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Matt's Log

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Aug 3
Club work-The club weighs about 5 pounds. Should be fun to alternate between the club and the hammer.
OAPU-2x5
Ran 40 min (5.2 km) with 3x5 second sprints
Note-I wasn’t really feeling it today, but I’ll be stuck inside all day tomorrow and probably won’t be able to train much.

Aug 4
OAPU-GTG-3x5

Hammer work
044-2x(5/4), 2x(4/4) @ 32
Note-I don’t have my 28 with me right now, so I was a little worried that I would be over-belled with the 32. I was, so I dropped the reps for the 3rd and 4th series down from 5 to 4. The 28 would still be better, but between the hammer warmup and 044 I was done in under 20 minutes, which is exactly what I needed this morning.

Addendum: Ok, I shelled out ten bucks for Q&D on kindle. Upon reading, don’t think I was all that over-belled. The 28 would still probably be better for that sort of training, but I think the 32 will work. Given my goals of being more efficient, as well as my desire to chase shiny objects, I might integrate some 044 series into things. I’ll keep my low volume session pure A+A, and keep working on bringing in the 36. For my medium and heavy days, I’ll start playing around with using the 044 format for my last 20-60 reps. I promise I won’t yell at Al or Pavel if my A+A/Q&D bastard child doesn’t turn me into Captain America. Schedule-wise, I have enough time for higher volume training than pure Q&D, but not enough time to run a proven A+A program. Maybe this will help me reap the long term benefits of the higher volume while still making the most of the time I have. I am experimenting at my own risk while I still have the luxury of time.
 
Aug 5
Club work
Snatch-16x5 @ 36
Goblet carry-2 @ 36
OAPU-1x5
Note-Did a full low volume session with the 36 kilo today. It went really well. Things felt like they were moving quickly and aggressively.

Aug 6
Hammer work
OAPU-2x5
Snatch-10x6, 044-2(4/4) @ 32
Goblet carry-3 @ 32
Note-Oof, ouch, my bicep tendons. My first snatch let me know what was up. The heavy snatches yesterday weren’t totally harmless, it would seem. Really, I should have just gone for a run instead of plodding on, but I also had dinner to make.

Aug 7
OAPU-3x5
Club work
Ran 22 min (2.9 km) w/ 2x5 second sprints mixed in
Note-Not much time to do something tonight, but I still did something. So that’s something. Would have been a good night for some 044, but them tendons were still a little sore.
 
Aug 8
OAPU-4x5
Hammer work
Snatch-6x6, 044-4(4/5) @ 32
Goblet carry-3 @ 32
Note-Graduated myself to 044 with sets of 5 instead of sets of 4. I think I’ll give it a few more sessions of 4/5 before I go for the 2/10

Aug 9
OAPU-1x5
Club work
Ran 61 min (8.1 km) w/ 4x5 second sprints mixed in
Note-I was going to do some work with the 36 today, but I didn’t sleep well and wasn’t feeling it. Maybe tomorrow.

Aug 10
Hammer work
Snatch-16x5 @ 36
Goblet carry-4 @ 36
OAPU-2x5
Note-Another good session with the 36. Then I went up to the mountains with the kiddo and found a dead tree to make a mace out of. We’ll see how that goes. I did the bulk of the work on it, but still have to get the handle worked down and get the weight adjusted . This was harder than the training session. Lots of sawing and pounding. It would have been a good time to still have my chainsaw and a full sized axe, instead of a hand saw, chisel, and hatchet. I feel like I’m in the Stone Age.

Aug 11
Rest day. Yesterday got me beat. Not the snatching, the woodworking. Biceps tendons feel fine, though.

On a side note, I finished my mace today. It’s 17 pounds and a little over 4 feet long. All made from a single piece of pine (not the best choice of wood, but all I really have access to). It’s a little on the heavy side for me right now, but I figure I’ll grow into it once my technique improves. If I ever need to make it heavier I can tack some chain to it.
 
Aug 12
Mace Work
OAPU-2x5
Snatch-8x6, 044-2x(4/5) @ 32
Goblet carry-3 @ 32
Note- I bumped out the rests between series by another minute or so. I don’t think Pavel will mind. The rests in Q&D are designed to be as short and efficient as possible while still preserving efficacy. I don’t imagine I’ll jack things up too much by adding a little extra rest when I have the time.

Aug 13
OAPU-1x5
Hammer work
Ran 56 min w/ 4x5 second sprints mixed in. GPS storage filled up, so no distance. Not like it really matters, though.

Aug 14
OAPU-GTG-2x8

Mace work
Snatch-044-4x(2/10) @ 32
Note-Rushed training session. Definitely didn’t drag out the rest periods this time. Also, this is the first 2/10 version of 044 I’ve done. That second set of 10, though. Damn.

Aug 15
OAPU-GTG-1x8

Hammer work
Snatch-18x5 @ 36
Note-I wanted to hit 20 repeats with the 36 today, but the hands weren’t having it. Other than that, it felt pretty good.

Aug 16
OAPU-2x8
Mace work
Ran 40 min (4.8 km) w/5x5 second sprints mixed in

Aug 17
OAPU-GTG-3x8

Club work
Snatch-044-4x(2/10) @ 32
 
Aug 18
Mace work
Snatch-12x5 @ 36
OAPU-1x8
Note-I wanted to bump up the volume for this session, but part of me felt like I just needed to cool it a bit. There will always be another session. Like, tomorrow.

Aug 19
Hammer work
OAPU-2x8
Ran 40 min (4.4 km) w/3x5 second sprints mixed in

Aug 20
OAPU-GTG-2x8

Snatches-044-2x10/2 @ 28, 2x10/2 @ 24
Note-Took my 24 and 28 out for a spin with a buddy of mine. I showed him how to to 2H swings, overspeed 2H swings, and sort of pointed out that he could do swings one-handed as well. Basically set him up with the idea of swings and push ups for a minimalist program. I didn’t give him a whole lot of guidance for now, but I’ll check in on him periodically. I ended up leaving him with the 28 (he’s a bigger guy), which he should have no problem growing into over time.
 
Aug 21
Mace work
Snatch-12x5 @ 36
OAPU-1x8

Aug 22
Rest day.

Aug 23
Road trip training. I took a few minutes to train 3 separate times.
Hammer work
Snatch-8x5 and 2 separate bouts of 044-2(10/2), for a total of 120 snatches
OAPU-2x8
 
Aug 24
Ran 32 min w/ 2x5 second sprints mixed in
-later-
Hammer work
Snatch-10x5 @ 32
OAPU-1x8

Aug 25
Hammer work
Snatch-044-4x(2/10), 8x5 @ 32 (split between a morning and road session)
OAPU-3x8
Note-Made it home. Three days on the road, could have been a lot worse.

Aug 26
Mace work
Snatch-16x5 @ 36
OAPU-1x8

Aug 27
Rest day. Aaaaand there it is. All the travel (and a night or two of mediocre sleep since I got back) finally caught up with me.
 
Aug 28
Mace work
Snatch-4x5, 044-4x(10/2) @ 32
OAPU-2x8

Aug 29
Mace work
Snatch-16x5 @ 36
OAPU-2x8

Aug 30
OAPU-GTG-3x8

Mace work
Snatch-2x10 @ 32
Note-Yup. Today was one of those days. I ended up training later than usual, and I could tell it wasn’t going to be great. Normally the mace work makes me feel fluid and tightened up. Instead it just made me feel kind of loose and tired. I tried some snatches, but just decided to call it. My sleep has been a crapshoot since this weekend. I need to just suck it up and do some Buteyko while I’m lying bed, but I’m letting myself get distracted by my thoughts.
A run would do me some good as well, so hopefully I can work that in. That snatches are so easy to fit around other stuff in the evening, running actually takes some time.

Aug 31
OAPU-GTG-2x8

Ran ~40 minutes
Hammer work
 
Sept 1
Mace work
Ran 42 minutes
OAPU-GTG-2x8
Note-I think I’m just going to stop recording mileage for most of my sessions. It’s not really relevant to my goals, anyways.

I casted a new mace with steel pipe and concrete, since I needed something smaller that I can use inside once we move. This one is 3 feet long and 26 pounds. The shorter lever makes the extra weight more manageable, but I’m still going to have to grow into it. I’ll plan on sticking with my longer 17 pound mace until we move. I’m not in any hurry.

Sept 2
Hammer work
Snatch-20x5 @ 36
OAPU-2x8
Note-A PR of sorts today. First session of 100 reps at 36 kilos. I’ve been “almost there” for a while, but it would have been a push to get it before. Today it was just another day of training. Power started to dip right at the end, but the hands held up fine, which is usually a good indicator that technique is holding together well.

Sept 3
Mace work
Ran 30 min w/ 4x5 second sprints
OAPU-2x8
Note-I didn’t really feel like I needed an easy day today, but the way I’ve been feeling lately I think it would be wise to give myself one anyways. Better to train light today than take tomorrow off. Also, weird to see how much my sleep is affected by change, and how far that sh*t rolls down the hill.

Sept 4
Mace work
Snatch-044-2x(10/2), 2x(5/4) @ 32
OAPU-1x8
Note-Long day capped off with a quick training session while dinner was on the grill.
 
Sept 5
Mace work
OAPU-3x8
Snatch-12x5 @ 36
Note-Education got in the way of sleep last night. I normally do alright the day after a short night of sleep, and then it hammers me the next day.

Sept 6
Rest day. As expected, I was toast. I could have forced it, but there are plenty of good days coming up.

Sept 7
Mace work
OAPU-3x8
Ran 68 min with 6x5 second sprints mixed in.

Sept 8
Hammer work
Snatch-20x5 @ 36
Push ups-6x20, GTG-5x20
My tricep tendons have been getting sore for the last week or two. The addition of the mace work to the OAPU appears to have been too much for my frail carcass to handle. I’ll stick with hammer work and regular push ups until things are feeling better. The chopping stuff I do with the hammer is done with more of a straight arm, so there’s less stress on the tendon. For push ups I would normally do something along the lines of power push ups for sets of 10, but since my goal is to provide a tonic exercise, I’m just doing them smooth and easy, like I would on a PT test when I’m going for max reps. I’m also widening my hands just a bit compared to what I would normally do, to de-emphasize the triceps a little. I may have gotten carried away with the volume today, but it’s nice to see that all the small sets of OAPU have carried over nicely to bigger sets of regular ol’ push ups.
 
Sept 9
Hammer work
Snatch-044-4x(10/2) @ 28
Push ups-GTG-6x20

Sept 10
Hammer work
Snatch-12x8 @ 32
Push ups-5x20

Sept 11
Hammer work
Ran 58 min w/ 5x5 second sprints mixed in
Push ups-8x20, GTG-4x20

Sept 12
Hammer work
Snatch-24x5 @ 36
Push ups-4x20, GTG-6x20
Note-The regular push ups seem to be “easier” to grease the groove with, for some reason. I just seem to think of them more often. I’ll probably reintroduce mace work in a few days, and stay with the regular push ups for a while.

Sept 13
Ran 54 min w/ 3x5 second sprints mixed in
Push ups-5x20, plus whatever I GTG today.
 
Sept 14
Mace work
Push ups-5x20
Snatch-16x5 @ 36
Note-Third session in a row with the 36. I’ll be traveling next week, which means working with the 32. I figured I’d better front load the 36 a bit.

Sept 15
Rest day.

Sept 16
Mace work
Push ups-5x20
Snatch-10X8 @ 32
BJJ class
Note-I’m back in my old stomping grounds for a week, which means I finally get to do BJJ again! I haven’t been able to maintain training partners for the last month or two, so it’s good to roll again. Hopefully I can go again on Wednesday and get the dust knocked off the cogs before I jump into a new gym in Seattle.

Sept 17
Mace work
Push ups-6x20
Snatch-2x10, 044-2(10/2), 8x6 @ 32
Note-I was going to do more of a Q&D based session, but after the first couple rounds I decided to just drop back to A+A work to get the rest of my volume in a way that’s a little less stressful. I always have to be reminded to dial it back a bit while traveling.
 
Sept 18
Mace work
Push ups-5x20
Snatch-12x6 @ 32
BJJ class

Sept 19
Mace work
Push ups-5x20
Snatch-26x6 @ 32
Note-Heavy day today since I’ll be in clinic and then on the road all day tomorrow.

Since doing some BJJ again this week, I’ve been thinking about where to go with my training. In the last couple months I shifted over to more running and more training that uses appropriately dosed anaerobic glycolysis (mostly Q&D). When I move to Seattle I’ll be doing a decent amount of BJJ training (at least for the first 4 weeks), and quite a bit more walking/biking than I’m used to. In other words, quite a bit of glycolytic work and aerobic work. With all that in mind, I think I’ll be moving back to more traditional A+A work for snatches, and I probably won’t make the LSD work as much of a priority. I’m sure that will change during periods where I get really busy. When my schedule gets super tight, I won’t be doing much BJJ and will be reaching for the super efficient Q&D sessions.
 
Sept 20
Rest day. Spent all in clinic and on the road, as expected.

Sept 21
Mace work
Push ups-5x20
Snatch-16x6 @ 32
Also: Packed everything we own into a UHaul trailer and the pickup.

Sept 22
Mace work
Push ups-7x20
Snatch-18x6 @ 32
Note-Drove almost all the way to Seattle with out stuff. Training occurred over the course of three different sessions, in various parking lots.

Sept 23
Finished the drive to Seattle and unloaded all our stuff. A little more “training” than loading it was. Instead of moving it a few feet from a storage unit to the trailer, we had to take it all down a hallway and a flight of stairs. Plenty of #loadedcarries. Seriously thankful for my physical capability. My wife is almost 6 months pregnant, so anything heavy was my job.

Sept 24
Hammer work
Push ups-4x20
Snatch-10x5 @ 36
-later-
BJJ at the new gym-90 minutes, Gi
Note-Went easy on the volume for the AM snatch session, since I had BJJ in the evening and didn’t know what kind of training they run. Really enjoyed the snatches, though. The 36 was moving fast. There’s a “gym” in my new apartment complex (a tiny room with dumbbells, a cable machine, and some cardio machines). It’s easy to take a ‘bell over to it and train there, so I don’t have to worry about waking anyone up.
 
Sept 25
Hammer work
Push ups-9x20
Snatch-10x5 @ 36
-later-
BJJ-90 minutes, no-Gi. Had a great time.

Sept 26
Rest day. Not only was back to back 90 minute BJJ days a lot, but I had crappy sleep on the night of the 24th. All hit me today. Time to chill out.

Sept 27
Mace work
Push ups-4x20
Hill sprint-6x4 seconds
Snatch-6x5 @ 36
Note-Still tired, but I feel like I won’t be able to sleep tonight if I don’t train. Also, I’ve been itching to take advantage of the hill I live on. With BJJ taking the place of a lot of my LSD running, I need to make sure I’m still using the running gait in some manner or another.
 
Sept 28
BJJ-120 minutes, Gi
Mace work
Push ups-3x20
Snatch-10x5 @ 24
Note-Took my big wooden mace (which is too big for the apartment or exercise room) to the BJJ gym, along with the 24 kilo ‘bell. They have a little area with exercise equipment. My thought is just to leave them there. That way I can show up 30 minutes early on most days and get some reps in before BJJ practice. The 24 is little light to use all the time, but it will definitely work for a few sets of hard and fast snatches before drilling. Today there was a bit of a hang up, so I wasn’t able to get the snatches in until afterwards. I’m sure I was slower and it was a less effective training session, but better late than never.

Sept 29
Hammer work
Push ups-6x20
Snatch-18x5 @ 36
Hill sprints-5x4 seconds
Note-The hill sprints seem like a decent way to increase my A+A volume a bit while sparing my hands. Pretty convenient to have a steep hill right outside the apartment.

Sept 30
Mace work
Push ups-5x20
Snatch-10x5 @ 24
BJJ-60 minutes, no-Gi

Oct 1
Hammer work
Push ups-8x20
Snatch-22x5 @ 36
Hill sprints-5x4 seconds
 
Oct 2
Mace work
Push ups-4x20
Snatch-10x6 @ 24
BJJ-90 minutes, no-Gi

Oct 3
Run-31 minutes
Also some bike based exploring
Note-Tested out a local trail. I haven’t run since before we moved, and a half hour left me wanting more. It was just a recovery run, though, so I think that’s a good way to leave it. I also didn’t sleep very well last night, so I expect I won’t be feeling too chipper tomorrow.

Oct 4
Hammer work
Push ups-9x20
Snatch-20x5 @ 36
Hill sprints-4x4 seconds
Note-I’ve also been using the cable machine and dumbbells in the exercise room to do some rows and whatnot. Basically anything that will help me pull on someone harder while I’m grappling. Nothing planned, just two or three sets most days. Also been doing some neck work when I remember. None of this is really done with enough consistency to record.

Oct 5
Mace work
Push ups-3x20
Snatch-10x6 @ 24
BJJ-105 minutes, Gi

Oct 6
Hammer work
Push ups-6x20
Snatch-14x5 @ 36
Run 23 min
Note-A little tired today, so I cut back on the snatches and added a short run.

Did a little audit of the last 3-4 weeks of training. It would appear that I’ve dialed up the volume quite a bit. Probably why it feels like I’ve been courting fatigue lately. I don’t want to cut back the BJJ while I still have time to do it, so I’ll have to cut back a smidge on the A+A volume. Fewer pre-BJJ snatches and more training days like today.
 
Oct 7
Rest day. I was going to go to BJJ, but decided against it.

Oct 8
Hammer work
Push ups-7x20
Snatch-12x5 @ 36
Run 22 min
Note-I fully intended this to be a normal 20+ repeat A+A session, but my biceps tendons started to get sore. I don’t think it’s just a biceps issue. I think that’s more of a reflection that I’m not adequately recovered in general. I called it early and went for a short run.

Oct 9
Mace work
Push ups-3x20
Snatch-10x6 @ 24
BJJ-75 minutes, No-Gi

Oct 10
Aha! Found out why I’ve been feeling more fatigues than I thought I should. My son had a stomach bug a few days back, and I woke up in the middle of the night with a nice one/two punch of vomiting and diarrhea. Only happened once, and I was able to sleep well the rest of the night. My body must have been fighting it off for the last few days. I think my greater-than-normal training volume is still partly to blame, but this explains a lot.

Anyways…

Mace work
Push ups-4x20
Snatch-12x6 @ 32
Run 35 min
Note-Kept things dialed back and easy today.

Oct 11
Mace work
Push ups-3x20
Snatch-8x6 @ 24
BJJ-75 minutes, No-Gi and Gi
Note-The rowing is because I showed up to open mat (which they just started doing at the same time as a kid's class, because they have two mat areas). Nobody else showed for about 45 minutes (and the instructor was running class), so I hopped on the rower and generally messed around a bit. Then a purple belt showed up and we rolled for the rest of the open mat. It ended up being awesome, and I learned a lot.
 
Oct 12
Rest day

Oct 13
Hammer work
Push ups-8x20
Snatch-22x5 @ 36
Hill sprints-4x4 seconds
Note-Good to get a solid A+A session in.

Oct 14
Mace work
Push ups-5x20
Snatch-6x6 @ 24
BJJ-2.5 hours, No-Gi and Gi

Oct 15
Relaxed. Did some rows, push ups, reverse wrist curls. Though about going for a run, but just didn’t have it in me after yesterdays BJJ session. I also have that rough feeling in the back of my throat that tells me pushing hard today might not be wise. Dosing up on the Vitamin C today and taking it easy. This is my last week before rotations start up again, so I want to be solid moving forward.

Once things kick off, my philosophy is going to be:
  1. When I have time to train that matches up with the BJJ classes, do BJJ (unless I did BJJ yesterday).
  2. When I have time to train that doesn’t match up with BJJ classes, do snatches (preferably A+A, but maybe Q&D).
  3. If I have time to train and just need to get some recovery going on, do running.
  4. Do push ups, mace work, and accessory stuff as it fits.
 
Oct 16
Rest day. Feeling a little crummier that yesterday.

Oct 17
Hammer work, rows, reverse wrist curls, neck work
Push ups-6x20
Snatch-12x6 @ 32
Note-Just a little tonic session. Feeling better than yesterday, but still pretty fatigued.

Oct 18
Hammer work, rows, reverse wrist curls
Push ups-6x20
Snatch-18x5 @ 36
Note-Whatever I have, it seems to be hanging on a bit. Whatever. I’m just gonna keep doing my thing, keeping the volume reduced a little as needed.

Oct 19
BJJ-1 hour, Gi

Oct 20
Hammer work, rows, reverse wrist curls, neck work
Push ups-5x20
Snatch-14x5 @ 36
 
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