Daily Mental and Physical Training
The Training blog of Tom Rowland. Father, Husband, Son, Professional fisherman, Television host, Television producer, Athlete, living life with passion. Mental and physical training through SealFit, Goruck Selection and CrossFit.
Brandon Phillips (BP) visits the RRL
RRL Warmup
Max set kipping pullups
Clean pull +Full Clean
work to 1RM then back down
Today 95,115,135,155,175,195,195,175,155,135,115,95
Front Squat @ 85% max
2-2-2-2
Romanian Deadlift @ 225
5-5-5-5
My Courage Dog...Gus
RRL Warmup
Behind the neck Push Press + Behind the Neck Jerk
1-1-1-1-1 Work to 1RM
FT: 1000 m, Push-ups and Snatches : 10 mins 31 secs | Rx'd
Run, 1000 m
100 Push-ups
10 Snatches, 135 lbs
RRL Warmup
30 Overhead Squats
10 Push-ups
10 Ring Dips
10 Pull-ups
5 Muscle Ups
Jump Rope (Singles), 3 mins
20 GHD Sit-ups
20 Hip Extensions
20 Toes To Bars
10K Run
For time
Stretch/Yoga
Looking through the old blog, I came across this post. Recently, I have received many emails regarding SealFit Kokoro from people who are either considering doing it or are already signed up. For that reason, I am going to publish this post again on this newer blog. There is nothing all that special about it except that it captures the excitement and nervousness that I had when I decided to sign up, alone, for SealFit Kokoro. This decision turned out to be an excellent choice for me.
Maybe this post will help others who are struggling with making a choice to challenge themselves. My advice: DO IT!
Originally published in July 2013
SealFit has had my interest for around 3 years. Over that time, I have considered going to the Kokoro camp and also tried to arrange a 20x challenge in Chattanooga for me and all my friends. For lots of reasons and conflicts, I have not been able to make this happen.
On Thursday, I was talking to my wife about our fall break plans. Our 3 children go to 2 different schools and their fall breaks overlap but are not the same. While discussing the plans I noticed that there was also a gap where nothing was scheduled on Oct 26-27. These were the camp dates.
I asked my wife if it would be ok if I went and she said yes, my kids thought it would be cool and all of the sudden I had the green light to go do something that had been a dream of mine.
Excitement, motivation and fear all were experienced at once as I completed the online application and hit the submit button. I was in now, no turning back.
The website has alot of good information. I reviewed the gear list and then the minimum physical standards which are listed here:
“We have published updated Kokoro Camp Standards to help you understand just what you are getting into when you start your training for Kokoro. We don’t want there to be any confusion as to what we are doing here. This is not a “SEAL experience” alone…it is an event unlike any other that will test you to your core. We want to prevent injuries as well as people holding their team back. The work-load at Kokoro camp was described by an Iron Man athlete as “3 back to back Iron Men races, without rest.” Prepare well.
Prerequisites for a graduate certificate will be tested within the first few hours of the camp. They include:
50 push ups (40 for women) in 2 minutes, 50 sit-ups in 2 minutes and 50 air squats in 2 minutes, with 2 minutes rest in between each.
10 dead hang pullups for men, 6 women
1 mile run in boots and utility pants on road in 9:30
Body Armor (aka Murph) with 20# pack (15# for women): 1 hour and 10 minutes minimum
Endurance standards to guide your preparation (not tested for performance, but completion):
10 mile run in less than 1:20
20 mile ruck hike with load in less than 6 hours
Two event failure (PFT/Murph) will result in drop from course and refusal to perform any event will be considered a non verbal drop. Note we highly recommend that you ramp up your endurance and stamina training. A standard CrossFit or SOF Prep training regimen will not suffice. You should run a marathon or half Iron Man and spend considerable time rucking with load. Please contact us if you are not clear about the physical demands of this program. Should you fail to meet the standards and are rolled you will receive a certification of attendance, not a Certificate of Graduation with accompanying SEALFIT Black Shirt. You will be invited to train with your new knowledge and come back to challenge Kokoro Camp again in the future.
Black Shirt graduates have the potential to pursue intern positions and the SEALFIT Mastery program, as outlined on our web site.
Good luck! – Coach Divine”
I am capable of all the physical standards at present, but I know I have ALOT of work to do before Oct 26, particularly in the rucking area. I felt as though I did not prepare enough for the Goruck and told myself that I would spend ALOT more time under load preparing for the next event. My running is not up to par either and I need to increase my mileage greatly and be confident running 12-15 miles without problem.
My plan is to continue my morning workouts with the guys 5 days a week, but also throw in additional work in the day of 10 mile rucks, 10 mile runs, lots of plank work, weighted dead hang pullups, sled pulls, hill sprints and lots of walking lunges. I plan to do all of this in boots and tactical pants to break in both and get used to moving in pants and boots.
I signed up through a link of Brad Mcleod’s www.sealgrinderpt.com site which included free coaching from Brad up to the event. I need all the help I can get, so I immediately sent Brad an email to which he responded right away. Brad suggested that I send him my benchmarks and also my time from a 1 mile sled pull.
I will track my training here and on the facebook page, but since I am just now catching up, here is what I have done since making this decision:
Wednesday
Determined that I could do this and got green light from my family
Thursday
Jerry workout in pants and boots
5×10 pullups deadhang
Reviewed and completed pushup, pullup, squat standards
Made the decision and signed up online
Friday morning
Hotshot 19 workout in pants and boots 39:24
9 mile ruck with 30 pound pack 3:00:00
10 set of 10 weighted pullups
50 pushups in 1 minute x 3
Saturday
Sled pull 1 mile afap with Rogue Dog Sled and 1 45 pound plate 16:02
3×10 weighted deadhang pullups 30 pounds
3×10 deadhang pullups unweighted
Swimming and breath holding practice with my kids in the pool
Today is Saturday, Oct 11 and it is the morning after Goruck Selection 015.
Out of 278 people who signed up, 162 RSVP'd to show up...out of those, only 82 actually did show up. There are various reasons for that, namely that the training for an event like this is really hard and injuries do happen. (Out of our group of 5, only 2 of us showed up injury free to the start) ...
Wet but warm this morning. Matt Lawson hits the last few Thrusters.
RRL Warmup
30 Overhead Squats
10 Push-ups
10 Ring Dips
10 Pull-ups
5 Muscle Ups
Jump Rope (Singles), 3 mins
20 GHD Sit-ups
20 Hip Extensions
20 Toes To Bars
Warm Up #2
30 Air Squats
20 wall balls
10 Push Press 95-135 lbs
10 Thruster 65-135 lbs
15 Thrusters, 135 lbs
Run, 200 m
20 Thrusters, 95 lbs
Run, 400 m
30 Thrusters, 65 lbs
Run, 800 m
Stretch/Yoga
In my opinion, 100 burpees for time is one of the best workouts to gauge fitness and to quickly assess your own fitness level. We do this workout, or variations, 3 different ways and each will have a different result. First is simply to do 100 burpees, jump off the ground and clap, second is to have a uniform platform to jump onto for each rep. We choose 2 45 lb plates. The third way to keep the workouts uniform so you can compare results, is to have a uniform distance to jump up to like in the Crossfit games. This distance is 6 inches above your standing reach. It is less important which of these you choose as your workout as it is to make sure that you put in your notes which result goes with which standard.
Read MoreDuring this time of year, I probably watch more TV than any other because of all the great college football rivalry games. Yesterday was filled with some incredibly determined athletes making sensational plays. You don't have to be a couch potato, use that time to make some significant changes in your mobility and ultimately, your performance.
I watched several games and spent time on the floor with my foam roller, lacrosse ball and band. A football game is an excellent time to get in some mobility work and clear up some troubled areas.
Last week I tweaked my lower back or upper glute doing front squats. This happened because I had neglected to do alot of the mobility work that I normally do. Post Selection, I became really super tight in my hips, calves and with increased Olympic lifting, my IT band became tight like a steel cable. Neglecting the maintenance on these areas resulted in injury.
During the football games, I spent alot of time on my quads and IT band and today, my knees feel as though they have been lubricated with oil. It is truly amazing the difference that some maintenance time can have on your mobility, comfort and injury prevention.
If you don't know about Kelly Starrett, you need to know him. He wrote this book:
Kelly tells it to you in an understandable and funny way and makes it so that anyone can perform basic maintenance on themselves. If you don't have this book, get it!
Spend some time on mobility and you will see your performance skyrocket.
By the way, did you know that you can get this blog sent to your inbox and read it like an email? If you would like to do that, click here
Filthy Fifty
50 Box Jumps,
24 in 50 Pull Up (Jumping)s
50 Kettlebell Swings, 35 lbs
50 Walking Lunges
50 Knees To Elbows
50 Push Press, 45 lbs
50 Back Extensions
50 Wall Balls, 20 lbs
50 Burpees
50 Double Unders
Read More
It is true...Gratitude changes everything. Be thankful for what you have and you will find that you have so much more to be thankful for. Live with an attitude of gratitude and the rest will take care of itself.
If I could suggest one thing to anyone to incorporate into their daily routine every single day to improve their health, fitness, financial situation and overall happiness it would simply be to start each day by saying thank you for what you have. There is always something to be thankful for.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because it reminds so many of us that we should be thankful for what we have but for many, it is fleeting. I challenge you to try to make everyday Thanksgiving, just dont eat 10,000 calories every day. Give thanks continually.
Workout:
Many or us met at Rennasance Park to do this one that I came up with a long time ago:
For time:
24 Push-ups at first corner
Crossovers on pier
10 Burpees at end of pier
24 Push-ups in second corner
24 Box Jump
24 in.s on picnic tables
24 Push-ups in 3rd corner
100m Burpee Broad Jump across bridge
24 Push-ups on 4th corner
50 Body Rows on railing by stairs
Go down stairs and come up big steps anyway possible
100m Bear Crawl up hill X2
Second round- All reps by 1/2
12 Push-ups Crossovers
5 Burpees Crossovers
12 Push-ups
12 Box Jump 24 in.s on tables
12 Push-ups
100m Burpee Broad Jump across bridege. Take 2 steps after hop
12 Push-ups
25 Body Rows
Go down stairs and up big stairs
100m Bear Crawl up hill
Done!
I challenge anyone to get this under 20 minutes. No one has done that yet at the RRL.
I stayed back this morning and nursed my injured back with this one:
Airdyne
:30 work at max effort
:30 rest
go for 20 minutes and dont let any round go under 70 RPM
RRL Warmup
30 Overhead Squats
10 Push-ups
10 Ring Dips
10 Pull-ups
5 Muscle Ups
Jump Rope (Singles), 3 mins
20 GHD Sit-ups
20 Hip Extensions
20 Toes To Bars
7 Front Squats @ 165 pounds
7 Chest to Bar Pullups
x 7 Rounds for time
Yoga 15 minutes
This one didn't go so well for me today. I felt a familiar twinge in my right lower back...really more like the upper glute. I stopped during the 6th round. Hopefully this will be resolved quickly with a little stretching and possibly acupuncture.
This is an injury that I have had numerous times before. Today, it probably stemmed from a light warm up as I did not complete the standard RRL warmup which is designed to loosen the lower back and prepare us old dudes for lifting. I made a mistake today. Hopefully it wont hold me back long.
We often do a Gratitude exercise here at the RRL. It is easy and starts your day or week off with an underlying theme of gratefulness and gratitude. Gratitude is one of the most powerful states that anyone can put themselves in. Be thankful for what you have and you will have much more to be thankful for.
Read MoreI made alot of mistakes in preparing for Goruck Selection. LOTS! Hmmm...where to start?
I guess one of my biggest mistakes was not paying very close attention to Jason McCarthy's blog post about packs and packing. It was late in the training and I had trained with a GR2 for 2 years. I did not think it was wise to go to a GR0, but I was wrong.
Read MoreThis is a 2 person team workout. Only one person works at a time.
While partner A holds a pullup (chin over the bar), partner B does as many ring dips as possible. When Partner A drops from bar, Partner B stops and they switch. Continue until 75 ring dips are complete.
Squat Cleans are tag team. Do as many as you want and then switch until 20 are complete
Partner A rows as far as possible while Partner B lifts and holds 225 lbs in the air. When the weight drops, rowing stops and partners switch. Continue until 1500 m are complete.
Walking lunge is tag team. Go as far as you want and then switch with your partner until 50 m are complete.
Read MoreRun 400 m
50 Double Unders
40 Pullups
30 pushups
20 Toes to Bar
10 Hang Power Clean @135
Run 400 m
Read More
Run 7 miles
Our route takes us across Veterans Bridge, Market Street Bridge, Walnut street Bridge and back across Veterans
For Time:
Burpee for all black cards
Push-up for all red cards
Face = 10
Aces = 11
Jokers = to be designated on day of workout
Post total time.
Read More
Ok, it wasnt quite this cold...but it felt like it
Winter is here. I am not ready for it.
Summer went by too fast and I traveled almost all of the fall.
Today, it was 25 degrees as we took off on our 5 mile run. The wind was blowing and it was cold.
Despite the cold, I had a nice run with Mike Drew. It was faster than conversational pace, however, we managed to catch up between my labored breathing.
We ran 37:30 on our big hill course which is 2:30 faster than last time. It felt pretty good so I have to keep it up and run more. My running was really good again before Selection and I do not want to lose it.
Happy Winter everyone
I know that this bears an uncanny resemblance to me...but it is not. That is Dimitry Klokov showing how its done!
Warm up
10 KB Swings
10 dips
10 Lunges with 45 pound bar
3x3 clean complex from blocks- clean pull+hang squat clean from knee+ push press @95
3x3 Clean complex from blocks at 135
2x5 back squat at 135 lbs
3x3 Jump squats + land in bottom of squat @135
3x3 Jump squats + land in bottom of squat @225
3x3 behind the neck push press + Snatch balance at 115 lbs
7x2 behind the neck push press + Snatch balance at 135 lbs
The blog of Tom Rowland. Father, Husband, Son, Professional fisherman, Saltwater Experience Television host, Television producer, Athlete, living life with passion. Mental and physical training through SealFit, Unbeatable Mind, Goruck Selection and CrossFit.
Stats: 53 year old Male, Husband, Father of 3, 5'8, 170 lbs, SealFit Kokoro 30 graduate Class 30, Goruck Selection Class 15 top 10 but DNF, GRT, lots of runs, obstacle races, CrossFit stuff. Professional TV Host, Fishing Guide, Tom Rowland Podcast
Vitals
Age: 55
Deadlift: 355
Back Squat: 365
Front Squat:285
Clean and Jerk: 245
Snatch: 175
5 mile run: 36:47
12 mile ruck @ 55 lbs: 2:57:59
100 burpees: 4:27
Max Pullups: 53
Training for:
LIFE, FISHING, Elk Hunting, CrossFit Games Age Group, Goruck Selection, SealFit, Olympic lifting, Endurance, Life in general
Logged workouts and results
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