RoryQ

When I was getting my front tattooed by Tomo he tattooed right up against but not on top of my nipples. He said he had lined directly over nipples before, and just commented that it was sore. I've seen quite a lot of chest plates which run right over the nipples. I would actually suggest that in that neck of the woods the sternum is the more painful area.

On workout 16 or so of Dan John's 40 day programme. Loving it so far, gradually adding weight and hopefully by the end I will had added a reasonable amount to my 5RM. That in turn should let me squeeze more good out of doing a hypertrophy cycle. Not sure what hypertrophy programme I will tackle. Thought of trying GVT again but I actually think you need to be pretty damn strong to get the most out of those two workouts per week. I felt like I was too weak to be able to actually do decent work across ten sets with such short rest periods. I think maybe something more conventional. Been reading about DeLorme based programmes ... Using clusters of lifts. Or maybe something based on ladders or drop sets. Still got a way to go on the current programme though. If anyone is looking for something quite structured and long term, I think I would recommend it... So far, at least.

I have a black tribal armband that I just ignored and tattooed around... On the upside it seems like ironic tribal is already almost back in style... Although I also saw a well observed comment from someone elsewhere querying whether it ever really went away ... Lots of people still love that spiky (west coast style?) black tribal and kept getting it here. I've seen some awesome blast-overs lately, where a heavy black panther or wolf is just piled on on top of an older tattoo that is faded. I could see myself doing that in 20-30 years, possibly.

Jake Adelstein, one of the authors of the article, wrote a pretty good book called 'Tokyo Vice' on his time as a crime beat reporter for the Daily Yomiuri ... (just recognised the name) To be honest, as I've gotten progressively more tattooed each time I visit Japan the more I find myself opting to cover up. People sometimes say 'times are changing' and imply that attitudes are softening but from what I can see it is still a scenario where it is just easier to cover up, rather than get turned away from a nice restaurant or bar. It might not be 'fair', but when in Rome... Unless you are hanging in a really bohemian environment for your whole trip it feels like the path of least resistance to don long sleeves and whatnot. That said, I guess CaptCanada is the man best placed to give us the inside scoop.

That's only a problem the following day, if you wake up with a charge sheet in your pocket!

Cowboy Bebop (manga) heavily inspired Firefly. Worth a look too. It was a cool series, and I thought Serenity was even better- a really great SF movie in its own right.

I did that for a month when I really jacked up my neck. It doesn't just make life bearable but getting the inflammation down can stop nerve damage etc too... Toughing it out can be a really bad idea. So- hooray for drugs (for a while anyway) @jade1955 Hope you feel better man, whatever your method for getting there.

I'm going to try that one, Tammy! Made this Mexican style pork stew: coriander, chilli, parsley, cumin, black beans, kidney beans, red wine vinegar, vinegar and served with guacamole and some sour cream ' n a squeeze of lime.

Yeah, if he comes back to Cult Classic in the UK next year too I would try and get over. Amazing work going up on IG every day. Booked to head down to AllStar Tattoo in Limerick next month, to catch some visitors while they're there guesting. I don't want to jinx myself by saying anymore at this point, because fate seems to keep conspiring against me every time I try to get down there.

Pecans candied in homemade caramel, with apple and an orange / olive oil vinagrette. Then ribe eye with mushrooms cooked in thyme, garlic and cream. Worth the time to do.

Ubiquitous but a classic still. DOO-vl.

Last night: Thornbridge Raven Black IPA Thornbridge Jaipur India pale ale x 2 Left Hand Brewing 400lb Monkey pale ale Then proceed directly to the Internet to buy things while drunk.

Just pulled the trigger on this via the banner link... I enjoy the Spider Murphys book so much that the comparison was enough to sell me. Plus I've just drank a load of Left Hand 400lb monkey pale ale.

@kylegrey Yep. I gather that the recommended starting weight for each movement is low - practically warm-up set weight (I've also heard the 50-60% effort figures mentioned). Next time, you go heavier, but stay conservative - no failed reps, no grinding, it should feel relatively 'easy'. Two work sets per exercise isn't much, but as it creeps up towards a higher percentage of 5RM it seems like it could be taxing to repeat day in, day out. I gather some have ended up having issues with the volume involved, particularly if they've gone too heavy too early. There's quite a few incarnations of this workout out there, but the most commonly cited ones seem to be these two- - T NATION | The 40-Day Program (Which is itself a modified version of the original Pavel Tsatsouline 40 Day challenge alluded to) - Even Easier StrengthDan John | Dan John I've mainly taken from Even Easier Strength.

Been regurgitating the same Di Franco workouts or the past year, not without success, but think I'm going to implement something new for 2013- one of the incarnations of Dan John / Pavel Tsatsouline's 40 Day programme. Going to be doing 4-5 workouts a week, each consisting of:- Push Pull Hinge Squat Carry Two sets of five for each movement pattern (bar the carries, obviously)... Not a lot of volume in one workout, but when it's 4-5 workouts per week it should quickly add up. There should also be a lot of skill development. I propose to sub in prowler or sled work for the carries. Or, if all of those are out, perhaps a barbell complex. Planning to bench, weighted pull up, deadlft variant etc. Got a little journal, now to see if I can stick to it and make the strength / skill gains others report.

Chad K. and Xam both guested at All Star in Limerick last year. If you're in the UK that would be one way to jump Xam's waiting list.... Chad had spaces last time he was at All Star too. Flights cost about 70 pounds.

Irish micro take on American pale ale. I think it would pass muster. You can't tell but the bottle cap was a ring-pull... Great idea.

Tats or GTFO! (I just wanted to be that guy).

If you like 'among the thugs', 'the football factory' by John King is worth a look. I used to have to cover the odd match for our national league. Provincial stuff compared to the UK but still idiots galore compared to rugby or Gaelic football matches: What is it about soccer in particular that makes otherwise respectable people want to chuck their seats in the air and break their hands on each others' heads?

I got a pack of the Westvleteren last year also ... I think I paid around 50 euro ($60?) at the time, but I've seen a few packs still circulating here for half that much again. Graeme, I'd absolutely recommend that you try some if you see it, although it's tough to say where you should draw the line in terms of what you're willing to pay. I don't think that 10-20 euro / dollars per bottle is necessarily crazy, although you have to appreciate that it's not exactly a magical elixir - just a very good abbey beer. It's kind of funny that the monks' approach to brewing inadvertently made their product super desirable just by virtue of it being so thin on the ground. If you're into beer it's worth paying for the experience of trying it, I think. I was in a bar in Den Haag a few months ago and they were selling bottles for 14 euro apiece... I think that would be a good way to do it. St Bernardus 12 is, as far as I know, the exact same recipe as Westvleteren 12. St Bernardus used to brew for the monks from the abbey until around 1992 and then the monks decided not to renew their licence and do it themselves instead. I've heard it said that the St Bernardus of today is, in fact, actually more like the Westvleteren of old in terms of the provenance of the ingredients used. I tried a blind taste test with my last bottle of Westvleteren and a bottle of St Bernardus 12 (an expensive 3 euro in my local offlicence...). You can certainly tell them apart, although probably unless you had them side by side you might struggle with that. Either way, I would be hard pressed to say that the Westvleteren is any better, IMO, and bearing in mind how cheap the St Bernardus is in comparison I came away thinking what an amazing deal it was. Both are amazing beers... Really warm and fruity, alcoholic body and a kind of nutty / blue cheese note on the nose that you wouldn't expect.

Pork belly. I bought a whole pork belly that time (it came all rolled up, probably 2-3kg) and cut it up like that when I got home.

Actually re reading that .. I've been getting the prowler n 3 times a week tops, never 4. Prob a good thing.

-> ->

Perhaps this could have gone in the food thread too...