6/26/15 Friday June 26, 2015 (training with Kevin, Kinetics)

6:30am - Trained with Kevin today.  Did some mobility work, practiced some crawling, hip bridges with a stretch.  Did some tall kneeling practice, deadlifts with the 40kg and 48kg, then practiced pressing with a 12kg and a 16kg out of the tall kneeling position.  Then worked on some 2H SW with the 24kg in a hike/swing/park fashion, 3-4 reps for each set.  I need to remember to work on that float at the top of each swing, not try to rush that part of the movement.  All in all this was solid, feeling good.  Felt like I barely did much this week for training, but that's ok.  It feels right at this time.

8:00am - Kinetics session.  This was good.  Getting some positive feedback about the tone of my muscles, glutes, hams, etc. and the improved range of motion in various things we are working on.  Moving forward.  I believe I am solidly on a path to get to a point of setting an improved foundation for my KB practice, and that is exciting.

6/23 - 6/25 Tues - Thurs June 23 - 25, 2015 (Phoenix for work)

Quick summary on my time in Phoenix, where I had 3 days of training for work.

Tues/Wed/Thursday mornings I got in some good mobility work each morning.  Basically focused mainly on Original Strength resets, also with a few other movements for opening up the hips and glutes.

On Tuesday evening I got in a 45 minute walk.  It was 110 degrees.  Holy shit.  Sun was pretty low already though at that point and it actually felt pretty good.

Wed morning after mobility work I went to the gym and got in a quick 20-25 minute training session focused on pull-ups and push-ups of different varieties, in superset fashion.  Did 6 sets of pull-ups, in the following fashion, superset with the push-up varieties

6 pull-ups
1 leg push-ups, 10/10

6 chin-ups
lizard push-ups, 3/3

5 chin-ups
10 push-ups

4 pull-ups
1 leg push-ups, 5/5

3 chin-ups
lizard push-ups, 3/3

2 chin-ups
lizard push-ups, 3/3

The chin-ups were unbelievably hard.  I hung from a squat rack with a very low bar, which essentially forced me to put my legs at a 90 degree angle straight out as my butt was close to the floor at the bottom portion of each pull-up.  I was pulling from an extremely disadvantaged position and it required tremendous ab strength.  They were freaking AWESOME and I probably do need to mix it up every once in awhile.  I mostly do ring pull-ups with the hands in neutral, which are great, but my body responds pretty well to chin-ups.  I don't do as well with pull-ups, that's always kind of been the case.  Push-ups felt great and given that I was taking little rest, I broke a bit of a sweat here.  Felt good.

Going to be great getting back to the bells, at least for a week (I have to go to NJ the week of July 6 and will be surprised if I have access to any bells that week).  Training with Kevin tomorrow, I am excited.  Body seems to have done ok with all of this travel, lack of sleep, etc.  Encouraging.

6/22/15 Monday June 22, 2015 (Jump rope, GF Method, 32kg 2H SW HSP, superset with push-ups)

8:00am - FMS and other warm up drills, (belly breathing, form roll, wall drops with 8k bell, breathing) - 45 minutes

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 - superset jump rope w Ground Force Method, 16kg BU FSQ / BU PR, superset 32kg 2H SW HSP w push-ups

3x:
Jump rope, 1 minute
Primal move - crawling, into a crab, into bridges with t-spine reach, 3 mins

3x:
16kg BU FSQ, 3+3
16kg BU PR, 3+3
32kg 2H SW + Park x 3-4-5
Push-ups x 2-3-5 reps

3x:
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 2 push-ups
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 3 push-ups
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 5 push-ups

Total reps -
9+9 16kg BU FSQ, 9+9 BU PR
36+36+36=118 2H SW with 32kg
30 push-ups

9:45am - Complete

11:30-12:30pm - Kinetics rehab session

Afternoon travel to Phoenix

Notes - Good training day.  Jumped again up to the 32kg to see how it would go.  Felt like the 28kg from Friday - great sign.  Very strong swings.  Had a good session at Kinetics, then had to travel to Phoenix for work.  Definitely tight in the right pec and shoulder, this is not new, going to focus on some mobility work and body weight work while here in Phoenix.  Not worried about this, it's a combo of going up in weight again, and then traveling sucks. I am very encouraged with how good my low back is feeling.  That is a great sign.  Just need to work out the travel stuff that just can play havoc with the body.  All in all, really happy to be able to do a few BU presses today, that was nice, felt very good, and also swing a heavier weight.  Progress.

6/20/15 Saturday June 20, 2015 (in Portland - pull-ups, shoulder taps, DB 16kg carries)

Writing this late Sunday night.  I was in Portland this weekend to be a godfather at the baptism for the daughter of my good friend.  It was a great weekend.  On Saturday I went to a park with my younger brother Pat and trained him for about 90 minutes or so, showing him a bunch of stuff.  It was really fun to be able to teach him some things and impart some of the knowledge I have learned over the last several years.  I am an SFG after all!  Also got my own training in.

Hanging from rings

7 pull-ups (rings)
3/3 Shoulder taps

6 pull-ups
3/3 Shoulder taps

5 pull-ups
3/3 Shoulder taps

4 pull-ups

3/3 Shoulder taps

3 pull-ups

3/3 Shoulder taps

Total pull-ups - 24, up from 23 last week.  Very strong.

Hanging from rings

Indian Club practice

DB 16kg carry, did two very long carries, each was probably up to 3-5 minutes, I did not time them.

Sunday evening, went for a long 1-hour brisk walk around Greenlake to try and shake out the cobwebs of all the driving this weekend.  Felt great as my back was a little irritated with all the driving, sleeping in a different bed, etc.  Going to do a little mobility and hit the sack.

6/19/15 Friday June 19, 2015 (Jump rope, GF Method, 28kg 2H SW HSP, superset with push-ups)

6:30am - FMS and other warm up drills, (belly breathing, form roll, wall drops with 8k bell,  breathing) - 40 minutes

7:10am - 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

7:25am- Training session - superset jump rope w Ground Force Method, 16kg BU FSQ, superset 28kg 2H SW HSP w push-ups

3x:
Jump rope, 1 minute
Primal move - crawling, into a crab, into bridges with t-spine reach, 3 mins

3x:
16kg BU FSQ, 3+3
28kg 2H SW + Park x 3-4-5
Push-ups x 2-3-5 reps

3x:
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 2 push-ups
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 3 push-ups
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 5 push-ups

end with 16kg BU FSQ, 3+3

Total reps -
12+12 16kg BU FSQ
36+36+36=118 2H SW with 28kg
30 push-ups

7:55am - Complete

8:00-9:00am - Kinetics rehab session

Notes - Moved back up to the 28kg bell today from 24kg, and it felt a lot better than Monday.  That was good.  Strong all around, was moving pretty quick with little rest as I wanted to make my appt at Kinetic on time.  Rehab was good time.  Feeling positive going into this weekend.  Things have been rolling.  I have to drive to Portland for the weekend, so lots of driving, which is not great, but will be sure to get in some good walks while I am there, and a bit of body weight work.  

6/18/15 Thursday June 18, 2015 (KB warmup, walk, IC practice)

6:50am - FMS drills (belly breathing, some Kinetics rehab work) - 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)

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 - Complete

9:30-10:00pm - Brisk walk around Greenlake, including hanging from pull-up rings

11:55pm - Indian Club practice, 5 mins

Notes -   Wow very interesting last couple of days.  Tightness in my R neck, scalenes, lat has dramatically decreased.  Low back has felt great.  Had a weird soreness in my L forearm and wrist the last few days.  These changes I think are from some of the ART work that Michael at Kinetics has done the last couple of sessions, particularly yesterday.  I think the various rehab work etc. is honestly bringing out some stuff with my L shoulder, which is the shoulder I took two hard falls on years ago and I know creates some asymmetries that I have to work through.  This whole time working through rehab I have felt that the overhead KB work particularly double jerks may have put just a bit too much load on my L shoulder, and other body parts compensated for it (because m L shoulder never bothered me, never noticed an issue at all).  Some of the rehab work and other positions, the L shoulder feels weaker than I would like, and certainly when rolling it on the foam roll and doing other things, it "clicks" at times.  I think all of this is good of course, bringing some of this stuff up to the surface.  I'd like to talk to Kevin about doing some light shoulder stability work for the shoulders again, in the overhead position, to start trying to build that up again.  Getups may be the answer.  

6/17/15 Wednesday June 17, 2015 (Jump rope, GF Method, 24kg 2H SW HSP, superset with push-ups)

6:10am - FMS and other warm up drills, Kinetics rehab (belly breathing, form roll, wall drops with 8k bell, scales 3/3, side planks, breathing, wall v slides) - 50 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 - superset jump rope w Ground Force Method, 16kg BU FSQ, superset 24kg 2H SW HSP w push-ups

3x:
Jump rope, 1 minute
Primal move - crawling, into a crab, into bridges with t-spine reach, 3 mins

3x:
16kg BU FSQ, 3+3
24kg 2H SW + Park x 3-4-5
Push-ups x 2-3-5 reps

3x:
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 2 push-ups
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 3 push-ups
SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, SW 3, park, 5 push-ups

end with 16kg BU FSQ, 3+3

Total reps -
12+12 16kg BU FSQ
36+36+36=118 2H SW with 24kg
30 push-ups

7:45am - Complete

4:30pm - Kinetics rehab session

Late evening  - Indian Clubs, 5 minutes

Notes - Outstanding day.  This training went extremely, extremely well and better yet I felt great all day.  Dropping to the 24kg was a good idea, now I think I can build on this and try the 28kg on Friday.  Loved getting in some BU FSQ practice and just started light with the 16kg.  Getting better at jumping rope again, smoother, crawling, and the bridges.  It's all good stuff.  Also had a good rehab session at Kinetics in the afternoon and moving forward there.  Progress, just have to stay focused and take it one step at a time.