TacticalBarbell.com

2024 BLOCK 1

Running Fighter-Bangkok/Black (8 Weeks)
Week 1/Day 1
Mainlifts

OHP-100 lbs (3x5)
-Failed on last set, last rep. Rest for 1 min., then hit a double to compensate

High Bar Back Squat-180 lbs (3x5)
-Went smoothly; legs and guts felt fine.

Deadlift-215 lbs (1x5)
-Went well, no soreness in stomach. Doing one (1) working set for now, however might up the working sets for next blocks. Debating on focusing on deadlift this year, to see how far I can get to my end goal of 400 lb. dead-lift. If I do, I might put my squat progression on the back burner doing three (3) working sets per week, and doing three (3) workings sets, twice per week.

Lat Pulldown- 140 lbs (3x5)
-Went smooth as expect; lat pulldowns have always been good exercise for me, with me being able to one (1) rep max the entire stack at my gym with good form.

Finisher
Suitcase Carry-45 lb plate (A few reps; wasn’t keeping count)
-Working on obliques and core strength, also as active rest activity between main lengths and accessory work.

Accessory Work
Tricep Pushdown/Tricep Overhead Extension (3 sets)
Cable Curls/Cable Upright Rows (3 sets)
Lateral Raises (3x8-10; 20 lb to 15 lbs)
Supersets to let off some steam and have some bodybuilding suffering/fun plus some lateral raises.

Cooldown
Walk-15 mins. at 3.0 MPH pace
Decompress and get some cardio in.

My fighter schedule is a heavy session on Sunday, with a minimalist session on Wednesday to work around my schedule and how busy the gym is going to be, with it being the New Year.


After Fighter-Bangkok/Black
I don't know what my next training block is going to be, with it being scheduled in Spring. Might roll with Fighter/Green, might not. This year I will be focusing on conditioning and maybe deadlifting this year.

Week 1/Day 2
BOO Row Variation
Instead of Indoor Power Intverals with an airdyne like I planned to, I just went my standard BOO Row Variation, with 1000 m Rowing followed by 30 KB swings. Did 4 sets instead of five, mostly because it was getting late as I slept after finishing work so I got the gym late.
I thought of doing Indoor Power Intervals with the rowing machine but did not feel like accidentally hurting myself with form breakdown in chasing near max effort.

However, I also have been doing the order of BOO wrong, with me doing the rowing first followed by swings, then rest. Not sure how much it affects the exercise routine, but I probably have to try the proper order later this week to see how it should actually feel.

Week 1/Day 4
Nailed all three lifts of OHP, Squat, and Lat Pulldown. Gonna leave some isolation work for tomorrow after work.

Week 1/Day 5
BOO Row Variation (Proper Rotation)
Did BOO Row Variation in the proper order, and I did four sets again.
Probably gonna kick up to 5 sets next week; I kind of want to try BOO with an air-bike to see how brutal it is.
I followed up that session with a light 20 minute walk on the treadmill for an easy burn.

P.S. I did do my Endurance cardio on day 3, just forgot to post. It was just like 30 minutes of the elliptical w/ interval resistance, just some basic ass zone 2 training.

Tomorrow is SE; might do it in the morning before work that way I can socialize right after work or starting my resting depending on how the weather goes.

Question:
Has anyone done BOO with an air-bike, and if so, would it be advisable to extend the rest time to a full 3 minutes after the bike part?

Week 1/Day 6
Was working from home and been sick most of the day.
Pushed through Strength Endurance Circuit training as it was not too bad at x10 reps.
Was planning on doing yoga today, but with it being well below zero, just gonna do some sun warrior poses and some basic mobility work.

Week 2/Day 1
OHP-105 x 3 x 5 - Failed on the last set.
Back Squat-190/5 x 3 x 5 - These felt fine actually.
Deadlift-230 x 3 x 5 - Decided to up my deadlift work, testing to see how I recover by the Day 4 of this week, as I felt like doing 1 set per week felt too little.

Accessories
Did triceps accessories today and biceps. Mostly just chasing the pump and maintaining gains at the moment.

Week 2/Day 2
Got snowed in so I could not use my usual gym, and I did not feel like doing Rowing and Kettlebell Swings again because my lower back is destroyed by the end of session. So I improvised with mountain climbers for 1 minute followed by 30 kettelbell swings, then resting a minute.

Is it one of the prescribed HIC workouts? Probably not, but it gets the job done.

Week 2/Day 3-6
This was a shit show as I got under the weather because of the stupid storm.
Day 3, I was able to do my Zone 2 work.
Day 4, I was able to do my OHP/Squats for the goal of reps and weight.
Day 5, Stayed in and worked from home to recover somewhat. Did a small pull workout; was not up for HIC that day.
Day 6, Skipped to rest up.Went out to drink with a friend I have not seen since last year.
Day 7, Should've rested up some more but decided to do my HIC and SE work that day. Between that, and staying up late for a friend's birthday party, Week 3/Day 1 performance was mixed to say the least. For HIC, I did the Fast 5 on the air bike, and for SE I just did the Humane Burpee by Dan John.

Week 3/Day 1
After a week of this shitty weather and staying out for a friend's birthday party last nigh, my performance was less than stellar.
OHP: Only able to do 2x2 for 115 lbs. Doing strength training first thing in the morning while still not a 100% probably contributed to this not going well.
Squats:Went smooth and easy; did 3 reps x 3 sets for 215, then did a final set of 225 to have a little win. Still felt good afterwards so I will test replacing each top set with 225 for this block.
Deadlift: Did my working top set of 255; went up to 275 for a single which went pretty alright. Debated on chasing three plates today but decided to wait for the next wave or end of the training block.

Assistance Work:
Went well enough; added some stimulus to triceps, biceps, and traps region.

Skipped dedicated cardio work at end of session because I walk to the bus stop which is about 15 minutes. Not only that, I feel drained after working out on an empty stomach.

Week 4: Rest Week
Gonna take it easy this week to full recovery from sickness.
Probably gonna do some Kettlebell work and stationary bike cardio to have blood going, however emphasis on taking meds and sleeping more than usual will be done make sure I attacked the next wave on full cylinders.

Week 4/Day 1

Started by going to the next block; trying to hit the 90% max again did not go well so I just settled with starting a new block.