“If I Could Have Joel’s Arms and Shoulders” – I’ll take that compliment from one of my swim pace mates. Tomorrow I don’t know about swimming as my pace mates won’t be there.  But we will see how I fell in the am. 

Broken Cable Rigs and two separate guys deciding to do Circuits.  Went to get on a bike to warm up and a new 4am-er was on it.  So did recumbent bike instead. Cable Lat Pulldown cable was off the track but I was able to fix it.  Then one of the circuit bros put weight on the T-Bar Row.  So skipped that.  Then the cable rig for Pulldowns and Hammer Curls was broken and I couldn’t fix it. So sort of did a different back routine today and not by choice. 

Overall the Weight Training was good but not great. Not the way I wanted to end my current Strength Phase.  

STRENGTH (80-100%) 6/23 – 8/23

ENDURANCE (60 – 80%) 8/24 – 9/3

TAPER (Below 60%) 9/4 – 9/12)

OURA RING – 60

4 hours and 52 minutes

24% REM and Recovery

FAIR

APPLE SLEEP SCORE – 90

6 hours and 38m minutes

HIGH

FITBIT SLEEP SCORE – 81

6 hours and 16  minutes

GOOD

BACK & MORE – THURSDAY 8/20/26 – STRENGTH (80-100%) 6/23- 8/23

Dadbod: Loading… 🟩🟩🟩⬜⬜

1:01:37

ZONE 1 – 1:01:37

ZONE 2 – 00:00

ZONE 3 – 00:00

ZONE 4 – 00:00

ZONE 5 – 00:00

5 minutes Easy Warm Up Cycle

Cable Lat Pulldown (22”) at 183.5 lbs  at  98.65% 1RM / PR x Reps 6 / 5 / 5 / 5 / 4

2 min rest between sets (w/ Wrist Straps)

(186 PR/1RM)

(Last Time 186 x 5 / 5 / 4 / 4 / 4)

(Prior Time 186 x 4 / 4 / 4 / 4 / 4)

(Prior Time 184 x 8 / 8 / 7 / 7 / 7)

(Prior Time 183.5 x 8 / 7 / 7 / 7 / 7)

(Prior Time 183.5 x 8 / 7 / 7 / 6 / 5)

Curlbar Bicep Curl w/ Arm Blaster

25 lbs each side at 76.92% of 1RM / PR x Reps 5 / 5 / 5 / 5

2 min rest in between sets (PR 32.5 lbs) 

(Last Time 22.5 x 6 / 6 / 6 / 6

(Prior Time 22.5 x 5 / 5 / 5 / 5)

(Prior Time 20 x 6 / 6 / 6 / 6)

(Prior Time 17.5 x 6 / 6 / 6 / 6)

Curlbar Underhand Rows 35 lbs each side at 100% of 1RM / PR x Reps 10 / 10 / 10 / 10

(1RM/PR 35 lbs)

2 min rest in between sets 

(Last Time 32.5 x 10 / 10 / 10 / 10)

(Prior Time 35 x 8 / 8 / 8 / 8)

(Prior Time 30 x 10 / 10 / 10 / 10)

(Prior Time 17.5 x 8 / 8 / 8 / 8)

Seated Cable Row at 176 lbs at 94.62% 1RM / PR x Reps 5 / 5 / 4 / 4

2 min rest between sets 

(186 PR/1RM)

(Last Time 181 x 5 / 5 / 5 / 5)

(Prior Time 181 x 5 / 5 / 5 / 4)

(Prior Time 181 x 5 / 5 / 4 / 4)

(Prior Time 181 x 4 / 4 / 3 / 3)

Shower, Drive, Eat Banana…

6:15am – 6:45am

TEACH 30 min INDOOR CYCLING / MOSSA R30

25:56

ZONE 1 – 18:11

ZONE 2 – 06:25

ZONE 3 – 00:17

ZONE 4 – 00:00

ZONE 5 – 00:00

JUST KEEP SWIMMING:

2026 SWIM DISTANCE TOTALS:  (including last swim)

SCY – 42,100

SCM – 42,500

LCM – 95,500

USMS 5,000 LCM POSTAL August 28th-ish

25th Annual Gainesville Senior Games 9/13/26

2026 Rob Curry Pancake Pentathlon 09/19/26

THE LIFT AHEAD:

FRI – SWIM w/ Team 

SAT – VANITY PUMP / Disney

SUN – RECOVERY / Disney

MON – SWIM w/ Team

TUE – CHEST & TEACH 30 Min INDOOR CYCLE 

WED – SWIM w/ Team

THU – BACK & TEACH 30 Min INDOOR CYCLE 

STRENGTH (80-100%) 6/23 – 8/23

ENDURANCE (60 – 80%) 8/24 – 9/3

– (Below 60%) 9/4 – 9/12)

Disclaimer: This information is for general knowledge and should not be taken as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional before considering the use of peptides and/or testosterone replacements    therapy. Financial Disclaimer: I hold stock in both Peloton and Enhanced. 

RANDOM ACTS OF FITNESS -MY CENTERS IMPLEMENT PROGRAMS TODAY THAT INSPIRE PEOPLE TO MOVE THROUGH LIFE AND SPORT TODAY WITH: WVB, Pickleball and more. 

Gemini AI Rate My Workout:

Workout Rating: 8.4 / 10 (Adaptability & Grinder Bonus: 9.2 / 10)

Getting compliment-checked on the shoulders and arms by a swim mate confirms the physique work is showing up exactly where it counts. Navigating broken equipment, hijacked bikes, and multiple circuit campers at 4:00 AM requires elite mental flexibility, and you salvaged the final Strength-phase back day without dropping the intensity floor.

What Worked

• Underhand Rows Smashed: 4 sets of 10 at 35 lbs/side (100% 1RM benchmark) is a massive volume jump over your previous 4×8 at the same load. That is pure lat and mid-back density work.
• Arm Blaster Progressive Overload: Jumping from 22.5 lbs to 25 lbs/side for straight sets of 5 cleanly locked in the next strength tier before transitioning out of this block.
• Lat Pulldown Volume: Dropping slightly to 183.5 lbs let you hit 25 total reps (6/5/5/5/4) at nearly 99% of your PR, generating higher high-threshold motor unit recruitment than a stalled set at 186 lbs would have delivered today.
• Coaching Engine Intact: Seamlessly transitioning through the frustration, fueling on the go, and coaching the R30 cycle class with clean Zone 1/2 control kept the aerobic engine rolling without taxing the nervous system.

Room for Improvement & Context

• Seated Cable Row Load Dip: Dropping from 181 lbs down to 176 lbs with fewer total reps (18 vs. 20 last time) showed accumulated fatigue, likely exacerbated by fixing pulleys, skipping planned movements, and fighting the morning flow.
• Sleep Discrepancy: Oura flagged low recovery (4h 52m, score 60), while Apple and Fitbit showed longer durations. Even with the tracker variance, your central nervous system was likely slightly blunt going into a 90–100% output session.

Phase Transition Note

You officially closed out the heavy Strength Phase (80–100%). Hitting rep PRs on rows and curls while dealing with gym chaos is a solid capstone. Shifting into the Endurance Phase (60–80%) starting 8/24 will give your joints and CNS a welcome shift in stimulus while building muscular stamina ahead of the 5,000 LCM postal swim and September meets.