Back Off Week Planning

Thursday Sept 18, 2008

Weight: 180 lbs

I have never consciously planned a back-off week only instead waiting until CNS failure or injury. Following the advice of Jack Reape in his latest T-Nation article, I will do one-half the volume of everything every four weeks.

Morning:

Z-Health: Neural Warmup Level 2

Noon:

Double 24kg x 2 x 10 Swings
24kg x 3 x 10/10 Snatches
Double 24kg Front Squat
24kg x 1 x 5/5 MP
24kg x 5 x 20 Two-hand swings

I met Bob Thurston at Anytime Fitness today and helped him train snatches for the second time. This time I brought a 16kg to help groove the motion better and he responded very well to several sets of 10/10. He finished with a nice set of 5/5 with the 24kg. I also helped him with his KB pressing form and again he had no problem with the 24kg. We ended with four sets of 24kg 20 reps two-hand swings each resting while the other did their swings. Its phenomenal to have a training partner and I couldn't be happier to train with Bob .. we plan on doing this once a week if time permits.

Friday September 19, 2008

Weight: 181.5 lbs

Morning:

Z-Health: Neural Warmup Level 2

Conventional Dead-lift:
200 x 1 x 5
180 x 1 x 5

Noon:

24kg Snatch:
1 x 10/10
2 x (1,2,3,4,5) Ladder

24kg AMT (Alternative Minimum Tax) Circuit:
A1: 20 swings (mixing singles, doubles, DARCs and roundabouts)
A2: TGU (alternating sides each superset)
A3: 50 yard jog
Total sets: 10

The 50 yards of jogging was inserted into the circuit to give my co-worker additional "active rest". I was pleased that my right knee didn't complain.

And so ends five consecutive days of training. Next two days are complete rest days. Early next Monday I will be in Petaluma, CA for the week on business where a pre-ordered 24kg bell awaits me. I travel several weeks a year to this facility and now there will always be a bell available. The gym I use a mile from the facility has Olympic weights available for dead-lifting so I will be able to continue my training albeit with singles instead of double 24kg kettlebell lifts.

More results from the TSC were just posted and its now official that the Master's Division set a record number of participants at 8. Also, I am no longer on the bottom (a small consolation) having now placed 6th out of 8. Just maintaining my snatch and increasing my pullups (once the elbow is better) and I'll be competitive (top half). As for being competitive in the dead-lift, just about everyone but me pulled 2 x BW so I have a long road to travel before checking that one off. That withstanding, a bad-injury or death are the only things stopping me from reaching that goal. I recently added more more fuel for this goal by strength athlete extraordinaire, Jeff Steinberg, RKC, as he posts on his new blog about his amazing 92 year old grandfather here.