Results matching “Bird”

Whilst I'm not one to make New Years Resolutions, I do have a few things I plan to identify (within the family tree) in 2008. These include :

Focus on 7 generations : I plan to focus my attention on the seven generations of the Bird family (including my own) leading back to Michael and Kate Bird (nee Fogharty). By limiting my research to this group - which includes several hundred individuals - I've already made much more progress in a few months than in several years previously.

Who were the wives? : there are some fascinating stories in the group I've elected to look at, and many of these are attributed to those who married in to the family. Unfortunately I only have information on a handful of them; in 2008 I plan to uncover the remainder of the Bird wives.

Make use of local resources : there are several excellent Family Tree libraries within reach of here; the majority of which I've never visited. Time to change that.

Travel to relevant locations : in February I'll be visiting a few of the places in Maryborough, Queensland, which relate to the family's history in one way or another. Former residences, places of work, churches and cemeteries.

Later in the year I'd also like to visit (and photograph) Townsville, Ayr and Mackay.

Obtain photographs / sketches / paintings of everyone in the tree : this one is quite challenging, but extremely rewarding. Just what did everyone look like? Are there physical features in common, and how have fashions changed over the years? Looking forward to it.

How about you - what are your own genealogical goals for 2008?

It's been a great year here on Straight to the Bar, and here are 20 of my personal favourites.

Enjoy.

1. Taking advantage of your location: at last, a bit of outdoor space (Scott Andrew Bird)
2. Eliminating the Lug Nuts: How to Find a Good Trainer (John Kaiser)
3. Grip Training - Lifting the Replica Inch Dumbbell (part II, III, IV) (Jedd Johnson)
4. Specific Training for the Transverse Abdominis (Kat Ricker)
5. New to Kettlebell Training? (Scott Andrew Bird)
6. 29 Things to do with a barbell in the corner (Jason Kirby)
7. Deconstructing hanging windshield wipers (Jason Kirby)
8. How I learned to love multi-joint exercises (John Kaiser)
9. Conditioning without trying : Walking 10,000 steps per day (Scott Andrew Bird)
10. A little yoke work : 10 exercises for a bigger neck (Scott Andrew Bird)
11. Starting your fitness journey : 10 things to consider (Scott Andrew Bird)
12. Straight to the Grip Contest (part II, III, IV, V, VI) (as PDF) (Jedd Johnson)
13. Visualisation (Scott Andrew Bird)
14. DIY : Home-made Gym Equipment II (Scott Andrew Bird)
15. 10 of the best : Parkour television commercials (Scott Andrew Bird)
16. Workout music : soothing or aggressive? (Scott Andrew Bird)
17. The demise of monkey bars (Scott Andrew Bird)
18. Setting up a home gym (Scott Andrew Bird)
19. Bars, plates, hooks and collars (Scott Andrew Bird)
20. Glossary - strength training equipment (which led to the Training Gear Wiki)

It's been a great year here on Straight to the Bar, and here are 20 of my personal favourites.

Enjoy.

1. Taking advantage of your location: at last, a bit of outdoor space
2. Eliminating the Lug Nuts: How to Find a Good Trainer (John Kaiser)
3. Grip Training - Lifting the Replica Inch Dumbbell (part II, III, IV) (Jedd Johnson)
4. Specific Training for the Transverse Abdominis (Kat Ricker)
5. New to Kettlebell Training?
6. 29 Things to do with a barbell in the corner (Jason Kirby)
7. Deconstructing hanging windshield wipers (Jason Kirby)
8. How I learned to love multi-joint exercises (John Kaiser)
9. Conditioning without trying : Walking 10,000 steps per day
10. A little yoke work : 10 exercises for a bigger neck
11. Starting your fitness journey : 10 things to consider
12. Straight to the Grip Contest (part II, III, IV, V, VI) (as PDF) (Jedd Johnson)
13. Visualisation
14. DIY : Home-made Gym Equipment II
15. 10 of the best : Parkour television commercials
16. Workout music : soothing or aggressive?
17. The demise of monkey bars
18. Setting up a home gym
19. Bars, plates, hooks and collars
20. Glossary - strength training equipment (which led to the Training Gear Wiki)

In the last part of this series, we looked at the pull path of the various implements we can use to mimic the Inch Dumbbell and ways to modify those pull paths for the most benefit towards increasing our thick bar strength.

Most people will find that after a short time of training with the Inch, they will be able to break it off the ground a few inches, but it will soon tear their fingers open and come crashing to the ground. The rotation of the globe-shaped bells is what causes this.

When I first started training with the Inch, I found a few ways to reduce this rotation, so that I could increase the time I was holding the Inch aloft, and these techniques enabled me to eventually be able to pull it to lockout.

One way to defeat the rotation of the bells in the initial portion of the lift is to eliminate it all together by grabbing the bell with two hands. With a hand on either side of the handle, there is no rotation and you can pull it all the way to lockout.

From this position, you can do one of two things, either Fight it or Ride it down.

When you Fight the Inch, you try to hold it at lockout for as long as possible and when the rotation starts again, you try to fight it and hold it there as long as you can until finally it overcomes your holding strength and tears completely out of your hand. This fighting will build your endurance and you will notice that you will become more confident with the Inch in that position and your strength will increase, especially the strength in the tips of your fingers and thumb as you try to dig your finger and thumb tips into the handle. The feeling you get after several Fight attempts is a peculiar one. Not much will stress the fingertips like a thick dumbbell ripping out of your grip.

The other option is to Ride it down. This one isn’t so hard on your fingertips. Instead of battling at lockout until it tears out of your fingers, you will pull the inch to lockout and then glide down with it as it rips out of your hand.

Normally in my training, I will perform three sets of three sets in the Fighting version of these pulls. By then my fingers feel pretty worn out, so then I move on to the Riding version. I can perform several more sets of three per hand in the Riding version. I usually do the Fight attempts alone with no other grip training going on. Then when I begin to tire, I shift to the Rides and since they are not as hard on the fingers, I might also throw in some other grip training like a wrist or thumb exercise.

The Science of Sport takes a look at claims being touted by console manufacturers (particularly the aura surrounding the Wii), and who's making them. A good read.

Via The Chalk Bucket : The toughest sport in the world? Boxing. According to ESPN, at least.

Via the RMAX blog : boxing champion Stefania Bianchini.

Rick points to a good piece over on ESPN looking at the life - and tragic passing - of Strongman Jesse Marunde. An incredible guy.

Via The Ice Chamber : ready for a few rowing technique tips? 2007 NCAA Women’s Rowing Champions Jo and Lindsay share some insights. Good information.

Via The Mighty Mix : Kat points to a nice piece over on The Sweet Science regarding the Female Fighter of the Year - Elena 'Baby Doll' Reid.