2024 Training Log- Part 8

Listening to Temple of the Dog as I’m writing this. I think I wanted to be Chris Cornell when I was about 16.

Overall last week was really good. I’m still trying to keep a lid on my lower back injury and I’m having some decent success. Conditioning good. Strength dropping by about 5% or so. 23 good sparring rounds last week. 1 with a blue belt, the rest with Purple, Brown, and Black. This week’s log will go Monday to Monday as it was Bank Holiday yesterday.

Monday (of last week)

Morning time was upper body strength work.

1) Single arm incline bench press- 4×5 @30kg, 1×4 @35kg
2) Incline Press- 2xmax
3) Single Arm Cable Row- 3×15
4) Arnold Press- 2×12
5) Kettlebell Batwings- 3×10
6) Weighted knee raise- 3×10
7) Weighted Crunch- 2xmax

Monday night was 6 minute rounds. I was working on getting to guard as fast as possible and having fast reactions to guard pulls. Some success, some failure as always.

Tuesday

Day of rest. Well, not really, just no time to train.

Wednesday

Lower body strength. Hey I’ll beat the drum again- just for movement and tissue quality.

1. Romanian Deadlift- 4×8
2. Sissy Squat 3×10
3. Single Leg Deadlift 2×12
4. Quad raise 3xmax
5. Ab machine thing- 3×10
6. Plate Shifting 3 sets

Wednesday night was more rounds. 5 minutes this time out. Letting my opponent get first move and then reacting- takedown entry, guard pull, pass attempt etc. I’ve been having some issues with getting drawn into guards after pulls, so this was about improving that.

Good rounds.

Friday

“Show and Go” session in the gym. A little strength, a little conditioning. Nothing too hard, just trying to keep weight moving.

1. A) Dumbbell Incline Bench 5×10 @30kg
2. B) Single arm supported row- 5×10 @40kg
3. Seated row- 3×15
4. Arnold Press 3×12
5. bent over raise 3×10
6. Weighted incline sit ups 3×15
7. 45 degree raise 2×15
8. Preacher curls 3×12
9. Lying tricep extensions 3×10

9 exercises seems a lot but it’s all done fairly fast. I was done in 54 minutes flat. Into the sauna afterwards for 20 minutes too.

Saturday

10×5 minute rounds. I was not feeling it much, my back was at me and I had eaten badly the night before. My own fault for not preparing food after a busy working day. By round 4 I was bushed, but then, the miracle happened. By round 8, I was back. Decent session, maybe a 6/10, which considering I was feeling brutal beforehand is pretty good.

Conditioning that day was moving a tonne of stone into my back garden. I ate hearty that night.

Monday (of the next week)

Working in my garden all weekend doing a bit of a landscaping job, so when I tell you my back is fried, I mean I spent a solid hour warming it up to train. It being a Bank Holiday I wasn’t expecting much for training, but I got Padraig (brown belt Masters competitor) and Nathan (Black belt pro MMA fighter) to train with.

To say I wasn’t feeling it would be an understatement, but actually it turned out to be a great session. We did 3 Man Positional Sparring. In the hole for 2×3 minute rounds, 2nd fighter is fresh after a 3 minute break. It’s a tough drill. We did 2 loops. It’s only 24 minutes of work with a lot of long recoveries but the intensity eats you up.

I’d go 9/10 for that one.

Training Thoughts of the Week

Take mental notes during sparring. Be aware of what you’re doing and what is working and not working. Too many people treat sparring as a scrap. That you’re trying to win is built into the process, so spend less time worrying about that. Be mindful of your errors, and your successes too of course.

Example, on Saturday a guy was passing my guard, and I had an opportunity to come up with a Single leg, instead, I paused, chose to recover guard, and he settled. In a tournament, I could have scored 2 points, instead I gave him top position and the advantage. I made a mental note, and in the next round in the same position, I chased the single and scored.

Without the thought process working, I’d have just made the same error.

Non-Training Thoughts of the Week

Honesty is a great quality in a person. I prefer it, even when it’s brutal. Maybe especially when it’s brutal. Everyone should have a mate or two who will just tell them what they’re thinking instead of couching it in politeness. It makes things easier and a lot more fun.

Dishonesty, on the other hand, must be really hard. It must feel like crap to go around trying to conceal something from this guy or that, or to try to remember not to tell someone something. I know of someone who is literally living a double working life. He has to hide the fact that he has a certain job. Thing is, the job isn’t that bad, it’s just socially a bit awkward to do what he does for the government. But he started out lying about it, and now all of his friends think he does something else… for the last 15 years. Crazy! “Oh what a tangled web we weave…”

Anyway, I prefer people who will tell you that you smell when you smell. That sort of person.