torsdag 4. desember 2008

100 burpees for time..in the freggin dark!

Almost skipped my workout today. Almost.

Then I decided to switch my normal Thursday workout out with the 100 burpee challenge.

Got on my bike, headed to the gym, got warmed up, started the camera, started the time, banged out 14 burpees, 13 burpees and then....total darkness...

Fun way to find out that the lights automatically switch off at 21.30..:) Well, I was not about to stop and change location so I finished my 100 burpees in the dark.

My time was 8min 18sec and my average heart rate was 168BPM (90% of my max heart rate). Not a great time but I was really wasted after.

I tried a declining ladder of burpees; 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, and I am not sure it helped.

I have only done this challenge 3 times. My first time I did a pyramid, from 1 up to 10 and down again in 8min 10sec, my second time I did 30-20-10-10-10-10-10 outside in the winter, time was almost 10min and I nearly damaged my lungs.

This workout will give you a great challenge no matter who you are... Just remember to jump high, hit the chest to the floor and go fast!

onsdag 3. desember 2008

Gave up on the commercial sandbag..

The commercial sandbag I bought was super solid and had a very good design but I discovered one problem.. The innerbags will give of dust, making it less then ideal for inside use.

My home made sandbag also had a little leakage but I fixed that today with some ducktape:




Todays workout:

Sandbag clean and and press - 33kg, 20-4-3-3reps

Weighted push ups - 9.4kg, 20-4-3-3reps

1legged deadlift - 10kg, 20-4-3-3reps

1arm standing row - 23kg, 20-4-3-3reps

I have upped the weights and gone down on the reps for the activation set. The weights I am using now feels right and I should see some decent gains in the upcoming weeks.

One thing I have been slacking off with is my eating habits. I eat too little and have to up my protein inntake. If there are anyone reading this that sell protein supplements I sure could need a sponsor..:)

That is it for today! Make your self a sandbag.. Sandbag training rocks!

Looking for solutions

Monday I took my son with me to the school I work at so he could play around in the gym while I got my workout done..

Once I had everything lined up and was done with my warm up a group of bandy guys came in for their Monday session..:) Oh, well, I packed up and went to the old strength room.

Most of my routine can be done anywhere since I basically only use a dumbell and a sandbag. Well, it was time to do my chin ups and I could not find a good place to do them.

After a couple of minutes of scanning the room I found a possible solution:




Yesterday I decided to take a rest day. Later today I am going to re-make my home made sandbag since the commercial one gives off to much dust for inside use.

søndag 30. november 2008

Recovery session

Yesterday I did a recovery session where I warmed up, did some dynamic stretching, some mobility exercises and relaxed stretching.

A good way to maintain/increase mobility is to incorporate these type of exercises in your warm up. My warm ups usually have three fases:

  1. General warm up - usually 5-10min worth of jogging, skipping rope etc. just to get the blood flowing
  2. Mobility/dynamic stretching - from head to toe to lube the joints and stretch the muscles
  3. Spesific warm up - depending on what type of training I have planned it can be anything from doing 5-10 reps, 2-3 sets with lighter weights to progressive sprints to further prepare the target muscles for the main activity

One of my main goals with training is to avoid getting injured. This is something I have managed to do largely because of varied training, being strict with the warm up, maintaining a OK level of flexibility/mobility and getting enough recovery.

Focus more on your warm up, include some mobility exercises and some dynamic stretching and do one recovery session per week where you only warm up and stretch for an entire session.

Here is yesterdays session:


lørdag 29. november 2008

Summary of this week

Been lazy with updating this week so here goes..
Wednesday routine went as planned, upped the weight from:
30kg to 31.5kg for the sandbag C&P
0kg to 6kg for the one legged dead lift
5kg to 6kg for the weighted push ups
20kg to 21kg for the standing one arm row



My Thursday workout went smooth and I had another workout in the evening, doing some gi-grappling.
Endurance session:






Extracts from the grappling session:






Friday became a rest day so I did my Friday session today:
Split squat - 6kg, 25-4-3-3
OA floor press - 19kg, 25-4-3-3 (did 25-4-4-4 with my right arm, trying to catch up to my left side)
Chin ups - BW, 17-3-3-2-2 (I should have split the final two reps and done two singles...barely got my chin over the bar on the last rep..)
Push ups - BW, 25-4-4-4



Took a picture after in an attempt to show the pump I get from this high volume protocol:



Tomorrow I am going to do some light cardio followed by a mobility/stretching session.

Have a nice weekend!

tirsdag 25. november 2008

Maksimum number of one arm push ups

So, a friend of mine challenged me in max number of one arm push ups (the sum of both the right and left arm) so I gave it try about 20min ago:




Happy with the result considering that I have not trained the one arm push up for a looooong time! Enough for today!

Being Positive

I stop by 3-5 forums about martial arts/self defence/training almost every day and every day I see a thread where people are bashing different "styles" of training, MA or self defence.


The internet surely brings out the worst in people if I were to judge by what some people actually write in these forums..


Why do we get so attatched to "styles" or groups with cool acronyms?


I say "we" because I find my self getting lured in quite often. Usually I snap out of it since I always go through a process where I break the "system" down to its bare essentials to see if it is all it claims to be. Most of the time I find it to be the same stuff in a different package.


It might be because we want somewhere to belong. A place where we feel connected to others, working for the same kind of goals..


It can be a good thing that helps people grow, both on a physical and spiritual level.. but why does it seem like so many turn to abusive keyboard warriors once they sign in on different forums?


What ever the answers are, my point with this rant is that I believe people are destroying their odds for becoming better human beeings with this kind of behaviour when online..


Look for sollutions instead of problems, when you fall, get back up and use it as a learning experience to succeed on your next try!


Instead of pointing out others flaws and weak points, look inward to your own inperfections! Strive to be a better human beeing and inspire others as well! Be good from the bottom of your heart!


End of rant! :)


Over to my workout this evening:





Good session! Long time since I did this one so my time was about 20sec slower then my base-time for this workout.


Since I need to clean up my eating I started today. This was my lunch and my dinner:

That is it for today! Remember: Stay positive, work hard and be good!

mandag 24. november 2008

Afraid of what we do not know?

Hello!

My big brother and his son visited us this weekend so I skipped my Friday session. We had a blast and I finally got my ass in gear and visited my grandmother. I have been putting it off for a long time.. She is 91 years old now and demented.

Well, it is often true that you are afraid of the things you do not know. I guess that has been the case with me not visiting my grandmother for so long. She was always so healthy and vibrant. When in her 80`s she still walked the hills, gathering berries, walking for hours.

Anyway, it was nice seeing her, she remembered my sons name, we laughed, we smiled, the kids (my son and my brothers son) had a blast and we took pictures.

If I have half of her good genes I will be one fit 90 year old!

From one thing to another.. I took some measurements today, just for fun, and they confirmed my suspicions...I have gone up on my biceps-, thigh-, chest- and sadly my waist-measurements. I have also gone up about 1mm on my stomack caliper measurement and 1-2mm on my scapula. The other caliper measurements are the same.

This corresponds with my training and my diet. I have been paying little attention to what I eat and get far too much sugar, fat and carbohydrates. Will clean that up.

Todays session:

Split squat - 6kg (25-4-3-3)

OA floor press - 19kg (25-4-3-3)

Chin ups - BW (17-3-3-2-2)

Push ups - BW (25-4-4-4)

torsdag 20. november 2008

OA divebombers from the side and a killer conditioning routine!




Someone requested I film the OA divebombers from the side so I did.. Starting to bother me that I am so much stronger in my left side.. Better start doing something with that.






Had a client late in the evening so I figured I would do a conditioning routine that takes less time then my normal Thursday routine. Came up with the brilliant idea to do 21-15-9 with burpees and kipping pullups...yeah..brilliant my "#¤%¤#! Freggin floored me!

Oh well, another day, another session.. See you tomorrow!

onsdag 19. november 2008

Wednesday workout and a new first..

I got my new sandbag a couple of weeks ago (right before I got sick) and I absolutely love it! It was expencive but it has solved all problems regarding leakage, making it much more; "wife friendly", in regards to using it inside..:)





Someone asked me if I warmed up before my sessions so I filmed my warm up today. Also, I was reading in a thread over at http://www.rosstraining.com/ (very good site with a supernice forum created by a good man, Ross Enamait) today and a user named "Padawan" was talking about trying one armed divebomber push ups. I figured they would present a formiddable challenge so I tried them out before starting my regular workout. Here is the video:








Feels real good to be at it again!

tirsdag 18. november 2008

Re-start!


Today I re-started my mass/strength-building program. I have been sick for almost two weeks so I have not done much.
Started with 5kg for the split squats and 18kg for the floor press, did 25-4-3-3 with 3 big breaths between the "sets". Proceeded to do 16-4-3-3 chin ups with 3-5 big breaths between sets and finished off with push ups, 25-4-3-3 with 2-3 big breaths between sets.
I did 500 rope turns as a warm up. Usually I also include some mobility movements and dynamic stretching in my warm up. I will include it in every warm up from now on to maintain mobility, flexibility and further avoid injuries.
Felt good to get started again! I hate to get sick but sh#¤ happens and I usually just rest untill I feel good enough to start back up.
After my RSBT-session this weekend I got reminded the importance of actually training the stuff.. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I did some things that are less then ideal..to put it lightly..:) Because of this I will focus more on this type of training instead of MMA/SW, and see if things change for the better.
Tomorrow is sandbag-day! Then you will see my new sandbag! I finally got a commercial sandbag that I ordered about one month ago and it rocks! Very expencive, but it rocks!

lørdag 15. november 2008

Realistic Scenario Based Training (RSBT)

Hello!

The cold got the best of me so I decided to rest and let it pass..

Today I went to a friend to do some realistic scenario based training:


Now to my excuses...:) Nah, no excuses.. I just wanted to highlight a couple of things regarding self protection training:

  • One should actually TRAIN to escape a violent encounter
  • If you want to pressure test your self protection skills, do it with a non-compliant attacker that has real intent
  • Put your self in bad situations with a larger, stronger attacker and try to get out in one piece

In the first scene it becomes obvious that I have not trained self protection for a while.. why..? Well, my reaction time is off, I fail to attack my attackers primary targets, instead of getting to my feet asap I actually go for a armbar! (Man, I know my friends will not let me forget that one..:)

Infact, the last 4-5 months I have only trained MMA and submission wrestling (I have not trained much at all but when I have been training it has been these two things), something I feel shines through with this video.

It should be self explanatory why one should practice de-escalating/escaping an violent encounter and if it is not, the video should be explanation enough. I mean, Simon (the attacker in the first 4 scenes) stabbed me in my ribs and face 10-15 times in that first scene.

When I focused on escaping the situation, getting through that exit-door, he did not manage to stab me at all..

Ofcourse, it depends, the situation dictates the response, but still...you MUST PRACTICE ESCAPING!!!

Regarding the second point; pressure testing with a non-compliant attacker that has real intent in hurting you, I think lots of people go far too easy on their training partners.. Sure, it makes no sense to go full tilt on an inexperienced training partner with 2 weeks of training...this is not my point.. My point is; during all out scenarios, if you "help" your trainingpartner and "fall on your ass" a little too easy you are building false confidence in your trainingpartner.

Going all out with protective gear against a crazy guy with a wooden knife is great for pressure testing and to "wake you up", but it is not the end all-be all of self protection training.. Ofcourse one have to do drills, practice without gear etc... This is just another training method...a method I personally think far too few self protection clubs fail to use.

You should put your self in bad situations (in training!) agains a larger, stronger opponent to further pressure test your methods and tactics.. If your methods and tactics hold up against this kind of nightmare...two thumbs up! If not, back to the drawing board!

That is it for now! I will re-start my strength training on Monday!

torsdag 6. november 2008

Rest day?

I had planned to take another rest day today..My cold is making me recover slower..

Well, obviously I had to test my newly made training tool; a tornadoball! :)


Yeah! Great session! That`s all for today.. Train hard!

onsdag 5. november 2008

Wednesday workout week 2

Taking a rest day was a smart thing. I feel like
the cold is about to tap out so I am upping my
sambucol-zma-seal oil-calorie-attack!

Todays workout was hard and I must have left a gallon of sweat on our porch.. Almost cramped up
on the nordic hamstrings exercise today.





Here is a easy setup for the nordic hamstrings exercise.

Take a beach towel that you are not using anymore, tie a knot in each end, put the knots on the outside of your front door, close the door, get some cushoning for your knees, put on some shoes and hook the beach towel loop behind your heels and let it rip! (Well, not litteraly! Make sure the beach towel is moth-free!).



Get your workouts on people!


















tirsdag 4. november 2008

If loving these are wrong..baby...I don`t want to be right!


Today is a windy and rainy day and I have an off-day, staying home with my son. Both of us have a sweet tooth so I decided to do some baking this morning.




First I made the dough (we had one of those 1-2-3-packs where you only have to add yeast and water), used the rolling pin to flatten it out, added some butter that I smeared out (also had water on the nearest edge to act as glue when it gets rolled up) and finally covered it with cinnamon and sugar...(thaaaat`s right..no low fat, low carb here!:)




Next I rolled it up and cut it into 22 pieces (my son followed the proccess while at the same time keeping tabs with jetix..:), spread them out on two plates, covered them and let them rise for about 40min. Final step was to bake them in the oven at about 180C.

One trick I use to get them nice and fluffy is to add about 25% more yeast then what is reccomended on the package.

Carb heaven here I come!!!

mandag 3. november 2008

Week 2 (batteling a tiny cold)

Week two has officially started!

As of this weekend I have been feeling like I am about to get a cold.. I hate when that happens.. Just starting to get into the groove with the new program and...booom! A cold or a injury comes along.
I am going to battle it with something called; "sambucol", some ZMA, seal oil and plenty of calories.


Workout went pretty smooth today. I upped the load with 5% and it went like this:

9.5kg for the split squats, up from 8.7kg last week. Stuck with 25+4+3+3 and felt the all too familiar burning sensation in my thighs and glutes..






19kg on the 1arm floor press, up from 18kg last week. That one kilo gram really makes a difference! Really felt it after the first 25 (did 25+4+3+3).
For the chinups I decided to go from 17 on the first set to 18. I did 18+3+2+2+2+1 with less then 10sec break between the sets and it felt great! Taxing but great..:) My arms usually respond very well to chinups so I am confident that my flexed biceps measurement will go way up with this protocol..
For the push ups I decided to add three "effective" reps, meaning: 25+4+3+3+3.
Another good session despite irritated sinuses.
I might take a rest day tomorrow to further battle my oncoming cold..time will tell..
Till tomorrow!

lørdag 1. november 2008

Why I love to run




The halloween party was a success. My lovely wife borrowed some face-paint from her job and turned me into a monster.


Made me look the way I feel after a burpee-session..:)





This weekend we are staying at the inlaws in our home town.

I went for a jog this evening and got reminded again why I love to run..

The fresh air, feeling your body slowly warming up, the constantly changing scenery, letting my mind wander.. I love running!

Going for a slow jog, clearing the mind, active meditation if you like..

Going semi fast, staying at the brink of your threshold, constantly eliminating lactate, batteling those dark, negative thoughts that emerge once the going gets tough..

Going all out, steeming like a raging bull, trying to break the sound barrier..

I love it!



Finished my jog (about 5km) with some stretching, 20sec holds x 3 for each stretch.





fredag 31. oktober 2008

Thursday and Friday workout today

Felt tired yesterday and got invited to a buddy to watch a movie so I figured I would do my Thursday routine today in the morning and my strength session in the evening.

Both workouts went smooth and kicked my behind! Even managed to get a good time on my Thursday workout! Felt great!

I am going to a halloween party now so I leave you (if there are any reading this blog..If anyone reads this and knows where one can check the stats of ones blog, like how many times each post has been read etc.. Please, answer back! I suck at this stuff..:) ) with the video of both my workouts today:


onsdag 29. oktober 2008

Wednesday workout

Felt a bit tired today. I have been going to bed too late the last couple of days so I am not recovering as fast as I could have.

Today a friend called me up and wanted to train with me.. He had seen some of my youtube videos and wanted to try some of the stuff I do so I invited him over to do todays workout.

Both he and I got the workout done and he really liked using a sandbag.

Yeah...that is about it for today... Time to get some shut eye..

Final reps of todays workout:


tirsdag 28. oktober 2008

Tuesday: MMA and my burpee pullup-workout

Had about 45min of MMA today before I did my Tuesday workout consisting of: 50 rope turns, 5 burpee pullups x 10 rounds for time.





Usually I do not eat breakfast but since I am trying to pack on some muscle I had some fruit with my morning coffe today.. 1 mango, 1 banana, 1 apple and 1 pear.

Ofcourse my MMA-coach had a challenge for me today (he is also a crossfit coach) so I ended up doing 10 ring dips with a supination at the lock out. He also showed me assisted hand stand push ups so I did 10 of those as well..:) Today might have been overkill but hey..I had fun! Till tomorrow!

mandag 27. oktober 2008

To build muscle with light weigth














Today my "experiment" officially started. Above you can see my "before"-pictures.
I have made a program for my self based on three articles of a Norwegian coach named Borge Fagerli.
To give you the short version: I am trying to build muscle and add strength with weights that are less then 60% of my 1RM weights, something previously thought impossible by many.

The first 4-5 weeks will be a "priming"-period where the focus is more on muscular endurance, upping the density of capillaries, expanding the muscles capacity to store glycogen etc.

I should mention that this is a program for advanced athletes. Beginners will most likely have more success with a standard 5x5-template, focusing on compound exercises and eating like crazy (for adding muscle that is..).

That is enough program-talk for now. I weighed my self, measured my right bicep, my chest, waistline and right thigh. I also took fat-caliper measurements to the right of my navel, my right love-handle, right thigh, left tricep and left scapula.

My weight is 73.3kg (with the camera..72.5kg without..) and I have about 8% body fat.

Here are the measurements and the first Monday-workout














søndag 26. oktober 2008

Hello!

First time blogger here! I am Norwegian so my English spelling might be off from time to time.

Some of you might have seen my youtube videos. I have two youtube accounts: babbis13 and bjorngranum. The first one has over 100 videos of me training and the last one is the one I am currently using for new uploads.

I created this blogg to have a place to put all my videos, to rant about my views on training, nutrition and self protection, all in a further attemt to inspire people to use their body (and mind) more.

As my path unfolds I will preform various experiments with training methods, training programs, training tools etc. to become a better human being.

My first experiment starts on Monday. The objective of this experiment will be to build muscle mass, add strength, maintain endurance and avoid gaining fat. I have chosen exercises and exercise tools that can be preformed/used at home or at a gym with little equipment.

I will explain the program (it is based on three articles written by Borge Fagerli, a Norwegian personal trainer with a lot of knowledge) on Monday. Here are some videos giving you a picture of where I am now physically: