- Reloading. I have got to take some people up on their very generous offers to get me started on the path to reloading. I've been using being busy and having kids as an excuse, not a reason, to avoid it so far, and it's damn time I took the plunge. My gun club has an indoor range that's limited to lead bullets only; and it'd be nice to work up some 9mm and .380 ACP loads to go with my .38 Specials for winter practice.
- Speaking of gun-related practice, I really need to work on my draw and dry-fire more often. I might break down and get a Crimson Trace for one of my handguns (which one I'm not sure of yet, but I'm leaning towards the J-frame) as a way to improve my dry-firing. I also need to work on drawing from the pocket (not so much) as well as IWB and deep-IWB/deep cover (assuming I get off my lazy ass and order the Thunderware...).
- I also need to take some classes at GOAL - particularly the Art of Concealed Carry. It'd be a good idea to take a Michael de Bethencourt class like Gun Fighting Secrets of the Concealed Carry Snub Revolver next time it comes close by. It'd also be a good time to look into getting certified as an NRA Basic Instructor so I could better assist folks looking to get their start in the shooting sports. An introductory shotgun fighting course would be interesting, but not as necessary as the others mentioned.
- 2009 might also be the year I start gaining some weight - in the form of more muscle. I've spent the past two years working on maintaining my current weight and exercise regimen; I think it's time to kick things up a notch or two and start working on adding some muscle back. I'm going to be calling on my good friend Ricky for assistance here. Hell, I'd need work to match his "Before" picture, although I'm not exactly a 98-pound weakling myself:
So, aside from hoarding as many evil black rifles, high-capacity magazines, and ammunition as I can, what else should I be thinking about working on in the coming year? What's everyone else working on these days?
That is all.
13 comments:
Jay, I think the NRA Basic Instructor cert would be a wonderful thing. I need to find a safety class that actually jives with my schedule so I can get my Maine Concealed Weapon Permit and I would absolutely drive to The Volksrepublik to take a class from you.
I'll be doing tons of dry fire practice with one of these http://scatt.com/ for high power. I'm hoping to get my offhand average up over 97% for next season. (The same style competition as Sebastian's centerfire postal match) Once I get back home, I'm hoping to put about 45 minutes or so in on the trainer each evening after work. We'll see how that works out...
Google "Ol' Buffalo Metallic Cartridge Handloading Guide". All my reloading equipment is due to arrive this week, and so far that is the most detailed and easy to understand online resource I've found in a month of searching. RCBS' site has a simpler version of the basic steps.
Ya look fine to me, buddy.
You have my cell # & e-mail addy, just call me anytime. Like Ahnold said in T2, "I have detailed files", both .pdf and excel, with many different workout routines included. My SIL and nephew are certified trainers, so I get a pantload of free advice from them, as well.
Actually, I'm about to go back on my diet. Been off one completely since finishing the P90X thing back in July & my pants tell me that it's time to put the @#$%ing fork down. They say that when you lift & eat a lot, you can get fat but you also get strong as an ox; I've been reminded that it's true....on both counts.
Matthew,
Thanks for the kind words! I'd really like to get the NRA course done this year, as I really do want to start kicking up the efforts to get more people interested in the shooting sports. Having the certification does three things: It helps pacify some of the fence-sitters (Ah, an approved in structor); it offers me some personal coverage legally; and it allows me to cover the MA-required course for folks to get their license.
Don't know if it would cover the ME requirement, but if it does you can be my first student. :)
aughtsix,
That looks REALLY interesting. I'll explore this more from home because it looks like it just might be what I'm looking for!
charles,
Thanks for the tip! I'm hoping to get both hands' on experience and do my own research in the coming weeks and months, and the more info I can cram into my head the better...
RW,
Wow! Thanks! That picture actually surprised me somewhat - I had no idea I had that much definition in my shoulders and back.
The first order of business is cleaning out our office to make room for a weight bench. Unless and until that gets done, there's no point looking any further.
I'm thinking a standard bench with military, bench and leg press positions would be a good inexpensive start; pick up a good set of free weights and bars and I can always get a better bench later.
More on this later, you can count on that...
Jay,
It's an awesome tool, but at about a grand (maybe more now) it's pretty expensive. Worth it to keep your focus dry firing in the winter, and to save on match ammo here and there. But not what you're looking for practicing your draw. However, as ferris bueler said, if you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.
It will show you all kinds of things about your hold, trigger control, etc. It's great for evaluating a change to your position. I mentioned it more as the answer to "what are you working on?" than a buying suggestion. Especially since it won't get banned. But if you're ever in northern va, you'd be welcome to try it. I've also got a spare lee turret press I got for $20 once upon a time. You're welcome to it (free, I havent used it in a few years.) if you don't have a press yet.
As far as fitness goes, I would judge by your picture that you're a borderline ectomorph/mesomorph, so you already have good body fat percentage, but adding significant muscle mass may be a challenge for you. Your friend RW, is either a mesomorph (most probable) or a very boderline endomorph, so he's going to add mass easily but have to work for the definition you already have.
The key to your workout is knowing your body, knowing what you want to accomplish, and knowing that your results will be based on your training. You can't add mass doing a lot of aerobic stuff, or lots of reps. Conversely you can't build your aerobic capacity doing 4 rep sets.
This is all probably redundant as RW has personal trainers at his disposal, but I encourage you to work towards your goal. Men lose 1% of their muscle mass per year after about age 30 on average. If you want to beat that statistic resistance training is the only way to do it. I started it a few years ago, and it's been a Good Thing (tm).
I got a Crimson Trace for my J frame. I like it for the deterrent factor, plus I have a little more confidence trying shots past 10 yards with it now.
I'm a cop, and my experience shows me that the little red dot works wonders as an attitude adjuster. Of course mine is from my Taser and not my pistol, but it is quite the attention getter...
Watch your 401k investment, Obama could be coming for your guns AND your money - after all they've talked and had meetings about it and it's not off the table.
theunpaidbill,
You're probably not going to believe this, but I'm an ectomorph. Former small-time basketball player (6'5") whose playing weight was 180-190 lbs. Got married at 195 lbs, stayed < 215 pounds for most of my adult life (a good 10 pounds of that was an overhanging belly) until I started weight training. Now, the lower two-hundreds sounds like a lot of weight, but not when you're 6'5". Without training, I'm a skinny @#$% with a gut.
I've put on around 30 pounds of muscle over the last decade through sheer hard work & a steady diet of protein. I can lose "weight" at the drop of a dime, but I generally also lose muscle. It's much harder for me to put an eighth-of-an-inch on my arms than it is to lose two inches from my waist.
You're info is quite right, though. I've told many people this - if you want to gain muscle, you must eat. You wanna pack on muscle? You gotta pack on weight. You can diet it off later & try to then maintain your 'size' (trust me, the ego kicks in big time when you get a few comments), but you MUST eat and virtually inhale protein while lifting like a demon if you're going to pack on some size.
-
Jay will believe this, but I still have some tank-tops that I wore on my honeymoos (1990...no joke) & I've thought about doing a 'before/after' montage showing the 18+ year difference.
Hand-over-heart, I have one of them in my car right now as I'm playing basketball this evening, after work. I swear, it's true.
eh, "honeymoon".
RW-
Do you use a Dvorak keyboard? I don't see too many n-s typos otherwise.
AughtSix
:)
Nah, I'd been typing another word after 'honeymoon' and messed up as I was backspacing-out what I didn't want to use. Accidentally knocked off the last letter of 'honeymoon' while leaving the last letter 's' from the unused word. Or, better yet, I'm a big goof.
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