There is always room for improvement! 💪🏼

bluemax_1 said:
Cool thread.

Never really been a regular logs, type. My posts in this thread have mostly been progress reports (i.e. no/minimal progress = no point posting).
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I have often found a log helps me stay motivated and more disciplined. But there have been times when I have maintained significant training activities without a log. And given how slow that thread is, I have not been posting there as much. I just re-opened my strongfirst log today after seeing this thread, though.

bluemax_1 said:
Nice work with the kettlebells!
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Thank you.

bluemax_1 said:
Some of the Oly lifts in Crossfit (like the Snatch), are simply a display of athleticism, with coordination and technique being a huge part of it, but to me, there's no real world practicality, as I wouldn't ever try lifting anything remotely heavy that way.

The Clean and Jerk, I get. The way the muscles are used, I can see the application for the Clean, for getting something heavy into a high truck bed etc., and the Jerk is useful for getting something heavy up overhead.
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I love both the barbell Olympic lifts. I learned to do them with the best form I possibly could from watching Donny Shankle and his cohorts. I also had one session with a local Olympic lifting coach, which I had to ride my bike several dozen miles to attend. I tell you the ride back home was so rough that I called my dad from the dark highway and asked him to come pick me up with the van.

The Olympic snatch is a very technical lift. It is a skill that demonstrates and expresses certain attributes like thoracic mobility and overall bodily integration and stability. Does it train those attributes? I don't really think so. You get the needed strength from the deadlift and overhead press, I think.

The kettlebell snatch is a different animal, and it is extremely beneficial for trainees looking for an efficient way to build or maintain a healthy body. There is a lot of literature on it, and I don't know one percent of it. But what I know is it's a great unilateral ballistic conditioning tool that builds a bombproof posterior chain and shoulder girdle while amping up the cardiovascular and respiratory systems and giving you a bone crushing grip in the process. That is if it's done with a weight around 25% body weight for medium to high rep sets. It can be done heavy, but a lot of the gurus over at strongfirst disavow its usefulness and risk to reward ratio as the weight increases.

I like it. I still use it sometimes. But the kettlebell C&J is easier on my body, and makes me work less while still keeping me strong. I have read some opinions online that if one could only perform one exercise for the rest of their lives, it would be the long cycle clean and jerk, meaning performing the clean on every rep, and going for high reps. I can't say I would feel undertrained if I were to do that. I'd be bored though.

bluemax_1 said:
Those kettlebell exercises you're doing also help build practical strength that helps with movements that can actually be of use IRL, not to mention building core strength and stability.
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Yes. The plan is to train myself to be a spry and beastly old man one day.
 
Wife and I are back into backpacking/hiking again. 6-10 mile day hikes are the norm on the weekends now. It’s push ups, pull ups, sit ups and burpies throughout the week. For 50 years old, I can hang with my 2 teenaged boys in whatever they do.
 
David Mary said:
I have often found a log helps me stay motivated and more disciplined. But there have been times when I have maintained significant training activities without a log. And given how slow that thread is, I have not been posting there as much. I just re-opened my strongfirst log today after seeing this thread, though.
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No doubt, keeping track definitely helps, to know where you are, and monitor progress.

With any weight training, though, it's a lot easier. More reps at the same weight, or more weight for the same reps = stronger.

Can I do more than I did for the same exercise/activity last week/month/year?

Can I run/bike the same distance in a shorter time?
 
Also have been improving handgun skills over the last year or so. Used to only carry locked in a box in my truck, but nowadays, I always carry on my person. Wife and oldest boy do too. As a concealed carrier, it’s my responsibility and obligation to be as proficient with my firearm as I can be. I strive to be a faster and more accurate shooter each time I practice.

Llsijju.jpg
 
Mentioned years ago (right around the time Knife Or Death first came out), that I reinjured an old shoulder injury.

Went from being able to wake up and drop and do 60-70 pushups in a row (to wake up, warmup and get the heart pumping and blood flowing), to the shoulder not even being able to handle the strain of a single normal push up (despite being able to do 1-armed pushups).

Been slowly working on it. Back to 70 pushups in a row, and hit a milestone today, doing a set of shoulder presses with 70lb dumbbells. Heaviest I’ve been able to do in years.

The progress is always slower than we’d want, but I’m happy that I’m able to see progress.

Keep at it, folks.
 
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TRfromMT said:
I'm heading out on vacation today, but my goal is to get my push-ups in, no matter what.

Hold me accountable, guys.
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You got this, man.

When I'm on vacation, I keep it simple; my "Wake TF up and make the most of your day!" routine, is to wake up, maybe do some light stretching (but
sometimes/often I don't even do that), drop and do 50-70 pushups, followed by hooking my ankles under a bed/couch/whatever and doing 50-100 setups, bodyweight lunges 25-20 reps each leg, then repeat all 3 exercises for 2 more rounds.

Wakes me up, and takes maybe 5-10 minutes tops.
 
91bravo said:
Also have been improving handgun skills over the last year or so. Used to only carry locked in a box in my truck, but nowadays, I always carry on my person. Wife and oldest boy do too. As a concealed carrier, it’s my responsibility and obligation to be as proficient with my firearm as I can be. I strive to be a faster and more accurate shooter each time I practice.

Llsijju.jpg
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This is the way. To many concealed carry people don’t practice enough. 👍🏻😍
 
Murphjd25 said:
This is the way. To many concealed carry people don’t practice enough. 👍🏻😍
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On this note;
I noticed that even amongst people I know who CC, many don't practice often, but even more concerning, is that they never practice any kind of defensive/combat shooting/drills.

Even when they go to the range, the only type of shooting I see them do, is precision/target style, slow, aimed fire (and even then, the lack of practice means their accuracy is lacking). Nothing wrong with practicing precision shooting, but if someone CCs, they need to make sure they also practice their accuracy AND speed.

When I went to the range with some coworkers, I began doing fast doubles, Mozambique and Bill Drills. When they saw me doing that, they decided, "Oh, that's cool. Lemme try that, too". Couldn't even hit the cardboard of the full size USPSA target at 5 yards! Yikes. Most of them have never practiced any trigger pull beyond the slow squeeeeeeze. A fast trigger pull yanks the gun WAY off target.
 
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bluemax_1 said:
On this note;
I noticed that even amongst people I know who CC, many don't practice often, but even more concerning, is that they never practice any kind of defensive/combat shooting/drills.

Even when they go to the range, the only type of shooting I see them do, is precision/target style, slow, aimed fire (and even then, the lack of practice means their accuracy is lacking). Nothing wrong with practicing precision shooting, but if someone CCs, they need to make sure they also practice their accuracy AND speed.

When I went to the range with some coworkers, I began doing fast doubles, Mozambique and Bill Drills. When they saw me doing that, they decided, "Oh, that's cool. Lemme try that, too". Couldn't even hit the cardboard of the full size USPCA target at 5 yards! Yikes. Most of them have never practiced any trigger pull beyond the slow squeeeeeeze. A fast trigger pull yanks the gun WAY off target.
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Drills are the way. Speed, reload and accuracy drills.
 
bluemax_1 said:
Likewise, my total reps for bodyweight pullups this past week, was 78 reps in 5 sets (10 to warm up. 26, 15, 14, 13. In 2 weeks, I'll see if 20x5 is doable. A Max reps set basically wipes me out, so every set after will be significantly lower reps than if I don't push for those last few). Doing 10x10 bodyweight wouldn't be an issue.
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Well, I tried and found another goal to work on; volume.

Tried to see if I could do 20x5 pull-ups. Nope. Only managed 20 for the first 2 sets. Then it was 14, 13 and 12, for a total of 79 reps in 5 sets with bodyweight. One more rep than 2 weeks ago.

So the goal is to see how long it takes to be able to do 20x5 with bodyweight, and 10x5 with the 40lb vest.
 
bluemax_1 said:
Well, I tried and found another goal to work on; volume.

Tried to see if I could do 20x5 pull-ups. Nope. Only managed 20 for the first 2 sets. Then it was 14, 13 and 12, for a total of 79 reps in 5 sets with bodyweight. One more rep than 2 weeks ago.

So the goal is to see how long it takes to be able to do 20x5 with bodyweight, and 10x5 with the 40lb vest.
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I do pull ups with 5lb ankle weights strapped to each ankle. It’s tough.
 
BTW, as further encouragement, I thought some folks might be interested in reading about some studies.

Everyone’s heard that exercise and better physical fitness helps combat aging, but folks may not know that it not only helps you feel better and allows you to do more at advanced ages (as well as reduce the risks of cardiovascular issues, diabetes etc.), it literally shows the reversal of aging at a cellular level.

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/711327

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10290068/
 
mb> said:
Knocked out a mile in the pool before lunch Sunday. That’s a first for me. And pretty boring! Need waterproof earbuds for that. Did it on an empty stomach for added fun. Made the Father’s Day steak extra tasty! :)
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I need to start swimming too and saving the hiking/backpacking for the Fall and Winter months. It's melting season here!
 
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