Don’t get me started on wrestling. The way they have those boys lose weight. Half of them are so tiny to begin with and then they want them to drop a weight class. One of the cross country runners had to drop 10 pounds so he could be in a lower class. That kid was so skinny to begin with I don’t know where the weight came from. That can’t be healthy for adolescent growth. It’s not like wrestling season is short either. So the kid just feels weak all season. (His words, not mine)
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We still have the OG Nintendo but I’m missing some of the best games like Contra and Paper Boy.
Totally forgot to come back to this! But video game collecting is a hobby of mine. Now that we’ve finally settled in somewhere, I got to build my “gameroom” that I’ve always wanted. With, of course, the Faustian deal of never having the time to enjoy it, haha. But it’s got an OG Nintendo in it among many other treasures of the past (Getting that Sega Saturn was a white whale of mine). And we have those retro-release consoles of the NES, SNES and Genesis as well, which my kiddo loved to play.
@dchris @BethB I’m honestly torn, because wrestling was probably THE best thing I ever did for myself physically as a high school kid AND perfect training for disordered eating. I wouldn’t be the athlete I am today without it, but it’s incredibly destructive. Being in an all-boy high school just made it worse as well, because it just self-perpetuated the fringe nutrition.
Meant to log that I chose to sleep in this morning, vs get my ruck. If I’m ever in doubt, I pick sleep, since I went so many years not being able to do that. I got in a really great brisk walk during my lunch break (about 6200 steps in 45 minutes) and plan to get in some rower when I get home and Tang Soo Do tonight.
I also found my coffee threshold, as even on this fasting day, I’m not in the mood for it. Which, again, as someone prone to addictions; I’m happy I can feel that way.
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I really don’t know the solution here. I agree with you. I played football leading into high school and weight was always a factor. Particularly, was always big (tall) and had to cut weight to be able to carry the ball. It prevented me from being a QB, which is what I really wanted to be. Instead, I was a TE.
With girls, it’s a bit weird tho. There is the social pressure that is 95% of my concern. The remaining 5% is what girls bodies go through. That said, we’ve found a good compromise where she goes to BJJ classes. There is no weight class issues by going to a martial arts class. Whereas you practice wrestling for the wrestling season, which requires weight classes. If she chooses to compete, she can do so, but she gets all the value out of ‘wrestling’, without the negative side.
I still have my NES, SNES and N64 with all the games. My kids got hooked on N64 Twisted Metal, Zelda, Smash brothers and Donkey Kong, which is awesome because those were my favorite. I’d love to design my office to my ideal theme (60s Cars and 80s action heros), but I work out of my home office, so it’s remained professional. Maybe when my kids start moving out, I can take over their rooms for that. haha
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but she gets all the value out of ‘wrestling’, without the negative side.
I will say, having trained Jits and wrestled on a team: it’s just different. The 3 hour extensive practices as a team, jockeying for position, competitiveness, etc, just bred a very different mentality and outcome, whereas going to class and grappling was certainly value added, but just not of the same magnitude. It was the aggression of wrestling as well: you get 3 rounds at 2 minutes a pop to make something happen. It’s a blessing and a curse to get exposed to that, because it certainly makes you a handful on the mat in grappling, but also makes it easy to burn out and never learn how to relax.
Which isn’t to take away from grappling training at all: it’s incredibly valuable and a great workout. But being a part of the wrestling team really just felt “Spartan”. We LIVED the sport for those 3 hours a day. I actually loved the training WAY more than I did the competition. Competing was just something I did so that I could train wrestling, which is so completely backwards from how I approach lifting, haha.
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I like the competitive nature of the sport. I think it has really been good for my boys to be involved in. They learned how to handle themselves at least a bit. It’s the unhealthy weight loss that I hate.
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I replied earlier without refreshing my screen and missed some great discussion. At our school, I think the wrestling experience is much different than yours. We have girls and boys practicing together. I don’t really see many kids that seem ‘tough’ to me and I think the wrestling workouts are pretty soft. There’s definitely not a Spartan-like atmosphere.
Sadly, I really don’t see anyone with that killer instinct or drive here. We have some phenomenal athletes thanks to genetics and they’re just like “meh” when it comes to working hard and achieving success. Some don’t seem to care and others are delusional and think they’re good enough already. You would think that now that college players are getting paid millions that they’d be working hard to get paid. Instead most of them flake out and quit whatever sport they choose during the first semester of college because they can’t handle not being the star and being held accountable.
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This is the part that seems school dependent. My kid’s mat club was mostly games and conditioning. They obviously wrestled and drilled, but wasn’t quite like what you are describing. My kids’ BJJ gym is also not quite what you described but much closer. The coach is a wrestling coach at another district and tries to operate similarly, as much as he can in a 1.5 hour class with kids ranging from nose pickers to ADCC competitors. hahahaha
Edit: Favorite moment was the coach talking about hygiene and ringworm being a fungus. A kid raises their hand and says ‘my dad has fungus on his feet. Does that mean he doesn’t shower enough?’
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More great dialog: will need to get back to it.
PM WORKOUT (1730)
TACTICAL BARBELL OPERATOR Week 2, Workout 4
“Connaught Range 10 to 1s” w/rower
Row 100m
10 burpees
100m
9 burpees
…
1 burpee
100m
Time: 11:00
Notes:
- Slept in this morning, skipped the ruck, got in some HIC instead.
- The RX for this is a 100m sprint, but I wanted to use the tools I had with the weather we have.
- Good challenge, I was huffing. Right pec is still a little dodgy: may have to be more aggressive with the rehab.
- Weighed in at 86.0 this morning. Without training, that’s a good weight for me. Another coffee fasting day today as well: totally effortless.
- Tang Soo Do tonight.
Nutrition Recap
Breakfast was black coffee. Dinner was 16oz combined of grassfed lamb and beef rib fingers, air fried, with 3 whole eggs and 5 whites. Will have my yogurt and Metabolic Drive meal before bed.
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@dchris That is exciting to hear about your kids BJJ coach, and, admittedly, I’m operating off of 20 year old data when it comes to how BJJ is trained. When I did it, the emphasis was one keeping cool and basically “puzzle solving”, and us wrestlers would usually get chastised for coming in hot because we’d eventually exhaust ourselves and become prey to a seasoned vet who was able to save their energy on the mat.
It is worth appreciating that I’m talking about a high school wrestling program. From what I’ve seen in the younger ages, it’s not quite as intense, although now that I’m in Nebraska and near Iowa, I can see a VERY different culture. I’m curious if it’s a similar way with your situation @Frank_C But also concur that athlete culture among kids is just “different” now. The biggest thing is that NONE of them ever want to be bad at anything, so, often, if they try something new and AREN’T immediately great at it: they quit. I used to just write this off as “entitled generation”, but someone pointed out to me that social media is full of “fail videos”, where people are trying to do something, do it poorly, and we all just laugh at them. It’s instilled a fear culture among the youth that, at any given moment, someone could be watching them screw up and they could become the subject of worldwide ridicule, and ALSO the notion that we SHOULD laugh at people who try to do something and fail at it.
@BethB the learning how to handle themselves bit can’t be overstated. I’ve trained quite a bit of martial arts, and when push comes to shove (puns), I definitely fall back onto wrestling.
AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)
TACTICAL BARBELL OPERATOR Week 2, Workout 5
MAIN WORK
SSB front squat
5x5x250
Axle strict press from rack
5x5x173+1 push press rep per set
Chins between sets
CONDITIONING
3 rounds of sandbag medley w/150lb bag
- Pick bag, carry back and forth, drop bag, run back and forth, repeat 3x total
ASSISTANCE
Lateral raise dropset
35x10, 35x5, 35x2.5, 35xEmpty Hands
Notes:
- Wasn’t super jazzed to do this today, but was excited at the prospect of getting my weekend underway.
- Stuck with 6 chins bewteen sets during the workout, and got in 60 during the warm ups. Volume is building up.
- 2 minutes rest on the main work, then 2 and 3 minute rest on the conditioning.
- Front squats were a little dodgy at the start, but got under control. Primary issue is my right toe is incredibly bruised. We played a game I came up with in Tang Soo Do that was “board break HORSE”, and on the VERY first kick I struck improperly and went big toe first. Felt like I broke the damn thing. It’s just incredibly jammed, and I have a limp again (boo), but it was also so swollen that my weightlifting shoe didn’t fit properly.
- Focused on carrying the bag high on the carries and it made a big difference. I’m pleased that I’m getting in so many reps with this approach. I really like this breakdown of training.
- Weighed in at 84.7 this morning. Significant drops. This approach is working fantastically, and it’s so stupidly simple AND easy (those are different). 2 days of coffee fasting creates a weekly deficit. I’m going to be smart and NOT reduce my food further until I start seeing stalls in the weight loss.
- Skipped the timed hang these past 2 days due to time: need to get it back again.
- My right knee is effectively 100% again. I still have some elements of “jumpers knee”, wherein I’ll feel pain in the knee if it experiences a sudden sharp impact, but the more significant concern was the pain I was feeling when I was sitting. I legit couldn’t drive to work without ending up an agony, and going to watch a movie was torture. We had to always pick the outside aisle so I could stretch my leg out. I was considering voluntary amputation, and thought for SURE I needed a knee replacement. Turns out I just needed to roll out and stretch the damn thing. Absolutely wild. My walking stride is normal again and MUCH faster: I can get in far more steps during my lunch break. All positives.
- Left hip is feeling better as well. Cutting the deadlifts short was the right call.
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I hate this about social media. Not sport related, but it’s the reason I stopped dancing at in public (bars, weddings etc.) someone is always taking videos and posting them for the whole world to see. Not a fan. Probably why I won’t go to busy gyms either. If I have to go to a public gym I try to find the dark sketchy looking ones where the only people in there could bench 3 of me and couldn’t care less about the people around them. It’s harder now to live life outside of public (worldwide) ridicule.
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This is a fairly new development in terms of humanity, but I approach it the same way I approach in-person interactions. I just simply don’t care what others think. If I end up on the internet there’s a pretty good chance I’ll never know because I don’t live in that world. If someone thinks I’m weird, cool. I’m sure there’s a line somewhere, but most of the things that cause people stress don’t bother me the same way. It’s a skill I’ve developed (or am in the process of developing). I can’t control other people but I can control how I let them affect me.
And I definitely know it’s a skill that takes practice and possibly a certain personality type.
When I hear a student say someone is weird I respond with, “You’re weird, too. We’re all weird to someone. Being different from someone else makes you weird to them. And that’s perfectly fine. We’re all weird; embrace it.”
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Oh I’m for sure weird. I have no doubt and I’m not bothered by it. I guess I’m just old school private. I’m just old enough that none of this was available when I was young. I prefer that life.
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And it’s worth appreciating that we HAVE the luxury to disconnect from it based on our age and demographic. I don’t feel our children will be so fortunate. My wife’s aunt flat out does not have internet. She lives on a farm in Iowa, and that’s her life. She manages that, because she’s a 71 year old farmer. But can you imagine trying to exist in the modern world without some sort of online presence? To say nothing of social media, simply not being reachable by e-mail?
What happens online is going to be more impactful to these kids, and being “weird online” can have some long lasting impacts.
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For sure. My husband and I talk a lot about how glad we are that there wasn’t social media when we were young. I can’t even imagine the crap that could be held against me to this day. 
I just feel like kids don’t have room to make mistakes because everything is documented.
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At my last visit I was 6’ 1/4” - fractions matter, lol. I am 62.
I have seen studies on rats that live much longer than normal when they are underweight. According to BMI, I would be considered '“healthy” between 134 and 184 pounds. Weighed 186 this morning and most people that know me think I am skinny. I would certainly not look healthy at 134.
I have what I consider to be a medium frame.
I lifted primarily to look good for most of my life. I have changed my goals to longevity - plural noun because longevity includes health markers BP, A1c, and cholesterol levels.
Sorry if this is derailing your log @T3hPwnisher - I can move it to mine if you desire.
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I think we’re good in Pun’s log if we’re talking about this stuff!
I completely get it. I don’t know if I’ll be able to get down to my ‘ideal’ weight in my 60s because I’ll be in the same boat as you. I think I’m supposed to be under 210 now and I’ve done that and it’s not fun (see the 2019 T-ransformation))
Maybe it’ll happen more naturally than I can understand now. I still want to have some muscle mass and be somewhat lean, but I’m expecting I’ll need to shrink a bit as I go.
You will naturally shrink - I used to be 6’ 1 1/2” and was 220 - probably 30%BF.
It’s a balancing act. I have heard that the greatest antidote to aging is LBM. The more the better. But how do I balance that with apnea, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and high A1c? And frankly, I look better at 205 than I do at 175, so there is that.
One of the reasons I posted is because I regret not heeding health advice when I was younger. I was not concerned with macros, just appearance - I guess I am Shallow Hal.
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All good with the convo gents! Will contribute when I have downtime.
Nutrition Recap
Breakfast was the same as Wednesday. Experimented with beef cheeks at dinner. Had to rush, but pressure cooked for 40 min with liquid smoke and then sprayed with beef tallow and air fried at 450 for 5 min for a crust. It was like the fattiest pot roast of my life: absolutely delicious. And so cheap. Can’t wait to give them a proper treatment, and to REALLY be able to feast, because this was a hunk off a 3lb cut and I could have had the whole thing.
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Hey @T3hPwnisher sorry if you have covered this elsewhere, feel free to point me there, but what is the pattern for your coffee fasting days? Just been scrolling back tryinf to workout when you eat 2 meals vs 1, etc.
Im very interested in this style of eating.
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Happy to discuss dude!
I am starting off with 2 days a week, and they are the days where I don’t lift in the morning. Absent that recovery demands, there isn’t a strong need to refuel. And really, it’s just old school intermittent fasting, but I am allowing myself black coffee along the way (typically 2 cups that day, but occasionally 3).
I am abiding by a principle of Mark Bell’s (which he admits to stealing from somewhere else as well): act like the fast never happened. I am eating the same dinners I normally would. So ultimately, in a week, I am creating the deficit that occurs from 2 skipped meals.
Although Chaos is the plan: I am fasting today, just because of how my schedule worked. The best part is: it’s not a big deal. No nutritional martyrdom, because I am never hungry with this approach
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