Hasegawa-Perez, Pavlik-Espino 12/19/09

I will not be in the gym for five weeks. The layoff is gonna hurt. Hopefully I can motivate myself to do at least some situps, pushups, and HIIT. And eat a lot.

Hasegawa-Perez showed me just how lost I am without an announcer. The pair looked to be fairly evenly matched for the first two rounds, until Hasegawa started catching Perez late in the round with his counters. Perez crumpled and was ruled a TKO loss, as with many of Hasegawa's opponents, even though he could probably have stood up. Apparently Hasegawa has gotten complaints that he finishes his fights too fast. What awesome fans.

There were a few Mexican bouts on last night that honestly didn't intrigue me that much. I was of course more interested in The Ring Magazine's middleweight champion's title defense. Kelly Pavlik, surrounded by bad rumors and bad press, took on challenger and caretaker of his blind mother Miguel Espino. Espino, vastly outsized and outreached and outclassed, was very game, keeping an inside and exchanging blows with Pavlik. Espino ripped a lot of good body shots and a few short right crosses to the head. Pavlik, lanky, allowed Espino to fight inside and stayed there. It was my first time seeing Pavlik fight, so I had to rely on the announcers (and my interpretation of his body type) to determine that he's usually more of an outside guy.

Espino showed a lot of heart. He wasn't afraid to get a little rough, hitting a bit low and hitting after the bell. In every sense, he fought like the challenger. Came at a time right after I'd been watching and reading some Ippo, so that's always really touching to me. In the end, he just couldn't hurt Pavlik the same way Pavlik could hurt him. He came back from three knockdowns, but his corner saved him in the end. I look forward to seeing a lot more of Pavlik.

Workout A 12/15/09

Dunno about squats, but they gave me confidence, which I really needed, because I failed miserably on the bench. I couldn't get 5x170 on my 'fresh' set. Makes me think that I need to lower the warmup weights there. my confidence was so shot that I deloaded all the way to 150. Deadlift actually made me feel really good; I pumped out 5x265 with a few seconds of breaks between reps, mostly double-overhand. Switched to right-over-left-under for the last rep.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x185, 5x255
- Bench 5x45, 5x105, 5x145
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x185, 5x225

Work sets
- Squat 5x295, 5x300, 5x300
- Bench 4x170 (failed miserably on 5), 5x150, 5x150
- Deadlift 5x265 (double-overhand 4x, right-over-left-under 1x)
- Pullups 3xBW (... whatever)

Calluses forming; right hand has one ugly ass tear. Deadlifts feel manly as hell, but they're hell on the hands, too. I might've been able to do more pullups, but the tear right under the pinky was a bit too raw.

Embarrassment B 12/13/09

Didn't really actually do anything.

- Press 4x110, 4x110, 4x105 or something. Basically, I don't remember.
- Row 5x115 and gave up.

It was bad. Let's not talk about it. I was in a rush to get to dinner and 'stopped by.' Whoops.

Workout A 12/11/09

I realized something while squatting, which is that I'm not all that concerned about making every single one of my reps perfect in squats as long as I'm getting at least one or two good reps in on each set. Which probably isn't a great attitude, but if I stayed at the 275-285 range for much longer, I was gonna go ballistic. Shitty willpower whoo.

Bench was also not hot. Tried going up 5 pounds and didn't quite maintain the 5/4/4 I'd had last week. In fact, it was a 5/4/3, with the last rep being a spotted rep. Also, when the hell did unracking the barbell become so hard? It looks like my goal of a body-weight bench of 180 or so will not be attainable before I go home.

Deadlifts went very well today with the double-overhand grip. I probably released too much tension between reps (3-5 seconds with the barbell on the floor; let go of it once for a second). But, I managed a double-overhand grip on a personal record for five reps, so yay. No more getting greedy on this one. I'm gonna go for 265 next time, and if that doesn't pan out, 260.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x225
- Bench 5x45, 5x95, 5x135
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x135, 5x225

Work sets
- Squat 5x295, 5x295, 5x300
- Bench 5x165, 4x170, 4x170 (last rep assisted)
- Deadlift 5x255

- Pullups 6xBW, 2xBW (wasn't going down all the way. Also, murder on the forearms after deadlift; murder on the back and upper arms after rows.)

Workout B 12/9/09

Argh, I can really feel that I'm not really making the plunge on squats. I don't want to deload again. I feel like I'm a little stronger than the last time I was at this weight, but I still can't go all the way down on every rep. Plus, I feel a ton of strain on my lower back now, which makes me think I might be doing it wrong. I think it might be affecting my presses. Sucks ass.

I did have to cheat a little on the last two reps of presses, but I don't feel too shaken up about it. Rows, on the other hand, felt like they involved a bit too much upper body movement downward, relying on transfer of momentum rather than on back and arm strength. When I planted my feet for real on the last set, I pretty much got fucked. Got like two clean reps and then started BSing.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x225
- Press 5x45, 5x85
- Row 5x95

Work sets
- Squat 5x290, 5x295, 5x295
- Press 5x105, 5x105, 5x110
- Row 5x120, 5x125, 5x125

Looking for a body weight bench by end of semester. Might try to be more ambitious on Friday about increasing the weight. Might go 5x170, 4x170, 3x175 or so. If I can.

Tabata grab bag 12/8/09

20 seconds on, 10 seconds off. Off here means doing light shuffles and some bobbing and weaving, some light counterpunches.

Did eight rounds for four minutes.

Round 1: High knees in place
Round 2: High knees in place
Round 3: Shadowboxing in place - infighting, throwing combinations
Round 4: Shadowboxing in place - infighting, throwing combinations
Round 5: Pushups
Round 6: Full contact twists
Round 7: Burpees
round 8: Burpees

Murder for the breathing. The burpees especially left my legs shot.

Workout A and Williams-Martinez 12/7/09

Good workout, I think. Not great by any means, since the last set of squats didn't feel like I went all the way down there, and I didn't go for a fifth rep for my final bench set. But, I managed to deadlift that 245 again for 5 reps. Gonna try for an unambitious 255 next time. this can be salvaged!

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x225
- Bench 5x45, 5x95, 5x135
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x135, 5x205

Work sets
- Squat 5x285, 5x290, 5x295
- Bench 5x160, 5x165, 4x165
- Deadlift 5x245

So technically this fight took place on December 5, but I didn't see it until about 12:00 AM Monday morning. Took me an unbelievable amount of effort not to check any boxing news websites to spoil it for me; the World Boxing Video Archive was a godsend for me here.

I didn't like Paul Williams before. He's far too big for the weight class in which he wants to compete; he's a southpaw; he doesn't seem to have any dramatic losses that humanize him; and he complains that no one wants to fight him. I didn't know who the hell Sergio Martinez was, but I wanted him to upset this beast at 160.

As it turned out, I came out of the fight a fan of both dudes. They traded knockdowns in the very first round. For the next two rounds, Martinez chilled outside of Williams's range with his hands at his knees, darting in and out with slick counters. His counter right hook landed flush, over and over, and I kept hoping that Williams would be KTFO. The first right hook that put him down was devastating, and Williams was seriously hurting.

But Williams not only managed to take them, shakily, he also started to give back as good as he took. Martinez's counters landed accurately and hard, and he started pounding Williams with a lead left straight later. Williams's response was to keep throwing punches. It's his same style as always, but the courage under fire was incredible.

At the end, both fighters had gassed, and their skills were remnants of the beginning of the war, but neither man went down, and neither man ever stopped trying. It wasn't a clean affair; there was plenty of clinching and wrestling, and both fighters went down and into the ropes from the grappling. But I'll be damned if they both didn't show incredible heart along with their skill. In addition, Williams looked truly vulnerable, and his response was extremely endearing.

Looking forward to see more of both of these warriors in the future. And no, I don't want to see a rematch. I want to see these guys against Mayweather, against Pavlik, against Hopkins, against Bute.

A late contender for Fight of the Year. Let's see if we get more in the coming weeks.

Workout B 12/5/09

Not a victory for America. Squats were okay, but the third rep of the final set almost killed me. The subsequent ones were probably sub-ideal in form. Meanwhile, the last rep of the press got me, and the last set of rows as usual was 'ugh.'

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x225
- Press 5x45, 5x85
- Row 5x45, 5x95

Work sets
- Squat 5x285, 5x285, 5x290
- Press 4x105 (probably due to insufficient rest), 5x105, 5x105 (push-pressed the last one)
- Row 5x115, 5x120, 5x125

Did 4 chinups at the end... Yeah. Probably gonna alternate pullups on Workout A and chinups on Workout B.

Boxing club and Workout A 12/2/09

Penultimate boxing club. Did mitt hits focused on speed. Combos included four quick uppers and a hook; one-two, body shot, upstairs right hook; and cross (up)-hook (body)-cross (up)-hook (body). For the final six or seven minutes, pretty much did HIIT. One minute of hitting the padded columns for speed, bobbing, weaving, moving. Then a thirty second break. Cycled that four times.

Went by my lonesome after the grueling workout without even eating. Obviously wasn't gonna be at 100%, so I'm not getting discouraged about this one. Just gotta make the next one count, which shouldn't be unattainable. Classes are ending, so that means better sleeping, better eating, and better exercising.

I felt asymmetric while benching. Not sure why, but I'm guessing it's from the previous fatigue. Again, hoping that one isn't so much of a problem next time. And on the plus side, squats felt pretty legit.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x225
- Bench 5x45, 5x95, 5x135
- Deadlift 5x135

Work sets
- Squat 5x280, 5x280, 5x285
- Bench 5x160, 4x160, 4x160 (began only being able to lift one side)
- Deadlift 5x225

Workout B 11/30/09

No time for too much comment. Squats got a little troublesome at the highest weight, and rows got worse on the last reps of the latter two sets. Typical.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x255
- Press 5x45, 3x95 (Langston screwed up the weights on this so it messed me up a bit)
- Rows 5x45, 5x95

Work sets
- Squat 5x275, 5x280, 5x285
- Press 5x95, 5x100, 5x105 (hurray)
- Rows 5x120, 5x120, 5x120 (need to do 2x5x120/1x5x125 next time or something)

Workout A 11/25/09

I need more willpower to up this fucking deadlift. It felt good to max-effort it before, but either I've gotten weaker, or I've become more of a bitch, or I didn't get enough sleep. (Less than six hours ain't hot.)

Emphasis was form for squats, as usual. Felt a little more confident on those today.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x225
- Bench 5x45, 5x95, 5x135
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x135

Work sets
- Squat 5x275, 5x275, 5x280
- Bench 5x155, 5x155, 5x155
- Deadlift 5x205

Need to man the hell up.

Boxing class 11/24/09

Nothing special today. We did some counters for the jab and for the cross, involving footwork, head-slips, parries, and jab-or-cross returns. My favorite was essentially the Bloody Cross from Hajime no Ippo. The cross comes, and you move outside, jab over it, knock the arm down with your elbow, and hit them with your cross clean.

Most of the outside slip-attacks were to the body. Kevin's favorite, and one I can definitely get behind, was slipping the right cross to the opponent's outside and then delivering a cross to the opponent's right ribcage. Apparently the extension of that ribcage makes it, and the liver, very vulnerable. I don't know firsthand this time.

Workout B 11/23/09

Went with Langston, who confirmed that I was not squatting low enough on some reps (at 275; it was fine at 225 apparently) and who is stronger than I was when I started.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x225
- Press 5x45, 5x85
- Row 5x65, 5x85, 5x100

Work sets
- Squat 5x275, 5x275, 5x275
- Press 5x100, 5x100, 5x95
- Row 5x115, 5x115, 5x115

Not much to say here. Rows were fine, but I'm weak as hell on them still.

Workout A and Kessler vs Ward 11/21/09

Hit the gym today with Steff, some motivation, and not enough water. Almost did right form on squats; will reiterate those heavier squats at 285 again for form. Felt strong on bench, and I was dehydrated for deadlift so I left it be. I think it was somewhat of a victory, if I can keep motivation high.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x225
- Bench 5x45, 5x95, 5x135
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x135, 5x185

Work sets
- Squat 5x275, 5x275, 5x285 (this last one could use improvement)
- Bench 5x145, 5x150, 5x155
- Deadlift 2x245

In other news, I was really struck by Andre Ward's strength of character. He is just like fucking Ippo, beloved by all. Bringing his kids, though? The last time a boxer brought his kids against a favorite... well, Miguel Jr. left the stadium after Round 9.

That didn't happen here. Ward dominated the Super Six's favorite. He mixed it up, disrupted Kessler's rhythm, and went for the KO. Barring one horrible round where he got unbelievably overconfident, it was a picturesque performance.

But I'm a bit sorry to say that it wasn't the cleanest of victories. Much of it happened in clinches and with the assistance of headbutts. I'm also a bit sorry to say that Kessler wasn't particularly impressive as a fighter tonight. It wasn't the deciding factor of the fight, but it was a bit of a mar.

Good show for Shotime.

Boxing class 11/17/09

Another circuit today. I got lucky and didn't go all the way around the circuit, only the punching portion. Did two rounds on the mitts and one killer round hitting a body bag. Enjoyable.

Workout B and Pacquiao vs Cotto 11/14/09

Staying away from the gym and using bad form have been terrible for my lifts. Also, having beef jerky before it was a bad idea, too. I don't even want to talk about the fact that I walked away from the last lift.

Warmup
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x205
- Press 5x45, 5x65, 5x85
- Power clean 5x45 'lol'

Work sets
- Squat 5x255, 5x255, 5x265 (tried to get that good, deep form again)
- Press 5x95, 5x95, 5x95

As far as fights go, I watched Fedor Emelianenko live for the first time last week. His knockout was pretty sensational.

This week, I watched Cotto's demolition at Margarito's hands. It hurt just to watch, even while Cotto was winning. He hit Margarito with every goddamn shot he had, and Margarito kept moving forward, even accelerating. It was heartbreaking to see him quit on his stool.

Which made it even tougher to see him fall apart at Pacquiao's hands. Invited Langston over to watch. Steff was shrieking and being sensational about it. The beating Pacquiao gave him was different from the Margarito one; the hits were clean, and Pacquiao didn't wear Cotto down with body shots, but rather hurt him early and hurt him often, searching for the KO every other round. There has been talk of Cotto's corner letting the fight continue far too long, but I was moved by Cotto's perseverance. I think he really needed not to quit after he basically resigned in the corner during the Margarito fight.

Pacquiao is of course a god now. He's a living legend, and I will be very interested in seeing how history treats him... especially since he's about to get chopped down by Floyd Mayweather. Honestly, though, the dude was singing 'Sometimes When We Touch' an hour later in the same fucking arena where he knocked out 29-year-old, former pound-for-pound contender Miguel Cotto. Incredible.

Some final notes from the pre- and post-fight: Pacquiao looked extremely relaxed and excited going into the ring to 'Eye of the Tiger.' Gutsy. Cotto entered solemnly to 'Harder Better Faster Stronger.'

The Pacquaio-Roach team is already legendary. When Pacquiao was asked about his future plans and specifically about Mayweather, his only response, both times, was that he was just a fighter, and that he was going on vacation with his family, and that he thanked God for his victory. Freddie Roach had to step up and go WE WANT MAYWEATHER. The crowd reaction is something I will remember for a long time.

Cotto is a class act. He got right back up, his face ruined, his career possibly crushed, and proclaimed that Pacquiao was great, and that he didn't see it coming. It was heartbreaking, but Cotto is a goddamn professional. I hope he comes back strong.

Boxing class 11/10/09

Augh circuit work here, too? After the typical warmup, for which I was a bit sleepy and weak, we went into medicine ball tossing, medicine ball running, medicine ball-weighted crunches, and jump ropes. Finally two rounds of mitt hits.

Not too much to say about this one. Conditioning work is where I'm worst; I'm embarrassing with the jump rope. The mitt hits weren't particularly impressive, either. Bleh.

Muay Thai seminar 11/8/09

Four-hour seminar with Kevin Seaman today. Not having to do running, pushups, power-squats, and whatever was a boon for the beginning. Provided way more reserve for the rest of the workout.

We did a few warmup items, reviewing first boxing, then moving on to basic elbows and knees, and finally using a few spinning elbows. After a bit, we worked on some counters. Did a lot of work on that with partners. One of the ones I liked was countering the cross with a jab and a step outside.

At the end, we had light sparring. Leg kicks and jabs allowed only. I got popped a few times with my first partner and then got him a few times. Then we switched it up a few times, and I felt a lot more confident as we went. Still got hit about as often as I hit, but I felt a lot more comfortable than Thursday night.

For one thing, I guess, there was no one else watching. The pressure the first time I sparred was unbelievable. This time everyone had a partner, so everyone else was doing the same thing. In particular, I'm pretty proud of my outing against a much shorter dude. Seemed like every time I blocked his leg kick to my front leg, I'd jab. He'd then parry and counter-jab me. After this happened three or four times, I stopped countering with the jab, and he, expecting it, would fall right for my leg kick.

Great fun overall.

Muay Thai club 11/5/09

Well, I was doing alright on the warmups until we busted out the jump ropes for a 2-minute session, followed by two 1-minute sessions. Then I got my ass kicked.

Speaking of which, had my first ever sparring session today. One two-minute round. Got my ass kicked. Tensed up, got punched in the face a few times, panicked, took tons of leg kicks. It was really something; getting into the ring (we didn't have a ring) is a fascinating feeling, and it really can't be duplicated without being face-to-face with a sparring partner. The shots I landed against the first dude, about my weight but shorter and more built, where almost all punches to the body, whereas I don't think his hands touched my midsection the entire time. Breathing is more difficult in the ring, and getting hit in the face definitely makes you panic involuntarily.

Then got in the ring with a 130-pound (probably lighter) chick with no experience who also kicked my ass. Well, no, it was actually fairly even, which is perhaps even more embarrassing. I definitely felt considerably calmer, though. I got kicked in the legs several times in both rounds, but the thing is, due to the lightness of them, I didn't really care. Which is bad, because in a real sparring match, I'd probably be destroyed mobility-wise. The head punches were a lot more threatening. Didn't take any of those in the round with the chick, though I guess I landed a few light jabs. I also took one body shot but then decided not to do more since she was a girl and stuff.

Fighting is really something else. I can't wait 'til next Thursday. This is also a huge motivator for me; I keep saying that I want to do HIIT but never actually do it, but the way that getting into the ring made me breathe was amazing. I want to be able to do something now.

Workout A 11/4/09

So I realized today that I'm not going down all the way in squats anymore. I'm gonna make my way to 300 and then start worrying about the form again. I really want to hit that mark, but I realize that it's beginning to cost me. That said, the uncertainty in my squat was manifest after only the 135-pound warmup set, so I think I was just a bit messed up today, quite possibly because (a) I fell down the stairs and (b) Wednesdays are always my shittiest day thanks to the way my schedule falls this semester.

My back hurt after squats, which probably contributed to my sucking at the deadlift today. Barely even want to write about that, but I suppose journalistic integrity binds me to it. For the deadlift, I was entirely unable to lift 255. Or I mean, I was able to, but only with the double-overhand, and only an inch or two before I decided I wasn't willing to do it. Then I did one rep at 245, mixed grip, and called it a night. Not my best night on lifting, and I am fairly ashamed of that.

Probably could've pushed out failing fifth benches on the first two sets, but I didn't feel like I had it in me after realizing my squat form wasn't as hot as I'd thought. I intended to make the last set a superset of 7 to compensate for the previous two shortfalls, but then the fifth rep kicked my ass, and I racked it. Helped out a white dude with arms probably a bit bigger than mine with spotting on his bench. He was practically failing after his fifth rep (135), but he just had to go for the sixth rep anyway, where he obviously failed. Bailed him out. I guess people are more courageous when they know they've got support.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x205, 5x275
- Bench 5x75, 5x105, 5x130
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x135, 5x205

Work sets
- Squat 5x295, 5x295, 5x295
- Bench 4x150, 4x150, 5x150
- Deadlift 0x255 (lol), 1x245 (aughh)

Goals for next workout A
- Squat 3x5x300, very good form. Gonna move up in weight by less and start focusing on making sure I get my ass down. I think my arch is still good, though.
- Bench 5x150, 5x155, 5x155. No more of this weakass 4-rep shit.
- Deadlift 1x5x255. No point in getting any more ambitious.

Boxing class 11/3/09

My sister's birthday along with the birthday of a bunch of people from my high school class.

Today's boxing was an 'integrating' one, meaning we did three full rounds of mitt-hitting, complete with feeds and counters and stuff. Obviously gassed out a bit, but it felt pretty good. Wish my partner were a bit more creative and active with the mitts, but I doubt I'm that amazing, either, so whatever. Finished off the final round with 15 seconds of straight up right crosses and left hooks. By the time I'd gotten there, my punches had no power behind them at all.

Sweat in my eyes. Good feeling. Still need to do HIIT.

Workout B 11/2/09

SSBM announcer voice: Failure. Only on the rows, though; I shook and shivered and cheated my way through the press. Squats left me with a bit of discomfort in the left knee and major tightness in the lower back, but I'm guessing that's legit. I waited a shitload of time between sets, too. I'm actually so disappointed with the row I'm considering trying out power cleans next time instead, as Rippetoe recommends. It's the lift where I'm most helpless with form at the moment, in my opinion.

Saw Langston there, chilling on the machines.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x205, 5x255
- Press 5x45, 5x75, 5x90
- Row 5x65, 5x90

Work sets
- Squat 5x285, 5x285, 5x290
- Press 5x100, 5x100, 5x100 (shaky but not technically failing)
- Row 5x120, 3x125, 2x125 (pretty much failed on these guys horribly)

Weighed in at 175. This worries me a little, since it means my weight has pretty much started to stagnate. Calorie intake is already at a level where I really don't want to eat much more, but it looks like more will be needed. Had a chocolate Muscle Milk and three bananas afterward.

Muay Thai club 11/1/09

Sergio wasn't there. In fact, very few of the regulars who are usually 'in charge' on Thursday nights were there. Was partnered up with a dude who's never done Muay Thai before but who had done Tae Kwon Do before. In other words, not only did I have to show him how to do every move even though I suck, but I also had to take his kicks, and he probably kicks harder than I do. He accidentally landed one right below my right ribcage. Most of the sting was taken off it, but it still sucked. Wasn't a very good practice overall.

Warmup was a lot more bearable than last time, though. Totally survived it; we only had thirty pushups and no wall-sits. At the end, we did a whole circle of 20 ab exercises per person, and that sucked, too, since I'm not sure about what ab exercises are legit, and also I suck at any ab exercise. Blah. Hoping Thursday night goes better, and hoping for fun next Sunday when Kevin Seaman, the coach for the Boxing class, gives a seminar. I can't take his Muay Thai class next semester, but I will hopefully be participating in Intermediate Boxing, so we'll see how that goes, too.

Workout A 10/31/09

Found out today that I'm fucked for deadlifts. I need chalk. Just today I was thinking about how great it was that I still had the grip strength to handle deadlifts, and then I got fucked over when after two reps, the barbell started slipping out of my hands hardcore. The lift itself is hard enough without having to worry about that. I went quite clearly, from laughing at Rippetoe's comments ragging on people who want lifting gloves, to desperately wishing something, anything, would help me cling to that barbell. In any case, the reps were a bit spaced out due to dropping the barbell. I even walked around, frustrated with it, between reps.

Since my 'comeback' last week or so, I've been taking more time between sets to recover. I'd like to say it's been helping. Not sure, but blind optimism never hurt nobody.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x205, 5x255
- Bench 5x45, 5x85, 5x115
- Deadlift 5x65, 5x135, 5x205

Work sets
- Squat 5x275, 5x275, 5x280
- Bench 5x145, 5x145, 5x145
- Deadlift 5x245 (did not do all at once)

That's about all I got for now. Glad my lifts progressed, but I need chalk if I'm gonna get anywhere in the foreseeable future.

Also, weighed in at 177 beforehand. This was before the latter two meals of the day, so I'm still gaining.

Boxing club and Tabata shadowboxing 10/30/09

Boxing club wasn't great. Harrison wasn't there, and the practice wasn't structured. Shadowboxed on and off for ten or fifteen minutes and then hit mitts for the rest of the time. Much as I hate biting the hand that feeds me, I'm not convinced that this more intermediate guy was being that helpful with his combinations and feeds. He kept trying to fix my cross form, and I'm not sure exactly what he was getting at.

As for some of the weirder combos, 1-2-1-2-1-2, cross-right uppercut, and double- hooks or uppercuts were a bit weird. I did learn that I would probably get KTFO by a good hook to the head, since I found that I really don't know how to block them at all in boxing. I'll try asking the coach on Tuesday or something. That said, bob-and-weave should theoretically be the preferred method for dealing with hooks. I hope.

Relatedly, my left hook has never felt all that strong to me, since I can't hit it very well on the pads, but when I blocked the feed-blows that my partner sent me, they still felt very heavy. Now he's a lot thicker than I am with shorter arms, but I feel like I should at least be able to generate at least a respectable amount of power with the hook, even if I don't feel it. Maybe it's just wishful thinking, but I'd really like to have what seems to be the most versatile power punch in boxing at my disposal, and I'd like to have it hurt.

Same story with Tabata as before. Four minutes, eight rounds of twenty seconds on and ten seconds off. Always tough, and uh, not particularly rewarding. But still, I'm not running, so it's what I've got. Thinking maybe of getting a skipping rope, since I know I suck ass at that. That said, there's no way I could do a Tabata on that. Maybe four minutes of fifteen seconds on and forty-five off. Maybe.

Boxing class and Workout B 10/29/09

I don't feel good about missing Muay Thai today. Resolving hereby not to let Monday workouts escape me in the future, because the fact that I was doing SS today is a result of that.

Felt good about boxing today. Took it a bit easier on the initial running, which was back to four laps around the little court as opposed to two around the big one. We did one warmup round with regular holds and bob-and-weave feeds, one round mixing in both body blow-uppercut counter combos. The last round mixed all of the above, and while my partner and I aren't exactly great at giving the feeds, I did get to practice with the coach before it started, and the fluidity of it felt really, really rewarding. Also, I was blinking sweat a little at the end, without having entirely punched myself out. Probably has more to do with my throwing less punches than with my conditioning improving, though.

Met Ben from freshman year at the gym today. He worked in with me, and we wound up doing the exact same exercises. Didn't make the full 3x5x5-pound progressions, but I also didn't quite fail on the later lifts, so I'm calling it a victory.

Warmup sets
- Squats 5x45, 5x135, 5x185, 5x225
- Press 5x45, 5x65, 5x80
- Rows 5x65, 5x85, 5x100

Work sets
- Squats 5x245, 5x260, 5x265
- Press 5x95, 5x95, 5x100
- Rows 5x115, 5x120, 5x120

Ate fairly decently. Had the typical 5 eggs, 3 egg whites split between breakfast and first dinner. 4 glasses of milk in total, 2 servings of cottage cheese with canned fruit/pudding/jello/apple sauce. 1 smallish scoop of tuna, a chicken quesadilla. Stuff seems really disjointed when I put it all as one large clump instead of separated by meals.

Boxing class and Workout A 10/27/09

Boxing was cool today. Partnered up with a girl since my regular partner was absent. Today's combo was blocking a body blow and then countering with uppercut-hook-cross or uppercut-cross-hook, depending on which side the body blow landed. The workout was particularly good because I found myself blinking sweat from my eyes during the last round. I'd just been complaining how that hadn't happened in too long.

The reason might not have been the drill, of course. Today, instead of running around one small segment around the gym, as we usually do, we ran around the whole gym, since the varsity basketball teams weren't practicing. Less laps, but more distance, and I went at a pretty fast pace, outstripping the rest of the class. This resulted in my being winded for at least fifteen minutes, especially since right after running comes 40 crunches and 30 pushups. Eek. I'll push myself harder next time, too; it's miserable, but I guess it's the only way to improve.

The last time I benched, I failed on the fifth rep of my extra-credit 140 set. That was more than two fucking weeks ago, and I hadn't benched since then. I was also slowly recovering into the squat patterns, so I did a whole bunch of warmup sets for them all. That said, I'm pretty pleased with how well I've picked up.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x115, 5x185, 5x225
- Bench 5x45, 5x75, 5x105, 5x125
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x135, 5x185

Work sets
- Squat 5x245, 5x250, 5x255
- Bench 5x135, 5x140, 5x140
- Deadlift 5x220

Deadlifting feels good. Callouses on the hands are signs of success.

Tipped the scales at 177-178 tonight. Really loaded up for dinner.

Tabata shadowboxing 10/25/09

I figured that I had nothing better to do, so I downloaded this and went at it for another eight rounds of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off. Arms so tired, but it's awesome.

Not really much else to say.

Workout B and UFC 104 10/24/09

Finally sucked it up and hit the gym. It was a Sunday, meaning I was unbelievably well rested, and I'd had dinner about thirty minutes prior. I regressed a little on my lifts, but I felt like I was psychologically restored and ready to resume. Rows need work to get those last sets up all the way, and the Press is still my worst set by a fairly clear margin.

Warmup sets
- Squat 5x45, 5x115, 5x185
- Press 5x45, 5x60, 5x75
- Row 5x65, 5x85, 5x95

Work sets
- Squat 5x225, 5x240, 5x250
- Press 5x95, 5x90, 5x90
- Row 5x115, 5x115, 5x115

Weighed in at 174-175 afterward. It was nighttime, so I guess that means my morning weight would've been a few pounds lighter. Makes sense; I haven't been eating great lately, either. Life's been regressing lately along with the lifting. Hopefully will get ass back in gear with this comeback.

Watched my first live MMA matches tonight. Caught bits and pieces for the most part, but what I saw were mainly Cain Velasquez beating the living hell out of Ben Rothwell and Lyoto Machida getting his legs wrecked by Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua. The Machida there definitely didn't look like the untouchable one against Tito Ortiz that I caught on Youtube, but there you go. Nonetheless, the judges gave it to Machida, and Steff and I rioted, and then I read on the internet about how we might be biased, and it was all a lot of fun.

I haven't posted about other fights I've seen, and I'll try to hold off on too many, but Tomasz Adamek doesn't look too great at heavyweight, even in his easy TKO victory against lumbering, useless-looking, 41-year-old Andrew Golota. Meanwhile, the Israel Vazquez/Rafael Marquez trilogy was flat out amazing, and it made me even more excited about boxing.

Boxing class and Learn to Climb 10/22/09

Boxing class was fairly run-of-the-mill. Did three rounds. The first two were rote patterns of bob-and-weave; one to the right, one to the left. The last round was freestyle, with bobbing and weaving in both directions mixed in with unanswered mitt-hitting. What I've realized, to my disappointment, is that I now exit class fully capable of seeing, whereas before, it wasn't an exercise session if I hadn't had to blink sweat out of my eyes on at least two occasions per session.

Rock-climbing was surprisingly fun. Steff took me, Jocelyn, and Gaomin to climb. After signing a horrific-sounding waiver, we were off. The helper chick, against the longest odds, was also a former Boldt Hall occupant, so that was cool. She looked like Tina Fey. We got suited up, shod, and tied up, and started with bouldering, climbing sideways. We each covered about six to ten feet. Then she belayed us as we climbed to the top of a fairly easy, artificial wall.

As the first one on, I wanted to quit on at least two occasions. The first was a bit after I crossed the yellow line past which belaying equipment was mandatory. Another time was when I was nearing the top. When I got to the top, I pulled myself up and looked down in horror until she told me how to get off. Descent is a bit of a strange sensation; aside from the 120-pound instructor chick, the only thing holding me up was friction (which, I later discovered, is very significant, so that's good). But on top of that, I had to begin my descent by getting off a flat platform, which is essentially the equivalent of hanging off a cliff. I was basically Mufasa. When she told me to put the soles of my feet against the wall, the natural reaction was... What?

Anyway, I came down safely and had fun watching the others ascend the wall, though none of them chose to sit on top of the world and gaze down at the twenty-or-so-feet they'd conquered. Afterward, I tried to boulder by myself, but it was way harder. I'm guessing it's a combination of the wall being more difficult and bouldering's being inherently more difficult. It's an expensive affair, but it was fun, and I might be paying it a visit next Friday or so.

Over and out.

Boxing class and Tabata shadowboxing 10/20/09

First of all, I have to make a piss-poor excuse for the layoff from Starting Strength, because failing early on my best lift shot my confidence all to hell, and you know how motivation goes with confidence.

Boxing class today was cool. Did two three-minute rounds of mitts. I like to think I'm getting better at wrapping my hands, though I'm not entirely sure that my wrapping method is legit.

Did a little Tabata shadowboxing in my room tonight for the hell of it. It's definitely not as vigorous as running, but it felt good. I used an internet timer, since I don't have a stopwatch. Only reason I don't run, or so I like to tell myself. Basically just threw nonstop punches and combinations (with terrible form, most likely) during the heavy 20-second intervals; did bobbing, weaving, movement, and counters during the slower 10-second intervals. Went for four minutes, as is the Tabata standard.

I need to get back on SS again, ASAP. Tomorrow looks unlikely due to homework, and Thursday's Muay Thai night, and Friday's boxing club day. That would set me back until Saturday, after a failure. I definitely don't like that, but it looks like that's how it's gonna be, unless I somehow become a god at General Relativity and finish that homework in two hours.

Boxing class and Muay Thai club, 10/15/09

My conditioning sucks ass. So much for the Marines Officer Program.

Boxing wasn't so bad, but it feels like the volume of practice is diminishing fairly significantly. We did more 1, 1-2, 1-2-3, 1-2-3-2 combos, along with a few more counterpunches, typically in the 1-2-bob/weave-2-3 or 1-2-3-bob/weave-3-2 format.

Muay Thai's conditioning is getting absolutely brutal. Last night's involved lunges, wall-sits, pushup sets of 25-20-15, skips, high knees, and butt-kicks. From there, we did 30 power squats, including three holds, and two minutes of in-place high knees and rope-skipping apiece. I went for water twice and still felt like throwing up, completely lightheaded after the warmup. Didn't think I'd make it.

Got better during the day's drills, which weren't particularly bad. Worked solely on kicks, so my pathetic upper body endurance wasn't rocked. A friend of mine came for the first time to that workout, though, so I spent a bit of the time trying to get him accustomed to kicking with his shin and with good form. It was the hardest workout I've had this semester, so I hope it doesn't discourage him. It sure discouraged me.

Failure B, 10/14/09

Ugh. I got fucked. Went for warmup squats at 5x45, 5x135, 5x205. Got fucked over on the first rep of 255. 245 didn't work, either.

My right shoulder is impinged, I think. The 5x45 press and 5x75 press worked, but I couldn't lift the 95 pound barbell at all. I was done.

Here's to hoping for a quick recovery. I can barely move the arm now. Dunno what the deal will be with boxing tomorrow.

Workout A 10/12/09

Failed for the first time on the bench today. I'd been working in with a guy, and he'd finished, but he still came over and bailed me out while I was trying to rack it after the failed fifth attempt.

Warmup
- Squat 5x45, 5x135, 5x195
- Bench 5x45, 5x95, 5x120
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x135

Work Sets
- Squat 5x245, 5x245, 5x245
- Bench 5x135, 5x135, 4x140 (failed on 5th at 140)
- Deadlift 5x205

Well, so much for trying to be the hero. 140 it is for the next bench set.

Fall break hasn't been great for eating, much as I love not having class. I weighed in at 169 pre-eating and around 171 after eating for this workout. Haven't been going to the dining hall, so milk and egg intake have been eliminated. I've had a chocolate Muscle Milk a day so far. That, along with bagel bites, bananas, yogurts, and $8.63 subs have been keeping me alive this break. It's been fairly tasty, but not nearly substantial enough for my purposes. Dining halls open Tuesday night, but somehow I doubt that I'm hitting 100 on my Press.

Steff did a little running today, a little Stairmaster, and then played around with a calisthenic rowing machine.

Back to being an internet addict now.

Workout B 10/9/09

Started my warmups by working in with two huge guys. They could squat 315-335-ish, with legitimate form, for around 3 reps. Managed to get my own squat rack after warmup sets and one work set at 5lb over last workout. Then did two more work sets at last workout plus 10lb. My joints and ligaments are a bit achy again, and there were a few reps where I didn't get the full range of motion. Presses and rows were the usual. I'm hoping that my legs aren't fucked up for an extended period of time, so I'll probably not squat again 'til Monday. Tempted to just go and bench Sunday, but I feel like I've got a good routine now and I shouldn't fuck with it too much.

- Squat 5x230, 5x235, 5x235
- Press 5x90, 5x95, 5x95
- Row 5x105, 5x105, 5x110

Mild headache and feeling shitty, muggy. Have been feeling like that all day. Probably a slight cold, and I hope it doesn't affect my working out more than it's affecting my mood and appetite. Haven't really been in the mood to eat at all today, though I nonetheless managed to eat a fairly respectable amount of protein, including a dozen eggs (five white-only). Maybe I should've gone for a Muscle Milk, but since the girlfriend was at the gym, I didn't go to buy it. She did 2.3 miles on the treadmill at a fairly leisurely pace, including walking, and then did five minutes on a Stairmaster to feel better.

Weighed myself today at around 174 before the workout. Still, checking the mirror. I feel like any gains I notice with my eyes are a result of vanity and not improved upper body muscle mass.

Boxing class, Muay Thai club 10/8/09

Had boxing class today. Have that every Tuesday and Thursday morning. It's a great way to invigorate myself for the day, and we spend a lot of the time with gloves on and either hitting mitts or holding mitts. My partner was kinda shy and didn't give much feedback.

One problem with the gym is that its water fountain is pretty far away from it, and its stream is very weak. It'd take me forever to get as hydrated as I wanted, so I just have a little sip and scurry on back between drills, using about a minute of the forty-five each time. That said, my cardio's definitely a limiting factor nonetheless, which I suppose is another good reason to do HIIT.

Today's class, we practiced a few combinations with mitts. Jab, jab-cross, jab-cross-hook, and jab-cross-hook-cross. Did one with bob-and-weave, too. My arms and shoulders are trashed after every single class. I'm not sure when that'll start to go away, but until it does, I will suck ass at every boxing thing.

Muay Thai today was relatively unpopulated. It was notable for the excruciating warmup. We usually start by running around the room as a class, stopping for pushups and whatever else. Today, the 'whatever else' included leap frogs, meaning we squatted ass-to-ground and then jumped up in full extension, fifteen times. Also did lunges for about thirty seconds. Was completely trashed after that. And I'd felt proud of myself when I survived the sixty-second wall-sits last week.

I felt the size difference (in my favor) for the first time with my partner today. I've probably been a bit bigger than most of my drill partners, but today my punches were rocking this guy through the Thai pads more than I expected, so I pulled them a bit. It was a weird feeling and not one I really like.

During the next few hours, since it ended at 9:30 PM, I had three bananas, an apple, water, V8, and a peanut butter-strawberry jam sandwich. Mm.

Workout A, 10/7/09

Was at the gym really late today, so I was a bit more rushed than usual. Nonetheless, I posted all the gains I was looking for. I feel like I could've stretched for the final bench set at 135, and I half-assed a few of the earlier squats in sets 1 and 2, but otherwise, it was pretty solid all around. I think. Deadlifting at 100% is fucking brutal, though perhaps it's from being so rushed that I did my warmup sets and the work set in like a combined two minutes. I'm gonna try for another 15-20 next workout, probably Monday.

Warmup
- Squat 5x45, 5x115, 5x165, 5x205
- Bench 5x45, 5x85, 5x100
- Deadlift 5x45, 5x115

Work Sets
- Squat 5x225, 5x225, 5x225
- Bench 5x130, 5x130, 5x130
- Deadlift 5x185

Drank the strawberry Muscle Milk afterward. Probably gonna stick with chocolate from now on. Also had a banana and downed a pint of orange juice. Probably totals around 500 calories.

And now for some references

http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/StrengthStandards.html
http://exrx.net/Calculators/OneRepMax.html

When I started, I was around the following:

- Squat: a little better than an untrained 165lb male, comparable to a novice 165lb woman
- Press: comparable to a novice 148-165lb woman or an untrained 132lb male
- Bench: comparable to an untrained 114lb male or a novice 132lb woman
- Deadlift: comparable to an untrained 148lb male or a novice 123lb woman

Currently, I'm at around the following:

- Squat: above the novice mark for a 165lb male
- Press: comparable to a novice 148lb male
- Bench: comparable to a novice 148lb male
- Deadlift: well above an untrained 165lb male but not even at the level of a 123lb novice male

Conclusions: The squats seem to be doing me good, if I'm doing them correctly. My upper body definitely needs work, but it's progressing consistently. I seem to be going up far too slowly on the deadlift and will work harder on that. I'll try to up the gains by 15 or 20 next time instead of the usual 10. Only one set of those, after all.

Updates Start Today

Just a little record of my progress so far. My workout plan is essentially Rippetoe's Starting Strength, with the modification of bent-over rows instead of power cleans. Here's the setup:

Workout A: Squat 3 sets of 5 reps, Bench 3 sets of 5 reps, Deadlift 1 set of 5 reps
Workout B: Squat 3 sets of 5 reps, Press 3 sets of 5 reps, Row 3 sets of 5 reps

I try to work out three times a week on non-consecutive days, alternating between Workouts A and B. Unfortunately, due to school, I wind up usually going about two times a week lately. There have also been groin injuries that have kept some lifts from progressing for a few weeks. Nonetheless, I've tried to increase the squat weight by 10 pounds each time, the deadlift by 10 pounds each time, and the other three lifts by 5 pounds each time.

My diet consists of basically as much protein-based food as I can eat without feeling disgusting or throwing up. Every day I have something resembling the following for food:
- 5-6 whole eggs, 3-5 egg whites
- 4-6 glasses of 2% milk
- whatever meat I can stomach
- 1/2-1 cup of tuna
- 1-1 1/2 cup of cottage cheese
- bananas as necessary
- cereal for boxing days
- a little bit of salad
- as of tonight, a bit of Muscle Milk from the West Campus convenience store, though I doubt that'll be a daily thing - perhaps just after workouts.

In other athletic news, I'm taking a boxing course on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, going to Muay Thai Club once or twice a week, and attempting to go to the Boxing Club as well. I've realized that I need serious cardio work, but I don't have a stopwatch, and yes, that is actually keeping me from running. Will pick one up this coming weekend and start doing HIIT, High-Intensity Interval Training.

Now here are some fun stats.

Started on 8/27/09, weight around 150.

My first day's stats (Workout A, 8/27/09)
- Squat 5x115, 5x125, 5x125
- Deadlift 5x95, 5x115
- Bench 5x75, 5x75, 5x75

My second day's stats (Workout B, 8/29/09)
- Squat 5x135, 5x135, 5x135
- Press 5x45, 3x75 (failed), 4x65 (failed), 5x55
- Row 5x55, 5x60, 5x60

Weighed myself tonight, 10/5/09, at around 170.

My second-most-recent workout (Workout A, 10/2/09)
- Squat 5x200, 5x200, 5x200
- Bench 5x125, 5x125, 5x125
- Deadlift 5x165

My most recent workout (Workout B, 10/5/09)
- Squat 5x210, 5x210, 5x215
- Press 5x85, 5x90 (failure), 5x90 (failure)
- Row 5x95, 5x95, 5x100

Had three bananas and a 230g chocolate Muscle Milk carton afterward. So tasty. Now I'm getting hungry and I'm debating having another banana before bed. Probably best not to, though. A lot of the weight has gone straight to the midsection in the form of good old stomach fat, and despite my legs ostensibly squatting 200 more pounds, walking up the hill from West Campus to get to class has actually gotten harder for me since the beginning of the school year. So yeah, things aren't all peachy. But I'm working on it.