Iron Mind Iron Body

Iron Mind shares with Iron Body

2012-01-29T17:26:00.001-05:00

South Korea was shaped
in America's Image

from:		Greg Hafer
to:		Mark Hafer
date:		Mon, Jan 30, 2012 at 2:51 AM
subject:		China's not that old.
mailed-by:		gmail.com

Brother! If you were a state, you'd be Markansas!

North Korea was shaped in
the Soviet Union's Image

So, I got stuck on a Wikipedia binge, opening a bazillion tabs, one for every link that I knew nothing about, usually pertaining to preceding dynasties or governments or empires. The history of East Asian is crazy. After a few hours, my favorite tidbit is about Korea. Korea was a long standing Empire for a bazillion years until Japan invaded and took control for merely a few decades. Then, after WWII, we essentially did the same thing we did with Germany, broke it up into zones. The Soviets got the top half and the US got the bottom half. Forget reinstating the Empire that existed before the Japanese invasion, the empire that shaped the culture, customs, philosophy, and language that is still dominant in Korea today, let alone entertaining the idea of even keeping the country intact. No! We had to split it into two countries, a compromise between the US and the Soviet Union. So, today, the Koreas have turned into caricatures of their creators. The Soviets modeled North Korea's government after their own crazy-ass Leninist single-party socialist state, so now modern NK is seen as the least-free, most isolationist, dictatorial nation in the world. The US modeled South Korea's government after their own crazy-ass self-indulgent free-market I-am-entitled-to-a-plastic-bag-for-my-crap-at-any-store-I-go-to-along-with-a-thorough-taint-licking-from-an-underpaid-worker system, so now modern SK has the fastest Internet in the world, 24-hour video game channels, and some of the best shopping centers anywhere. Crazy! I feel kind of stupid that I didn't know why there are two Koreas and why they are so different. That was one of 28 tidbits that I enjoyed tonight. The other one is about China.

People keep saying "China is the oldest civilization in the world." I'd be pissed hearing this news if I were from Mongolia, which was established a decade before the Qin Dynasty, which later gobbled up Mongolia. And Mongolia is still around, even after breaking away from the Qin Dynasty in 1911. But none of that makes a difference anyway because guess what? There is no more Qin Dynasty. It's gone my friends. You know what isn't gone? Mongolia. Sure it's a bit different, a modern democracy, not like the preceding Mongol Empire. You know what else isn't an empire? The People's Republic of China, which is only 62 years old and encompass a different geographical region than any of the governments proceeding it. No one makes claims on the age of the civilization now called the US by factoring in the British Empire or the Iroquois tribes or even the Paleo-Indians. I'd love a presidential candidate to throw that one out on the campaign trail. "America has been hijacked by the radical left and is moving further and further away from what our founding fathers intended for this great nation. Take my favorite founding father, Zugzug. The late Pleistocene era was a trying time in US history, but brave men like Zugzug had vision. They knew that if they fashioned a stone spear tip just right, they could take down a heavily armored glyptodont quite easily. And as we all know, those glypyodonts had thicker skulls that most Democrats. Am I right? Am I right?" If the age of a civilization had to do with an organized group of people occupying a geographical area, the US would be as old as Zugzug. If it had to do with its ties to previous political systems, the US would be as old as the tribal system established by homo sapiens in the British Isles during the Bronze Age. China is 62 and the US is 235. Anyway, I wouldn't brag about how old my civilization is if most of my people don't have hot running water. China is a new country, and as such, the next generation has an amazing opportunity to shape New China into something great. But lest we forget, this supposed "oldest civilization" is still a developing nation. You know which country has a higher literacy rate than China? Mongolia. Oh snap!

Anyway. Asian history is fun. I'll save my other tidbits for later. This email is getting too long. We should just start a blog that consists of our emails to each other. People would read it. We could call if something like "TO: Hafer CC: Everyone Else."

(gh)

Google Chat that night:

4:55 PM me: Jimmy

I've been doing some research of my own

James: oh yeah

me: on The Duck family geneology

very peculiar

lotta gaps

4:56 PM lots of parents neglecting their children

no wonder Huey Dewey and Louie were trouble makers

their family kept shirking them off onto other family members

4:57 PM Della gets pregnant with a mystery duck and can't raise her triplets so she ditches them off on Donald who gets enlisted in the Navy

4:58 PM so He dumps em on his Uncle, who is an old scottish codger that hordes money

James: woot

The most boring post I ever made

2012-01-24T19:23:00.000-05:00

I was originally trying to gain mass so that I could play Rugby. Checking in at 155lbs just isn't going to cut it on the Rugby pitch. I joined the gym for the 1st time in my life and started a healthy dose of squats and deadlifts. I packed on about 7 pounds in 3 weeks. Then I went to Bangkok, then I started Hashing. Now I don't really care about playing Rugby anymore. My new goal is to be in shape for any and everything. My new regiment will consist of two days of heavy lifting (4x8) at the gym. Two days of body weight exercises that populate a majority of this site and static hold style exercises for the other two days. Running long distances, sprints, boxing and other cardio workouts are peppered throughout my week as well. I routinely injure myself doing stupid things like jumping over fences so as long as I am not dedicated to a sport I can exercise some part of my body and not let anyone down.
If you are one of the many people that come here for the ridiculous pictures and sexual inuendos, I apologize. I will bring them back soon enough.

Jorge Gets his Shit Together

2012-01-20T22:49:00.001-05:00

An Email from Greg to Mark

Oi! Physically, I've been a lazy piece of shit, and now I'm not even a vegetarian. I just got back from Harbin and noticed how much my little tummy has grown. I pretty much lived on deer sausages and beer while I was there. The city is amazing! It's Russia with Chinese people instead of Russians. I went there with a 60-year-old Scottish woman, which wasn't as fun as I thought it would be. Why aren't you here? Anyway, I'm back in Shaoxing for two days before the second part of my vacation. This place is a ghost town. Creepy. I could run around the campus naked and no one would know.

This is my first day of recovery, so I decided to eat only vegetarian today and do a jump-start workout. I worked every muscle group a little bit just to see what needs the most work. I certainly need to destroy my gut. Tomorrow I'm going to go running. Gunna run the track, gunna do intervals. Running up the back steps. Running down the front step. Got to make my mind up. Which steps should I take?

Anyway, I kept telling myself, "Iron mind iron body" because you used to say that all the time, so I googled the phrase to see where it came from, and the only thing that matched was your blog, which I completely forgot about. Then, after I opened it, I see that you started writing in it again for the first time since 2009. I had to check the dates a second time. Isn't that crazy? A few days after you started the blog again, I accidentally found it on the Internet, the first thing I found after not having the Internet since the 16th, which is also when you posted. It's like we are connected on a quantum level, like two biceps on the same body, possibly Deepak Chopra's body. Hot stuff, coming through.

I just thought I'd let you know that your iron mindwaves reached me all the way in China, clearly proving that there is no such thing as distance at the quantum level, and by quantum, I mean something that has to do with psychology but it's too complicated so I use a scientific term from physics to trick people into thinking I'm smarter than I am by describing what I see, but not really knowing why those observations occur, hence the contrived quantum bullshit explanation.

I'm going to get back to exercising, even though I can't eat those fancy foods that you listed on your blog because I'm not a privileged Westerner. Looks like rice and cabbage again...

The posts are coming ...

2012-01-17T18:15:00.003-05:00

... like the line of guys at the Houston 500, which means often and probably on someone's face. So my first day back into my routine went like this:
Diet: 2 Eggs and Organic grassfed sausage for breakfast, Avocado and stirfry for lunch, blackberry and banana smoothie, Salad with beans, nuts etc. for dinner. I make my own dressings. This evenings was olive oil, balsamic vinegar, cashew butter, Blue agave and some garlic powder. I also drank some Kefir post workout.
Went for a 2 mile run with 4 100 yard sprints thrown in there. Then boxed 5 minutes on the heavy bag then do abs for 4 minutes, then heavy bag for 5 minutes again, then abs for 4. Then I did some arm raises cause I have delts like a 4 year old girl.

Then I figured out a shortcut for completing the rubiks cube, made a charcoal portrait of Samuel L Jackson, watched a Ted video on locating the parts of the brain that control consciousness, read 50 pages of Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, and watched part 1 of a 3 part series on "Guns Germs and Steel".
If it makes you feel any better I had off today so all of this was possible.

Like a bad case of herpes ...

2012-01-16T15:06:00.000-05:00

I'm back! It has been over two years since anyone has posted on this blog but the hits don't stop coming. I believe it is due largely in part to the sexual inuendos that cover this site, but I am going to delude myself into thinking it is my wit and valuable workout information.

So what the hell happened you may ask ( you probably won't, but I am going to assume that you did). I stopped caring, and my cohorts who were supposed to motivate me dropped the ball as well. I also injured myself and couldn't run for a year so I made that an excuse to not do anything else either. But I started working out again in preparation for Rugby and other than my 3 week hiatus for going to Bangkok, I am back on train (not the kind we run on your mother).

If you discovered this page in search for questions about herpes please go here. If you want to see me kick Tim Hahn's ass in pull ups at Lumphini Park in Bangkok watch this video.

How Close are you?

2009-08-21T21:48:00.003-04:00

I took this idea from beast skills to get better at one armed pull ups. You take a weight attach it to a rope and hang it over the pull up bar. Then you grab the bar with one hand and then rope with the other. If you are a pussy when you pull up with your one hand you will pull the weight up with the other hand and you won't finish your pull up. I currently did a pull up with 10 lbs on the rope. I got it with my left arm on the bar and I only got half way with my right arm on the bar and left on the rope. I am thinking of getting a pulley because I think the friction is playing into the actual weight I am using with my off hand. Try it out!

I wrote Planche not Blanche

2009-08-13T20:17:00.003-04:00

Trying to get the planche. I am using the ever helfpful Dragondoor site to obtian this marvelous feat. I currently suck horribly. I can hold the tuck planche for about 30 seconds. I will keep you updated. My front lever however, is a bit stronger than my planche. I think it is because my shoulders are pretty weak. Anyhow if you want to be planchen' it like a pro this dragondoor article is really helpful.

Huge Sack

2009-07-26T15:30:00.002-04:00

I apologize for the lapse in workout posts. I have been working out though. Vigorously. I have been using the rings very often and now I have a huge sack. A huge canvas sack of gravel that is great for making insano forearms such as mine. You can do most of the workouts that you would with a kettlebell but with a huge sack. I have also been doing lots of sprints leaps and bounds. Also I discovered that trying one armed pullups and muscle ups and other difficult explosive exercises aren't good to do all the time (if you are a pussy like me) so I cut back such workouts until I am more jacked (which I may never be, because I am an inconsistent bastard).

Like these chicks... I'm into pullups!

2009-05-10T14:09:00.004-04:00

I am doing the one hundred pull ups per hour workout. I have also added to this extravagent event by doing 100 inverted pushups within that same hour. I go 10 pulls wait 3 minutes 10 Pushes wait 3 minutes until the end. While not entirely hard, I definitely feel like I did something the next day. Give it a whirl!

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

2009-03-18T17:19:00.004-04:00

So it rained today. And it was colder. I didn't run. But I did do some one legged squats and calf raises, push ups and sit ups, and some biceps curls. The sun will come out tomorrow . . . . its only a day away . . .

Spring

2009-03-17T14:35:00.003-04:00

I've found that the sun gives me an incredible amount of energy. I've accomplished so much in the past three days since the sun has melted the snow and the days are growing longer. I even ran today. Not too far but I did it. It killed my lungs but it felt good. Hopefully this will be a regular occurrence now that the sun has returned.

Squeezin' it!

2009-03-07T15:22:00.002-05:00

I started running. Yesterday 3.5 mi. Today I went 2 then did 4-70yard sprints then 2 more miles. Yesterday, I worked out at garage strength. Doin some dips, ring flys, inclined dumbell bench and a burpee tabata. Frustrated with my meager rope climbing performances I decided to get nuts today. I realized I was doing 14 pulls on the way up. I feel like that is pretty significant and should warrant some recovery time. So today I went for volume. I did 5 rope climbs (14 pulls to my peak) I just took plenty of rest between sets. I think the high volume of grabbing the rope will pay off. Then I did 4 x 10 pull ups with a towel to continue my grip strength obliteration. Then I did rafter rows with the towel. Hopefully my forearms feel like butt tomorrow.

I'm gonna be jacked soon

2009-03-05T18:51:00.003-05:00

Kick Ups (into hand stand)
10 Left Leg 1st - 10 Right Leg 1st

Flip, Lift, Slam, Punch ( heavy bag )
6 warm up - 3 x 10 (30 sec rest between sets)

Pinch Grip
Deux @ 40 lbs
4 x 5 sec x 3 sets

Dips
3 x 20

Lateral Bag Jump
Tabata

Pinch Grip
Slim @ 40 lbs
4 x 5 x 3

Inverted Pushups
4x8

Leg Raises
2x10 (w/ 7 1/2 lbs on ankles)

Knee Raises
2x20 (w/ weights as well)

Heavy Bag Pushups
3 x 20

Pushups

2009-03-03T18:33:00.003-05:00

I ran. Tried to do muscle ups (a pull-up above the bar to where you press yourself up). However, I suck. Played soccer for two hours the one day. That was rough.

A friend of mine who doesn't exercise had been doing pushups since this past summer and did 55 in a row. I was pretty impressed considering he usually couldnt do more than 20. So I thought I would give it a whirl. My expectations were low since I had only recently started using my shoulder. I figured I'd pull off 45. Oh no good friends. 60 in a row. Astounding. I might have to destroy my shoulder more often.

This bastard does 50 pushups a minute for 200 minutes! Thats 10000 pushups for you mathematically declined.

Boots

2009-02-26T08:24:00.002-05:00

So yesterday I worked on felting boots and I found that it was an incredible upper body workout. I got too tired so I had to start using my feet and I jumped on the wool for awhile. Maybe one day I'll work out for real.

Say What!?

2009-02-24T20:49:00.002-05:00

Worked out with Greg. Yeah No shit. I also bought heavier ankle weights and rocked the abs and pull ups etc.

My workouts are so good the Russians are trying to steal them.

2009-02-22T19:31:00.004-05:00

I went ape with the heavy bag today. Some new exercises (to me at least) were
Flip it, Lift it, Slam it, Pound it
Also heavy bag press (great wrist strengthener, perfect for perfecting handstands)
Tabata Bag hops
Pushup hop over the bag.

Greatest Ab Workout Ever

2009-02-18T06:26:00.002-05:00

I've discovered a new way to get ripped abs. All you have to do is get really sick and cough non-stop for three days. I feel like I did 10,000 crunches. And it was all involuntary so there was no motivation needed.

167.5 lbs

2009-02-17T21:44:00.003-05:00

Thats how much pressure it takes to close the 1.5 CoC. The 2.0 is 195. I did some Arnolds today and pull ups and DB bench and kick ups (into handstands) and then felt unmotivated to continue. I am however pumped about my grip strength. I have been thinking of making one of these. Its like heavy sword training but cheaper and cooler. Plus you'll get forearms like this badass!

CRUSH!

2009-02-13T17:23:00.003-05:00

Guess who closed the Captains of Crush 1.5...... ME! Right handed. BLAP! The left hand isn't quite there yet. I also exercised some other muscles today, but who cares.

The rope is kicking my ass!

2009-02-11T18:28:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I rocked the dips, military press, explosive pushups with one arm up on Slim and then explode across to the other arm. Lots of core stuff. Kept my ankle weights on the whole time.
Today I went for a nice 2.5 mile jog and then blasted out 6 100s. Then I sucked on my rope climb then did rock ring pull ups for 4 x 8 decreasing in crimping length. Then went for some rafter rows with the towel and pussed out after the first set and went to just the rafters (4x8) Then some dumbell curls. Oh yesterday I tested pinch grip and used 45 with woody for 3 x 3seconds and 35 with Deux for 3 x 3 seconds.

Time Trials

2009-02-10T22:26:00.002-05:00

March 1st I am starting my time Trials. I am gonna time myself in the 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200 and 5k. My focus for running will be in the 2 mile range. The lower sprints will be timed periodically for the hell of it. My goal is to go sub 2:00 in the 800 sub 4:40 in the 1600, sub 10:00 in the 3200 and sub 17:00 in the 5k. Time to start running!

Today I did some dips and offset pushups with the cinderblock and some military press. Loads of new ab exercises that I can't explain.

Whos got Pull-ups!?

2009-02-09T20:04:00.002-05:00

I think the shoulder is healed, which means I can do pull-ups now. On friday I did 4 sets of ten and the other day I went for a run in Philadilznik and stopped at the park and tried to do another round of 4 x 10 but couldnt get the last set ( only 5 ) I think my rest period was lots shorter than it was at home plus I had just finished a somewhat tiring run. That was also the first run I have gone on for awhile. It was just so nice out I couldn't pass it up.

Eww

2009-02-06T14:49:00.000-05:00

FYI : Tofu should not be used in a smoothie. Its gross and it just tastes like tofu. Not recommended.

Move Fatty Move

2009-02-06T14:30:00.003-05:00

I don't know where it came from, but today I got motivated.

20 min. Kick(my ass)boxing video

situps

3x15 pelvic thrusts on ball

3x10 abs on ball

3x10 one legged squats

3x15 one legged calf raises

stretch

make and eat a berry tofu smoothie

Ankle Weights

2009-01-29T18:42:00.003-05:00

Like Paris Hilton on house arrest, I am going to wear ankle weights for all my workouts now. I used em today for ab stuff and tabata jumps. It was brutal! Woot!

Dead Lift

2009-01-28T19:48:00.002-05:00

Did some dead lift today. Woot! I got wimpy ass hamstrings.

Also hit up the on demand today. Found me some good cardio. I did the Biggest Loser Cardio-Max!

It was fun and actually pretty tough. I realize that there is no way that this could be a continuing show because this workout was fairly hard and the tubbies that were on there would definitely be skinny in a month. Also the guy leading looked totally annoying. I avoided this ridiculous banter by turning the volume off and blasting Sevendust.

Tried out the shoulder today. Tried some handstands. Not ready for that yet.

Lazy

2009-01-26T18:20:00.001-05:00

Seeking motivation.

Ham String

2009-01-19T20:04:00.004-05:00

Pinch Grippin like a God. I found out I have less mobility in my right thumb. Making it harder for me to pinch grip with that hand.
Deux @ 30 lbs 3 x 15sec
Woody @ 40lbs 3 x 15 sec

Front leg levers 2 x 15, High Knees 2 x 15

Lateral Raises Tabata
Multiple types of squats with 32.5 dumbells. Looking for a good new exercise.
Ham Jammers Started out two legs for 2 x 15 then switched to one leg for a set of 8
Tabata Jumping

For demonstration purposes check out this lady I found doin these. So do this but with only one leg on the ball at a time. The other leg stays tucked up and when you do a set switch legs. Its a KILLA!

Rip-a-Nip

2009-01-13T19:55:00.003-05:00

Ball on Back Squats - 4 x 10 (See the ball videos at right)
The thing about this workout is that you can put your legs farther away from the wall which hits the quads much harder when you stand up. Because you come up like this / Instead of like this |.
Next Two tabatas

1 Alternate Jumps and Bicycles (the lay on your back and work your abs kind)
2 Alternate Lunge Jumps and Hot feet.

A side note on Nipples. So I grabbed a shirt off my pile. It was the tech-shirt I got from the mud run in New Jersey. Sweet! Thats what I thought till I realized the screen printing on the front was reeking havoc on my nipples through the thin, synthetic garment. Before I knew it my nipples were aching like a mother's after a day of nursing septuplets. Before my new razor blade chest accessories cut wholes in this shirt I swapped out for a cotton shirt and saved myself some pain.

I will now be wearing protection:

Jack Bauer hinders workout

2009-01-11T22:39:00.002-05:00

So I was getting ripped. Mostly legs since my arm had gone back a little after dips. I think It'll be another week till I use it.

Tabata: Lunge Jump Switches (best name I could come up with)
Squat Arm raises - 4 x 15
Straight leg raises - 4 x 12
Forearm Sledge workout upped the reps to 12
Okay this is where it gets fun. I helped My brother move his furniture so he could get new hardwood flooring because apparently recession, economic downturns and large loans mean nothing to this @$$clown. And since his TV etc where stored in his kitchen he came over to watch the season premier of 24. Well, I found out that he could stand on my pullup bar (detached from the wall) to help me do Hamstring explosions during commercials. But apparently me working out really hinders his ability to mentally digest the last 10 minutes of 24. So I had to switch to an exercise I saw on those You tube videos to the left. You put your shoulder blades on the ground put your heels on top of the ball and then keep your pelvis high and curl the ball in with yoru hammies. The key is really keeping your hips up. I did 3 x 15 after a commercial segment of Hamstring explosions.

Then I did the same pinch grip workout I did last time.

I also learned that while white russians are delicious, they are a horrible post-workout drink.

Laura,
You are missing funny pictures. So this one is for you.

Bloody Thumbs

2009-01-11T19:33:00.004-05:00

1 leg squats 4x10

1 leg calf raises 1x20

stand on stability ball about 5 minutes

pelvic thrusts on ball 4x20

oblique crunches on ball 4x20

body twists w/10 lb ball 2x25

bicep curls 3x10 (10lbs)

saw wood to make ladle and cut thumb . . .

I hope I have enough fingers left to finish it.

Sledge Hammer Exercises

2009-01-10T17:56:00.003-05:00

One legged squats with 27.5 lb dumbells 4 x 5
Tabata - Jumps
Hamstring Explosions
Ab stuff with weight
Sweating
Forearm sledgehammer workout. 2 x10 in all directions.

I'd like to congratulate Laura on Posting our 80th post of the blog. What a Milestone.

Actually I did this forearm workout seen above. Grab the sideview mirror of a moving tractor trailer and try to stop it.

My New Ball

2009-01-09T18:41:00.002-05:00

Attempted one legged squats - 3x10 (right leg ok, left leg felt like burning. I stopped. I have no insurance)

One legged calf raises - 3x20

Hand pumping the stability ball

Pelvic thrusts? on stability ball 3x20

Crunches on stability ball 3x20

Stood on stability ball and did some squats (while holding wall)

Stood on stability ball for about 5 minutes (not holding wall)

10 squats on stability ball - look Ma no hands!!!!!

Stability ball squeeze 3x10 (for inner thigh)

I'm wondering if my stability ball is easier to stand on than others or if I'm just that amazing. I'll let myself believe that I'm just that good.

Introductions

2009-01-08T15:16:00.002-05:00

Let me welcome my pinch grip friends.

The 2 x 12 in my right hand with the 4 - 10lb weights is Woody. Woody has two brothers. They are conjoined twins called Deux. They look exactly like Woody except they are conjoined (like a 4 x 12). If you've been reading this blog then you know that the fella on the left is Slim (friend of Cindy & Blocky).

I use slim when I wanna do exercises and work my pinch grip. When I wanna just focus on my pinch grip I use Woody and Deux. Today I held Deux with 30 lbs for 3 sets of 10 seconds (each hand) and then I put 40 on Woody for the same. In between sets I worked my extensors (opening my hand) with a thick rubberband I got off a head of Broccoli.

Stay tuned for Iron Mind to get Crazy, I'm thinking about using my arm next week.

Other updates: Hahn's kickin it at Garage Strength. Brooks is .... I have no idea. And Laura is gonna carve Tim and I up some practice swords so we can beat the shit out of each other.

Bonus Tip: Make your own Woody and Deux. Get some Rope and at least a 2 x 8. Drill a big hole in it. Pass arope through it and put to loop knots on the end (Figure eight or Overhand on a bight works great). Put a carabiner through it. Not get another piece of roop and put two loops on the ends. Load the free rope with weight and clip it in. BING! Done. To make Deux, cut two 2 x 8s or bigger and screw them together. Then follow the rest of the woody steps.

Arm of One

2008-12-30T23:03:00.002-05:00

Been doin lotsa one armed goodness till the old shoulder heals

Tabata - Jumps

Straight Leg Raises

3 x 15 - Arnolds (right arm)

3 x 15 - Military Press (Right Arm)

Wood Splitting (Right Arm)

One up One down

2008-12-28T21:12:00.002-05:00

As Mark's shoulder begins to make its recovery, Hahn's knee goes down in a brutal battle between Brooks and Tim.

The next week of rehab will look something like Hahn doing no leg workouts and Hafer doing no arm workouts. With our powers combined we make a fully functional human.

Today I was popping stability balls with my huge groin muscle and workin on my wimpy ass hammies with that sweet exercise where your feet are held down and you lean out to the ground and back. I also broke out a new friend to the Cinderblock Family. His name is Slim and he helped me work my pinch grip today.

Uniforce

2008-12-28T03:07:00.002-05:00

Today I made Laura workout.... and then she left :( One legged squats 4 x 10
one legged calf raises 3 x 20
Hanging leg lifts
Stability ball squats
V- sit leg raises
Ball squeezes (groin)

so Laura left the tri-force I haven't seen Hahn in awhile and this sling is actually helping Zang!

News

2008-12-24T12:59:00.002-05:00

Marks Arm is still F'ed up but he continues to work out.

The gang goes to garage strength to test the skills of personal trainer Dane Miller.

Latest report on Tim Hahn is that he is poopin his brains out from Chinese food and couldn't make it to the workout.

The gang hits the upper body with lots of dumbell presses after a hard day of legs.

Hafer's a hamstrings are as week as he assumed.

And the top story today is someone is actually reading this! Thanks Heins ;)

4 Way

2008-12-22T14:24:00.002-05:00

Tabata - Lateral Raise
Tabata - Burpees
Pull Ups
Leg Lifts
Heavy Bag
Abs
Tabata - Mountain Climbers, Running, Hot Feet

Crying

2008-12-20T11:11:00.002-05:00

1 legged Squats 3 x 15
Ab work on Stability Ball
Crying over my busted arm - 8:43
Wondering if Tim is exercising - 3:27

BOOM!

2008-12-19T17:32:00.003-05:00

Tabata - Mountain Climbers

Tabata - Heavy Bag

Leg Lifts - Hanging and Armrest

MedBall Situps

Fetal Hold on DB

Inverted Pushups - Hafer

DB Flies - Hafer

Forearm Curls

Boxing

WheelBarrow - Hafer

One Armed Rotator Cuff Blowout - Hafer

The Beginning

2008-12-16T12:02:00.002-05:00

Tabata Squat Thrust Hafer - Cindy / Hahn - DB
Tabata Leg Kicks
Handstands
Ring Dips Hafer 3 x 10 / Hahn - 2.5
Ring Flies - 3x10
Ball Work

Bi-Force

2008-12-09T19:06:00.003-05:00

This is obviously not the Bi-Force I am talking about, rather I wish to speak of the reuniting of two of our three pieces of our triforce on Saturday. Our first day may not start out too healthy, but I am anticipating some intense training.
Today I did
30 minutes heavy bag boxing
3 x 10 leg lifts
3 x 15 squat thrusts
3 x 15 DB flies
3 x 10 Ring Dips
1 x 20 wobbleboard (WB) pushups
1 x 5 (both hands) off center WB pushups
Oh and some hand stands

Food

2008-12-08T18:56:00.002-05:00

I think food sounds good. I was thinking the same thing - eating together after working out. How much time will you have with student teaching? I am very excited to begin the tri force.

I discovered the coolest instrument today. Mark, you probably already know about it cause you always seem to. Its called a hang drum and its awesome. There is a video of it on youtube if you want to check it out.

Tri Force

2008-12-08T13:03:00.002-05:00

How do you guys feel about working out and eating together afterwards? I think that would be an important part of our Iron Mind Iron Bodiness. We should teach something to each other each day, then workout and then eat.

My workout - I did one legged squats. I dipped down on a chair but, didn't let my other leg touch the ground for 3 sets of 10. And my fucking Gluts are blown out today. This baffles me considering all of the squats I have been doing Tabata style. I dont get it.

Soon there will be three

2008-12-03T23:08:00.006-05:00

of us working out together. Which will be sweet for my shitty motivation. Which also means we will only need one blog post. (WTF do we need a blog for if we are all working out together!?) To let the world know how bad ass we are of course! BAM!

I'm an Idiot

2008-12-03T18:43:00.003-05:00

So this past weekend, I realized that I work in a school that has a weight room that nobody uses. Why didn't I think of this 4 months ago? Anyway, today I ran on the treadmill for 12 minutes. I realize this is pathetic but I'm working my way up to 20 or 30. I did 10 yesterday, my plan is 15 tomorrow. Then I did some situp stuff and 3 sets of 15 pushups. Then came the bicep curls - 10 reps with 10 lbs in each hand, 3 reps (on of which was hammer curls) alternating with triceps - 3 sets of 10. Anyone with suggestions of what I should do for the next two weeks I have access to the weight room - let me know. Oh yeah - I officially quit my job today. Only two more weeks till freedom.

Taking Cindy to the House!

2008-12-03T16:41:00.003-05:00

Workin on the cinder block tabata. The other day I did that and got to 3:30 before switching from Cindy to Blocky. Then I did some Towel pullups, hammer curls, open grip pull ups and then Rows.
WOOT! Today I took Cindy to the House! I completed a tabata with Cindy. I did however drop from around 13 reps to 8 by the end. But I finished. Then I did inverted pushups on a bar for sets of 5. Then some close grip neutral pushups on the bar. And some dumbell flies. Then I had to peace out to get some school work done.

I started reading "How to Grow a School" again. Its a great example of how to educate our youth. I have also been reading Playboy which manages to get short fiction from kick ass authors that has never been published as well as some cool articles on evolutionary psychology. We need to play more chess Hahn.

Circus Time

2008-11-30T16:26:00.003-05:00

Today, Balance board pushups, ring dips, archer flies, Iron crosses (not full extension yet)

Wanderlei

2008-11-30T05:32:00.003-05:00

I've been looking for new core exercises recently and I found one on Wanderlei Silva's website. I dont know what its called but i call it the break dancer. You basically just kick your leg out and switch to the other side. I did this in a tabata set and i got pretty tired at my mid-section.

Goin the distance

2008-11-29T23:51:00.002-05:00

Today I tried doing Tabata squatting with the cinderblock in the crush grip. I got to 3 minutes until i switched to the smaller block. Which is two extra sets further then last time. Hopefully I can pull off a full tabata. If at somepoint I do get it. Should I increase the weight or just try and get more reps in? I also did some pullups and then hammer curls and then towel pull ups and then some rows.

Thrusting

2008-11-21T22:52:00.002-05:00

Yeah chief I went for the squat thrusts with 35lb dumbells. After the third set on my tabata i was fucked. Had to drop em and just squat. Vicious. Then I did some abage. I stretch out and have six inches with my legs and my shoulders just off the ground. Then I crunch back in. And do this till I blow up. I also hit up the ab wheel from the knees. I also did going up the stairs upside down feet first. Its in one of the parkour videos on the right. Its good for the tris and shoulders.

The CORE

2008-11-20T08:55:00.002-05:00

When I get home in December there are a few things i have to do: submit my brother and Quoc, beat Brooks in a race(are you reading this Brooks?), and the v-sit/planche. So, I've been training my core to max. Anyway, I'd like to hear your core exercises or just make a list.

Core exercises:

Hanging leg raises
Exercise ball crunch
Exercise ball push-up position crunch
6 inches
Bicycles
Mountain Climbers
L-raises
normal crunches and what not

Also, i just created an awesome exercise. Get a chair with high arm rests, sit in it and crunch your legs into your stomach, and then do dips... great for a bunch of stability muscles!

Slump

2008-11-16T22:32:00.002-05:00

I want into a no workout slump for the last 8 days. I haven't done shit. I know there is no excuse to spend half an hour a day getting jacked but I have become a lazy bastard, thinking about applying for Ph. Ds and worrying about comprehensive exams. The sad thing is I wasn't actually preparing for any of that shit, just worrying about it. I've been reading books and trying to catchup on a years worth of magazine subscriptions which I will definitely not renew. So today I stopped being a hobo and did some a light workout.
Cinderblock arm raise squats 2 x 30 (15 with each arm)
Cinderblock crush grip squats 3 x 15
Hand stands. Like 5 or 6 I have been amazed at how easily I can hold 2o second hand stands. Its like the more I slack the better I do at shit.
Some serious ab work on this chair I am sitting at. Its like hanging out on the parallel bars ( arm rests). V sit, L sits, leg raises etc. Crazy good on the tris, delts and abs

Sage Arts

2008-11-12T19:47:00.002-05:00

To train the mind you must first train the body.

Yesterday, I went to the temple Butsuji, a buddhist area located within the mountains. This place is famous for its spectacular scenery in the fall, when the leaves change their colors. I traversed this peaceful place with three others.

After a morning run, i stretched, showered and prepared myself for the trip. Upon arriving, a sense of calm and peace wash over you... and i was sage mode. Thereafter, i begain meditating much like kamana. I became one with nature. The above pic is me after a few hours.

New Exercise of the Week!

2008-11-11T20:32:00.002-05:00

Start in a frog stand so that your shins/knees are resting on your elbows/triceps.
Hold that for five second then press up and release your legs from your arms and hold them there for two seconds. So your body is in the fetal position and you are holding yourself up with your arms. See picture three in the January 19th post. Then put your legs back on your arms for five seconds and continue this for a set of 5.

McGuire Mudrun - Hauser and I ran a 10k mudrun this past weekend. I had previously run one time since the last race we did together which was about a month ago. The run involved wall climbs, mud crawls, running through waist high water, crossing the creek via a brief swim or rope bridge. It was pretty sweet. Hauser and I came in 26 and 27th out of about 950 people. Funny thing was I wasnt even sore the next day. If we can get 3 more people we will have a team so saddle up friends.

Trailer

2008-11-10T16:14:00.002-05:00

I'll have a new post when I get home. I am currently in Philly to talk to a professor about school. My new post will detail how well Hauser and I did at the McGuire Mud Run and one of my newest exercises that I have just recently discovered. Bonus info: It works your forearms, abs, triceps and shoulders.

Look for the update on Wednesday (Thursday if you live in Japan).

PS Thanks for everyone posting it is actually motivating to have people talking about all the exercises they are doing.

PS2 Lucky for all of us Brooks now has Facebook so he can go on there as much as he does on here and MySpace. Which is never.

PS3 is apparently really cool but I doubt I will ever buy one.

Breaking through

2008-11-10T00:15:00.002-05:00

I just finished my toughest tabata workout thus far in my career of tabataing.
Today i started with a 20 min fartlek that turned into 6 short sprints before i came back to my place. Then i took a little breather and stretched for about 5 minutes...

And then squat thrusts (if thats what they are called... you squat down a with weight and then military press it). Wow... pain like ive never known before (or at least in the past few years). I got two and a half minutes of this and then i pussed out into squat jumps. I think ill keep doing these for the next few weeks and see how far i can go with them.
after that came abs, shoulders (punching with light weight), and shadow boxing

Mind training... studying japanese. I have a big japanese proficiency exam coming up on Dec. 7 so i need to prepare for that. Im trying to get about 5 hrs a day of good studying.

IRON MIND

2008-11-06T20:01:00.003-05:00

I have been working out my brain lately and I thought I'd share it with you. I'm doing a naturalist training program called Kamana and its awesome. Everyday there are different exercises to do and then reflections at night about the day. I highly recommend looking into it. I've also started visiting a Sit Spot several times a week. It's basically a spot in front of a tree in the woods where I sit and pay attention. It's amazing what you can hear and smell and see when you pay attention.

www.wildernessawareness.org is the website for the wilderness awareness school in Washington state. You can find more about Kamana there.

New Diet!!!

2008-11-06T03:25:00.002-05:00

Ive been trying to run at least 4 times a week. These runs range from medium to light runs usually lasting about 25-30 minutes. After running, i usually go into my resistance workout.

Ive noticed that doing tabata leg workouts after running are killer. I did squat jumps the other day and my legs didnt lift off the ground after the second minute.

However, i feel i am improving and im adding a new phase to my workout... shadow boxing. I will try to do this 4 times a week in conjunction with my other workouts.

Also, give me some feedback on this... i was reading about Arnold's workout philosophy and he advocated to do ab workouts every day. Well, i did some recently and i ran today and my sides started getting all tight and uncomfortable... continue everyday or not? im trying to do five sets of varied ab exercises.

My Friends Blocky & Cindy

2008-11-03T19:19:00.003-05:00

Today's workouts were all on the rings. Assisted iron crosses. Flies. Dips, pushup leg raises.
And a little warm up with my two friends. One is a squat with arm raise. A standard kettlebell move. The other is one I came up with just today. It is a squat with a crush hold on Cindy! Here is some visual stimulation to help conceptualize.

MIxin it up.

2008-11-02T02:02:00.002-05:00

Missed some update days. I haven't missed any workouts though. Nothing real new from what I've been doing. Although I did hold a V-sit for 3 seconds which was a huge improvement. I also need to work on finding a band to do assisted Iron crosses because the chair isn't cutting it.
In the pull up world I did 4 x 5 the other day real slow. 5 seconds up and 5 seconds down. It was fun to mix it up there. I also have a new workout for the V-sit that involves putting your hands on the edge of the counter or some other edge and then holding your legs up. This way if your legs dip down they don't touch the floor and you still work your abs even though they dip below parallel.

Remind me to talk about my new kettlebell.

kick flips

2008-10-31T08:36:00.003-04:00

It's been a while since i've posted something here but i have been keeping in decent shape.

Workout the other day:
Tabata

Alternating push-ups on a platform
side jumps over a bag
kick flips into a pull-up
***this was pretty awesome i didnt feel tired in the cardio aspect but my muscles are pretty pumped today...
front squats while holding 30 kg bag

Iron Cross

2008-10-28T23:44:00.001-04:00

Thinking about Going for the Iron Cross. So I had my rings low and had my feet resting on a chair as I lowered out towards the Iron Cross. I think a better way to get there might be to put some kind of band between the rings for some assistance. I'll let you know when I get it.

Dark and Dirty

2008-10-12T12:06:00.002-04:00

Ran the Dark and Dirty 6.66 mile night time trail race. WOOT! So much fun. So dangerous. Hauser and I came in around 59:00. We placed 25th and 28th outta 375. So we are gonna start a racing group that consists of people that want to run ridiculous races but not actually train.

Squat Jumpin

2008-10-11T15:47:00.002-04:00

So Hahn was saying how the air alert II is vicious. Well it is but doing a tabata of Squat jumps (about 15/20 seconds) ends up being 120 jumps. Thats flippin Rough. I felt burnt out and my legs still hurt for my 6.66 mile night trail run. I'll keep you posted on how that goes considering I haven't been running enough lately. I also did some L sits and pushups on my pull up bar. Neautral grip and overhand grip. I also used the bar for my L sits. Maybe I ll post pics to show you what I mean. KABAAM! (Thats Eddie Baran check em out hes the ab king)

I was Ruuuunin!

2008-10-08T20:47:00.003-04:00

Ran 3.6 miles.
3x12 pullups (neutral overhand neutral grip)
3x12 hammer curl
Who wants to be a millionaire!
G'night.

Kettle Ball

2008-10-08T20:46:00.001-04:00

So I was going to buy a Kettle Ball the other day but then I remembered that I am living in poverty (literally) and I have to heat my house this winter. Needless to say, I didn't buy the Kettle Ball.

Sooo Tired.

2008-10-07T21:00:00.002-04:00

I took a three hour nap today.

Taba ....TAAAAAA!

2008-10-06T20:30:00.002-04:00

Tried out the new tabata burpee to rafter pull up.
PHEW!
It was rough. A couple times when I was tired I didnt grab the rafters or only grabbed with one hand. Those were rough.
2 x 25 board and pipe pushups
3 x 10 Inverted pushups
3 x 10 Ring Flies
3 x 8 Ring Dips

TSAAAA!

Soccer

2008-10-04T22:23:00.002-04:00

I played in the Inaugural Alumni Soccer game at SV. That was two 30 minute halves.
I did exactly what I didnt want to do and that was get spiked in the ankle. Feels great.
Then I did 3 x 12 Pull ups
Crap I forget the rest. But I hung out doin L sits and workin on my V sit for a while.

Two Tabatas?

2008-10-03T17:11:00.003-04:00

Tabata 1 - Burpee to pull up Tabata (as seen on videos on side panel)
Tabata 2 - Step Ups

3 x 8 Ring Dips
3 x 10 Leg Raises
3 x 10 Dumbell Military Press

So I just got totally burnt out by the time I did military press. I dunno if it was because 2 tabatas for the first time. Maybe 8 minutes of Tabata action is just too much. Or because I hadn't eaten lunch and then ate some Soba noodles right before I exercised. Or cause I am tired. Either way I petered out and didnt finish all of my exercises

A word about Burpee to pull up tabatas. My bar is reachable from the ground so I would jump and then have to step forward and grab the bar and pull up. this was maybe 3/4 of a second that felt wasted and not as physically as exhausting as it should be. So, I tried one in my attic and having to jump to the pull up is much better. So I would do a burpee and on the jump have to get high enough to grab the rafters and go right into the pull up. This felt much better. There was less wasted time and you really have to exploded to make sure you get a good grip on the rafters. I am gonna try it that way next time.

I did my step ups on "The Step" some workout product my mom owned. Its just like a 6 inch step.

Jumping Jacks

2008-10-02T20:11:00.001-04:00

Today's workout

Jumping Jack Tabata

Jump Rope Tabata

Bicycle Abs Tabata

Attempted Extended Squats - failed for fear of puking

Goin light

2008-10-01T21:04:00.002-04:00

Today's workout:
2 mile run
Tabata: Alternate between squat thrusts and hitting the heavy bag
Rafter Rows using s towel 3x10
Pull ups on the Rock Rings 3 x 8
Hammer Curls 3 x 12
Leg lifts on Stabillity ball - Lay stomach on ball lift legs up work lower back

I went right in to Tabatas after my run and then I stretched a different muscle group between each set.

I started watching the Universe. There are 12 1 hour episodes. Greg says the same people made it that made Planet Earth and Blue Planet. I acutally haven't finished Planet Earth so maybe I should do that first. Before I expand outward.

Quads

2008-09-30T21:08:00.002-04:00

Is it just me or do all the girls in these photos have insane quads. I am cutting back my workouts. I think I might be over training. I was hanging out on Dragondoor.com and was reading about not going to failure almost ever and resting your muscles enough. I just feel like I am not trying hard enough when I don't go to failure. But I also plateau and burn out or injure myself so maybe its about time I slow it down. I'm really just talking to myself on this thing now. I mean Hahn's hoppin around in a different hemisphere doin crap and Mil-mil is more worried about Kenjiro than this sweet ass blog. Oh I started doing this exercise. It works wonders.

Kettlebells

2008-09-29T14:20:00.002-04:00

Hey has anyone exercised with kettlebells? I think I might get some. I was looking at workouts with them though and loads of them look like people are swinging them around and crap. It just seems like your arent getting a good workout if your swinging them all over the place. Like they are using a shitload of momentum.

On a similar note I was doing curls with an adjustable dumbell and putting all the weight on one end and holding the empty end. Like a hammer. Killer for the forearms. Without forearms you can't even do half of these great bodyweight exercises.

Slip out with your bip out.

Shattered Shins = Ripped Everything Else

2008-09-24T16:51:00.002-04:00

So I was on a 10k training program. About a month into it my perma-destroyed tibia said I don't think so. So I stopped running for a week. Now I am gonna cut back my running severely and do more biking and body weight exercises. My idea is to mix up the workouts as much as possible. It seems to be working. It is less mentally exhausting and possibly better for my muscles in joints. I also just started Tabatas. I know am way behind on jumpin on the Tabata workouts. Anyhow I F'ing love em. They totally obliterate you in just 4 easy minutes. I made Greg do them yesterday. he started doing squats and then couldn't so did burpees for the last half. By his tast set he was pretty much just laying on the ground rolling around. It was hilarious.

Hopefully this motivates you punks.

A workout

2008-05-20T06:19:00.002-04:00

I finally stopped being a piece of shit last night! With the farm stuff going crazy, fixing my Veggie car and having an 8 month old, I haven't been finding time to workout (and i'm learning to play the mandolin). But last night i decided to do at least 3 a week and told anna to call me a pussy if i don't do them.

So yesterday i did scriptless tabatas. That means i picked a few exercises and anna called them out to me for every interval. I did 3 five minute sessions, to be increased next time, of the following exercises (and more), in no particular order:

Ground n pound heavy bag
Lateral Bag hops
Burpees
hillsprints
med ball throws
med ball pushups
med ball rotators

it was tough as hell, as usual, but i feel better now. i need to condition badly, so im aiming for 3 days of conditioning with an emphasis on strength stuff.

playing the mando has been a big plus, too for my mental workouts.

Air Alert II

2008-05-13T10:49:00.002-04:00

has this blog gone to the wayside like phlogistine, pleomorphic bacteria, dane millers shot putting ability, micromuscles or am I just imagining things. If that last sentence didnt make any sense, please, read no further.

Ive made a new train partner, and we've been together for the past month; working out in the mornings and sometimes before work. His name is gohan. Kinda like hoagie-zaimus. But, we had an accident the other day and 30kg of his guts spilled on my bedroom floor. Poor guy, never saw it coming. Needless to say, the ol' lady wasnt very happy (no, not my wife... literally, she's an old lady). So, i gave him a pretty good tape job and stuffed his little rice guts back in 'is belly. But, he had to be retired back into the closet from whence he came.

Anyway, on to my workouts... i was using that 30kg bag for tabatas of front squats and overhead presses. I am continuing that workout but now ive replaced it with a giant jug of water. I had some crazy motivation today after watching scottie pippen highlights on youtube. And i will be resurrecting the Air Alert II program. Perhaps, hafer only knows about the pain and desctruction this workout brings to your legs.

Air Alert II - basically a full on plyometric/jumping program that is to be done 5 days a week, accompanied with sprints, twice a week. Goes as follows: 1/4 squat jumps, calf raises, explosive step ups, fast/all out jumps, and burn out hopping... all increasing on a weekly basis.

ps- hafer you need to mail the program again... i have a pretty good idea but im not sure i remember everything

Micro Muscles

2008-04-15T13:23:00.003-04:00

"micro muscles" are better than Jed muscles ( both of which are scinetific names ). I have been doing mucho balancing of late. Somethin I previously completely sucked at. However, this seems like the best skill ever. The funny thing it isn't really a skill at all. It is just tiny muscles knowing what the hell to do because they have never been used before. Current balancing - the balance board. I have managed to put my feet all the way in the center. Like a soldier, fucking legs together and then standing in the center of the board. Also doing what I thought was a ridiculous idea but now I can do with ease and that is stanidn the same waywith my legs together but facing the other direction. So I am no longer balancing side to side but fron to back. My next goals are getting a unicycle. Maybe when Bush sends me my stimulus package I can buy one. Another goal is to start slacklining. I essentially wanna be a freaking cat. I wanna be able to walk on anything without fear of falling. It seems more useful to have muscles that control your body then muscles that can pick up iron bars.
When I get my unicycle I will post some pictures of me splitting my face open on the side walk. Stay tuned.

The Dinner Table

2008-03-07T22:51:00.002-05:00

What do you do when you have a table in your dinet and one in your dining room? You clear of the one you aren't really using and you throw a strap around it. Then you put your legs under the strap and lay on your back so that you hang out off the edge. Then hold yourself there or do situps or get made abs. Thats what I did today. When thats easy put your arms over your head. When thats easy hold a 50 Kg boulder in your hands.

The burpees

2008-03-07T21:07:00.003-05:00

I'm finally felt well enough to start working out again and i started off with some burpees. A mr. brooks miller recommended this for my workout. And, i am thoroughly drained. My hipflexors feel exceptionally tired. Im breathing like a dog and typing this message while me lags are shakin. Good workout

2 paths.

2008-03-05T12:43:00.002-05:00

I am judging by the amount of posting on here that we have taken either of these two paths. Path one - we are so busy working out like fiends that we don't have time to blog our vast improvements and strength gains we are making. Or Path two - we have become so complacent and lost so much motivation that we are gonna need to be craned out of our houses and have our stomachs stapled shut and then our extra skin surgically removed.

To tell you the truth I am a lazy piece of shit. My elbows were killin after doing some intense workouts for like 2 weeks and then I got sick. And then I was like oh man my elbows hurt I can't do anything. Like abs or legs. So I became a vagina and read alot of books. I finished Gaviotas and Primary Perception (Cleve Baxter) I think they quoted him alot in the secret life of plants which I haven't read yet. So maybe one of you could smack me in the face and tell me to get with the fucking program. Or you could all guilt me in to being a douchbag for not working out by posting the 1 handed rope climbs you are doing.

workout schedule

2008-02-10T09:26:00.000-05:00

This workout goes out to everyone who reads this blog (mark and brooks).

Well, sad as it is, work dictates when and what i can workout (because i have to go to a different city for 2 days) but here goes:

Monday - gym - a day of the gym usually consists of free weights, rotating between legs, arms, back and chest. I usually do chest and back together. This workout consists of benching 3x10, pull-ups 3x10, behind the neck military press, one arm rows, and some other minor exercises that make me tired. Legs are usually squats (which i am really getting into), the thing where you hang your upperbody over and then lift it up. It hits your glutes, hammies, and lower back. please tell me this exercise name so i wont have to write a long description. I also do shoulders on this day. Those are the major things i do.

Tues-run/body weight exercises (the gym is also closed this day)
Wed & Thurs. - I am in a different city so i am stuck to body weight workouts... i am think of adding a jumping/plyo day here.
Fri- gym
Sat- gym
Sun- rest

Methodology-
Since being in Japan, i dont have a workout partner so i dont usually go to complete failure. I am actually liking this more and more. I am seeing results and i dont have to be as sore on the off days. Also, there is a hot girl that just joined the gym so it has inspired me to work out harder.

Anyway, i want your input on working out until failure. I read this one report that said going to failure is good but you should only do it every once and a while.

Also, i have been doing a set amount of certain workouts everyday. Say, try and get 100 push-ups a day, 30 pull-ups, abs, or some other bodyweight exercise. I have been thinking that maybe your body will get used to this and it will be cake after a few weeks. Good or bad?

Gaviotas

2008-02-10T01:38:00.000-05:00

This post has nothing to do with Gaviotas I did however just read half the book. How is this not more influential than an Inconvenient Truth? This book rules. Anyhow. Pull-ups -10 to warm up and then 2x5 for each arm where one arm is holding the bar and the other is holding a bath towle like a foot below the bar (working) towards the one hander. Then 3 x15 rafter rows. Then I layed on a table so that my wastes was over the edge and I would lift my legs up and try and hold em. For somereason my head almost exploded. These are hard. I think I did some other pull ups. And I have been doing these things where you go in to a head stand. And when you are perfectly straight you bend at the waste and try and lower your legs to the ground. Its a good lower back workout. However, i couldnt finish because my shoulders and all my handstand muscles were burnt out from yesterday.

I wish we had a pool of genius graduate kids to try stuff out on our farm.

KAPOW!

2008-02-08T15:36:00.000-05:00

So I split alot of wood BLAM! and then I blasted the heavy bag for like 15 minutes THWACK! Then I was handstanding. Then 2 sets of 50 explosive pushups off the counter. Then 3x15 inverteds. Then alot of holding my legs up with my hands on the arms of the chair. One of these exercises is making my belly button hurt.

Today I found my kana & Kanji book so I am gonna start learning how to read Japerneez.

IRON MIND! IRON BODY BITCHES! BLADOOOOOW!

Advent of Hahninator

2008-02-08T00:18:00.000-05:00

This blog is all about getting about getting ripped and recording our daily routines... I will write about it when im not at work. For now, im standing on one leg for the rest of the day.

Constant Mix Up

2008-02-05T12:36:00.000-05:00

I've learned so many sweet skills that I can hit the same muscles every other day but do completely diferent exercises. This keeps my motivation up. When I find one I like I stick with it till it sucks and use any of my other goodies.
2 days ago I was blastin the heavy bag for 5 songs of Fear Factory. Then I went to Inverted Pushups which went 15-13-10. Then I did pushups with my hands on the side of the basketball 3x10. Then I went to the wobble board and went for 2x20 but i put the board on the basketball. You were right the bigger the object the harder that bitch is. If the ball was pumped way more it woulda been really hard. I think I might try to get a shitty bowling ball from somewhere.

Yesterday, was 3x15 Rafter rows. I think thats the 1st time I got all 45. Then I did 8 Rafters pullups and dropped cause my forearms were pumped. Then I came downstairs and did 6 pullups off my balcony. And then I through A towel over my pull up bar and held each end and did 2x5. Then my forearms turned to jelly so I smeared em on some toast and ate em.

back in

2008-02-04T22:04:00.000-05:00

after not posting for a while, i'm 2 weeks deep into a solid workout change. i'll detail each day as i go through it. planned on doing 20 minutes of hand balancing this morning, but my friend wade came over for his first workout, so i was busy explaining things to him.

warmed up with about 150 rope touches, then did one 20 minute all-out circuit. consisted of:
100 rope touches (sprints/double unders)
20 sledge hammer tire hits
10 burpees
about a minute of ground n' pound on the heavy bag on its side
repeat as many times as possible. i got through just over 4, which means my aerobic system needs some work.

i've been learning a lot about cheese chemistry in preparation for the pasa conference this weekend. all day thursday i learn about cheese and the creamery business, then friday and saturday i'll mostly be focusing on soil health, pasture and forest management, and livestock genetics. i've got a lot of questions. lately i've come to the conclusion that farmers who can successfully farm through rapid climate change will be superior geneticists, both plant and animal. i think goats and chickens will be the two most important livestock (which they already are in the rest of the world).

Do these.

2008-01-19T13:23:00.000-05:00

Whenever you are sitting. Do these. Its all about the core. I find too that I need to work on my flexibility because it is impeding some of these ab workouts.

Walking

2008-01-12T12:08:00.000-05:00

I have been doing alot of it in Japan. The thing I needed to pair with that was stretching but once I get home I can focus on a new routine. I want to start slacklining and walking on bars and railings and stuff.

A word about wheelbarrows

2007-12-14T13:53:00.000-05:00

Ok so I am fortunate enough to have two staircases in the home in which I dwell. This offers a great circuit for traveling through the house. The differences in these stairwells are that they are on different ends of the house and that one is carpeted and one is not. The circuit goes as follows. Have someone hold your legs for wheelbarrows as you walk on your hands down the hall down the wooden stairs through the dining room, the kitchen and then up the carpeted stairs. Or reverse. Let me tell you this: when going down stairs you are at a very steep angle. This could be difficult for your partner to have proper grip as you decend. If you partner happens to be wearing socks, his/her grip may be inadequate and the two of you shall tumble down the stairs; your partner bustin up ass bones while you smash your face, arms and elbows in to stairs, concrete flooring and walls.

Slowly Improving

2007-12-06T22:14:00.000-05:00

Today I did 3x15 Rowing from the rafters. Then I did 2x5 Pullups where one arm was like 18inches down from the bar and holding on to a really fat towel. So it was grip strength for the off hand and almost all pull up on the other hand then I switched hands. Then I finished by grabbing each side of the towel wich was over the bar and did 8 more pull ups. Then I went in to the basement and started listening to another interview from the handbalance master course and practices alot of the hand balancing exercises. I'm starting to hold em more consistantly now. I also am gradually improving in chess. It doesn't feel like it but the people I used to have trouble with I am beating more often. I also now how myself up on the arms of the chair and hold my legs up. Like I am gonna do dips but I am just workin my abs while they move and then sometimes I stretch my legs straigh out and hold the L shape.

Hand Balance Mastery Course

2007-12-03T11:49:00.000-05:00

So I got my handbalance mastery course inthe mail. Its filled wit sweet exercises. It also has interviews on cd. I listened to the one while I hit the heavy bag. The dude was from beast skills http://www.beastskills.com/ I heard the guy talking about crazy stuff he was striving for and it was things like the one handed rope climb! This guy is crazy strong check out his site hes got good stuff on there. Then I was doing all kinds of different hand balancin positions. I need to strengthen my core so much to do this stuff. Yesterday I did Pull ups my workout was 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1. For some reason it wasnt that hard. Maybe I rested too long. I'm gonna try it again with shorter rest and then I am gonna try it by starting at 11. I'd thing 66 pullups oughta wear me out. Maybe I'll change grips or use the towel and have one hand lower so its focused more on one arm. Meanwhile I gotta do alot more core stuff I need to find a way to get from doing the wheel on the knees to doing it from standing. It such a large gap in ability.

GIANT TIRE!!

2007-12-02T21:15:00.000-05:00

sweeeeeet....i got a giant tractor tire today. i plan on smashing it with a sledgehammer in the near future and flipping it across the yard in tabata intervals. i'll let you know how it goes.

my new method

2007-12-01T23:32:00.000-05:00

i discovered a fantastic new way to train this weekend. i wake up about 20 minutes earlier than usual, and when i go out to do the morning chores, i workout in between each chore. a sample of the morning yesterday:
6:00 - wake up, do fingertip pushups to get forearms and 'bows ready
6:05 - get milking gear ready, do fingertip pushups
6:07 - put on boots, hat, go outside
6:09 - climb rope twice to get going
6:11 - milk baby
6:15 - decline pushups on the rings 2x15
6:18 - milk gracie, start filling water bucket
6:23 - decline flies on rings 2x12, set of fingertip pushups
6:27 - take baby and gracie out on pasture with water, feed other goats
6:29 - do upside down rows on rings 2x12 (hard!)
6:33 - feed chickens, collect eggs, make sure sheep are watered
6:38 - inverted pushups and two more rope climbs
6:42 - filter milk, do 2 more sets pushups

so usually it takes me a little under half an hour to do the morning chores. i added an entire workout and only tacked on about 15 more minutes. nice! plus i feel solid to start the day, and without telling anna i did the workout she comes down while im cooking breakfast and says "your arms are freakin huge!" obviously.

as for iron mind - got deep into why NPK fertilizing not only doesn't work, but is the worst idea ever. NPK fertilizing is like taking the EV1 off the road, but doing it in the 1930s and using lobbyists to continue keeping it off the road. i just watched who killed the electric car, so sorry for the comparisons. really, the two are very related since its all about the chemical companies. thats where the shit be at.

also, i started getting into animal physiology. its time to break this respiration thing down to the cellular level to see where our deficiencies really come from!

Crushin

2007-11-29T21:52:00.000-05:00

The one thing I have been diligent about of late has been my crush strength. I have been closing the grippers every other day and now incorporated the extensor band on the opposite days. But I didn't go buy IronMind brand bands. Seriously the one I pulled off the broccoli is working great. I completely forgot about wall walks. I need to incorporate them back in to my routine. I just dropped a hundred bones on the hand balancing mastery course from the hand balancing kid. It should be worth it. Its a huge folder with like a zillion workouts to do some of the craziest shit ever. Plus Cds with interviews with the best gymnast, hand balancing super humans ever. I was rocking some one legged squats the other day and doing pushups on the pipe and board have become a staple of my workout. If you keep your feet together it makes it really hard to balance and sometimes it can be rough doing like twenty pushups. Some days I work on making the board real uneven so I am doing 1 handed pushups essentially. I have been making it to the attic to use the rock rings now too. I was doing 4 sets of 8 or 10 I forget. I would start on the top grip for the 1st set and then work my way down to the tiny crimper for the last set.

Iron Mind has been school work. I was enjoying watching movies and playing chess the past month and now all of my large projects are due so I am spending all my time doing those. It was however worth it. I'll come visit when the semester ends before I go to Japan.

first joint workout with kaj

2007-11-28T22:14:00.000-05:00

for the first time today, ii worked out with my son, kaj. he was doing his "tummy time," which is when we put him on his stomach and he works on whatever he wants to try - holding his head up, squirming forward a bit, or just chilling, and i did explosive pushups and wall walks. kaj lasted a good 10 minutes, so i got 3 sets of pushups in and 1 set of wall walks.

over the weekend, i cleaned out my space in the barn and started finally using my chains and handles for some serious stuff. i did a lot of rope climbing this weekend, too. not for time, but i'd do 2 climbs every time i walked past while i was building a new sheep shelter that could be used in winter or summer weather.

as for iron mind, i have been thinking of the whole election deal coming up next year. i have only been thinking of ron paul so far. i don't think he has much of a chance because he's pro life, which will immediately turn off most democrats, despite the common sense he uses to form policy. he wants to negate roe v. wade on the grounds that it is unconstitutional, the federal government meddling in state affairs, which is how he views most issues. the big issue for me, though, is not the fact that he wants to negate roe v. wade and make the abortion thing a state issue, but because of the sanctity of life act. he tried to pass a bill defining life as beginning at conception, which i think is not for any government to define. i personally don't think abortion should be addressed federally. making it a state issue is more in line with how our government was supposed to work, but still not addressing the heart of the matter. why let any government body draw conclusions about situations that are not provable? it should be a person by person basis, case by case decision, made by the parties actually affected by the decision. and, really, i don't see why we're trying to stop abortion anyway. the world is so overpopulated with poorly raised people, adding "50 million" more into the mix would only make things worse. abortion is good population control, and it will happen either way - legal or not. i think it's ridiculous how pro lifers are allowed to show pictures of aborted fetuses, but if you show a picture of a mangled soldier (especially american) its poor taste.

s long as there are enough democrats in the senate to not pass the sanctity of life act i think he's the man to have in charge, mostly because he's about having a local government run most everything while the federal government does the big stuff like defense and infrastructure. i normally include health care in there too, but he doesn't. i suppose if you provide universal health care, the government gets to decide what health is and what falls under its various headings, which i would oppose. more later i guess.

Football

2007-11-24T18:27:00.000-05:00

I played football on Thanksgiving. It hurts. I have also been addicted to ChessMaster and get nothing else done in my life. I started doing pushups on the wobble board. I almost have the captains of crush 1.5 closed. I started using the wheel for abs. And my rope is getting soggy and nasty at the bottom.