the bad about Spark by Adocare

I really love Spark. I've found a ton of good things about it, and even some bad. The list of bad is a short list. So here it goes:

If I take it before an evenning workout I can't get to sleep until late. I'm talking really late. 3-4 am kind of late. I have to wake up at 3:30 am for my new job. That sucks. Now that I'm not using it for evenning workouts I've found the other negative thing about Spark. I've become accustomed to having the amazing workouts that Spark provides. When I don't use it I struggle to get through the workouts. Trying to workout without Spark after being used to it is probably what Superman feels like when he's exposed to Kripronite.

Adocare Spark for weightlifting

This is my one thousandth blog post! I'm pretty excited about that. I've been blogging about the sports I've been competing in for over almost 10 years. Ive tried and blogged about triathlon, duathlon, running, cycling, swimming, brazilian jiu jitsu, CrossFit, powerlifting, and now weightlifting. It's been an amazing journey.

I've been using Spark by Adocare when I train or compete the last couple months. I love it. It doesn't matter how long or intense my training day is I never run out of energy or start lifting crappy because of fatigue. No matter how tired I am when I get to the gym, once I start sipping on Spark I'm feeling great and ready to train!

When I first stated taking it I was just mixing it with water. It worked really well. But I didn't get the unlimited energy until I started mixing it with gatoraid and a half scoop of whey protein. Now that I'm mixing it I literally feel like I could lift forever without any loss of performance or ability.

As much as I love Spark for training it's made the biggest difference in weightlifting meets. I used to start to crash hard after the snatch's. During the clean and jerks I'd feel so fatigued I just couldn't produce the effort to get anywhere near the results I knew I was capable of. Since taking Spark I never fatigue during the clean and jerks. EVER!

It wasn't until today I felt the downside of Spark. I forgot my mixture or Gatorade, whey protein, and Spark at home. By the time I was three quarters of the way through my workout I ran out of energy big time! I was struggling fierce. Training without it after feeling bullet proof during training for so long sucked.

I've been buying Spark off of Ebay for awhile now. I think it's time to get membership to Advocare. Buying my Spark directly through Advocare will be much cheaper.

Snatch high pulls and other weightlifting joys

Today I completed 4 sets of snatch high pulls at 90%. I LOVE snatch high pulls and clean high pulls! They're one of my favorite exercises of all time. When I first started weightlifting I hated any kind of high pulls. I sucked at them, and they completely exhausted me. Not only would high pulls tire me out for the rest of the workout, but I'd be physically wiped out the rest of the day too! It's amazing to me how the body can adapt if it's given the right stimuli.

I'm also amazed at how much more sleep I need now that I'm an olympic style weightlifter. Today after my workout I laid down to rest for a moment or two. I had no intention of falling asleep. I woke up 2 hours later. Since picking up weightlifting I sleep much more deeply. I never struggle to get to sleep and I rarely wake up during the night. I never needed this much sleep when i played football, trained MMA or triathlon.

Since the powerlifting meet I competed in a few weeks ago my elbows have been hurting when I do jerks or any kind of presses. I'm not sure what's going on there,  but I purchased a bottle of glucosamine chondroitin. Glucosamine really is a miracle drug. My Rottweiler used to run with me when I was a hard core triathlete. She'd average 25 miles a week. About the time she turned 7 her hips would hurt after long runs. I started giving her human grade Glucosamine and after a few weeks she never had problems with her hips ever again. On hindsight I suppose I should have started taking glucosamine as soon as I became really serious about weightlifting. Especially since I didn't pick the sport of weightlifting up until I was 38 years old.

weightlifting without supplements and too much work

I've been back, training again for two and a half weeks. My power exercises like squat, clean, and deadlift are back to where they were before my hiatus. But form exercises like snatch, jerk,  overhead squat,  etc are still bad. The New Mexico games are only four and a half weeks away. It'll be close if i can get my lifts back to where they were at my last meet in April.

I've been training consistently. Haven't missed a day since coming back. My diet has been good. I'm eating relatively healthy,  keeping my proteins up. I haven't been using supplements at all. No protein  powder after workouts, no glutamine,  or creatine. I wanted to take a break from them for a weightlifting cycle.

I've been working unbelievable amounts of hours at work. By July fifth i will have worked 5 weeks straight with only two days off, twelve to sixteen hours shifts each day. I'm tying to save up enough cash to move my family off of prison grounds,  buy a house, retire from the prison, and start another career. I'm so tired. I'm sure working this many hours is negatively affecting my weightlifting,  but I'm eager to start the next chapter of my life.