Today's Training: Resisted Sprints/contrast sprints

Today was the 6th consecutive day of what I call "High Impact" training. What do I mean by that term? Several years ago, when I was in my early 50's, I realized I couldn't hammer with high intensity, high impact training day after day without hampering my recovery efforts as well as taking a toll on my joints. I know that may seem like it took me a while to figure things out but what can I say, I'm slow that way! :) In any event I started organizing my training between what I called "high impact" days (sprinting, baseball, squash, plyos, etc.) and what I considered "low impact" days (generally mobility work and strength training). One could argue my classifications but it's my training, my body and I understand how I react to certain training stresses better than anyone else. So bottom line was I tried not to have too many "high impact" days in a row and organized and planned my training accordingly. It has seemed to work well as I've had no serious injuries and have been able to train hard and consistently. But for whatever reason the last 6 days were different and went something like this: Thursday: Long sprints Friday: Hill sprints Saturday: Squash (10 games) Sunday: Acceleration sprints & softball Monday: Squash (10 games) Today/Tuesday: Resisted sprints/contrast sprints I have survived these last 6 days none the worse for wear though I don't plan on pushing the envelope that hard anytime in the near future. Today's Session Warmup: Ankle mobs, Scap pushups, No Moneys, Low Box Hip Flexor, 1/2 kneeling adductor, Leg swings, open hip t-spine rotation, March Series Workout: Med ball work: MB wall dribbles 2 x 15 sec. @ 4 lbs; Med ball chest passes off wall: 2 x 12 @ 18 lbs; Med ball side toss 2 x 8 ea. @ 18 lbs.; Med ball Scoop tosses 2 x 6 @ 18 lbs. Resisted "fly" 20's w/ 30 yd. fly-in: 4 x w/ 35 lb. parachute Contrast "fly" 20's w/" " " : 4 x Box Jumps 3 x 5 Comments: Good training session; like the flying 20's...good top end speed work. The contrast "flys" felt good as well. Will try to integrate them more into my training plan over next several weeks. Train hard and train smart! http://fitnesstogether.com/media for our website and all of our links

Grill the Guru I: Charles Poliquin

Grill the Guru I: Charles Poliquin Long but interesting article from Bret Contreras.

Today's Training: Hill Sprints

Today's training was a little variation on what I normally do which would have been a strength training day. But I felt like running so I did hill intervals instead. Warmup: Leg swings, lateral squats, march series, skip series, arm circles Workout: "Garage" hill sprints- 3 x 3 w/ 4 minutes rest between sets. Comments: Though I believe training schedules are important I also believe there is nothing written in stone. If you have a certain training activity planned but you are not mentally ready to do that activity or are slightly injured then you have to be able and willing to improvise. Today was one of those days for me, admittedly, so I substituted hill sprints instead of lifting. I didn't slack off but did something I was mentally prepared to do and do it hard and well. So the point is listen to your body and your mind. Train hard and train smart! http://fitnesstogether.com/media for our website and our other links.

Today's Training: Sprints, Power

Today I did some longer sprints (about 175 yds.) as I am preparing for a track meet in 4 weeks where I plan to do the 100 meters, 200 meters and perhaps long jump. We will see! Warmup: Foam roll, tabletop hamstring, tabletop hip rotators, ankle mobs, wall slides, low box hip flexor, 1/2 kneeling adductor, open hip t-spine rotation Workout: Box jumps 3 x 5; 4 x 175 yd. sprints (3 min. recovery walk in between); Med ball work: Wall dribbles 2 x 15 seconds @ 4 lbs; Med ball chest passes 2 x 12 @ 20 lbs; Med ball side tosses 2 x 6 @ 20 lbs. Comments: Took a little time to get the Box jumps "smooth", didn't quite feel good until 3rd set...perhaps I wasn't warmed up enough?!?! Sprints went well as did the Med ball work which it usually does for me. Train hard and train smart! http://fitnesstogether.com/media for our website and all of our links

Yesterday's Training: Strength

Today was the 2nd day of the new Wendler 5-3-1 program I'm doing and the core lift was the hang clean. Warmup: Foam roll, tabletop hamstring, tabletop hip rotators, wall slides, ankle mobs, Swissball adductor, Swissball chest stretch, Indian clubs, low box hip flexor, 1/2 kneeling adductor Workout: Hang clean: 1 x 4 @ 95, 135, 155, 165; Rip Trainer punch 3 x 8 ea.; KROC DB Rows 2 x 15 @ 80; Weighted pushups 2 x 10 @ 70; 2 x 6 @ 95; Rollouts 3 x 10 Comments: Good session; clean technique is getting better but still needs work...it has been a while and too long since I did this exercise. Train hard and train smart! http://fitnesstogether.com/media for our website and all of our links

Today's Training: Sprints/Power!

Today, between rain storms, I got a chance to go outside and train. Even when it's overcast it's still better than training indoors! Warmup: Leg swings, lateral squats, ankle mobs, Spider lunges, open hip t-spine rotation, Inchworms, toe walks/heel walks, March series, high knees, butt kickers, skip series Workout: Med Ball scoop tosses: 2 x 6 @ 4 kg; Sprint ladder 10-20-30-40-50 meters x 2--walk back for recovery. 2 1/2 min. recovery between sets. Plyo step-ups 2 x 12; Overhead Med ball throws 2 x 6 @ 4 kg. Comments: Another good workout. Really making sure I warm up thoroughly before training as I have been remiss in the past in doing a good job of that. At this point in my life/training life a good warmup is imperative. Until next time... Train hard and train smart! http://fitnesstogether.com/media for our website and all of our links

Today's Training: Strength Training

After two de-load weeks, it was back to the 5-3-1 program again with some changes to the exercises. Will do this for a month and then see where we are at that point. Warmup: Tabletop hamstring, tabletop hip rotators, ankle mobs, forearm wall slides, Swissball upper body stretch, Swissball hip flexor mob, Indian clubs, Deep squat mob Workout: Zercher squats 1 x 5 @ 95, 120, 135, 1x 6 @ 160; Incline BB press 1 x 5 @ 115, 135, 155, 1 x 6 @ 175; Chins 3 x 15; KB racked carries 2 x 60 yds. Comments: Good training session. Finding a way to make the Zercher squats comfortable with the elbows is going to be a challenge, though, esp. as the weights increase. Train hard and train smart! http://fitnesstogether.com/media for our website and all of our links