A challenging snatch session

Thursday February 26, 2009

I caught a nasty head cold earlier in the week but recovered to 85% by Thursday evening. I must have drank two gallons of water and tea during the day and this really helped flush out the toxins. I also ate a huge quantity of healthy food.

Evening Olympic Lifting Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

Snatch (kg):
20 x 1 x 5 High-Hang Snatch
20 x 4 x 5 OH Squat
20 x 3 x 5 Snatch Balance
20 x 1 x 4 Low-Hang Snatch
35 x 2 x 4 High-Hang + Low-Hang + 2xSnatch
30 x 1 x 3 Snatch Balance
35 x 1 x 3 Snatch Balance
40 x 2 x 4 High-Hang + Low-Hang + 2xSnatch
45 x 2 x 4 High-Hang + Low-Hang + 2xSnatch
50 x 3 x 4 High-Hang + Low-Hang + 2xSnatch (75% 1RM) 4 misses
50 x 1 x 3 Snatch

Squat Combo (lbs)
135 x 1 x 6 3xFront-squat + 3xBack-squat
155 x 1 x 6 3xFront-squat + 3xBack-squat
175 x 6 x 6 3xFront-squat + 3xBack-squat (80%1RM)

It looks like I'm going to have to back off a few sessions to allow my very sore left thumb to heal. Its a combination of jammed and sprained and now it hurts with the slightest resistance. Its been getting progressively worse over the past two weeks .. I was hoping it was just a minor tweak but now it requires attention. Fortunately I can still do a lot of assistance work while it heals.

There were two themes during my squat snatch session last night that the coaches hammered home to me:

• Keep the bar under your chest for as long as possible during the triple extension
• Drop under the bar as fast as possible .. practice with an air-bar or broomstick.
  

I missed four of the heavier snatches as I really focused on jumping under the bar as fast as possible. Two of the four misses weren't close the other two were nice fast drop-unders but a loss of balance. This was the 1st time with 50kg I tried this and I'm very encouraged even with the misses.

The front and back squat combo was very intense especially after fairly high volume snatches. The called for combo lift consisted of front squatting for three reps, quickly re-racking and then three reps of back squat with 80% of 1RM Front squat. With my recent increase to 100kg front squat this meant 80kg or close enough with 175lbs. It was very, very tough.

The coach also wanted us to do 4 x 5 @ 70% of clean grip push presses but I was too wasted and my left thumb was in no mood to hold a barbell.

Total Volume: 14160 lbs
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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Friday February 27, 2009

Current: 182 1/4 lbs

I'm up 3/4 lb but considering how much extra I drank and ate to fight off a head cold, I was surprised it wasn't a lot more. Glad to chalk up another day of 100% Precision Nutrition compliance.

5x3@70% C&J

Tuesday February 24, 2009

According to Coach Fuller the surest way to success with Olympic lifts for beginners (less than a year or two of experience) is place focus on 90% of the Olympic lifts in the range of 70-75% of 1RM. With a meet experience under my belt, my marching orders for Tuesday night were a working set of5x3@70% C&J.


C&J (kg)
20 x 2 x 5 C&J
20 x 1 x 5 Front and back Sots Press
40 x 1 x 3 C&J
50 x 1 x 3 C&J
55 x 1 x 3 C&J
60 x 5 x 3 C&J Working sets

Romanian Deadlift (kg)
90 x 5 x 5 (80%)

OH Walking Lunges (lbs)
45 x 1 x 10/10 Steps
75 x 2 x 10/10 Steps

Step-Ups (lbs)
3 x 5/5 with 20 in each hand

Total Volume: 11990 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Tuesday February 24, 2009

Current: 181 1/2 lbs

Another day of 100% compliance, or more precisely Precision Nutrition compliance. For those new readers out there, I have been following the Precision Nutrition program since late spring of last year and have had great results. Its not really a traditional diet as such but a set of very well defined rules which after following for a month become habit. Here they are in condensed form:

• Do not drink calories .. no milk, soda, wine, alcohol etc. When thirsty drink water, plain tea or coffee. The exception to this is after a workout, a protein shake is encouraged.
  
• When having a meal make sure it contains lean protein and veggies. A piece of fruit is optional .. but if you going to have some fruit, you must accompany it with lean meat and veggies.
• Each five to six meals spread out through the day.
• No starchy carbs: bread, rice, potatoes, corn, pasta
• Stay 95% compliant with the above rules
  

Kettlebell Session followed by a Barbell Front Squat PR

Monday February 23, 2009

Yesterday I completed the last set of 6x2(80%) of Russian Strength Routine (RSR) front squats. Today feeling very strong after my Kettlebell session, I finished the last RSR 2x2(100%) and then tested my new 1RM.

Yesterday's Assistance Lifts:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

BW x 1 x 5 Ab wheel on the knee rollouts, 5 sec hold and rollback
BW x 1 x 10 Heavy blue band Goodmorning

Barbell Front Squats [Russian Strength Routine] (lbs)
135 x 1 x 2
155 x 1 x 2
165 x 6 x 2 @ 1 set at the top of every 45sec


Today's noon Kettlebell session:

32kg x 1 x 3/3 TGU

Double 24kg x 6 x 10 Swings

24kg x 1 5 Rung Snatch Ladder
24kg x 1 x 22/22 Snatch
24kg x 1 5 Rung Snatch Ladder

Double 24kg Power Complex: One complex every minute and half
A1: 1 x 2 Double MP
A2: 1 x 2 Double Snatch
A3: 1 x 2 Double Front Squat
Total: 6 complexes

Barbell Front Squat (lbs)
165 x 1 x 2
205 x 1 x 2 (PR)
210 x 1 x 2 (PR)
220 x 1 x 1 (PR)

During our kettlebell session with Max and Nick, I increased the volume in all areas with the exception of double 24kg complexes. Both Max and Nick were able to do 7 complexes each but I dropped the bells during my second front squat of my fifth set when I tried to pull myself down into the hole too quickly .. I picked up the bells, re-cleaned them and re-did the missed squat. I then missed my next MP on the next set, rested for another period and completed the 6th complex.

After resting I felt great and having two spotters, I decided to try and complete the RSR. It was a great feeling to do doubles at 99% and 101% of my old 1RM. I then decided to go for a nice round number, went ATG and then was able to squeeze back up for a new 1RM PR of 220 lbs or 100kg. I am looking forward to someday being able to C&J that weight but for now I'm very satisfied to have front squatted it.

Yesterday's Total Volume: 2560 lbs
Today's Total Volume: 17400 lbs

Total Volume: 2560 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Monday February 23, 2009

Current: 181 1/2 lbs

I had my first junk food in over three weeks when I split a monstrous fried dough with my S.O. yesterday. Fortunately I stopped there and today again I was back to 100% compliant eating. I will be very pleased to complete the next three weeks as well as the previous three.

A light but difficult session

Saturday February 21, 2009

The adrenaline from last Sunday's competition finally wore off. I worked extremely hard this week and today I was already fatigued even before starting what should have been an easy light session. I have experienced this pattern before and know its time to reflect on the accomplishments of the previous sessions and build on them when my body has properly recovered.

Coach Yasha Kahn, worked with me again and wanted to see if we could build on the solid squat snatch progress I made Thursday. I knew right away after the difficulty getting under 40kg quickly that it was going to very difficult to reproduce Thursday's result forgetting about exceeding them. Coach Kahn wanted to work the session a little differently by having me snatch pull and then snatch. I missed every snatch and we concluded my body was just confusing the two movements so we went back to hang snatch followed by regular snatches. Not surprisingly, although I did improve a bit over the course of the session and even had a 2kg squat snatch PR, not a single snatch felt as effortless and smooth as Thursday. Moreover, my snatch squat stance got wider and wider as the weight increased making more and more difficult to recover from the squat.

Late Morning Olympic Lifting Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

BW x 1 x 5 Ab wheel on the knee rollouts, 5 sec hold and rollback
BW x 1 x 10 Heavy blue band Goodmorning

Snatch (kg)
20 x 2 x 5 Hang Snatch
20 x 1 x 3 Sleeper Stretch Snatch
20 x 1 x 5 OH Squat with progressively moving in snatch grip to directly over shoulders
40 x 1 x 4 Snatch
40 x 1 x 4 2xHand Snatch + 2xSnatch
40/45 x 1 x 2 Snatch Pull @45, Snatch miss @40
40/45 x 1 x 2 Snatch Pull @45, Snatch miss @40
50 x 1 x 3 2xSnatch Pull + Snatch miss
40 x 1 x 4 2xHand Snatch + 2xSnatch
45 x 1 x 3 Snatch
50 x 1 x 3 Snatch
55 x 1 x 3 Snatch
60 x 1 x 1 Snatch
62 x 1 x 1 Snatch miss
62 x 1 x 1 Snatch PR

Total Volume: 3940 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Saturday February 21, 2009

Current: 181 1/2 lbs

Staying 100% clean is moving from a challenge to a habit. I even had an additional late night meal last night consisting of a large bowl of u-waved green peas, 4 oz of canned salmon and multiple snack bags of roasted cashews and almonds. I'm apparently at weight that allows me to stuff myself with nutritional clean food and not gain. I did have to tweak my diet slightly by eliminating the large quantities of organic yogurt I recently added over the last few weeks .. I had noticed, without being too explicit, that it was producing undesirable side-effects.

Working squat snatch technique

Thursday February 19, 2009

I was really looking forward to my session this evening having felt very well rested. Knowing that it would be snatch based really psyched me up .. I have been making incremental progress and am really starting to enjoy the feeling of this lift when executed properly.

Evening Olympic Lifting Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)


20 x 2 x 5 Hang Snatch
20 x 1 x 5 OH Squat
20 x 1 x 5 OH Squat narrowing the grip each rep until arms are directly over shoulders
20 x 1 x 5 Sleeper Stretch Snatch Balance
20 x 1 x 5 Hang Snatch
40 x 1 x 4 Snatch
40 x 1 x 3 2xHang Snatch + Snatch
40 x 1 x 5 High-hand Snatch + Hang Snatch + 3xSnatch
45 x 1 x 2 Hang Snatch + Snatch
45 x 1 x 2 High-Hang Snatch + Snatch
50 x 1 x 5 Hang Snatch + Snatch + High-Hang Snatch + 2xSnatch
55 x 1 x 1 Snatch
50 x 1 x 1 Snatch (Best form ever .. caught right ATG completely comfortable)
60 x 1 x 1 Snatch PR
40 x 1 x 5 High-Hang Snatch + 4xSnatch
40 x 2 x 3 Hang Snatch + 2xSnatch
40 x 1 x 2 Hang Snatch + Snatch

Russian Strength Routine for Front Squat (lb)
135 x 1 x 3
155 x 1 x 3
175 x 1 x 3
195 x 3 x 3 (95%) PR

A great evening as Coach Yasha Kahn spent a long time working with me to get under the squat snatch with speed. I squat snatched everything whether hang, high-hang or from the floor. Towards the end I was catching them right at the bottom of the squat and it started to feel comfortable. When I asked if I could attempt a squat snatch with 60kg, he made first me drop down to 50kg to get my form crisp. The 60kg although not as smooth as the 50kg was a solid full squat snatch for a hard earned PR.

I really had to work extremely hard for my 3x3(95%) front squats and barely made the last rep of the last set. Next week is 2x2(100%) which if successful I should in theory have a new 1RM at 105% of where I started.


Total Volume: 7940 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Thursday February 19, 2009

Current: 181 1/2 lbs

I have remained 100% compliant for almost three weeks now. I am below my goal and eating well. Its gotten to the point where I don't even crave chocolate, donuts, ice cream and cake and other starchy sweet carbs.

A Fun Olympic Lifting Session

Evening Olympic Lifting Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

Clean and Jerk (kg)
40 x 1 x 4
50 x 1 x 3
60 x 1 x 3
70 x 1 x 3
75 x 1 x 2
80 x 1 x 1 Clean and missed jerk
80 x 1 x 1 Clean and jerk PR

Hexbar Deadlift (lbs)
165 x 1 x 5
220 x 1 x 5
265 x 1 x 5
330 x 1 x 5

OH Barbell Walking Lunges
20kg x 1 x 4/4 Clean Grip
42kg x 2 x 4/4 Clean Grip then Snatch Grip

Sled Drags with 45lbs
4 x Forward and Backward

Medicine Ball Complex:
A1: 1 x 10 Left side toss
A2: 1 x 10 Right side toss
A3: 1 x 10 Underhand toss
A4: 1 x 10 Left side shotput
A5: 1 x 10 Right side shotput
A6: 1 x 10 Chest pass
Total: 3 Complexes

Incline Press and Pull-up Complex:
A1: BW x 1 x 3 Pull-ups
A2: 135lb x 1 x 5 Bench Press
Total: 4 Complexes

Tonight I squat cleaned everything no matter how light or heavy. I missed my first jerk attempt with 80kg because of a bad clean catch and prolonged recovery. On the second attempt I nailed a solid squat clean and needed no grip adjustment before jerking. I pushed myself under the bar with locked out arms to complete my first ever legitimate C&J with 80kg.

The rest of the session was a blast with lots of new assistance exercises. Coach Fuller felt we needed this type of session to compensate all the Olympic lifting we have been doing. The hexbar dead-lift is so much easier than regular deadlift as evidenced by my easy set of five reps with 330lbs.

This was the first time the OH barbell walking lunges didn't kill me. Its now clear that the last four months have really built up my leg strength. Thursday we will be back to work with the usual emphasis on the Olympic lifts.

A great post-meet Kettlebell session

Monday February 16, 2009 Presidents Day

Yesterday's Olympic Lifting Meet was not very taxing. I attribute this to the following factors:

• Currently my technique lags my strength which prevents me from safely being able to handle more challenging weights .. when it catches up my future post-meet fatigue will be much greater.
• I properly de-loaded the entire week prior to the meet.
• I ate clean and got plenty of rest.
  

Today I was well-rested and ready to resume a challenging Kettlebell session which I performed well in. It also helped to have two very strong, young supportive partners, Max and Nick, looking to me to provide them with a tough workout.

Early Afternoon Kettlebell Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

24kg x 1 x 20 Two-hand swings

32kg x 1 x 2/2 TGU
40kg x 1 x 1/1 TGU

Double 24kg x 5 x 10 Alternating turns between the three of us

24kg x 1 x 5/5/5/5 Snatch
24kg x 1 x 10/10/10/10 Snatch
24kg x 1 x 15/15 Snatch

Double 24kg Power Complex: One complex every minute and half
A1: 1 x 2 Double MP
A2: 1 x 2 Double Snatch
A3: 1 x 2 Double Front Squat
Total: 6 complexes

I was very pleased with the bulldog TGU on both sides. I performed it very slowly with clean transitions between the ascending and descending positions.

This was the first time in almost four months that I returned to double 24kg swings and they felt strong and powerful. The goal is to slowly work up to ten sets of ten over the next two months.

My double 24kg snatches were the smoothest since picking these up a month ago.

I intend on maintaining these one a week sessions for a long time as I want to always be able to provide proper instruction in the art of RKC hard-style Kettlebell lifting.

Total Volume: 15340 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Monday February 8, 2009

Current: 183 1/2 lbs

I ate clean but I was extremely hungry after last nights meet.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari
  
• One bowl of u-waved green peas
  
• One large banana
• 4 oz of roasted chicken with 4 oz of organic non-fat yogurt
  
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds
  

Mid-morning Snack:

• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• One small snack bag of raw cashews
• 4 oz of roasted chicken with 4 oz of organic non-fat yogurt
• 6 raw baby carrots
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds

Lunch

• Two bowls of pasta-less spaghetti (organic beef, no-salt organic Marinara sauce and veggies)
  
• Two small snack bags of roasted almonds

Dinner:

• 4 oz of roasted chicken with 4 oz of organic non-fat yogurt
• 4 oz of baked salmon
• One bowl of u-waved Brussels sprouts
• One small snack bag of roasted cashews
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts

My First Olympic Weightlifting Meet Experience

Sunday February 15, 2009

Today was my first ever experience participating in USAW sanctioned Olympic Weightlifting meet called the "North Atlantic States Open" held at the YMCA in Lynn Massachusetts . We may be in a bad recession, but it certainly has'nt had an adverse effect on the local lifters who participated today. To the contrary, there was a record turn out of over sixty lifters and gym full of lifting enthusiast to cheer everyone on. I had the priviledge of lifting for the "Excel Sport and Fitness Team" out of Waltham, Ma, whose members I train with three to four times a week. And a priviledge it was we came in first team place.

The mens 85kg and heavier class weigh-in was at 11am. I weighed in at light 82.7 kg .. and this was after a large breakfast. More important than making the weight was that I had maintained a very high level of clean, nutritional eating for several weeks .. and I plan to continue on it.

Because of the high turnout, I didn't start lifting until 3:45pm. No problem as I really enjoyed cheering on all the women and lighter class mens lifters. After doing my Z-Health Dynamic Joint Mobiliy warmups, Coach Theresa, had me warmup with:

Snatch Warmups (kg)
30 x 1 x 3
35 x 1 x 2
40 x 1 x 2
45 x 1 x 1
50 x 1 x 1

This went very well .. all power snatches with very high pulls. My first snatch attempt was 57kg and I missed it with a partial pressout .. I pulled it so high it shocked me that I froze completely erect and pressed it up a bit. Coach Fuller (who incidentally ran away with 1st place in the super-heavy class while coming off a back injury and very extremely light for him) asked me to squat a little bit on the next attempt to correct the problem. That's what I did and made my 2nd attempt. For my third and final snatch attempt, he asked me how I felt and I told him that although I had made 65kg once in practice and missed it several times since then, consequently I felt that a more conservative attempt with 62kg was more realistic given this was my last chance. It turned out to be my best snatch .. with an around parallel squat snatch.

Of late my jerk had regressed somewhat as I had placed much more emphasis on my squat clean. Several times in practice a few months ago, I had done 80kg with small press-outs but recently had been unable to even match that. As a result, I was not surprised when Coach Fuller settled on an opening lift of 75kg. Here are the warmups Coach Theresa had me do:

C&J Warmups (kg):
40 x 1 x 3
50 x 1 x 2
60 x 1 x 1
70 x 1 x 1

I missed my first clean with 40 in the warmups and realized I was still in snatch mode! The subsequent lifts went well as I really focused on pushing myself under the bar during jerk. My left shoulder was still a bit sore from the Military presses back on Tuesday so I put a towel under my T-shirt during the warmups and this really help minimize the discomfort on the catch.

During the first attempt with 75kg, after the clean catch and recover I did too much readjustment by bouncing off my feet and although the subsequent jerk was solid I got three red flags for a no-lift. Coach Fuller ask me to focus on keeping my chest out and to only re-adjust my grip without bouncing after the clean catch and recover. I did what I was told and nailed it. He asked my for my input on my third attempt suggesting 77-78kg and I said lets be conservative with 77kg. I went out, power cleaned it and hit the best jerk ever with this weight. So summarizing:

Competition Snatch (kg):

• 57 No-lift
• 57 Good
• 62 Good

Competition C&J (kg):

• 75 No-lift
• 75 Good
• 77 Good

I was and still am very pleased to have met my goals of non-zeros in both lifts. I came very close to my best lifts in practice and realize as a novice this is only the beginning of long journey. As a plus, although I placed out of any class awards by a long shot , I did earn my team a few points towards first place and had the honor of joining my teammates in the award ceremony and photos .. I will post these as soon as they are available. I also went out of my way to congratulate as many lifters as I could for doing their very best and putting it out there on the line for all to see.

Finally I want to say special thanks to fellow bloggers, Martin Schap, Colin, Ed Pierini, Franz and Aaron for all the extra encouragement and support they provided.

Final Session before Meet

Thursday Feb 12, 2009

Knowing this was the last session before the meet, I knew not to get too aggressive and stayed in the confines of the template.

Evening Olympic Lifting Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

Snatch (kg)
20 x 2 x 5 Snatch Balance
20 x 1 x 5 Snatch
20 x 1 x 5 Hang Snatch
20 x 1 x 10 OH Squat
32 x 2 x 4 Snatch + 3xSnatch Balance
32 x 1 x 2 Snatch
37 x 1 x 6 Snatch + 3xSnatch Balance + 2xHang Snatch
40 x 4 x 2 Snatch + Snatch Balance
45 x 1 x 2 Snatch
47 x 1 x 2 Snatch

Clean and Jerk (kg)
40 x 1 x 3
50 x 1 x 2
55 x 1 x 2
60 x 4 x 2

On the snatches, I went back to pulling off my toes until corrected. My last set of double were very solid and stopped while I was ahead. As for the C&J, if my catch is a little off, my jerk suffers. Again I ended on good form. Two days of rest and then the competition.

Volume: 5200 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Current: 183 lbs

Saturday 14, 2009

No details for the last three days other than to say I have continued with my plan of eating clean. Last night I had I went out and had a large steak dinner with a garden salad, steamed veggies, glass of wine, roasted peanuts and small piece of French bread.

Last Snatch Session prior to Meet

Tuesday February 10, 2009

Current: 183 1/2 lbs

Snatch (kg)
20 x 5 x 5 OH Squat
20 x 1 x 5 Hang snatch
20 x 1 x 5 Snatch Balance
30 x 2 x 4 Snatch + 3 x Snatch Balance
40 x 2 x 2 Snatch + Snatch Balance
45 x 1 x 2 Snatch
50 x 1 x 2 Snatch
55 x 5 x 2 Snatch (80%)

Front Squats (lbs) with weightlifting shoes on
135 x 1 x 2
155 x 1 x 2
175 x 1 x 2
180 x 3 x 2 (80%)

85lbs x 3 x 5 Military Press

BW x 3 x 5/5 Below parallel pistols (One legged squats)

A light (low volume with nothing above 80%) but good session. Coach Fuller had me really focus on keeping from raising my hips prematurely. I found that to do this I had to stick my chest out and look upward with my eyes as pulled the bar vertically from the ground. Magically my knees extended correctly and although it felt weird, my second pull was consistently stronger.

This is the 1st time I did my front squats with my weightlifting shoes on (as prescribed by Coach Fuller) and it allowed my to go very deep.

This was the 1st time I have ever done barbell Military Presses and it will be my last as my left shoulder acts up even with just 42kg. From now on I will substitute MPs with push-presses.

Thursday will be my last session before the meet on Sunday as Coach Fuller recommended that I skip the Saturday session to make sure I am completely rested.

Total Volume: 7330 lbs
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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Tuesday February 10, 2009

Current: 183 1/2 lbs

One day of clean low sodium eating and there goes a pound.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach
  
• 4oz of canned salmon
  
• One large banana
• Two small snack bag of raw walnuts

Mid-morning snack:

• 6 raw baby carrots
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds
• 4 oz of canned salmon

Lunch:

• One bowl of pasta-less spaghetti
• One apple
  
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds
  

Mid-afternoon Snack:

• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• One small snack bag of raw cashews
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds

Post-workout dinner:

• Whey protein shake (24g)
  
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds
• 6 raw baby carrots
• One large banana
  

Wednesday February 11, 2009

Current: 181 1/2 lbs

Second day of clean low sodium eating and there goes a two more pounds and back under my target weight.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach
  
• 4oz of canned salmon
  
• One large banana
• Two small snack bag of raw walnuts

Mid-morning snack:

• One bowl of u-waved frozen green beans
  
• 4 oz of canned salmon
• Two small snack bag of roasted cashews
  

Today's Kettlebell Session: Less Volume, Higher Density

Monday February 9, 2009

I had planned on a basement dungeon workout of front squats, push presses and clean pulls yesterday but more rest was needed. I pushed it last week and have learned the hard way that an extra day of rest is not extra at all. Also, even with the Olympic lifting meet this coming Sunday, I did not want to give up my kettlebell training today .. an extra Oly session yesterday was not really going to make a difference at the meet at this late stage.

Wishing to cut back on volume but still get a good workout, I opted for higher density:

Kettlebell Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

32kg x 1 x 2/2 TGU

24kg x 5 x 20 Two-hand swings. Sets at the top of the minute

24kg x 1 x 20/20 Snatch

Double 24kg Power Complex: One complex every minute and half
A1: 1 x 2 Double MP
A2: 1 x 2 Double Snatch
A3: 1 x 2 Double Front Squat
Total: 5 complexes

Afterward, my two training partners, Max and Nick, demonstrated some very strong stuff. Nick did a set a 9 right followed 8 left of push presses with the bulldog. Max bent pressed the beast with his right. I settled for a set of three push presses with the bulldog on my right side.

Weight: 184 1/2 lbs
Total Volume: 7670 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Sunday February 8, 2009

Current: 182 1/2 lbs

Hmm .. could yesterday's indulgences of single glass of Amoretto on the rocks and the six extra roasted almond snack bags caused me to put on pound? Yes .. these are the hard facts about staying clean.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of pasta-less spaghetti
  
• One large banana
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds
  

Mid-morning Snack:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• One small snack bag of raw cashews
  

Lunch @ Szchuan (Sichuan) Restaurant:

• Large helping of Sichuan style panfried fish fillets, celery with spicey chili sauce
• Large helping of Chinese spinach with garlic sauce
  
• Two small snack bags of roasted almonds

Mid-afternoon snack:

• One banana
• Three small snack bags of raw walnuts
• One small snack bags of roasted almonds
  

Dinner:

• One glass of red wine
  
• One large garden salad with 4 oz of diced chicken
• Small helping of sweet potato French fries
• Two small snack bags of roasted cashews

Monday February 9, 2009

Current: 184 1/2 lbs

Wow another two pounds of weight gain. So in one weekend end I completely I gained back 3 of the 3 1/4 pounds that had taken me a week to loose. I believe the real culprit is the Chinese restaurant where salt content of the food is off the charts. This is my theory anyway and its back to low sodium good eating today.

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach
  
• 4oz of canned salmon with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
  
• One large banana
• One handful of raw walnuts

Lunch:

• One can sardines
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• One apple
• One handful of raw walnuts

Afternoon Snack

• One handful of raw walnuts
• Two handfuls of roasted almonds
• 10 raw baby carrots
• 4 oz of canned salmon

Dinner:

• One handful of raw walnuts
• One can of sardines
  
• One handful of raw cashew
• One handful of roasted almonds
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach

Approaching Meet Conditions

Saturday February 7, 2009

At today's training session at the club, the coaches wanted to us work up to 4 x 1 @100% snatch and then 2 x 1 @100% C&J. Being a new lifter with no consistency I had to settle for 60/75. I fell back on bad habits trying to snatch 65 and miss badly several times. Although I have improved my jerk with the correction identified on Thursday, I'm still quite a bit from hitting 80kg. So realistic goals for next Sunday are 60/75 .. I will be satisfied if I can reproduce these in meet conditions.

Noon Olympic Lifting Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

20 x 5 x 5 OH Squat
40 x 2 x 3 Snatch + 2x Snatch Balance
50 x 1 x 2 Snatch
50 x 1 x 5 OH Squat
55 x 1 x 2 Snatch
60 x 2 x 2 Snatch
65 x 1 x 3 Snatch miss
60 x 1 x 3 Snatch with 2 misses
60 x 1 x 1 OH Squat

40x 1 x 2 C&J
50 x 1 x 2 C&J
60 x 1 x 2 C&J
65 x 1 x 2 C&J
70 x 1 x 2 C&J
75 x 1 x 2 C&J
80 x 1 x 2 Clean with 2 jerk misses

On the snatches I have gotten to the point where my second pull with 60 is high enough to catch and power snatch. Unfortuanatley this does not work with 65. As a result after the the misses with 65, I dropped back down to 60 and tried to full squat snatch it and failed. I ended with a 60 OH squat single just to get a feel for what it might be like to squat snatch 60 and it was very tough.

By the time I got to 80kg C&J I was already spent and both my cleans were poor with too wide a squat stance instead of just dropping under it. Lots of work to do ..


Weight: 181 1/2 lbs
Volume: 6060 lbs
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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Friday February 6, 2009

Current: 181 1/2 lbs

Egads! .. I dropped another whole pound and am now a half a pound under my goal. However, I did weigh myself after a 20 minute Epsom salt early morning bath so I'm sure that accounted for a good deal of it. Also another day of 100% compliance with health clean eating.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach
  
• 4oz of canned salmon with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
  
• One large banana
• One handful of raw walnuts

Lunch:

• One can sardines
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• One apple
• One handful of raw walnuts

Afternoon Snack

• One handful of raw walnuts
• Two handfuls of roasted almonds
• 10 raw baby carrots
• 4 oz of canned salmon

Dinner:

• One handful of raw walnuts
• One large garden salad with 4 oz of diced chicken
• One handful of raw walnuts
• One handful of roasted almonds
• One glass of red wine

Saturday February 7, 2009

Current: 181 1/2 lbs

Still holding to half pound under my target and not deprived of any kind. This is the first time I have ever gone seven days of 100% compliance. The pre-packaged snack bags that I made in advance consisting of a handful of either roasted almonds, raw cashews or raw walnuts has satisfied my cravings for junk. Measuring out the snack bags ahead of time has really keeped the caloric intake reasonable whereas previously a large opened one pound bag of nuts would be consumed in one or two days.

My will power has also been challenged everyday, as I purposely left an opened two pound box of top quality dark chocolates on my kitchen counter top. So far I have not had one piece since getting back to clean eating for the last week.

I have now lost 3 1/4 pounds in a week by eating clean .. no starving at all .. just clean eating.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach
  
• 4oz of canned salmon with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
  
• One large banana
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts

Mid-morning snack:

• One can of sardines with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds
• One small snack bag of raw cashews
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• 6 raw baby carrots

Post Workout Meal:

• One whey protein shake
  
• Equivalent of 8 small snack bag of roasted almonds
• 6 raw baby carrots
• 1/3 u-waved sweet potato
• 2 small spoonfuls of peanut butter
  

Mid afternoon Meal

• One glass of red wine
• One and half Maryland crab cakes
• One garden salad with 4 oz of diced chicken

Dinner:

• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• 4 oz of canned salmon with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
• One glass of wine
• One glass of Amoretto on ice
• One small snack bag of raw walnuts
• One small snack bag of roasted almonds
• One small snack bag of raw cashews

A pre-jerk clean rack correction

Thursday February 5, 2009

Noon Olympic Assistance Lift Session:

Front Squats (lbs)
135 x 1 x 4
155 x 1 x 4
170 x 1 x 4
185 x 4 x 4 (4x4@90%1RM Russian Strength Routine)

Evening Olympic Lifting Session:

20 x 4 x 5 Clean + 4 x Jerks
40 x 1 x 3 C&J
50 x 1 x3 C&J
60 x 1 x 2 C&J
65 x 1 x 2 C&J
70 x 1 x 2 C&J
75 x 1 x 2 C&J
80 x 1 x 2 Clean + 2 Jerk misses
80 x 1 x 4 Clean
50 x 1 x 1 Clean
55 x 1 x 1 Clean
60 x 2 x 1 C&J
65 x 3 x 2 C&J

BW x 5 x 3 Tactical Grip Pullups
70lb x 4 x 8/8 Bent over rows


This afternoon I completed the first non-trivial work sets of the Russian Strength Routine's intensity phase. I did these again without wrist wraps. Today I had an epiphany (for great training insight checkout college swimmer turned Olympic lifter Barry Kinsella's "Weightlifting Epiphanies" blog) about why front and back squats are so important.

Yes, foremost they do increase leg and overall strength. The insight here is that they provide an overload mechanism to get the body used to supporting heavy weights in an upright position. Thus squatting is also about learning how to stack the joints and position the weight properly so it is held in the most supportive way possible. Many times I knew my jerk attempt was going to fail because the racked weight seemed too heavy .. I'm sure in large part due to the inefficiency of the rack itself. Eventually all the squat work should help me discover the most efficacious way to support heavy weights in an upright position.

The later evening session at the club focused on clean and jerks. I did fine until I hit 80kg and missed all attempts. What I discovered was that I was holding my shoulders upward as if at the end of a shrug prior to the jerk. There is absolutely no power in this. This worked fine for 75kg and below but no way for a heavier weight. I dropped back down to sets of 60 and 65 to work on relaxing the shoulders in the clean rack prior to jerking. The result was my jerk was much smoother. I contemplated going back up again but I was already spent and finished with pull-ups and rows.

Weight: 182 1/2 lbs
Total Volume: 14390 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Thursday February 5, 2009

Current: 182 1/2 lbs

Another 1/4 lb loss attained .. at this rate I should make the April deadline no problem.

Here are simple rules I have been following to stay clean:

• When eating a meal or snack, always have some veggies and lean protein
• Avoid drinking calories
• Drink 80 to 100 oz of water everyday
• Supplement every meal with two capsules of fish oil
  
• Limit high glycemic carbs to a fifth or less of the daily caloric intake, e.g., Bread, Pasta, Rice and Potatos
• Stay away from all refined/processed foods especially sugar
  
• Finish the last meal of the day by 7:30 pm
  
• Log EVERY caloric item consumed to create total accountability
  

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen Brussels sprouts
  
• 4oz of canned salmon with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
  
• One large banana

Mid-morning Snack:

• One handful of roasted almonds
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
  
• 6 raw baby carrots
• One can of sardines with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt

Lunch:

• Pasta-less spaghetti (made with 93% lean organic beef)
• One handful of raw cashews and walnuts
• 6 raw baby carrots

Mid-afternoon Snack:

• One handful of roasted almonds
• 6 raw baby carrots

Post Oly Session Dinner:

• Whey protein shake
• Two handfuls of roasted almonds
• Two handfuls of raw cashews and walnuts
• One bowl of u-waved frozen carrots
• 4 oz canned Salmon with 40z of non-fat organic yogurt
• 6 raw baby carrots
• 1/3 u-waved sweet potato

Focus on the Clean Rack and a Beak-Tweak

Wednesday February 4, 2009

This morning my lower back was much better especially after another long hot Epsom salt bath.

Evening Olympic Assistance Lifts Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

Off the Rack Push-Presses (lbs)
45 x 1 x 3
65 x 1 x 3
95 x 1 x 3
105 x 1 x 3
115 x 1 x 2
125 x 1 x 2
95 x 1 x 1
95 x 1 x 3

Front Squats (lbs)
135 x 1 x 5
155 x 1 x 5
165 x 4 x 5
165 x 1 x 7

This training session was done in my basement dungeon .. no bumper plates required .. just an inexpensive Oly bar, some metal plates and a rack stand. Both of the assistance lifts require a solid clean rack to perform correctly and that was the main focus.

Okay, time to fess up and admit that I did do something very dopey on my last set of push-presses when during the 2nd rep of the last set with 95, I focused so much on a big jump upward after the dip that I didn't get my head back in time and subsequently smacked the underneath of my nose with the bar.

I immediately ran upstairs, swearing like a sailor, filled the bathroom sink with cold water and soaked my schnazola. I already have a pretty large proboscis so with the addition of the swelling, I 'm sure this was not something to help me get on the cover GQ. Anyway, not letting a bruised beak ruin my training session I went back down stairs like a trooper and did three more reps to complete the set.

Sets of five rep front squats with 165 was the easiest its ever been but still non-trivial to maintain strict clean rack positioning with upright elbows, an ATG full bottom squat all the while holding a neutral back. I also did them without using wrist wraps a first in several months. The clean rack is still awkward and uncomfortable on my wrists but much less than when I started. Its probably a good year before I can come close to the gumby like wrist flexibility of the seasoned lifters.


Weight: 182 7/8 lbs
Total Volume: 7680 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs by April 2009

Wednesday February 3, 2009

Current: 182 7/8 lbs

I added the a date to my target weight goal to pin it down to a concrete time span. Yesterday was the fourth consecutive day of 100% complaint and another 1/8 lb drop. I was very hungry this morning I'm sure in large part due to the back to back relatively heavy volume training sessions. With complete abstinance from sweets for the last five days, raw baby carrots are now beginning to taste very sweet.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach
  
• 4oz of roasted chicken with 3 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
  
• One large banana
  

Mid Morning snack:

• Small handful of raw cashews
• Small handful of raw walnuts
  
• 8 raw baby carrots

Lunch:

• One can of water packed sardines with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• One handful of raw cashews and almonds
• 6 raw baby carrots
  

Late afternoon meal

• One half a can of sardines with 2 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
• 4 oz of canned salmon
  
• 6 raw baby carrots
• One large bowl of u-waved frozen peas, green beans and Brussels sprouts
  
• One handful of roasted almonds

Dinner:

• 6 raw baby carrots
• Handful of raw cashews and walnuts
  
• Handful of roasted almonds
• 4 0z of canned salmon with 4 oz of non-fat organic yogurt
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• One apple

More Squat Snatch Progress

Tuesday February 3, 2009

I woke up this morning with a slight muscle pull on the lower left side of my back. I took a long hot bath and followed that up with a Chiropractic adjustment. I was fine until the early afternoon when my back started to ache when sitting at my desk at work. I popped two ibuprofen and that seemed to do the job and allowed me to train in the evening.

Evening Olympic Lifting Session:

Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

Snatch, Snatch Pull, OH Squat and Snatch Balance (kg):
20 x 5 x 5 OH Squat
30 x 2 x 3 Snatch + 2 x Snatch Balance
35 x 2 x 3 Snatch + 2 x Snatch Balance
40 x 3 x 3 Snatch + OH Squat + Snatch Balance
45 x 3 x 2 Snatch + OH Squat
50 x 3 x 2 Snatch + OH Squat
55 x 2 x 3 Snatch
60 x 3 x 2 Snatch (PR)
65 x 2 x 2 Snatch (PR) + 3 misses
50 x 1 x 3 Snatch
75 x 4 x 4 Snatch Pull

Romanian Deadlift (kg)
90 x 1 x 5
100x 2 x 5
110 x 2 x 5

Bar-only High Snatch Balance
20 x 1 x 5

All the extra OH squat and snatch balance work has paid dividends as my squat snatch really hit a groove. After doing my first snatch with 60kg for a PR, I repeated it five more times. Then I went for 65kg. Missed it by a little bit my first time, then hit and then missed it twice more. Wanting to end on a good note, my Coach had me drop back down to 50kg and these were almost effortless .. only two weeks ago, I couldn't consistently snatch 50kg.

As for the snatch pulls here are some key points I need to work on:

• The lift off and 2nd snatch pull position should be identical to that of the full snatch .. my hips were not back far enough during the snatch pulls
• The weight needs to be on the heels before starting the pull
• The hips should thrust upward not forward .. when done properly the hips will hit the bar
• The focus should be on full extension without using any arm pull at all. If done correctly, the elbows will bend due to the continued acceleration upward of the bar.
  

After the RDLs I did a set of bar only high snatch balances. Here the bar is held with the snatch grip at chest height with elbows bent and over the bar. Then one explodes down under the bar using the hips into a full squat while extending the arms to lockout. Even with the just the bar these must be done very explosively to under get quick enough .. there is no pressing with arms at all .. it is a drill to get comfortable dropping quickly under the bar.

One of the things I noticed was that I was very relaxed tonight. In particular, my arms were very loose (the coaching cue being " arms likes ropes") and for the first time my right elbow was not sore during or after the session. In all this was probably the best session to date .. I know I can continue to build on it.

Weight: 183 lbs
Total Volume: 14200 lbs

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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs

Tuesday February 3, 2009

Current: 183 lbs

Yesterday was the third consecutive day of 100% complaint and another 1/4 lb drop. Today I was also 100% compliant.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
  
• 4oz of roasted chicken
• Small handful of raw cashews and walnuts

Mid Morning snack:

• Small handful of roasted almonds
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• 4 oz of canned Salmon
  
• 8 raw baby carrots

Lunch:

• One large bowl of pasta-less spaghetti (90/10 free range beef)
• One banana
• One handful of raw cashews and almonds
• 6 raw baby carrots
  

Afternoon snack

• One apple
• 6 raw baby carrots
• One of u-waved frozen peas
• One handful of roasted almonds

Post Session Dinner:

• Whey protein shake (24 g)
  
• 10 raw baby carrots
• Handful of cashews
• Handful of roasted almonds
• 4 0z of roasted chicken
• 1/3 u-waved sweet potato
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
  

Start of last hard week of training before Olympic Weightlifting meet

Monday February 2, 2009

This is last hard week of training before my first Olympic Lifting meet on Sunday Feb 15. It starts off with today's weekly kettlebell training session followed by three Oly sessions on Tues, Thurs and Sat. I have been taking hot Epsom salt baths daily for the last week to deal with soreness and it has been a big help.

Noon Warmup:
Z-Health: Neural Warm-up Level 2 (Dynamic Joint Mobility Drills)

Kettllebell Session:

32kg x 2 x 2/2 TGU

24kg x 1 x (5,10,15,20,25,20,15,10,5) Two-hand swing pyramid

24kg x 5 x (5l/5b/5r/5b) Roundabout swings at the top of every 1:50

24kg x 2 4-rung snatch ladder
24kg x 1 x 10/10 snatch

Double 24kg Power Chains: 10 chains @ 1 chain at the top of minute
A1: Double Military Press
A2: Double Snatch
A3: Double Front Squat

First time in a while I was able to perform doubles with the 32kg TGU. Max Schreiber, my training partner, brought a long another Kettlebell lifter, Nick, and another very strong lifter at that. After the session was completed, both of them easily jerked the beast for singles with each arm. I tried with my right and this time it moved a few inches off my shoulder. Nick, although this was his first time with this template, handled it well. He told me his story of how, his lower back was perpetually sore until he started training with kettlebells. Max is getting scary strong as today he blew through everything with the exception of the Front Squats in the double 24kg chains. For these, he still has to focus intently on maintaining a neutral back coming out of the hole.

My double snatch was a little off, and Max and Nick were right there to suggest corrections .. which did the job as my last five where much more fluid than the first five. On the other hand, the double 24kg front squats feel very light .. good, I need something easy as the double 24kg press and double snatch still challenge me.

Weight: 183 1/4 lbs
Total Volume: 18770 lbs
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Diet and Nutrition:

Goal: 182 lbs

Sunday February 1, 2009

Current: 183 1/2 lbs

Yesterday was my first 100% compliant day in 6 months.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of Kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach
• One int of canned sardines packed in water
  
• 4 oz of organic yogurt
  

Lunch:

• 6 oz of roasted chicken
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen Brussels sprouts
• Two handfuls of roasted almonds

Dinner:

• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• One small handful of walnuts
• Garden salad with 4 oz of diced chicken breast
• One glass of red wine

Evening Snack:

• One bowl of u-waved frozen Brussel sprouts
• 6 baby raw carrots
• 4 oz of canned salmon
• One small handful of walnuts
  

Monday February 2, 2009

Current: 183 1/4 lbs

Again 100% complaint and another 1/4 lb drop. After an almost 19000 lbs of kettlebell training volume left me extremely hungry. I did eat a large amount of food .. all of it compliant with healthy eating.

Caloric Consumption log:

Breakfast:

• One bowl of kitchari (yellow mung beans, brown Basmati rice, sweet potato and various exotic Indian spices)
  
• One bowl of u-waved frozen spinach
• 4oz of roasted chicken
  

Mid Morning snack:

• Small handful of raw cashews and walnuts
• One bowl of u-waved frozen peas
• 4 oz of roasted chicken
• Small handful of roasted almonds
• 5 raw baby carrots

Late Lunch:

• Protein (24g) shake
• One large bowl of pasta-less spaghetti (90/10 free range beef)
• One apple
• 6 raw baby carrots

Late Afternoon snack:

• Small handful of roasted almonds

Dinner:

• Two small handfuls of raw cashews
• One small handful of raw walnuts
• Half bowl of pasta-less spaghetti (90/10 free range beef)
• Large bowl of u-waved frozen Brussels sprouts
• 4oz of roasted chicken
• One handful of roasted almonds