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Trying to be social about training

8/12/21

Morning Day 80 of S&S

Swings: 40 R, 40 L. 24 kg. 10 R, 10 L. 32 kg
I think I let my shoulder come unpacked on the left-handed 32 kg swings. That was a set of 8, then a set of 2. I seem to be fine.

Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Everything seems to be going just fine.
 
8/13/21

Morning Day 81 of S&S

Swings: 40 R, 40 L. 24 kg. 10 R, 10 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon
5 prying goblet squats. 24 kg.

These were performed much slower and more carefully then my warm up goblet squats.
 
8/14/21 Saturday

Morning Day 82 of S&S

Swings: 100 T. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

I tried going all-out on the swings, but I think I started losing power around the 6th or 7th set. I know the 9th and 10th were not as powerful as they could be.

Afternoon
MP: 6x1 24 kg

8/15/21 Sunday

Morning Day 83 of S&S

Swings: 10 R, 10 L. 32 kg. 40 R, 40 L. 24 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

My hands are getting roughed up. That was 4 L, and 6 L on the 32; I didn't expect pain in my left hand along the callous line.

Afternoon
5 slow prying goblet squats; 24 kg.

I am trying to increase my flexibility a bit.

8/16/21

Morning Day 84 of S&S

Swings: 10 R, 10 L. 32 kg. 40 R, 40 L. 24 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

MP: 8x1. 24 kg
cleans: 5 per hand. 24 kg

I wussed out like a little bitch and put a band aid on my right hand over the callous line. I did this when I realized that I dreaded cleaning the bell into the rack position more then pressing it. The cleans were performed facing the wall, I think I am having a problem with the back-swing. I should probably work on that.
 
8/17/21

Morning day 85 of S&S

Swings: 100 T. 32 kg
Get ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

5 cleans per hand. 24 kg
3 Passive to Active Prying Squats. 24 kg

I could only hold the squats for about 40 seconds at best. The third one was much less.

This is what I am talking about when I say Passive to Active Prying Squats:

 
8/18/21

Morning Day 86 of S&S

Swings: 40 R, 40 L. 24 kg. 10 R, 10 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

MP: 10x1. 24 kg

That was a lot easier then the same 10 presses on the 4th, so yay progress.
 
8/19/21 Thursday

Morning Day 87 of S&S

Swings: 40 R, 40L. 24 kg. 10 R, 10 L 32 kg.
Get Ups: 5L, 5R. 24 kg

Afternoon
2 Active to Passive G. squats. 24 kg, with 30 seconds worth of holding.
5 cleans per hand. 24 kg

8/20/21 Friday

Morning Day 88 of S&S

Swings: 100 T. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5L, 5R. 24 kg
I forget to do the the squats during the warmup with the 32 kg bell, I did them with the 24.

Afternoon
MP: 11x1. 24 kg. 1x2. 24 kg
The reason for the 1x2 set was that on the 7th rep on the left I visibly cocked my arm down before the lift, so I simply performed the lift twice to fix it. After thinking about it, I repeated the pattern on the right during the 8th set.

8/21/21 Saturday

Morning Day 89 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5R. 24 kg

8/22/21 Sunday

Morning Day 90 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5R. 24 kg
 
3 months in seems like a good time to take stock. I also did not include very much information in the first post of this log, so here is my 13th week report. I basically asked myself some questions and wrote down my responses.

What am I doing?

The plan is to get myself to 100 one-handed swings a day with the 32 kg bell. Then start worrying about the get up. The get up will be maintained at 24 kg as much as possible. Meanwhile, I am trying to increase my pressing strength, but this goal with be sacrificed in favor of daily training towards the first goal.

How am I doing it?

During the last four weeks I bought a 32 kg kettlebell. I started swinging it. I have been working with 80 one-handed swings at 24 kg, and 20 one-handed swings at 32 kg. I just moved up to 60 one-handed swings with 24 kg, and 40 one-handed swings with 32. My hip hing is a lot stronger then it was before, the 24 kg kettlebell effortlessly comes up to shoulder height.

I have been grinding out 24 kg get ups. I am also cheating a bit by pressing the 24 kg in the afternoon. I hope to build up strength before I try a get up with 32 kg. Ideally I should be able to do two get ups in a row with the 24 kg bell before I try with the 32.

I never had a good estimate for my body fat percentage. I weighed myself on 8/22, and I weigh about 222 lbs. When I started Simple and Sinister, I weighed 233 lbs, so I lost about 11 lbs in 3 months. Assuming that that was 11 lbs of fat, I am either still a lard-a#@ (conservative estimate of body fat), or I am almost healthy (liberal estimate of body fat). I should mention that I weighed over 290 lbs in December of 2020.

Why am I doing it?

I am training towards timeless simple and then presumably timed simple without stopping to reassess my goals.

I assumed that I could not reach my weight lose goal while pursing strength goals. That does not appear to be true. So having less then 20% body fat is also my goal.

Is there a reason behind the reason for why I am doing it?

No.

Because I started. I am not a quitter. Strength, like its brothers: intelligence and virtue, does not need a reason. I sure hope I made that last one up, but I probably subconsciously cribbed it from somewhere.

There is no goal behind the goal. Ok, fine, I want to survive my next unexpected lethal force encounter. Happy now?
 
8/23/21

Morning Day 91 of S&S

Swings: 100 T. 32 kg
The last four sets were "shadow swings." I think one set of ten only took about 6 seconds, but that was a perception, not a measurement.

Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

MP: 14x1. 24 kg

8/24/21

Morning Day 92 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

1 Passive-Active squat with about a 30 second hold. 24 kg
1 Goblet Squat with 10 curls while sitting at the bottom. 24 kg
5 clean and front squats per hand. 24 kg.

I am starting to question my variety work in the afternoon. Maybe if it is raining, my morning warm up will take longer then it should. Maybe my squat needs work. At any rate, a clean and then a front squat is probably not the answer that I am looking for.

8/25/21

Morning Day 93 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

MP: 3x2. 24 kg.

As always, the press is easy on the right and difficult on the left.
I settled on a warm up for the military press: 5 halos in both directions, 1 light get up (16 kg) per hand, and T. spine bridges.

8/26/21

Morning Day 94 of S&S

Swings: 100 T. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

I did not make an effort to do anything faster then gravity this morning. That is such a weird statement, but I think people will understand what I mean.
 
8/27/21 Friday

Morning Day 95 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

MP: 4x2. 24 kg

I am left with the impression that my abs are getting stronger from the presses. I just seem to be able to brace myself better.

8/28/21 Saterday

Morning Day 96 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon
3x5 goblet squats with a curl at the bottom. 32 kg

8/29/21 Sunday

Morning day 97 of S&S

Swings 110 T. 32 kg

There was an extra penny mixed in with the 10 pennies I use to keep track of what set I am on. I took this as a challenge and tried to perform an 11th set of swings as aggressively as possible. I think I should read up on hard style laziness because I don't think that worked, it just messed with my form.

Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

5 Double Suitcase Deadlifts with 32 kg in my left hand, and 24 kg in my right (stronger hand).

I did this because I wanted to know what my perceived level of exertion was for the heaviest deadlift that I can do with the equipment that I currently own. Honestly, that was not very difficult.

Afternoon
MP: 5x2 24 kg

This is the first time that I feel confident that I will complete a cycle of Soju and Tuba. But, I won't know for sure until I try that third press without putting the bell down with my left hand. If I can't, I'll just repeat the doubles until I can.
 
8/30/21 --Monday

Morning Day 98 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

The swings sucked today. I got a lot of bad reps where I squatted and I lost my balance on one of the left-handed 32 kg sets.

8/31/21 --Tuesday

Morning Day 99 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Today the get ups were poor. My hamstrings are tight, so I was having a hard time keeping my the heel of my support leg on the ground.

Afternoon

MP: 6x2. 24 kg

This felt like a hard day, and there are more hard days to come.

9/1/21 -- Wednesday

Morning Day 100 of S&S

Swing: 100 T. 32 kg
Gets 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

I put in a solid and consistent 80% effort in the swings.

9/2/21 -- Thursday

Morning Day 101 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

MP: 7x2. 24 kg.

Oddly enough these seemed to get easier on the later sets. After the first two, I doubted that I could continue, but I finished strong.

9/3/21 -- Friday

Morning Day 102 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

I seem to be getting better at the heavy one-handed swings.

Afternoon

5x5 goblet squats. 32 kg
 
9/4/21 --Saturday

Morning Day 103 of S&S

Swings: 100 T. 32 kg
Get ups: 1 L, 1 R. 24 kg
Floor Presses 5L, 5 R. 24 kg
Suitcase carries up and down 2 flights of stairs. 24 and 32 kg

I didn't have my usual exercise space this morning. It was also a bad day to hurt myself by trying to do get ups on an uneven and unfamiliar (for get ups) surface.

9/5/21 -- Sunday

Morning Day 104 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

9/6/21 -- Monday. Labor Day

Morning
MP: 8x2. 24 kg
Swings: 12 minutes. 24 kg

The 24 kg bell is a good travel size bell for when I will only be gone for a day. I also decided to try something different, so that I don't wind up with too many days of Simple and Sinister that aren't actually Simple and Sinister.

The 12 minutes broke down into 1 set of 30, 10 seconds rest,1 set of 20, 10 seconds rest, maybe 3 sets of 10 with 10 seconds rest. And a few sets of 10 with more then 10 seconds of rest. I probably only did about 100 swings; I did not auto-regulate well.

9/7/21 --Tuesday

Day 105 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

9/8/21 -- Wednesday

Day 106 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon
MP: 2x3. 24kg

I can manage a third press on the left, so I am officially stronger then I was when I first started posting in a quantifiable manner.
 
9/9/21 -- Thursday

Morning Day 107 of S&S

Swings: 100 T. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

I have a cold, but it is nothing worth not training over.

9/10/21 -- Friday

Morning Day 108 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Afternoon

MP: 3x3. 24 kg

9/11/21 -- Saturday

Morning Day 109 of S&S

Swing: 20 R, 20 L. 24 kg. 30 R, 30 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

I have to watch my form when swinging the 32 kg bell. I just don't seem to be able to get a good hike back with my left arm. The obvious solutions is to stop a set when my form starts to fall apart, but boy am I stubborn.

9/12/21 -- Sunday

Morning Day 110 of S&S

Swings: 100 T, 32 kg.
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

Neither exercise was good this morning. I still have that cold.

Afternoon

MP: 4x3. 24 kg

I had to grind out that last rep on my left. But I made it. I like these triples, they are difficult, but I know I am getting a lot from them.
 
9/13/21 -- Monday

S&S Day 111

Swings: 20 R, 20 L. 24 kg. 30 R, 30 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

I feel better, but it is clear that I have been missing sleep.

9/14/21 -- Tuesday

S&S Day 112

Swings: 10 R, 10 L. 24 kg. 30 R, 30 L. 32 kg. 9 high pulls, 1 snatch R. 24 kg. 9 high pulls, 1 snatch 24 kg.
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

I am wearing myself out and needed to take myself out of my comfort zone to stay sharp on that last set of "swings." Set the note at 9/15 infra.

Afternoon

MP: 5x3. 24 kg

Since I am treating each set of 3 as one lift, I get to PR every other day.

9/15/21 -- Wednesday

S&S Day 113

Swings: 15 R, 15 L. 24 kg. 30 R, 30 L. 32 kg. 5 half snatches R., 5 half snatches L. 24 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5 R. 24 kg

The third set of swings at 32 kg with my left hand was garbage. I needed to take myself out of my comfort zone to avoid mailing in the last sets of swings at 24 kg, which I broke into 5 half snatches and 5 swings. I decided to demote myself to two sets 32 kg swings. On a related note, I received my copy of Simple and Sinister Revised and Updated Edition in the mail today. It took me 30 seconds to realize that I am progressing in the swings more then twice as aggressively as I should be. So yeah.

I also bought a copy of Enter the Kettlebell. Not really relevant, but I will be practicing the snatch in small doses that are not worth recording. My form is terrible; I corkscrew like a sports practitioner. But, that is not an immediate problem.
 
9/16/21 -- Thursday

S&S day 114

Swings: 100 T. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 L, 5R. 24 kg

Afternoon

MP: 6x3. 24 kg

This completes a cycle of Soju and Tuba. Saturday is testing day. 5 crisp and solid clean and presses per hand at 24 kg is success. But I am hoping to also press the 32.

9/17/21 -- Friday

S&S day 115

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 5 R. 24 kg. 1 R, 32 kg. On the left I only went to hand and back again with the 32 kg bell.

Well the good news is that I did a 32 kg get up with my right hand, and I at least have a partial movement to work with on my left. I don't know if I should continue to do full 24 kg get ups with my left hand or work on the partial get up. I am just not comfortable doing a get up with a weight that I cannot press from the floor and look at for a few seconds before rolling to elbow.
 
9/18/21

Testing Day
3x5 goblet squats 24 kg

C&P: 4 R. 24 kg. I was not strong enough to comfortably make the 5th lift, and I did not try to grind it out.
C&P: 2 L. 24 kg. I got a bad clean.
C&P: 3 R. 24 kg. I got a bad clean.
C&P: 1 L. 24 kg. I got a bad clean.
Needless to say the 32 kg clean and press did not go.

The lesson here is to learn how to clean if I want to clean and press. Its the drop that is the problem, I never clean for reps, so I never practice this skill.

Swings: 40 T. 24 kg

I stopped due to abdominal pain. I may come back in the afternoon and complete a deloading session of Simple and Sinister.

I am probably going to deload today and tomorrow and start again on Monday. I have a few choices to make. (1) I could buy a 28 kg kettlebell and advance in the get up with confidence. (2) I could continue on straight S&S until I can do a get up with 32 kg with my left hand. (3) Or I could keep pressing to cheat my way to a better get up.
 
9/18/21 Continued
I did the rest of the swings, but only 1 get up per side with 24 kg.

9/19/21 --Sunday

Day 117 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

That felt great. The swings were crisp and powerful, and I managed a get up on both sides with 32 kg. The get up was shaky on the left. On the right I needed three attempts to roll to elbow and on the way down I gave myself a scare by bringing the bell way too close to my face.

For the next four weeks, this is what my exercise routine looks like. I may do two get ups in a row with the 24 kg bell if I don't think I can complete a get up with the 32 safely.
 
9/20/21 -- Monday

Day 118 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

9/21/21 -- Tuesday

Day 119 of S&S

Swings 60 T. 24 kg. 40 T. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

This is actually going really well.
 
9/22/21 -- Wednesday

Day 120 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 R. 32 kg

On the left get up with the 32, I got the shakes at the start of the low sweep. I braced myself and stared at the bell until it was motionless. Then I went back down. I tried again, but not very hard, so it was basically just an isometric hold for 8-10 seconds or so.

9/23/21 -- Thursday

Day 121 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 L. 32 kg

I don't know what happened with the right get up. I think I placed my support foot wrong at the outset and series of small mistakes caused me to lose control of the bell during the lunge. I wound up standing in the rack position with no idea how I got there. After a few seconds of wondering if I did that on purpose, I cheat uncleaned the bell with both hands. I did not attempt the lift a second time.
 
9/24/21 -- Friday

Day 122 of S&S

Swings: 60 T. 24 kg. 40 T 32 kg.
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

The 24 is starting to feel light for get ups.

9/25/21 -- Saturday

Day 123 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

I wrote down that I didn't think the get ups with the 32 were good or safe, but I can't remember why.

9/27/21 -- Monday

Day 124 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 5 1/2 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 R. 32 kg.

I didn't trust myself with the 32 on the left, so I did an extra half a get up (to standing) immediately after the second get up on the left.

Yes, I skipped Sunday. This was due to a horrible hang over.

9/28/21 -- Tuesday

Day 125 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg. 1 L, 1 R 32. kg

The get ups with the 32 were surprisingly easy today. I wonder if it is a skill thing because 9 days with missed lifts does not seem like a long enough time for physical adaptation.

9/29/21 -- Wednesday

Day 126 of S&S

Swings: 60 T. 24 kg. 40 T. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

Again the get ups with the 32 were easier then I expected.
 
9/30/21 -- Thursday

Day 127 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

Unremarkable.

10/1/21 --Friday

Day 128 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

Today I seemed to tire easily and I displayed poor form in both exercises.

10/2/21 -- Saturday

Today was another one of those days were I had to carry my kettlebell up and down two flights of stairs to use them. I was also pressed for time and could not risk hurting myself. So, I tested a few things to get a working baseline.

Clean and Press: 3R, 2L. 24 kg
2R, 1L. 24 kg
Military Press: 4R, 2L. 24 kg
4R, 3L. 24 kg
Swings: 12 minutes Two-handed 24 kg. 153 reps using a 5-10-15-20 pattern

Thus proving that you get what you train for.

10/4/21 -- Monday

Day 129 of S&S

Swings: 30 R, 30 L. 24 kg. 20 R, 20 L. 32 kg
Get Ups: 4 L, 4 R. 24 kg 1 L, 1 R. 32 kg

Starting the third week of a four week step cycle,
I hope for physical adaption
I have nothing to say, else I would say it clear.
 
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