My progress through Convict Conditioning

[Toadstool]

I've been looking to save money so I cut out going to the gym.
I did the whole bodybuilding thing. It was okay for awhile. Made my body look real nice and pretty, but hey - I wasn't any stronger. I couldn't lift things any better or wrestle around any better. Sure, I was more fit, but my body lacked strength.

So I found this convict conditioning book and have been doing it for the past couple of months. I'm going to plot my progress here (why not, eh?) each time I work out. I workout almost every day, unless work calls me, in, so you'll be seeing this thread updated a lot.

Today I'm doing squats and bridges.
Squats
Warm up set 1 : 30 full squats
Warm up set 2 : 20 full squats
Work set 1 : 20 close squats (using a weighted ball to help me get all the way down)
Work set 2 : 20 close squats (with the weighted ball)
I'm going to be repeating this work set throughout the day until I can perform the ass-to-grass movement without the ball. What I do is I descend with the ball, release the ball and try to hold the position for as long as I can.

Bridges
Warm up set 1 : 50 short bridges
Warm up set 2 : 40 short bridges
Straight bridges : I'm having some serious difficulties with this. I'm doing an in-between set to get my body strong enough to perform this properly, so I'm doing the exercises detailed in this video: Convict Conditioning- Step 2- Straight Bridges - YouTube
Work set 1 : 10 table tops
Work set 2 : 10 table tops
I'm very weak with this work set. I'm going to repeating them until I can do 20 of them. I'll just keep repeating throughout the day.

[Toadstool]

I have a cold. I caught some virus somewhere so maybe I'll try to muster up the energy to sweat it out by skipping rope if I have time.

Otherwise, I'll be doing abs and pushups today.
I've been readng Pavel Tsatsouline's book Bullet Proof Abs and he explains the proper way to do a situp or crunch. He also describes how to relieve the pressure on the lower back's psoas muscle group while doing the leg raises and it's shown me that I'm not as strong in my abdominals as I originally thought. I had been doing the hanging leg raise (master step) but I've went down to the flat frog raises, which is step four. I'm going to redo all of these steps, but keeping my lower back straight and firmly pressed against the floor to better isolate my waste muscles.

Abs
Warm up set 1 : 35 Flat Knee Raises
8 Russian Ballet Leg Raises
Warm up set 2 : 30 Flat knee raises
8 Russian Ballet Leg Raises
Work set 1 : 15 Flat Bent Leg Raises
20 Janda situps
8 Russian Ballet Leg Raises
Work set 2 : 15 Flat Bent Leg Raises
20 Janda situps
8 Russian Ballet Leg Raises

Pushups
Warm up set : 20 full pushups
Warm up set 2 : 17 full pushups
Work set 1 : 10 uneven pushups
Work set 2 : 10 uneven pushups

[eiffel]

As a martial artist, I do a lot of bodyweight conditioning as well, and I've also gone through many of the progressions in Convict Conditioning. If you haven't already, you should definitely check out the York Hand Balancing Guide. It's available for free online, and all the progressions require little to no equipment.

[Toadstool]

I will, thank you. I can't at this very moment. The soonest I can would be tomorrow morning.

[Toadstool]

Cardio and pull ups today.

i did 30 minutes of running with a 20 pound vest on.

Pull ups
Warm up set 1 : 10 close-grip pull ups
Warm up set 2 : 7 close-grip pull ups
Work set 1 : 2 uneven pull ups (both sides)
Work set 2 : 1 uneven pull ups (both sides)
I did this final work set maybe 4 or 5 more times. I'm really weak in this area, especially my left arm. I keep swinging and lack the stability. My left wrist hurts something fierce if I do it for 4 or more reps, so I'm keeping it small until I build strength.

[Toadstool]

I started with some more pull ups today. I did several 1-rep sets until my forearms got too weak to continue.

I did 40 minutes of running, sans vest.

Working on my handstands today
Warm up set 1 : Wall headstand 1 minute
Warm up set 2 : Wall headstand 1 minute
Work set 1 : Wall headstand 2 minutes (Mastered!) - good 'cause I hated this step.
Work set 2 : Crow stands 20 seconds

[Toadstool]

Pushups

Warm up set 1 : 20 close grip pushups
Warm up set 2 : 16 close grip pushups
Work sets : 8-10 uneven pushups x 4

I also ran to and from my martial arts class today.

[Toadstool]

Squats and Bridges

Squats
Warm up set 1 : 20 close squats (with weighted ball)
Warm up set 2 : 20 close squats (without ball)
Work set : 5 Uneven squats
This is impossible for me right now. I lack the balance and strength and flexibility to dip my ass all the way to my calf. I'm going to be working on this for awhile.

By the end of the night, I must have done 4 or 5 sets of these. I used something to stabilize myself to get down and then tried to let go and use my own strength to get back up ... TRIED. By the end of it all, my legs felt really ... weird.

Bridges
Warm up set 1 : 50 Short bridges
Warm up set 2 : 40 short bridges
Work set : 10 table tops
I lack strength here too. I did 6 sets of 10 table tops before I quit. I can't seem to bring my hips all the way up no matter how hard i push. My legs get really weak, specifically my inner thighs.

[Toadstool]

Pull ups and Handstands

Pull ups
Warm up set 1 : 10 close grip pull ups
Warm up set 2 : 10 close grip pull ups
Work sets : 1-2 uneven pull ups x 8

Handstands
Warm up set 1 : 2 minute wall headstand
Warm up set 2 : X minute wall headstand
Work sets: Crow stands (17s, 23s, 23s, 23s, 32s)

I really like doing the crow stands. They help build stability and balance. I'm trying to do them where I'm supporting my whole body with muscular tension, rather than resting my legs on my shoulders as CC recommends. I think it will make me that much stronger when I progress to the next step.

[Toadstool]

1 hour of running with a 20 lbs vest on