Jeremy Osborn's Training Log (Suggestions to my training agenda are VERY welcome

[Jeremy Osborn]

Ok, so since i need more overall strength for Parkour, i figured a training journal would help to show the Parkour community how im doing and what i need to work on instead of placing a new topic everytime i have a problem! And i know you guys will help by 'yelling' at me for not doing anything.

SO! Today i used 15 lb dumbells and walked around my house doing bicep curls i think they are called  i also did 10 butterflies laying down on my back with the same amount of weight. Did about a minute of Handstand work  (anyway to spot yourself when you want to get off the wall?) did around 20-30 situps and 30 pushups. i might do some rail balance later at the park across the street.
OH! is there any way to see if a spot is good but theres always skater punks there?(i REALLY hate skaters, especially because they think they are better than everyone else (around here they do)) I want to check it out, but id go alone and when they saw me practicing Parkour i know they would just start messing with me..

[Jeremy Osborn]

Monday! 
Had a training session with Keno Flow(some new local team, not my kind of people) for around 2 hours(vaults mostly, some rolling, got a little better at climb ups!) before i left for my friends house to help clean his garage for some cash, did some decent lifting there.. i rode my bike around town pretty much all day.

Tuesday
Rest day...I was really sore from lifting and running around all day and i think im sick, its somewhat hard to breathe at times..i drank lots of water and stretched.

[Jeremy Osborn]

yesterday! the 19th of august! i went to the skatepark by my house and trained while it was raining! i went out while it was raining because i thought the skater punks would be gone! but! they werent so i trained anyway, i practiced my climb-ups.. still not getting yet, but theyre a lot easier on rails! Anyways, so then i did elevated pushups on 4 stairs, working my way up each time after 5 pushups each stair.. did some QM on some flat 2 foot high wall thing..then i went home because it got way too wet and slippery for my liking..the concrete is like super smooth and not like your average sidewalk, no little bumps or anything, so holding on the the wall while i was working on climbups was difficult. but i am so proud of myself! i trained alone in front of people, they were all just watching me, and when i started doing QM i got the "Look! its spiderman!" thing, but i ignored it and kept going. Im not sure how much potential that spot has though...

[Jeremy Osborn]

OK, ive been slacking. UGH. Alright.. heres what i want to work on:
L-Sit
Handstand
Overall Conditioning

I feel like im losing weight too.. that might be because my appetite has kinda sucked.. and because i havent done anything.
So! Im going to be doing:
60 Bicep Curls (30 each arm) 15 Pound Dumb-bells
20-30 Pushups
15-20 Ab Rollers(to work my core for L-sit)

I want to run more.. maybe a mile when i get home before dinner..
I want to add Pull ups.. OH! i can!(Soccer posts at the park across the street
Lets add 10 Pull-Ups to that List!

Is there anything else i should add?

[Hazim]

I want to check it out, but id go alone and when they saw me practicing Parkour i know they would just start messing with me..

Not in this world a skater can beat a traceur. Can he catch you on his piece of wood? Work hard man Make us proud.

[Jeremy Osborn]

11/6/09
I did my workout.. but i feel like im not doing enough.. my arms are burning up and i feel like im doing something, but i dont feel as if im going to get anywhere with this workout..
I could barely get the 10 pull-ups, push-ups my arms started to burn, the bicep curls started to burn near the 30th one..
(as you can tell i have poor upper-body strength)
I didnt run today.. had a half day so spent after school with my girlfriend
Anything i should add?

[Spencer B]

Handstands are a skill thing. Just work them to get better. L-Sit should come along well fi you keep going at it, and general conditioning... Check out the APK WOD or maybe Crossfit.

I feel like im losing weight too.. that might be because my appetite has kinda sucked.. and because i havent done anything.
So! Im going to be doing:
60 Bicep Curls (30 each arm) 15 Pound Dumb-bells
20-30 Pushups
15-20 Ab Rollers(to work my core for L-sit)

Not on HERE, but crunches are useless. As are bicep curls, definitely at the weight and reps you're doing also. Ab rollors are fine, but work them on a hard wood floor with a towel! 

[Jeremy Osborn]

Handstands are a skill thing. Just work them to get better. L-Sit should come along well fi you keep going at it, and general conditioning... Check out the APK WOD or maybe Crossfit.

Not on HERE, but crunches are useless. As are bicep curls, definitely at the weight and reps you're doing also. Ab rollors are fine, but work them on a hard wood floor with a towel! 

Even if my upper body is terrible theyre useless?
and whats the difference between doing them on carpet and on a hard wood floor?

[Spencer B]

Even if my upper body is terrible theyre useless?
and whats the difference between doing them on carpet and on a hard wood floor?

Yes. Pullups, either kipping (With a swing) or whatever is a MUCH better exercise.

And there's no difference really, just with a towel it might be easier on a surface where there is little friction! 

[Jeremy Osborn]

Pull-ups are hard to do for me.. and Kipping Pull-ups seem impossible to do
I could always use my bed.. but my arms arent straight then..
And going across the street to do pull-ups just seems really..dumb? i cant do much there besides pull-ups..
is there anything else that i should add?
and i should kick the curls?

[Spencer B]

Pull-ups are hard to do for me.. and Kipping Pull-ups seem impossible to do
I could always use my bed.. but my arms arent straight then..
And going across the street to do pull-ups just seems really..dumb? i cant do much there besides pull-ups..
is there anything else that i should add?
and i should kick the curls?

1. Kipping pullups should be easier actually. It's kind of a form thing too. And if you can do five, that's all you need right now.

2. Hmm... Body rows aren't bad to build up to pullups. Even if your arms aren't completely straight, it shouldn't be a big problem.

3. Hmm.. Soccer field. I sense HIIT, pushups, broad/long jumps, squats, etc. 

4. Pullups and maybe front lever progressions is what I would say

5. I would say a big yes.

[Jeremy Osborn]

Hmmm.. 5 kipping pull-ups? ill have myself a go at it.. see if i can do more..
I cant do body rows on my bed, i have a loft (a bunk-bed without the bottom bunk) thats
Great ideas!!! How should i go about using the soccer field for HIIT though?
Alright then, bicep curls have been dropped..

So my workout now includes:
25-30 Pushups
15-20 Ab Rollers
60 seconds tucked front lever (added up)
5-? Kipping Pull-Ups
20-30 Squats
HIIT?.. Not sure how to go about doing this..

i COULD add jump roping.. isnt it a good cardio workout?

[Spencer B]

HIIT?.. Not sure how to go about doing this..

i COULD add jump roping.. isnt it a good cardio workout?

Jump roping is good for agility and as a warmup.

HIIT is better for 'cardio', ie endurance to an extent, and stamina.

Basically HIIT is interval training, there is actually a topic about it in general fitness, you should look in there. also, you should read up in general fitness more often! 

[Jeremy Osborn]

I probably should!!
Ughh.. im too tall for the soccer posts even!!
AND the bar is too thick.. or my hands are too small 
I just found what a want for christmas...a pull-up bar!
i did my ab rollers.. it feels like more of an arm workout than a core workout....

Just read the thread on HIIT, i dont have any measurements for how long the field is, and the field isnt marked off, so would i sprint to the other goal post, walk back, then sprint to the other side again?

[Hazim]

I probably should!!
Ughh.. im too tall for the soccer posts even!!
AND the bar is too thick.. or my hands are too small 
I just found what a want for christmas...a pull-up bar!

A tree branch is a natural pull-up bar. You can find all sizes too.

[Spencer B]

Just read the thread on HIIT, i dont have any measurements for how long the field is, and the field isnt marked off, so would i sprint to the other goal post, walk back, then sprint to the other side again?

That will work fine for now. Don't worry about distance ATM.

[Jeremy Osborn]

11/7/09
I did my ab rollers! it feels more of an arm workout than a core workout..
I did L-Sit progressions 2 rounds, 15 seconds each
30 squats
30 Pushups

[Max G]

it's likely that your weak link in the ab roll-outs is your upperbody/arms+lats and straight-arm pulling muscles. Might want to consider a different core exercise..as spencer said, consider working on front lever progressions. Those will definitely make your midsection work, and you will develop some upper body strength. (specifically in your back and elbow extensors)

and for the sprints/interval work, the point is to make it hard, do it fast, and then when you repeat the workout, do it faster. A stopwatch would be a handy tool here.

[Max G]

also, though it's a little after the fact, i just want to add that bicep curls are not entirely useless. For a beginner looking to improve his/her strength for parkour, they aren't very worthwhile, but they can have a roundabout benefit for someone involved in parkour. For example, let's say you've gone through starting strength as recommended by several folks here, and have progressed to the point where you are benching/military pressing/dipping frequently and with lots of weight. To continue progress, or just maintain joint health, it can be beneficial to add in curls to provide muscular balance around the elbow.

in my personal experience, i've had full blown elbow tendinitis as well as little aches now and again due to elbow extension work, and i've always been able to alleviate/improve things but dropping in a set of curls to get some blood flowing into the joint.

[Jeremy Osborn]

11/8/09
I was really busy.. just kinda went home and crashed, but i did do:
30 Push ups
30 Squats

11/9/09
These as will be the rest of my posts will be in order of how i did things
30 Squats
30 Push ups
Tucked L-Sit (15 Seconds)
Jump Rope (about a minute - a minute and a half) (i need to do this outside)
Tucked L-Sit (12 Seconds) (Failed)
19 Ab Rollers (i went for the 20! Couldnt get it!)


Self-Evaluation:
Squats i could start to feel something.. I think im going to amp it up to 40-50..
The Push ups started to get difficult near 30.. Im looking for these to get easier..
That first tucked L-Sit, wow, i could definitely feel my core burning from that
Jump Rope? ehh..i need to start my workout before dinner, not before bed, so i can go outside..
This tucked L-Sit, i felt this in my core too.. i leaned back too far and just went on my back..Its hard to keep myself up too.. i think im going to add in some dips..
Those ab rollers, they still feel like more of an arm workout, but i think i found the problem! i was looking at the ground instead of straight ahead, and i think thats why i was getting more of a shoulder/upper arm work out than a core..
I am DEFINITELY putting in that HIIT tomorrow. how many sets should i do??