Thursday - 17 October through Monday - 20 October Workout: No training
Nope, no gym time while we were away, but we crushed a ton of physical activities beyond the 1-2 hours of horseback riding daily:
Mini-golf
Basketball
Ping-pong
Corn hole
Laser tag
BB guns
Archery
Indoor water slide
Hay rides
Paddle boating
Canoeing
Wall climbing
Mountain tubing
and lots and lots of walking. I mean LOTS of walking.
Yep, it was a truly awesome trip: I was able to unplug from work, we ate like kings (with a ton of great protein options at every meal), and we had nearly 5 full days of focused family time.
And while I’m obviously no @dagill2, here’s a shot of me on the climbing wall:
It’s nothing to write home about, really, but I was glad I could haul my fat-a$$ up the intermediate level on my first attempt, and then repeat it the next day.
@T3hPwnisher, @dagill2 - Thanks for the comments, guys! And you’re absolutely right: It really was amazing!
We often do the Disney parks this time of year, but over the summer Mrs. SvenG talked me into trying something new: It was a totally different experience, but one we all decided we’d like to do again if the opportunity arises!
Monday - 20 October Workout: Easy conditioning, 1900-1925 (25 minutes)
Walk - 25 minutes
The expected 6-hour drive home took over 8 hours because of an overturned semi blocking both lanes—and in a construction zone no less!
Luckily no one was hurt, but we were at a dead-stop on the expressway for over an hour…
We made it home, unpacked, and I was able to hit up a walk. It felt good after sitting in the car for so long, but I didn’t really have the desire to do more: We were all exhausted from a great trip and the long drive!
For sure! I don’t think I’ve ever done one before—and if I have, it’s obviously been long enough that I’ve forgotten—but it was definitely a FUN kind of hard that I haven’t felt in a long time: Way more challenging than I expected, and I got a bigger sense of accomplishment than was probably warranted. (Haha!)
As it happens, my 98-lbs, almost 13-years old son crushed all three levels, including the hard level 3-4 times over the course of our time away. When it comes to sports, he’s got a pretty good work ethic for a kid, but neither my wife nor I have seen him demonstrate the kind of tenacity he did when attacking the hard climb: He did it over and over until he got it, and the problem-solving he was doing while clinging to the wall on tiny hand-holds was incredible—to say nothing of the point near the top that required an honest-to-goodness leap through the air, despite him being relatively lanky with a decent wing-span for his age.
It was awesome to see, and we’ve already started looking into climbing lessons locally. Sometimes I worry because I don’t think he’s going to end up being built like me, but this climbing thing really could work out for him…
That list of activities is awesome!! Would love to try some archery one day!
Props on the rock climbing, I’ve done it a handful of times and it is always fun!
We have a climbing gym locally. My kids have loved it from the word go. I’ve gone with them and climbed a few times. It is much more difficult that most people would expect. I could definitely tell the difference between when I was lifting regularly and when I quit. It is fun to watch your kids just kind of spider monkey their way up the walls. I always hoped my kids would get a bit more into it, but they still go for fun occasionally so I’m happy with that.
@shaneinga, @DJoftheJungle1 - Thanks for the comments, guys! Of all the things we did, Laser Tag was actually my favorite—mostly because it was just the four of us for all but one of the games we played, and there were both team- and every-man-for-himself options. Definitely a blast, haha!
That said, I enjoyed the rock climbing well enough to try it more than once—it really was fun to use my strength to do some other than move iron around.
@BethB - Not sure how old your kids are, but we’re still very much in a “finding your thing” phase with my son: He a truly excellent swimmer, but hates it. He does well enough at basketball, but he’s way too young to be a one-trick pony.
Even if he doesn’t take to rock climbing, we feel like the exposure to it is what’s important at this point.
The only “problem” with vacation: I leave work, but work continues!
Spent a really long day playing catch-up—not unexpected, but annoying and stressful nonetheless—so I didn’t get around to this work until after dinner: I walked into the weightroom, loaded the bar, and just started squatting. Really happy with how those went—only 285 felt hard, but maybe that’s not unexpected, either.
Didn’t have time or desire for more, but I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish.
Ended up putting in another long day at work, but my schedule was a bit more normal compared to yesterday. Same thing here, though: Just loaded the bar and started pulling. Deads were fast and strong today, used straps for the set at 320. Press was amazing—particularly compared to how these same weights felt last week. Likely a consequence of extra rest and extra calories while we were away. I’ll take it, though, whatever the reason!
Oh, and that reminds me: The pump over these past two workouts have been insane! Once again, likely due to the extra carbs on vacation. And once again, I’ll take it, whatever the reason!
Somehow I screwed up the numbering on my Pause days here, because technically today is supposed to be Day 7. Hm…
(Oh, I’m sorry: Is that my OCD showing?)
Anyway, this morning I went to the weight room with a blank notebook—decided to do this circuit more or less on the fly. Then I set my timer for 60 minutes, setup the implements, and tried to get in as many complete rounds as I could.
It was actually about 40 minutes of active work, with 10 minutes of setup, 5 minutes of teardown, and 5 minutes to recover before heading back to my desk. It was definitely a fun bit of work!
Playtime’s over, though. I’ll resumeGod Sven is a Beast with this evening’s post-dinner walk (assuming it happens).
just before we left for our trip. I was surprised at how much more effective it is for the triceps extensions compared to the DBs I’ve been using. I also think I can load it a bit heavier while still managing good form.
My only complaint: They couldn’t get it to 20 lbs unloaded? Really!?! I mean, how stupid is a 19-lbs bar?
(Dang it! There’s my OCD showing again—I thought I put that way. Haha!)
