Shaping the body; adjusting the mind

[Kit_L]

@jaja: please contact either of us immediately. If you email your number, we will call.

[jaja]

A night of sleep helped, but I think I’m gonna drop an email your way soon. Thanks. 

[Kit_L]

On 7/27/2020 at 7:50 AM, jaja said:

One ring chin-ups: 4x10

• I can't seem to progress, those are damn hard

And yet you are doing more of these than ever before, aren't you? Sets of ten are really at the limit of the intensity that you may need to get stronger, so why don't you add 10Kg resistance, and start again? I always found doing this to be helpful. Consider adding just enough weight so that you never go past eight reps, and do an unweighted of eight reps first, to make sure the tendons feel fine. And when doing weighted chins, it's even more important to pull as smoothly as you can.

[jaja]

On 7/28/2020 at 11:17 PM, Kit_L said:

And yet you are doing more of these than ever before, aren't you? Sets of ten are really at the limit of the intensity that you may need to get stronger, so why don't you add 10Kg resistance, and start again? I always found doing this to be helpful. Consider adding just enough weight so that you never go past eight reps, and do an unweighted of eight reps first, to make sure the tendons feel fine. And when doing weighted chins, it's even more important to pull as smoothly as you can.

I seem to have endurance issues in general and I'd like to improve that. Back when I was doing weighted chins with 12 and more kilos on my belt for 7 reps, I still couldn't perform a set of 15 lifting only my bodyweight. This puzzles me.

[jaja]

* Wall HF stretch

* Wall quad stretch

* Passive back bend on baby whale

* Bolster piriformis stretch

[Nathan]

9 hours ago, jaja said:

I seem to have endurance issues in general and I'd like to improve that. Back when I was doing weighted chins with 12 and more kilos on my belt for 7 reps, I still couldn't perform a set of 15 lifting only my bodyweight. This puzzles me.

Not puzzling at all, really. The energy pathways are different. You get better at doing what you train - I know you know this. I've worked up to sets of chins with something like 35kg or more and I'm doubtful I could have banged out a set of 15 unweighted. It wouldn't have been easy even if I'd managed it. In fact, it wouldn't be unreasonable to consider them different exercises. Strength chin ups vs. (strength-)endurance chin ups. Do you consider walking, jogging, running, and sprinting to be the same exercise? In one sense, they are. But the training stimulus, energy pathways, etc. are all very different. Of course there is overlap. My hill sprints definitely made me better at medium-distance runs. But not nearly as much as doing medium-distance running would.

So the real question is: Do you want to get stronger or do you want to be able to do more at once? Both are valid, but you need to decide what is important to you. If you want both, then you'll need to periodize and be willing to accept sub-maximal gains. Again, perfectly valid! Just be clear about what your goals are and your results will make a lot more sense.

[jaja]

@Nathan In a way, your right. I don't know why, but I've always considered someone who's able to perform 20 chin-ups as way stronger than someone who can manage little more than 10 reps. Also, if one doesn't have access to weights (as happened during the lockdown), one of the ways to progress is just do more reps.

My main BW goal at the moment is the muscle-up, both at rings and at the bar. It's absurd I can't pull it off yet. Then…I guess that while in barbell training I mostly focus on the maximal amount of weight I can lift, in calisthenics I'd like to perform a good set of 15-20 reps in some exercises. I'm there with push-ups (and aiming at 30), but I lag way behind in everything else.

Then there's skill work: I'd like to do a handstand. Yet I'm afraid to even try, unsupervised.

[jaja]

• Deadlift: 1x6x125kg + 1x7x112,5kg
  • Oh boy, this felt good afterwards! Struggled with the last rep, though.
• Chin-ups (chest to sky): 3x7
• Overhead press: 1x8x42,5kg + 1x9x40kg + 1x6x40kg
• Lateral raises: 3x11x8kg
  • I hope this will help to strengthen my shoulders. It's my sole goal here. This exercise is boring as hell.
• Dead hangs: 1 minute
  • Grip was fatigued. Probably the effect of not training at all this week
• One arm dead hang: 1x20s

-----

I still have the nasty sensation in my left lower back. It might be tied to the HF (left one is tighter), but I suspect piriformis is heavily involved. Yesterday during the stretch I felt tightness in the whole of my left glutes. The more I stayed there, the more my left side of the body began to loosen up. Basically I have tension in the left lower back, left ileopsoas, left side of the diaphragm, left side of the neck and even left eye. Left leg is my longer leg, if this is of any indication, but the right ankle is the most problematic one (e.g. worse dorsiflexion).

-----

Tomorrow I'm going to do quite a hike. The plan is to reach a shelter at 3600mt above sea level. Crossing a glacier is required. Hope my legs won't be too sore from the workout!

[Nathan]

19 minutes ago, jaja said:

It's absurd I can't pull it off yet.

I think we've touched on this before. Almost certainly an issue of technique. The movement is simply not in your body yet. You can do pull ups and you can do dips. You need to work the transition directly (and consistently). Once your body figures out how to do to the movement, it will simply happen.

9 minutes ago, jaja said:

The plan is to reach a shelter at 3600mt above sea level. Crossing a glacier is required.

Looking forward to pics! 

[Kit_L]

21 hours ago, jaja said:

I've always considered someone who's able to perform 20 chin-ups as way stronger than someone who can manage little more than 10 reps.

This is interesting. There was an old-school test that was going around in my era (so, last century!) where you were asked to calculate 80% of your one-rep max for an exercise, and then do as many as you can with the 80%. The paradox was that the innately strong guys (the ones with the potential to be really strong, and big) could usually do 10 or less reps with that 80%. The 'endurance-types' could often do double that number. You might be in the 'strong' group.

There are many ways to train local muscular endurance if you want it, though, and all involve higher numbers with less weight. So for a bodyweight exercise like chins, the challenge becomes, 'how to unweight the body enough to do 15–25 reps?' We had a pull-up machine in one gym I trained at that you knelt on, and the weight you selected on the stack (plus friction) unloaded your body's weight by that amount, via a simple single pulley. Sticking to the higher end of that rep. range and slowly decreasing the weight will do what you need it to do.

[jaja]

So…Saturday was FUN! I got to see mountain goats right after setting foot out the cableway; and everything afterwards was an escalation of physical challenges and eye-candies. Only downside was sleep deprivation (what a surprise!) that made everything more difficult. Also I experiences a bit of height sickness: 3600mt are no joke if you're not use to them. Even if I deadlifted heavy the day prior, my body was up for the task. I only experienced a bit of soreness. Here's a carousel of highlights.

--------

Sunday I rested. Slept a solid 9 hours and spent most of the day planning the upcoming summer holidays. I stretched in the evening and noticed tightness in the usual places (HF, piriformis, lumbar), but a bit more sever than usual. Here's what I did:

• Wall HF stretch
• Wall quad stretch
• Bolster piriformis stretch
• Tailor pose stretch
• Passive back bend on baby whale, with a more steep angle

--------

Today:

• Push-ups: 3x27
• Diamond push-ups: 2x15

[Kit_L]

What a difference a day or two can make to one's perspective. That Mt Rosa is some rugged terrain—what a blessing to have these kinds of mountains where you live. And great images, too. Thanks for posting.

[jaja]

Yesterday:

• Squat: 3x6x100kg
• Bent over row: 3x5x50kg
• Pull-ups: 3x6
• Lateral raises: 3x12x8kg

 

Today:

• Pendlay Row: 3x5x50kg
• Hip thrust: 3x7x80kg
• Bench press: 1x6x80kg + 1x7x77,5kg + 1x8x75kg
• Weighted chin-ups: 3x5x12kg

[jaja]

• Deadlift: 1x3x130kg + 1x4x117,5kg
• Chin-ups (chest to sky): 2x8 + 1x6
• Overhead press: 1x6x45kg + 1x7x42,5kg + 1x8x42kg
  • I always have a hard time keeping the glutes contracted throughout the movement
• Lateral raises: 3x12x8kg
• Dead hang: 1m
• One harm dead hang: 25s

 

Three days in a row of heavy lifting and my body is mostly ache free. Tomorrow a good hike will test my energy reserves.

[jaja]

Saturday

Relatively short hike on an easy path to reach a nice lake surrounded by rocky mountains. Nothing challenging, but I had the opportunity to know some new people. Despite the previous days of training, my body was nice and fresh. Good! In the evening the lack of sleep caught up with me, though, so I went to bed early.

 

Sunday

A BBQ with friends gave me the opportunity to rest. In the evening I did a quick stretching session, since my hips were giving me some troubles.

• HF stretch
• Wall HF stretch
• Bolster piriformis stretch

 

Monday

• One ring shin-ups: 4x11
• Ring pull-ups: 3x6
• Ring knee raises: 3x5
• Ring muscle-up drills
  • Trying to nail the transition
• Ring support hold: 2x35s
  • Getting weaker here, been a while since last time I tried
• Ring dips: 1x10 + 1x8 + 1x7
  • Same as above. Not good.

[Pat (pogo69)]

Playing catch up!

On 7/17/2020 at 4:41 PM, jaja said:

Since none of the calisthenics I do can substitute the deadlift, it might mean I don't need to train the movement weekly to get stronger.

It is very difficult to adequately substitute the deadlift with calisthenics.

Certainly gymnasts do so, to an impressive degree.  But with a far more complex array of posterior chain variable-leverage bodyweight movements.

I can't remember, but did your calisthenic routine include anything like Nordic Curls and Arch Holds?

With respect to deadlift frequency: certainly many people maintain their strength on very low frequency.  Others train deadlift only once per week, or every other week, due to its heavy toll on CNS.

On 7/19/2020 at 8:07 AM, jaja said:

Overall I find climbing humiliating because I always look like a fool. Too weak, poor mobility and technique. Yet, I keep doing it.

Otherwise known as "being a beginner".  No-one is judging you, when you climb.  EVERYONE ELSE has been there at some stage.

I don't know just how much truth there is to the old adage: "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't--you're right".  But I am certain that your default mindset does not help you in your quest to conquer new things.

On 7/23/2020 at 4:22 AM, jaja said:

Playing with ring muscle up

• The issue I have is with the transition, just before the dip part. I don't have the required strength in the joints, or maybe I just have poor technique.

Nathan already touched on this, but in the interests of emphasis:

It is BOTH!

The muscle-up is a movement requiring a reasonable degree of strength.  But just as important is the skill component.  The transition is an entirely unfamiliar movement to anyone who hasn't previously encountered it.  You must practise the transition, if you wish to acquire a muscle-up in a timely fashion.

We all discussed this last year in this thread:

 

On 7/27/2020 at 7:50 AM, jaja said:

One ring chin-ups: 4x10

• I can't seem to progress, those are damn hard

As per @Nathan's and @Kit_L's comments, muscular endurance is a specific goal that must be specifically trained to progress.

If you really want to build your pullup endurance, you will probably progress more quickly by following a program targeted towards that goal.  Something like the Fighter Pullup Program:

https://www.strongfirst.com/the-fighter-pullup-program-revisited/

Simply attempting to occasionally add a rep to a bodybuilding style set/rep scheme is sub-optimal, as you have too little volume.

On 8/4/2020 at 3:27 AM, jaja said:

So…Saturday was FUN! I got to see mountain goats right after setting foot out the cableway; and everything afterwards was an escalation of physical challenges and eye-candies. Only downside was sleep deprivation (what a surprise!) that made everything more difficult. Also I experiences a bit of height sickness: 3600mt are no joke if you're not use to them. Even if I deadlifted heavy the day prior, my body was up for the task. I only experienced a bit of soreness. Here's a carousel of highlights.

Awesome pics!  You live in a very beautiful part of the world.

 

[jaja]

Yesterday a did some modeling to help out a friend who's a photographer. I was rigid in front of the camera, I could feel it and it definitely showed. Yet I couldn't do anything to loosen up. I want to free myself, FF sake!

Today:

• Chin-ups (chest to sky): 3x8
• Deadlift: 1x2x130kg + 1x5x117,5kg
  • Harder than expected, worst performance than last time. I know my body it's not supposed to express peak strength every day, but it's still a bummer. On top of that, a week ago a friend of mine said deadlifting 130kg is quite easy. I feel weak.
• Overhead press: 1x7x45kg + 1x7x42,5kg + 1x8x40kg

Afterwards I did some gardening. I must say strength gains are noticeable in everyday activities, if one pays attention.

[jaja]

3 hours ago, Pat (pogo69) said:

I can't remember, but did your calisthenic routine include anything like Nordic Curls and Arch Holds?

I keep forgetting to incorporate nordic curls, but I do perform arch holds. I struggle with them because of my lax shoulders, though.

3 hours ago, Pat (pogo69) said:

I don't know just how much truth there is to the old adage: "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't--you're right".  But I am certain that your default mindset does not help you in your quest to conquer new things.

No it does not. I'm a master in sabotaging myself and I get frustrated easily because I often have unreasonably high expectations. Yet I constantly try new things and enjoy the process of learning, unless the task is too much at odds with my natural inclinations (eg. I LOATHE playing basketball). Oddly enough, being a beginner is much more frustrating when there're other people involved. Dealing with failures in climbing is harder than in weightlifting/calisthenics. Harder still is dancing (almost unbearable!). So it must have something to do with making a fool of myself in front of others.

3 hours ago, Pat (pogo69) said:

Awesome pics!  You live in a very beautiful part of the world.

🇮🇹❤️

[Pat (pogo69)]

18 hours ago, jaja said:

Harder still is dancing (almost unbearable!).

I'm with you on that one!

I have had a very long-term interest in taking up adult ballet and/or modern dance classes.  Still hope I will find the time, one day.  But I will be VERY adult, by the time I do.

However, I have ZERO interest in dancing, socially.  Actually, it probably registers somewhere quite a bit lower than zero. 😄

[jaja]

Yesterday:

• Wall HF stretch
• Wall quad stretch
• Bolster piriformis stretch
• Lumbar stretch
• Wall pec stretch

Today:

• Passive back bend on a tilted baby whale
• Ankle mobility
• Seated piriformis stretch
  • This one can target a spot which the bolster version leaves untouched, but it's harder to relax
• Bolster piriformis stretch
• Lumbar stretch
• Scalenes stretch

[jaja]

There's this friend of mine, who's naturally very strong and can get stronger without a specific regime. He just has to train somehow. Be it weightlifting, calisthenics o climbing. Only downside: he's quite heavy, he has a belly and struggles a lot to lose body fat. Honestly, he probably just needs to cut off alcohol, but it's a sacrifice he's not willing to make.

I find myself envying him, because I don't have his strength and probably never will.

[jaja]

• Push-ups: 3x27
  • Happy with how I felt during and afterwards
• Diamond push-ups: 3x15
• Pike push-ups: 3x10
  • Hard as fuck, it's been a while since the last time I performed those

Spent a good chunk of the afternoon at the local climbing gym for a bouldering session. AKA: gettin humiliated by the wall. Since on of my limiting factor is grip strength (especially finger strength), I trained for a while with the fingerboard. I didn't follow a precise program, but I got a good forearm pump afterwards. As for the bouldering session per se…I had fun!

[jaja]

• Squat: 3x8x100kg
  • Could have used more depth. However, this felt easy…which is good!
• Bent over row: 3x7x50kg
• Pull-ups: 3x6
• Lateral raises: 3x12x8kg

[Pat (pogo69)]

On 8/13/2020 at 7:45 AM, jaja said:

There's this friend of mine, who's naturally very strong and can get stronger without a specific regime. He just has to train somehow. Be it weightlifting, calisthenics o climbing. Only downside: he's quite heavy, he has a belly and struggles a lot to lose body fat. Honestly, he probably just needs to cut off alcohol, but it's a sacrifice he's not willing to make.

I find myself envying him, because I don't have his strength and probably never will.

I think that that is my biggest issue with training over talent "inspiration".  At its most insipid (what we see most of the time in these days of the social media influencer), it negates the reality of genetic potential.  It absolutely DOES make a difference.  No matter how hard we (regular people) train, we are never going to be the 100m world champion.  We are never even going to come close to a pale shadow of such.

One of my sons is that "genetic outlier".  He is naturally well lean and muscular.  Strong FAR beyond the effort he puts into attaining it.  That said, I am stronger than him by almost every measure because he is lazy.  So, there certainly is a balance past which we can push.  Often, to a much larger extent than we give ourselves credit for.

Quote

"Comparison is the thief of joy."

-- Theodore Roosevelt

There are an endless supply of variations of this, for good reason.  It is almost always a path to disappointment.  Given that we are all different (even identical twins, as our genes are not our destiny), comparison with anyone other than ourselves, is ultimately pointless.  Even then, is it really fair to compare oneself with our former or future self?

We all do it, to some extent.  But progression towards something(s) specific is a much better frame of reference.

On 8/14/2020 at 4:22 AM, jaja said:

AKA: gettin humiliated by the wall.

As long as you keep it between you and the wall, I would say that this is quite healthy! 😄

On 8/14/2020 at 4:22 AM, jaja said:

I trained for a while with the fingerboard. I didn't follow a precise program, but I got a good forearm pump afterwards. As for the bouldering session per se…I had fun!

YAY fun!

I think it is probably a good idea to keep this somewhat playful.  But I would be a little careful about volume, on both the fingerboard and bouldering.  As with all such things, build volume and intensity slowly, and (preferably) separately.  Connective tissue injuries are very common (pulley injuries everywhere), and will result in time away from the very thing bringing you joy.

 

[jaja]

So…I’ve spent a whole week hiking on the Italian Dolomites with a group of strangers. I had a blast and learned few things in the process. Dolomites in the Veneto region are a little less crowded than those in Trentino, so we could enjoy the hikes even more. They were not easy, though: on average we covered ascensions of 800mt a day and the longest one was 1600mt, to reach the top of Mount Civetta, at 3200mt above sea level! My body was up for the task, despite walking long distances almost every day, I have little to no DOMS. However the bottleneck was cardio. Sometimes I was really struggling to keep up with the pace (one of alpine guides always walked really fast) and one day I experienced nausea as a result of sustained aerobic effort. Felt sick for the rest of the day, but a good night of sleep fixed everything. What was shocking to me was witnessing a fellow hiker, a 73yo man, walking those steep slopes like he was 40 years younger! There’s a trend among certain fitness circles of deeming cardio as a waste of time, but this is far from the truth. Strength is important, but you’re not fit if your endurance sucks. I need to address this.

On average, I was among the most experienced of the group, having already tried both climbing and vie ferrate. This does not mean that I didn't have fun or that I found the activities too easy! Exerting that kind of effort every single day means fatigue builds up, so I needed to manage my energy and move smarter than usual. Even an easy via ferrata is challenging if you're already tired. Climbing day was indeed easy, since most of the group didn't have any experience, but I could refine my technique and I really enjoy the type of rock I was climbing. Also I got few compliments which is nice. My shoulders gave me some problems, though. Maybe it was the fatigue, but in a couple of instances the joint instability I suffer from made me experience sharpe sensations. I badly need to strengthen the rotator cuffs.

Here's a short album, in case someone wants to see few pictures.