I enjoyed that post so much, you should be a published author. I loved the story, but I loved even more how you tied it back in at the end.
KB complex… pretty freakin G. And you definetely don’t need a gym to work out.
major win for taking it outside Cal - sounds lovely. Now I’m gonna fork out and get my own. I just love the idea of barefeet swinging with the birds…
It is lovely. There are quite a few commons in South West London - Tooting Common is one of the nicer ones.
It was hot in my flat so I went out for another stroll and took a few pictures which I thought I’d share. Here’s the Egyptian Goose and her three goslings.
One of the burnet moths I mentioned the other day. Apparently they’re not that common but there are lots of them here.
Another burnet moth. I like this photo.
Anyway, I’m sure you can understand why I like to run or walk around Tooting Common. I find a certain amount of peace here, especially if I’m just chilling, looking at the ducks.
Lovely pictures. I was trying to imagine what a “common” might be. Here its mainly manicured grass with paths through it.
That is a great idea about taking a KB outside. I have a 12 kg one that I could take to my backyard or deck.
It’s “common land” - originally a tract of land where everyone can go (or graze their sheep, once upon a time). The main difference between a common and a park is that parks have fences, tend to be shut at night, and often have flower gardens and the like.
Commons are generally more wild although most have grassy areas that are mown, and a lot have sports facilities. Tooting Common has football pitches, tennis courts, a running track and Tooting Bec Lido, which is the UK’s largest pool at 100 yards long and contains one million gallons of water.
I’m sure it would be nice to swim there on a hot day, were it not everyone else in the vicinity has the exact same idea. I’m also not keen on public pools. My friend swims there and has caught impetigo twice. Eww.
But a lot of the common has wild areas and wooded sections which I like to walk (or run) through. It’s only at the end of my road so I’m really lucky.
Clapham Common isn’t far either but is surrounded on all sides by main roads and is generally less picturesque.
I’d like walking there too 
The moth pictures are very nice - love the coloring. I had no idea about the “common” vs. “park” great explanation.
googled impetigo - major eww. I’m learning so much from this forum. lol
I was too beat up (read: sore) to do anything today, so I went for a walk on Wandsworth Common (which is about a mile away) as I hadn’t really explored it previously. Like Tooting Common, it’s bisected by a railway line, and is bigger than I expected. One half is fairly uninteresting - open green space with trees and paths - but the other side of the tracks is very nice and even has a trim trail (pull up station, sit-up logs and so forth). I was scoping it out as a potential place to run but it also looks like being somewhere to go for an outdoor workout. Nice.
Wonderful idea to take the workout outside! Looks like a challenge, no wonder you’re sore.
And that common is beautiful - pics are lovely too.
I tossed around moving to London a few years back. Its really such a nice city.
Hi Cal. Love the photos! What a beautiful area. Your training is looking awesome.
Weather is cooling down slightly - cloudy today, but still warm. Hopefully this means my flat will finally get cooler and I can get a good night’s sleep.
Gym today.
Military Press
(Warm up: 10 x bar)
9 x 30kg (no change)
I guess I can’t expect progress every time. Rep 9 was an all-out effort, no way I could have got 10. I still have some residual soreness from the KB workout so perhaps that is the reason, but as I said, you can’t always go forwards - sometimes not going backwards is enough.
Chins x 5 (no change)
Same number of reps but felt better than last time, so it’s progress of a sort.
Decline Push-ups (shoulder-width hand spacing) x 18 (+1)
Another small victory.
Chins x 4 (+1)
Finally I get an extra chin on my second set! That makes me happier.
28kg Dumbell Rows x 7 (+2kg)
Went up a weight and predictably that made it a lot harder. The main issue was grip - had to put the dumbell down a couple of times. Perhaps I need to get straps now. I’ve always turned my nose up at 'em because it feels like wussing out, but I’d be glad to hear your thoughts on this if you have any.
High incline dumbell bench press: 16kg x 12 (+2)
Time to move up to 18kg. This felt a lot easier than last time.
Pull-ups x 2 (+1)
Overhand grip again. If this starts bothering my shoulder I’ll revert to chins but it seems OK for now.
50kg Pulldowns x 9 (no change)
Felt strong at the start of the set but that didn’t last, heh. Funny how that happens.
Decline sit-ups with 2kg dumbell x 10
Ugh I am pathetic at these. Again, on the highest incline, but as I’d got the 12 reps with no weight last time, I added a weight this time - the smallest, pussiest dumbell in the gym. (Well actually not quite the smallest - there is a 1kg dumbell in a different set than the regular ones…but that’s just plain embarrassing). I put it behind my neck to start but that just felt uncomfortable so I ended up holding it across my throat. I died at rep 10… Christ I need to get better at these. I suck.
Weighted hyperextensions (18kg) x 9 (+2kg)
So I moved up a weight and I actually didn’t have too much trouble putting it behind my neck. The reps aren’t too bad for a first attempt at that weight, either.
TGUS, 6kg - 3 per side
I remembered this time. The first TGU (dumbell in right hand) caused a bit of distress to the left ankle due to my awkwardness. I was extra carefull subsequently. Each time I did right then left, then a small break to recover. I did try 8kg after and got it on the right (if a bit ugly) but not on the left. It’s the transition from lunge to standing where I have the trouble.
Stretching.
The good news: I weighed myself and am now down to 146lbs (-2lbs from last time).
The bad news is that I wore shorts to the gym for the first time and was a bit horrified by how my legs look. See, at home, I don’t have a full-length mirror, there is nowhere to put one. The only way I can see myself is to stand on the edge of the bath, but that puts me a bit too close to the bathroom mirror to get an objective view. Everwhere else I wear clothes that generally covers my thighs so I don’t tend to see them. And not to put too fine a point on it, they are quite flabby and have no quad sweep unless I turn my feet out like Charlie Chaplin. They would look a lot better with more muscle so it frustrates me that I can’t squat due to a back injury. Still, I will have to make more effort to work on them instead of ignoring them and hoping running will take care of the rest. The kettlebell swings definitely help so I’ll make a point of doing them more regularly. I’ll see what else I can cook up.
Can you do ANY sort of movement with the legs??
If you can do swings, why not give goblet squats a try? And if you can do goblet squats, why not regular front squats? Then theres always the leg press, or good ole’ lunges/step ups!
I sympathize with you Cal, I remember when I was self-conscious of my legs as well. When I wore shorts for the first time to my school gym, I had an awful workout b/c I was worried about what others were thinking of my legs. That makes for a bad workout. Then feeling pretty silly at the end when you realize that no one’s seeing the “flaws” that you see.
With a workout like yours, no one’s paying attention to your legs, they’re trying to keep up with how many chins that you can do, which is a lot. But if you’re self-conscious about them, then change them. If you can, go on the leg extension machine. Of get a stick for balance, put an ankle weight on your foot and do standing leg extensions.
Squats are nice but they’re not the only way to get the legs in shape.
I can do static lunges (the more explosive kind I have to skip, due to my ankle problems) and the plie squat seemed OK (well I’m not sure if it’s a KB plie squat or a sumo deadlift - holding a kettlebell, it seems to be a bit of both).
I did switch from back to front squats when I was doing 531 - I dropped them around Feb time because my back was still aggravated. Consequently I’m not sure goblets will help a massive amount. I have a lot of mechanical issues when it comes to squatting. Hips are tight, yes, but there’s also stuff like having a stupendously long spine and longish femurs, but short shins, which means I can’t get my feet under my arse. It’s a massive pain (literally, in fact) so I’m going to have to find a workaround.
I say “leg press” if you can swing it with your dodgy back. I do them sometimes when my trainer guy insists and they don’t totally suck.
As for straps, I haven’t needed them yet. I work through grip issues with dumbbells by just toughing it out until my grip improves. You might also try db holds. I remember Bobbi talking those up a while back.
Weighted decline sits are a HUGE bitch. I use a 10# plate and can barely squeeze out 10. Perhaps not even at the highest incline…I’ve got to check on that.
I totally hear you when you say sometimes its a victory just not going backwards. I’d say 50% of my trainings are like this, 25% of the time I DO go backwards and 25% of the time I rock.
I must admit I hate the leg press - it causes some weird awkwardness in my groin. I don’t know why - I’d assume it’s the tightness in the psoas. The movement just feels wrong.
3 mile run today, to test the ankle. It felt fine (there is pain in the ankle, but not when I run on it, if that makes sense) so I’m waiting to see if it swells again or not.
I also felt very decarbed so that 3 miles was more of an effort thant he 90 minute run I did last week. I need to eat.