Days 94 - 100: One last good one

Day 100
I'm writing this after my day 100 only because I have been busy with book edits and life in general.  I incorporated another workout routine.  Frank Medrano has a great book that's easy to read called "Beginner Calisthenics:  Superhuman Origins".  This book covers an 8-week program that is strictly devoted to bodyweight exercises.  Part of that routine is an entire workout devoted to pull ups.  Part of his theory in muscle development is to use the negative motions to your advantage.  For example, I would do my best repetitions on a pull up.  Rather than resting, I could shoot for a few more reps, but focus on the negative motion.  So, I would pop up into the highest position (whether stepping up onto a chair or jumping into position) then gradually allow my body to lower.  Then, I would do the same thing again for every rep thereafter.  In due time, this builds muscle and strength endurance.  This would, in theory, increase my pull-up maximum repetitions.  Which is what I'm shooting for.

Another great resource I stumbled on was T-Nation.com.  This is an excellent fitness resource and really established what I was shooting for in dead hang pull-ups.  T-Nation goes further in depth, discussing the kipping method and the butterfly kipping method.  The butterfly method is used primarily in CrossFit competitions with the objective of getting the chin above bar.  The dead hang form is sacrificed to get more repetitions in less time.  As I thought it would be, this form is a bit more dangerous especially if you do not have proper shoulder development or the mechanics of this exercise mastered.  The kipping method was encouraged as a last resort to improve the dead hang pull up, but not at the expense of the shoulders.  In other words, use the kipping method for a few reps after you have died out from your dead hangs.  Read more here:  T-Nation.  You will find the link to the article on butterfly pull-ups in the previous link.  Great read, have a look at it.

T-nation has a lot of great reads, so take your time and browse through it.

Day 100 saw me make an attempt of 15 straight pull ups on my first attempt.  The subsequent attempts were about 10 reps for 3 sets.  I'm not upset that I didn't make my goal.  Re-evaluating things, I could've had a stronger finish had I:

Researched more on:

1. -proper form
2. -improving max repetitions
3. -what made others successful in their max reps
4. -set a rock solid plan prior to jumping in
5. -rehabbing my neck issue before I started this program

Thanks for joining me.  Stay tuned here for the latest developments.  I plan to do full research on this idea, develop a game plan and implement it for another attempt at 100 pull-ups in 100 days.  For now, I'm going to continue my normal training program and work on improving my neck so that I'm able to attack this goal a bit better.  

In the meantime, whatever you do, shoot big, do your best and if you fail, fail forward.

-Dale

Days 89 - 93: Still on track

I am still truckin' forward with one week left on the program.

Yesterday, Day 92 I did a pull workout with a little legs:
10 minute warm up with rope
30 seconds skip
30 seconds rest
Then,
Pull ups - 2 minute rest between each attempt
15, 12, 12, 12
TRX Inverted Rows - 2 minute rest between each attempt
15, 16, 16, 15
(This movement aggravated my right shoulder.  I have been doing some research lately and have found a few experts stating that upright rows can be damaging to the shoulder.  Normally, if a TRX is suspended from a bar, inverted rows would be on par.  But, the TRX I use is suspended from the wall, so the movement is more like an upright row.  Part way into my second set, I was feeling it, but I didn't listen to my body.  After the workout was done and this morning was possibly the worst. I iced my right shoulder and it is feeling better later in the day now.  No more TRX "inverted rows" when the suspension is from the wall.  Not good.)
Close grip pull ups - 2 minute rest between each attempt
10, 10, 10, 10

Finished with legs -
Lunges - 2 minute rest between each attempt
50, 52, 54, 60
Squats - 2 minute rest between each attempt
20, 30, 40, 50

Cooldown on the treadmill for 10 minutes

Day 85 - 88: Train Hard on Pulls Every Other Day

By Dale L Roberts (One Jacked Monkey, LLC)

February 3, 2015

Hey, just popping in ever so briefly to catch up.  I've still kept on track with pull up training every other day.  The two workouts I enjoy most are:

50 pull ups workout
15 straight on the first attempt
10 straight on the second attempt
15 straight on the third attempt
10 straight on the fourth attempt
I rest roughly 1 minute between sets
-----------
50 pull ups workout
10 straight on the first attempt
5 straight every attempt after
Very little rest between sets.  I took about 3 slow and deep breathes, then jumped right back into it.

My challenge days are coming to a close.  On my last day, I will give my best effort.  The whole training approach changed when I could honestly evaluate how well I was performing each pull up.  I like to stick the hang clean style, using zero momentum from my body and pulling all with the back and a little with the arms.

My form should be:

1. Shoulder blades pulled back at all times
2. Elbows pointed out to the sides of the body and not forward (as this is closer to a chin up and requires less back power)
3. Grip just shoulder-width apart on the bar
4. Pull all the way up till the chest meets the bar
5. Go down and come up with equal pacing

Catch up with me again soon.  I should have a video post rather soon, however, I have been tied up re-writing/editing my first publication "The 3 Keys to Health & Happiness:  Unlock Your Greater Life" (first version available here).  Stay tuned.

Day 80 - 84: Still pushing, further clarification and a new practice

By Dale L. Roberts (One Jacked Monkey, LLC
January 30, 2015

The days are starting to close in on my goal to complete 100 pull ups in 100 days.  Have I been successful so far?  Mmmm...yes.  However, have I met my goal?  Not by a long shot!  It has been tougher than I thought and I believe that I do need to take time and do a bit more research on how the successful people have achieved this goal.

It was quite funny that in my pursuit I found this video --->>> HILARIOUS

Okay, so I'm not shooting for the form that this gentleman shows in this video.  He's using quite a bit of kipping and I really cannot differentiate between one rep and the next.  His pull ups are closer to incomplete muscle ups (see this exercise here), almost as if he gets just about at the pressing point, but then drops back down.

No disrespect is intended toward the gentleman in the pull up video.  He is displaying great endurance, speed and strength.  My point is that his form is NOT what I'm shooting for and I believe that during my journey to 100 pull ups that I was starting to look a lot like this gentleman.  I do NOT want that in my end result.

I want 100 solid pull ups that are paced evenly with no momentum as in this video.  You may get a laugh out of the Stephen Hawking voice over in the video.  The form I am shooting for his called a "dead hang" (decent video with a great description)

Over the past 4 days, I have alternated days on and off for pulling up.  I'm sticking to performing 10-15 pull ups straight followed by a brief rest until I reach 50 reps.  Generally this takes me about 6-7 minutes to complete.

Last night, however, I did something completely different.  I loaded and unloaded with each repetition.  First, I reached up and grabbed the bar, pulled myself up off the ground, brought my chest to the bar, then slowly released myself back to the ground and let go of the bar.  I did 15 reps on my first attempt, 10 reps on my second attempt, 15 reps on my third attempt and 10 reps on my last attempt.  Whew!   This was a lot harder and I felt a bit more challenge in gripping this time.

Check back with me again soon as I close in on my 100 day mark.

Days 74 - 79: Writing books, pull ups and knowing my priorities

By Dale L Roberts, One Jacked Monkey, LLC

January 25, 2015

This is a blog that's been a long time in the making.  I was going to go on a rather detailed accounting of the past week, however, this post would become a novel.  So, I'm just going to highlight what I did since staying super busy with travel, writing 2 new books and rewriting 1 old book.

1. I did 2 priority pull up training routines over the past week.  It consisted of 5 sets of 10 pull ups in under 7 minutes and 30 seconds
2. I stretched a lot and continued my neck work using the Denneroll
3. I added rope skipping to my routine and my calves have hated me for it
4. I added bridging to my routine to aid in neck development and spinal decompression

That's my synopsis thus far.  I will get back on here a bit more frequent now that I have 2 of my books off to the editor.  Stay tuned!

Day 66 - 73: Vacation days, a low ceiling and plenty of rest

By Dale L Roberts (One Jacked Monkey, LLC)

January 19, 2015

I realize it has been awhile since the last post, but I had to check in and leave my thoughts on the past week, my progress (or lack thereof) and my on-going pursuit to performing 100 pull ups straight.  

Day 66 & 67 were two days I took off with my usual morning cardio, stretch and increased time on the Denneroll from 4-5 minutes up to the 10 minutes.  Thankfully I had vacation coming up to get a little time respite time away from the usual routine.  Though I travel frequently, I still keep active as possible and hit the gym when I am able.  

Day 68 I arrived in Las Vegas at the New York New York Casino/Resort and checked in long enough to see the gym and spend the rest of the day walking the strip.  

Day 69 I got up, threw down some food and a pre-workout then hit the gym.  I focused on a quick, intense push/pull workout:

------

-Pull Ups x10

-Push Ups x10

-1 minute rest

5 sets

------

-Lat Pulldowns x10 (170, 175, 180, 185, 190)

-Machine Chest Press x10 (90, 110, 130, 150, 185)

-1 minute rest

5 sets

------

Dumbbell Curls dropset 10 reps each

35s, 30s, 25s, 20s, 15s, 10s, 5s

------

About 4 inches between the pull up bar and the ceiling

Day 70 - 72

Other than walking a ton and resting little, I was in full vacation mode.  No excuses, I just cut loose.  Rest and relaxation.  On Day 71 I flew home then slept all the way through 72.

Day 73

I was feeling great today and hit the gym for a quick pull up routine.  My focus was quality pull ups.  If you watched last week's video post (here) you will hear my commentary on the quality of my pull ups.  One of the criticisms I share on my pull ups is the fact that I was not opening up all the way at the elbows and shoulders AND on every first rep, I was jumping up grasping the pull up bar with my elbows already bent.  Therefore the reps I was pushing out were not as good as I THOUGHT.  With a little less than 30 days left in my challenge, this is going to be a hard correction.

BUT, today, I got in, reached up without the jump and pulled up without the jump.  Then, I watched my form on every rep in the mirror across from the pull up bars.  I was able to do 10 quality reps for 5 sets.  The fifth set was most difficult as the last 2 reps were a struggle.  I did this routine in 8 minutes and 15 seconds.  I only had 1 minute rest between each set.  

I'm going to go back into the gym later tonight and repeat this routine.  

That's all I have for now.  Hit me up in a couple of days with the update...for sure this time.

Days 61 - 65: Busy days, staying active

By Dale L Roberts (One Jacked Monkey, LLC)

January 11, 2015

Woo!  It's been a long time since I last posted and it was not my intentions to get this far off track.  I will cover each day very briefly.

Day 61 - This was an off day and I focused just on a little extra cardio (30 minutes on treadmill, elliptical & bike) and 2 stretch sessions.  A tool that I have reintroduced to my arsenal is something called a denneroll (that I never knew how to spell until now).  My chiropractor turned me onto this tool that is used for traction at home.  I find when I am diligent with using it everyday, I feel better and have less tension in my neck.  Long story short - my spine is all kinds of jacked up and I have to exercise, stretch and take corrective measures to keep my quality of life at it's best.  

     If you want more info on the denneroll, click on the link below the picture.

Link to the info

     Essentially, I place the (gray) denneroll just below my shoulders on the spine and I lay on my back.  Slowly, my head tilts back and my neck begins to relax.  It is super awkward, but man, does it feel good after I have finished.  With all that said, if I reference the denneroll, now you know.

Day 62 - This was my secondary priority training day and I usually record my video right after my workouts, but this time I just didn't have it in me.  I did 100 pull ups straight on the assisted pull up machine at -85 pounds on the wide grips.  Whew!  Once again, it was not too bad till I got past 50 repetitions.  Then, my forearms and back were screaming to stop.  But I pushed through!  

      Right after, I got into a great leg workout.  After I was complete, I was a glutton for punishment and hit the assisted pull up machine and cranked out an additional 100 pull ups on the assisted pull up machine at -100 pounds on the narrow grips.  I was dead tired after that and headed home for a quick protein shake then sleep.

Day 63 & 64 - Literally, all I did on these 2 days was 30 minutes of cardio/15 minutes of stretch/5 minutes of denneroll each.  My neck was doing everything in it's power to slow me down.  I was going to tough it out and squeeze in my normal Saturday priority training routine, but I wanted to test out a morning routine for a change and pushed it to Sunday morning.  More about that below.

Day 65 - Priority training day - I got up, ate 1.5 cups of oats, threw back some BCAAs and Spark and read for 30 minutes before I headed into the gym.  My wife came along to capture the footage that I have posted on YouTube.  I didn't time myself this workout, because I just forgot in the process of getting someone to video the workout.  My first attempt only saw 25 pull ups straight on the inner grips.  Not a good start to me.  That's a bit of a back step from last week, so my theory of early morning workout did not payoff today and I'm okay with this development.  My body certainly needed the rest.  The subsequent attempts ranged from 10-15 repetitions.  I would rest for exactly 2 minutes between each attempt.

     I love videoing the process, because now I can evaluate form and see what I need to work on next.  As of this post, I haven't edited the video yet, so I'm not sure how it turned out.  The video should be up by late afternoon on Monday, January 12th.  I will not have another post again until next Saturday's routine as I will be knee deep in finishing up the upcoming books I will be releasing by spring 2015.  

     Thanks for tuning in.  Would love to hear from you, so please feel free to comment, subscribe and share this blog post.