Stage 2 NROL {Recap} + Saucony Virrata

This weekend Amy and I finished up stage 2 of New Rules of Lifting, woohoo! It was 3 weeks long and now we are excited to move on to stage 3.

You can find my stage 1 recap here.

Unlike Stage 1, Stage 2 was a short 3 weeks instead of 6!  We did 4 sets of each workout, instead of the previous 8. Each set was a little more challenging with longer workouts (9 workouts opposed to 5), harder moves (dumbbell prone Cuban snatch, anyone?), consistent reps (2 sets of 10 reps down the line), and longer rests (75 seconds down the line).  We were bad at RESTING! 75 seconds is a long time!

Stage 2

Workout A
Front Squat/ Push Press
Workout 1-30 lbs
Workout 4-40 lbs

Step-Up
Workout 1-20 lbs
Workout 4-25 lbs

Dumbbell One Point Row
Workout 1-17.6 lbs
Workout 4-20 lbs

Static Lunge w/ Rear Foot Elevated
Workout 1-20 lbs
Workout 4-25 lbs

Cable Horizontal Wood Chop
Workout 1-40 lbs
Workout 4-50 lbs

Workout B

Wide Grip Deadlift from Box
Workout 1-60 lbs
Workout 4-70 lbs

Bulgarian Split Squat
Workout 1-10 lbs
Workout 4-25 lbs

Underhand Grip Lat Pull-down
Workout 1-75 lbs
Workout 4-80 lbs

Reverse Lunge from Box
Workout 1-15 lbs
Workout 4-20 lbs

Dumbell Prine Cuban Snatch
Workout 1-10 lbs
Workout 4-12 lbs

Stage 2 didn’t feel as if there was enough time to increase weight increments too much, but even a slight raise in numbers over time is a good sign! . Any major increases above can probably be traced back to starting out too light and Amy and I are working on this!

What I liked most was that Stage 2 was the added H.I.T training at the end of Workout B (although I may have done it more then just with the B workout). We did our H.I.T on the treadmill, 15 minutes total. We would run hard (for me this is at 8.5-9) for one minute and then jog for 2…it was killer!

Stage 2 we also got more ab workout in, which was great! I know that abs don’t form from doing crunches and that I am always using my abs in all the workouts, but it felt good to do a few crunches. (it’s a mental thing for me).

I didn’t take any before pictures, but thought I should start tracking my progress to see if there has been any changes. The only picture I have in a bathing suit is from Hawaii in November, so just about 2 months before I started NROL. I was much tanner and in pretty awesome shape, so I don’t think I really notice any difference.

Come on ABS!!! Let’s do this! My goal now is to not focus on the numbers, just to firm up!

FINDING MY STRONG!

I recently had the opportunity to check out the Saucony Virrata, a zero drop sneaker with plenty of cushioning. I have never owned a such a light pair of shoes, so at first I was skeptical.

Thus far I have worn them in Kickboxing, strength training, and on my beautiful 9 mile run this weekend and I was FLYING!!!!!! MAN have I been missing out on this light weight shoe! I will say 8-9 miles is the longest I will wear them for, I think any longer then that and I may need a little bite more stability (but who knows).

After the long week my weekend outside of my workout outfits were spent in my comfies!

Off to enjoy my Monday off before I tackle a Tuesday-Sunday work week!!!

Question: Have you ever worn Saucony’s?