Edale Skyline Walk

My typical week of training is as follows (AM actually corresponds to a Lunchtime workout):

Monday - Strength Training Upper (Early PM), LGKF (PM)
Tuesday - Rest
Wednesday - Strength Training Lower (AM), LGKB (PM)
Thursday - Rest
Friday - Strength Training Upper (AM)
Saturday - Climbing
Sunday - Rest

Monday - Strength Training Lower(AM), LGKF (PM)
Tuesday - Rest
Wednesday - Strength Training Upper(AM), LGKB (PM)
Thursday - Rest
Friday - Strength Training Lower/Ramble(AM)
Saturday - Climbing
Sunday - Rest

You can see that in the second week, I interchange Friday's lower body workout for some low intensity distance. I find this a nice complement to the Monday workout which usually features some form of sprinting work (not to mention skipping and kick drills in Lau Gar). Saturday's climbing might actually fall on a Sunday. I tend to flex training session as required and implement rests when so inclined.

On occasion, as with this week, I am in a Week 1 phase, but am going rambling nonetheless. Tomorrow I will tackle the Edale Skyline - which is a good 20 miles with about three thousand feet of ascent. I am still fatigued from Wednesday's ONT (aka The Destroyer), but reckon I should hack it.

The rambling is hitting a chord with me at the moment. It is time to relax. Time to be away from technology - just your thoughts and the company of friends (see photo above). The only other stimulus apart from colleagues, is nature around you.

A final thought is that on Monday and Wednesday I always implement a 24 hour fast. But I do allow coffee and milk - and a small a amount of cheese or an egg just prior to the Lau Gar. But I think I am going to go hardcore on these fasts and drink only water and be nil by mouth for the duration this week forth. I have re-read 'Eat, Stop, Eat' and don't feel I am leveraging the hormonal response a perhaps I might if I were only to show a little more discipline!

Volume Wk9 W/O2

Damn this deloading phase! I really want to do more. I need to lift heavy...but must obey the spreadsheet. The spreadsheet says to deload!

As a compromise I have added a few levers and planches in to today's lower body workout in a bid to satisfy my training lust and to grease the groove a bit. No bad thing.

I enjoy this feeling. It feels like my drive to train is being enriched. There can be no risk of burnout with this approach and I know that once I hit the next training phase, I will be stoked.

The next training phase will be strength focused. So I will drop the volume and aim for a %:3:1 style implementation. Can't wait.

Warm Up (5 mins)
Main (25 mins)

1. O'Neill Test (L10, 4'x1200m)
2. Pistols (8x32kg, 8x32kg, 8x32kg)
3a. Wall Walk/BackBridge (15s, 15s, 15s)
3b. Splits (20s, 20s, 20s)
4a. Frog Planche (20s, 20s, 20s)
4b. Tuck Lever (20s, 20s, 20s)

Normally I post the workout on here prior to completion. This means I can browse the routine on my phone in the gym. This is much better than keeping a routine in hardcopy.

As you can discern from the text above, I entered the gym itching to work today. I sacked the intended routine (omitting the greyed out exercises above), and did an O'Neill Test (ONT) instead. The stuff I sacked was due to being physically incapable of pretty much anything in the ten minutes following the ONT!

The ONT is a killer and although I don't row that often, that hard or for much of a distance (usually only 500m once every week or so, and often at a light intensity), today's test was a personal best of 1200m. My bodyweight is just over 82kg and I think the improved performance constitutes greater strength in my legs as much as psychological factors (such as 'wanting it big time'). The other main difference between this and previous tests is that I now use a resistance of 10 (for simplicities sake).

But anyway, my personal goal of an ONT classification of 'Good' has been achieved (but only just) - and all as a byproduct of my (non rowing-specific), training. This test was also performed in a fasted state. I also note that I am probably at the lighter end of the heavyweight scale and at the older end of the age range.

Only another 37m to go before I make it to 'Excellent'. This is about another eight strokes or so and as I enter a strength training phase, reckon that anything is possible. I might even make my training rowing specific to achieve this goal (but then where is the fun in that?).

For the record:
ONT Attempt 1 - 20100129 - 1122m
ONT Attempt 2 - 20100205 - 1158m
ONT Attempt3 - 20100423 - 1200m

Happy days. Oh, and so much for deloading......

Volume Wk9 W/O1

This is a deloading phase. The goal here is some 50% (ish) RM mileage. Nothing too taxing. Last Friday (which was sheduled as a lower body day), I undertook another circuit of one of my favourite walks/rambles. This took 3.5 hours and incorporated a couple of the local big hills (see here for more details).

I enclose this detail to allow anyone following my progress to be fully aware of my exercise - particularly as there are some who believe I might be 'burning fat off' and eating less/doing more!

Warm Up (5 mins)
Main (20 mins)
1. Sprinting to Fig 8s (1x10sx50s rest, 1x10sx50s rest, 1x10sx50s rest, 1x10sx50s rest, 1x10sx50s rest)
2a. Frog Planche (5x2s, 5x2s, 5x2s)
2b. Backbridges (3x15s)

PM
3a. (Light) Ring Routine to Chins (5, 5, 5)
3b. Cuts to Splits (3x1 each way)
3c. Fingerboard (5x1, 5x1, 5x1, 5x1, 5x1, )

4. Handstand Straddle (Play@LGKF for time)

Another great day - so I did a few extra sprints as I was out on a playing field bathed in sun under a blue sky with a fresh breeze!

Once again the planching seems slightly laboured but the backbridges feel increasingly solid. I am wondering whether my recent increase in weight is due to bigger legs - making the planche leverages increasingly unfavourable.

St. George

Happy Saint George's day!

Volume Wk8 W/O2

Warm Up (5 mins)
Main (35 mins)

1. Sprinting to Figure Eights (1x12sx60s rest, 1x12sx60s rest, 1x12sx60s rest, 1x12sx60s rest, 1x12sx60s rest)
2. Frog/Tuck Planche (1x20s, 1x20s, 1x20s, 1x20s, 1x20s)
3. Handstand, Cartwheels and Wrist PushUps (Play for time)

PM
4a. Ring Routine to 20s Tuck Lever to Chins/RopeClimb (8, 8, 8)
4b. Three-Way Cuts/Splits (1x3, 1x3, 1x3)
4c. Campus Board Plyo Drops (1x5, 1x5, 1x5)

This workout was simply superb. Blue skies, bright sunshine, a few little fluffy clouds and a cool breeze. PERFECT weather for training. No need for a VitD supplement today.

The sprints were held at a local park, and the goal posts allowed me to fit in some figure eights at the end of the sprint.

I might have overcooked it on the Frog Planches and so my handstands were a technically quite poor. I supplemented with a few cartwheels and finished off with wrist pushups (the latter I need to do more of).

This evening I will endavour to fit in some gymnastic ring work and some fingerboard stuff.

Volume Wk8 W/O1

The big walk yesterday means a slight adjustment may well be required today. At the very least, I will 'suck it and see', and be prepared to sack sets and reps as required.

This is my last week before a deload phase (which should last about two weeks). Then I will look at my 8RM and 1RM again. These results will feed in to my next eight week cycle.

Warm Up (5 mins)
Main (30 mins)
1a. Deadlift (5x5x55kg)
1b. Chin Ups (3x8)
2a. Frog Planche (3x20s)
2b. Flat Back Lever (3x20s)

PM
3. Backbridges (3x15s)

* UPDATE: If you tuned in earlier you can see that I totally revamped this workout. The walk yesterday has tired my legs and this, combined with reading Chris's Deadlift post, made me think that my time would be well spent practising the deadlift.

Like a muppet I ignored my NEED to backbridge. I guess I got sidetracked by the enjoyment of the deadlift (it is nice just working such a basic movement), and the gymnastics!

I had spotted a week or two ago that my deadlift form was perhaps not the best. I had asked a PT at the gym to give me a few pointers last month - but nothing came of it. The thing is, anyone who coaches themselves has a fool for an student.

Oh well - I feel nicely stretched and warmed throughout. I will add in some backbridges tonight.

Dr Sarah Myhill

Reader Dextery alerted me to the work of Dr. Sarah Myhill who is about to be struck off the medical register due to a series of complaints. Curiously these complaints have come from other doctors rather than from her patients (who seem satisfied with Dr. Myhill's particular approach to the practice of medicine).

There are two complaints in particular:

1. A group of doctors has taken umbrage at Myhill's recommendation that one of her patients take an injection of vitamin B12,
2. An anonymous complainant is "concerned that patients are being seriously mislead (sic) by her advice, both online and most likely in consultation at her practice. In some cases I think her recommendations are a serious risk to patient safety."

So let's see what her advice features...

• Symptoms and tests help identify the underlying mechanisms that cause disease. Common mechanisms include allergies, sugar and carbohydrate addiction, poor mitochondrial function, poor antioxidant status, poor thyroid and adrenal function, toxic stress, poor detoxification and methylation and so on.

In fact, bold as brass she recommends that to lose weight you need to eat a stoneage diet! Crazy I know, but there you have it; she goes on to state "I am coming to the view that whatever your medical problem may be, or even if you simply want to stay well, we should all move towards eating a Stone Age diet based on vegetables, nuts, seeds, meat, fish and eggs. Recent Western diets get 70% of their calories from wheat, dairy products, sugar and potato and it is no surprise that these are the major causes of modern ill health such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, obesity and degenerative disorders."

Under exercise she advises a Body by Science approach (so already is making the right noises). She talks about fast twitch muscle fiber, developing power and recommends Doug McGuff's Big Four. In her conclusions she even recommends exercise for pure fun! Throw in her advice on sleep and jeez, this lady is WELL ahead of the curve!

You know what? I like Dr Myhill's advice and the fact that she nails carboholicism as a serious problem with regard to the nation's health makes me think that the rest of her advice is bang on the money as well - or at least will have been as conscientiously researched (as opposed to the vanilla advice given out my more conventional medical practitioners and nutritionists).

As far as I can see there are too few paleo oriented doctors in the UK. In fact apart from the excellent Dr John Briffa I cannot think of any more! Dr. Myhill needs the support of the paleo community. We now appear to have a cause celebre which may help paleo move firmly in to the mainstream and break the stranglehold maintained my pharma intent on milking our finances in return for medicines that sustain the sick rather than preventing or curing the cause.

What you can do to help.

• In her own words:
  
  The GMC's case is that they consider that I pose "a potential risk to public safety" because of the information in my website. If I lose my licence to practise, there will not be a potential risk, but a very real and immediate risk to patients.
  
  Please, point out to the GMC, in as many different and innovative ways that you can think of, privately and publicly, that for me to lose my licence to practise would result in you being harmed directly, immediately and in the longer term.
  
  1.Email the GMC on pbridge@gmc-uk.org
  2.Telephone Mr Paul Bridge on 0161 923 6417
  3.Fax Mr Adam Elliott on 0207 189 5177
  4.Write to Mr Paul Bridge, General Medical Council, 3 Hardman St, Manchester M3 3AW quoting Case Reference: PB/C1-314994282
  To say:
  
  1.to what extent you have found the website a helpful source of information;
  2.what it would mean to you personally and to your health if you are unable to avail yourself of my services as a doctor;
  3.Request to attend a future Fitness to Practise Hearing to give evidence that you have been helped by information from my website.
  Ask the GMC to acknowledge your letter and concerns and keep you updated as to when and where hearings will take place.
  
  All the letters will be printed out and taken to the Hearing. They will all be in the Public arena.

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? ;)