Boston Invite: 06/28/08 - 06/28/08

Saturday:
Mephisto - won

Pike - won

NY - won
The only game worth commenting on. This maybe the 3rd time we have played them this spring and I am sure we will manage to play them a couple more times as well. We were 2-0 against them this year, but 0-2 in the first half. The O-line seemed to fall right back into the early deficit. They were completely erratic, but extremely consistent. Erratic in the sense that they turned it on every other point of the 1st half, consistent in that someone would get a block every time or Pony would toss it away. Brutal to watch. Our failed to produce a single turn in the first half, but then a few points into the 2nd Dave H grabbed a D and we were off and over the next couple points we collected 3-4 breaks. Ballgame.

Sunday:

Pheonix - Won
They had some pretty athletic dudes, but very little disc discipline.

Great Britain - 13-12 won
They took half 8-6 on two breaks or so. We played a very lazy 1st half probably thinking we could coast because of the beating we laid on them Friday. We came back with a more fired up second half and had the disc on their goaline at 11-10 to win the game. They scored, we scored, they scored, on an amazing layout in the back of the endzone, to tie it at 12-12's and bring on double game. Despite a foul contest for a huck, we scored relatively easily to win.

GOAT - Won
This game really came down to who was in better shape and we are. Rotating a huge roster in and out of games kept us fresh right up until our victory sprints. They kept with us early as we exchanged breaks, but they were getting lucky and our d was wearing them down and forcing them into bad decisions. Fatigue started taking its toll as the second half moved on especially after one of their best handlers got his ankle tweaked in a scrum for jump ball and that is when we turned the screws and they folded.

I played allright in each game. Only got toasted deep once, but it was bad. Missed a deep d by a couple inches, missed another when as I tripped over the offenders legs. Came down on the wrong mark once and cost us a point. One pull out of bounds because it didn't turn over, another one that I didn't get high enough that went out the back, but I am very happy with 2 of 25.

I feel like I cut well when I cut. There is still a lot of commotion that makes me hesitant to cut and I end up waiting to long especially near the endzone. Three turnovers on the weekend. One on a huck to an open guy taking not a great angle that hung and got d'd. Probably should have pumped. One on a huck to a poached guy that just came off to hot and forced him out the back of the endzone. One on a backhand huck in the goat game where I got crossed up with my receiver. That one killed me cause it was before we mounted our surge and it probably would have opened the flood gates earlier. Two goals thrown, 4 goals caught, no drops.

Showcase: 06/27/08

Just when you thought the showcase was over we have the showcase of all showcases! Boston vs Great Britain in front of about 300 people (eventually) under the lights (eventually). It was fun even if we destroyed them. They did get a break towards the end and held us relatively break-less in the second half, but we jumped out to 6-2 lead and they never had a chance to come back.

I played all right. Tough, but d-less, defense. Smooth O when I we got the rock and I was, and have been for a couple weeks, bombing some pulls. Per tradition we gave their MVP's some gifts, but they had nothing for us. Poor SOTG if you ask me.

Faust: 06/25/08

Got in a half ass track workout cause I was on my way to a meeting at 6:30 in Cambridge.
200, 300, 400, 400, 300, 200
32, 57, 76, 73, 53, 32... I was supposed to follow up with another set of (4) 400's, but I ran out of time.

Times last year:
31,55,78,75, 56,33: I remember that weekend last year. I felt miserable during this workout and although my times are comparable I left a lot in the tank this year and those are two big seconds for me on the 400's. I am excited to get back on the track with the boys in July.

Gym: 06/24/08

I am trying out something different at the gym these days. I am taking into account the fact that lifting heavy weights is not the only way to get an "ultimate" workout in the gym. I have a pretty specific routine when I go to the gym these days:
Active warm up
heavy lift/joint mobilization
supplementary lift/joint mobilization
supplementary lift/ joint mobilization
core/stabilizers

I have been talking/reading about "ultimate" workouts and I want to implement a few ideas.

I am going to change my active warmup to a more active warmup. Continuous warm ups incorporating jump rope with dynamic lower and upper body movements.

Next comes an explosive set of plyo exercises for both upper body and lower body.

Finally we end with heavier weight in multi joint exercises.

Here is how it broke down for me:

x 2 active:
lunges
jump rope (20, 20 lft foot, 20 rt foot, 20 double jumps)
1st set push! ups/2nd set push ups with feet on physio ball
side lunges
jump rope (20, 20 lft foot, 20 rt foot, 20 double jumps)
push! ups/push ups with feet on physio ball
lunges
jump rope (20, 20 lft foot, 20 rt foot, 20 double jumps)
push! ups/push ups with feet on physio ball

x 2 plyo:
8 bench step ups
hands on physio ball push ups
side shuffles with 25 lb weight overhead
jump-knee tuck pull ups

multi joint:
cleans (2) 6 @ 145
deadlifts (2) 6 @ 225
front squats (2) 8 @ 205
1 arm snatch (1) 4 @ 45, (2) 4 @ 55

This wasn't exactly right. My space is limited and equipment limiting so I will keep evolving it to fit my needs.

Practice/Showcase: 06/26/08

We only had Sunday practice and it was real early due to the showcase game at 12 ish.  D won the scrimmage at the end, but with some mediocre play on both sides.  

15-11 Cambridge on the open side and 15-14 Boston on the coed side.  I had a lot to do with our loss in the coed.  Tons of throw aways, many to bad cuts or no cuts at all as it turned out.  Bummer. 

Showcase: 06/20/08

Busy week. We rallied from a terrible showing last week to take the 2nd open game 15-11. A couple key additions personnel wise helped us take a lead and extend it to the 4 points necessary for the victory. I broke my no laying out rule, but kept with my huck it if you see your teammate going deep regardless of defenders and poaches.

summer league: 06/19/08

6 v 7 again. We played some douche team who, as they fall from whatever grace they were at, are trying to take as many younger, more athletic teams with them by calling terrible fouls and strips. We persevered and smacked em 15-11 or so. 6 v 7 is super frustrating cause you can't really run hard, but you are running forever at around 75% and offense with 6 people is just a mess.

Track: 06/18/08

I was not happy heading into this workout. My hammies were in rough shape. All day I could feel tightness and pain right where they connect to the glutes. I was just sore from the leg workout on Monday, but I didn't feel like running and sucking more than usual at another track workout and this workout seemed hard. I got there around 6:00 and we didn't start running till 7, which further made me not want to be there, but we had an awesome group of guys. Definitely the biggest group since the timed mile with Metal a couple years ago.

6 minute 30/30/30 fartlek run. 5 minutes rest.

3x400M, 90 seconds rest after each
200M, 4 minutes rest.

2x200M. 75 seconds/90 seconds
2x400M, 90 seconds rest after each
2x200M, 75 seconds rest. Done.

73*, 75, 75, 30, 30, 31,75,76,30**,29***

*we hit the split at like 33 and I immediately figured I had just fucked myself for the whole workout.
**Kevin outkicked me for first. I just couldn't give it that last umph.
***Colin dominated the last one at like 27, I crossed the same time as Jeff for second.

I completely suprised myself with this. Doing workouts by yourself on shitty tracks really adds some seconds to your time.

My times last year 6/19:
75 , 78, 78, 30, 32,33, 83, 82, 33, 32

upperbody: 06/17/08

I need to get back into notebook mode cause I can't really remember what all these weights were.

A1 one armed bench:
(3) 8 @ 45

A2 bent over DB row:
(3) 8 @ 55

B1: pull ups
(3) 6 @ 0

B2: DB military one armed
(3) 8 @ 40

C1: rows
(3) 8 @ 120

C2: airplane pushups
(3) 10 @ 15

D1: prone trap raises
(3) 10 @ 15

D2: palov press
(3) 10 @ 45

Lower body: 06/16/08

A1 deads: I took it easy on the weight cause a month ago I tried to get involved with 225 and the 225 turned on me and hurt me real bad. After some warm ups:
(4) 4 @ 205

A2: bulgarian split squat
(3) 8 @ 35

A3: one legged squat
(3) 8 @ 35

B3: bar roll outs

Practice: 06/15/08

The morning weather was sloppy, but not sloppy enough to account for our sloppy play out the gate. Things got cleaned up as the day went on, but I feel like we should be at a higher level. You have to give some of the credit to our sloppy play to the fact that although we have had a core of 15 out for everything 20 other dudes have been floating around in and out of events.

Ultimate: 06/13/08

The Shwagcase game between Cambridge and Boston. They killed us. I felt like shit and didn't even get a part of the trackworkout in cause they didn't have a track.

Summer League: 06/12/08

Summer league, more like Bummer League. I wanted to get my track workout in before our summer league game. For some reason our start time was announced as 6:00 pm which seemed ridiculously early so I busted ass to get to a set of fields that were very much occupied. I definitely could have fit in a brief workout cause while most of our team were on time the other team didn't get there till about 6:30. We ended up moving to Belmont High and played our game from 7:00 to 8:45 ish and got the last pull in right before it would have been called due to darkness. We lost 15-14 having been pulled to at 14-13 and 14-14. We played 6 against 7 cause we were down a woman, but even that was no excuse for losing.

We have a fun team that runs from elite to very very beginner, which is more what I was looking for in a summer league team as opposed to the pretty dominant ones I've been playing on over the past couple years. Wins will be that much more satisfying.

Upperbody: 06/10/08

Finally an upperbody day. It has been a while.

A1 incline bench:
(3) 5 @ 165

A2 chest supported pull
(3) 8 @ 55

B1 pull ups:
(1) 6
(2) 8

B2 DB shoulder press:
(3) 8 @ 40

C1 face pulls:
(3) 10 @ 50

C2 side bridges
(3) @ 45 secs

It was so f'n hot in that place. No AC and a bunch of sweaty dudes heating and stinking that place up.

Weights and Ultimate: 07/08 thru 10/08

Caz Invite:

I'm not gonna get into details until I make the team, but everyone played well and we played well as a team leading to our victory over GOAT in the finals 15-11.

Weights: Legs

front squats:
(3) 6 @ 225

walking lunges:
(3) 8 @ 35

one legged squats
(3) 8 @ 35