Martin roy training log

[Martin Roy]

Vista, Vista, Vista. It was the best of times; it was the worst of times. For me it was a case of opposites detract.

In the morning I threw great; in the afternoon I sucked. I'm going to blame it on the heat punishing me because I can't think of a better explanation.

We did hammers to start the day and my first heavy hammer toss was The Single Worst Throw I've had had in years. But the next one improved by over 10 feet and my third was only 4" off of a PR; nothing to complain about. Light hammer sequence was excellent: a solid first throw, a 5' improvement on the second throw, and a PR on the third. 68-1 and I'm closing in on the (for me) elusive 70' threshold. I keep chipping away at it and finally I'm getting close.

Wob was next and went well. I figure my strongest throws are the third attempt through about the 7th or 8th. So my preference is to start at 9 for a warm up, go to 10 for a second warm up, then 11 to position myself for good shots at full strength for 12. I got that sequence with three strong tosses at 9, 10, and 11. 12 would be a PR for me and at Woodland and now Vista I've hit the bar hard three times at both games. I'm very close to getting it in competition; I can taste it.

Caber was a huge disappointment. It was a relatively light stick and I was looking for 3 12s. However, for left foot slipped as I planted to pull on the first attempt, the second I blew my timing, and the third attempt my right foot caught in the dirt as I was moving to plant it and I dumped it to avoid injury. Eff, Eff, Effing, Eff. This was a stick I should have owned.

That was the morning. After lunch the worm turned.

Stones absolutely stunk. My worst performance in a long time in both Braemar and Open. And that's about all I have to say about that.

Wfd also terrible. However, upon reflection I did have one hwfd toss that would have been a PR before Woodland and it's an indicator of my higher expectations that I consider it an unacceptable throw now. Footwork and rhythm on the light and the heavy were simply off. Couple that with no pop and it's a recipe for lousy throws. Looking down the road to Monterey in early August, I'm going back to drilling speed and footwork with the 14lb until I can do it right in my sleep. I want new PRs in both at Monterey. Not happy.

Sheaf finished the day and it's an event I never practice. And I should change that. I cleared 17' and missed three attempts at 19'. I probably would have cleared 18 but that wasn't where the bar was. Oh well...

All in all, though, it was a great weekend. Alan H and I roadtripped down the coast, saw some nice country, made it through LA unscathed, and saw some good folks. We got to throw some heavy stuff and wear kilts, too.

What could be better than that?

[Martin Roy]

Good photos, Alan - thanks for posting them. In the wfd shot I can see why my balance was off. My left cheek was overinflated and the right wasn't. That, no doubt, created subtle balance issues which threw off everything. Time to focus on facial drills......

[Martin Roy]

Looking down the road to Monterey in early August, I'm going back to drilling speed and footwork with the 14lb until I can do it right in my sleep. I want new PRs in both at Monterey. Not happy.

Started the process yesterday evening at Shaffer. The 14 exclusively - many, many reps focused solely on footwork, balance, and every other technical aspect of wfd I could think of. By the end of the session I was feeling more comfortable. Next time I'll work into some reps with the 28.

Tonight I'm hearing the squat rack calling.

[Martin Roy]

Last night I had a workout the cleared out the toxic waste and left me feeling both refreshed and spent. As I've mentioned previously I'm implementing a twice per week lifting schedule with a 5x5 approach to maintain and raise the foundation in an unhurried manner.

Thus, after warming up on the bike, I moved to the squat rack - all sets were 5 reps - 135 for a couple, 185 for a couple, then 5x5 at 225 to officially kick off the plan. I completed it without a problem but it was more volume than I've been doing over the past several months. Felt really good to finish and next time I'll take it up to 245. In addition to the volume, I'm aiming to explode out of the hole with the vision of hitting a 12' wob as my carrot.

Next was overhead press. Warm ups with the bar, a couple sets with 75 to get the kinks out, then 5x5 with 95. Completed it without difficulty although by the last set I was feeling some push back by the weight. Next time I'll move it up to 105. I'm still chasing the goal of sets with the 45 plates.
Finished with 5x5 pull ups to train the opposite of overhead. I'll decrease the offset next time-this set was almost too easy. But given my residual loathing of pull ups it's better to start off with a win instead of a fail.

Cooled down on the bike and the elliptical.

This morning I'm a bit sore, but nothing serious. I'm contemplating doing some wind sprints and stairs later this afternoon as a change of pace. Tommorow will be an off day due to circumstances beyond my control.

[Martin Roy]

So those sprints and stairs I was contemplating? That's as far as it went. By late afternoon, after a day spent watching, in order, the Tour de France, the Hot Dog eating contest, the Giants vs Nationals, and the Women's World Cup match between England and Germany, setting a personal record for couch sitting, I decided that I needed more iron in my system.

Got the blood flowing again on the bike and elliptical, coupled with a good ab routine. For some reason I really wanted to do some pulling but, after squatting the day before, I didn't want to go real heavy. Thus, warmed up on a few sets of 185 and then did a 5x5 with 225 focused on speed. Just right.

Ater that it was a series of accessory stuff, beginning with db hammer curls 3 sets of 5 with 30 and 35; finished with 5x5 with 40.

Seated bench row 5x5 with 180; tricep cable push down 5x5 with 90 on the stack. Some traps to loosen the upper back, then another round of bike and elliptical. Finished with a good stretch.

Solid workout.

[Alan H]

So those sprints and stairs I was contemplating? That's as far as it went. By late afternoon, after a day spent watching, in order, the Tour de France, the Hot Dog eating contest, the Giants vs Nationals, and the Women's World Cup match between England and Germany, setting a personal record for couch sitting, I decided that I needed more iron in my system.

Got the blood flowing again on the bike and elliptical, coupled with a good ab routine. For some reason I really wanted to do some pulling but, after squatting the day before, I didn't want to go real heavy. Thus, warmed up on a few sets of 185 and then did a 5x5 with 225 focused on speed. Just right.

Ater that it was a series of accessory stuff, beginning with db hammer curls 3 sets of 5 with 30 and 35; finished with 5x5 with 40.

Seated bench row 5x5 with 180; tricep cable push down 5x5 with 90 on the stack. Some traps to loosen the upper back, then another round of bike and elliptical. Finished with a good stretch.

Solid workout.

You're way ahead of me. I had a big workout today...the first one since we got back. I took a high school friend and his kid on a 90-minute walking tour of Stanford. We went into the gym...

----to view the Fencing studio. Biggest workout in a week.

[Martin Roy]

I'd been planning this evening's workout since yesterday as the next step in implementing my 5x5 foundation building plan. The idea has been to move the weight up in modest increments to increase strength without overdoing it to risk injury during the season.

Started with squats, warming up with a couple sets at 135, 185, and another at 225. Moved up to 245 for 5x5. Completed it without undue difficulty but it was definitely more of a challenge than 225 was last week. Legs were cooked afterward.

Continued with bench, after warm ups, 5x5 with 145. This, too, was more challenging than 135 last week, but manageable nonetheless.

Finished with 3x10 at 180 on seated bench row for some back action; then the pec deck 3x10 with 130, and 3x5 with 145.

Bike to cool down and done.

Next lifting session should happen on Friday with pulls and overhead.

Throwing Wednesday and Thursday at Shaffer.

[Martin Roy]

After lifting on Tuesday I needed a light day throwing. Thus, I worked exclusively on open stone footwork with a very light stone. I'm thinking about changing to a modified South African spin delivery if I can feel comfortable and balanced. Many, many reps looking at foot placement, balance, and delivery position. My brother provided commentary. I didn't really throw it at all. As a work in progress, though, you start where you are and not where someone else is.

I'll revisit this on Sunday afternoon.

[Martin Roy]

Thursday's plans were revised from throwing to light work in the gym, mainly bike and stretching. The simple reason for the change was that I was feeling like I'd been in a fight and lost, with aches and pains in unexpected places. It happens, you deal with it.

Friday evening I got a late start and only had time for overhead press; I'll finish the session later today with pulls. I surprised myself with the overhead work. All day I'd been debating whether to jump up to 100 or 105 for the 5x5 work sets, but after warming up I decided to push the envelope with 105. And I wasn't sure whether I'd complete it. However, I got through 5x5 cleanly and with good form. The next jump up will be to 110 but, depending on how I feel at the time, I may do a repeat session with 105. I keep reminding myself that this is about solidifying the foundation and not simply bigger numbers.

[Martin Roy]

Sometimes it just feels right.

Rack pulls today: warm up sets with 135, 185, 225; then work sets with 255. With pulls I prefer fewer reps to make sure that fatigue doesn't cause form issues. Thus, instead of 5x5 I did 3 reps per set. Except on the fifth set I did 5 reps because it felt good. Then I did a set of 3 with 275. That also felt good and will be the starting point next time.

Also did light trap and shoulder work to get the blood flowing; reverse flyes for some rear delt and back work. Then a good bike session to loosen the legs after the pulling.

Good session today; Sunday afternoon throwing at Shaffer tomorrow.