Beyond Limits Training with Rich Lauro

[rich55]

PUSH, SQUATS & SKILL WORK

Yesterday I hit a rock solid PUSH workout. I did some strength work, a CF strength WOD, some bodybuilding and a CF conditioning WOD. And I felt good afterwards. Holding steady at 194 and getting harder/leaner.

Flat DB Press
These felt eh today on the high end. Maintaining is fine with the vast rotation of work I'm doing right now.

65 x 10
80 x 10
95 x 8
110 x 7 ---> 1 better than last time
115 x 3

Standing Shoulder Press Strict
I've grown so used to push press, push jerk and military press. This was a shocking weakness.
95 x 3
125 x 3
145 x 3
155 x 3
160 miss
145 x 3
150 x 3

Incline Flys & Cable Pushdowns
Flys felt a little stronger than Saturday at the 80's x 9 and pushdowns felt weak. Have to keep hammering the tris!

Hang Power Clean & Push Press Tabata
20 sec max reps Power Clean, 10 rest, 20 sec max reps Push Press, 10 sec rest
Repeat 8 times with 115 lbs
Total max reps = 108

Round 1 totaled 21 reps, then into the teens and tried to hold steady at 11 & 10 rep rounds into the end. Seem to stack up decent based on the other WOD totals reported and I was fatigued.

SQUATS & SKILL WORK

Barbell Squats
Day 2 back squatting again regularly since July due to the hip. Up from 335 x 3 last week. It will come back!
45 x 10
135 x 10
225 x 8
275 x 5
315 x 5
345 x 5

Kipping Pullups
Max rep test
25, 15, 15 ------> These numbers are up
- SLOW SUPERSET -
Handstand Pushups
Max rep test
16, 10, 10 -----> Much better. Kip on last few reps is going better.

Plated Loaded Rows
Little extra back work with 3 sets. Back is pretty spent from pullups, HSPU, squats and power clean/push press work yesterday

Box Jump
Did these later to really just play with my fast rebound. 50 jumps x 20". 18 reps unbroken rebounded then 12, 10, 10.


FRIDAY OLYMPIC LIFTING & CROSSFIT FIT CLUB

Tomorrow some short duration/intense running & rowing. Friday I'm hitting some Olympic Lifting with Fit Club owner Mitch Potterf and catch up. Then, I'll hit up a WOD. Saturday will be a bodybuilding accessory day.

CL GOLD FEAST REPORT
Absolutely love the watermelon flavor. I mix it with a little, whey, oatmeal & stuff in the AM and the whole thing is SO much better than my previous breakfast shake. Have to give it up to Controlled Labs for the GOLD FEAST!

[rich55]

ANOTHER SOLID WEEK IN REVIEW!

Training keeps going very well. I had a great session at another CrossFit gym in Columbus called Fit Club as I prep for Level 1 Trainer exam. Let's just talk PR's this past week and decent numbers, because that is the way I think about/assess the week.

Front Squat- Switched to Oly style grip. Singles at 135, 185, 205, 225, 245, 265, 275, 285 ---> PR!
Hope WOD- 1 minute of each no rest til end: burpee, snatch 75, box jump 24", thruster 75, chest to bar pullup, rest 1 min. Repeat 2 more times continuous = 190 reps
Flat DB Press- 110's x 8, 120's x 3
1-Arm Rows- 130 x 8, 142 x 6 PR's!
Josh WOD- 21/15/9 Overhead Squat 95 lbs & 42/30/18 Pullups = 9:30
Clean & Jerk- 205 x 2
C & J Medley- 185 x 2 each power clean, squat clean, clean & jerk
Elizabeth WOD- 5:15 of 21/15/9 power clean 135, ring dip. Knocked 75 seconds off! PR!
1720 m run- 7:30 ---> recent PR. Time to get back in the 6's!
Squat- 355 x 5 ----> getting better
Lunge- 215 x 20 steps
GHR- Raises & Situps 21/15/9
30" box jump- 30 reps

Chest, arms & easy stuff tomorrow. Maybe a run too. "Seven" on Saturday, ouch!

[rich55]

QUICK UPDATE: TRAINING AWESOME!

My training has been awesome these past several weeks and months. It has been hard mainly mentally staying with my powerlifting and bodybuilding base, while trying to improve my olympic lifting and crossfit workouts. I think I've hit a stride these past few weeks. Just a few notes from last week:

-Flat DB Press- 110's x 9 (rep PR), 120's x 4 (tied a rep PR), 110's x 6 (can't remember ever coming back to this after that)
-Back Squats- Climbing back up after the July injury. Hit 365 for 5 fairly easily. 10 lbs per week is the goal nice and easy.
-T-Bar Rows- Worked up to almost 215 x 4 strict. Working 4 plates felt light. Was happy about that. Middle back rocked.

All in all my chest, shoulders, lats, quads, hams and bis have all been crushed this week if not multiple times. Tris didn't too sore, but I did 3 push workout days of some kind. CrossFit WOD notes:

-Kelly- 5 rds for time: 400 m run, 30 box jumps 24", 30 wall balls 20 lbs. 39:03 ouch! Quads were sore that night. Started with workout with deadlifts and snatches.
-D.T.- 5 rds for time: Deadlift 12, Hang Clean 9, Push Jerk 6 at 155 lbs. 13:43. Took my time and received quite a bit of clean and push jerk coaching during the WOD from two CF coaches. Could easily knock several minutes of this one. Upper back, forearms and hams were sore from this.
-Lynne- 5 rds AMRAP. Body weight bench and pullups. 163 reps. Repped 195 lbs x 17-11 reps and kipping pullups x 27-18 reps. Chest was sore. Back has been sore all week.

Oh and The Seven last week was brutal. 7 rounds of 7 handstand pushups, 7 135 lb thrusters, 7 knee to elbow leg raises, 7 245 lb deadlifts, 7 burpees, 7 70 lb kettlebell swings & 7 pullups. Finished just over 50 minutes. I was happy to do all movements unbroken. Onto a big week!

[rich55]

DEADLIFTS, CORE & ENDURANCE:

And today's workout was just that. After taking it easy on deads last week at 405 x 5 and then another dynamic day, I knew that pulling beyond 455 would be tough. It was. Needed to hit the abs and wanted to work on running & squatting under my cleans. Badger was the perfect Hero workout for this.

Deadlifts
135 x 8
225 x 6
315 x 5
405 x 3 ---> felt light
455 x 3 ------> not bad
475 no dice. Next week it's on!

Situps
100 reps

Badger
3 rds for time = 38:05
30 squat cleans at 95 lbs
30 pullups (kipping)
800 m run

Tomorrow a typical Chest & Arm day, Wednesday Olympic lifting, rowing & burpees, Thursday off, Friday Back Squats & Hero WOD, Saturday Chest & Shoulders.

[rich55]

Figured I'd copy and past my log from the Controlled Labs forums here as well. I started logging a month ago as I prep for my final bodybuilding season. The WNBF Pro US Cup next week and the WNBF World Championships 3 weeks later. Let's do it!

WRAPPING UP A GREAT WEEK OF TRAINING: 1 WEEK OUT!

Building the machine. I'm now one week out and here is a log of the past few days.

WEDNESDAY - CONDITIONING & ARMS

Mile run to warm-up
Yup, you read that. Miles stand alone are easy at this point. I'm glad to get my athlete mojo back.

Squat Snatch & Single-Unders
For time: 10-8-6-4-2 snatch @ 115 lbs & 100's on jump rope after each snatch set. I've done so much conditioning the last few days that I can't recall if this took about 12 or 15 minutes. What I do recall is what matters; on the 6-rep set I found my stride and began to do them unbroken, fast and feeling the movement. Jump rope is improving with 60, then 40 to pace each 100. I'm feeling double-unders coming soon.

Not focused on weights too much for arms with so much big chest & back movements this week. I went heavy and then high rep to blast every fiber.

Cable Pushdowns
Barbell Curls
Barbell Skullcrushers
Alternating Hammer Curls
Overhead Rope Extensions
Mid-line Hammer Curls
Prone DB Kickbacks
EZ Bar Reverse Curls
Leg Press Calf Raises

Hit up some Wednesday night church to get my mind and spirit on focus. God is good.

THURSDAY - CROSSFIT & BACK
Visited Fit Club, a local CrossFit affiliate, to visit, talk shop and check out the new gym with owner Mitch Potterf. He's a good dude who has been around the Cbus scene a while. Workout was multi-faceted and gymnasty which was perfect considering everything was sore.

Warm-Up
Missed out on various planks due to running mouth. Lunges, duck walks, lots and lots of somersaults. Adults need more gymnastics.

Rings Skill Work
4 rounds of 20 second holds at dip extension and dip bottom hold each with about a minute of rest in between each alternating. Good drill for beginners on rings.

Warm-up/Skill Work - Wall Walks
Wall walks to toes and nose on the wall with a great plank of mid-line stability. I was surprising good at this with my low body weight and new found shoulder mobility. 20 second holds and 40 second breaks for several rounds.

Conditioning - Bear Crawls and OH DB Walks
Note to self. More unilateral DB & KB work is needed. That and more mass to increase strength/stability haha. 4 or 5 rounds of 25 meter DB bear crawls & 25 meter DB overhead walks with a pair of DB's. DB's overhead after crawls were terribly difficult. Dug it. I had to break 3 times and take a 5-rep DB deadlift burpee penalty. I should have taken a break earlier to recover more. Took about 8 minutes.

Headed back to Beyond Limits after catching up with a few peeps and did some isolation back work for feel:

Straight-Arm Pulldowns
Low Pulley Cable Rows
Plate Loaded Rows
Band Pull Aparts

FRIDAY - CHEST, SHOULDERS & RUN WORK:

Incline Bench
Wrists were tired after the wall walks & miscellaneous work yesterday. Kept it lighter focusing on negatives, contractions & feel.
45 x 10
135 x 10
165 x 8
185 x 6
195 x 5
205 x 3 --> took a spot on #4

Cable Crossovers & Incline Bench Superset
A little pre-exhaust for even more upper chest. 4 x 12 on crossovers & 3 x 8 on incline bench with 145 lbs. Lots of negatives, burn and contractions.

Shoulder Press Standing
45 x 10
75 x 8
95 x 6
115 x 5
135 x 4
115 x 7
115 x 9 ---> push press
115 x 15 ----> push jerk

Hammer Wide Chest
4 or 5 sets

DB Lateral Raises
30's, 35's, 40's, 45's, 45's x 10-8 reps

Slammed some Purple Wraath (single scoop) & Purple Psyko (half scoop) with White Flood (additional 1/2 scoop) and 1-2 Tbsp blue gatorade.

7 rds x 400 m run every 3 minutes
Tough workout but doable. Ran first round at 1:40 to warm up, then kicked up to 1:30 for almost all of them, 1:27 on one, 1:33 on one and last one at 1:25.

Feeling like a machine. Leaned out from morning to evening. Feeling good.

"Fear is not real. The only place that fear can exist in our thoughts of the future. It is a product of our imagination causing us to fear things that do not at present and may not ever exist. Danger is very real, but fear is a choice."

[IK9]

I like that you have cross fit stuff incorporated in to all of this. I'll be lurking around (;

[rich55]

I like that you have cross fit stuff incorporated in to all of this. I'll be lurking around (;

Yes, CrossFit has rounded out my powerlifting and bodybuilding training very nicely for a great total package. I'm truly in the best shape since H.S. football days while being much stronger and prepped for stage. Stay tuned. I'll be posting up training through the next month.

[rich55]

"LIGHT" LEGS & BACK AT A WEEK OUT



The only thing light was the leg volume on a relative basis. I pushed, but held back despite what it looks like. God was with me today. I've never been this strong this light. I weighed in at 164 and change this am before my refeed.

Deadlifts
1st pull on each set was just ripping off the floor.
135 x 6
225 x 5
315 x 4
405 x 3
455 x 3
470 x 1 ---> could have pulled another rep and considered doing 480.
405 x 9 -----> greater benefit for the upcoming bb show next weekend

Underhand BB Rows
Always do these overhand, but was trying to hit my low lat tie-in's harder. It worked. Slower tempo with increased muscular focus.
95 x 10
135 x 8
155 x 8
175 x 8
190 x 6
205 x 6 ---> good, but have to keep the lower back safe

Bent-Over DB Laterals
Yes another prone movement haha. Oh well.
30's x 10
35's x 10
40's x 10
40's x 8

Leg Extensions
2-second squeeze at top. Quad muscles a blazing!
115 x 15
170 x 15
225 x 15
250 x 13

Smith Shrugs in Front
Extra slow & controlled.
185 x 10
275 x 8
275 x 8
185 x 17 behind back

Seated Calf Raises
4 sets of 15-10 reps

Conditioning: Front Squats/Burpees/Abs
3 rds for time:
30 front squats at 95 lbs
30 burpees
30 abmat sit-ups
Finished at over 18 minutes. Front squats were broke into 3 mini-sets on 1st to rounds and 2 on the last round. Burpees went from 30 to 20 & 10 to 15 & 15. Slow on sit-ups. I'll be doing a lot more core work after my shows for Oly & CF purposes. Meanwhile, it's better than it's ever been and sufficient for BB.

OVERALL PEAK WEEK THOUGHTS:
God is good! I've gone through some junk this prep and He has brought me through it with a whole new insight on training. It has produced by far my best effort and for that I am thankful regardless of what happens next weekend in Connecticut.

[dogg74]

Ola Sir Lauro

That is what you call LIGHT legs/back?..I think we all here can say have lots of work to do!!!!
superb progess and going out with a BANG.
see ya fri at weigh ins!

[rich55]

Ola Sir Lauro

That is what you call LIGHT legs/back?..I think we all here can say have lots of work to do!!!!
superb progess and going out with a BANG.
see ya fri at weigh ins!

Clement!! What's up man?! Haha, it was supposed to be "light". It changed as I got rollin, but I did back down as the workout went along to keep things all good for this weekend. Awesome! Will I have the honor of sharing the stage with you again? Too cool. See you then!

[fltallpaul]

Great stuff Rich, I can't wait to see the improvements you have made. You have been killing it for a few years!

[rich55]

Great stuff Rich, I can't wait to see the improvements you have made. You have been killing it for a few years!

Thanks Paul! Me too man. I'm super happy with everything, so the stage is just icing on the cake. BTW, your training has been beast this past year. I see your staff on FB! Keep it up man!!


---------------------------------------

CHEST, TRIS & PUTTING THE FINISHING TOUCHES ON IT!

Mental Game & Preparation:
At this point in the game, I'm putting the finishing touches on 25 weeks of focused, hard work! I lighten up a little each day, but really just be safe and be aware of recovery from what I'm doing. 2 months out I started tanning once per week, then a month out twice per week and 3 times per week the past 2 weeks. Coat 1 of 3 of Pro Tan Sunless Tanning lotion applied last night and posing practice is 20 minutes non-stop at this point. Routine if still in visualization process, but the chorus should allow a fair amount of cool free posing and only a little choreographing. Preparation is key. Organization helps me to prepare for the competition and traveling out two days in advance. God makes everything else happen.

Plan for the Week:
MON - Chest, tris, sprint conditioning, easy run
TUE - Shoulders, traps, core, distance row, pose
WED - Back & bis, more food
THU - Travel to CT. Rest day, pose, more food.
FRI - Upper body pump, light pose, walk, eat up.

Mile Warm-up
Nice and easy run. Rolled right into bench less than a minute after the run. Heart rate & breathing fine.

Benchpress
Despite holding steady at 168 PM weight the last few weeks, this has gradually weakened the past few weeks as I've hardened up and leaned out. Better than it's ever been this lean.
45 x 10
135 x 8
185 x 6
205 x 5
225 x 4
240 x 3
250 x 2
225 x 5 ---> felt to move on to some DB's

Incline DB Press
60 x 10
80 x 9
95 x 4 ---> feels light but elbow extension is just not there
95 x 4
75 x 12 -----> pulsing quickly at bottom on first batch, then increasing range of motion with slow speed at end

High Cable Crossovers & Parallel Bar Dips
Opted for a cable fly motion to take it easy and throw in some slow dips for triceps and chest stretch. Increased tempo warmed me up for a little metabolic conditioning work to follow.
22.5 x 15, BW x 10
22.5 x 12, BW x 10
22.5 x 12, BW x 10
22.5 x 10, 19 lb chain x 7

Met Con: CrossFit Games Open 11.1 WOD
Scaled from 30 double unders to 60 single unders. I'll work on double and muscle ups heading into the Worlds. I'm ready for it.
AMRAP 10: 60 single unders & 15 power snatches @ 75 lbs
5 rds + 39 SU's
Rolled through 3 unbroken sets of 15 on power snatches and then started to break them up. Carb depletion in effect. That combined with less leverage. Good news is that jumping rope feels better than ever.

Barbell Skullcrushers
Tris were tired, but pushed through with plenty of rest btw sets.
45 x 10
65 x 10
85 x 10
95 x 8, drop to 65 x 15

Cable Pushdowns
Picked a moderate weight and did 4 x 10 with 4 second negatives.

OH Rope Extensions
Little rest, so ended up doing 3 drop sets.

[dogg74]

Clement!! What's up man?! Haha, it was supposed to be "light". It changed as I got rollin, but I did back down as the workout went along to keep things all good for this weekend. Awesome! Will I have the honor of sharing the stage with you again? Too cool. See you then!

Doing ok at the moment. I guess you got into the groove of things on that stellar light day
YOU WILL have that honor of stage sharing with me...IF you DO NOT hang them up and then compete next year or beyond that limit...ha..honestly though..I have a lady competing in the Pro's. should be a fun and entertaining weekend.

[rich55]

SHOULDERS, TRAPS & ROW - 4 DAYS OUT!

Pretty slow start to the workout similar to yesterday to really ease myself into one of my last training sessions and take the edge off. Overall a solid workout and more than I've done in the past at this point. The WNBF World Championships lie just around the corner on Sunday, so I need to be able to come back strong next week. Plus, who wants to lift little weights? Not this guy. A little light is bad enough.

Push Jerk
Haven't done much jerking since a wrist tweak several weeks back, but determine cleans and front squats will be the tough progression back to par. I've been doing more strict standing shoulder presses the past few weeks.
45 x 8
95 x 6
125 x 5
155 x 4
165 x 3
170 x 3
175 x 3 ---> had some more, but stopped there
135 x 10 -----> good enough

Standing DB Lateral Raises
First few sets were tight after the jerks, but felt better as I went along. Kept it easy focusing on long pull for a deeper tug down the delt head.
30 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10
35 x 10
35 x 10

Farmer Shrugs
123 x 10
143 x 10
143 x 10

Rack High Pulls
75 x 10
95 x 9
95 x 8

3K Row
Endurance better than the last 2 or 3K row. Pace was steady in the 1:50-2:00/500 m range. 1500-2000 m is the dead zone.
Time = 11:38

PEAKING!
Carbs have been low, but manageable and higher than previous low days of contest preps past. Weighed in lighter and leaner this morning at 163 lbs and 27.75" waist. Oh yeah! More carbs tomorrow! Yeah!!

[bigfish18q]

Definitely in on this! Been considering coming up to your gym for a while man.

[The Solution]

MY MAN!!!
was awesome to see you last month at your home place.

Finish this STRONG!!!

[rich55]

Definitely in on this! Been considering coming up to your gym for a while man.

Yeah buddy!! Come on down! After I get back from CT, you should swing down next week. If you like hitting the iron, then you'll dig Beyond Limits.

MY MAN!!!
was awesome to see you last month at your home place.

Finish this STRONG!!!

Hey Bob! You too man. Will do! A chill day tomorrow with plenty of carbs, then game time!


--------------------------------

2 DAYS OUT: PREPPING FOR THE STAGE!

The lineup for the WNBF Pro US Cup in 2 days is a stacked one and I'm excited. That motivates you to do your homework and the little things. We flew into beautiful fall Connecticut this morning and was just blown away with the changing of leaves throughout CT combined with a legendary Yale University campus. This beats my NYC or Texas shows.

WED: Light back, bis, core & calves
THU: Off, walk 1.5-2 miles, pose for 25 minutes
FRI: Light walk through on posing, light upper body pump with lots of carbs

I haven't taken any pre-stage photos photos in some time as I haven't cared to. I improve each day and right now a meal or good night's rest changes the way I look. I just want to get up there and let the stage do the talking. I may do a few teasers tomorrow evening. We will take plenty of the show. I'm on point for my best ever. Time to make it happen!!

[dogg74]

cant wait to see the NEW Rich..Ready to rock the House I say.
Good luck and have a blast at the show..See ya soon!

[jaredmus]

best of luck Rich have fun and speak to my buddy casey if ya get a chance super cool kid

[The Solution]

Get after it Rich, you were looking lean when i saw you at Beyond Limits. Pose hard and finish the drill.

[bigfish18q]

Excited to see how ya did man! I can't find the results anywhere online lol.

[The Solution]

Excited to see how ya did man! I can't find the results anywhere online lol.

He crushed it. Took 2nd.

[rich55]

2013 WNBF PRO U.S. CUP RECAP

Hey fellas! Sorry for the tardy response. A 4-day vacation away from the kiddos and business will put you in the hole haha. I'm just now climbing out. Yes, I finished in 2ND PLACE! After seeing these fellas backstage at the U.S. Cup it was clear that it was going to be a battle! Everyone was big, in great shape with no gaping holes. We all had things that stood out individually, but everyone looked HUGE! My goal was top 5. Anxious energy always leads me to simply to focus on my game plan with my wife, hang out with everyone back stage and have fun. You have to keep it light backstage for sure!

My wife and I applied the dream tan as the pro ladies got started. At that time, I start snacking on sweet stuff to keep my filled out and give me some energy. Then I do some light pump up and keep snacking. Chill. Check the mirror. Is that me?!? I'm ready. Another light pump and just wait to see how the timing of things are going on stage. Another snack. We then headed to the pump up directly backstage for a few more rounds of pumping up. After 37 minutes onstage where I remained in the center the judges scored it as such:

Pro Men Light
1st Diamond Harding 8 points $1000
2nd Rich Lauro 11 points $300
3rd Casey Rice 18 points $200
4th Ivor Brown 19 points
5th Matt Viemeister 23 points
6th Tony Ruffin 24 points
7th Wilfred Vidro 41 points
8th Christopher Applegate 42 points
9th Anthony Delgado 43 points
10th Frederick Fleuimond 44 points

I'll post up some pix tomorrow. You can check them out on FB. Now, it's time for the Worlds!! The 2013 WNBF World Championships looks to feature probably the deepest lightweight class I've seen in years. 4-time champ Brian Whitacre, the one to watch Levi Burge and UK's 2-time champ Damian Lees to name a few. Yeah buddy! I have to bring my best.

My week thus far:

MONDAY - CHEST & LEGS

Benchpress
Felt great, then faded fast.
45 x 10
135 x 8
185 x 6
225 x 3
235 x 3
240 x 3
245 x 3
250 x 2

Back Squats
Felt solid. Legs are a little out of shape from resting them much of last week.
45 x 10
135 x 8
225 x 6
275 x 4
295 x 4
305 x 4
315 x 4
320 x 4

Incline DB Press
60 x 10
80 x 8
95 x 4
95 x 4
85 x max reps
75 x lots of reps

Paused Front Squats
Worked on 3-4 second eccentric with pause to stretch out my hand and wrist.
95 x 5
135 x 5
155 x 5
175 x 5

Incline DB Flys
50 x 10
65 x 10
75 x 8

Glute Ham Raises
BW x 10
25 x 8
30 x 7

Strength & Skill Conditioning:
5 rounds for time:
10 ring dips
10 jerks 155 (2 rds at 155, scaled down to 135 after to increase speed)
Time = 12 and some change.

[bigfish18q]

Great job Rich! Can't wait to see the pics up.

[Bnizzle163]

Awesome work, Rich!

In for pics!

[rich55]

cant wait to see the NEW Rich..Ready to rock the House I say.
Good luck and have a blast at the show..See ya soon!

Clement! It was great seeing you man and catching up. Looking huge as always! I'm glad this is my last season as I wouldn't want to run into you next year haha.

best of luck Rich have fun and speak to my buddy casey if ya get a chance super cool kid

Jared!! What's up man!?! Yes, Casey and I chatted quite a bit. We were onstage for quite some time together too haha.

Get after it Rich, you were looking lean when i saw you at Beyond Limits. Pose hard and finish the drill.

You know it! Thanks for filling them in. Work slammed me when I got back into town. I celebrated quite a bit afterwards with some food.

Great job Rich! Can't wait to see the pics up.

Thanks man! I appreciate it! Posting a few up right now.

Awesome work, Rich!

In for pics!

Yes sir! Thanks!! It was a battle for sure...all prep long to the stage. We are still gathering pictures, but really just busy getting ready for the WNBF Worlds!! Here are a few:

[rich55]

WNBF World Championships Coming Up in 2 Weeks: Gotta Train Insane!

This week has been solid with training. I pushed hard, pulled back, went hard again, worked on some parts and ready to tear up a marathon conditioning session and snatches tomorrow! Overall, I'm super thrilled with my training. It's really just super balanced and that should show onstage at the Worlds against some monsters. Here is what else I did this week:

TUESDAY - BACK DAY:

Wide Grip Pull-ups
Felt a little weak on these as last week's peak week lined up for lighter back work. Felt good and will crush next week!
BW x 10
25 x 8
45 x 5
55 x 4
55 x 3
25 x 11
BW x 17 or so

1-Arm DB Rows
Same story here. Just getting back into the swing.
80 x 8
100 x 8
120 x 8
130 x 8
100 x 15/arm

Farmer Shrugs
123/hand x 10
143 x 10
153 x 8
123 x 15

Decided to just head into some conditioning work at this point and go hard particularly with some rowing. I will get some additional back involvement and direct work in later in the week. DOMS from legs was in full swing.

Conditioning: AMRAP 10
6 Handstand Pushups
9 Box Jumps 24"
12 Calories on Rower

7 rds + 16 reps. Very surprised at this performance as I only found one other person from Competitor WOD who tied this effort. My box jumps and rowing can improve haha!!

WEDNESDAY - ARMS & SKILL WORK:

Warmed up with a mile run in the cold to prep for this coming Saturday's 3.1 mile run. Just going to list these out cuz it's arms. Biceps were strong and pumped up so hard it kinda hurt haha. Dips BW x 30 and 21 with 19 lb chain, turning all gymnasty at a low body weight. It may be muscle-up time!

Barbell Curls
Triceps Pushdowns
Alternating Hammer Curls
Barbell Skullcrushers
Midline Hammer Curls
Overhead Rope Extensions
Parallel Bar Dips
EZ Reverse Bar Curls

Jump Rope Work:
3 rds AMRAP: 2 minutes singles, 1 minute rest = 205, 220, 205. Better than previous 180ish efforts! I'm going to dry doubles next week!

THURSDAY - LEG DAY NUMERO 2:

I programmed a nasty chipper conditioning workout from Competitor WOD for Beyond Limits and had that on the agenda. I decided to have my first day of heavier front squats since my wrist tweak 2 months back and to do some pulling before some lung burn.

Front Squats
45 x 10
135 x 6
175 x 6
205 x 3
225 x 3
240 x 3

Deadlifts
135 x 6
225 x 5
315 x 4
405 x 3 ---> felt rough. Hips tight & movement not trained in 2 weeks.
435 x 2 -----> sucked it up to prep for a better week next week

BRUTAL CHIPPER FOR CONDITIONING
30 Thrusters 115
30 Pull-ups
30 Power Cleans 115
30 Burpees
30 Jerks 115
30 Box Jumps

Finished with 14:20ish time. A few of our studs and studettes finished in the 14-minute range, so I'm happy with that effort!

FRIDAY - ROW, CHEST & SHOULDERS:

2K Row for time
7:21. Big PR! I have more in me from the 500m-1500m range. I pushed hard on the front and back, while pacing out the middle 1000.

Incline Bench
Felt weird after not having done in some time.
45 x 10
135 x 8
185 x 5
195 x 4
205 x 3
215 x 2
225 x 1
235 x miss. Stalled half way up. No biggie. Felt solid.
185 x 6
135 x 21

Flat DB Flys
50 x 10
60 x 10
65 x 10
70 x 7 ----> chest started feeling real tight. Called it for a bigger day next week.

Push Press
45 x 8
95 x 5
135 x 5
145 x 4
135 x 6

Arnold DB Presses
I did these during some hotel room pump and they felt great. I'll be working them back in with some dynamic presses these last few weeks. Slow & controlled.
40 x 10
50 x 10
50 x 10
60 x 6
60 x 6
----> right into some DB Laterals Standing with 30's and right into some DB Laterals with 25's.

Tomorrow I'm doing snatches to 1RM, muscle-up work, 150 burpee pull-ups and a 5K run. Yes, you read that right. The road no other bodybuilding competitor will travel this season.

[The Solution]

No worries, ill see you in March for the Arnold!!!!

[rich55]

No worries, ill see you in March for the Arnold!!!!

Yes sir, Bob! It will be a GREAT one!!

[jaredmus]

strength still seems pretty solid congrats on a great placing as well rich