LAST WEEKS WORK OUTS

 MONDAY JANUARY 17

BEACHBODY ARM & BACK ROTATION

TUESDAY JANUARY 18

BEACHBODY STRETCH DAY

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 19

CHEST BURN OUT

4 SETS X 25 REPS

BENCH PRESS - 95#

DUMB BELL BUTTERFLIES - 10# 

DUMB BELL CENTER PRESS - 40#

THURSDAY JANUARY 20

5 SETS X 10 REPS

DEAD LIFTS - 135#

DUMBBELL SHOULDER PRESS - R 36#, L 20#

STANDING CHEST FLY - 15#

FRIDAY JANUARY 21

SITUPS X 150

SATURDAY JANUARY 22

4 SETS X 10 REPS

BOX JUMPS

HANGING SPLIT SQUAT

LUNGES W/ 36# KETTLE - 10 EACH LEG PER SET

5 SETS 5 PULL UPS

SUNDAY JANUARY 22

4 SETS X 10 REPS

CLEAN & JERK OVERHEAD PRESS - 75#

DUMBBELL CURLS - 35#

OVERHEAD DUMBBELL PRESS - 40#

3 SETS EACH ARM

FOREARM BLASTER BURNOUT

LAST WEEKS WORK OUTS

 WEDNESDAY JANUARY 12

CLEAN & PRESS - 75#  4X10

SHOULDER SHRUGS - 40# DUMB BELLS EA HAND 4X10

DUMBELL PULL OVER - 40# 4X10

REVERSE DUMBBELL FLY - 15# 4X10

THURSDAY JANUARY 13

300 PUSH UPS

FRIDAY JANUARY 14

REST DAY

SATURDAY JANUARY 15

JUMP ROPE 5 MINUTES

1/2 CURLS USING THE BAR 2X10 50#, 2X10 60#

DUMBBELL CURLS - 20# 4X10

HAMMER CURLS - 25# 4X10, 2 SETS FRONT, 2 SETS WIDE

TRICEP PRESS - 40# 4X10

SUNDAY JANUARY 16

NIGHT HIKE IN THE SNOW STORM UP TO THE TOP OF BARNHILL MOUNTAIN

PUSH UPS & SCREECH OWLS

 I HAVE TO SAY, IT WAS A PRETTY COOL EVENING.  I WENT TO THE SHED TO DO MY USUAL UNUSUAL EXERCISE ACTIVITIES.  I WAS QUEING UP THE PANDORA TO STONE SOUR RADIO, WHEN ALL OF THE SUDDEN, A LARGER THAN AVERAGE BIRD STARTED SWOOPING AROUND IN THE SHED.  IT'S NOT A BIG AIR SPACE SO THE BIRD SEEMED SIZABLE AT FIRST.  I THOUGHT IT WAS A BABY HAWK.  TURNS OUT IT WAS A SCREECH OWL, EVEN COOLER.  

HONESTLY AT FIRST, I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT KIND IT WAS.  I THOUGHT MAYBE IT WAS A HOOT OWL, SO NATURALLY, I START HOOTING.  HIS EYES SEEMED TO GET BIGGER WHEN I DID THE HOOT CALL SO I THOUGHT I WAS ON TO SOMETHING AND THAT ALL SIGNS POINTED TO ME BEING AN OWL WHISPERER.  

THIS PICTURE BELOW WAS TAKEN FROM ABOUT 3 FEET AWAY FROM HIM.  VERY SLOWLY I TOOK MINI STEPS TOWARDS HIM.  HE DIDN'T SEEM TO CONCERNED.  MAYBE BECAUSE HE WAS PRETTY SURE HE COULD TAKE MY EYES OUT IF HE WANTED TO.  ANYWAY, VERY COOL EXPERIENCE.  I PROBABLY SPENT ABOUT 30 MINUTES JUST KIND OF WATCHING, FILMING, TAKING PICTURES AND BY THE TIME I WAS READY TO WORK OUT, I WAS FREEZING.  I WAS PLANNING TO DO BENCH PRESS TONIGHT.  I WENT TO LIFT THE BAR AND I COULD FEEL THAT IF I WENT FOR IT I WOULD HURT MYSELF.  I GUESS THE OLDER WE GET THE MORE WE FEEL THINGS IN OUR BONES.  I DECIDED TO HEAD INSIDE FOR A LITTLE PUSH UP ACTION.  I SET THE NUMBER AT 300 AND WENT FOR IT.  I WILL TRY TO DO 10 MORE EVERY TIME UNTIL I MAKE 1000.  WHY NOT?    

 

 

Quick & Effective Shoulder & Upper Chest Workout

HAPPY SUNDAY TO YOU ALL!  IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL RAINY, FOGGY DAY HERE ON THE MOUNTAIN.  THE DUMBBELLS WERE A LITTLE DAMP TONIGHT AS THE MIST HAS BEEN CREEPING THROUGH THE SLATS ON THE SHED ALL DAY, BUT THAT'S OK.  I TOOK LAST NIGHT OFF FROM THE EXERCISE FUN.  THEY SAY THAT A RECOVER DAY OR EVEN TWO IS HEALTHY.  THEY ARE PROBABLY RIGHT, BUT IT DOESN'T FEEL THAT WAY.  ANYWAY, WE ARE BACK ON TONIGHT.  3 EXERCISES, 4 SETS OF 10 REPS.  NOTHING CRAZY.  VERY APPROACHABLE AND EFFECTIVE.  I DO HAVE TO APOLOGIZE AS I DON'T KNOW THE NAME OF MOST OF THESE EXERCISES.  CHECK IT OUT, LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!  HAVE A GREAT WEEK YALL!     

BEACHBODY BABY

  EVER SINCE GROWING UP AND SEEING MY MOM FOLLOW ALONG TO DANCE EXERCISE AND TALL SOCKS AND BRIGHT COLORED SPANDEX OF THE EARLY 90'S, I WAS NOT TOO QUICK TO JUMP ON THE VIDEO STYLE WORK OUT ROUTINE.  HOWEVER, WHEN YOUR WIFE GETS REALLY INTO SOMETHING, LIKE BEACHBODY, AND IS SUPER EXCITED AND WANTS TO SHARE, I REALLY DIDN'T HAVE A CHOICE.  I HAVE ONLY DONE ONE FULL 8 WEEK WORKOUT PLAN TO DATE.  I CAN'T SAY I SAW ANY RESULTS AFTER ONLY 8 WEEKS, HOWEVER, I CAN TELL YOU THAT I FELT RESULTS.  THE MIX OF CARDIO AND WEIGHT TRAINING IS AWESOME.  I DO STILL OCCASIONALLY UTILIZE THE STRETCH ROUTINE PART OF THE PROGRAM.  THAT'S HOW I SPENT MY EXERCISE TIME TONIGHT.  THANKS JOEL!  THE LAST TIME I DID A STRETCH ROUTINE THAT JEANNIE RECOMMENDED, I FELT LIKE I WAS HIT BY A MACK TRUCK THE NEXT FEW DAYS.  THANKS MEGAN.  I GUESS THAT IS GOOD?  JEANNIE HAS DONE A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT PROGRAMS NUMEROUS TIMES, LOVES IT, AND HAS SEEN FANTASTIC RESULTS.  JEANNIE IS ALSO A HUGE FAN OF THE MEGAN DAVIES SERIES ON BEACHBODY.  I AM VERY PROUD OF HER DEDICATION TO ALWAYS IMPROVING.  EVERY NIGHT WHEN WE TURN THE KIDS LIGHTS OUT, THEY ALWAYS SAY "HAVE A GREAT EXERCISE!"  BE THE EXAMPLE FOR YOUR KIDS.  DON'T RELY ON THEM TO 'PICK UP GOOD HABITS' FROM OTHERS.  THEY ARE LOOKING TO YOU FOR THIS GUIDANCE.           

S S S SQUATS, MAKE ME HAPPY

   LISTENING TO THE JOCKO PODCAST ON MY COMMUTE HOME TONIGHT AND THEY WERE TALKING SQUATS, DEBUNKING RUMORS, AND OTHER FUNNY STUFF, I COULDN'T HELP BUT GET EXCITED FOR LEG NIGHT.  EPISODE HERE.  SQUATS ARE NOT MY STRONG SUIT AND SOMETIMES I AM GUILTY OF MAKING UP AN EXCUSE AS TO WHY I SHOULD DO ANOTHER UPPER BODY ROUTINE.  ANYWAY, I WENT FOR IT.  I LIKE TO WARM UP WITH JUMP ROPE, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS ONE FROM ROGUE.  SR-1S SPEED ROPE.  4 SET OF 20, 115#.  FOLLOWED BY A FEW SETS OF SQUAT JUMPS.  NOTHING TOO CRAZY BUT I CERTAINLY FELT IT THE NEXT DAY.  REMEMBER, IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO DO SOMETHING, RATHER THAN NOTHING AT ALL.  EVEN DOING 4 SETS OF 25 REPS BODY WEIGHT SQUATS IS A GREAT QUICK WORKOUT THAT CAN BE DONE IN THE MORNING IN YOUR KITCHEN OR WHEREVER BEFORE THE KIDS WAKE UP.  IT WILL REALLY GET THE BLOOD FLOWING AND GET YOUR DAY OFF TO A GREAT START!       

CURLS, CURLS, CURLS

   HAPPY HUMP DAY EVERYONE!  KEEPING IT SIMPLE AGAIN TONIGHT, WHICH I TRY TO DO MOST NIGHTS.  IT DOESN'T MEAN I AM NOT CHALLENGING MYSELF, I JUST TRY NOT TO COMPLICATE THE WORK OUT.  4 SETS OF 10 REPS, 3 EXERCISES.  SINGLE 35# DUMBELL 2 HAND CURL, STANDARD CURLS WITH ROGUE CURL BAR + 20 POUNDS, WIDE HAMMER CURLS USING ROGUE ARM BLASTER.  

  BELOW IS THE ARM BLASTER IN ACTION.  IT DOES WONDERS FOR FORM WHICH IN TURN MAKES IT HIGHLY EFFECTIVE.  $65 PLUS SHIPPING. TOTALLY WORTH IT.  SOLID YET SIMPLE CONSTRUCTION.  THIS THING WILL LAST FOREVER.  ONE REASON I CHOOSE TO PURCHASE GEAR RATHER THAN GO TO A GYM IS BECAUSE I KNOW THAT IT WILL HAVE ANOTHER LIFE WITH MY SON ONE DAY AND HOPEFULLY HIS SON.  I NEVER HESITATE TO INVEST IN MY HEALTH.  CHEERS TO YOURS!  REMEMBER, IF YOU DON'T HAVE YOUR HEALTH, WHAT HAVE YOU?   

NOTE ; FOR SOME REASON YOU HAVE TO MAKE THE VIDEO FULL SCREEN TO SEE IT, OTHERWISE YOU JUST HEAR DEEP CREEPY BREATHING    

PULL UP CHALLENGE

   I WATCHED AN ONLINE LEADERSHIP SEMINAR TONIGHT THAT LASTED LONGER THAN I EXPECTED AND I HAD NOT SEEN MY WONDERFUL WIFE MUCH TODAY AND I WAS FEELING A LITTLE BEAT UP AFTER THE MONDAY NIGHT WORK OUT.  I GAVE MYSELF TWENTY MINUTES TO DO AS MANY PULL UPS AS I COULD MUSTER.  THE TOTAL CAME TO 73.  BETTER THAN I EXPECTED HONESTLY.  I DID 100 ONE DAY AND THAT TOOK ME AT LEAST 45 MINUTES, BEST I RECALL.  I WILL TAKE 73.  I LISTENED TO AN EPISODE ON THE OUTSIDE PODCAST A WHILE BACK INTERVIEWING THE WORLD RECORD HOLDER FOR PULL UPS.  I TRIED TO FIND THE EPISODE TO LINK BUT FAILED.  IT WAS SOME INSANE NUMBER, LIKE 5,000 IN 24 HOURS.  THE RULES ARE QUITE STRICT AND THE TRAINING IS PURE DEDICATION.  THE GUY WOULD DO PULL UPS FOR LIKE 4 HOURS A DAY.  AMAZING.  THERE WILL ALWAYS BE PEOPLE BETTER THAN US AT EVERYTHING, HOWEVER, DON'T LET THAT STOP YOU FROM DOING WHAT YOU CAN OR BEING PROUD OF YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS.  AS LONG AS YOU ARE IMPROVING YOURSELF, THATS ALL THAT MATTERS.  WE WILL AIM FOR 75 ON THE NEXT 20 MINUTE CHALLENGE.    CHEERS!

THE OLD NOT SO TRUSTY PULL UP BAR, CUSTOM DESIGN, AND REPAIR

PULL UP TALLIES

 

PUSH UPS IN THE COLD

 TONIGHT WAS A PUSH UP CHALLENGE.  I STARTED WITH 3 SETS OF 40 THEN I HAD TO SCALE BACK TO SETS OF 30, 20, AND 15 UNTIL I REACHED 250 TOTAL.  WE WILL GET 300 NEXT TIME. 

A LITTLE SNOW DECOR ON THE RACK IS ALWAYS NICE

TONIGHTS WEATHER

A SHOT OF THE SHED GYM LAST NIGHT PRE SNOW

FULL BODY

 I WOULD BE LYING IF I TOLD YOU THAT I DIDN'T PUSH MYSELF A LITTLE HARD LAST NIGHT.  I HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH AN ELBOW AND A SHOULDER INJURY FOR THE LAST FEW MONTHS AND I AM CERTAINLY FEELING BOTH OF THEM TODAY.  HAVING A VARIETY OF EXERCISE COMBINATIONS IS KEY.  TONIGHT WAS 

5 SETS OF 10 STEP UPS ON EACH LEG, 100 TOTAL, WEARING AN 11# VEST AND HOLDING A 25# DUMBBELL IN EACH HAND

5 SETS OF 20 PUSHUPS BETWEEN STEP UP SETS WEARING 11# VEST

THE NEXT DAY IS ALWAYS THE INDICATOR OF EFFECTIVENESS!  

I RARELY HAVE A PLAN FOR THE EXERCISE ROUTINES THAT I DO.  MY DECISIONS ARE ALWAYS BASED ON WHAT MY BODY TELLS ME AND HOW MUCH TIME I HAVE.  HAVE FUN, GET CREATIVE WITH YOUR ROUTINES, AND LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!  EVEN IF YOU ONLY HAVE TEN MINUTES, GO FOR IT.  YOU CAN DO A LOT OF AIR SQUATS OR PUSHUPS IN 10 MINUTES.  

 

   

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

Bench Press

115# 10 Reps

135# 10 Reps

165# 7 Reps x 3 Sets

175# 3 Reps x 3 Sets

145# 10 Reps

145# 9 Reps

145# 5 Reps

25 Push Up Burpees x 2 Sets

Soundtrack - Stone Sour Radio on Pandora

Supplements - Liquid Collagen 

Rogue Fitness Plates

. . . . AND WE ARE LIVE

 

  This is a photo that was taken by my six year old son right after him and my four year old daughter completed testing for their new belts in Tae Kwon Do at Sun Soo Martial Arts in Asheville, NC.  The picture represents a new beginning in my life, of course, Jordan didn't realize that and nor did I until I pondered the content of this post for a bit.  The picture of the kids below represents excitement, focus, and a pursuit of goals and triumphs.  I can't imagine myself accomplishing what my kids have at this young age.  When there is love, and support, it's amazing what these little minds can absorb.  This post also represents a new beginning for the blog and our life adventures.  

Jordan just earned his Yellow / Green* & Elsa just earned her White / Yellow*

*The belts earned (mentioned above) are not given to the students until their next class.

Since my last blog post, February 5, 2016, exactly one year before Elsa was born and Jordan was about to turn two, much has happened, some good & some not so good.  I have endured a few defeats, other wise known as 'learning opportunities', and a few bouts of 'burn out', but I don't stop.  Here I am stronger than ever physically, healing mentally, and, happy for my kids and their wins, and ready to take on some new challenges of my own.  Compare the above picture of me to this post and know that whatever challenges you may be facing, it will pass, and you will win in the end.   

  The first day of a new year seemed like an appropriate time to make a commitment to myself and to you that I will rekindle the blog that I enjoyed writing so much for many years.  In the time that I have put the blog aside I like to think that I have learned (debatable) and pursued many new things that I can share and maybe even inspire in you.  I will kindly ask that you subscribe and follow along with me in my pursuits and curiosities.  Happy New Year to you and yours, here's to new challenges and getting stronger!