Beards, Barbells, and Beer

[DrBdan]

I had to leave work early on Friday to meet a house appraiser so I didn't lift. We're refinancing our mortgage to have some spare cash for home renos.

Sun Dec 7, 2014

Hockey (league)
After last week's game we ended up with 3 guys suspended: 5 games, 3 games, and 2 games respectively. Then two guys couldn't make it so we had 10 skaters, 2 full lines. I was still feeling under the weather but had a pretty good game. I know a few of the guys were dead by the end of the game since they're used to playing with 3 lines.

The game was back and forth with lots of chances at both ends. As the game went on I started feeling worse and in the third period I started feeling nauseous. Right after the game I ran to the bathroom and crapped my brains out. Oh uh, TMI warning.

We played pretty well but ended up losing 7-5. I had two goals and a few other great chances. The goalie robbed me from point blank in the third period with a few minutes left.

Right at the end of the game I was driving to the net and their d-man elbowed me in the head/shoulder and went down hard. I landed right on my tailbone and it fucking killed. By the time I got home my back was really sore and when I put weight on my left leg I'd get a shooting pain right up my leg into my back. In addition to that I still felt nauseous.

I couldn't get comfortable in bed so I got a terrible night's sleep (and I had to get up early) and felt awful on Monday so I took a sick day, so no lifting. My back still really hurt so I didn't think I could have squatted anyway. The amazing thing is that by the end of the day my back felt a hundred times better.

Tues Dec 9, 2014

Hockey (pick-up)
I had guys coming to my house today to do some masonry work so I worked from home. It was nice because I got to sleep in a bit and it was a nice quiet, productive day without the distractions of being in the office.

My back felt even better today which is amazing. It's actually kinda weird how much my back hurt on Sunday night and how by Tuesday afternoon it only felt sore, like after a bunch of heavy squats or deads.

The game was pretty fast paced and I had a goal and a couple assists. On one shift I started two tic-tac-toe plays that resulted in pretty goals. As I've mentioned before I'm trying to be conscious of taking more time with the puck and looking for passes (since my natural tendency is to drive the net and shoot) and it's paying off. I haven't gotten a tonne of assists on my Sunday team but I think that's more because I only have a couple strong players to pass to. On Tuesdays there are lots of good players so I'm able to setup more goals.

Today (Wednesday) I'm working from home again as the masonry work continues so again no lifting. I guess at the very least I could do some push-ups and back work. I should be back in the office tomorrow and then I'll hit the gym on my lunch. It will probably be a lighter day since I'm still not feeling 100%.

 

[DrBdan]

Thurs Dec 11, 2014

C2 rower, dynamic stretching

- Squats
45x8
95x5
135x3
165x2
195x2
225x3
250x2
275x1

Back felt okay. It's amazing how terrible my back felt on Sunday night and Monday morning and how much better it feels today. I wonder if it was swollen and once the swelling went down there was no actual damage. Or magic, probably magic.

- Facepulls: 5x20
- Push-ups: 5x8

 

[DrBdan]

Fri Dec 12, 2014

C2 rower, dynamic stretching, DCSW

- Bench
45x10
45x10
75x8
95x6
115x4
135x5
155x3
185x1
155x8

I'm still under the weather so I was just getting in some work today. The bench I was on was a little wobbly so I didn't want to go heavier than 185.

- Cable rows
32.5x10
50x10
70x10
80x10
85x10

Done.

 

[DrBdan]

Tues Dec 16, 2014

C2 rower, dynamic stretching, DCSW

- Bench
45x10
75x8
95x6
115x4
135x3
165x2
185x1
205x1
175x6

These felt solid. Maybe had one more rep on 175. I was running late today so this is all I had time for. Tomorrow I'll do extra upper back work after squatting.

 

[DrBdan]

Tues Dec 16, 2014

Hockey (Pick-up)
Good fast-paced game last night. I clicked well with my one winger who I rarely play with (since the teams are shuffled every week) and we had a lot of chances. The goalie played well so we only had one goal each but could have had a few more. Both teams had a lot of chances and the goalies played well so it ended up being a fairly low scoring (i.e. neither team broke double digits, which is low for a pick-up game with only moderate effort on defense at best).

Having not squatted on Monday my legs felt really fresh which is nice. I'm going to re-examine my routine for the New Year but I'm not sure that I can get away from squatting on Mondays because then it means doing squats/deads on Wed/Thurs/Fri. We'll see.

 

[DrBdan]

Wed Dec 17, 2014

C2 rower, dynamic stretching

- Squats
45x8
95x5
135x3
165x2
195x2
225x1
255x1
285x1
315x1
335x1
275x3

Not bad but I think I'll be hard pressed to squeeze out a PR next week (would need to hit at least 360x1).

- Inverted rows: 4x12, 11

 

[DrBdan]

Thurs Dec 18, 2014

C2 rower, dynamic stretching, DCSW

- Bench
45x10
75x8
95x6
115x4
135x2
155x1
175x1
195x2
175x5
155x8

On the second rep of 195 my elbow flared and I got totally out of the groove. If I could maintain good form I think I could hit 3 or 4 reps but that's always a big "if" when I get up to 195+ lb.

- DB rows
25x10
50x10
80x10
80x10
80x10

 

[NurseKnuckles]

A PR would be fantastic. Good luck, Doc.

Its been a long time since I've tested my sq 1RM. Ive hit a lot of rep PRs. But my body weight has fluctuated so much during the past few months that its hard to say where I'm at right now. I'm supposed to hit 295 for a triple on Saturday so that will give me a good idea. I did 295 for 5 quick singles (like 15-20 sec. racks) and they were really easy.

 

[DrBdan]

Thanks NK. A PR would be great. I feel like between being sick a couple times and working from home a bunch (and thus not lifting those days) I've been treading water all Fall. Even a small PR would be nice so I can see a bit of progress. Sounds like you've been making good progress.

Looking back through my log I found this post from late July:

I should also note that my weight has been stuck around 208-209 since late June as I've had too many reasons to drink beer and/or eat junk food. I'm hoping to clean up my diet again and hopefully hit 205 in a few weeks.

After that my next goal is to fit into my "European fit" (i.e. skinny fit) suit for a wedding I have at the end of September. I'll definitely need to be under 200 for that, maybe 195. That might be a bit ambitious since I have my wife's b-day, my anniversary, and my own b-day coming up between now and the wedding. I'll have to eat clean on most days and keep the indulgences to the special days.

I got my weight down to just under 205 by late August but didn't break 200 and wasn't able to fit into the new(er) suit. Over Oct-Nov my weight actually weight back up to 208-210 and I think I'm sitting around 205-206 right now.

 

[DrBdan]

I'm pretty tired today (stupidly stayed up late to watch the finale of The Fall, great show) so I just warmed up and the did limber eleven and simple six.

Over the holidays I think I'll go back through my log and do a recap of the year. I've never gone back through an entire year so I think it might be useful.

 

[DrBdan]

Sun Dec 21, 2014

Hockey (league)
We were playing the first place team last night and had a short bench but they were also missing one of their top players. We were able to focus on their other top player and mostly shut him down and cruised to a solid 7-2 win. Our regular goalie was on vacation and the guy that subbed in was solid so that helped too.

I had a good game, with a goal and two assists. It was a really fun game, there was only one penalty and no chirping between the teams or anything rough. A nice game to have before the holidays. We have no game next weekend and are back at it on Jan 4.

A summary of the season so far: We went 1-4 in our first 5 games and got bumped down a division. We went 3-1-1 in that division and got bumped back up and are 2-1-1 since then. This puts us at 6-6-2 and we are in 6th place out of 8 team. However everyone is really bunched together and the first place team only has 17 points. With a few more wins in January we can easily jump up a few spots.

 

[DrBdan]

Mon Dec 22, 2014

C2 rower, dynamic stretching, DCSW

- Bench
45x10
65x8
85x6
105x4
125x2
145x1
165x1
185x1
205x1
205x1
205x1

My plan was to see how 205x1 felt. If it felt like I could have hit a triple I was going to try for 225. It didn't feel very strong, probably a shaky double, so I did 3 singles with about 60 seconds rest instead. So no PR but I'm feeling good heading into the new year.

- DB Rows
25x10
60x10
85x10
85x10
85x10

 

[DrBdan]

Hi log, I haven't forgotten about you!

Sun Jan 4, 2015

Hockey (league)
First game after the break and it definitely showed. I didn't do anything active over the holidays and I don't think much of my team did either. We were pretty flat and missing some skaters but the other team had good jump and just out-worked us, winning 4-1. It probably didn't help that I spent 7 hours in a car driving back from Montreal on Sunday afternoon before the game.

I had to drop back to defense and I played pretty well, only on the ice for one goal against. This game again showed that I should play center because then I can help out on defense and it's easier to generate offense. Unfortunately we were missing a lot of d-men so I had to drop back.

Tues Jan 6, 2015

Hockey (pick-up)
We had two full benches and a handful of the better players returned last night which made for a pretty fast paced game. I had a pretty good game and wasn't totally gassed so I think driving back from Montreal on Sunday definitely affected my legs.

My team had a couple puck hogs but luckily I ended up on another line with two guys who play hard and pass a lot. I had two goals and a few assists, overall I think my line had 5 or 6 goals and we didn't let in many goals.

 

[DrBdan]

Wed Jan 7, 2015

C2 rower, dynamic stretching

- Squats
45x8
95x5
135x3
165x3
185x3
205x3
225x3
245x3

- Bench
45x10
75x8
95x6
115x4
135x5
155x5

- DB rows
25x10
50x1
75x8
75x8

Just getting back into it. Hopefully DOMS won't be too bad tomorrow.

 

[DrBdan]

Beer update part 1: I went to Montreal over the holidays and stopped in at the Dieu du Ciel brew pub for a few pints. I think they had 17 brews on tap and I had the following:

- Saison du Noel: This is a new beer just brewed for the first time in December 2014. Don't let the name fool you, it's not a saison-style beer. They say it's a "season beer" which I take to mean a winter beer aka winter warmer. It was definitely that style: malty and sweet with tastes of plums and raisins. A very Belgian style beer. Good for the style but not my favourite though my wife loved it.

- Revenante: This is a smoked porter and boy was it smoked. It takes like you took a dark chocolate porter and left it in a smokehouse for a month, making it smokey and dry with a mildly bitter aftertaste. I liked it, my wife hated it.

- Premiere Neige: This is a wit (wheat) beer with aniseed and nutmeg. Usually wit beers are flavoured with things like coriander and orange peel which gives them a light Summer-y flavour. The aniseed and nutmeg were interesting and gave it a winter-y feel while still being fairly light.

more beer up next...

 

[DrBdan]

Beer update part 2: Before I left Montreal I stopped by an IGA grocery store (beer in grocery stores, awesome!) and picked up some 6 packs of Dieu du Ciel:

Route de epices (Spice Route): This is a peppercorn rye beer. I tried one in our hotel room and it was tasty. It's a smooth malty beer and the peppercorns give it an interestingly spicy finish.

Aphrodisiaque (Aphrodite): A cocoa vanilla stout that is well-balanced and very drinkable. I've had this on tap twice in Toronto and it's delicious. The cocoa and vanilla are perfectly balanced and the finish is slightly bitter from hops and dark chocolate. Just so good.

Rescousse (Rescue): An altbier. I haven't tried it but apparently it's malty and hoppy. A portion of the profits from the sale of the beer goes to a wildlife preservation organizition which works to rescue endangered animals in Quebec.

Blanche du Paradis (Paradise white): This sounds like a standard wheat beer which I expect to be tasty but not ground-breaking. I'll have to see how this stands up against Blanche de Chambly, a wheat beer made by Unibroue (another Quebec brewery).

Disco Soleil: An IPA brewed with kumquats. I don't really know what to expect but I assume it will be bitter and hoppy.

 

[DrBdan]

Thurs Jan 8, 2015

Conditioning (LISS)

- C2 rower: 12 minutes
- Treadmill: 18 minutes

A whopping 30 minutes! HR around 140-145 BPM.

 

[DrBdan]

Here's the program that I'm going to run:

Sunday
Hockey

Monday
Squats (light)
Bench (volume)
Rows

Tuesday
Mobility work, Hockey

Wednesday
Deadlift Singles
Bench (light)
Rows or other upper back work

Thursday
Conditioning (LISS)

Friday
Squats (heavy)
Bench (heavy)
Rows

Saturday
Rest

I want to do light squats on Monday because having heavy squats sandwiched between two days of hockey is pretty killer. I'm going to alternate 3x5 @ 85% and 3x3 @ 90% of a training max on Fridays, adding 5 lb every two weeks. Light squats will start with 3x5@50% on Monday and I'll increase the volume or intensity as I see fit.

For bench I'm going to use the Texas Method progression, probably rotating through 1x3, 2x2, and 3x1 on Friday. I'll probably go up 5 lb/week to start and once Monday starts becoming a grind I'll break out the ol' ankle weights and do a slower progression.

Deadlifts will be singles and I'll keep the volume and intensity low to start. Depending on how timing works out I might swap the light bench day or push-ups instead so I can super-set them with deadlifts.

Any thoughts are appreciated.

 

[DrBdan]

Fri Jan 9, 2015

C2 rower, dynamic stretching

- Squats
45x8
95x5
135x3
165x3
185x3
225x3
255x2
285x1

Switched back to high bar today and it felt good. I never felt like I really nailed down the low bar rack position and high bar feels so much more natural. 255 and 285 were a bit uncomfortable but I think it's just a matter of getting used to have the weight up on my traps again. Reps were smooth.

- Bench
45x10
75x8
95x6
115x4
135x5
155x3
185x1

Solid.

- Inverted rows: 5x10.

Felt good today. It was easy to get lots of sleep over the holidays and that trend has continued into the new year. Good stuff.

 

[DrBdan]

Sun Jan 11, 2015

Hockey (league)
Crappy game last night. The other team was solid all the way through, no superstars but they all played well positionally and played well together. It really highlighted the terrible positional play of our team. We also had some issues as the game went on with people taking long shifts which was compounded by the timekeeper letting the clock run for 5-10 seconds after the whistle.

I also had to drop back to D because we had 14 skaters and everyone else refused to drop back and that always hurts our offense. I clicked well will one of the centers who plays well positionally because I was able to hit him with good breakout passes but too many guys don't come back on defense or came too far back and stood near the net. Frustrating. The final score was 6-2 and I was actually +1 myself but I prefer to win or at least keep it close.