Eastbourne Boot Camp 19/12/2009

First snowy boot camp of the winter saw a super keen 5 boot campers turn up for a gruelling session in cold, but stunning sunny conditions.

After a thorough warm up including various mobility exercises the session got under way: -

Round 1
Kettlebell swing (30 sec), Sprint 20M, Star Jumps (30 sec) walk back - repeat * 4

Round 2
Kettlebell Swing Max set - 2.5 minutes of constant swinging

Round 3
Kettlebell swing, Pass around left, pass around right, clean left, clean right, press left, press right, one arm swing left, one arm swing right - 10 reps each one, back to back no rest. Repeated 3 times. This was HARD!

Round 4
Kettlebell Snatch - Learnt by boot campers for the first time
40 reps swapping hands every 10 reps * 2 sets

Round 5
Kettlebell Windmill - Learnt by boot campers for the first time
3 reps each side for 3 sets

Perimeter runs and cool down to finish!

Well done to all who attended!

For new 2010 dates check out http://www.total-fitness-personal-trainer.com/Eastbourne-Boot-Camp-Bookings.html and join in the FUN!

Eastbourne Boot Camp 12th December 2009

Penultimate session of 2009 today saw a great turn out of enthusiastic boot campers!

The session was a tough one which saw everyone performing the following rounds: -

Round 1
Tabata Kettlebell Swing 20 secs on, 10 secs off repeated for 4 minutes.

Round 2
Kettlebell Clean, Press, One Arm swing 30 seconds on each arm so 3 minute set * 3 repeats

Round 3
Battling rope, plank, star jumps, battling rope, squats burn out - 20 seconds on, 20 off for about 10 - 14 sets

Round 4
Kettlebell Pass Around L/R, Kb squat to press, climbers, KB upright row
30 seconds on each repeated 3 times

Round 5
Perimeter runs/battling rope - 2 people on the ropes for the duration it takes the rest to run around the marked perimeter - repeated until everyone has a go on the ropes.

Round 6
Tug of war, 2 teams of 5 - best of 5 games.

Well done to Tim, Nikki, Angie, Dave and Sue for your efforts on the winning team! We'll get them next time my team!

Everyone worked very hard and Dave from East Magazine was down to sample a session for up coming adverts. Thanks for coming down Dave and hope you enjoyed yourself!

Have a great week everyone and keep working!

Todays Eastbourne Boot Camp session saw mixed weather and a mid session downpour! To those that attended, a big pat on the back and well done for sticking it out! I bet you all enjoyed returning to the warmth and dry when you got home.

The session today was as follows: -

10 Minutes of Dynamic Warm Up

Round 1 - Kettlebell Swing Ladder (5 - 25 reps and back down again)super setted with Star Jumps
Round 2 - Battling rope, crunches, leg raises, battling rope, star jumps, push ups circuit (30 seconds of each)
Round 3 - Prisoner Squats, Kb pass around, mountain climbers tri set * 3 (30, 45, 45 seconds)
Round 4 - Battling rope, Kettlebell Swing, battling rope, Kettlebell deadlift, squat jumps, star jumps circuit (30 seconds of each)
Round 5 - Kettlebell Clean and press * 1 minute * 3

Cool down - 4 perimeter runs touching floor on the long runs, side stepping on the short runs.

Lots of hard work done today people! Keep up the great work!

There are 3 more boot camps before xmas - 5th, 12th and 19th December.

All Welcome!

Yesterdays session was a lighter bench session to allow for a short "de load" which I employ every few weeks to give the central nervous system a little break from all of the very heavy work.

My benching has gone very well for the last 6 weeks so a deload was long over due.
The session went as follows: -

Bench Press
Bar x 50
60 x 10
60 x 10
75 x 5
90 x 10
100 x 5
110 x 1 x 5
100 x 8

Double 20kg kettlebell clean and jerk
15
15
15 all done under 90 secs

Kb snatch
16kg x 100 (alternate hands every 10)

20kg x 20 (10L/(10R)
20kg x 20 (10L/(10R)
20kg x 20 (10L/(10R)

Towards the end I was feeling pretty tired - cant have recovered from Fridays brutal session of 1 arm jerks which incidentally saw my pulse rate elevated above its normal resting rate 4 hours later!

A rest day today, squats and deadlifts (light) tomorrow before taking the rest of the week very easily.

Kettlebell One Arm Jerk Conditioning

Last night I fancied a bit of a conditioning session, didnt have much time so had to keep it short and sweet - or is that short and sweat??!!

One Arm Kettlebell Jerks
32kg * 10 Left + 10 Right Arm
28kg * 10 Left +10 Right Arm Performed as a super set

This was repeated 3 times for a total of 9 minutes of jerks.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33DopOxGeeM

There was a serious lactic acid build up in the legs after these so finished off with some kettlebell windmills.

Kettlebell Windmills
20kg * 5 L + 5 R
24kg * 5 L + 5 R
28kg * 5 L + 5 R
32kg * 5 R + 4 L as failed 5th rep

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaA6cLgQTAA

That was it, simple but very effective and I was still feeling the effects of this session some hours later.

One of the best for getting your metabolic rate up and burning significantly more calories at rest.

Eastbourne Boot Camp - Off the Ground!

Yesterday marked a very special day - the 14th November saw the very first Eastbourne Boot Camp session in Gildredge Park, Eastbourne.

On the run up to the boot camp the weather had been horrendous, 24 hours of driving rain and gale force winds, needless to say, it didnt look good for us remaining dry and avoiding a mud bath!

Thankfully, the weather cleared and we enjoyed a clear, if not windy session. The drainage in the park must be superb as despite the rain the grass was just a little soft under foot.

The session kicked off with a dymnamic warm up using various exercises chosen to lubricate the joints, warm the muscles, elevate the heart rate and get the mind prepared for the task about to come.

I find these kind of warm ups by far the most effective way to get ready for an intense session - traditional static stretching, as far am I am concerned belongs in between sets, or at the end of the workout.

Once the warm up was complete I introduced the boot campers to the humble kettlebell and a trio of very effective kettlebell exercises - namely the kettlebell swing, kettlebell pass around and the kettlebell over head press.

From there we began the session proper: -

Kettlebell swings * 1 minute
Star jumps * 1 minute performed back to back and repeated 2 more times with a short rest between each paring.

Kettlebell OH Press * 1 minute
High Knee Jogging * 30 seconds performed back to back and repeated 2 more times as above

Next up was: -
Kettlebell Pass Around * 1 minute
Mountain climbers * 1 minute performed back to back and repeated 2 more times.

Perimeter runs
Battling rope combo - This was intense to say the least but very very effective.

Battling ropes rock!

We finished with one arm rows and a tug of war!

Everyone worked very hard indeed, lots of lactic acid floating around in the body and this is the type of workout that can REALLY deliver great results!

Well done to everyone who came along, and if you would like to book a place on Eastbourne's most exciting, challenging and effective outdoor exercise class please visit www.eastbournebootcamp.com

You will be glad you did!

Conditioning Work and Bench Progress

Since having my knee op at the start of October I have been gradually getting back up to full strength with squats and deadlifts.

The major positive to come out of the reduced poundage from squatting and deadlifting is that I have had more energy to put into my benching.

Over the last few weeks I have switched up to benching every 5 days (as opposed to 7) and keeping single reps to a minimum.

The result has been great and am now in new territory with the weights I am shifting.
My previous best bench was 120kg which I can now hit comfortably any day of the week.

I am resisting the urge to go all out for a new PB attempt right now as I am trying to eek out the gains for as long as possible.

My format has generally been one heavy session of full bench press, working up to 3 sets of triple or double reps.

This has been followed by a lock out movement such as heavy 4" block presses to over tax the triceps in that movement.

Second session of the week has been a speed based session, working at 50% ish of my 1RM with an Iron Woody Mini band attached to each side of the barbell. This serves to increase the tension as it nears lockout making the movement dynamically more taxing.

The second exercise is then usually benching to a 2" block for reps of 5, somewhere around 4 sets of progressively heavy weights to a single 5 rep all out set with max weight.

I reckon my bench at the moment is sat around the 127.5kg mark - will see what I can get a little nearer to Christmas.

My goal is a solid 130kg bench but we shall see.

I have also been starting to include more in the way of conditioning and played about with this "fun" little kettlebell session a day or two ago.

After a thorough 10 minute warm up: -

Kettlebell single arm jerks(performed as one long set)
32kg x 10 reps (5right/5left)
28x 20 reps (10L/10R)
24 x 20 (10L/10R)

This was very VERY hard. I wanted to get 30 reps with the 24kg but I was gassing BIG TIME. This is going to be a core exercise for me now over the next few weeks as I would love to hit 100 reps with another drop down to a 20kg bell!

kettlebell single arm jerks
32kg x 20 reps (10L/10R)
32kg x 20
32kg x 20

kettlebell single arm snatch
16 x 60 reps swapping hands each 10
16kg x 40 reps as above

Double kb snatch
16kg each hand x 10
16kg each hand x 10
16kg each hand x 10

One thing that this session has revealed is a much greater need for some shoulder/thoracic spine flexibility work as I had a problem keeping my lifting arm tucked to the side of my head when in the over head lockout position.

That's probably due to all of the benching of recent, but still is no excuse - shouldnt be neglecting my flexibility!

Thanks for reading.

I trained on Sunday last and figured I would test out the knee as it has been two weeks since my operation to remove a bakers cyst from behind the knee.

I still have a fair amount of scarring, but all things considered, session went ok.

After a thorough warm up using various mobility exercises and dynamic stretches; -

Squats
bar*many
60kg*10
60kg*10
70kg*10
90*3
90*3
100*3
100*3
110*3

Partial Deadlift from knee height
100kg*10
100*10
120*5
140*3
160*3
170*1
180*1
190*1
190*1
190*1

The 190's were hard with no "from the floor" momentum - failed a few attempts through just not being focussed enough in the groove.

Finished with
3 sets of weighted swiss ball crunches

100 reps of kettlebell snatches with 16kg swapping hands every 10 reps.

Then Tuesday night was bench night: -
Decided to bench to a 2 inch block to give myself a break from full ROM benching and to try and over load my sticking point a little.

Bench with Block
60kg*10
60*10
70*5
90*3
100*3
110*3
110*3
110*3 all smooth and well paused between reps
115*2
115*2 again, all good reps

Full ROM Bench
90kg for 8 reps, then 10 second pause and 2 more reps to failure.

Chest Supported Bench Rows
60*10
60*10
70*10
70*10
70*10

Face Pulls with 2* woody mini bands
3 sets of 15 reps (i find this really hits between my scapula and is a great exercise for increasing stability in the bench and general shoulder health)

Kettlebell Floor Press
20kg each hand *12
24*10
28*7 and failed on 8th rep

Job done. Good session, and benching is feeling very strong at present.

Back to full ROM benching next week.

110*3

Well this was my first session back after a 2 week break due to having a knee operation.

A very good session and now I am on the run up to the BDFPA Qualifying Championships early next year.

By the end of this year I am hoping to achieve the following targets.

Bench Press 125kg * 1 rep with strict pause on chest.
Squat 165kg Strict Depth, with crease of hip joint falling below the height of the knee (ie legal comp squat depth)

Deadlift - 210kg

So on with last nights session: -


Flat Bench
bar*many
60*10
60*5
70*5
90*3
105*4
105*3
105*3

4" block press
110*5
110*5
110*5

Bench Rows
60*10
70*10
80*6
80*6 then double drop set down to 70 then 60

Face pulls using mini jump band, each hand 15 reps
Superset with side laterals 5kg 10 reps
3 sets done

Kettlebell Snatch
16kg for 100 reps 6 minutes swapping hands every 10 reps.

Good session today.

Bench felt good as did rows.

Will be using bands for speed sessions on bench and squat in forthcoming weeks and the face pulls for high reps using mini bands felt very good between the upper traps. This will now be a staple.

Am also going to perform 100 reps of KB snatches at the end of each session, just for a bit of conditioning really and to keep the podge at bay.

Having said that, after the rows, face pulls and side laterals I was blowing out of my arse by the end of 6 minutes!!

Good to be back - Happy Days

Eastbourne Boot Camp Coming Soon!

I am very excited about the upcoming launch of a new project - Eastbourne Boot Camp!

Initially the bootcamp will run in 4 week blocks from 9am - 10am on Saturdays, 14th November - 5th December 09 in Gildredge Park, Eastbourne.

Men and women of all ages, sizes, shapes and fitness levels are invited to join in these sessions aimed at getting people out into fresh air and to show that exercise need not be the boring chore it's often made out to be.

The boot camp session is specially designed to cater for all abilities, so individuals can work at their own pace.

The format of each session will centre around highly effective kettlebell, medicine ball, battling rope and body weight exercises geared towards helping people feel great and look good while offering that little something different to traditional gym based workouts.

Places are limited to 16 and on signing up, each boot camper will receive an information pack containing everything you need to know to maximise fat loss, eat healthily and exercise right. In addition, bootcampers can e mail me with any questions or queries they may have about their progression, fitness and program in general.

For more information please visit www.eastbournebootcamp.com

Sign Up Today!

Due to being so busy with clients and the hosue move, I havent been able to update my training blog much.

Training has been continuing though and is going very well right now.

The last 3 sessions are as follows: -
Session 1
Deadlift
60x10
60x10
100x5
120x3
140x3 belt on
160x3
170x3x3
140x5
140x5

sldl
100x5
100x5

ran out of time so will hit abs and front squats tom.

Deads felt ok, took it easy and didn't quite have the power I normally have. 3 sets at 80% was enough and i'm really focussing on keeping my core tight as I think I been guilty of letting my back do all the work. Also trying to hold back a little to avoid another burn out!

Session 2
Bench
bar x 20
40 x 10
60 x 5
80 x 5
90 x 5
100 x 3
110 x 1
115 x 1
105 x 2
105 x 2
100 x 3

bench rows
60 x 10
62.5 x 8
62.5 x 8
65 x 8
70 x 8

One arm kb jerk
24 x 10 left and right
24 x 10 l/r
24 x 10 l/r
28 x 10 l/r

some light flys and rear felts to finish.


Session 3 - Today Squats.

Had a bloomin busy morning personal training and then ripping out carpets from the house.

When it got to training I made a slight faux par by having only comsumed 1 meal by 3pm - CRAP.

Warming up I felt rubbish and stiff so spent a fair bit of time doing some light squats just to get the hips opened and glutes loosened off.

Bar*10
40*10
40*10 to a low box
60*5 to low box
80*5 to low box
100*5 to low box - bar felt heavy and i felt slow.
100*5 (box taken away)
120*3
140*1*3 all good singles, felt comfy and form was good.
145*1*3 - not so good form wise.
140*1*4 all good deep singles.

Front squats
60*5
70*5
80*3
90*1
100*1 - BURIED!

Swiss Ball Abs
Bodyweight only *15
BW +5 *10
BW +10 *10
Bw+10*10

That was it, I was shattered and in desperate need of food.

Had been taking a BCAA supplement during workout which helped with energy levels.

Plenty of volume today, squats felt nice and ready to move up a bit next session I think.

Legs wise the 145's were fine, but still trying to keep myself from having premature hip rise.

Getting there.

Hi all,

Trained today after well over a week off and much needed break from training.

Flat bench
bar x 20
40 x 10
60 x 10
70x 6
90 x 3
100 x 3
100 x 3
100 x 3
100 x 3
100 x 3

Chest supported row
40x 15
60x 8 x 5 sets

kb military press
20kg each hand 3 sets x 8 reps

flys
11kg x 15
16kg x 8 x 2 sets

rear flys
11kg x 6 x 3 sets

extensions and curls to finish.

Benching felt good and last set was hard to finish.

Blimey, It's been a while since posting - but things have been silly busy with business improving beyond my wildest expectations and also trying to move house at the same time.

Training has been going well for the most part, while also having a couple of niggles that I have been managing.

My most recent training session was as follows; -

Box squat
bar x 20
60 x 10
60 x 5
80 x 5
100 x 3
110 x 2
120 x 1
120 x 1
130 x 1
130 x 1
130 x 1
140 x 1
100 x6
100 x 5

kettlebell Turkish get up phase 1 only.
16kg L/R x 10
20kg L/R x 5
24kg L/R x 6

crunches with feet on bench
10 reps x 3 sets

Here is a link to me Personal Best box squat of 140kg: -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4QiGnUlmU0

Once the house move is sorted I will be back with a vengence updating the web site with lots of exciting new articles, hints and tips.

5 days off so back to it today.

Have been toying with the idea of trying a modified 5*5 routine, squatting and benching twice per week with deads just once.

The reason for this is to put a little less strain on my cental nervous system and reduce over all fatigue. So for the next few weeks at least, no heavy singles!

Todays session:-

Squat
bar*10
60*5
60*5
83*5
97*5
113*5
130*5
140*1
140*2
140*2
140*2
100*3 (all paused at the bottom)
110*3 (as above)

Bench
Bar*10
60*5
60*5
75*5
90*5
100*4 (just missed the 5th)
100*2
100*2
100*2

Kb jerks
16kg*10* 3 sets
20kg*10* 3 sets

That was it, had to stick to low weights on the KB due to having a tat done last weekend and not quite healed properly where the kettlebells were resting in the rack position.

The squats felt good, but got carried away (Reflex Nutrition Matrix Evolution pre workout - super focussed!) Should have stopped at the planned 130*5kg which is what the plan said, with a view to hitting 135 for 3 on thursday.

Still the 140's were solid and form pretty good, so its slowly gettin there.

Had a sports massage a while after that and talk about pain! IT band hell.

Chicken breast with fresh Edamame Bean and Pea salad
If you want a really colourful and healthy salad with a taste of spring, this is the meal for you.
You will need:-
1 Chicken Breast - Roasted without skin
1/2 cup Edamame Beans - cooked
1/2 Cup Fresh Peas
Handful of Spinach
1 Spring Onion
2tbsp Greek Yoghurt
1 Garlic Clove

Wilt the spinach in a small amount of water in a pan, and then drain thoroughly.
Finely chop the spring onion and cut the chicken breast into bite sizes pieces.
Crush garlic clove and mix thoroughly with Greek Yoghurt.
Mix all ingredients in a Tupperware box and store in the fridge for 1 hour to marinate.

Take out and enjoy when hungry.

This is an incredibly healthy meal, packed with protein, fibre, vitamin A, B and calcium. The carbohydrates in this meal are extremely slowly digesting, making it ideal for a mid day meal, and helping to avoid the after lunch slump. The protein content serves to promote repair and combines with the fibre to keep you feeling fuller for longer. A real winner!

Hi Everyone,

Was looking back through some old articles and found a quote that I am particularly fond of......

"The level of thought that has gotten you to where you are now, is not the level of thought that will get you to where you want to be” - Albert Einstein

I have had and still got a stinking head cold, which I initially thought was hay fever, but the usual anti histamines havent touched it, and havent had itchy eyes either, so it MUST be a cold!

My philosophy is that if the cold is from the neck up - it's ok to train, BUT if the cold is on the chest and in the throat and feeling achy etc then better to rest.

With that In mind I had a great training session tonight and ended up benching more than I have benched in training in a long time!


Bench
Bar*20
40*10
60*5
70*5
80*3
90*1
100*1
107.5*1
115*1 not bad at all :-)
105*2*3
92*4

Double 24kg Jerks
10
10
10

One Arm KB Rows
20*10 each arm
24kg*10
28*8
32*8
32*8

Flys
11kg*10
13.5*10
13.5*10

rear flys
8.5kg*10*3 sets

Job done and very pleasing all things considered.

Hi Everyone,

I completed the Performance Boxing Course with Optimal Life Fitness Group 2 weeks ago now and can safely say it is the best workshop I have done by far.

Great bunch of people, great support and great fun!

I cant recommend them highly enough, and their courses can be found here: -

http://www.optimallifefitness.com/

My training has been going very well recently, despite the incredibly busy schedule.

I have found the need to increase calorie consumption over the last 2 weeks as due to taking on a few more clients, and being consequently being much more active I have been struggling to keep the weight on.

Why do I want to keep the weight on?

Well if I start to lose weight, my strength tends to drop which is not what I want with my powerlifting.

Im currently maintaining at around the 82.5kg mark, which is the lightest I have been for some time (without cutting down pre comp).

Training this afternoon - squats and deadlifts - cant wait! :-)

Performance Boxing

Tomorrow I am on Performance Boxing Course with Optimal Life Fitness, which means as of next week, I will be offering boxing training and pad work for my clients.

Boxing is an awesome workout for the cardiovascular system and upper body, offering conditioning and incredible muscle toning benefits.

It's also very popular with those who need to let of some steam and stress, usually while visualising their boss/work colleague/worst enemy and go a bit punch crazy!

It's all great fun though, so if you are interested in trying out this awesome workout, please get in touch with me.

Be Well

What a week!

Hi all,

This week has been soooo busy and just havent had the time to keep this updated, so will summarise my training for the last 7 days.

Friday 8th May
Training Friday

Bench
Bar*30
40*10
60*5
80*5
90*3
90*3
92.5*3*3
100*2*3

Squat
Bar*10
60*5
80*5
100*5
110*3
120*3
130*2
140*1*6
130*3
120*3
110*3
100*5

Sunday 10th May
Took saturday off then trained today with kettlebells as follows:-
10 min warm up with halos, kettlebell passes round the body, some light swings and snatches.

Jerks 20kg
4 mins
6
6
6
6

3 mins
6
6
6

2.5 mins
6
6
6 (shoulders/upper pec just too pumped)

20kg jerks, 6 reps every minute, on the minute for 10 minutes (giving 20-30 seconds rest per minute)

Snatches
20kg
3 mins, 1.5 per arm, 15 reps per arm

2 mins of snatches, 1 min per arm 12 reps per arm

24kg snatches
10 per arm
10 per arm

Single arm swings
24kg *10 per arm * 3 sets

Done and shattered!


Tuesday 12th May
Jerks with 20kg
3 Mins
6
6
6 then lost it so performed another 7 compression sets of 6 reps per minute, leaving about 25 seconds recovery each minute (pretty crap).

Just didnt have any power at the end.

OAC&J
24kg 2 mins (swap hands after a minute) * 2 sets

Windmill
16*5
20*5
24*3 each hand

Snatch
20kg * 10 per hand * 3 sets

Friday 15th May
Bench
Bar*20
40*10
60*10
80*5
90*3
100*3*5 sets

KB Jerks 20kg
3 mins * 3 sets
7
7
7

Kb one arm jerk
24kg 2mins 1 min per arm 11/11
24kg 2 mins 1 min per arm 11/11

KB Snatch
24kg 4 mins swapping arm each minute 8 reps per min

Kb snatch 24kg 1min per arm, 11 reps each arm * 2 sets

Windmill
24kg *3 each arm

Was pretty fried after this session, struggled with first 2 sets of jerks after benching, but relaxed more on the 3rd and felt much better.

I am now into the second week of my very gradual build up to new personal bests, planned for around the week 10-12 mark.

Due to the length of the training cycle, I will increase the intensity very gradually so as not to peak too early.

When using longer cycles, it's important to really plan out each and every session, and work at specific percentages of 1 rep max.

For example, My first week started with a low load of 70% of 1RM, but due to the low load, I performed more volume (an example being 8 sets of 3 reps @ 70% maximum for bench press.
Each week, I have increased the weight by 5% of maximum, while dropping the sets, or reps slightly.
As I near 90%, the sets and reps will be very low, at which point I intend to take an easy week, increase my 1 rep max estimated figure by 5kg, recalculate my percentages and start again.

It's a system that takes bit of work, but does work incredibly well.

My last session looked like this:-
Deads 60*10
100*5
120*5
140*3
160*3*6 sets all belted.

Rack pulls from knee height
140*5
160*5
180*2
180*2

Power shrugs
100*8*3
Swiss ball weighted abs
body weight *15
+5*10
+10*8
+10*8

KB swings
28kg bell *20
28kg*15
28*10

KB side bends
28kg *15
28kg*15

Job done.

Hi all,

It's taken me a while up to update, but I went o the British Championships and what a day it was!

It was a HUGE learning curve and valuable lesson in where I am currently at, and what I need to do.

I finished mid-field, the highlight being a new personal best squat of 172.5kg.


Have the vids of all my lifts here, was no where near the top guys, some of whom went for numerous world record attempts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vw1c9QwgC0 - bench 110 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wH8M9X7aDQk Bench 117.5 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TF2tmwM0lws Bench 122.5 and pb attempt but failed .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCqV-0gyZQY Squat 150kg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NFHaRvredI Squat 162.5 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFy8oINW8Qg Squat 172.5 and PB

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddYD7B-12yA Deadlift 190kg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5uWOv5WUOM Deadlift 200kg fail - grip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CiOF5U3pWg Deadlift 200kg got it!

My bench was a bit of a gamble - wanted 122.5 but it just wasnt there on the day.
Annoyed with the deads - for some reason I couldnt hold the bar on the first attempt with 200kg while waiting for the refs call - which i have never had before.

It was just opening out my hand and while waiting it slipped down - big fat fail.
Nailed it second attempt, but wanted 210 really.

Ah well. So now back to drawing board and the plans are.

Adjust squat stance, go to squat in coverse flat shoes, shift feet out wider, work on hip flexibility and squat wider, in attempt to keep torso more upright when coming out of the hole.

Bench will shift to once every 5 days, with some floor pressing thrown in to work the mid point of the move, which seems to be my weak point presently.

Deadlift - more grip work - static holds to be done in various grips after deadlift work. A complete week off powerlifting now, and trip to the physio to sort out a tight quadratus laborum right hand side which keeps causing a bit of a hip slip to one side.

Onwards and upwards!

Thanks for reading.

Hi All,
Nothing much to report, been taking it very easy since my last session.

I am two days out now from the BDPFA British Championships to be held in Coventry.

I have been watching my weight as need to come in at 82.5kg or less on saturday morning. This morning I was 83.2 - so cutting right back on carbohydrates, and keeping water intake very high at 4 - 5 litres each day.

My plan for tomorrow is to stop eating and drinking after 3pm, which should then see me wake up on the big day and step on the scale at well under 82.5kg - that's the plan at least.

My planned openers - will be as follows: -

Squat 150kg
Bench 110kg
Deadlift 190kg

That's the plan anyway!

In the mean time I have been busy writing two new articles for my web site:-

The first is about How to Lose Stomach Fat which can be seen here: -
http://www.total-fitness-personal-trainer.com/stomach-fat.html

The second article is about the use of kettlebells, and how they can be used for a whole host of benefits including building muscle and gaining strength.

http://www.total-fitness-personal-trainer.com/kettlebell.html

I hope you enjoy reading them.

Best Wishes

Training tonight was my last session before the BDFPA British champs next weekend.

Worked up to each of my openers and felt ok, not as sharp as I would have liked, but I feel a slight cold in the background which Im trying to keep at bay with some vitamin c increased dosage for a few days.

Squats
Bar*20
60*5
60*5
80*5
100*3
120*3
belt on
140*3
150*3

Bench Press
bar*20
60*5
60*5
80*3
100*2
112.5*1
110*1
110*1
100*2

Deadlift
60*5
100*5
120*3
140*3
160*1
170*1
Belt on
180*1
190*1

Job done.

Deadlifts felt very good and 190 went up with relative ease.

Planned openers and weights for next weekend are now something like:-
Squat
150*1
162.5*1
172.5 - 175*1 depending how the 162.5 goes.

Bench
110*1
120*1
125*1

Deads
190*1
200*1
210*1

Each of the top lifts would see a PB for me, so fingers crossed.

Time to rest up now and keep supple.

Thanks for reading.

Hi all,

Trained Sunday with KB, earlier in the day than usual - and I felt it!

KB Jerk 16kg Bells
2 Mins 8 reps per min
2 Mins 8 reps
2 Mins 8 Reps

Wanted to do 20's but just felt rubbish so: -
KB Jerk 20kg
1.5 Mins
1.5 Mins

Did as many reps as I could which was around 15 ish.

Was going to do one arm snatches but just wasnt feeling it so decided on some OALC with the 20kg KB.

4 Mins alternating arms each minute
4 Mins as above - was about 10 reps per minute

By the end of these little beauties I was sweating and breathing like an old man doing a marathon! lol

Grip was something of a problem today for some reason.

Off to mother in laws for a roast.

Came back later on and was fidgity so decided on a second session!

KB swings
16kg * 2 mins per arm
20kg * 1.5 mins per arm
20kg * 1.5 mins per arm
20kg * 1.5 mins per arm

Again, grip was a problem here, as was just getting the bell up towards the end.

Windmill
20kg*5 per side
24kg * 5 per side
28kg *5 per side

1 arm jerks with 24kg
18 per side * 2 sets

That was it, a very good days training marred probably by dehydration.

I felt like a calorie burning inferno after all this, kind of like how I used to feel when I was a competive cyclist and finished a race - body just shattered.

Last heavy heavy session proper today and wanted to get deadlifts in early to allow time to recover ready for my opener session next week.

Session took 1hr 40 mins, mainly due to the 3 minute rest periods that I used throughout the heavy sets.

Id hit deads last friday and squatted heavy monday, so was feeling a little tired so started on bench first.

Bench
bar*10
40*10
60*5
70*5
80*3
90*3
100*3
110*1
112.5*1
112.5*1
100*2 with extra long pause on chest
100*2 as above

2 board bench press (5" block on chest and bench onto that)
120*3
120*3
120*3

Deads
60*10
100*5
120*3
140*3
160*3
170*1 belt on
180*1
190*2

Rack pull from knee height
200*3
190*3
190*3

Job done.
Very enjoyable but bloody hard work out.

Will hit a KB session on sunday now, then final powerlifting session is next wednesday or thursday depending on recovery where I will work up to my opening weight on each lift in one session.

Squat Focus Day

Todays training. Session time, 1 hour 20 mins.


Squat
Bar*15
60*5
80*5
100*5
120*3
130*3 belt on
140*2
150*3
160*1 crap rep and bar slid up shoulders when in the hole
160*1 much better!
140*3

walk outs
175
180
180

Swiss ball crunches
15*bw
10*+5kg
10*+5kg

Side bends
24kg KB 15 per side
28kg Kb 12 per side
28*12 per side

Job done.
Good session today and is the last heavy squat day before my comp.
Next week I will be working up to my opening weight and then allowing 8 - 10 days complete rest before the comp.

Sunday - conditioning session with Kettlebells

Training today was a KB only session as follows:

Jerks
2mins, 20kg 6 reps per minute
2mins 20kg, 6 reps per minute
2 mins 20kg, 6 reps per minute

1 Arm Jerk
1min, 24kg 13 reps L then 1 Min R arm
1min, 24kg 14 reps L then 1 Min R arm

Snatch
20kg 2 mins, 1 min per arm, 10 reps per minute
20kg 2 mins, 1 min per arm 10 reps per minute
16kg 2 mins, 1 min per arm 15 reps per minute

Bottom Up hold (without press)
16kg for numerous attempts.
Managed 3 good sets of 10 second holds

Windmill
20kg*3 each side
24*1*2 each side
28kg*1 each side

That was me, first all KB session since the advanced course and first time of trying snatches after jerks.

Needless to say, the snatches felt poor and were a real effort to punch through at the top.

Whole workout took an hour and I was shattered at the end of it!

Great conditioning though and will be doing this now for the next few weeks in addition to powerlifing dominant work.

Very enjoyable!

Training - Bench Dominant

Trained last night as follows - wasnt feeling 100% due to a pesky cough I have picked up on returning from hols!

Bench Press
Bar*20
40*10
60*5
70*5
80*5
90*3
100*1
110*1
110*1
110*1
110*1
110*1
97.5*2 with extra long pause on chest
95*3 with extra long pause on chest
95*3 "

2 Board press
110*3
115*3
115*3

Just focused on trying to fire em out explosively with 1 second touch on chest

Behind neck press
bar*15
40*6
40*6

KB snatch (10 reps per arm all done in 60 seconds)
16*10 L+R
16*10 L+R
20*10 L+R
20*10 L+R

Rear delts
5kg*12*3 sets

Very good session, lacked a little speed off the chest with the 110's but that's to be expected after a week off and cold.

Next weeks session will be stepped up with a little more weight, but less volume.

Thanks for reading.

It's been a while!

My does'nt time fly?!

I can't believe it was over 2 weeks ago since my last update, but it goes to show how easy it is to lose track of time when your mind is on other things.

Since my last update things have been a little up and down - but all in a good way.

After my Advanced Kettlebell course I admit, I was feeling somewhat beat up - physically and mentally.

I ached for most of the week after the course which meant that my planned training had to be trimmed a little to take account for my added fatigue.

In situations like this I tend to cut right back on the volume, aim for my target set and then back right off with some lighter assistance work.
The fatigue I felt was most apparent in my back, with me noticing some tightness around the lower right hand side of my back, just above the hip.

I had a week of snowboarding planned which was a welcome break from training, and yet equally tiring due to long days out on the slopes and all the effort of control needed to stay upright!

It was a great week filled with amazing scenary, fab company and truly glorious weather!

On returning back to the UK feeling well rested from my usual training it was back to it with squats planned.

The session went as follows: -
Squat
Bar*15
60kg*5
80*5
100*5
120*3
130*3
140*3
150*1
150*1
150*1
150*1
130*5

Box Squat
100*2
100*2
100*2
100*2
100*2

Swiss Ball Crunches with 5kg plate behind head.
10 reps
10 reps
10reps

Side Bends with 20kg Kettlebell
10 reps per side repeated 3 times

Bridges
1 minute * 3 sets with 60 seconds rest between each.

That was it, a very good session within which I felt very strong, despite the week on the slopes which had left me somewhat tired.

3 weeks to go until the British Championships and feeling incredibly focussed!

Thanks for reading.

This weekend was spent on a 1 day course in London - The Optimal Life Fitness Advanced kettlebell course.

It was a great day of competition kettlebell lifts, swings, snatches, cleans, jerks and grind lifts including the windmill, 2 handed anyhow and much more.

Needless to say, after 6 hours of lifting, and two days later - i'm still sore and pretty tired - but happy.

The guys at Optimal Life Fitness are great, with outstanding knowledge and know how.

Check out their web site for the courses they provide if your interested in kettlebells and are based in the Uk.

http://www.optimallifefitness.com/

Tonight I had written in my diary to squat - and with me being away snowboarding next week, it's vital that I complete my core sessions for each of my main lifts, that being squat, deadlift and bench.

So, after a strong coffee it was down to business.

Squats with a cambered bar (helps prevent elbow, shoulder and wrist strain)
Bar*10
40kg*10
60*5
80*5
100*5
120*5
130*3
140*3
140*3
140*3

Box squat performed with speed: -

100kg*2
100kg*2
100kg*2
100kg*2
100kg*2

And that was it.

The box squats were done with a narrower stance and exploded out of the hole as fast as possible for two reps.

Got plenty of stretching to do as my lower back was pretty fatigued after this little lot.

A pleasing session, with the 140's being 80% of my 1 rep maximum.

Perfect!

Thanks for reading.

Hi Everyone,

Well it has been a week since I last updated and in that time it's been my competition.

I awoke on the morning of the comp and weighed in at 81.1kg first thing in the morning, which was perfect and served to give me plenty of room for difference in scales at the competition venue.

The journey there was a little stressful, after getting 5 miles into my journey and picking up a nail in my car tyre!

Thankfully I had a spare and after a quick change I was off again.

On arriving just after 8am I weighed in without issue, 81.1kg.

I was scheduled to lift in the 4th wave, which was great news as it meant I had plenty of time to rehydrate and get some food eaten.

I started off with 1 litre of carbohydrate/electrolyte replacement drink, and a banana and p-nut butter sandwich, which was shortly followed by some home made flapjack while I sat back and watched the first lifters set off.

The day went very well indeed, with me starting lifting at around 11am.

My opening squat was 145kg, followed by 160kg and finishing off with 170kg.
Each of the lifts were legal, and 170kg had been my target, so I was very happy.

About an hour later is was time for my second set of lifts of the day - the bench press.

My opener was 110kg with second lift and New Personal Best of 120kg.
My third attempt was 125kg.

Unfortunately I could not get past my sticking point which is 2" off the chest and failed this lift. Still, a personal best and target achieved saw me very pleased.

I knew that in order to qualify for the BDFPA British Championships I needed to get 490kg in total, so I needeed 200kg for the deadlift and I would be there.

I opened with 180kg which flew up, followed by 190kg.

For my third and final lift I was tempted to go for a personal best, knowing that in training I have lifted 205kg recently.

In the end I decided to play it safe and nominated 200kg which saw three white lights, a successful lift and a place in the British Championships on 18th April 2009!

To say I was over the moon was an understatement - Goal Achieved!

I had one more suprise in store and that was I was called out as 3rd place winner in the South East Region from my category.

Days just don't get much better than that!

So now I have 5 more weeks of training, staying healthy and keeping injuries at bay.

The finals can't come quick enough!

Thanks for reading.

2 Days to Go

It's nearly the big day that see's my powerlifting competition on saturday.

Training wise I have done very little, lots of stretching and trying to keep stress to a minimum while getting some good quality sleep.

However, typically, the week so far has been busier than I would have liked, with today being non stop.

I find at times like these it can be good practice to turn within and look at what thoughts lead to frustration and stress.

Often frustration and stress is caused by too much looking ahead, feeling over whelmed by what is perceived to be forthcoming.

In times such as this, drawing ones attention back to the present moment can help significantly reduce stress. You see, in the present moment, what may or may not be ahead is not a problem right NOW in this moment. It may even be that the imagined outcome for the forthcoming event does not turn out the way we expect it to - often resulting in stress that was unfounded when you eventually get there.

By bringing your attention back to the present moment, and immersing yourself in whatever you may be doing, whether it be washing up, watching TV or sat with the eyes closed paying attention to your breathing only in peace and quiet - the action of being in the moment of Now can bring with it a huge sense of mental relief.

Indeed, this is something I was encountering earlier this evening, wondering how on earth I was going to manage to get everything done that I felt needed doing.

The fact of it is, right now, there is nothing that cannot wait - and through taking some time to self centre and realise this my stress levels and feelings of frustration have been obliterated.

Try it for yourself sometime - you may be suprised how effective it is!

I have also been watching my weight very closely this week.
I will be competing in the category of 82.5kg and so must weight as much as this on the day - MAXIMUM.

Each night I have weighed myself before going to bed and been on the scales around the 84kg mark.

I then weighed myself first thing in the morning, after visiting the bathroom and have been finding I am usually around the 82.3kg mark.

With this in mind and to make weight for certain, I shall be stopping food and fluid (apart from sips of water) after 3pm tomorrow evening.

The weigh in is at 8am, so on rising on competition day I shall check my weight on rising and have nothing to eat or drink until weight has been made.

From there I will have 3-4 hours to get as much fluid on board as possible, along with high carbhrdrate foods to boost energy levels.

Thankfully with me being there or there abouts, I will not be significantly dehydrated on the morning of the competition making for speedy rehydration and better performance - at least that's the theory!

Thanks for reading.

Final Pre Comp Workout.

I had my last workout on wednesday 18th feb, and am now into my 10 days rapid taper ready for the competition in a weeks time.

The idea of the session was to perform each of the lifts, up to a maximum of 80% of 1 Rep Max, concentrating on hitting good form and power.

My session was as follow:-

5 minute warm up using various body weight exercises.

Squat

bar*10
60kg*5
60*5
80*3
100*3
120*1
130*1

Bench Press

Bar*10
40*5
60*5
70*5
80*3
90*1
90*1
90*1

Dead Lift
60*5
100*3
120*2
140*1*2
150*1
160*1
170*1

Felt good throughout with the session taking a total of 90 minutes.

Nothing further to do in terms of training now, just keeping loose, stretched off and relaxed.

I shall perform some mobility exercises over the next day or so with nothing being done from wednesday.

Thanks for reading.

Benching - Last Main Session!

Hi All,
Today saw my last full bench session before my meet.
I intended to stay sub-maximal and focus on really "oiling the groove".....so that's exactly what happened.

The 110kg singles all felt good and I feel confident now using this as my opening weight.
Warm up
Various stretches, arm swings etc

Flat bench
bar*30
40kg*10
60*5
70*3
80*3
90*2
100*1
110*1
110*1
110*1
110*1

6" board press
110*2
120*2
120*2
120*2

Pin push from 2" above chest
115*1
115*1

Plenty of power, the 110's went up no problem and was just oiling the groove.
The 120 board presses were straight forward too - just focussing on powerful and speedy lock out.

As a note, and for the benefit of those who don't know - the board presses are used to work different parts of the benchpress.
Of recent I have had less power from mid way up to lockout - hence the inclusion of the 6" presses, which focus on the lock out.

The other advantage of it is that it prepares you for lifting heavier as your body adapts to having a heavier weight than normal on your arms and chest.

It works very well indeed.

KB Jerks
24kg each hand *6 reps
24kg " " * 6 reps

Bent Flys
5kg*10 reps
5kg*10
5kg*10
5kg*10

That was it, job done.

Deadlift Training

Today's session was deadlift specific just oiling the groove really and getting my technique as sound as possible.

Warm Up
Shuttle Runs
Arm Swings
Arm Circles
Hip Rotations

Deadlift
Bar*20
60kg*10
60*10
100*5
120*3
140*3
160*3 (belt on)
180*1
190*1

Speed Deadlift
150kg*1
150*1
150*1
150*1
150*1

Chest Supported Row
40kg*15
60*10
60*10
60*10 all reps done fast and explosively

Kettlebell Military Press
20kg*10
20*10
20*10

Straight Leg Sit Ups
30 reps
30 reps

Finished off with some stretching, creatine drink and 20 minutes later protein shake.

I felt a little sluggish throughout, but then I have had a very busy week, and am probably still recovering from the heavy squat session done last monday.

Technique felt good though and Im feeling confident.
The Kettlebells were more aimed at shoulder health while the abs were high reps with body weight only due to me having already trained abs on monday of this week for low reps.

Core strength seems to be improving using this technique - which can only be a good thing.

In the next 5 days exercise will be kept to a minimum, with next wednesday being my next heavy (ish) session.

Within this session I shall be building up to my opening weights for each discipline followed by 10 days of active rest prior to my competition on the 28th.

Thanks for reading.

Last Heavy Squat Session

In the build up to my competition, I completed my last squat based session yesterday.

I was feeling a little fatigued and ready for my de load period on the run into the competition, but none the less, it ended up being a very good session.

Warm Up
Body Weight Squats *20
Behind Neck Press *20 with Olympic Bar
Torso Twists *20
Various Stretches

Squats
Bar*15
60kg*10
80kg*5
100kg*3
120kg*3 (belt on)
140kg*1
150kg*1
160kg*1
165kg*1
160kg*1
150kg*1
140kg*1

Box Squats
100kg*3
120kg*3
130kg*2
140kg*2 (new personal best)

Weighted Ab sit Ups
30*body weight
10kg*8
10kg*6
10kg*6

Stretch off.

As you can see, a very simple session.
The box squats are a great addition and teach the body how to fire rapidly "out of the hole" at the very bottom of the squat.

I have my box set so that when I'm sat on it, my hip joint is just below the height of my knee joint, making it perfect practice for legal depth in a competition.

Needless to say, I'm feeling a little tired today, so plenty of stretching, quality food and water is the order of the day.

Thanks for reading.

I am currently in the final stretch of preparation of my first powerlifting competition on 28th Feb 2009.

I will be aiming to compete in the 82.5kg category, and at 3 weeks out im there or there abouts being 82.8kg this morning.

The competition is a RAW competition, which means lifting in a weight belt only, so no bench shirts, squat suits or knee wraps.

The format for the competition is 3 attempts at the Squat, Bench Press and Deadlift, aiming to lift as much as possible, for a single rep, while ensuring the lift is considered to be legal.

That means squatting below parallel, benching with a pause on the chest until the ref signals to lift, and deadlifting in a smooth single movement with no hitching.

Last week I performed my last heavy dead lift session, and worked up to 190kg for 2 sets of 2 reps, followed by rack pulls from knee height, culminating in a new PB of 210kg for 2 reps.

On Saturday 7th February I performed my penultimate heavy bench session before the comp and went as follows:-

10 minute Warm Up
Arm Swings
Shoulder Rotations,
Push Ups
Behind Neck Press with Olympic Bar

Flat Bench
Bar*20
40kg*10
60*10
70*5
80*3
90*2
100*1
110*1
115*1
115*1
115*1

5 Inch Block Press
115*3
120*3
125*3
130*2 (New Pb)

Chest Paused Bench with 4 second pause.
100*1
100*1
100*1
100*1
100*1

Kettlebell Military Press
16kg*15
24kg*5
24kg*5

Bent Over Rear Delt Flys
5kg*10
5kg*10
5kg*10
5kg*10

That was my session.
Lots of heavy work, with average rest between sets being 3 minutes for the heaviest sets.

I felt strong throughout, and the power off the chest felt good.

From here on in my max on the bench will be around the 110kg mark so as not to over tax the central nervous system and allow a complete recovery in preparation for the big day!

Thanks for reading.

Yours Matt Shore

Introducing My Blog

A warm welcome to my blog.........

My intention is to maintain a regular update providing insight and information relating to a wide range of topics relating to Total Fitness.

In addition, I will be keeping a detailed diary of my techniques and strategies that I employ in the development of my own personal fitness.

I am currently training for the British Drug Free Powerlifting Association South East Qualifier to be held on 28th February 2009.

For more information about my approach to Total Fitness, which not check out my web site which can be seen here:


http://www.total-fitness-personal-trainer.com/index.html

Yours Matt Shore