An examination of the failure that is the TSA, by someone who has a clue on the topic.
Month: February 2012
2012-02-29 workout – Wendler 5/3/1 program, cycle 6, bench press 4
It’s deload week. keep it light, even if it means changing it up a bit.
“Week 4”
- Deload – Bench Press (working max: 220#)
- 2x5x45 (warmup)
- 2x5x95
- 2x5x110
- 2x5x135
- Asst. #1 – Bench Press
- 5 x 10 x 135
- Supersetted with chin-ups: 5x2xbw
- Arm work
- DB hammer curls: 3x8x30 (each)
- supersetted with
- Triceps rope pushdowns: 3x10x40
I’m loosening up about deloading, because yeah… just deload. Do basic movements, take it easy. I also think I’m getting all excited about chin-ups, so I opted to just do them today and skipped the db rows. Kept the light arm work in too, just because.
No big deal today. Just get in, get out.
M&P, shooting drills
It’s now been 2 weeks of carrying the M&P9 and it’s more and more comfortable every day.
As I mentioned previously, I’ve wanted to do more shooting drills with it because I just haven’t. It’s been most “utility” shooting and steel shooting.
So this past Saturday while out at KRT I shot some drills.
The first drill I shot was Karl’s “3 Seconds or Less” drill. No major problems in shooting the drill, tho weak-hand-only shooting still needs work. More on this later.
The second drill I shot wasn’t a drill per se, but was Paul Howe’s set of Pistol Instructor standards. I couldn’t shoot #9 since I didn’t have a rifle to transition from. I also forgot to do #10 because of other things going on at the range.
In general tho, all things went well. Shot well, time to spare. All is good… except weak hand.
I’ve been doing a LOT of dry fire lately. Ever since I got the M&P I’ve been striving to dry fire every day, and it’s paying off. But I can see where my dry fire has been helping and where it hasn’t. I say hasn’t because I’ve been focusing a lot on trigger press and sights, not so much on the draw and present. Some presentation, but not from draw nor under time pressure. In general I was fine, but it showed up worst with weak-hand-only. Timer goes off, I didn’t get a good grip, didn’t get the press-out well enough, and then yanked the trigger since my grip sucked. Conversely, we were over on the steel range shooting at the small hostage target plate some 20-ish yards away. First thing in the morning Tom challenged me to shoot it weak-hand-only cold. Nailed it. 🙂 Then that morning and then during the break between classes we did more, and I was shooting alright… not 100% but certainly far better than I have. But it was all slow “take your time” shots (e.g. take 3-5 seconds to get the shot off). Of course that’s alright, but when I put the pressure of the timer on me I wasn’t getting the grip firm and consequently blowing the shots. *sigh*
And so, I see what I need to work on. Not just weak hand, but weak-hand under pressure.
Unfortunately I didn’t get to shoot much more because other things were happening on the other range that were quite interesting, and I got pulled over into that. Thus I didn’t get to shoot more drills (tho I did shoot more steel, both the slow weak-hand-only and then a bunch of two-handed fast), nor shoot on paper to see how she was grouping and how POI vs POA was faring. But I’m not sweating it too much because overall everything appears to be going where I told it to go: it’s more geeky minutia interest that I have in wanting to know that information. Oh and Karl… sorry… in getting distracted I totally forgot to take down my targets.
I really like this gun. I would say I shoot it just a hair better than my XD-9.
2012-02-27 workout – Wendler 5/3/1 program, cycle 6, Press/Deadlift 4
Normally deload week is nothing to write about, but today was different.
“Week 4”
- Deload – Deadlift (working max: 315#)
- 2x5x135
- 2x5x165
- 2x5x195
- Deload – Press (working max: 150#)
- 2x5x45 (warmup)
- 2x5x60
- 2x5x75
- 2x5x90
- Asst. #1 – Press
- 5 x 10 x 75
- Asst. #2 – Chins
- 5 x 2 x BW
First thing, I forgot my iPhone. I keep track of what TO do and then what I DID do in an iPhone app, and forgetting it well… I basically knew what the numbers and routine should be. I was slightly off on deadlift (5# more than I needed). But it all was good enough.
Then after finishing the last set of assistance pressing I realized I forgot to superset with chins! Ugh. Then I figured why not? this is deload week, no need to kill myself. I opted to just do chins but this time go for 2 reps each set. I managed to do it, tho the last rep I got my chin to the bar and had to work to get it over the bar. Good enough! And that’s all I did today. Rest was very minimal… I was in and out of the gym in about 40 minutes.
So I had to really wing it today, but today is always an odd day since it’s deload week and since I’m doing 3-days-per-week Wendler you have to double up deads and presses on the same day to ensure an even cycle.
Whatever tho. I’m actually happy about the chins. I decided next cycle that I’ll strive for 5x3xbw with chins, and if I can’t get 3 reps then somehow I have to. If say I get almost up there, struggle for it but then let myself do a negative on the way down. If I can’t get up at all, rest 15 seconds then get back on the bar. I will get 3 reps regardless of how I have to do it, with the goal being of course 5×3 smooth and happy sets. Due to that, I’m not going to change my pulldown weight because the chins will already be adding an increased workload.
Two classes, and what a good day it was
This past Saturday was a slightly different day at KR Training.
1. We held 2 Basic Pistol 1 classes. It’s common to have 2 classes in 1 day, but always different classes. We ran 2 of the same.
2. Karl Rehn (the “KR” in KR Training) wasn’t there.
Why the difference? The Rangemaster Polite Society Annual Tactical Conference was being held that weekend, so Karl was off presenting at the conference. However, demand for classes, especially Basic Pistol 1, has been extremely high. We’ve run a lot of BP1’s, it’s a pretty well-oiled machine. John (TXGunGeek), Tom, and I have things down pretty well, and we were joined by misBehavin (Mrs. TXGunGeek), the suburban dad, and Ed (the “intern”). So we took over the reigns for the day and introduced 20 new students to the world of firearms.
High number of women in the class, well over half; a fantastic thing to see. And as usual, the demographics spread from young to old, across all sorts of bounds. Sorry, but I think the only pigeonholing you can do here is people taking responsibility for themselves. I will say tho, I’m seeing more and more young women showing up in classes. I can hypothesize a number of reasons; it’s an interesting data point.
All in all, classes ran well. TXGunGeek said it best, that what’s so satisfying about these Basic classes is that “new shooter smile”. That first time they shoot, and the HUGE smile that comes over their face. I’d have to agree that while some of the “high speed low drag” classes are a lot of fun, the Basic classes are some of the most satisfying both professionally and personally.
I also enjoyed the classes because I got to do a little more direct teaching. The nature of most classes, Karl runs the show and we’re assisting. I have zero problem with that, and that’s of course how it should be. But it is nice from time to time to get to demo and show stuff. I handled the technique portion of the classes (grip, stance, trigger press, follow through, etc.), and enjoyed it. Got to play with a SIRT pistol (on loan) a little bit and I can see how it could be useful… just have to find the right places to work it in.
Students were good, asking questions, open and receptive to learning. They all seemed to enjoy themselves — lots of smiles. 🙂
And that… makes it all worth it.
Sunday coda
The brisket spent 11 hours in the smoker. A few more hours would have been good, but this was fine. We were hungry.
It turned out alright. Good flavor. Good texture. The Dillo Dust? Too much sugar for our tastes. Made things very sweet. Wife reminded me how good it tasted on roasted winter squash (acorn, butternut). But here? A little too sweet and not enough savory nor salty. Still, overall not bad. Oh, after about 3.5 hours I basted it with some Moose Drool beer and chopped onions (the onion juice is key), then loosely wrapped in foil.
Wife made some pinto beans, and a new cream spinach recipe. She also reports the brisket tasted great with her Becker Vineyard cabernet.
Good food. The laughter of my family. A fine end to the weekend.
Sunday
Brisket. Check.
Dillo Dust. Check.
Oak wood. Check.
Smoker. Check.
Time to wait? Check.
We’ve had a brisket in the deep freeze for some months now, bought with the side of beef we previously ordered. Alas, with the severe drought and fire risk, I’ve not smoked nor grilled anything in a long time. *sigh* But with all the recent rains and greening up, I’m happy to get outside and do some cooking… at least, while there’s the ability to. I reckon this coming summer will be more of the same as last summer, so might as well smoke and grill while I can.
I got some Dillo Dust in a package of stuff I ordered from Larue Tactical. No, you can’t buy it. I’ve tried it on a few things, like a seasoning salt, and I don’t like it — too much sugar. However, as a rub? Potential. It might work, it might not, I don’t know, but I figure why not give it a try. If it sucks that bad, the dog will be very happy for a few days. 🙂
The brisket had been defrosting in the fridge for a couple days, but by Friday evening wasn’t fully defrosted (due to having been foled in half by the butcher). But it was close enough and I couldn’t wait any longer, so I rubbed it down with what was left of the dust (about 3/4 bottle) and put it back in the fridge. So it’s been sitting with the rub on for about 36 hours.
Woke up early this morning, got the smoker fired up. Extra nice too because well… remember all that xeriscaping we had done? There was a bunch of flagstone left over. Couple years ago, we had our friends at Fertile Ground Organic Gardens come and do a bunch of stuff in the backyard, and they used some leftover stone there to make what Wife calls the “Man Meat Pit” — just an area for me to put my grill. Well, it was fine with the little grill, but once I got the offset box smoker, it was too small. We had more stone left over from the front-yard xeriscape, so a few days ago Fertile Ground came back out and used the remaining stone and enlarged the pit area. Very roomy now! Once the cold weather breaks and the rest of the planting gets done, yes I’ll finally post some pictures of the xeriscaping.
As of this writing, the brisket’s been in the smoker about 3 hours. Keeping it around 250-ish degrees, burning nothing but oak logs. It’s sitting naked right now in the smoker, but next time I go check it I’ll be wrapping it up in some foil. If Wife has any apple cider vinegar in the pantry, I’ll probably baste it with that too. Else I’ll use some beer.
Alas, I haven’t drank any beer. Yes, cooking over fire requires a beer, but I’m trying to be a good boy about sucking down useless calories.
All the kiddos have expressed happiness and are looking forward to the brisket. It’s been too long since Dad smoked one.
We’ll see how this turns out. Supper should be good.
Sunday Metal – Lita Ford
Lita Ford – “Kiss Me Deadly”
Because she knows what I like….
2012-02-24 workout – Wendler 5/3/1 program, cycle 6, Squat 3
I may have set a PR, but I realize… I just don’t like leg work. 🙂
“Week 3”
- 5/3/1 – Squat (working max: 260#)
- 2x5x45 (warmup)
- 1x5x105
- 1x5x135 (supposed to be 130 but I didn’t feel like dealing with all the plates)
- 1x3x160
- 1x5x195 (work)
- 1x3x225
- 1x4x250 (PR)
- Asst. #1 – Leg Press
- 5 x 10 x 315
- Asst. #2 – Leg Curls
- 4 x 10 x 85
- 1 x 6 x 85
- Foam Roll
After this workout I realize that I still don’t like leg work. Never liked it as a teenager or any time throughout my life that I’ve lifted. I admit I like it more now than I did before, but it’s still the least favorite of the 4 days. 🙂 But, you still do it, because if you don’t address your weaknesses you just become weaker.
It really wasn’t a good set tho. I found myself leaning forward too many times. On the 225 set I almost didn’t get out of the hole on rep 2! It was just a very off day. I’m not yet ready to reset, but as I’ve alluded to before in other log entries, I suspect resetting is coming.
But hey, 1x4x250 is still something I’ll take. It’s still a PR for me. And frankly, when I look back at the 230 sticking point I had for so long, I know that it’s far behind me now.
I’m playing with my foot placement on the leg press, trying to find what works me lower body closest to the squat. I’m thinking foot placement a little higher, so there’s more glute involvement and I feel more like I’m pressing through my heels than through my toes. Through my toes feels akin to “leaning forward” when squatting, so I don’t want that.
I don’t know what gives on the leg curls. I just peeded out. I’ll have to adjust this, maybe go to 80 for a cycle and see what shakes. Maybe even something like 5x15x80 or 5x12x80.
In other news… I’m enjoying the kitchen scale. It feels weird weighing out everything, but there’s a novelty right now and I get rather surprised when I see how the portion size and weight actually bear out — you realize that you are a terrible judge and have been consuming too much. 😦 We’ll see how it pans out for me tho.
I also decided for Lent to give up extraneous eating. I’m not Catholic, but I figured it was a good time to practice some extra discipline. What I mean by “extraneous eating” is eating stuff I don’t need to when I don’t need to. I eat the 5-6 meals a day and that’s all. I can’t snag a handful of almonds in between meals; sure almonds are good, better than chips or candy or some such, but it still contributes to caloric intake that I don’t need. Keep myself strictly to my meals, and if I really want almonds, work them into a meal somehow.
One thing that’s helping in an indirect way is the ZMA. You need to have an empty stomach when you take it, so I end up eating supper and that’s it for the night. That will help me a lot, because all too often I’d want to eat a little something before bed. Even if it was good eating, it was still eating. The ZMA itself too seems to be working nicely for me.
Next week is deload, and I really don’t want to do it. I want to just crank along. But I know, gotta deload for longevity.
A more effective tool
Technology is a wonderful thing, especially when it advances. If we go back to early man, he did things with his hands but eventually came to realize the limits of what his hands could do. But through daily living he came to discover implements could overcome the limits. He might have discovered pounding with a stick was more effective at breaking something open. He may have then discovered a rock was more effective. Tie the rock to the stick, and now with that additional leverage you’ve got an even more effective tool. And so on.
We don’t write on animal skins, or cave walls, or clay tablets. No, we’ve gone through the printing press, typewriters, and now we have iPad’s from which to publish our blogs on the Internet. Advances in technology generally bring about better things and a higher quality of life.
So when it comes to life, we’ve also managed to come up with better ways to protect ours. Again, the stick and the rock. Eventually you might find that a sling helps you better throw the rock. Metals and metalwork were discovered and through bronze and iron and eventually steel we came up with better means to hunt and protect ourselves and our state. Of course, gunpowder changed the entire landscape.
And as any technology evolves, eventually that which was replaced does fade away. Oh sure, it’s still around usually for historical or educational reasons, but practically speaking we don’t send clay tablets by pony express any more. Heck, even the US Postal Service is fading away. We no longer arm our armies with bows and swords because more effective tools have been developed. Technology progresses.
We carry firearms because, so far, nothing better has come along to replace them. We have yet to invent a better tool for the job. All we’ve been doing for the past few hundred years with firearms is refining and improving, but the general concepts remain the same. Still, folks try to find more effective tools.
Such as a taser.
The reality is, a taser isn’t that effective of a tool. Case in point:
A crazed knifeman was shot up to four times by armed police officers after Taser stun guns failed to incapacitate him.
The man, aged in his 20s, was fighting for his life in hospital last night after receiving multiple gunshot wounds.
He was injured as he brandished a large knife or sword at a group of officers.
[…]
Local officers were the first to arrive at the scene but they were forced to retreat and call in armed colleagues when the man threatened them with a weapon.
Police followed the man and another confrontation took place in a neighbouring street, during which a 50,000-volt stun gun was discharged and shots fired.
First they tried nothing — because they had nothing — so all they could do was retreat. They were fortunate to be able to call in reinforcements… with guns. They didn’t call in for police with knives, no, they wanted a better tool. They wanted a better means to end the situation as quickly as possible with as minimal harm and impact to the neighborhood and citizens as possible. A gun.
But they tried a taser, and it didn’t work. So they had to go to something stronger, something more effective.
A taser has a place, but not for private citizens. It’s effective in police work when you have many armed friends right behind you. Tasers are good towards working to gain compliance, so that the VCA can be taken to the ground and a bevy of armed police swarm him to secure him. If the taser doesn’t work, again, there’s a bevy of armed back-up to help manage the situation.
But you, the private citizen? You don’t have backup. You don’t need to gain compliance, you need the situation to stop. You want to get away. A taser might help you here, but gee… it’s a single shot tool, it’s easy to miss under stress and pressure, it may not work, you have to get somewhat close to your attacker to use it. I just don’t see how it’s an effective tool for a private citizen.
There are more effective tools. This is why the gun has yet to be replaced.
Stuff From Hsoi 