I’ve got some updates on my training if you are interested. In today’s update, I give you Old Man Conjugate: Bandbell Bars and Box Jumps. That’s a good summary of what I’ve been doing.
As you may or may not know, I am 7 months out from total hip replacement and I am doing AWESOME. I am moving better than I have in years and getting more strength and mobility back every session. I’ve also shifted my training from almost 30 years of Westside style Conjugate training to Old Man Conjugate.
My goals now are to be stronger, MUCH STRONGER, than the average guy on the street, but also to be unkillable. I want to be explosive, mobile, agile and in shape. This is possible because I was at one point in my life. And if I could be that way at around 300 pounds, getting back at 250 pounds or less is plausible.
One of the problems with training for these goal is that I HATE being out of breath.
Hate it.
That make is a weakness and a main principle of Old Man Conjugate and Westside Conjugate is to work your weakness. So, I am doing just that, but taking a smart approach to it. Since I have a low capacity for aerobic work I am easing into it. A lot of people jump into GPP/Conditioning too hard and get frustrated or injured. I’m treating myself like a client when doing my Out of Breath Stuff.
I actually enjoy doing things like shadowboxing, agility ladder, jumps, kettlebell swings and walking the Great Brandino.
But, I hate doing things like running, treadmill, bike and The Prowler.
I also hate wasting time training so I am incorporating most of my Out of Breath Stuff into the strength sessions.
Old Man Conjugate: Bandbell Bars and Box Jumps: The Strength Stuff
I am doing mostly very high kinetic work with my massive collection of Bandbell bars. I explained this in a log a few weeks ago. You can read it here in case you missed it. It’s good, so go ahead and click.
For Squats I am running a wave written by my boy Bo who is referenced in the article above. It is a Squat to a Box followed by a Box Squat. And it is brutal.
I have been fighting with WordPress to embed the videos for this training session, and I cannot figure it out. Is there a 9 year old to help? Anyway, click the pictures for videos of the training and more explanation.
Set and reps are in the Insta post below-Click It to watch the video!
Presses are Very High Kinetic, but simple. A few sets of higher reps, then a few sets of lower and it changes weekly.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CunX9RPgcK0/See what I mean in the post below. Click to watch!
And for Deadlifts, I was running a Very High Kinetic wave, but I am not now, because all three lifts at the same time is too much to recover from. I’ll be on straight weight for a few weeks, but I will tell you.
A few weeks of Old Man Conjugate: Bandbell Bars and Box Jumps with a Very High Kinetic wave of Deadlifts built my strength very well.
You can see the set up for those below.
Ok, now that we have the strength covered, let’s get the Old Man Conjugate: Bandbell Bars and Box Jumps: Out of Breath Stuff.
Did I mention that I hate being out of breath?
Well to be unkillable, you need to be able to do things without getting out of breath, and you probably should be EXPLOSIVE and agile.
Why not do all of that at once as part of your training?
I’ve been doing 1-3 repetition exercises and then Out of Breath stuff and it seems to be going well.
JL Holdsworth likes to call it SAD training day and I love that. Leave a comment if you want to know that the means.
EG: On the video below, I did not show what I did immediately before the ladder and jumps.
I did 3 pullups, Hammer Curls with 45’s for 15 or 30 reps (can’t remember) and Overhead Tricep Extensions with 120 pounds for a shitload of reps. Then right to the ladder and the jumps.
Click the picture below to watch the video.
My progress on the ladder and moving quickly is coming back fast. A week or two ago I posted a video of me going through the ladder that looked like a monkey fucking a football. Not graceful, not athletic, just bad. This video is none of those things either, but it is BETTER than last time.
That’s a win.
And I have not done any jumping for years because of the hip. I started two weeks ago on a Sanddune that was about 8 inches high.
Why?
Because it was super soft and I wasn’t sure if my titanium implant would tolerate it.
Well, it did.
So, in the essence of treating myself like a client, I had goals for today’s jump session.
- Set’s of 1-3 reps
- Soft landing using good deceleration mechanics
- Stick to a box height that allows me to use proper form
I don’t think anyone should be impressed by a 12” box jump, but I was.
I did box jumps.
And they didn’t hurt.
That is amazing.
And, it made me out of breath.
Mission accomplished.
I’ll be running the KLT Very High Kinetic wave for a few more weeks and then I’ll go back to straight weight. I’ll also be ramping up my SAD training (Out of Breath Stuff) and building my base each week.
As always I’ll keep you posted.
Thanks for reading Old Man Conjugate: Bandbell Bars and Box Jumps.
Did you see my episode of Table Talk?
Did you miss last week’s log?
Read it here.
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Vincere vel mori
C.J. Murphy
July 27, 2023
