BJJ, Strength & Air Traffic Control

Nice spreadsheet sobchak! When I'm dieting, I've found the easiest way to track the macronutrients is on fatsecret.com. They have pretty much everything there, you just put in what you ate, even if it was from a restaurant...
 
16Jan12

Deadlift
245x5
285x5
320x7

RDLs
135x10
145x10
145x10
145x10

DB Side Bends
95x10
100x10

Ab Wheel from Knees
15

Notes

-This was actually fine.MY PR with 320 is 9 reps but I have lost a lot of strength with the weight loss over my last couple of dumbass dieting weeks. So while I haven't gotten back to where I was quite yet, I am very happy that I could handle this weight for this amount of reps, at this stage.

Not sure if I should drop the training max any more. Wendler always said it never hurts to start out light, so maybe another 10-20lbs just to be safe.

-Everything else was good. No BJJ tonight because I have a ton, TON of studying to do for a test tomorrow.
 
18Jan12

Close-Grip Bench
135x5
175x5
185x3
195x3
215x3
225x1

Dips
10
+25x10
+25x10
+25x10

Cable Rows
195x9
180x10
165x10
150x10

DB Side Raises
40x10
35x10
30x10

Notes

-Spotter touched the bar with 225 for 3 reps so I'm counting it only as one clean rep. I felt a little weak anyway but still fucking obnoxious spotters in LA fitness. I haven't got one clean spot yet since being here.

BJJ

Did movement drills, takedown drills then just 7-minute rounds in prep for a tournament the gym is competing in this weekend. Went with a purple belt, several blue belts, a huge (240lb) white belt and a teen white belt. Great, great rolling. My intensity has picked up a ton since starting here, and can already tell a big difference in my game. I'm faster, more aggressive and assertive with everything. I tapped everyone I went with besides the purple belt, though our match was very competitive, close and I maintained good positions a lot of the time.

On the downside, I got rolled over my head/neck a very bad way and heard several cracks/crunches. It doesn't hurt now but I'm dreading the morning. Also had someone put their knee down on my fingers so they hurt as well. Ouchies

Getting especially good taking people's backs. The bigger the guy, the more important I'm realizing it is to take the back or dominant position ASAP and not play my damn open guard game. It has a time and place, and that time and place is for when I'm recovering from a scramble off my back. Other than that, I'm not going to be doing that shit anymore. It's held my game back big time and is not conducive to either self-defense OR sport BJJ.
 
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Sorry if you've mentioned it already but are you doing 5/3/1?
 
Sorry if you've mentioned it already but are you doing 5/3/1?

Oh! I should have put that in the first post. Yeah, I'm doing 5/3/1 for squat and deadlift, and the Westside template for bench.
 
Oh! I should have put that in the first post. Yeah, I'm doing 5/3/1 for squat and deadlift, and the Westside template for bench.

Sweet. Steve wants me to use Westside for my bench and stick with 5/3/1 for everything else. How is it working out for you?
 
Getting especially good taking people's backs. The bigger the guy, the more important I'm realizing it is to take the back or dominant position ASAP and not play my damn open guard game. It has a time and place, and that time and place is for when I'm recovering from a scramble off my back. Other than that, I'm not going to be doing that shit anymore. It's held my game back big time and is not conducive to either self-defense OR sport BJJ.

Awesome. I think this is critical for smaller guys. Almost everybody at my gym is over 200 lbs, and I definitely think it has affected my game.

It's good to see you are rolling more intense too...I know everyone has a hard-on for flow rolling, but if you look at the best wrestlers in the world (an old sport, and more "evolved" if you know what I mean) they go hard in practice, everyday.
 
Sweet. Steve wants me to use Westside for my bench and stick with 5/3/1 for everything else. How is it working out for you?

Great minds think alike. 5/3/1 never netted me any gains on my bench, ever. It was very frustrating. I did however work up to my PR of 275 paused, using the Westside method. When I had the best success with it, I was eating everything in sight and rotating out normal bench press, close grip bench, floor press and close grip floor press as my Max Effort lifts. I also used the repeated effort method instead of Dynamic Effort days. Something like 50% for 12-18 reps, 3 sets across.

It worked for me then, so I'm trying to make it work again.
 
Nice spreadsheet sobchak! When I'm dieting, I've found the easiest way to track the macronutrients is on fatsecret.com. They have pretty much everything there, you just put in what you ate, even if it was from a restaurant...

Thanks. Fatsecret, eh? Pfff. Poppy****!

Good work with the ironstuffs, Snitz. That's all that really matters.
 
20Jan11

5/5/5+

Squat
195x5
225x5
255x10
Boring But Big
145x10
135x10
135x10

Assistance
Hanging Leg Raises
15

Notes

-New log format for easy programming recognition.

-I dropped the training max by a bit, and 255x10 was a ballsy target I felt like. Surprisingly I was able to nail it but don't think there was anything left in the tank.

-Boring But Big fucking kills when squatting.

BJJ (no-gi)

Fundamentals class taught by a purple belt. This guy is real good by the way; about my weight but well over 6'0, he just took like 3 gold medals home from a tournament last weekend and is competing again tomorrow.

Anyway, we went over basic escapes from rear mount. A couple of different options including falling to the side so that the choking/attacking arm is on top, so as to not make the choke any tighter. One escape I'd never seen was cool but only for when they have hooks but not arms. Drilled the 3-4 escapes a lot.

Rolling; went with a white belt heavyweight (~230lbs) and tore him apart. From the feet I got a front headlock, snapped down to knees, took the back and arm bar in like 15 seconds. The rest of the match was more of the same; taking the back, chokes/arm bars, and or triangles from closed guard.
Next went with a well-built blue belt a little bigger than me; from the feet again, and this match was VERY competitive. Tons of movement from both of us, awesome stylistic transitions and attacks. I tapped him with a rolling toehold once, and we had a very close match the rest of the time.
Lastly went with the other guy, smaller but either a high white or low blue. Picked him apart in the same way as the heavy weight, with most of the same things.

Lots and lots of attacking the back and taking the back tonight. I felt on fire, fast, strong, aggressive and competent. Being no-gi really made my decisions easier because there were less arbitrary grips and things to go for; just worked on my strong suits to improve them, with the same mindset of being on top more and being aggressive. I often will arm drag or head lock, spin to the back, get arm control and arm bar from there. Either that or work on chokes, they roll and I take mount. My chokes are low-percentage right now but my arm bars from the back are good. If they roll into my guard from an arm bar attack, I've been working a triangle transition too.

At one point in someone's half guard, they got to their side so I worked on a darce like Corrosion had been saying but was unable to get it locked in. I'm doing something wrong. Gotta look up vids on this and identify how to tweak it because it is, like he said, always there.

Good training!
 
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Awesome. I think this is critical for smaller guys. Almost everybody at my gym is over 200 lbs, and I definitely think it has affected my game.

It's good to see you are rolling more intense too...I know everyone has a hard-on for flow rolling, but if you look at the best wrestlers in the world (an old sport, and more "evolved" if you know what I mean) they go hard in practice, everyday.

Oh yeah. I told my gf later that night about my rolling and how confidence-boosting it is to really work over a super-heavy weight. Especially a 4-stripe white, then you consider how easy a non-BJJ person would be on the ground.

This is true about going hard intense, I definitely agree. It's at a cost, however. Fingers are fucked up again, neck is sore all over, bruise and cuts all over me. Whatever, Sparta!!!

Thanks. Fatsecret, eh? Pfff. Poppy****!

Good work with the ironstuffs, Snitz. That's all that really matters.

Thanks dude. Well, that and macronutrient balancing ;) No but I really think it's working! I mean it's been less than 2 week so still wayy too early to tell, but I really think I'm losing fat and gaining muscle. After 12 weeks I'll post progress pics to be sure. The flaming will be intense I'm sure.

How often do you cheat, by the way? I'm thinking about making a giant, sugar-free cheesecake on Sunday.

This nutritionist's blog I've been reading was the inspiration:

6404652143_96957edf23_b.jpg
 
Thanks dude. Well, that and macronutrient balancing ;) No but I really think it's working! I mean it's been less than 2 week so still wayy too early to tell, but I really think I'm losing fat and gaining muscle. After 12 weeks I'll post progress pics to be sure. The flaming will be intense I'm sure.

How often do you cheat, by the way? I'm thinking about making a giant, sugar-free cheesecake on Sunday.

This nutritionist's blog I've been reading was the inspiration:

6404652143_96957edf23_b.jpg

You can feel it when you're eating right, for sure.

Hey, no one's gonna flame you if you're ript and jakt, so keep twerkin hard! ;)
What percentages are you using for your macros? And when you're doing WS4SB, do you only focus on one pressing movement per month? I was thinking of doing WS4SB, but I hate the idea of only focusing on bench or SOHP for a whole month. I suppose I could just use one as high volume assistance work, but ferk..

As for me, I cheat too often. My motivation is at like 70%, but I'm really going to ramp it up soon. I only intend to cheat on one meal per week, after deadlifts. However, I cheated on Wednesday because a buddy I never get to hang out with invited me out to Old Chicago, and I'm not going to not try some beers. And of course, I was starving when I got there, so I had a meaty calzone and some pizza rolls. I ate mostly cleanly yesterday, but now I'm sick as a goddamn dog, so I've been eating whatever today, and probably will tomorrow. I feel like I need calories to beat this lungdump virus. I even skipped presses today. :eek:

P.S. GIVE ME THE GODDAMN CHEESECAKE LINK!

P.P.S. Post some Tabata shit to motivate me to start sprinting again.
 
22Jan12

Repeated Effort

DB Incline Bench
65'sx10
65'sx10
65'sx12
65'sx10

A1

Skullcrushers
70x10
70x10
70x10
70x10
60x10

A2

Weighted Chins
BWx5
+80x6 (PR + Rep PR)
+65x6
+55x6
+45x6
BWx15

Notes

-Felt a little weak and sleepy overall. Didn't take any stimulants because I think they may have been interfering with sleep lately. Breathing has been labored at night as well so sleep all this week was 4-6 hours per night.

-Got a video of the chin PR but the phone was angled too low, all you see is my legs rising up and down. I was very surprised to nail 15 bodyweight chins after all of the work sets. I think that must mean I'm good for around 20 chins right now, which would be a lifetime goal and PR met! Next Repeated Effort day, I'll start off with an all-out chin set to see. Question for people though, does it count any less if I'm using the slightly angled, rubber-coated chin up bars seen at LA Fitness? They lack a proper power rack with a chin up bar.

-Didn't mention but I got a meningitis shot earlier this week. It was in my left deltoid and for 3 days or so it was very very painful in the injection site. Went away now though, just thought I'd mention. Not feeling any illness symptoms from the shot so that is good.

BJJ

Big class tonight for a Sunday; a couple of purple belts, several female blues and several whites. We worked a guard pull from the feet right into a sweep over the shoulder. Drilled and drilled, didn't click right away but felt okay. Then rolled with just about everyone. One thing I took away was a half guard pass one of the purples showed me; from your o's half guard, plant your right (trapped) foot flat up high by his left shoulder. Put your left foot in the 'prying' position on his right thigh. Walk forward, putting all of your weight on top of him until his half guard opens. Cross your ankles, and angle out to the left to pass. He swears by it and got me with it several times, so I will def put it into my non-existent half guard game.
 
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23Jan12

3/3/3+

Deadlift
250x3
285x3
325x8

Boring But Big

RDL
155x10
155x10
155x10
155x10

A1

Ab Wheel
20

Notes

-Not a bad showing considering I'm still coming back from my little starvation vacation.

-No BJJ tonight due to homework and studying :(
 
I am really jealous of how many higher ranked females you have at your school. I was the only one that was consistently training at mine. Girls would pop in every now and then but typically never returned. Do you notice BJJ is more popular there?
 
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