My training log and thoughts

 30.01.2024 Flys, full range / supersetted with back flys (skier flys) 2 kg dbs - 2 sets of 15 6 kg dbs - 2 sets of 15 Slow squats with hand support in the front 4 sets - only a few reps, but really slow; it kind of looked like me moving up a few degrees up, pausing, up again and so on. Don't want to overdo anything before tomorrow. But feeling kinda nice, pumped muscle and brain. Having some old ideas - from a year and three months ago enter my brain again. But I'm a little different nowadays. But also they still feel refreshing somehow, I feel like there are more options in life than I thought. Overhead press - a set of reps with the 27 kg ez bar 31.01.2024 Kind of a nice day. I may be mistaken, but I think I'm coming out of that little depression I've developed since early November. A few things are different. I feel like there are more options. Nutrition has been fairly average. Sleep - hard to say, haven't been quite getting enough. But I feel okay. It's no...

 28.01.2024 Sunday. Hard to say how I feel. Nutrition and sleep have been above average. Friday workout hit me pretty hard - but only CNS wise, my muscle didn't get too sore. I slept all Saturday and ended up not working out. My mind has been obsessed with the idea of running a DnD game online, with strangers or perhaps my friends from ESO. My first impulse thought is that I'd be subjecting them to torture if I were to influence them to participate in it, but I realise it's a little overexaggerated. I think it's permissible to write "overexaggerated" as one word, it feels right. Anyway, I want to hold a game with DnD5e rules - like in BG3 - but set in my setting, i.e. the slightly absurd version of real life. The one where (semi-post ironic) parodies of conspiracy theories are real. There's nothing unbelievable about the concept of conspiracy. They did it with the lightbulbs and now you have to pay to change them every year, even the expansive energy-savin...

 26.01.2024 Week 3, Session 2 Squat - 4 sets of 5 with 77,5% . 180-185 kgs Workout Warmup - some Squat 20 for 10 50 for 5 100 for 5 143 for 5 I don't like how my joints feel. But I might be warming up too quickly. 183 for 3 and then superstition overwhelmed me. All three reps were easy. I just thought about adjusting technique on the fly and got confused in the squat. I had a traitorous thought - after my initial confusion - that I should just drop it, and I sat there, in the hole, wrestling with that idea, still confused; I wanted to try and get up even from this rounded back position, but something - my instincts, or my gut feeling I presume - suggested that I should drop it, so I did. A little displeased, but Thank God I know it's just a matter of confusion rather than weakness. So, I deadlifted it into the lower racks and then unplated it down to 50, put on squat racks and put the plates back on. Now I need to let my warmth arrive. 183 for 5 - nice. I'm not fiddling muc...

 25.01.2024 Yesterday was a high exhaustion day. I had way too much fun. Sleep has been weird. I can't sleep, but I feel sleepy during the day. Food is decent, above average for once. I'd like to do OHP today, if possible. Week 6, Session 1 - 4 sets of 3 with 82,5% . So around 105-108 kgs. Sounds reasonable. Workout Much later. Warmup - a little, just upper body Overhead press 20 for 20 50 for 10 70 for 5 was still wearing flat shoes here 90 for 5 okay. Knowing and believing that it's a light weight for me really helped 105,3 for 3 okay 108 for 3 nice, right arm uneven in the third rep, but all difficulties today are more about balance than strength, which seems sufficient. Left eye is popping. I have to learn to press from a stable position on the third rep heh. Funny how technique comes and goes sometimes, even if you are very learned. 108 for 3 nice too Smart observation - a small thing we don't often realise is that if a muscle is weaker than it can either be workin...

 22.01.2024 Lovely day. Food and sleep are really subpar, but I've been feeling great. I'm having a very light one today, my thoughts focused more on Wednesday. Warmup - somewhat thorough, upper body Workout Flys 2 kg dbs - 2 sets of 15 6 kg dbs - 2 sets of 15 Press 6 kg dbs - 2 sets of 30 Calf raises 3 sets, full range from the floor, pauses at the top Lower body moves (squat variations) four a couple sets Deep knee bends (i.e. fully vertical squats on toes) - 2 sets of 15 Horseman stance, no wall this time - 1 sets, counting (quickly) to 120 24.01.2024 Week 4, Session 2 - 4 sets of 2 with 85% So, around 270? Could be done. Hmm. Workout Deadlift 20 for 10 70 for 5 120 for 5 160 for 5 200 for 3 230 for 3 250 for 2 kinda nice 270 for 2 - way too hard, but I did it. Mid back still really tired from squats. Thorassic spine. It worked hard on squats cause of how seemingly upright they were. Hmm. Also, kinda hard to breathe and brace. Let's see... 270 for 1 same, way too hard, m...

 21.01.2024 Week 3, Session 1 - 5 sets of 8 with 67,5%. My squat sure has been getting quite spread around. I don't think it's that big of a deal for the moment. I'm pacing myself. So, I'm thinking I could do 150-160 kgs. Not completely confident in regards to my maxes. Workout Squat 20 for 10 70 for 8 123 for 8 163 for 8 - surprisingly hard. I realised I had almost nothing to eat and went to cook. 163 for 8 - wraps underknee, a little better 163 for 8 - better again. I stood close to the racks and I think that helped me not to  fall forward onto my toes all the time. 163 for 8 - nice. It was not easy, but it was much easier than the first set. RPE around 60% if I was forced to estimate it - for the sake of memory.

 18.01.2024 A bit of a weird day. Didn't get a lot of sleep, woke up, went to help somewhere. Recently I've been in a slightly unusual mood. Hard to explain. Sort of bitter, but it's not painful. Like I accept the bad things in life and I've made my peace with them - to a point that they don't bother me. Thank God for that. 19.01.2024 Week 5, Session 2 - 5 sets of 4 with 80% . So, around 105 kgs. I feel very strong, upper and lower body. Except for my pecs - they're shrunk and weak. But they don't hurt and don't feel damaged. Good enough for the moment! Workout Warmup - some, upper body Overhead press 20 for 30 63 for 20 kinda hard, but I wanted to do this. Need some more blood pressure, it feels like. 93 - somehow, when I tried pressing today I felt hte strongest instinctual impulse telling me to stop training today. I obeyed it - it seemed truthful. Well, I admit, I barely got any sleep, for the second day in a row. 20 for 10 more reps 20.01.2024 Pacin...

 16.01.2024 Light day - a general warmup, a lot of flys Rubber lat pulldowns - 2 sets, light, many reps Lower body moves (hinge variations) - some, not overdoing Squats - 2 sets of 10 Horseman stance, by the wall - 3 sets, each one minute long - this time I measured it with a clock, since I realised my counting can go super fast if unchecked. I've been trying to keep it at 90 degree angles - knees, hips and torso, so it's as hard as it can be. On third set I tried fully pronouncing the numbers and it turned out to be almost exactly two numbers per second, very close. So counting to around 127 was a minute. Enjoying the warm feeling in the tendons above my kneecaps. 17.01.2024 Week 7, Session 2 - 5 sets of 4 with 80%  - obviously it's not exactly Week 7, since I do one DL session per week and I've soft-restarted the middle microcycle last week Deadlift 20 - 70 - 163 - 203 for 5 233 for 5 253 for 4 - I must note I first failed the 4th rep, but they all were very ligh...

 15.01.2023 Genuinely nice day. I think I messed up a little and I was lifting in the wrong range on my last two OHP workouts. Let's check... Actually, no, I didn't. Legs sore from my squat yesterday. Today can be a fairly basic 4 sets of 8 workout. Week 5, Session 1. I sorta feel very strong. How curious. Workout Warmup - minimal Overhead press 20 for 34 got lost for a few seconds heh 63 for 15 a tiny burn. A longer break here 93 for 8 fairly easy, casual, pure muscle effort 93 for 8 nice, easier 93 for 8 lovely, hard but nice, smooth. 20 for 10 reveling in my mobility This weight - 93 kgs - was a good choice for a working weight in this range (4 sets of 8, around 70%). I'm close to an equilibrium between weight and effort - all these sets were both heavy enough and smooth enough, almost completely optimized CNS strain. Shoulders pumped nicely. Hoping to have decent thoughtful fun for the rest of the night. Simple and basic, like having enough water to drink and enough bre...

 13.01.2023 Kinda nice day. Quiet, peaceful. A little chilly. Suprisingly, the heater was warm. I guess it's only gotten chilly after sunset. Haven't gone to do number two in more than two days now, a little worried about it, but feeling okay otherwise. Well, my knee instability is something to be concerned with, but it's an issue I've sort of been able to deal with before. So, just a bit of rest for the knee specifically, and need to pace my efforts. In that case, what shall we do today? I felt a little too sensitive to caffeine when I woke up today. I wanted to have some of that random instant coffee we got, but it's been finished. No matter - it's more about the form. I made a conventional 20g/x10 brew and put it in a large cup with some sugar *sic!* I don't always have sugar, that's why. Well, not pure sugar. An uncovered hypocrisy. My brain is buzzing pleasantly now that I'm about 80% done with the cup. I feel good. Nostalgic. Living. Imagery, p...

 12.01.2024 So, it's Friday. I didn't write much about what's going on, did I? Let me check... No, wait, I did, obviously. Wednesday was kind of a messy day for me. It was a very long day, very fatiguing. Recently, the left side of my body has been hurting, something inside, something related to blood pressure. The first search suggests spleenomegaly. Curious. Kinda silly. The usual trope of "googling symptoms", hehe. You know, if you're a writer or something like that you may enjoy reading tvtropes site. Yesterday, after sleeping in complete dead sleep all day, I woke up feeling something. I dunno, man. I just gotta keep praying. I don't feel bad, I don't feel lost, but I kinda feel locked up. Like, somebody's locked me in a room but then is telling me to keep going. I need help, man. All I can do is pray. It's all been not very rewarding at all. You muster up some strength, all your strength to try once and you get swatted down to the ground....

 09.01.2024 Kind of a nice day. Didn't sleep at night, had a pill, went to work at school, but later, once I returned home I got news i wasn't being hired after all, after one month and one additional day of work. Oh well. I foresaw something along the lines of. Bureaucrats don't want fresh, living blood. Heh. Sounds like funny coping. No matter. It might be at least partial truth. Anyway, I prefer not to care. These news helped reset something in me, and even though I'm deeply disappointed, I no longer feel anxious and distressed somehow. That day I slept a lot during the day - it was very deep sleep, since I've had such a long day by combinign Sunday and half of Monday. I had a micro workout - L-flys and full range shoulder flys (superset) - 2 kg dbs for 3 sets of 15, nice pump for back and shoulders Squat - 2 sets of 10 - something felt fragile in my knee. Not good news. My legs are indicating to me that they need some rest. I've been having sharp, but not ve...

 07.01.2024 Light day. Sleep mediocre, nutrition above average. Workout Warmup - thorough, all around curious moves Rubber lat pulls and raised elbow one arm curls Curls 2 - 6 - 8 kg dbs for sets of 15 16 kg kettlebell, one arm drag curls - 3 sets of 15 - kinda hard, very direct load Floor-supported ring pullups 2 sets of 10 Pullups - I unhooked a part of my pullup bar and put rings on it 2 sets of 10, pretty awkward - they were not staying in place, rolling all around on the metal construction. But it felt comfortable for my problematic spots, which is great. 08.01.2024 Kind of a horrible day. The usual stuff. Brain chemistry destroyed. Not a big deal. I know I can stay calm. I'm supposed to have an OHP workout today - Week 4, Session 1, 4 sets of 4 with 80%. But I don't know what I want. I speculate it could be beneficial for me to take it light today. I'd like to imagine that it's all the cold getting to me. *** This January will be a good one. I will make sure of th...

 05.01.2024 Light workout. All around warmup, some horseman stance, wall pushups, hand walks from a standing position into a pushup plank (4 sets overall). Floor-supported ring pullups - 3 sets of 10 keeping it very easy for lats, using my legs a lot. Those hand walks can be complexified to make for a very difficult exercise. Enjoying them. Doing them in superset with ring pullups. Shoulders and triceps are getting pumped, lats a little bit too. Proud of being able to finish early. 06.01.2024 Kind of a nice day. Sleep and nutrition slightly above average. Coughing. Workout Warmup - almost none Squat 20 for 10 50 for 10 100 for 5 satisfied with technique today 153 for 5 not great, but sort of casual. I.e. body isn't automatically generating enough effort to lift this weight easily. I.e. not warmed up. Well, it is also literally cold. Thank God the air is somewhat clean. 153 for 5 nice, not perfect but a little better. Put on wraps underknee. 153 for 5 very easy 153 for 5 about the s...

 04.01.2024 Today's Week 3, Session 2 - 70% for 5 and 4 sets of 5 with 77,5% in my OHP. Yesterday was a very fatiguing day. So, I think I'll settle for something simple, like 85 and 95. Workout Warmup - some, not really OHP oriented Overhead press 20 for 30 50 for 5 70 for 5 85 for 5 93 for 5 95,5 for 5 - I actually love how the bar is moving today, so smooth. 95,5 for 5 nice too 95,5 for 5 okay, smooth, but starting to see accumulating fatigue (unevenness) 20 for a few more reps as I marvel at my shoulder mobility. I couldn't dream about it two years ago! I definitely have to get to PPs and Olympic-style stuff when it gets warmer. *** One arm press, kettlebell bottoms up 16 kg - 2 sets of 10 - okay, relying on grip, but also positioning Wall pushups - about three sets. Keeping it up. Keeping pecs alive, more or less.

 03.01.2024 Sort of a nice day, I guess. Sleep was a little awkward. I felt more comfortable in bed than I did in a while, my nose wasn't troubled, but at some point it was very cold once again, so it disturbed and broke my sleep. I woke up late again. Mood was nice. Nutrition was low, but I wasn't hungry. Went and brewed one nice moka. I've been sort of low on caffeine lately, so it's feeling nice. Had a few semi-decent nutritious enough bit of food, such as potato and sald and some other snacks. Took a dump - it's a good sign when coffee makes you do it, I think that means you're less likely to be irritated. Now I'm having a second moka. Gonna start my workout somewhat soon. Alright, it's about time. Today we're lifting big, more or less. I want new music. Maybe something really new. I think I wanna try getting to 270 for 2 and 288 for 3 sets of 2. And maybe a heavier single. Possible? I don't know. We'll see. Workout Warmup - dressing up D...

 01.01.2023 So, it's very simple. We have Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays for conventional workout days. Wednesday is always DL. The rest should be light days. And it's very simple - we just alternate Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays as OHP/Squat. Today I feel very low on energy. I know I need to rest. We can assume we did out OHP on Saturday and our squat today (instead of yesterday). So, we can have asomething light tomorrow, good empowered DL on Wednesday and OHP on Thursday. It'll be difficult, but it's a good plan. And today we'll keep it super light. At some point we should be able to spread our efforts per day, so it's not just OHP but cleans/OHP/PP etc. Should be lovely. Workout - mini Hip hinge exercise, many variations - 6 sets One leg rotations - 5 sets - you can do them like a corkscrew, or you can do them like calipers, just roating sideways Some leg raises and donkey kicks/swings - for some reason those exercises felt much more boring compared to ...