Walk softly and turn a big stick

[Mike Wills]

Alright, I'm going to try and keep a training log, although I am notoriously bad about not doing so.

Tonight:

Warmup
Elliptical
Overhead squats w/empty bar
Band pull-throughs
Reverse hypers w/body weight

Workout
Front squats - up to sets of 5 w/275
Back squats - up to sets of 5 w/315
Squat bar step ups with band on each end of bar - 2 sets 10
Hammer winds
Glute ham raises

Stretching

[miked]

Hey Big Mike, how are the knees feeling? Have you gotten all the renovation stuff knocked out? You should try to make our next dino day. Good times, good times.

[Mike Wills]

One of the things I am learning is how to diagnose knee pain from muscular imbalance and IT band tightness versus wear and tear or injury. I have found that if my knees are hurting for no apparent reason, a couple days of warm ups with serious IT band stretching in addition to some side step ups for VMO activation knock it out pretty quickly.

I squatted 405 for 5 last week with just knee sleeves and they felt fine for the first time in many years. I have also found that the more work I do to loosen up the hips, the better I can put the weight back on my hips for squats...which really alleviates the stress on the knees.

[bjketchem]

isn't that the truth about the fine balance of injury/tightness...It's amazing, as I have gotten older how important warming up properly and post workout stretching is.
...wish i was 21 again... streching is an evil necessity...

[Mike Wills]

I'm telling you...not only is the stretching important, but I'm finding that thorough, whole body warm-ups are the key to longevity. No doubt if I had started doing good warmups 15 years ago, I wouldn't be 82% gristle right now.

[bjketchem]

amen to that...i think I'm at 64.5% gristle now...

I think we need to to a new standard form of body assessment...forget body fat analysis...

The Body Gristle Analysis is much more beneficial as far as I'm concerned.

[randy]

i don't stretch before a workout anymore.

(i first heard this from Monster Malutich --before he became a monster-- "you're not supposed to stretch cold muscles.")

didn't listen then. always stretched like a sonofagun.

been reading alotta talk about this lately (some on NASGA i think).

tried it.

finally convinced.

i now increase blood flow with some sort of warmup and jump right in with first sets.

do some light stretching between and after sets to stay loose.

feels great.

maybe i can stave off a grisly future.

r

[Rich McClain]

I start every workout with joint rotation like arm circles and hip rotations. I have a strong track and field back ground from high school. I was a sprinter and hurdler. The hip rotations like completing the trail leg clearing the hurdle. Forward and backward then some squatting to the floor and hold. this really loosens up my hips and lube the joints. Then I go straight in to the workout. I listen to my body for good and bad pain. I stretch all day at work and home after that. I also love the Hot then Cold showers right after the workout. I go back and forth about 3 times each ending with cold.

Shoulders a little sore today and knees a little tender.

[Mike Wills]

Yesterday = 20 minutes on elliptical and stretching

Tonight:

Elliptical - pull through/reversehyper - overhead squat warmup
Deadlift: Up to 405 x 3 conventional...medial meniscus could not handle modified sumo with 405
RDL's: 275 for 3 sets of 5
Bent Rows: 225 3 sets of 5
Pull Ups: 3 sets of 5
Hammer Winds
Inverted Situps: 3 sets of 10

[Mike Wills]

Friday night

Very quick workout w/no energy at the end of a long week. I also learned from Beau, so I didn't push the incline benches for my first bench workout since 2001!

Pushups - 3 sets of 20
Incline Bench - 205 for 3 sets of 8
Dips - 3 sets of 15

[Mike Wills]

Saturday night's alright for fightin'...and also some really weak olympic lifting.

Elliptical, pullthrough/reverse hyper warmup
Cleans - 185 for 2 sets of 3, 205 for 2 sets of 3, 225x2, 235x2 - I am terrible at olympic lifting, I can pull the bar higher and with a lot more weight doing a bent over row than I can doing a clean!
Clean grip snatch - 135 for 10 singles dropping down to behind neck push press on each rep
Push press - 135 for 5 sets of 3 - trying to get comfortable and not do the tail tuck when taking it out of the rack, dipping it for the push and returning to rack...also trying to do the "rapid fire turnaround" presses
Hammer winds to finish

[bjketchem]

Nice stuff Mike...I'm so jealous that you have access to a rev. hyper...

[Mike Wills]

I don't actually have a revers hyper, I have the glute ham raise from new york barbells that you can turn around backwards on for bodyweight reverse hypers. For extra resistance, I attach a thin band to the base of the GHR and around my ankles on the reverse hypers. I am working on a design that involves laying a pad with 2x4's mounted under it across the pins on a power rack. Then an apparatus made out of pipe is hung on one of the pins and you have a real revers hyper for a few dollars.

[bjketchem]

That's a great idea for making your own! When I was a strength coach that was probably the best tool (along with the GHR) I had access to. My kids learned (painfully) to love both of them.
...I just need to figure out how to build a little comtraption for my weightroom...

[Mike Wills]

Tonight = 20 minutes on elliptical plus a lot of stretching.

Missed a full week with my lower back going out last Monday. It wasn't any type of injury. With the previous problems, the low back and disk that is bulging is a little sensitive to volume directed specifically at the lower back. I did a little too much too frequently before everything was conditioned. I could tell that I was reaching that point because Saturday and Sunday I could feel the sides of the low back tightening some. I was going to take a couple days off...but a little playing in the floor with the kids brought on the lockdown. Some percocet, muscle relaxers, stretching and rest should have me back up to speed soon. I'll start lifting again tomorrow.

[Mike Wills]

Tonight:

Elliptical - pull through - reverse hyper - overhead squat warmup
Front squats
Back squats
Step ups w\bar & bands
Rhythm jumping squats w/empty bar
Core crushers
Hammer winds

[bjketchem]

That stinks Mike. How's the back feeling after that workout?

[Mike Wills]

The back was fine afterwards. I didn't go too heavy - 275 for the fronts and 315 for the backs - but I knew it would be okay. Its just one of those things where I know that it is usually more like an allergic reaction than an injury. A certain level of fatigue in my back causes it to go into spasms from variable angles - partially due to the disk squishing out on different sides and partially due to the nervous system expecting it. So, when I know what's going on, I can have the spasms that pull everything out of kilter to where I can barely stand or walk, and yet know that in a week or so it won't be affecting me at all. Very weird.

[bjketchem]

definitely sounds weird, but at least you know what's going.

Life can be a pain sometimes, literally. I can't think of a day where a joint or something isn't aching.

[Rich McClain]

It must be that gristle you guys were talking about.

[Mike Wills]

I have been working out, just not posting much. Highlights include trap bar deadlift 505 for 5 and raw squat 405 for 3.

Had a great workout today with my old friend Chuck.

Bench press - 225 for 3 sets of 8
Seated dumbell press - 80's for 2 sets of 12
Other stuff that I can't remember
Cleans up to 255 (ties PR)
Empty bar overhead squats
Reverse hypers
Hammer winds

[miked]

255 clean. very nice, sir. I am glad to hear you have been getting the workouts in. How're the knees feeling?

We all want a healthy, well conditioned Mike Wills out on the field this year.

How is the rippage coming along? Washboard abs, yet?

[Mike Wills]

If no injuries occur, you will absolutely see me at my strongest and best this season. The knees are feeling pretty good. A lot of prehab/rehab type work combined with an emphasis on legs in my lifting is really helping. My legs haven't felt this good since I have been throwing.

I'm getting in better shape, but alas, I may not quite reach washboard status soon.

Realistically, I would say that my power peak will come at the end of next year's off-season, when I go into the off-season with a pretty high strength level...but I am already feeling a lot of major improvements for this year. I'm going to video my cleans at some point...Chuck was laughing at me today saying that my cleans are the most ridiculous thing he has ever seen. I don't bend down any to catch the weight, so I was pulling 255 to upper chest level while standing straight up, but still couldn't get under it for the first few tries. I basically have to pull it to the "finished" position to make a clean! I want to get 300 in that manner by May...this was my second clean workout this year.

[miked]

strong.

[Mike Wills]

Did a little more training tonight.

Pull throughs
Reverse Hypers
Trap bar deadlift up to 530 for 3
RDL's up to 305 for 3 sets of 5
Glute ham raises
Single leg revers hypers
Hammer winds
Inverted situps

[Mike Wills]

Feeling good today. The knees recover MUCH faster now and the lower back seems to be getting very strong and pretty stable. Let's hope it keeps up.

[bjketchem]

glad to hear things are going well for you Mike and that was great work on the Dl's..530 x3 is excellent.

[Mike Wills]

Did an in-between workout tonight. Did a lot of core and throwing specific stuff along with cardio and stretching.

Finished my workout, and I was looking so pumpalicious that I had to add 15 minutes of posedowns to the end.

[S McCracken]

did you use good oil and tan in can?

[Mike Wills]

Pull-throughs
Reverse Hypers
Squats up to 425x3
Front squats up to 345x1