12/31/13 Tuesday December 31, 2013 (SL DLs 16 kg, 2H SW 48kg 10 / 10 mins)

6:45am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

7:15am - kids waking up, made breakfast, played a bit

9:15am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Took a work phone call, resumed at 10:30am.

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

10:35am - Training session - Focus on 2H SW 48 kg, SL DL with 16 kg

TGU 24kg, 1+1

SL DL 16kg, 5/5

2H SW 24kg, 10

2H SW 48 kg, 10 minutes, 10 on the minute (100 reps)

SL DL 16kg, 5/5

11:00am - Complete

Notes -  Well, that was the last training session of 2014.  And it ended, appropriately, with me swinging a Beast kettlebell at my house for the first time ever after receiving my Beast a few weeks ago.  We had not programmed it into the routine yet and I for some reason fought successfully any urges to play with it.  I will say, the power of the Swing is just amazing in general.  Walking the thing outside after deadlifting it with two hands, the damn thing is just plain HEAVY.  The thought of trying to clean the thing, press it - come on, 1H swing even, really?  I feel like I am progressing well and am building some good solid strength but those feats just seem very far away to me.  But - I knew I could 2H swing the thing with some power because I had been 2H SW the 44kg I have with good success.  Also I have been swinging double 24s with a lot of power also.  Well - I was right.  After getting warmed up I went for it with max power on the swings and was really pleased with how things went.  Man, you can really get rooted into the ground with a weight that heavy, and it feels damn good.  I took forward to continuing to train with the Beast and I will be damned if by the end of 2014, I have not progressed to being able to swing it with 1H, as well as get a solid TGU up and down with the Beast.  I believe as long as I continue to progress methodically with Kevin's tutelage along the way, and be smart, I can achieve those two goals.

As far as wrapping up 2013, it's worth saying a couple of things briefly.

First, I started logging my training daily at the very end of 2012, and I kept up with it throughout 2013 without missing a beat.  This is a tremendous habit, I enjoy it, it is valuable to me, and damn it I wish I had done this much sooner, which I had discovered KBs and the methods of the RKC / StrongFirst so much earlier in my life.  But, at 36 years old, I am absolutely without question in the best shape of my life, not just physically, but mentally as well.  I have a long way to go like all of us here on planet Earth, but I know very much realize that life is about the journey (journeys really), and not the destination(s).

Second, I have been through a lot personally in 2013, primarily dealing with the emotional loss and grief of the deterioration of my relationship with my wife who moved out of our house in February and has indicated she wants us to divorce.  While we have maintained complete amicability and respect for each other, and tried to focus on strong parenting of our two children who are just 6 and 4 years old now, the whole situation obviously is deeply emotionally uprooting and challenging.  I am grateful for the couples and individual counseling I sought and and actively participated in, which started in November 2012 and went pretty consistently through August 2013.  That time was one of deep self reflection, development of self awareness, and a recognition among many other things about myself that although I have tried damn hard all of my entire childhood and adult life to be perfect - I do not have to be.  I do however have a responsibility to be present in the moment, put the best parts of me forward as much as possible, love my two kids to death but parent them responsibly and thoughtfully so that they can start a path toward being two outstanding lights in this world that really has a lot of darkness, if that is what you focus on.  I truly believe that life is not a series of random events, things absolutely happen for a reason, and in every person and every interaction and experience in life there is something to be gleaned and learned from, if you can get your mental/spiritual/physical being to be present completely, ready to learn, grow, and mature to be ready for whatever is around the corner for you in life.  I want to be able to say I am doing just that in 2014, and beyond.  

12/28/13 Saturday December 28, 2013 (3.5 mile run, pull-ups)

Keeping up with the consistent running at least once a week building on the Seattle half marathon training, I got in a nice 3-4 mile run around Greenlake Saturday afternoon.  Wow this is the best my legs, ankles, arches have felt running in a long, long time but I have been noticing since the race that each week they have been feeling better.  I think it just really took a long time to build up the running volume in the minimalist Vivos I wear for training and running, as well as primarily just dealing with the very long layoff from not running much for two full years (all KBs basically).  But I have to say, I have a stronger foundation now, particularly so much stronger in the glutes, my stride is better, I have more stability throughout my entire structure, and it is a good feeling to get out and run. I am really glad I can do this.

Inspired by a recent blog post by Pavel on the StrongFirst web site, "Strong First Ground Work", which outlined doing aerobic work interspersed with quick short sets of 1-arm / 1-leg pushups or pistols, rinse and repeat, I realized I could get some Pull-Up training done at the lake his way at the two different Pull-Up stations.  I really don't know why I didn't think of this before.  So I realized it at the end of the run but got in a few sets of Pull-Ups, realizing that the really thick bars near the basketball hoops are absolutely terrible for pull-ups, but the rings are GREAT.  I will check out the other Pull-Up station and hopefully those bars are normal and can be used for P/Us and chins.  After talking with Kevin I am going to set it up where I do about 1 mile of aerobic work, then a set of 3-5 pullups, then rinse and repeat for a total of 3-4 miles, 3-4 sets of P/Us.  This should be an excellent compliment to my KB training and keep things fresh enough so that the P/U test at the SFG (5 strict P/Us) is no issue for me.

12/30/13 Monday December 30, 2013 (DB SS PR 24 kgs, 1H SW 32 kgs)

6:50am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 40 minutes (some extra time to work the lacrosse ball on traps, obliques)

7:30am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

15 or so minute interruption for kids waking up

8:05am - Training session - Focus on DB SS PR 24 kgs, 1H SW 32 kgs

TGU 20kg, 3+3

DB DL 32kgs, 5 2X

DB SS PR 24 kgs, 15 minutes timed, AMRAP - did 4/4 x 9 sets, total of 36 reps per arm

1H SW 32 kg, 5 minutes, 10/10 on the minute (100 reps)

8:35am - Complete

Notes -  This was a very good training session, now working on some new things for the next several weeks on a new program from Kevin.  I have not done see saw pressing in a long, long time, probably back to early March so at least 9 months.  I will say I am a hell of a lot stronger than I was in March and it was obvious to me today.  I was really rooting into the ground, good glute tension, quads tight and the presses were just going up pretty easily with double 24s.  This is one of my favorite movements and it was great to practice it again.  I could have pushed harder but went by feel on the first set and it felt like 4/4 would be just right to stay away from failure.  Aimed for anywhere between 32 and 40 reps per side and ending with 36 was a good first effort.  After the see saw pressing I took a few minutes of rest and then banged out 5 minutes of 10/10 1H SW with the 32 kg, which was cool.  I was huffing for the last two sets, but was able to maintain good form, kept telling myself to get the bell back on the descent and use my hips, not worrying about how high the bell was going but just keeping things strong and snappy which the swings were.  Good stuff.  I still felt some muscle fatigue and DOMs in my lats, traps, obliques and abs from doing some pull ups on Saturday for the first time in forever, so for this session to go as well as it did was pretty awesome.

12/27/13 Friday December 27, 2013 (training with Kevin - baseline SN test)

Checked my training log and I last trained with Kevin on Wed November 27 - a little over a month.

Before meeting Kevin at 6:30am I slept in, so really didn't get warmed up at all.  That is a little frustrating to me because I have done that several times before training with him and it just takes me too long to warm up, really kind of a waste of time when we could be training some lifts.  I need to get that fixed but I am tired as hell from the holidays and couldn't get it moving this morning.

6:40am - Training session with Kevin.  We did some basic primal move and other mobility work for while and then got into things.  Kevin did tune up my Bretzel with several modifications that I think will be useful - staying tight in the pre-stretch phase, getting the legs at 90/90, supporting the raised leg with a foam roller.  All good tips.

We then did a series of arm bars, then TGUs, goblet squats and then 1H SW with the 16 kg.  Then did TGUs, goblets, and 2H SW with the 24 kg.

We then did some snatches with the 20 kg, then the 24 kg, and then got warmed up for the real event of the day - a baseline 5 minute Snatch test with the 24 kg.  The goal - 100 reps in 5 minutes.

Anti climatic a bit as I got 80 reps.  I actually felt pretty good physically and checking the logs the last time I snatched the 24 kg was Friday December 13 where I got 114 snatches in 12 minutes using a 3/3, 6/6 ladder approach.  I felt pretty shitty about my 80 reps in 5 minutes today until I realized that my pace for 5 minutes 2 weeks ago was 48 reps.  So in that sense maybe today was not so bad.  Clearly I have something to work toward as I have a 20% improvement I need to achieve.  Kevin thought it was a good baseline today so that was encouraging.  I was pretty pissed because the limiting factor was the callous on my R hand under the middle finger, which continues to be my toughest hand issue.  I have been working the pumice stone in the shower but have to keep focused on hand care and really need to clean that callous up completely.  I truly think the damn thing cost me at least 10 reps alone as I was getting pretty worried about tearing it, it was distracting, and on every descent the damn thing was pulling and it hurt.  If I can get that cleaned up it will be nice to see where I can get on my next snatch test.

7:45am - Finish.  OK day, needed to get warmed up, be on time, not waste time with Kevin and also need to get the callous all the way cleaned up.  So, just an ok day but I did come out of this knowing I am not too far off of snatch test requirements for the SFG.  Kevin keeps encouraging me to pick a date and sign up for the cert.  San Diego in late Feb seems quick, the next one is Chicago in April.  I need to make a decision and go for it.

12/26/13 Thursday December 26, 2013 (TGUs, 1H SW 32kgs)

7:00am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes, then 15 minute interruption for kids' waking up

7:45am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

8:00am - Training session - Focus on TGUs, 1H SW 32 kgs (lots of interruptions)

TGU 24kg, 1+1
TGU 28 kg, 1+1
TGU 32 kg, 1+1
TGU 32 kg, 1+1

DL 32kgs, 5

GSq 32 kg, 5

1H SW 32kg, 10/10, 5X (100 reps)

8:45am - Complete

Notes -  Kind of a weird day coming off of taking Christmas day off, being extremely tired as well from all of the holiday stuff and coming off of all of that.  Lots of interruptions too as I got up late and the kids started waking up and it threw things off pretty badly in terms of just getting in and out quickly.  In terms of the training itself the 2nd rep on the 32 kg TGU surprised me in terms of the difficultly level.  I will say this is the first time I can recall attempting the 32 kg for reps, but I thought I would be more ready for it.  Maybe just tired, not sure, but I will build volume very, very slowing with the 32 kg.  I do want to get to 5/5 in 10 minutes a la Pavel's Simple and Sinister minimum requirements with the 32 kg.  He also has a 100 rep minimum with the 32 kg for 1H SW which I feel I am already at.  I did not time myself today but I did go quickly with the swings with minimal rest.  Didn't really feel that sharp, some reps could have been more powerful, and with the L arm in particularly I felt the bell tugging on my elbow on some reps which I did not like.  Need to do some lacrosse ball release work tonight.  Still, I do think this type of workout a couple of times a week as a variety day session could be very on point.  Not sure if the load is too heavy for variety days, so I want to talk to Kevin.  Perhaps one variety day yes, the other variety day, something with less load.  

12/24/13 Tuesday December 24, 2013 (DB C&P 24 kgs, DB SW 24 kgs)

1:20pm - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

1:50pm - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

2:05pm - Training session - Focus on DB C&P 24 kgs, DB SW 24 kgs

TGU 24kg, 2+2

DB DL 24kgs, 5

GSq 24 kg, 5

3X:
DB C&P 1, 2, 3 ladder (total 18 reps, 13 minutes)

In between C&P, some body weight SL DLs, 3/3

DB SW, 10, 5X (50 reps, 6 minutes)

2:35pm - Complete

Notes -  That was called density strength training.  DB C&P into DB SW, all within 20 minutes including body weight SL DLs for active rest.  It is Christmas Eve, odd training time for sure as I usually go early morning but I had a window here and I took it.  Hadn't practiced pressing with double bells and had not practiced cleaning and pressing with doubles, so this was great practice.  Only wanted to go to top rung 3 on the ladders because I had a hard session yesterday, will rest tomorrow, very light Thursday, ready to train with Kevin on Friday.

12/23/13 Monday December 23, 2013 (32kg chain SW/CL/FSq, SN 20 kgs 7/7 for 7 mins)

6:30am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

7:00am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

7:15am - Training session - Focus on TGUs, 32 kg chain SW, CL, FSq

TGU 24kg, 1+1
TGU 28kg, 1+1
TGU 32kg, 1+1

DB DL 32kgs, 5 2X

Chain with 32 kg:

5X:
SW, CL, Fsq - 3 / 3

(15 reps total of each movement) (this took about 12 minutes, same as last week)

SN 20 kg, 7/7, 7 minutes (98 reps)

8:00am - Complete

Notes -  Interesting day.  Got back from vacation yesterday afternoon, and both of my kids are sick.  Was up pretty much at midnight until I couldn't take the coughing any longer from my daughter in bed next to me, a few minutes after 6am.  Maybe I cobbled together a couple of hours of sleep.  I contemplated not training or training later but literally had 4 days in a row of great sleep, Thurs-Sunday, probably the most rested I have been in months and months.  So I said what the hell let's get after it.  Once I got going, I felt good.  First chain on the R side I did not like the feeling in my front R pec, but realized I really needed to focus on the movement, keep my lats down, use my hips to move the bell.  All other reps were much better.  I am not completely sure how much training I will do Tues-Thurs this week given Christmas Eve, Christmas etc. and I wanted to get in at least one more snatch practice before training with Kevin on Friday.  So I decided to move up the weight from 16 to 20, increase the density from 6/6 to 7/7, but drop the time from 12 mins to 7 minutes.  Absolutely great, felt strong, snatching the 20 kg actually feels the best to me.  I am looking forward to the day when a 24 kg feels like the 20 kg does.  

12/21/13 Saturday December 21, 2013 (3 mile run)

I went running for about 30 minutes or so at the track by my parents' house in Hockinson, WA while on a trip for the weekend.  Felt pretty good all around, but am watching the R trap, R front pec, R neck pretty closely as I definitely am not feeling that it is nearly as loose and free as it needs to be.  As to running nice soft surface on the track, I enjoyed that quite a bit.

12/20/13 Friday December 20, 2013 (TGU/SL DL, DB SQ, SN for 12 mins)

8:45am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 40 minutes (little extra time, moving slowly)

9:25am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

9:40am - Training session - Focus on 16kg TGUs superset SL DLs, DB FSq 24 kgs, SN 16 kg for 12 minutes on the minute 6/6

3X superset:
TGU 16 kg, 1/1
SL DL 16 kg, 4/4

DB FSq 24 kgs, 2, 3, 5, 10

SN 16 kg, 6/6 on the minute for 12 minutes (144 reps)

10:30am - Complete

Notes -  What a difference a couple of days makes, plus having great people in my life that can help with training in addition to my KB trainer Kevin (my massage therapist and my bodywork/acupuncturist).  I had the training setback on Wed from heavy pressing, got a massage that day, and then had some intensive bodywork yesterday.  It really, really was exactly what I needed.  Super tied up in my lats, under my arm pits, traps, pecs.  I know the combination of my job coupled with the stress of life and then doing pretty focused KB training can have the ultimate result of a pretty tight body, despite doing a lot of mobility work (basically every day I do at least 30 minutes of mob, sometimes more).  After doing the bodywork yesterday, which I could tell had an immediate benefit, I felt like a new man today.  A lot more range overhead and more space between my neck and traps was probably the most obvious change.  I felt good enough to train and gave it some thought as to what I wanted to do today.  I decided to go with the planned training session, but drop out the 24kg snatch ladders for 16 kg 6/6 on the minute, same amount of planned time, 12 minutes.  I want to keep the snatch groove and I am reminded that damn it in some ways I just need to work through some of this stuff - no sense in being scared, just focus on quality movement with a weight that is appropriate.  Everything went very well, the snatches were dare I say "easy."  My pace was 30 seconds of work, 30 seconds of rest, which over 5 minutes would have equated to about 120 reps without setting the bell down.  This was just right, now to focus on a lot of mob the next several days, keep those traps and lats loose, and try to maintain some of the extra ROM I have after getting the bodywork done.

12/19/13 Thursday December 19, 2013 (OS, KB warm up)

10:40am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 20 minutes

11:00am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

11:15am - Complete

Notes - Felt shit today.  I did not have to be anywhere this morning so I literally stayed in bed until 10:30 in the morning, which is really, really weird for me.  Not quite sure what to make of that, but if felt like the right thing to do, so I did it.  I suspect my body is just - worn down.  So much to take in for my personal life, work, and the busyness of the holidays.  It probably should not surprise me at all that I had the muscle tweak and spasm yesterday in my trap and neck.  I got a massage last night, that is helpful, but this is going to take some time.  I am seeing my acupunturist / bodyworker today for more treatment.  It doesn't feel good, and that sucks, but it is part of the process.  Thinking back, I was reaching the point of failure in that set of C&P with the 28kg, and even though I grinded out that last rep, I don't think I did it in the safest manner - probably was lifting my shoulder instead of rooting and pressing from the lat.  Too much pressure on the traps, that doesn't even make sense on a press, I need to press from the lat.  So chalk it up to a learning experience.  Once I feel better I am dropping the weight, probably just focus on swings and getups, before moving back into other lifts.  I am definitely going to focus on rest and recovery for the entire next week and try to enjoy this holiday with friends and with my kids.  That is the most important thing right now anyway.

12/18/13 Wednesday December 18, 2013 (C&P 28 kg ladder, DB SW 24 kgs)

5:40am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

6:10am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

6:25am - Training session - Focus on 28 kg C&P ladders, DB SW 24 kgs

TGU 24kg, 2+2

GSq 24kg, 10

28 kg C&P ladders, 1, 2, 3, 4 R/L - 2X, then switched to L/R for 1X (30 total reps each arm) (about 28 minutes to finish)

DB SW 24 kgs, 10, 5X (50 reps) (7 minutes)

7:10am - Complete

Notes - Good session today.  Felt strong, got a little more rest last night.  A couple of things on the presses.  I started with the stronger arm, R, and noticed a challenge getting the last rep on the ladders of 4 on the L side, I was doing hand switches between arms and not setting the bell down (which was cool).  So for the last set I started with the L and then went to the R, which was good.  With that said on the very last rep of the set on the R, I really had to grind it out - got the rep, but perhaps at a bit of a price as my R trap is pretty tight now / R pec too - definitely a little strained.  This has been a trouble spot both in the trap and in the front on my R pec / neck which I have been working on through arm bars, other mobility etc.  I finished the DB SW, no issues at all with those, and then tried to do some mob, lacrosse ball etc.  I actually had an appointment for a massage today anyway so the timing is good, and I also decided to get an appt tomorrow with my acupuncturist/bodyworker to get some more treatment done.  Going to work on that stuff and see how I feel on Friday, hopefully much better and up for the 5 minute snatch test.  I do need to get this area loosened up and feeling better anyway, I can tell it has been tougher to get the R arm lockout then left side and it is due to this restriction.  Again the arm bars are helping a lot but I think I need some greater focus and possibly additional mob work on this area.

12/17/13 Tuesday December 17, 2013 (2H SW ladder)

6:30am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

7:00am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

7:15am - Training session - Focus on 2H SW ladders

TGU 20kg, 1+1

2H SW ladder:

32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 5/5/5/5
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 10/10/10/10
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 15/15/15/15
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 20/20/20/20

200 reps.  Finished in about 12 minutes.

7:30am - Complete

Notes -  Focused on a lot of power today.  Enjoy swinging the 32 and the 28.  Really don't like the 20 or the 24, but it is crazy how much lighter they feel after swinging a heavier bell.

12/16/13 Monday December 16, 2013 (32kg chain SW/CL/FSq)

8:40am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 40 minutes (extra time on lacrosse ball)

9:20am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

9:35am - Training session - Focus on TGUs, 32 kg chain SW, CL, FSq

TGU 24kg, 1+1
TGU 28kg, 1+1
TGU 32kg, 1+1

DB DL 32kgs, 5

Chain with 32 kg:

5X:
SW, CL, Fsq - 3 / 3

(15 reps total of each movement) (this took about 12 minutes, shaved off about 3 minutes from last week)

DB CL 32 kgs, DB FSq 32 kgs - 1 rep (practice)

Farmer carry with DB 32 kgs to finish, 1 minute walking.

10:10am - Complete

Notes -  I slept in significantly today, to 8am, which surprised me just a little as I literally never heard my alarm.  Had a big night on Friday night, work Christmas party, very busy day with the kids on Saturday and into Sunday as well.  Then had dinner with a friend Sunday night.  So on reflection it was a very busy 3 days and obviously my body needed rest.  I have been extremely tight in the traps, mainly right side, right oblique, tricep, forearm and hips since Friday.  Spent time on the lacrosse ball and foam roller every single day trying to work the trigger points out.  I think it reflects on the stress of the holidays and just a lot of stuff going on.  I also had some notes from training on Friday regarding the callous on my R hand which was throwing off the groove on my R snatch, and I think that did cause me some issues that are reflecting on that R side tightness.  But I have the callous well under control now, actually started using a pumice stone in the shower, as well as using Corn Huskers lotion more frequently.  As for training today, it went well, when I finally got going I felt pretty strong.  Good reps with the TGU, love the heavy 32 kg TGU, and then the chains went well, and I was able to increase the density of the training session by several minutes so that was good.  Felt like messing around and tried a DB CL with 32 kgs into a DB FSq - a bitch but got it no problem.  Definitely getting stronger.

12/15/13 Sunday December 15, 2013 (3 mile run)

Ran around Greenlake in the late afternoon, about 3 miles.  Felt good, didn't notice my ankles or arches nearly as much so I think things are getting back to normal a little bit after all of the 1/2 marathon training.  I think it will be good to run pretty consistently, just a good 5k or so a week, just to keep more of a groove of the running stride and keep my ankles and arches conditioned a bit better than they were.  I would like to start speeding up the running a bit and up the pace, but that can come over time.  For now it is about a 10-minute mile pace.

12/13/13 Friday December 13, 2013 (TGU/SL DL, DB SQ, SN for 12 mins)

5:50am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

6:20am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

6:35am - Training session - Focus on 16kg TGUs superset SL DLs, DB FSq 24 kgs, SN 24 kg for 12 minutes using 3/3, 6/6 ladders

2X superset:
TGU 16 kg, 1/1
SL DL 16 kg, 3/3

I had to cut this down from the planned 3 sets of 5 reps on each SL DL to the above just because I knew I was pressed for time.  This probably took 10 minutes.

DB FSq 24 kgs, 2, 3, 5, 10

Took only about 5 minutes or so to do these DB FSq, probably half the time of last week.  I just went for it.  The last set of 10 was a bitch near the end but maintained tightness and good form.

SN 24 kg, 3/3, rest, 6/6, rest (1 round), total of 6 rounds plus a 3/3 in 12 minutes = 18 reps x 6, +6 = 114 reps in 12 minutes.  Only a 6 rep improvement over last week of 108 or 6 rounds.

7:10am - Complete

Notes -  A little let down by training today, I was expecting to be able to hit a better number with snatches.  I ran into issues in the middle of the set with the callous on my R hand, this time the top of the callous that has been hard to file.  I was thinking about trying to shave it yesterday and damn it I wish I would have.  It was getting sore and throwing off my groove on the R side quite a bit, which was very frustrating.  The groove on the L, which is my less strong side, was very good.  It was very distracting because I thought the damn thing was going to tear.  It did not fortunately, and I need to get it shaved down.  I felt pretty good going into the snatches, rest last night in hindsight was not great though.  As I write this I am sore in the forearms, tight in the hamstrings, obliques - probably a combo of a tough day of pressing and swinging Wed and then trying to snatch today.  I probably did not get enough stretching and recovery in between, it has been a very busy couple of days.  You know, live to train another day, it's ok.  I am looking at a 5 min snatch test next Friday with Kevin and I want to be ready to hit it hard and see what I can accomplish.

12/12/13 Thursday December 12, 2013 (TK PR, SL DLs)

6:30am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

7:00am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

7:15am - Training session - Focus on TK PR, SL DLs

16 kg TK PR 3/3, 2X

16 kg SL DL, 3/3

7:30am - Complete

Notes -  Punch the clock.  Nothing to say really other than I felt pretty good today after a hard training session with the 28 kg C&P ladders and then DB SW on the 24s.  A little bit of work needed on the traps, obliques are sore a bit from tough reps on the C&P but all in all good.  Continued practice on the SL DL is a good thing.  I am using a yoga block on the ground and that is working well until I can go all the way from ground up and down again.

12/11/13 Wednesday December 11, 2013 (C&P 28 kg, DB SW 24 kgs)

7:45am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 45 minutes (extra time to work out some tightness in traps, R side hip, glutes)

8:30am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

8:45am - Training session - Focus on 28 kg C&P ladders, DB SW 24 kgs

TGU 24kg, 2+2

GSq 24kg, 10

28 kg C&P ladders, 1, 2, 3, 4 R/L - 3X (30 total reps each arm) (about 29 minutes to finish)

DB SW 24 kgs, 10, 5X (50 reps) (7 minutes)

9:30am - Complete

Notes - There is some real beauty to the way Kevin has set up programming.  If you look purely at my log from a week ago when I did this same training session, it would seem as if I did nearly the same thing, with a little more volume on the DB SW.  Wrong.  The devil is in the details.  The technique on the C&P this week was much tighter.  I was using the acceleration of the clean and redirecting that force right into the press.  The bell was flying up today.  I have never pressed the 28kg like this before.  I was using hand switches and not setting the bell down, and still getting all of the reps, tight.  I did not get the very last rep on my last set/ladder of 4, hit a sticking point on the R side but I missed the lift the right way.  Set the bell down and got the last rep immediately.  I realized I was leaking some tightness on the glute on the bell side.  So I need to focus on really squeezing the glutes.  Had I been focusing on that, I would have gotten that last rep.  My focus today was on tight cleans and breathing, so improved those parts of the C&P,.  Next week, glutes.  I did focus on the glutes during the DB SW and that was cool, got really good hip snap, very powerful, keep the lats locked down, felt like I had a lot of control of the bells.

12/10/13 Tuesday December 10, 2013 (2H SW ladder)

6:35am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 15 minutes

6:50am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

7:05am - Training session - Focus on 2H SW ladders

TGU 20kg, 1+1

2H SW ladder:

32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 5/5/5/5
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 10/10/10/10
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 15/15/15/15
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 20/20/20/20

200 reps.  Finished in about 11 minutes.

7:20am - Complete

Notes -  Felt fine, sort of a punch the clock day.  I don't really love these as much as swinging really heavy bells, but it's good. I wasn't very happy with my snap on the R hip, it just didn't feel completely there today.  I probably could have benefited from a hip flexor stretch.  Just seemed a little bit off and I did not feel as rooted as I would have liked on the R side as result.  But all in all, fine.

12/9/13 Monday December 9, 2013 (32 kg chain SW/CL/FSq)

6:45am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

6:15am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

6:30am - Training session - Focus on TGUs, 32 kg chain SW, CL, FSq

TGU 24kg, 1+1
TGU 28kg, 1+1
TGU 32kg, 1+1

DB DL 32kgs, 5

GSq 32kg, 5

Chain with 32 kg:

5X:
SW, CL, Fsq - 3 / 3

(15 reps total of each movement) (this took about 15 minutes)

Farmer carry with DB 32 kgs to finish, 1 minute walking.

7:00am - Complete

Notes -  This was good today.  Body felt well rested, I got plenty of sleep this weekend and decent sleep last night.  It has been unbelievably cold - for some reason I have not been mentioning that in my blogs but each morning for a week it has been sub 30 degrees, around 25 this morning.  Getups were strong, technique on the chain was improved from last week.  I like the difference in doing a swing and then having to transition and control the bell into a tight clean, and then into a squat.  It is good stuff.  I had a lot left in the tank this morning but no need to go above and beyond every time out for training.  Looking forward to pressing the 28 kg on Wed and seeing how that goes compared with last week.

12/8/13 Sunday December 8, 2013 (3 mile run)

Ran around Greenlake for one loop in about 30 degree weather - damn that was cold.  Feet did not feel very good, I need to keep working on them particularly the R arch.  All in all, not bad though.

12/6/13 Friday December 6, 2013 (TGU/SL DL, DB SQ, SN for 12 mins)

6:50am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

7:20am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

7:35am - Training session - Focus on 16kg TGUs superset SL DLs, DB FSq 24 kgs, SN 24 kg for 12 minutes using 3/3, 6/6 ladders

3X superset:
TGU 16 kg, 1/1
SL DL 16 kg, 5/5

Took 20 minutes.  I was quite surprised about how long that took.  I didn't really feel like I was wasting time or resting too much, just being very controlled with the movements and trying to practice really good technique.

DB FSq 24 kgs, 2, 3, 5, 10

Took about 10 minutes or so to do these DB FSq.

SN 24 kg, 3/3, rest, 6/6, rest (1 round), total of 6 rounds in 12 minutes = 18 reps x 6 = 108 reps in 12 minutes (doesn't compare that well to a recent week's 6/6 snatching for 10 minutes, or 7/7 for 8 minutes that I was able to complete)

Farmer carry DB 24 kgs, 1 minute to finish

8:20am - Complete

Notes - I felt good today.  Rest was ok, though I did go to bed pretty late.  I did feel ready to go, got warmed up well.  TGUs and SL DLs went well, noticed some interesting synergies after doing a SL DL and then getting back down to a TGU - TGUs were easier, body felt more "put together".  The SL DLs continue to be an important exercise for me.  DB FSq felt good.  I have never done a set of 10 with DB 24s - I felt I maintained good form throughout.  Took some extra time on the last couple of reps, took an extra breath or two in the rack, tried to stay very tight.  I did notice my jeans are feeling loose in the waist but tight in the ass and thighs - definitely getting bigger glutes etc etc and the squats are definitely part of the gain:)  As to snatching as per my comments above, I could be a little disappointed with the numbers but honestly I felt good doing these.  Technique was good, power good, yes I needed some more rest than perhaps I was hoping for (a big accomplishment would be tracking 6/6 for 12 minutes, which would be 144 reps, so I was WAY off of that kind of pace).  I looked at my logs and it has been 2 full weeks since I last snatched, after getting a callous tear, so that probably is a pretty big factor.  But lockout felt strong, was trying to keep the bell close to me on the drop and throw it down to my navel, felt a lot of power doing that. I have 2 weeks until we do a 5 minute snatch test with Kevin.  My goal next week is to get at least 7 rounds which would be 126 reps.  8 rounds would be 144 or the 6/6 pace I was able to maintain for 10 minutes several weeks ago.  That means 8 rounds is within my capabilities but probably is too big a jump from this performance.  We'll see what I can get to.  

12/5/13 Thursday December 5, 2013 (SL DLs, TGUs to knee with PR)

6:35am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

7:05am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

7:20am - Training session - Focus on SL DLs, TGUs to knee, with PR

16 kg SL DL, 3/3

16 kg TGU to knee, PR 3 - L then R, 2X (4 TGUs, 12 PR)

7:35am - Complete

Notes -  Good day.  The arm bars with the extra ROM to put my head on the ground have just been awesome.  I am feeling a lot less tension than just 5-6 days ago in my neck, right trap.  The stretch is incredibly intense, I really feel it into the R bicep, down the back.  I just really breath into that stretch and let it go for as long as possible.  Man I am glad Kevin suggest that additional ROM on the arm bar.  I did not do a ton of work today, but later in the afternoon and evening my body felt really, really good, very strong.  Doing hard work and then following it up with a very light day of mostly mobility with a few KB movements is really working well.  Great stuff.

12/4/13 Wednesday December 4, 2013 (28kg C&P ladders, DB SW 24kgs)

6:55am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 15 minutes

7:10am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

7:25am - Training session - Focus on 28 kg C&P ladders, DB SW 24 kgs

TGU 24kg, 2+2

GSq 24kg, 10

28 kg C&P ladders, 1, 2, 3, 4 R/L - 3X (30 total reps each arm)

DB SW 24 kgs, 10, 10, 5 (25 total reps)

8:05am - Complete

Notes - Good session.  Body felt good, I was pressed for time and had to do everything pretty quick.  On the C&P ladders with the 28kg, on the first set I did MPs instead of C&P (cleaning between every press).  The final ladder with 4 reps of MP with the 28kg was tough.  I paused and checked Kevin's notes and realized that this was actually supposed to be C&P so for sets 2 and 3 I cleaned between every press.  I knew this was going to actually make my presses a little easier because I have dialed in my clean technique quite a bit, and the momentum and energy of a good clean can really help get a press going.  That is exactly what happened.  On my final ladder of 4 on the L I missed the lift on the last rep, but that was due to a bad clean during the set that I ended up just recleaning again instead of trying to press (the bell was not in my hand in the rack in a way I wanted to press).  The reclean was the right move but I think it threw me off enough to cause a little too much fatigue and I missed that last rep.  Set the bell down, rested for a few second, shook it out and then got the final rep.  Do need to work with Kevin on breathing techniques on the C&P for higher reps.  I was doing fine, concentrating on getting the inhale on each clean and trying to hold the exhale until pressing up, which was fine.  The bigger challenge was in between breaths on the descent from the press, re-rack, and then into the clean.  Double swings were very strong and I wanted 5 sets of 10 but I had to cut it short due to time, stopping with 25 reps total.  I will get 50 next week.

12/3/13 Tuesday December 3, 2013 (2H SW ladder)

6:40am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 30 minutes

7:10am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

7:25am - Training session - Focus on 2H SW ladders

TGU 20kg, 1+1

2H SW 24kg, 5

2H SW ladder:

32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 5/5/5/5
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 10/10/10/10
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 15/15/15/15
32kg, 20 kg, 28 kg, 24 kg - 20/20/20/20

200 reps.  I got interrupted in the middle for about 4 or 5 minutes.  Taking that out, the SW ladder took me about 11 minutes I think.

7:45am - Complete

Notes -  Body felt way better today.  Right hamstring pretty tight from the 1/2 marathon, will keep working it, but really a lot of progress since the race Sunday morning.  Feet and ankles felt good actually, surprised. The actual training session was good, focused on strong hip snaps, throwing the bell down, getting into the hips. I don't really "like" swinging anything lighter than a 28kg, but I know there is a purpose to it.  

12/2/13 Monday December 2, 2013 (32 kg chain SW/CL/FSq)

7:00am - Original Strength and Primal Move - 75 minutes (a LOT of extra mobility work, foam roll, lacrosse ball due to Seattle 1/2 marathon yesterday)

8:15am - Kettlebell warm up ("Standard")

1/2K halos - 8kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)
1/2K pullover - 12 kg, 5X each leg

1/2K halos - 12kg, 4X each side / each leg (total 16X)

1/2K pullover - 16 kg, 5X each leg
Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm

Arm bar 12 kg, 1+1

8:30am - Training session - Focus on TGUs, 32 kg chain SW, CL, FSq

TGU 24kg, 1+1
TGU 28kg, 1+1
TGU 32kg, 1+1

DB DL 32kgs, 5

GSq 32kg, 5

Chain with 32 kg:

5X:
SW, CL, Fsq - 3 / 3

(15 reps total of each movement, I realistically ended up doing a few more reps here or there because I had some trouble counting:) ) (this took about 16 minutes)

Farmer carry with DB 32 kgs to finish, 1 minute walking.

8:55am - Complete

Notes -  I suspected I was going to feel pretty drained this morning, and I absolutely did.  Seattle 1/2 marathon really took it out of me.  Despite doing a decent amount of mobility work after the race, I needed a ton more this morning to get in a position to move a 32kg bell around.  I had a meeting at 8:30 and cancelled it after I woke up as I realized I simply needed to take my time to get mobilized, work out some of the DOMS in my legs, and hopefully feel good enough to train with the bells.  It took an incredibly long time but I did feel pretty good by the time I started the main training session.  Funny enough the work today didn't seem like much to me.  That makes absolutely no sense other than I have been building my way up through Kevin's programming and damn now if I cannot move a 32 kg bell around pretty well.  That is sweet.  I noted on the 28 kg TGU with bell in the left hand that if I do not really focus on pushing my left foot into the floor, I get a shitty rep as per usual.  I dialed in the technique big time after that and got a couple of great reps with the 32 kg on both sides.  Heavy bells demand that your technique has to be on point.  They expose flaws.  What I need to get better at is dialing that up with the lighter bells and just being nails on technique, acting like I have a heavier bell in my hand(s).  Something to continually work on.  I also enjoyed doing the chains, got the heart beating a bit which I was not anticipating.  I had some issues working out the breathing through the chain but got that cleaned up.  That was good practice to do something different than I had been doing and I liked it quite a bit.  

12/1/13 Sunday December 1, 2013 (Seattle 1/2 marathon)

Today was the big race.  I finished it in 2:22, which was pretty much exactly 11 minute miles.  I checked my watch a couple of times and I basically ran at the same pace throughout the entire race.  Did not stop to walk at all, ran the whole time.

In terms of observations on the race, as I expected, I was challenged by my feet and ankles.  Started noticing them basically on mile 1.  This was a 100% concrete running, and I did all of my training at Greenlake, trying to stay on the grass or softer paths, which I accomplished probably over 90% of training.  The one time I ran on concrete was training in Vancouver BC and I totally had my arches and ankles act up that day, and subsequently pretty much every other training run.  Honestly, I am not a runner, and the thought of my main exercise being running, particularly on concrete, just sounds patently awful.  I do not miss this at all,  Seriously - at all.  Love my kettlebell training, and here is why as I was reminded yet again today.   There were also no hills at all for my training, and plenty of hills in the Seattle 1/2 - anyone that knows Seattle knows there are plenty of hills.  I absolutely crushed all hills today.  In fact, after the first one, I wanted more of them which surprised me at first because this was never a strength of mine in the past.  I realized that all of the KB work with swings, dead-lifts, snatches, squats etc. has seriously developed my glutes and they are now a strength of mine.  I felt those glutes just kick in on the hills.  I was passing people left right and center.  And then on the flats, I would get passed - feet and ankles just don't have the miles and the durability for running.  That is one thing that the KBs don't really directly train, given that most movements are standing in place.

In the past I think my best every half marathon was 1:53 in Vienna, Austria, in 2005, over 8 years ago.  The last 1/2 marathon I ran was the Seattle Rock n Roll, which was in June 2010, about a year after our son Liam was born.  Jill and I ran that race together, and pretty much all of the 1/2 marathons I have ever ran (about 13 or 14) together.  I trained for this race alone, and I ran this race alone.  In some respects that makes me sad because I think about the last 13 months that have been so challenging personally, particularly since Jill moved out in February and our separation began.  On the other hand, I am proud that I was able to accomplish this goal and demonstrate to myself again that I have some deep reserves of willpower and motivation.  At times in the last 13 months it has been hard to find those reserves, and find that motivation, I will be honest.  But it is there, and I feel like today was another step in a positive direction for me and ironically running really has absolutely nothing to do with that at all.  It was just a vehicle to remind me that I am capable of doing more than I think I can do, it just takes some faith, patience, a plan, determination and a willingness to keep going even when things get difficult.  I can take a lot from this experience over the last couple of months and build on it and that is what I intend to do.