Ohio State vs That Team Up North

If you havn't seen this yet stop reading and just watch....



Ooooohhhhh man I can't wait for Saturday now!

Smolov Squat Cycle Week 1 Recap

I heard some things about Smolov. The program that is supposed to be brutally hard. So tough that there's review with titles such as "Surviving Smolov" or "How to make it through a Smolov Cycle". So with my current situation of having a bum wrist I needed a legit squatting program to get me through these next few months. Enter the Smolov Squat Cycle.

If you are just tuning in I recently banged up my wrist pretty good. A torn SL Ligament in fact. It's pretty rough. I am meeting with the surgeon this coming Monday and will have him go over everything but long story short is I'll be needing surgery. Heres the pic of my MRI-

So if you take a gander at that little arrow there should most certainly not be a gap right there. Here compare it to this pic I dug up from google-

Notice the even spacing? And I am not even sure what the hell that spider web looking thing is. Hopefully nothing. Knowing my luck I got cleated sometime during season and that's actually some crazy fracture that hasn't healed.

But I digress...

In order to kick off the new workout I needed a max. So that was Monday. Turned out I can still hit 380. Not bad I guess. BUT there is one thing I also need to mention which I will likely discuss in a separate blog; my new VS Lifting shoes. Holy damn why have I not bought these sooner? Or any lifting shoe sooner. Good stuff.

Anyways, Smolov is a percentage based program that runs off your 1RM. In fact heres the orginal website I picked up the spreadsheet from-
http://www.allthingsgym.com/smolov-squat-routine-spreadsheet/
He did a well enough job running through the program. But it's simple enough. Just punch in your current 1RM and be a little conservative. Then the program spits out your numbers for the next 6 weeks. Easy, right? So far so good.

Now I will say after the 3rd day of squatting I was getting pretty sore. There's a fair amount of volume in those first few days. It's nothing extreme but it'll be a slight challenge. Frankly, I thought the first few sets were the tough ones and then it gets much easier in the low rep sets. By day 4 (Im counting my test day as well) my soreness was about gone despite 3 straight days of squatting and that last set at 90% felt damn good. Almost too easy for the weight being moved. Well, for me at least.

Week 2 actually looks fun. A lot of dynamic effort work with jumps. Shouldn't be bad. Just 3 days of speed work. Fun stuff. Which is good since next week also starts 'peak' season at UPS and working 3rd shift AND running Smolov may just actually kill me looking at the "Base" weeks following week 2.

100 rep squats - 2.5% makes a difference

It only added 10lbs but damn did those squats wreck my day. I ended up failing on set 7 and 9 this time. I feel like I may need to get back to the original writeup and double check the send of times. 90s send off feels like it may be too short. I used to run this back in the past with 90s rest. Not 90s a set. Total it knocks off about 45s rest and those frigging matter.

Meh...ill stick it out another 2-4 weeks and see what I can work up to.

By the by I ran a set with deadlifts mixed with ribg push ups and those are still ringing in my hamstrings. Got to remember that combo down the road.

Rugby Helping to Promote Better Tackling in Football

I always believed this will help promote better tackling and well look at that. Someone else seems to agree.




With the helmet-to-helmet problems the NFL and NCAA are facing letting these kids play rugby would definitely help them learn better tackling. There's no armor to give you that sense of invincibility. Just you and the other man. If you hit high or with your head first like what seems to happen quite often you are likely to get hurt. And probably miss the tackle.

"Yea, I can go 500"

Wow. Those words bit me in the ass.

So I'm box squatting talking a big game after I just crushed 475 on the high box, roughly 18", and loaded up 500 even. Locked and loaded so let's get this!

...nope.

Well damn. Next time maybe.

I did hit 425x3 with the med bands so thats a bigger jump. Ill take the day as a win. Now for some hammy work and wrap it up.

Beers are calling.

Getting my first surgery

Damn...almost made it 31 years before I had to say those words.

Quick recap;

>play in scrimmage
>catch a kickoff- impending tackle from charging meathead
>attempt to stiff-arm- not very effective
>sharp pain in left wrist from impact
>be almost 4 weeks later and still hurts like a mug
>new health insurance kicks in- thanks UPS
>get xrays- probably torn scapho-lunate ligament

In a nutshell the X-Ray showed a very obvious separation between the Scaphoid and Lunate bones. So in a week or two Ill get an MRI to confirm there is a torn ligament. Then surgery probably beginning of the year. Unless I can work with it then sooner. Trouble is at work we have the dreaded "Peak" season coming. Long ass days and hard ass work. May be tough with a cast on one hand. 

Luckily I can still finish the season. Well not that it would matter since I've been playing on the damn thing anyways. Just sucks knowing theres a ligament in my wrist that is torn apart. And only fix is surgery. If you know me Im big into active rehab measures to fix what ails ya. Not the case here. It will only get worse if it isn't addressed sooner than later.

So once I get over a base program, i.e. a LOT of a volume work and not very heavy weights, its off to the squat cave I go and not to emerge until likely late February or March.

Maria Kang: Wednesday Ramble

So its hump day and apparently the internet is in a pissy mood about this Maria Kang lady. Well maybe just Facebookers are mad. Or somebody. Either way have a look.

Pretty nice, right? I mean hell anybody that can look like that at 32 has my vote. But looking like that after 3 kids? Solid.

So whats the problem? Well of course the chubbers come out of the wood work and throw a fit about something they don't like. Sorry ladies (and some guys) but every damn comment I read that had something negative to say about this woman is, well, a fucking fatass and more often than not a woman. Deal with it.

See, I love this sort of stuff. To see an individual go through with life and its challenges and come out like a champ. Those challenges being have 3 freaking kids AND owning a business. So how the hell can you wig out about this woman and her accomplishments? Here's my response to a few comments I saw before I got fed up and closed the damn page. Caution- Im a little heated so if bad language offends you then get the fuck out.

"She looks like a slut wearing that outfit in front of her kids like that just for attention"
First of all, shut the fuck up. Secondly, the outfit covers up more than your typical bathing suit and what the hell is she supposed to wear to show off her fitness? I nice sweater? Her kids are going to grow up some athletic badasses and you're sitting in front of your computer crying about some lady you will never meet while YOUR kids are likely sitting on their ass playing XBOX eating some bullshit from the bottom shelf of the frozen food isle.

"She has been training a long time and was a pageant winner before being pregnant."
And before all that she was VERY overweight. So whats your point? I've seen many women get preggers and just throw in the towel and gain 100lbs. She's been putting in the work for a long time. How is that supposed to be an argument against her statement? Oh no, being fit is a lifetime commitment? Well fuck me you mean those late night infomercials about losing weight in 5minutes were lying to me all along?

"Its genetics. Asians ain't fat"
Yes there are many saying this. And I can only respond - Are you fucking kidding me? The genetics argument is dead. Quit trying to blame things that don't deserve it. Sure genetics play a part in your height and frame (skeletal) but quit blaming your grandparents for not being able to fit your fatass through the door.

"Lol she looks hungry. Somone give her a sandwhich"
As you can tell now the comments were just getting stupid. Sorry kids you cant have the energy to train, build muscle, and deal with work and 3 kids while starving yourself.

"My (insert personally known male) prefers women with curves and meat on them! She has no boobs!"
Right. Im sure that guy would turn down a night out with Maria as compared to what he had to settle for. Sure you can say that all you want but be real for a second.

I did like this comment but then the bitch just kept talking....
"She should not only focus on physical appearance but health and wellness and the soul. This sets a bad example of what is important."
Now heres the thing. If that statement came from someone who appeared physically fit then I may have bought their statement. But you already know they wern't. She then called her a bully. Listen the truth is simple. Being overweight , or worse- obese, is just a bad thing long term. Period. There's miles of studies to support that fact.

 Improve your wellness and soul or whatever the hell. Thats fine. But believe me the body is a physical thing and all that excess body fat is putting a beating on that ole' ticker. Eventually somethings got to give. Whether it's the knees. The kidneys. The heart. Or, preferably, you serve your excess fat an eviction notice and live a longer healthier life. 

Some called her a bully along with the above comment. So pretty much any sort of message that calls the public out on their own bullshit is now bullying. Right. In that sense everyone ripping on Congress for throwing a hissy fit is now bullying the government and should essentially be locked up for terrorism. Laugh now but that's the direction we're going.

Today's extra pissed off workout brought to you by the public at large.

Happy training!

Under the Fat Bar

Damn it felt good to get back in the big bar again. I've been taking some serious time off heavy lifting recently. Just getting too banged up playing ball. Today I wanted to change that.

Wrist rehab with the finger web thing I found in the training office.

Standing press - worked up to triples from sets of 10. Finished 5x3 at 155 strict press

Deadlift - Worked up to a max single. Discovered the bar only holds 4 bumpers at a total of 405 but I managed to squeeze 2 10's on for a total of 425. Threw 2pairs of chains on for a set total of 505 at lock. Not too bad. Especially with a bad wrist, fat bar, and just recently recovered from a helluva nasty thigh bone bruise. I wanted to throw another pair on but thought it best to not push it so soon. It has been awhile.

Like I said. This seasons been a little rough.

Monday Motivation

Feeling a little down its Monday again? Here's some insanity wolf to get your motor running again.

Pyrros Dimas Training Video

I have never felt weaker than I do right now after watching this vid.

Props to Strength Sports for the video.

Tuesday funnies

Im getting old

"Im getting too old for this shit."

Riggs said that best. But I am really feeling the years pile on. Mostly in the knees. Ive just warmed up to the idea of using knee wraps and am strongly considering some sleeves instead. Just seems like the time to give in and get some.

Nonthe injuries are pretty normal right now. Just the wrist really. Knees just hurt during heavy squats. Nothing else really.

Well gee maybe don't squat?

No. Fuck that. I do what I want. Unless I cant walk anymore. Then maybe I would only do partially what I want.

The bright side of today is last week went 285 for 8 with 80lbs of chains. This week week was 300 for 4 with the same chains. Not exactly better but I didnt wait as long between game time and squat time. Plus the overall workload was much heavier today. I'll take it.

How many days a week do I train?

This is a pretty legitimate question. Unfortunately there is no true answer. Only speculation, trial and error, a little bro-science, some real science, and a lot of arguing. 

This was posted as a weekly tip on one of my frequented Facebook pages and it almost immediately received some heated responses. Some slightly agreed but had their own input. Others didn't agree and specified why. Others just didn't agree at all and were very colorful with their opinions.

The advice broke down like this;
Train 3 days a week for beginners.
4 days minimum for optimum weight training.
2 days a week for maintenance.

I can buy that. But there were many that didn't. Mostly citing their own experiences.  Which is fine. But that doesn't hold up well to those that have trained many a athlete or client and have seen what works on a grand scale. 

Heres essentially my 2 cents. Ive been doing this for a while so take it for what its worth. Ill start with one of my favorite quotes- "If you want to do something well then do it everyday." Dan John said that. And it holds especially true to sport training but this tip only addressed weight training. 

Before I say anything about this it really needs to be understood what else if anything is the client doing. Also training age and strength levels are a huge part. So that plays into my response quite a bit.

Strength levels have a massive impact on training volume and intensity due to the resources required to perform work with heavier loads. I.e. one of my athletes is a near 600lb squatter. 80% for him is massively different than the majority who are about 400lbs or less. So trying to train regularly in that range takes some extra considerations. Which throws the challenge that training him as he was any other athlete could and likely will be detrimental.  Not to knock on the girls but their strength levels are much lower but this means their training loads are lighter and through the years Ive noticed their capacity is relatively higher than the guys.All that equals to the girls actually getting a higher volume of work. But that is usually a case by case basis. So take that for what its worth. 

Training age is also a consideration. With younger athletes and athletes that have a young training age i.e. they have just recently started training despite actual age. In my experience younger athletes respond well to constant work depending on intensity. Repetition is key. High volume sets that don't necessarily need to be high intensity. This is especially true when motor patterns are the issue. A great example is some athlete I have that have the 'baby huey complex'. They're just too damn big and never bothered to build the muscle systems to handle their frame at such a young age. This is usually accompanied by a slouching posture, horrible flexibility, and poor motor movements. With these guys I would make them do the same warmup every day and then before even lifting or training perform certain patterns (overhead squats were pretty common) before EVERY SINGLE workout. They hated it but the results were outstanding. Also, to go back to training day volume, we trained a minimum 5 days a week. So if you are working with a client/athlete with, say, poor hip movement and flexibility make them perform specific exercises on their own regularly and test them during their sessions. This is in a scenario if you only see this particular client/athlete once or twice a week.

Type of training. I've spoken with many powerlifters who favor a once to twice a week approach to max effort training. I.e. lifting to near maximal capability or 100%. Thats per lift. In other words they may have a heavy bench day and another day a heavy squat day. Then add in 2-3 extra days of dynamic or speed work. Olympic lifters on the other hand I have been hard pressed to find any that didn't train 5+ times a week in their lifts and above all else, squatting. For sports the workload in the gym drops to 2-4 days a week depending on the event. But it's still no where near what I dedicated lifter or bodybuilder may put in. Obviously they are spending more time practicing their craft than worrying about how much weight they can move.

Personally my amount of training days in the weight room depend on what time of the year it is. Off-season I'll grind out up to 7 days a week and throw in some double sessions. Pre-season that drops to about 4-6 days. In-season we're looking at 2 to 3. Maybe 1 depending how beat up I am from the previous game. Thats rugby season. Track season I find even with high volume throwing I can still get 4-6 in with no real issues in regards to recovery or over training. Mind you I've been training a long time. Almost 18yrs now. I'm also not particularly strong for my size. But I'm running into the issue of age. Things don't heal as quick as they used to. Getting older is a bitch.

So after all that then how many days should you in fact train weekly? Mostly I believe that is up to the individual. It really can be a case by case basis since everyone handles their training workload differently.

Need help? My advice is 1-2 days a week will help maintain. This is helpful during a grueling season or if time is at a premium so efforts are directed towards training elsewhere. 3 days is likely the minimum I would recommend for building up. Whether strength or otherwise. I might agree with the 4 day plan but truthfully I prefer the 5 or 6 day split to really build up quickly. For newbies to help enforce motor recruitment I don't really follow the notion that 3 days is best. We're trying to build some good habits and 3-5 hours a week is far from optimum.

5 simple rules of the gym

I came up with this as a response to a busy of mine. So in a few minutes this is what I thought of.

"1-The only judgment allowed is to the one that looks back at you in the mirror.
2-put your shit away.
3-build each other up. Encourage one another. We are all like minded individuals.
4-Train with purpose and a strong attitude. No half assing workouts.
5-no puking in the gym"

To each their own. But I've seem to have gotten by pretty well when these rules are followed.

How to Sell Your Product - View from an angry buyer

I saw something today. A little post on Facebook that seriously caused a bit of angst in me. Admittedly more so than it should have. But it did. I think it likely came from the fact the post was promoted by someone I've been following for a bit now in regards to workouts, at home stuff, kettlebell training, etc. So I think I was a bit let down. So what was the issue?



A piece of workout equipment. No big deal right?



A $600 piece of workout equipment. Well...that’s rather pricey.



A $600 piece of equipment that literally is built to do ONE thing. WTF?!?



Imagine a late night infomercial selling some garbage that literally only solved one issue that, frankly, is already solved by other more practical and economical ideas. Now make that item $599 (shipping included - zomg!). But hey, its built to last so it's got to be worth it. Right?


Well, maybe. I mean I see what it does. And won't argue it does it well. But that is all it does! Not to mention there really isn't much to the construction. Just a small padded bench, two bent pipes, and a small platform. Then there's the issue of how ridiculous you looking performing the exercise. It's a glute movement so picture a girl laying face up just dry-humping the crap out of the air. Once again this is actually a great movement BUT you really think something like this will go mainstream? Hell even the first comment on the YouTube video demonstrating it reads “This is soft porn”.



I checked through the comments and the price of the product did in fact come up. It was justified “Well similar pieces of equipment cost more so it's fair to say that my price is ideal!” There are literally dozens of pieces of equipment purpose built for the same thing that not only do what this product in question does, but WAY more! And only cost about 1/3 more. Sorry, man, but just because it's similar does not justify a price hike. Even with shipping included you are looking at roughly $50 bucks tops. Depending on how well you can pack it of course. So if this thing costs 550 then how much is your manufacturer charging? It was designed by only one guy so there goes R&D. So I can only assume the manufacturer is fleecing this guy. Or he's just incredibly greedy. And since I've read his stuff and he seems intelligent enough then you can see why I have some issue here.



So back to my title post. “How to sell your product.” Just get a following. Make sure the people believe everything you say. Even if it is something worth standing by. Then develop a product and charge out the ass for it. Because at the end of the day somebody is going to brag that they got it and someone else doesn't. Like some of those dumbass clothing lines that charge 50 bucks for a t-shirt. I can custom build my own for that price. And truly I feel the same way about this equipment. I can contact a local fabricator and copy the design (it really isn't that complicated) and likely have a product in a week.

That last sentence is actually getting me to consider finding someone to do this. Or maybe just get my own design and contact Rogue Fitness to build it. Seriously doubt they would charge that much. I love those guys over there.

Thursdays Thoughts - Injuries

Not so random stuff today. Because guess what?!? Yep, dealing with another injury. This time its my back again only slightly different per the usual spinal stuff.
About 3 weeks ago I aggravated something in my back. Probably the insertion of the right latimus. So I stopped doing a lot of pullups. Started feeling better so I went back to doing some light easy work on the pull down machine. Probably the only machine I don't hate using. Well about a week ago I got a little tired and let the handle get away mid rep asks BAM repulled the same friggin muscle. Top that with a rough game the same Saturday and work and you for a good recipe for a sore back. Good times. So 2 days off work and stone rest from the weight room and I think I may be back in business to jack it up by the weekend. Cuz I'm sweet like that.

Thursday Random Thoughts

Would be Thursday thoughts but its Friday. Oops. Eh well. Shit happens.

I had a rant a week or two ago about massively overweight football coaches and how the hell they are even coaches. Well today I was pleasantly surprised to see a football coach getting a workout in and walking on his hands across our 60' long gym. Well played random football coach, well played.

Apparently chalk is a hot commodity in our weight room. Ive lost 2 separate containers of the stuff in a week. Once after i put the stuff away and it disappeared. Another time from me accidentally leaving the stuff out and then it vanished. Related note- lifting in this damn awful humidity without chalk sucks butthole.

Speaking of which if I were to ever leave Ohio for a specific reason its this damn humidity. I hate it. A lot. I went through 4 tshirts yesterday alone.

Well thats all. I have a fantasy draft in 30mins that my preparation for involved a whole 2 halfs of preseason football. This ought to be great.

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Review

It's not much a secret I'm a tech geek and today I've decided to give a quick overview of my latest gadget; The Note 2.

Starting off if you are looking for the full rundown of specs and the lil whatevers under the hood of this phone, well, you probably won't get it here. This is the 'meat heads' perspective.

First Impression
Yes, this thing is big. 5.5" screen is a handful. But for the big man out there looking for something to fit their hands this phone is honestly perfect. My thumbs always smashed my last phones letters and it was equally frustrating when I never hit the right damn buttons. Now with the massive screen that rarely happens. My gripe is just 'teaching' the swipe how I talk. The is also very light for its size. Which makes me a lil nervous. I like having some weight in my hands. If also seems target fragile because of that. But I'll get into that later.

After a week of use
Well I already scratched the screen...twice. Remember when I said this thing felt fragile? Screen can't hold up at all apparently. The Otter Box and screen gaurd can't get here soon enough. Bit how about this gigantic battery?!? Holy damn this thing carries a charge. How much? I've had this thing off the old since 4am. Ran Pandora at least a total 7 hours today and barely put a dent in it. Watched YouTube, bogged, texted, Facebook, you name it.  It is now almost 9pm and I just broke 40%. Effing crazy. I literally don't need to worry about charging this thing. At all. Ever. Unless its bedtime.

Performance
This things rocking on the speed department. The apps function and load up fast as hell. The speakers are loud. The screen is responsive. And the S-Pen, despite not playing with it much yet, offers the ability to doodle and paint random crap all over the place them share it fast. The graphics are about as HD add I can imagine for modern phones.
Ok I gushed enough for the moment.
I'll try and finish this up later. In the mean time of you are looking to get this big sumbitch then I say get it! But for God's sake get some great to protect it!

Advocare SPARK - First Impressions

I'll keep this sorry and say since it's merely a first impress ion of the product.

So far I'm liking it.

Now dont get me wrong this stuff doesn't have that 'kick' that say a heavy can of Monster or Full Throttle might have but the 'buzz' is solid. And theres no crash to mention. The energy almost chines on waves. It's rather weird. Them again I use it at work at 4am. But it keeps me awake and I feel very 'aware'.

Will report more later.

Sunday Funday

Its the beginning of the week and its time for some maxing out! The day to smash some weights and hit some PR's. Well for the most part. Today was realistically more a learning day.

I wanted to have a mock competition. Get at least 3 attempts at some big singles and try for more if I could. So not a pure meet but just get an idea where I am at lifting wise. The results went good and bad.

Clean and Jerk - 240lbs
Snatch - 190lbs
 Total - 430lbs

Yeesh. I really need to work my leg strength AND apparently my shoulders are weak as hell. That fact really is not much a surprise to me. I never had a stellar over head press. But the truth is at my body weight I should be hitting bigger numbers by default. Instead Im struggling hitting what I use to get 5 years ago. I will say my Snatch has improved immensely. I just have a hard time holding at the catch and standing up with it. Usually falls out of position. My weakest aspect in the Clean and Jerk is by the Jerk. I need to make some blocks so I can train specifically the Jerk movement. That and just get my damn overhead strength up. This is frustrating.

Well tomorrow starts the first full week of the new lifting schedule. Im not really a fan of this. Really going to miss being well and done by 1pm. But I may dip into the weight during the day to see what the new class schedule looks like. If I can get a workout in early then all the better. Otherwise its nap time for this guy. 

Spartan 300 Workout

This looked pretty rough. Maybe even overkill. The 'intro' Spartan Race is just a 5k so performing this much work seems like a LOT. Regardless there are some more extreme versions of the race so I suppose if you can hit this in good time you are ready.

The Spartan 300
1. 30 Burpees
2. 30 Burpee/Pullups
3. 30 Pullups
4. 30 Box jumps
5. 30 Medicine Ball Squat Throws
6. 100 Jumping Jacks
7. 300 crunches
8. 30 body weight squats
9. 30 side kicks (each side)
10. 30 jumping lunges
11. 30 curls
12. 30 Tricip overhead presses
13. 30 frog jumps
14. 30 squat jumps
15. 3 x rope climbs

I'll Never Get This Sleeping Thing Figured Out

Well it's almost the weekend and my only thoughts are not of partying, being outside, getting things done, etc.etc.etc. Nope. Just catching up on Z's. That's the problem with this lifestyle I suppose. There just isn't enough time in the day to get sleep in. Between working, training, coaching, then either training again or practice the hours run out quick. Not to mention that much activity requires even more sleep than the usual individual.

Can you believe it that its reccomended to get in at least 8 hours a night? Pretty crazy huh? When was the last time you got that much in? I THINK I may have landed a solid 8 hours last Friday. Maybe. Lately, however, if I figure how to get that much in it's through a 4-6 hour sleep and then a later nap. Which usually ruins my day since I'll wake up all groggy anyways then just get nothing accomplished there after.

So what even inspired this post? The fact that I just took a 15 minute nap and feel WIDE FRIGGIN' AWAKE!!! I will never figure this mess out. All I know is the body reacts very positively to 15-20mins of sleep or also known as the mighty Power Nap. Theres a major problem hitting that though. Any more then you suddenly wake up feeling more tired than you did prior to that nap. Has to do with the REM cycle. I'm too lazy to look all the fun facts up at the moment but that is really it. 20 minutes and you shut down the REM cycle before it really kicks in and the body never quite makes it into full shutdown mode. Think of it like putting your computer to sleep compared to shutting it off. Might save energy shutting down but sleep mode allows a quicker reboot. So something like that.

So how the hell do you pull that off? Couple options were lay down to take a nap but first pop a caffein pill or some sort of stim. If you manage to fall asleep sooner than later then the stim when it finally kicks in will jump you out of your sleep. The obvious option is an alarm clock. Set it for 25-35 minutes. The prob here is this is assuming you can fall asleep quickly. If you can't then plan ahead a little bit more. Set it to 45 minutes even. Any longer and if you do happen to nod off quick then you're going to be in for a rude awakening. The last option that I kind of like is sleeping in a recliner or chair. This is more personal preference but I never sleep long in a chair or basically anything not a bed. So that may be worth a shot.

Well Im off with this crazy new found energy spike....on 5 hours +15mins of sleep.

10,000 Page Views!

Well that took long enough!

I kid. It is a nice little milestone for the blog. But there's no time to rest here. Onwards and upwards. 20k here I come!

Man Moves a Mountain

Never underestimate yourself. With the right motivation it is insane what the individual can achieve.

"Manjhi did not want anyone else to suffer the same fate as his wife, so he carved a path 360-foot-long (110 m) through-cut, 25-foot-deep (7.6 m) in places and 30-foot-wide (9.1 m) to form a road^[5] through a mountain in the Gehlour hills, working day and night for 22 years from 1960 to 1982. His feat reduced the distance between the Atri and Wazirganj blocks of the Gaya district from 55 km to 15 km, bringing him national acclaim.^[2][6][7] He died on August 17, 2007.^[8] He was given a state funeral by the Government of Bihar."

This guy moved a mountain over the course of 22 years. What the hell have you done recently?

Warrior Dash Recap

So I finally ran one of these things this past weekend. I got to say it was definitely NOT that bad. Especially considering we ran it in a BLAZING 51 minutes ...hah. Ok but seriously it was for fun and after I finished I legitimately wanted to run it again to see how well I could handle running a 3 mile obstacle course at a decent clip.

First off we couldn't have asked for a better day. 75 degrees and sunny. Sunny enough I got a bit of a tan line from it. Add to the fact that there were several water obstacles it ended up working out nicely. I will say it could not have been hot enough to handle how cold that water was they hit us with at the end to hose off. Damn that was like a ice shower from the 7th circle.

If you havn't ran one of these here's a few bits and pieces of advice for first timers.

Arrive early. It took us almost an hour to get our ID wrist band, gear checked, and kitted up. Not that it matters. I signed up for 12:30 while my friends were signed for 1pm. We just ran at 12:30 anyways. Fun fact; after you run if you're up for it just hose off and jump back in line. Not one person was checking us. Thought that was odd. But hey, why not?

Get plenty of hydration prior. That should be a given. Eat light. As I mentioned we had a few obstacles that involved some swimming and a lot of climbing. Having a belly full of food is no good for that.

Beer and food is expensive. Bring cash. They had ATMs but I didn't bother looking how much that service charge would've been. The beer steins were also 20 bucks. So if you're looking for a good souvenir then there ya have it.

Entry into the area was free. Which was good since parking was 10 $#&%ing bucks. In all honesty just with entries and parking they had to have grossed close to a mill on the event. Take away insurance and blah blah blah and they must be raking it in with these things. But I digress. This is the part where it's good to bring friends and split the gas and the parking. Or make them buy first round. Not everyone has to race either. There was mostly good music. Decent food and drink. And some different activities to mess with. So theres a bit of a party atmosphere surrounding the race.

Lastly, while I was doing a minute of research I did stumble on the risks involved. But after reading the story the injuries/deaths, yes deaths, were seemingly preventable. Especially after reading about the kid diving into the mud pool and becoming paralyzed. Listen, read the damn waiver you are signing. There's even a check box that says "DO NOT DIVE INTO THE WATER". Every entry point at ours was less than a few feet deep. And its muddy. Thats just dumb. Plus, if you are not at all familiar with running far (3+ miles) then don't try and kill yourself racing the course the first time in. I saw many people trying to do that who clearly never ran farther than to the kitchen from living room during a commercial break for a beer.

Overly Manly Mans Take on Workout Splits

...I've been writing emails all morning. Break time. AKA lifting time. AKA LEG DAY ALL DAY, BABY!!!!

Now an Advocare Distributor

I've been hearing a lot of good things about this company. Yes, it sounds like another pyramid scheme. Yes...it is. I mean the model is simple enough. Throw all sorts of numbers and success stories your way and BAM! make a sale. Then get that stiff to sell the crap to others and BAM! residual income starts flowing in.

Sounds like its too good to be true, right? Sort of is. Sort of isn't. I've seen some garbage in the past. Schemes like these are a dime a dozen. So why Advocare then? Well, I work with athletes. I regularly use supplements. Their supps have been receiving good reviews. So why not? Plus the 'start up' is WAAAYYY cheaper than many other companies. Hell, they throw in $50 bucks worth of supps with the start up kit. So realistically I'm spending $30 on the kit and buying samples to throw at potential clients/ customers.

There is a nice bonus going on here. The more you buy the more you save. They run a tier system so for every X-amount you spend you receive a PERMANENT discount on future purchases. Now that I like.

On the same note their big push is the "24-Day Challenge". This is something that peaked my curiosity simply because once rugby season is done, well done for me at least, I had the notion to drop some weight in prep for track season. So why not give that a run, take some before, during, and after shots, and post the results? I figure that would be a good boost for the business. Assuming it works that is. Time will tell.

So if you get on the site and are curious at having a look at what we're offering product wise click the tab at the top or right here -----> ADVOCARE

Warrior Dash is Here

I will say I am moderately enthusiastic. Mainly because I had a great lifting session today and yesterday and finally got caught up on sleep so I am not in complete zombie mode right now. Still down 7lbs since yesterday so that sort of concerns me. Got to keep eating.

Im already guilty of this hahaha no but seriously...

Lynne Crossfit Benchmark

I took a shot at another Crossfit workout today: "Lynne". I'm starting to like these benchmark lifts for a quick GPP session after a lift. Hit upper body pretty hard today and wanted something that hit a similar end. If you don't know Isabel is essentially supersetting cleans with ring dips and performing sets of 21-15-9. The cleans wern't bad. Dips kicked my ass. Between my shoulder going foul today and already being worn out the dips weren't happening. So I tied a band to the rack and stuck my knee in there and did them with some assistance. I think my total time was somewhere around 9:30 but at the moment I really don't remember.

Two things I picked up from today is I need to get in some serious shoulder rehab work and possibly work on my dips if I'm going to keep doing this. My dips are worse than my pullups.

Isabel Rx

My buddy did this last week (vid shot on Friday) and gave the bright idea to try it myself. Had to do some research on it first so I am hoping this was all correct. Also shot this on my brand new JVC camcorder. So far I'm liking it.




If you kept count at all you may have noticed what I saw. Only 28 reps. No blood to the brain = poor math. Also, I had no idea my hips rose up that high each rep. Even my 'good' ones. Definitely something I'll need to address from now on.

Mondays training

Dammit this one put a whooping on me. Few things that needed to be changed and I felt the difference.
1- Maintain rest between sets! My ADD lately has been ridiculous and checking the clock and regulating time between sets not only massively reduced workout time but also gave me a helluva workout to boot.
2- FOCUS. This really is part of Number 1 but deserves it's own note. Maintain focus. I'll admit this one is tricky since I train about the same time as my athletes do. So I suppose it could be classified more to do with time management. Coach when needed but still get work done. Either way when helping teenagers get a lift in it's easy to forget what you were doing or how long ago you did it.

So anyways I tried a few things different today. Mostly the cleans...damn my full clean is terrible. Im hitting the extension better but the second pull is something of a mystery to me. My catch is so slow. Granted I did just start putting effort into this not too long ago. Squats somehow went up. I drove myself into the dirt last week and felt tired for 8 days straight yet I managed to add 10lbs and then perform 3 reps with it. My body pisses me off sometimes.

Warmup, stretch, yadda yadda yadda
Kneeling box jump to depth jump - Worked up to max single, no idea on height
Cleans- Worked up max single. 275 felt great. 285 felt terrible. 2x3 @ 225 to finish
Box squat- Worked up to 415x3. Then 330x3 w/orange 'light' bands.
DB Step ups- 3x5@65/65/75
SL RDL- 3x6@235
Russian Twist- 3x12@10/20/25

Legs are shot at the time of writing this. Worst part is....got a 3 mile run later. Got a race in 6 days. Yuck.

2 Weeks Until Warrior Dash

Actually less than that. I will be honest...I am not ready for this crap. My foot is still a mess and realistically the most running I've been doing lately is the occasional Rugby practice. Now I've heard this course is not really that bad at all. It's the one near Canton, Ohio FYI. Heard it is pretty flat and not very challenging. So that is at least good news. My grip is just running that long without much training is a little unsettling to me. Although I heard that there are usually traffic jams near the obstacles anyways so I guess I'll get some rest stops along the way. Works for me, I guess.

I have practice tonight so running should get taken care of there. Otherwise I have about 12 days to prepare. So likely tomorrow Im hitting the bleachers again. Thursday I don't think theres practice so it'll likely be a sprint and sled pushing day. Friday I may try and get some hill runs in. Saturday maybe a few miles? Sunday I have pretty much booked so maybe a quick lift and thats about it. Like I said the biggest issue I am going to have is my right foot is still recovering. 5th metatarsal is likely going through a stress fracture. Lot of swelling in the usual spot (I've had this injury before). So that's the plan but we shall see how Im feeling day to day.

Thought of the day / mini rant

What is the issue with the younger generation lacking any sort of critical thinking ability? I'm not sure if it's this focus that schools have with just take a test on how well you can memorize things and move on or too many kids taking meds for every damn thing ever. But I swear if something happens that require to use their own free will they lose their minds.

Can't find something in the area I was told? Oh well not here.

That sentence didn't make sense. Should I make an initial thought on what they meant and follow up with a question? Nahh I just don't get it. Period.

What's this mean? Better avoid it instead of figuring it out.

And above all else it seems non have any desire to expand and learn. For that I blame Yolo and swag... And Bieber. And Disney Channel.

Weekend Superset Workout

If you need to get a quick lift in for the weekend and are not familiar with supersets well here's a brief intro to them and a sample workout.

Supersets are very fast ways to get a lot of work done in a short amount of time. Not quite circuits which involve several exercises or AMRAPS which involve some to several exercises that involve cranking out as many reps as possible (hence the name) but usually involve pairing two to three exercises that can either be similar muscle groups (bench, fly, triceps extension), opposing (bench press and bentover row), or unrelated (squats and crunches). Those listed are just some examples.

Here's a quick workout that is not only brutal but very time effective if the rest is kept to 60-90s per set.

10x10 volume workout
1st group (about 15mins)
Bench Press 10x10 @ 50%

Bentover Rows 10x10 @ 50%

2nd group (10mins)
Standing Press 5x10
Lat Pull Downs 5x10

3rd grouping (optional, 5mins)
Barbell Curl 3x20
Triceps Extension 3x20 
 ->Want to work abs and low back as well? Add in some weight situps and hyper extensions after tri-ext for 3x20. 

Break that down that is about 420 reps in approx 35-45mins.

Enjoy.

Every Damn Day

I swear it's just every day routine. Pop some pain meds. Go to work. Bitch about something hurting. Ice it down. Stretch. Rehab. Workout. Then repeat the next day.

I've heard of timers complain about bad knees, shoulders, whatever but me? It's always something new. Realistically my back should still be bad. Shoulder should be falling out. And both knees locked up and offline. Nope. I always seem to heal but come up with new injuries!

Sigh.... Aight enough complaining. Foot is about frozen and it's time for an 'easy' day. Clean and jerks, snatches, and some prowler pushing here I come.

2013 Throwing recap / thoughts

As I sit here with my foot drowning in sub 50 degree water and struggling for a distraction I started to get some thoughts together on the past season. It was a bit of a struggle, learning experience, and a bust as much as a success.

Here's a quick look at what I learned ;

Despite snow and ice Ohio weather can still be dealt with when it comes to throwing in mid January. It just takes much more preparation. And sometimes a steel shovel. And hand warmers.

Switching from Adidas to Nike shoes was the worst decision I made this year. My right foot, 3 months later, is still paying for it. The arch still is struggling to heal proper. I think I may be done wearing Nike for now on.

Even after 12 years of throwing my technique is still far from perfect.

I've gotten crazy slow since my 'good years'.

I still believe active recovery is the best method to heal by. Anytime I feel sore or beat up and decide to just relax I feel worse.

I'm starting to lean more and more to the camp of "overtraining is a bullshit concept". You'll eventually get used to it with enough sleep and food.

No matter what administrators will do what they can to piss you off then go full hypocrite behind your back.

Lastly, not exactly training related, is a money thing. I think Warren Buffet said "save first then spend". I've done much better with this idea this year. Unfortunately not quite enough. Looking back there's definitely some things I wish I didn't buy or dumb things I blew money on but at least I plugged that leak before I wasted everything. But back to the quote this is sound advice for anyone. Everytime you are paid for anything always put a percentage into savings. At least 10%. Lately I've been trying to put 25% in. And after bills that may not lead to much left to spend but that's just how it is. Looking back if I followed this simple concept I could EASILY have the money needed to get the gym started and pay first years rent to boot.

To wrap up I'll leave on a quote that my ex told me. "Quit dwelling on what you can't change. Worry about what is to come". So hopefully others learn from my mistakes and as for me I can only look to what I can do from now on.

Daily dose of motivation

Its 95 degrees out

Your legs are fried

Your back is sunburnt

Those bleachers only seem to be growing higher

And sweat is nearly blocking your vision...

But when your workout is over this is the only appropriate way to feel when its all over

Cobalt s1010 tablet - stay away

UPDATE: I'm even more pissed about this piece of shit. It fell off a stool in my garage thats barely a foot tall and the entire screen shattered as if it was made from the cheapest glass known to man. So now it not only is a subpar junky tablet its practically useless to resell since the entire screen is covered in a cobweb of cracks. What a waste....seriously DO NOT BUY THIS THING if you ever come across one. Cough the extra dough and get a decent tablet from a name brand.

ORIGINAL REVIEW:

Man this thing is just junk. I got it a few weeks ago from eBay and I got to say I've been had. Granted it didn't cost much but still I could have put a good payment on a decent Samsung tablet or something similar than this garbage.
So to start off the manual is in a laughable engrish format. Non of it really makes much sense. Even when booting up everything was set to Hong Kong time.
Secondly it claims battery in use lasts for hours. Up to six even. Try an hour and a half tops. And forget trying to use it while you have it plugged in on its short wire. Touch the screen with it plugged in and out goes nuts. Apparently it needs some alone time while charging.
The screen itself ain't terrible.  Nor the size. But the touch function is just off. It does not feel like a normal touch screen at all.  And the keys not nearly as responsive.
Wi-fi is shaky at best. If you are close to the signal it works well.  Move away and say good bye to Internet.  Even on strong signals.
The camera is just useless so I won't even bother going much further.
Lastly, but not least, I mainly wanted this as a mini laptop and a way to blog on the go using a lightweight platform. The text function does not come with a English dictionary! It says it does but any word you may type will be tagged as misspelled until you manually add the word. Well screw that,  I say to myself, I'll just type on! Wrong! Get enough of those 'misspelled' words and it will slowly but surely slow down to screeching halt. I made it about a large paragraph before it cropped out on me.  And apparently that went to my browser as now that is slowed to mush.
Really the only thing I have found this piece of crap to be useful for is playing Angry Birds. Even then this supposedly HD screen looks low res to me.  Everything's very grainy.
That's what I get from buying the equivalent of China's Walmart. Which would be like saying if the crap was so cheaply made in China Walmart itself wouldn't sell it.  Which is pretty accurate here.

random thought of the day

Ranfom thought of the day inspired by The Chive's post I saw about how muvh they love fit chicks.

I will day I love them as well but they had a bunch that didn't fit the description at all. Random skinny chicks wearing booty shorts and sports bras does not count as 'fit' in my definition. They could be grossly undertrained with no aerobic or anaerobic work capacity and definitely no real strength to mention of. But they had the right outfit so I guess that makes them 'fit'. I could wear a golf outfit and buy expensive clubs but that sure as shit doesn't make me a golfer.

Cleveland Masters Open Quick Recap

That one sucked.

Hey I said it was a quick recap.

Ok, in all seriousness, I've had worse meets but this one just wasn't a good day for throwing. Especially since it was my last meet of the season. Unless I decide to do the weight pentathlon sometime later this year. But with rugby season fast approaching that isn't likely.

First off, it was damn hot. I don't know what the temp was but I had swamp ass by 10am and Conner looked like he died his shirt a darker color. Humidity was a major factor. By the time we threw, regardless of shade, I was already just down and depleted and literally my legs felt like they were ready to cramp and lock up on me.

I warmed up like shit and took more than I usually do. Nothing felt right. First round I went 153 which is actually a decent opener. Problem is I couldn't get it on film and every throw I did get on tape I fouled for one reason or another. In fact I didn't mark again until the 6th round and THAT one too didn't get filmed.

Side grumble....

There's this official. Old guy. Like really really old. Sorry in advance if you are friends with him, or are him, or just in general think Im wrong but he needs to retire and just spectate or coach or whatever. If you've thrown in Ohio in the past 40+ years you likely know who I am talking about. Number 1 if you're an official you can't just coach every random kid that enters the ring. Not everyone wants it nor is it allowed since, ya know, you are a official. Secondly, there were so many blatant fouls I wasn't sure if the ring was regulation size. Some guys just walked out to pass on the throw and still got a measure. Others foot fouled by almost a foot out of the ring but if they somehow bounced back in he wouldn't notice and called a mark. There's been situations in the past with this guy calling bad fouls or vice verse yet he's still around. To make it worse during the women's discus he called the marks from INSIDE the cage...wtf? I admire his dedication but when the work you are paid to do starts slipping dramatically to the point it screws with the event results its time to let it go.

End grumble....

Well that essentially wraps up my season. I figure one more week of organized practices for those who are left and then if the kids still want to throw they are on their own. I'm a little burnt out at this point and need to run around and start hitting people. To rugby season!

Update - "The Gym"

I'm using quotes because as of now that thing still is not in existence. At least physically. The idea is still alive and well but I've run into more snags than I am happy about since I really pushed to get this going. Some were out of my control, others just poor planning/ judgement, and some just due to losing that drive that I used to have. So lets start sometime back around October...ish.

Long story short I had a somewhat ok location picked out in an existing facility. What it boiled down to was it was not a very good deal for my end and I ran out of money. Looking back I am glad I held off signing that lease when I did or I would've been locked down and screwed worse than I was already. So despite a generous investment from a friend I still was buried in bills, debt, and at the moment no job and no plan of escape. I basically 'left' my old training job and ran out of money fast. Not to mention having a potential partner completely bail out without so much an email saying 'hey, sorry, but Im out"....thanks, brah.

I can't say it was a total disaster as the land lords were at least sympathetic to my situation. I literally lost what I had trying to get that thing going but was clearly over my head in a hurry. They even tried to work something out by bringing a different group in to help set something up. Didn't happen. So by end of Fall I was moved out and most of my gear was back in the high school weight room or in the track shed. Much cheaper than a storage unit.

So at this point I'm pretty bummed. I luckily still had a few clients left at Lifeworks but was still broke, unmotivated, and at loss of what the actual fuck I was going to do now. I kept pretty bottled up about it too which in hindsight just did not help. Nor did getting texts and or calls from folks I havn't talked to in awhile saying something along the lines of "Hey! Congrats on the gym!" ...yea about that.

So, anyways, as luck would have it I found a job working for UPS. Even better it was the morning shift which typically has more hours and pays better. PLUS it was out of the way of coaching/ training. See, at this point, I was ready to walk away. Just drop everything, sell my gear, pay back what I could, and work off the rest and just say "this is enough". In all reality, and this is likely one of the rare times I am saying this, I was about to retired completely from the coaching/training/whatever life and just get some shit job I was good at. Most signs were leading to warehouse work. Pay ain't bad plus theres benefits and I'm on my feet lifting things while getting paid for it. I guess as fate would have it most jobs turned me down due to lack of experience. Along comes UPS saying 'yea, you'll do' and thats where Ive been since.

Over Winter really not much happened. Well nothing out of the ordinary. Indoor season started. Trained the high schoolers like usual. Get threatened at least 2 to 3 times that I'll be fired...again. Then outdoors starts. By now I finally have some credit cards paid off. Yes I said cards with an "S". What was weird is having a decent enough paying job now so I actually had money. Usually Im broke about this time of the year. Now Im just broke because Im paying crap off. But I digress.

A few new oppurtunities arose after my misfortune last year. I was approached about restarting the gym. At this point I made it clear the only chance in hell I had of making this happen was if I had some MAJOR finacial backing as I was in no hurry to make the same mistake again. Unfortunately for both parties involved this just wasn't happening any time soon. What was agreed on was maybe sometime near July. Which, ironically, as Im writing this I noticed today is the first. So you can probably guess how that particular situation is going. But fear not! Due to some decent financial planning on my part, not just blowing my entire track contract on bullshit like I usually do, and being single (hey, man, girlfriends get expensive) I was able to get some money put away for once. AND after a meeting last Friday I may have found the assistant coach I was looking for. Assuming he doesn't bail like the others. Apparently this is a scary business. Or is it just me?

To top that off I may have found a suitable location that could literally fulfill the niche market I am going after. Track, football, rugby, and small group fitness in a warehouse style gym. Even better is compared to the last location is that this place is 400s/ft bigger, 4' higher ceiling (16' total), has a bay door, small office, and is about 3 minutes from I-71. Oh yea, and its about $400/month less than the other place. Pretty sweet, right?

There are still some obstacles that need to be cleared;
1- MONEY. Im getting sick of saying this but if anyone sees this thats considered opening a small business take my advice- Stow away some serious cash first!
2- Field turf. Part of the niche is having the ability to train athletes in a turfed environment. Well that doesn't work too well when you don't have any. Unfortunately brand new green costs about 1200 for what Im looking at.
3- Clients. This is something that I feel I will always struggle with until I pick up some sales techniques or hire someone to do it for me. My dad was always the sales guy. Me? Not so much.
4- The city. This one Im not entirely worried about but it's definitely worth noting. In order to put a gym into a warehouse style building I would need to file a variance. Otherwise I have to move into a commercial zone which will NOT do. This is more frustrating due to the fee involved of $200. So there goes that new bar I wanted.

So that sums up the past 9 months or so in a nutshell concerning business matters. Giant pain in the ass that is for sure. But I keep telling myself I don't want to work a warehouse forever and training in a big gym or the school is starting to wear on me.

You know you're a meathead when......

Saw this on Facebook the other day and I had far more than just one response.....

.... Rest day workout is referred to as a quick "gun run"
... No mirror can simply be walked by without a quick flex
... Going out? Need a quick pump first.
... It's not food is macros and micros.
... No sleeve is safe
... Pregaming is referred to as warming up your dining muscles
... You can have a full conversation with another meathead with only one syllable words
... The same can be said for no words period
... You understand the squat rack is for squatting, no exceptions
... Those who don't understand this infuriate you
... Planet fitness for does not know you personally but has a restraining order against you

Off the top of my head that's what I got but I'll be sure to add more later.

Campbell Wright Recap

As I am riding this bus to my 4th consecutive track meet in as many days trying to ignore this obnoxious freshman girl behind me I figure I'll write up a quick recep of my weekend.

Saturday I headed to Akron for their Campbell Wright open. I was feeling sluggish Thursday and decided some rest was a good idea for Friday. In hindsight I don't think it helped much. Mentally and physically I felt ready as I could be. But still something felt 'off'.

I will say an issue I have is I don't have a routine anymore. Past 3weeks I've been toying with different windups and entries and even up till Akron I didn't have anything set in stone. Which is probably why I bombed ny first full turn over 50m yet opened with a whopping 44m. Yikes.

Once I got the nerves out a lil things calmed down and got somewhat back to where I should've been at the start. 2nd round went about 47.80 so I was in better shape there. Unfortunately I just couldn't find that stretch anymore that I accidentally discovered earlier. Everything then on just felt forced.

I did managed a sort of PR 5th round with a 48.25. I'll refer to these as my washed up meathead PRs. Mostly since I hurt my back all those years ago I havnt been anywhere near my old marks. Roughly I'm back to maybe when I was about 22 or so. Just older, slower, and fatter then when I was 22. So that's kind of sad.

Well thats my first meet roundup. Not much excitement but its a start. Next up is Ohio Wesleyan next Tuesday. Heard their ring is crazy fast. So that may work out for me.

A lot of throws

Too many maybe. I had a goal of 100 full turns today but after 70 I realized that was a much tougher goal than I imagined. It's been a long time since I got a workout in with that much volume. Definitely harder on the body as well. Mix that with the 70deg temps I was pretty fatigued pretty quick.

An interesting note was I started off as usual. Throws about the mid 150s. Then a massive drop. I couldnt get over 145 to save my life. But after 50 tosses my distance started going back up. I tweaked a few things and was actually throwing farther than when I started. Despite getting tired I was back to the upper 150 range. Not exactly sure what that tells me yet but its rather interesting.

The Hunt Continues

Last week was a bit of a bummer week. Wednesday's track meet was probably the coldest we've had all year. We got shut down on the warehouse we wanted for the gym (beat to the lease). The other location apparently would need a massive overhaul since it used to be a daycare. And that about wraps up anything we could've looked for in the Brunswick area at the moment. So I will likely need to look towards Strongsville for the new location. I havn't totally given up on Brunswick as there may be a spot next door to the location we originally wanted if there isn't much buildout needed.

Still this is getting frustrating. We're almost to the point where I have the network and finances to support a startup club but now can't find a friggin' good enough spot! I'm still confident we'll make something work. Just a matter of time.

One week until Akron Al Campbell open

My confidence is much higher than earlier this week. Of course having a few days rest helped a bit. The important thing is I had a somewhat hard day of throwing and really got a good rhythm going. Had several, if not all, throws over 155 and a few verified over 163. This puts me well ahead of last year.

This is about what my schedule looks like;

May 4th - Akron Open
May 14th - Ohio Wesleyan
July 7th - USATF Lake Erie Open

I'm sure ill find more but that's what I'm planning on for now.

Regional Throws Rankings as of 4/25/13

We're about half way done with the regular season so heres a quick look at how were doing rankings wise. Why is this important? Well for one its fun bragging rights. Secondly, and more importantly, it shows not just our own progress but how well we stack up against the local competition. Mainly I looked at regionals. This is the big one. We can say we rank so and so state wide, which is nice, but the region determines who actually makes it to the big show at the end of the year.

GIRLS DISCUS

Rank	Mark	Athlete Name	Team	C/O	Date	Meet
1.	142-7	Nicole Breeden	Clay-Oregon	2013	04/06/2013	Knight Warm Up Invitational
2.	132-8	Christine Bohan	Avon Lake	2013	04/19/2013	Midview-Lorain County Invitational
3.	128-0	Cari Pallini	Medina	2013	04/06/2013	Avon Lake Invitational
4.	117-0	Mariah Mansperger	Ashland HS	2014	04/20/2013	Mansfield Mehock Relays
5.	111-4	Baylee Geiss	Brunswick	2015	04/20/2013	Dublin Coffman Invitational
6.	110-11	Brooke Bilinsky	North Olmsted	2015	04/13/2013	Beachwood Invitational
7.	110-10	Tityana Gardner	Whitmer	2014	04/06/2013	Knight Warm Up Invitational
8.	108-10	Alana Hayes	Whitmer	2015	04/06/2013	Knight Warm Up Invitational
9.	108-8	Makenzie Williams	Mansfield Senior	2013	04/13/2013	Lexington Invitational
10.	107-8	Taylor Warner	Sylvania Northview	2013	04/06/2013	Knight Warm Up Invitational

GIRLS SHOT PUT

Rank	Mark	Athlete Name	Team	C/O	Date	Meet
1.	41-0.25	Christine Bohan	Avon Lake	2013	04/06/2013	Avon Lake Invitational
2.	38-3	Alaya Hayes	Whitmer	2014	04/12/2013	Whitmer Gold W Invitational
3.	37-9	Cari Pallini	Medina	2013	04/20/2013	Miele Invitational
4.	36-1	London Williams	Lima Senior	2014	04/20/2013	Vandalia Butler Invitational
5.	35-10	Tityana Gardner	Whitmer	2014	04/12/2013	Whitmer Gold W Invitational
6.	35-1	Amelya Upthegrove	Lima Senior	2015	03/30/2013	Titan Ice Breaker
7.	34-2.25	Mckenzie Moran	Medina	2015	04/06/2013	Avon Lake Invitational
8.	34-1.5	Ambreeana Johnson	Sandusky	2013	04/09/2013	Sandusky Dual
9.	33-8	Brittany Morrison	Saint Joseph Academy	--	04/13/2013	Kimberly Relays
10.	33-3.5	Haley Lyle	Westlake	2014	04/19/2013	Lakewood Ranger Relays

BOYS DISCUS

Rank	Mark	Athlete Name	Team	C/O	Date	Meet
1.	177-11	Jared Ballenger	Fremont Ross	2014	04/20/2013	Mansfield Mehock Relays
2.	171-0	Aaron Zedella	St. Edward	2013	04/13/2013	Medina Relays
3.	166-5	Max Seipel	Avon Lake	2014	04/06/2013	Avon Lake Invitational
4.	161-10	John Zedella	St. Edward	2015	04/20/2013	Mansfield Mehock Relays
5.	160-2	Mike Hierholzer	Medina	2014	04/06/2013	Avon Lake Invitational
6.	159-10	Donald Eastman	Norwalk	2013	04/20/2013	Edison Invitational
7.	153-6	Maurice Harris	St. Francis De Sales-Toledo	2014	04/20/2013	Mansfield Mehock Relays
8.	150-8	Colin Lucas	Avon Lake	2014	04/06/2013	Avon Lake Invitational
9.	147-3	Berry Grant	Sylvania Southview	2014	04/12/2013	Whitmer Gold W Invitational
10.	145-6	Tyler Laffin	Brunswick	2014	04/20/2013	Dublin Coffman Invitational

BOYS SHOT PUT

Rank	Mark	Athlete Name	Team	C/O	Date	Meet
1.	61-3.5	Aaron Zedella	St. Edward	2013	03/30/2013	Brunswick Elite Meet
2.	56-2.25	Mike Hierholzer	Medina	2014	04/06/2013	Avon Lake Invitational
3.	54-0	Kevin Kavalec	St. Ignatius	2013	04/13/2013	Medina Relays
4.	53-1.25	Jared Ballenger	Fremont Ross	2014	04/18/2013	Oak Harbor Tri Meet
5.	52-8	Max Seipel	Avon Lake	2014	04/06/2013	Avon Lake Invitational
6.	52-2	Jayden Corbit	Anthony Wayne	2013	04/12/2013	Whitmer Gold W Invitational
7.	50-5.25	Mathew Martella	North Royalton	2013	04/13/2013	Nordonia Knight Relays
8.	50-2	Maurice Harris	St. Francis De Sales-Toledo	2014	04/12/2013	Whitmer Gold W Invitational
9.	49-9.25	Colin Lucas	Avon Lake	2014	04/19/2013	Midview-Lorain County Invitational
10.	48-8	Grant Judson	Anthony Wayne	2013	04/12/2013	Whitmer Gold W Invitational

Two weeks until my first track meet of 2013

I probably couldn't be in worse shape for it.

Just came off a deload week due to some seriously nagging injuries (neck, right shoulder, some weird hip problem, and the usual back issues) and got in fairly heavy workout today. About 50 throws later I was pretty gassed. In fact I wasn't so much tired just my right shoulder just didn't want anymore. Im really getting to the point where Im thinking if this doesnt get fixed or at least manageable my throwing days may be over. Especially considering I have a hard time putting the disc over 160 with a decent wind. I would really like to be able to do pushups with ease again. But with the issues in the rotator area I really can't tell if its getting worse or better.

So what am I going to do? Hell with it...move forward.

Crossfit 13.1 - First Timer

Oh, God, why the fuck did I try this?

Quick background- My fitness sucks right now. Like bad. I just started adding some conditioning and GPP into my workouts last week but not much and today for whatever damn reason I decided to add the 13.1 Open workout to the end of my dynamic day. Which involved; sled sprints, heavy ass kettlebell swings to triple long jumps, DB snatches, and heavy step ups.

For starts I screwed up the order. You're supposed to do 40 burpees right off but instead did 75lb snatches from the floor first. Secondly, apparently doing 30 snatches is a lot harder than I first thought. Oh yea, and Im terrible at burpees.

End result? Despite the fuck up and non-official nature....

113

I don't know what that means or how that compares but I know it aint good. Considering that aint even half the posted workout. I heard the 13.2 was better so Ill try that in a few days. 

Worst Clean and Press Videos You Will Ever See

I've seen some shit but these two are absolutely atrocious. Mind you if you have ever seen an 'expertvillage' video on Youtube then you probably already know the quality you are about to see.





You want to get some decent advise on Olympic Lifts or watch what some good lifts look like? Here-

Ohio High School Indoor Track and Field Championships Throwing Flight Sheets

Well here they are. Flight sheets finally announced and this is what we're up against. I am happy to say that for however many years in a row we have a full lineup of weight throwers competing at the state meet. However, this year looks to be one of the absolute most competitive years we have gone up against. Ought to be interesting.

*Just a fun side note. We actually had FOUR boys in the top 16 this year and a 5th in the top 20 but due to the rules of entry only two from each team/club may enter the state tourny. Only fitting our two seniors made the cut. 

You can find the rest of the Heat/Flight sheets HERE and also the DivII/III entries.

 
Event 53  Girls Shot Put Div I
===============================================================================
Saturday 3/16/2013 - 9:30 AM
 Top 8 report to the awards podium immediately after
       HS FH:  47-06.75  3/19/2011   Jackie Leppelmeier, McComb                
  State Meet:  44-05.50  3/21/2009   Brittany Wilson, Harrison                 
     Name                        Year School            Seed Mark           
===============================================================================
  1  Daniels, Katelyn              12 Olentangy Or       46-10.25 
  2  Stacey, Lauren                12 Western Brow       41-01.50 
  3  Gray, Alexis                  11 Solon              41-00.50 
  4  Bohan, Christine              12 Avon Lake          40-11.00 
  5  Antill, Kaylee                10 Tri-Valley         39-05.00 
  6  Freshkorn, Ashley             12 Hamilton Tow       38-11.50 
  7  Avery, Dajsha                 12 Wayne              38-04.00 
  8  Carpenter, Chelsea            11 Walnut Hills       38-00.75 
  9  Mackey, Teria                 11 Wayne              38-00.25 
 10  Pallini, Cari                 12 Medina             37-00.75 
 11  Johnson, Brenda               10 Bellefontain       36-11.50 
 12  Figueroa, Gabby               11 Austintown F       36-06.50 
 13  Hayes, Alaya                  11 Whitmer            36-06.00 
 14  White, Ka'Nisha               10 Boardman           36-05.00 
 15  Merchant, Tradazia            11 Austintown F       36-04.25 
 16  Silvestri, Giovanna           12 Boardman           36-04.00 

Event 54  Boys Shot Put Div I
===============================================================================
Saturday 3/16/2013 - 9:30 AM
 Top 8 report to the awards podium immediately after
       HS FH:  65-00.75  3/20/2010   Matthew Hoty, Perkins                     
  State Meet:     64-03  3/20/2010   Dustin Brode, Canfield                    
     Name                        Year School            Seed Mark           
===============================================================================
  1  Zedella, Aaron                12 St. Edward         61-11.00 
  2  Maurins, John                 11 Mentor             60-02.00 
  3  Hierholzer, Mike              11 Medina             55-07.00 
  4  Price, Billy                  12 Austintown F       55-06.00 
  5  Kavalec, Kevin                12 St. Ignatius       55-00.50 
  6  Daniels, Chris                12 Canton McKin       54-10.00 
  7  Seipel, Max                   11 Avon Lake          54-09.50 
  8  Cartwright, Grant             12 Olentangy Li       54-05.00 
  9  Peters, Jeremiah              11 Euclid             53-07.00 
 10  Lassiter, Ellery              11 Walnut Hills       52-05.50 
 11  Burwell, Jon                  12 Tri-Valley         52-00.00 
 12  Landers, Robert               10 Wayne              51-10.75 
 13  Hale, Colton                  12 Centerville        51-07.25 
 14  Prouty, Collin                11 Tri-Valley         51-04.50 
 15  Seme, Nick                    12 Wadsworth          51-03.00 
 16  Zedella, John                 10 St. Edward         51-01.50 

Event 57  Girls Weight Throw Div I
===============================================================================
Saturday 3/16/2013 - 9:30 AM
 Top 8 report to the awards podium immediately after
       HS FH:  53-07.50  3/21/2009   Alexis Thomas, HH Wayne                   
  State Meet:  53-07.50  3/21/2009   Alexis Thomas, Wayne                      
     Name                        Year School            Seed Mark           
===============================================================================
  1  Figueroa, Gabby               11 Austintown F       58-11.00 
  2  King, Erica                   12 Cuyahoga Fal       52-03.00 
  3  Avery, Dajsha                 12 Wayne              48-07.00 
  4  Mackey, Teria                 11 Wayne              47-01.00 
  5  Freshkorn, Ashley             12 Hamilton Tow       46-06.50 
  6  Mansperger, Mariah            11 Ashland HS         46-04.00 
  7  Merchant, Tradazia            11 Austintown F       45-04.00 
  8  Stacey, Lauren                12 Western Brow       42-08.25 
  9  Helenthal, Natalie            11 Ashland HS         41-02.00 
 10  Jones, Sydney                 11 Brunswick          38-11.00 
 11  Cospy, Arlesha                11 Trotwood-Mad       37-01.00 
 12  Geiss, Baylee                 10 Brunswick          36-08.50 
 13  Carpenter, Chelsea            11 Walnut Hills       36-02.00 
 14  Antill, Kaylee                10 Tri-Valley         35-09.50 
 15  Ziccardi, Maddie              11 Cuyahoga Fal       35-03.00 
 16  Crawford, Laylaa              12 Big Walnut         33-02.50 

Event 58  Boys Weight Throw Div I
===============================================================================
Saturday 3/16/2013 - 9:30 AM
 Top 8 report to the awards podium immediately after
       HS FH:  79-01.50  3/20/2010   Justin Welch, Eastwood                    
  State Meet:  70-07.75  3/19/2011   Aj Hicks, Solon                           
     Name                        Year School            Seed Mark           
===============================================================================
  1  Zedella, Aaron                12 St. Edward         78-02.50 
  2  Price, Billy                  12 Austintown F       71-10.00 
  3  Wilks, Anthony                12 Marlington         70-07.00 
  4  Peterson, Lovell              12 Wayne              68-10.50 
  5  Dexter, Isaiah                11 Lancaster          64-10.00 
  6  Maurins, John                 11 Mentor             64-03.50 
  7  Brandon, John                 11 Hudson             62-06.00 
  8  Zedella, John                 10 St. Edward         61-01.75 
  9  Burnside, Bryce               12 Findlay            58-09.50 
 10  Landers, Robert               10 Wayne              58-06.00 
 11  Crist, Austin                 11 Lancaster          57-02.00 
 12  Jindra, Dan                   12 Brunswick          55-03.00 
 13  Hunter, Nate                  12 Brunswick          54-03.50 
 14  Rafique, Rehmaan              12 Austintown F       52-10.00 
 15  Seipel, Max                   11 Avon Lake          49-00.00 
 16  Roop, Tim                     11 Centerville        48-11.50