Wango back at the grind

[wango]

Man, we seared some thick tuna steaks on Friday, encrusted with sesame seeds, some other seasonings, etc, then The Wife made the rest tonight into a tuna salad thing, with home made mayo. O M G!

The cut can wait!

You can’t beat a seared thick filet of Ahi! I think we may part ways with levels of how well or rare it is, but damn tasty either way!

[wango]

Well my left quad definitely thanked me for yesterdays workout - woke me up screaming at me.

Great push day today! No abs or cardio so I added an exercise or 2 to tri’s, delts & pecs. Falling in love with seated machine dips again, man do they feel great on my triceps!

Favorite exercise of the day was the machine bench press. I bring the seat as high as it goes so the grip is just south of my nips. And the arc of the machine makes it a slight decline motion. Plus you can adjust the depth of starting point on the handles - so all in all a shoulder friendly movement for this geezer. I did 20 reps, then did double drop sets of 20 each with only rest enough to make the weight stack one plate lighter each set. Pecs and tri’s were torched & pumped. Perfect ending for the workout!

[Cylon357]

You can’t beat a seared thick filet of Ahi! I think we may part ways with levels of how well or rare it is, but damn tasty either way!

Man, these were easily an inch think, with some serious red flesh in the middle. Definitely not over cooked!

[wango]

Man, these were easily an inch think, with some serious red flesh in the middle. Definitely not over cooked!

There you go! I’ll snap some pics at our farmers market on Sunday. Our fish guy is incredible and that really red Ahi is something to behold.

[wango]

Moved the seat closer again on the leg press, so the movement is deeper and closer to a functional movement. But damn, back to the lowest plate. Added the glute kickback machine (kind of like a reverse leg press) & that felt awesome. Single leg knee extensions and added single leg hip ABD.

A couple of ab exercises then stationary bike, elliptical & treadmill for a total of 40 minutes.

I’m getting sloppy & missing my injections more & more, gotta tighten up my routine.

[Cylon357]

Moved the seat closer again on the leg press, so the movement is deeper and closer to a functional movement. But damn, back to the lowest plate. Added the glute kickback machine (kind of like a reverse leg press) & that felt awesome. Single leg knee extensions and added single leg hip ABD.

A couple of ab exercises then stationary bike, elliptical & treadmill for a total of 40 minutes.

I’m getting sloppy & missing my injections more & more, gotta tighten up my routine.

Did I see say you were doing single leg presses? Like just one leg or alternating? I can't remember if you have leg / knee issues. <-- Hey, it's a very real possibility at our ages!

[wango]

Did I see say you were doing single leg presses? Like just one leg or alternating? I can't remember if you have leg / knee issues. <-- Hey, it's a very real possibility at our ages!

Left leg only. It’s my non dominant side and simply didn’t respond as well after the THR on that side, like it did on the right. It will get there - time & work.

[Cylon357]

Left leg only. It’s my non dominant side and simply didn’t respond as well after the THR on that side, like it did on the right. It will get there - time & work.

Oh yeah, man, it has been a minute. I totally forgot about your hip replacement. That would do it!

[wango]

Oh yeah, man, it has been a minute. I totally forgot about your hip replacement. That would do it!

Replacement (s). As I said in Buzz’s thread; small potatoes compared to other things that can inflict us. Gotta just keep rolling with the punches and adapt. And, as Buzz said, be a tuff mf’r to keep staying after it.

[wango]

Our weekly farmers market favorite vendor - first stop every time! But, just got the salmon today; not quite in the mood to fire up the grill to seer that Ahi, Cy. We’re having a “cold spell”, it’s a brisk 60 degrees out (it was actually in the 30’s this morning however).

Man am I going to need the cardio this week, we stocked up on some good eats for today’s big game.

[Cylon357]

Our weekly farmers market favorite vendor - first stop every time! But, just got the salmon today; not quite in the mood to fire up the grill to seer that Ahi, Cy. We’re having a “cold spell”, it’s a brisk 60 degrees out (it was actually in the 30’s this morning however).

Man am I going to need the cardio this week, we stocked up on some good eats for today’s big game.

Man, that is some good looking salmon! Enjoy the game!

[wango]

Who needs the gym when you’re doing yard work. Over the years to save water we’ve made changes in landscaping that involve a LOT of polished river rock. But we want to do some revisions this year to expand it and reduce some plants that needed an extra 150 sq/ft on the drip system. However we need to clear out, level and replastic about 250 sq/ft.

So . . .

To prove to ourselves that we are still capable at our age, we’ve had to hand pick those rocks out. A lot need to be slightly dug out of the dirt as well. Bless my honey as she is tougher than nails! We estimated that we’ve moved about 600 pounds of those little mfr’s in slightly over 3 hours over the past 2 mornings. That’s 200 pounds per hour by some old Medicare recipients, hell yeah! However, we’ll let the landscapers put everything back after they finish next week.

I’m currently resting & reading, but my baby still wants to get her steps in so she’s now doing her traditional 4-5 miles in the park - she’s a beast!

And I’ll be the recipient of some of that killer salmon from the previous picture & spaghetti squash! How lucky can one man get?!?

[wango]

That stone moving whooped my butt literally. Then a day of mega walking & standing on Friday - I enjoyed the R & R over the weekend.

Back at it today with favorite movements & left leg work. Unfortunately, got a bit more rock moving to do today. Figured we’ve moved about 1000 pound’s already, at least we’ll be done with it. Damn, my wife is a beast, she refuses to let me do it alone.

Blessed & thankful

[wango]

Man, heavy yard work is getting more difficult, no work outs the end of last week. Crazy weather here, next I’ll be buying a snow shovel for the driveway if it gets even nuttier.

[wango]

To recap:

6 month tear in 2022 with a weight loss from 218 - 220 to 194.

4 months coasting due to illness, holidays & simply re-energizing. Inconsistent with my TRT, likely only getting in 70mg./week. Hit all body parts at least 1-2x week, but severely cut back on volume of cardio.

Still ate clean, but not as strict as those 6 months. Lost a little muscle & weigh in at 197. Strength and libido down due to Test levels likely being in the low 200’s (just from experience, no BW).

Back on the clock, started year/phase 2, week 1.

Everything hit once yesterday, with cardio yesterday and today. I also know by experience (and my age) to ramp things up gradually.

Back at 75mg./2x week of my TRT. When I’m in full stride in about 4 weeks, I will bump it up to 200 or maybe even 300, as I have a bit more Test in my reserve due to that 4 month stretch.

God willing, want to do age 65 proud. Feeling blessed & fortunate for the ability & drive to do so.

[wango]

Pull day & abs. Slight boost in volume & intensity.

Re-started Smith machine squats. Proceeded to lunges and hip ABD machine.

2 rounds of 7 mins on the elliptical, but my legs were screaming at me after the second. Damn, the rapidity of deconditioning is a mofo as the years pass by.

Wife took a tamale making class at a cool, old school Mexican restaurant. Besides bringing home killer tamales, she brought their side of rice, beans & melted cheese along with their house tortilla chips. Packed away a lot of carbs last night. Oops.

[Cylon357]

Pull day & abs. Slight boost in volume & intensity.

Re-started Smith machine squats. Proceeded to lunges and hip ABD machine.

2 rounds of 7 mins on the elliptical, but my legs were screaming at me after the second. Damn, the rapidity of deconditioning is a mofo as the years pass by.

Wife took a tamale making class at a cool, old school Mexican restaurant. Besides bringing home killer tamales, she brought their side of rice, beans & melted cheese along with their house tortilla chips. Packed away a lot of carbs last night. Oops.

Life is short. Eat the tamales and chips!

[Cylon357]

Life is short. Eat the tamales and chips!

I also recognize that maybe I'm not the best supporter of diet efforts...

[wango]

Life is short. Eat the tamales and chips!

Oh for sure on booth accounts! When opportunities present themselves, it’s ridiculous in this stage of lining to say no all of the time.

[wango]

I also recognize that maybe I'm not the best supporter of diet efforts...

Hey, I’m with ya! They do say that great minds think alike; they are spot on in this situation

[wango]

Push day today. Once again slightly ramped up the volume & intensity.

Light cardio on the treadmill & abs.

Overall, week one was a success. Just the right amount of DOMS & zero joint aggravation.

Maybe it’s the return of the sunny weather, but motivation feels great for phase 2!

[wango]

AS IT SHOULD BE

With a few taps on the I-pad screen, the testosterone is ordered from my health care provider. It gets delivered to the door within 5 days.

Cost for my 3 month supply?

$10.

[wango]

Friggin goofy weather has brought on a weird allergy season causing some frequent and often nasty nose bleeds. This has been going on for several days. They’re improved a bit, so I tried the gym today. Gentle pull day, some lunges and treadmill. I sprung a mild nosebleed but brought gauze, shoved it up my nose and covered it with a mask, quite resourceful.

[wango]

Abs & cardio only. Easy on the cardio because my legs were screaming.

Lunch was leftover steak covered in sirracha and a new addition. Dill pickles with the middles scooped out and replaced with flaming hot Cheetos. Both dishes had a NICE kick!

[wango]

Still had a few bloody gushers this week, but now on the third day without a nose bleed.. And although we needed the rain badly (and got a ton), I’m happy to think it’s over for a while. Plus when the weather sucks, why go out if you don’t have to, and this week the fireplace trumped the gym.

But back at it today with a complete body workout. Got in another day of lunges, abs and treadmill.

Yeah, the sun is definitely motivating.

Change of plans, keeping TRT lower at 120/wk. Frankly, I like it when my libido is a bit subdued at this time, enjoyable.

BTW, the flaming hot Cheeto stuffed dill pickle is a keeper.

[wango]

Happy for the sun, motivation is significantly improved.

Solid pull day with legs yesterday. An even better push day today. Abs and cardio with both. This creaky body is handling more volume & resistance well (knock on wood). However with the lower test levels, strength has dropped a bit, but honestly don’t mind at this stage of the game.

[wango]

We spoke to our broker this morning & got some really nice news. Beautifully sunny day in the park for cardio. And an octopus salad for lunch (bless those cooking shows).

Feeling it, hell to the yeah!

[wango]

Walk into the gym with my wife this morning and say, wow it’s empty (which it was). She wasn’t aware she was listening to her music through her ear buds and exclaimed “except my damn bikes” (which rarely are all used). Oops, so loudly anyone without headphones that was 40 feet or less away, suddenly turned and looked. Way to make an entrance baby

A little bit of everything today, except cardio. Turning up the intensity, volume, resistance & feeling gooood!

[Cylon357]

Walk into the gym with my wife this morning and say, wow it’s empty (which it was). She wasn’t aware she was listening to her music through her ear buds and exclaimed “except my damn bikes” (which rarely are all used). Oops, so loudly anyone without headphones that was 40 feet or less away, suddenly turned and looked. Way to make an entrance baby

A little bit of everything today, except cardio. Turning up the intensity, volume, resistance & feeling gooood!

I hate ot when I use my "headphones voice". Everybody looks at you with the side eye lol

[wango]

Man I shot her a look, lol. She just shrugged her shoulders and found the recumbent bikes instead. I got a gem I tell ya - lucky man I am!

[Cylon357]

Still had a few bloody gushers this week, but now on the third day without a nose bleed.. And although we needed the rain badly (and got a ton), I’m happy to think it’s over for a while. Plus when the weather sucks, why go out if you don’t have to, and this week the fireplace trumped the gym.

But back at it today with a complete body workout. Got in another day of lunges, abs and treadmill.

Yeah, the sun is definitely motivating.

Change of plans, keeping TRT lower at 120/wk. Frankly, I like it when my libido is a bit subdued at this time, enjoyable.

BTW, the flaming hot Cheeto stuffed dill pickle is a keeper.

I'm guessing that is as hot on departure as it was on arrival!

[wango]

I'm guessing that is as hot on departure as it was on arrival!

Ironically, no. What does that for me personally is beets. They get me every time.

Actually, I finished off those pickles yesterday-darn rootin tootin good!

[wango]

Pull day with abs and Treadmill. The legs have been adapting to those dreaded lunges, so I added a third set. Man on an empty stomach those things get me a little dizzy. Filling out my t-shirts again; feeling blessed.

[wango]

Push day with elliptical & treadmill. Legs recovered great from the lunges, whereas last week I was in agony. Strength returning at only 120 mg. But, still a tad too horny, thinking the dosage could be lowered more.

[wango]

Same dude cut my hair for 20 years, but it’s time to move on as he’s getting inconsistent. Had my cut today at a highly rated place closer to me and not all that more expensive. The dude hit a grand slam, f’n perfect! Day off, pull day tomorrow.

[Cylon357]

Same dude cut my hair for 20 years, but it’s time to move on as he’s getting inconsistent. Had my cut today at a highly rated place closer to me and not all that more expensive. The dude hit a grand slam, f’n perfect! Day off, pull day tomorrow.

I've had the same dude cutting my hair for about 20 years, too. It doesn't cost me anything except replacing a razor head every now and then. And he dang sure does follow up to make sure those stray shorties don't linger. The advantages to being bald...

[wango]

I've had the same dude cutting my hair for about 20 years, too. It doesn't cost me anything except replacing a razor head every now and then. And he dang sure does follow up to make sure those stray shorties don't linger. The advantages to being bald...

If I could pull that look off I’d be overjoyed! I’ve fantasized over the convenience & cost. But damn if my head ain’t shaped like a martian or some alien that you see in a movie.

Hope that you’re well, because the gym & the weights are really agreeing with me as of late. I hope that your workouts, etc. are going great!

[wango]

Just too damn comfy reading the past few days, but got my old ass to the gym today. An hour straight assault on everything. Cut my rest to 30 seconds between sets, switched machines strategically to avoid rest, ground out some mega high reps sets and added frequent drop sets. No need for cardio as I kept my heart rate around 105 the entire time.

We have a few insane baseball fields 5 minutes walk from our house, owned by some pricey private schools. The teams actually are rated high in the city. May fill up a thermos with wine (no peanuts and cracker jacks though) & check out a game in a bit.

[wango]

Electricians at the home the past two days (great work!), finally the gym today.

Total body, less rest & drop sets once again to cram as much intensity & volume into one hour. The machine bench with sets of 20-15 reps and with 2 drops without rest is a scorcher.

Contacted my primary MD, I’m looking to get a consult with a shoulder specialist I’ve seen 7 years ago. He’s been doing a “new” approach to helping irreparable rotator cuffs. Fingers crossed, can’t wait to talk to the MD and hear some specifics.

[Cylon357]

Electricians at the home the past two days (great work!), finally the gym today.

Total body, less rest & drop sets once again to cram as much intensity & volume into one hour. The machine bench with sets of 20-15 reps and with 2 drops without rest is a scorcher.

Contacted my primary MD, I’m looking to get a consult with a shoulder specialist I’ve seen 7 years ago. He’s been doing a “new” approach to helping irreparable rotator cuffs. Fingers crossed, can’t wait to talk to the MD and hear some specifics.

Shoulder specialist is a surgeon or ? Cause as you know, surgery is no fun...