TRAINING LOG: Jeff Kaste

Longs Peak Scottish Irish Highland Festival, Estes Park, Colorado 

PROS: Spencer Tyler, Chuck Kasson, Luke Crowley, Beau Fay, Mike Dickens, Jeff Kaste, Nate Burchett, Damien Fisher, Jake Sullivan 

22# Braemar- 36'+ 

16# OStone- 47'2 

HWFD- 40'6 

LWFD- 80'5

Had another amazing trip to Estes Park this weekend. Got to hang with my boy Mike Wilder and his lady Dana who hosted me and drove me and fed me and in general were amazing human beings. But, onto my throws. 

Stones were good and bad. Braemar was bad. It's a good stone that I've gone 38' on more than once and this time, kept missing a good punch and managed only 36'. Which is garbage. But oh well. OStone was good because I glided! And I hit 47' which would usually be bad but for me this season is good. So I will keep the rhythm going into Loon with some glide action. I think I could snap a 49'-50' if I connect with one. 

Weights were good and bad too. HWFD I was fouled on my first which was not a foul but, judges call is final and it got in my head. Rookie move. Mustered a 40' on my last but in that group, it was a junk throw. LWFD was good as 80'+ is the best I've ever thrown Spuntik, the Estes LWFD. Of course, it was crap compared to Chuck and Burch who both went 88' but, I'm not them lol. 

Hammers were good! Heavy felt really good with 2 throws over 100' but I was looking for a PR and forced it a little too much. Light Hammer was nice. My second throw went 128' and with a 3/4 inch PVC handle which is a PR for that type of handle. Very excited. 

Caber was dumb. Should have turned it and I took it for granted. Moar focus. 

Sheaf was good and bad. Hit 27' on my last attempt and it had height for 30' but come 30' aim and height was off. One more sheafing this year before I overhaul the shit out of it. 

WOB was solid for this weight. It's a thick handle which I let get in my head the last 2 years, but this year it felt good and I kept peaking in front and landing it on the bar at 16'. I do think I'm finding my WOB groove again though. 16' at Loon. 

SO overall, I am happy with how I threw. Will need to really compete this weekend at Loon as it's going to practically be a World Championships. Every point is going to count. A few practices this week and a lift and it's on to my favorite games, LooN!

Warm Up 

Weights for distance and, occasionally, height

HWFD x10 best of 43'+ feet felt a little wonky but the pop was there

LWFD x10 best of 82'+ same as ^

WOB x7 just going for timing/feeling.

Hopefully some light stone and hammer tomorrow then done!

New Hampshire Highland Games, Lincoln, NH 

PROS: Mike Zolkiewicz, Heisi Giermundsson, Dan McKim, Matt Vincent, Matt Doherty, Andy Vincent, Craig Sinclair, Jeff Kaste, Scott Rider, Jeff Milliron, Spencer Tyler

HH: 100'.5 

16# OStone: 44'5

HWFD: 39'10.5 

Caber: 60 degrees 

WOB: 15' 

LH: 120'+ 

26# Braemar: 34'11.75 

LWFD: 79'9 

Overall: 9th 

Tough weekend for everyone number wise but I did myself no favors by throwing as poorly as I did. In this crowd I was hoping to perform well enough to grab 7th or 8th but I left a lot of points on the field in certain events. 

Hammers were ok. Heavy hammer felt like it was going to be a PR day but my SI joint/TFL locked up during it and was somewhat painful. Also kept releasing hammer toward the hillside which did me no favors. Still another games over 100' is good for me. Light hammer was feeling grand the next day but again, no good trajectory throws height wise or away from mountain wise. Left big time points on the field in both events. 

Stones. Oh stones. OStone hurt so so bad as it was most effected by my back locking up. Could not push off my right foot at all or stay back during the glide. Essentially armed out my throws. Oh well. Braemar was better because I loosened up over night. Not a bad put for me with this stone but not the best. 36'+ would have really helped.

Weights were so so. HWFD really let me down, first time in a while. Everything felt weird. LWFD felt fine but I wasted 2 attempts with bad form. 

Everything else was as expected. Excited to throw at Loon again as it's my favorite games ever and I want tot hank Bill and Holly Crawford for having me again. 

Celtic this weekend and it's the last. Gotta make it count. Recovery work all week then go time!

Celtic Classic US National Championships, Bethlehem, PA 

PROS: Mike Zolkiewicz, John Pilling, Jeff Kaste, Jake Sullivan, Eric Frasure, Nathan Burchett, Matt Vincent, Chuck Kasson, Spencer Tyler, Dan McKim 

22# Hammer- 96'5 

24# Braemar- 36'8 

HWFD- 40'5 

Sheaf- 27' 

Caber- 65 degrees 

16# Hammer- 116'1 

OStone- 46'5 

LWFD- 75'2 

WOB- 15'

Overall: 8th 

Qualifying for this games was the last of my goals I wanted to achieve as a Highland Games pro. I was absolutely thrilled to go and throw with the best in the USA. I went into this games with the mind set that I am seeded 10th and any place I get better than that is a positive and to keep the positivity flowing. 

I threw alright in all events but absolutely left a number of points on the field that definitely could have earned me 7th place and maybe 6th. That being said, for the field conditions (the field is a mound and hammers were thrown uphill, but everything else was fairly flat) I am ok with how I did. The length of the season definitely reared it's ugly head this weekend and despite feeling good pain/body wise, my pop, timing, and strength were not there.  Fouled a few throws that would have helped too (one LWFD, and had all kinds of height on sheaf at 30' but just outside) but in the end I am proud to have placed 8th. 

It was an absolute blast being treated like a celebrity as well. You get this at most games but at Celtic, more than ever do you feel like a rock star. It's truly something awesome (although I don't think I could do it all the time) 

Will recap the season (maybe) later and get back into training after this week. Just going to do some recovery stuff maybe a little BB to keep myself sane and then plan my offseason. 

My hat is off to Celtic Classic and to the 2016. It has been a doozy and I cant wait for the next one!

POSTober Week 1 Day 3 

Warm Up (glutes, hips, shoulders) 

Power Clean from Floor 

135x4, 135x4, 185x4, 225x4, 225x4 working on form and driving knees out during pull (they always cave in, so dumb) 

OHP W/ Swiss Bar + Chest Supported Rows (for rhomboids!) 

75x8, 95x8, 105x8, 125x8/4x10 @ 45s so hard....

Sumo Dead Lift + Rear Delt Flys (Don't judge me for sumos, it's purely weakness related) 

185x10, 185x10, 185x10/3x15 @ 85# 

Reverse Hypers + Belt Squat Marches 

3x12/3x50 w/30 second glute squeeze at the end 

Triceps Extensions + TFL roll out on PVC

3x15 

Did all this in about an hour and 15, sweating so bad. Back feels amazing!

Postober Week 2 Day 2 

Warm Up 

BB Bent over Rows 

135x8, 135x8, 185x8, 225x8, 225x8, 225x8, 225x8 

Hammer Strength Seated Shoulder Press + Machine Rows 

3x20 @ 90# / 3x12 @ 230* all reps done with a 2 second pause

Cable Face Pulls + DB Chest Supported Y's 

3x15 / 3x12 @ 10's 

BB Curls + DB Curls 

3x12 @ 80 / 3x12 @ 30s 

Feelin very good lately. My Legs have stopped bowing in so much as my IT bands and TFLs let go of their icy grip on my hips. Back feels good, hunch is diminishing. I think another 2 weeks of this will set me up nicely to start training regularly once more!

Postober Week 3 Day 1 

Warm Up 

Snatch Grip Deads 

135x5, *add 120# of chains 135x5, 225x5, 315x5, 315x5, 315x5, 315x5 whew, these were hard. 

SSB Good Mornings from Bars / DB Rhomboid Rows @ 60s 

4x10 @ 115 / 4x10 

BB Glute Bridge / Dead Bugs 

4x12 @ 135/155 / 100 total reps it's becoming increasingly obvious my core and glutes are weak. The BB bridges, while moving well, I felt the burn and they got hard after rep 8. Gotta keep up with these. 

Reverse Hypers 

3x15 heavier than normal. 

Throwing!! 

16# Stone 

Stands x8 best of 43' lol

Glides x8 best of 48' not bad! Working on my non-reverse trying to channel my inner Lukasz Wenta. I may be giving on MSA. 

HWFD x7 best of 42' ha, not bad. 

16# Hammer x7 best of 125' lol 

Honestly pretty surprised with the numbers, pleasantly surprised! With no squats in over a month or benching, my throws were good! Might try to get out 1-2 times a month to keep my throwing in tact until the snow sets in. Should prove interesting. 

Postober Week 4 Day 1 

Warm Up 

Snatch Grip Deads 

135x5, *add 120# chains, 135x5, 225x3, 225x3, 315x3, 365x1, 385x1, 405x1 Not bad! Around 520 or so at the top (some chain links were still on ground) Feeling confident about these. 

SSB Good Mornings From Spotters 

115x10, 135x10, 155x10 holy gawd roasting my glutes and hams 

RDL from 4" Deficit / DB Rhomboid Row Holds (6-8 second holds) 

225x8, 255x8, 275x8 / 55sx5, 55sx5, 55sx5 

BB Glute Bridges / Hamstring Curls 

135x10, 185x10, 185x10 / 3x12 figuring out the bridges. Putting myself into a posterior tilt during the movement really exposes the weakness. My right glute specifically which is weird because I'm a righty. 

Reverse Hypers / Dead Bugs / Foam Rolling 

3x10 / 120 reps / 3x30 seconds per leg on quads

Postober Week 4 Day 3

Warm Up 

Axel Push Press / Shoulder Harness Sled Drags @ 180#

75x5(strict), 115x5(strict), 145x3, 175x3, 205x3, 205x3, 205x3, 205x3, 205x3, 225x1, 255x1 these felt great! / 50yds x1, 50ydsx1, 50yd x1, 50yds x1

Sumo Deads / Back extensions w/orange band 

135x8, 225x8, 275x8, 295x8, 315x8 / 1x10, 1x10, 1x10 

BB Glute Bridge / Rear Dealt Flys 

135x10, 185x10, 185x10, 205x10 / 4x12

Reverse Hypers / Planks 

3x10 / 3x 30seconds 

Well, Postober is over. It was a success in my eyes because it really helped identify what I refused to believe previous: I'm all eff'd up. Hopefully the head start on my posterior chain strength and balancing my body will help as I begin my true off season training next week. Squats will hurt but I'm going to start with light eccentric sets really working on form and proper hip placement. 

Good times ahead. 

Warm Up 

Z Press w/ Swiss Bar 

85x5, 105x5, 125x5, 125x5, 125x5, 125x5, 125x5 These were hard to keep close to my face but if I did, they went up alright. Shoulder strength is going slow but steady. 

Swiss Bar Bent Over Rows 

135x8, 185x8, 225x8, 225x8, 225x8 

Incline Bench 

135x5, 155x5, 175x5, 185x5, 205x5 these were hard. Biceps tendonitis still hurty when doing these but Im going to work on it. May be the only benching I do from here on out. 

Hammer Strength Shoulder Press / Face Pulls 

3x15 up to 70 per arm / 3x12 good pump going here 

DB Shoulder Raises / Triceps Push Down / DB Curls 

3x10 / 3x15 / 3x6 @ 40s, 50s, and 60s 

DB Curls Palms up, slow tempo / Dead Bugs 

3x10 @ 25s / 120 reps total