7.18.10 - Rest Day

244.8

Taking a rest day today. I'm still feeling it in my calves from the sprints last Monday. Extended recovery time seems to be one of the issues I'm fighting, which of course is an argument for more rest days.

I'm considering resetting my 5/3/1 loads for the Back Squat to something that will allow me to pump out 20 or more reps on set 3. Right now, I'm just toying with this idea in my head. This last week, I did 11 reps at 180. My guess is that something like 150 is where I would need to be to get 20+ reps. Also, at 150 (or even lower), I should get a little bit better ROM, which would help with all sorts of things - power cleans, snatches, box jumps, double unders, deadlifts, running, wall balls, etc. Another way to go would be to simply repeat the week 1 loads in week 5 when we max out. Then maybe do an endurance bias with lower loads in the next cycle.

On the other hand, I KNOW that the bulk of my issues with endurance are linked directly with my body weight. Right now, I'm at a baseline of 242-245, which is still really heavy for 6'1". Even at that weight, I've seen flashes of higher performance and better endurance when I've had sufficient rest and recovery time beforehand. The sprints last Monday are an example of that. So, as my body weight moves down, and my strength gets better, performance should improve. This is the mantra I've been preaching to myself for the last eight months. It will be interesting to chart what my performance looks like around Christmas time, when my weight should be in the 215 - 220 range. Then, a year from now, I should be solidly under 200, ideally somewhere between 190 and 195. At that point, my body should be working like a machine and I'll probably be in the best shape of my life.

But, in the near term, I need to hop back on the diet bandwagon and get my baseline down to the mid-230's. There's still time to get this done by mid-August. If I can get that done, I'll have six weeks until the end of September, when I need to be under 230. So, the goal for this week (starting today) is to be really, really careful with what I eat. Last week wasn't the end of the world, but it wasn't ideal either. I need to stay away from grains, sugars, and alcohol. No late night donuts and pizza, and no burgers unless it's with a salmon patty or something like that. No Diablo next Friday night.

Food:
Two Pork Tacos
Tall Latte