Platypus lifts/reads

[platypus]

9/1/20
30" decline pushup BWx60 in 20 minutes

9/3/20
zercher Tinkerbell x36 in 20 minutes

Reading
Finished On Basilisk Station. It was a captivating story, and once I settled down to read it didn't take very long. Luckily for me, it's the first of a series.
Also, in anticipation of moving I've identified which books I want to keep and which ones to give away. I'm down to eighty-something books now, down from two hundred or so.

Culture
I've decided to just keep my wall of heroes as is, but once I've got the space I'll focus on adding Louisianians.

[platypus]

9/4/20
Handstand pushup to 5.75" block BWx24 in 20 min.

Notes:
- I tried doing these about two months ago when I first started 50/20 and didn't manage one. I'm spending less time on training than ever before, taking every fourth week pretty much off, and not tracking my sets or RPE. I'm blown away by how well this is going. Especially since for a large part of the last few years I've spent 4+ hours per week lifting, without making very much progress (the conjugate method being the lovely exception).

In Captain Kirk's speech to the SSC, he said (this might not be an exact quote) "Sometimes it's Christmas in the gym and you take it when you can."

[hector]

Your progress sounds awesome!!!!

[platypus]

9/7/20
Handstand pushup to 5.75" block BWx28 in 20 minutes

9/8/20
Zercher tinkerbell x24 in 20 minutes

Notes:
- After a dismal summer, the raniest in our recorded history, it got up to 69F with almost no clouds today. I was was sweating like a stuck pig and barely made it through the stone lifting. It was like God wanted to send me a little foretaste of hell, perhaps as a reminder to quit sinning. It also hit me that my family members down in Louisiana wear heavy coats when it gets this cold.

- Also skipped last week's second stone lifting session since my landlady had workers busy transforming the mud pit into civilization of some kind. This time I swiped the stone during their break and brought it around to the other side of the house. Maybe today's heat was actually karma getting me for skipping a workout. I'm thankful for the sunshine though.

- I am 42 days away from being a civilian again, and it's past time for me to come up with a plan.
All I want in a job for now is:
A. Plenty of time to read
B. The more money the better
I'd prefer to avoid:
C. companies that make bad products, like McDonalds
D. easily offended people

I just watched A Year On Ice, and Antarctica sounds cool. I may finish up my associates and try applying for work there as an ET. I'm open to suggestions.

[platypus]

Your progress sounds awesome!!!!

Thank you, Hector!

[iamsmu]

9/7/20
Handstand pushup to 5.75" block BWx28 in 20 minutes

Are you doing these on a 5.75" block? If so the ROM must be pretty close to a normal press. That's pretty tough!
I'm still doing them on the ground (headstand press). I might go up 2", but 5.7" is a full handstand press.

[platypus]

9/7/20
Handstand pushup to 5.75" block BWx28 in 20 minutes

Are you doing these on a 5.75" block? If so the ROM must be pretty close to a normal press. That's pretty tough!
I'm still doing them on the ground (headstand press). I might go up 2", but 5.7" is a full handstand press.

I wish! I'm doing the opposite; touching my head to the block to reduce the ROM. The plan for now is to keep using smaller blocks till I can touch my head to the floor.

[platypus]

9/11/20
Handstand pushup to 5.75" block BWx30 in 20 minutes

9/12/20
Zercher tinkerbell x36 in 20 minutes

Notes:
- I realized to do 50 zerchers in 20 minutes I'm probably not going to be able to take any breaks, given how long each rep takes.
- Finished Mutineer's Moon by David Weber. It's a scifi story about the distant aftermath of a mutiny on a spaceship. I enjoyed it. I don't often read much fiction, but a buddy with his head screwed on right gave me a stack of books.
It hit me that reading is sort of like lifting. I'm strong enough for all the tasks of my daily life, and so getting stronger now is an extra thing. Likewise, I have the technical knowledge I need for my everyday life, so all my reading time is spent learning extra stuff. It's been a long while since I read a book with actionable information that changed the way I do things.
This got me wondering if it really matters what I learn about. For example, is a WW1 buff who knows all the names, dates, and battles really any different from an LOTR nerd who can name every character in the The Silmarillion? On one hand, it's intuitive that learning real things is more useful than learning imaginary things. On the other hand, it seems like fiction can convey worthwhile information just as easily as -and sometimes better than- nonfiction. For example, Aquinas' "Treatise on Law" from the Summa is barely readable, but Atlas Shrugged rehashes the same points in a story that's easier to understand and a lot more pleasant to read.
Long story short, I'm beginning to think novels are worth more than I've given them credit for.

[platypus]

Training
- Another mostly off week. I successfully did a headstand pushup, then managed a double on my second try. It feels strange to intentionally not train for a week, but I can't argue with the results.

Reading
- Finished Startide Rising by David Brin, a sci-fi story about the first spaceship captained by a dolphin. The concept was really interesting but the style of writing wasn't to my taste.
- Currently reading Critical Thinking by Richard Paul and Linda Elder. It's not bad for a textbook.

Life
- I somehow miscalculated the days, and it turns out I only have two weeks until my terminal leave starts. Civilian life looms closer, yet I am no closer to figuring out a career plan. I'm frequently amused by people who believe in soulmates. But when it comes to career choice, the clear-thinking part of my brain shuts down and I start trying and failing to think of the one specific career that would be The Job For Me.
I might go on a camping sabbatical and do a vision quest.

[hector]

Vision quest, career, and handstand pushup updates?

[platypus]

3/27/21
Max effort lower body

Squat	345x1 315x2x2
Power clean	185x2x3 185x1 155x3x2
Deficit deadlift	275x4x4
Military press	105x4x4
Cable shoulder stuff	Who knows?

Training
I’ve been back in the gym for the last two months or so after a long absence. Doing a conjugate/concurrent setup, today was a little unusual in that I decided to do some extra shoulder work on lower body day. That might become a regular thing.
My waist is at 37.65" right now, down from about 40" the start of the semester. In the fall I'm going to be photographed shirtless for a fundraiser, so I have a pressing need to get shredded.

Current maxes:
Squat 345
Press 160
Deadlift 405

Life
I am out of the military now, and attending a small Christian liberal arts school. The classes are great, and I’m learning a lot. The only downside is that it’s a little difficult socially. I hadn’t anticipated the quite how vast the cultural gap is between me and a bunch of morally upstanding, 18-year-old fundamentalists who would probably choose martyrdom rather than down a shot of vodka.
There's a swing dancing club, so I've gotten back into that.

Reading
The last non-school book I finished was A Man in Full by Tom Wolfe, a surprisingly relevant novel from two decades ago featuring racial tension and #metoo. Currently reading My Father by Maria Rasputin, in which she tries to clear the name of her difficult-to-kill father with the piercing eyes.

Vision quest, career, and handstand pushup updates?

I didn't do the vision quest yet, so I'm still at a total loss as to my calling in life. Instead I visited a lot of friends and family, fattened up on junk food, then came to college. The vision quest will happen though, probably this summer.

[Wilhelm]

Welcome back!

Sounds like an interesting school environment.
Happy civilian-ity to you.

[platypus]

Thank you, @Wilhelm!

[hector]

Welcome back!!!!

College is about finding yourself. Not the only way, and maybe not the best way, but a way for sure. Lots of the freshman you meet who won't do a shot and are morally upstanding may change a bit by junior year.

What major are you thinking of?

[platypus]

3/29/21
Dynamic effort upper body

DE press	105x5x5
Hammer chinup	BWx50 in 27 min.
Seated DB press	50x7 45x8 40x8

Welcome back!!!!

College is about finding yourself. Not the only way, and maybe not the best way, but a way for sure. Lots of the freshman you meet who won't do a shot and are morally upstanding may change a bit by junior year.

There's only about 1,400 students so I've actually met a ton of upperclassman too.
I've spent the last few years in an environment where not drinking till I pass out or committing adultery makes me a prude, while here I stand out for opposite reasons. Thankfully, there are a few other older students and vets who I mix well with. Also the swing dancing peeps have slowly come to see my apparent philistinism as endearing, so I've got that going for me.

What major are you thinking of?

That's the million dollar question (almost literally...). There are only a few options at my school: accounting, the basic science degrees, and the basic non-communist liberal arts degrees. Really, it boils down to whether I want to major in:
1. Something that will get me a job (accounting or science)
2. What this school specializes in (politics)
3. Economically valueless things I want to learn (languages)
My chances of finding a wife are also dramatically higher here at Christian school than they were in the Alaskan wilderness, so I should probably plan on supporting a family. And should therefore take option 1. But then, I already know a trade and majoring in Latin sounds more awesome, so...
The core curriculum takes two years so I've got some time to decide.

[hector]

My advice, which you shouldn't take and is not worth the electrons required to communicate it, is to double major. Go to town and knock out the coursework.
Maybe one major you love and one major that will get you a job. Or else a practical major but then also a language major.
Elon Musk writes about how there are enormous benefits to knowing 2 different fields really well, in his case engineering and business. You can speak natively to two different populations. You are harder to bullshit.
If I could do it over I would party a little less and add a second major. You've already been in the real world, so you already know, but it is more difficult to learn things on your own in the limited time after the work day ends.

[platypus]

3/31/21
Dynamic effort lower body

DE squat	225x5x5
DE deadlift	265x2x5
Pendulum leg press	450x11 450x9
KB swing	55x58 in 5 min.

4/2/21
Max effort upper body

Bench	185x1@8 160x2x3@8
Chin	BWx7 BWx5 BWx3x3
Seated DB press	50x6 45x6 40x8

4/5/21
Max effort lower body

Deficit deadlift	335x1@9 355x couldn’t get it off the ground 315x2x2@9
Power clean	165x2x10
Front squat	205x3x5@8

Training
I tried benching back in January and was in pain for about a month after. On April 2nd I did it again, this time with a few months of consistent overhead lifts under my belt, and I didn’t feel any pain. I’m going to try making bench my main upperbody lift, keeping with the same general format as last time I did the conjugate/concurrent method. Basically:
- Bench for DE day
- On ME day, alternate each week between a full ROM flat bench variation and some other type of press (overhead, incline, or partials)
- No repetition benching, but plenty of repetition overhead lifts
This way I should be able to benefit from the heavier weights allowed by bench pressing without messing up my shoulders by doing a bunch of it.

School
That is certainly food for thought regarding a double major, @hector. I hadn’t considered that but I should.

[SeanHerbison]

My advice ... is to double major. Go to town and knock out the coursework.

School
That is certainly food for thought regarding a double major, hector. I hadn’t considered that but I should.

I have slightly different reasons (learn ALL THE THINGS), but I'd second that recommendation. I did English the first time around because it was easy, and I wish I'd approached that differently. Now I'm back for a second degree, and I'm doing Neuroscience and Cognitive Science (NSCS) and Computer Science (CS).

I'll also add that despite wanting to knock it out sooner rather than later, 23 credits at a time is a bad idea.

[platypus]

4/6/21
Dynamic effort upper body

DE bench	120x5x5
Hammer chinup	BWx50 in 29 min.
Military press	95x10 85x6 75x5

Dating
I've decided to ask out 3 people per week until I find someone I click with. As I write this, it occurs to me I should keep a log. Compared to my training notebook, it would be at least as valuable and a lot more interesting to look back through later.

School

I have slightly different reasons (learn ALL THE THINGS), but I'd second that recommendation. I did English the first time around because it was easy, and I wish I'd approached that differently. Now I'm back for a second degree, and I'm doing Neuroscience and Cognitive Science (NSCS) and Computer Science (CS).

I'm curious, are any of those fields related to your work in the Army? And how many additional credit hours did you end up needing for the second degree?

I'll also add that despite wanting to knock it out sooner rather than later, 23 credits at a time is a bad idea.

I'll bet! I'm taking 13 and it's enough to keep me busy.

[SeanHerbison]

I'm curious, are any of those fields related to your work in the Army?

I'm out of the Air Force now, but kind of? I was technically a Cyber/Network guy, depending on what they wanted to call my career field that particular year. But in terms of actually doing my job, I barely used that at all. Definitely nothing hands on. English was, sadly, actually the most useful. Most people can't write for crap, in or out or the military. (Looking at you, USAPL newsletter.)

And how many additional credit hours did you end up needing for the second degree?

Something like 110, I think. Though it may end up actually being two additional degrees instead of one double-major degree. Still working that out. And I'm still trying to get them to accept some additional transfer credits, like physics. I took two physics classes and five engineering classes, and they still want me to take their Intro Physics I/II classes.