HedgeMage: training, thinking, working

[HedgeMage]

This won't be a daily log.  I'm too busy for that.

 

Since I'm not doing the NF challenges any more (the format change clashes with my training regimen; I decided that trying to align them was too much overhead), I wanted a place to drop semi-regular updates to my NF friends for accountability's sake.  This first post contains some general info for anyone who'd like to follow.  If you don't know me and want to, you might reference my introduction post and/or the post on why I am a Ranger.

 

Generally speaking, I'm focused on functional strength training, with a side of physical skills training and endurance-building activities.  The mix varies depending on what's going on in my life.  My favorite resources right now are my awesome trainer, Mitch Evans, and the Tactical Barbell series of ebooks by K. Black.  Mitch has done an amazing job of helping me untangle the fitness issues I ran into being obese and very strong at the same time, which had stymied every other trainer I tried.  Black's books were a great fit for me, and have helped me become much more independent in planning my training.  The TB series is written for tactical operators -- military, law enforcement, SAR, and so on -- so it's hyperfocused on functional strength, avoiding bulk (not that we ladies must worry about that much), fitting workouts into a busy life with a variable schedule, and keeping steady progress without ever winding it out so hard that you are too sore to get the job done...all the things I want.

 

I welcome comments and feedback from others, so please don't hesitate to post.

[The Most Loathed]

wut up Hedgie?

I saw that you had started a new battlelog and figured I'd stop by. I went and read your intro post and you certainly sound like you live a fun and fulfilling life and I think that is awesome. 

I'll be checking in.

 

I'm a fellow desk jockey who just tries to keep things going outside the office.

[HedgeMage]

Not sure whether I'll get to work out tomorrow (work schedule and house-buying stuff hitting me hard), but I did get to lift  yesterday.  Pros: I like the routine I'm on, loosely based on the Tactical Barbell Operator template.  Cons: I think I underestimated myself by trying to repeat week 1 after missing some workout time last week, yesterday was way too easy.  Will bump to week 2 when next I lift.  Here's the current routine:

 

• 10 minute warm-up: half spent on some sort of moderate cardio, half spent on stretching and/or kata.
• TB Operator template using Squats, Bench, and Pull-up.
• Plank & Shank, 3 sets (2 on hard lifting weeks)
• Cool down by standing around talking to my lifting buddy and possibly drinking coffee.  Giggling optional.

Repeat 3x/week.

 

On "off" days I mix in random stuff... sometimes deadlifts, sometimes accessory lifts, sometimes cardio, sometimes skills training.  Sometimes agonizing over my side projects.  Whatever gets the blood pumping.

[HedgeMage]

Lifted this morning, but unlikely to run tomorrow as planned.  I forgot that the location of the trip I'm on is still snowy.  :facepalm:

At least I should catch up on sleep. Yay!

[QuietRiotGrrrl]

Well, I was going to harass you to lift tomorrow, but you're on a trip!  But I have found your battle log, so I'll be stalking here.  

 

House buying is a lot more exhausting than I thought it would be.  I really had no idea what to expect.  When you're around, we need to get together so you can update me on yours!

[HedgeMage]

I came back from travels with some pressing deadlines and a respiratory infection.  FUN ON A STICK.  No working out for me until these antibiotics have done their job and I can breathe again.

 

Of course, because I'm a stubborn ass I still took at least one work call from home and arranged some things by chat/email for the rest of the week.   Because Ranger.  I seem to be working myself into a couple more leadership positions for the coming year.  This is a good thing, I think...

 

I spent some time recently contemplating why I gravitate toward leadership positions, and excel at them, and hate and avoid them.  Yes, I notice the self-contradiction there.  What it comes down to is this: I too often become not just A leader, but THE leader.  In other words, I get into situations where everyone is looking to me for answers such that I lack a peer or superior to bounce ideas off of or look to when I need help sorting things out.  Those are the ones that burn me out.  When I have other leaders around me -- even when I'm ultimately the one in charge -- I'm just fine.  I do good work, and I don't have the isolating factor of having to be Superwoman all the time.

 

So, I dropped a post over at "Find Your Sidekick" in the hope of finding some crazy overachiever like myself to chat with now and again.  I know a few in other realms -- work stuff, hacker-land, etc. -- but apart from my military buddies, whom I can't usually talk to regularly, I don't have such a person in the realm of physical-world stuff.  Wish me luck in finding him or her.

[The Most Loathed]

I feel you on the leadership thing. I think most great leaders are exactly in your position. they understand the cost of leading and tend to shy away because unless they also have a great leader, the burden is crushing. However, people who aren't Leaders often become managers and are de facto leaders without understanding what it takes. 

 

This has to become a conscious thing for you. You can take the road of rising the ranks but understand that as a Leader it will cost you more personally and emotionally than someone who is just a manager. You can also chose to become a rank and file leader, where you engineer yourself into a ground level position that still gives some leadership opportunities but lead by example and mentorship. Neither is perfect or without pain points but either can work for you, especially if you are deliberate.

[HedgeMage]

I feel you on the leadership thing. I think most great leaders are exactly in your position. they understand the cost of leading and tend to shy away because unless they also have a great leader, the burden is crushing. However, people who aren't Leaders often become managers and are de facto leaders without understanding what it takes. 

 

This has to become a conscious thing for you. You can take the road of rising the ranks but understand that as a Leader it will cost you more personally and emotionally than someone who is just a manager. You can also chose to become a rank and file leader, where you engineer yourself into a ground level position that still gives some leadership opportunities but lead by example and mentorship. Neither is perfect or without pain points but either can work for you, especially if you are deliberate.

 

What I'm focusing on at the moment is ensuring that I surround myself with peers I can cross-mentor with in various areas.  As I mentioned in the Sidekick post, leadership itself isn't high-cost for me.  It's pretty much my natural state, so much so that I end up there without intending to.  The isolation that comes with it can be a bear, though.  I'm trying to pre-emptively kill said isolation by ensuring I have a network of leadershippy people to talk to and bounce ideas off of.  Here's hoping it works.

 

Susan

[HedgeMage]

Lifted again last Saturday with QRG...pretty smooth for a first day back from being sick.  Focusing on squats, bench, and pull-ups right now, mostly because I'm hoping pull-ups will help with my grip for deadlift, and I'm not sure what else to do with my deadlift until I get some time with my trainer.  (SpecialSundae gave me a couple of good ideas recently, but that was after Saturday.)

 

Mortgage seems to have been approved today.  House purchase is chugging along.  So much paperwork.  Can't wait to close.

 

Lifted this evening after work.  Made a complete ass of myself, all for ego.  I thought that I was recovered enough from my respiratory infection to go back to my usual warm-up routine: a quick go at the rowing machine followed by a few minutes martial arts drill.  That's usually just enough to remind my body that I'm not at my desk any more.  10 minutes between the two, and I had so much fluid in my lungs and was so lightheaded that I momentarily contemplated going home.  Of course, who am I to go home without lifting anything?  I made it through my usual squat routine, but with the amount of weight I usually use to warm up.  On to bench.  Only managing slightly more than warm-up weight.  4th set, second to last rep, I felt about cashed out, should have racked it.  Didn't.  Last rep, realized halfway up I wasn't going to make it, should have asked for help or put it down on my chest for a second.  Didn't.  Tried to lock it out and ended up putting it on my face instead...not hard enough to really damage anything besides my ego.  Someone helped me rack it.  I took a couple minute break, decided I was not going out like that and did one more set (face-free), then finished the rest of my workout.  The rest of the workout was actually a bit easier now that my lungs were being helped out by the SNS reaction from my being a total twit earlier.

 

Lacking in humility?  Don't worry, the bar will give you some.

[The Most Loathed]

Grip is always slow to develop. You can use straps in the short term so you don't have to stop your progress while you work on grip. 

Deadlift is considered supporting grip in the grip community which is generally best trained through long or heavy holds. The most common approaches would be farmer walks with the heaviest dumbells you can manage and more puls (deadlifts, power cleans, high pulls). High volume Kettlebell swings may help too. 

[HedgeMage]

I got to work out again yesterday morning, this time with my trainer, Mitch.  I warned him that my lungs were still hating on me and did a stretching warm-up instead of anything cardio-ish so the session went well.  I also received a long-overdue reimbursement from work, and am putting part of it toward more training sessions.

While I want to get more independent in my planning so that I can flex around travel nonsense more effectively, I really do get my best workouts with Mitch.  I push harder (because he won't let me drop weights on my head/face, so I don't have to hold back and keep something in the tank), and I focus better because he's always answering "what's next?" and I don't have to think too much about it.

[HedgeMage]

I had a lackluster weekend...house stuff and other stress intruded on working out.  I did a few minimum things, but nothing I'm happy with.

 

Monday (yesterday), I had a good workout with Mitch.  Today, I ran (ish) with a friend.  Mostly walking with a few short runs...but we spent a fun couple of hours together.  I should really start running more to build up endurance, but I'm an awkward runner on the best of days, and the lung recovery is not fun.  The only endurance workouts I've ever really enjoyed are swimming and long, hard rucks with a heavy pack.  However, neither is practical for during-the-week workouts, so I'm trying to force some motivation on the stuff I don't like.

 

I have some gym plans for the rest of the week, and we expect to finally close on the house Friday.

[HedgeMage]

Good morning at the gym.  Set up a partner session with my trainer to help introduce my houseguest to lifting.

 

I think $houseguest had fun.  I had a good session, and while my deadlifts suck a bit from neglect, they are not nearly as far gone as I expected.  Worked on speed squats a bit, which is new/different for me.  I've been thinking more about trying (again) to find a local dojo or martial arts group.  I need to get the new house settled and a few other things handled first, though.

[QuietRiotGrrrl]

 

You have a house!

[HedgeMage]

On 3/28/2016 at 9:58 AM, QuietRiotGrrrl said:

You have a house!

 

 I do!  I'm loving it.  So much still to do, but I hear that carpentry is exercise (especially the demolition part).  

 

 I made 3/4 lifting workouts this past week.  The fourth was nuked by a last-minute change in my lawnmower delivery.  Not terrible, considering.  Oh, and @QuietRiotGrrrl and I went dancing last Friday.  Not for long enough to count as exercise, but it was still fun.

 

Life is settling down...somewhat.  We're already using the added space of the new house even though it's not quite move-in ready yet.  I'm about to have a bunch of work travel again, but it will be manageable, I think.  Having the homebuying stress exchanged for stressbusting yard work and such has been great.  I can't wait until we are moved 100%.

[HedgeMage]

Lifted this morning and got some more program tweaks from Mitch.

 

Have been eating crap all day...WTF...oh well, one day once in a while won't kill me.

 

Starting to realize that continuing to lift 4x/week and adding in the many hours of yard work and home repair I've been doing has made me crave a lot more food than I'm used to eating...and I was just starting to get used to where I was at.  Ugh.  It's a reasonable instinct, given the activity bump, and that I'm getting tired and cranky when I don't eat more.

 

Bumping daily protein minimum to 150g to help keep macro balance and food quality under control while I try to increase my intake.

[QuietRiotGrrrl]

Let me know if I can help out at all!  I know you're got lots of travel plans and I have homework getting in the way, but I have the occasional free time I'd love to spend hanging out and maybe even being just a tiny bit helpful.

 

[HedgeMage]

I'd love to get together!  I'll ping you when it's not so awfully late with my bizarro schedule.

[HedgeMage]

More scheduling insanity (because when isn't there?)...

 

I got a couple more days of lifting in since my last update before work travel again interceded.  This trip was not too bad in terms of staying on track; the hotel weight room was about as useless as expected, but I got a little upper body and core work done, then did a lot of walking with a friend (and some cardio machine stuff, yucky but won't hurt I guess), and three days of swimming for a solid hour or more.  I was staying conversational rather than pushing hard, but given how seldom I swim any more, I still felt those long sessions.

 

The food intake bump has been helping, but all this travel has me eating way too many carbs.  Then I'm afraid to ratchet it down when I get back because the trips are so frequent and I can't afford to crash each time.  I have one more trip that's in an area where staying high-protein is especially hard, but come the second week in May I'm going to try to dial back a bit, even if I can't get back to my normal for a few more weeks.

 

Lifted this morning with @QuietRiotGrrrl, which is always awesome.

 

Once travel calms down, I don't expect to have trouble getting back into my lifting routine again, but I'm starting to wonder how I'm going to work adequate conditioning in.  I hate running and biking almost as much as I hate cardio machines, and thanks to road construction, swimming regularly is impractical.  Grr.

[QuietRiotGrrrl]

I've only got 2 more weeks of classes!  Then I'll have time for short runs and more lifting if you want.

You are just so busy   But you're doing awesome.