How often do you inspect your equipment?

/ hsoi

The title says it all:

How often do you inspect your equipment?

It doesn’t matter the context. If you have equipment you rely upon, it should get some sort of periodic inspection.

When was the last time you checked the air pressure in the tires of your car? Or the oil? Or the washer fluid? How about if all of the exterior lights (turn signals, brakes, backup lights, etc.) work?

How about the fire extinguisher in your kitchen? The smoke detectors in the house?

The backup system for your computer (e.g. Mac OS X’s Time Machine). When was the last backup run? Is everything in order?

The list can go on.

I’m far from perfect in this. I’m like you: busy, with a lot of things on my plate and in my head. I can’t remember everything, and things do slip through the cracks. For example, I wear a kydex pouch on my belt to carry my flashlight and a spare magazine. A few weeks ago I realized that one of the belt clips had started to crack. I’m glad I caught it because it wasn’t too long before it fully broke. I was able to get a replacement ordered in time.

Funny thing tho? The replacement wasn’t properly made so I had to send it back (they did correct things; a topic for another time). Thus I was without the pouch for a little while. I used my rotary tool to cut off the broken parts and whittled it down to just a flashlight pouch. But what to do about carrying a spare magazine? While I do have other mag pouches, it would have made EDC cumbersome. So, a DeSantis Mag-Packer to the rescue. It was good to have some sort of equipment redundancy.

Friend of mine had a similar issue with the flashlight in his car’s glove compartment. The bulb fried somehow, and SureFire is going to take care of it. But better that he found out now instead of when he was stranded roadside at night needing to change his tire.

Any equipment and things you rely upon, inspect them. Fix them. Replace them. Do whatever is needed, so when you have to call on your equipment, it’ll be there.

2015-11-06 training log

/ hsoi

Tried a little change up today.

I wanted the work-ups to be a little more of a work-up, to see where that would get me. I think it fared alright, or at least I’ll keep at it and see where it takes me.

That said, it’s also a long-ass session, and I need to make it more efficient. I might drop things like the 100-reps and go for maybe sets of 15-25 with drop sets, or just try taking what I am doing and squeezing more out of it (drop sets, rest-pause, etc.). I’ll see. It’s just a long-ass time in the gym… for arm day at that.

Anyways, all in all alright.

  • Cheat Curls
    • 40 x 12
    • 50 x 10
    • 60 x 8
    • 70 x 6
    • 80 x 6 (only true cheating set)
  • DB Curls
    • 30e x 8
    • 30e x 8
    • 30e x 8
    • 30e x 6
  • Reverse Curls
    • 25 x 100 (protocol: AMRAP, rest as many seconds as remaining reps; continue; repeat until 100 total)
  • Close-Grip Bench
    • bar x 5
    • bar x 5
    • 115 x 5
    • 135 x 4
    • 155 x 3
    • 175 x 2
    • 195 x 1
    • 155 x 13 (AMRAP)
    • 155 x 7 (50%)
  • Lying Triceps Extensions
    • 40 x 12
    • 50 x 10
    • 60 x 10
    • 70 x 8
  • Pushdowns
    • 40 x 20
    • 40 x 15
    • 40 x 16
    • 40 x 14
    • 40 x 13
  • Preacher Curls (superset with pushdowns)
    • 40 x 12
    • 40 x 12
    • 40 x 11
    • 40 x 8
    • 40 x 6

Yes, you ARE being detained – Follow-up

/ hsoi / 3 Comments

Yesterday’s article, “Yes you ARE being detained” stirred up more controversy than I expected. My goal was to inform you – the potential open carrier – about how the new Texas “open carry” laws are being interpreted by the police, district attorneys, and lawyers. Yet, there were some who disagreed with what I wrote (on my blog, in Facebook comments, and emails).

What I wrote was not my random opinion.

What I wrote was an explanation of the realities and facts of how the current open carry laws are presently being interpreted and thus WILL be enforced. 

This was written for YOUR benefit, so when a peace officer approaches you while you are openly carrying your handgun, you can have an informed, knowledgable, and good interaction. Because if you decide to get your “rights” up in a bunch, that the first words out of your mouth are “AM I BEING DETAINED?!?!” while you fire up your phone’s video recorder so you can give the officer a roadside civics lesson, you need to understand that the encounter is NOT going to end in a manner that you care for – AND YOU WILL LOSE because of your ignorance and/or arrogance. Not only will you lose, but you’re going to make the rest of us lose as well.

Here’s a video from a November 4, 2015 meeting held by Houston Police Chief Charles A. McClelland, Jr., Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson, and Houston City Attorney Donna Edmundson specifically to address questions regarding the new Open Carry laws:

You don’t need to watch the whole thing. Just watch and listen to the first 2 questions, starting about 6 minutes into the video. They specifically address these issues, and they said the same thing I said.

If you want to blow that off as “Houston”, then take a read of the Nov/Dec 2015 issue of TSRA Sportsman, the magazine of the Texas State Rifle Association. Edin Walker, independent attorney for Texas Law Shield, wrote an article and said the exact same thing. TSRA is about as pro-gun rights as you can get, and they are saying the same thing.

You are welcome to disagree all you want, but the facts are what they are.

When this law goes into effect January 1, 2016, if a police officer sees a person carrying a handgun in plain view, they can stop and detain you until they can determine if you satisfy the “unless” clause (produce your ID and LTC). If you fail to do so, you will be in violation of the law and consequences for disobeying the law will ensue.

If you disagree with all of this, then it’s simple – don’t open carry.

Furthermore, you don’t need to give me or the peace officer a civics lesson. Instead, you need to contact your state legislators and discuss improvements to the law for the 2017 legislative session.

As well, I would recommend joining the TSRA and sending Alice Tripp some money so she can continue to lobby for you.

Either way, you need to think about the big picture.

Come January 1, 2016, every anti-gun-rights group AND media outlet is waiting. They are waiting – salivating – eager for that first open-carry fuck-up. They will parade it around, turn it into national news, they will twist it to serve their agenda, and they will use it as ammunition to further restrict our rights and abilities.

Do you want to be that poster-child?

2015-11-05 training log

/ hsoi

That was awesome.

My back work has slowly been improving. For the longest time anything I did for my back never really felt like I’d be working my back. Maybe here, maybe there, but I rarely would walk out of the gym feeling like my back was really worked hard (other than sometimes my lower back from squats or deadlifts). But slowly that’s been improving.

Lower the weights always helps. But really it’s been a revisiting and more dedicated application of muscle over movement. I’m not pulling, I’m not trying to move weight. I’m trying to contract muscle. And that contraction happens from the shoulder/scapula and/or the elbow. Let the shoulder go forward, be sure to really retract the scapula. I should feel and move from my back, from my elbows — do not feel it or try to move with the arms or hands.

And it’s generally been that way, but I’ll forget or drift or maybe first set is that way, but then I drift because I get more concerned about moving the weight and “getting the sets/reps in”. But today was really great because it was there the whole time.

The BB Rows, I’m liking this approach. Instead of just hitting straight sets, the work-up is good. I mean, BB Rows are the staple of back work, like bench press to chest and squats to legs. So why not work them up just the same way as I’m doing the others? It’s nice to get that heavier work, and the work-up is really helping me set the stage. First just simple warm-up, but it’s also allowing me to really reinforce the proper movements, to really move the shoulder and back and elbows and such. Get that retraction, etc.. That’s just a great mental thing for setting the stage. And the AMRAP+50% is proving to be nice; while I’m getting less volume perhaps than a straight set, by the end I’m feeling more worked.

The cable rows are becoming a favorite. I feel it so much with them. I get that 1-0-3-0 tempo sort of thing where it’s an “explosive/fast” concentric into a tight squeeze at the top, then a slow lowering and ensuring the shoulders go all the way forward so I get the most range for the scapular retraction on the next rep. But I really have to focus on that eccentric to have it come from the shoulders and NOT involve my arms/biceps. But man, this is growing to be a real worker for me.

The shrugs I continue to enjoy. I felt today, now that I’m getting a good groove with ligher weights, to start to ramp up the weight a little more.

Pulldowns I finally remembered to finish with a drop set. Don’t recall the specifics, but I took the 4th set to failure, then dropped 10# and got probably 2-3 reps, then another 10# drop and another 2-3 reps. That was all.

Finally, pullovers. This was an experiment. Last week I thought that maybe using a barbell might be better on my shoulders. So I grabbed a 30# barbell and tried. Every few reps I would change hand position: very narrow, medium, wide, just various things to fiddle around. The grip width didn’t matter so much, or at least as much as elbow position — both flaring or not AND the amount of bend in the elbows. Second set I tried using an EZ-Bar in case that put things in a slightly better position. It was marginally better but still it was all about the elbows. On the 3rd set, on a whim, I tried using a cable, laying down on the cable rows bench (which put me at a slight decline). That was a bust; it gave me more tension all the way through, but I didn’t get the stretch at the top of the movement, which is part of the point. So…. I dunno. I’m starting to feel like pullovers are going to be a bust. My shoulders can only take so much, and I’m not feeling much. But I’m not ready to give up yet; there’s still more exploration and adjustment.

All in all tho, today felt like how back work should be. Worked. 🙂

  • Barbell Rows
    • bar x 10
    • 105 x 5
    • 125 x 4
    • 145 x 3
    • 165 x 2
    • 185 x 1
    • 145 x 12 (AMRAP)
    • 145 x 7 (50%)
  • Cable Row
    • 95 x 12
    • 95 x 12
    • 95 x 12
    • 95 x 10
  • Behind-the-back BB Shrugs (smith machine)
    • 135 x 20
    • 165 x 20
    • 185 x 18
    • 185 x 15
    • 135 x 25
  • Close-grip Pulldowns
    • 110 x 10
    • 110 x 10
    • 110 x 10
    • 110 x 9, then a couple drop sets
  • Pullovers
    • whatever.. was experimenting. See above.

Yes, you ARE being detained

/ hsoi / 13 Comments

Updated 2015-11-05: posted a follow-up.

For those of you wishing to open carry a handgun in Texas come January 1, 2016, it’s critical you understand the law.

One issue that came up during the debates during the 2015 Texas Legislative session 84(R) on the open carry bill (HB 910) was issues of “stop and identify”, if a police officer could stop you to determine if you had a carry license or not. The drama of the debate no longer matters: what matters now is what the law currently says.

What does the law say? The law is silent on the matter.

That said, the bottom line is that yes, if a police officer sees you openly carrying a handgun, they can certainly stop and detain you for the purposes of determining if you are properly licensed.

How is this possible?

Prior to 84(R) HB 910, Texas Penal Code §46.02 Unlawful Carrying Weapons said:

Sec. 46.02. UNLAWFUL CARRYING WEAPONS. (a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly carries on or about his or her person a handgun, illegal knife, or club if the person is not:
(1) on the person's own premises or premises under the person's control; or
(2) inside of or directly en route to a motor vehicle or watercraft that is owned by the person or under the person's control.
(a-1) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly carries on or about his or her person a handgun in a motor vehicle or watercraft that is owned by the person or under the person's control at any time in which:
(1) the handgun is in plain view; or
(2) the person is:
(A) engaged in criminal activity, other than a Class C misdemeanor that is a violation of a law or ordinance regulating traffic or boating;
(B) prohibited by law from possessing a firearm; or
(C) a member of a criminal street gang, as defined by Section 71.01.
(a-2) For purposes of this section, "premises" includes real property and a recreational vehicle that is being used as living quarters, regardless of whether that use is temporary or permanent. In this subsection, "recreational vehicle" means a motor vehicle primarily designed as temporary living quarters or a vehicle that contains temporary living quarters and is designed to be towed by a motor vehicle. The term includes a travel trailer, camping trailer, truck camper, motor home, and horse trailer with living quarters.
(a-3) For purposes of this section, "watercraft" means any boat, motorboat, vessel, or personal watercraft, other than a seaplane on water, used or capable of being used for transportation on water.
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), an offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
(c) An offense under this section is a felony of the third degree if the offense is committed on any premises licensed or issued a permit by this state for the sale of alcoholic beverages.

Under existing (pre-January 1, 2016) law, a police officer has the authority to stop someone they see openly carrying a handgun. Why? Because according to the above law, it’s against the law to do so. Simple enough.

With 84(R) HB 910, §46.02 changes:

(1) the handgun is in plain view, unless the person is
licensed to carry a handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter 411,
Government Code, and the handgun is carried in a shoulder or belt
holster; or

So what it means is this:

If a police officer sees someone openly carrying a handgun, the police officer has reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed – namely, the possession of a handgun in plain view, in violation of Penal Code §46.02. Note the language in HB 910 adds to §46.02 the phrase “unless the person is licensed to carry a handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code, and the handgun is carried in a shoulder or belt holster”.

So yes, you can be stopped. Yes you can be detained. Yes the police officer can and will work to determine if you are able to legally carry (do you satisfy the “unless” clause). Yes, you might be disarmed by the officer.

And yes, per GC §411.205, if a license holder is carrying a handgun on or about the license holder’s person when a magistrate or a peace officer demands that the license holder display identification, the license holder shall display both the license holder’s driver’s license or identification certificate issued by the department and the license holder’s handgun license. That doesn’t change with 84(R) HB 910.

So before you get your “rights” all up in a bunch, realize that this is how the law is.

And in speaking with lawyer and LEO friends of mine, there are many other legal cans of worms that are being opened due to the general notion of open carry AND specifically due to the way the current law is phrased. The more I hear and think about these things, the less I feel like open carrying and becoming the precedent-setter. A lot is going to have to be sorted out by the legislators and the courts in the coming years.

If you don’t want to be stopped, if you don’t want to get stuck in the legal mud, then don’t open carry. It’s simple. If you don’t like that this is how things are, then work with your legislators (and probably the TSRA) to get things improved.

If you do chose to carry, if you do get stopped, then realize it will be your opportunity to set the pace and tone for not just yourself, but every other gun owner. As I said before: be polite, be professional. In terms of your own interaction, you’re going to get further by being professional, polite, understanding, sympathetic, and polite (yes, polite said now three times for emphasis) – even if the cop is being a power-tripping asshole, that doesn’t mean you have to be. Be nice. Demonstrate good manners (say “please” and “thank you”, “sir” or “ma’am” doesn’t hurt either). If you’re nice, your interaction should go smoothly – if it doesn’t, then you being nice gives you the upper hand and will just magnify the other’s less than exemplary behavior. We’re all going to be scrutinized here, so live up to some high(er) standards. And hopefully if all early-day interactions go smooth and well, hopefully that will mean less interactions for us all as time goes on.

It’s your choice – you can be an asshole, or you can be an ambassador. Don’t ruin it for the rest of us. Don’t ruin it for yourself. Some people want to open carry to show off their gun. Well, remember that it’s not just your gun that’s openly carried, but also how you carry yourself that’s open for display to the whole world. Make us and make yourself proud.

2015-11-03 training log

/ hsoi

What an ass-kicker that was.

It’s pretty clear that my problem is work capacity — I just don’t have any. Lack of food does that. 😉 All is to be expected at this stage of things.

I started out not wanting to squat. The time change is messing with my body-clock, so I was dragging into the gym and had a “do I have to?” moment, but yes you have to. I felt better after a few sets of squats. I actually am getting a better position and groove to my squats, which I’m appreciating. Then the AMRAP is where I start to find my work capacity needs… work. One thing it makes me think of is those true 20-rep sessions where you use a 10RM weight… so I would use this 210, and yes, I can see exactly why around maybe rep 15 or so you’d have a “come to Jesus” moment. That’s not in the cards for me right now, but one of these days I have to try a true 20-rep workout

Then the high-bar. This is where it becomes evident my work capacity is crap. The weight isn’t much, but the work is. That said, it’s better than last week. Last week I felt I ran out of gas before my body really was worked. Today it was about the same. So things are improving. I told myself to just keep repping, 1 rep at a time, until I came close enough to a failure point where it’d be unsafe (e.g. too wobbly), then rack it. Yeah, I still feel wussy. But the high-bars are getting better.

The stiff-legs… btw, I realize that I’m not doing true stiff-leg deadlifts but actually Romanian deadlifts. Just keep forgetting to update that. Dropped the weight because the high-bars add enough work, and I wanted to get enough reps. But still, once I got to set 3, I was spent.

One change on calf raises. Paul Carter suggests a 5 second pause at the bottom to really get a stretch. Then power up, really get a peak contraction, hold it for a second, then repeat. I tried that. Gah…. gonna have to drop weight to really take advantage of that, but I can see it. One interesting thing is after my first couple sets, well… every do that thing where you press your hands out in a doorway for a minute, then when you relax your arms float up? I felt like that, but with my whole body after I was finished. It was a weird but funny sensation. 🙂

But it was an ass-kicker today. Had numerous points towards the end of dizzy and nauseous feeling. I don’t strive for that, but it shows me, I worked today. And work is needed to support Defattening. So, onwards.

  • Squat
    • bar x 5
    • bar x 5
    • 115 x 5
    • 145 x 4
    • 170 x 3
    • 215 x 2
    • 245 x 1
    • 210 x 10 (AMRAP)
    • 210 x 5 (50%)
  • High Bar, close-stance Squat
    • 115 x 12
    • 115 x 10
    • 115 x 9
    • 115 x 8
  • Deficit (1″) RDL
    • 215 x 8
    • 215 x 8
    • 215 x 5
  • Leg Extensions
    • 40 x 15
    • 50 x 14
    • 50 x 12
    • 40 x 12
  • Leg Curls (superset with Extensions)
    • 50 x 10
    • 50 x 8
    • 40 x 8
    • 30 x 8
  • Standing Calf Raises (5 second pause/stretch)
    • 100 x 10
    • 100 x 10
    • 100 x 8
    • 100 x 7

2015-11-02 training log

/ hsoi

Just a good “80%” day.

Started out a little slow. Was it from the weekend of depletion? Was it because the Daylight Saving Time change and my body clock is all messed up (can someone remind me again why we still do this? to what productive end?)? Whatever it was, things did start slow. But as the session went along, everything picked up. Just a solid session, what things should be on a regular basis.

I upped the weight on flies, but I might drop it again as I didn’t let myself get as much stretch and hold. But that could just be I need to do so. Still, of all odd things my wrists were hurting from all of this so….

The front plate raises continue to be a fun thing to cap off with. But oh, when the first “set” only gets to 15 reps, you know getting to 50 with that “rest in seconds however many reps you have left” protocol… oye, it’s gonna be tough. The last 5 reps or so were just singles. 🙂 One big extended rest-pause set, basically.

Anyways, just a good day.

And I’m 206 this morning. Downward progress continues.

  • Incline Press
    • bar x 5
    • bar x 5
    • 85 x 5
    • 105 x 4
    • 125 x 3
    • 155 x 2
    • 175 x 1
    • 155 x 10 (AMRAP)
    • 155 x 6 (50%)
  • DB Bench Press (4-0-1-0 tempo)
    • 55e x 10
    • 55e x 10
    • 55e x 10
    • 55e x 10
    • 55e x 8
  • DB Flat Flies
    • 25e x 10
    • 25e x 10
    • 25e x 10
  • Press Behind Neck (seated, smith machine)
    • 95 x 10
    • 95 x 6
  • Seated DB Press
    • 40e x 10
    • 40e x 10
    • 40e x 9
    • 40e x 8
    • 40e x 6
  • Front Plate Raise
    • 25 X 50 (AMRAP, rest for as many seconds as there are reps remaining; repeat until 50 total)

Sunday Metal – Anthrax

/ hsoi

Been trying Apple Music (so far enjoying it). A playlist “Best of Thrash/Speed Metal” came up, and I thought it’d make for a good Sunday Metal series.

Anthrax – Caught in a Mosh

 

 

2015-10-30 training log

/ hsoi

The rain is awesome.

Big thunderstorms rolling through Austin this morning. No walk to the gym, and it’s always fun when the gym loses power — no worries, just keep lifting. 🙂

Nothing major to report. The bro in me still loves having an arm day. Only real change I made was having the 100-rep set use reverse curls instead of regular. Why? A little variety.

Otherwise, just a good day. Nice way to end the week.

  • Cheat Curls
    • 40 x 20
    • 50 x 15
    • 60 x 8
    • 60 x 8
    • 60 x 8
  • DB Curls
    • 25e x 10
    • 25e x 10
    • 25e x 10
    • 25e x 10
  • Reverse EZ-Bar Curls
    • 25 x 100 (protocol: AMRAP, rest as many seconds as remaining reps; continue; repeat until 100 total)
  • Close-Grip Bench
    • bar x 5
    • bar x 5
    • 115 x 5
    • 135 x 4
    • 155 x 3
    • 175 x 2
    • 195 x 1
    • 155 x 13 (AMRAP)
    • 155 x 6 (50%)
  • Skullcrushers
    • 40 x 20
    • 50 x 12
    • 55 x 8
    • 55 x 7
  • Pushdowns
    • 40 x 18
    • 40 x 17
    • 40 x 17
    • 40 x 12
    • 40 x 12
  • EZ-Bar Preacher Curls (superset with pushdowns)
    • 40 x 12
    • 40 x 11
    • 40 x 9
    • 40 x 7
    • 40 x 6

2015-10-29 training log

/ hsoi

The experiment is interesting.

I decided to try a different approach, working up on BB rows like any other “heavy/compound/main” movement. It’s too early to reach a verdict. It does feel good in one respect, but it also feels like I don’t get enough volume. So, I don’t know. I’m going to up the weight a bit for next week and continue with it for a bit. We’ll see how it goes.

Otherwise, things are working nicely. Cable Rows are really being helped by the different handle. Using the “nylon strap loops” allows my hands to move more freely, plus I get a little more range and squeeze at the end. Really trying to focus on using the back only, pulling from the elbows (if you will). The shrugs I kept light beacuse I’m still working on ensuring I find the groove there. Tilting my head forward, looking down, and I’m getting a better motion. I did up the weight slightly, and I think I’ll start to do that, but still keep the reps higher until the movement pattern feels solid and I don’t regress. Forgot to dropset the pulldowns (ugh). And the pullovers are finding their groove, tho I still think this will need to stay light until I feel better about it — it’s still a little uncomfortable on my shoulders, but it’s not so much the normal pains as it is just being stiff. I might also try using a barbell for this as I wonder if different hand positioning (e.g. wider) might be less of an issue.

So, experimentation continues

All in all, not a bad day. I’ll chalk it up in the 80% column.

  • Barbell Rows
    • bar x 10
    • 95 x 5
    • 115 x 4
    • 135 x 3
    • 155 x 2
    • 175 x 1
    • 135 x 15
    • 135 x 7
  • Cable Row
    • 95 x 12
    • 95 x 12
    • 95 x 12
    • 95 x 10
  • Behind the back barbell shrugs (smith machine)
    • 135 x 20
    • 135 x 20
    • 135 x 20
    • 185 x 17
    • 135 x 30
  • Close-grip Pulldowns
    • 110 x 10
    • 110 x 10
    • 110 x 10
    • 110 x 10
  • DB Pullovers
    • 25 x 12
    • 30 x 12
    • 35 x 12
  • Band pullaparts
    • a bunch