Fine-Tuning the Machine & Tacking on the Vanity Plates

Training
481

[quote]pch2 wrote:
I’m going to have to do back and actually read your log, lots of good stuff in here. So, sorry if you’ve answered these already, but how far apart are your feet for the wall squats? I feel like mine are ridiculously far apart, but I’m starting to think it’s a function of ankle mobility. Which I guess means I’m also putting in a request for your ankle mobility program.

Also, kale? Do you like the bitter or is there some magic way you’re cooking them? Greens in general have always baffled me. Do you have any recipes that don’t involve a pound of butter?[/quote]

Actually, nobody asked about how wide my wall squat stance is… but it is basically the same as my squat stance- WIDE. Toes out at ~45 degrees+. It seems to me that a narrow stance which requires the knees to move forward would be prohibitive for wall squatting. I see your point regarding ankle mobility too. That probably is part of why people often tip backwards during this drill. i’ll have to work on the ankle mobility stuff soon I guess.

Funny you should ask about “the bitter” in your kale query. I actually think that it tastes sweet!? Reminds me of an episode of NOVA Science Now where they did an experiment that involved testing kids for whether or not they could taste a particular compound found in brassicas. The non-tasters loved/liked to eat many more varieties of veg like broccoli, brussel sprouts, kale, etc. The tasters were very picky eaters. This is by no means an excuse not to eat veggies, but at least it makes more sense why some people don’t like them as much as others do.

However, my palate is very much conditioned for bitter friendliness. When I was growing up we always ate cooked greens with vinegar. Sort of an odd German heritage thing I guess. (Think sour kraut, etc.) I can’t remember eating cooked spinach without vinegar splashed on it at home until I was an adult! Still eat it that way a lot. One of my favorites is rice wine vinegar. Yum- tangy and sweet.

As far as how I cook the greens, regardless of how I dress them, I usually braise them in vegetable broth or sometimes I’ve even used olive juice or pickle juice from a jar. The low-heat braising technique keeps them from getting overly bitter too. That said, I also love raw greens and often just eat them chopped or munch on whole leaves of the stuff. Also, you may want to check out some different varieties of greens. For example, there are tasty curly leaf kales as well as flat leaf toscana or roman varieties.

Lastly, I shudder at the thought of drowning greens of any sort in butter! Don’t get me wrong I like butter, but i can’t imagine putting it on my beloved kale :slight_smile:

482

[quote]veggiestrong wrote:

And I was thinking of you while I was drinking the wine Frenchie.
[/quote]

dramatic hand pose Veggie of the Amazone legs thought of little old Moi! cue fainting

:wink:

currently drinking a very nice LBV 2004 Quinta do Infantado Port
unfiltered and bottle at the estate.
very very nice gift from the brother. On my 3 glass tonight. Bad Frenchie.

483

Just catching up on the last week or so over here. I don’t know how I missed so much! Some awesome pictures. Your legs in those little volleyball player shorts look fantastic.

Gotta get some wall squats on. Nice vid. And cute sundress up there. I’m a skirt and dress person myself.

Maximus just told me about Poliquin and now you are talking his GVT training over here. Must do more research. It’s probably not for me yet.

Oh, and I noticed all the talk about hormones back a couple of pages. I’ve talked about it before. The Pill seriously messed with my libido, and not in a good way. My 20’s could have been a lot more fun had I figured that out.

484

And if you decide to show that lovely face, you’ll get some good Cali wine recs, too :wink:

Napa and some other great wineries (and some distilleries) are practically in my backyard.

485

i was going to ask about your kale too.

but…oh boy. braise? i have no idea what that is…my veggie prep experience is all steaming or raw :{ but i wanted to try kale too since i’ve heard its pretty spectacular for you.

486

[quote]brute_fury wrote:
i was going to ask about your kale too.

but…oh boy. braise? i have no idea what that is…my veggie prep experience is all steaming or raw :{ but i wanted to try kale too since i’ve heard its pretty spectacular for you.[/quote]

Girl, braising is slow cooking in a liquid, usually a flavored liquid. Recall that she said she uses broth.

e.g. “braised ribs” = ribs cooked in a slow cooking liquid. Yes, you can do it in a crock pot.

487

greens with vinegar… i never thought of that. i drown fish in vinegar. can just about drink balsalmic, really love the stuff. never thought to put it on greens, though. great idea.

488

Hey Veg, dropping in, GVT looks brutal, but it’s treating you well.

489

Look at that mobility on the wall squats–very nice. I see your dance background.

490

[quote]veggiestrong wrote:
Good morning all! I’ll work on some ankle and other mobility stuff soon and put up the vids.

Just got back from a follow-up with my gyno. Looking good. Nurse weighed me and took my bp. 139 and 110/60. Happy. Not sure about what exactly I weigh because for the sake of consistency, I got on the digital here at home when I woke up. 135.2, same scale as last week. That would be + 2 lbs since last Mon. I am inclined to believe this to be true based on the amount of food that I have managed to consume and the hard-core GVT over the past 7 days.

Here is a pic of part of my breakfast. 4 eggs + gorgonzola cheese, bowl of wilted kale x2, also had a banana and several stuffed and oil-cured olives while I was cooking.

EDIT: Ponce I do appreciate your suggestions regarding scotch. I was finishing a 1/2 bottle of a Cali pinot that my roomie/gran brought home from dinner while I was posting last night and got distracted by all of Bre’s questions. And I was thinking of you while I was drinking the wine Frenchie. I like wine too, just go through phases with stuff. [/quote]

The cleavege looks yummier than the plate of food.

491

I absolutely love the way Neil deGrasse Tyson explains things, though I hear he’s not so approachable in person. I have that episode on the DVR and will watch it soon for sure.

I don’t usually have a bitter issue, I tend to do the ACV in warm water thing and like it a lot. Maybe it’s just been that long since I’ve tried kale, braise in the crock pot it is.

Now to start reading backwards.

492

someone mentioned wall squats and ankle mobility in a recent article here at t nation, too. maybe i’m missing something but i don’t understand how ankle dorsiflexion is required for wall squats since the wall prevents dorsiflexion by not allowing the knee to come forwards.

493

So, this song kinda describes how my training and, to a great degree, even the rest of my day went.

A classic.

First of all, I had to train in the morning which is not my best time of day. I lift much better in the afternoon/evening. That receptionist at my office who had strep throat last week turned out to have mono, so I’ll be covering Tuesdays for a while and working without any front desk/reception help on Wed morning. Manageable for the short-term, but it messes with my training schedule and throws off my energy. Perfect. Just what I need when I’m running a program like GVT.

As a reward for my sacrifices for the good of our practice, I bought myself a bottle of Laphroaig Quarter Cask. Absolutely delicious. I love that smoking peat bog flavor.

Training: Chest/shoulders-triceps GVT

DB decline press w/30’s: 10, 10, 10, 10, 10, 10, 9, 9, 8, 7; 93 reps total

After I finished these I realized that my anterior delts were pretty fried. I did those CGBPs on Sunday and didn’t take them into account. My triceps, on the other hand, were feeling well recovered. I decided to at least try some MPs and got some reps up at 75, 70, 65-- not feeling it. I knew that 10x10 on them was out of the question. Figured that I’d trust my instincts and train my tris again instead.

Skullcrushers @ 53: 10, 10, 10, 10, 10, 9, 8, 7, 8, 9; 91 reps total

Lastly…

Waiters’ walks w/50 (thanks to Frenchie :slight_smile: 1 each arm for ~100 ft

I was planning to do some pullups but I ran out of time. It was a really intense session. I was dripping in sweat and I did some really quality work, but I was all over the place mentally. I chalk it up to the fact that I was feeling out of my element training that early in the morning… it was 10:30 a.m. For what its worth, both of the docs that I work with mentioned to me, independently, that they were “having a hard time getting going” within the last 24 hours. Maybe we have some spooky energy vortex in our office. Stranger things have happened.

494

next time I will do it 2 lengths of my gym to be equal in distance.
or throw up the 55lbs :wink:

nice workout despite the energy vortex.

495

yeah, great work. especially since you were training at an odd hour for you. i didn’t think i much liked whiskey until i tried Laphroiag. it really is wonderful stuff.

496

I sympathize with the routine changes. I hate when I have to shift things around. On the plus side, you still banged out an awesome workout! I find dripping sweat quite gratifying. :slight_smile:

497

[quote]alexus wrote:
yeah, great work. especially since you were training at an odd hour for you. i didn’t think i much liked whiskey until i tried Laphroiag. it really is wonderful stuff. [/quote]

LOVE LAPHROIG! lets go have a scotch!!!

498

Laphroig is liquid smoke!

Lagavulin 16 is in the same class

Macallan Cask Strength is a great value

Caol Ila 18 is way underrated. Goes excellent with a cigar, probably the best Scotch I’ve had with a cigar (Oliva Serie O or V)

499

Wow Dollface, how are the tris feeling after the 10x10 skullcrushers? Toasty.
I love that you trained regardless of the time. Like you said in my log, whatever gets the job done.

I’ll feast on everything in that pic… yes everything. Even the hottie with the fork <3

500

AHHHHHHHH… I finally made it to my day off! Taking a little time to lay in bed, sip green tea, and catch up with all of you. Thanks for reading everybody.

MiM- Thank heaven that I had last weekend off, and this one too for that matter. Since you are a fellow veggie lover: Do you like eggplant? I am making the most yummy eggplant dip/spread later today. I can’t wait!

Beast- Yup, I try to just take the gym idiot activities with a grain of salt and laugh about their stupid shit. I would certainly train with you anytime if the opportunity presented itself. Glad you liked the wall squat vid. Mobility stuff for the feet an ankles to come.

Kimba- Glad that you are trying the Pro-Enz. Guess what??? I found out via a patient that the Indian place has Sunday Brunch! Buffet + MORE of THE creamy delicious in just a few short days. I am so excited. Keep working those wall squats.

Last Stand- The super dark chocolate is where it’s at. Guess that it is an acquired taste though. GVT is totally intense, I love it!

debra- Yeah, I guess you’re right. Feeling really hungry and then being able to eat well does feel quite good. Doing GVT legs/lower today. This is the most taxing split so tonight will be a feast!

Max- I’m glad that I’m not the only one who gets stupid hungry on this program. Those wall squats are pure WIN. Love 'em. Also, glad to have posted a delicious composition of eggs, kale, and titties. I never think of myself as having much cleavage, guess I do. Thanks.

alexus- I am blessed with easy access to bodywork, hope you can get some soon. You were one of those who requested the wall squat vid. Thanks because it forced me to learn something new- how to make a vid. And I hope that posting it helps other people. Many requests for the ankle mobility stuff, so I’ll get on that soon. Let me know how you like the greens + vinegar. Laphroiag is quite tasty, had another glass last night.

Masch- You would like the GVT. I think it would suit you on many levels. And I am all about knowledge and preventative healthcare. Why wait until you get sick to take care of your body? My previous career working as an industrial chick around big machinery gave me an appreciation for the idea of preventive maintenance. Our bodies are far more complex and dynamic so it only makes sense, right?

Ponce- Thanks again for the scotch recs. I saw a bottle of Lagavulin when I was in the store. $80 so I bought the $50 bottle of Laphroiag. I will certainly have to try it sometime. Maybe for my birthday or something. Agreed on the Macallan Cask Strength. I haven’t had that in a long while. Scotch and cigars. I haven’t had a cigar in a while either. Last time was in Key West in October. Cigars are best alfresco anyway. There is a cool restaurant nearby that has an outdoor bar with bocce courts. Perfect place to go drink scotch and smoke a cigar on a warm spring evening. Now the weather just has to cooperate. And thanks for explaining braising for those who were wondering.

Frenchie: You were a big inspiration for the wall squat vid. Thanks for that. I’m so excited to go squat/DL today. I’m going to do an extra long warmup and really get into the squatting groove. I always loved to squat, wall squats make me love squatting even more because it makes them feel so right. By the way, that port you mentioned sounds amazing. Gran is a fan of port. Also, thanks for the friendly waiters’ walk competition. Fun. The hardest part for me when they get heavy is turning. How 'bout you?

Nikki- Thanks babycakes. I have seen a few yummy photos of you recently :wink: I will be attempting 100 RDLs @ 150 today. Wish me luck. My triceps were pretty burnt after all of those skullcrushers. But honestly, not as bad as I though that they’d be… and I swear that I could feel them growing yesterday.

Ink- Thanks. JMT really get me going. I love their beats and lyrics. Violent By Design is probably the most played album on my iPod.

Matty- Thanks. You should seriously consider trying GVT. It is fun to switch things up and you can only run it for 4-6 weeks.

pch- Glad that you liked the wall squats too. Hope that you find a kale to love. Seriously, try the braising. Only takes 15 or 20 minutes, but it is delicious and also helps preserve some of the nutrients. WIn-win. I also do the ACV thing, not every day, but often. Also flax and cran in the morning. Just makes me feel good.

Puff- Thanks for the complement on the dress. Once the weather gets decent I live in dresses during my leisure time. Can’t wear them to work because of the nature of my job :frowning: Also thanks on the “volleyball player shorts” pics. I am the farthest thing from a volleyball player, but at least I can dress like one! Vertically-challenged and volleyball don’t mix! Definitely get you wall squats on, they rock!

Brute- You gotta try the braised veggies. So yummy and really not a difficult technique. Let me know how you like the kale.

lil power- Thanks for stopping in. The GVT is treating me well and I’m loving it.

Nadia- The wall squats are a perfect outlet for my perfectionist, gymnastics brain. I can focus intensely on EVERY single muscle contraction and movement and overanalyze it to my heart’s content! And it actually helps me in the end!

Lanels- Yes, dripping in sweat is totally gratifying. I’m so looking forward to my afternoon, quiet gym leg GVT session today! The schedule will also have me there tomorrow night! Friday night quiet gym too! Perfect end to my hectic work week.

Bre/TPD/?- I would certainly enjoy having a scotch or 6 with you.