Back Squat - Find 1 Rep Max

In the weeks leading up, I wasn't able to lift my 90% or my 95%. I was not feeling confident, but I was going to attempt this lift. I warmed up to 275 lb. and started to follow the percentages on the white board. I went up to 315 lb. and did two reps before adding 365 lb. I put the bar on my back and got into a good position. I was able to control the weight but I was not able to stand it up. I got stuck on the bottom and promptly bailed. No use in trying to save that lift, I would re rack the bar and try again.

I thought about what I was doing wrong. My feet felt good, I had control of the decent but couldn't make it out of the bottom. I took a few minutes and tried again. The bar felt the same, the decent felt the same and not making it out of the bottom, felt the same. It was at that point I decided to call it a day. I didn't get to PR and it sucked. I haven't missed a squat max since I started and it felt bad.

I realized that not lifting a new PR is a direct result of my training. I haven't been putting in the work and it showed. I talked to my coach after class and he gave me some tips and what to work on. I'll definitely hit a PR next cycle.

WOD

Partner WOD - 15 Minute AMRAP

4 deadlifts (135 lb.)
3 hang power clean (135 lb.)
2 push press (135 lb.)
1 front squat (135 lb.)

I partnered with my wife for this workout and we broke up the workout into alternating rounds. I was not worried about a particular movement. The weight was light enough for me to get through most of it unbroken even at later rounds. We tired to keep each round to under 45 seconds but we couldn't keep up that pace in the later rounds. My grip started to give out around round 24. I lost the grip of the bar during a hang clean. I took a few seconds and finished the round. We finished 26 rounds of the workout.

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The other model I primed for NeoCon was the Devout. I didn't finish Malekus during NeoCon so the Devout is on deck. After I finish Malekus, I'll get started on the Devout. The left arm has broken off a few times but it should hold up. 

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Looks

The first colorway that interested me was the red/blue sketch that Inov-8 Training posted on their Instagram.

Screenshot taken from @inov8training Instagram profile

I love the red and blue color scheme which is why I purchased the first version in that color. Unfortunately, the sketch was not a production color. After looking at the launch colorways, I decided on the grey/blue/black version. The shoe resembles many of the shoes in the Inov-8 catalog and is not something completely different like the original 235's.

Fit

I ordered my pair from Zappos.com, in the same size as the v1's. I am not sure if I received a defective pair but they were a little more than a half size too big. I had to ship it back for a half size smaller. When I got the new pair, it still felt a little big but not by too much. I had more room in the toe box compared to the original.

Construction


After using the shoes for about five months, they are holding up great. No rips or tears from rope climbs or general use. The only issue that I have is with the rubber label on the tongue. It was attached using some kind of adhesive and has started to come off. It's not a big deal but it's the only flaw I can find in the shoes. The mesh is also showing some signs of wear where the shoe flexes. It looks like it will  hold up.


Performance

If you are a fan of the original 235's, you will like this version. Since it's not as snug, I was afraid my feet would be sliding around during workouts and lifts. I have used these shoes for almost six months and almost any workout. They held up against olympic lifts, metcons, squats and deadlifts. The soles felt sturdy during squats and flexible during runs. Power transfer was not an issue during heavy lifts thanks to the dense sole.

Rope climbs feel great as well. They grip the rope better than the Metcon 2. Better technique might be able to explain that however. I set some pr's while wearing the v2's, a new power clean pr and a few metcon pr's. Check out my Instagram or the Barbells and Boxcars for videos of me wearing them.

Final Thoughts

The v2's is a great follow up to the original 235's. It does what good shoes are supposed to do, let you forget about them. I did not think about my shoes during workouts and did not have to switch them out when heavier lifts were programmed into the workout. It could be that I'm getting better at the movements but the shoes definitely help. If you can get passed the aesthetics, these will be a great buy. 

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In addition to helping man the booth at NeoCon 2017, I was able to make a time lapse of day 1 and do some interviews on day 2. If you didn't get a chance to read up on my experience at NeoCon 2017 chek out THIS post from last week. 

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Back Squat - 6x3 at 80% (325 lb.)

Last week I did squats at 70%, this week we're up at 80%. I did this twice this week, the Monday session was great, completing four out of six sets at 325 lb. The session of Friday was terrible. I played some Ultimate Frisbee on Wednesday and my legs may have been worn out. On Friday, I worked up to 325 lb. but it felt extremely heavy. I was only able to complete one set. I dropped the weight to 315 lb. but that was too much as well. My coach told me to drop to 275 lb. and do some one second pauses at the bottom. It was a tough week and I should get some heavy reps done. We will be maxing out next week and I hope I'm ready for a new PR.

WOD

Partner AMRAP - 20 Miniutes

10 row (cals.)

15 wall balls (20 lb.)

15 Russian kb swings (54 lb.)

*Partners will alternate movements

Did this workout with my wife and it was a lot of fun. The movements were alternating which gave some time to recover. The hardest movement was the wall balls (as usual). At the beginning of the workout we set our goal to 10 rounds.

I started on the wall balls with the goal of doing all of them unbroken for the entire goal. Looking back on the open, the wall balls in 17.4 were my biggest hurdle and now is the time to work on them. I knew I would be okay on the row and kb swings so I didn't worry about them. I tried to keep a good pace on the rower 900 - 1100 cals. on the rower and complete the kb swings unbroken.

Towards the end of the workout, my wife would finish a movement but I was not ready to start the next one. I was still trying to catch my breath, but it would only take a few seconds. On my last round of wall balls, I broke at 10 reps. I wanted to keep going but my arms and legs were giving up. After a few seconds of rest, I finished the wall balls. We pushed each other and were very supported during the workout. We finished with 10 rounds, 10 row and 9 wall balls.

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During NeoCon, we decided to have a painting demo for people looking at our display. I primed a Devout and Malekus and decided to paint the latter. I did most of the painting over the two days but I have to finish the rest of the details. 

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Back Squat - 7x5 at 70% (275 lb.)

The percentage for back squats have gone up by 5%. It took a few warm up sets to get into it but I was able to finish all the sets in the amount of time given. I'm gaining more confidence in my squat now that we are going up in weight. Hopefully I'll be able to hit a new PR in the coming weeks. 

WOD

Partner Holleyman - 45 Rounds For Time, 35 Minute Time Cap

This workout was modified from the original Holleyman

5 wall balls (20 lb.)

3 handstand push ups

1 power clean (205 lb.)

The amount of rounds is daunting but once we got into the workout we didn't stop. I had to scale the power clean to 205 lb. The Rx version had the power cleans at 225 lb. which is close to my 1RM. In order to finish under time cap each round had to be done under 45 seconds. I wasn't sure how quickly I would finish each round so I tried to pace accordingly.

This workout was actually fun. We would finish a round under 45 seconds and the break in between was enough to catch your breath. The hardest movement for me was the wall balls but towards the end of the workout, every movement was becoming more difficult. I did all the reps unbroken but I almost missed a power clean. I would love to retest this workout.

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The video below is the last leg of our European honeymoon. Amsterdam was a favorite city of ours and we would love to go back and do more exploring. After using my GoPro Hero 3 for the duration of the trip, I'm tempted to get a Hero 4. I would upgrade to the newer Hero 5 but it's not compatible with my Feiyu Tech gimbal.

The music track we used was Sheppard's "Keep Me Crazy" which doesn't allow the video to play on mobile devices. I did not know it would be restricted but it can't be helped now. Thanks for watching.

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NeoCon 2017 was held on April 29 and April 30 at the Onward Resort. My gaming group, Limitless Fails Gaming Group, had a small booth with a miniature display and demo table. We had miniatures from five different games displayed: Warmachine and Hordes, Flames of War, Warhammer 40,000, Infinity and Guild Ball. We had a lot of interest this time around with many people asking questions about wargaming and the hobby. We also made a short video that will be posted soon.

Feedback

We received great feedback from people at the booth and friends at the convention. A few people that stopped by said we had the best booth. After the convention was over we thought about our overall experience and what we can do better. We will be implementing some of these changes for the next convention.

A few of our changes will be to make a small 2'x2' table for demo games like this one, display boards for armies and using tablets as video monitors. having one dedicated demo table is great but it does hold up the demo line. Each demo game takes about 30 - 45 minutes and people may not wait around. Two demo games going at once will definitely speed up that process.

Painted miniatures are great but displaying them on a black tablecloth is not the best way to present them. I've noticed people would look at my miniatures a lot longer, maybe because they were on a display board. Overall, I think more display boards would help our table.

We wanted to do a video presentation like the last few conventions but our space was limited. One of our members that volunteered, Van, came up with an idea for some video displays. He used his tablet to loop videos of miniature games. It was a great idea so Rodel and I used our tablets as well. Next time, I will download videos to my tablet, eliminating the need for wifi.

Check out some of the pictures below. 

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I finally finished the Blood of Martyrs after weeks of sitting on the table. I also played him in a game yesterday with his warcaster Thyra. I had fun painting this model and tried some new blending techniques. I tried to do some two brush blending on the shoulders but it didn't come out as smooth as I wanted it. It's a great start though and my technique will get better with more practice. 

This model was also a lesson in purchasing miniatures second hand. The sword was broken at the tip and I couldn't fix it. Also, half of the left fist was cut off, presumably to fit the sword. The next time I purchase a model, I'll be sure to look at all the pictures first. Let me know what you think in the comments below and thanks for stopping by. 

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Amsterdam was our last stop on our European honeymoon and also the shortest. Three days were not enough to fully explore this amazing city.

Cell Phones

Since this was the last leg of the trip and the shortest, we didn't purchase a new SIM. We decided to use our SIM cards from the previous countries until we used up all the minutes and data. We would switch to WiFi whenever possible to cut back on data usage. 

Transportation

We picked up a three day Amsterdam Travel Ticket for €26. This Smart Ticket or (OV-chipkaart) is easy to use and you can choose a longer duration, up to seven days. Getting on a bus or train is easy, you tap it on a pad on trams and buses. It also comes with a transportation map which was helpful. The ticket covers the train from Schiphol Airport to Amsterdam Central Station. This is convenient since you do not need to purchase separate tickets for the public transport in the city. We used the Citymapper app to navigate around the city. It's a lot better than Google maps for transportation schedules.

Accommodations 

We stayed in Amy's Blue Room on the historic Haarlemmerdijk. It's a short distance to central station, two stops on the bus. You can easily get to the other parts of the city from Central Station. It's about one kilometer to the Anne Frank House and the city cente, and it's a nice neighborhood to walk through.

The Fun Stuff

The Canal District



We loved walking through the canal district. The clean streets, iconic architecture and fresh air were a welcomed break from the busy streets of London, Rome and Paris. While not many places of interest are in the canal district, the scenery and architecture is well worth the stroll. We would buy pastries and hang out along the canals which looks great at night as well.

Anne Frank House and Museum



Heinekin Experience



If you are a Heineken drinker, this is a must visit. The Heineken Experience is a tour through the first Heineken brewery in Amsterdam. You learn the history of Heineken and how their beer is made. Beer is no longer brewed in the building but kegs are shipped in from their closest brewery. Two glasses of beer are included with the ticket.

Van Gogh Museum

My wife and I decided to visit the Van Gogh museum instead of the Rijksmuseum. We wanted to visit both but we were limited on time. She's a fan of Van Gogh's work and wanted to see more of his paintings. If you're a fan of Van Gogh, this visit is worth the trip.

Thoughts on Amsterdam

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Front Squat - 7x5 at 65% (90 kg.)

It wasn't a heavy weight but it was tough. The current squat cycle has been focused on back squats and I've been neglecting my front squats. I felt the rust after warming up but I was able to push through and finish six sets at 90 kg. before time ended.

WOD

Partner Mule in Paris - 12 Minute Time Cap

1 squat clean thruster (60 kg.)

2 squat clean thruster (60 kg.)

3 squat clean thruster (60 kg.)

.... until time cap

This was my first time doing this workout and I wasn't sure what to expect. Squat clean thrusters (clusters) are fun but not at 20+ reps. Thankfully, this was a partner workout and I would have some time to recover. I decided to do the reps in singles since it would be easier for me to maintain a good pace in the later rounds. Initially it wasn't too bad, rounds two and four were done at a steady pace. Rounds six and eight had to be broken up. The front squats we did earlier in the day were hard on the legs. I pushed on and did my best to break it up the reps and keep a constant pace. We finished round nine and two reps into round 10. My legs were sore after that workout but I had the weekend to rest.

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