Saturday Vagaries

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uring a busy--perhaps I should say, supposedly busy--weekend, I will jot down a few random thoughts before I go back to work... alleged work.

To friends, fellow Xangans and everyone else in London: Stay strong. I am with you in spirit. I pray that we will someday shake some sense into these idiots.

RBJ Tomodachi: You'll notice that I've taken down the links from the top of the page, but I still maintain my gallery as a show of appreciation to all you guys who have bookmarked me. Thanks to you, I am ranked in the top 5 over at RBJ. I am more than just a bit embarrassed, really... Okay, okay, I don't mean to self-promote, but I am surprised at how many people want to actually read the drivel I post.

Random answer about weights

J0hns0nT How heavy are your weights?

Um, this is a question posed in a previous post when I said I was trying to work out again. How heavy are my weights? Let's see. I use free weights and have a small set of dumbells and plates for my barbells. The plates go from 2.5 lbs. to 45 lbs. Two 45s on the barbell--itself being 45 lbs.--will make it 135 total lbs., at which I can do 10 reps (3 sets). But like I said, I'm out of shape. I hit my peak about two years ago, when I maxed out at 195 lbs. I weighed about 155 lbs back then, so 195 doesn't sound like much--I want to lift 1.5 times my body weight--but I'm an old man, so give me a break.

The rack I use is a Parabody and it's pretty sturdy, which is good since I sometimes train without spotter. That way, if I lose control, I can just drop the barbell onto the side rails without injuring myself. (Fortuntely, I've never had to use them.) I do military presses for my shoulders on this rack, as well. I've always had weak shoulders, so I'm just doing 65 lbs. now (barbell + 10 x 2). I figure if I can get to 95 lbs, I'd be able to wear sleeveless T-shirts again . I also attached a pulley to the rack so I can do back exercises. But I'm very lazy. M is always bugging me about focusing on my back. She treases me by telling me I only work out the body parts that I can actually see--arms, chest, shoulder, GUILTY! This might be an indication of my butt, too, but we won't go there.

Next to the rack are a set of small dumbells from 2 lbs. to 15 lbs. M and her friends use these. I use another set.

This set runs from 20lbs. to 40 lbs. I used to do French Presses (for triceps) with 35 lbs. per arm, but can only do 25 now. M does French presses and she does not have sagging underarms--or natural kimono sleeves 天然振り袖. She has talked her friends into doing them also and they have noticed a difference as well. And if you're wondering, they have another expression for guys. We don't have love handles, we have natural inner tubes 天然浮き輪. Yes, I too am the proud owner of my very own inner tube. Ugh! Anyway, you can do French presses too. Use a half liter bottle of water or a 16 oz. can of soup.

The 40s I use for shrugs, squats and lunges--yes, I use a strap. I also have an easy curl bar for arm curls. I know that a straight bar builds bigger biceps, but I injured my forearm tendons once--very similar to tennis elbow--so I stick to the sissy bar now. I currently curl 50 lbs. (15 + 15 + 20 lb. bar). I hope to get back to 70 before school starts.

Anyway, hope that answers your question.

Do any of you guys workout with weights, too? Don't get the wrong idea now. I'm not trying to get buff (although that would be a nice side effect). We live in a society where we do very little heavy lifting, so working out with weights is pretty essential for overall health. Of course, I'm probably the last person who should be preaching.