Pre Season Training

Leon11

I've decided to keep a log of pre season on-line until September. Last month (June) was the first block of pre season.

Stats from my last fitness test were:

Height: 6ft 4
Weight: 107kgs
Bodyfat: 19%

Bench: 85kg (Narrow Grip)
Squat: 120kg (Below Parallel ie Calves and thighs touching)
T Test: 9.3 secs

Other stuff included but won't go into that.

Goals for next fitness test is:

Weight 106kg
Bodyfat: 17%

Bemch: 95kg
Squat: 135kg

So phase 2 started this week. That meant hitting the gym today at 1pm.

Warm Up

5min bike.
10min stretching calfs, quads, hip flexors, back

Deadlift
5x60kg W/U
5x60kg W/U

5x110kg
5x110kg
5x100kg
5x100kg
5x100kg

In between sets of deadlifts I did single leg hurdle jumps.

Bench Press (Narrow Grip)


5x50kg W/u
5x50kg W/U

5x80kg
5x80kg
3x77.5kg, 2x75kg
5x72.5kg
5x72.5kg

Finished up early with ten mins of HIIT on the bike because my friend had to leave for work

Leon11

Back in gym at 8.20 tonight.

Chin Ups

5x26kg assisted
5x26kg assisted
5x26kg assisted
5x26kg assisted
5x26kg assisted

Remedial Work

Calf Raises - 45secs on each leg
Single Leg Bodyweight Squats - 3x15
Back Extensions - 2 x30 sec holds (lying on belly, thumbs pointing up, legs up)
Leg Extensions - 1x15
Shoulder Rotations - 2x10 (elbow on knee, rotating shoulder)
Plank - 60secs
Horse Stance (Supermans) - 3x10

I tried single leg squats on the swiss ball with one leg extended out but it just didn't happen. Remidial work is pretty important because it helps avoid any niggly soft tissue damage brought on by weight training.

Leon11

This is what my diet will generally look like, today I didn't eat much fruit/veg so you could add in at least 4-5 servings more if your thinking OMG:D

9am

4 weetabix, 200ml supermilk, 45g pro-x

11.35am

1 Tomato Wrap, Chicken, Peppers, Olives, Slice of Chedder Cheese

2.45pm

3 scoops Ram

4.15pm

2 slices Wholegrain Bread, Half can of large tuna & s.c, Lettuce
4 whole eggs (scrambled)

7.15pm

75g Pasta, 2 chicken fillets, 100g cottage cheese, 150g mixed frozen veg

10pm

2 slices BB, 2 chicken fillets, 20g cheedar

12.30am

60g Pro-X, 350ml Supermilk

Ideally I should be eating more nuts, and some fruit with meals 1,2,3 though parents are away and I've been working all weekend so little time to get what I need. Should have the extra stuff tomorrow morning. Off to get some sleep.
Until next time

Leon11

Tuesday 10th July

Gym 5pm

200m sprints on rowing machine with 2min break between sets.

4x200
4x200
4x200
3x200

That actually killed me. I could barely lift my feet out of the footbelts on the rower at the end of each set. Total Time 25mins

Did about 15mins core & remedial work.

1)Calves & Ankles
2)Back Extensions
3)Single Leg Squats
4)Leg Extensions
5)Shoulder Rotations
6)Core

Stretched the legs a lot for 10 mins since the legs felt tight.

Into the pool for about 15mins of hydrotherapy on upper & lower body.

I'm going to aim to do this workout everyday after I hit the weights, sort of like an active recovery as such.

Eating is good, extra veg and fruit included. 150ml natural yoghurt and 2 tablespoons of flax seed helped too;)

Leon11

Wednesday 11th July

15min Warm Up and Stretching

Squat

5x50 W/U
5x70 W/U

9x100
5x100, 4x90
4x90, 4x80
10x75

Wide Arm Pull Ups


These are the assisted weight I used

8x47
8x47
6x47, 2x54
8x54

Step Ups

8x65 (18 inch box)
8x65 (15 inch box)
8x65 (15 inch box)
8x65 (15 inch box)

10mins remedial work.

The squats ****ing killed me, I'm typing this the morning after and they feel like jelly. I decided to go full depth because that's how our 1rm is tested, I can positively say now that full depth feels better to perform rather than parallel. Next time I do this workout I'll look to get 100x10 and drop down to 92.5 and nail 10 more.

Pull Ups I hate, I feel weak doing them, hopefully by the time I finish this phase I can get down to around only 30kg assisted which I'll be happy with.

The steps ups were very hard, required me to really stabilise myself. After the first set I knew I'd probably injure myself if I kept using an 18 inch step so I dropped it 3 inches which was wise. Actually I only hit 7 reps on the left leg on the last set!

All in all, tough workout even though I only did 3 exercises. Legs are not happy at me right now. Think I might just rest today and go all out tomorrow.

Leon11

Right back at it today, missed about 8 days of training due to a number reasons but no point in dwelling.

Deadlift

120x5
120x5
120x4
110x5
110x5

Chin Ups

26x5
26x5
26x4
33x5
33x5

Close Grip Bench Press

80x3
75x4
70x5
70x5
70x5

Not too happy with my benching today, may have been the lack of sleep and getting hammered last night but it's no excuse. Had no spotter either as I had the top floor of the gym to myself bar a savage new fitness instructor, passed up a chance there to get some 1 on 1 time with her

I am happy with the DL's though, hopefully I can hit the 150 mark in the next few weeks.

Off to eat now, which reminds me I've to post up new eating plan as recommended to me

walt0r

What are you training for? You're big at 6 4 and 107kg. That's about the weight I'm trying to get up to

Leon11

walt0r wrote:

What are you training for? You're big at 6 4 and 107kg. That's about the weight I'm trying to get up to

cheers, I'm training for rugby. Happy enough with the weight I wouldn't mind if I was 4-5 kilos lighter just want the body composition down really.

New Eating Plan

Breakfast

3 Weetabix + 300ml milk or 50g Porridge + 300ml Milk + Raisins
1 Scoop Pro-X or 2 Eggs
1 Orange


Snack

200ml yoghurt + 2 Tablespoons Flax Seed
Banana
Chicken Fillet

Lunch

2 Slices BB, Tuna with Olive Oil/Chicken, Mix of Peppers/Cucumber
Apple

Pre Work Out

1 Scoop Pro X
10 Walnuts
Simple Carbs (Bagel, 100g Jellies)

Post Workout

3 Scoops Ram

Dinner

2 Chicken/Turkey Fillets or Fish
Small Baked Potato or 50g Pasta
Cup Frozen Veg, 3 Heads Broccoli
70g Cottage Cheese

Pre-Bed

2 Scoops Pro-X
250ml Milk

I've been told to take some fish oil tablets as well so I'm gonna have a look for them and fit them in too.

Lower Back and glutes very sore from yesterday, off to do some sprints in a while.

Leon11

Sprints cancelled due to relatives dropping over, made it up to the gym bout 8.30.

5 mins warm up bike
10mins stretching
12 intervals of 200m at 42sec pace with a 30sec rest in between each
5 mins remedial work
5 mins stretching/ warm down

I like the rowing machine:D Just realised I can program interval training on the concept 2. It's excellent, stops you from cheating with those extra 5 secs rest as it counts down your rest period. Once I can hit 25 intervals I'll be extremely happy.

Leon11

In my mates house today so had to improvise workout due to no squat rack:mad:

Deadlifts

90x9,10,8

Bench Press
80x5
70x9,8

Shoulder Press
20x10,6,7

I did 5x1min all out rounds on a small speed bag. Was pretty hard after the shoulder press, what I found even harder was trying to get the ball to come back at you, I slowed my punching down a tiny bit and found I'd more control. Really enjoyed it.

I was reading sherdog's conditioning forum and see they have a timed 100 burpee challenge so I'm gonna give that a go either tonight after work or in the morning before death row*.

Need to do some corrective work on my left shoulder when doing SP because that's the only thing from stopping me doing higher reps.

On benching though I find I'm having more trouble bringing up my right arm (my good side) than my left.

All in all a good workout that had me sweating like a mofo.

*Death row is my new term for interval rowing

Leon11

screw the burpees!

Made it up bout 8.30 and just did 5 x 800m sprints on the rower with a 90sec break in between though the last 2 sets i took 150secs!.

Went to do boxing and got 1min in, yes 1 MINUTE before I suckerpunched the thing and the hooks just flew off.

The bag and I only knew each other a short time, RIP lol!

The last 20 odd mins I showed my friends how to bench, squat, deadlift etc. What was funny was there was a bloke DL weights with bad form rounding of back, I showed the lads the correct way and then showed them what not to do when they start to tire, cue bloke not happy. He eventually got it right after mirroring the movement

Leon11

Started up with a quick bike ride and a thorough lower body stretch. Lasted 10-15mins.

Squats

60x5
80x5

100x10
95x10
90x10*
90x8*

Wide Pull Ups Assisted Weight

47x10
47x10
47x8
47x7

Step Ups 15 inch box

70x10
70x10
70x10
70x10

*Squats were tough work, I was pretty happy that I could squat my last two sets with no plates under my heals. I leaned a bit far forward on some reps and had my hips come up early on some of the reps.

Pull Ups I still hate but felt a great pump in my forearms after for some reason.

The step-ups are definitely a challenge after a heavy squat session. I really gave it everything and felt like puking after the last set.

Was training beside Bernard Dunne today, the guy is very focused!

Finished up with a good 10min stretch which has helped delay doms.

I weighed myself after I woke up this morning and I'm 110kgs:mad: Would honestly like to see it slide down the other way! Team sessions start 7th August 3 times a week so I should see the weight fall by mid October.

Leon11

Deadlifts

60x5 W/U
80x5 W/U

130x5
130x5
130x3, 120x2
120x5
120x5

Chin Ups (Assisted)

26x5
26x5
26x5
26x5
26x4

Bench Press (Narrow)

40x5 W/U
60x5 W/U

85x2 - hit a third one but my left arm didn't quite hit it so it don't count
80x5
75x5
75x5
75x5

Good session, I'm beginning not to trail off towards the end of sessions. Last Monday I upped the assistance on the chins half way through this week I didn't:D The bench has come on a bit too especially in the last 3 sets.

Dead lifting is good though I get a bit sloppy at times bringing my hips up too soon but I've been working on it and there was fewer sloppy reps ie 3 or 4

Leon11

Simple today,

10x400m sprints on the rowing machine. Averaged between 1.20 and 1.30 for sprints with a strict 1 min rest between each one.

On sprint 9 I took an extra 25 sec rest.

Leon11

Bench Press (Narrow)

70x8
70x8
70x8

Arnold Dumbbell Press

10x14
10x13
10x14

Standing Overhead Tricep Press

22x10
22x9
22x8

Bent Over Row

25x10
25x10
25x10

Upright Rows

15x10
15x10
15x10

Barbell Curls

20kgx20,18,16,14,12,10,8,6,4,2,20

Weighted Situps

5kgx20,18,16,14,12,10,8,6,4,2,20

No idea why I did this workout. Pure non-stop only took a 1 min break for benching, arnolds and tricep press.

Only had a bowl of porridge before 40 mins before workout. 2 scoops Ram after I finished, then I headed to the Deli Boutique in Rathgar and got a large portion of scrambled egg and a wholegrain roll with chicken/lettuce/mayo.

A lot of carbs eaten already but I do have a heavy leg session tonight so I'm telling myself it's okay. Off to get 40mins of sleep now.

Leon11

Squats

60x5
60x5

100x6
80x10
80x9
80x7

Step Ups

60x8
60x8
70x8
70x8

Tonight I learned to leave the ego at the door. I've been posting up squat lifts of 100x10, 95x10 etc but I trailed off using ****e form on the last few reps ie 7-10, instead of squats I was nearly doing good mornings!!! So I've dropped down the weight from now on I'm gonna make sure I use proper technique all the time!

To anyone reading this if you've any doubts as to what your doing in a gym ask someone who knows to critique your movements, it's well worth it.

The step-ups were a pain in the hole because I usually do pull-ups in between them and squats but tonight it was just pure leg work. Feel absolutely wrecked even though the 40 min sleep ended up being a 4hr sleep:eek:

Honestly think I ate way too many carbs early on and it caused me to sleep that long, that and the hangover I had from 3 and 1/2 pints last night I wouldn't mind for the fact I still got more than 7 hours sleep too.

Don't know if I'll post tomorrow because I'm off up north to the Milk Cup.

Lesson Learned This Session

Increase weight gradually and not in 10kg increments

Leon11

Leon11 wrote:

I showed the lads the correct way and then showed them what not to do when they start to tire,

I'm an idiot!

Leon11

Squats

Full Range ATG

60x5
60x5
100x4

Partial

120x15
120x15
120x15

Shoulder Press

15x11
15x10
12.5x15

Deadlift

70x15
70x15
70x10

Rest times 1 min in between all sets, was only suppose to perform 2 sets of DL's.

Couldn't even get 1 heavy set of squats in because I was wrecked from Wednesday and I drove for 400miles yesterday so I didn't get much chance to stretch my legs out.

For the partials I concentrated on the upper half of the movement just so I got use to weight on the back. If anyone ITK regarding partials is it possible to work the lower range of the squat by putting a bar say 4 pins abovethe safety catch or is it just a bad idea??

Shoulders-meh....they're fecking weak, gonna need to do some serious work on them up till the middle of October

Leon11

FitDay estimate of what I eat here
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=LeonNangle

Leon11

1st day of "team training".

Quick meet and greet and onto the pitch. 3k run in 14mins 57secs (feckin ****e but seeing as I've done feck all running since March at least it wasn't too bad. I'll be looking to hit 14mins for our next run in 2 or 3 weeks?

After that we just did basic handling drills that were actually 40m sprints. We did about 5 different drills about 8-10 times.

10min game of touch and we were finished within the hour. First practice match in 2 weeks so the cardio is getting jumped up from now.

Leon11

chest infection and left knee ligament strain rules out gym work today

Leon11

Back for the first time in a week. Over the chest infection now, well almost. The knee was much better tonight considering we trained non stop for roughly 2hrs.

30 mins of bodyweight & mobility exercises

ie push ups, press ups, deep squats with jump, burpees, bear wrestling, knee slapping, face slapping, press up wrestling, punching work etc

30 mins of drills & bags

ie setting up driving mauls, pick n go's, passing etc

40 mins of pure contact

20m wide pitch 12v12 just to reinforce the drills we went over 2mins attack, 2 mins defend, 1 min rest

25mins of interval training

16 x 30 sec sprint, 30 sec jog, 30 sec walk

To be honest I felt lousy as the breathing was still heavy, calf's tightened up towards the 2nd half of the interval training. Was good to actually do some contact and hit bodies again, it only gets easier from here.

Leon11

3 sets of 12x100m sprints.

30 sec rest between sprints, 5 min break between sets.

Body is very sore from last night. Contact is a killer the 1st time back, calf's still a bit sore

Leon11

Club training

20min warm up using bodyweight exercises. all the same as before except done for a shorter period.

15mins of 150m shuttle runs. 30 sec shuttle, 30sec break

30-35 mins of contact 15 v 15

Finished up with about 20mins of scrummaging, probably hit 25-30 scrums roughly.

Felt v.tired doing the shuttle sprints, for the last 5 mins I reckon I barely 80m in the sprints.

Got smashed with a forearm to the face in contact! luckily I'd just put a gum shield on about 30secs earlier since there was a few big hits going in. If I hadn't of I reckon I'd be minus 4 or 5 teeth right now, my upper gums are all full of blood on the inside if that makes sense, nice. Game on sat so I'm pondering whether or not to hit the weights in the morning.

Leon11

Gym

Deadlifts

70x10
70x10
70x10

Shoulder Raises front & side in between DL's with 6kgs, 8-10 each way

Bench Press

70x5
75x5
75x3
60x6

Squat

60x5
60x5
60x5
60x8
60x8
60x8
60x6

Barbell Curls

25x6
25x6

35min workout. I'm still very sore from last night and I've got a 40mins in a game tomorrow as well as a training session beforehand so I didn't wanna go too mad. Weights will prob take a bit of a backburner volume wise because we've pretty much got 2/3 training sessions & 1/2 games against other clubs for the next 3 weeks. I'm on hols in 2 weeks though:D

Leon11

Training for 80 minutes and then into a match. We'd 2 teams put out, 1 per half with lots of subbing etc. Played roughly 20mins. Felt like blowing chunks as I'd forgotten how fast the game is. Happy enough with a few big hits, not happy as it showed me that I'm still unfit cardio wise. Still another 2 months to reach that level though.

Leon11

**** day.

About 15 mins we were going through different passing drills. The grid next to me was doing tackling drills, anyway I was running through offloading with the weight on my right foot when two of the lads smashed into my knee! Trained on for another couple of mins but I had to stop. Physio says it's just swelling and bruising on the knee. Fecking golf ball size lump on my inside knee.

Got to come back out and watch the end of training, we played 15mins of a training match and some of the handling was savage from the lads. It was good to watch.

Anyway more of doing sweet **** all, so much for the pre-season so far. Was suppose to play another match tonight also but that's out the window.