Month: April 2024

4/20/24
I was on the note of shot put in yesterday’s post, in fact was thinking of it during the second session last night as I rammed that 35lb kettlebell into the sky.

Right hand. Strong side. The side I put the shot with for a few years of high school.

I genuinely wonder ;
•”what if I’d lifted kettlebells then”
•”what if I bought an adult men’s shot and threw now”

…..

Wow!

It’s an angle I don’t usually catch in the mirror – I was brushing my teeth, caught my arm bent at 90° saw how my forearm and bicep come together WOW – HYPERTROPHY

lesson : continue kettlebell

…..

My buddy canceled the am outdoor workout – doesn’t want to be rained on.

So I won’t be doing weighted pushups today ☹️

(genuine sad face – I’d have gotten a decent number of reps with him standing on my upper back – been feeling strong on my (mostly untrained horizontal push), would’ve ran the camera leaned against gallon jug, ball cap providing cover over phone by being sat upon gallon jug of precious precious H2O/agua/вода/water))

But do I lift? lol
(you already know the answer)

……

Pushups as the birds start to chirp.

…..

I’m like a little kid, lifted/pressed/filmed, and had a blast – GOT SOAKED – still dribbled the soccer ball too (while wearing snow boots which meant I tried from the knees some in addition to the feet)

The WORST soccer ball dribbling in days lol (of course – snow boots, soft ground, etc
L O L)

One video of a bunch of thing as far as tricks and juggling with the 16kg kettlebell.

One short of bottoms up clean 10x40kg right (today to ig, on yt soon)

One short of 40kg snatch and hold (vertical anchor) left while leveling my teeny tiny itty bitty weight (8lb) sledgehammer to nose from both the front and to the side.

I’m rather wet – mostly soaked through, and muddy in patches up and down both my hoodie and sweats.

I had a blast, then did the video editing (sitting outside – try to maximize fresh air in your life (it’s good for ya))

Productive Saturday.

…..

Six hours later (after a nice sleep) it isn’t raining, and the ground has dried up enough 🙂 – I went outside for a playful minisession of more soccer ball and light kettlebell stuff.

Mostly 5ct, 6ct – doing decent with foot to foot, the best was an 11ct this again mostly foot to foot.

With the 16kg bell I did mostly those pull with one hand then catch at rack with other and press transitions – did both normal c&p and buc&p like this.

Heavy buc&p would be pretty cool like this.
Competition bells might be better as each side is identical, and with the bells I have I have one perfectly round faced, one with two flats (the best design) and most with one flat, one round face.

……

The leverages of tossing a bell from bottoms up then catching it bottoms up in the opposite hand are pretty challenging – you’ll end up using legs, and a lot of midsection to stabilize anything not caught in the perfect groove.

I get out of breath fast with this freestyle kettlebell stuff.

Even with only 35lbs (16kg) it’s quite challenging.

This session I was trying to nose breathe, to mosey along at a slow enough pace to continue doing so, and had a real slap in the face realization as to how an aerobic base, being in shape, and conditioning allow for the ability to practice physical skills with more density and intensity.

My teenage self would be impressed with how strong I’ve gotten with weights alongside my level of shoulder girdle development (like I pictured at my start in the school weight room) but absolutely disgusted at the lack of conditioning of my present.

I do know this however ; the fact I’m doing something, and always have done something – consistently, is a big plus.

Take some weight off and the conditioning may be there just due to the ease that a lighter bodyweight functions at.

I’m genuinely enjoying this all again.

…..

There’s much value to being physical all day long like in manual labor, and too there is value to instead of having one big chunk of time as training period to instead have multiple, as many as possible, minisessions throughout the day.

The body stays primed that way, stays ready to perform.

When you’re physical often the body just doesn’t need as much warming up, coddling, perfect conditions to perform.

…..

Third session/minisession :

Clean 40kg
x7/side
x15 left
Press 16kg
x10,5,5/side

then a bit more soccer ball

My hips are getting stronger, and my agility increasing from this – which is as simple as trying to keep a soccer ball in control and in the air.

We need more physicality as adults.

There’s no longer ultimate frisbee at that park (would I be able to restart it)

Basketball? I haven’t played in most of a decade (I can recall playing at 21).

Soccer? Where would an adult league be?
Rugby? That’s available soon.

Heck, even if it’s just me kicking around a ball it’s better than just sitting around.

I feel that I’ve an impressive bunch of qualities coming together – just work on them all, consistently, make it happen.

•heavy kettlebells
•handstand stuff
•mile run
•zercher
•soccer ball
•sledgehammer levering
•gripper

Just do them all, you’ll succeed.

…..

Training changes the equation.

If one played sports in high school, but stopped being very physical in adulthood – their sports playing bodyweight really ends up being their largest athletic size.

Dudes may gain weight, but it’s a +50lbs of fat type equation like the guy who played high school football at a fit 180, and by early twenties is walking around with his beer moobs at 220 or 230

Flipside those who need some muscle, never built it – they’re the ones who need it as they age.

I don’t see how the conclusion of inevitable horrible aging is reached.

Why are you choosing pain?

Do you not see a lifetime of television got you to “losing it” (the it you really never developed) and that even now maybe, just maybe, strength training would make a difference.

I think it’s medical malpractice that strength training, even just a milquetoast two day a week thing, isn’t standard medical recommendation.

But the norm is to be unhealthy, the cultural expectation to do anything but really opt into living, the…

Half the country says you can have weed for everything, but doctors can’t tell everyone to back squat?

Strength training changes the equation.

35lbs isn’t much, but really any man who just plays with a 16kg kettlebell on a regular basis would age pretty well.

That’s the power of kettlebell juggling as I see it ; playful, builds you strong enough with wind, is a <$100 one time cost – what’s your excuse?
Throw around a 16kg/35lb kettlebell.

The ballistics would be more strength than he needs for his job (most likely, and yes there are definitely exceptions) and definitely for the yard work, shoveling snow type takes that many (or maybe not many) do.

Yeah I’m gonna branch off on that note ; when I’d visit california in youth after moving to new england I couldn’t help but notice how much tougher I seemed than the suburban kids there solely by little bits of backyard pickup sports and winter snow shoveling.

An aunt’s husband, like 65, did everything within his power to NOT shovel, had those silly shovels with a bend in them, when he finally HAD to shovel it’d be done at the saddest half assed pace imaginable, eventually I’d probably do it – took longer to get over there than to shovel, they had not much driveway, perfectly flat, it was EASY.

Often it’s nice to power through work.
Props to my dad. He’s like that. Powers through, gets it done FAST.
Yard work with him taught me a lot.
Thank you.

Back to that uncle, and the culture at large ;
the lengths that people go to not get five minutes of exercise. Scratches my head.

And a piece of advice ; play catch.
Catch makes you move around in an athletic manner, plus it’s good fun, outside, a bunch of positive things you need.

Persistence & Tenacity

4/19/24
I’m typing this upon laying down for the night, inadvertently having skipped horse stance – not getting out from under the blanket to do so…

And I only realized I didn’t do horse stance cause of how sore my quads are.

Must’ve put a lot of quads into yesterday’s kettlebell cleans.

I can’t wait til today’s lift, and that’s a great thing – it’s total passion for lifting again.

It’s for the kettlebell.
I wouldn’t have expected that even a year ago.
Life.

I can see heavy kettlebell lifting on youtube being monetized and changing my life.

…..

Today’s Lift :
highly unstructured, I simply played in an almost circuit of 95lb barbell, 40kg kettlebell, 20kg kettlebell, and soccer ball

not every workout needs a program, a plan, etc – it’s not like I’m weak with 95lb bb oasn, every kettlebell variant done, and lacking athleticism by tapping a soccer ball in the air repeatedly

soccer ball 17ct is probably PR, definitely my best set with a good deal of foot to foot

to a beach boys playlist – fun
the session just over forty five minutes

ended the workout by curl throwing the 12lb shot hand to hand.

…..

While I’ll probably cook the sausage & eggs and/or onions tonight, tonight is “cheat meal” I’ve a frozen pizza about to cook, and am drinking strawberry lemonade.

I know lemonade in every variant is basically just water, a little fruit juice(s) and a decent bit of sugar but dang do I find it very freshing and hydrating.

In warm months I used to drink it between work and the gym.

Tonight?
As the pizza cooks between minisessions.

…..

I may need to drop the intermittent fasting for a while.

I was wrecked by that session, and most of the way through that bottle of lemonade thought “maybe I shouldn’t have this much sugar, but instead eat mixed macro food”.

(like philly cheese steaks)

…..

A 16oz tall jar of honey roasted peanuts is $3 (yep, it too has been hit by inflation), but still it’s over 40g protein per dollar, and it’s ready to eat.

•not keto
•not carnivore
(probably not vegan)•
•nutritious
•travels well

…..

After dark minisession ; 16kg kettlebell, playing around with c&p, pyramiding 1-5-1 the press(es) with a clean every “set”, then switch sides, some bup, some c&p with h2h transfers between hands, some playing around with more complicated transfers like at the very bottom and the one hand pull, other catch at rack transfers.

Around 50, 60 presses/side total.

…..

Showering up I notice my quads are highly activated, somewhat sore, somewhat fatigued (and totally forgetting they were sore earlier).

Is it kettlebell one arm cleans?
Is it the soccer ball dribbling?
Is it the little bit of agility and heavy footed jogging around after the kicked soccer ball?

Shrugs. I just noticed it.
Seems one arm cleans & all the counts of soccer ball dribbling are more quad stimulus than expected.

…..

Man are my abs wrecked.
That first session did it.

Barbell one arm snatch, kettlebell overhead both size bells – every variant, kettlebell at rack (especially that 40kg rack carry or the five steps you took with the 40kg bottoms up rack carry before it fell lol), keeping a leg in air/moving a leg up in air to dribble the soccer ball – ALL ABS!

Then I did that second session, really a minisession, with the 16kg bell.

And tomorrow I’m going to have a 150lb ish buddy standing on my back for weighted pushups

Note : LONG pushup position planks weighted like that are about the hardest ab workout you could do (speaking from experience (though it was one of his similar sized buddies as he ran the timer))

Persistence & Tenacity

ugly woman – (jimmy soul) apparently not harry belafonte

4/18/24
It’s minutes after midnight, I just did the first russian lesson of the day on duolingo.

My neck, lats, traps, all feel pumped.
For as midnight had struck, from about fifteen seconds before to about five seconds after I was doing a set of strict pushups.

25 reps in twenty seconds.
They were crisp. All the pressing has me dialed in for when I do reasonably controlled and strict pushup reps.

Half an hour earlier upon stepping out of the shower I was flexing and stretching my neck admiring it in the bathroom mirror. (pure vanity/narcissism)

Four directional/four way flexing (and dynamic tension), rotations to relax, maybe a most muscular or three, more neck work – pumping it up.

I think of these as free hand neck work, and with pushups they’re a surprisingly good little routine.

If you want to include the lower body you slowly extend a side kick, then hold it there – hip flexors mostly or whatever.
They’re fun to do.
(especially if there’s a full body mirror – ah all those weird hour extra workouts)

Or include horse stance.
Very simple.
No equipment.
These will carry you far.

…..

Why an extra little workout before a late night meal?

Why work on a language you may never use?

Isn’t it all so obvious yet.
We can’t just exist. There was, maybe it’s a lost concept, of the renaissance man.

To be everything. Well rounded, to he both physical & intellectual.

It needn’t be approved either.
I’ve no college education. I’ve no fitness certification.

This is all a journey in independent self betterment, and at times greatly I fear that both I’m not doing enough, and that I won’t ever get anywhere with any of this.

See my russian isn’t.
I know little more than an introduction, and years of minutes a day may, just barely, maybe know the АЬВs (that’s a latin s after the cyrillic)

…..

Cool video for the day taken in the morning.

Last night my subscriber count passed my bodyweight if barely at 290 subscribers vs 289lbs scale (I checked…also had been waiting a month or so to be able to say that).

I did a variation I hadn’t before ; one bell, 40kg, clean & press every rep style.
Got 10x40kg right.

Maybe later I even out the volume left hand
lol – no matter

Solid session.
More importantly from that one set I felt solid.
40kg is nowhere near my limit.
I’ll go way further.
Weight. Reps.

It’s gonna be epic.

And note ; one moderate to heavy bell, clean & press = one unit, solid, strong for life.
It’s all you need.

…..

Soccer ball, and left hand c&p (it was HARD to press), then some cleans ;

C&P
2x40kg left
Cleans
12x40kg left
12x40kg right
8x40kg left

The final set done with three deep breaths at rack between reps for more time under tension.

My left hand is getting locked in “the claw”.
Both biceps are smoked.
You push the clean reps, remember a year ago having 10 pullups?

That was off of some 32kg clean sets at 10-20 reps.

Imagine high rep 40kg cleans, and 2h swings as part of your normal training rotation.

That’s a lot of lat and bicep incidental work, the oft toted kettlebell wth effect at play.

And note ; nothing trains biceps like high rep kettlebell one arm cleans.

…..

It’d be wild to get the one arm press to 150+ while getting bodyweight down closer to 200 than 300.

I’m in a real good place now, physically I’m so close to performing strongman.

…..

Pushups pretty early, before midday.
Man! When my buddy and I meet up I’ll be getting some reps of weighted pushups with him standing on my back.

I feel strong.

…..

Neither did I run to the store, nor did I cook up the smaller sausages in the fridge, so it was more carbs than anything today.

The worst day from a nutritional standpoint in weeks.

A couple of bowls of chip type snacks, a bowl of rice with cheese, a couple corn dogs that were in the freezer, a couple slices of american cheese, a can of iced tea, a small amount of milk (so as to not run out of milk), etc.

It’s better to eat meat, with saturated fat.
This requires cooking.

Ergo it’s better to cook!

Tomorrow I’ll be making a batch of sausage, maybe what’s in the fridge – I’m thinking I’ll bake them a bit, then crack a lot of eggs in the pan, have sausage & eggs in easy bulk prep.

I’ve never cooked eggs in the oven before, but if people make quiche why can’t the oven be used for meat and fried egg one pan meals.

(I did a bit of googling, that’s why I think I’ll cook the meat most of the cook time independently, then add eggs – it’s gonna be good, and as far as strength and body comp could be a game changer)

…..

I gotta wonder what I could kettlebell as maxes.

Intuitively, I know I’d rep a 60kg one arm clean.
Right hand definitely. Left hand iffy.

When you’re starting to talk of using these equivalent to human weight bells, you start to realize just how strong kettlebells will make you.

Even if it’s not world’s strongest man implements and weights.

Plenty real world strong.
Plenty gym strong.
Strong. Conditioned.

Maybe a strongman anyway.

Persistence & Tenacity

“Zero Equipment Grip Training” :

In 2015 I did a lot of this stuff ;

•open the hand for high reps
•open the hand and flex, trying to made your hand as wide as possible

The high rep hand opening is good for getting blood flow into the forearm, which means down the limb – blood flow at the extremities from ankle or wrist movement is a prehab/rehab thing too for the joints up the chain.

It’s supposed to be good for joint health to train the hand extensors in addition to all the closing that is grip training, lifting, calisthenics, training in general

•levering
•wrist curls
•reverse wrist curls

These can be four directional flexing or can be done as manual resistance, one hand pressing against the lever/curl of the other.

•fist – make a tight fist
•pinch/squeeze – can flex at any hand angle

Honestly you’ll be able to improvise stuff here, doorways, random stuff in the house (initially I meant to isometric squeeze against, but I had fun for a time doing a martial arts inspired thing with a wok that looked kinda like kettlebell juggling).

•squeezing the thumb – against manual resistance, against a desk,

And no one does enough hangs or hanging hand walks.

…..

“Thoughts On Steroids & Potential” :

You can only take accusations of steroid use as a compliment, as really what the accuser is saying is that you’re so awesome they don’t think you could do it on your own.

Personally it bothers me how quickly this accusation can be made, as it’s said more often about people that don’t look like ronnie coleman in his prime than do.

The bar for the accusations is incredibly low.

The potential for human performance is so much greater.

See, while most aren’t all that impressive – this isn’t a lacking of genetic potential it’s a dysfunction in lifestyle, choice and action.

Every living, breathing human COULD be able to jump at a decent level, sprint at a decent level, and lift full body workouts, maybe not at a powerlifter 800lb raw squat level, but decent levels of strength shown on a train every day basis.

“You can’t ___ every day.”
You can’t unless you try.
I prefer daily lifts, always have – and it seems I’ve never shriveled up from overtraining either.

Years ago I wrote (paraphrased) “I’d love to be the only natural training with those on steroids – I’d take it as a personal challenge to try to run THEM into the ground with volume, work pace/training density, high frequency”.

My sentiments haven’t changed.

Go be better than you are!
Our ancestors got us here, means we all have caveman blood!
We all, naturally, are ruggedly vital.

Act like it.

…..

Random Jots :

I realized I could muscle out weight plates, as an old timey, high activation exercise.

…..

I pressed a rock.
It was a harder, long way, one arm press.

(this was at the local dump, the older woman next to us got a kick out of it I’d say – it was more rounded, thus easier, even if a tad heavier than my yard rock – no clue the weight, I’ll never see the rock again – I also shot put a 8ish lb rock left handed too – even stevens lol)

…..

I juggled my 12lb shot put, throwing and catching it in alternating hands from a curl.

Did 4x :30 work/:30 rest and just held the shot for the rests from the top sort of like a pinch grip.

(some doms from this late night btw – I may include it regularly for a time)

BUC&P
25x16kg right
27x16kg left

I love this manner of training, it’s just an honest moment of work that I enjoy – the right hand set I tried not counting seeing where I’d naturally stop with forearm fatigue, the left hand I counted reps to guarantee a PR for the camera.

…..

Soccer Ball :
After I uploaded the day’s lift.

Less than five minutes, stopped for ten, did a couple more then…

Drink a can of iced tea.
Took out the barbell 😁👊👍

95lbs
Let’s mix this with one arm snatches…
And put on the beatles.

Let’s have some fun with this!

(this is the forte of at home training – kettlebell, soccer ball, one arm barbell, rocks, etc – mixing it all by feel)

10×1/side on those one arm snatches

That was good for another forty or more minutes outside, switched from beatles to a 2015 country music playlist, and I just had a blast with the barbell and soccer ball.

2015 country music seen here :

little bit of you – chase bryant

Got a laugh out of a couple walking by, they said “oh, gym outside” and “nice set up”, my reply “state of the art” with a big smile on my face.

And why wouldn’t I be smiling?

I was having a blast, music going, a bit of a sweat going under my hoodie, kicking around a soccer ball, and hitting some one arms snatches thinking to myself “I could get this to 185, 225lbs”, just in an absolutely good place enjoying myself in the moment.

…..

I realize that it’s not far for me to have a handful of performing strongman abilities.

•bottoms up press
•kettlebell juggling
•sledgehammer levering
•handstand (develop freestanding hspu and hs walk AT THIS SIZE)
•barbell one arm snatch

As I get those things developed more ; then add more, frying pan rolling, card tearing, etc

I realized with the barbell one arm snatch today, that I play with 95lbs and have done 135lbs on a handful of occasions.

A year or so back I’d bought a barbell and bumpers to be able to make 165lbs with this as one of the things in mind.

It makes sense to train these frequently, for power, and to start getting up there in poundage.

95lbs to 165lbs is a 70lb difference.
At a jump of 5lbs a week it’s 14 weeks, while upping the weight 10lbs a week is 7 weeks.

Sample Session Idea ;
•one set/side high rep, light, buc&p 16kg
•barbell one arm snatch, 5-10×1/side, long rest periods mixing in soccer ball dribbling
•handstand practice, maybe soccer ball mixed in, and this with optional heavy kettlebell – front squats, 2h swing, bottoms up clean

Handstands and 2h swings seem a good pair, like pullup training without the pullups.

Persistence & Tenacity

P.S. After lots of lifting I typed a bunch with intermittent sets of strict pushups throughout.

I say the overhead pressing and pushups feed into each other nicely.

(a lot of pics in this one 🙂)

4/16/24
Lunch hour lift, one set, right hand – bottoms up clean & press 26x16kg, one set left hand 15x16kg.

PR set right, followed by a purposely moderate effort set left handed.

My fingers cramped partially curled shut strongly on the right hand set.
The limitation on the high reps this light is grip endurance.

A handful of months of this progression, and I’m going to have some serious forearm development.

Lots of reps. Lots of volume.
A contrarian kettlebell way of bodybuilding.

It’ll likely transfer to sledgehammer levering whether I practice them or not.

Soccer ball immediately after the kettlebell.
Such a fun combination.

Hoodie on, skullcap off for kettlebell.
Skullcap on, hoodie off for soccer ball.
(keep my head from burning, while getting lots of vitamin d this way)

I tried ladders like from kettlebell with the soccer ball dribbling.

Bounce it, 1ct left, bounce it, 1ct right, bounce it, 2ct, etc.
Pretty much only would get to 3s, but that’s improvement with the left foot.
And plus this is ALL skill improvement, and keeps me on my feet, active, in the fresh air, and today the sun.

About twenty minutes of soccer ball.

…..

Online I see a lot of this term “hybrid athlete”, it’s strikes me as funny (yet again) that everything has to have a trendy name.

Firstly are any of these “hybrid athletes” actually professional or are they all just internet famous (like admittedly I desire to be), and secondly what ever happened to just being like “yeah I didn’t make it in sports in my youth, so in adulthood I’m just gonna make myself an all around athlete that I should’ve done earlier cause we’re human and meant to be active”.

Just be athletic.
No need to name it.

Run, sprint, or play a sport.
Do some burpees and jump rope.
Lift kettlebells in every manner.
Lift weights if you desire.
Jump, or play a sport.
Grapple. Box. Or don’t.

Why’s it need an internet name?

I’ll be outside kicking the soccer ball and pressing the kettlebell.

…..

It’s still cold at nights but is getting warm during the day.

I’ve tended to sleep overdressed, heck training overdressed too.

Long sleeve shirt and skull cap to bed.
Hoodie on while I lift, though I pull it off to kick around the soccer ball.

Maybe I’m sweating more with the sleeves on, but I notice in the mornings that I look, leaner, sucked up, like the more fat in my diet, and just goofing around with the kettlebell and soccer ball is working for being on the path to getting lean.

…..

Pressed the rock right handed on the flat again, reps were only 5, while 10 is PR, I’ve gotten into the heavy pressing “dark times” ala john broz now on both sides lol.

That’s why high rep 16kg buc&p is the primary press for a time.
I’ll continue to press daily.

…..

Early dinner ; 10 chocolate covered coffee beans, 2 slices american cheese.

(I consider this a snack that is on diet on the sausage & onions diet, though I doubled up the initial portion – got to feel the caffeine, again, as I’m a squirrel with no caffeine tolerance)

…..

BUCP
10+10+5+3+2/side w/16kg
alternating hands, unbroken – one long set, h2h swing as transfer, 30/side, 60 reps c&p total

maybe I’m greasing the groove here, or maybe I just love the minisessions

ended it with a bit extra soccer dribbling, got decent cardio effect from 60 reps of clean & press – good wind, good pump, it’s fine that it’s “only” 35lbs

And a bit more soccer ball after a little bit of yard work, and after those…a few handstand attempts.

I think a month of grinding handstands an hour a day would build something.

Working on freestanding handstands daily, and on wall hspu twice a week or so could easily be “heavy press” to go with the volume buc&p at 16kg, could alternate handstands with soccer ball dribbling as active recovery for each, and really…why am I not doing a bunch of 2h swings with my 40kg bell?

I could easily set up a few stations, jog between them, get all my strength and conditioning done together.

But, know this ; I can get to be a performing strongman with the continued bottoms up press, kettlebell juggling, and with the addition of sledgehammer levering.

…..

Oh man what a good hearty robust dinner!
A big baked potato chopped up, mexican mix cheese atop it, then the sausage & onions mix atop that.

Milk to drink.

A big bowl may not be the fanciest presentation, and I’d rather home fries than a baked potato (though that’s more prep involved) but this my friends is a good meal.

…..

It’s really getting in my head that I can do performing strongman with the kettlebell, sledgehammer, handstands – that I’m not too far from there.

…..

So much of this bottoms up work leaves me with upper back cramps come evening…

= Gains

The set of 60 bucp was mint, may have to train long sets ala the bastard child of hardstyle and girevoy with it.

The left mobility is a limitation on heavy, hence the long progression starting at 16kg, before the 20kg, then the 24 & 28 purchase.

…..

Late night, just after the night’s pushups, just before showering up – I again, after having eaten the sausage & onions meal within the past hour or two, look monstrous!

Persistence & Tenacity

P.S. Man! Looking in the mirror, that forearm development is new! High rep bottoms up clean & press baby!

I highly suggest it.

4/15/24
Mostly I eat dinner.

Dinner is supposed to be sausage & onions – I’ve not yet locked in the discipline.

What has been happening lately is a big serving of meat for dinner, probably a quart of milk, and some form of a few hundred calories of chocolate for dessert.

If I’m ravenous I’ll eat some smaller serving of carbs, probably with milk, as a midnight snack.

Lately it’s been close to one meal a day, tends towards that way.
I simply don’t like eating often.

And despite that – getting in plenty IS NOT an issue, cause think about it I’m 6′ 290.
No one gets this size without knowing how to put down food, and having done so repeatedly for lengths of time.

A contrast that, I don’t like eating often, yet can eat big, and am big.

……

Sausage & onions requires prepping in batches.

A meal of ground beef or eggs is simple to just whip up when needed.

I’ve mentally decided that I’m going to go with the buc&p 16kg idea.

That most pressing for a time is going to be light while still training daily, and that I’ll shift priority to barbell one arm snatch as the “heavy” lift.

The buc&p is looking for a set of 50x16kg.
That’s a lot of stimulus.

35lbs is light they say.
I say do 50 unbroken reps of bottoms up clean and press.
Thus far I’m at like 20, maybe 25. It’s surprisingly good stimulus.
Lots of upper back, lots of the sides, plenty of pressing for the time – my wrist must be solid, my grip endurance will improve.

…..

Maybe I’ll make these purchases ;
•stuff to rebuild heavy sandbag
•HEAVY sledgehammer (20lber)

I genuinely can see myself getting down a handful of performing strongman type skills, and alongside the kettlebell making it like that.

My 30th birthday approaches, and I can’t see myself just existing – passion has to be involved in my day to day, in my vocation, to have an existence worth writing down.

That might’ve been the major lesson of my twenties, to not just exist at jobs year after year, to go do something cool, unique, that fits me.

(not that I wouldn’t work say firefighting should the opportunity…)

…..

The rock stays outside, while the light 16kg buc&p is the EASIEST logistical thing ever (as small bell = can go to parks easily, not just yard liftin), and it’s gonna be fun to really make a run at a heavy barbell one arm snatch.

I may put priority on the left arm with it, solely as I had been putting more priority in the right during at the pressing these past six months.

It’s days to the six month mark, and I truly have overhead pressed in some capacity every day.

…..

What would it take to clean & press 300lbs? 315lbs?

…..

Today’s Lift :

BUC&P
25x16kg right
20x16kg left

This is the new main training.
Sometimes I’ll barbell one arm snatch looking for bigger #s, though daily or near it I’ll be using the high rep bottoms up kettlebell.

Continuing with daily pressing in this capacity.

Build back up to higher bup #s this way.
Get some serious forearm development and wind this way.

Soccer ball immediately after, only six or seven minutes – got a handful of 7ct, maybe an 8ct, and had one that was foot to foot, pretty well under control.

Half a month, minutes to an hour a day, and the skill is getting better.

Maybe handstand needs this treatment again. I do want handstand walks and a freestanding hspu – I don’t care how heavy I am.

But bucp/buc&p is the main movement, the skill stuff alongside kettlebell primary training is an awesome mix, and already I feel that the buc&p is going to carryover to both pullups and sledgehammer levering naturally in true kettlebell wth effect fashion.

…..

Finally cooked up the next batch of sausage & onions.

Mind you I microwaved a little with some rice as I had the batch in the oven, otherwise it’s 2lbs of kielbasa, 2lbs of a “philly cheese steak” sausage (which tastes phenomenal cooked up), and just one onion, a little flour in the pan to sop up the fats.

Next time I may try cooking it in the oven with spuds/instant mashed potatoes in the pan to sop up the fat.
Potato is better than wheat.

Two to three days of food is prepped…

If I was a sponsored athlete I’d seriously want old neighborhood as one – I eat a lot of their sausages, then got milk cause I’ve lived a long time on dairy as a connoisseur of milk.

As I was lifting and kicking the soccer ball around today I had a realization that this’ll
melt the fat off of me.

It’s a funny thought ; to be asked how you got lean and answer “I lifted kettlebells for five to twenty minutes a day, then spent time dribbling a soccer ball to develop a skill – it was enough activity to do so”.

…..

The sausage & onions works for me.

Long have I found that a certain amount of saturated fat, and I just feel more…vital.

It’s actually in contrast to some other experiences.

I remember for a long time I didn’t want to eat much pizza as usually, most pizza places, it just felt too greasy to me, yet the ingredients really are the same saturated fat.

Heck, any amount of soybean oil is too greasy like that. Living on restaurant food ain’t healthy.

I experienced it as a line cook, really cutting my grocery costs with an employee meal every shift and by saving any food waste (basically carbs getting tossed at the end of the night went home with me – LOTS of greasy soybean oil laden rice).

The burger last night, wasting no drippings of just under 1¼lbs of 80/20 ground beef – the meal was too greasy in the end.

I don’t find that happens with steak or sausage.

And as said above I just feel good with the high fat of them.

“Bodybuilding By Bratwurst”
(cool ring go that, though in reality it’s heavily slanted kielbasa)

Persistence & Tenacity

4/14/24
How long would I go without pulling a single deadlift?

How long would I be willing to train the deadlift, and secondly would it be every day?

Looking at my back development from the kettlebell I can’t think anything other than that my deadlift must be up, so we revert back to the above questions.

At 6′ 290lbs, it’d be both nothing, and a lifetime PR to pull 600lbs, and I do have the equipment for it.

Have you read that Bill Starr article about no deadlift deadlift training?
Louie Simmons too said similar.

Wow, R.I.P. both.
In my early twenties I thought I’d meet Louie someday.

Right now I’ve interest in a handful of lifts ;
•kettlebell buc&p
•kettlebell 2h swing
•barbell one arm snatch
•barbell one arm press

Basically I’d be continuing to build the deadlift without training it.

It’d make sense to add in deadlifts, whether for reps or as speed pulls – it’d likely only be light in addition to the main four lifts above, and I wouldn’t really have any interest in pulling mixed grip at all.

Only double overhand.

I was thinking about this ; if I committed to pulling once weekly…in under a year adding 10lbs a week from starting at 205lbs would see me pull 600.

And it’s an entirely reasonable (ie a slow and guaranteed) progression given my size, my recent pull muscular development gains via kettlebell, and my history/muscle memory of pulls in low 500s years back.

…..

Did the pushups early today, strict and low rep – neither my usual, though it’s been almost a week like this now.

…..

Did rock presses for about a half hour, didn’t PR, but got a massive sides and upper back pump.

Then I did buc&p with the 16kg for mostly sets of x5/side and soccer ball dribbling – the latter two for a decent chunk of time alternating.

Might be time for a shoulder deload, but that’d mean lots of buc&p volume which would likely add a LOT of pullups.

(without training pullups at all – kettlebell wth effect”

It’s knarly/gnarly (spelling) for the upper back, mid back, sides, and done high reps is crazy for the forearms.

Maybe it’s time to blend light, high rep buc&p with my 50rm philosophy, and run it!

Coincidentally 12ct and x12/side were highest reps this session.

On the buc&p you can squeeze the entire time making it really demanding on the forearm, or your can loosen your grip on the descent to the hang/between the legs, then squeeze at bottoms up rack through the press and back to the rack.

One is a grip primary full body exercise, the other is more girevoy like with relaxation and tension looking for higher pressing reps.

…..

An hour later press 25x16kg right, and a few more soccer dribbles – 10ct highest and to end note.

…..

I’ve put off the next batch of sausage & onions four or five days now.

Tonight’s dinner is simple.
Almost 1¼lb of ground beef, simply spiced, cooked up as a few burgers real quick, instant mashed potatoes made up to sop up the grease.

Chopped up, then ate the burgers and potatoes in a bowl with a bunch of mexican mix cheese.

I snacked on those roasted chickpeas that essentially are quadruple priced roasted peanuts but are now a thing while cooking.

I like chickpeas. At the salad bar as a kid instinctively I added a whole lot of cheese and garbanzo beans. Grandma didn’t necessarily approve. Mom said have at it “look he’s eating the salad”.
Soup Plantation no longer exists.
It was OUR silly suburban chain restaurant to be somewhat regulars at.

Chickpeas are #1 for vegetable protein.
It’s like a vegan diet would have to be heavy on chickpeas, olives, avocado, potato, and onion, plus probably beets.

I like beets.

Call this one here, until tomorrow
-J

drive it like I stole it – apathy
(middle school video game music making the lifting playlist rotation

4/13/24
For about a week now I’ve bic’d my scalp right before every night’s shower.

It looks sharp, and looking sharp is better than not looking sharp.

…..

Looking in the mirror before bed, not only is my mid back bonkers, my upper back impressive…I saw an increase in lower back thickness.

Really, the answer is get strong on kettlebells – and my programming isn’t programming.

It’s spur of the moment, whims, essentially randomized…but the effort is there.

That’s the important part.
The effort.

You put effort into kettlebell lifting equals you get gains.

Your midsection is all sore? Your abs smoked all the time? That means you’re gonna be stronger.
It does for me.

My abs shaking has always led to gains, and I’ve never really let my abs fully recover – I simply kept doing compound lifts, weighted calisthenics, one arm stuff, have people stand on my back, etc.

Never fully recovered, and quite strong.

…..

I have this joke I use in real life, I’ll say “studies have shown”, then make up the most absurd “fact” on the spot.

“Studies have shown ___”, and people have this hilarious tendency to buy into it.

Once I explained it to a coworker as I drove him home, then used it…and he bought it.
“Dude! Think about what I just explained”, “oh man, you’re right, wow – I automatically deferred to the studies”.

I came up with the concept as reaction to how much “studies” are referenced as far as whether something training will work or not.

Because I’ve long cared more about human anecdote, what worked for them, than anything that came out of a laboratory setting – especially considering that those in the lab are still human, it’s not as if they’re any more inherently perfect.

Not as if a study can’t be inherently flawed.
Studies can be flawed.
Most don’t realize this.

Personal experience is what someone experienced.

Personal experience, it happened, and plenty of people have had success with what “couldn’t possibly work” – remember science says that the bumble bee can’t fly by science, yet them things are still flying around.

 

So you can get jacked doing it your way.
There are guidelines, but the rules are grey.

Just like I like to read some guy say how he got jacked in less than ideal circumstance, I too, like a folklorist, personally would rather hear you tell your life story than to spend an equal amount of time watching some show that someone wrote and that didn’t truly happen.

These things put me in an opposite stance to the many, solely because I want to be rooted in the real world, not in the world of televised “reality”.

…..

Did soccer ball a bit later than I’d usually, and today it was approached more with a grind mentality – made myself just do the five minute minimum, hey we’re human – this was the first time “I didn’t wanna”.

It wasn’t warm enough to get the sun shirtless, though I did it shirtless anyway under overcast skies (and ironically it became sunny when I pulled hoodie back on right after).

A 9ct using both feet, mostly right was the best in that period of otherwise 5s at best…
Like I wasn’t warm.
Still did it.

Type a few minutes.
Drink some water.

I’ve nice leftovers (pizza and cherry pepsi) ready to eat from last night.

Okay, cool – I’ll kick the ball more now that I’ve taken a few minute break.

…..

11ct the best, better with foot to foot this period as well, an extra 12:00 or so, ending with 8ct alternating feet – my best like that yet I’d say, and ended it in that high note.

Bottoms up clean & press immediately after the soccer ball.

With 16kg ; 12l+12r+6l+6r+3l+3r, one long set switched hands with a swing, not setting the bell down – aiming the kettlebell more towards similar to long cycle even if with one bell, bottoms up, and a press.

Frankly I like this combo, buc&p looking for cardio (it still gives a good full body pump), and the soccer ball.

Were I to deload it’d be lifting like this with a skill to progress alongside, whether that stays a soccer ball or changes to three ball juggling, handstand work, etc – we’ll see.

I write it over and over – you could over the long haul just train buc&p light, every so often jump up 4kg in weight and within a decade you’d easily bottoms up press 48kg.

Likely sooner. Training weights are never your maximum.

That progression is more and more reason to make the bell purchase, stock your life with unlimited access to kettlebells.

It makes sense to, right now, really push the reps on buc&p with the 16kg.

Persistence & Tenacity

4/12/24
Just after midnight, it’s a packet of microwave ninety second rice (mexican rice), a metrx bar, and some milk.

I’m thinking I’ll do a 40kg bup today, hopefully a double or better.

…..

Inflexibility in the shoulders, the elbows, that’s my weakness in the bottoms up press.

I need a bunch of mobility to match my left arm numbers to my right arm numbers.

It would make sense to have those 4kg jumps between 20kg and 32kg for training the left hand, but as I filmed yesterday – I can train a long while on bottoms up snatch volume with the 16kg and 20kg before “needing” to make the 24 & 28 jumps on the road to 32kg consistently left handed.

What I really need is a training partner to manually stretch the left side, to force the positions.

…..

Haven’t more people made it in difficult circumstances than in easy circumstance?

Tell yourself that.
Shrug at everything.
Keep going.

…..

I write it time and again ; the kettlebell is meant to be done with high frequency, high volume, the loads and variations varied.

My upper back has been developing amazingly, and it’s the fact that everything kettlebell works it.

So do your bottoms up work, all your presses, snatches, swings, and build dense glutes, a crazy upper back, awesome shoulders, and ever thickening forearms.

It’s actually pretty simple to do some kettlebell work daily.

If I’m really not feeling it I’ll just do some form of light pressing, then move on.
Comically little like 10 presses or bottoms up presses a side with 16kg.

It’s always better to do something “even if it’s the empty bar” (to paraphrase John Broz), than to take the day entirely off.

The thing is, usually that quick light minisession ; it’ll get my heart into it more, or later in the day the urge will strike and I’ll lift more.

…..

I may lift kettlebells daily, or nearly so, for the rest of my life.

I can easily see this as being the case.
The kettlebell, it just clicks for me.

I’m good at it pretty early as shown by the 40kg bottoms up press, and now at 29 years old it’s converting the beginner gains in size that I’d made at 17 years old to quality with muscular separation, increasing leanness, while maintaining lots of size.

Imagine if I’d started this stuff at 11 years old or so!

(the path of “working man’s rugged weightlifting gpp” aka kettlebell training – the thing really is a nice blend of lifting strength, manual labor strength, and grappling strength all in one cast iron bell, and I feel would’ve been/would be fine for youth strength training)

…..

The humidity was off the charts high today with a bit of a drizzle/misting (it had rained earlier really giving credit to that phrase “april showers”).

The lift went meh. I failed a bunch of attempts at a 40kg bup, though I almost rode one down and back up for a 40kg bottoms up rack front squat.

I lost the bell near or at the top, almost a complete rep.

To end the lift I did a regular press, one rep a side, with the 40kg.

Maybe it’s time to deload.

If I make the purchase of 24,28,36,44,48 I’d be able to start at a 16 and run it for forever, bottoms up almost exclusively, high volume, and back to PRs plus some really impressive stuff.

The soccer ball dribbling was right after the lift, it too started off meh with 3s, 4s, maybe a 5ct, but within ten minutes I got a couple of 10s, and an 11ct that might’ve been an ugly ugly 12ct.

I ended on a high note. A 10ct where it was like two a side back and forth, maybe the best control I’ve had yet.

Not every lift is great, but the fact you lifted is.

I got outside, sweat, drenched by the humidity, lifted my kettlebell, and dribbled the soccer ball.

There’s some wins there.

…..

Second session, light 16kg, x10, 8, 6 of bottoms up snatch, bottoms up clean & press, alternating left, right, movement to movement ie

•bus l
•bus r
•bucp l
•bucp r
•soccer ball
•repeat

Yep, again I mixed in the soccer ball dribbling – I’m digging the practice.

Got a 15ct this time, some back and forth on it, though mostly right foot.

Not only do I enjoy the practice, I feel a sense of pride and accomplishment seeing the skill improving with practice.

…..

Another half hour of soccer ball a half hour or so before dark (no kettlebell this time), no count PR, but movement, and some with better height and from foot to foot.

…..

If I was to deload I’d probably go for minutes long sets of buc&p light at 16kg, aim for taking 2h swings to 100x40kg, and do a lot of “skill” stuff – the soccer ball, handstands (cause eventually I want freestanding hspu), maybe new skills.

We’ll see.

Psychologically it’s hard for me to deload, and essentially impossible for me to fully take a day off when my heart is into frequency.

In 2022 there were times I went almost two weeks between sessions of barbell press, training no other lifts, but doing my daily pushups like usual, and after every shift my tree branch mace swings.

It’s not 2022, it’s 2024!

Mentally I function better with high frequency. It’s best to always structure my life in a way so as to lift some weights daily. Keeps me happier in every way.

Persistence & Tenacity

4/11/24
It’s that old kali muscle meme from a decade back – “good carbs, only good carbs”.

It’s a tad after midnight, I’m supposed to eat sausage & onions but finished the batch just over 24 hours ago.

This means last night was one meal, frozen breaded chicken, which is probably the laziest way to get protein in, while today I’ll have to cook up a big batch of the right stuff ; the sausage & onions.

Right now?
Right now I’m typing, gonna eat some “good carbs – only good carbs ” (aka childish crap that isn’t food)…a pack of ramen, some marshmallows and chocolate chips melted in with it.

“dessert ramen”

That with 18oz of milk, a handful of chocolate covered coffee beans, another 12oz glass of coffee milk, and I’m off!

(I’m a squirrel with caffeine – purposely keeping a low tolerance)

…..

One heavy or one moderately weighted kettlebell really is all you need for an awesome workout.

You can’t convince me that anyone comfortably handling 40kg or more on all the usual suspects, the training fairly dense isn’t going to be a strong individual.

The day before yesterday I had that last minisession of 2h swings and soccer ball dribbling – but did one set a side of 1h swings.

The demands on the body with a heavy one arm swing are nuts!
Core and hand.

The 2h variation is more of a glute builder as you can handle more density of work that way.

To round up your physical capability you do a few presses, a few front squats, and likely are powerlifting far better than the kettlebell’s training weight suggests.

I say that with confidence ; one who regularly trains with kettlebells is far stronger than their training poundage suggests.

Though I still don’t get why 32kg is often viewed as heavy.

…..

Right before laying down for the night do a brief horse stance – it gets the small muscles of the leg/hip/groin firing, makes you feel good – out of breath and the leg fatigue, makes the bed more comfortable.

Don’t care if your horse stance isn’t perfect.
Mine is definitely high, but the benefits (and they made me scary strong in the past) make them worth doing.

…..

Idea for off camera ; lots of swings and jog around between sets.

Might lackadaisically get a good mile like that – intense swings, easy jog, repeat for a time.

…..

Every day make a few minutes, five to ten, for exercise, and ditto the same for some form of physical play.

Everyone should have some silly skill they’re working on.

As a personal trainer I’d have this be a mandatory thing for every client.

I don’t care what it is, so long as it has you up and moving around for a few enjoyable minutes.

For about two weeks now I’ve been dribbling a soccer ball – it was chosen almost at random, though the idea of it being something I didn’t do in my youth strongly factored in.

Off hand basketball dribbling, basketball dribbling in general, handstands (I’ve started kicking into a few here and there again), juggling, kettlebell juggling, handstand walk, jump rope in general or looking for certain tricks – just say “I’ll do it for five minutes every day”, this in addition to a few minutes of some form of lifting, and the two is an enjoyable one-two punch.

Right now, for me, it’s kettlebell stuff – with a focus on bottoms up, and looking for more and more counts and control with the soccer ball.

It’s like I got myself outside and back to the enjoyment of physicality that I had as a teenager, a couple years into training, back when I was already bigger, stronger than I was as a true rank beginner and while too I was in good shape, conditioning being my buddy and I spending hours at “the game” (a short field rugby ball punt & return, sometimes touch, sometimes tackle, but lots of cutting, and 5-20yd dashes) HOURS.

I’d lift for an hour and a half or two, run bleachers for twenty minutes, then play an hour and a half to three hours of “the game” with my buddy, sometimes something else, and note this ; after “the game”, after dinner, we’d often go run 3-5x400m or 2x800m, or something like that , some form of middle distance fast workout, equal walk rests.

It’s funny, so many of us can be crazy fit as high school athletes, but add ten to fifteen years and it’s a shame.

So do your small steps, if small steps are necessary.

•Get outside.
•Lift a few minutes.
•Play a few minutes.
•No excuse.

…..

First 10ct!

I’ll end the soccer ball on that strong note, fifteen to twenty minutes which were half spent at typing right after a light, brief kettlebell session.

I love this one-two of kettlebell & physical skill/play!

…..

Upload going slower than molasses?
Kick the soccer ball, or lift the kettlebell some more.

I ended up doing about 50/side total of 16kg bottoms up snatches.

…..

An extra session of one arm barbell and one arm rock pressing.

That amped me up to do more soccer ball, and in that extra minisession I got an 11ct to again end on a high note.

11ct is my best yet, and in not quite two weeks I’ve seen a bunch of improvement with the soccer ball dribbling – higher counts, and both higher first sets and average counts, and, in fact, I think the increased coordination had carried over to the kettlebell juggling.

…..

Dinner?
Didn’t end up cooking a big batch of sausage & onions, instead my big dinner was ten eggs, most of a pound of deli chicken fried up with it, some chocolate chips sprinkled atop, milk to drink.

And a small dessert of a couple kitkat bars.

…..

Lots of unstructured kettlebell sessions, some snatches, some presses, some swings, occasionally front squats – the variation and details all on the fly.

It’s a working man’s way to develop a bunch of gpp, work capacity, recovery ability, etc.

They say don’t deadlift every day, but if you’re used to volume ballistics whether that’s swings or snatches…you’re likely good for high frequency, low rep, high muscular activation, double overhand deadlifting.

Maybe I’ll make a run for, something deadlift soon.

As is I see inevitable body composition and fitness, alongside continued upper back, shoulder, and glute development with the kettlebell thang.

…..

Low rep, strict pushups for a few days now.
I’ve more interest in the overhead pressing, in more types of grip work, would have more interest in the daily pushups were they weighted – like heavy bench type stimulus.

…..

I have the feeling I’ll sleep well tonight.

Today was an enjoyable day ; I pushed the fast to about eighteen hours, got a few overhead press minisessions, and a few brief practices with the soccer ball, ate ten eggs.

At some point youtube will take off, that or I’ll be well past a 48kg bottoms up press and doing performing strongman, maybe both, maybe neither and life will be something entirely different as far as vocation.

We’ll see.
I live in a universe of joy and abundance.
(really own your personal positive affirmations)

🙂🌞✝️👍💪

Persistence & Tenacity