Entry #47
Today was intense. During weightlifting I was sweating as if I was
doing cardio. Lats and abs for today. Tweaked my neck from straining so
hard on overhead dumbbell presses but I maintained perfect form.
Shouldn't last more than a few hours anyways.

Definitely need to make more time for striking practice. I've
been doing a ton of weight-lifting and minimal fighting the last few
days. Today consisted of nothing more than a few rounds of shadow
boxing in my room for 10 minutes.

Saw Ong Bak yesterday and it ruled. Granted, the fighting looked
nothing like muay thai (unless muay thai is a mix between capoeira and
tae kwon do) but it was still awesome.

 

Entry #46
Started taking powder-form whey protein in addition to my regular
consumption of protein shakes and bars. Taking three servings a day:
breakfast, pre-workout, and post-workout. Interesting to note any
changes as a result of additional supplements.

Maybe the stuff works better than I thought because today my squat
record was through the roof. Definitely increase the weight next time.

Must get in tons of striking practice tomorrow to make up for
today. George is coming over (or vice-versa). I'll be prepared for
a fight, and he should be too. After we kill each other we're
going to see Ong Bak. Not a bad Saturday. And I'll work in
some heavy bag work afterwards.

Entry #45
Took a second day off from strength training to practice my striking
game. My endurance is steadily improving; I think I can go for longer
rounds on the bag. Still need to focus on snapping back fists after
punches.

Hope to get a speed-bag this weekend.

Entry #44
Jumped higher than ever today, and managed to hold on to the rim in
basketball during PE. Was actually able to get entire hand over. The
progression on this goal has been awesome. I blame the squats.

Weighed myself. Gained 10 pounds since last time, which was a few months ago. None of it is bodyfat.

Back and biceps strength training today. Unfortunately, gym was
closed so had to make do with backyard equipment. Stacked every single
weight I had on the bar for dead lifts, and it felt like nothing.
Biceps are sore, however. Focused on keeping my upper arm completely
stationary and back dead-straight, isolating the effort into the
desired area of the arm. Unfortunately, had to drop a few pounds in
order to maintain perfect form, but on the other hand, they feel like
they've been worked more than they've ever been.

Tomorrow is bag training and shadow boxing to make up for the fact that today was all bodybuilding and no striking practice.

Entry #43
Sparring yesterday: kept my hands up for the most part but I still drop
them during kicks. Need to work on flexibility for sidekicks because
mine never work. Also, I've never done any grappling with George; next
time we'll include groundwork as well. We should also probably pick a
more suitable spot than his driveway, but this didn't turn out to be
a very serious match anyways.

If I can't get any formal training for the time being (until summer
when I move out) because of no good schools around here, then I
need to at least get a training partner. The following weekends I'll be
practicing drills with George and anyone else I can find.

Triceps are already sore from workout today. Chest is usually sore
the next morning. Moving from set to set much faster; no more than one
minute in between.

Entry #42
Birthday today. Change in plans. I was going to celebrate by going to
the gym but George called and said he'll beat me up for my birthday. So
I'm going over there right now to fight him. Best present ever. I'll be
back.

Entry #41
Awesome gym day. Maybe because it was Valentine's Day, but there was no one there.

I tried out the new speed bag they have set up. I'm a lot faster
than the last time I tried it. I just can't keep it up for very long. I
want to buy one for my backyard to go next to my punching bag.

Bicep workout was different. I sat on a bench with a slight incline
angle and held two dumbbells, rather than one barbell while standing.
Focused on perfect form and keeping my upper arm completely stationary.
Curls were much harder like this.

Ran home while it was pouring rain. I love this.

Entry #40
Going back to the gym today, will update after. In the meantime, Happy
Valentine's Day, here's something from the depths of my heart, hahaha.

Entry #39
Still contemplating about whether to join Tae Kwon Do or not. It's close, but it looks like they focus more on the sport of it.

Entry #38
I was eating lunch on a bench by the public library reading a book when
I feel something poking my back. I turn around and this little four
year old boy is poking me with a stick. He ran around and came to my
front and out of nowhere he said he he'll punch me. I told him I'd just
block it, and then he said he has a 100 foot tall robot that would kill
me. I asked if it had missiles and he said yes, in its fists. So we
started talking about robots and I had one too, and we were going to
have them fight soon (mine had missiles in its chest, and its punch
power was 1000000 psi). Then his mom came and he had to go. What an
awesome kid.

On-topic: You know you had a good workout when you can't even raise your arms to go running afterwards.

That was a good feeling. And the side of my chest would twitch in
pain because of the up and down motion that makes the muscles tense.
Good feeling, but I wasn't very satisfied today. I tried a lot of new
ideas, so it was worth it.

I upped the intensity by a huge amount. Much less time to recuperate
after sets. No longer will I sit for a few minutes and then continue.
I'll have a one minute rest in between; during that I'll be stretching
to release lactic acid and stuff.

Also, perfect form. I'm concentrating on going a bit slower and
putting more resistance on the down movement. I've had to drop some
weight in order to improve form, especially on the incline bench press.
But good form will build muscle faster. Heh, got to keep telling myself
that. I don't like taking off weight. "Lift for your muscles, not your
ego." Good quote from a magazine.

Need to get proper running shoes. I was running in skate shoes and my ankles were sore after about 5 minutes.

Writing this all down in notes is great at helping me drill this stuff into my brain.

Entry #37
Day off from weight training. I need to work harder to maintain my diet
on off-days, though. I seem to eat a lot less on days like today. Must
eat 8 large meals every day, no exceptions.

Practiced mostly my kicks. I'm working on getting more flexible.
They may not be the most practical move but I want to get better with
high kicks. I once saw a TKDist K.O. a Muay Thai fighter in UFC with a
high kick directly to the face. He was out cold, it was
amazing. It'd be nice to have those in my move list.

I'm also thinking of reconsidering my choice and go for the track team.

 

Entry #36
Gym notes for next time:

> Ditch pull ups. Having them before a big bicep routine leaves
me with none of the required stamina. Proper curls are more important
than pull-ups for development. If possible, will work them in
afterwards.

> May need to lower a few weights in order to maintain better form.

> Bring ear plugs. !#$%ing sick of Britney Spears on the speakers. She is hampering my gains. Must be eliminated.

Entry #35
Rough today. I went to the gym angry and had a really
intense weight lifting session (shoulders and abs today). When I
was done I was feeling a little dizzy for some reason, but I
wanted to do some running. After about 5 minutes of running I suddenly
felt like I had to faint. I wasn't tired or anything, but I was ready
to pass out. I got off and ran to the locker room where I was in the
bathroom for 10 minutes trying not to throw up. It was hard but I
won. I got out and left the gym and I feel fine now. 

I take it that's a sign I had a good intensity level for my lifting. My new goal is to feel like that after every workout.

Entry #34
Was racing against this guy, Renee, in PE today on the track and
apparently one of the coaches was watching, because after class he
asked me if I want to be on the track team. I wanted to say yes but I
couldn't because it would conflict with weightlifting, since practice
is everyday. Still, it was tempting.

Today consisted of leg weight-lifting. Didn't get in any rounds of
punching bag practice or shadow boxing. Tomorrow is a day off from
liftting. Will get practice in then.

 

Entry #33
While playing basketball at school I grabbed the rim for the first time
(before I could just barely touch it with my fingertips). I couldn't
actually hang off of it but I grabbed it and fell back. I did it a few
times. Maybe the result of new leg routine.

Gym notes:

> Much better form today. Particular improvement on bench
press; no arched back at all. I could really feel my shoulder blades
digging into the bench.

> Easily completed all sets on decline bench press. Can increase the weight next time.

> Focused on breathing correctly and taking big breaths on the down movement.

Afterwards, practiced shadow boxing.

I'm thinking it'd be good to get into sword fighting again.
Back in summer George would bring his sai over and I'd use my katana,
and we'd just spar with them in my backyard, no protective gear. No,
it's not smart at all. It's fun. It also helped my stamina. When I box,
I sometimes get tired and then I'll get lazy with blocking, and I
just focus on offense. During weapon fighting I never get lazy when I'm
tired because of the adrenaline rush of seeing someone come at you
with a weapon. Always have the chance of getting stabbed, and
that keeps me on my toes, so to speak. I need to apply that to
hand to hand fighting.

Don't actually have pictures of a weapon fight. I have it on a movie
but I'd have to print out frames and scan them, which I might do later.