CC and Viking Warrior May 28, 2010

This morning as I was getting off shift I did the following for Viking Warrior

rolled 3 dice totaling up to 10 work sets

36:36 protocol

12 kg bell

20 reps each work set


Overall, it felt much easier and smoother than it had been in the past. I was well within the time limit for all of the sets. My forearms began to burn about half way through, but other than that not other discomfort or pain, including my elbows which felt great the whole time. I do have to remember one of these days to not wear sweatpants while doing Viking Warrior snatches. The looser fit forces me to change the arc of the bell as it descends, making it slightly bigger and thus slower than I would like.


Once home I followed the New Blood Day 2 program and completed the following sets and reps

Horizontal Pulls 17, 15, 15

Half Squats 2x50

I performed the horizontal pulls in bare feet instead stockinged feet this time, for more traction. Still, I didn't have quite as high a jump in reps as I would've expected. My forearms, biceps and grip were burning nicely by the end of each set. To find my foot position for the half squats, I used a trick learned in RKC II. I performed a quick squat jump and noted the angle of my feet upon landing. This aligned my feet so that my knees would track directly over my toes. My leg strength is far outstripping the rest of my body, which is a little surprising, but then again, this is the only exercise that I could already perform at step 10, before starting the program. As my talus continues to mobilize, I'm looking forward to building up the strength in my left leg to match that of my right, which this program seems to be doing well. My inside quad muscles are starting to show up on both legs, which is a nice little bonus.

So far my progress is as follows

Pushups - step 2 progression standard

Leg Raise - step 1 intermediate standard

Pullups - step 2 beginner standard

Squats - step 4 progression standard


At times I get a little impatient with my progress, especially in the leg raise and pullup series, and become tempted to add more volume to increase my reps. At the same time though, my numbers are slowly increasing week to week, I excitedly await each workout day, and my joints have felt great throughout. I'd like to progress to the Good Behavior program which incorporates 6 total exercise done over 3 days per week. In order to get there though, I have to reach level 6 in all of the above mentioned exercises. This will most likely take several months.

To put things in perspective I just have to remember that this is my 40th birthday present to my self. The goal is to reach the elite standard for all 6 exercises

100 one-arm pushups each side

2 sets of 50 one-leg squats each side

2 sets of 6 one-arm pullups each side

2 sets of 30 hanging straight leg raises

2 sets of 30 stand to stand bridges

5 one-arm handstand pushups each side

Like I said, this is the goal for my 40th birthday, not next year for my 35th. Therefore, since there's 6 years left to complete the program, a few months is right on schedule, if not ahead of the game. This timeline represents a bit of a change in thinking for me. Normally, my athletic goals are set a few weeks, or at most a few months away. Still though, the ultimate goal of this program, more than the numbers is correct form leading to strong tendons and ligaments, as well as muscles. I just realized that this will also coincide with the half way point of my career, 15 years with the San Jose Fire Department. I can't think of a better way to celebrate and promote longevity.