123 Jump!

Off-season Block 1.2

Squats
45x10
135x10
185x10
225x10x7

Good Mornings
95x10x3

Triceps Press
45x15x3

Video is worth it for my training partner.

Bullets, Guns and Missiles

All cleans of all kinds today. Just triples, doubles and singles. Started out doing very deliberate full cleans to hammer the idea of "get under the bar" into my head. Managed to work up to a PR (from the floor) of 255.

 

Stone Smoked Porter

The first thing I was afraid of trying this beer was that Stone would overdo it with the smoke flavor. They did not, and it's a very balanced Porter. Sweet aroma - smoke really hides out until you take a sip. Hoped for a little softer, maltier taste, but it is a Stone Brew after all. Mouthfeel is excellent.

Refusing to Use Metal

Just a collection of the off-season throwing videos I've made thus far. Big off-season for me this year, so I want to get off on the right foot with regular throwing.

Hammers - need the most work here.

Open Stone - full spin is coming back, and progress is finally being made.

HWFD - Gain weight, Mike.

20 lb Sheaf - Feels good. Just need to get some practices in with speed.

More Stones - Really trying to get my finish fixed.

Eat Floor. High Fiber.

Still just kinda jackin around until Austin Celtic Festival is over this weekend. After that, I will start my off-season in earnest. Did a lot of overhead work today. Definitely zeroed in on a weak point - my shoulders. I can push press 225 most days, but I was struggling to strict press 165 today. Gotta target delts and triceps a little more these next few months.

Strict Press

45x10

95x5

135x3

95x10x3

Push Press

135x3

185x1

205x1

Speed Deads

275x5x3

Chins

10, 8, 6

Superset Standing Triceps Press/Upright Rows

12/10, 12/10, 12/12

Do I suck a lot more, or a little more?

Got a good week of training in last week, and I'm ramping up for the off-season fairly well. Hannah continues to rob the wife and I of precious sleep, so I have to make do with what level of rest I get. I got the "lift heavier" bug these past couple of sessions, so I loosened up the routine and kinda did whatever. Nothing wrong with testing myself a little to see what I lost over the course of the season in terms of top-end strength.

Cleans, snatch and deadlifts:

Squat variations and ugly, ugly, bench press:

I have been really getting into the idea of experimenting more with hard cider recipes, so I picked up the following at Austin Homebrew today:

• Bavarian Wheat Yeast
• Champagne Yeast
• 1 lb. Wheat DME
• 1 lb. Golden Light DME

...and then I forgot to get apple juice. It's tough to be this way. To be me.

Man, I totally had a kid! AGAIN!

Really the only thing of actual importance that has been going on with me is the birth of my daughter, Hannah Michelle Beech. Here she is just after being born:

Here she is making a grumpy, yet awesome face a few days later. Seriously, this kid is Queen Grumpface.

I have had a pretty successful season thus far making beer for Luke's big bad tailgate extravaganzas. The biggest hit so far has been a simple blonde ale that I really knocked out of the park. Hmm...replicating a batch; that should be easy in a garage brewery with no computers or skilled brewers.

My highlands game season is coming to a close. I have two more games in Austin and Salado, but I am kind of considering this last weekend's Celtober Cowtown Throwdown the official "end." So, re-capping my first year in the games:


- Competed in 9 games (will be 11 by year's end)
- Earned the right to throw with the A's by my 3rd ever games (north texas kickoff)
- Traveled out of state for a games (greenville, sc)
- Won my first overall games (sherwood forest faire)
- Gained 15 lb.
- Met and befriended throwers and ADs from all over
- Recruited 2 athletes to the sport
- Learned that entertaining and engaging the crowd is incredibly important for the sport

I can definitely live with that list. Let's look at the numbers now as compared to 11 months ago:

Braemar: 28'-1" --> 32'4"
Open Stone: 36'-2" --> 40'-10.5"
Heavy Weight for Distance: 17'7" --> 30'-9"
Light Weight for Distance: 36'-8" --> 62'-7"
Heavy Hammer: 54'-7" --> 68'-4"
Light Hammer: 87-7" (didnt throw this in 2011)
Caber: 12:00
Sheaf: 22' with 16# bag --> 24' with 20# bag
Weight Over Bar: 10' --> 13'

Looking those over, I'm supremely disappointed with open stone, especially given how much I work on it. Breaking 40 feet was great, but I am consistently stuck between 36 and 38 feet. Hammers are abysmal, but that's simply from lack of practice. Can't use that excuse any more. This off-season I will acquire every single implement so I can train how I need to.