Tuesday- SQ/DL

Squat: worked up to 445x3

Reverse Band Squat: 495x3; 565x2
This is where I loop what is essentially a large rubber band around the top of the squat rack and then around the bar.  The purpose is so that I can train my CNS to handle more weight without the bar turning me into a pile of goo on the floor.  I had too much tension at the top which made the reps less harder than they should have been.  I'll play around with different band/band tension combos in the coming weeks.

Block Eccentric Deadlift: 485x3
I loaded the bar onto some pulling blocks so I only have to bring the bar up a few inches to have it fully in my hands. I then do three reps with it.  The purpose is to have an eccentric (down) loading phase before the concentric (up) phase.  This recruits more motor units and muscle fibers into the lift, thus enabling me to lift more.

Glute Ham Hypers: 3x12 w/ black band
w/
Straight Leg Raises: 3x12

I was friggin' beat after this.  I would have liked to have done more on the deadlift, but such is life.  My ass is going to be super sore tomorrow.  Any takers on a massage?  Ladies? 

I'm about to publish my first intentional article.  It will be about what I would eat if I could only eat five foods for the rest of my life.  Be on the watch for it in the next few weeks.

Song of the Day:

"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."
- Theodore Roosevelt

Saturday

Question: How many reality shows about cakes can America stand?  Answer: Seemingly unlimited. 

The website current.tv counts six.  I will admit when I don't feel like thinking and really just want to hear some ambient sound and stare into the middle distance cake shows are there for me.  It's no secret that I love cake.  Chocolate, vanilla, yellow, funfetti, red velvet, that shit is all good.  If you, however bring coconut near me you will wearing that abomination unto the lord.  Jesus hates coconut anything.  It's in the bible.  Leviticus I believe.  What the glut of cake shows is symbolic of though is the endless non-creativity of mass media, especially reality based shows.  If one show has a modicum of success then it is copied ad nauseum.  No one wants to think and be original anymore.  Same with movies and music.  I don't know the exact numbers but it seems like every other movie that comes out is either a prequel, a sequel, a remake, or a squeekuel (fucking Chipmunks).

When it comes to music the quickest way to get on the radio is to make a shitty cover of a great song.  Case in point:



Don't let America's fucked up sense of patriotism sway you.  I fully support our troops.  They are willing to sacrifice something I and many others simply would not.   I do not, however, support this song.  Look the band up on the interwebz.  They get worse.  Much worse.

Ok, rant over.  3-2-1, 1-2-3 what the heck is bothering me?  Big breaths.  Urge to kill...fading. 

Here's what I trained Saturday.

Snatch Complex: 3x3

Walking Lunge: 3x20 yards
w/
DB Shoulder Press: 3x15

45' Back Extension: 3x10
w/
Neutral Grip Chins: 3x5

Face Pulls: 3x15
w/
Reverse Grip DB Curls: 3x10
w/
Side Crunches on 45' Bk. Ext: 3x10 each side

That kind of looks like I just threw a bunch of shit together when I got to the gym.  There was however a method to the madness.  Here's a breakdown of why I did each exercise.

Snatch Complex: Work on force production; work my mobility through overhead squat portion
Walking Lunge: Glute/hamstring insertion point is weak; mobility work through single leg variations
Shoulder Press: not training barbell overhead press; want cannonball shoulders
45' Back Extension: Lower back erectors weak/tight; hams and glutes can always use some good work
Neutral Grip Chins: neutral grip gives you greatest biomechanical advantage; lats and upper back need strength
Face Pulls: work external rotators of shoulder to prevent kyphosis, impingements, and other shoulder problems
Reverse Grip Curls: Grip/forearms
Side Bends: Obliques important for core stability when squatting and deadlifting

So there you have it.  So many emotions involved in this post.  You should have seen me typing it.  Crying, laughing, yelling, cowering, indifference, I'm pooped.  Before you go I need your help.  I want to start writing more informative posts.  Articles if you will.  What I want from you folks is to give me ideas on what to write about.  What is something you want to know?  Want my opinion on certain subjects in the strength and fitness industry?  Want to learn about some awesome guys and gals from days gone by?  Want some motivation?  Ask away.  You can either leave a question or topic in the comments or email me at tdequaine@hotmail.com.  If you guys don't ask anything then it's all going to come from my head.  I got a lot going on up there.  Be ready.

Song of the Day:

“It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation.”
-Herman Melville

Update, Jr.

Part of this post is to through some new shit against the wall and see what sticks in your brains and part is some stuff I forgot to post about yesterday.

This week I've been working a lot on my mobility.  Lots of stretching and rolling.  What's strange about a complex muscle system like the hip girdle is that when one part is off, the rest is off.  Case in point: my right TFL (tensor fascia latae).  This sonuvabitch has been bothering me for a while and I've recently started to really pay attention to it with the roller and the stretching.  Because of this it's started to relax and not be so damn tight.  Because of that other parts of my hip complex have started to overcompensate and thusly feel tight.  My left iliopsoas and piriformis are starting to feel tight and have led to some back pain of late.  It's like playing that Wack-a-Mole game at Chuck E. Cheese's (the "E" stands for Entertainment).  You hit one down and another one pops up in a different place until you get so goddamn mad and frustrated you start missing, yanking the mallet off of the game, kicking the game, being asked to leave, refusing to leave, having the cops called, still refusing to leave, being "escorted" out in a struggle where your pants and underwear end up around your ankles, and so on and so forth.  I've seen it a hundred times.  My point is that when you're dealing with a biomechanical issue in the human body you have to treat the whole system, not just the symptoms.  That's kind of a catchy rhyme.  I should trademark that.

The other thing that I've been working on is my diet plan for my upcoming meet cycle.  It's going to be macronutrient (carbs, fat, protein) based instead of calorie counting based.  I recover better with more protein so that is going to stay constant at 250 grams per day.  Carbohydrate intake is going to be based on my activity level.  On days I lift heavy and use a lot of muscle mass I'll eat more.  Probably in the 400-600 gram range.  On days that I rest or do just cardio it'll be closer to 100-200 grams.  I'm going to try to get most of that from fruits and sweet potatoes with some rice, oats, and bread sprinkled in.  Fats is going to be based on my carbohydrate intake.  Higher carb days will be lower fat days and vice versa.  Fat sources will be egg yolks, some nuts and seeds, natural nut butters, and oils such as coconut and olive.  I'm not going to put together a detailed, what-to-eat-when plan like I normally do.  I know what I should and shouldn't eat and I know how much to eat.  I just have to be diligent with it as it is very easy for me to get lazy with it.

So there you have it.  I'm ready to get going with my meet cycle.  I'm excited to see what I can do.

Song of the Day:

“There is no short cut to achievement. Life requires thorough preparation -- veneer isn't worth anything.”
 -George Washington Carver

Update

I've been deloading this week so nothing worth writing about.  Monday I went for a run with Katie, Tuesday I did a light upper body workout, and today was a light lower body workout.  I'm still working on how I want my diet to run for my upcoming meet cycle.  I'll post it up when I have it figured out.  Until then, go Packers.

Song of the Day: Listen to any/all of the songs on this website.

“Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.” -Ovid

Big Al's Is My Bitch

Saturday Lance came up and trained at West Allis Barbell with me.  He did a deload deadlift and I did a rep total body.  Nothing special.  After training we sauntered on down to a local diner called Big Al's Cafe.  Big Al's has this special/eating challenge called the Craaaaaaaazy Eight Special.  It consists of eight eggs, eight sausage links, eight pieces of bacon, eight pancakes, and eight pieces of toast.  I've had my eye on this challenge for a while now.  I've even been plotting my plan of attack so I knew exactly what to do when I dug in.  I will say that I was legit nervous going in though.  The only thing I really had to lose was my pride, but that is worth a lot to me.  To see it dashed before my eyes by a shitload of breakfast foods would be just too much for me to take. 

Here was my plan of attack:  I would power through all the proteins first then eat the starches last.  This way the starches wouldn't have time to expand and fill me up.  This is a very simplistic approach that would obviously need to be tweaked as things went on.  I was to be like Bruce Lee and be fluid.  Adjusting to cracks in stone like a rivulet of water.

Eggs were first.  They were scrambbies without salt or pepper.  I eat six eggs everyday so this was no big deal.  Took me maybe 7 minutes tops.

Next was the bacon and sausage.  To say I was surprised by the sausages would be an understatement.  These were not the Jimmy Dean sausage links that you can pick up at the grocery store.  These were a few grams of pork anus shy of being a brat.  Probably an inch in diameter and about 4-5 inches long.  I decided to eat half of the sausage and half the bacon until they were gone.  Four sausages, four bacon, two and two, then two rounds of one each.  After this I was ok but starting to feel the full.  My taste buds were burned out from the sausage and my palate did not want another drop of grease.

Next came the starches.  I went with the one to one approach.  I poured a bunch of syrup on my plate and started dipping my first pancake.  It went down without any problems.  Next came the toast.  The middle was soft and buttery but the crust was very chewy.  By the end of four of each I was extremely full.  Every time I put a bite of pancake in my mouth my body screamed, "Unless you want to see this guys brothers don't swallow."  My mouth was dry and my jaw hurt from all the chew, chew, chewing.

This is where my focus and mental toughness came into play.  If they had been covered in peanut butter it wouldn't have even been an issue.  But alas, there was no peanut butter.  Only my wits and focus.  I kept making deals with myself.  I'd say, "Just get through this pancake and piece of toast and you can quit."  Every time I got through it I made myself another deal and another and another.  Then it was down to the last pancake.  I cut into six pieces.  As I put each piece in my mouth I took a small sip of water to help with chewing and swallowing.  And then, after what seemed like an eternity, I swallowed the last piece. 

Apparently I was the first legit finisher of the challenge.  There was another guy that finished but it took him well past the hour time limit.  I finished in 58 minutes.  The waitresses had never seen such awesomeness and I doubt they ever will again.  For finishing the Craaaaaaaazy Eight challenge my food was free, I get two free meals, and my picture will go up on the Big Al's wall of fame.

When I got home all I could do was lay on my back and side in an effort to relieve some pressure.  I'm glad I did it, but will never do it again.  I also might not be able to eat pancakes and sausages for a while.  I just hope they haven't been totally ruined for me.

Not-Quite-Song-of-the-Day:

“So long as you have food in your mouth, you have solved all questions for the time being.” -Franz Kafka

Thursday- Squat

Squat: 340x3; 390x3; 435x3

Bulgarian Split Squat: 3x10 each

Glute Ham Hypers: 3x15
w/
Straight Leg Raises: 3x15

Today was a giant pile of shit.  435 felt like the weight of the world.  I'm trying to be, but I'm not quite up to Atlas' level.  I think this is due to a number of factors.  Sleep, eating, diarrhea, I'm tighter than a duck's asshole.  You know the usual stuff.  I've got my training cycle figured out for my upcoming meet.  I'm going to put together a diet plan as well as my eating has been less than stellar.  I don't think I'm eating enough and it's affecting my recovery.  I'm going to deload next week and hopefully get the tightness worked out.  Then its time to cowgirl up and start kicking ass in preparation for my meet.

Song of the Day:

"Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character."
-Albert Einstein

Tuesday- Military Strong Man

Standing Press: 125x5; 145x5; 160x7

Log Press: 4x12

Pull Ups: 5x4
w/
Upright Row: 3x10

Face Pulls
w/
Arm Curls

Up and down session today.  Standing press felt heavy but the log didn't.  Pull ups I went chest to the bar on each rep and they weren't as hard as I thought they were going to be.  I haven't done upright rows since college.  I'm going to give them a shot and see how I feel with them.  I've heard they can be bad for your shoulders.  But I'll be the judge of that. 

This week I'm going to plan out my peaking cycle.  It's going to be 13 weeks or so and will take me through 3 December when my meet is.  Other than that I'm just going to keep plugging away.

Song of the Day:

"Small strokes fell great oaks." -Benjamin Franklin

The Freakin' Weekend

Another great weekend in the bank.  There was some partying, some lifting, some eating, a baby was born, but NO, and I mean no, barnyard animals were harmed.  Here we go.

Saturday I lifted with a crew consisting of myself, Katie, Joe Flick, and Matt Cerra.  Nic was also in the gym but he got there a bit before us and was almost done.  Here comes the awesome.

Deadlift: worked up to 435x5

Sgl. Arm Row: 3x10
w/
Glute Ham Hypers: 3x10 w/ 25#

Ab Roll Outs: 3x10

2 Quarters conditioning

I've been working with Matt and Joe for a bit now.  Matt is about 4 months post ACL surgery and Joe plays semi-pro football.  Matt has really come a long way.  He's been chomping at the bit to get beck into normal lifting instead of the stuff that is going to be best for his knee, which can get a little boring and repetitive.  I've just recently started letting him squat and deadlift, albeit light, and he's doing really well.

Joe is in-season right now so he's on more of a maintenance program.  Once his season is done he'll likely take a week or two off and then get back at it.  Matt and Joe are BFFs and I'm sure there will be some healthy competition between the two.  Always a good thing when it's kept in check and doesn't get too out of control.

Saturday night my friends from Carroll, Marcus and Talia Koronkowicz, had a birthday party for Marcus at their home in Illinois.  The best part of the night was probably when Eric got a little too much steam going down the stairs and disintegrated a picture frame hanging on the wall.  I'll retell it as if I was going to direct it in a Hollywood movie.

Camera is close up on Eric as he approaches the top of the stairs.  He's not paying too much attention and probably looking around and talking to others.  Camera pulls back and down the stairs as he begins his descent.  He quickly picks up steam and realizes he is soon going to be out of control.  Cut to Lance slow-motion yelling, "PUUUMMMPPP THHHHEEE BRRRRAAAAAKKKES!"  Cut back to Eric who is flailing arms trying to regain equilibrium.  Cut to side view at the bottom of the stairs as Eric crashes into the wall and blows up the picture frame.  Two minutes of cuts to close ups of people slow-motion crying/yelling.  End Scene.  Great times.

Sunday Katie and I went to the Wisconsin State Fair.  It was everything and more I had hoped it was going to be.  Here's a list of foods consumed by Katie and/or me.  Cheese Curds, Corn Dog, Krispy Kreme Cheeseburger, Deep Fried PB&J, Deep Fried Pickles, Flavored Milks, Corn on the Cob.  I'm sure that I'm forgetting something but it's a start.

The best part of the fair was my serious underestimation of Katie's love of animals.  Especially pigs.  Every pig we saw she would crouch down, pet its fur, and squeal, "HI WILBUR!  YOU'RE CUUUTE!"  We also saw a pig get loose of its 12 year-old handler and almost side swipe a woman to the ground.  Those things have a lot of inertia and could probably pack one hell of a punch once they get going.

We were also big fans of the rabbits.  Something about their soft fur and floppy ears gets me.  I do not, however like the albino ones.  I'm ok with the white fur, but their blood red eyes creep me out in a big kind of way.  No thank you.

I also want to congratulate my friends Brian and Lindy Jachimek who welcomed their first child, Brady, into the world on Sunday.  I like to think I'm almost like an uncle now.  It's going to be so awesome.

Once again a great weekend with great people doing some pretty awesome things.  I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Song of the Day:

“When having a smackerel of something with a friend, don't eat so much that you get stuck in the doorway trying to get out.”
-Winnie the Pooh

Wednesday and Thursday

On Wednesday I did a quick five at the hill.  I've been feeling some inflammation and pain in my knee.  Nothing serious and nothing a few grams of ibuprofen, some coffee, some heartfelt prayer, and a few doses of low-grade beaver tranquilizer can't take care of.

I ran five of these:

And walked five of these:

Here's a picture of me when I was done being awesome in a tank top:

I'm not sure why it looks like I'm listing to my starboard side.  Hills will do that to a man.

Today (Thursday) I did some benching.  Here's what went down.

Bench: 180x5; 205x5; 235x9

Floor Press: 4x10

Lat Pull Down: 3x15
w/
Chest Supported Row: 3x10

Got some good work in.  Nothing too special or worth burning calories thinking about something to write.

Song of the Day:

"The silence that is in the starry sky,
The sleep that is among the lonely hills.”
-William Wordsworth

Tuesday- Deep Knee Bends

Squat: 315x5; 365x5; 415x5

Bulgarian Split Squats: 3x10 ea. leg

Glute Ham Hypers: 2x12

Hangling Leg Raises: 2x12

WABB was a total sweat box last night.  No air movement whatsoever.  Not complaining though.  I wouldn't want it any other way.  Lower body strength has taken the foreseen dip.  This is due to the extra conditioning I've been doing.  In the training world you can't be doing a lot of conditioning and expect to be your biggest or strongest.  It's like trying to sit on two horses with one ass.  Impossible.  Except for maybe this guy or gal.

Anyways, once I begin my peaking program for my December meet I'll scale back the conditioning.  Having that base of conditioning is going to really help my strength gains as I'll be able to train harder and longer if I need to.  With that said tonight I'm going to feed some orchids that are probably kind of thirsty then run some hills.

Song of the Day:

“Like tourists huffing and puffing to reach the peak we forget the view on the way up” -Friedrich Nietzsche

Monday- Hills

Jog 1 Mile: 9:30 pace

Hill Sprints: x5

Sweating: x a lot

Again, just trying to increase my conditioning.  Strength is taking a navigator role for the time being.  Not in the back seat, but not in the driving the car.  I'm definitely doing a meet on December 3rd in Iowa.  I'll be planning my peaking program in the next week or so.  For the time being I'm just trying to be less fat.

The hill I run is only a half mile or so from where I used to live when I was in school at Carroll.  I measured my steps and it was 92 on the way down.  I would estimate that it's about 75-85 yards long.  It takes me the better part of 25 seconds to do each one.  It's hard.  It makes me better.  It is good.

Song of the Day:

"The human foot is a masterpiece of engineering and a work of art." -Leonardo da Vinci

Saturday

West Allis Barbell was rocking this morning.  BFFs Joe Flick and Matt Cerra, and fellow trainer and friend Nic Hansen came and had an awesome session in the car hole (garage).  When dudes that are dedicated to training get together and train it's almost too awesome for words.  We talk about women, football, asshole dudes we know, and there are tons of dick and pussy jokes.  A Sham-Wow couldn't soak up all the testosterone.  I put Matt and Joe through a total body workout, Nic did some accessory stuff, and I trained the standing press.

Standing Press: 140x5; 155x5; 175x5 (PR?); 95x10; 115x10x2

Pull Ups: 6x3 (BW)

Band Rows: 3x20

Shoulder complex: x2

Conditioning: (55 yd sprint x4 + 60 yd shuttle = 1 quarter) x3 quarters

After this Matt had Wisconsin State Fair on his mind.  Joe had a tattoo appointment and I told Katie I'd wait for her to get back from Fargo and go with her.  Let me just say that I frickin' love the State Fair.  Eating food, drinking beer, and people watching are some of my favorite activities.  This year's new big item at the fair is a cheeseburger with a Krispy Kreme doughnut as a bun.  For a dollar extra you can get chocolate covered bacon on top.  I am definitely getting one.  I'm going to skip the bacon though.  I tried it last year and was very underwhelmed.  Another item that has been in the back of my mind for the past year is the deep-fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  Everyone I tell about this has the same reaction, "Really?  Ew."  But everyone that tries it says it is awesome.  And I would agree with them.  It's a PB&J dipped in what is essentially pancake batter and then fried in partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (shitloads of trans-fat).  How could it not be good.

I love State Fair food, but I'm glad it only comes once a year.  There are, however, lots of people that seemingly celebrate the Fair year-round.  These are my favorite people to people watch.  It's the great state of Wisconsin at it's finest.  Way too big women wearing way too small clothes and people that must have been cool a long time ago because they just keep hanging on to the fashion and hairstyles of years gone-by.  Mullets, cut-off jean shorts, Looney Tunes t-shirts, tennis shoes with calf high tube socks pulled all the way up in the summer, "These colors don't run" shirts, huge Jesus chains, and motorized scooters for the huskies.  Shit yes.  I think I'm going to bring by camera.

Song of the Day:

“Look not mournfully into the past, it comes not back again. Wisely improve the present, it is thine. Go forth to meet the shadowy future without fear and with a manly heart.”
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Alright Alrgiht Alright

Holy crapola.  I haven't updated since Monday.  What the H is wrong with me.  I'll tell you what's wrong with me.  Nothing.  I'm just living life.  I'm doing a whole lot of moving and shaking as they say.  Instead of inundating you all with every last detail of my week here's the highlights.

Tuesday

Bench: worked up to 255x4
DB Bench: worked up to Big Face Hundy's x10

Wednesday

Mile Jog: 10 minute pace

Prowler: 90 lbs., 20 yards, 30 sec rest, x10
This had me down a lot more than I thought it would.  I'm not sure if it was a case of the prowler flu or what but for the rest of the day it felt like someone had slapped the ol' potato sack about 30 minutes prior.  Guys, you know what I'm talking about.  It's that really dull yet very persistent ache in your lower abdomen just above your nether regions.  It's gone now so I'm not too worried.

Thursday

Deadlift: worked up to 475x1
My calves have never been this sore.  I could feel every rep right through my toes and gastroc and soleus.  I'm about 100% sure it's from the jogging and conditioning.  I had a conditioning/running base of about zero and I just jumped right in.  It'll go away.  Just gotta keep on...keep...keep truckin'.

So that's my week thus far.  It's about 7:30 in the a.m. on Friday as I type this and I'm sure I'll be doing something today.  I think I might go bust out some hills.  We'll see.

Song of the Day:

“Restlessness is discontent and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure.” -Thomas Alva Edison

Monday- Conditioning

Mile Jog: 10 minute pace

Hills: x5 (4 sprints, 1 jog)

Nothing special today.  I need to start bringing up my conditioning.  I'm going to try to work in at least 2 days of conditioning.  I hit 230 pounds today which was my target after coming off the biggest loser challenge.  I'm going to try to maintain it, but if a little comes off from the conditioning I'm not going to panic.  As long as I'm making progress, getting stronger and more awesome I don't really care what I weigh.

Song of the Day:

“Any fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius-and a lot of courage-to move in the opposite direction.” -Albert Einstein

Circle of Friends Reunion Trip 2010

I didn't post much this week because I was in Florida for the 2010 Circle of Friends Reunion Trip.  It was a great time that I'll talk about in a minute.  I trained today (Sunday).

Power Clean: worked to 264x1x3

Squat: 355x5; 405x3; 450x1

Lunge Walk: 3x 20 steps
w/
Ab Wheel Rollouts: 3x10

Squats felt really heavy.  Probably due to a lack of sleep and I was probably still a bit dehydrated from the weekend.  Anyways I made it through.  I'm not going to deload this coming week.  I don't feel I need it.

Every two year the Circle of Friends has a reunion trip.  This is where they gather the kids from the two previous winter trips and bring them together in a warmer climate.  This year the trip was in Tampa, FL.  All of the kids had a great time.  Some of the activities included a Tampa Bay Rays game, a beach day, and Busch Gardens on probably the hottest day of ever.  It was extremely hot and very humid at times.  I likened it to standing behind a Greyhound bus and getting the heat of the exhaust in your face.  Many many bottles of water were consumed during the trip.  However, the kids are definitely very resilient and didn't let the heat get in the way of their fun.  In fact some of the nurses made the call to get the kids inside on the beach day since some of them had been outside for six hours and were starting to get a little pink.

The Circle of Friends trips are something that I love to do in my outside life that has nothing to do with training.  Until this trip.  Two things happened that highlighted a few of the reasons why I train the way I do.

I had a revelation of sorts.  Some of the kids have obvious physical impairments.  Most, however, refuse to let it get in the way of their daily lives.  Some have limps, some have arms that have been affected, and some are in wheelchairs.  I was reflecting on how lucky I am to be able to do the things that I can do.  If I wanted to I could go run a 5k, or squat 400 pounds, or bust out 10 50-yard sprints.  Some people can't (i.e. cancer patients), and some people don't (i.e. most of the U.S.).  I took a silent vow to myself that as long as I am still able I will keep running, conditioning, and lifting.  It reminds me of a quote whose author I can't remember.  It goes, "Those that can't find time for exercise will soon have to make time for disease."  I'll never cure cancer but I sure-as-shit won't waste any of my physical capabilities.  That is a tragedy that is committed on a daily basis by millions of perpetrators.

The second example of why I train is a bit funnier, but no less important.  On that last day I was helping Peter Bennet (the guy who helped organize the trip) carry some stuff to his car.  When we got there we saw that he had a flat tire.  We had two options: Call AAA or do it ourselves.  The previous day Pete had been talking big about how the ocean is far superior to lakes.  He said he feels more like a man after a day or being in the saltwater or fishing for the bigger fish in the ocean.  Now it was gettin' down to brass tacks time.  When there is doubt there is no doubt.  We immediately set about finding his car jack and spare tire. 

Being men we didn't really think about consulting the owners manual.  How hard could it be?  Well, after two attempts to do it wrong and about a half gallon of sweat we finally decided to look at the directions.  Being a factory jack it was designed to work on one specific spot on the chassis of the car.  So we got the car up, the flat tire off, the spare tire on, and set her back down.  When we were done I looked down and was dripping sweat from every pore.  My shirt, hat, and shorts were all sweaty.  I haven't sweat like that in a long time.  That Florida heat and being on the black asphalt really got me rolling.  But the thing is, Pete and I both train.  Granted our training may be different, but we were both able to change the tire without getting too tired ourselves.  Yeah we sweat a few pounds of water right there, but it wasn't anything we couldn't handle. 

Usefulness is the key here.  Being able to handle those types of situations is something that I like to do.  I like being able to move heavy stuff by myself to the wonderment of others.  For you young men out there let me tell you this: Women don't care about six-packs.  If you have a six-pack but can't move a coffee table without assistance you are no good to anybody.  If you have a six-pack and can be physically lifted by your girlfriend whether you let her or not, you, sir, are a disgrace.  That's all I have to say about that.

Song of the Day:

Just substitute "California" with "Florida".

"Life is not a spectator sport. If you're going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you're wasting your life.” -Jackie Robinson