Ben Plotnicki

1/28

Lat series

A1 – Lax ball/theragun smashing into armpit/lat x 30 sec/side, rest 30 sec

A2 – Hanging scap circles x 4-5/direction + Scap pullups x 4-5, rest 60-90 sec x 2 sets

B – Neutral Grip Strict Lean Away Pull-Ups: 15-20 reps, accumulated with a 2111 Tempo; break up as needed/for quality

Decided today I was going to try and get more reps per set than I had been doing

C – Hanging Arch Body Upper Back Extensions: 4-6 reps w/ slow controlled eccentrics x 2-3 sets

D – Prone Banded PVC Lat Pull-Downs: 8-10 reps w/ slow controlled eccentric x 2-3 sets

+

3 sets @ continuous effort:

6 min bike @ zone 2

4 min row @ zone 2

2 min ski @ zone 2

(36 min)

The hardest part about zone 2 today, was the 6 min of cold air from the bike blowing back on me in a cold gym. 

1/29

3 min row, easy effort, little faster in stroke rate every 60 sec

+

5 sets at steady effort

10 KB goblet squats

15 KB russian swings

20 unloaded walking lunges

500m bike erg

53 on the squats and the swing

+

For total time

Row 10-20-30-40-30-20-10 cals

*rest 30 sec bt each interval

*controlled intensity here, leave runway to get faster on the way back down

10:50 on running clock….7:38.9 row time – 28.8–1:02.2–1:29.8–1:53.2–1:26.6–51.9–25.5 – I might have shortened my runway too early on the 40 cal round, I started out holding 1300 for the majority of that set, but I felt my form break down more than anything. Also, this was weird and unique how it happened so fast, the 30 sec rest isn’t really rest when you start pushing the pace, it goes by pretty quick

1/30/2026

A – Long pause back squat x 8 reps, new rep every 2 min

*10 sec deadstop pause at depth WITH tension in hips/midline, then drive up fast

*start around 155-175lbs

155–175–185–195–205–215–225–235 – I feel the load didn’t get really hard until the 205 barbell, i definitely rushed the pause on the 225 so I vowed to make sure I held the 235 a little longer

B – Back squats – 5 reps every 90 sec x 5 sets

*start around 155-175lbs, keep good rhythm and speed

175–190–205 the rest of the way….the speed and rhythm at 205 was where I think you would want it to be so I wanted to keep that quality and turnover high

+

EMOM x 18 (3x through)

1 – 12 ski cals

2 – 12 toes to bar

3 – 12 box jump overs @ 24in (step down)

4 – 12 deadlifts @ 155-175lbs

5 – 6 strict pullups

6 – 48 DU’s

*rest 4 min*

EMOM x 12 (2x through)

1 – 12 ski cals

2 – 12 toes to bar

3 – 12 box jump overs @ 24in (step down)

4 – 12 deadlifts @ 155-175lbs

5 – 6 strict pullups

6 – 48 DU’s

175 on deadlift and TTB felt pretty good.

1/21

Lat series and shoulder flexion control

+

EMOM x 20 (4 times through)

1 – 5 shuttle runs

2 – HSPU play (experiment with kipping and strict and see how shoulders are feeling)

3 – 250m row

4 – 15 wallballs

5 – 45 sec easy bike

5 strict hspu on each round, each felt like a 1RM press but at least I got 20 shspu so that is progress and healing. Tried to keep row pace around 1:46-1:48

+

Additional hip/midline support

A1 – Posterior sling march from boxes/benches x 10 alternating steps, rest 45 sec

A2 – Lightly loaded copenhagen plank press ups x 5/side, rest 45 sec

A3 – Band resisted hip thrusts from back on bench x 15 reps, rest 90 sec x 3 sets

Had to get creative with hip thrusts, the functional fitness side of the gym doesn’t have a squat rack like video for set up so and logistically didn’t feel like separating A3, so just rolled with it. Nice to see some video from the Ohio gym

1/19

Lat series

A1 – Lax ball/theragun smashing into armpit/lat x 30 sec/side, rest 30 sec

A2 – Hanging scap circles x 4-5/direction + Scap pullups x 4-5, rest 60-90 sec x 2 sets

B – Neutral Grip Strict Lean Away Pull-Ups: 15-20 reps, accumulated with a 2111 Tempo; break up as needed/for quality

C – Hanging Arch Body Upper Back Extensions: 4-6 reps w/ slow controlled eccentrics x 2-3 sets

D – Prone Banded PVC Lat Pull-Downs: 8-10 reps w/ slow controlled eccentric x 2-3 sets

done

+

1-2 sets not for time (shoulder flexion ROM and control)

15 sec yielding shoulder flexion isometric

8-10 sec/side 1-arm overcoming shoulder flexion isometric

5/side overhead archer presses from standing

5 double overhead archer presses from standing

*second movement from above vid

done

+

1-2 sets not for time (post shoulder/OH position prep)

6/side 1-arm elbow on knee DB ext rotation at slow tempo/light weight

6 slow reps mini band distracted dbl DB front raises

6 controlled reps of sliding glide kips from bar anchored in rig

12 light dbl DB shoulder balboas from seated

Done

+

4 sets for quality (gymnastic strength work)

3-4 reps foot assisted ring dip eccentrics @ 32A2 tempo

15 sec chest to bar isometric hold at top of inverted BB row

15 sec piked HS hold for stack

6/side landmine meadows row

I did 4 reps of eccentrics and bottom support unassisted without a FOOT!!!!!! Fuck yeah, i didn’t try pressing out, just didn’t want to jump in the pure deep end of the pool

+

EMOM x 4

20 sec wall facing HSPU

1-1-1-2 – it was a little painful, but it was more painful from I’m not strong in that position because I haven’t done that in I have no idea how long. 

+

EMOM x 4

4 strict pullups

into

EMOM x 4

6 chest to bar pullups

Changed locations to get to my favorite pull up bar – CTB didn’t feel as good as last week but making progress

+

Every 3 min x 3 sets

45 DU’s

15 OHS

10 toes to bar

1:26–1:23–1:21 – starting speeding up OHS cadence but at times I would lose my balance throughout my foot and that would slow me down a little

+

Every 3 min x 4 sets

Row 20 cals in < 60 sec

Held 1300-1400 -48.4–51.1–50.7–50.2

1/20

2 sets, rest as needed

Tall kneeling thoracic extensions against wall x 3-4 reps with 3 breath cycles/rep

2-way half kneeling thoracic rotations against wall x 3 ‘reps’/side

1-arm KB snatch to high windmill x 3 reps/side

+

2 sets, rest as needed

Thoracic bridge flow against wall x 3/direction

Alternating sky reaches from squat x 4/side

1-arm KB sots press from low seated x 5/side (rotate T-spine)

+

EMOM x 12

1-4: 2 power snatches @ 135-155

5-8: 3 power cleans @ 175-195

9-12: 4 hand release deadlifts @ 225-255lbs

Between late night football playoffs and college football national championship I was up late the last two nights and not as well rested or recovered as I wished….just didn’t feel as snappy, but that was it. Hit high ends on snatch and power clean, but just 235 on deadlift

+

For time

10 clean and jerks @ 135, rest 1 min

7 clean and jerks @ 185, rest 1 min

5 clean and jerks @ 205, rest 1 min

90 sec AMRAP clean and jerks @ 225

2 c&j @ 225, missed the jerk on a 3rd one…..hardest part was my right arm rack position, one finger kept coming out of potions in the front rack on my right hand so that effected me a little bit in receiving on the shoulders and being able to efficiently drive the barbell overhead. I am super freaking excited as the clean at 225 felt like I smoked them, just not comfortable going overhead yet. 

+

Additional midline support x 3 sets

KB hip to halos from tall kneeling x 10 alternating reps (5/direction)

KB drag throughs from front plank x 10 alternating reps (5/direction)

1-arm KB farmer carry x 100ft/side (minimal lean/twist)

Was not doing anything other than 70 on the carry

1/16

Lat series

done

+

Shoulder iso’s and archer presses

done

+

RC and scap activation

done

+

4 sets for quality (gymnastic strength work)

5-6 reps foot assisted ring dip eccentrics @ 32A2 tempo

20 sec chest to bar isometric hold at top of inverted BB row (bar in jcups, you standing inside rig, adjust angle as needed to challenge the time window

20 sec piked HS hold for stack (can do feet on box or wall, MAYBE start to add some lateral shifts to load hands more like a WW)

8/side landmine meadows row

40 on landmine row, – felt decent here and went back to rings for eccentric work

+

3 rounds for time

21 toes to bar

15 power snatches @ 95lbs

9 BBJO @ 24in

10:35 (also not done at favorite bar location) (also notes were made from siri so might be a little off  – Today, major limitation was with Toe to bar and confidence in Toe to bar. Plan was to break up early and often and quick rest breaks. Also goal was to have really fast transitions after Burpee box jump overs to get my first set in and then when I take a little longer break and then get into the small smaller set, shorter rest. Snatch was primarily all singles, did a set of four touching go in the second set. Some of my biggest winds here were trying to stay pretty consistent by staying close to the bar drifted away from the bar at certain points, but on the last set, stayed on top of the bar and try to get a little uncomfortable. Box jump overs were consistent, but my footwork felt off on some of them, especially towards the end. On the last set, I did the set of nine and 34-35 seconds, wish I could’ve made that faster but footwork was off and couldn’t find a rhythm to jump up or jump down. Overall, I was about in a timeframe I expected just wanted to stay smooth and consistent and new the Burpee‘s could not slow down and that would be the only way I would be extremely unsatisfied with this workout if I let the Burpee slow down, so my goal of singles on snatch and small sets on Tobar was to keep my Burpee pace at about four seconds per route or faster

1/17

EMOM x 9 (warmup)

1 – 15ft/side 1-arm KB OH carry + 3/side KB high windmills, light

2 – 6/side 1-arm alternating KB russian swings from split stance

3 – Ski erg 30 sec (faster with each round)

+

A – Long pause front squat – 1 rep every 2 min x 6

*moderate load, enough to challenge where your front rack is currently at BUT not cause pain

*this is a 8 sec full stop pause at depth each rep. then stand and rack

165–185–205 the rest of the way – lat was fine, front rack isn’t painful just limited, i’ve temporarily lost some range of motion on the right side

+

7 rounds for time

5 power cleans @ 135lbs

7 back squats @ 135lbs

9 bar facing burpees

11:07 – this is a beautifully designed workout to challenge transitions….I definley slowed down by need and by choice on the clean, back squat speed per rep is too slow, i just need to trust that I will be ok. Main goal was to keep burpee speed under 30sec. Without watching video, and quick glances at clock I think I was there, maybe a second off on one round maybe two but for the most part stayed consistent there. I did push the pace to sprint finish but did it too early, just wanted to see if I could hold that for the last 2 rounds, it was uncomfortable, clean was tough but able, back squat was just too slow in last round but sprinted last 9.

+

Accumulate 15 wall walks for smooth rhythm (putting this at the end in hopes things are warmed up REALLY well

1/14

EMOM x 36 (6 times through)

1 – 13 cal bike erg

2 – 15 russian swings @ 24kg

3 – 13 cal row

4 – 15 wallballs

5 – 13 cal ski

6 – Easy bike erg (recovery effort, reset monitor at the end of the minute to start back at top)

Had quite the balancing act this am….the gym that has the bike erg does not have 10ft ceilings so i had to pop outside and wall ball in the cold weather! No weather was going to hold me back today, but it wasn’t raining or snowing either so didn’t have to make that decision. The kb and the wall ball were really like resting stations, bike tried to be under 30sec every set, row was about 33-35 and ski was about 34-37

+

Accumulate, not for time

30-40 tempo GHD situps (2 sec down, 2 sec up)

50-60 strict pullups

70-80 pushups with hands on DB’s/parallettes

Did top end of all reps, but i definitely took not for time to heart

1/13

2 sets, rest as needed

Tall kneeling thoracic extensions against wall x 3-4 reps with 3 breath cycles/rep

2-way half kneeling thoracic rotations against wall x 3 ‘reps’/side

1-arm KB snatch to high windmill x 3 reps/side – windmill is still tough and feels a little unstable and have to use my off hand to really trace my down leg to help with stability. But I can do it

+

2 sets, rest as needed

Thoracic bridge flow against wall x 3/direction

Alternating sky reaches from squat x 4/side

1-arm KB sots press from low seated x 5/side (rotate T-spine)

+

EMOM x 15

1-5: 3 power snatches 125–130–135–140–145

6-10: 4 power cleans 155–165–175–180–185

11-15: 5 hand release deadlifts 195–205–225–235–245

*build inside of each 5 min movement window, AND from movement to movement

All barbell work felt really good today and never really went out of a 7/10 rpe…..i will say, and i felt it a little in the c&j and it was a limiter, but my right shoulder just felt tight, and all knotted up. It wasn’t in pain, just felt like it didn’t have a ton of movement freedom even with all the activation work. I’m sure it was from all of Mondays work. 

+

For time

15 clean and jerks @ 135

10 clean and jerks @ 175

5 clean and jerks @ 205

9:08 – the shoulder stiffness was definitely the limiter in the overhead work. The clean felt great, but lockout felt limited, and front rack for tng at the shoulders felt no limitations or pain there. Just didn’t trust myself with tng at the shoulder on the 205 barbell, but I took my time there and grinded throught it…i also will say i had no sense of urgency chagning weight from the 175 to the 205. 

+

Additional midline support x 3 sets

KB hip to halos from tall kneeling x 10 alternating reps (5/direction) – 26

KB drag throughs from front plank x 10 alternating reps (5/direction) – 44

1-arm KB farmer carry x 100ft/side (minimal lean/twist) – 88 on the first set and that was a dumb idea and vowed to not do that again.

1/12

Lat series

A1 – Lax ball/theragun smashing into armpit/lat x 30 sec/side, rest 30 sec

A2 – Hanging scap circles x 4-5/direction + Scap pullups x 4-5, rest 60-90 sec x 2 sets

B – Neutral Grip Strict Lean Away Pull-Ups: 15-20 reps, accumulated with a 2111 Tempo; break up as needed/for quality

C – Hanging Arch Body Upper Back Extensions: 4-6 reps w/ slow controlled eccentrics x 2-3 sets

D – Prone Banded PVC Lat Pull-Downs: 8-10 reps w/ slow controlled eccentric x 2-3 sets

+

1-2 sets not for time (shoulder flexion ROM and control)

15 sec yielding shoulder flexion isometric

8-10 sec/side 1-arm overcoming shoulder flexion isometric

5/side overhead archer presses from standing

5 double overhead archer presses from standing

*second movement from above vid

+

1-2 sets not for time (post shoulder/OH position prep)

6/side 1-arm elbow on knee DB ext rotation at slow tempo/light weight

6 slow reps mini band distracted dbl DB front raises

6 controlled reps of sliding glide kips from bar anchored in rig

12 light dbl DB shoulder balboas from seated

+

4 sets for quality (gymnastic strength work)

3-4 reps foot assisted ring dip eccentrics @ 32A2 tempo

15 sec chest to bar isometric hold at top of inverted BB row (bar in jcups, you standing inside rig, adjust angle as needed to challenge the time window

15 sec piked HS hold for stack (can do feet on box or wall, MAYBE start to add some lateral shifts to load hands more like a WW)

6/side landmine meadows row

35 across w/focus on major control – did the bench foot assisted dip eccentrics @ 63A1 + Foot assisted bottom of ring support hold for 15 seconds. 

+

EMOM x 4

3 wall walks

These actually felt decent today, feeling a little more confident….still a little ways to go 

+

Also split today in two sessions, did first part up to here at gym where time of day and logistics worked out. And did second part so I could have access to the pull up bar I like. Also doubled up on some of the lat series and pushed others to the second half of my sessionn

EMOM x 8

5-6 chest to bar pullups included video to assess the progress and feedback

Not really pain, but more of a 1 of 10 on the scale of annoyance. Did not know it was going to feel so much improved so I started videoing after the first set. Day after update: A combination of stiffness, soreness and joint irritation. So doesn’t feel 100% but all in all I think it’s some progress

+

3 rounds for time

20 dbl DB box step overs

20 dbl DB front rack squats

20 row cals

15:11 – I did the step overs in round 1 in 2 sets, semi short rest and I think that was a mistake. I should’ve taken one more break and been short and quick. I think it was a mistake bc holding the db for the squat was not my favorite. I did those in 2 sets as well and just couldn’t feel like I could get into a comfortable rack position on any set. Doing 2 sets really limited my power output on the row, so I changed that up in the 3rd round. Round 1 had a decent row pace but round 2 was absolutely shitty, the 2 sets of squats really hurt that so I decided I was not going to do that again. The 3rd round of step overs, i tried to break a lot, and short rest and everytime I didn’t pick up the dumbbells i told myself that was resistance effecting me. I did the squats in 3 sets, i’m sure rest was way too long but I at least cranked the last row up in the 1300’s after the first 4-5 cals.

1/9

Lat series

A1 – Lax ball/theragun smashing into armpit/lat x 30 sec/side, rest 30 sec

A2 – Hanging scap circles x 4-5/direction + Scap pullups x 4-5, rest 60-90 sec x 2 sets

B – Neutral Grip Strict Lean Away Pull-Ups: 15-20 reps, accumulated with a 2111 Tempo; break up as needed/for quality

C – Hanging Arch Body Upper Back Extensions: 4-6 reps w/ slow controlled eccentrics x 2-3 sets

D – Prone Banded PVC Lat Pull-Downs: 8-10 reps w/ slow controlled eccentric x 2-3 sets

+

1-2 sets not for time (shoulder flexion ROM and control)

15 sec yielding shoulder flexion isometric

8-10 sec/side 1-arm overcoming shoulder flexion isometric

5/side overhead archer presses from standing

5 double overhead archer presses from standing

*second movement from above vid

+

1-2 sets not for time (post shoulder/OH position prep)

6/side 1-arm elbow on knee DB ext rotation at slow tempo/light weight

6 slow reps mini band distracted dbl DB front raises

6 controlled reps of sliding glide kips from bar anchored in rig

12 light dbl DB shoulder balboas from seated

+

4 sets for quality (gymnastic strength work)

3-4 reps foot assisted ring dip eccentrics @ 32A2 tempo

15 sec chest to bar isometric hold at top of inverted BB row (bar in jcups, you standing inside rig, adjust angle as needed to challenge the time window

15 sec piked HS hold for stack (can do feet on box or wall, MAYBE start to add some lateral shifts to load hands more like a WW)

6/side landmine meadows row

25 for first 2 sets then 35 for last two on meadows row – chest to bar hold was tough today so angle was kind of easy

+

Every 2:30 x 10 alternating sets

Odd – Ski 500m – 1:58 — 1:56 — 1:56 — 1:57 — 1:57

Even – Run 400m – it had just started raining (and it was hard so wasn’t going to gut it out) and the assault runner was out of batteries so I had to triangulate between RPE, apple watch, steps and time

*threshold efforts, sustainable and repeatable, even with short rest windows

1/10

Use some of the same pieces from yesterdays warmup to open things up here, even if you pick from some of the gymnastics strength pieces

Did the lat series – and the dip (but I used a bench instead of rings and did 84A1 tempo) – and did the piked hold and feet against the wall which I like that so much better.  

+

Camp redo setup

AMRAP 9 min

45 DU’s

15 OHS @ 95lbs

10 toes to bar

In my head I knew that a sustainable pace per round was about 1:45-1:50…..knowing that 4+ was my goal and developed my rep breakdown strategy off of that. I also didn’t have the confidence that I could maintain UB ohs, my speed per rep is not worth it right now. However in my mind I know breaks between ohs would be way longer than breaks for ttb would be. So I did think about that. Also I think my biggest limiter today is muscle endurance, I felt it in shoulder fatigue and feel thy is what caused a really bad dounle under round in round 4, I think I broke 3 maybe 4 times, more on fatigue than anything. 

Camp Prep Spreadsheet

Amrap video

*still use the same sheet that I sent out for splits, and grab vid too!

1/6

A – Front squats @ 30X1 tempo x 5 reps, rest 2 min x 5 sets

*little heavier than last week

200–200–205–205–215 – these felt really good and really strong and front rack is feeling 100x better, it’s still not perfect yet but it’s a noticable difference

B1 – 35 sec goblet loaded wall sit, rest 25 sec

26 bell 

B2 – 50ft dbl DB farmer carry lunge @ 50/hand, rest 90 sec x 4 sets

done

C – Barbell deadlifts x 7 TNG reps, rest 60 sec x 4 sets

*start around 185, build as you want for the day

185–205×3, I stuck with double overhand and I had more of a grip limitation than anything else. Also the 60sec rest made it more feasible to stay at that same weight for the last 3 sets as well

D – Banded quadruped plank to pike x 18-21, rest 90 sec x 4 sets

* https://www.youtube.com/shorts/DENW3P4DfIo

Done

+

3 sets hip/core, rest as needed

Seated mini band hip abductions x 15-20

Banded pull throughs from sumo stance x 10-12 with glute squeeze at top

Copenhagen plank press ups x 5/side with 3 sec hold at top of each

Arch rocks x 6-8 into 10 sec superman hold

Needed to get done, so going to split this up and do later with some shoulder rehab

1/7

Row/Burpee Beep Re-Test 

On a running clock

10 lateral burpees over erg + Row 500m

*Until you can’t finish the distance in the time window

First time window – 0:00-4:00 (4:00)

Second time window – 4:00-7:50 (3:50)

Third time window – 7:50-11:30 (3:40)

Fourth time window – 11:30-15:00 (3:30)

Fifth time window – 15:00-18:20 (3:20)

Sixth time window – 18:20-21:30 (3:10)

Seventh time window – 21:30-24:30 (3:00)

Eighth time window – 24:30-27:20 (2:50)

Ninth time window – 27:20-30:00 (2:40)

Tenth time window – 30:00-32:30 (2:30)

Eleventh time window – 32:30-34:50 (2:20)

Twelfth time window – 34:50-37:00 (2:10)

Last round (lucky #13) – for time!

*Target – finishing that 11th round! Push your burpee cadence starting around the 8th or 9th round, and transition quickly so that you can stay calm and steady on the rower as things get dense. Be prepared to have those back-to-back rounds, and get to work right away to give yourself a shot!

Finished the 11th window, I don’t want to say easily, but was pretty under control, but because I didn’t want to find out and kick myself for not finishing I kicked way too soon (I think around 275/300 left) and just sold out and held on, so I finished with 3-4 seconds too spare, but that effort of kicking too soon gave me zero chance to put up a fight in #12. I think I got 250 meters into the 12th window. I pretty much stayed around 2:30 the whole time with stepping up the burpee, so i was very confident I was going to hit the target, really pulled back on sandbagged the 6th and 7th window on the rower because I knew it was time to kick it into gear in the 8th and that’s when i picked up my burpee speed. I think I was finishing those burpee around 24 seconds from what I remember from taking a quick glance at the clock

Talk to you tomorrow

1/5

Lat series

+

1-2 sets not for time (shoulder flexion ROM and control)

15 sec yielding shoulder flexion isometric 

8-10 sec/side 1-arm overcoming shoulder flexion isometric 

5/side overhead archer presses from standing

5 double overhead archer presses from standing

*second movement from above vid

+

EMOM x 5

3 wall walks 

*same as last week, continued exposure

I hit pause after the 2nd minute, my shoulder didn’t feel prepped enough so I do a quick few sets of more overcoming isometrics an yielding isometrics. That felt better and fell back into the groove. 

+

EMOM x 8

6-8 chest to bar pullups

These went much better today, I do end up doing 3 on set 4 and 5 on set 6, I did a 9th minute to catch back up on the volume. These just felt labored, kip wasn’t smooth and I’m sure it was lack of exposure for quite some time. Pain was a 1 maybe temporarily crept to a 2 but no worries to not keep going. 

+

AMRAP 9 min

3,6,9…reps each, adding 3/round

OHS @ 95lbs

Toes to bar

Box jump overs @ 24in (step down)

140—-5 reps into ohs…..cycle speed on squats need to be faster, was just worrying about stabilizing shoulder. What I felt from overhead position was shoulder wanting to internally rotate, outside of that everything felt good with the shoulder and lay at this point. Broke ohs in set of 12 and 15, made a mental count error in the set of 15 but pleased with that other than speed. Probably pretty easily could’ve gotten the 12 UB but didn’t want to risk it.  TTB – first time I trusted getting into a good arch and starting finding a rhythm. Clipped on one box jump. Tries to stay diligent an smooth today. Felt good with transitions but definitely rested a little more than I should’ve in traders on breaks of ohs and TTB.