Memoirs of a Tough Old Bastard: the Resurrection of MHL

[proud_polack]

Uh oh. 190 on SOHP... If that's not a "push" press, you may very well have surpassed my standing shoulder strength

[Payton1221]

your journal reads like a novel, full of cliff hangers, intrigue, higs and lows, and often leaves the reader asking
"wtf is he going to do next? Who cares, he's going to do it with class and he's going to keep it real."

^^this

[wedjim]

Wow, I think that is 66 SOHP reps, with a PR for good measure. Good stuff, eventually the iron will be scurred when it sees you come thru the door!

Own it every time!

[mharrislove]

Delts and Calves

* Friday's session *

Under promise,



over deliver.

warm up:

• standing DB presses, 1 x 15
• DB squats, 1 x 10
• DB RDLs, 1 x 10
• standing DB curls, 1 x 10
• pull ups, 1 x 10
• hyperextensions, 1 x 10
• knee extensions, 1 x 15
• lying leg curls, 1 x 12

DELTS

standing overhead presses
bar x 10 wu
100 x 8
135 x 5
135 x 5
155 x 5
155 x 5
165 x 5
165 x 5
175 x 4
175 x 4
185 x 3
190 x 2 --- PR
155 x 5
155 x 5
135 x 5

This was a good run. It was time to pay homage to the Gods of Volume. I never even thought about the problem shoulder until the PR set. After that, I thought, "first, do no harm..." and backed off. I'm writing this the day after the event and all is well with the arm (at least, no changes from its normal sh!tty status...).







Seated side laterals SS w/standing behind the neck overhead BB presses
30 x 12 /75 x 12
30 x 12 /75 x 12
30 x 12 /75 x 12

I kept these modest by design, and it paid off. The numbers don't show it, but this was quality work. The preset BB is much shorter than an Oly bar, so my relatively narrow grip keeps the pressure off of my bum rotator cuff and allows me to do the movement with no pain (there's more pain cleaning the bar than actually doing the presses).

DB front raises
25 x 12
35 x 10
45 x 8


DB Shrugs
105 x 15
105 x 12
105 x 10



CALVES

Standing heel raises (Hoist; plate loaded; weights listed per side)
1 plate x 15
2 plates x 15
3 plates x 12 --- drop sets
--> 2 plates x 10
---> 1 plates x 10

Seated heel raises (LifeFitness)
2 plates x 15
2 plates x 15
3 plates x 13
3 plates x 10






Impressions:

Another very good day in the gym. With the exception of my shoulder fiasco on the bench, the whole training cycle has been fairly awesome. Today was important because it showed that there is still a way forward for delt training despite the current physical problems. This is critical for me to stay on target regarding my competitive plans. Still, I have to take the rehab seriously and balance it with my desire to pound the iron.

Even though I'm not on a Smolov cycle now, I may still treat my gym exploits in a similar manner. Specifically, I mean that since I have hit a few PRs this week, it may be best to work on general lifting capacity over the next 3 to 4 weeks before attempting the next PR. I'll know more about how I'm going to approach it after I make a firm decision on my program after my travel training/deload/whatever week.

I was going to do Smolov for bench, but clearly things are not where they need to be for me to go that route - maybe I'll cross that bridge later in the year. But whatever I'm going to do, I assure you that it will be interesting...






The WTF? Gym Moment of the Day:



To the dudes dragging ass on the Hoist machines while I was sweating bullets in the rack:

You are not going to look like your BFF, Greg Plitt (or some other cover boy), by constantly filling the airwaves with banal chatter.


JFT or GTFO!

[Akudela]

It seems like you're hitting a PR every workout! Awesome man! As for the chatter, I know the feeling. The one power rack we have left (the 2nd one broke somehow) was occupied by 2 new-years-resolutes doing 3 rep shrugs in between their rather hefty sets of idle banter. It wasn't a squatting day so I just needed the barbell for deads and 35min after I wanted it I finally asked if they were done. They got huffy and let me on it. After a few warmup sets I loaded 415 (a PR for me) and repped it once. One of the guys had the nerve to walk back up to me and say "You needed us to move so you could lift that once?" so I grabbed the bar and repped it twice more. After that, I felt a bit dizzy, but I suppose that's the price I pay for having an ego ;p

[mharrislove]

Uh oh. 190 on SOHP... If that's not a "push" press, you may very well have surpassed my standing shoulder strength

I don't know about that, DPT...

I don't claim to be doing "dead presses", but I'm not jumping under the bar Oly style, either. Be it 135 or 185, I am trying to keep about the same small degree of full body "push" as I go into the press. This isn't to crank up raw weight for the sake of numbers, my low back is just in a better position at the time of the press if I do it this way - that's why the form is about the same no matter what I have on the bar. So, we're probably still traversing the same neck of the woods...

^^this

I know that you have been crazy busy lately, so thanks for just taking the time to stop by!

Wow, I think that is 66 SOHP reps, with a PR for good measure. Good stuff, eventually the iron will be scurred when it sees you come thru the door!

Own it every time!

Yeah, it's been a war against those SOHPs.

I consulted my Pavel text on delt training a while back and it went something like this...

Me: Skipping through the page after page, I finally find the section on 'Shoulder Training', "Ah, here it is..."

Pavel: "People that press a lot, tend to press a lot..."

Me: bertstaring Pavel

Pavel: bertstaring back at me

Me: "Okay!"

[ironwill2008]

Once your waist gets down, the manufacturers think that you're built like a middle grade student.

Legs can present a wardrobe problem for sure. With jeans, I've had luck with Levis 560s, at least 3" larger than me in the waist, and then they fit my legs.

DELTS

standing overhead presses
bar x 10 wu
100 x 8
135 x 5
135 x 5
155 x 5
155 x 5
165 x 5
165 x 5
175 x 4
175 x 4
185 x 3
190 x 2 --- PR
155 x 5
155 x 5
135 x 5

This was a good run. It was time to pay homage to the Gods of Volume. I never even thought about the problem shoulder until the PR set. After that, I thought, "first, do no harm..." and backed off. I'm writing this the day after the event and all is well with the arm (at least, no changes from its normal sh!tty status...).

gj on the PR, and your shoulder living to tell about it!

The WTF? Gym Moment of the Day:



To the dudes dragging ass on the Hoist machines while I was sweating bullets in the rack:

You are not going to look like your BFF, Greg Plitt (or some other cover boy), by constantly filling the airwaves with banal chatter.


JFT or GTFO!

LOL @ Plitt. I watched a couple minutes of one of his 'training' vids on youtube a few weeks ago. I don't think I've ever seen as much contrived "drama" in 2 minutes anywhere else in my life. What a phony that joker is. If you looked up the word "douchebag" in the Webster's, Plitt's photo would be there.



But other than that, he's OK.

[Brackneyc]

I consulted my Pavel text on delt training a while back and it went something like this...

Me: Skipping through the page after page, I finally find the section on 'Shoulder Training', "Ah, here it is..."

Pavel: "People that press a lot, tend to press a lot..."

Me: bertstaring Pavel

Pavel: bertstaring back at me

Me: "Okay!"

This^^ I like. The other stuff is cool too, but this is the essence of it all. (unless I am reading it wrong).

[Brackneyc]

Legs can present a wardrobe problem for sure. With jeans, I've had luck with Levis 560s, at least 3" larger than me in the waist, and then they fit my legs.






gj on the PR, and your shoulder living to tell about it!




LOL @ Plitt. I watched a couple minutes of one of his 'training' vids on youtube a few weeks ago. I don't think I've ever seen as much contrived "drama" in 2 minutes anywhere else in my life. What a phony that joker is. If you looked up the word "douchebag" in the Webster's, Plitt's photo would be there.



But other than that, he's OK.

Don't forget all of the "cool" swearing.

[mharrislove]

It seems like you're hitting a PR every workout! Awesome man!

Thanks, bro!

As for the chatter, I know the feeling. The one power rack we have left (the 2nd one broke somehow)...

How the fuk does a rack get broken?!! You guys got Stan Efferding training up in there or something? Damn...

... 2 new-years-resolutes doing 3 rep shrugs in between their rather hefty sets of idle banter. It wasn't a squatting day so I just needed the barbell for deads and 35min after I wanted it I finally asked if they were done. They got huffy and let me on it. After a few warmup sets I loaded 415 (a PR for me) and repped it once. One of the guys had the nerve to walk back up to me and say "You needed us to move so you could lift that once?" so I grabbed the bar and repped it twice more. After that, I felt a bit dizzy, but I suppose that's the price I pay for having an ego ;p

Wow...to hog up a bar doing a jaw bone workout and then essentially criticize someone for doing heavy singles with the bar takes some cojones!

[mharrislove]

Legs can present a wardrobe problem for sure. With jeans, I've had luck with Levis 560s, at least 3" larger than me in the waist, and then they fit my legs.

Thanks for the tip!

gj on the PR, and your shoulder living to tell about it!

Ain't it the truth!

LOL @ Plitt. I watched a couple minutes of one of his 'training' vids on youtube a few weeks ago. I don't think I've ever seen as much contrived "drama" in 2 minutes anywhere else in my life. What a phony that joker is. If you looked up the word "douchebag" in the Webster's, Plitt's photo would be there.

Yeah, he's definitely a character. I respect a lot of what he accomplished prior to the cover boy stage of his career, but the vids are a bit much. After a few minutes I find myself feeling like that Cheryl Cole gif:

This^^ I like. The other stuff is cool too, but this is the essence of it all. (unless I am reading it wrong).

Nah, I would say that you are reading it perfectly.

Don't forget all of the "cool" swearing.

Hey, @#$%^&*! We are pottymouth friendly here at the Memoir!

[bamazav]

Checking in to see great work, chattering teeth and a cool conversation with Pavel. This journal has everything.

Keep it up!

[mharrislove]

Checking in to see great work, chattering teeth and a cool conversation with Pavel. This journal has everything.

Keep it up!

Hello, my friend. This journal will have everything once I start gettin' bigger - but rest assured that I am working on that!

[FlaIronMind]

Fantastic session my brother and congrats on that PB with teh OHs. Awesome.

And yep...with that WTF moment...awares. Sigh.

[mharrislove]

Fantastic session my brother and congrats on that PB with teh OHs. Awesome.

And yep...with that WTF moment...awares. Sigh.

Hey, brother...thanks for the encouragement, as always. Breaking down a barrier on a lift that has caused you fits is rewarding to say the least.

Also, I'm glad that you enjoyed the appearance of Morris Day in your journal; based on what you were doing, the posting of the pic was well deserved! (I'm still shaking my head just thinking about it..!)

[FlaIronMind]

Hey, brother...thanks for the encouragement, as always. Breaking down a barrier on a lift that has caused you fits is rewarding to say the least.

My pleasure brother. And, Amen to that.

Also, I'm glad that you enjoyed the appearance of Morris Day in your journal; based on what you were doing, the posting of the pic was well deserved! (I'm still shaking my head just thinking about it..!)

I did indeed and thank you. Actually, now that you mention it, what's been going on in here warrants posting some of teh early-day Prince, Loring Park, funkliciously smoothgelical stuff. Enjoy. If you've never heard this bootleg of his from '77...hold on tight brother. Weather Report, Jaco and Chick must have been turnin' green.

[Akudela]

To answer your question about breaking a rack... I honestly don't know. One day it was fine, the next day it was gone and replaced with a sign that said "Gone for repairs"

[-=FLEX=-]

Still, I have to take the rehab seriously and balance it with my desire to pound the iron.

For guys like us this is more challenging than the usual "motivate me to get to the gym" BS we read on here ad nauseum.

I have a messed up shoulder and any day it even feels HALFWAY normal I want to try and bench press a house.

[rpaul11]

hittin a 190 on OH Press is just stellar man.

and the high rep laterals at 30 lbs aint no joke either. Keep it up

[mharrislove]

Hams and Back/Rear Delts

"To be what we are,


and to become what we are


capable of becoming,


is the only end in life."


- Robert Louis Stevenson

warm up:

• standing DB presses, 1 x 15
• DB squats, 1 x 10
• DB RDLs, 1 x 10
• standing DB curls, 1 x 10
• pull ups, 1 x 10
• hyperextensions, 1 x 10
• knee extensions, 1 x 15
• lying leg curls, 1 x 12

HAMS

Sumo deads (from platform; belt; Vgrips on top sets)
135 x 6 wu
225 x 5
315 x 4
365 x 3
405 x 2
425 x 1
405 x 3
365 x 5





RDLs (using Sumo stance)
----------- using red bands, 2 points of contact, very high tension
225 - 325 x 10
225 - 325 x 8
225 - 325 x 6


Lying leg curls (stack weight; SS w/chins to save time)
140 x 15
140 x 15
140 x 12



BACK/REAR DELTS

Chin ups
BW x 5
BW + 45 x 5
BW + 70 x 4
BW + 80 x 3
BW + 85 x 3 (PR)


Dead lift ---> Bentover BB rows (dynamic resistance; dead stops w/each rep)
----------- using red bands, 2 points of contact, very high tension
135 - 235 x 5
225 - 325 x 3 --- Clearly my 'WTF were U thinkin'?' moment of the day... (pause to use smartphone to cut-and-paste this into FIM's journal instead)
185 - 285 x 5 --- breathin' hard, but this was perfect


Lat pull downs (stack weight)
140 x 10
180 x 10


Seated reverse flyes
100 x 15
100 x 10


* Note: I limited volume at the end due to time constraints *






Impressions:

Very pleased with this effort. It sucks that work travel will interrupt this nice training groove that I have goin' right now. Then again, if the fancy-smancy hotel gyms has a pile of plates and an Oly bar, then the good times will keep on rollin'.

Hams were put on notice, the low back was worked but held firm, and the shoulder was quiet (for now). I'm curious to see what's going to happen during the next chest workout, but no need to borrow trouble. I'll ride this morning's endorphin rush right up to my morning meetings.






The WTF? Gym Moment of the Day:

Okay...the thing about using "10 cent" words and complex explanations is that you can make anything, well, sound like anything.

Centuries ago this happened in medicine (there are tons of examples, really) when physicians pontificated on complex, yet rational sounding, explanations about why blood-letting was a reasonable therapeutic approach. They had theories about it. They wrote books about it. And they used a kinda' Salem Witch Trial logic paradigm to the whole thing: if you die, then you were too far gone; if you don't die, then I'm brilliant.

So, I'm watching this personal trainer just a few feet away from me work with a first time client. And he's going through all of these pained explanations about core training, the value of stabilization, blah, blah, blah...as he instructs the client to do DB curls while standing on one leg.

They then go through a whole series of things and return to my area to do single leg BB curls. But, ya' know, B.S. has a way of floating to the surface eventually. And some B.S. is so bad, that it stinks up the place almost immediately.

I sense that this new client was on to this whole charade, because throughout the whole session, her face was constantly like:

[mharrislove]

My pleasure brother. And, Amen to that.



I did indeed and thank you. Actually, now that you mention it, what's been going on in here warrants posting some of teh early-day Prince, Loring Park, funkliciously smoothgelical stuff. Enjoy. If you've never heard this bootleg of his from '77...hold on tight brother. Weather Report, Jaco and Chick must have been turnin' green.

Aww, man! Measly reps 4 life, for those Loring Park sessions! The earliest stuff I have are the sessions with Pepe Willie (a local producer that was influential in the whole MPLS sound) on this LP:



Thanks again; the hunt for the MP3s begins...

To answer your question about breaking a rack... I honestly don't know. One day it was fine, the next day it was gone and replaced with a sign that said "Gone for repairs"

Hopefully you guys are back up to full strength again soon.

For guys like us this is more challenging than the usual "motivate me to get to the gym" BS we read on here ad nauseum.

I have a messed up shoulder and any day it even feels HALFWAY normal I want to try and bench press a house.

Yeah, that about sums up the dilemma! I need to tame that instinct, but the beast inside rears his head at the damnedest times...

hittin a 190 on OH Press is just stellar man.

and the high rep laterals at 30 lbs aint no joke either. Keep it up

Thanks, man...the rebuilding project is in full swing now!

[ironwill2008]

After a few minutes I find myself feeling like that Cheryl Cole gif:

AHAHAHAHAAHAHA! ^^^^This!

....... "motivate me to get to the gym" BS we read on here ad nauseum.

This is the one type of thread that I just can't get a grip on. I cannot figure out what people who post these type of threads could possibly expect random internet posters to tell them that will get them off their butt. Either you want to improve yourself, or you don't. I don't see any middle ground there at all.

Sumo deads (from platform; belt; Vgrips on top sets)
135 x 6 wu
225 x 5
315 x 4
365 x 3
405 x 2
425 x 1
405 x 3
365 x 5

Good job on honest hard work.

Chin ups
BW x 5
BW + 45 x 5
BW + 70 x 4
BW + 80 x 3
BW + 85 x 3 (PR)

Good work on the PR!

I've got these on the docket for today, and I'm hot on yer heels, bub!

The WTF? Gym Moment of the Day:

So, I'm watching this personal trainer just a few feet away from me work with a first time client. And he's going through all of these pained explanations about core training, the value of stabilization, blah, blah, blah...as he instructs the client to do DB curls while standing on one leg.

They then go through the a whole series of things and return to my area to do single leg BB curls. But, ya' know, B.S. has a way of floating to the surface eventually. And some B.S. is so bad, that it stinks up the place almost immediately.

I sense that this new client was on to this whole charade, because throughout the whole session, her face was constantly like:

Lulz @ that pic; I'm stealing it for future use!



I post all over this site, and for the most part PTs are constantly made fun of, and generally described as being little better than charlatans in their dealings with clients. In the past, I've found myself going into such threads and actually defending PTs on the basis that "Sure, there are some bad ones, but they're like any other work group; there are a lot of good ones too."

But then I read a report like yours, and I'm increasingly disinclined to defend any of them.

[ArchAngel'73]

I am politely requesting a re-cap of your goals.
You competed, what exactly are you trying to do or make better for next time?
Is it all about mass acquisition or any particular areas you feel need bringing up?
Thanks, and sorry I missed them previous, journal moves fast.

[proud_polack]

Awesome work from the floor today.

At the WTF moment... I'm speechless. In my ACE cert class (the beauty of an exercise science minor), I hear horror stories like this... But this is just beyond anything I have ever heard or personally witnessed... It's sad when broscience is being spread by someone who's supposed to be knowledgeable.

[mharrislove]

AHAHAHAHAAHAHA! ^^^^This!

I'm glad that gif made sense!!!

This is the one type of thread that I just can't get a grip on. I cannot figure out what people who post these type of threads could possibly expect random internet posters to tell them that will get them off their butt. Either you want to improve yourself, or you don't. I don't see any middle ground there at all.

True. I understand the problem. But I don't understand how anyone else can really help you if you have this problem.

Good job on honest hard work.

Thanks. It's been fun to push a little here after replacing them with Jeffs for so long.

Good work on the PR!

I've got these on the docket for today, and I'm hot on yer heels, bub!

You think I don't know that?!! LOL!

Lulz @ that pic; I'm stealing it for future use!

That's Prime, Grade A, material right there!

I post all over this site, and for the most part PTs are constantly made fun of, and generally described as being little better than charlatans in their dealings with clients. In the past, I've found myself going into such threads and actually defending PTs on the basis that "Sure, there are some bad ones, but they're like any other work group; there are a lot of good ones too."

But then I read a report like yours, and I'm increasingly disinclined to defend any of them.

There are some good ones out there, but holy hell at those bad ones...

I am politely requesting a re-cap of your goals.
You competed, what exactly are you trying to do or make better for next time?
Is it all about mass acquisition or any particular areas you feel need bringing up?
Thanks, and sorry I missed them previous, journal moves fast.

Well, I'll save my typical TL;DR posts for another time and try to be brief:

* Be bigger on stage

* Make poses from the front be more competitive with my poses from the back

* I enjoy volume/hybrid training and find it effective, but I can't train like that for 18 months straight, so...

*...the temporary strength phase stuff will make me more effective when I finally return to my usual madness.

* Learn how to f*cking diet about two weeks out from a comp (I can't keep my promise to stay brief on this topic, so I'll stop while I'm ahead).

Awesome work from the floor today.

At the WTF moment... I'm speechless. In my ACE cert class (the beauty of an exercise science minor), I hear horror stories like this... But this is just beyond anything I have ever heard or personally witnessed... It's sad when broscience is being spread by someone who's supposed to be knowledgeable.

Yeah, FLEX nailed it in an earlier conversation about this issue. Marketing > Efficacy.

As long as training on a circus ball or like a Flamingo is more "exciting" than just plain ol' lifting, then so-called "functional" training is not going away anytime soon.

[FlaIronMind]

Brother, your choice of picture, selection of prose quoted and your effort in the dungeon make this a truly epic entry. Fantastic work my friend and I appreciate the thought/shout-out re the bent-over BB rows. Those looked great, as did those sumos. I am also glad to read that the back and shoulder held up well with that work.

As for that WTF Moment...typical, ain't it? I had one occur in my dungeon last week sometime that I never bothered to put down. But, since we're on the subject, it involved a trainer leading a young lady, his client, over to the hack press. The hack press just happened to be close to my power rack. I was between sets and I watched this trainer assume the position on the hack press, without any weight, and tell his client,

"Now, you just release this thing here [pointing to the lever] and take it down. Then keep doing it. I'll be back later."

He never did even bother to demonstrate the motion.

Then he left, for quite a while. The young lady became bored with trying to figure out what to do/what to do next, so she just went over to the leg extension machine and started in with those. I finished my squats and was well into my deads set when I noticed that she had left. Her trainer never did return, at least to that area of the dungeon.

And folks pay for this.

BTW, I am glad you appreciated the Loring Park session stuff. It's fairly easy to track down and is utter beauty from start to finish. But that 94 East set you have is awesome stuff as well my brother. Love it.

[cowboybiker]

Great stuff and very motivating.

I hope I to learn alot from you.

[ironwill2008]

But I don't understand how anyone else can really help you if you have this problem.

The entire issue of such threads is a complete mystery to me, and one pops up just in the O35 about once every two weeks. The general public, at least that segment of it that doesn't think all bodybuilders are brainless pin cushions, seems to be under the impression that bodybuilding is a sport that just about anyone can excel at on some level.

I've gone so far as to reply to a few such posters that bodybuilding isn't for everyone any more than playing football, or driving Formula 1 cars, or playing high-stakes poker, is for everyone. Such replies by myself generally don't get a good reception from the OP.

It's pretty difficult to reply honestly without sounding like a d*ck, so any more, I just usually pass those threads by.

[mharrislove]

Brother, your choice of picture, selection of prose quoted and your effort in the dungeon make this a truly epic entry. Fantastic work my friend and I appreciate the thought/shout-out re the bent-over BB rows. Those looked great, as did those sumos. I am also glad to read that the back and shoulder held up well with that work.

Thanks, man...I love it when things just click in the dungeon, you know? That's not to say that it comes without work or effort, because it's still all of that. But the work is efficient, meaningful, and productive - it's not slamming your head against a brick wall when things are decidedly NOT clicking. Anyway, I'm thankful for the iron as usual, 'cause more often than not, things just work. We do what we do for a reason, I guess..!

As for that WTF Moment...typical, ain't it? I had one occur in my dungeon last week sometime that I never bothered to put down...

"Now, you just release this thing here [pointing to the lever] and take it down. Then keep doing it. I'll be back later."

He never did even bother to demonstrate the motion.

Then he left, for quite a while. The young lady became bored with trying to figure out what to do/what to do next, so she just went over to the leg extension machine and started in with those. I finished my squats and was well into my deads set when I noticed that she had left. Her trainer never did return, at least to that area of the dungeon.

And folks pay for this.

That - is - horrific. WTH?

BTW, I am glad you appreciated the Loring Park session stuff. It's fairly easy to track down and is utter beauty from start to finish. But that 94 East set you have is awesome stuff as well my brother. Love it.

Well, thanks again...and you were right - I did find the MP3s. As good as he was back then, much of that stuff shows his mastery of the then current fusion style at a very young age. But it's hard to fathom the evolutionary leap his music made from '77 to just the early '80s. Just think about those jam sessions and the songs from the first two albums compared to the sound and song structure of "Dirty Mind", "Private Joy", "Automatic", all the way to the critical and commercial breakthrough by '84. And that's not even his most creative stuff; the critical peak (while somewhat under-appreciated) didn't come until "Sign 'O the Times" and "Parade" (still, perhaps, his most unique album). Just crazy, freakish, musical development.








Prince live w/Larry Graham on bass and Maceo Parker on sax:
guitar intro (from start to about 3 min); Hendrix's "Red House" (around 4:45); solo (around 7:30)

Great stuff and very motivating.

I hope I to learn alot from you.

Thanks for stopping by...welcome to the Memoir!

The entire issue of such threads is a complete mystery to me, and one pops up just in the O35 about once every two weeks. The general public, at least that segment of it that doesn't think all bodybuilders are brainless pin cushions, seems to be under the impression that bodybuilding is a sport that just about anyone can excel at on some level.

I've gone so far as to reply to a few such posters that bodybuilding isn't for everyone any more than playing football, or driving Formula 1 cars, or playing high-stakes poker, is for everyone. Such replies by myself generally don't get a good reception from the OP.

Well, it's probably because folks (rightfully) feel that "fitness" involves general activity that should be available and doable for everyone. Trouble is, a light circuit on the universal weight machine does not = an Ortmayer progression or Madcow routine.

So, yeah, I agree; everyone can lift or play football, but few are made of the stuff needed to do it well.

It's pretty difficult to reply honestly without sounding like a d*ck, so any more, I just usually pass those threads by.

Dang...I just got the kid to sleep, but me laughing my ass off to this may have stirred him a bit!

[FlaIronMind]

Truth be known, Sign O' the Times is my favorite LP of his. By far. Though, the first 30 seconds of "Purple Rain," with that guitar intro, puts me in a very good place. My wife routinely reaches for "1999" or "Around The World In A Day," but SOTT is mine. No surprise you posted it either.