Strength

15 min of Overhead Squat, working up to a heavy triple. I got up to 85lb and probably could have kept going but ran out of time.

Skills

This was supposed to be a Jump Rope tabata, but I can’t jump so I subbed in a bunch of stuff:

Two rounds through of:

• Max Cals on Air Bike
• Slamballs
• Goblet Squats with Slamball
• Russian Twists with Slamball

I used a 20lb slamball. I didn’t count the reps, but I got through about 12 slams, 12-13 squats, and 24-26 twists.

WOD

AMRAP. 4 rounds of:

With 2:00 on the clock:

• 40m OH Walking Lunge Steps
• Remaining time: max cals on the air bike

Rest 1:00 between rounds.

Bonus: Right at the end of the 4th round (at min. 11), complete 30 seconds of max slam balls. Each slam ball counts as 5 cals.

I got 24 cals on the air bike and 13 slam balls .

Another glorious OMK is in the books. Highlights from the weekend:

• Darts and credit card roulette for spin-the-wheel on Friday = 4 hours of sleep
• First point of Saturday - we have 4 players there on time
• Pool(tub) of shame
• Gooch wears a $90 shark wrestling singlet
• Games got rained out around noon on Sat
• Circling the wagons, playing dice and drinking, car-swapping relay races
• Front seat must be naked
• Day drinking and pizza box at Mike’s
• No one is allowed to take off clothes when they shower
• Dinner with Seth & Jennie
• Anti-thumper at Wolff’s
• After-party at Liz’s mom’s house
• First game on sunday - opponents warm up for half an hour, we win 13-4
• Tom Kirby’s 15-year-old son Jack picks up with us for the day. He’s pretty good for being 15.
• Second game - we fall behind pretty hard, rally the troups, eke out a win
• I throw Dana a terrible floaty huck, do my penance by drinking a sip from the pool of shame
• Squirt-gun shootout with a 4-year-old
• Semis - game is very upwind/downwind, we can’t catch a disc in the endzone to save our lives, lose 13-9
• Last point of semis: I catch a nice half-field throw from Brown, dish it, drop the next pass. Handler picks up, I handblock his hammer, cut to the endzone. Brown throws to my S-cut, it gets Ded, I lay out a million feet to catch it. Rush to stand up and throw the goal, get footblocked. About 30 seconds of my highest highs and lowest lows for the day.
• I threw and caught at least 1 Rochester each
• Post-tourney burgers at Jumping Jacks, grilling at Liz’s mom’s, home by 8pm

Bears finish together

6 games over 3 days at the US Open. We did really well, winning our pool (despite a last-game loss to Polar Bears) and then losing a close game to Slow in the semis. Personally, I wasn’t at the top of my game because my toe was killing me, but it actually got better throughout the weekend and I played my best game against Slow. I even got a shoutout after games on Saturday for continuing to cut hard even late in the day/tournament.

Besides the ultimate, I had a lot of fun hanging out with the team. We drank beer, went swimming in the ocean, played games, watched ultimate, and enjoyed each others company. It was a great start to the season.

Low-key summer league game. I wasn’t gonna go but decided it’s good to move around some. Ended up being great weather and the ideal amount of running. Even my messed up toenail wasn’t a problem (good to know for this weekend).

Gentle 20min bike ride along the sound, then some foam rolling.

Two long, hot days of ultimate with not many subs. The D line guys were practically savage all weekend, especially Saturday. DJ left halfway into the second game, so the four of us (Lucas, Billy YoungJo, and I) played every D point after that. Occaisionally one or two others would sub in and help out, but that was basically it. On top of that, I did a bad job taking care of myself (not enough water, salt and sunblock, not enough sleep and food the day before). In one of the very last points of the fourth game, I cramped up super-hard (both hamstrings and a calf) and had to lie on the ground for 10 min before I could get up again. Thankfully the game ended and we were done for the day.

On Sunday, I took extra care to eat and drink a lot (I also ice-showered the night before), and felt way better. We were still low on numbers, but DJ returned and John G’s hamstring felt better so he played a few points. Despite playing the whole previous day, I felt less tired after Sunday than I did after Saturday. The caffeine and electrolyte pills probably helped too.

Game-wise, I guess I played well. I’m not happy about my lack of forced Ds and how tired I felt, but its hard to compare that to a normal game where I’ll have proper subs. I didn’t throw many turnovers, which is great for me, but I did make several fatigue-induced mistakes (not helping out on a few discs, getting beat upline, dropping two discs that I had my hands on, some throwaways). Then again, I played solid defense the vast majority of the time. Even in the last game, I stuck close to my guy a lot and ran a few nice switches with Billy. I guess my main problem was summoning the will to cut hard after a turn, esp late in the day. On the points where I forced myself to go hard, we usually did well and scored quickly. On the points where I was too tired, it was hard to make things happen. I gained a lot of respect for the other guys on the line (esp Billy) and their nonstop effort after turns.

I picked up a few minor injuries (a bruise under my big toe nail, some soreness in my tendons), but my tendonitis doesnt seem to be bothering me today. I hope it still feels good after US Open next week, and continues to hold throughout the season.

Played a close game against Alex Morrone’s team. We started off slow but came back at the end to win it 16-14. I played an ok amount at first, but then played most of the last few points to bring us back on top and take the win.

Straight from there, drove to Porcfest for two days of camping, LBRY and freedom.

Strength / Skill Work

4 rounds of:

• 5 Overhead Squats, building to 75lb
• 8/side Dead Bugs

WOD

For Time (9:00 cap)

• 12-9-6-9-12 Overhead Squats
• 30 Bicycle Kicks (15/side) after each set of squats

I just used a 45lb bar for the squats, but probably should have gone heavier. I went of my calculated 1RM on the squats, but it was probably somewhat old and I’ve gotten stronger since then.

Gymnastics

Support Holds On Box (5 x 30sec)

Arms fully locked out, pits of elbows forward, shoulder blades pulled back and down. Keep torso upright, stay tight. Rest 30 seconds between efforts.

Push Ups (4 x 8)

2 second hold at top (hollow position) and at the bottom. Rest 30 seconds between sets

Arch Hold With PVC (4 sets for max time)

Rest as needed between efforts.

Box Dips (Foot Assisted) (3 x 10)

Use feet to help with the movement so as not to overload the shoulder. Elbows stay tight to body, chest upright, tight core. Rest 30 seconds between sets.

Squat Holds (5 x 30-60sec hold)

This is an active hold, not a stretch. Perform an air squat and hold the bottom. Fight for upright torso position. Rest as long as you were able to hold.

90 min of goalty at Miriam’s going-away party. We played double-goal goalty for the first time. It was fun, though I prefer single-goal because its encourages better defense. With two goals, you expect to get scored on so you hang back to protect against the fast break on the way back. So you don’t always sprint to get back and protect your goal. Besides that, it was a great time.

Strength / Skill Work

5 rounds of:

• 5 Back Squats @ 70% 1RM
• 8 Barbell Bicep Curls

My 1RM is never really that accurate. I did my first set at 155lb, then bumped it up to 165lb for the rest. Curls were 55lb .

WOD

4 Rounds for Time (8:00 Time Cap)

• 15 Wall Balls @ 20lb
• 10 KB Swings @ 53lb
• 10 Chin Ups (or 5 Ring Muscle Ups)

I came very close to finishing it all in 8 min, but missed by a bit. I got through all the wall balls and 4 swings on the last round before time ran out. The chin ups were pretty tough. I think I kept putting my hands too wide on the bar to facilitate kipping, but then I didn’t get a good enough grip on it. I also tried out these new grips that they had at the gym to keep my calluses from ripping, but that made it harder to hold onto the kettlebell and the wall ball.

Strength

6 rounds of Snatch Complex. Start a round every 90 seconds. One round is:

• Lift Off
• Snatch Pull
• Snatch High Pull
• Power Snatch

I started with 65lb and went up to 75lb halfway through. The goal was to focus on form, not get a high weight. I still have trouble with the bar following the correct path on the way up (not hitting my knees, touching my thighs).

Abs

Tabata Abs. Two rounds of:

• AbMat Sit-ups
• Tuck Ups
• Russian Twists @ 25lb
• Bicycle Kicks

My numbers were 16,16,26,38,13,13,20,20 for a total of 162 reps .

WOD

4 rounds of:

• 10 Total DB Snatches @ 40lb
• 6cals on the assault bike (subbed for 8 10m Line Touches)
• 8 Slam Balls @ 20lb
• max reps Russian Twists w/ Slam Ball

You have 1:30 to do each round. Your score is the number of Russian Twists you get through. Rest 1:30 between rounds.

I started with a 35lb DB, but went up to 40lb after the first round because I got a lot of twists in. My numbers were 27,20,20,0 . The bike on the last round really killed me. I biked super slow and used up all my time. I just finished the slam balls as time expired.

Gymnastics

I missed two weeks of the gymnastics program, so I’m doing week 2’s workouts now. I didn’t do everything because I was tired, but I got in

• 3x6 Slow Pushups (3 seconds down, 3 seconds up)
• 3x10 Squats with Feet Together
• 4x20sec Forward Leaning Hold

7 games across 2 days at Windmill. Played the Portuguese and Polish nationals teams, club teams from all over Europe, a team from Israel, and one US-ish pickup team. We were very solid for a pickup team, but were inconsistent and plagued with injuries. Finished 17th with a 4-4 record - a lot of close losses and hard-fought games.

Personal highlights include a big layout D, several nice hucks, solid handling and cutting all around, and some good lessons learned about leadership (mostly: if the team expects you to lead, you have to lead. Even if you like to keep it loose, you are in charge and need to provide direction)

The best part of windmill is, or course, the people. Our whole team was talented, extremely friendly and nice. The Portuguese team was awesome (my fav game, I think) and I saw a bunch of BDP friends. I also made some new friends that I hope to see again sometime. Maybe windmill ‘17?

An hour of squash with Diana and her mom. I’m clearly getting better - won about half the games.

• 3x3x10sec Knee Elevated Handstand Hold with 5sec rest between each rep. Goal is quality overhead position. Rest 60 secs between sets.
• 3x15 Reverse Crunches. The lighter the object you hold on to, the better. Crunch in as far as possible without momentum. Rest 30 seconds between sets.
• 4x10/leg Reverse Lunges. Drive through the heel. Rest 30 seconds between sets.
• 4x10/side Alternating Arm/Leg Arch Hold. Solid squeeze in each position. Rest no more than 60 seconds between sets.
• 3x10 Overhead Plate Shrugs. Plate fully locked out, shrug shoulders up to ears. Rest 30 seconds between sets.
• Tabata Air Squats: score is round with least amount of reps.

Strength / Skill Work

• 3x16 Suitcase Walking Lunge Step @ 35,40,45lb
• Butterfly Pullup work. I’m basically there, just need to get the tempo and leg movement down so I can do them repeatedly without swinging wildly.

WOD

4 Rounds For Time (17min Cap)

• 20 Pullups
• 20 Goblet Squats @ 30lb
• 10cal Assault Bike (subbed for 40 double-unders)

I did kipping pullups for the first two rounds, but completely tore up my hands in the process. So I switched to SVPUs for the last two rounds. I finished the workout in 13:59

Gymnastics

• 3x8 Supine-grip Ring Rows: Slow pull (no snaking or jerking) with a 2 second hold at the top. Rest 60 seconds between sets.
• 5x60sec Bottom-of-Squat Hold: Rest as long as you were able to hold. Fight for upright torso position.
• 5x Chin-over-bar Hold for max time: Stay hollow at the top, use a band only if absolutely necessary. Rest as needed between efforts.
• 4x10 per side One-Legged Box Squats: No rest, just switch sides.
• 4x30-60sec Plank on Elbows

The gymnastics work was pretty brutal today because it was almost exactly the same thing we did during the WOD. I couldn’t even do the chin-over-bar hangs because my hands were dead. The ring rows were really hard as well. The rest of the workout was decent. I killed squat holds and did fairly well on box squats (though I didn’t know the focus was on going slow and balancing). I hit 45sec on each plank.

Played 2v2 mini with Ross, Diana and Miriam. Started off strong, but got tired and lost the last 4 games straight. Finished with some core work: 4x15sec bridge, 60sec super plank, 30sec side plank each side. Supper club at Temple Grill.

Strength

20:00min of Clean and Jerk. Build up to a heavy single.

I topped out at 185lb , which basically ties my PR. I hit the clean on 190, but missed the jerk (twice). Again, same as last time.

WOD

10-8-6-4-2 reps of

• Power Clean & Jerk @ 115lb
• Knees to Elbows

I finished in 9:13 , just shy of the 10min cap.

Gymnastics

• 3x5 Push-ups: 3sec descent and a 5sec hollow hold at the top, actively pushing into the ground. Rest 60 seconds between sets.
• 3x8 Wall Squats: slow, controlled descent; 2 second hold at bottom. Fight for good position. Rest 60 seconds between sets.
• 5x30sec Support Holds. Arms fully locked out, pits of elbows forward, shoulder blades pulled back and down. Keep torso upright, stay tight. Rest 30 seconds between sets.
• 4x Arch Holds for max time. Rest as needed between efforts.
• 2-4min Hollow Hold (break up into multiple sets as needed).

Today was the first day of the 6-week gymnastic basics program. It’s a lot of core work and static holds, with a focus on form and quality reps. It was all bodyweight stuff, but some of the movements were quite challenging. The wall squats really hit my shoulders hard. The hollow hold also killed me. I did 40 seconds for my first set, then dropped to 15 and even 10 seconds for the next few sets. I just barely made it past 2 min before giving up.

Strength/Skill Work

4 rounds of:

• 6 RLESS per leg with 60lb dumbbells
• 8 Tricep Kickbacks per arm with a 10lb dumbbell

WOD

One

6:00 AMRAP

• 10 Wall Balls @ 20lb
• 10 Push Ups
• 8cal on the assault bike (subbed for 50 Jump Rope Singles)

Got 3 rounds + 17 reps . Did the 3rd and 4th set of pushups on my knees.

Rest 3:00 between WODs

Two

6:00 AMRAP

• 10 Goblet Squats @ 30lb
• 5 Renegade Rows @ 15lb dumbbells
• 8cal assault bike (subbed for 50 Jump Rope Singles)

Got exactly 3 rounds

Played a bunch of mini with team topscore. Probably played for an hour at least. Before playing, did some focussed throwing. Afterwards hucked for ~20 min. Gonna change my pull form to be more like Cenzo’s: wind up hard, pause, unwind. Focus on loading all your muscles, then releasing them one by one. Probably start pulling from my right leg too.

Had a great time at Beach Nationals with Weekend with Bernie. Everyone on the team were Youngbloods players, except me and Max. The team was a lot of fun, both on and off the field. We came in seeded 15th but finished 10th. Personally, I played really well on Saturday. I only had two turns, both against Amp in our crossover game. One was a drop, one was a huck that went just a bit too far. Other than that, my throws were on point and my D was very solid. The game against Amp was actually my best game, with lots of nice breaks and good cutting.

On Sunday, I played really bad. I threw a bunch of turns, was not focused on D, and was all around pretty meh. Maybe staying up all night raging doesn’t make you better at sports?