Let me point out that I am keenly aware of how ordinary my athletic abilities are. I’ll put it this way: when swim coaches saw me swim, they frequently asked if I had swam in high school. NO ONE asked me if I swam in college.
Or, one time, a New Balance shoe rep looked at me..and guessed my 10K run time within 1 minute and my bench press within 10 lbs…upon observation.
It is clear what I am: a gym bro who likes to do physical stuff but isn’t particularly good at it.
I’ll comment more later in this post. But I suppose that what this means is my videos are for me to look at and to determine what I should do next..and I got some valuable feedback from seeing them.
Today: rotator cuff and hip hikes before pull ups (still rested between sets)
5, 5, 10, 5, 5, 5, 5, then 6 singles then a set of 4: 50 reps total. the ones in the set of 10 were not high quality. Some chins..some standard.
bench press: 10 x 134 then (all “light touch and go..NO BOUNCE”)
3 x 184, 4 x 174, 4 x 174, 5 x 170
shoulder press: barbell: 3 sets of 10 x 92, 10 x 44 dumbbells
rows: 4 sets of 10 x 134
push ups: 40, 30, 10
headstand (went ok t0day)
very leisurely pace; took about 90 minutes.
My videos: I note two things: 1. Height looks MUCH better from behind ..the side angle is deceiving and 2. The set of 10: quality suffered in the second half; you can tell that by the bend in the elbow and how close my forearm got to the body. Note: it was 14 F outside…extra clothes were almost like light weights.
Set of 10: bad toward the end.
Set of 5: better quality.
Same quality (later set); but the height “looks” better.
Chins…not my best (note the disgust in my voice); I had rested a bit too much between sets.
35 to 40…getting tired..
Bottom line: cold weather, lots of clothes and too much body weight (200-205) makes these hard for me right now. 190 would feel better, as would warmer weather.
Sports Commentary
I’ve become something of a fan of Alan Thrall’s youtube channel. He is a gym owner and a coach who has had a modest amount of success in competition. He appears to be very down to earth and in tune with the fact that other people have different goals. So here are a couple of his videos;
- Why do people stop lifting?
I can just say what happened to me: I vary what I do per life circumstance. When i ran, I considered other activities supplemental. Then I got hurt running and so walked and swam. But I would injure myself in these activities…and I have not been to the pool in several years.
It now makes sense for me to get back to the pool but ..well..with vaccination I think I will return. And, as I age, well, if one activity gets more time and effort, the others either stop or get less. I have weight stuff and will probably stick with that until I am medically no longer able to lift. Same with walking.
And yes, I like the personal challenge though I am not setting PR’s in anything any longer.
And speaking of injuries:
Now, there is quite a bit of wisdom in what he says. That being said: I know that swimming improved when I changed my hand entry from “thumb first” to “pinky first”; it gave my shoulders more room to rotate.
But…as he points out…and increase in training (volume or intensity) that is too sudden is usually the main culprit. That point is pure gold.
Life of an old goat 