Corrective Strength Cycle

So on the last week of June right before we broke at The University of Memphis for Fourth of July "it" happened. "It" being my first injury while weightlifting.  Now it wasn't anything major only just a pulled rib head, a pulled rhomboid, and a strained pectoral minor all of which on my right side.  Not terrible just somewhat painful and tender.  The injury or set back as I like to call it came after I tried too hard to sacrifice technique for momentary glory while trying to lift heavier then I should have.  I know dumb of me.  For the next few weeks my workouts were tapered down a bit into something like this:

Week 1

Day 1:

Box Squats 5x5

Day 2:

Deadlift realized my Rhomboid wasn’t going to cooperate so we stop just short of a 4RM (Rep Max)

¬ Went and saw Dr. Jessop (Sports Message/Chiropractor)

Day 3:

Pause Box Squats 5x5

Lat Pull downs 5x10

GHR Sit ups 5x10

Day 4:

Clean Pulls 5x3-Moderate to Moderate Heavy

PR 5x5 –Light

Reverse Hypers 3x15

Plank Holds 3x 1 min hold

Day 5:

Split Squats (Single Leg Squats) 5x5

Cable Row 5x10

KB Snatch 5x15 –Heavy

Week 2:

Day 1:

Safety Bar Box Squats 5x5

¬ We realized from the set back that I tend to have a very bad T-Spine (Thoracic Spine).  So we started to utilize the Safety Bar, to help me strengthen that area of my back.  The Safety bar will naturally pull you forward because of the way the apparatus sits on your shoulders.  Your job, and a very hard one at that is to fight that force and keep your chest up.  If you don’t you’ll die, so it’s kind of a win or seriously lose situation.

DB Row 5x8 –Heavy

Day 2:

Snatch Pulls 5x3 – Heavy

Press 5x5- Moderate to Moderate Heavy

GHR (or GHD) Sit ups 5x10

Day 3:

Pause Box Squats 5x5 – Heavy

¬ We started using Pause Box Squats, because we realized that I was getting stuck at the bottom of my lifts and was not producing enough force, and power to become unstuck.  Also, this was a great way for me to work on my core strength because in a box squat you have to keep your core tight and fight to keep your torso engaged and adding a pause to it makes it even harder.  Plus my coach just is a mean guy.

Lat Pull downs 5x10

Yoke Walks 5 Trips

¬ This is something that you see on World Strongest Man Competition, I use an apparatus that looks much like a power rack, stack weight on the sides and place it on my back and walk so many yards.  We began to use this, because again my core/torso is very weak which allows me to drop the weight when it begins to get heavier so again we are strengthen my core. Plus it makes you just feel like a man walking around with three red plates on an already one hundred and eight five pound apparatus in front of crossfitters.

Day 4 – This was the last day on this cycle.

Clean Pulls 5x3

Safety Bar Box Squats 5x5

Lat Pull downs 5x10

Yoke Walks 4 Trips

After three to four weeks I was finally able to progress back into the full moments currently this is what I am doing for the current four weeks.  I have to keep in mind that I will suck at the start because I had four weeks off from not pull.  For some reason no matter how many times I do Snatch Pulls, or Clean Pulls it doesn't replace the full movement for me.

Week 1: BWT: 196

Day 1

Tall Snatch +Mid-Thigh Snatch+ Snatch x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Safety Bar Box Squats 5RM 4x5@90%

Chin ups 5 sets x Max Reps

GHR (GHD) Sit ups 5x10

Day2

Power Clean + 2 Jerks x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Push Press 5RM, 4x5@90%

Clean Pull + 3 Sec. Descent holds 5x3 –Heavy

Reverse Hypers 5x15

Day 3

Tall Clean + Mid-Thigh Clean + Clean x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Front Squat 5 RM 4x5@90%

Row 5x5 –Heavy

Palloff Press 5x30 Sec.

Day 4

2 Power Snatch + Snatch x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Snatch Pull + 3 Sec. Descent 5x3 –Heavy

Handstand Push Ups 5 Sets x Max Reps

¬ I know, if you know me personally you are thinking to yourself; how in the world can you do a handstand push up? Well I can, and it’s a great exercise for overhead pressing strength as well as core strength.  These are two areas I need work on.

Toes to Bar (Hanging Leg Raises) 5x10

Day 5

Snatch 1RM

Clean and Jerk 1RM

Quarter Squats 3x3 –Heavy

¬ It’s much like a Jerk Dip Squat, or it’s about 1/4^th the way down on a standard squat.

Single Arm Farmer Walk 5 Trips each side

¬ Similar to the Yoke walks, it works the same areas and sucks just as bad.

Week 2 BWT: 195

Day 1

Mid-Thigh Snatch+ Snatch x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Safety Bar Box Squat 3 RM 4x3@90%

Chin ups 5 sets x Max Reps

GHR (GHD) Sit ups 5x10

Day2- This day I added two workouts to my day, because I was leaving town to go back to my hometown of Oxford, MS with my fiancée for our wedding shower.  There is just something’s you just got to do for that special someone.  Plus, we got some awesome gifts. So I did Day2’s workout in the AM before work and Day3’s workouts in the PM.

2 Jerks x 10 90 Sec. Rest

Push Press 3RM, 4x3@90%

Clean Pull + 4 Sec. Descent holds 5x3 –Heavy

Reverse Hypers 5x15

Day3

Mid-Thigh Clean + Clean x 10 90 Sec. Rest

Front Squat 3RM 4x3@90%

Pendley Row 5x5 –Heavy

¬ This is a little different style of rows, you have to set up much like you would for a clean and rise up like you normally would to about the knee position and then pull.  This is helpful with me because it allows me to really work on my positioning.

Palloff Press 5x30 Sec.

Day4

Power Snatch + Snatch x 10 90 Sec. Rest

Snatch Pull + 4 Sec. Descent 5x3 –Heavy

Handstand Push Ups 5 Sets x Max Reps

Toes to Bar (Hanging Leg Raises) 5x10

Day5

Snatch 1RM

Clean and Jerk 1RM

Quarter Squats 3x3 –Heavy

Single Arm Farmer Walk 5 Trips each side

Week 3 BWT 195- This will be the last week of this program.  My coach and I will meet after the 1RM day and discuss what we feel like are my problem areas and my weak points and discuss the next step we will take.

Day1

Snatch x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Safety Bar Box Squats 2RM 4x2@90%

Chin ups 5 sets x Max Reps

GHR (GHD) Sit ups 5x10

Day2

This day I added two workouts to my day, because I was leaving town to go back to Destin, FL with my fiancée for us to look over everything for our wedding. So I did Day2’s workout in the AM before work and Day3’s workouts in the PM.

2 Jerks x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Push Press 5RM, 4x5@90%

Clean Pull + 5 Sec. Descent holds 5x3 –Heavy

Reverse Hypers 5x15

Day3

Clean x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Front Squat 2RM 4x2@90%

Pendley Row 5x5 –Heavy

Palloff Press 5x30 Sec.

Day4

Snatch x 8 90 Sec. Rest

Snatch Pull + 5 Sec. Decent 5x3 –Heavy

Handstand Push Ups 5 Sets x Max Reps

Toes to Bar 5x 10

Day5

Snatch 1RM

Clean and Jerk 1RM

Quarter Squats 3x3 –Heavy

Single Arm Farmer Walk 5 Trips each side

I’ll post the next cycle when my coach Mike Bledsoe and I settle on what the next step will be.