form, this is the way I will be doing my reps from now on. Try it, it's WAY more taxing.

Tomorrow is off. Fencing really kicked my ass tonight. Thursday will be shoulders and arms, followed by Cleans and Snatch on Friday. Cleans will count as both a leg workout and an OLY workout, as I'm going to go heavy.

Themostocles
02-11-09, 1:18 am
Like that rep style on the deads, might have to try that sometime. Hope the shoulder is alright.

Thrawn
02-11-09, 5:10 am
Outstanding work, Matt. And i hear ya on the deads form. I do them like that for a long time already. If i go for continuous reps on deads, i cannot do them in proper form if the weight goes above 70% of my max. I stick to singles also then.

Thrawn
02-11-09, 5:11 am
Cleans will count as both a leg workout and an OLY workout, as I'm going to go heavy.

Lets see what you got, brother! I think i can up the weight on them a notch again. Back is doing FINE sofar.

mjsef88
02-11-09, 6:14 pm
Molecular Biology Lecture got canceled today. Awesome. Went into work earlier, got out early. Got home and hung out. Did nothing. My chest is fried, my quads are demolished. Looking forward to some push jerks tomorrow.

Vaze_06
02-11-09, 6:16 pm
Molecular Biology Lecture got canceled today. Awesome. Went into work earlier, got out early. Got home and hung out. Did nothing. My chest is fried, my quads are demolished. Looking forward to some push jerks tomorrow.

poor lil guy.. no need to lie... i know how much u like bio!! :)
have fun

mjsef88
02-11-09, 6:18 pm
poor lil guy.. no need to lie... i know how much u like bio!! :)
have fun

That's chem, sweetheart.

Vaze_06
02-11-09, 6:19 pm
That's chem, sweetheart.

aaaaaaah.. u sure?
kk! u must know yourself better than me =p

shizz702
02-11-09, 6:30 pm
Doing your deads like that is the only way to pull brother! That's how I've always done mine. By doing it like that each rep is a "dead" lift.

B Con
02-12-09, 8:09 am
Always feels good when you get unexpected extra rest with a class being cancelled. Sounds like you definitely are putting in that work with the soreness in the chest and quads.

mjsef88
02-12-09, 1:49 pm
Get in, get out, get back to studying...

Push Press: 95lbs warmup, 135lbs x 5 x 3 sets, 155lbs x 2, 185lbs x 1, 205lbs x 1 x 2 sets
Seated Front Raise supersetted with Seated Lateral Raise, 25lbs x 8 drop 20lbs x 5 drop 15 x 12 (front raises then same number of reps for lateral, then the drop)

Hise Shrugs: 135lbs x 12 x 3 sets
DB Shrugs: 90lbs x 10, 95lbs x 8, 100lbs x 8

LittleMan55
02-12-09, 1:57 pm
Nice work! I know what it is like to have to be in and out because of studying. Just keep grinding.

Themostocles
02-13-09, 1:08 am
Great little session Matt. Now get back to studying. Have a great weekend bro

Thrawn
02-13-09, 4:54 am
Strong pushpresses, Matt! Well done!!
Good luck with the studies!

Thrawn
02-13-09, 5:51 am
Matt; question on the powercleans.
I dunno if what i did was correct, so i just ask my personal pro here =)
You told me that starting off the floor slow is the way to go and accelerate from knee upwards. I tried that out, and although that was hard, it worked. I think i bent my arms a bit too fast, but that is something i can work on.
What i noticed was this: as soon as i accelerated i found myself (or should i say felt myself) kinda whipping the weight up. I SUSPECT that this is NOT the way to do it. It felt kinda unnatural to me. But from what i see in vids of pro's, they do just that. So i am a bit puzzled.
Can you enlighten the brother here?
If you do not understand what i try to say here, i can have a vid taken.

mjsef88
02-13-09, 6:37 am
Clean and Jerk:
99lbs
155lbs
175lbs
185lbs bailed out while in the hole. Reset, hit it solid
Shoulder said stop, especially after yesterday

Snatch:
99lbs x 3 singles. I had a hard time adjusting mindsets and form switching between the two. Decided to scrap it while I was still alive and move on, making a note to re-hit the Snatch on Monday.

V-Bar Tricep Pressdowns: 40lbs x 15 ss w./ 60lbs x 15 dropset 40lbs x 15 x 2 sets

HS Preacher Curls: 50lbs x 15 dropset to 25lbs x 30 ss w./ 50lbs x 3. Sick pump.




Matt; question on the powercleans.
I dunno if what i did was correct, so i just ask my personal pro here =)
You told me that starting off the floor slow is the way to go and accelerate from knee upwards. I tried that out, and although that was hard, it worked. I think i bent my arms a bit too fast, but that is something i can work on.
What i noticed was this: as soon as i accelerated i found myself (or should i say felt myself) kinda whipping the weight up. I SUSPECT that this is NOT the way to do it. It felt kinda unnatural to me. But from what i see in vids of pro's, they do just that. So i am a bit puzzled.
Can you enlighten the brother here?
If you do not understand what i try to say here, i can have a vid taken.

I completely understand what you're saying. It's just one of those wierd feelings that we have to get used to. The way to work on it is simple: Lower the weight, get in the stance. Approach the bar like normal and start the lift (remember it should be slow). When you get to your knees, COMPLETELY STOP! Pause there for a good 3 seconds, then try to rip the bar up and through your face. ...duck... (squat), and there you go. Put a little bit of fear in you, a heavy bar flying at your face.

hopefully that helps, it's what helped me. Now ofcourse, the bar wont be at your face, you still want to keep that part of the movement and form like normal, but it's always good to have that mentality. If you could, take videos of everything, even if you don't post them up. It's good to watch yourself. Believe me, if I could I would tape every one of my lifts.


Strong pushpresses, Matt! Well done!!
Good luck with the studies!

Thanks again! I'm in this inbetween peroid where I don't have any exams for about 3 weeks, but I still need to keep up.


Great little session Matt. Now get back to studying. Have a great weekend bro

Thanks man, enjoy your weekend too!


Nice work! I know what it is like to have to be in and out because of studying. Just keep grinding.

Shit sucks, but what can we do. I just remind myself that you're class schedule is WAY harder and you're getting it done.

Thrawn
02-13-09, 6:49 am
Much appreciated, my friend! It appears that i am doing it proper after all, but its just a 'feel' that i am not used to. Thats allright, nothing i cant handle. The stop method you describe is sound pretty hard and spartan. I like that. Will give it a whirl.

Vaze_06
02-13-09, 9:10 am
nice session sweetie, hopefully u get time to breath during the weekend ;p

NJC_Manhattan
02-13-09, 9:12 am
Nice cleans and jerks man. Youre killing it in there

mjsef88
02-13-09, 5:50 pm
Much appreciated, my friend! It appears that i am doing it proper after all, but its just a 'feel' that i am not used to. Thats allright, nothing i cant handle. The stop method you describe is sound pretty hard and spartan. I like that. Will give it a whirl.

They are most brutal! Just remember to keep your back squared away and you'll be fine.


nice session sweetie, hopefully u get time to breath during the weekend ;p

Thats the plan. This coming week is going to suck hard, so I'm trying to relax as much as possible over the next 60 hours.


Nice cleans and jerks man. Youre killing it in there

Hey thanks for stopping by!

mjsef88
02-13-09, 6:43 pm
I want everybody somewhat involved in the Olympic style movements to watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd1LSZfVBtY&feature=related

She has probably been promoted to my favorite weightlifter. Around 30 seconds in she completely MASTERS hand movement to the jerk position. Even though she bails, later on in the vid she does it, AGAIN, perfectly, and even keeps her lateral balance.

Thrawn, you've noticed me flipping my hands one hand at a time in some of my videos. This movement is what we need to learn how to do. I've actually never seen it done quite like that before.

Can't wait to hit up some Clean and Jerks next Friday.

shizz702
02-13-09, 7:38 pm
Nice work Matt, 205 is a strong push press and I'm glad to seeing you back to doing what you do best, the oly lifts. That female weightlifter had impeccable form and I love the way she "bounced" off her upper chest and shoulders and caught it thumbs under like that. Very nice technique and I'd assume much be more efficient for the jerk like that. I'll have to keep that in mind next time I give those a go.

Thrawn
02-14-09, 8:39 am
I want everybody somewhat involved in the Olympic style movements to watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd1LSZfVBtY&feature=related

She has probably been promoted to my favorite weightlifter. Around 30 seconds in she completely MASTERS hand movement to the jerk position. Even though she bails, later on in the vid she does it, AGAIN, perfectly, and even keeps her lateral balance.

Thrawn, you've noticed me flipping my hands one hand at a time in some of my videos. This movement is what we need to learn how to do. I've actually never seen it done quite like that before.

Can't wait to hit up some Clean and Jerks next Friday.

Talk about inspiration... Awesome job, i wouldnt mind giving her my Animal shirt of my back. Hard time to study this, it happens pretty fast for a noob like me, but i like a challenge. Lets see if i can incorporate that too.
I also like the way i can see she is also nicely 'slow' off the floor, then when she hits knee height she really throws it up. Impressive.

mjsef88
02-15-09, 9:35 am
Alright let's figure this out:

This weeks training:

Monday- Snatch, Legs
Tuesday- Chest, Shoulders, Bis, Tris
Wednesday- Out, too much going on with school/work to get to the gym, all in all I'm looking at 14 hours of school related things (classes, meetings and study sessions....fun).
Thursday- Out, too much personal stuff going on that day.
Friday- Clean and Jerk, Back
Saturday- rest
Sunday-rest

Does this make sense? Did I miss anything?

Vaze_06
02-15-09, 10:39 am
Alright let's figure this out:

This weeks training:

Monday- Snatch, Legs
Tuesday- Chest, Shoulders, Bis, Tris
Wednesday- Out, too much going on with school/work to get to the gym, all in all I'm looking at 14 hours of school related things (classes, meetings and study sessions....fun).
Thursday- Out, too much personal stuff going on that day.
Friday- Clean and Jerk, Back
Saturday- rest
Sunday-rest

Does this make sense? Did I miss anything?

u also have a pair of calves and abs.. lol
makes a lot sense, have fun?! =p

mjsef88
02-15-09, 10:42 am
u also have a pair of calves and abs.. lol
makes a lot sense, have fun?! =p

Calves have intentionally been left out. Fencing has put a large strain on them. Think shin splints but worse. I'm working with my coach to find a good combination between support and a change in stance to fix it.

Abs get hit up every other morning with calistenics and whatnot, I just havn't been posting up those morning workouts up on here.

Vaze_06
02-15-09, 12:28 pm
Calves have intentionally been left out. Fencing has put a large strain on them. Think shin splints but worse. I'm working with my coach to find a good combination between support and a change in stance to fix it.

Abs get hit up every other morning with calistenics and whatnot, I just havn't been posting up those morning workouts up on here.

sounds good to me
have a nice week sweetie

Thrawn
02-15-09, 5:24 pm
Looking good to me, brother. Grip and RIP.

MRoush
02-15-09, 5:51 pm
That's what I call a solid week Matt! Hit it hard and don't look back.

We are going out of town this weekend, so I have to miss 2 workout sessions. Needless to say, I am a little bummed. Might have to sneak one in on one of my normal rest days.

mjsef88
02-15-09, 5:55 pm
sounds good to me
have a nice week sweetie

hey you too


Looking good to me, brother. Grip and RIP.

That's the plan.


That's what I call a solid week Matt! Hit it hard and don't look back.

We are going out of town this weekend, so I have to miss 2 workout sessions. Needless to say, I am a little bummed. Might have to sneak one in on one of my normal rest days.

Hey take the rest! You've been working hard, you deserve a break!

mjsef88
02-15-09, 8:29 pm
Also:

I've hit what some would call "Writers Block". I'm turning to you, the leigon, to help me out with some ideas for future Dinner Nooks.

shizz702
02-15-09, 8:32 pm
Also:

I've hit what some would call "Writers Block". I'm turning to you, the leigon, to help me out with some ideas for future Dinner Nooks.

How bout something comparing all the different aspects of our sport: weightlifing, powerlifting, and bodybuidling?

Themostocles
02-16-09, 1:45 am
How bout something comparing all the different aspects of our sport: weightlifing, powerlifting, and bodybuidling?

And how they overlap and add to each other. Kick ass this week Matt.

mjsef88
02-16-09, 10:57 am
I feel like absolute hell. Got maybe 2 or 3 hours of good sleep. Can't keep anything down and I'm freezing.

Went to the gym anyway. Tried to do chest, but it just wasn't happening. Decided to listen.

Active stretching: 40 minutes
Shoulder Rehab: 20 minutes
Sauna: 30 minutes

Felt great.

Now I'm going to go sit in a hot shower and try and clear myself up, maybe try the whole food thing again.

I get this sickness off and on around this time of year, constant weather changes fucks me up. If it's anything like it normally is (and it feels like it), I'll be fine tomorrow. Just means it's time for a double session. I decided last week to not do any deadlifting this week anyways, so I should have no problem hitting up chest, back and arms. Save OLYs and legs for Friday. It works out, because like I mentioned last week, I need to work on switching mindsets between the two olympic lifts.

It just sucks missing a workout for something so stupid as not having an extra blanket when I went to bed last night.

Phil800101
02-16-09, 1:38 pm
Sick sessions Matt! Keep up the great work.

Hope you feel better soon bro, I feel shitty today too.

mjsef88
02-16-09, 9:15 pm
So this week the universe is against me. Between class, labs, work, personal matters and not feeling 100 percent, I'm making the executive decision to take this week off. My head hasn't been in the gym. I need to refocus and prepair myself for the ARNOLD.

Vaze_06
02-16-09, 9:23 pm
So this week the universe is against me. Between class, labs, work, personal matters and not feeling 100 percent, I'm making the executive decision to take this week off. My head hasn't been in the gym. I need to refocus and prepair myself for the ARNOLD.

enjoy the rest, time for u to get some good night of sleep

Themostocles
02-17-09, 1:42 am
I hope you aren't as sick as I was/am. A week off is probably the best medicine, rest up and feel better Matt

B Con
02-17-09, 5:29 am
I was sick last week so I know how you feel. Get plenty of rest and push the fluids... don't worry about the gym until you feel 100%. I wish you a speedy recovery M.

ghost
02-17-09, 10:06 am
So this week the universe is against me. Between class, labs, work, personal matters and not feeling 100 percent, I'm making the executive decision to take this week off. My head hasn't been in the gym. I need to refocus and prepair myself for the ARNOLD.

get over to the house tonight if you want. you and i are going to kill some fucking weights.

LittleMan55
02-17-09, 10:12 am
Hope you get to feeling better soon. Rest up and get them fluids in.

mjsef88
02-17-09, 8:58 pm
Woke up, vomited, tried to down a shake, vomited, drove to class, vomited (on the road, at a red light, opened up the door and puked, shut the door, woman in the Jetta next to me was horrified), sat through class, suprizingly did not vomit. Barely made it through lab, vomited afterwards. Slept in my car for 2 hours at my grandma's. She made me chicken noodle soup. It would be a great insult to throw up Gram's soup, so I held that shit down. I love her for that. Went to fencing. Survived, got home and tried making a shake again.

40g of whey, 1 cup of ground up oats, 2% milk, held it down. That has been my diet for today, ontop of alot of water. Tomorrow I'll introduce OJ (the acid has not played out well). Also, havn't been sleeping (as usual). Test in bio tomorrow, fun shit, I'm glad it's on the shit that's been drilled into my head from 7th grade up to now.

I think today is going to be the worst day. I'm off for tonight though, I'm going to try to sleep. Come hell or high water I'll be back to 100% by next week's first training session.

Thanks for the support guys!

Firedrake
02-17-09, 9:00 pm
Take care of yourself! I swear, almost everyone on the board has had some form of this -- are you sure it's not a computer virus? *grin*

mjsef88
02-17-09, 9:22 pm
Slept in my car for 2 hours at my grandma's.

It should also be noted that i slept in a BED at my grandma's, not in my truck....

blueIMlifter
02-17-09, 11:10 pm
It should also be noted that i slept in a BED at my grandma's, not in my truck....

lol that would be taking hardcore to a new level.

do whatever u gotta do to rest up so you can bring your "A" game for the Arnold.

Themostocles
02-18-09, 1:35 am
Good luck on your test and feel better Matt

mjsef88
02-18-09, 10:25 am
Take care of yourself! I swear, almost everyone on the board has had some form of this -- are you sure it's not a computer virus? *grin*

it's the shit weather here in Michigan. Cold winter to 45 and sunny down to 17 and windy back up to 30 and snowy and now it's 40ish and raining.


It should also be noted that i slept in a BED at my grandma's, not in my truck....


lol that would be taking hardcore to a new level.

do whatever u gotta do to rest up so you can bring your "A" game for the Arnold.

That would be hardcore. I think I could be on my deathbed and still absorb the surrounding energy to put up sick numbers at the Arnold ABCs.


Good luck on your test and feel better Matt

done and working on it. Thanks.

.....

Bio lecture test: done
Bio lab: still to go, starts in 15, goes for 2 hours
THEN
back to Chem lab to finish up my lab. I was granted a pass for the second part, but that's what we'll be tested on, so I kind of have to go in.

Was able to hold down a shake and cup of coffee this morning, that's a plus. I've also been drinking shit tons of OJ and taking 2 paks, makes for expensive pee. I am starting to feel better though. AND AND AND, I finally slept for more than 4 hours last night, so Vaze you can shut up. :)

shizz702
02-18-09, 10:32 am
Damn Matt hope you get well soon brotha. I give you credit though cause you are definitely taking it in stride and still doing what you got to do. Way to hold it down and not let that sickness get the best of you.

mjsef88
02-19-09, 8:27 am
Thanks Shizz.

....

Today is busy, but it's personal business. There is a big difference between being sick and doing things that you're told to do (e.g. school) and things that you want to do (errands and such).

Pointless, hour and a half lecture this morning, then taking care of things until about 5 or 6, then hitting the rack again. Got about 8 hours last night, felt good. I'm not having a food problem (been able to hold down food since last evening). I think this shit is rounding a corner.

ghost
02-19-09, 8:30 am
glad to see it is finishing its run on you brother. see u at DA at 1530 hrs.

MRoush
02-19-09, 8:40 am
Hope the feeling of wellnessness continues to stick with you Matt. Sucks that you can't do what you know you have to when you are sick, but that is just your body telling you to take a break for a while. You'll be back there in no time!

Vaze_06
02-19-09, 4:32 pm
Bio lecture test: done
Bio lab: still to go, starts in 15, goes for 2 hours
THEN
back to Chem lab to finish up my lab. I was granted a pass for the second part, but that's what we'll be tested on, so I kind of have to go in.

Was able to hold down a shake and cup of coffee this morning, that's a plus. I've also been drinking shit tons of OJ and taking 2 paks, makes for expensive pee. I am starting to feel better though. AND AND AND, I finally slept for more than 4 hours last night, so Vaze you can shut up. :)

ah, i know u killed bio....
well... no.... 5h isnt enough for me
tho u dont seem to like my facebook messages fucker :)

mjsef88
02-19-09, 6:43 pm
Could eat, couldn't sleep, could drink (4ish gal. of liquids), didn't throw up. Good day.

Tomorrow is work, and even though it starts early, should be an easyish rest up day. Saturday I have nothing going on, and will not set an alarm.

I'm sorry I havn't had time to check up on you all. I'll get around to it soon.

Vaze_06
02-19-09, 7:21 pm
Could eat, couldn't sleep, could drink (4ish gal. of liquids), didn't throw up. Good day.

Tomorrow is work, and even though it starts early, should be an easyish rest up day. Saturday I have nothing going on, and will not set an alarm.

I'm sorry I havn't had time to check up on you all. I'll get around to it soon.

hey, at least u are still in one piece ;p and almost the weekend. u'll make it
ill be online tonight, if u need me ......

mjsef88
02-20-09, 2:17 pm
Work work work work. Got so busy I called Rcrott1 to come help out. That was fun, well...more fun than it would have been just by myself.

Unfortunately the job didn't get done, so we have to go back on Monday. I'll be moving Monday's workout to this Sunday. Don't know what I'm doing yet. Have to start planning for lifting at the Arnold.

Phil800101
02-20-09, 9:07 pm
Sorry to hear you're feeling shitty bro, but good call on taking a break from the gym. Glad to see you're feeling better though.

mjsef88
02-22-09, 1:00 pm
Dinner Nook: Call This Whatever You Want.

…to be fair, I’m not even sure that this is really a Dinner Nook. I’m not describing anything, I’m not brining up a new aspect of anything, I’m not even really talking about lifting in general.

I am coming into the Arnold in quite possibly the worst condition I’ve ever been in since I’ve picked up a weight. Late 2008 and early 2009 have had me in a funk. I’ve been riddled with injuries, sickness, and a lot of personal things that get in the way (see: Classes).

I am optimistic. I need a kick in the ass. I feel confident. I feel confident because, knowing that I am currently in the worst shape that I’ve been in a while, I still look good, have still kept mass, and right now feel like my numbers have not suffered THAT much.

I’ll be honest. Since the beginning of this semester, I’ve had opportunities to get into the gym, and have intentionally skipped them. I’ve been exhausted, sick, busy, etc, but I could always say that I’ve never skipped a workout, just rearrange them in my split. I’ve skipped a couple times, and I’m not concerned. Life lessons, is all.

I know I’m blatantly contradicting myself from my last write up. I’m so stoked for the Arnold. I’m watching the guy who I’d consider to be my American Coach in OLY lifting put up some numbers in the Masters Class on Friday night. I may be doing some work for my Fencing coach throughout the weekend (if they don’t have another tournament, I find out Tuesday). And, I’m looking forward to seeing all of you, in person. Following your logs is one thing, but meeting you is quite another. I’ll get to see first hand all of the progress you’ve made. We’ll talk, and we’ll subconsciously compare each other to ourselves, and that will be alright, it’s in good spirits. I’ll see you guys, and I’ll use that as my drive for next year.

Can’t wait to sling some weight at the ABCs. Thursday, Friday and Saturday night I expect to go to the brink of hell and back. Rcrott1 and I have this way of pushing each other when we’re training together. I can’t wait to see that energy in front of (and with) the Legion.

“Bigger than yesterday, smaller than tomorrow” –G Diesel

Vaze_06
02-22-09, 3:03 pm
our life isnt all about weights.... as much it might important and everything. u also need a break from them... nothing bad in ''skipping'' lol
imo u have done a pretty damn good job working out everything. i prolly would have been died by now (still need to work on my less than 6h of sleep =p)
have fun at the Arnold

Firedrake
02-22-09, 9:33 pm
Work work work work. Got so busy I called Rcrott1 to come help out. That was fun, well...more fun than it would have been just by myself.

Unfortunately the job didn't get done, so we have to go back on Monday. I'll be moving Monday's workout to this Sunday. Don't know what I'm doing yet. Have to start planning for lifting at the Arnold.

I'm looking at that last bit, too -- I know I'm doing legs with Vinny on Friday -- I don't know what I'll be doing for the ABC.

Themostocles
02-23-09, 1:29 am
Hope this doesn't come across wrong, but I think its funny that you stress about it this hard. I didn't even pick up a weight till I was 23, which was the first of several false starts. I didn't stick with it till I was 26. Now I don't know what your idea of bad shape is, but it couldn't be worse than what I looked like when I started. Your schooling is pivotal to rest of your life, once you got that locked down the rest will come. The weights will be there, whether you get to them on a regular basis or not. All your goals will be achieved, but you can't do them all at once.

mjsef88
02-23-09, 7:25 am
Hope this doesn't come across wrong, but I think its funny that you stress about it this hard. I didn't even pick up a weight till I was 23, which was the first of several false starts. I didn't stick with it till I was 26. Now I don't know what your idea of bad shape is, but it couldn't be worse than what I looked like when I started. Your schooling is pivotal to rest of your life, once you got that locked down the rest will come. The weights will be there, whether you get to them on a regular basis or not. All your goals will be achieved, but you can't do them all at once.

Hey Seth, I find it funny too. I really do. It just gets kind of lame after a while posting up "no workout" and watching all of you guys kill it in the gym.

Thanks for the support man!

Themostocles
02-23-09, 7:30 am
Hey Seth, I find it funny too. I really do. It just gets kind of lame after a while posting up "no workout" and watching all of you guys kill it in the gym.

Thanks for the support man!

I am just trying to catch up to you out of shape numbers

B Con
02-23-09, 7:41 am
Don't worry about the condition you come in at, at the Arnold. The fact is you are going and will be having a great experience. All you can do is progress from there.

mjsef88
02-23-09, 3:38 pm
Alright let's nip some of this in the bud. Guys, I really am looking forward to the cage, no matter what condition. I'm just saying that this is not the best personal condition I've ever been in. Some guys train to peak in size, shape or weight moved, just for the Arnold ABC, which is fantastic.

Seth, Your numbers are insane, I'm the one catching up to you

BCon, thats the thing. Progression from there. I'm using the cage as an extra push of modivation for NEXT years cage. Shit, this one hasn't even started and I'm already talking about next year.

I need to focus on the 25m target first.

Cant bloody wait to train tomorrow.

Themostocles
02-24-09, 1:49 am
Seth, Your numbers are insane, I'm the one catching up to you


Numbers are one things, and experience and knowledge are whole different ball park. Kick some ass tomorrow

MRoush
02-24-09, 8:59 am
As with anything in life Matt, look at what you have and not what you don't have. Sure, you would like to be in what you perceive to be your peak condition. However, due to school and you being sick recently, that just isn't possible. Life happens and you do have your priorities you need to attend to first. So go there just the way you are and have an awesome time!

mjsef88
02-24-09, 8:32 pm
Seth, Matt: Thanks guys. I'm not down about anything, I'm really not. "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are"

Tuesday, Febuary 24th 2009

Rack Pulls ss w./ Front Squats: 135lbs x 5 ss w./ 135lbs x 5, 225lbs x 5 ss w./ 135lbs x 5, 315lbs x 3 ss w./ 135lbs x 5

Walked over to the machine area: 100lbs x 15-30 reps x 2 or 3 sets:
pec deck
bicep curls
tricep seated press down (kind of like a french press but going infront of your face
leg extensions
leg curls
cable rows
shoulder press
reverse pec deck
ab crunch

Felt good to be back. Tomorrow is shooting and rest, fencing has completely kicked my ass tonight. No more squats before fencing. Thursday and Fridays workouts will be the machine work again. Sunday starts training for the Arnold, Monday, Tuesday will be OLY days, Wednesday will be a light machine day...

THURSDAY STARTS THE MADNESS THAT IS THE ARNOLD!!!

Vaze_06
02-24-09, 8:33 pm
crazy work out, nice

B Con
02-24-09, 8:38 pm
I fucking pumped about the Cage. Can't wait. We will have some great sessions.