12/31/15 Thursday December 31, 2015 (20kg TGUs, 24kg 2H SW)

3:45pm - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 30 minutes

4:15pm - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

4:30pm- Training session - 20kg TGUs, 24kg 2H SW

20kg TGUs, 1/1, x 5
10 getups

24kg 2H SW, 10, x 10
100 2H SW

5:00pm - Complete

Notes - Back from San Diego.  I basically took Monday - Wednesday off this week, other than some primal move work and some walking.  It was a planned rest period and it was great to be able to do that.  Today I kept it simple, lighter weights, just to get the blood flowing.  Tomorrow I will do some KB aerobics with a light bell, 20kg, just to again get some blood flow.  This is the end of 2015, and I am ending on a real high note.  Body feels great, I have been in a recharging mode this month and have been enjoying a good progression in my training.  Added a lot of weight this year, probably 10 pounds, and have put on a lot of muscle in my shoulders, traps, lats, glutes, and quads, arms and chest too.  Pretty distributed all around and that reflects the good training templates that Kevin has designed for me.  I am looking forward to 2016 and the huge goal is to train for, attend, and pass the SFG2.  This is a big deal for me and it's going to take a lot of focus.  I am very excited to work with Kevin and start this process next week. 

12/26/15 Saturday December 26, 2015 (complex DB 16kg SW, FSQ, DB 16kg SN)

Did this work on Saturday afternoon at home

5:00pm - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 15 minutes

5:15pm - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

5:30pm- Training session - Complex DB 16kg SW / FSQ, DB 16kg SN

2x:
16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
16kg GSq, 5

5x complex:
DB 16kg SW, 5, FSQ 5

2x:
DB 16kg  SN, 5

6:00pm - Finish

20 minute walk

Notes - This was a great training session, quick and fun.  I felt like trying some double snatches with the light bells just to see how they felt, and they actually felt great.  A double snatch is a fun movement to try, lots of hip drive concentration to really make the bells pop up. 

12/25/15 Friday December 25, 2015 (TGU ladder, 28kg KB aerobics)

9:10pm - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 15 minutes

9:25pm - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:40pm- Training session - TGU ladder, 28kg KB aerobics

16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
20kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
24kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
28kg TGU to windmill, 1/1

28kg KB aerobics, CL 2, PR 2, FSQ 2, set down, switch hands, keep going

20 minutes

ended up doing 9 sets per arm, which is up from 1/1/1 for 12 sets last week, so 50% more volume - whoa that surprised me

2H SW 28kg, 10, x 2

10:10pm - Finish

Notes - Christmas day, beautiful day, had a great time with my kids at my ex wife's house and then ex sister in law's house.  It's good to be able to say that.  It's been a tough 3 years and over a year since our divorce was finalized on December 1, 2014, but things have moved forward and they will continue to move forward.  I have to keep working on my mindset but I have made a lot of strides over the years and I will continue to evolve and keep moving towards becoming the best version of myself possible.  As far as training goes I didn't train in the morning as I wanted to get down to Tacoma, but after spending the whole day away from the house I just had an itch to get the training in tonight instead of waiting for tomorrow, so I went ahead.  Unusual for me to train at night but it was kind of cool.  It's ok to switch things up every once in awhile and in fact it's good to be able to demonstrate some flexibility in training conditions.  The point is - get the work in.  I was a bit shocked to realize that I did 50% more volume with the 28kg than last weeks session, that's probably too much really, and if I had realized I think I would have taken more rest periods.  A couple of the 2nd reps on the press were not easy, I definitely was squeezing the shit out of the glutes and trying to press from them and the lats, vertical, no wasted movement.  A pretty damn good close to a 5 week cycle here and it's been outstanding.  Going to take some days off next week on a trip to CA for fun, will just do some primal move, get in some walking, I will throw in some crawling and a few push-ups perhaps but really not going to try and do much for several days and allow the body to rest and recover.  This is a great way for me to wind down 2015.  I am excited to get with Kevin and plan the training approach for early 2016.  

12/24/15 Thursday December 24, 2015 (soft tissue, primal move)

7:15am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 45 minutes

Notes - Did this from my parents' house in Portland.  Very light work this morning as we were hitting the road to get back to Seattle.  Mainly, just wanting to get in some primal move and do some mobility, no KBs.  I was tight again waking up in the R trap near the base of the neck, same old spot.  Just have to keep working it.  It responds well to the soft tissue work and mobility.  

12/23/15 Wednesday December 23, 2015 (24kg HSP, 24kg SN)

10:10am - belly breathing, foam roller, lacrosse ball work, Primal Move practice   - 25 minutes

10:35am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

10:50am- Training session - superset 24kg 2H SW HSP, 24kg SN

2x:
16kg half TGU to windmill position, 1/1
24kg DL, 10

10x:

24kg 2H SW Hike Swing Park, 5
24kg SN, 5/5

50 total 24kg 2H SW HSP
100 24kg SN (50/50 L/R) (up from 80, 40/40 last week)

24kg 2H SW, 10

11:20am - Complete

Notes - did this training down at my parents' house in Battleground.  Just brought a 12, 16 and a 24kg kettlebell down with me so I modified the training template for this bell, it worked very well.  Felt great to snatch that 24kg for 100 reps. I will work with Kevin, it's probably time to start using snatching to improve my conditioning now that I have built up to 100 reps with the 24kg, no issues at all.  Or we could go a different direction and use it for strength, if we wanted to keep going with the no timer approach but start putting in the 28kg, work up to the 32kg, etc.  I had worked up to the 32kg at one point in the early spring and that was real, real badass stuff.  

12/22/15 Tuesday December 22, 2015 (16kg TGUs, SLDLs)

8:45am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 30 minutes

9:15am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

9:30am- Training session - 16kg TGUs, 16kg SLDLs

1x
16kg TGUs, 1/1
16kg SLDL, 5/5

9:40am - Complete

Notes - Did this from my parents' house in Portland.  Feeling very good other than pretty tight in the R trap at the base on the neck, old spot, it gets tight with overhead work, traveling, etc. Not surprising.  It responded well to  soft tissue work with the lacrosse ball.  All good. 

12/21/15 Monday December 21, 2015 (CL&PR ladders 24kg, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg)

9:15am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, foam roll   - 45 minutes (needing a lot of soft tissue work)

10:00am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

10:15am- Training session - 24kg CL & PR ladders, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg

2x:
16kg half TGU, 1/1
24kg GSq, 5

4x:
24kg CL and PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3, 4/4 (clean before every press)

40 total presses per arm (up 4 sets from 3 last week)

5x:
24kg 2H SW, 5
28kg 2H SW, 5
32kg 2H SW, 5

75 total 2H SW (backed off to 5 sets, felt like enough)

10:50am - Complete

Notes - .Long weekend.  Lots of holiday party stuff - Thursday, Friday, Saturday nights and it definitely has caught up with me.  Took my time today and got a very good session in and felt strong, but certainly needing to recover now for several days.  The groove on the press continues to improve.  I am very pleased with the progress here and as I have said a number of times, I can see this going on for some time if it make sense.  This has been very good.  L shoulder, elbow, forearm, wrist - didn't notice a thing at all.  Seems like that is improving too, the consistent soft tissue work and adjusting training a little bit have been smart.  I think I can now go to some 1H SW but need to start lighter than what I was doing - 20kg over the weekend was easy, no issues.  I can start working in some 24kg 1H SW work I believe.  Need to build that slow to make sure it is all going ok. 

12/19/15 Saturday December 19, 2015 (DB 20kg FSQ, 1H SW 20kg)

Did this work on Saturday afternoon at home and then Greenlake

3:30pm - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 15 minutes

3:45pm - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

2x:
16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
16kg GSq, 5

Head down to Greenlake

4:00pm- Training session - DB 20kg FSQ, 1H SW 20kg

5x:
1H SW 20kg, 5/5
DB 20kg  FSQ, 5

4:20pm - Finish

20 minute walk

Notes - Good training session, I was pleased with how this worked out.  A little greasing the groove on the squat movement with double bells and not too heavy.  Same with the 1H SW.  A different set of movements than what I have been training during the week.  Backing off on the weekends has been a good idea. 

12/18/15 Friday December 18, 2015 (TGU ladder, 28kg KB aerobics)

9:25am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 30 minutes

9:55am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

10:10am- Training session - TGU ladder, 28kg KB aerobics

20kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
24kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
28kg TGU to windmill, 1/1

28kg KB aerobics, CL 1, PR 1, FSQ 1, set down, switch hands, keep going

20 minutes

ended up doing 12 sets per arm

2H SW 28kg, 10, x 2

10:40am - Finish

Notes - This was very good.  Tossing the 28kg around and it feels... .light??  This is what I am going for.  With the consistent pressing practice, I might be sneaking up on a pressing PR in the future if I continue to just go slowing and work that groove.  I have not pressed a 36kg before overhead but the way this is going, I can see that happening.  I will work with Kevin to do the programming to keep this as a goal.  I would love to see this happen, and then from there, who knows.  I am really doing a better job of getting tight, using my glutes, pressing into the floor, pressing from the lat as a shelf.  A lot of improvement in technique.  You can always get better of course.  I don't think I get tight enough in my abdomen at times and that has been a longstanding issue.  It's why jerks ended up causing me problems.  In any event, love to see this steady progress. 

12/17/15 Thursday December 17, 2015 (20kg TGUs, SLDLs)

6:45am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 30 minutes

7:15am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

7:30am- Training session - 20kg TGUs, 20kg SLDLs

2x
20kg TGUs, 1/1
20kg SLDL, 3/3

7:40am - Complete

Notes - Feeling very good.  Good recovery from snatching.  Right pec just a bit tight, not unusual with snatching, foam roll and some other mobility work seemed to loosen things up nicely and I was moving fine. 

12/16/15 Wednesday December 16, 2015 (40kg HSP, 24kg SN)

7:10am - belly breathing, foam roller, lacrosse ball work, Primal Move practice   - 25 minutes

7:35am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:50am- Training session - superset 40kg 2H SW HSP, 24kg SN

2x:
20kg half TGU to windmill position, 1/1
48kg DL, 8

8x:

40kg 2H SW Hike Swing Park, 3
24kg SN, 5/5

24 total 40kg 2H SW HSP
80 24kg SN (40/40 L/R) (up from 60, 30/30 last week)

24kg 2H SW, 15

8:20am - Complete

Notes - Outstanding training session, this went very well.  Wanted to moderate the increase in volume on the 24kg, just to step it up a bit at a time, not rushing.  60 reps last week, went to 80 reps today, that was perfect.  Really feeling it today, including feeling good with the L shoulder, elbow, forearm, wrist.  Getting a little better recovery I think and clearly getting over my sinus infection that was bogging me down for literally weeks is a huge gain in and of itself.  Feeling fortunate to be able to enjoy this.  Conditioning doesn't seem great, at some point I will probably benefit from more timed sets, but this is really working for me right now in terms of dialing in technique and not rushing a clock. 

12/15/15 Tuesday December 15, 2015 (24kg TGUs, SLDLs)

7:30am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 15 minutes

7:45am - Break

8:45am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

9:00am- Training session - 24kg TGUs, 24kg SLDLs

2x
24kg TGUs, 1/1
24kg SLDL, 3/3

9:15am - Complete

Notes - Feeling very good.  Wanted to pick up the 24kg this morning, and it felt great.  Nice.

12/14/15 Monday December 14, 2015 (CL&PR ladders 24kg, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg)

8:15am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, foam roll   - 45 minutes

9:00am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:15am- Training session - 24kg CL & PR ladders, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg

2x:
16kg half TGU, 1/1
24kg GSq, 5

3x:
24kg CL and PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3, 4/4 (clean before every press)

30 total presses per arm (added the rung of 4 and dropped to 3 sets from 5 sets, same number of presses but "harder" given the 4/4 rung)

7x:
24kg 2H SW, 5
28kg 2H SW, 5
32kg 2H SW, 5

105 total 2H SW (up from 90 last week)

10:00am - Complete

Notes - . Up ridiculously late last night (women will do that to you sometimes, it's not the worst thing) but slept ok, slept in too long but what do you do.  Solid training session.  Long cycle here of the clean and press and it just keeps giving returns.  I feel like I could milk this honestly for months and months and would be ok with it, going to the 28kg, and then the 32kg. It's something to talk to Kevin about.  I'd like to get back to heavy front squatting with doubles too, but again, will talk to Kevin and see what makes sense.  Right now, this has really been working.  My press technique continues to get better and I can tell that I am getting stronger in my glutes and quads as well, because I am really using them in the press, mainly the glutes but quads too.  Combined with swings, this is a great template.  Still really watching the technique and paying attention to that left elbow, forearm and wrist but no issues.  Got a good recovery I think over the weekend but not over training and doing too much.  All in all, a nice start to the week here. 

12/12/15 Saturday December 12, 2015 (DB 16kg CL & FSQ)

Did this work on Saturday afternoon at home.

4:30pm - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 15 minutes

4:45pm - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

5:00pm- Training session - DB 16kg CL & FSQ

2x:
16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
16kg GSq, 5

5x:
DB 16kg CL, 3, FSQ, 5

15 DB CL, 25 DB FSQ

2H SW 24kg, 10, x2

20 2H SW

5:20pm - Finish

Notes - So I made a very conscious decision to switch up the weekend training and do something much more in the "grease the groove" vein with very light weights and a little bit different than what my main training has been.  So I opted for double bells, but very light at 16kgs.  I am writing this the next day on Sunday afternoon after taking an hour walk and man I feel much better than last weekend, better recovery, this was a much smarter training selection.  I am realizing that going at KBs two days in a row, which is rare for me but can happen, absolutely requires that one of the two days be lighter load.  It's where I am at right now, and that's fine.  What is very good is that on the heavier load days, I am doing well and making a lot of progress.  The issue for me is recovery time.  There is a significant amount of stress in my life and I am always trying to combat that.  It really eats into recovery abilities.  For me it's not about can I handle a heavy load on pure strength alone.  I can.  I have proven that.  What my issue is that I don't give enough and put enough into recovery and over time that will cause issues among those injuries.  What's important here is first to establish the self awareness and two over time make changes.  

12/11/15 Friday December 11, 2015 (TGU ladder, 24kg KB aerobics)

6:10am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 30 minutes

6:40am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

6:55am- Training session - TGU ladder, 24kg KB aerobics

16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
20kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
24kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
28kg TGU to windmill, 1/1

24kg KB aerobics, CL 3, PR 3, FSQ 3, set down, switch hands, keep going

20 minutes

ended up doing I think 7, possibly 8 sets for each arm

2H SW 24kg, 10, x 2

7:25am - Finish

Notes - This was a great training session.  A good challenge with reps of 3 for each set, this was up from 2 last week.  I really like the KB aerobic work, it's a real chance to get in a groove and practice these movements. 

1210/15 Thursday December 1, 2015 (16kg TGUs, SLDLs)

7:00am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 15 minutes

7:15am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

7:30am- Training session - 20kg TGUs, 20kg SLDLs

2x
16kg TGUs, 1/1
16kg SLDL, 5/5

7:40am - Complete

Notes - Feeling good (other than dealing with sinus problems). Surprisingly good and L shoulder, forearm, wrist feeling good too.  Getting a deep tissue massage this morning as well to further help with recovery. 

12/9/15 Wednesday December 9, 2015 (36kg HSP, 24kg SN)

8:00am - belly breathing, foam roller, lacrosse ball work, Primal Move practice   - 55 minutes (needed a lot of extra time for soft tissue work)

8:55am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:10am- Training session - superset 36kg 2H SW HSP, 24kg SN

3x:
20kg half TGU to windmill position, 1/1
48kg DL, 8

10x:

36kg 2H SW Hike Swing Park, 3
24kg SN, 3/3

30 total 36kg 2H SW HSP
60 24kg SN (30 per arm)

9:40am - Complete

Notes - Very slow morning.  Not feeling very well, I have battling cold symptoms on and off for about two weeks.  Took a long time to warm up, which was ok.  The actual training session itself was solid, good to be snatching with the 24kg again and those reps felt pretty strong and smooth. L shoulder, forearm, wrist a bit tight, not surprised. I am going to try and get in to get a couple of chiropractic adjustments this afternoon if I can fit it in.

12/8/15 Tuesday December 8, 2015 (20kg TGUs, SLDLs)

7:00am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 15 minutes

7:15am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

7:30am- Training session - 20kg TGUs, 20kg SLDLs

2x
20kg TGUs, 1/1
20kg SLDL, 3/3

7:40am - Complete

Notes - Feeling good. Pretty nicely recovered from yesterday's training and left shoulder, forearm, wrist feeling good. Nice. 

12/7/15 Monday December 7, 2015 (CL&PR ladders 24kg, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg)

8:30am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, foam roll   - 45 minutes

9:15am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:30am- Training session - 24kg CL & PR ladders, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg

2x:
16kg half TGU, 1/1
24kg GSq, 5

5x:
24kg CL and PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3 (clean before every press)

30 total presses per arm (added a set from last week)

6x:
24kg 2H SW, 5
28kg 2H SW, 5
32kg 2H SW, 5

90 total 2H SW

10:15am - Complete

Notes - Good training session.  Was out very late last night and slept in this morning as a result, but feeling pretty good.  Got a lot of sleep the night before as well, trying to work through a cold.  The sleep has definitely been helping me recover from training.  I also had a 45 minute "float" in a  hydrotherapy chamber filled with Epson salts (which I got as a gift) yesterday evening which was pretty cool and relaxing.  I have been watching the tenderness / tightness in the L elbow and wrist closely, and working on mobilizing those through my shoulder.  As usual, I know this comes from the shoulder first (old injury site).  My overhead mobility is massively improved the last several months which is awesome, but I need to keep working on stabilizing that shoulder and just stay on top of things.  The overhead training work can be challenging for me if the volume gets too up there, too fast, and I have fun into that a few times (most recently when trying to add in pull-ups on the weekends).  I think the lesson for now for weekend work is that I really need to truly focus on mobility and walking, and any KB work should be lighter than what I have been doing (for example maybe DB 16kg FSQ or something like that, for limited reps, just to grease a groove).   Regardless, today's training was good, 5 sets of clean and press with the 24kg and the bell was just popping up on both sides, absolutely no issues, no straining, felt easy.  Very good signs.  On the 2H SW I focused on hip drive and really extending my arms and the KB out at the top of the swing on the float, so not bending the elbows but keeping them straight.  That was good and seemed to help with the technique a bit.  If I go to any 1H SW in this cycle I think I am going to start with the 20kg and not go heavy at all as I need to dial that it better and work through the stuff with my L shoulder before trying to move up bells too fast again. 

12/5/15 Saturday December 5, 2015 (2H SW ladder)

Did this work on Saturday afternoon at home.

12:30pm - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 15 minutes

12:45pm - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

1:00pm- Training session - 2H SW ladder

16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1, x 2

3x:
2H SW 24kg, 10
2H SW 28kg, 10
2H SW 32kg, 10

2H SW 24kg, 10

100 2H SW

1:15pm - Finish

Notes - I was feeling great going into this.  My left elbow and wrist have been a little tender lately at times.  Got these worked on Wed during a deep tissue massage which was very good.  After finishing up today, they were a bit tender and tight.  Really starts I think in the shoulder and into the bicep rather than being a real issue in the elbow or wrist.  Heavy swings and in particular heavy 1H SW from last week seem to irritate it.  I will stay focused on this but it probably makes sense to stay with the 24kg for swings right now.  That seems to be completely fine.  

12/4/15 Friday December 4, 2015 (TGU ladder, 24kg KB aerobics)

7:25am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 30 minutes

7:55am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

8:10am- Training session - TGU ladder, 24kg KB aerobics

16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
20kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
24kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
28kg TGU to windmill, 1/1

24kg KB aerobics, CL 2, PR 2, FSQ 2, set down, switch hands, keep going

20 minutes

ended up doing 10 or 11 sets for each arm but didn't count

2H SW 24kg, 15

8:45am - Finish

Notes - Very good day today, this felt fantastic, great working with the 24kg bell.

12/3/15 Thursday December 3, 2015 (20kg TGUs, DB 16kg SLDLs)

7:15am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 25 minutes

7:40am - Break

8:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

8:45am- Training session - 20kg TGUs, DB 16kg SLDLs

2x
20kg TGUs, 1/1
DB 16kg SLDL, 3/3

9:00am - Complete

Notes - Feeling good. 

12/2/15 Wednesday December 2, 2015 (36kg HSP, 20kg SN)

7:10am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice   - 20 minutes

7:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:45am- Training session - superset 36kg 2H SW HSP, 20kg SN

3x:
20kg half TGU to windmill position, 1/1
48kg DL, 8

10x:

36kg 2H SW Hike Swing Park, 3 (up from 32kg last week)
20kg SN, 5/5

30 total 36kg 2H SW HSP
100 20kg SN (50 per arm)

36kg 2H SW, 10

8:20am - Complete

10:00am - Deep tissue massage

Notes - Feeling good today and this was a quick and well-paced training session.  Body felt good. Left wrist and elbow have been feeling just a little bit tight, I think the one-arm swings on Monday were tough as I am not used to those.  After training today I had a massage which was great and my masseuse worked on my hand and some tendons in the wrist, both hands, which was great.  This is very good recovery work given how hard KB training can be on the grip, wrist, and forearm muscles. I need to keep up the solid recovery work, I think this has been pretty key to my solid gains here in training for the last several months.  Balancing enough training to make gains with sufficient recovery is something I need to continue to focus on.  The recent lesson I had on a weekend a few weeks ago where pull-ups didn't feel great, given all of the other overhead work that is in my training program currently, was another reminder to just be thoughtful and push where appropriate, but not to the point of doing something stupid.  At 38 I need to be doing things that are adding to my health and not taking anything away.  All in all, another one in the books today and a good one at that. 

12/1/15 Tuesday December 1, 2015 (20kg TGUs, SLDLs)

7:15am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 25 minutes

7:40am - Break

8:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

8:45am- Training session - 20kg TGUs, SLDLs

2x
20kg TGUs, 1/1
20kg SLDL, 3/3

9:00am - Complete

Notes - Very light work today, body feeling very good and recovered from yesterday's extended press and 1H SW session.  Very encouraging.  

11/30/15 Monday November 30, 2015 (CL&PR ladders 24kg, 1H SW ladders 24/28/32kg)

7:30am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 30 minutes

8:00am - Kettlebell warm up

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

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

8;15am- Training session - 24kg CL & PR ladders, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg

2x:
16kg half TGU, 1/1
24kg GSq, 5

4x:
24kg CL and PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3 (clean before every press)

24 total presses per arm (added a set from last week)

3x:
24kg 1H SW, 5/5
28kg 1H SW, 5/5
32kg 1H SW, 5/5

90 total 1H SW

8:55am - Complete

Notes - Outstanding training day. Really, really pleased with how this went.  Body felt good despite a lot of traveling this weekend, presses very strong, and getting into some 1H SW with heavier weights (the 32kg was challenging, you really have to be sharp on form, using the hips to drive). We'll see how recovery goes but this was certainly an exciting start to the week.  Oh, and I did this outside in 30 degree weather as well.  Badass.

11/28/15 Saturday November 28, 2015 (TGU ladder, 20kg KB aerobics)

Modified as I did this session at my parents' house for the T-day holiday

7:55am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 20 minutes

8:15am - Kettlebell warm up

Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

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

8:20am- Training session - TGU ladder, 20kg KB aerobics

16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
20kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
20kg TGU to windmill, 1/1

20kg KB aerobics, CL 3, PR 3, FSQ 3, set down, switch hands, keep going

20 minutes

Didn't count, probably about 9 sets per arm

2H SW 20kg, 20

8:50am - Finish

Notes - Writing this late Sunday evening after getting back from a trip for the weekend.  Good session at my parents' house in the Portland area for the holiday.  Brought a 16 and 20kg KB in the car with a plan to do this and it worked out fine before we headed out for the day.  R overhead position was tight for sure, same stuff I have been working through.  Snatching on Thursday, driving long hours on Friday, sleeping in a different bed is definitely going to be a tough combination for sure and I was not surprised at all by this. Actually things loosened up today pretty nicely and going to get some mobility work in before bed, and get ready for tomorrow's training.  Pressing, 4 sets of ladders to 3 with the 24kg, and then some heavier 2H SW ladders.  I am excited and looking forward to it. 

11/27/15 Friday November 27, 2015 (24kg TGUs, DB 24kg SLDLs)

8:00am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 30 minutes

8:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

8:45am- Training session - 24kg TGUs, 24kg SLDLs

16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1

2x:
24kg TGUs to windmill, 1/1
24kg SLDL, 3/3

9:00am - Complete

Notes - Good day.  Felt good to do these movements with the 24kg.  It's good to load up that TGU windmill position, this is absolutely helping my shoulder stability and ROM.  Very good to do on a near-daily basis. 

11/26/15 Thursday November 26, 2015 (32kg HSP, 20kg SN)

7:15am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 20 minutes

7:35am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:50am- Training session - superset 32kg 2H SW HSP, 20kg SN

3x:
20kg half TGU to windmill position, 1/1
Glute bridges, 5
48kg DL, 8

10x:

32kg 2H SW Hike Swing Park, 3
20kg SN, 5/5

30 total 32kg 2H SW HSP
100 20kg SN (50 per arm)

32kg 2H SW, 15

8:30am - Complete

Walk at Greenlake - 45 minutes

Notes - Getting around to writing this Friday evening.  Did this on Thanksgiving Day on a gloriously cold morning in Seattle, just above freezing temperatures and I am outside swinging and snatching kettlebells.  There is nothing like it, I am sorry, it makes you feel like a bad motherfucker.  I love this shit I am not even going to lie.  You have to appreciate those times when your body feels great and you feel like you could go through a brick wall, and this was one of those days for me.  On Thanksgiving Day, I was grateful for many things in my life and certainly having my health and a strong body that helps me get through the ups and downs that get thrown my way is very, very high up on that list.  Great stuff and I am so pleased that I seem to be responding from the tweak at the base on my R lower neck from pull-ups last weekend.  I think I had some good responses to that in terms of the soft tissue work, adjusting the training schedule, not increasing load or volume this week, all good advice from Kevin.  There's a hell of a lot to be said about not doing dumb things and making something that could be minor turn into something that could be major. 

11/25/15 Wednesday November 25, 2015 (20kg TGUs, DB 16kg SLDLs)

7:45am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 15 minutes

8:00am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

8:15am- Training session - 20kg TGUs, DB 16kg SLDLs

2x
20kg TGUs, 1/1
DB 16kg SLDL, 3/3

8:30am - Complete

Notes - Really restless night of sleep, coughing and not feeling great.  But woke up ok and moved quickly, just getting some movement prep in and a few TGUs and SLDLs.  Everything felt pretty good.  Had a chance to go see my friend Molly at her gym Fuelhouse for a few minutes this morning which was great.  All in all, things moving in a good direction it seems.  

11/24/15 Tuesday November 24, 2015 (CL&PR ladders 24kg, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg)

9:00am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 35 minutes

9:35am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:50am- Training session - 24kg CL & PR ladders, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg

2x:
16kg half TGU, 1/1
24kg GSq, 5

3x:
24kg CL and PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3 (clean before every press)

18 total presses per arm

7x:
24kg 2H SW, 5
28kg 2H SW, 5
32kg 2H SW, 5

105 total 2H SW

10:30am - Complete

Notes - Good training session particularly given a relatively poor night's sleep, and watching carefully my technique and not pushing anything given the stiff neck and tension in the right pec / trap since doing training on Saturday at the lake.  I have been monitoring this, the chiropractic adjustment was helpful and so has been some mobility and soft tissue work.  I have a deep tissue massage tonight as well, and have 48 hours to try and recover from this session which is good.  This went well, absolutely no pain at all, and really focused on using my hips and pressing from the glutes, pushing my feet into the floor.  2H SW felt very good.  We'll see how I feel tomorrow and the day after.  

11/23/15 Monday November 23, 2015 (16kg TGU, 24kg 2H SW)

8:30am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 90 minutes (sick and body not doing well)

10:00am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

10:15am- Training session - TGU, 2H SW

2x:
16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
16kg GSq, 5

24kg 2H SW, 10, x 10

100 swings

10:30am - Finish

11:00am - Chiropractic appointment

Notes - Shitty day but that's how it goes sometimes.  I spent 50 minutes last night before bed doing the Supine Groin Stretch from the Pain free book, just trying to get some of the tension out of my right shoulder and arm mainly (that stretch has done amazing things for me in the past for both my abductors as well as my hips and shoulders).  My right arm was in spasm at various points and definitely there is some stuff being worked through there. I told myself that I would go with the flow this morning and see how I felt, and if anything didn't feel ok, I would back off from the training plan and live to fight another day.  I tossed and turned last night in bed, woke up with a raging headache, and some head cold symptoms.  Not great.  I decided ultimately that it made zero sense to try and press today, or really do anything much beyond doing some solid mobility work and soft tissue work with the foam roll and lacrosse ball to work on hot spots on my right arm, i.e. tricep, pec, trap, under the armpit, etc.  I spent a long time doing that, and eventually felt good enough to do my basic kettlebell warm up and then some TGUs and goblet squats with the 16kg.  By that point, those were feeling ok, not a problem, zero pain. I had a feeling that 2H light swings with the 24kg would be fine, so I tried them, felt good, zero pain, did 10 sets of 10.  I then made an appointment with my chiropractor to go get checked out, get a few adjustments to work on this tension in the right lower neck, trap, arm etc.  That was excellent and I am glad I was able to get in and see him.  I will work the mobility hard tonight, get some rest, and see how I feel in the morning.  Kevin suggested both staying with last week's load and volume and also taking an extra day and to the training Tues / Thursday / Sat.  At first I didn't think this would work but in my mind this morning I realized that could work just fine, especially with another of recovery, night's sleep, let these chiro adjustments settle in, etc.  So that's the hopeful plan for tomorrow.  For once I am proud of myself for actually listening and backing off. I should have realized a long time ago that it's not worth it to jeopardize longer-term training and results for an immediate training fix.  If you can't go, stop, figure it out, and set yourself up appropriately so you can go.  

11/21/15 Saturday November 21, 2015 (pull-ups + push-ups + carries)

Warm-up

3x:
1 pull-up
2 push-ups

2 pull-ups
2 push-ups

3 pull-ups
2 push-ups

DB 24kg farmer carry, about 2 minutes, 2x

Notes - Writing this very late Saturday.  Got some training in with the kids in the late afternoon in very cold weather at the lake (sub 40 degrees) which in hindsight was problematic.  I had been moving around all day and felt pretty warmed up and ready to go, so I didn't take much of a warm-up (and it was cold and I wanted to get in and out of there).  In hindsight, I have significantly increased the volume of my overhead work lately and in particular this week. I needed to warm up my shoulders and I didn't do it.  As a result, during the middle set on a pull-up I felt a grab in my R lower trap, base of the R lower neck, an old injury spot.  Man I was super pissed.  Got home, did some soft tissue and other mobility work, and it has been responding well so hopefully this comes and goes, just part of training.  I am not certain with my current training schedule if I even need to be doing this overhead work on the weekends, or even push-ups, given plenty of volume for the upper body.  If anything I think it would make more sense to do a few swings and do some fast walking for a long walk.  I will discuss with Kevin.  I love pull-ups but they seem to be causing me some issues lately, which is odd.  I was on a very, very long run with them that was highly productive but just not feeling it right now.  The pull-ups today, just going up to a max set of 3, were not easy.  I felt fatigued.  I have been working very diligently to get the kettlebell work back up to speed, particularly working on the overhead press and now snatching too, so honestly probably no need to be caught up in pull-ups and push-ups right now.  Other body weight work like some crawling or other stuff could be good, with some swings, and a walk.  Will discuss with Kevin.  Just hoping that grab passes on.  Will stay up on mobility and recovery work, I have a deep tissue massage scheduled on Tuesday evening, perfect timing.

11/20/15 Friday November 20, 2015 (TGU ladder, 20kg KB aerobics)

7:10am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 30 minutes

7:40am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:55am- Training session - TGU ladder, 20kg KB aerobics

16kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
20kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
24kg TGU to windmill, 1/1
28kg TGU to windmill, 1/1

20kg KB aerobics, CL 3, PR 3, FSQ 3, set down, switch hands, keep going

20 minutes

ended up doing 9 sets for each arm - 27/27/27 CL/PR/FSQ per arm

1H SW 20kg, 10/10

8:30am - Finish

Notes - Great session, feeling awesome.  One of my favorite training templates is KB aerobics (ok maybe with snatches thrown in, even better).  This was great.  How about 28kg TGUs!!  Felt great.  Really good stuff happening with my overhead position.  L shoulder and arm were fatiguing at the end of the KB aerobics, but maintained form.  Decent amount of overhead work this week, not surprised.  

11/19/15 Thursday November 19, 2015 (20kg TGUs, SLDLs)

7:10am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 20 minutes

7:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

7:45am - break

8:45am- Training session - 20kg TGUs, SLDLs

2x
20kg TGUs, 1/1
20kg SLDL, 3/3

9:00am - Complete

Notes - Fine. Writing this at the end of the day.  What a brutal day. Car didn't start and got towed today, just a debacle all around.  Starting fresh tomorrow.  Looking forward to KB aerobics with the 20kg.

11/18/15 Wednesday November 18, 2015 (32kg HSP, 20kg SN)

7:30am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 40 minutes

8:10am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

8:25am- Training session - superset 32kg 2H SW HSP, 20kg SN

3x:
20kg half TGU to windmill position, 1/1
Glute bridges, 5
48kg DL, 8

10x:

32kg 2H SW Hike Swing Park, 3
20kg SN, 5/5

30 total 32kg 2H SW HSP
100 20kg SN (50 per arm)

9:05am - Complete

Notes - This was a very good training session.  Body is feeling pretty good.  Overhead position for both arms, very good, so much improved from several months ago.  Really have dialed it in much better with the primal move work, the light getups to the windmill position, the soft tissue and recovery work I have been doing.  This is all going in the right direction.   Will be interesting to see how I feel after 100 snatches, it has definitely been some time since I have been snatching much at all, but I think it will be fine.  Just going to work on shoulder mobility drills for the next day or so and see how it turns out. Certainly felt very good during training.   

11/17/15 Tuesday November 17, 2015 (16kg TGUs, SLDLs)

7:10am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 20 minutes

7:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

7:45am - break

8:45am- Training session - 16kg TGUs, SLDLs

2x
16kg TGUs, 1/1
16kg SLDL, 5/5

9:00am - Complete

Notes - Uneventful.  Slept right through alarms - needed the sleep, definitely worked hard yesterday pressing the 24kg for reps, and the swing ladder.  Ate a ton of food yesterday.  Huge appetite the last few days.  Feeling pretty good all around.

11/16/15 Monday November 16, 2015 (CL&PR ladders 24kg, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg)

7:45am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 60 minutes (a lot of soft tissue release)

8:45am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:00am- Training session - 24kg CL & PR ladders, 2H SW ladders 24/28/32kg

2x:
16kg half TGU, 1/1
24kg GSq, 5

3x:
24kg CL and PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3 (clean before every press

18 total presses per arm

6x:
24kg 2H SW, 5
28kg 2H SW, 5
32kg 2H SW, 5

90 total 2H SW

9:45am - Complete

Notes - This was an excellent training session.  I played with my foot placement, toes just slightly out, same position I would fall into when doing a bodyweight squat, based on advice from Kevin from last week's training.  Pressing the 24kg felt strong.  Good power on the 2H SW.  All around solid day.  Have an appointment at Kinetics this afternoon, that should be good as well.  

11/14/15 Saturday November 14, 2015 (pull-ups + push-ups + carries)

Writing this Sunday afternoon.  Got in some training in the rain at the lake yesterday afternoon after dropping the kids off.  Really, really shitty conditions but it's sometimes about just punching the clock and moving forward.  Kevin and I determined that it would be appropriately to start incorporating some pull-ups back into the routine, after taking a number of weeks off to let some elbow and biceps issues that seemed to be exacerbated by pull-ups calm down.

Warm-up

2x:
1 pull-up
5 push-ups

2 pull-ups
3 push-ups

3 pull-ups
2 push-ups

DB 24kg farmer carry, about 2 minutes

Notes - Writing this the next day, feeling very good and there doesn't seem to be any unusual soreness or issues coming out of putting the pull-ups back into the routine.  Keeping the rep count very low obviously was important.  In general the movement felt strong, and I felt a lot more lat engagement than I remember previously, I suspect due to all the swings I have been doing I have been recruitment of those muscles.  Was really pleased to see at the top of the pull, no elbow issues like I was experiencing before. All good signs here.  I think it will be appropriate to keep training the movement again.  What got me into trouble I think were weighted pull-ups which in the overall training program I was doing at that time, maybe were too much volume, or I wasn't doing enough mobility work and recovery for the shoulders, not sure. I would like to eventually get back to training weighted pull-ups in an effective manner but for now it's going to be bodyweight for sure, and just progressing slowly and appropriately in a way that is additive to the other training I am doing.

11/13/15 Friday November 13, 2015 (training with Kevin)

5:50am - warm-up, some halos with an 8k and a 12kg, and some arm bars with a 16kg

6:15am - Training with Kevin

Last training session was on September 25 with Kevin

Some foam roll, then right into things.

Get-up practice to the windmill position with a 16kg.  A couple of minor pointers to move in the supporting hand slightly, open up the hip but in general, really good, especially lockout.

Did some swings with the 24kg to get warmed up.

Got into some clean and press practice with the 20kg and 24kg.  Really feeling good on presses.

Got into some practice with front squatting the 24kg.  Kevin gave me some very good pointers on foot position, to open up the toes slightly and basically "go where my body wants to go" as in how my feet are positioned in a body weight squat.  Noticed a huge difference.  This could be a big cue and adjustment for me.

Did some snatching with the 20kg just to get a feel again.  Snatching is going back into the next cycle.

Finished with some ladders on 2H and then 1H swings, 24kg, 28kg, 32kg.  1H SW on the 32kg was awesome.  Man it is feeling good to be getting back to these weights.

Excited for the next cycle.

11/12/15 Thursday November 12, 2015 (20kg TGUs, SLDLs)

6:50am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 40 minutes

7:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

7:40am - Break

8:50am - Resume

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

9:00am- Training session - 16kg TGUs, SLDLs

2x
20kg TGUs, 1/1
20kg SLDL, 3

9:10am - Complete

Notes - Uneventful.  Feeling pretty good all around.

11/11/15 Wednesday November 11, 2015 (KB aerobics 24kg / 28kg)

8:45am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 30 minutes

9:15am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:30am- Training session - KB aerobics, 24kg / 28kg

2x:
Glute raises, 5
48kg DL, 5
16kg half TGU, 1/1

25 minutes:

24kg CL 1, PR 1, FSQ 1, 1H SW 5, set down, switch hands

28kg CL 1, PR 1, FSQ 1, 1H SW 5, set down, switch hands

Just keep going back and forth until time is up

28kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, maybe 20 reps (very hard style with as much acceleration on the bell going into the hole as possible, hard hip snap)

10:10am - Complete

Notes - Great training session.  Had to sleep in again to try and completely get over these flu symptoms, so I felt reasonably rested once I got going.  Man it felt good to handle the 28kg like that again.  Those presses were popping up.  I like the progress a lot and love this simple style of training. 

11/10/15 Tuesday November 10, 2015 (20kg TGUs, SLDLs)

6:50am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 40 minutes

7:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

7:40am - Break

8:50am - Resume

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

9:00am- Training session - 16kg TGUs, SLDLs

2x
20kg TGUs, 1/1
20kg SLDL, 3

9:10am - Complete

Notes - Uneventful.  Feeling pretty good all around.

11/9/15 Monday November 9, 2015 (KB aerobics 20kg / 24kg)

8:30am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release   - 60 minutes (interruptions and frankly moving very slow)

9:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:45am- Training session - KB aerobics, 20kg / 24kg

2x:
Glute raises, 5
48kg DL, 5
16kg half TGU, 1/1

25 minutes:

20kg CL 1, PR 1, FSQ 1, 1H SW 5, set down, switch hands

24kg CL 1, PR 1, FSQ 1, 1H SW 5, set down, switch hands

Just keep going back and forth until time is up

24kg 2H SW, 20 (very hard style with as much acceleration on the bell going into the hole as possible, hard hip snap)

10:25am - Complete

Notes - Slept like a rock and completely right through my alarm, but I felt better this morning having done that.  Busy weekend and I needed those extra hours.  Got behind this morning as a result but that's ok.  This was a solid training session.  Pressing the 24kg felt great.  Actually doing everything with the 24kg felt great.  

11/7/15 Saturday November 7, 2015 (BU FSQ 20kg / pistols / SLDLs + push-ups)

Writing this on Sunday evening late after a very long weekend, but very fun.  A co worker got married on Saturday night and I had one hell of a night.

I got training in during Saturday afternoon before the festivities began.

Primal move warm-up (feeling very good)

Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

BU FSQ 20kg, 3/3
Push-ups, 5

Pistols, 1/1
Push-ups, 5

BU FSQ 20kg, 3/3
Push-ups, 5

SLDLs 20kg, 3/3
Push-ups, 5

BU FSQ 20kg, 3/3
Push-ups, 5

Total 9/9 BU FSQ 20kg, 25 push-ups

Notes - Good all around.  Noticed later in the evening and today, pretty tight in the R trap, same old spot, and R knee sore which I suspect was from the pistols.  Pistols didn't feel all that great.  Was not getting very good depth.  Hamstrings too tight.  Those are dropped and that's why I only did the one set.  No need to mess around with those right now but I just wanted to see if I still had the movement capability.

11/6/15 Friday November 6, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 32kg 2H SW)

7:10am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice   - 10 minutes (quick for one)

7:20am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:35am- Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 32kg 2H SW

2x:
Glute raises, 5
49kg DL, 5
16kg half TGU, 1/1

7:50am - Break for work

8:45am - Resume

16kg TK PR, 3/3, x 3

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3, 4/4 x 3

30 CL, 30 PR each arm (medium day, up from 1/1 2/2 3/3 last week)

12 minutes:
32kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest, do it again

Didn't count reps, but this went very well.

9:20am - Complete

Notes - Good day.  End of a training cycle, resting yesterday was a good idea.  Body is feeling sore, but it's not from training, I think I may be coming down with something.  Both of my kids are sick.  Need to get a great night's sleep tonight. Have to check with Kevin as to where I go from here for training but this has been very productive. 

11/5/15 Thursday November 5, 2015 (primal move )

6:45am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 60 minutes

7:45am- Complete 

Notes - Decided just to do mobility and no kettlebell work today.  Feeling run down and a bit tight.  Need to rest.  Got an ok night's sleep. 

11/4/15 Wednesday November 4, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 24kg 2H, 1H SW, 20kg 1H SW)

9:00am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, hip and hamstring stretches, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 50 minutes (moving very slow, needed a lot of soft tissue work)

9:50am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

10:05am- Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 24kg 2H, 1H SW, 20kg 1H SW

2x:
Glute raises, 5
49kg DL, 5
20kg TK PR, 3/3, x 2

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3 x 3

18 CL, 18 PR each arm (light day, up from 1/1, 2/2 last week)

15 minutes:

Various alternating swing sets of the following

24kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest
24kg 2H SW HSP
20kg 1H SW
24kg 1H SW

Felt good to get reps in with the 1H 24kg.  Makes me really focus on the leg drive and hip snap.  Kept the reps low on those, but went well. Encouraging.  2H SW are very powerful these days, this is good.

10:45am - Complete

11:00am - Chiro adjustment

Notes - Late night last night, had to sleep in.  Slow start to the day, needed a lot of soft tissue work primarily on my thoracic spin on the R trap, and R pec, R scalenes on the neck, same spots that have been tight.  Got a chiropractic adjustment and other work after training that helps for sure.  Training itself felt good once I got going.  Grooving into a nice clean and press now that I have a number of reps under my belt the last few weeks.  Swings are powerful.  Some good things are happening, I just need to clean up this stuff on my R side a bit more.  

11/3/15 Tuesday November 3, 2015 (16kg TGUs, SLDLs)

6:50am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 30 minutes

7:20am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

7:35am- Training session - 16kg TGUs, SLDLs

2x
16kg TGUs, 1/1
16kg SLDL, 5

7:50am - Complete

Notes - Uneventful.  Feeling pretty good all around. 

11/2/15 Monday November 2, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 28kg 2H SW)

7:20am - belly breathing, Primal Move practice, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 20 minutes

7:40am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:55am- Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 28kg 2H SW

2x:
Glute raises, 5
48kg DL, 5
16kg half TGU, 1/1

Forgot to do TK PRs damn it

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3, 4/4, 5/5, x 3

45 CL, 45 PR each arm (up from 1/1 2/2 3/3 4/4 or 30/30 last week)

2 minutes:
28kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest, go again

8:35am - Complete

9:00am - Acupuncture appt

10:35am - 8 minutes of 28kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest, go again , to get in 10 total minutes of swings

Notes - Very solid day of training.  Press volume got up there now once you take ladders to 5s.  The last round, last set of 5 was a little tougher than I would have expected with a 20kg, which is light for me.  Kevin was right to stay at the 20kg this week and just finish out the cycle to get to ladders of 5s.  This was good.  I realized I did not do my TK PRs in the warm-up after writing this, so that wasn't great, probably would have warmed up my shoulders even more for pressing but I felt pretty read to today actually with just arm bars and a couple of get-ups.  My swings had to get broken up between 2 minutes before I had to leave for an acupuncture appt and 8 minutes after I got back, to get in 10 total minutes, but that was fine.  2H SW are very powerful these days.  I like where I am at right now mainly because it feels like I am moving forward in a positive way.  

10/31/15 Saturday October 31, 2015 (24kg 2H SW + push-ups, TGUs)

Writing this on Saturday evening after a very busy day with my kids coaching soccer.

Found 20 minutes in the late afternoon at about 5:30pm at the house to bang out a quick session, after working in my yard for a couple of hours.

Primal move warm-up (feeling very good)

5x superset:

2H SW 24kg, 20
5 push-ups

Total of 100 2H SW 24kg, 25 push-ups

24kg TGUs to windmill position, 1/1, x 2

TGUs with the 24kg felt awesome, it has honestly been a long time since I did a TGU with a 24kg and I think I can get back to that now.  Lockout in the windmill position was excellent.  This is really good.

10/30/15 Friday October 30, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 32kg 2H SW,. 20kg 1H SW)

8:45am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, hip and hamstring stretches, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 45 minutes

9:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:45am- Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 32kg 2H SW

2x:
Glute raises, 5
49kg DL, 5
16kg half TGU, 1/1

16kg TK PR, 5/5, x 2

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3 x 3

18 CL, 18 PR each arm (medium day, up from 1/1 last week)

12 minutes:
32kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest
20kg 1H SW, go until form degrades, including hand switches, rest

Didn't count reps, but this went very well.

10:15am - Complete

Notes - Awesome.  Conclusion of an excellent training week.  This is really going well for me.  Need to talk to Kevin about how to keep progressing using the same movements, 1 arm press and the swing, into next week.  Question is to either stay with the 20kg for pressing and add ladders, or go up a bell.  The 20kg is feeling damn light at this piont.  

10/29/15 Thursday October 29, 2015 (16kg TGUs, 24kg 2H SW)

6:50am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 30 minutes

7:20am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

7:35am- Training session - 16kg TGUs, 24kg 2H SW

16kg TGUs, 1/1, x 2

24kg 2H SW, 10, x 5

7:50am - Complete

Notes - Easy, quick, feeling good.  Nice.  

10/28/15 Wednesday October 28, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 32kg 2H SW)

8:15am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, hip and hamstring stretches, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 60 minutes

9:15am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

9:30am- Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 32kg 2H SW

2x:
Glute raises, 5
49kg DL, 5
16kg half TGU, 1/1

20kg TK PR, 3/3, x 2

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, 2/2, x 3

9 CL, 9 PR each arm (light day, up from 1/1 last week)

15 minutes:
32kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest

Didn't count reps, but it was tough, I pushed the bell speed on each set pretty hard.  I did take some fairly long rests, but that allowed me to keep the bell speed very high on every rep.

10:00am - Complete

Notes - Very good day, particularly swinging the 32kg.  I like where things are going.  Definitely working through some real tight muscles on the R side in the trap, mid back and lat, as well as bicep, but it's ok.  I just need to keep working mobility.  I know that 1 arm presses in the past have somewhat led to this pattern, where the R side tightens up a bit, not totally sure why, but it's very manageable and to me just a sign that things are changing and moving around.  I am really pleased with the power I am generating with my swing practice, it's very good.  I think that is helping my glutes and low back a lot, with other added benefits to the whole body.  It's really a mistake for me to get too far away from making sure I am consistently incorporating some swing practice into my training.  It's that good for me. 

10/27/15 Tuesday October 27, 2015 (16kg TGUs, 16kg SLDLs)

7:00am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release  - 30 minutes

7:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

7:45am- Training session - 16kg TGUs, 16kg SL DLs

2x:
16kg TGUs, 1/1
16kg SLDLs, 3/3

7:50am - Complete

Notes - Solid progress.  Feeling way off on my sleeping schedule, but otherwise, body has been responding well. I am particularly pleased with how my L hip  /oblique / TFL has been responding to the various soft tissue treatments.  This is outstanding. 

10/26/15 Monday October 26, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 20kg 1H SW / 28kg 2H SW)

7:15am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, hip and hamstring stretches, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 45 minutes

8:00am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

8:15am- Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 20kg 1H SW / 28kg 2H SW

2x:
Glute raises, 5
49kg DL, 5
16kg half TGU, 1/1

16kg TK PR, 5/5, x 2

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3, 4/4, x 3

30 CL, 30 PR each arm (up from 1/1 2/2 3/3 last week)

10 minutes:
28kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest

20kg 1H SW, do some straight sets on each arm, and then do some alternating reps (H2H) until form degrades, rest

Didn't count reps, but it was tough, I pushed the bell speed on each set pretty hard

8:55am - Complete

4:30pm - Kinetics appt

Notes - Great training day.  Body is feeling good all around.  Definitely had some tightness in the R front trap and bicep, I suspect from the push-ups and 2H heavy SW on Saturday, though this has simply been tight lately.  Things are moving around.  The L shoulder continues to improve, as does the L elbow.  Lockout is significantly improving. I can really tell a difference with the get-ups and a few other movements.  It's almost like the issues have slid a bit over to the R side from the L side, though there is absolutely no pain at all, it's more just tightness and really having to work on mobilization etc.  But honestly this is good stuff and I think my body is responding well to a simply focus on single bell pressing and then doing a variety of different swings.  I am gaining some confidence getting in some reps with the press, in terms of honing technique, being efficent and powerful with the clean to set up the press, etc.  It's all good stuff.  I also received some good news today that I don't have to work in New Jersey next week as I was planning, so I can keep running this cycle uninterrupted and hopefully continuing to move the ball forward.  

10/24/15 Saturday October 24, 2015 (24kg / 32kg 2H SW + push-ups)

Writing this on Saturday evening after a very busy day with my kids.

Found 20 minutes in the late afternoon at about 4:20pm at the house to bang out a quick session.  Not having pull-ups in the arsenal right now means some flexibility and I didn't have to make it down to to the lake to get the training in (though we were down there several times today anyway).

24kg Gsq, 5

5x superset:

2H SW 24kg, 10
5 push-ups
2H SW 32kg, 10

Total of 50 2H SW 24kg, 25 push-ups, 50 2H SW 32kg

This felt very solid.  Need to get some decent mobility work in this evening.

10/23/15 Friday October 23, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 28kg 2H SW)

7:20am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, hip and hamstring stretches, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 25 minutes

7:45am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

8:00am - Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 28kg 2H SW

2x:
16kg half TGU, 1/1

16kg TK PR, 5/5, x 2

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, 2/2, x 3

9 CL, 9 PR each arm

5 minutes:
28kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest, do it again

Didn't count reps, probably about 60 reps or so, maybe more.

8:30am - Complete

9:00am - Acupuncture appt

10:30am - Chiro appt

Notes - Back from NYC, good training day all things considered.  Decent night's sleep, left shoulder continues to improve, and desipite all of the traveling and sitting I had to do this week, low back feels ok.  No issues at all during training.  Got another acupuncture appointment done today and chiro too, just trying to really stay up on the recovery methods particularly in the face of travel commitments.  Feeling solid going into the weekend.  A few push-ups and 2H 32kg swings tomorrow.  

10/21/15 Wednesday October 21, 2015 (walk in NYC)

5:30 - 7:00pm - Took a 90 minute walk in Manhattan, walking from my hotel at the Waldorf Astoria near 50th and Park Avenue down through mid down, Times Square etc.  It was awesome.  I was feeling tight all day and this walk was excellent just to unwind and get out and see the city.  Walking is a great, great thing for the body.

10/20/15 Tuesday October 20, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 24kg 2H SW)

7:30am - belly breathing, OS resets   - 15 minutes

7:45am - break

8:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

8:45am- Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 24kg 2H SW

16kg half TGU, 1/1, x 2

20kg TK PR, 3/3, x 2

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, x 3

4 minutes:
24kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest, do it again

Probably got in about 60 very hard style reps in 4 minutes - was pressed for time

9:00am - Complete

Notes - Very quick day, light day in the cycle, and had to move it up to Tuesday from what would have been Wednesday since I flew to NYC later this morning.  Been a long one.  Pretty tight from flying, I expected that, going to try and get up in the morning and just go walking around my hotel which is right on Park Ave in the thick of Manhattan.  Hoping the heartbeat of the city can breath some life into my steps:)

10/19/15 Monday October 19, 2015 (20kg CL/PR ladders, 28kg 2H SW)

7:45am - belly breathing, OS resets, Primal Move practice, lacrosse ball release, hip and hamstring stretches, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 45 minutes

8:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

8:45am- Training session - 20kg CL/PR ladders, 28kg 2H SW

2x:
16kg half TGU, 1/1

16kg TK PR, 5/5, x 2

20kg CL/PR, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3, x 3

I screwed up and didn't clean after every press for the first set and a half.  I made up for that by doing 2 cleans to every press for the rest of the 2nd set and the final 3rd set:)

18 CL, 18 PR each arm

10 minutes:
28kg 2H SW, go until form degrades, rest, do it again
Didn't count reps

9:30am - Complete

10:30am - Chiro appt

4:30pm - Kinetics appt

Notes - Kind of a crazy day.  The training was very good, felt great, I like this new plan on this cycle to basically just focus on 1 arm presses with cleans, and swings of different varieties.  I think this is going to work well.  My overhead position was clearly, tangibly better today and I am really encouraged.  Really working the 1/2 TGU, focusing on form, this is good right now.  Worked in some primal move in the warmup, a good mix of movements there.  Presses felt very good today.  I also had a chiropractic adjustment later in the morning, really trying to get some good time in with recovery methods and really focus on my health.  Did a kinetics appt in the afternoon as well.  A lot of soft tissue and recovery work lately, but I have to go to NYC tomorrow, long plane ride, another one back Thursday, so doing all of this makes sense. 

10/17/15 Saturday October 17, 2015 (DB 16kg SW, DB 16kg Farmers)

Writing this on Sunday evening after spending the weekend in Portland for my 20th high school reunion.  It was one hell of a time and I am so glad I went.  20 years, class of 1995.  That's unbelievable.  So many things have happened in my life since then but at the same time seeing my classmates, it was like I was a senior in high school yesterday with my entire life ahead of me.  Crazy stuff.

I did some training on Saturday morning at my parent's house.  Very low key, with a focus on mobility work.  Dropping pull-ups for some time now and working on other things.

45 minutes of mobility work, OS resets, primal move, halos, arm bars, get-ups with a 16kg.

16kgs DB SW, 10 minutes

Did sets of 10, probably about 10, so 100 reps.  First time I have done doubles in some time.  Felt good except for my TFL on the left side was acting up a bit due to the wide stance.  I now know more about the TFL after receiving a massage today when I got back from my trip, and we worked on this a bunch.  It's a primary cause of the issues I have been working through.  So I am thinking probably no double bell swings for now, stay away from a wide stance, will just go with single bell swings (1H and 2H).  The narrower stance for single bell pressing is also going to work well.  I think that's the plane to work at this point and I will re test double bells in a week or two weeks.

16kgs farmer carries, about 3 minutes, x 2

Great weekend overall.  After the massage, noting again that the elbow stuff is really clearing up which is extremely encouraging.  Basically wasn't an issue the entire week.  Really happy about that.

10/16/15 Friday October 16, 2015 (training with Kevin)

6:00am - Training with Kevin

Great session today.  Kevin had been thinking about things to work on around some of the mobility issues I have been having with the L arm overhead and the L hip / oblique stuff.  He came up with the very solid ideas of the following

Primal movement work for prep

Light TGUs but only a half get-up, stopping before kneeling position as that is not doing any good on the L side since I am not locking out well.  Put in some bridging on the way up to open up the hips, and just really focus on each position in the half get-up to the hand, get a great lock-out on the hand.

1 arm clean and press ladders, to get time in the overhead position but in a controlled manner

Swing variations, 1H, 2H, alternating, double bell, etc. etc.

Perhaps some squatting on the weekend just to keep the squat pattern but it won't be a focus

We basically worked on all of the above except for squatting, primarily using a 20kg bell and that's where I will start.  I was shocked frankly at some of the improvements in my L overhead during this session.  Pressing felt very good and I was getting a great lockout, so ironically, pressing I think will actually help this situation as long as the reps are low and very controlled.

I am quite encouraged here.

7:15am - Finish

10:30am - Do just a bit more work after getting home, just to pattern a little more pressing.

2x:
20kg CL, PR, 1, 2, 3 each arm

12 reps L / 12 reps right

10 minutes:
24kg 2H SW, swing until form may degrade, stop, rest, do it again (not counting reps, quality technique

Good stuff excited to head to Portland for my 20th HS reunion this weekend!

10/15/15 Thursday October 15, 2015 (16kg TGUs,24kg 2H SW)

9:30am - belly breathing, OS resets, lacrosse ball release  - 25 minutes

9:55am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

10:10am- Training session - 16kg  TGUs, 24kg 2H SW

3x:
16kg TGUs, 1/1
24kg 2H SW, 10, x 2

10:30am - Complete

Notes - Felt ok today.  L elbow continues to improve.  Low back /oblique stuff on the L side is not great but I have some treatments tomorrow, so will just try to keep moving forward.  

10/14/15 Wednesday October 14, 2015 (Spokane, coaching soccer)

I flew to Spokane late on Tuesday evening, plane delayed on the tarmac in Seattle, then we had to get out and switch planes.  Went to bed after 1pm, certainly not great.  Tried to do various mobility movements before bed, particularly really trying to target the hamstrings which are way tight, as are hips, that is clearly the culprit before with the left hip stuff and am sure it is again.  Squatting on Monday and Tuesday, in the hindsight, maybe not the greatest idea ever as I am probably just slowing getting used to squatting again.  With that said, very surprised today that my body seemed to be bouncing back throughout the day and felt good for soccer practices for my kids from 5-7pm, moving around well, that was very nice to experience.  Also, since Monday morning, the stuff with the left shoulder / bicep and elbow on the L side has significantly dissipated.  I would say as per my earlier training notes, pull-ups really are exacerbating those issues right now so I think I was on point to avoid them for now and keep working on getting this stuff sorted, will add them back in very, very slowly later.  Good to see that KB 2H SW, cleans, and FSQ don't seem to really be causing any issues with that stuff, so that is encouraging.  Was thinking some bottoms up work with single or double reps, lighter weights, might be a nice option to try a bit.  More hamstring work planned tonight before bed.  In any event, nice to see some improvement today.  I probably just need some damn rest.  We filed the Costco annual audit report on Tuesday with the SEC and its been a pretty crazy six week sprint to the finish.

10/13/15 Tuesday October 13, 2015 (DB 20kgs FSQ, 24kg 2H SW)

6:15am - belly breathing, OS resets, lacrosse ball release, hip and hamstring stretches, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 30 minutes

7:30am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:45am - Break

8:45am- Training session - DB 20kgs FSQ, 24kg 2H SW

2x:
16kg TGU, 1/1
Hip extensions, 5
48kg DL, 5

5x:
24kg 2H SW, 10,  x 2
DB 24kg FSQ, 5

100 total 24kg 2H SW
25 DB 20kgs FSQ

9:15am - Complete

Notes - Decided to train since I am flying to Spokane late tonight, interviewing candidates at Gonzaga tomorrow, and then coaching two soccer practices back in Seattle Wed evening. Thought I would not feel like getting in training late Wed night.  Dropped the load on both the FSQ and the 2H SW but frankly standing here late in the evening, not feeling great.  L hip, oblique, low back stuff is back.  Need a few rest days and I have several soft tissue appointments / chiro set up for later this week when I am back.  Super, super frustrating.  There is a lot of stuff I really need to get sorted out health-wise it seems. 

10/12/15 Monday October 12, 2015 (DB 24kgs FSQ, 28kg 2H SW)

7:15am - belly breathing, OS resets, lacrosse ball release, hip and hamstring stretches, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall   - 45 minutes

8:00am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

8:15am- Training session - DB 24kgs FSQ, 28kg 2H SW

2x:
16kg TGU, 1/1
Hip extensions, 5
48kg DL, 5

5x:
28kg 2H SW, 10
DB 24kg FSQ, 1, 2, 3

28kg 2H SW, 10

60 total 28kg 2H SW
30 DB 24kgs FSQ

8:55am - Complete

Notes - Well I learned one thing from Saturday's training at the lake - pull-ups are out for awhile.  Too much tension right now on my L bicep due to the elbow issues (which really is a shoulder issue as I know).  Things acted up Saturday night and continued to Monday morning, though getting better through that time.  It's a movement I really love, and I have been training it very well for quite some time.  Sometimes you have to know when to say when though and now is that time.  I will focus Saturdays on walking, heavier 2H SW but not for high reps, and some push-ups.  Lower lats should get decent work with the heavy 2H SW versus doing pull-ups.  I will come back to pull-ups sometime down the line after I have fully sorted out these L shoulder issues.  I am starting to really appreciate concept of "do what you can" and not worry about things that are not feeling good at the time.  I mean hell for now pressing, snatching, and it looks like pull-ups are not great while I work out these issues, but I can do other things.  The 2H SW is working well right now.  DB FSQ were good today, though as I write this late this evening, I am pretty sore and things are acting up a bit.  Will need some decent recovery time it seems.  

10/10/15 Saturday October 10, 2015 (pull-ups, push-ups, 24 / 32kg 2H SW)

Writing this on Saturday night.  Got this done in the very late afternoon after dropping the kids off for a birthday party.

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

Hanging from rings

7 pull-ups (rings)
5 push-ups

6 pull-ups
5 push-ups

5 pull-ups
5 push-ups

5 pull-ups
5 push-ups

4 pull-ups
5 push-ups

27 pull-ups, up one from last week
25 push-ups

pistols, 3 each leg

45 minute break

24kg 2H SW, 10, x 3
32kg 2H SW, 10, x 5
24kg 2H SW, 10, x 2

100 total 2H SW, 24kg 50, 32kg 50

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

Notes  - This was really good.  Body is doing well, shoulders are really responding to some of these mobility drills, I am just trying to hit them multiple times per day.  Everything felt very strong.  Can't go to the complete top range at the height of the pull-up as my L elbow starts to light up, and didn't push it.  Just enough to get the chin to the rings.  With that said, these were my best form in terms of pull-ups and I think I will drop the reps at the top range and not start with more than a top rep set of 5, just really working the movement.  Will keep working on that left shoulder and elbow but there absolutely has been good progress.  I am very encouraged by the latter part of this week.

10/9/15 Friday October 9, 2015 (24kg 2H SW / DB 20kg FSQ complex)

6:30am - belly breathing, OS resets, lacrosse ball release, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall  - 30 minutes

7:00am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:15am- Training session - DB 20kg FSQ and 24kg 2H SW complex

2x:
16kg TGU, 1/1
48kg DL, 5

3x:
24kg 2H SW, 10
DB 20kg FSQ, 3
24kg 2H SW, 10
DB 20kg FSQ, 5
24kg 2H SW, 10
DB 20kg FSQ, 7

24kg 2H SW, 10

100 24kg 2H SW (50 28kg 2H SW Wed)
45 DB 20kg FSQ (up from 30 DB 20kg FSQ Wed)

7:40am - Complete

7:45-8:30am - Kinetics appt

Notes -  This was an outstanding day, best I have enjoyed in several weeks and I am very appreciative.  The work at Kinetics this week really helped open up my shoulders in a major way, I am nearly shocked at the improvement and so was the Kinetic staff today.  I guess I just was very locked up.  In any event, great training session, everything very strong today.  I can tell a real difference in my shoulders doing halos and light get-ups and this quite encouraging.  Going to stay focused on these prehab / rehab drills.  Looking to just stay with 2H SW and DB FSQ next week, not evening going to mess around with it.  Going to start Monday with 2, 3, 5 ladders for reps with the DB 24kgs and see how that feels.  After this week, should feel pretty good I think.  

10/8/15 Thursday October 8, 2015 (16kg TGUs,24kg 2H SW)

7:10am - belly breathing, OS resets, lacrosse ball release  - 40 minutes

7:50am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

8:10am- Training session - 16kg  TGUs, 24kg 2H SW

2x:
16kg TGUs, 1/1

24kg 2H SW, 10, x 5

8:30am - Complete

Notes - Woke up a bit stiff, but the mobility drills particular the wall exercises for shoulder ROM were very helpful.  Finished with swings, and felt honestly pretty damn good.  Excited to try and follow this up tomorrow with another squat and swing session before the weekend. 

10/7/15 Wednesday October 7, 2015 (28kg 2H SW / DB 20kg FSQ complex)

6:30am - belly breathing, OS resets, lacrosse ball release, quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall  - 35 minutes

7:05am - Kettlebell warm up

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

16kg Roll to press (TGU start) - shoulder cam shafts, each arm
Arm bar 16kg, 1+1, x 2

Crooked Arm bar 16kg with 3 presses and rotations, 1/1

7:20am- Training session - DB 20kg FSQ and 28kg 2H SW complex

2x:
16kg TGU, 1/1

28kg 2H SW, 5

3x:
28kg 2H SW, 5
DB 20kg FSQ, 2
28kg 2H SW, 5
DB 20kg FSQ, 3
28kg 2H SW, 5
DB 20kg FSQ, 5

50 28kg 2H SW
30 DB 20kg FSQ

7:45am - Complete

Quadruped shoulder rotations against the wall

Notes - Good day today.  I felt like pushing a little and this was nice.  I feel good about these two particular movements right now and I am going to work them pretty consistently for the next several weeks.  Will slowly increase reps or load, will vary it up.  For Friday I think I will stay with DB 20s for the FSQ but go to 3/5/7 reps, unless I feel horrible the next few days.  Will work these corrective exercises from Kinetics very diligently, get in some Indian club, and just try to improve ROM and stability in the overhead position.  Nothing more than light TGUs at this point, I want to look for signs with the light TGUs that the OH position is improving before loading it up any more.