What does your programming look like?

Loosely structured for olympic lifts meaning that I typically hit a daily max then drop some weight and complete a few more reps. 5/3/1 for strength movements plus dips and pullups. I also commute on my bike, which is about 7 miles round trip.

07/02

10am

C&J
130, 135
2x1x126

DL
7x164

A1 Hamstring Curls
4x8x22

A2 Dips
4x10xBW

Realized that all that biking is adding in quite a bit of quad work so I'm going to start adding in direct hamstring work to even that out.

07/04

11:30am

Snatch
100, 105, 110, 114, 118x

C&J
130, 136, 142x

Pretty decent day. I haven't snatched that much in awhile.

07/08

1:00pm

Front Squat
4x150

A1 Pendlay Row
10x83

A2 Dips
5x10xBW

Skipped bench. It's a nice day and wanted to be outside.

114 is nice

Thanks dude.

07/11

11:00am

Snatch
up to 100
2x2x90

HBBS
1x174

A1 OHP
3x76

A2 Pullups
6x6xBW

Weights felt pretty heavy and I was a little sore from sailing yesterday.

07/13

11:00am

C&J
3x1x125

DL
4x174

Dips
4x10xBW

Felt like punching the clock. I guess that's good that it seems routine but that also means I have little to no enthusiasm for lifting.

ya 114 is legit af.

keep grinding bird

Thanks man. I don't know where it came from since I feel so weak lately. After sessions like this week I'm thinking about resetting or switching up programs.


07/16

11:00am

Front Squat
1x161

Weak sauce.

A1 Bench
6x89

A2 Pullups
6x6xBW

Dips
5x10xBW

These are kilos you are lifting, right?

you lift at chalk and metal right? they dont mind that you do your own thing?

Yes. They is just one person and he doesn't care. Is that a thing?

ive heard it is. we just recently started to let that happen. creates a weird atmosphere sometimes.

I dunno. Making people do the gym program seems way weirder to me. I've never had a coach though so having one seems weird in general.

Whoa, almost two weeks with no lifting.

07/28

12:00pm

HBBS
3x5x120

Just trying to move.

Snatch
100xo, 105o

C&J
up to 130

No misses but jerk on 130 was questionable.

Whoa, almost 6 weeks with no lifting. I moved to a different part of town to be closer and finally went to a new gym. This place is pretty nice but it doesn't cater solely to weightlifters, so we'll see how it goes.

09/11

10:30am

HBBS
3x3x130

Snatch
100xo

C&J
110, 120, 115, 110

OHP
5x60, 3x65

Which gym?

It's Aspire Athletics in Fremont. Decent price and 24h access which is really nice.

09/17

10:30am

Front Squat
2x2x125
2x2x115

Snatch
up to 100

No misses but overhead doesn't feel stable or strong.

Power Clean & Jerk
up to 120

No misses. Felt much stronger than snatches.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bn1uGpxgUf_/

09/19

10:30am

HBBS
5x120, 5x130, 5x140

OHP
5x45, 5x50, 6x55

Quick, but effective training session

I'm watching this video for like a minute before I realize it's just one lift on a loop; "Man, those guys behind him are REALLY working that chalk!"

Life update.

It had been many years since I visited a cardiologist but I decided to go back and get another round of imaging/tests since I'm getting older and my issue can't fix itself. Today I met with my doctor to discuss the results of an echocardiogram and it looks like my aortic valve's narrowing has graduated from the moderate to severe (there's one higher level of extremely severe). My heart has enlarged slightly over the years but not out of line given the other issues. A new complication is that my aorta has enlarged above the average size to 4.75cm and if it continues to increase in size, I will develop a non-marginal risk for aortic dissection (that's bad, K). I'm still not at the point where they would recommend going under the knife to replace my valve, but I'm at the edge and if any of those items get worse I will get to meet a cardiovascular surgeon.

So that means I have to make a few changes in my life. One of the first changes is that I can't lift heavy anymore. My issues combined with intra-abdominal pressure can increase the likelihood of aortic dissection significantly. I can still lift and exercise, but the parameters are going to have to change. No more 1RMs or thinking about competing for awhile and more focus on lighter weights. I think I'll be fine lifting in about the 4-6 RPE range and not doing high rep sets. Cardio is also fine and I'll likely bike more often, but it's starting to be rain season in Seattle and it's just ****ty out most days so that may be a tough transition. I do have an Airdyne so I can do that inside.

Anyone have program recommendations that focus on that RPE 4-6 range? I'm just starting to look into it but would appreciate any recommendations.

Sad to see you move on from wl, but glad you are on top of things. At that rpe and not pushing volume, I'd just do some muscle snatches(?), maybe sn. dl or something that keeps ROM/flexibility up, or something else fun that you might enjoy, etc. Yoga? Hang in there!

Ugh, that stinks, man; heart issues are not fun. Feel better.