4 years and counting...

[Mellor]

Tuesday - Power

Warm up:
Foam rolling
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

Core Activation - Active Single Leg Raise

Box Jump
75cm x 5
90cm x 5
97.5cm x 5
105cm x 5/1/4 (roughly 42")

...with a run up
120cm x 1 (roughly 48" or 4ft)

The gym got in some ironedge boxes for jumps. Heights printed on them (15/30/60cm) so no more guesswork.
But it's gonna be hard to add small height increments.
Messed up my set. Will post a video later.

120cm was just for fun, didn't expect to get it

Hang Clean
15kg x 5
45kg x 3
55kg x 2 x 3

Used a 15kg women's bar for these. Felt good, figured it would.
I don't know where that's because it's smaller diameter, or a dedicated Oly bar. Either way I think I'll stick with it.

Pull ups
Some reps, trying to get the hang of kipping/muscle up. I can't.

Short session. Didn't have time for the prowler sled.


Video
http://youtu.be/hbQaZJxWC1g

[Mellor]

Sunday - Workout A

Deadlifts
20kg x 5
60kg x 5
100kg x 5
[i]*mixed grip*[/u]
120kg x 5
130kg x 5

Bench Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
75kg x 2 x 5

Pendlay Rows
30kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
65kg x 5

Lateral Raise, Rear Delt Raise - superset
7.5kg x 2 x 8
7.5kg x 2 x 8

Tricep Pushdowns
3 x 12
Cable machine

Didn't want to push it too much on the main lifts.
Plenty of room to progress. Hopefully 2.5kg per week for a while.

[Mellor]

Monday - Workout B

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

Box Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5
90kg x 5
100kg x 5

Set up a low box, a good bit below parallel, just to reinforce depth before moving on.

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
50kg x 5
52.5kg x 5

Had it cut it short there, finish it tomorrow

Tuesday - Workout B + Power

Pull ups
BW x 3 x 5
8kg x 2 x 5

Hope to add weight weekly

Snatch grip shrugs
40kg x 8
50kg x 8
55kg x 8
60kg x 2 x 8

Box jumps
60cm x 5
90cm x 5
100cm x 5
105 cm x 5

5 clean reps at 105cm. Dead stop. No jump or step to load up.
Not sure if I can increase this to a achievable height.

Bulgarian Bag
Spins, Swings, Throws
8kg x reps
12kg x reps

That is fucking tough. 12kg wrecks you. Loving the bags.

Power-Shoot
10 reps

My own experiment here.
Put on a harness, connected it to a big purple band anchored to the floor.
Drilled my shoot against the resistance.

[Mellor]

Tuesday PM - Wresting

Warm up
Sprawls, tuck jumps, uneven press ups
Straddle rolls, reverse straddle
Cartwheel, headspring, handstand walks

Technique
2 on 1
2 on 1 to snap down
2 on 1 throw

[ianmc38]

Out of interest do you have a job on top of all the training or doing this full time atm?

And when will the next fight be?

[Mellor]

Out of interest do you have a job on top of all the training or doing this full time atm?

And when will the next fight be?

Yeah, still have a 9-6 job. I actually got a new job recently.
Since June, I'm in the design dept of a large health and fitness company. Came in for my first day with a back eye from an accidentally knee in training and nobody blinked when I sad how it happened. I've free access to a premium gym at work. Kitted out with Oly platforms, bumpers plates, plyo boxes. Which means I can get all if my weights, cardio, power work done during lunchtime sessions.
I got pretty lucky and just landed in the role.

I've entered a grappling comp this Sunday. After that I might enter some more grappling, sambo or pankration comps. And potentially a fight in November.

[Mellor]

Weds 6AM - MMA

Warm up
Skipping, shadow boxing

Technique
Head movement
Side control movement
Guard passing

Weds 6PM - Muay Thai

Warm up
Dynamic Warm up, Plyometrics, Stretching

Technique
Footwork, checking, distance

Pads
Jab, cross, roundhouse
30s Left/30s Right Roundhouses

Weds 7PM - BJJ

Warm up
Rolls, hip escapes, bear walks

Technique
Guard recovery from HG
Sweep from HG
Knee arm bar (Ude hishigi hiza gatame)

Rolling
Two rounds with two first timers


Three sessions today. 7 in the last 4 days.
A well earned rest day tomorrow.

[Mellor]

Sunday NSW BJJ comp

Gi:
3 quick wins by armbar, all well under a minute. Lost the final by a RNC, well technically it was a neck crank as I was defended the choke and he couldn't get my throat

NoGi. Bye in first round, win in the second by triangle armbar. Another pretty dominant win.
Close out the division with a teammate. We roll to decide medals and I take another silver.

Only real blemish is the gi final. Some mistakes there, but other than that by best outing to date, solid performances and all wins by sub.

5 matches, 4 wins, 4 submissions.

[Mellor]

Monday - Power

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

Box jumps
60cm x 5
90cm x 5
100cm x 5
105cm x 5
115cm x 0
107.5cm x 4

Figured out way to increase smaller amounts. Wasted a bit of energy on 115cm before that though. Think I can make some linear progress with these.

Hang Cleans
15kg x 5
45kg x 3
55kg x 3
60kg x 2 x 3

Thought I hand less on the bar during that last set. Happy with my form for 60kg. Hopefully I can go +2.5kg per week without falling apart above 65kg.

Pull ups
BW x 10, 8

Bulgarian Bag
Spins, Swings, Throws
8kg x reps

[Mellor]

Tuesday - Workout A

Deadlifts
20kg x 5
60kg x 5
100kg x 5
[i]*mixed grip*[/u]
120kg x 5
132.5kg x 5

Bench Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 2 x 5

Pendlay Rows
50kg x 2 x 8

Lateral Raise, Rear Delt Raise - superset
6kg x 2 x 8
8kg x 2 x 8

Tricep Pushdowns
3 x 12
Cable machine

[Mellor]

Wednesday - Workout B

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

Box Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5
90kg x 5
100kg x 5
110kg x 5

Liw box again

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
50kg x 5
55kg x 3
52.5kg x 5

Need to make smaller increases

Pull ups
BW x 5
8kg x 2 x 5
10kg x 2 x 5
BW x 10

Snatch grip shrugs
50kg x 8
55kg x 8
60kg x 8

Curls
25kg x 8
27.5kg x 8
30kg x 8

[Mellor]

Thursday PM - Wresting

Warm up
Sprawls, tuck jumps, uneven press ups
Straddle rolls, reverse straddle
Cartwheel, headspring, handstand walks

Technique
Double leg
Double leg switch
Arm drag from DL sprawl

Friday - MMA
Handstands practise to warm up

Tech
Head movement
Body shots

Rolling
A few rounds on the bottom. Getting pretty good with my lockdown

[Mellor]

Update Post
Back into the swing of training mow. Happy with where I'm at. Strength did fall off a whole lot, just going to try micro-load the lifts for 5 rep sets and hopefully just ride it past PRs. Enjoying the varied training, hopefully it pays off.

Trying to put on a bit of weight at the moment too, further down the line I'd like to be 10% bodyfat @ 77kg. So for now I'm happy to settle on half way as a target, which is sub12% bodyfat @ 76kg. To get there from here I need to put on 2-2.5kg and drop maybe 1.5kg fat. Not a huge change, but won't be easy for me.
Eating c.3000cals daily, a but of a struggle without resorting to crap, but so far its pretty clean.

No comps planned for a while. We'll see what happens.
Here's a quick highlight from the comp last week.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIzAdU3xhVk

[Mellor]

Away for the weekend, up to the hunter wine region. Lots of wine, cheese, bread.

Wasn't planning on working out. But a morning in the hot tub turned into stretching.
And then knocked out a few pull ups and single leg squats.

pull ups
BW x 11/10

SL Squats
BW x 5 x 2

Did these standing on the edge of the deck, wit the other leg hanging down.
So much easier than pistols as hip mobility issues eliminated. I can't think if an obvious negative to this way (Lloyd thoughts?)
Right is a lot stronger than left though. Managed to keep going for 10 reps on the last set.

Edit
Added soem handstand, hand walk drills. Slow progress

[Mellor]

Tuesday - Workout A

Deadlifts
40kg x 5
90kg x 5
110kg x 5
[i]*mixed grip*[/u]
135kg x 5
90kg x 8

Went up pretty easy, especially considering I was chalk-less.

Bench Press
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 5
82.5kg x 2 x 5

Pendlay Rows
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
67.5kg x 5

[b]Lateral Raise, Rear Delt Raise - superset/b]
8kg x 3 x 8

Tricep Pushdowns
3 x 12
Cable machine

[Mellor]

Wedsday - Misv

Kb swings
24kg x 3 x 8

Bicep Curls
20kg x 12
30kg x 2 x 12

Lateral Raise, Rear Delt Raise - superset
8kg x 3 x 8

Power Cleans
35kg x 3
45kg x 3
65kg x 3 .....awful reps. Shouldn't have done these after arms were goosed.

[Mellor]

Wednesday - Workout B

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

Box Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5
90kg x 5
110kg x 5
120kg x 5

Debated adding 10kg tbh. Should be sticking to 5kg but knew I had it.
Depth was good, box touch, but was a bit tough.

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
50kg x 5
53.75kg x 2 x 5

Pull ups
10kg x 5
12kg x 2 x 5

Snatch grip shrugs
55kg x 8
65kg x 8

[Mellor]

Saturday
1 hour of BJJ

Drilling with a beginner 1-on-1 for an hour.


Tues - Power

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

Snatch warm up

Hang Cleans
15kg x 5
45kg x 3
55kg x 3
60kg x 3
65kg x 2 x 3

Much better than last week. Hook grip slips a bit my the third rep. I think chalk will solve it though. Slowly form here to BW. It's there soon I feel.

Pull ups
BW x 10, 10

Sweat hands make these harder than they needed to be.

[Mellor]

Thursday - Workout A

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch
Core activation: Active straight leg raise (ASLR)

Deadlifts
20kg x 5
60kg x 5 @3
100kg x 5 @6
115kg x 5 @8
[i]*mixed grip*[/u]
130kg x 5 @8
137.5kg x 5 @9

Pretty solid form I felt. The 115kg double over set equals a PR I think.
Slowest rep was getting the first off the ground at 137kg. The rest of the set was easier even though they were paused on the floor. No bounce at all. Muscle activation I guess.
THe @8/9 after each set is the rate of perceived exertion (RPE). Something I'm playing about with for the next while.

Bench Press
20kg x 5
50kg x 5 @5
70kg x 5 @6
80kg x 5 @7
85kg x 5 @9
60kg x 10 @9 paused

85kg felt good. I don't think I'll get to 90kg within 2 sessions. So I think I should introduce micro-plates/loading from here.

Timed out there... will finish later


Edit: For to include the 60kg x 10 paused reps at the end.

[Mellor]

Monday - Workout B

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

Box Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5 @5
100kg x 5 @7
120kg x 3 @10 ... broke forward and had to take a step to save, re-racked
120kg x 5 @10.. sloppy, some 1" high on reps 3 and 5

@10 on the basis I messed up.


Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5 @5
50kg x 5 @8
52.5kg x 2 x 5 @9

Pull ups
BWkg x 5
10kg x 4 @9

Snatch grip shrugs
50kg x 8
60kg x 8



Weakk all over. Been feeling a bit sick this weekend. Scaled back on the fly after the speed bump at 120kg. Hoprfully I'll repeat this workout by the weekend. Cardio planed this week

[Mellor]

Tuesday - Workout A

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch
Core activation: Active straight leg raise (ASLR)

Deadlifts
60kg x 5 @3
100kg x 5 @5
120kg x 5 @9 *PR* (Double Over)
[i]*mixed grip*[/u]
130kg x 5 @7
140kg x 5 @9

Chest Supported Rows
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
65kg x 5
70kg x 5

Bench Press
20kg x 5
50kg x 5 @5
70kg x 5 @6
80kg x 5 @7
86.25kg x 5 @9


Lateral Raise, Rear Delt Raise - superset
6kg x 3 x 8

Tricep Pushdowns
3 x 12
Cable machine





__________________________________________________ _

The difference a day can make. Monday was a poor session from me, felt weak generally.
Today felt great. Went in knowing I had 140kg, and then surpassed expectations .
I pulled 140kg x 1 in December with Lloyd. Failed it in January. That makes 140kg my heaviest deadlift this year, and I repped it for 5.
140kg x 5 isn't an all time PR. I've pulled 145kg x 5 in nov '12, and 150kg x 5 in 2011 (@81kg). But this 140kg was a far better form wise that previous at 140kg+. If I can ride this out for a few more weeks we'll see all time PRs at a lighter bodyweight.

Felt fast of the floor for the first rep, surprised myself a little.
Neck faults on the last fifth. A little too happy and distracted dropped the bar at the end.

[LuckyLloyd]

140 x 5?

[TomD]

beasty!!

[Mellor]

140 x 5?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWgfe_wajwQ

Still neck faulting here, but very happy with the speed off the floor for 140kg

[Mellor]

Thurs - Workout B

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch
Shoulder dislocates

Box Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5 @5
100kg x 5 @7
120kg x 5 @8 ... Good. Hit depth. Kept posture
125kg x 5 @10.. Max effort, had no more. Tough, but I hit the box on all reps.

Pull ups
BWkg x 5
8kg x 5 @8
12kg x 4 @10

Not entirely sure if weights are accurate here, using a chain

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5 @5
50kg x 5 @8
55kg x 2 x 5 @9/10

Thought I might miss it going it. But all reps out, strict. Micro loading continues

Curls
30kg x 8
32.5kg x 2 x 8

[Mellor]

So obviously wasn't over what ever I had last week.
Ended up in bits with gastro over the whole weekend. Very little sleep or food.
Weight loss, dehydrated. Took a few extra days off the the gym. But was nervous going back. Just didn't want to lose the momentum I had going.
Tried to eat as much as I could before gym today:

Tuesday - Workout A

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch
Core activation: Active straight leg raise (ASLR)

Deadlifts
60kg x 5 @3
100kg x 5 @5
120kg x 5 @9+ ...happy to equal last weeks PR
[i]*mixed grip*[/u]
130kg x 5 @8+ ...tougher than last week...ugh
142.5kg x 5 @10

What a grind. But I got it. Hopefully strength was down a bit as it was slow.
Finished the rest later:

Bench Press
20kg x 5
50kg x 5 @5
70kg x 5 @7
80kg x 5 @8
87.5kg x 5 @10

Chest Supported Rows
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
65kg x 5
70kg x 5

Lateral Raise, Rear Delt Raise - superset
6kg x 8
8kg x 8

Tricep Pushdowns
3 x 12
Cable machine

[Mellor]

Thurs - Workout B

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch
Shoulder dislocates

Box Squats
20kg x 5
70kg x 5 @5
100kg x 5 @6
120kg x 5 @8
125kg x 5 @9

Thought I missed 125kg last week. Happy enough to repeat.
No box this week, on review I hit parallel but wasn't breaking it. Position is just changing under max load

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5 @5
50kg x 5 @8
55kg x 2 x 5 @9/10

Pull ups
BW x 5
10kg x 5 @8
12kg x 4 @9
12kg x 5 @10

Snatch Grip Shrug
60kg x 8
70g 2 x 8

Preacher Curls
26kg x 8

[Mellor]

Tuesday - Workout A

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch
Foam roll

Deadlifts
65kg x 5 @3
105kg x 5 @5
125kg x 5 @8+ *PR*
[i]*mixed grip*[/u]
135kg x 5 @8
145kg x 5 @9

Later:
Bench Press
20kg x 5
50kg x 5 @5
70kg x 5 @6
80kg x 5 @7
88.75kg x 5 @9

Close Grip Bench Press
60kg x 8

Chest Supported Rows
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5
75kg x 5

Lateral Raise, Rear Delt Raise - superset
8kg x 8
9kg x 8

Tricep Pushdowns
3 x 12
Cable machine

BOOM! Another double-over PR. Grip strength clearly benefiting from double over warm ups.
While not an all time PR, I need to go back to 2012 to 145kg x 5 - from memory that was an ugly grind. Today was slow, but solid.
I don't want to get ahead of myself, but I have my sights on a target here.

I can't get over how much I love deadlift day lately.

[Mellor]

Sat - Workout B

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch
Shoulder dislocates

Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5 @5
100kg x 5 @6
120kg x 5 @8
128kg x 2 x 5 @9/10

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5 @5
50kg x 5 @8
57.5kg x 5 @10 *PR*

Pull ups
BW x 5
12kg x 5/4/5 @10

Snatch Grip Shrug
70kg x 2 x 8
80kg x 6

Curls
30kg x 8
32.5kg x 2 x 8

First set of squats at 128 was a little high when I watched it back. I think I'm less upright under max loads with the low bar position, and it's makes depth harder to hit smoothly.
I repeated the weighed and focused on pulling myself back and down rather than just dropping. Depth was good on that one. I'll post videos later.

Surprised myself with 57 press. I just realised that since I'm no longer push pressing the first, that these are all PRs. Can I make it to a strict 60kg?

[Mellor]

128kg x 5, Set 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6g0BecHMcgQ

128kg x 5, Set 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-VKQX-hk5I

[Mellor]

Tuesday - Workout A

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch
Foam roll

Core activation: Active straight leg raise (ASLR)

Glute activation: ATG Front Squats
40kg x 3
60kg x 3
70kg x 3

Deadlifts
60kg x 5 @2 ... Felt really light
100kg x 5 @5
125kg x 5 @9 ... bar was slipping
Changed to power bar with more aggressive knurling
*mixed grip*
135kg x 5 @8
150kg x 5 @9+ ... *PR*

Snatch Grip Deadlifts
100kg x 3 ...goosed

later

Bench Press
20kg x 5
50kg x 5 @5
70kg x 5 @6
80kg x 5 @7
90kg x 5 @9

Chest Supported Rows
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5
75kg x 5

Tricep Pushdowns
4 x 12
Cable machine (20kg-32.5kg)

I knew I had 150kg x 5. So went ahead and made the 5kg jump. Left side was a bit stiff and I think that's reflected in my start position. I've had a search through the log and that equals my all-time ugly as hell 5RM from June 2011. I was maybe 81/82kg then, and 78kg this morning (+3.5kg in 2 months btw), so relatively thats my biggest deadlift set ever.
Next week is my last 5 rep week, unsure what to load up.

Bench is moving along well. Within 1.25kg of my PR.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5W04333y7kQ

[Mellor]

Just realised when I went to log this workout that I forgot to log it last week. at least one power clean, maybe two. Was essentially the same as this, except dialled back a bit.

Tues - Power

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

Box jumps
60cm x 3
90cm x 3
100cm x 3
105cm x 3
107cm x 2

Leg slow after deads. Was the same last week. top set wasn't sloppy.

Hang Cleans
15kg x 5
35kg x 3
45kg x 3
55kg x 3
65kg x 3
70kg x 3
70kg x 3 (From the floor)

67.5kg last week. Keep going a few more weeks, then clean bodyweight.

Pull ups
BW x 11, 11

[LuckyLloyd]

Manful Deadlifting going on in here, nice one.

You will pull 155kgs x 5. Another 5kgs on there, load her up.

[Mellor]

Manful Deadlifting going on in here, nice one.

You will pull 155kgs x 5. Another 5kgs on there, load her up.

Screw it, 155kg it is. More or less double bodyweight x 5. I'll prob do it later in the week. Try to come at it, fully mobile and loosened up the day previous.

Still need to so session B this week, was supposed to be thursday. But instead ended up with the below impromptu session. Had to do some testing of lifting platforms and rubber flooring at a club, so I was asked to lift and drop the weights.


Thurs - Deadlifts/Cleans

Each round of testing consisted of;

Dumbell Deadlift
55kg x 3

Barbell deadlift
60kg x 3

Power Clean
60kg x 3

Split Jerk (after 3rd P.Clean)
60kg x 1

- 7 Rounds

[Mellor]

Sat - BJJ

2.5 hours
Mostly drilling, went through some really good stuff from side control. Very MMA/NoGi applicable too.

Sun - Hot Yoga

60 mins of Yoga. Never tried it before, although many of the positions are part of my normal warm up for MMA.
Basically an hour of stretching, can't be a bad thing I suppose.

[Mellor]

Mon - Workout B

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch
Shoulder dislocates

Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5 @5
100kg x 5 @7
120kg x 5 @9
130kg x 5 @9+
130kg x 2

Felt sluggish turning up. 100kg was heavy and didn't fell great getting under 130kg.
Hit 5 reps the first set. Again depth is tight at the bottom position when i'm so far forward.

SPOILER

Went for a second set, and on the 2nd rep, I pulled myself right into the hole and lost it.
Pulling down isn't working, I think I need to rep a bit faster and stretch into it.

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5 @5
50kg x 5 @8
59kg x 5 @10

Pull ups
BW x 5
14kg x 3 x 5 (Pr?)

Snatch Grip Shrug
50kg x 8
70kg x 8
75kg x 8

Curls
32.5kg x 8
35kg x 2 x 8

Abut late finishing last "weeks" workouts.
This will be my last week of 5s. Looking at nice even numbers all round. 155kg/90kg/130kg/60kg

[Mellor]

Tuesday - Workout A

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch

Core activation: Active straight leg raise (ASLR)

Glute activation: ATG Front Squats
20kg x 3
60kg x 3
80kg x 3

Deadlifts
60kg x 5 @3
100kg x 5 @5
130kg x F... Didn't have the bar I like. Wasn't happening.
*mixed grip*
130kg x 3 @7
155kg x 5 @9 *PR*

Double BW x 5, all time PR. And prob one in the tank.

Bench Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5 @5
60kg x 5 @6
80kg x 5 @7
90kg x 5 @8
92.5kg x 5 @9 *PR*

90kg went up easy so went for a 2.5kg increase. Another PR and called it a day a that.

[LuckyLloyd]

Bam!!

[Lurker23]

PB city! Great stuff altogether.

[Mellor]

Bam!!

PB city! Great stuff altogether.

Cheers guys.
Straight forward linear progression. But it's gone well. I thought I'd have tested before now, but why bother when 5s were still increasing.

Fri - Judo
90 mins going over some basic stuff
Considering competing in a Sambo comp next weekend

Sat - Workout B
Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch
Shoulder dislocates

Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5 @4
100kg x 4 @6
120kg x 3 @8
130kg x 5 @9
130kg x 1

A much better set of 130kg. Added a single just to really get ATG.

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5 @5
50kg x 5 @7
60kg x 2 x 5 @10 *PR*

Pull ups
BW x 5
14kg x 5
16kg x 2 x 5 *PR*

Snatch Grip Shrug
50kg x 8
70kg x 8
75kg x 8

Curls
35kg x 3 x 8

Will post vids later.

[Mellor]

Just passed 1000 posts.
And with it, close out 5 rep sets. A week of triples then I test.

Tues/Weds - Workout A

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch

Core activation: Active straight leg raise (ASLR)

Glute activation: ATG Front Squats
20kg x 3
60kg x 3
80kg x 3

Deadlifts
60kg x 5 @3
100kg x 3 @5
130kg x 3 @ 10....grip was at its limit here
140kg x 3 @ 6
150kg x 3 @7
160kg x 3 @8 *PR*
165kg x 3 @9+ *PR*

1RM was 160kg. Pull it for a triple, then add 5kg and triple again.

SPOILER

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzpPQanktIk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvSMD6Ylggc

Ran out of time so had to finish the rest on Wednesday at lunch

Bench Press
20kg x 5
50kg x 5 @4
70kg x 3 @5
80kg x 3 @6
90kg x 3 @7
95kg x 3 @9
97.5kg x 3 @10

I have a fair idea what I’ll hit next week for a single in bench too.

SPOILER

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VI-NVyyTDYk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOUCc9Cgo6c

Chest Supported Row
60kg x 3
70kg x 3
80kg x 3
85kg x 3

[Mellor]

Thurs - Power

Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch

15kg Snatch Progression

Hang Cleans
15kg x 5
45kg x 3
55kg x 3
65kg x 3
70kg x 3
75kg x 2 +F
65kg x 3 (Floor)

Form was awful. Have it on video so I can see where it's going wrong
Knees and hips sagging forward, messing up my whole posture.
Was planning on trying 75 x 3 from the floor but arms just went numb after the 2nd 65kg set. Just hit that point of fatigue and I wasn't gonna recover for a while.

[Mellor]

Sat - Sambo Comp
A small comp and only one person in my division, as luck would have it, he was a Judo brown belt.
Started off well, liw single, defended the throw, and got very close with a calf crush attempt - one small error if I fixed that is have won. From there I as a few armbar attempts an a sneaky knee bar. After that the ref announced my advantage for attacking constantly.
Judo guy didn't like that, he got a trip and held be down for 6 points - Judo 101 stuff really. From there I could catch up and list via an armbar. I prob could have fought and escaped, but wouldn't changed the outcome.

All in. Was interesting to fight inter-style at a high level. And I definitely found some weaknesses to exploit next time.

Mon - Workout B
Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch
Shoulder dislocates

Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5 @4
100kg x 3 @5
120kg x 3 @7
130kg x 3 @8
132.5kg x 3 @9
*smack my bitch up*
135kg x 3 @10

Went with a wider stance for these. Depth felt better. Chest staying up.
However, I don't have vids as phone for providing audio motivation.

Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 3 @5
50kg x 3 @7
60kg x 3 @8
62.5kg x 3 @9 *PR*
65kg x 1 (and a half) *PR*

65kg was a bit optimistic. Should have taken 63/64 ish. Was prob rushing the rest period too.
Fully fresh, I could have doubled 65kg. Target set for singles next week.

Edit: Just looked over my numbers from the Decembers session I did with Lloyd in Ballymun. For strict press I hit a 60kg, and missed 62.5kg. which now I've hit for a set of 5 and 3 respectively.


Roll on test week...

[Mellor]

Test Week

Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3

Attempt 1RMs in all lifts this week. I should be hitting PRs accross the board.
I'll prob wrap up bulking after this week. Body weight is 79kg for an almost +5kg over 3 months.


Weds - Workout A

Warm up
Band Pull-aparts
Scap push ups
Shoulder dislocates

Foam Rolling

Forgot my chalk so no deadlifts.

Bench Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 5 @3
60kg x 4 @4
80kg x 3 @6
90kg x 1 @7
100kg x 1 @8
102.5kg x 1 @9 *PR*
103.75kg x 1 @9+ *PR*
105kg x 1 @10 *PR*

Incline Chest Flys
12kg x 8
16kg x 8
20kg x 8

Tricep Push Downs
25kg x 8
27.5kg x 8
30kg x 8

Triple bench PR. Flew past my previous 100kg plateau.
Was absolutely sure of 102.5kg. Confidant of 103kg, and only after 103 went up did I feel like 105kg was there. The 102.5kg video didnt record. No matter.


Videos

SPOILER

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sxo3nYMCMU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRvmtEUDZyE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbhSM0NqKkk

Bonus workout
Weds Night - BJJ
2 Hours of BJJ with the advanced group

Some grading stuff and some DLR stuff.

[Mellor]

Took Thursdays off, wasnt feeling great. Ended up all stuffed up thursday night. And had a disaster workout on friday.
Had a nap before working out and went to the gym late at night with the best intentions of smashing deadlift singles. But it wasn't there. Meh


Friday - Deadlift

Warm up

Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch

Core activation: Active straight leg raise (ASLR)

Glute activation: ATG Front Squats
20kg x 3
60kg x 3
80kg x 2
90kg x 1


Deadlifts
60kg x 5 @4
100kg x 3 @6
120kg x 2 @7
140kg x 1 @8
160kg x F

Slow rising, and was pulling me forward so I bailed on it without attempting the grind.
Considered taking 5 mins to get psyched up and try again. But it dawned on me, they wewre all heavy working up. I'm not 100% today. Gonna take the weekend of lift and try again on tuesday. Hopefully the volume is low enough not to have an effect. Gutted.

[Hectorjelly]

105kg x 1 @10 *PR*

Does this mean you lifted 105kg 10 times non consecutively?

[FeetMagic]

Was wondering that myself and if so why so many reps?

[Mellor]

Does this mean you lifted 105kg 10 times non consecutively?

Nah, it was just the one single rep.
10 singles that would be 105kg x 10 x 1 (or 1 x 10).
The @, is a rate of perceived exertion. @9 means I think I've a rep in the tank, @10 is max effort, nothing left.
I started using it recently, the idea is to record effort on the day, otherwise I'll forget. And then to gauge how a session compared to previous, and how much to add that week.
So when the deadlift warm up felt light, I added 5kg. Today, it's was heavier, so I pulled out early.

[LuckyLloyd]

You've a mental block with the Deadlift imo. Reading through recent posts you're strong as an ox in everything else and pulled reps at 150+ recently. Get some sleep, get fed and go and pull 165 ffs. It will be there.

You gut everything else out to the max.

[Mellor]

You've a mental block with the Deadlift imo. Reading through recent posts you're strong as an ox in everything else and pulled reps at 150+ recently. Get some sleep, get fed and go and pull 165 ffs. It will be there.

You gut everything else out to the max.

Pulling it tomorrow. Will pull 170kg+, sure of it

[Mellor]

Tues - Workout A - Again

FeeL much better going in. Eating plenty early on today.

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch

Glute activation: ATG Front Squats
60kg x 3
80kg x 3
60kg x 3

Core activation: Active straight leg raise (ASLR)

Deadlifts
60kg x 5 @3
100kg x 3 @5
120kg x 2 @8
140kg x 1 @6
150kg x 1 @7
160kg x F ... FFS. Overconfident and not fully there mentally
160kg x 1 @9 ... Way harder than the 160kg x 3 (two weeks ago)
170kg x 1 @9++ *PR*
175kg x F x 2

Missing 160kg in the middle really messed up the momentum. Really frustrating as I pulled 165kg two weeks ago. Got it second time round but it was slower than the triples previously. Two week gap after triples wasn’t the ideal build up.
Loaded up 170kg, watched the 165kg x 3 video, and asked myself wtf is wrong. Pulled it, slow rep, but a PR none the less.
Convinced myself that 165kg x 3 = 175kg x 1. Could of taken 172.5, but I knew I should have it. Sadly, missed twice. Watching the videos back. My set up wasn’t perfect. No excuse for that.
Set my eyes in 175kg a few weeks ago. Honestly believe that it was there if not for the small things. Disappointed to fall short but 170kg is still a PR, so ultimately happy.


Videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb4wUoT6wXY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3liEk7yFio4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRa8ve85_zc

[LuckyLloyd]

Yes! Yes! Yes!

Well done Mellor, delighted for ya. 170kgs is a savage pull for your bodyweight. It was a good gritty pull too.

You really shouldn't worry about the 175s. You had to have used up a lot of emotion and nervous energy closing out 170, so it isn't surprising.

But yeah, great. He'll of a strength cycle all round, congrats.

[Mellor]

Yes! Yes! Yes!

Well done Mellor, delighted for ya. 170kgs is a savage pull for your bodyweight. It was a good gritty pull too.

You really shouldn't worry about the 175s. You had to have used up a lot of emotion and nervous energy closing out 170, so it isn't surprising.

But yeah, great. He'll of a strength cycle all round, congrats.

Cheers Lloyd.
175kg would have been great, but I knew I was aiming high.
All up, I'm delighted with this cycle. Really surpassed any expectations I had.
Last test session below


Thurs - Workout B
Warm up:
Glute stretch
Hip flexor stretch
Shoulder dislocates

Squats
20kg x 5
60kg x 5 @3
100kg x 3 @5
120kg x 2 @6
130kg x 1 @7
135kg x 1 @8
140kg x 1 @ 9 *PR*
142.5kg x 1 x 2 @10 *PR*

Wasn't entirely sure about the depth on the 142.5kg so I did it a second time. Slightly lower, and slightly tougher. Far the best squats I've hit north of 135kg.
Videos:
First is the last squat (142.5kg), then all 4 single in one video

SPOILER

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6f5ZP_sPoBg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UH4K9lG8PJ0

later
Press
20kg x 5
40kg x 3 @5
50kg x 2 @6
60kg x 1 @7
65kg x 1 @9
67.5kg x 3 @10 *PR*
Grind. Absolute grind. Any notion I had of potentially trying 68.75kg went out the window. And I didn't give a shit.

Pull ups
BW x 15 *PR*

Plan was max weighted pull up, but had no decent way to added weight, so went with reps. Delighted with 15, another PR.
As Dan John says, 15 Pull ups is the game changer.

[Mellor]

Round-up

Strength Cycle Review

I knew strength would return quickly with simple linear progression. But progress completely exceeded any expectations I had. Previous PRs were from last December, except for deadlift which was much further back.

Happy with numbers all around. If I can maintain these numbers, or similar, while I get back down to 75kg I'll be pretty happy. Big ask though.

I was also trying to add a bit of muscle during this time. The goal was to hit 80kg and then cut back to a "fight weight" of 75kg. At the very end, I weighed in at 80.1kg, once. That'll do and time to cut back down.
I took measurements at the start and end of the 3 month strength cycle.

[Bubbleking]

Im jelly of your neck measurement at 80kg!

How come you lost size in your chest? just seems a little counter intuitive is all

[Mellor]

Im jelly of your neck measurement at 80kg!

How come you lost size in your chest? just seems a little counter intuitive is all

Chest stats were accidental reversed, should of been the other way around, from 97cm to 100.5cm. Thanks for spotting, fixed it now.

The neck/traps/shoulders is probably the biggest change. I couldn't really notice it happening. But day I was wearing a t-shirt and it was barely touching my jeans, I figured it shrunk in the wash. Then a couple more t-shirts started being the same. They weren't too tight or anything, just too short. It still didn't click with me until my GF pointed it out. Said my shoulders and "that thing" (traps) are getting bigger and lifting the t shirts up.

First time I've actively tried to bulk. Enjoyed the extra cals a little too much. Time to cut them out now.

[Mellor]

A less happy post now...


Went to an open mat session at a different club on saturday. First roll, with a bigger guy. He was on top of me and I went to sit out, he sprawled on me the same time and my right knee bent sideways. Felt a crack and a bit of pain. Pain went away fast. But in the back of my mind I was thinking, shit that's a ligament.
The coach got me to range of motion, he said if I can move it, then it should be ok. I went to the doctor anyway.
He checked my squat also, check the knee for stability, and twisted it to see if it caused me pain. I said it was uncomfortable, but not terrible. He thinks that its just a strain, because that the knee feels stable, and that twist is should be very painful, almost excruciating.
He did add a "However" though .
He said that I'm clearly in good shape, and I could be the case that, and the muscles around the knee are strong so holding it in a stable position and allowing me to squat, my high pain threshold will affect what I class as painful. He said hammer the NSAIDs and go back if it doesn't clear up in a few days. It's been 48 hours and its not getting better, if anything its hurting a bit more. Fuck it anyway.

[Mellor]

10 days rest. Knee still not right, doctor still thinks its only a strain. Stronger NSAIDs prescribed. Going nuts not training so need to do something. If I'm gonna fight in January, I'll need to get back to 75kg, before xmas too so I can enjoy the holidays.
New program starts today. Strength work done, this ones about volume and intensity.
(Letters indicate supersets. ie A1, A2, A1, A2, A1, A2, then on to B's...)

Tuesday - Workout 1

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch

A1: Deadlifts 100kg, 3 x 10,
A2: DB Bench Press 25kg, 3 x 10
*60s recovery between sets

B1: Hip Thrust 60kg, 3 x 10,
B2: Snatch Grip Shrug 60kg, 3 x 10
*60s recovery between sets

C1: Prowler +35kg**, 3 x 18 metres (**total weight is 98kg inc prowler)
C2: Chins ups BW x 10/7/5
*60s recovery between sets

D1: Calf Raises 40kg, 3 x 10,
D2: BB Curls 25kg, 3 x 10
*60s recovery between sets


Each pair takes about 8 or 9 minutes. The only rest between pairs is time to set up the next.
Felt really sick after that.

[Lurker23]

Great stuff dude. Awesome progress.

Everything looks solid as usual on your lifts.

Hope your knee recovers quickly.

[Mellor]

Middle session is going to be a mixed bag from now on.

Wed

Warm up
Glute stretch
Hip Flexor stretch
Foam roll

Cardio
20 cycle (10.5km) on a spin bike.
I think the distance is a load on nonsense as the resistance didn't seem to affect it, but i'm not sure. Kept the resistance tough, comfortable cadence around 70

Assisted Rope climb (machine)
5 mins messing about.
Such a nonsense machine. Probably won't go near this again

later

MMA - 1 hr
Stretching, movement, testing out the knee. Better but sore still.

Heavy BAg Just pounding it out

I was offered a last minute fight, but I won't make the weight limit after bulking. Nor would I take it with the knee. Nice to be considered though.