Concurrent Strength Training & Running 2015: Eight-Week Workout Cycle VII

Here's the page, but the bolts I'm talking about aren't depicted.
http://www.thebarefootrunners.org/t...2014-eight-week-workout-cycle-ii.17238/page-6
I was surprised too that carriage bolts weren't sturdier but I guess they're made for keeping things together, not as one-ended supports. My design for the new set-up should be pretty solid.

Well, according to my projections, based on adding two pounds to the squat each week, I should reach a 1000-pound total by early May.

Of course, I have no idea if my current rate of increase is sustainable. On all my weekly templates, I have the total in the top right corner, so you can check on my progress. And yeah, I think all three lifts should be done in the same day. I won't be attempting anything outside of the projections, which so far have been pretty accurate, so I don't anticipate too much trouble making all three lifts once the charts tell me it's time. I think I'm consistently underestimating my true 1RM on all the lifts by about 5-10 pounds, so I should be OK.

Maybe in April we can start paying more attention to this, and make it a bit of a game, although I'm pretty sure I will be unwilling to add risk just to hurry up the process. This period of injury-free lifting is true bliss.

Yah, the ring of Kerry is spectacular. And you gotta love those huge Irish breakfasts at the B&Bs. How much longer do you think you'll be in Europe, by the way?

Yeah I think April will be good to set up a challenge, I'll have a better idea then of how the microloading is going and see if that kind of time frame is feasible. Maybe I'll have lost some weight too?

Not sure about the time, maybe another year and a half at least? Not really in any rush to get back home. But this new touring bike has got me thinking about doing some longer road rides to help supplement the long running. Plus moving around long distances on your own power is kind of enchanting. Hopefully I can drag the kids along when they get a little older too.

Maybe do a ferry ride to England and loop up to the lakes and down to wales? The possibilities are endless, although the left side of the road riding kind of freaks me out.
 
I see what you're talking about now. I was wondering if you could add spotter arms, but you'd have to increase the footprint by bolting the rack onto longer 4x4s.

If installing the rope safeties, one could try anchoring a length of strong wood perpendicularly across 4 joists, and hang the ropes from it. Of course, it would depend how the rack is oriented relative to the joists.

I suppose this is all dependent on how safe one wants to be. Since, I'm relatively inexperienced, I wanted to maximize safety. Actually, if anyone has any more safety suggestions, I'm all ears. Thanks!
 
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instant success! on day #4 of this high volume plan, i cranked through my "everything else day" in about 10 minutes less than last time (subtracting out the time wasted on curls), hit the last repetition on the last two sets of presses (unlike last time) and left off only 50 calf raises. so basically same work, less time = progress. maybe it was all that homemade hummus at the communal dinner tonight....
 
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I'm hoping the microloading will help develop the connective bits more steadily. The weight wasn't really an issue.

Had a good run today, I am still doing the walk 1k/run 1k thing. It seems to be working well and I may employ this strategy at my ultras this year. I feel way less beat up after the run and the pace overall is a bit slower but definitely in the fast end of the ultra range.
I think that's another benefit of microloading. Perhaps sometimes we get injured because muscle adapts faster than connective tissue, giving us a false sense of our true gains, until something pops. I have to say, right now, I'm very happy to see the weight go up across all the lifts super gradually. I'm still a little under-confident on the conventional Deadlifts, but hopefully that will clear up after another week or two of getting back to heavier loads.

I sometimes wonder if the run-walk method isn't the more natural way to run? Perhaps continuous running developed more through racing than recreation or hunting/warring? Still, nothing like a good long run.
 
I think that's another benefit of microloading. Perhaps sometimes we get injured because muscle adapts faster than connective tissue, giving us a false sense of our true gains, until something pops. I have to say, right now, I'm very happy to see the weight go up across all the lifts super gradually. I'm still a little under-confident on the conventional Deadlifts, but hopefully that will clear up after another week or two of getting back to heavier loads.

I sometimes wonder if the run-walk method isn't the more natural way to run? Perhaps continuous running developed more through racing than recreation or hunting/warring? Still, nothing like a good long run.

Yeah another benefit for the walk/run is getting out early in the cold and dark is much easier and bearable which is very helpful this time of the year. And overall the winter run experience is more enjoyable. I also like to walk and look around, and I find that walking is trainable too from a speed standpoint.

Yeah and as we age, giving that connective tissue the extra time build up is a no brainer. I liken it to my slower paced, higher volume but lower frequency running plan. Seems to work well for me from a joint health aspect as I never feel sore or creaky after a run anymore.
 
Well, fellow DIY home-gymers, here's how the Safety/Dip Station turned out.

Here it is in Squat Safety Mode:
1 Safety Mode - Squat.jpg


Note: Dip brackets are on the outside of the 4x4 posts so that I don't hit them with my arms while squatting.
2 Safety Mode.jpg


Upper bar is set at Squat level, lower bar is set at Bench Press level.
3 Safety Mode.jpg


Remove the upper bar to shift to Bench Press Safety Mode (the upper bar is from a gate latch). The lower bar is set at Bench Press level and is secured by a threaded bar passing inside the pipe and fastened to the front of the posts with a wing nut.
4 Safety Mode - Bench Press.jpg


Shifting now to Dip Mode: First loosen the front wing nut then pull the 4x4 wood post away from the base and steel rack post. The threaded bar comes out from inside the pipe. The pipe has been screwed into a 3/4-inch hole about an inch deep in the back of the 4x4 post. After that, the hole continues at 1/2-inch diameter so that the 1/2-inch threaded bar can pass to the front of the post and be secured by a wing nut. The threading on the end of the pipe that abuts the steel rack posts has been cut off. The perpendicularity of the posts can be adjusted by loosening or tightening the pipe's insertion into the 4x4 posts: tighter, and top of the 4x4 post becomes closer to the power rack; looser, and the top of the 4x4 post is farther away. So, using a level on the back of the 4x4 posts, it's easy to adjust the pipe's exposed length until the 4x4 posts are exactly parallel to the power rack's posts.
5 Changing from Safety Mode.to Dip Mode.jpg


The 4x4 post fits snugly inside the 1x4 pieces on either side of the base. I was going to run a bolt through them, inside to outside through the post, but the fit is so good that it's unnecessary. There's zero wiggle, and anyway, almost all of the force, whether in Safety or Dip mode, is vertical.
6 Changing from Safety Mode.to Dip Mode.jpg


Switching posts to opposite sides of the base so that the Dip brackets are on the inside now.
7 Changing from Safety Mode.to Dip Mode.jpg


Inserting the Dip handles into the brackets. Note the notch in the bottom of the dip handles that aligns with a little embossed square inside the brackets.
8 Changing from Safety Mode.to Dip Mode.jpg


Putting a 1x4 cedar board across for extra stability, held in place by the Squat safety bars. The extra board isn't really necessary though.
9 Dip Mode.jpg


Dip mode side view.
10 Dip Mode.jpg


My son sees an irresistible climbing object.
11 Dip Mode.jpg


Here's the pulley I installed a few months ago to make the pulldown cable more vertical, in order to reduce the load's platform friction on the post as it ascends and descends. This meant taking out the pulley in the post, which makes low-cable rows impossible. Not sure if it was worth it.
12 Pulley for Pulldowns.jpg

Yeah another benefit for the walk/run is getting out early in the cold and dark is much easier and bearable which is very helpful this time of the year. And overall the winter run experience is more enjoyable. I also like to walk and look around, and I find that walking is trainable too from a speed standpoint.

Yeah and as we age, giving that connective tissue the extra time build up is a no brainer. I liken it to my slower paced, higher volume but lower frequency running plan. Seems to work well for me from a joint health aspect as I never feel sore or creaky after a run anymore.
Ha, you're almost talking me into trying running again. Maybe I could get away with it? But is it worth the risk/wear and tear to the meniscus?
 
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Nice addition! I don't think I have actually seen a home made thing that can convert quite that easily. Really nice job. In fact that's exactly like the rack I tried to buy but didn't come with the dip handles.
Just an idea cause I see some of the weight at the bottom floating around, if it works for you just ignore this. The rack I tried to buy had a storage upright in the back near the pull down weights that you could rack all the weights on, similar to the old 4 x 4 I ran from the floor the ceiling in my old gym and drilled some holes for some short pipes. The foot print was minimal but held a ton of weight. You could prolly do something like that in the back and connect to the front uprights in the same way but expand your weight storage immensely and would be out of the way while lifting.

Shit now you have got me shopping... for a pull down attachment, speaking of which if I were to buy one how does the pull down/low pull work without a bench that counteracts your weight? Also where do you put you feet for the low pull? Or where did you? Do you think its worth it? $175. I'm worried if I don't get it now they will stop selling it.
 
If the pull down is more than bodyweight, then it sounds like you'd need to bolt the bench down and then strap yourself to the bench. Why not just use a pullup bar with a dip belt?

Yeah it wouldn't always be more than bodyweight but occasionally I guess. You think just kneeling down is fine, I guess I could always throw some weight in my backpack to help counteract? I have always had the sitting bench available and have never done one without the bench.
To answer your question though they have always felt a little different to me, pull ups and pull downs. The pull downs seem to isolate your back and biceps more. Pull ups are more full body, core stabilization intermixed with the back/bicep work. So I kind of look at them as different lifts if that makes sense.
Also the pull down will let me get in some more volume vs. the pull ups. But I could also use different handles to vary grips, do face pulls, tricep pull downs etc.. and the horizontal rows would be nice.
 
Nice addition! I don't think I have actually seen a home made thing that can convert quite that easily. Really nice job. In fact that's exactly like the rack I tried to buy but didn't come with the dip handles.
Just an idea cause I see some of the weight at the bottom floating around, if it works for you just ignore this. The rack I tried to buy had a storage upright in the back near the pull down weights that you could rack all the weights on, similar to the old 4 x 4 I ran from the floor the ceiling in my old gym and drilled some holes for some short pipes. The foot print was minimal but held a ton of weight. You could prolly do something like that in the back and connect to the front uprights in the same way but expand your weight storage immensely and would be out of the way while lifting.

Shit now you have got me shopping... for a pull down attachment, speaking of which if I were to buy one how does the pull down/low pull work without a bench that counteracts your weight? Also where do you put you feet for the low pull? Or where did you? Do you think its worth it? $175. I'm worried if I don't get it now they will stop selling it.
Thanks! Yeah, it turned out better than I had hoped. I guess it did help that I had thought about it for several weeks before actually implementing it. I'm a real inefficient family man, so I've been trying to avoid unnecessary tasks and projects, but I think this one was worth it. I'll know for sure after a week or two of use. If I end up doing dips every workout as assistance, the conversion process might get a little old, but right now I'm planning on doing dips on Wednesday only, so the rest of the time it will be in Safety Mode.

The way I rack the weights right now works reasonably well, but I like your idea, something to think about. The only problem I can foresee at the moment is that the power rack sits on top of the 4x4 base corners, so it would be difficult to plant an upright 4x4 there. Also, it might impede access to the pulldown loading platform, but I think I load from the inside most times anyway. In general, I like having the weights stacks on both sides for easy loading. I've also thought about extending the front 4x4 posts higher, in order to mount my joist-mountable pullup bar, but then it would interfere with the garage door a bit more. As it is, I have to remember to detach the pulldown attachments when I'm done otherwise the garage door crashes into them when it's fully open. It's a pretty tight space over all. It would be really nice to have about two or three times more space. I think it would help with motivation. Everything feels a little cramped right now.

Pulldown loads of 190-200 pounds are on the threshold of pulling me up off the floor at a bodyweight of 245 pounds or so. My knees come up first, putting me in something of a fetal position as I draw the bar down below my chin. The solution I've thought of so far would be to extend and secure some kind of bar or board across the base, under which I could tuck in my kneeling legs. It would probably be even easier to set up now with the 4x4 vertical posts. But the goal at the moment is to convert to pullups when this pulldown weight gets to be too much, although like you say, pulleys and cables have other uses too. In general, I'm trying to have everything in place so that workouts proceed quickly and smoothly from one lift to another.

For the low pulley row, I have this set up, currently in mothballs:
08.jpg
I got the foot platform from Yukon Fitness I think. I do miss the cable rows. I like barbell rows and I like centering my routine on the basic barbell lifts, but for rows, it's always seemed to me that some combination of barbell row, one-hand dumbbell row, and cable row is optimal. Kind of like how pulldowns are best done with a variety of grips. So, perhaps with the current idea of making the upper body pulls more assistance again, I could justify always doing some combination. But then again, I don't always get to the assistance, and I really like having an ultra simple routine, which the barbell focus provides quite well.
 
Ok thanks for the ideas, I'll think about the pull down contraption a little more. I was thinking about ordering a couple spare 20kg bumper plates to encourage me to warmup a little better and ran across the add on then.

How often do you use that hot tub? I totally understand about the space. I like to have the space generally free around me when I am lifting too, which is the only reason I commented about the weights. I also like it to be clean, which is hard since we lift in the garage and the floor is always messy from various outdoor shenanigans. The difficult thing is to ignore cleaning and wrenching between sets while I am lifting, but I keep the garage a bit cleaner because of it.
 
Ok thanks for the ideas, I'll think about the pull down contraption a little more. I was thinking about ordering a couple spare 20kg bumper plates to encourage me to warmup a little better and ran across the add on then.

How often do you use that hot tub? I totally understand about the space. I like to have the space generally free around me when I am lifting too, which is the only reason I commented about the weights. I also like it to be clean, which is hard since we lift in the garage and the floor is always messy from various outdoor shenanigans. The difficult thing is to ignore cleaning and wrenching between sets while I am lifting, but I keep the garage a bit cleaner because of it.
Yah, likewise, you got me thinking about a more efficient way to store the plates on the side. If you have some pics of your old set-up, I wouldn't mind having a look. The easiest thing would be to put two 4x4 posts behind the base, and attach it to the steep posts as you suggested, but that would move the whole thing forward and then the garage door opening would become an issue. Anyway, something to think about. These projects are always best when they're slow-cooked anyway.

I would actually like to get rid of the hot tub, but that would be another project, and who knows, maybe the family will start using it more when the kids are a little older? I hear you about the hassles of garage gyming. Everyone unloads their crap in the garage, and then there's the leaves and snow and stuff tracking in all the time. I often spend the first 15 minutes of my workout just cleaning up, while I'm doing my Squat warm-ups and stretching out (don't tell Miguel), but then sometimes other stuff comes up and it cuts into my workout. Just have to always plan on starting 15-30 minutes early, and if I finish early, do some of the chump work around the house that never ends, before I have to pick up the kids. But I sometimes just have a beer and spicy pistashios when that happens.

Crap, haven't exercised since Friday. Have to get back on the bandwagon before lethargy seeps in. Lately there's been too much to do all the time.
 
Too much time off, so I was going to ladder up to a full set of Squats 1/2/3/4/5, which works out to the same reps as 5/5/5 as well. I had also woken up with a sore right knee for some reason, so it behooved me to work it up slowly. I was starting to finally get a little warmed-up and motivated when I hit the left vertical 4x4 post coming down on the third or fourth rep of my fourth set and the bar became unbalanced and before I knew it, the left side's plates were sliding off. I stood there like Wiley E Coyote, waiting for the inevitable as the plates fell off in rapid succession and then again as the bar tipped to the other side to let all the plates slide off to the right. Crap, first time that's happened, on Squats anyway.

It happens so fast!
So uh Collars? Bumping weight on the safeties happens all the time. Probably why I don't like squatting in the rack and I think I'd rather bail but I'm not sure. Benching with safeties is a must for me though.

I would love to have a hot tub again, it worked wonders for me when for soreness back in the day. Funny you say that about the family, I told the boys maybe we could buy a house with a pool someday again and they said no they wanted a big hot tub they could swim in lol.

I don't have any old pics of that rack. But it was basically a post that ran from the floor to the ceiling and I attached it to the joists in the garage. Then I drilled maybe five holes tilted slightly upwards and put in 1.5" x 12" steel conduit as the weight holder. That thing used to hold about 500lbs of weight.
 
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That happened to me while squatting. So, I now use Ivanko collars. I still need to patch the dent in the drywall.

Heck, after seeing that, I'll spring for collars for the barbell outside the rack, since I use it for press.
 
It happens so fast!
So uh Collars? Bumping weight on the safeties happens all the time. Probably why I don't like squatting in the rack and I think I'd rather bail but I'm not sure. Benching with safeties is a must for me though.

I would love to have a hot tub again, it worked wonders for me when for soreness back in the day. Funny you say that about the family, I told the boys maybe we could buy a house with a pool someday again and they said no they wanted a big hot tub they could swim in lol.

I don't have any old pics of that rack. But it was basically a post that ran from the floor to the ceiling and I attached it to the joists in the garage. Then I drilled maybe five holes tilted slightly upwards and put in 1.5" x 12" steel conduit as the weight holder. That thing used to hold about 500lbs of weight.
Ha! But for me it seemed a little more slow motion. I didn't actually hit the safety bars, but the top of the vertical posts, which took me by surprise. I don't think it will be a problem hitting the safety bars. I did that once or twice last week, just to check depth, and with little velocity on the bar and good balance, it wasn't an issue.

I don't know if collars would be an improvement. I know once I missed re-racking the bar and that pulled a muscle mildly in the traps or someplace as I was able to rebalance the bar before the plates started slipping. Yesterday, with collars I might've been able to steady myself better, but I also might've wrenched my back trying to. For the time being, I will experiment lifting inside the safety station with lighter loads. Theoretically, the bar path should be vertical, always above mid-foot as I descend and ascend, so I shouldn't need too much margin on either side. And it might be good practice for maintaining strict form on each and every rep, avoiding moment arms. It will mean getting my foot placement exact in terms of distance from the rack, if not necessarily width-wise. Up to now, I've mostly been concerned with stance width, not stance depth as it were. And the safety bars do allow me to achieve depth consistently without every worrying about whether I'll be able to make it back up. So it's worth trying to adapt. I could also cut a little off the vertical posts, they're only that height because of the dips, but the dips could be done lower perhaps. One other option would be to move the 4x4 posts farther away from the power rack, but the gate latch I found for squat safety bar works perfectly at the current distance. I'd have to switch to a plain or threaded bar, which might not be as strong without the pipe overlay.

I was also having an off-day and not really focused, so something to be aware of. I think I was daydreaming on the missed rep.

At least a few times not having collars on my bench press has helped keep me from getting stapled to the bench.

Yeah, I don't understand the whole thing with ice baths, hot tubs seem like the way to go. Funny, my kids thought the hot tub would be great for splashing around in too until they found out how hot it is. And if you cool it down to kid-tolerable temps, it loses its therapeutic effects and just becomes a big warm bath.

Yah, maybe I could use the top of my rack with a horizontal 4x4 attached, in lieu of open joists, to steady vertical, plate-storing 4x4 posts. It's an intriguing idea because I would like to unclutter my steel posts. I have my 2.5-, 5-, and 10-pound plates hanging on either side, which looks good when not in use, but I pretty much have to take them off as soon as I start lifting, otherwise they get in the way. Wood posts placed a little more to the sides or back wood be a better set-up, but I'm not sure about how much room I have to spare. And it would present another climbing opportunity for my kids. My son already climbs up the rack, stored weights, and loaded weights on the pulldown platform in order to get on top of the hot tub. That's where he likes me to put on his shoes/boots and wraps. I wouldn't want to tempt him to climb all the way up to the ceiling on stored weights.

But it's true, 4x4 wood posts are pretty strong. I've even seen people build their entire power racks out of them
I still need to patch the dent in the drywall.
I narrowly missed destroying our vacuum cleaner!
 
I was thinking you could even cut one 4x4 on an angle and attach from the bottom to the upper portion of the upright. I just wonder if the torque of the weight would be too much? Then you wouldn't need a lateral support connection or wouldn't have hieght issue with the garage door.
 
I was thinking you could even cut one 4x4 on an angle and attach from the bottom to the upper portion of the upright. I just wonder if the torque of the weight would be too much? Then you wouldn't need a lateral support connection or wouldn't have hieght issue with the garage door.
That might work actually, just have to make sure it doesn't interfere with any of the lifts. I also like your idea of maybe just running a 4x4 up to the ceiling, off to the side, to get all my standard plates, which I hardly ever use, off the floor. Right now they're stacked on top of plumbing pipe with flanges. I don't have exposed joists but I could use an angled plate to attach the top to the ceiling I think. It's something I could whip up fairly quickly I would think, with minimal expense.
Well I think my walking speed is topped out at 9 min/km (14:30 min/mi), I guess that's not too bad when I thin about it. Kept the run sections below 5:30 min/km.
I think 15-minute miles is pretty normal for a brisk walk, more like 20mm for a normal gait.
Kids trashed the gym and now I have to clean up smashed crumbs and other assorted crap before the morning.
Don't get me started.
One other note my hip is bothering me again on the same side? And I also have this kink in my left trap for about a month. Not sure what's going on, prolly should go see the chiro.
Have you been stretching the hammies, ITB, and Piri Formis? I find most hip issues disappear when I'm limber.
Surprisingly difficult workout for some reason.
I've been having too many shitty workouts lately. Hopefully today's goes better or I may have to consider repeating this week. I may think about doing a better warm-up of some kind, but I hate spending extra time on that stuff. Most days, I only have about an hour of motivation in me.