Yesterday I did a 70-second dead hang from the pull-up bars at lunch. I feel my endurance increasing and a minute is no longer challenging. Worth noting that these bars are a lot thicker than the bar I do pull-ups with at home. Harder to grip but feels easier on the elbows, which is a good combination.

At home:

5 minute shadowboxing round with oxygen-restriction mask

3x 5-minute rounds on the heavy bag with 30 seconds of rest, last round with headgear and mouthpiece

Wanted to give my shoulders a break, so instead of doing more push-ups or other ways to pre-exhaust my arms for heavy bag rounds, I increased the rounds to 5 minutes for an added challenge.

I have to say that it's great my shoulders are feeling better, but having the right one hurt has done wonders for my right hook. I've been forced to practice moving my whole body into it in order to throw it without any shoulder pain and it's a much stronger punch now. 

I've also been reading Angelo Dundee's (trainer to Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, and 90's George Foreman among others) autobiography, My View From the Corner and it's a 10/10. Lots of interesting stories and perspectives.

Just got back from my lunch break where I did another 70-second dead hang on the pull-up bars.

 Did a 65-second dead hang yesterday on my lunch break after walking to the pull-up bars and back. Some guy came up and stood behind me nearly the entire time. I don't know if he wanted to ask me something or he was waiting to use the bars, but I walked away before he could say something.

After getting home, I did:

50 push-ups

4-minute high-intensity round on the heavy bag

30 push-ups

4-minute bag round

25 push-ups

4-minute bag round

Essentially, I replaced the rest times with push-ups.

After dinner, went on a 2.23-mile run while pushing the pace for the first mile, which resulted in a time of 7:53. 

I have some numbers to compare from my training log. In 2005, I recorded my best mile time in high school at 6:25 at a bodyweight of around 185 (roughly 20 lbs lighter than now). In 2015 and 2016, I recorded two instances of my mile time at 8:02 and 8:11, roughly weighing the same that I do now.

Went out to dinner with coworkers on Friday and devoured crayfish, shrimp, and lobster.

Saturday:

Log clean and press

190 x 3 x 5

Super-set with pull-ups: 3 x 10

Arnold press

80s x 3 x 8

Super-set with wide pull-ups: 3 x 10

Was sleepy from going to bed late and the first 2 sets of log press moved slow. Got focused and tight and the third set was by far the best.

Also finished watching Riddick (the last movie) Saturday night. It kicked ass. The second is still my favorite due to how over-the-top it is, but this one was a fine homage to Pitch Black. Now I need to somehow get the games on my Steam Deck... 

Sunday:

Mat pulls (stack of 8 mats)

535 x 5

Sandbag squats

200 x 3 x 10

Reverse-hypers

200 x 2 x 10

290 x 10

Back was a little achey afterwards from doing heavy pulls and sandbag handling the day after log cleans, but nothing alarming. 

Went on a hike at Russian Ridge afterwards. Saw lots of deer and I think my first California newt ever, a real big one. While heading back, the fog rolled in and made for some incredible scenes, especially when we spotted deer in the mist. 

Walked to the pull-up bars on my lunch break yesterday and did a 60-second dead hang.

Upon coming home from work:

20 ABCs with 50 lb kettlebells

27 decline push-ups

17 pull-ups

90-second intensity round on the heavy bag

Was gasping for air by the end. No elbow or shoulder pain, they’re holding up.

Later at night, ran 2 miles. Time for the first mile was 9:18, although I walked at the start because it was dark and my elderly neighbors sometimes go down the narrow trail to our neighborhood.

2-board press

315 x 3

Close-grip 2-board press

275 x 7

Skullcrushers

50s x 5 -> drop-set to 35s x 6

50s x 7 -> drop-set to 35s x 4

50s x 4 -> drop-set to 35s x 5

Dumbbell rows

115 x 4 x 8

200 lb sandbag carries

Doing what doesn't hurt the shoulders. Happy to report that the left feels fine now and it's just the right one. Although pain was minimal (just a little bit at the bottom of the first rep and it went away), it felt like I couldn't fire at full power under the bar and the reps of 315 were slow as a result. Still very good to be pressing something heavy.

A strongman competition in May has caught my eye. Would interfere minimally with boxing, as I would simply steer the lifting I'm currently doing toward training for the events. What has me really excited is a car deadlift AND a truck pull, the latter which I've never done before. Will start doing more heavy push pressing and monitor how my shoulder feels.

I read a training approach from one boxer that involved pre-exhausting the arms via landmine presses, battle ropes, and other exercises before doing non-stop rounds on the heavy bag to build-up stamina for his fight. I would love to try that with strongman training like RE clean and press instead of the typical boxing gym lifts. I think they would compliment each other well. 

 Left shoulder is feeling much better and no longer aches when at rest.

Boxing yesterday went great. Ended up being my first lady coach ever, for any martial art, and it was the perfect class to attend with a healing shoulder. Intensity was low and technique was the focus. Very similar to Tuesdays, except combos were simpler and we didn't continue to build on and add to the same string. Informed my partner that I'd be throwing light with my left hand, but was still able to put out a pretty snappy jab. Left hooks on the shield were definitely light, but it was an opportune moment to focus on putting my whole body behind the strike and whittle down any habit of arm striking. 

 SSB box squats

330 x 5

350 x 5

380 x 5

Dips: 8

Log press

140 x 8

90 x 20

Chin-ups: 20

Dumbbell skullcrushers

35s x 10

50s x 10, 7

35s x 10, 10

Hammer curls

35s x 10

50s x 10, 10

35s x 10, 10

Experimenting with different upper-body movements to see what hurts. Basically, everything. Log press with 150 felt fine until rep 6. Settled on skullcrushers and got a satisfying arm pump super-setting them with curls.

Feels like hitting the bag hard after sparring worsened my left shoulder, particularly left hooks. 

I decided not to cancel boxing and will go today. Never worked with this coach before. Will make sure to take it easy and not throw anything hard except right straights and uppercuts. 

Quads still hurt a bit, too. Made the right call to do punch-the-clock box squats instead of that 20-rep squat/deadlift hell super-set. Will squat heavy again on the weekend.

Unrelated, but I finally got to watch Pitch Black on Wednesday night with Eli, roughly 20 years after seeing Riddick in theaters (which I aim to rewatch soon). Was really good.

Got totally schooled in sparring yesterday. I was paired up with coach Gabriel again, probably because we're both similar weights, and just before starting, his cornerman coach (who's cornered me before) called me over to explain that this isn't an intro to sparring class anymore so Gabriel is going to go harder on me. The most frenetic sparring session I've ever been in ensued. The hits were hard, but it was the pace that threw me off my game. I've sparred hard in Muay Thai before, but  they could always be interrupted by my own hard shots. Gabriel kept surging forward and I couldn't really find my rhythm. It was my first time going against someone that high level who's also a pressure striker.

Ate some big shots as a result, but defended decently against the majority of them. The problem was just how much on defense I was across the 3 rounds. I also started to tense up more than previous spars, which made me tired but not gassed. There were moments when he eased up so I could get some offense going, and I noticed just how much my arms felt like lead in those windows despite training for much longer rounds.

Afterwards my cornerman gave me tips about movement and defending, and then Gabe worked with me on the ground floor to polish up my guard. People started leaving early, but my hour of sparring class wasn't up so I smashed the heavy bag for the remaining 20 minutes with short breaks. It was a very good learning experience and right now I just want to spar and train more.

Also of note is that I went into the gym with both my shoulders now in pain, not just the right, and I suspect it had an effect on my aggression and arm fatigue during sparring. Will keep up the rehab and rotate out painful pressing movements. I'm thinking today will be a light axle press medley followed by either dips or skullcrushers, depending on dips feeling good or not.

 Yesterday was another rest day. Left shoulder was achy from the combination of intense heavy bag training + push-ups on Friday and grinding out bench press reps Sunday, even with the Swiss bar. During my lunch break I walked to the pull-up bars on the nearby trail and did a 60 second dead-hang.

Also caught up on UFC 312 from last Saturday. Zhang Weilei was as impressive as ever, but Dricus Du Plessis also put on a savage performance. Such a wild striker.

Shoulder is feeling a little better. Ready for sparring.

 Friday night boxing was a grueling workout, like usual. Mixed in push-ups, squats, and high knees during rounds on the heavy bag. This coach also had us practice hooks with the palm facing down, which he explained can sometimes slip over the opponent's guard better. It's something I've experimented with before and never stuck to, but that's an interesting point.

Throwing right hooks is a little painful on my shoulder and it's hard to generate power. Will up the shoulder rehab this week: band pull-aparts, dead hangs, and Turkish get-ups. Thankful that it's my right, though, and that I can throw hard straights with my right just fine. 

Saturday was a rest day. Did some stretching, foam rolling, and went on a 10-minute post-lunch walk. Went to George's for a game night to play Mansions of Madness with Atlas and Azzy, which was a blast. Really brings me back to playing Arkham Horror 10 years ago. In the midst of having some drinks I remembered to sign-up for boxing. To my surprise, a lot of classes were already full, but member sparring (my main target) was available and a Thursday evening class with 2 coaches I've never trained under was also open. After I registered, I felt distracted the rest of the night and kept thinking about sparring. It was an exciting feeling.

Sunday was a helluva training day:

Swiss bar bench press: 260 x 5 x 5

Super-set with lying dumbbell rows: 115s x 5 x 8

Incline Swiss bar bench press

175 x 9, 7

Lateral raises

15s x 10

35s x 2 x 10

Deadlifts

455 x 5

8 shrugs at the top

Alternating dumbbell curls

50s x 2 x 16

Nighttime:

2.5 mile run to the bank and back

Shadowboxing with headgear, mouthguard, and 16 oz gloves: 3 rounds, 4 minutes each

Despite it being in the 30s outside, I was drenched in sweat after taking my headgear off. My fingers were cold when starting the run and became warm at the halfway point.

As for the lifting, I had in my mind to do at least 2 deadlifts, wanting to go easy on myself after last week's failed reps, but 455 ended up feeling like air. Good weight to build confidence up again.

Yukon bar squats

430 x 7

Drop-down to 365 x 7, 315 x 8, 225 x 8, 135 x 8

I did not take into account that I may want to squat heavy later when I did kettlebell goblet squats in the morning. And we did kettlebell squats and dynamic jumps in boxing the day before. Still crushed this. Didn't feel particularly heavy, but my quads felt like they lacked a little pop when at the bottom so I screamed on the last few reps.

There was heavy rain so I squatted in the garage, but was a bit wary about the smooth concrete and wet shoes from going outside to fetch plates (first time barbell squatting inside). 

Afterwards, I ate dinner and purchased Street Fighter 6, which downloaded in time on my Steam Deck to go a few rounds as Ryu and Zangief. It plays marvelously. Can't wait to unlock Akuma. Hajito Shirei!

Boxing was a good workout yesterday. Ran through 8 different stations: sledgehammer hits on a tire, tire flips, push-ups, landmine presses, kettlebell squats, battle ropes, step-ups, and sit-ups. Switched to 2 rounds of freestyle heavy bag work and 2 rounds of partner drills where the striker would call out a combo and the opponent has to defend, switching every 3 combos. Ended with ab work and then stretches.

Between the 100 push-ups in the morning and the additional workout at boxing, my upper-body got good training for the work week. May do heavy but low-rep benching this afternoon along with squats, or just squats by themselves since I'm signed-up for Friday boxing which is the most calisthenic-intensive day of the week.

This morning: 30 goblet squats with the 50 lb kettlebell followed by 30 kettlebell swings.

Good sparring day yesterday. Sparred coach Gabriel again, as the only sparring day available this week was coach sparring. Slipped way more punches than previous sessions and didn't keep my head on the centerline. I also used my strength to push him around as he came forward, moving him into position for my punches and throwing him off-balance, which I'm now reminded that George Foreman used to do. I also threw rapid double left hooks, which landed every time. People just don't think another hook is coming after the first. My corner coach complimented me after each round and said I look much better than last time.

My biggest regret was looking at the clock at the end of round 2, trying to time when I should start throwing more flurries in an effort to pace myself. During this pause, I heard my cornerman yell out that my opponent was open and to capitalize. I consider this action personally disgraceful and mentally reprimanded myself to not check the clock again. Coach Gabe was doing rounds with almost everyone while I only had 3 rounds with him to contend with, there should be no worry about cardio.

After 3 rounds were over, instead of watching the rest of the matches like most people I went to work on the heavy bag for the remainder of the time I had. I ran into another coach of mine on the ground floor who fist bumped me and he also said I've improved.

Ate a big steak with a small salad for dinner, followed by cottage cheese before bed, and slept like a baby after nighttime stretches and foam rolling.

This morning before work I did 100 total push-ups, broken up in sets of 52, 30, and 18, followed by 50 band pull-aparts.

Came home from work yesterday and wasted no time getting to shadowboxing:

1 round with breath restriction mask
3 rounds with headgear, mouthguard, and 16 oz gloves on

4 minutes each.

Looking forward to sparring today.

Yesterday I couldn't deadlift 530. Brain just kept shutting the attempt down and I didn't get a chance to strain. It surprised me to check and see that it's been 2 months since I've deadlifted heavy. That's not a bad thing with boxing being my focus, but I can start getting back into heavy deadlifts with either mat pulls or going lighter than I want to next time. The 470 I lifted during my work-up set ended up being my top set for today.

Romanian deadlifts

365 x 3 x 8

Walking dumbbell lunges

80s x 3 x 12

Another week of Costco not having eggs. This time, they were out of the liquid egg whites I buy, too. But bought a LOT of red meat and have a fridge full of prepped meal containers for the week.

Axle press
130 x 3
160 x 3
195 x 3
10 pull-ups

Arnold press
80s x 3 x 8
Super-set with 3 x 12 pull-ups

Incline dumbbell press
80s x 10, 6

Dumbbell palm curls
50 x 8
35 x 8, 8

Dumbbell hammer curls
50s x 8, 8
35s x 8

Lying lat flyes
15s x 3 x 10

Some right shoulder pain on the axle press, but glad I got 3. I think switching to log press is a great idea next week. Not really feeling much stimulus with the palm curls, so going to ditch them.