Today had its ups and downs, I didn't feel too slow on the track but didn't feel amazing either. It was pretty cold in the Dalplex today (unusual) and I ended up tweaking my hamstring in the same reoccurring spot I hurt it in Moncton on the last 50m. I pulled up pretty quick so it wasn't too bad, just more of a scare. Still, it was bad enough that I couldn't do glute-hamstring raises. I'm going to move them to Thursday because I really don't want to develop an imbalance and risk farther damage. Squats went a tad better than expected, failed at 325lb's at the last rep but I wasn't too disappointed considering it was the fourth set. I haven't lost as much strength as I thought I had. Hopefully I'll be back up to my pb next week, which I would be pretty happy with considering I'm probably 5lb's lighter.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
5x20m
3x30m
2x50m (pulled up on second one)
Squats 2x5@315lb's, 1x5@320lb's, 1x5@325lb's (Failed last rep)
Glute-hamstring raises 1x5@11lb's (Very sore so stopped after first set)

Today was the first day where I was starting to feel back to my usual self but the weirdest thing, I have a lot of pressure behind my right cheek which seems to hurt when I jump or bend over, it's not bad but annoying. I got through today's workout pretty well, I tried to really focus on the precision of each movement and I changed the core routine slightly.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
Ankle hops 5x10
Twisting hops 5x7 (Each side)
Backwards hops 5x10
Left hops 5x7
Right hops 5x7
Low bounds 5x5
Core circuit--
Incline leg-raises 4x10
Leg raises 4x10@20lb's
Oblique crunches 3x10@60lb's
Laying twists 3x10@22lb's
Abdominal pull-downs 2x10@170lb's, 2x10@180lb's
Sitting twisters 3x10@6kg
Standing med-ball twists 1x10@6kg (Each side)
Lunge-position med-ball twists 1x10@6kg (Each side)
Sitting med-ball twists 1x10@6kg (Each side)

I tried to take a few 11 step jumps today but my sleep schedule from last night was pretty sporadic so I wasn't feeling the best. I felt as though I was falling asleep. Although I did have a few jumps in the 13.00m+ range which I'll take for a day like this. I feel pretty light right now, around 160lb's, I'm going to take the next three weeks as a strength block which will be pretty taxing on my body but follow with a three week taper to end the season. This will taper through AUS and straight to CIS. I'm also starting a three week creatine cycle, basically I'm trying to replicate the training I did from December 18-January 13 focusing more on explosiveness and technical prowess.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
Three step bounds 3x3
Five step bound 3x5
Seven step bounds 3x5
Five step triple jump x3
11 step triple jump x5
Weights--
Hang snatch 6x2@140lb's (last two were terrible, tired)
Explosive bench press 6x2@95lb's

I didn't feel much better today than yesterday, pretty nauseous for most of the day. I started to feel a little better around the time I was scheduled to long jump, I came very close to attempting to warm-up but at the very last second I backed down, not wanting to repeat yesterday over again. I hate how weak minded I am, I should I have at least tried--now I feel like I wasted a whole weekend of training for nothing.

Today went much differently than I thought it would when I woke up, I finally took things too far, it was bound to happen eventually. I'm glad it did now before things went too far. I was really feeling good this weekend but this morning I essentially ended up poisoning myself in my own foolish effort to cut weight as low as possible.
For the last meet two weeks ago I cut my sodium levels down to 1735mg as well as took a mild diuretic (pamabroom) which felt pretty good, I didn't feel dehydrated at all but this week I cut down to 550mg which pretty much killed me, I probably should have been in the hospital but instead suffered things out at the track. It's definitely not a day I would ever want to relive. I woke up with a pretty bad headache and things only got worst from there. By the time we arrived in Montreal I was really starting to get nauseous, where it got to the point I threw up in the sink three times. I felt a little better after that so I tried to warm-up for my event, I wasn't able to move during my warm-up, every time I tried to I became nauseous again. I tried load up with sodium and electrolytes but I ended up not being able to stomach that either. I went back to the hotel room and possibly had the most painful 15 hours of my life, drifting in and out of wakefullness, trying to consume real food but I couldn't get anything down. I will never tamper with my salt levels again.

I'm feeling about as good as I could have hoped for, I weighed in this morning at 158.4lb's which is the lowest I've been since Juniors back in July. With one more day left on the taper I'll probably be under 158lb's tomorrow. I think my performance is going to be determined by a few external factors:

1. This is going to be the first time I have ever jumped off a 13m board which shouldn't be a big deal since I was jumping from 12m in Moncton. Just being farther back may cause me to lose focus however, I don't want to be reaching to make it into the pit. There's a chance that it may actually cause me to bear down and really stretch out the first two phases.

2. The runway in Montreal is a little bit too short for my runup. I remember having to start on the banked track last year when my first mark was at 30.50m. I'm now at 32.75m and jumping from a board 2m farther back. Now that I know what to expect I'm hoping my experience from last year will help me coup.

3. My hamstring feels pretty much fine but there's still a chance it won't hold up and may tear early on.

4. There are 15 jumpers which is quite a few compared to what I am used to, it shouldn't be a huge deal and the extended rest between jumps will probably be a positive.

If all goes according to plan I should be able to get another pb, hoping over the 14.40m mark.

I felt pretty good today but kept the volume low, all I did was a competition warm-up and half an hour of light stretching. I feel loose and more importantly I feel light. I hope I can substain my weight where it is right now without any substantial strength lose.

TODAY'S WORKOUT
Warm-up
Light stretching
Myofascial release

I felt pretty good today, I hit top speed over 30m but my hips were back while running--probably a defense mechanism for my hamstring. I didn't feel it which is good but I was worried about it. I really hope it holds up. I was happy with the result in the weight-room, I squatting 325lb's with ease but I guess it's not much weight considering I went ten pounds heavier for five a couple weeks ago. I could have definitely went up a bit but I didn't want to overdo it so close to competition. After Montreal this weekend I'm going to spend the next three weeks trying to regain strength and then finish off with the last taper of the season ending on March 8. I currently weigh 159.2lb's.

TODAY'S WORKOUT
Myofascial release
Warm-up
4x30m
Weights--
Squats 3x3@325lb's
Light stretching
S

I felt pretty good today--energized and enthusiastic to get through a core workout that I normally hate. I'm definitely starting to feel good for this weekend, I'm currently 160.0lb's which is lower than I was expecting to be. The only question is my hamstring.

TODAY'S WORKOUT
Warm-up
45 minutes of hurdle mobility
Incline leg raises 4x10
Leg raises 4x10@20lb's
Oblique crunches 4x10@60lb's
Abdominal pull-down's 2x10@170lb's, 3x10@180lb's, 1x5@190lb's, 1x5@200lb's
Lying twists 3x10@22lb's
Standing twists 3x10@33lb's

Today was kind of a weird day, I started off feeling pretty flat but as the day went on I started to feel better. By the end of the day I would go so far as to say that I felt great. My body weight is at a season low, but unfortunately I'm not feeling as strong as I was. There is a lot that could go wrong this weekend but I'm definitely feeling more comfortable than I was last year now that I know what to expect.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
Three step bounds 1x3
Five step bounds 3x5
Seven step bounds 2x5
Ten step triple jump x6 (first 4 felt terrible but last two felt really good)
Weights--
Hang snatch 5x2@135lb's
Explosive bench 5x2@95lb's

Today was a rest day, so I did some light stretching in the morning and pretty much just took it easy for the rest of the day. I spent most of the day at a meet I was originally going to be jumping at but opted out of after injuring my hamstring last Saturday. I feel good for Montreal on Friday.

I wasn't feeling the best today, very low energy and ended up shutting it down early. I figured my body knows best--a methodology that I haven't follow in the past. If this season keeps progressing the way it has been it has the potential to be my most successful season yet and I don't want to mess things up. I'm 6cm off the national leader, I know that probably won't last but as long as I can stay competitive anything can happen on one day.
TODAY'S WORKOUT
Warm-up
Light bounds 3x5
Incline leg raises 2x10
Lying plate twists 2x10@25lb's
Abdominal pull-down's 2x10@170lb's
Light stretching
Myofascial

I may be starting to lose some strength but hopefully after McGill I can go heavy for another week or two before the final month of the season. I had trouble locking on the clean and jerks today but in all fairness I have be suffering from a bit of a cold too for the last three days. Overall I feel like I'm physically prepared to jump this weekend the only factor is going to be with my runway, I know I'm going to have to start on a banked turn but maybe now that I know what to expect this year I will be able to prepare better than last year. One year ago I jumped 13.10m at this meet, it was a terrible day, but soon I will rectify it with a jump of 14.40m.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
Bounds 5x6
Hops 3x5 (Each side)
Pop-ups 4x3
Weights--
Hang cleans 3x2@205lb's, 2x2@225lb's
Jerks 2x3@155lb's
Clean and Jerk 1x3@185lb's
Light stretching

I felt a little better today, after I got going at least. At first I was feeling a little shaky and my hamstring was tight but it quickly loosened up. It held up surprisingly well while doing 100m at about 75% speed. Near the end of the workout it was starting to feel sore but considering I don't need to be back to 100% for another eight days I think that gives me plenty of recovery time. I think I'll be back to 100% by this weeks technical workout.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
2x3x100m@75%
Leg raises 4x10@20lb's
Abdominal pull-downs 2x10@170lb's, 2x10@180lb's
Oblique crunches 3x10@60lb's
Light stretching

Also here's the video from last weekend, still not technically where it should be, I was falling forward through the step phase on every jump.

Today was terrible, nothing went well. My hamstring is still sore from the meet this weekend--not cripplingly so but enough to be an inconvenience. Physically my whole body hurt today and when I was in the weight-room trying to do squats my whole body was shaking. I have never felt so weak before. I have felt very faint all day and it's really just a series of moments I would like to forget. I'm going to aim for 10+ hours of sleep tonight, hopefully I will feel better tomorrow.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
3x30m (Couldn't get to top speed)
Weights--
3x340lb's (fail on third), 3x335lb's, 3x335lb's (fail on second)
Glue-ham raises 3x5 (Could only go half way down)

I felt terrible all day, I feel like my body is shutting down around me. Funny, I felt best when I was working out but when I was just sitting around during the day I felt like I was dying. Hopefully I'll get at least nine hours of sleep today, I could definitely use it...

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
30 minutes hurdle mobility
Incline leg raises 4x10
Leg raises 4x10@20lb's
Oblique crunches 4x10@60lb's
Standing med-ball twists 1x10@6kg (Each side)
Lying plate twists 4x10@25lb's
Abdominal pull-downs 2x10@170lb's, 3x10@180lb's, 1x5@190lb's, 1x5@200lb's
Back extensions 4x10@75lb's
Pull-ups 4x10@15lb's
Cool-down
Myofascial release

I felt pretty bad today, around my hips especially. My hamstring doesn't feel too bad, I think it will be fine for the next meet but training until then may or may not have to be modified. I did some strides today to test it out and found that I could get up to about 80% without pain--I guess that's better than nothing.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
3x60m (Light)
Cool-down

Today went very well--of course it wasn't perfect but no day can be. I wanted to jump 14.22m and I did that and then some, 14.28m. I'm pretty happy with it, a 26cm personal best. I would like to break the school record though before the year is over, 14.38m. My goal coming into this season was 14.40m which I seem to be quickly approaching with three pb's in a row (4cm, 14cm, 26cm).
I tweaked my hamstring on my last jump, it doesn't seem too serious but I doubt I'll be able to compete next weekend. I was only going to do long jump anyways but looks like I will still be jumping in McGill the week after.
Jump 1: Fault (14.19m)- when I got a measure on this one I knew that it was going to be a good day. I was nervous coming in and unsure of how I was going to do but it quickly erased my self-doubt.
Jump 2: 14.28m- I was pretty pumped, 26cm pb but I felt like I was rotating forward off the step phase, I was way out of position.
Jump 3: 13.78m- It's funny, this is what my first jump of the season was and I was pretty happy with it... Now it is 50cm off my pb. It felt terrible and my elbow went back.
Jump 4: 14.13m- Definitely felt like the farthest jump of all, I thought it was farther but I didn't touch the board. This was the jump I was looking for, I'll get it next time.
Jump 5: 13.95m- Back on the board and started to lose control, with only 3 jumpers fatigue was starting to play a factor.
Jump 6: NJ- slight hamstring pull, felt like it could have been a good jump too but it cramped up bad during the step. It's pretty sore right now but I'm going to do strides tomorrow to test it.

T-16 hours until I hopefully jump farther than I ever have before. I weighed in at 160.2lb's this morning which puts me 0.7lb's ahead of where I was before the last meet, I won't be able to weigh myself in the morning but I'll probably be around 159.0lb's.
   I took today off and feel pretty good, no real injuries and I have been taking it light all week. I may be constricted for time when it comes to my warm-up but hopefully it won't be too bad, the Dal bus is leaving Halifax at 6:00am and I'm jumping at 10:15am.

Goal: 14.22m

Today was pretty light, I had a little bit of pain in my right hamstring--right up in the origin--but it didn't seem to be an issue after warming up. I can't believe that I will be competing in two days, I'm not sure if I'm ready. I'm sitting at 161.0lb's right now which should put me on pace for around 159.0lb's for the meet. I wish I wasn't jumping so early on Saturday, as it stands right now 10:00am.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Morning:
Static stretching
Myofascial release

Evening:
Warm-up
Bounds 5x6
Hops 3x5 (Left)
Weights--
Hang cleans 3x2@181lb's

I didn't feel great today but I never do on Wednesdays. I'm not injured and my body weight is slightly less then it was for the last meet so I guess I should have nothing to worry about. I'm starting to get a little nervous though.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Morning:
Myofascial release
Hip mobility in pool

Evening:
Warm-up
2x3x100m
Cool-down

I felt good today but for some reason, looking back to how I felt this time before the last meet, it seems like I'm optimizing it. I seems like I felt "perfect" in December but that simply cannot be, if I remember correctly my quads and lower back were quite sore up to and including the day of the meet. I need to stop worrying and stay focused. I'm down to 2500mg of sodium today and tomorrow I will be at 2000mg, I'll probably see the greatest drop in weight on Thursday/Friday.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Morning:
Myofascial release
20 minutes stretching

Evening:
Warm-up
4x30m
Weights--
Squats 1x5@295lb's, 1x5@305lb's, 1x5@315lb's
Glute-hamstring raises 3x5@11lb's

I'm starting to feel more competition ready and the taper is afoot. I'm about 0.4lb's heavier than I was at this point before the last meet but I don't think that means much. I think I should be able to cut into the 158's for maximum performance.
TODAY'S WORKOUT
Morning:
Myofascial release
Static stretching
Evening:
Warm-up
45 minutes hurdle mobility
Incline leg raises 4x10
Leg raises 4x10@20lb's
Oblique crunches 4x10@60lb's
Lying twists 4x10@22lb's
Abdominal pull-down's 2x10@170lb's, 2x10@180lb's, 1x5@190lb's, 1x5@200lb's
Standing med-ball twists 1x10@6kg (Each side)
Lunge-position med-ball twists 1x10@6kg (Each side)
Sitting med-ball twists 1x10@6kg (Each side)

I actually felt pretty good this morning, a lot better then I was expecting. I did a fair bit of bounding which felt great but when I moved up to longer approach stuff I was losing control. All last week I had a feeling the meet on the 14th would go poorly but now I'm more optimistic for a pb. My goal is to get the CIS autoqualifying standard of 14.22m.
TODAY'S WORKOUT
Warm-up
Three step bounds 2x3
Five step bounds 3x5
Seven step bounds 1x5
Five step triple jump x2
Ten step triple jump x4
Jogging ten step triple jump x3
Weights--
Hang snatch 5x2@135lb's
Explosive bench press 5x2@95lb's

I took today off, I'm hoping that I will be feeling pretty good for tomorrow's technical practice. I haven't jumped in three weeks. I don't know why but I still don't feel great, I feel heavy--maybe it's from the creatine cycling. Hopefully I feel better tomorrow and will drop a couple pounds before next Saturday.

I felt better this Friday than I usually do by the end of the week. I feel a little heavy even though I'm still only in the 163lb range. I'm am going to start tapering on Sunday.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
45 minutes of hurdle mobility
Incline leg-raises 4x10
Leg raises 4x10@20lb's
Oblique crunch 4x10@60lb's
Lying twists 4x10@22lb's
Abdominal pull-downs 2x10@170lb's, 3x10@180lb's, 1x10@190lb's, 1x10@300lb's
Standing twists 2x10@33lb's
Pull-ups 4x5
Back extensions 4x10@60lb's

I felt flat again today, two days in a row. The volume was agonizingly low (I'm not used to finishing so early) so I'm guessing that by Sunday I will be feeling good again. I'm excited to jump but I can't shake a gut feeling that it's not going to go well. Maybe it's because I'm a little bit heavier than I would like and I haven't been feeling the greatest on the track recently. Hopefully when I start jumping on Sunday I will feel differently.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Warm-up
Hurdle hops 3x5
Bounds 5x6
Left hops 3x5
Right hops 3x5
Pop-up's over hurdles 3x3
Weights--
Hang-cleans 5x2@205lb's,
Jerks 3x3@155lb's

I was flat today, I guess from weights yesterday. I took it pretty easy. My weight is still going up slightly which is a slight concern, I think when I start cutting though I should be fine.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Light 800m jog
Warm-up
1x2@120m
1x2@100m
1x2@80m
Cool-down
Myofascial release

I did some speed testing today, it felt good but the times were slow. I was only 0.01s off my pb but I feel like if I was tapered down I would have been able to run a good 0.05s faster than I did today over 25m.
   I pb'd in the weight room by five pounds on my squat. I feel like it is progressing nicely but I'm going to cut down the weight immensely now that I'm entering a three week competition block.

It feels weird saying that it's 2012, I'll probably write 2011 by accident every second day until June. The first workout of the year felt a little flat to be honest and my back hurt a little bit, I definitely have a bit of a sprain or something going on. I worked through it though, it seems to only be an issue when I do something rotational. I move back to Dal tomorrow so it will be easier to stay on a strict routine.

TODAY'S WORKOUT

Light jog
Warm-up
Ankle hops 5x10
Twisting ankle hops 5x10
Backwards ankle hops 5x10
Left ankle hops 5x10
Right ankle hops 5x10
Low bounding 5x6
Incline leg raises 4x10
Leg raises 4x10@20lb's
Oblique crunches 4x10@60lb's
Lying twists 4x10@25lb's
Abdominal pull-downs 2x10@170lb's, 2x10@180lb's, 1x5@190lb's, 1x5@200lb's
Standing med-ball throws 1x10 (Each side)
Lunge position med-ball throws 1x10 (Each side)
Sitting med-ball throws 1x10 (Each side)

I took today as a recovery day, I have been feeling pretty beat up recently so hopefully this will help a little bit. I had trouble sitting still for the entire day though, I had to go for an hour long walk this morning and did a little bit of static stretching in the evening to keep my sanity. Hopefully I'll wake up feeling refreshed and ready to go for the next week.