Yeah I am from the Chicago-land area, which is a great place to be from. I still call Colorado home though and hope to get back there eventually. I could settle back in AZ too, its definitely a cool state. Not sure about the length over here, we are enjoying it immensely so I have no reason to head back for a while. Little man is doing great, he's actually a very easy one thank goodness, which makes life much more enjoyable. Thanks for asking! And how about your family? Getting ready to hibernate for the winter?
I took the garbage out barefoot this morning, cold wet weather makes it quite unenjoyable. I give you guys credit for having the patience for winter barefoot runs.
Yeah I haven't read about the texas method too much. But SS and the texas method seem similar to what we are doing with some additions to fill the weaknesses of those two programs. On another note I think I really was able to dial in my squat stance today, the trick was not pointing my toes out and keeping the width a little narrower. There was a lot of pop out of the whole so I think I am going to keep working this style.
Trying to firm up some race plans for the next few months... I need to find a 50 miler somewhere in the Ardennes.
Hmnn, I lived in Chicago seven years. A lot more going on than in the Twin Cities, and it feels like you're closer to the East Coast. St. Paul is the last of the Eastern Cities I guess, and Minneapolis the first of the Western Cities. Anyway, I still would like to move out West at some point. I'll take mountains over lakes any day.
The family's going great. Our daughter is old enough now (seven and a half) that she can help out more and keep her little brother (three and a half) occupied. So that's a big help. Plus it's great listening in on their conversations. Our daughter starts basketball this week, because two of her friends are doing it. It would be great if she takes a liking to sports. I think that's great for young girls' self-esteem.
Winter kinda sucks, but once we get a decent snowfall, we can start sledding. I'll try to use the sled-harness and sprint up the hills for some quad development. I gotta get back to hills and intervals at some point. Been thinking about the daily 5K a bit again, but I liked six miles on Saturday, so I think I'll try six miles again today, and stick to a 3xweek schedule with some run-commutes on my off-days. In any case, hopefully this winter won't be as bad as last winter. So far, I'm kind of enjoying it, then in January you have the NFL playoffs, so it's just February that really sucks, but sometimes we can get spring-like temps then, so you start to feel like you're home-free.
The barefoot running in the winter thing is interesting. I think it's a combination of one's natural tolerances and adaptation. You got to ease into it throughout the fall I think, but it also helps if you perform day-to-day activities like taking out the garbage barefoot as much as possible.
I think I've committed now to making this cycle an experiment in adapting the Texas Method to the rhythm I adopted by accident last week. I'll take my triples @85% my 1RM, then, using your percentage of percentage approach, set my volume day weights at 88% of that, and my recovery/dynamic day at 90% of the volume weight. This gives me numbers that seem reasonable:
If it proves to be too much, I'll lower the percentages. I'm still hoping to get in some assistance lifts on Wednesday, the recovery day, mainly Russian Twists, Hypers, Farmer's Walk, Pullovers, Dips, and Rotator Cuff. If I can do the main lifts with little or no warm-up, should be possible.
Yesterday I pulled a muscle slightly. After moving the pullup handles over to the other side, I was in a bit of a hurry trying to get through my first volume day, didn't warm-up properly, and felt a little niggle on the third rep of my first workset of deadlifts. Opps. I think I can massage and stretch it out in time for tomorrow's workout. This afternoon's run should do it some good too.
Glad to hear you're successfully honing the squats. It's funny how those little adjustments can make such a big difference, but until you're completely sure about your technical choices, it's hard to approach the squat confidently. It took me several months of messing around until I found something that works for me. Now I really love the movement, the little trip up and down. I'm also really getting into the OH Press for the first time. Those two lifts plus the deadlift are my points of emphasis now. But I'm going to keep the deadlift volume a little lower to avoid overtraining.
. I think right now there is little reason for me to work singles as I feel like I am getting the same stimulus from the lighter weights?
I still have trouble trusting that 2 x 5 is going to be enough, so hopefully allowing myself a higher intensity day on Friday and a higher volume day on Monday will scratch the itch.
Yah, I saw that. It's definitely possible, just have to keep plugging away. I'll start testing my 1RM by spring at the latest.
BTW Sid, Dan John and Pavel also both encourage training barefoot, seems like Rooney does too according to the article.
Rip always has a one size fits all philosophy, that's his personality. Which is funny as quite a few people knock him over it. However I did cut my toe open on my squat rack the other day...
Yah, Rip seems like kind of a prick, but I respect his no-nonsense attitude. His recommendation for bar position and narrow, thumbless grip was key to getting my squat more stable.
"It's not comfortable stepping out of the rack barefoot with 400 or 500 pounds on your back," Rooney says.
Funny, for me, it's just the opposite. I feel so stable barefoot.