Gaining Mass/ROM for College Javelin

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54

hi angela! that’s cool to here that exercise almost always makes u feel better to. I remembering hearing that exercising while sick just delays one’s recovery from illness and one cant see gains anyways because the lack of an anabolism as one fights off the bug, but I seem to get better faster if I do exercise.

And as for “flow”, things have been going fantastic so far. I think I’ve learned a lot since starting to make my own workout plans when i was 16, so its awesome when it appears that training startegies I implement, that maybe in general wouldn’t be a usual recommendation, but are right for me) work (saw the mopst weight gain in my unload week, even though it seemed pretty early to already have one) and it’s even cooler when something totally unexpected goes good (or bad I suppose, still a learning experience).

I’ll be super excited to get back on the team, especially if things continue going well. I think my coach will be psyched, as the only reason I’m on the roster is that a couple attributes I had look like potential for high power output, so when I go back, it’s the season to show him that he was right! Still a lot of time until then though, so I just have to be patient and keep my eye on my goal.

Ironically, after doing barely anything speedwork related and concentrating on javelin, I am almost certain that I am running significantly faster than I was in the Fall. I wonder whether this has to do with work capacity, a need further general development, rebound results from past overtraining, flexibility increases or (probably) some combination of those

55

4/9/2013 (am)

weight: 148

notes:
-seem to be catching a cold :frowning: will take my zinc supplements and sleep a little extra. if I take care of it right when I notice it, I tend to recover quick from colds
-some minor lower doms, but right where I’d want it (upper hammy, lower glutes)
-felt pretty groggy in the morning still, but much better than yesterday. appetite still down, but I think this is directly related to my tiredness, so I know I have to get better rest if I want to be hungry
-too busy at work today to fit in the usual core. I’ll just do it at the end of my lift like I used to do

56

4/9/2013 (pm)

weight: 149
thrower’s warm-up
oly lifts checks
5x8:
-bench(135,135,155,165(f@7), 135)
-pull-ups(bw,bw,bw,bw,bw(f@6))
2x10 upperbody circuit (10 exercises)
1x20:
-shoulder complex
-band pulls
-pullover stretch (on stability ball)
self-massage
stretching (upper)
15’ ice (r. shoulder)

weight: 152

notes:
-feeling pretty crappy from my cold, but i usually feel like this right before its over, so that’s a good sign
-good to see weight back in the 150s
-will do core tomorrow morning, and depletion push ups before stretching in the afternoon

57

4/10/2013 (am)

weight: 149
500 reps core
stretching (core)

notes:
-really felt the increase in energy from exercise today. haven’t hit the 8+ hours of sleep I aim for the last couple nights, but I’ve realized if I get more around 7-7.5, I don’t feel more tired during the day and tend to have fewer nighttime awakenings, remember dreams less vivdily, etc. I’m just nervous to get less than the recommended amount of sleep as far as sickness and athletic recovery go, but i suppose sleep quality is probably more important than quantity for both cases. I’ll try to get near 9 for the next couple nights and then 8, and then i’ll try a week of looking more at 7.25 hours per night. If I feel more sore or tired, then I’ll boost back up to at least 8
-upperbody soreness not noticible, but lower doms still hanging around

58

Thursday 4/10/2013 (pm)

5’ elliptical
depletion push-ups (47,17,15)
self-massage
yoga (10 positions)
javelin specific stretches
flexibility checks
15’ ice (r. shoulder)
weight: 153

notes:
-upperbody soreness started seeping in as my work day came to an end. less severe after the push-ups

59

Wednesday 4/11/2013 (am)

morning weight: (forgot)

500 reps core
stretch (core)

notes:
-chest soreness practically gone. surprised bc it clearly seemed on its way up going into yesterdays pm workout. I was worried the depletions would inhibit recovery, but it seems it acted more as active recovery than anything
-didn’t get to exercise right when I woke up because I had a project to present at work and felt pretty crappy. assumed it was still my cold (sinuses finally draining out, probably will be back at 100% tomorrow or the next day), but once I exercised, I felt all better
-Slept 8.5 hours last night and actually woke up feeling not terrific (low appetite, groggy). can’t tell if this is a cumulative thing or if my body is wired for 6-7.5 hours, so that could be oversleeping by nearly 2 hours and that probably would result in grogginess and upset stomach. also might have to do with what sleep stage I have to wake up from, so maybe I need to push 9 hours to finish the cycle. after about 6 hours I have very interrupted, yet deep, sleep, I’m thinking 7.5 and a nap might be best, but I’ll try to get 8+ for like a week and if it doesn’t work then I’ll try to line up at a 1.5 hour increment

60

A caveat to my previous comments about exercise always ’ making" me feel better is that what is essential I have experienced is the correct judgement of training at any point in time regarding how you feel. I find teaching people how to judge ’ what type of work to do when ’ is difficult unless that person is vested in their training methodology. Most people want recipe training. Having said that you can’t have every athlete questioning all things all the time with coaches either but it’s a balance depending on the situation.
You see TB you are young and have lots of time and you are making a time and energy commitment into taking a very active role in your training through research and reading and questioning. This is an excellent way to learn more about yourself and what you might be capable of accomplishing.
Generally speaking I will tell you that most people over train, do not understand the various attributes of certain types of training ( high intensity, low intensity, the effect of too much volume ). As a general rule if you error on the side of less you will do better long term. Now, high performance is a different beast all together. At the highest level the game and stakes are raised to meet the possible rewards ( or perceived rewards ) of the outcome.
I am not so surprised to hear that your speed may be decent despite not focusing on it the way you felt you needed… Understand if you were a pure sprinter that pattern would not be sustainable. Retaining speed at a certain level for a period of time is one thing but the greater your goals and the higher you go in competition the more speed work will need to be developed, maintained and routinely practiced. I think you understand this anyway but I wanted to make the point regardless.

61

Thank you for taking time to post Angela. Any of your wisdom is much appreciated. I think I actually have you credited for one of my “favorite quotes” listed on facebook. It was a derivative of the “work smart, not hard” saying (which I think is a bit short on meaning, because smart AND hard seems best to me), “work smarter, not necessarily harder” was along the lines of what I saw you had commented somewhere.

I’ve definitely noticed the training less is more, and unfortunately I think some of my athletic imbalances make it frustrating for me to improve in certain aspects because when there are big gaps in ability (ie I’m much better at jumping high or throwing hard than running fast) it’s hard to determine whether to try and bring your weaknesses to par, or even what par is, or to make the most of your strengths. I think it’s likely that I just never really found the correct combo of speed work for me because it seems the workouts at my college are geared towards people of intermediate-advanced abilities (100m 10.2-10.8s) whereas my high school’s workouts are geared to very beginners (100m 12-13s), and the workouts I did myself seem to have been much too start concentrated (my first 10m did get pretty decent, but top speed and speed maintenance are just so much more valuable in a beginner’s 100m).

Honestly, the getting faster might even have nothing to do with good training, period. my health seems to have drastically improved since starting treatment for a sleeping disorder and my training volume is much lower, so my risk of overtraining is probably much less, so this initial boost I’ve seen might just be as simple as that. also, i think my weight numbers always suffered when i put too much into longer sprints, and as a guy who never really cared for distances over 100m, I think the drop in my strength may have constantly outweighed increases in endurance (I seem to adapt very quickly, but also overtrain very easily and lose gains very quickly). I also tend to be an overthinker, so maybe just the time away from having pressure to run fast has let me loosen up mentally and physically

62

Thursday 4/11/2013 (pm)

pre-workout weight: 154

thrower’s warm-up
oly lifts checks
5x8 pc (135,145,155,165,175(f@4))
5x8 squat (225,245,255(f@7),225,225)
2x10:
-hammy curl (1-leg negs, alt)
-calf raise
1x20:
-x-band, each
-ankle dorsi-flexion
self-massage
stretch (lower)
15’ ice (r. shoulder)

before bed weight: 151

notes:
-by f@7 I mean that I did 7 reps, but failed on having solid mechanics, so I stopped the set
-curious my weight went down before bed, scale may have misread. regardless, I’m happy to see numbers above 150, hopefully I soon will be done with seeing 140s. starting to lok noticibly bulkier/broader shoulders
-very tired towards late afternoon today, a lot of sinus pressure from getting over cold. I tink my bdies just exhausted from recovering from the cold, should be ready to go next week, try to get some “season” pr’s next week with 6 reps (as low as I’ve gone not unloading)

63

4/12/2013 (am)

morning weigh-in: 150

500 reps core
stretch (core)

notes:
-minor lower doms already developed, but again, if I’m going to feel any, lower glutes and upper hammys is the place for it to be! only notice it when they are stretched/flexed
-good to see 150+ for morning. I have a long time to get up to the 165 I’d like, but I also know that as I get nearer to it, especially because I hold such little bf, getting down enough calories will become tougher and tougher, so I’m feeling a bit impatient although more than 1 lb a week of healthy, muscle isn’t really a feasible goal. Haven’t even been touching protein/weight gainer shakes or particularly calorie-dense foods yet, though, and have been drinking powerade throughout the workday whereas I’ll probably switch to lactaid (can’t handle too much dairy) if I see any noticible stalls, so I have a couple tricks up my sleeve left.
-7.5 hours of sleep, felt better awakening in the morning (woke up a couple minutes before alarm, but fell back asleep until it went off) but still a bit tired in general. corework helped me wake up a bit, and I’m still clearing my system out from all the junk in my sinuses so hopefully after a restful weekend I’ll be back to how good i felt last week (and I’m pretty certain I would’ve felt even better had I not had to unload, I’ve never felt good during those weeks)

64

4/12/2013 (pm)

pre-workout weight: 152

thrower’s warm-up
oly lifts checks
5x8:
-bench(135,145,155,165(f@7),135)
-pull-ups(bw,bw,bw(f@6),bw,bw)
2x10 upperbody circuit (10 exercises)
1x20:
-shoulder complex
-band pulls
-pullover stretch (on stability ball)
self-massage
stretch (upper)
15’ ice (r. shoulder & r. heel)

night weight: 156

notes:
-156 is the heaviest I can ever recall being. And as far as bf goes, the skin around my stomach is as tight as its ever been. I’ll hope it holds!
-energy very low in afternoon. felt great for an hour or so post siesta, but then very crappy until working out, during which I felt fantastic even for a bit after. will try to get a ton of sleep this weekend then get consistent with the 7.5 and a nap for the upcoming week. if I feel great, I’ll keep with it. if tired, I’ll try increasing to 9, though fitting that much into my day will be tough if I want any leisure outside of my workout.
-probably could’ve gotten the 8th rep of 165 up, but had no spotter so I didn’t want to risk it. I’ll be curious if the gap between my ability to do reps and maxes has decreased, because, if not, I could be looking at some pretty decent max numbers for me, right now. Doing higher reps than typical as of late probably means I’ve closed that gap a bit, however.
-noticed that while my torso is finally starting to fill out, my calves look like little twigs, even compared to what they typically look like. they should be getting some work from cleans, calf raises and hamstring curls, but the workload on them is considerably lower than usual because I haven’t been sprinting. my vertical is higher than ever, speed is good (for me) and it doesn’t seem to be hampering my power clean gains, so I won’t worry about it, yet. it’s pretty funny to have arms larger than my calves, though, because I do not even have large arms in the first place! Shawn Crawford actually seems to have pretty similar lower body structure to me (lower legs miniscule, only bulk around upper thighs and glutes) and is strong as heck, so maybe some people are just like that

65

4/13/2013 (am)

morning/pre-workout weight: 150
5’ elliptical
depletion push-ups (43,20,15)
self-massage
jav stretches
flexibility checks
15’ ice (r. shoulder)

66

4/13/2013
(pm)
night weight: 150

4/14/2013
(am)
“bodyflow” yoga class

4/15/2013
(am)
morning weight: 150
500 reps core
stretch core

(pm)
pre-workout weight: 153
thrower’s warm-up
jav tech checks
acrobat chackes
oly lifts checks
5x6 pc (135,155,175,185,200(f@5))
5x6 squat (225,275,300,315(@3),225)
2x10:
-hammy curl (1-leg negs, alt)
-calf raise
1x20:
-x-band, each
-ankle dorsi-flexion
self-massage
stretch lower

4/16/2013
(am)
morning weight: 151
15’ ice (r. shoulder)
500 reps core
stretch core

(pm)
pre-workout weight: 152
thrower’s warm-up
oly lifts checks
5x6:
-bench (135,155,175,185(f@6),135)
-pull-ups (bw,bw,bw,bw+10,bw+25(f@5))
2x10 upperbody circuit (10 exercises)
1x20:
-shoulder complex
-band pulls
-pullover stretch (on stability ball)
self-massage
stretch upper
15’ ice (r.shoulder)
night weight: 154

4/17/2013
(am)
5’ bike
depletion push-ups (43,19,14)

notes:
-hectic week at work, ate less, no noticible weight loss! :slight_smile:
-cns torched from squats/pc. hard to output effort yesterday, minor effects today. rest of week easier on HI and harder MI/LI to prepare for 4 rep week
-stance splaying further than I’d like in pc’s (stance narrow enough for full squat catch, like oly clean), but within rack width and looks smooth. might experiment with narrowing squat width a bit (delay in hammy stretch reflex, perhaps from added hip ROM), and suppose to go hammy’s parallel, not deeper, for my school
-switched to nuvigil instead of concerta/ritalin. methylphenidate therapeutic effects very short and crash very long for me. nuvigil currently working fantastically
-ROM and flexibility increasingly apparent. vertical jump and elasticity noticibly better
-more muscle fatigue and soreness than sensitivity. obvious muscle tone decreases during recovery. usual signals pre-hypertrophy (as opposed to increased fitness, like distance or push-up soreness)
-switching to f@x means “failed on rep #x” whereas @x means “Stopped after x reps”. usually try to stop set before failure, but hard to tell on oly lifts and when pumped-up/feeling aggressive

67

Tb,
I think you are very thoughtful about your training and no matter happens this " thoughtful " trait will carry over to the quality of all aspects of your life.
Will you be faster? Are you getting faster?
I was lucky TB.
I had " the man" show me , teach me, coach me and tell meal the secrets and special things that make some one fast.
Genetics are huge. Opportunity sure does not hurt. Circumstances for sure play an enormous role. Sleep is critical but some need more than others without question.
I struggled with my training aspirations without a knowledgeable coach.
Unsupervised training is tough.
The game to some extent is trial and error and what trials you get to pick and if you allow yourself to error which creates a need to fix that error, improve and or change. Finding the correct combination for speed success may or may not happen on our time line wish list.
Do you think too much?
Geez, thank gosh for thinkers. Just know when to move forward and enjoy and give yourself some credit as well. You are working hard to achieve things that are not recipe based but require a lot of determination, practice and excessive amounts of patience.

68

Please check your email.

69

…I assume this is directed to angela?

70

words of wisdom angela. I’m sure I think too much, but that is the aspect of my athletics that I have seen the most improvement in over the last year or so. I didn’t understand the difference between how something “feels” versus what your body is actually doing; now I feel good cues and training in general, with an observant coach, are more valuable for an athlete than any amount of personal knowledge of mechanics or training. Many of the kids I’ve asked about their mechanics when I’ve noticed they looked exceptionally good (or very atypical, yet seemed to work well for them), seem to have super simple ideas of what they are doing, and everything seems to fall into place perfectly, even things they have no idea they do, or that are good, or have even thought about before.

and luckily, though my goal and what I strive for is athletic improvement, I like how training feels in general. Also, in the words of the friend who brought me to this site: “No matter what I’m not wasting my time because, in the least, I’m gonna look better on the beach”, haha. Even just being aware of adaptations makes training worthwhile because I don’t know how anyone could not be utterly fascinated by the changes a consistent lifestyle change can make

71

4/17/2013 (am)
5’ bike
depletion push-ups (43,19,14)
(pm)
pre-workout weight: 154
5’ elliptical
self-massage
jav (spear and band) stretches
night weight: 156

4/18/2013 (am)
500 reps core
stretch core

72

4/18/2013 (pm)
pre-workout weight: 153
thrower’s warm-up
oly lifts checks
5x6 pc (135,165,165,165,165)
5x6 squat (225,275,275,275,275)
2x10:
-hammy curl (1-leg negs, alt)
-calf raise
1x20:
-x-band, each
-ankle dorsi-flexion
15’ ice (r.shoulder)
night weight: 156

4/19/2013 (am)
morning weight: 153
500 reps core
Jav specific stretches
self-massage

notes:
-was able to find that good “bounce” in the squat again, stance widened out again
-realized dropping pc from the top and resetting so I can find the stretch reflex from my glutes in the first pull was adding much more vertical power. 165 flew up and hit my chin at triple ext for my last rep, whereas I was barely catching it in a 1/4 squat in earlier sets (keeping my stance tighter than Monday)
-heaviest morning weigh-in I’ve had yet. upper body is starting to fill out a bit, and bf is low. I’d like to see my bf get a little higher as if I’m not adding bodyfat along with muscle, I think it’s unlikely I’m consuming enough calories to see max muscular gains. Not planning on messing with success though, so unless I start seeing a slow in gains, I’ll keep similar to what I’ve been doing
-feeling limber as far as flexibility goes, shoulders starting to feel more relaxed while overhead. Finally felt my arms fall into place while warming up with some jerk width-grip overhead squats

73

4/19/2103 (pm)

thrower’s warm-up
5x6:
-bench (135,155(@7),165,165(@5),165)
-pull-ups (bw,bw(@8),bw+20(@5),bw+10,bw+10)
2x10 upperbody circuit (10 exercises)
oly lifts checks
1x20:
-shoulder complex
-band pulls
pullover stretch (on stability ball)
night weight: 156

4/20/2013 (am)
morning weight: 150
5’ elliptical
depletion push-ups (50,17,15)
self-massage
15’ ice (r. shoulder)

4/21/2013 (pm)
yoga (20 poses)
jav stretches
flexibility checks
stretch upper, core, lower