New surroundings merits a new log...
Been in Belfast for a couple of weeks now, and finally got into the gym again on Saturday just to test the waters. Been off the creatine and beta alanine during that time, and lost a bit of weight too (was 79kg in the evening the day after the move) so first session was decidely poor (front squatted a 5 rep grinder with a weight I could normally hit 10 with...). Better showing the next day when I banged out 3 comfy singles at 120. Bag didn't have more than 125 in it, but a 5kg drop in my current state isn't too bad. Pressed only a couple of reps short of my all-time best this morning though, and was looking pretty buff in the mirrors too. Pretty sure I saw Buzz's ghost weeping behind me.
Anyway, I'm taking the next 2 weeks as an opportunity to try a few new things out and reacquaint myself with a few others. So, hang snatches are back, hang cleans are back, glute ham raises are in (never seen anyone use this yet...), bench pulls are in, pullups are back (shoulder finally approves). Doing a quick CM and BA reload now, so once I'm back up to where I left off I'll resume 5/3/1.
The plan for each session now is something in part inspired by Gant Grimes' Heavy Hybrid programming, so each session will look something like this:
1) Skill work - light OL stuff, maybe learning handstand pushups and kipping pullups, maybe the odd front lever.
2) OL
3) Front squat, press or clean dead following 5/3/1, plus assistance
4) Short metcon, no more than 10 mins, ideally 6-8 mins - 200m intervals and 100m sprints on the C2, some modified CF stuff, maybe some KB work.
Still working out some of the finer details, but it will almost definitely be the best VF has ever seen, and certainly likely to reduce gauze to a pile of non-training excuse tears.
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."
-- Theodore Roosevelt, 1910
