We might be somewhat the opposite! But I love being social on here and absolutely love that you’re here too.
Watching longer videos – usually educational – on a topic is pretty big for me. And “educational” doesn’t always mean deep haha. Makeup tutorials are some of my favorites! But I love short funny videos, dog videos, historical facts, fashion advice, etc. So after T Nation community, if I had to choose only one other form of social media, it’d probably be YouTube.
But you make a good point. It’s not really “social” if you’re just part of the audience. And I think I’m okay with that. In-person social interaction lights me up more these days.
That’s a great point! You just completely altered my perspective of that. HA!
The entire idea of parasocial relationships is riveting, and I mention it in conversations with Chris a lot. You’re the only other person I’ve ever met who’s brought it up!
If anyone is scrolling through here and wants to understand that topic better, this podcast was the first thing to introduce me to parasocial relationships. And they break it down in such an entertaining way!
Stephen Dubner isn’t a host on that show anymore and it kinda went downhill, but back in the day, this used to be my favorite podcast.
I may have to give it another shot. Angela Duckworth and Stephen Dubner had so much chemistry that it had me laughing while listening, but I think some of the hosts that helped cohost afterward weren’t as good a complement. Smart lady though!
She sounds familiar! I’ll for sure check out her stuff. Thanks for the recommendation!
I can’t keep it at arms distance. If i have it, I’m on it all the time. Same goes for forums too.
I wish i could just be normal and only use these things lightly, when i want to. But my brain likes dopamine too much to let me be an occasional partaker of any social media.
Tell me about it. It’s hard to use in moderation, so maybe our best bet is to just be selective about how we use it. I wonder if there’s a way to set boundaries around it.
It seems normal to be on it all the time though. I just don’t want to crave internet validation as much as most people on instagram. I used to in years past, and it occupied so much of my attention without ever leading to a greater sense of purpose, contentment, or joy. There were fleeting dopamine surges dependent on other people’s reactions to my “content” which is a barf word if you’re just a person on the internet and not a business.
The desperation that comes with striving for more likes and follows is so off-putting that it makes my stomach turn. But maybe that’s just my bias because I’ve seen too many Joey Swoll type videos where people are just mean and awful in their efforts to gain traction.
You know what you do though? You have deep, honest, and thought-provoking conversations with people. And that says a lot! Most of social media is pretty contrived. But there’s nothing like an Andrewgen thread.
Just caught up again and left a gazillion likes for a bunch of people. I swear, I’m not getting all wierd for @Chris_Shugart or @Dani_Shugart. I think its an age bracket thing.
Colors- A woman I interact with often has this locked down tight. I have never seen such an amazingly dressed & coordinated person in my life. Its incredible. Seasonal too. The whole nine yards.
@Lonnie123 trauma & training- Ive had different times in my life when I felt that if I could focus on one thing and do it extremely well, then the hardships that brought me to that point would all be worth it. Like giving meaning to a lot of things that were senseless and tragic. It seems to have worked. I made it this far!
Kind of a gestalt self improvement method.
All the other stuff- very relatable too.
@T3hPwnisher - marbled doe sounds incredibly good, but I get where you’re coming from. Most of the venison I’ve eaten (went on a several year run of it once) had to be cut with pork and/or cooked carefully to be really good.
I stick to fly fishing, but my brother in law gets tags for here in PA and W.Va for like, all parts of deer season- Like doe, buck, bow, rifle, black powder, etc. Anyways, between him and a deep freeze, I was neck deep in deer for a long time!
The ones in my yard don’t even care anymore. They ate my pumpkins this year, one while looking straight at me!
I almost need an “allowance” for social media. Ideally my phone would kick me off after 10-20 minutes maximum a day. If there’s an app for that, let me know because my brain is not disciplined enough to be moderate about it.
At some point this month, I switched to an upper-lower split, kinda accidentally. Maybe that was because of the shoulder impingement. But my chiro seems to have healed it.
Hip Thrust
Leg Press
Booty Machine
Walking Lunge
Seated Ham Curl
Abs
I started doing hip thrusts last week (after a year of not doing them) and the pump in the glute max was unreal. Then I had a delightful amount of soreness over the weekend that made me excited to do more today.
With only 95 pounds total, I got the most insane mind-muscle connection and extended a set to the point that it made me say, “Uuuuuuuuuuuuungh”. Verbally. Out loud. And after this sound came out of my mouth, I realized that I had projected it across the gym.
Welp, that was embarrassing. I would get it if someone made a grunting noise after a heavy lift, but a moaning noise? After a light lift?
Confessions and Weekend Stuff
One of the reasons I got back on the 'gram is because I was influenced! By an influencer! She’s big in fitness, but I discovered her because she has also delt with a lot of hair loss and shared her story on YouTube.
She actually inspired me to start trying out wigs. So that’s a thing I’ve been playing around with. Chris and I made muffins and I went blonde for a day.
They are enormous, peach cobbler muffins, and they magically get better on the second day.
Blonde may not be the best color with my complexion. But I did try to choose something with warm undertones that would match the autumn color season (diagnosis?) I was given a couple weeks ago. It’s fun to have options.
