(Specialty warm-up: 5L, 5R kettlebell row, 5L, 5R hinge-and-hand position practice: Mace shovel, 10 weighted lunge) Pendlay row: 1 x 5 @ 50% of 2RM 1 x 5 @ 65% 3 x 3 @ (up to) 85% 3 x 5 @ (up to) 75% 1 x 10 @ 50% Challenging, scheme-appropriate weights. Rest as needed between sets. If sets require interruption, make as minor an adjustment as needed and complete the next uninterrupted. When scheme is listed as “3 x 5″, it always refers to “Sets” x “Reps”. Reminder: Position and execution always govern weight; Identify your lowest, hardest hinge position prior to attempting to "set" it, and do not compromise it while moving heavy weight off the ground. Then, 3 rounds of:

5 Mace shovel (Left)

10 Lunge (Stationary, with mace in overhead position; Starts at top of 5th shovel)

5 Mace shovel (Right) 10 Lunge (Stationary, with mace in overhead position; Starts at top of 5th shovel)

5 Dip

(Up to) 1 minute rest/ assessment

This is heavy, organized, and violent. Brace hard off the ground, and stop with authority at the top. No passive shovel, no soft lunge.

Wait for your hips to send your hand in the shovel, and brace before you drop in each and every lunge, forever.

And then, as quickly as possible:

50 "Tall slam ball" @ (minimum) 10lb. W, 12lb. M

Distinctively different starting and operating position than mace shovel; Same aggressive, straight-line overhead position.

No rest.

And finally, "Time under tension":

5 x 10 Mace front pendulum @ powerful, heavy enough to be useful +

25 Abmat sit-up @ forward-to-overhead (use bumper plate) + 15 Dowel partial pull-over + 15 calorie Airdyne/ equivalent cool-down

Set Abmat behind you, not underneath you (a few inches from your body, not wedged underneath like a doorstop). Keep a strong, organized arch, and drive hips forward at the top of each rep. Today, bumper plate transitions from in front (similar to top of a bench press), with back flat on the ground and arms "short and straight", to true overhead, locked-out, and stopped at the top of the sit-up. This will tell us, a lot: Overhead positioning (and if your hips are impacting it), midline stability, and if your mobility is impacting it, ability to control flexion and extension minus momentum or postural compromise... And, it's also just really hard, and equally useful.