I use schedule 80 pvc for my hammers. One weighs 19# (an old drilled out 20# shot) and the other is a hobbled together 22 1/2 (2 10’s and 2 1/2, 3/4"opening weights, duct taped together). Never threw one with a metal, rigid shaft. You’ve over 40 so you get to use a 42# for the wob and wfd. I still use a 56# to practice wob but had to compete as an A last year once and that’s the last time I’ve tried to throw it for distance. Came up with a real ghetto slosh pipe type 4", 12’ pvc pipe for caber practice. I’ve got 3 more HGs this year and really need to get some more practice in on the sheaf which I official suck at. Sorry to run on but except for MJ Newland and Heavythrower no one ever knows what I’m talking about.
The hammer came into being when a welder friend decided to come and try throwing. He came out and was just learning the hammer and throwing flat. It was a dry year and the ground was hard as concrete and he broke two handles in three throws. Anyway, the next weekend he showed up with this monstrosity that we welded together. I’ve thrown it a few times before, and I am sure the handle will never break, but mainly I just used it for turns to warm up and build strength. It is heavier than I remembered. 
I used 3/4" plates for weights exclusively and they chewed up the PVC pretty good even regularly, but I never duct taped them. I expected that would help. I need to dig them out though as they got put somewhere safe. I liked 5# weights and then a 2 1/2 for the 22, and a 1 3/4 to make a 16. I made a weight throwing handle the same way, and ended up cycling the weight +/- 10%, especially for the wob. I usually pretty much stopped lifting in season, and just relied on regular wob and braemar throws with my 30# rock to keep up my strength. Strangely enough I did in my shoulder eventually. I was actually throwing a 30# today that the same fellow made for me. It is apparently sliced section off of an oil drilling shaft he welded an eye bolt into and I have a airplane cable and gas pipe handle on it. He made me a 55# as well. He built all the stuff, trained with me for almost a year, then never competed.
I have lots of Aspen, and they grow straight, but thin and short here, so nice for cabers, I just need to get the chainsaw out and cut one. I’ll need to wait until winter now, as they’ll be too wet and heavy. I had one like that and a treated telephone pole I cut down. I was expecting the ants to get the aspen, but the treated post went too. I guess it has been 10 years…my trig is gone too and that was a treated 4x4.
Now I’m running on… 
So tried a new workout called a cardiac stress test today. I met the cardiologist and looks at my chart and says “this looks more like asthma than your heart”. I point out ventollin didn’t help at all. He decides he might as well put me on the treadmill as I was there anyway and better safe than sorry.
I head off at a brisk inclined walk. At about 10 minutes in he wants to stop. Apparently all those wavy lines were waving in a way he didn’t like.
I say, I’m not feeling all the way bad yet, but he shuts it down an writes me up a prescription for nitro spray to deal with my angina. I said that wasn’t too bad, I can push it way past that, I wasn’t even getting spots in front of my eyes. He pointed out that my heart rate was well over 220 and my systolic blood pressure was over 240…
Anyway, echocardiogram and pulmonary stress test Wednesday, and they will tell me when my angiogram is Wednesday.
I’m moving weight training to Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday from Monday, Wednesday, Friday this week, as I feel like I’ve been punched in the nose and chest repeatedly, and I imagine I’ll feel the same after the pulmonary stress test Wednesday. I am off the wagon, and having a pint. I have high triglycerides, and low cholesterol alcohol is counterindicated, but I’ve had maybe half a dozen drinks since March and it hasn’t seemed to make a difference so a pint tonight seems in order.
So, question. For cutting weight, as I think losing bodyfat is now my first priority, just cut calories, keep the macro’s and the workout the same? I’ve seen it argued back and forth to death, but my bodyfat is too high and my strength level is too low for me to think that is matters too much.
I can’t advise you in diet, but I wanted to drop in and say I’m enjoying your log and hope your medical condition gets straightened around. You have an amusing way with words!
Look up the carb night solution for loosing weight. Basically it’s keeping carbs to under 30 grams a day for 10 days then having a carb binge the next evening and night then repeating the process over and over again. There are other components but the diet works. My wife has lost inches and body fat.
The gemini from rogue fitness is easy to get used to and if you like some pain to help relieve pain and soreness it’s great. If you have used a foam roller then you will a pretty easy time figuring it out. I’m going to get their Super Nova ball soon too because it looks like another great tool for mobility work.
Thanks snap!
I managed to get my heart rate up to 220 on the treadmill, with a max heart rate for someone my age being about 180. I have a prescription for nitroglycerin. So I was explaining to my wife that I am pretty much a superhero now.
Me: “See, I can take my heart rate well over human normal and I have nitroglycerin…powers.”
Reply: “You don’t become a superhero by adding the word “powers” after things.”
Me: “I’m pretty sure that’s how it works.”
gorilla: I’ll look into the diet. I’m not sure what to do. I’m not obese even by BMI standards (close, but I squeak under by a pound or two), but I am pretty sure any excess body fat is bad fat at this point in my life. I’m going to put the gemini on my birthday list. It is a few months off, and I’m not able to hit it hard enough I need it, but a good deep massage is nice. I don’t feel like paying a professional and my wife never manages to unknot my back.
Well, still a bit of a headache from the cardiac test yesterday, but I decided that now I’m a superhero (Nitroman… I need to make a costume) I’ll carry on anyway.
Decided that I was going to try and cut back to squats every second workout…after this one, so I am going to alternate oly lifts and squats. Except I need to practice them, so I’ll do a few each workout. Or if I am feeling perky I’ll just keep doing both. I definitely have a plan…
So tonight was:
Overhead Squat + 3 Behind the Neck Presses, 5 reps 50#
Snatch 5 singles, a little rough, but I’m blaming the cardiac test, it is getting a lot of blame
Squat 5x5-230# - should be at bodyweight next workout
Overhead Press 5x10-75#
Pulldowns 5x10 - 205#
Been thinking of hitting my squats harder following the old adage that you throw with you legs, at least in Athletics. Do you have bumper plates when you oly lift?
You need balls for your knots, the tennis kind & other slightly pointed and hurty implements.
hel
I don’t have bumpers at home. It doesn’t matter yet for the oly’s, as I’m not lifting much for my bodyweight, and I can sneak off to the gym that’s only 7 miles away once I need the weight. They have a few platforms with bumpers set up and not too many users. I’m too embarrassed of my general flabby feebleness and poor form at the moment though. Once I need the weight I’ll wander over there.
Was thinking about you PVC caber. That has no taper at all. You have it weighted or is it just a dead straight stick? It sound nasty to throw if it has any weight to it. I hate straight sticks…
minimal
That definitely sounds naughty… Honestly, I just haven’t been getting too much trouble yet. I remember how it was, and I think I’m still lifting light for my size but so far so good.
You’ve inspired me to throw in a couple of overhead squats for warm-ups or something.
Fate’s capricious mischief foils my plans again!
I wrenched my back this morning.
You may think it was carrying a fridge upstairs, wrestling the donkey to trim hooves, or even flexing too hard while posing as Nitroman…but alas no. It was drying my back off after showering this morning.
If I’m going to hurt myself, I want to hurt myself doing something cool!
Anyway, hot water bottle ibuprofen and lazing about working from home. I should telecommute more often, as I got a lot done…until it came tiem to work out.
After going on about squats healing all things, I had to skip tonight. I had my son set up my bar for the bench before he went off to fence for the evening, and there was some smirking involved but he knew not to say a thing.
I hobbled out this workout:
Bench 185 5x5 = a couple inches high as I had no back arch and it twinged with each rep. I’m going to redo the weight next workout.
Let Pulldowns 205 5x10
…and that was that. I’m hoping its’ better for next workout. I think its just a cramp. I need the gemini now! Need to find a tennis ball at least I know we have one around here somewhere.
[quote]corrmhona wrote:
You may think it was carrying a fridge upstairs, wrestling the donkey to trim hooves, or even flexing too hard while posing as Nitroman…but alas no.
There’s only one superhero here and that’s Urbanman!
Really, enjoying your log. I truly hope you get good news from the docs on your medical issue.
[quote]corrmhona wrote:
Fate’s capricious mischief foils my plans again!
I wrenched my back this morning.
You may think it was carrying a fridge upstairs, wrestling the donkey to trim hooves, or even flexing too hard while posing as Nitroman…but alas no. It was drying my back off after showering this morning.
[/quote]
Sorry to hear that. Backs are funny things. I once put my back out reaching for a tile playing Scrabble, no lie.
Heal up quick.
Does that make me a supervillain then? Appointment with GP on overall status, waiting on an agiogram appointment before the cardiologist wants to see me again…
It is feeling better. Talked the wife into getting her knuckles into it. Left erector spinae is swollen, but the pain is going down, right side fine. Back to squatting tomorrow, but I think I’ll ramp up the sets.
[quote]FarmerBrett wrote:
[quote]corrmhona wrote:
Fate’s capricious mischief foils my plans again!
I wrenched my back this morning.
You may think it was carrying a fridge upstairs, wrestling the donkey to trim hooves, or even flexing too hard while posing as Nitroman…but alas no. It was drying my back off after showering this morning.
[/quote]
Sorry to hear that. Backs are funny things. I once put my back out reaching for a tile playing Scrabble, no lie.
Heal up quick.[/quote]
Sitting at my desk once and I sneezed. My entire back cramped up and I could barely move. Hot baths and massages for a week to get it loosened up.
[quote]corrmhona wrote:
Does that make me a supervillain then? [/quote]
No, not at all. My attempt at humor!
Hot bath and massage seems to be working. I’m testing it out later today. If I don’t post a workout I failed! Got my wife working her knuckles into the sore muscle until my leg started twitching and I think it helped a lot.
I thought I should check on the supervillian thing. I told my wife I was going to get a luchador mask, a speedo and a pair of wrestler boots, then connect the patches the shaved in my chest for the ECG electrodes in to a big N for my costume. She didn’t say it was a supervillian look, but she did think maybe I switched sides somehow. (Humour appreciated. Always.)
Ah, no not the back, sorry to hear that. Just make some puppy dog eyes at your wife, make some sort of compliment about her hands, etc etc. And watch how you sit and move for the time being.
Looks like the back is just a cramps. Still a bit sore if I twist unexpectedly, but decided to test it out with the following squat sets:
10x120#, 10x140#, 10x160#, 6x160# was going to do 10 but needed nitro so decided to switch to 5’s, 5x190#, 5x210#, 5x240#, 5x260#, 5x260#. That brings 2 lifts up over bodyweight…and the squat into a more proper relationship with the bench.
So I think the back is OK.
Overhead Press 5x5x120# - elbow seems fine as well
Lat Pull Downs 5x5x210#
I am tired. I don’t know how you guys do it…
minimal: I give full credit to my wife. I complimented her on her karate and had her pound the muscle until it behaved.