cesimpson

Again I’ll say, if I could stay home with a blanket, my wife, a fireplace, some whiskey and coffee - all winter long - I could tolerate winter. Unfortunately, I have to venture out into the wild every once in a while.

Reason Number Two I hate winter is the drivers. St. Louis drivers are terrible winter drivers. They shouldn’t be, but they are - terrible, horrible, idiots. I hate being on the road at all when there’s ice. I hate it double when I’m surrounded by Rusty Wallace wanna-bes.

Daddy vs The Tree

There’s our little girl cheering on daddy in the annual bout - daddy v. tree. Daddy is ahead in the series, 4-1. Don’t ask about the 1. Ugly story. =)

Saturday morning, went to a local Christmas tree farm and cut one down. It was cold and raining and muddy. Since we were all quite miserable, we were not terribly picky about the tree. If it was reasonably green and coniferous, it was coming home with us.

Had some lunch at the local Steak ‘n’ Shake. I ordered a turkey melt and consumed it with no problems. I think it’s safe to call that the first real full-portion poultry meal comfortably consumed in a very long time.

Training

The gym was very empty this morning. I think there were lots of people using the ice and cold as an excuse to stay bundled in bed.

Not me.

Overhead Press work up to 1RM

5x @ 45#

5x @ 95#

3x @ 115#

2x @ 125#

2x @ 135#

2x @ 140#

0x @ 145#

1x @ 145#

That 145# went up rough. It was uneven and leaning back a little too far for my comfort. Still, it got up and that’s better than I could have done last week. No complaints here.

Front Squat / Weighted Pull Up Superset

5x Squat @ 135# / 3x Pull Up @ BW+5#

3x Squat @ 185# / 3x Pull Up @ BW+5#

3x Squat @ 185# / 3x Pull Up @ BW+5#

3x Squat @ 185# / 3x Pull Up @ BW+5#

3x Squat @ 205# / 3x Pull Up @ BW+5#

3x Squat @ 205# / 3x Pull Up @ BW+5#

3x Squat @ 205# / 3x Pull Up @ BW+5#

3x Squat @ 205# / 3x Pull Up @ BW+5#

Every pull up was done with a pronated grip, chin clearly above the bar, elbows behind center-line of body. I’m very excited about that.

I should do front squats more often. Today was a scheduled back squat day, but my spinal erectors and glutes are still sorta tight and sore from last friday’s deadlifting session. I decided to give them a bit of a break and do some front squats.

I’m glad I did. I kinda forgot about them lately and realized today I need to do them more. The 205# was tough, and it shouldn’t be.