I did the 5/3/1 pyramid on the bench 3 times, which is probably too much work. It's more than what was specified, for sure. I slapped a pair of 45 pound plates and a quartet of 25 pound plates on a 45 pound Olympic bar at the top of the pyramid. For the record that is 95+95+45 = 235. At the end of the first two pyramids I nailed 2 reps instead of one. On the final pyramid, I could do it only once.
I was tired. I didn't want to end up like Stafon Johnson. Next time, I will do more.
Naturally, this pales in comparison to the 39 x 225 that guys such as Barry Allen have performed in the past. Still, I think it ain't bad for a guy who (a) hasn't lifted in years, (b) maybe going in for shoulder surgery soon (c) just lost 145 pounds, a process that always makes you weak.
One very interesting side note: In his fantastic book and video Enter the Kettlebell, Pavel Tsatsouline provided some weight guidance for beginners with the Kettlebells. He used the bench press as a misguided guide to scaling you Kettlebell weight. His official statement was:
Most men should begin with a 16kg (35 pound) kettlebell
If you are a strong man, able to bench 200+ pounds, you may begin with a 20kg (43 pound) kettlebell.
Only exceptionally strong men, such as experienced powerlifters, should begin with a 24kg (53 pound) kettlebell.
Well, it just so happens that the 20kg kettlebells at the Woodland Hills Athletic club and my own 45 pound kettlebell are just now becoming manageable for me. I can swing 'em, I can halo them, I can row them (two of them), I can tea-cup squat with them. In fact, I can swing and teacup squat with a 24kg. I can't yet clean them or snatch a 20kg, but I am getting close to a clean-clean with the 20kg.
What a co-inky-dinky that 235 becomes manageable on the bench press at the same time that the 20kg kettlebell becomes manageable on a variety of exercises. Hummmm... kinda makes you wonder if Pavel Tsatsouline has a little expertise, now doesn't it?
Just 2 x 20 pound kettlebells and 5 minutes of effort. I guarantee this will just about kill yer arse if you put your heart & soul into it. Believe me, it's a lot harder than it looks.
We have just 5 exercises here, each performed for just 60 seconds. The clock gone bad beeps indicating when you are to switch exercises. As always, you don't count reps, you go for time. It's about time, not reps.
Double kettlebell swings
Double front squats
Double presses
Alternate front-leaning rows {I bet you can't do this}
The score a few moments ago was 187.2 English pounds on the Tanita scale. The digital read-out wavered between 187.0 and 187.2 several times before rounding up, as it always does. Let's presume that I am 187.1, and the 2/10ths digital display simply cannot indicate that fact.
The Bod Pod would place me somewhere 186.2-186.25 this morning. That is without any special prep. I did not do an extensive areobic workout last night. I did not do 30 minutes in the saunas at 24 Hour Fitness. I did not purge my intestines with Magnesium Citrate. An official prep for the Bod Pod would put me lower this morning.
I mention all this, because this is the end of another two week Bod Pod cycle, and I have officially missed the test. It was a tough week of finishing Jury Duty and trying to catch up at work after 8 days out of the office. I never found a spare moment between 9:00am and 5:00pm to call the California Health and Longevity Institute to make an appointment.
I mention all of this because two weeks ago, my body weight was 195.7 pounds on the Bod Pod scale. The indication is that I have lost some 9.45 pounds in the past two weeks. This is shocking. When last I blogged on this subject, we were speaking of the point of inflection. We were speaking of that moment when my body weight would cease decreasing, and begin increasing... hopefully with lean-mass only. Low-and-behold: we have a massive 9.45 pound decrease in gross body weight at the end of this cycle.
God only knows what this did to my Body Fat Percentage (BFP). I wish I knew. I bitterly regret not having a test this week. It might have been a dandy. Presuming that this was all fat weight, my body fat would have dropped from 44.56 pounds to 35.11 pounds. 35.11 / 186.25 = 18.85%. This is astounding. I might actually have moved the check-box to Healthy territory, and I might be just 1.85% away from my final and ultimate medical goal.
This is all the more shocking because I have largely abandoned the aerobics machines that have brought be most of the distance. I only walked on the tread mill once last week. I only got on the bike twice last week. I only got on the Elliptical Cross-Trainer once last week. I only did the Olympic Rowing Machine twice last week.
To make matters more interesting, I did ZERO CrossFit workouts last week. Now why the limited amount of work? Because I encountered a substantial training injury to my right shoulder doing head-stand push-ups last Saturday at the CrossFit gym.
I did train last week. I did a dumbbell workout with Aaron on Thursday, and I did a killer WOD routine here at the apartment with my ROM machine and some Kettlebells that I have recently purchased. Those were brutal workouts. My heart rate went over 170 during the Kettlebell swing, I am sure.
I am going to add one more piece of complexity to the picture for you: I have fallen in love with the Del Taco Macho Bacon and Egg Burrito all over again. According to one source, this burrito contains approximately 1,030 kcal per shot. That's a load of kcal energy, buddy.
Yet at the same time all of this has been going on, I know my strength has been increasing. I am officially swinging, cleaning, and rowing the 20 KG kettlebell, doing orbits with 16 kg, and doing the Turkish Get Up with the 8 KG bell.
The Kettlebell has become my new obsession, and a powerful one at that. If you were to read Enter the Kettlebell! by Pavel Tsatsouline (an August 23, 1969 Virgo guy from Russia) you will find that a simple regime consisting of 5 minutes of Kettlebell Swings and 5 minutes of Turkish Get Ups done once every other day is all he recommends for a beginner. Don't count reps, go for 5 solid minutes with good form. He claims that is enough to get your strength moving northward and your body fat moving southward.
Evidently, the Kettlebell Swing and the TGU are the two master exercises in the Kettlebell regime. They are just as important in Kettlebell training as the Deadlift and Squat are in the Powerlifter's regime. These are the two exercises a Kettlebell student must master and perform all the time.
Further, this two exercise regime will trigger plenty of fat loss without "the dishonor" of aerobic exercise. Pavel is very derisive of those metro-sexual machines. Men should be playing with cannonballs, not girly bikes and treadmills. The comrade-ladies should also be using Kettlebells to meet their fitness needs.
It sounds preposterous, I know. That just can't be enough work to get the job done. However, in this week of recovery from injury, I seem to have inadvertently proven his point. Now, I did more than that. There were other Kettlebell exercises. Further, there was the good 'ole ROM machine. However, the Kettlebells in my living room were the big, big, big change item.
I am in love with Kettlebells!
