At long last

I finished New Rules of Lifting for Abs today!  The last phase took for-freaking-ever due to my decision to go the longer route (8 times for the A & B workouts instead of 6) and the need to drop from three workouts a week to two, due to the running workload. 

On the whole, I really liked the program, and there's no doubt in my mind I'll do it again.  There are sufficient progressions and variations built into the program or discussed in the book that I'm sure it could feel entirely different going through a second time, particularly if I stick to the 6 trips through A & B plan.  Next time through I'll add the "Extra Strength" section to Phase 2, as well.  I'm thinking I may do this as soon as October, although I'm getting ahead of myself as usual with the planning.

My goal for this rotation was to strengthen my core all around and to improve my strength overall, and I have to say, mission accomplished.  Although there is a weight loss/leaning out element to the book, I don't need to lose weight.  If anything, I MAY have gained a pound for the second rotation in a row, and I am starting to suspect it really is muscle.  My body fat %, as I measure it, hasn't changed, and I can SEE the changes under the skin and in the mirror.  However I claim this with what I hope is not false optimism; for all I know it's just the usual carry-more-water-in-summer thing and it'll vanish by the second week in September.  On the other hand, I've been working damned hard, I've been eating in a way I hope maximizes the physiological responses to exercise, and while I've always considered myself a hard gainer, even hard gainers do, well, gain.  So, here's to a rotation well done, and hopefully more lean body mass!

Which leaves me with a bit of a strength training programming gap.  Next week will be a big time unload week, so I have some time to think a bit.  Assuming all goes reasonably well at the 12 hour race,  I will in all likelihood do a second ultra distance race (a 50K) in early October; that will be it for the high mileage stuff for the year.  If that happens, it won't be until early/mid October that I start another serious strength training program - which may be that second go through NROL/A, to be followed (finally) by Maximum Strength.  So that leaves me with the August - September time frame to work out. 

Which I will, but not today!