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The Little Engine That Could

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2018.03.23 [Friday]

Resting HR: 54
Heart Rate Variability: 59
Elite HRV Score: 8S (Green)

Sleep: I got just under 7 hours of sleep last night.

Feeling: I felt pretty good upon waking. There are definite perks to these light weeks!

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine

Warm-up Circuit (1x)
Halos 16kg 5x each direction
Prying goblet squat (including 3 bicep curls at bottom) 16kg 5x

Practice
Single Hand Kettlebell Swings - 20kg - 10 x 10
Turkish Get Ups - 20kg - 10

Duration: 26:36 (I didn't "record" the first set of swings)
Average Heart Rate: 114
Max Heart Rate: 143

Cool Down
Hurdler Stretch
Butterfly Stretch
Frogger Stretch
Straddle Stretch

Thoughts: Swings were a little weird this morning (wasn't expecting that after I felt so good earlier this week). I kept rounding my back at the bottom and it was really frustrating me. The more of focused on not rounding my back, the more persistent the problem seemed to be! Finally, when I instead just focused totally on the hip hinge and stopped worrying so much about my lower back things fell into place. TGUs felt good today and were appropriately challenging by the end. I'm proud of myself for sticking completely to a full week of dialed back practice. Next week I will add back in one set of 24kg (both swings and TGUs) to my practice. I haven't decided if I'll try to get back to a daily practice yet or keep the multiple rest days. I'll go 100% by feel for that decision.

*******

PM - Practice
5 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
15 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
5 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
40s Hollow Body Hold
5 Prying Goblet Squats - 28kg

I'm experimenting with adding some hanging bar leg raises to strengthen grip and lower abdominals/hips/whatever. It's a work in progress so I'm not not noting it here - but I'm monkeying around with an additional movement.
 
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2018.03.24 [Saturday]

National Brain Tumor Society 5k

Participated in this race to honor a woman I know who passed away last year. It was a cold but good day.

*******

PM - Practice
5 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
15 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
5 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
40s Hollow Body Hold
5 Prying Goblet Squats - 28kg

I'm actually much more tired from the morning run than I anticipated. My diet wasn't on point though, so that's not helping. Plus I wasn't limited to MAF during the run, so probably a combination of things.
 
2018.03.26 [Monday]

Decided to sleep in and get a full night's rest to fully recover from Saturday's race (and a generally busy/stressful weekend). In the morning I did my minimum work requirement: GMB Wrist Warmup and my Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine.

*******

PM - Practice
5 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
15 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
5 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
40s Hollow Body Hold
5 Prying Goblet Squats - 28kg

I tried adding in some knees-to-chest on rings. I realized how deconditioned I am on rings! I was wobbling like a newbie again!


2018.03.27 [Tuesday]

Resting HR: 47
Heart Rate Variability: 60
Elite HRV Score: 9P (Green)

Sleep: I only got about 6.5 hours of sleep.

Feeling: For the most part I feel good. I have a slight feeling in my sinuses like I'm getting a cold (Saturday's race was a little chilly - in the past I've gotten sick when I run in the cold. But that was on SAD diet, etc.). I cleared out some lung oysters and went about my day. My right shoulder felt a might bit odd, but not bad or painful.

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine

Warm-up Circuit (2x)
Halos 16kg 5x each direction
Prying goblet squat (including 3 bicep curls at bottom of first set) 5x [16kg 20kg]

Practice
Single Hand Kettlebell Swings - 20kg - 10 x 10
Turkish Get Ups - 20kg - 10

Duration: 28:16
Average Heart Rate: 117
Max Heart Rate: 145

Cool Down
Hurdler Stretch
Butterfly Stretch
Frogger Stretch
Straddle Stretch

Thoughts: Practice felt good this morning. I've been doing an unloaded swing before each set to get the proper form in my head before I pick up my bell and it's been helping a lot. My shoulder feels a little "off" today after practice. I might need to take the evening off from my pulling-movement-heavy GTG (or maybe yesterday's rings work affected my shoulder more than I care to admit?).

*******

PM - Practice
5 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
15 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
5 Chin-ups (3 unassisted & 2 with Rogue Monster Band - green)
40s Hollow Body Hold
5 Prying Goblet Squats - 28kg

I felt sick and congested by the end of the day. My shoulder felt okay. I decided to GTG after all. I'm glad I did - the movement felt therapeutic and it energized me just the right amount to walk the dog, make dinner, and crash early.
 
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2018.03.28 [Wednesday]

Resting HR: 51
Heart Rate Variability: 63
Elite HRV Score: 5P (Yellow)

Sleep: 8 hours of sleep! Wahoooooo!

Feeling: I cleared out some gunk upon waking (congestion, etc.), but felt really good considering I thought I'd wake up super sick. S&S was out due to time restrictions (I hate I'm missing practice, but the rest was much needed), so I decided to just double up on my GTG today and do a set in the morning before work.

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine
Jefferson Curl - 16kg - 3 (with 10 "pulses" at the bottom)

GTG Practice
5 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
15 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
5 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - green)
5 Prying Goblet Squats - 28kg

I skipped the hollow body hold in my usual GTG routine because my shoulder PT already has a pretty intense plank variation. I was super happy to get this practice (albeit reduced) in this morning.
 
Where I've Been

I've been pretty sick for a few weeks. While I thought it was in my best interest not to do Simple and Sinister I did keep up my own "Minimum Work Requirement". Each morning I would do my Shoulder PT and in the evening I would do the following GTG:

6 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
16 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
6 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - green)
40s Hollow Body Hold
6 Prying Goblet Squats - 28kg

And I recently added in the TGU with a 10s pause at each point with a 16kg bell.

I've been obsessed with being healthy injury free for this Sunday when I attend a StrongFirst Kettlebell Course. I've been frustrated because between mild shoulder re-injury and illness I'm nowhere near where I'd hoped to be. But worst of all, this past weekend - while washing my hands I snorted in to clear my nose AND MY TRAPS SPASMED IMMEDIATELY. My trigger point tightened all the way up. I spent hours doing every stretch, myofascial massage, trigger point release, etc. that I could think of. It's getting better and I've just received a TENS unit to help alleviate the trigger point pain.

I've continued doing some moderate exercise because I think it helps to keep the muscles working. So there's a chance I'm not healing as quickly as I could - but I'm not getting any worse either. Last night I tried some swings which helped me decide to do a short S&S routine this morning (covered in following post).

Here's hoping for a great pain-free course this weekend...
 
2018.04.11 [Wednesday]

Resting HR: 51
Heart Rate Variability: 64
Elite HRV Score: 7P (Green)

Sleep: About 7 hours.

Feeling: My neck and shoulder movement were okay. I was still a little sore/tight/tender though. I had good energy and didn't drag which was very helpful.


Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine

Warm-up
Halos 16kg 5x each direction
Prying goblet squat (including 3 bicep curls at bottom) 16kg - 5

Practice
Single Hand Kettlebell Swings - 20kg - 4 x 10
Turkish Get Ups - 20kg - 4

Duration: 11:15
Average Heart Rate: 114
Max Heart Rate: 140

Cool Down
Hurdler Stretch
Butterfly Stretch
Frogger Stretch
Straddle Stretch

Thoughts: I was really happy to do this practice this morning. I noticed my hearth rate didn't recover as quickly after some time off (at least I think). At work my neck/shoulder/trap is a little sore - so I'm wondering if I should just rest until I'm better (especially with the kettlebell course looming this weekend). Yesterday it felt the best after my short GTG work though. Either way, I'm looking forward to another TENS session this evening.

*******

PM - Mobility, Stretching and TENS

I did OS resets. A TON of shoulder mobility work with bands, foam roller, peanut. Used my TENS unit. Got a little nauseous after using the TENS unit for a little while. I think I had it up a little too high. Especially with one of the pads so close to my spine (not on my spine though).
 
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2018.04.13 [Friday]

Yesterday I did my Shoulder PT in the morning and stretched out my neck/trap/shoulder a lot. In the evening I did OS Resets (this time with Leopard Crawling istead of the "reduced" baby crawls I've done while hurting previously). I did a brief bar hang as well. Used my TENS unit for about 40 minutes (on a lower setting than yesterday!) and stretched everything out afterwards. I felt really great when I went to bed last night. I had full range of motion and no soreness. I even debated waking up for a full S&S session this morning.

But alas, upon waking I had the telltale neck stiffness again (worse than the previous morning). So this morning I rolled out my back, stretched, did some of the OS resets, and did my PT. I've been stretched throughout the day at work which has helped and I'm better than when I first woke up this morning, but I've still got a persistent dull ache in my shoulder.

I'm extremely frustrated. All I want is to be feeling good for the Kettlebell Course on Sunday. Tonight I'll only do mobility work, stretching, and TENS. Saturday I'll probably take it easy too. Hopefully everything gets back to normal by Sunday. If not, I'm sure I'll still learn plenty.
 
2018.04.15 - Kettlebell Course

The Kettlebell Course was a great experience. We had a small group so we all got lots of individual attention. My biggest takeaway from the day was that I very much need to focus on engaging my lats. I've been so focused on strengthening my traps that I've just been pulling my shoulders BACK instead of back AND down. Our instructor had a funny way of putting it "Imagine you've got a winning lottery ticket that your carrying in your armpit". I also will probably start doing the "tss" exhale. I've just been forcefully exhaling quietly because of how early I practice in the mornings. But feeling the automatic ab contraction (which I've been struggling with - noted occasionally here) from simply pressing my tongue against the roof of my mouth and forcefully exhaling. In addition I took copious notes and had many individual takeways, but these will touch almost all of my practice.

Also, it's interesting to note that during the course of the day my neck/trap/shoulder issue totally fixed itself. On Saturday I was still frustrated because I was feeling some numbness in my arm and some (very) mild radiating pain. I used my TENS unit the night before and did my shoulder PT routine the morning of the event, but I still felt worse than what I was hoping for as I walked into the gym. By lunchtime it was feeling better. It hasn't bothered me again since. So my thoughts are that learning to use my lats instead of placing all the strain on my traps helps alleviate my symptoms and that proper movement can be therapeutic if I've generally healed but have some mild nagging symptoms.

I'm nice and sore today (Monday - day after). But in only the best possible ways. :)

@RRFBETSY - thanks for your awesome instruction!
 
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Groove Greaser said:
My biggest takeaway from the day was that I very much need to focus on engaging my lats.
Click to expand...

I think you're onto the solution. I have a saying I tell myself: "Lazy lats = tense traps." When the lats aren't doing their job, the traps pick up the slack and end up overworked and tense.

Glad to hear you went to Betsy's class! Her 1-day kettlebell class was my first StrongFirst course and it was certainly well worth it.
 
2018.04.17 [Tuesday]

Resting HR: 54
Heart Rate Variability: 60
Elite HRV Score: 6S (Yellow)

Sleep: 6.5 hours. Should have easily hit 7 but I stayed up enjoying a quiet evening with my wife after our hectic weekend. I felt rested upon waking.

Feeling: Still have DOMS all down my posterior chain. I'm resisting the urge to jump right back into training and trying to let my body recover first.

Warm-up
Halos 16kg 5x each direction

Practice
Press 4x1 - 16kg (Soju and Tuba day 1)

Thoughts: I was wanting to do some OS Resets too, but my daughter woke up extra early and playful this morning (not a bad thing really :). I've been wanting to run the Soju and Tuba program in conjunction with my S&S practice so I figured I'd do the first session today (since it would be much easier on my posterior chain) and see how it felt. Technically I'm not "committed" to it yet, but I could also see myself going through the whole program also. My main focus is still on working S&S and owning 24kg (and beyond).

*******

PM Practice
6 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
16 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
6 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - green)
40s Hollow Body Hold

I skipped the goblet squat. Muh legs.
 
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2018.04.18 [Wednesday]

Resting HR: 49
Heart Rate Variability: 61
Elite HRV Score: 8S (Green)

Sleep: 7.5 hours. I woke up well and got to it! (I got up at 1:30 to use the bathroom and my posterior chain was stiff as a board! When I got up this morning it was significantly better - only mild soreness)

Feeling: My posterior chain is still very tight. I thought I might just jump back in with a light S&S workout for recovery, but when I bent over to put my shoes on to walk my dog this morning, I knew that wasn't the best idea. So I decided to not push it and focus on doing light work to get some mobility back. But I wasn't completely smart - I decided to go ahead with Soju & Tuba day 2 (though it's recommended to take a break between days) since it was early in the program and I started on a Tuesday...

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine

Practice
Press 6x1 - 16kg (Soju and Tuba day 2)*
This was done with a slower GTG style mixed in with my other practice.

Yoga
Nerd Fitness Yoga Water Series B
^
Duration: 29:30
Average Heart Rate: 85
Max Heart Rate: 115

Thoughts: It's amazing how focusing on engaging lats is touching almost everything I do. My shoulder physical therapy has a modified plank that I must have been doing slightly wrong for some time now. Lots of the yoga poses allowed me to focus on lat activation. I even noticed the instructor giving cues (that I've heard before) to achieve this. One of those times where you only hear something when you're ready I guess?

I was also starting to think that Soju & Tuba might be a little too easy and maybe I was doing it with too light a weight (although my press is very weak, hence my desire to focus on it). On the 6th set I was no longer worried this was the case. Now I'm more worried about the coming days and higher reps! I'm pretty excited though. :)

*******

PM Practice
6 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
16 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
6 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - green)
40s Hollow Body Hold
 
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2018.04.19 [Thursday]

Resting HR: 51
Heart Rate Variability: 64
Elite HRV Score: 8P (Green)

Sleep: About 6.5 hours

Feeling: Still a little tight in my hamstrings and right glute, but significantly better.

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine

Practice
OS Resets
2 TGUs @ 20kg (one each side)

Thoughts: I did the OS Resets very slowly and intentionally. I also did the "harder" versions of things - including rocking on toes, rolling from plank, and leopard crawls. By the end of practice I felt loose enough that I realized I could have gone back to full S&S practice today. On my second Turkish get up my dog ran past me and bumped me forcing me to have to bail. I'm glad I was only working with the 20kg or it might have resulted in injury - I did everything wrong on the way down - lol.
 
2018.04.20 [Friday]

Resting HR: 54
Heart Rate Variability: 59
Elite HRV Score: 5S (Yellow)

Sleep: About 6.5 hours.

Feeling: A little slow getting started - but I was motivated to finally get some quality S&S time in again! I was a little queasy too (I think I ate some spoiled meat at lunch yesterday...), but it wasn't too bad. I was concerned about dipping back down into yellow on HRV, but I wasn't going to give up on today's practice.

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine

Warm-up Circuit (2x)
Halos 16kg 5x each direction
Prying goblet squat (including bicep curls at bottom) 5x (16kg 20kg)

Practice
Single Hand Kettlebell Swings - 20kg - 10 x 10
Turkish Get Ups - 20kg - 10
Duration: 31:26
Average Heart Rate: 118
Max Heart Rate: 145

Additional Practice
Overhead Press 8x1 - 16kg (Soju and Tuba day 3)

Cool Down
Hurdler Stretch
Butterfly Stretch
Frogger Stretch
Straddle Stretch

Thoughts: My recovery between sets is noticeably worse since I haven't been able to do a good session in quite some time. The curls on the goblet squats were touch trying it with the new variation I learned this weekend (keeping the bell pointed towards my body at the bottom rather than gripping it by the horns and allowing it to rotate freely). My grip/wrists felt very weak. Swings felt pretty good and I used the "tss" sound for the first time during my AM practice and it didn't wake my daughter up. I really thought about stopping after 6 TGUs because they were getting hard (and I was already running late), but I decided I really wanted to finish the whole practice (also, I could compare with other full sessions and see what I had lost in the interim). I'm super happy to have put in the work this morning! :)
 
2018.04.23 [Monday]

Resting HR: 47
Heart Rate Variability: 59
Elite HRV Score: 7S (Green)

Sleep: In bed 7.5 hours. Woke up several times. Probably still clocked about 7 hours total though.

Feeling: I could have slept longer but I was motivated again this morning to get up and get to it. I was excited to get be well fed, well rested, and have a plan to get through my whole session.

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine
Jefferson Curls - 16kg - 3x

Warm-up Circuit (3x)
Halos 16kg 5x each direction
Prying goblet squat (including bicep curls at bottom) 5x (16kg 20kg 20kg)
Hip Bridge (squeezing yoga block between knees) 3 seconds - 5x

Practice
Single Hand Kettlebell Swings - 20kg - 10 x 10
Turkish Get Ups - 20kg - 10
Duration: 30:04
Average Heart Rate: 119
Max Heart Rate: 146

Cool Down
Hurdler Stretch
Butterfly Stretch
Frogger Stretch
Straddle Stretch
Hamstring Stretch

Thoughts: I forgot about Soju & Tuba until I had already started S&S. I'm going to try and work that into my evening so that I stay on schedule. I felt like my recovery was still super slow (and it was compared to some of my older sessions), but it was about a minute faster than last Friday. Also, those TGUs are an absolute GRIND. I can recover my swing strength and comfort pretty quickly, but those TGUs are brutal. Some of it might be attributed to my using better technique, but I think I also just lost a lot of strength during my multi-week sabbatical while sick and/or injured.

*******

PM Practice
6 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
16 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
6 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - green)
40s Hollow Body Hold
6 Prying Goblet Squats - 28kg

Additional Practice
Overhead Press 10x1 - 16kg (Soju and Tuba day 4)
 
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2018.04.24 [Tuesday]

Resting HR: 50
Heart Rate Variability: 64
Elite HRV Score: 10P (Green)

Sleep: In bed 7.5 hours. About 7 hours of sleep. Some restlessness. Even though I'm missing my goal of trying to hit 8 hours - I'm very happy that I'm finally consistently getting 7.

Feeling: I felt good. Still very motivated and happy to be back on the S&S train.

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine
Jefferson Curls - 16kg - 3x

Warm-up Circuit (3x)
Halos 16kg 5x each direction
Prying goblet squat (including bicep curls at bottom) 5x (16kg 20kg 20kg)
Hip Bridge (squeezing yoga block between knees) 3 seconds - 5x

Practice
Single Hand Kettlebell Swings - 20kg - 10 x 10
Turkish Get Ups - 20kg - 10
Duration: 30:02
Average Heart Rate: 115
Max Heart Rate: 148

Cool Down
Hurdler Stretch
Butterfly Stretch
Frogger Stretch
Straddle Stretch
Hamstring Stretch

Thoughts: My recovery felt much better today already. TGUs felt better too - still much more difficult than I would like at this weight though. I let my mind wander a few times and took long recovery breaks. Even with that I wound up with similar time to yesterday and a lower average heart rate. I'm definitely going to hang out at 20kg the rest of the week. I'll be cautious about trying to hop right back into transitioning to 24kg too fast. My swing form felt amazing today and I'm really starting to do a better job of truly swinging "hardstyle". Several of the cues I picked up from the seminar have been very helpful and focusing on my lats is paying huge dividends. It's a focus point for my evening pull-up/chin-up practice too and that has prevented a lot of trap soreness.

*******

PM Practice
17 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
45s Hollow Body Hold
Single Leg Deadlift - 16kg - 3x1
25 bodyweight calf raises (2s up, 2s pause, 2s down)

I decided to lay off my back muscles as I'm getting back into S&S. I want them well rested for my main goal - progressing in S&S. So tonight I worked on single leg deadlift (which was identified as a problem spot at the kettlebell course). I also tried calf raises because I read this article the other day. I only did 25 because I'm not looking to be sidelined by DOMS anytime soon. Those single leg deadlifts really hit my hamstrings - I think that might have been the cause of last week's muscle soreness!
 
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2018.04.25 [Wednesday]

Resting HR: 48
Heart Rate Variability: 61
Elite HRV Score: 8S (Green)

Sleep: In bed 7.25 hours. I wake up and some restlessness. I came in somewhere under 7 hours. I guess that's what I get for being so proud of my sleep patterns yesterday.

Feeling: A little bit more run down than the rest of this week. It makes sense with less sleep last night and jumping back into training.

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine

Warm-up Circuit (3x)
Halos 16kg 5x each direction
Prying goblet squat (including bicep curls at bottom) 5x (16kg 20kg 20kg)
Hip Bridge (squeezing yoga block between knees) for 3s - 5x

Practice
Single Hand Kettlebell Swings - 20kg - 10 x 10
Turkish Get Ups - 20kg - 10
Duration: 31:06
Average Heart Rate: 115
Max Heart Rate: 146

Additional Practice
Overhead Press 12x1 - 16kg (Soju and Tuba day 5)

Cool Down
Hurdler Stretch
Butterfly Stretch
Frogger Stretch
Straddle Stretch
Hamstring Stretch

Thoughts: This morning I was focused on getting through everything and I skipped Jefferson Curls and forgot to stretch after practice! I did run through all the stretches quickly before I hopped in the shower - but I was so preoccupied I can't believe I forgot these essentials. As Soju and Tuba becomes more demanding I think it will be important for me to split these two practices between morning and evening. I had done most of my sets before S&S practice and it made the TGUs an absolute GRIND. Tomorrow I might switch out S&S practice for some yoga/mobility and tonight I might try out the Active Recovery on my new Compex unit (picked one up on the cheap out of curiosity more than anything).

*******

PM Practice
OS Resets
20 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
45s Hollow Body Hold
Single Leg Deadlift - 16kg - 3x1
30 bodyweight calf raises (2s up, 2s pause, 2s down)

I most likely won't have time to play with my new toy (Compex Edge 2.0). I'm still taking it easy on my upper back, but not too easy (between some of those resets and the single leg deadlift it still got hit pretty hard!). I have thought about just doing S&S with 16kg tomorrow - but I might still do yoga because of how it loosens up my hamstrings. I'll make the call tomorrow AM.
 
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2018.04.26 [Thursday]

Resting HR: 53
Heart Rate Variability: 59
Elite HRV Score: 7S (Green)

Sleep: Right at 7 hours of sleep. Possibly just under.

Feeling: Extremely fatigued. Very slow moving. (Also my trigger point is acting up again accompanied with some arm numbness)

Zero Training. Got ready for work in a sloth-like state.

Thoughts: I wanted to do something but just had ZERO energy this morning. It wasn't until the afternoon that I started feeling reasonably awake. I don't know if I overtrained or the bag of plantain strips (with no avocado) and strawberries gave me some kind of carb crash or if it's classic autoimmune BS. Either way, this is an example of HRV totally being inaccurate for me - but I'll keep doing the tests because I'm a weirdo.

*******

Evening Practice
Overhead Press 14x1 - 16kg (Soju and Tuba day 6)

I wanted to get some kind of training in and I figured this would be best. That way I wouldn't try to stack this on top of S&S Friday morning (and I won't be able to train until Monday). Seems like it might have been a good idea? I can't tell.


**************​

2018.04.27 [Friday]

Resting HR: 51
Heart Rate Variability: 62
Elite HRV Score: 9S (Green)

Sleep: In bed 7.25 hours. One wake up (fully alert), but no difficulty getting back to sleep. Woke up before my alarm clock. Hopefully got about 7 hours.

Feeling: Shoulder is still a bit funky with some arm/hand numbness. Hopefully the overhead work wasn't an issue last night (Impingement? I think it's still my PITA trigger point that squeezes a nerve. I might try to go back to PT to get dry needled again. Too bad it's so expensive...).

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine
Jefferson Curls - 16kg - 3x
Halos - 16kg - 5x (each direction)
Prying Goblet Squat - 16kg - 5x

Practice
Two Hand Kettlebell Swings - 24kg - 10 x 10
Duration: 15:52
Average Heart Rate: 117
Max Heart Rate: 147

Thoughts: I was crunched for time and with my numbness in my arm I figured I'd mix it up with an easy (though still reasonably challenging) session. My swings felt really good - in fact I considered using my 28kg bell, but decided not to given the circumstances. I also tried to remember this pre-work checklist I ran across yesterday and it really helped. I also focused on keeping my hip hinge explosive (athletic hip hinge) and really getting tight at the top. All around a great session. Now to eventually tackle this arm numbness thing...
 
2018.04.29 [Sunday]

We travelled all weekend for my wife's birthday. I did the GMB wrist routine and my shoulder PT each morning. We rode the Virginia Creeper Trail (a 17 mile scenic bike ride). It's mostly downhill and, while I'd recommend it heartily for the experience, not "exercise".

Today when we got back home I did the following:
Jefferson Curls - 16kg - 3x
6 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
20 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
6 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - green)
45s Hollow Body Hold
6 Prying Goblet Squats - 28kg
Single Leg Deadlift - 16kg - 3x1
50 bodyweight calf raises (2s up, 2s pause, 2s down)

I just kind of ran through a circuit of everything I like to keep "active". Then I used my new Compex unit on my calves. I bought it with my traps in mind and I've been dying to try it out, but my wife was asleep so I went ahead and used in on my calves after the calf raises (recovery mode obviously).
 
2018.04.30 [Monday]

Resting HR: 48
Heart Rate Variability: 63
Elite HRV Score: 9S (Green)

Sleep: In bed 7.25 hours. One get up and some restlessness. Hopefully still about 7 hours of decent-ish sleep.

Feeling: I woke up with a headache. I've also got some lower back pain from the weekend. The bike I rented was a little too small for me (they didn't have any my size), perhaps that affected my lower back?

Mobility
GMB Wrist Warm-up
Shoulder Physical Therapy Routine
Jefferson Curls - 16kg - 3x

Practice
Overhead Press 3x2 - 16kg (Soju and Tuba day 7)

Thoughts: After a few days away from my kettlebells those presses felt waaaay heavier than they should have! I mean, still totally manageable, but the weight felt toy-like last week and somewhat respectable today (16kg - ugh, why I need to work on strength). At work my shoulder still feels a bit "off". I didn't do any shoulder mobility work after - hopefully I didn't shoot myself in the foot. In other news, today I re-enroll in my BJJ school. First time back on the mats in over a year will be tomorrow. I'm very excited and hoping that some of this strength work will be protective.

Additional Note: Today I added L-Citrulline Malate 2:1 to my post workout drink (even though I didn't have a strenuous workout). It made the concoction significantly harder to get down. But I did. We'll see what comes of it. I've also got some Ribose coming today which is part of the same recovery supplement experimentation.

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PM Practice
6 Pull-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - black)
20 Push-ups (elbows tight against body)
6 Chin-ups (with Rogue Monster Band - green)
45s Hollow Body Hold
Single Leg Deadlift - 16kg - 3x1

Afterwards I used the peanut, foam roller, and worked on the "first rib" a la Kelly Starrett.
 
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