September 2024 – Rick Vasko

Back it at – Pull Day

I took a rest day yesterday. I do this when my body tells me too and it was so worth it. I saw a podcast a while back with Danica Patrick. She is big time into fitness and she talked about how she has learned the importance of rest days. At one point she was working out so much that her progress was suffering. The body adapts and needs time to strengthen and build. Anyway, I do take 2 or 3 rest days a week and try not to overwork fitness.

I also listen to my body during workouts. I am 60 years old so I do want to make sure I am being careful not to get injured. I push but really try and tune in to my body to see how hard I can go.

Today I did a 500M row warmup followed by deadlifts with a hex bar also known as a trap bar. I have one similar to this https://amzn.to/3N3dgSw. This has helped my be in a better position with deadlifts. I also use it for shoulder shrugs and bent over row after deadlifts. Both are pulling exercises. I then moved to good mornings upping my weight again this week followed by farmers carry. I am working up farmers carry to be my bodyweight so will be uppin gthe weight over the next few weeks. I am a believer in farmers carry as a great strength tool. By the way, I use the hex bar for that as well.

Today I did not do a HiiT routine like the past few weeks and I focused on strength. I did a routine for dumbbell curls, pull ups, 21’s, reverse fly with heavy dumbbells and 70 hammer curls. The workout overall was about 1 hour and 10 minutes. It was good and I am continuing to feel stronger.

Discipline keeps me going! Have a great day everyone!

Searching for Positivity

This morning was challenging. I cannot explain it but felt down and tired. It was difficult to get moving. I completed my normal Wednesday leg routine. Positive moment: I actually did it which is better than not doing it.

I started by rowing 500 meters to warm up. I then moved to hip work with bands. The bands I use are here: https://amzn.to/47IeA6D. The first set is to tie the bands just above both knees. I use two bands and try and tie it pretty tight. I then perform 100 reps opening my legs against the resistance. It takes just about 2 minutes in total as I try and do them slow. I next remove the bands and place a ball between my knees. The ball I use is here: https://amzn.to/3XUXmzP. I then perform 100 reps pressing my knees against the ball. Again it takes about 2 minutes total. I target 2 minutes as this is slow enough to get a good rep.

After that, I move to my exercise bike and site backwards. The seat is high enough to get my feet off the floor which is needed for this exercise. I tie the same two bands across my ankles and place the ball between my knees. I perform 100 reps pulling my ankles apart which takes about 2 minutes total.

I then use a resistance band attached to the bottom of my weight bench. These are the bands I have: https://amzn.to/3TJ7xF0. I use the purple one for this particular exercise. I put my left in the band and swing my leg out against the resistance for 100 reps. I repeat the same with my right leg. I then do the same thing with left and right legs only this time I swing from front to back for 100 reps each.

I thank attach an ankle stripe band like the one here: https://amzn.to/3XBM02l. I bend my knees so that I am close to a sitting position and walk side-to-side for 7 steps to the right and 7 steps to the left for a total of 14. I repeat this 7 times giving me 98 total reps. My legs are burning pretty good from this.

Next I get on the squat rack and work up from 135 pounds to 255 pounds and back down. I go as deep as I can. I use an old school squat belt for back stability like this: https://amzn.to/3XBM02l.

Once squats were done, I performed a 20 minute AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) of 400M run, 10 Romanian Deadlift for hamstrings with 135 pounds, 24 walking lunges with no weight, and 45 calf raises on a step with no weight. For the calf raises, I do 15 with toes pointed in almost touch each other, 15 with toes pointed straight, and 15 with toes pointed out. This hits all part of my calf muscles. I was able to perform 3 total rounds.

After that, I put on a 20 pound weight vest and walked for 1.10 miles at a fast pace. Overall, I got the workout done but had a very difficult time getting through it and my intensity was really lacking. I had 72 intensity minutes which is lower than normal.

The positive of all of this is that I did it. Way better for both my physical and mental health than not doing it. I always encourage people to do the best they can even if circumstances are not ideal. I had to take my own advice today and am glad I got it done. Have a great day everyone.

I hear a Train

I love Johnny Cash. One of my favorite movies is “Walk the Line”. My son and I use to watch it a lot. I still watch it again from time to time. Johnny Cash has a great story. He had many obstacles to overcome and got some help along the way.

This morning I was listening to a remade version of the song “Folsom Prison Blues” by Cody Parks and the Dirty South. I really like the work of Cody and his team. What he does is mix metal, rock, and country and it turns out great. The name if the song by Cody is “Thunder Cash 69” and it mixes some Rob Zombie in there. It’s worth a listen.

Today is Tuesday and I am going to recap both Monday and Tuesday. I didn’t get a chance to write a post yesterday (translation – I forgot). The workout yesterday started with a 500M row to warm-up and did some chest stretches with bands. Next I did bench press pyramid style. I worked up from 135 pounds to 255 pounds and back down.

Next I did shoulder press with dumbbells working up from 25 each to 40 each. This was a 12-10-8-6-24 routine. I then used the same pattern for skull crushers working from 55 pounds to 85 pounds on the straight bar. I then did 4 sets of DB fly from the ground with 35 pound dumbbells. Next I did dumbbell kickbacks starting at 25 working to 40 pounds in a 12-10-8-6-24 routine.

I then did three rounds of 200M row followed by 20 push ups, 10 dips, and 50 cable crunch. Overall very good workout with 107 intensity minutes.

Today I did a run/walk workout for about 45 minutes followed by leg stretching, 2 rounds of 100 DB triceps press and 60 DB hammer curls. I finished with 2 minutes of sit ups and I was able to complete 70. Today was 100 intensity minutes so I am at 207 intensity minutes for the week by Tuesday morning which is great. Remember that Garmin sets my weekly goal to 150 by default but I modified it and now my weekly goal is 300 intensity minutes.

Short post today but will be adding more this week. Have a great day everyone!

Friday – Pull

Another rough night of sleep. Challenging this morning but got after it. It started with a 500M row. I next moved to deadlifts pyramid style. I worked up from 120 pounds to 330 pounds and back down. I had to dig deep on this one. Pretty soon I need to get those skinny 45 pounds weight plates I’ve been talking about so I can go after 400+ pounds. I will get there.

Next I did four sets of hex bar shoulder shrugs with 170 pounds followed by four sets of hex bar rows with 140 pounds. Increased weight on the hex bar row from 120 to 140 pounds this week. Getting some aggression out.

I moved on to supersets of good mornings for lower back with 185 pounds and farmers carry with 140 pounds. Both are increases of weight. I did four sets of these and I won’t lie, there were times I was yelling in the garage pushing through.

I then moved to a 20 minute AMRAP of 400M run followed by max pull ups and 60 reps of hammer curls with 15 pounds. On the pull ups I focused on looking up to get my chest to the bar. I completed three full rounds. Overall a good workout and really allowed me to refocus on mental fitness. Have a great day!

Fly

The little boy looked up at the sky at the plane overhead. He was mesmerized by it. Fascinated that it could fly in such a precise way. The boy was intrigued with airplanes from an early age. As he got older he would collect pictures of planes and jets and hang them on the wall in his room. He talked about how fast they would go and their capabilities. As he started studying military fighter jets he would learn about the different types of aircraft and what they can do. It was easy to have a conversation with him about this and he would explain concepts in great detail.

The boy developed a passion for planes. That passion eventually carried him to the air force where he would learn about the F 15 and eventually become a crew chief. He was so knowledgeable. I remember talking to him while I was in the Navy and he was fascinated with the air capability of the Navy. He once had the opportunity to visit an Aircraft carrier and explained to me in great detail the capabilities of the aircraft and talked about the power this presented. I was in the Navy at the time and his knowledge was far superior to mine.

Eventually he became a top crew chief for the F 15 in the Air Force. So much so that he became an instructor to teach other air crews. When his military service was completed, he continued his mission as a contractor. He continued to develop curriculum and taught new crews. I always enjoyed talking to him about this.

This little boy, now a man, who followed his passion for flight is my brother Steve. In addition to his passion for flight, he also loves music. He attended concerts regularly with his daughters. When I would speak to him he always talked in great detail how proud he was of his daughters. He talked about the great times they had and how his daughters are doing very well. Steve has a great sense of humor and we always had fun and laughs when we are together.

My brother and I would talk regularly and even though our relationship had grown somewhat distant over the years I have always been proud of what he accomplished. I talked about him from time to time with colleagues of mine. Yesterday, I learned that my brother has passed unexpectedly. I am not sure what happened or why. Perhaps God has bigger plans for him.

This post is to honor my brother. Remembering how he followed his passion for flight through his career. The experiences he gained and shared with me are treasures. I will always remember his passions and his sense of humor. The lessons I take from him are to follow my passion always. Take flight and go for it. Work to make a difference as he did with the people he trained and interacted with. I could always feel his passion for flight and will continue to follow my passions everyday.

I pray for him and his daughters. I will remember Steve for his passion for flight, humor, and family. Rest in peace my brother and one day we will see each other again. I love you!

Overcome

There is a song by Creed released in 2009 as part of the Full Circle album named “Overcome”. Some of the lyrics go like this:

I’m entitled to overcome
Completely stunned and numb
Knock me down, throw me to the floor
There’s no pain; I can’t feel no more
I’m entitled to overcome
Overcome

If you follow the band Creed or know of their story you understand that they have have had to overcome a lot of adversity over their career. We all face adversity and must find a way to overcome. This morning, I faced some serious adversity.

I did not sleep well. I woke up several times in the night. I am not sure why I was so restless. I have anxiety and I am a worrier so perhaps I was worrying about things subconsciously and it kept me awake. Unfortunately this happens quite a bit to me. At any rate, when 4:30 am came around I had a difficult time getting out of bed. I finally managed to do it, got dressed, fed the dogs and let them out. I then took my preworkout.

I was groggy, tired, and struggling. My self talk was very bad this morning trying to talk me out of exercise. My body is sore from the leg workout yesterday, I am tired, and negative self talk was really pushing. I know that if I can just get started I would be okay. So I got out to the gym and started walking around outside to get the blood flowing. I did that for 10 – 15 minutes.

Once I hit the road I was starting to overcome. Today I ran for one minute and walked at a fast pace for one minute. I did this for a little over 45 minutes. There were times during my workout that was better than others but I was able to overcome and get it done. I then did a series of leg stretches followed by 2 sets of 100 triceps press and 60 hammer curls with 15 pound dumbbells. I then did max situps in two minutes which was 67 today, slightly less than my previous few sessions of 70+ but I got it done. I am so glad I did because my mindset is much better now. I accomplished something very hard and instead of being in a bad mood because of lack of sleep I am now ready to conquer the day and kick butt.

It takes a lot of mental fortitude but I have learned that I can take charge of my mind and accomplish things. I am really believing that what I put into the universe is what I will accomplish. Well, now I will get on to the day. Have a great one everyone!

Blessed – Leg Day

There is a song I heard today named Blessed by Fearless Motivation. It starts off this way

It doesn’t matter where you are in life
If you don’t feel blessed you won’t be blessed
You’ve got to know your worth, before you can be worth anything

The song has a great overall message. I like listening to uplifting music in the morning and YouTube music built a very nice playlist based on this song.

Let’s talk about leg day. Previously you’ve seen that my leg days start out with all of these hip exercises with bands. I wanted to explain how that came to be. About 3 – 4 years ago my lower back was constantly hurting and didn’t seem to get better. I went to the doctor and they referred me to physical therapy.

In physical therapy they had me doing all of these hip exercises with bands. I asked the physical therapist “why am I working on my hips when back hurts?”. She explained that my back is just a symptom of a bigger problem. My hips were weak. Because my hips were weak I overcompensated by using my lower back in awkward ways. She was right. Over time as I strengthened my hips my lower back pain went away. Since I finished physical therapy I continue to do a series of hip exercises I learned at physical therapy during my leg workouts prior to lifting heavy.

Once I completed the hip and band exercises, I moved on to squats. Today I did 10 reps at 135 pounds, 6 reps at 185 pounds, 4 reps at 225 pounds, and 2 reps at 275 pounds. I actually did 2 sets of 2 reps at 275 pounds. I am still unhappy with how deep I am going but I try my best to get as deep as I can. I will keep doing this weight until I can get all of the way down. Once I completed the 2 sets at 275, I reduced back to 225 pounds and completed 4 reps. Then 185 pounds for 6 reps and finally 10 reps at 135 pounds. I use a weight belt once I hit 185 pounds and up to limit stress on my lower back.

After this I performed a 20 minute AMRAP of 400M run, 10 Romanian deadlifts at 135 pounds, 24 walking lunges, and 45 calf raises with 100 pounds. I was able to complete 3 rounds. Next I put on a 20 pounds weight vest and walked at a fast pace for a little over a mile.

Overall it was a good workout. I was pretty winded during the AMRAP and it was pretty humid outside. I had to keep pushing through. I will leave you with another part of the song blessed:

When failure tried to take my mind
I wouldn’t let failure take my life
I am not blessed because it all went right
I’ll never give up
I’m blessed because I’ve got fight

Stay positive, stay active, keep fighting, and always do your best. Have a blessed day!

Tuesday – Cardio day

On Tuesdays, I have been running but today I was faced with a massive downpour from the storm that came in from the coast last night. There have been many times that I will still run in the rain. I would put in some water resistant pants and jacket and go for it. However today, I decided to change it up.

My daughters have told me about the benefits of walking on the treadmill at a steep incline and I have also read about this. I know it is good to vary routine so I figured I would try it today. I jumped on the treadmill, put in on 12 incline at 3.2 mph and decided to try 30 minutes.

Let me tell you, what a burn. My legs were burning hard at periods throughout and I have thought about lowering the pace or incline but I decided to push through. As I was getting around the 25 minute mark the pain and stress were very real, but I told myself to push to 30 minutes. I worked up a pretty strong sweat and when I got off the treadmill my legs felt sore. It took me a little bit of walking around to get my legs underneath me.

That was actually a good experiment and I am thinking I should incorporate this workout in my workouts periodically. I remember David Goggins talking about performing very long distance races such as 200 milers. He said that you have to be able to walk at a good pace and up hills. He mentioned that you have to train to walk in addition to run because they are different and work different muscles. I believe him. Walking at an incline like that really showed that I lacked walking strength. I also remember hearing marathon runners talk about how they struggle to walk up stairs even though they can run 26 miles. I have the same problem.

I am now convinced I need to start incorporating walking into my training more deliberately. I was doing it some while walking with a 20 pound weight vest but the road is mostly flat where I live. Perhaps I need to work incline walking into my routine. Exercise and fitness is about experimenting, switching things up, and making sure you are strengthening every part of your body. Today was good and I learned something potentially valuable.

Have a good day.

Rise & Shine – Let’s Push

It’s Monday and that means it is push day. After a weekend of traveling and football, it is time to get back to it. I did get a lot of walking in which was great and it also felt good to let my body recover.

Today started with a good warmup with bands stretching out the chest. I also did a bit of walking to get my body warmed up. Then it was time to jump in and build strength. It was a pyramid day. Why? Because I felt like it. No real rhyme or reason, I just switch things up and try to keep my muscles guessing. Plus it is less boring that way.

I started with bench press. I did 10 reps at 135 pounds, 6 reps at 185 pounds, 3 reps at 225 pounds, 1 rep at 245 pounds, and 1 rep at 255 pounds. I worked my way back down doing 245 pounds for 1 rep, 225 for 4 reps, 185 for 6 reps, and 135 for 10 reps. It felt pretty good and the 255 at the tope felt better than last week. Perhaps I will be looking to move to 265 in a couple of weeks. Awesome!

I then moved to shoulder press. Today I used the straight bar instead of dumbbells. I started with 55 pounds for 10 reps, then 75 pounds for 8 reps, 95 pounds for 6 reps, and 115 pounds for 4 reps and back down to 95 pounds for 6 reps, 75 pounds, for 8 reps, and 55 pounds for 10 reps. My shoulders are weak, probably the weakest part of my anatomy. So for me to hit that weight was good. I will keep working at it to strengthen my shoulders.

Next was skull crushers with the straight bar. Again I did a pyramid. I started at 55 pounds for 10 reps, 75 pounds for 8 reps, 95 pounds for 6 reps and 115 pounds for 2 reps. 115 pounds was tough. I worked my way back down to 95 pounds for 6 reps, 75 pounds for 8 reps, and 24 reps at 45 pounds just because I felt like a high rep set was needed.

Now it is time for HiiT portion. This is a 20 minute AMRAP. Before I started I saw one of my neighbors kicking butt out there I think running sprints. He’s a big guy running at a good pace. I’m sure a lot better than I can do. Perhaps 20 years or so younger also. For Hiit, I started with a 400 meter run followed by 15 pushups with perfect push up, 10 dips on the dip station, and 40 cable crunches with a heavy band. I was able to do 4 rounds in 20 minutes. I was really feeling it on the last round.

Overall good workout which was about 1 hour and 20 minutes. I came in and made a power smoothie consisting of oatmeal, dried peanut butter, skim milk, fat free Greek yogurt and creatine. I also took a shot of Master Tonic and a shot of unfiltered olive oil.

Read a little Nick Saban today. “Success comes when discipline becomes the habit of execution. Goals are the starting point, but it’s the discipline and commitment to act on them consistently and relentlessly that separate winners from everyone else.”

Until next time, have a great day!

Outlaw Shit!

There is a song I heard yesterday and like a lot. It’s by Bryan Martin and it’s called “Everyone’s An Outlaw”. It is a very good song and the main theme is a saying I have heard before “Everyone’s an outlaw, until it’s time to do outlaw shit!”.

This is something that resonates with me heavily. I have a coached football for many years and also been around coaches, they all talk about the process. Everyone is trying to win a championship but you really have to embrace and trust the process to have a chance. The process is messy, it’s ugly., it sucks. But it’s necessary. Not just necessary but essential to perform the process at a high level. There are sayings like how you work in the dark will show up greatly in the light. Doing the things that suck matter the most.

I listen to David Goggins a lot. If you do not know David Goggins I encourage you to look him up as he has a tremendous story. He said something one day. People ask him all of the time how to do what he does. Everyone sees him accomplish the things he accomplishes and they want that. He tells them that even if I told you what I do, you won’t do it because it sucks. He describes the worst pain you can imagine and pushing past it with everything he has. He said most people will quit long before that. They are not willing to sacrifice and do what it takes.

I was watching a TikTok video the other day and there was a young person saying something about how people have steered him wrong. He described that he bought a house based on what people recommended. He said it sucks. He didn’t realize all of the work it takes to keep it up and he hates it. He said he was selling it as soon as possible and going back to a condo and pay someone else to take care of it. You see, a lot of people want the glory of owning a home but is not willing to do what it takes to maintain it. There are a lot of benefits and reward to owning a home. In fact, most of the wealth in this country was accumulated through real estate. Yes, it takes work, it must be maintained, and yes you are responsible, but it is worth it.

I have a pool now for the first time. I hear people talk about how having a pool sucks. It takes so much work and expense to just have it available a few months of the year. They are correct. It takes a lot of consistent work and effort. I have had to learn a lot and am getting better at it. It does really suck at times. But when all of my family, friends and others come here to get together in the summer such as 4th of July, it is so worth it.

Kids watch sports and see the championship and see the people celebrating, having parades, smoking cigars, hugging each other. the media is all over it. It’s celebrated heavily. They want that and a dream is born. Nobody bothers to tell them that the championship game is three hours, the parade is a couple of hours, media covers us for a couple of 30 minutes segments but to get all of that it took hard work, dedication, and consistent effort at a high level every single day for a very long time. It takes a lot to build your skill well enough to be able to play at the level. There is a lot more suck than good feelings. You must be willing to do the outlaw shit to be an outlaw. You must do championship level practice by yourself to be able to win a championship.

Read the lessons from Kobi Bryant, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Lebron James, and others who are the best to ever do it. They will tell you what it takes. If it was easy everyone would do it. Let’s not have the attitude that we don’t want to put in the work because it is not worth it. To have anything in life with a high reward you should understand to get there it sucks. The higher the reward the more the process sucks.

You want the benefits of home ownership including the wealth that comes with it, do the work required. You want the championships, practice like a champion every day by yourself, have discipline. You want to host family gatherings and enjoy the fun a pool brings, do the work. To be anything of significance, it takes a process that often sucks. It’s hard. But I believe that all of that suck is worth it. Let’s go after it and change our mindset!