Grip, Weightlifting, & Bw Stuff For Bjj/wrestling

[God-man]

Thursday:

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Rolling Thunder singles (up to 166lbs)

I got 166lbs with my right hand once. I went for 156lbs with my left hand, but failed on all attempts to fully lock out with it.

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Pinch Grip

sets w/ 2 25lb plates (50lbs)

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Close-grip Dumbbell Military Press

10 x 25lb dumbbells

10 x 30lb dumbbells

10 x 40lb dumbbells

6 x 55lb dumbbells

6 x 60lb dumbbells

6 x 60lb dumbbells

60lb dumbbells felt pretty good. I guess I'll move up to 2 sets with the 65's next week.

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Lat-Row machine

6 x 190lbs

6 x 190lbs

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Dumbbell Skull-Crushers

10 x 50lbs (2 25lb dumbbells)

3 x 80lbs (2 40lb dumbbells)

3 x 80lbs (2 40lb dumbbells)

OK, yeah, the dumbbell skull crushers really revealed how much my right arm has been compensating for my lagging left arm. I am doing dumbbells and only dumbbells from now on with these. I also did some one-arm overhead skull crusher negatives, too.

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[God-man]

Thursday:

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Close-grip Dumbbell Military Press

10 x 30lb dumbbells (60lbs)

10 x 40lb dumbbells (80lbs)

8 x 50lb dumbbells (100lbs)

4 x 65lb dumbbells (130lbs)

4 x 65lb dumbbells (130lbs)

*************************************************************************

One-armed Overhead Dumbbell Skull-Crushers

10 x 20lb dumbbell (each arm seperately)

6 x 30lb dumbbell (each arm seperately)

6(right arm)/4(left arm) x 35lb dumbbell (each arm seperately)

4(right arm)/2(left arm) x 35lb dumbbell (each arm seperately)

+ some negatives

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Bodyweight pullups

1 set of 10 reps

I did each rep real slow and paused at both the top of the pullup and the bottom, too.

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[God-man]

Friday:

*************************************************************************

Rolling Thunder singles (up to 166lbs)

Could not lock out with 166lbs w/ right hand, could not lock out with 156lbs w/ left hand.

*************************************************************************

Pinch Grip

10 second holds with 2 25lb plates each hand

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15 minutes of stationary bike cardio

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I'm going to a BJJ no-gi tournament today. Just to watch. Hope my teammates pull out some wins!

[God-man]

Monday:

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1 hour of tennis - it was hot out today, but I got a good workout.

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Weighted Pull-ups (bodyweight + 75lbs)

1 set of 5 reps, almost got 6 full reps.

*************************************************************************

Close-grip Dumbbell Bench Press

10 x 30lb dumbbells

10 x 40lb dumbbells

10 x 50lb dumbbells

8 x 60lb dumbbells

2 x 70lb dumbbells (warming up for 85's)

2 x 85lb dumbbells ... wow, that was bad

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Barbell Bent-Over Rows

10 x 135lbs

6 x 185lbs

6 x 185lbs

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One-handed Pinch Grip

sets w/ 2 25lb dumbbells for each hand

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Can't go to BJJ tonight because I have a big test in German coming up.

[God-man]

Tuesday:

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#2 Captains of Crush Over-crushes

Man, I am close to closing this thing. Less than a 1/4 of an inch.

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Wednesday:

*************************************************************************

1 hour of tennis

Had a good time and got a some good cardio in.

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I've got BJJ tonight, so I'll post what happens tomorrow.

[God-man]

Friday:

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Rolling Thunder singles (up to 171lbs)

I got 171lbs with my right hand once, but it was kinda iffy, in a sense of the lock out was a little shaky, not that good, but hey, I'm countin' it! I also got 161lbs with my left hand, but again, the lock out wasn't great.

*************************************************************************

One-handed Pinch Grip

sets w/ 2 25lb plates (50lbs each hand)

sets w/ 1 35lb plate and 1 25lb plate (60lbs each hand)

*************************************************************************

Close-grip Dumbbell Military Press

10 x 25lb dumbbells

10 x 30lb dumbbells

10 x 40lb dumbbells

8 x 50lb dumbbells (end of warm-up sets)

5 x 65lb dumbbells

4 x 65lb dumbbells

65lb dumbbells felt ok. I got 1 more rep in the first set than last time, same number of reps on second set. Hey, improvement is improvement.

*************************************************************************

Barbell Squats (squatting depth: little below parallel)

10 x 45lbs

10 x 95lbs

10 x 135lbs

1 x 185lbs (end of warm-up sets)

6 x 205lbs

4 x 205lbs

*************************************************************************

Shrugs

6 x 110lb dumbbells

4 x 115lb dumbbells

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1 set of 100 bodyweight squats (below parallel)

then

1 set of 10 lunges each leg w/ 50lbs

then

a few sets of bw lunges

then

15 minutes on the stationary bike @ level 8.

*************************************************************************

Forgot to do one-armed skull crushers ... bah! Anyway, I'm happy I finally got back up to my old max w/ both hands on the Rolling Thunder.

Edited September 15, 2006 by God-man

[God-man]

Monday:

*************************************************************************

1 hour of tennis - we played doubles today, so I really didn't get that much of a workout in during the match.

*************************************************************************

Weighted Pull-ups (bodyweight + 75lbs)

1 set of 6 reps

*************************************************************************

Close-grip Dumbbell Bench Press

10 x 30lb dumbbells

10 x 40lb dumbbells

10 x 50lb dumbbells

8 x 60lb dumbbells

2 x 70lb dumbbells (end of warming up for 80's)

6 x 80lb dumbbells

4 x 80lb dumbbells

*************************************************************************

Barbell Bent-Over Rows

10 x 135lbs

6 x 185lbs

6 x 185lbs

*************************************************************************

One-handed Pinch Grip

sets w/ 2 25lb dumbbells for each hand

*************************************************************************

One-armed, Over-head Dumbbell Tricep Extensions

10 x 25lb dumbbell (each arm)

6 x 30lb dumbbell (each arm)

8 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 4 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

5 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 2 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

*************************************************************************

Dumbbell Hammer Curls

8 x 40lb dumbbells

8 x 45lb dumbbells

*************************************************************************

#2 Captains of Crush gripper

I did a some overcrushes ... and I got the closest I have ever got to closing the #2. I think that I would have had some chalk, I could have closed it, cause the gripper starts slipping a little if I don't have chalk.

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Edited September 19, 2006 by God-man

[Davesbeard]

Been to Bjj recently? I really enjoy reading those reports

Are you just trying to maintain your strength on weighted pullups? I'd suggest more sets otherwise, you don't seem to have made much progress in that exercise.

[God-man]

Been to Bjj recently? I really enjoy reading those reports

Are you just trying to maintain your strength on weighted pullups? I'd suggest more sets otherwise, you don't seem to have made much progress in that exercise.

Actually, I'll be going tonight for like the first time in 2 or 3 weeks. My attendance compared to some is pretty poor ... but in all fairness, bjj is pretty low regarding my priorities, like the Lord Jesus, living an active church life, school + studying for school, my work, etc.. But like I said, I'll be there tonight and post tomorrow.

And yeah, regarding the weighted pullups, the progress that I have made has come very, very slowly ... which is obviously because I am only doing 1 set of them a week .... I would like to do more sets on them to speed up my progress, but it seems that (from previous experience) doing more than one heavy set of those really gets the back of my shoulders and the inside of my elbows sore and inflammed. If I was not doing any kind of grappling, I would definitely be doing more than merely 1 set, but I find that when I do more than 1 set of those heavy weighted pullups my joints (elbows and shoulders) get so sore and inflammed during live grappling to the point were I get weak and can't function as well because of the sheer pain. I COULD take some anti-inflammatory pills and stuff, but personally, I prefer not to mask the pain that I might have, because of the possiblity of worsening the inflammation and condition of my joints. I started taking some during wrestling, and the pain went away, but I could feel that my joints and muscles were weaker, and the next few days were always leaving me in pain, in turn, making me become dependent on pills ... which I just would rather not do. Anyway, yeah, I am just sticking to 1 set of those heavy weighted pullups a week, and although my progress is slow, it is progress, ha. Actually, if I finish the set of 6 next week with the same weight, I'll probably move up to 80lbs tied on to me. We'll see.

My joints are doing great, though, with this routine I have, and I am not living my life in pain like I used to, which is nice! I'll be back tomorrow with another exciting report of bjj, haha.

BTW, your log is fun to read also. One-arm pullup goal is pretty neat. I was wondering, though, when you are doing the hand-stand pushups, are you doing them against a wall, or free-standing on your own hands?

[Davesbeard]

Been to Bjj recently? I really enjoy reading those reports

Are you just trying to maintain your strength on weighted pullups? I'd suggest more sets otherwise, you don't seem to have made much progress in that exercise.

Actually, I'll be going tonight for like the first time in 2 or 3 weeks. My attendance compared to some is pretty poor ... but in all fairness, bjj is pretty low regarding my priorities, like the Lord Jesus, living an active church life, school + studying for school, my work, etc.. But like I said, I'll be there tonight and post tomorrow.

And yeah, regarding the weighted pullups, the progress that I have made has come very, very slowly ... which is obviously because I am only doing 1 set of them a week .... I would like to do more sets on them to speed up my progress, but it seems that (from previous experience) doing more than one heavy set of those really gets the back of my shoulders and the inside of my elbows sore and inflammed. If I was not doing any kind of grappling, I would definitely be doing more than merely 1 set, but I find that when I do more than 1 set of those heavy weighted pullups my joints (elbows and shoulders) get so sore and inflammed during live grappling to the point were I get weak and can't function as well because of the sheer pain. I COULD take some anti-inflammatory pills and stuff, but personally, I prefer not to mask the pain that I might have, because of the possiblity of worsening the inflammation and condition of my joints. I started taking some during wrestling, and the pain went away, but I could feel that my joints and muscles were weaker, and the next few days were always leaving me in pain, in turn, making me become dependent on pills ... which I just would rather not do. Anyway, yeah, I am just sticking to 1 set of those heavy weighted pullups a week, and although my progress is slow, it is progress, ha. Actually, if I finish the set of 6 next week with the same weight, I'll probably move up to 80lbs tied on to me. We'll see.

My joints are doing great, though, with this routine I have, and I am not living my life in pain like I used to, which is nice! I'll be back tomorrow with another exciting report of bjj, haha.

BTW, your log is fun to read also. One-arm pullup goal is pretty neat. I was wondering, though, when you are doing the hand-stand pushups, are you doing them against a wall, or free-standing on your own hands?

Ah ok, better to be safe than sorry, no point going quickly only to injure yourself and lose a lot of ground. Heh cheers, i don't post particuarly often really don't do regular enough work. Though at the moment its working me for. The little bit of planche/handstand pushup stuff has already visibly improved my triceps

The Handstand pushups are against a wall at the moment, not got the strength to do them freestanding. Not sure how you develop that either.

[God-man]

Been to Bjj recently? I really enjoy reading those reports

Are you just trying to maintain your strength on weighted pullups? I'd suggest more sets otherwise, you don't seem to have made much progress in that exercise.

Actually, I'll be going tonight for like the first time in 2 or 3 weeks. My attendance compared to some is pretty poor ... but in all fairness, bjj is pretty low regarding my priorities, like the Lord Jesus, living an active church life, school + studying for school, my work, etc.. But like I said, I'll be there tonight and post tomorrow.

And yeah, regarding the weighted pullups, the progress that I have made has come very, very slowly ... which is obviously because I am only doing 1 set of them a week .... I would like to do more sets on them to speed up my progress, but it seems that (from previous experience) doing more than one heavy set of those really gets the back of my shoulders and the inside of my elbows sore and inflammed. If I was not doing any kind of grappling, I would definitely be doing more than merely 1 set, but I find that when I do more than 1 set of those heavy weighted pullups my joints (elbows and shoulders) get so sore and inflammed during live grappling to the point were I get weak and can't function as well because of the sheer pain. I COULD take some anti-inflammatory pills and stuff, but personally, I prefer not to mask the pain that I might have, because of the possiblity of worsening the inflammation and condition of my joints. I started taking some during wrestling, and the pain went away, but I could feel that my joints and muscles were weaker, and the next few days were always leaving me in pain, in turn, making me become dependent on pills ... which I just would rather not do. Anyway, yeah, I am just sticking to 1 set of those heavy weighted pullups a week, and although my progress is slow, it is progress, ha. Actually, if I finish the set of 6 next week with the same weight, I'll probably move up to 80lbs tied on to me. We'll see.

My joints are doing great, though, with this routine I have, and I am not living my life in pain like I used to, which is nice! I'll be back tomorrow with another exciting report of bjj, haha.

BTW, your log is fun to read also. One-arm pullup goal is pretty neat. I was wondering, though, when you are doing the hand-stand pushups, are you doing them against a wall, or free-standing on your own hands?

Ah ok, better to be safe than sorry, no point going quickly only to injure yourself and lose a lot of ground. Heh cheers, i don't post particuarly often really don't do regular enough work. Though at the moment its working me for. The little bit of planche/handstand pushup stuff has already visibly improved my triceps

The Handstand pushups are against a wall at the moment, not got the strength to do them freestanding. Not sure how you develop that either.

That's cool. Yeah, I used to do handstand pushups against a wall ... but since I am a light guy, I needed to move on to doing dumbbells to increase my strength ... doing my light weight wasn't getting me too far, ha. Yeah, that would be awesome to be able to do a handstand pushup without a wall, wouldn't it? My dad could walk on his hands all day if he wanted to ... it's pretty funny, but actually I have stronger shoulders than he does ... I think walking and keeping balance on your hands just has to do with practice and more practice, like my dad did. Keep up the training!

Thursday:

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Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class/practice

We had warmups and then went for a little while "light" sparring. I paired up with Nate who says we won't go 100%, which of course, means, "... just 95% ..." *psh*. Anyway, him and I had our so-called warm-up, and of course, Nate starts going hard. I passed his guard and got him in full mount, then he reversed me. Then I went for a triangle choke, but I didn't start out right, so he got out and passed my guard. Then he got me in what seemed to be a perfect armbar, but I didn't tap because I was kinda mad at him, so I fought it and after about 10 seconds struggling and keeping my arm super stiff, I was able to get my other arm and lift up one of his legs, roll over and through, and escape. Then after I escaped the armbar I passed his guard and got him in full mount. By that time, time was up for the "warm-up", and we were both tired. I got a little lucky in the armbar because my arms are short, flexible and fairly strong ... basically it is really hard to armbar me unless you have it just right, or if you are super-strong, or both. I really didn't tap because the so-called armbar wasn't hurting me at all, so I figured I'd tough it out and fight him for it, and somehow I escaped and got him in full mount. BTW, Nate is a 2-stripe whitebelt who is there nearly every class. He is a tall, skinny black guy who is my same weight. He is one of the only guys at my weight who actually gives me a challenge, so going with him is always good practice.

Then we went over straight achilles locks and the different variations, which was fun.

I left early, so I didn't have the pleasure of doing live matches with the guys that time *sarcasm*. Anyway, hopefully I'll be there Saturday. We'll see ... also, one of my brothers wants to come with my to bjj and is interested, so he might come with me Saturday.

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Closed-grip Dumbbell Military Press

10 x 30lb dumbbells

10 x 40lb dumbbells

8 x 50lb dumbbells (end of warm-up sets)

4 x 65lb dumbbells

4 x 65lb dumbbells

*************************************************************************

Barbell Squats (squatting depth: little below parallel)

10 x 45lbs

10 x 95lbs

10 x 135lbs

1 x 185lbs (end of warm-up sets)

6 x 205lbs

6 x 205lbs

*in Austin Powers voice* "Yeah, baby, YEAH!" haha Since I finished the two sets of 6 with 205, I am moving up to 225lbs. This will be interesting, ha.

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One-armed, Over-head Dumbbell Tricep Extensions

10 x 25lb dumbbell (each arm)

6 x 30lb dumbbell (each arm)

8 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 4 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

7 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 4 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

My right arm is obviously stronger than my left, and in a couple of weeks, I might go ahead and move up to the 40lb dumbbells with my right arm, even if my left is still at the 35lb dumbbells. My left arm is improving, though, along with my right.

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Pinch Grip

sets w/ 2 25lb plates

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Machine Lat-rows

10 x 140lbs

6 x 190lbs

6 x 190lbs

*************************************************************************

15 minutes on stationary bike, level 8 pushing resistance, very, very hard pace. I really pushed myself, keeping the rpm's between 115 and 135 most of the time.

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Forgot to do dumbbell hammer curls again. Dah!

Edited September 22, 2006 by God-man

[God-man]

Friday:

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Rolling Thunder singles (up to 171lbs)

I couldn't lock all the way out with 171 with my right hand, but I got 166 easy. I also locked out with 161 with my left hand, but couldn't budge 166.:p

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Pinch Grip

sets w/ 2 25lb plates

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Dumbbell Hammer Curls

8 x 40lb dumbbells

8 x 45lb dumbbells

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15 minutes on treadmill @ 7.5 speed.

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Saturday:

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Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class/practice

We went over full mount escapes, which was fun. We worked those for a while, and then we had live matches.

I went up against a guy named John, who is a 180lbs whitebelt who has been doing this off n' on for a while now. I think he really underestimated me at first, because we started going and I ended up submitting him with a triangle choke in like 10 seconds. Then he was like, 'oh, you actually can do that kind of stuff'. So then he started going harder with me. We ended up changing positions and reversing each other a lot. I submitted him two more times, once with a kimura, and once with MY FIRST ACHILLES LOCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!! John was not able to submit me. He was the only guy I went against, but we went at it for like nearly 10 minutes straight. ug. He's a real nice guy.

Then coach made us do a bunch of sprints, situps, squats, and pushups. yay.

My coach Yousef asked me to compete in the coming BJJ competition that our club is holding ... so yeah, I'll be competing in a couple of weeks in the whitebelt division ... not sure what weight class, though. I'm ah-feared. ha

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[God-man]

Monday:

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Weighted Pull-ups (bodyweight + 75lbs)

1 set of 6 (almost 7) full reps

I'll be moving up to 85lbs next week. Oh yes.

*************************************************************************

Close-grip Dumbbell Bench Press (on the Swiss ball)

10 x 40lb dumbbells

10 x 50lb dumbbells

8 x 60lb dumbbells

6 x 70lb dumbbells

5 x 70lb dumbbells

Woooweee! These were harder than I thought. I really like doing this on the swiss ball, now. It makes it a lot harder to stabilize everything and I can really feel it today! I will continue to do it on the swiss ball instead of on a hard flat bench.

*************************************************************************

Barbell Bent-Over Rows

10 x 135lbs

6 x 185lbs

6 x 185lbs

Alright, I'm moving up to 205lbs with these.

*************************************************************************

One-armed, Over-head Dumbbell Tricep Extensions

10 x 25lb dumbbell (each arm)

6 x 30lb dumbbell (each arm)

8 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 4 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

2 x 40lb dumbbell (right arm) / 5 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

That 40lber was tough ... I did a few negatives afterwards with it.

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Edited September 26, 2006 by God-man

[God-man]

Thursday:

*************************************************************************

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class/practice

We had warmups and then went for a little while "light" rolling. I rolled with Joseph (Sakuraba) and I actually submitted him in an achilles lock. Woohoo. second one.

Then we went over a reversal, where we trap their arm and shoulder across our body, reach around with the other hand under their other arm/shoulder, and whala, just pull and rotate the hips for a reversal. We also practice taking the back from that position, too, and then finishing with a choke.

Then we had live matches:

I first went with Dana a 30-something guy about 160lbs who trains pretty hardcore up in Texoma. Him and I rolled for about ten minutes, with me getting the better of him the first couple of minutes, but then it went down from there, ha. He ended up submitting me once with a rear-naked choke. Agh! I hate getting choked! lol He was real nice and knowledgeable, though, and I learned a couple of things from him.

Then I went with Zain, a 275lb whitebelt. I went for a triangle choke and he totally passed my guard and ended up mounting me. ... basically because he just isn't as experienced I am, I ended up escaping after a looooong time of him trying to smother and choke me, which was real tiring ... because, well, he weighs over 275lbs. yeah. Like I said, I eventually escaped and reversed him, and then submitted him with an achilles lock. I could actually hear and feel his ankle start to pop a little and he tapped out hard. I don't like hurting people, but it is nice to know that the submissions you are doing do indeed work, y'know?

Then I went with Joseph, but for like only about a minute, and nothing much happened because I was gassed and he couldn't do anything either, so ....

Then coach put me again with Dana again, but only for like a minute. He pulled guard and tried a reversal, but I went for an achilles lock, but I didn't have it right ... my wrist was under his middle calf instead of his ankle, but he was doing a real good job of kicking his leg through and foward so I couldn't get it, so it ended with that. If I would've had more time, I might have gone for a Half Boston Crab .... I'd like to try that on Saturday, because even if you for some reason can't make them tap from a Half Boston Crab, you can always swing around and take their back and/or mount.

*************************************************************************

Closed-grip Dumbbell Military Press

10 x 30lb dumbbells

10 x 40lb dumbbells

8 x 50lb dumbbells (end of warm-up sets)

4 x 65lb dumbbells

4 x 65lb dumbbells

*************************************************************************

One-armed, Over-head Dumbbell Tricep Extensions

10 x 25lb dumbbell (each arm)

6 x 30lb dumbbell (each arm)

8 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 5 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

1 x 40lb dumbbell (right arm) / 4 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

That 40lber is a killa!

*************************************************************************

Shrugs (no straps, of course! )

6 x 115lb dumbbells

4 x 120lb dumbbells

*************************************************************************

[God-man]

Monday:

*************************************************************************

Weighted Pull-ups (bodyweight + 85lbs)

1 set of 4 reps

Well, here I am at bw + 85lbs. It felt pretty good.

*************************************************************************

Close-grip Dumbbell Bench Press (on the Swiss ball)

10 x 40lb dumbbells

10 x 50lb dumbbells

8 x 70lb dumbbells

6 x 75lb dumbbells

2 x 80lb dumbbells

*************************************************************************

Barbell Bent-Over Rows

10 x 135lbs

6 x 195lbs

4 x 195lbs

*************************************************************************

One-armed, Over-head Dumbbell Tricep Extensions

10 x 25lb dumbbell (each arm)

6 x 30lb dumbbell (each arm)

7 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 5 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

6 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 3 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

Triceps felt a bit weaker today.

*************************************************************************

Tuesday:

*************************************************************************

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class/practice

Today, since the tournament is coming up, we just did live rolling all during the period.

I first went with Dana, and ended up submitting him with an achilles lock, a guillotine choke, and another achilles lock. He was also able to submit me once with a gi-choke. He showed me some cool stuff with the gi-chokes 'cause those are his bread and mayonaise, err, butter.

Then I went with 'Zuber', a middle aged white guy who is a blue belt. A blue belt, that is, that competes in the US opens and stuff. Yeah, he's good. We rolled for a while and we pretty much controlled me almost the whole time. He wasn't able to submit me, but he definitely was beating me positionally.

Then I went with Jula, the ridiculously good blue belt from Hungary. Yeah, I watched him go with brown belt afterwards, and he beat the brown belt, twice, by submission both times. Anyway, Jula and I rolled for a few minutes, with him reversing me and stuff. He wasn't able to submit me, but he was beating me on points positionally.

Then I rolled with Ali, a two-stripe 210lb whitebelt who is a real good wrestler, only for a short while. Nothing much really happened, and we eventually started working some sweeps and stuff.

I was pretty gassed from all of the rolling, even after just going with Dana and Zuber, but I can tell my stamina is improving.

[God-man]

My first Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament

Uh, yeah. I'm worn out. I've been cutting weight and doing hours and hours of cardio for the past two to three days for my Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament, and I made weight. Anyway, I just had the tournament this morning ... wow, I'm tired. The first match I was getting beat bad at first, but then with about two minutes left, out of no where, I submitted my opponent with a guillotine choke.

Then in my second match I was again, losing pretty badly, but about two minutes into the match, I submitted him with a nasty achilles ankle lock. He wasn't tapping at first, but then I got the hold just right, cranked it, and I could feel his ankle pop about three or four times real fast and he tapped out. I didn't want to crank it, but he was real tough and didn't want to tap, so it was either submit him or lose ....

Then in the finals my opponent and I were dead-even in points, so it had to go into overtime ... great. By that time, I was gassed, tired as a dog, and I lost by points in overtime, getting 2nd place in the tournament. I'm not sure if I'll compete in this again, just because it's dangerous ... not just physically, but also mentally and spiritually ... it's quite easy to stop walking in the Lord when you're competing in a submission sport like that.

Sooo, yeah, hey, I'm glad I got second. But I think this tournament, even though I god second place, exposed my weaknesses and showed me the things I need a lot more work on. I'm definitely glad it is over with.

[God-man]

Thursday:

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Closed-grip Dumbbell Military Press

*************************************************************************

One-armed, Over-head Dumbbell Tricep Extensions

*************************************************************************

Dumbbell Curls

*************************************************************************

Close-grip Pushups

*************************************************************************

I'll go to the gym and do some squats and leg stuff later on today.

[God-man]

Friday:

*************************************************************************

Squats

10 x 45lbs

10 x 95lbs

10 x 135lbs

6 x 185lbs

4 x 205lbs

*************************************************************************

Stationary Bike

15 minutes on level 7.

*************************************************************************

Saturday:

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class/practice

We had warmups and I went with Joseph. I was able to submit him with a rear-naked choke. Then coach showed us some butterfly sweeps/reversals that we worked a lot on. Then we had live matches:

First, I went up against Brandon, a 175lb whitebelt. We reversed each other a lot, like we always do when we roll, but I was able to submit him twice with a guillotine choke. He was not able to submit me.

Then, I went up againt Aaron, a middle-aged 185lb whitebelt. I was able to submit him with a keylock, an achilles lock, and a gi-choke. Aaron did not submit me.

Then coach made us do sprints and pushups and situps and jump squats.

*************************************************************************

Monday:

*************************************************************************

Weighted Pull-ups (bodyweight + 75lbs)

1 set of 4 reps

*************************************************************************

Close-grip Dumbbell Bench Press (on the Swiss ball)

10 x 50lb dumbbells

8 x 65lb dumbbells

7 x 75lb dumbbells

7 x 75lb dumbbells

*************************************************************************

Barbell Bent-Over Rows

10 x 135lbs

6 x 185lbs

6 x 185lbs

*************************************************************************

One-armed, Over-head Dumbbell Tricep Extensions

10 x 25lb dumbbell (each arm)

6 x 30lb dumbbell (each arm)

8 x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 6 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

8 (barely) x 35lb dumbbell (right arm) / 6 x 35lb dumbbell (left arm)

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