Friday, August 9, 2013

P/F/M NATs '13 MISREP Day 2: Equipment Familiarization

This was a good day. I still had the 'fish out of water' disposition but a good day none the less.


I got to Brute and have myself an hour to hit the things I was concerned with for tomorrow, namely the Axle and the Chains. There's only so many ways you can grip a chain to drag it and I think I found one that'll work for me for tomorrow. The most challenging piece of equipment for tomorrow will by far be the 260 Axle in the Push-Pull Medley. The thing does not spin at all, and I've never worked with an axle like it before.


This took a few more reps than it should of to get a feel for but I was finally able to figure it out... At slightly over event weight. There's a 600 Frame Dead immediately before the 260 Axle Press, the key is going to be to take an additional second to focus before cleaning it. I don't see too many people finishing the medley, hell, I may not finish the medley. The 240 Keg at the end it going to be a beast.

I spent the rest of the day relaxing and refeeding. Also, lots of time was spent thinking about tomorrow's show. It's been a long time - The Barn in 2011 - since I've gone to a show solo like this. It's also been a long time since I've competed. I'm feeling good!!

Thursday, August 8, 2013

P/F/M NATs '13 MISREP Day 1: Travel Out

Today definitely did not end as I had hoped. I was supposed to land in Norfolk at 5:50, which would have given me some time to get over to Brute Strength Gym and spend a little time with the implements but due to a storm and an overfilled jet, I didn't land until around 8:10 and Brute closed at 9:00.

I was able to get there by 8:45 but, of course, this was not enough time to get anything done other than a walk-through. I took a few mental notes while I glanced around and I do need to get there tomorrow and touch some of the toys. 1. I noticed that their axle doesn't rotate at all - they did it right - which is a little different than I'm used to so I should go get a feel for it. 2. The 145 pound shackle for the anchor chain drag is a fucking monster, I need to go figure out how to pick it up for the drag. 3. The pick heights for the Frame, Truck Tires and Car Dead are different than I’m used to so I also need to go feel them out, a little.

These aren’t stark contrasts but hey, these slight differences can mean placing on the podium vs off the podium.

I will say, it was enjoyable to travel without having to worry about making weight. For shows past, by this point I’ve sodium loaded, then water loaded then started to try to sweat it out. I was able to have an iced coffee before I flew out and a meal over the extended layover in Denver, it was nice. Tonight I’m about to go find something to eat and tomorrow morning I can eat again, had the weight class shift not happened, I’d be waking up, wrapping myself in a garbage bag under a few layers of sweats and walking on the treadmill or sitting in a sauna until I saw the magical 232, hoping carry-over would bring me under 231.5 by the time I got on the scale. Then I’d start re-loading and re-feeding until I didn’t feel like me ears needed to pop, take a nap and hopefully feel normal again by early evening. Luckily, I don’t have to weigh in so, I don’t have to worry about any of that.


Competing as a Heavy (or “Middleweight” in this case) comes with a different set of Training, Tactics and Pcedures. I can’t recall what I did the days before my other NAS Open Heavy Shows (So-Cal Strength Challenge OCT 2010 & Red Bluff JUL 2012) but I do remember feeling at ease and unstressed, which put me in a good frame of time to turn it on when competition day came.

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~SAVAGE~

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Pol/Fir/Mil NATs '13 - 1 Week Out: Show Goals

No workouts this weekend other than 5 sets on the Rower, to keep the blood moving.

Saturday afternoon it was announced on Facebook that the weight classes would be combined at Brute Strength Gym next weekend due to a lack of heavyweight competitors. Based off of the people who were 'going' on Facebook I thought there were going to be a lot of big guys throwing a lot of big numbers around but I guess I was wrong. With the change, the Open Men are lumped into two categories; 200 pounds and under and 200 pounds and over. What it means for me is that I don't have to worry about cutting down to under 231.4 for weigh-ins, I just need to show up over 200 pounds and smash weights, the same event weight I've been training for all along!!

On one hand, if I had known 13 weeks ago that I'd be competing against a few of the big boys maybe I never would have cut down and maintained a lower body weight. On the other, I'm not ready for a 270 Log Clean 1 / Press for Reps in a show and should I place, I wouldn't be going to Open Nationals as a HVY, I'm far from being ready to go as a LWT, let alone a HVY.

The only drawback I see is that I planned on flying out on Thursday so I could make weight first thing in the morning on Friday. Now that I don't have to make weight, I really don't have a reason to fly out a day early but at this point it's very expensive to change flights, sucks that I'll be away from the family one more night than I really need to.

Show Goals
I've never competed against a Heavyweight Monster (think a top 15 Open NATs placer) in the smaller shows that I’ve done but I have won both times that I competed as a Heavy. Looking at the line up for Brute I recognize a few names from NATs in years past and there's some formidable 200 pounders on the list and the PFM LWT winners from ’10 & ’11, but what I don't see is Previous PFM HWT winners or many of the guys that I see in the Brute vids. I guess, mostly, they show up and help things run smoothly, which I’ve done while injured in my own back yard.

Event Weights List

It’s interesting to think about goals at the show knowing that I won’t have to cut those last 10 pounds and then re-load after getting on the scale. My goal is to win and come home with the PFM above 200 National Champ title and an invite to Open NATs 2013. The question is… Because it’s billed as a combined Middleweight Class, if you win, can you go to NATs as a 231.4 because the class wasn’t offered? At the end of the day, I doesn’t really matter until I come home with it, so what happens, happens next week and the rest will be figured out when all the dust is settled.

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~SAVAGE~

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Pol/Fir/Mil NATs '13 - 2 Weeks Out: Last Look & Heavy Liftin'

This weekend was my last chance to get heavy work in before P/F/M Nats. About a year ago I was training heavy for a Dallas Plat Plus show a week out and fucked my back up when pulling my 750 pound 'Doomsday Frame', an injury that haunts me to this day. With the recent 'hard cramp' of two weeks ago, I don't want to take any chances but, I needed a 'last look' before the show.

Failing at 303

DTG: 27JUL2013/1000
LOC: Brownfield Residence

Events: Axle Clean & Press, Arm / Arm Pull, Tire (Chain) Drag, Car Dead Lift

Today was a Team Big Sac extended family reunion at the Brownfield residence. The Barrel Doug Carroll came up from Santa Rosa, Brooks brought a few guys doing the Novice class at Northern Nevada's Strongest Man down from Chico and Fred Larson, Ty-lor Shelgren and Zach rode up with me.

I got some work in on the Axle while everyone else was working with the BiggDogg Logg. I worked up to 303 but I missed it twice. My best good rep was 283, 300+ will sadly have to wait until after VA. I did two sets each of Arm Over Arm Pull / Tire Sled drag with a 220 pound stone in the tire, both times the second go felt better than the first.

My real reason for heading to the Brownfield Residence was to get my hands on his Car Dead setup again. The pick on my Car Dead is about 6" higher than his and the one in VA, and it damn near crippled me last time I used it. I wanted to have another session with it, and be able to walk away from it, before heading out. Today, for my last set, we had a Corolla on the platform w/ 100 pounds of dumbbells in the trunk, with each rep one of the guys threw in a 60 pound sandbag. My 5th rep was my last, with an additional 240 pounds of sand in the trunk... And I walked away from it without cramping or tweaking it. Good training day.

DTG: 28JUL2013/1200
LOC: Fortress of Solitude

Events: Log Press, Keg Press

The sun has been relentless this summer and I was pretty burnt out after my day in Oroville. I decided to omit Frame Dead and 18" Dead today, after the Cad Deads, I didn't want to chance it. I got my whole workout in today in about 45 minutes. I went slightly above event weight on the Log, cleaned it once, pressed it for 4 reps. Not as good as I've done before but I also hadn't done Axel Press / Log Press on back to back days before. I'm going to chalk my weak Log work up to that.

Kegs have been an issue for me lately, mostly because I haven't trained with them enough. Today I worked staggered grip and hit the 207 with the left and right, also the 230 with the left and right. My last rep was a single with the 250, left hand on the top / right hand on the bottom, if that makes sense. Honestly, I was surprised that I hit it today, a 240 is going to be a chore at the end of the push-pull.

Last Two Weeks:
I have 12 full days until the competition. This morning I was 246.8, I have to cut 15.4 pounds. Here's my plans for the final days:

07/29-08/05: Last week of lifting. No max attempts at all. Any static events practice done will be capped at 85% of event weight. Try to hit conditioning every other day first thing in the morning, switching between 20 minute steady state sessions and hi intensity interval training.

08/06-8/08: Rest, rest, rest. Get adjustments and take massages. If any work needs to be done for cutting purposes, keep it very low-impact. Travel day is 08/08, I get in early enough to find a sauna or steam room if needed.

08/09: Wake up, check body weight, cut any final weight that I may need to, head to Brute to weigh-in as early as possible (1100 per entry form) and then hit Waffle House like a wrecking ball, get back to Brute to feel the equipment out, pizza/pasta feed at Regino's with leftovers 3 hours later.

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~SAVAGE~