Strength Training and Deadlift

I wasn't planning on a strength workout today but after reading this on Ross Enamait's blog with my morning cuppa I decided I really wanted to do one! It's a great story about a 70 year old grandmother who can bench press 188 pounds/85.2 kg and deadlift 288 pounds/130.6kg. I decided to try the deadlift for the first time, I went on the side of caution and lifted light 'cause it's easy to injure yourself deadlifting and I have a tempo run planned for tomorrow which I don't want to be too sore for.

I left out the weighted lungess but did the rest of my strength workout as usual, I've been seeing good results doing this strength routine once a week, proof that you don't have to do masses of sets or lift really frequently to see improvements. I'm going to post the weights I used the first time I did this workout and the weights I used now to show the comparison. It would not be ideal if I were just training for strength but I have to fit it in around boxing and running and make all the types of training I want to do work together, I wouldn't have the time to strength train three times a week and I'm guessing I'm not the only one out there who cannot strength train that frequently so I just want to show people that it's possible to see improvements without huge amounts of time dedicated to strength work.

My first deadlift.

Todays workout 30/03/10
Barbell Deadlift 30kg 2 x 6
Dumbell Clean and Press 10kg 1 x 5, 1 x 4 (last time I could only do 1 x 2 and 1 x 1 with 10kg yay!)

Dumbell Bent Over Row 15kg 2 x 8
Dumbell Bench Press 10kg 2 x 5
Dumbell Curl 7.5kg 1 x 2 then 7kg 2 x 6 (amazing what difference .5kg can make!)
Barbell Wrist Curls 22kg 40 reps (I wondered why I couldn't get to 50 then I realised I'd misread my own handwriting and add 2kg by mistake...didn't feel so bad when I realised that)
Barbell Reverse Wrist Curls 11kg 40 reps
Neck Curls 10kg 40 reps

03/01/10
DB clean and press (2x8) 7.5kg +2.5kg
DB bent over row (1x8, 1x6) 12.5kg +2.5kg
DB bench press (1x6, 1x8) 6kg +4 kg
DB lunges (2x12) 22kg +3kg
DB curls (1x6) 6kg, (1x8) 5kg +2-2.5kg
BB wrist curls (1x10) 20kg, (1x40) 17.5kg +4.5kg
BB reverse wrist curls (1x50) 10kg +1kg

So I've made improvements in every area doing it at best once a week sometimes I don't do a strength workout, I usually don't do one in backoff weeks, for example.

I can't wait to go running tomorrow, even though the weather forecast is awful, spring seems to have disappeared again, come back spring! I really wanted to go running today but I thought it was probably best to give my legs a day off since I'm supposed to be doing the runs on alternate days. Tomorrow I have a tempo run planned, 1 mile easy, 2 miles short tempo and 1 mile easy. Hope I don't regret trying the deadlift out!

GPP workout and tabata finisher.

Hope everyone's having a fun Friday! Mike and I don't have much planned for tonight, just going to relax and watch some rubbish on the telly. We watched the Sophie Dahl cooking show on the iplayer, a few people mentioned it on their blogs, I wasn't too impressed, she seemed to be trying to emulate Nigella Lawson. I had high hopes for the program cause I'd heard she was vegetarian so I was looking forward to a veggie cooking show but she eats fish so that was a bit of a let down. Not that I want to be negative towards people who are pescatarian but I was just looking forward to an all veggie affair! Are there any UK people planning on watching Over the Rainbow tonight? I must admit those shows are a guilty pleasure of mine! For my overseas readers who might not know what I'm on about, it's like American Idol for music theatre, this season they're trying to find someone to play Dorothy, I think in a west end version of the Wizard of Oz!

Didn't do loads of training today, Mike was out most of the day and we ended up a bit pushed for time when we could train together. The finisher was tough! My shoulders are still so sore from the neider press the other day but I think it would be a tough one anyway, especially going straight on to the push-ups, my arms felt like jelly!

Chin-ups x 5 from dead hang (done during the morning)

GPP #1 (From Ross Enamait's Infinite Intensity)
30s burpees
30s star jumps
30s high knee dumbbell press
30s shadow boxing

x 5 rounds back to back.

Finisher
Tabata bar hangs x 4
Tabata push-ups x 4 (22)

Nakd Pecan Pie



Nice texture, I've decided I prefer the Nakd's minus the oats as they're a bit softer and chewier.
I liked the taste a lot but it was Mike's least favourite so far, I must admit out of the oatless bars I prefer the cashew cookie and cocoa orange but I would eat this over one of the bars with oats.

Trek Cocoa Brownie




This had a similar taste to a nakd cocoa loco but with the added soy crispies which were a nice texture.
It was nice and filling, I had half for a rare mid morning snack since I ate breakfast two hours earlier than usual and there was no way I was making it to lunch time!
I liked the soy crispies - I wonder if there would be any way of doing a soy free version of the trek bar as Mike's allergic to soy, he did try the peanut one cause he really wanted to and he hoped it would not cause a reaction but unfortunately it did, which is a real shame cause he loved the bar and I think he'd like this one even more, maybe I'll put the idea to Natural balance in case it's a possibility!
The ingredients are similar to the peanut oat and it has ginseng and gingko biloba in which I like.

19/03/10

Well I tried the cherry raisins in my breakfast this morning and yummmmm, they were really good! I tried them by themselves too and they were good that way too, kind of like sweets. I think when I start doing runs that are long enough to need fuel I will try these, I think they would be easy enough to digest and give me some extra energy! Anyway... I've gone off topic... Back to my breakfast, it's quite an art form the amount of things that go into it!

I have two natures path cereals, optimum power and millet rice oatbran flakes, then I have plain musli to which I add dried apples, blueberries, cranberries and today cherry flavoured raisins!

Optimum power, cereal with soy, flax and blueberries

Millet rice oatbran flakes

Musli

+ cherry raisins!

Served with semi skimmed organic milk and xylitol, my milk of choice is soya actually but today it was cows milk.

Yoga AM
Our yoga dvd arrived this morning so I just had to try it out, I did a 30 minute routine which was supposed to aid digestion. It's hard to say if it worked but it felt like it did, I was fairly full when I started and my tummy felt better by the end, not sure if that was just cause time had passed though... will have to test it out after a restaraunt meal!! The dvd looks good though I'm looking forward to trying all the other routines.

Run - Afternoon
I ended up having a good run today! It was going to be a tempo run but my tempo miles ended up not very good tempo but good overall, I beat my old 3 mile time! Yipeee! I didn't even realise how much until I checked the time at the end, I just ran as hard as I could. Mainly thanks to a man on a bike who cheered me on in the first mile when the wind on the bridge felt unbearable and I just felt a bit crap, he put a smile on my face for a good mile or so :-) Here's my stats!

Mile 1 (warm up) 9.51 average HR - 160

Tempo(ish) miles - 3 in 24.33 average HR - 183
Mile 1 - 8.31 (181)
Mile 2 - 8.13 (183)
Mile 3 - 7.47 (187)

Cool down miles 2.39 at 10.03 per mile average HR - 169

Total running = 6.39 miles in 58.25, 9.09 per mile

With my lunch I tried the apple pie nakd bar, Mike and I shared the big one, it felt like good running fuel and didn't make me feel sick whilst I was running so that's a big plus for me! It was really tasty too, similar to the apple cupcakes I make only more healthy! The big bar has two of your five a day crammed into it too... Check out Mike's hand model skills!



It had a similar texture to the berry bar, I liked it more than Mike as it was very appley and he's not the biggest apple fan! I really liked the apple chunks in it and the cinnamon flavour, I can't decide if I prefer this or the berry one... too many choices I think hehe.

Mike has started a blog!! In face we're both blogging sat in bed at the moment haha, anyway go check it out and say hi if you have time! Here it is Fighting Fit. It's similar to mine but he is going to include more fitness articles such as training without much equipment, high intensity methods, strength and combat sport articles. I might be slightly biased but it's definately worth keeping an eye on, he knows his stuff and spends a lot of time researching fitness techniques and the body's energy systems. He writes most of the workouts we do together at home if they aren't a Ross Enamait one that is!

28/02/10

Today ended up being quite a good day work out wise, ended up getting more done than we'd both planned love it when that happens.

AM
Checked max chin-ups and push-ups, can still only do 1 chin-up from dead hang, it's getting frustrating!! I'm trying some new approaches to getting that bit from the bottom sorted out like having Mike give me a little support from the bottom so it's assisted so I can build the strength a bit more gradually, hopefully that will help. I also managed 30 push-ups but I stuck my bum in the air to rest a bit near the end so they don't really count as 30 consecutive ones so I'm going to try those again see if I can do them without the rest.

Did some boxing work on a new guard style I'm trying, like Joshua Clottey's guard.. Did some work with Mike like technical sparring so I was working on blocking and countering his punches and also throwing any combinations he shouted out to his gloves. Mainly working defensively though.
Technical sparring 4 x 2 minute rounds with 30s rest
Mitt work 2 x 2 minute rounds with 30s rest
We hadn't planned on doing any boxing specific work, just the magic 50, another Ross Enamait workout... So we did that too! I used to absolutely HATE this workout cause it's tough but now I love it! I used an 8.5kg dumbell for the lifts.

Magic 50
5 clean each arm
5 swings each arm
10 burpees
x 5 rounds

I completed it in 7.03, annoyingly close to under 7 minutes! I saw the timer was at 6.40 just before I started the last set of burpees so I was trying hard to power through them to come in under 7 but I just didn't quite make it! Maybe next time!

PM
Max push-up re-test got 30 proper ones this time, only just though, really tough, my arms feel like jelly now!
Max plank test managed 2.47 + 17 seconds from my last max test
Neck work

Off to watch Saving Private Ryan, it's on TV and I've never seen it, hope everyone has a great night!

21/02/10

AM
Today I did a variation of workout capacity 101 from Ross Enamait's book infinite intensity for a video (not of me I'm afraid!) and more info from the man himself, see here. My variation is really the same except it swaps chair dips for pull-ups, for two reasons, 1) I usually do this workout with Mike and we'd both be fighting for the pull-up bar if we both did pull-ups and 2) if I had to do 5 pull-ups each round it would take me all day!! Also my medicine ball slams were more like swings as our floorboards would probably not cope with medicine ball slams! Anyway the workout is...

• 5 Chair dips
• 10 Medicine ball slams (12kg)
• 15 Burpees
• 20 Jumping jacks

x 10 rounds in 18.55

This workout might look easy on paper but I promise you it is absolute HELL! My entire body hurt afterwards!!

I've blogged a few times about the caramel apple spice cupcakes from veganomicon, I wasn't sure about posting the recipe but I've seen it posted elsewhere on the web so I'm going to share it here too. The frosting makes these cupcakes really good, it's definately worth making.

Caramel Apple Spice Cupcakes
2 apples
2 tablespoons brown sugar (I use xylitol)
1 tablespoon margerine
1 cup of milk (non-dairy for vegan version)
1 tablespoon of lemon juick
1/3 cup of canola oil (I use applesauce)
3/4 cup sugar (I use xylitol and slightly less than 3/4 cup)
1 teaspoon of grated lemon zest (I leave out)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour (I use plain wholemeal)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Caramel Penuche Frosting
1/2 cup sugar (I use xylitol)
3 tablespoons margerine
1 tablespoon molasses
2 tablespoons powdered milk (I use soy protein powder)
1/3 cup milk (non dairy for vegan version)
pinch of salt
2 1/2 cups of confectioners' sugar (I make my own with xylitol and use less than 2.5 cups)
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 cup toasted nuts to top (I use cashews)

Directions
Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350f or 177c
2. Chop apples into 1/4 inch pieces (leave skin on)
3. Heat sugar and marg in a heavy skillet over medium heat until bubbling
4. Add apples and cook until all liquid has evapourated about 12 minutes
5. In a large bowl mix milk and lemon juice allow to sit for a minute or so
6. Add oil, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla, stir
7. Sift in flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg mix until flour is moistened, don't overmix
8. Fold in apples
9. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full
10. Bake for 20-22 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean

Frosting

1. Combine sugar, margerine, molasses, powdered milk, milk and salt in a pan over medium heat, stir constantly.
2. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly
3. Add vanilla and gradually add confectioners' sugar
4. It should end up thick and fudge like
5. Top cupcakes while the frosting is still hot
6. Top with nuts
7. Enjoy!!

PM
10 Chin-ups
Neck exercises

31/12/09

I did another workout from Ross Enamait's books today,

AM
ICT#5

10 burpees
10 chinnies
10 squats
3 push-ups

amrap (as many rounds as possible) x 20 mins

I did 14 rounds in 20.42, the first 2 rounds I did the intended 10 push-ups but I couldn't keep that up as it's too close to my maximum so switched to 3 per round for the remaining 12. The squats and burpees fried my legs which still haven't forgotten ICT#4...

PM
Did 20 chin-ups over the night in single reps.

27/12/09

I'm going to upload some of my old workouts from the end of last year so I can keep track of the years goals from the start of the year. A lot of the workouts I do at home with my partner come from Ross Enamait's books. Highly suggest checking them!

ICT #4

10 second pull up hold
10 push ups
10 upright band pulls

x 5 rounds

10 burpees
20 lunges
30 squats

x 5 rounds

21.02 mins my legs felt like jelly at the end!!

Finisher
held the maize bag for as long as possible (4.30) could have gone on longer but it wasn't tiring me out so I tried moving it about and dropped it!