Steve's (rather long now) ex-log

[Steve Low]

Haha, you too. Yeah, I might have it before then if I do this 3 times each week (mon, wed, fri) with days to rest in between them. I condition probably more than anyone in my gym so I'm getting it faster. Lots of hard work is going to pay off.. what a great feeling

[Steve Low]

Doing the same workout:

crosses
cross flys

also adding in some dips and HSPUs as well as some pseudo planche pushups.

I think I am getting close to a straddle planche even though I haven't really been training planches for a while. We'll see how far it is a few days from now

[Steve Low]

Getting close to the cross.

Last fall I took up iron cross training which lead to getting some pec/lat development. I started at approximately being able to go out 75 degrees from horizontal and worked it down to about 45 degrees in 3 months. All during this time I was working lowering down with therabands, just plain bodyweight pullouts and chicken dips. Then I quit after my elbows started hurting. My forearms and biceps were definitely not strong enough to help stabilize the elbow so it took a HUGE amount of the pressure.

This fall after working out my forearms and a little biceps mainly throughout the year, I took up the cross training again. As you may know, I have been doing lots of planches, cross flys, iron cross pullout drills and the occasional front lever drill for about 2 months. I've since worked down from the 45 degrees to about 15 degrees from horizontal.


So the summary is this:

1. Progressed about 30 degrees in a 3 month span with therabands (on the rings), chicken dips and plain lowering bodyweight pullouts.
2. Progressed another 30 degrees in a 2 month span with mainly cross flys, planche drills and block assisted iron cross pullouts.

Thus, I believe that the second method is VASTLY more effective than using therabands and just lowering. Not only have I improved MUCH more in a shorter span of time, but since the cross strength increases exponentially as it approaches horizontal, I have gained MUCH more strength than just "30 degrees" and another "30 degrees. If you want to train the cross, I recommend working cross flys, planche drills, front lever drills and cross pullouts with a block. Theoretically, I'd say the average person should be able to get it in under 8-10 months (as I had no pecs/lat in the beginning and am very close now. Plus, my genetics aren't that great for gaining muscle).

Notes: Strengthening the biceps and forearms are a must to sustain the elbow from hurting too much. This was developed in conjunction with rice bucket to develop the forearms and the cross flys (with straight arms) as well as planche drills to help develop the bicep as it is at the increased lever angle.

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Recently (last mon), I have been increasing the cross pullouts to 4x6 and 4x7 with isometric holds for the last one. Also the flys have been getting upgraded to to 4x5 as well, but I am not as strong in these as with the cross pullouts.

[Bobby]

Thanks for that last post.I will try it for a couple of weeks and see if it helps me more than the cable I`ve been using.I started yesterday with isometric crosspresses.The way I do them is:sranding on the floor and while keeping the arms in a crossposition I press down as hard as I can.I managed a cross on the 26th and 27th of october(1 and 2 second hold)but it hurt so much that I decided to go back and work more on the foundation,so to speak.And yes it was mainly the elbows that hurt.

[Bobby]

I just finished trying those ironcross pullouts with a block.They are much harder than using a cable/band.Thanks again Bobby

[Steve Low]

4x6 cross pullouts
3x5 cheat malteses

CROSS PULLOUT PICTURE


This is the method that got me down a whole 30 degrees (45->15) in about 12 workouts over 2 months. It's freakin' amazing. I went from being able to do 1x3 reps with straight arms on the underside of my KNEE cleanly to doing 4x6 sets on my HEELS cleanly.

[Steve Low]

Let's see...

supersetted
11 handstand pushups
20 dips
11 hanging leg raises

then did crosses without the blocks for 2 sets but with spot. man, pulling up out of that is HARD. then did another set with the block.

after that did 3x10 pseudo planche pushups

[Steve Low]

Been doing maintenence strength. Hardcore strength tomorrow.

Here's a training vid of me though:

http://www.wam.umd.edu/~slow/elt/flairtravel.mov

[Paul Corfield]

Here's a training vid of me though:

Nice.

Paul.

[Bobby]

Nice vid!As my right wrist hurts like h... right now and I can only workout with it heavilly wrapped,the question is:the pommel horse must put quite a strain on the wrists,how do you keep them from hurting?I read what you said about icing,but is there anything else?

[Steve Low]

Ah, I probably should list my weight and height just because

height = 5'8"

weight:
sept. '03: 108
sept. '04: 120
sept. '05: 133
current: 135 +/- 2 ... i think currently it is still 133.. though I've gained a lot of functional strength

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workout today (not necessarily in order)..

4x6 crosses
15 hanging leg raises
8 hspu
10 front lever pullups
20 pullups
1 rope climb

eh, I just really did random stuff. I need a serious routine. I think I will make one either this week or next.

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Wrists...

1. First thing is first.. you want to build the forearm muscle up which will also stimulate increased cartilidge in the wrist and elbow to keep up with the stresses on the muscles. Weights are good for the forearms to build the muscle as well as strengthen the wrist. Rock climbing can also help as well as a rice bucket (put your hand in and move it all around).

2. Taking supplements like glucoasmine or eating chicken cartilidge can help increase the tendon/ligaments in the wrist to keep them from rubbing against each other.

3. Icing.. obviously

4. Rest.. again obvious

I had forearm splits like last year and by strengthening my forearms they went away. Also, I had pain in my wrists from doing reverse stocklis on pommel horse because it torques my wrist counterclockwise.. all I did was ice it and rest it for about a week with not much activity and it went away. Now, it can be a bigger problem than just pain like tendonitis or something, but in general, rest+ice+strengthening forearms takes care of most problems. If it persists, I'd get it checked to see if it is something like tendonitis.. if it is definitely get some supplements cause that can help out and do the 3 former things I mentioned a sentence up.

[Paul Corfield]

Glucosamine really helps. I've been taking it for a couple of years and notice the difference when I run out of a supply.

No wonder you move like you do in your video at that bodyweight. I'd love to lose a little more. I've been at 152lbs for a around 3 months now. I think I could lose a max of another 10 to 14 lbs to be what I would term as fat free, really defined abs etc. I think then I could hold my front lever for more than a second which it is now.

Paul.

[Steve Low]

Haha, yeah well I have the benefit of knowing the techniques of doing circles so in general it is easy for me to do them. Circles and flairs really don't take that much strength -- it is more balance and technique than anything else.

I could stand use a little bit more musle for strength though since comparitively to real gymnasts I am weak. Meh. I don't even really have that much muscle.. I think my bones are really dense or something.

[Bobby]

I think I will try the supplement and see if it helps together with the icicng.I`?ve got pretty strong forearm(mainly been using the grippers though,the coc#2 is not a problem,on any given day I can close it for at least 8-10reps),but I might start using weights for my forearms again and see what happens.

[Steve Low]

Try to work your forearm muscles the other way since grip is only half of the forearm. I do this way the most since this is the grip used for parallel bars, pommel horse and doing stuff on the floor most of the time. Working the opposite side of the grip part of the forearm helped my forearm splits the most when I had them.