Massenomics Podcast - Ep. 450: The Evolution of Powerlifting with Angelo Fortino

Episode Date: November 18, 2024

Big Angelo joins us for this one to talk about what powerlifting looks like going forward for both fans and competitors. They also are shifting their focus at 2WL. I think he also admits that Massenomics is the best podcast ever. Build Fast Formula Use code MASSENOMICS to save 10% on every order! BearFoot Shoes Use code MASSENOMICS to save 10% on every order! Juggernaut AI Use code MASSENOMICS to save 10%! The Strength Co Get some Go-To Plates! Swiss Link Use code MASS to save 15%! Texas Power Bars Get the Barbell that changed the game!

Thanks for what you do with your podcasts and all the rest. You're doing a great job. Hope everybody keeps tuning in. You get a lot of good info, a lot of insights, understandings on how to get strong, how to stay strong, how to use your strength. You do a great job, dude. You make things better than they are in real life, I think. If you don't follow Massanomics, y'all do it. Social media, website, everything. Massassenomics! Oh, thank you, Bill Casmeyer and company. Welcome everyone for episode 450 of the Massenomics podcast, the Lifting Podcast about nothing listened by millions and viewed around the globe. My name is Tanner. And my name is Tommy.

Recorded from the corners of the Dakotas. Tommy, throw me off each week when you catch, get that sound going just at the very end. I think I'm not gonna be able to tell. That's my reminders right at the very end. You put it on every time and I'm like, oh, yep, there it is. Yep, that's my reminder.

Right at the very end, hit the button so Tanner can, Tanner can no one to go Yeah, someone on YouTube comments other day said they miss I miss Tommy pointing at me This one's for you and you and you and you and you Yeah, that's more like it a little throwback point. Yeah episode 450. We got big Angelo 14-0 coming on later this episode Not 14 year old 14. Oh, that's a 14 year old power lifter He might have been he was definitely 14 at one point not sure if he was a 14 year old power lifter

But that was at least a couple years ago several other things to touch on recap foreshadow preview all the sorts of things but first This week's episode is brought to you by our great friends over at Build Fast Formula. They are friends in Watertown actually, also from not really a corner of the Dakota, just like more of a centralized location. Kind of like sort of an edge of the Dakotas. Yeah.

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massonomics, save you 10%. Thank you. BuildFast. This episode is also brought to you by Texas Power Bars. If you head on over to texaspowerbars.com, they got a couple of interesting things in the works over there. The first one right there, big on the website, buy any Texas Power Bar, get a free American flag.

I mean, America right there, baby. And there's also another little something going on right now. I don't know if you caught this Tanner, this is kind of interesting. They have the 29 millimeter Texas Power Bar that we both know and love and are big fans of, but they have something a little special. You can get the prototype sleeve version

instead of the regular price of 330, you can get the prototype sleeve version instead of the regular price of 330, you can get the prototype version for $282. What the hell is the prototype version? To be honest, I don't know totally, but what it is is, what I can tell you though, is it still has the 29 millimeter shaft with chrome sleeves. You can get the shaft in a variety of coatings and colors, but they did, it sounds like building the final version of the 29mm power bar, they tested a few different

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I don't know if you know what it is. Yeah I don't know what this bring me up to speed here Tanner I know break it down for me. I assume we're talking about the same topic right. I believe believe so, yeah. Yeah, Edmund Fitzgerald, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald. Been a lot of, you actually kind of awoke a memory in me that I forgot I had. And I, well, okay, maybe there's some people that don't know what the Edmund Fitzgerald is. All right, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald.

First of all, I guess what what what we're referring to here is the song, the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald by Gordon Lightfoot. He was writing about the tragic incident that took place on Lake Superior in 1975 when the the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sank. It had twenty six thousand tons of iron on it. They're headed from Superior, Superior, Wisconsin to I think final destination is Detroit. I assume it's metal that they're taking for automotive factories or whatever factories they have over there. The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was a fairly large ship as far as they go on Superior and I had a crew of 29 experienced crew members

including the captain and on November 10th they sank and all of them died. It was the gales of November, they came earlier than normal and the water became rougher than anticipated early in November. And- Which is wild when we're talking. You don't think of that as being like a Great Lakes thing that you can get waves so big that a giant ship like that- I think it was 16 or almost 20 foot waves.

Damn. That took them on. I'm not talking the ocean here, but- I mean, I know a lot about it because I've been talking about this in excess with my family and bothering my wife about it all week and my son because we come interested in it We won't stop talking about but it's funny you say that

Look up how many ship how many shipwrecks and how many deaths there's been on the Great Lakes? It's I think there's it's either I think it might be like 30,000 ships have been sunk on It's either I think it might be like 30,000 ships have been sunk on superior is the biggest of the great. Okay. Yeah. So this says, uh, and I, I get that the great lakes basically feel like an ocean when you're on them. I get that they're enormous, but still it's not the ocean. Uh, okay. Yeah. It says, uh, right here, uh, the great lake ship wreck museum estimates 6,000 ships and 30,000 lives lost. shipwreck museum estimates 6,000 ships and 30,000 lives lost. Yeah. Superior is the largest freshwater lake by land area,

not by cubic measurement though, because it's- The depth. Yeah, not if you factor in the depth, because there's one in Russia that That's like a mile deep, okay So my surface area it is the biggest. Yeah my surface area. There you go as large Okay, so back to the SS Edmunds Fitzgerald is written by Gordon Lightfoot Canadian singer-songwriter and He just it's the song is just the tale of the SS Edmunds Fitzgerald. It's a ballad where it's just like, you know, it's like a six minute song where it's like nothing repeats.

It's just like the story. He's telling the story throughout the whole song. And there has become a lot, I've noticed there's been a lot of memes about it online. Yes, yes. And I always liked that song prior to, but then like it coming up in memes, I'm like, it really resurged it for me.

Okay, I gotta say, I actually, I haven't, I totally forgot to do it. I was gonna do it before this. Just sit down and just listen to the song the whole way through. Yeah, you got to do that actually. Because I've only picked up pieces of it from memes. I haven't actually given it a clean playthrough,

but I can tell you, I remember the first time I ever heard that song. It was in elementary school. We had one, I want to say in the entire elementary school, one teacher that was a man and it was the music teacher. And for whatever reason, basically never played popular music. He just strummed his guitar and played whatever songs we had to sing. But very, very rarely he would play an actual piece

of popular music, I mean music he would hear on the radio. And I remember I had to have been second grade or something and for whatever reason he played the rec of Edmund Fitzgerald. That's a wild choice. I don't know why and I just remember that really stuck out to me at the time like oh man This is a boat and it went down and he probably like embellished

All right He probably really amped up the the theatrics of the story and really got us engaged But that really stuck with me at the time is that man this boat crashed and everyone it isn't Arlie Song though like the way he tells the story. I mean it is Theatrical in a way is a fair, fair thing. And actually Scantz mentioned to hear the last, the last radio signal that the Edmund Fitzgerald sent out that was ever recorded by anyone is a neighboring ship

had asked how they're doing, how are they faring over there? And the captain replied back, we're holding our own. And that was the last that was ever heard of the admin, since Gerald. Yeah, he said, his literal response is, we are holding our own. Wow, wow.

They say in the song, Gordon Lightfoot says, they think if they could have made it just like 15 more miles, if they would have put, he says if they would have put 15 more miles behind them, they would have made it to Whitefish Bay and they would have put he says if they if they would have put 15 more miles behind them They would have made it to Whitefish Bay and they would have been fine So they're far away from making it to clear waters. Damn. That's pretty wild Yeah, I can my wife is just absolutely sick of me talking about this and playing this song I was blasting it in the garage off the garage radio. So so all the neighbors could hear it this weekend.

And... Well, okay, so one thing, just because the number of shipwrecks just totally amazes me here, but it does look like the number of shipwrecks have just drastically reduced since like the 70s and 80s. Well, that's good. To the point where it looks like,

just looking here, cause you can sort by date, it looks like there was maybe one in like 1990, but I feel like the Edmund Fitzgerald might have actually kind of signed the end of an era for shipwrecks there. Yeah, okay. Other tidbits, Gordon Lightfoot, the only other song I really know of him is very well as Sundown, which a lot of people would have heard that song too. Maybe I need to hear it. You've probably heard it, it's like,

Sundown, you better take care. If I find you been sleeping round my back. I'll have to hear it. I don't know if that's a cover. I think other people have covered his version of it is actually what, so Sundown, that's about the other one I know. Yeah, that's definitely looking at the Spotify numbers. Sundown has 158 million plays.

Number two is if you could read my mind with 138 million. I don't know that one. The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald has 76 million plays though. Okay, next year will be the 50th anniversary. So... Those numbers are gonna shoot way up then. Yeah. Yeah Yeah, the they they Ring the bell 29 times each year one for every soul lost on the Edmund Fitzgerald and some say now they do at 30 Times one also one extra for Gordon Lightfoot Now that he's passed on. Okay. Yeah

That is I think the extent of my knowledge of the SS. Well, that's pretty good. I feel like the way you're really rattling off the facts, I'm like, you just saved me having to read the Wikipedia article, because it's quite long, actually. So, I'll actually, what I'll do though, is I'll listen to the song,

and then I'll still read the Wikipedia article anyways. But, okay, this reminds me though, there's one other song that... Are we sure we can't talk more about that? Actually, we can if you want. We can bring it back to that. We don't actually have to move on ever.

This did remind me, there's another song that sort of fits the same vein for me where we had a teacher, this one was in high school that played a piece of music and it really... Okay, you have a lot of memorable music teachers. This wasn't a music teacher, this was a history teacher. This one, the high school one was a history teacher. Oh, so he talked about the Edmund Fitzgerald as a history teacher. No, the music teacher was in elementary, like second grade.

In high school, we're talking a history teacher here. And he played a little song, you know, cause as you get more in American history and more with current times, you know, you start, it's, I don't know, there wasn't, I don't know, was there much for pop culture in the 1770s? You know, they didn't have like entertainment. They were like fighting wars and dying. Busy enough trying to be alive. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. So as, as time goes on, there's more of culture and pop culture at that. So, um, we had a teacher, uh, he played a song and it actually

really did catch on with everyone. Everyone seemed to really like it at the time. And I'm curious if you ever heard this song, it is the Eve of destruction by Barry Maguire. I don't know it. Could you sing it to me? Oh, it's I'm serious. You'll, I think you'll actually really like the song Tanner.

I think not by Toby Maguire, not Toby Maguire. I think you'll really like the song, tanner. I think not by Toby McGuire not Toby McGuire I think you'll really like this song the Eva destruction by Barry McGuire and What year was this made? What year was the song? It has to be like a Vietnam era song 1965. When was Vietnam? Um That seems close close enough, I mean it's a very I only know I'm a I'm a white dude I only know, I'm a white dude. I only know about World War II history trivia. It looks like Vietnam took place from like 55 to 75, according to Wikipedia.

Oh, only 20 years, great. Yeah, as all wars do. Oh, you should, it's just, it actually, it fits, I mean, so many people, depending on how you feel about things, the world is either ending or the greatest place on Earth ever at any given moment, and so much of it. It's just the Eastern world, it is exploding, violence flaring, bullets loading,

you're old enough to kill but not for voting, you don't believe in war, but what's that gun you're totin'? I mean, it goes on and on. Dude, it's so good. It's, you gotta listen to the song, you'll love it. How many downloads does it have on Spotify? Actually it's so good. It's it's it's you got to listen to the song You'll love it. How many downloads that it does it have? I see it. Let me see How does it compare? I want to know if it has more or less than the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald 46 million is all it's behind we got a we got a gem here. That's not nothing though

No, it's not nothing especially when you look at He only has one other song that gets a million plays all of them are mostly in the few hundred thousand So and the name of the song one more time is of destruction Barry McGuire. It's a banger I'm telling you I think you'll I think you'll really like it It was enough to get high school kids that don't care about that stuff at all Like damn this song's pretty good actually. So when you say he played it, he wasn't up there playing it on a guitar. No, he's just like, for whatever reason, he's like, all right, we're gonna play a song

that really speaks to the times in America. And then it turned- For a while there, I was thinking you had some really hip teacher that was up there. Oh, no, no, he was- He was like sitting on a stool playing. He actually probably hit, it was probably actually even on a cassette,

and he probably hit play. And then it got to the point where like, kids would request him to play the song and Okay, he'd say no, but then eventually he'd come around and play it and yeah That's how our history teacher was with band of brothers. We would beg him for us to be able to watch Band of Brothers It's like I'll find I don't want to teach today. Anyways, probably the only piece of like more modern Anything we got to watch was we watched Schindler's List in...

I've never actually seen, I know a decent bit about Schindler's List and pop culture and I've never actually seen it. Not a feel good movie if that's what you're trying. Good movie though. I've been to the Holocaust Museum. I mean yeah, it's that same feeling. Right. But enough about the Holocaust.

Right, moving right along. Transition. Transition, transition. Oh, I got a little, a quick tidbit here. Oh. You thought you were so fancy over there on your high horse Well, you're not the only one fancy in your high You're not the only okay. Do you have a black phone though? Is that a black phone? Oh

Yeah, I actually went well, it doesn't really matter because you put a case on that's why she went with natural titanium this year I I talked I I can't believe you don't have a case on that right now. Well, it's just cuz I literally have so I'm not gonna buy a case from the cell phone store because There's a sucker born every minute, but I like to think it wasn't me So I'm not buying one at the cell phone store and I'm like I'll run over to Walmart and get one and I've legitimately been So busy that I have not had a chance to do that. And I do not like it. It is scary not having a case on this. I actually, my phone actually sat here for almost two days in the box

because I didn't have a case. And I was so afraid to take it out of the box with a case, so I had to keep it on. But initial thoughts, I mean, have you got to do anything with it? Here's what I, I've had it for like three days. Oh, you have? Oh, okay.

Yeah, so here's my initial thoughts Color doesn't matter because you throw your case on the phone immediately Which is that's what's funny thing like why does it come in four colors? Everyone puts a case on their phone. Yep. Don't even bother In certain lights like the camera bump is like my camera bump has more of a gray background and yours has a black one That's about all you um other notes Super annoying when all my apps I have to re-enter passwords into every single thing password manager, man It does it all for I do have a password massive manager, but not the right one apparently okay. I think I use last pass Yeah, I do. I don't use that one. Yeah

The other thing, other notice, absolutely nothing. I couldn't possibly be more- I mean, is your battery any better? Yes, actually, yes, the battery is better. I can last a full, this will be my third day in a row where it goes from morning to night and I never plugged it in. So yes, that is the best part of it. And I say that all to say that is the best part of it.

And I say that all to say I'm still glad I did it. And because also I got rid of a three-year-old piece of hardware and got a brand new piece of hardware. So I'm like, I feel like you're playing a gamble at a certain point that it's just going to quit working. It is because you never know next year if they're going to offer that or not. And they've already made it worse. Two years ago, it used to be they'd lock you in for two years. Well, now they lock you in for three years. So next year, did they lock you in for four years? Like you never know. But that's my biggest thing. It's almost,

it's almost shocking how little there is for them to do with this anymore. Have you noticed the dynamic Island at all? Has that, uh, have you noticed little things? Oh, I'll tell you what I notice. Uh, my swiping up off the bottom of the screen like to close out of an app and go back to the home is not Like like there must be something about the way I swipe my thumb when I do that It does not do it as easy as I'm like get off of there Oh, I haven't had any issues with that at all like this. You know that yeah, so what's the dynamic island? That's your little so you have the black hole punch out on the top instead of the notch and like let's say here, do this right now.

If I'm listening to a podcast, I see it pop. Yeah. A little, here's another little thing. Like, uh, let's say you go into the, the top, do you ever set timers for yourself ever? I use this as my like alarm. Yeah. I always set timers for myself because I'll get wrapped up in something and I'll forget so like if I go to the timers app And let's say I hit a timer for five minutes and I hit play, you know hit the timer to go

It's kind of cool in the dynamic island up there. It puts the timer on the sides of it So you can see that it's actually going Okay, I don't know if you know what I'm talking about. I don't use that, but I mean, yeah, I get, yeah, I see. Because I've noticed it on my podcast or whatever I'm listening to. Oh, and then it'll sit up there, yeah. Well, it'll do the little, like what our board does over here

where it shows you the levels. I don't know if they're true levels or if it's just like, but it does indicate that something's happening. Yeah, something shows that something's being played. Yeah, I started to, Battery is definitely better though. That's a good point. That's my favorite part.

I actually on this one, my home screen. Are you just a straight up? Do you do widgets or anything on your home screen? No, I actually started. I used to only put the weather widget on just so I could see, you know what I'm saying? Where you can see like more of the weather. It'll show you stuff. Yeah, yeah, I did one.

I actually like it for macro factor where now it just gives me like a little gives me like a gauge right there so I can just look down on my phone and be like, Oh, I'm at 160 grams of protein for the day and 280 grams of carbs and like, again, not that it really saves me a lot of time, but I don't have to like open up the app and start digging around like I can just look down at that and know right away like, hmm, what should my next meal or snack be planned around? So, but that's not really, that has nothing to do

with the phone, that's just a widget thing, so. The camera interface, I see there's a lot more options. Yeah, they've changed a lot on that. Well, okay, actually. I'm like, okay, great, you made something really simple and now there's like an overwhelming number of options of meat that I have to pick from here. That does bring up a good point. There's one feature I use a ton. Are you familiar with the action button on the side? Have you messed with that at all?

That's the camera button. No, no, no, no, we're saying the action button here, you know, it's not a switch anymore for your mute You know, yeah now that is a you know, you know, you can change that to whatever you want it to do. Oh Okay, like right now for me know that very handy. I go like this hold it down boom flashlight just like that. Oh I so that's that top button Yeah, and you can like you can make that button do anything like there's built-in settings but then you can build shortcuts to make that run things or do things and then there's the camera button on the side which I I always kind of forget exists, but yeah, that would be about it for the hardware pieces the guy was telling me that

All phones are gonna have to have removable batteries soon including the iPhone have you ever heard that I Mean I've heard people say things like that. I think he's is it I don't think he's well I mean technically the iPhone does have a remove it depends on what's your definition of removable, like user removable or tech like serviceable removable. Right, right. Because these ones are, as far as that goes, because like the whole right to repair and all that, people are coming under fire for like, all right, they just make stuff that's irreplaceable,

not like you can't fix it. And supposedly these, like they've done a ton of things to like make these ones more repairable now like you can't fix it right and supposedly these like they've done a ton of things to like make these Ones more repairable where like yeah, you could take them apart Significantly easier and replace a battery if you wanted to then what it was before. I'm not sure I buys The idea that yeah They're all gonna have like batteries that you can detach in and out because that would require I think some laws changing too Yeah, I mean I don't know I

like I think some people want their phones to be like these Five-pound bricks to be like it can do anything and I'm like, well, yeah, but most people get rid of it after a couple years So like you really need to do all that stuff The other thing I noticed that I mean obviously you'd all this out and I knew to it but the specie that I went Well, I would lay down and you know, this was at 10.30 p.m. I lay down, you know, go to plug my phone in like I normally would, and I'm like, oh yeah, wait. I can't do that.

We're not charging. Yeah. Yeah. So I'm like, well, that'll be tomorrow's problem. See, and I use the MegSafe charger on the back. I do the wireless charging, but where it hit me was I went to go plug it into my car to listen to a podcast. I'm like, oh, can't do that right now.

I need to go over over the store and get a Three and a half, you know an aux cord that ends in a USB C cable. I guess that's what I need to do So overall I am it was very very cheap to do yeah Did you so did you have to change your plan or anything were you able to mostly stick to what you had? I Had to change the name of my plan. My bill got $10 per month cheaper. Yep.

So I was like, okay. Yep. Like I was like, kept being like, so what's the catch? Yeah. Well the catch is if you've had Disney Plus for free before it's gone. Right, and I didn't care about that. So that didn't matter.

So yeah, actually my plan got $10 a month cheaper, and I was like, all right, good. It sounds like, oh no, lock me up for three years? I'm like, check and see how long I've been a customer here. He's like, oh, 20 and a half years. And I'm like, OK, three's probably. Three, throw it on the pile. He laughed.

He's like, oh, 20, just over 20 years. Well, and I don't, yeah, and I also don't. I'm like, what's my alternative? That's, yeah, I mean, that's what I don't know if people get is like where we live in the middle of nowhere. Like, cell service is good. Like, having good cell service is important. And I don't know, like, I guess some of the cheaper options

maybe use the same towers, but I'm like, you know what? When I'm driving to Aberdeen from Sioux Falls at like 11 o'clock at night Like the last thing I want to worry about is like is my cell connection working? You know, that's yeah The other thing it sounded like now this plan is truly unlimited and in the sense that it's not They can't they don't throttle you down at all at a certain point. It's unlimited and not throttled down. That's what he's talking about. Well, I think they do after a certain number of gigabytes. Okay, so it's just a higher number then or something?

Yeah, yeah. I think it's like after like 30 gigs. There is some fine print there, but again, unless you're actually trying to do some insane stuff on your phone, I'm not sure you'd ever hit that. Right, right. So that's cell phones. It sounded like after in the discord, there was some talk that after our

conversation about this a week or two ago that several people did the same thing you did and made the upgrade. And now you've you've done it too. Well, I was worried. I'm like, well, if I don't do this, then I'm going to get off off the schedule of knowing when Tommy it's a new one because if we were if we didn't go by that I'd be like I'm not sure when I get it like and I'm not gonna don't want to do any research on the phones so I'm you're like no it's a pretty good time now and I'm like yeah sounds like a good time and then if I wait a year all the sudden it's like, oh, that's not the newest one or the deals different.

Or you don't want to be the dummy that upgrades in the middle of the year, you know, six months in, that's the wrong time to be doing it. And it was really cheap. Yeah. Like it actually pays for itself because of my plan going down within less than a year and a half. It actually pays for like you could a class that couldn't afford not to.

I don't I still don't know why I literally got $1,000 trading like it actually cost me $0. I mean, like a $30 transaction fee or whatever they do. But yeah, 35 to too cheap. I made him I made him go over every little bit of the because I had him transfer it for me there So we had some time and I'm like no I want to understand this exactly like I don't want it to be when you say Okay, here's what you pay. Yeah, I don't want it to be $80 more than what we said like tell me what the cut Like I'm like I spent way too many hours crunching those numbers and actually making spreadsheets comparing stuff

So I'm like I still don't trust them at the end of the day Like I made him go every detail so that I like, and then it's like the, the $35 fee that you were talking about. You can't, that was the one thing they wouldn't let me pay for there. They like that has to go on the next, uh, next bill. I'm like, fine. I'll allow that. Yeah.

You guys, you won this time. Damn it. Yeah. Our guest fine, I'll allow that. Yeah, you guys you won this time. Damn it. Yeah, our guest has arrived Tanner. All right, let me while you kick everyone off, but maybe I'll do a little supporting our supporting members. Yeah, let's do it. Big Sam Brown competed multiply 2100 pound total PR, big old total for Sam Brown. Congrats there. Big Ryan, Jack and

ginger competed he had a 540 squat PR along with a 352 bench and a 579 deadlift. Big Brehmeonti in Australia got second place in his meet in the 105 kilogram class and along with a squat PR and then Big Cam congrats he bought his first set of vintage weights. Oh yeah I saw those what were those called again? I can't remember I think they were called vintage weights. I said right on them, vintage weights. All right, should we let our guest in? Let's do it. Speaking of that, let me introduce our guests here. Big Angelo Fortino for the maybe second or kind of third time on the podcast possibly, because I think you're on as a guest.

And then we also did a mock draft one time with you and Big Steve, right? Yeah, I want to qualify as a mock draft. That was about as real as it can get. That was just a real draft. Real draft. Yeah, I own I forgot who I drafted. I had to play. Yeah, I they're on my team now.

Whoever I drafted is on my team. Yes, correct. So third appearance on the Vastonomics podcast, Big Angelo, host of Two White Lights podcast, power lifter, former USAPL power lifter, now a power lifting America power lifter, a competitive at the national world level, and he's back in the saddle again. So first of all, I just listened to your most recent episode of Two White Lights. So what's going on with Two White Lights?

Yeah, one, thank you for having me on again. I appreciate it. I like to think I'm the league leader of being on Mastodonomics. I'm not going to check the stats on it. I'm just going to claim it. There's several, three, I don't know if there's many fours. Four is very, I mean three isn't common either, but four is very rare, yeah. So, time for the League League, there you go. Yes, yes.

Great, yeah, so we discussed it on Two White Lights, just what's going on with Two White Lights, and since we started the podcast, which is around 2020, things have changed a lot for Steve and I. I would say more so for me, with my job when 2020 was more as a substitute teacher. And I'm sure you guys had substitute teachers in your life. They have a lot of time on their hands. From what I remember, they don't really need to prepare at all. They literally just have to show up, and that's all.

You gotta know how to hit the play button on the VCR. You're a cool uncle. That's pretty much what you're supposed to do. You're responsible enough to watch over kids, but it's like, should you have your own kids? Probably not at this point, but we'll get there. But that's what you are as a sub. So Two White Lights was really able to take off.

And with Two White Lights, it's like coverage of meets, recaps, previews, breaking news stuff. And we had to be on our phones a lot. We had to be on Instagram a lot. And then it kind of opens up to where Instagram is part of our lives, and social media is part of opens up to like where Instagram is part of our lives and social media is part of our lives and content creation is part of our lives and then about a year ago I graduated from cool uncle to actual like person who has responsibility and needs to teach kids

so that uh that occupied a lot of my time and And then also with being a competitive powerlifter, elite level powerlifter, along with just like I'm doing high school powerlifting coaching too, teaching myself and all that. Just was hard to do Two White Lights the way we did Two White Lights.

So Steve and I like always spoke about, we acknowledged that we need to do something with the show because did Two White Lights. So Steve and I always spoke about, we acknowledged that we need to do something with the show because we love doing it, but it was starting to become pretty difficult to just do the extensive meat coverage of powerlifting. And also we discussed on Two White Lights, the landscape has changed a little bit in powerlifting where it's not as easy to do the recaps

and also just not as, not what it once was because it does come somewhat repetitive and lifters are starting to like tune out of us doing the recaps and like previews. And what Steven and I always really want to do is just, I'm not going to say similar to what you guys do because you kind of cornered the market of fitness random conversations. But That's a very polite way of putting that.

Well, that's the nicest thing that anyone has ever said. That actually is the nicest way anyone's ever put this. Yes. That actually is the nicest way anyone's ever put this. Yes. All right. I'm happy about that. Uh, but, uh, we wanted to kind of just speak off the cuff about things and powerlifting and fitness. And then the continued until last episode, that's kind of what Steve and I really do want to do is just talk about things. It's going to keep people somewhat informed on powerlifting. It's not the most, it's not a sports podcast where someone's covering all the major sports, like all the major news stories because you're always going to get content that way.

Powerlifting doesn't really yield that. So doing it less, you know, potentially once a month and having those conversations I think is just going to be more enjoyable for Steve and I, but also I think the loyal to White Lights fans appreciate that a little bit more at the root of it of just having those conversations where we're talking about powerlifting and then all of a sudden we get into a weird tangent about how much Matt Everflue sucks and the Bears organization is trash and it's painful watching them. It's like being waterboarded every week.

And then we get back on to talking about the 83s. Right, right. Okay, so Tanner and I, we both think of you and Steve as like, you know, if we ever really needed to know what was going on in Tested Power, Liffey and you guys would be like our on the scene reporters. Like, we know you guys know what's going on in Tested Power, Liffey, and you guys would be like our on the scene reporters. Like, we know you guys know what's going on. So when you say you feel like the,

what was the word you used? Like the scene has changed or the way people think about it has changed a little bit. Like what, I mean, do you have anything specific where that comes to mind when you say that? Yeah, the split between the American idea. I didn't know if it was just that or if there was more to you say that? Yeah. The split. I didn't know if it was just that or if there was more to it than that. Yeah. Yeah. And also, that was a big part of Two White Lights too. A lot of our really popular episodes was because of that split. We gave our takes on it. I think we gave praise to both

federations and also a lot of criticisms to both federations. When I talk about both federations, I'm talking about USAPL and IPF. Then when Power of Thing America was introduced, we were honest about things. We criticized them, but also we gave them their props when they did something good. Now it's kind of clear what's happening. USAPL is pivoting in this strange direction that we kind of hate, where they're getting into more international powerlifting. And it's, I don't think that's going to work where I think the focus should be at the local level, because as a high school powerlifting coach, that's the, that's where USAPL helps.

I get to get my kids into powerlifting meets because USAPL is pretty accessible to them. And we think that should be more their focus. And now it's just simply, we're focused on powerlifting America IPF, which is good, but also you get these massive gaps where we'll have podcast episodes about people's, if we do have regular podcast episodes about, you know, what they're doing on Instagram,

like what's their gym total right now, what's going on and potentially what they said on Instagram or on another podcast, which if you want, like we'll give reactions about what somebody said on another podcast. It's not it's like a meta Right. Yeah we've also decided to stop doing preview and recap episodes of We actually Look somewhere in the back at all. We did that probably like I would say maybe if you looked in like 2018 or 19 We did a couple recaps of some of the bigger

Untested meats at like sales, maybe like the first Kern or something like that and This might be a hundred percent my own Just maybe change in my own mind track over that last five six seven eight years like the way it shifted but like That feels to me like it'd be drastically less interesting now if we tried to do that, like there wouldn't be as many stories to follow. And I just don't know, like here's what I'd say. I like powerlifting just as much as ever. And especially like you said at the local level, like I enjoy competing in it. I enjoy all the things that come out of it and stuff. But some of the stuff on the bigger level have for some reason become slightly less interesting to me at times. And that just might be a personal thing of mine,

but I'm not sure if maybe other people experience a shift like that too. Yeah, I mean, no, I think I've experienced that too, especially at the higher level. I mean, it could be, it's, I think a little bit more my perspective on it, just as a, I am a competitor first. Right. I do love the content creation. I do love talking about powerlifting. And I am more deeply involved in powerlifting now

than I was at any point because like I said, I'm coaching it, I'm competing, and that's a lot of my life. Like a lot of my life is dominated by powerlifting, yeah, more so than it was, I think, when I was just doing two white lights and powerlifting. So I get that, what you're saying, and it is harder to create stories,

but then also as a competitor first. This is kind of the funny things that continuously happens where I make a prediction on a preview show, which by the way, like, there needs to be a separation of that media, because I was commentating a lot of these meets too. Then I would, you know what I predicted, so it just doesn't really work that way.

You know, Joe Buck is in on podcast saying like, he thinks the Cardinals are gonna win, and then he goes and commentates the Cardinals game. Like it doesn't, it't sound a good dynamic. Then it slightly pisses off lifters, but then they, you know, and it's all good content, right? Like they're listening to the show, they're getting pissed off at what we say

because we're speaking honestly. But then like they see me at a meet and they're like, hey man, you were wrong. Then I'm like, I don't care. Right, right, right. I'm competing soon. I don't care about the other thing that I got. And then at USAPL Nationals, I remember I won.

I won USAPL Nationals. And people were chirping me when they won, or when they got second or third or something in my DMs. I'm like, I easily can just shut you down right now and be like, well, I won, I don't care what was wrong but your second place finish when you got like, or I said you're gonna finish third, you got second, I won, so I could easily brag about that right now.

And it's just a weird being also a competitor. And then Steve is in a way worse position because he's possibly just like killing any chances he has of getting after it. Right. Right. He doesn't want to off half of his, uh, potential pool of, uh, clients there. Um, what, what do you teach? Uh, history, history. Okay. What kind of history? Um, us history this year, uh, world history.

And I also, so it's just, I'm a social science major with an emphasis in history. So I can also teach like political science, econ, sociology, psychology. Um, and this year I'm doing econ and government too. Speaking of history, do you know any much of anything about the wreck of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald? Yeah, I love those questions. I love when people are like, yeah, when you're a history teacher, like, hey, can you tell me about this one event? Let me think of all events in all of time.

Of course, yes, I know about that too. It's like, I start off every world's history, like year is like, okay, so we're starting with chapter one, which is early humanoids. And then we have to get to like now. And we have like a couple months to do it. So my follow up question to that is who do you think is the strongest powerlifting teacher? That random Korean guy. Okay. No, I don't know.

That's his handle, by the way. It's also a pretty meta handle too. Because when he put up this crazy total and it's USA PL South Korea meet where he tied ash and he's one of the best like power relishers in the world in that weight class and he was in the Arnold pro finals he's just ridiculous and yeah he's an English teacher and I was really pissed off to find out he was the English teacher okay because Jen Thompson also a teacher I was gonna say that was my number two. Who is, was Heather, is Heather Connor a teacher? Yeah, she was. Okay.

She was elementary. I remember that. Yeah. Yeah. So several of you though. Yeah. There's a, yeah, there's a decent amount of education. Also powerlifts, but. Like I noticed there's like a in powerlifting, I think, isn't there like a firefighters or police officer division thing? Maybe there should be a teacher division for a teacher division.

Yeah. Teacher nationals. I think that'd be a good one. I say PL teacher nationals. I wonder that's got a certain room to it. Yeah, I'm actually just trying to figure out the graphics for it, like in my head or like a barbell and like a ruler crossed in the background. Yeah, like apples.

Yeah, that's that would be yeah, that'll be the metal. Yeah, that would be the medal. It's a golden apple on it. I'm actually wondering what subjects teachers, like powerlifting teachers would do. I would think it would be heavily skewed towards history because history is like, I get this stereotype a lot because people assume I coach football. Right, right, right. And I mean, I would love to. If my high school had, it's a I, if, if my high school had,

it's a very small charter school, my high school had a football team. I would immediately be like, yes, I'm please put me into this some way somehow. Um, but yeah, they're like, Oh, like, so do you like how it's football? Too? I'm like, all right, guy teacher, young in shape. You're like, he's a teacher's history teacher and P E guy or he's the history teacher but he's really just a football coach. They just need to put him as a job in the school somewhere so we can't coach football. Well if I can add any any to that statistic I I did have a middle school teacher that had done a

few powerlifting meets in like the 80ies, he was also a history teacher. So my history teacher was a football coach also. It's a very true stereotype. It's not a, I'm not like, this is so unfair. Um, I, when I, when I would say I was a teacher, everyone is assume I was a PE teacher. So I'm like, I guess I, maybe that's serious. I mean, I get it. Obviously it's fitness and it would make more sense, but I don't know. Cause I do take pride in being like a general education teacher.

Well, speaking of, uh, stereotypes, what's better, which is the better sauce? Prego or regu. I think it's prego. Prego, yeah. Prego or regu. Yeah, it would be terrible marketing if they named it that terrible tomato sauce and they just gave it that close. Either one. So which is better?

I would say prego. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that.

I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. I would say that. tomato sauce and they just hated that the most. Either way. So which is, which is better? I would say Prego for sure. Okay. Prego. Um, the top one is Bertoli.

I was going to wonder where Bertoli fits in there. I feel like that's that, that primo stuff, but you can still find it at most grocery stores. I got to work that one up. Yeah. Bertoli is like, again, you like, you would prefer fresh tomatoes, obviously, like that. But it's actually not that hard to make pasta sauce. If I'm being completely honest, like it's relatively easy thing to do. But yeah, you're in a time crunch.

Now you're not going to be able to make, you know, you know, vodka sauce that quick. That's, that's going to take a little more time. So Bertolli is kind of like the, the okay. I said thoughts when you're in a crunch What is the best actual kind of pasta sauce not talking brands here? We're talking the actual sauce itself Cabanara, I mean it depends though. I mean, it's like you got to be Like carbon, I am I'm sure you guys had pasta carbonara before uh-huh it's like you got to be like carbonara. I am I'm sure you guys had pasta carbonara before.

It's you know, you got to like kind of cut out an evening to have that. You can't just be like, I'm just going to have this nice little hip. It kind of alters your night. It's heavy. It's a heavy pasta. So it's like not that common to eat for dinner every night. I mean, I'm just always a big fan of just fresh tomatoes. Like pasta sauce with nice fresh tomatoes. And that's the, I mean, that's gonna be your,

that's your foundation. That's gonna be the most consistent. I've been on a big vodka pasta kick the last like year. So that's really, it's really done it for, you know, gives you that break from like the more marinara type sauce to, you know, something that break from like the more marinara type sauce to you know something a little different Yep, oh yeah, big big fan of aca sauce pas a la vac probably

would definitely be on Mount Rushmore's of Okay Apasses excellent additional segue you see you're familiar with Mount Rushmore as a history guy. We're from South Dakota So we're also a little familiar with Mount Rushmore as a history guy. We're from South Dakota. So we're also a little familiar with Mount Rushmore. Got the four faces on there. We want to know your Mount, your Mount Rushmore of powerlifting podcasts. Oh man. That's a lot to tease from too.

Just try and think of four. That's really what I'm like, is this their for? I think they're for actual podcasts. Oh man, actually with this answer I might piss off people. That's what I was hoping for. Yeah, I might have to be as political on this as possible. I mean, I definitely have to put two white lights on there. I'm going to put two white lights on it. Then of course, Mastinomics.

Oh, wow. We're here. You didn't have to say that on your podcast, but as long as you're here, then our listeners will be on your side at least. Yeah. I want to make the cult happy. Yeah. All right. We got our sound bite. Shut it down. Well, I want to make the cult happy. But yeah, I mean, I'm thinking when I got into powerlifting, Mastinomachy, like your podcast, was like the one that I think was just the most inviting out of all the many you listen to,

it's like, okay, it's actual like podcasts. What was the one with Andy Wang and- Oh, and John Hack? No, no. Well, Andy has had like five. Yeah, I know. He had one with Brandon Allen, where it was like, oh yeah. Brandon Allen.

Was that like the bro? Broke hands? I forgot about that one, wow. I, cause when, all right. That was good actually. I, yeah, so it will depend. So like, I was expecting a thing out of the podcast. So when I started Two White Lights, I started to get guests out. That's how I would research. I would listen to King of the L. So when I started to write lights, I started to get guests out.

That's how I would research. I would listen to King of the Lifts. I was listening to you guys. I would listen to that one. And then I'm like, it actually, aside from your podcast, you guys actually had good audio. But the other two, King of the Lifts and RodeCast, I'm like, I felt always like just like,

okay, we have a trash podcast. So I can, that's how you start. I'm recording, I felt always like just like, okay, we have a trash podcast. Like that's how you start. I'm recording on my laptop and I was like, how is my audio quality better than King of the last? I felt good about like, how are they doing it so bad? Are they doing that on purpose? I totally forgot that podcast existed. I'm glad you brought that up.

Yes. Yeah. It is the broadcast. You are correct. Yeah. Yeah. I just remember I listened to it. And, um, well, uh, Garrett fear, I had Garrett, if you're on two white lights and I wanted to get some research on like what not to ask them or what to ask them or like where the conversation was going. I just listened to that one. And yeah, I just remember the audio quality just not the best. Um, and, uh, yeah, I,

I just remember I forgot what Brandon said to Garrett. I'm like, those are those off the cuff. You'll never heard in my life. Well Brandon says little off color things at times. I think. Cause it was just so random. Cause he like, he's like, uh, something about it, like a mother's mistake or something it's like, so it's like, cause Garrett has a ton of like siblings. He's like, what's your mother is like, or it's, uh, it's like, or what mistakes

your mother made aside from like not aborting you. And then I'm like, Oh my God, that sounds about right. So, so you started with two way lights, mass dynamics, and you haven't really named it a third or a fourth yet. I know I'm thinking, uh, I, I'm going to go, I gotta go king of the lifts on, on this one, I wondered if you were going to put them on or not. So that was, uh, yeah, oh yeah. You're trying that, but here's the thing with King and the lifts.

And, um, I mean, I spoke about this in Great Lanes My Podcasts, too, I just, I am wishing, and it seems like they are turning more into the professional podcasts of powerlifting, because with Two White Lights, I always want to be the alternative to the professional, because I didn't want to do the extensive meat coverage thing. That wasn't initially what I wanted to do with Two White Lights. But then as I was listening to King of Lifts initially, I'm like, these previews

can be a lot better. There's a lot of things left out. There's a lot of lifters being left out. There's a lot of analysis. And I don't think it was the most honest analysis. I think it was very And I don't think it was the most honest analysis. I think it was very nice. I think it was very impartial and it just wasn't the best listening experience. And I said it when I initially came on your podcast, when we started doing meat coverage, their meat coverage improved because that's what happens when people do things, when people, you know, get involved in the same thing and try to make it better, the other one improves as well. And then also they do, you know, the interviews, they do the high volume of interviews more. And I do think it's it is like a new source for powerlifting.

And Ryan does a good job of interview. and Ryan does a good job of interviewing. Like, that's his thing, is interviewing. He does a very good job of that specific thing. Granted, like, I prefer what we do on Tour of Life, when we have a person on, I just really want to talk to them and see if we can talk like competitor to competitor or competitor to coach, and that creates a different dynamic.

But Ryan treats it like interviewer to an athlete and that adds a different dynamic. So yeah, I like that one and I'm going to go very political here and go power and lifting Solana because that's an extension of Two White Lights as well. Right. Solana is the most unofficial co-host that we've ever had. So technically we have two parts of Two White Lights on this Mount Rushmore.

We are dominating Mount Rushmore. Bookending the mountain. Yeah, bookends. Tommy, while we were talking, any others come to your mind? I'm just really curious. I mean, there's other podcasts, but I'm not sure if you're aware of this, Angelo, but for many, many years, actually, when Massonomics first started, it was more blogging than anything.

And we would routinely run an article of top 10 podcasts. And the joke has just turned into every year, we'd have to just remove eight of them off the list because they didn't exist anymore. And now it's gotten to the point where we kind eight of them off the list because they didn't exist anymore And now it's gotten to the point where we kind of just quit updating the article because every year it's like well None of the other ones exist anymore So I guess it's just all new podcasts every single year Yeah, you know

Sorry, I don't mean to interrupt. Oh, you're good. You know, be a good one. Mount Rushmore of podcasts that don't exist anymore Well that actually that's actually a better I like that I don't mean to interrupt. No, you're good. You know, be a good one. Mount Rushmore of podcasts that don't exist anymore. Well, that's actually a better, I like that. Well, and also if you're, if you are saying historically, I mean the Powercast would make a- That's for- Yeah, I mean, that's kind of what got me into all of this was that.

Right, right. That was the first podcast I regularly listened to and everything, so that it would be hard to leave that one off the list. I'm just trying to think of like, beers with Chad, like I liked his. Oh, that's true, juggernaut when it was. Or juggernaut when Max was on there too.

Like I used to listen to that one every single week. That was actually really, really good for a few years there. That was, I really enjoyed that for a while. Because some episodes you'd have Chad talking in depth about coaching and mindset things. And then other weeks he'd just be going off about 49ers football and beer and whatever else.

And like, I always enjoyed that. Um, and then like, yeah, you, like you were saying the brocast and then the other one, uh, was it like a pop up here? Was it a two bros, one shaker cup when it was Andy way and, uh, and, uh, John hack, uh, that was the then after that also started another one with another, oh I can't think of his name, another untested lifter that was set in some world records there for a while then.

After a while I'm like, you're recording fewer episodes of each subsequent version of your podcast. It's like, but the next one, we're literally just recording one until we move on to the next name. And like each time there would be a new graphic with new, like cool art and like a cool cover, and then they would just would fizzle. It's tough to keep it going for a long time. Uh, you know, I mean, obviously you understand that too.

Oh yeah, for sure. I agree. And that was the reoccurring joke too, like with people creating podcasts. Like, you know, if it wasn't said publicly, it was definitely said privately in people's group chats of like, how long is this one going to last? Right. Well, I mean, that's just, that's when anytime any podcast starts, because let's be honest, awesome, don't last very long at all.

Like when you guys have changed, you know, sometimes you've gone longer without recording them. Do you get many people asking you what are they like, when the hell's the next episode? Because people get in the habit of listening to a podcast and then they're like, hey, we need, you owe us that podcast now, you know, like do you get any messages about that?

Oh yeah, for sure. I think it was when we just started kind of slow down the Free Maxi podcast and just the uploads and on top of that, like, I think we did some good updates on the show of like, but last year I'm like, I'm not going to be recording very often because like Steve and I really only technically only have one day to record. This is right now, when I'm recording this podcast, this is past Steve's bedtime. Like this is the only time I really have available to record.

And I'm like, when you guys told me 9 15, I'm like, oh, yeah, it's actually. I record always. Yeah. Yeah. We're kind of in the same boat. Yeah. Steve, like, he's like, no, And also Steve is like such a regimented person and he's very good at, if he doesn't wanna do something,

he's not gonna be like forced to say yes. You know, people just say yes, cause they're so nice. Yeah. He'd be like, no, I'm not doing it. All right, cool. Okay, and yeah, so like he's, and it explains a lot about him, probably apply. He's probably more the trusted guys in powerlifting as far as like business stuff goes. So that probably tells you thing that you need to say no and actually to get things done.

But yeah, we like we had the updates on the show. Like it's gonna be really hard to record with the amount of time I work and then see schedule and you know, we only have Thursday record and anything comes up we can't record on the day. It's like that's the day we have. So yeah, I think people listen and kind of understood in you. But like, also they have a long gap helps too, because we got a lot to say. Meet, we have to recap. There's not a meet, we have to preview. There's not a reaction thing we have to give.

There is a lot of things though, like in powerlifting that I missed out on, where I'm like, I would have loved to talk. Like that IPF post about like how we could train women. Yeah, right, right. And it was like, they're pretty much saying that they should be, I mean, if you just like, remove the word woman and just put dog,

it would imply the whole thing. Give them treats when they're happy. Did anything ever come of that? Or was it just like, oh, our bad, okay, like, was that it? Most of how IPF reacts to things is doing that. They're just like, some things were lost in translation and then they like show like 10 more slides and just get progressively worse. Like they're just like, I don't think everything was lost in translation, but in fairness,

a woman did create those slides. So it's not total misogyny by the, they only did that for other things. Like when they had the international women's day posts and they gave me they gave women like three jobs. Women are not only our housewives or our teachers or secretaries. They're also lifters. Yeah. It's like, thanks. What do they do again?

Ah, secretary. Yes. Who's going to win the next Sheffield? Who's the favorite to win the next Sheffield? Oh, man, with the the training, I don't know if you guys know with, I always mispronounce his name, and it's been told to me like 800 times, but Cajal, I believe that's how you pronounce his name. He is cutting down to 66,

and his total that he's putting up in the game looks insane for a 66 kilo lifter, and he could obliterate that 66 kilo record so he looks like the favorite right now going in perk would definitely be up there some of what the 83s are doing ash was kind of thought about thought about the favorite but Cajal is kind of right now, if he can make that weight cut happen and then retain things, he's yeah, he's nasty right now. Then on the women's side, Agatha is just a Terminator. She's insane and then also the super heavyweight women too are beasts. They're awesome. Like you got some, you're gonna get a really good match up there with Sonita,

Brittany and Alexis. It's just, they, they, they're, they can really push each other into going past the world record. But yeah. That's good. Mini Sheffield preview. That's good. Is Taylor Atwood kind of making a comeback? Yeah, I would say so. I'm actually really curious. Do you kind of like to poke the bear on him on occasion or? About me?

Yeah, like I've just heard you kind of. Oh yeah, I loved it. Yeah. I love, I mean, it's honestly poking the bear. It's just, I always acknowledge how good of a lifter he is. Sometimes on social media though, I'm like, good Lord. What would you say, would you say comes off as like, what would you say comes off? How would you describe it sometimes on social media? You guys know Russell Wilson?

Yes. Cool. Yes. That. Yeah. Like, so like what, what I mean, is it like cheesy corny? That sort of thing like that. Yeah, right, right. That's what you would say kinda. He's a phenomenal. All right. He's a phenomenal lifter He's all these things. He's got incredible accolades You're just corny on social media. Yeah, it's just it's I can't have two white lights and maybe on social media and be dry and sarcastic about everything on social media without pointing out the obvious.

He's it was never like I was never a person like, oh, he's washed. I'm like, no, he's not washed. What he needs is just kind of a change in direction because direction because because people probably call like 34 years old old and it makes me like feel bad because I'm 31 so I'm like I get called old all the time by a crop of 22 year old lifters at the gym who you know and they're they're under 19th pair of in Zernesleys because they need to get tighter and tighter pairs and so they can get a you know five kilos out of their squat that's low bar to their tailbone. I'm called old by them. I'm not cynical or hated at all. Yeah, so people are calling him washed.

I'm like, absolutely not. Taylor Atwood is not washed. 34 years old is not the age to be washed. He doesn't have a snap, he doesn't have a tear, he doesn't have surgery. He's a guy who just had injuries and he's overcoming those injuries. And you know, he's going up a weight class

and that's kind of changed the direction. And he had a ridiculous meet at 83. So I'm going to be competing against him. That's actually really exciting. Like the fact that I'm going to be competing against him at nationals for a guy that going into the sport definitely was one of my role models. I always share the story just on two white lights, how cool it was to be drug tested with him after he had that 838 total and I didn't really realize he had an 838 total because I was competing

at the same time as him and I was like when I was in the drug that's where I found out was like getting drug tested and I'm like oh my god that's the best powerlifting performance in history in many people's eyes. So it's cool to be, you know, competition with him. But yeah, the social media games. It's it's it just makes me giggle sometimes. He just says things to her. Sometimes blatantly incorrect. And it's it's it speaks more volumes of me.

Because I could just let everything go, but I don't, you know, so I just don't let it go. the a pet peeve, no matter what. And it probably happens to me on occasion of, no one lifters are good and people are influencing. So everything they say is prophetic and funny and great. I'm like, no, it's not. It's not always like that. And when I see people do it, I'm like, no, this wasn't deep. This wasn't funny. You're saying that because this is a popular person.

I'm like, this was not funny at all. It was not a deep, insightful thing. I see way deeper, way more insightful things from people who have less of a following. And that's kind of what I got out of it. It's like you start to buy into it. You start to buy into it. Like you start to buy into social media and I just, I never liked that. Whatever anyone has done it like when people start buying the social media, I'm like, that's the time to stop being on social media and start experiencing life around you. and I can't describe the scene scenario. Just wasn't funny.

Um, it was in promotion of their cool clothing hybrid when they, when they made cool clothing and I just saw the comments of like cry face emojis, like that was so not funny and I'm pissed off that you guys aren't acknowledging it. Well, that is what it is. Like it's 100% true is I mean, with I mean, to most people were probably not funny. I don't know, sometimes I think they were kind of funny, but I get it. We're probably not funny to most people. But I think if anything like social media is done is it made a lot of people think that

they're really funny. And it's like, no, actually, you just have like a lot of yes men in your life. Like you're not actually funny. Like if no one knows who you are and saw that, they'd be like, no, it's not funny at all. And I'm like, if that's not funny to just a random person, then it's not funny. Like if it's only funny to your people, you just have yes men in your life.

And like social media has amplified that to like a thousand for people. Yeah, yeah, for sure. And like most of my friends are within powerlifting, but then, you know, you're in your friend groups or aren't in a powerlifting. And then like, say they ask you about it or like something's happening in powerlifting. They ask about it on social media. And here's like, I can't explain this without you being completely lost or bored. And at the same time, this is like this is what me and my friends are talking about in powerlifting.

But I'm like, if I share this with you, you're just kind of going to look at there. You look at me like, so, like what is this serious? Like do people actually trust character had a clothing brand and it is no longer a clothing brand and people are mad? Like, it's the gist of it, I guess. It doesn't sound that cool when you say it like that, but, you know, I don't think that's enough. I'm gonna frenzy. Have you seen, like, the comments? And then the comments are just like totally unfollowable and you have no idea what's happening. So yeah, it's probably more,

when you start interacting with people who are not interested in the world that you're in, it's not that funny. But I think it's still one of those things of like, even within my world, sometimes things aren't funny and yeah, the yes men and the nut huggers. Yes. I honestly can't stand it.

Like it's a very annoying thing for me. That's good. Tommy, what do you think? Overrated, underrated or? Let's do it. Okay. Angelo, you're familiar with the think? Overrated, underrated or? Let's do it. OK, Angelo, you're familiar with the game. Overrated, underrated.

We got a handpicked set of topics just for you. And it's your job to decide if each one is overrated, underrated. But you have to remember, you can't ride the line. You have to definitively decide each one. So never invite people to ride the line out of the show again. That's exactly right. Yes. Yes. They're kicked off for good. So we kind of even touched on this a little bit overrated or underrated the ultra super stiff knee sleeves that have come around in the last few years.

They're insanely overrated. I would just slam an overrated button if I had one by me. You guys need to invest in an overrated button. That's a, yeah, I mean, that would be a good kick to the show, but yeah. Yeah. I just, I, yeah. If I see another person like needing to buy the new pair of stiff knee sleeves, it's so, and if I have to see a person like take eight years to put them on and take them off, I just can't, I can't bear to watch it because those same people make fun of a quick power lifting. Yeah, that's the ultimate issue with it is that you can't

make fun of quick power lifting and then also be like, yeah, I got to size down and get stiffer ones. Yeah, I never tried them on, but there's no way that they're going to help. I'm like, I'm so not thinking about rebound out of my squat. Like just, yeah, I just can't, I just don't see how that would make my squat better. And also if it doesn't make my squat better, probably doesn't make your squat better.

So overrated on the stiff knee sleeves. Okay. All right. Overrated or underrated Caleb Williams. Oh, I hate you. That's actually right now potentially underrated because I think everyone collectively thinks he sucks. So that's the weird. They're not talking about benching him right now or something are they Yeah, so there was a report in the locker room Which this is pretty much how the season has gone so far that a few of the veteran players have asked for Tyler Bajan Yeah starter with his

Travis Bajan son Yeah champion arm wrestler he's at the Arnold Travis Bajan was at the Arnold this year, too Have you guys had a set someone come on the show? We I've don't I don't have a line of connection with them. I think maybe I've shot a DM over Instagram, but to know, you know, not a not a not a DM that's gotten seen. So I need someone to the connection to hook us up still. Yeah. So he's a character. I don't know if you ever see like some of the stuff.

Yeah. Yeah. It's awesome. Actually, it was a good segment of what I was about to say. This is the inside report on this one for the Bears is my brother Santino. So take it with a grain of salt on this news report. But apparently it was Tyler Basin's dad who might have leaked that information out of you. But again,

that is coming from, so source is Santino 14. Oh, if this becomes a new story, if like ESPN picked up on massonomics and then the Santino 14, it's not me. It's massonomics crediting my brother. All right. So is the quarterback the issue with the Bears right now? No, no.

The Bears are the issues with the Bears right now. Yeah. Like the fact that the Bears exist as an organization is their biggest issue. Have they played anyone in their division yet? No, they're gonna get absolutely destroyed. You know, we're in South Dakota here, so we're in like- Bunch of Vikings fans.

We're in Vikings fans. I mean, there's a fair number of Bears fans, but also a lot of Packers fans too. Even actually a lot of Lions fans. We're just in that division up here, so we're living the life. That's actually, I never really thought, I would assume a lot of Minnesota fans, but I guess-

There's a lot of Packers fans. Well, too. Yeah, there is. Yeah. Oh, hacker fans travel, dude. Like Houston and like, I remember what I was just injected just after a Bears game once just, and it was when the bears, I'm stupid to say when they sucked, because that's like the reoccurring theme, but they were exceptionally bad and I was just at the bar. I was kind of alone too just like watching the games and one guy pulls up next to me and I'm talking to my you know then girlfriend about how much the bears suck and

then he's like and he just interjects in the conversation and starts talking trash. I look and he has a Packers hat on. I'm like, dude, are you, I'm like, there's a lot of you in Illinois. Yeah. In the Midwest and we all hate you. But now in Houston, like I thought I was far removed from at least like people making fun of me

for being a Bears fan. And now I go like the school I work at, there's like two Packer fans. And I just, I can't escape it. I always get mad. Like just, like the Vikings and Lions, like they're divisional rivals, but I can tolerate the fans.

Pack, I can't, I can't do it with Packers. It's because, we can't take anything to Packer fans. It's because to be a Vikings and Alliance fan, you just had to suffer through so much just like shit and mediocrity. And like it's easy to be a Packers fan because for like the last 20 some years you've had a, you know, Hall of Fame quarterback.

So it's like, it's easy. It's a, it's more of a fair weather fan thing, you know? Yeah. Yeah. No, absolutely. We have no comeback. So like whenever a Packer fan makes fun of me, I can't say anything to a Packer fan. Also on top of that, just between the rivalry

between the Bears and Packers, Bears fans are definitely the toxic fan base. It's probably the bad guys in every situation. Just based on my experience, like we're pretty miserable, angry people. And Packer fans are really nice just in general. But like, Bear's fans are angry, but then when they get good, they're cocky angry. Like they're they're very in your face about being good,

where Packer fans are just the Wisconsin-y friendliness to them. So it's also that's another hard pill to swallow. It's like you're kind of on the wrong end of this. the question now. Caleb Williams overrated. Underrated. I'm just gonna say underrated. I'm gonna ride with Caleb Williams because that's all I have to do right now. That's sound logic actually. Okay, overrated or underrated. Semi-sumo deadlifts or maybe you'd call it narrow sumo deadlifts. Yeah, the hybrid frog stance, want to call it. Those are overrated. Overrated.

Oh yeah, for sure. Cause only people asked about to do it. And there's like one person who does it consistently. And that's me. Yeah. So if it was a good thing to do, like if it was a thing to like everyone should do, then more people would do it. But it's, um, it's not that common.

You had Ed Cohen do it. I was going to say the other famous one would be Ed Cohen, right? Anyone, anyone else that Bob used to do an insane one. Okay. Um, yeah. Bob Matthews used to do an insane hybrid. Um, I would say the ball Browner, he's not hybrid, but he's got not the super wide sumo. It's just not as narrow as mine.

But yeah, you have to toy with your leverage, but just because you see someone do it, you have to understand like how leverage is work and yeah, I just, it's, it, I think that's the definition of overrated, like people asking me questions on how to do it and people wanting to emulate it. And then you see no one really do it. And there's, there's some really good deadlifters out there that don't do it at

all. Um, like it's actually like Russ is a very influential person. Like he's got a great deadlift on him. He does conventional. Like does he force people to do conventional? I, I don't know, but everybody knows that, no, if you want to make the lift easier, you wouldn't do it at conventional. Right. Right, right. So have you ever done experimented much with like extremely wide sumo deadlifting,

you know, wider sumo deadlifting? I really, I just don't think I have the mobility for it. That's kind of just what happened when I started deadlifting was my, the comfort level I had sumoo because I would start off like everyone else like conventional who didn't know what powerlifting was. That was the only way to pick up a weight. And then I saw people do sumo. So I tried to do the sumo that they did. And it just was okay, but it looked kind of strange. And I just felt more of a comfort putting my legs more, my feet more narrow.

And yeah, I mean, I do wonder, like, cause I think I'm at a point in my power of thinking career where it's like, people are getting really strong and you're going to have to start taking every advantage you can. And if there's a long off season and if my coach is like, Hey, let's experiment with this. I'm saying yes. Like I'm not married to anything because of a gimmick or because of an image. And I really want to, uh,

No, you've got to be that you've got to be the frog stance guy that guy. Someone needs to carry that banner. If you stop, it might, it might just die. Yeah. I, who knows? The foundations of this country, it's not the election, it's me doing frog stance. That's me just holding the nation together. The country needs it. I would like a graphic of you standing there frog-stanced and like the American flag behind it

or something like that. No, me standing frog-stance and me just holding the nation together. Yeah, that's right. The country coming together. Your frog stance is really the only thing between us and a complete anarchy. Yeah. Last one. Most important one. We saved the best for last.

It's worth all the marbles. So overrated or underrated. Gabagool. Oh, Capacola. I still don't know how I have a discussion with my students about this. I have no idea how Capacola became Gabagool. I know Tony Soprano said it.

I don't know if it's a New Jersey thing, but it's just not spelled anywhere close to that. Underrated, especially if you get like really good cured one. And what we do in my family, we do the super soft every year. That's dry cured meat. And we do the capagola as well. Capagola, we only have two, but that's definitely the one that everyone wants. And we don't do like lunch meat for sandwiches with that. Capagola, we only have two, but that's definitely the one that everyone wants.

And we don't do like lunch meat for sandwiches with that. We get it a little bit, we do it, we cut it ourselves a little bit thicker. And it just, that's our antipasto. It's like, it's out of, and I mean, it can get chewy, but that's with some nice bread, Bocconcini with some olive oil and oregano on it. That's like, I want to say snack, but that's just like cholesterol off the roof, but I'm going to qualify it as a snack. It's just my favorite thing.

When I go back to Chicago for Thanksgiving, I'm hoping to have just a little bit of that. It's so underrated because people normally get it in like sandwiches now and it's like it's a good lunch to me like in a sandwich but alone. It's fantastic. A Gabagool hack. Gabagool tips. I mean, you, the only way that that works though, is if you like dry it and cure it yourself. And that's a, that's the whole thing.

Yeah. Like, uh, it's a fun process. Like it's always, always look forward to it every year. Just, um, the, the, just the process of getting the meat, you know, putting it in the intestines, hanging it in your chentine, which every Italian has in their house, a wine cellar in the Midwest where it gets, you crack the window, it gets cold, and then it hardens the meat like this naturally and you just go in and get like, you know, some pop or something, some, uh, some things out of the fridge and then he just had yours like hitting me like

this hanging it all over and just hitting it. That's like getting the stuff and he was closing it. Got to put the dream come true. Nice. Steve would love that. Yeah, and then he has to put the blankets. It's always a task getting something out of the basement fridge. You've got to re-put the blankets on. You've got to make sure no air is getting in because that's what makes it watery.

So yeah. We can all relate. Great news. You makes it watery. So yeah, it's a. We can all relate. Great news. You did it again. You just passed overrated, underrated. So congratulations. All right. Better than winning Nats.

If you ask me. I don't remember winning Nats. It happened so long ago. So yeah, I'm going to say. Well this is the new hotness then. Ah, so what is your, when, when do you compete against next? So we know, when do you compete next? So we know when to cheer for you. April, April 3rd through 5th. I don't know the exact dates,

but I noticed that weekend. Yeah. So far the American nationals, Atlanta, all national party in the city where the heat is on And yeah, so far off the American nationals. Where's it at? Atlanta. Ooh. All nationals are in Atlanta. Party in the city where the heat is on. Party, oh, wait, that's Miami. What's Atlanta? Who's the famous rapper from Atlanta?

What, Chris? Where to start. Yeah, I mean, isn't that a hotbed? Gucci Mane. I mean, Belist goes on and on. Okay. Outcast. There you go, yep, there we go. I did not know Outos on and on. Okay. Outcast. There you go. Yep.

That's, there we go. I did not know Outcast was from Atlanta. Oh, AT Aliens, man. They like, they put Atlanta on the map. I'm going to be out and I'm going to do overrated, underrated. Outcast, overrated. No way! No, no.

I think they're underrated. They're so underrated. They're so underrated. They got a couple, like, I think it's, you. They're so underrated. They're so underrated. They got a couple like, I think it's, you ever see that sketch, Key and Peele of Andre 3000? No, I haven't. Sir, that's a perfect depiction of Andre 3000 to me.

All right, I'll have to look it up. How they depicted him in that sketch. What about this Andre 3000 underrated actor? I like that. Yeah, he can act. What's it, Four Brothers? Have you ever, is that what the name, is that? It's like with- The Walberg.

Yeah, with Mark Walberg, right? Is that what it, isn't he one of the, isn't he in the? Okay, I was just Googling it right now. I gotta say. And then the guy from Fast and the Furious Yeah, right Yeah, yeah, you've never seen that Tommy what one four brothers I

Know what movie it is. I've seen parts of it. I've never actually the whole thing and Andre 3000 also in semi pro, right? Yeah Yeah, yeah Sugar Mcdunk and I forgot yeah, yeah like you would hate the nickname every like Wait and actually have you watched four brothers recently? No, I haven't I don't think if that was a movie I thought was good because I was like 13 years old. Yeah, I think you might be right honestly. Or it was like the Fast and the Furious movie and it's like oh I'm wondering if you're a spot-on about that. That's actually not good even. Yeah I'm like kind of like, I remember there was a lot of action, but I don't know.

The plot was a foster mom, I think got killed. And those are the four brothers that she took in. They all like were coming back. They weren't actually brothers. Yeah. And that's, that's about all I remember. Like there's like maybe gang activity or the, something like that. I, yeah. And even though they were in Detroit, Mark Wahlberg probably had a Boston accent. Yeah, definitely. Yeah, definitely. Safe to say.

Okay, so we'll be cheering for you in April in the 83s at Powerlifting Nats. We'll also be tuning into Two White Lights as you and Steve continue to talk more on your somewhat semi-new format. Anything else people should be checking out or tuning into? Um, not really. We'll just tell them to do those two things then. Yeah, I guess. You guys want to follow me on Instagram? You can do it. If you you don't that's cool to

Angelo 14 year old power lifter. Yeah. Well, it's been it's been a long time since someone has asked me if I was 14 Like I doubt it Awesome well, thanks again for coming on we always enjoyed of course, so it was it. Yeah. Awesome. Well, thanks again for coming on. We always enjoyed it, of course. So it was good. Yeah, absolutely. I love having I love. I love coming on. It's always a good time.

Thanks a lot, Angela. Tell Steve hi for us, too. I will do it. And can we get a sound bite that just makes one of Steve just really quick? Steve, you suck. Damn it, Steve. Yeah, Steve.

And then if he did it by the name of Steve, this is my impersonation of Steve finding something not funny. And you want some reaction out of him just to move on with the conversation. So you make a joke and he's just like. Yeah. And then you're like, give me something. Yeah. First interview I had with him, I'm like, make a joke. And if he does, he doesn't give the

fake laugh. He doesn't get the right, right, right. He doesn't like that content. Yeah. He just keeps there like, okay, all right, next. It was a funny. That's good. Awesome. All right. Thanks, Angela. All right. See you, boys. See you.

Cool beans. Cool beans. Cool beans. Those are seller cool hanging right next to the Gabagool hitting you in the face. Gabagool. Have you ever seen the one, the soprano song where they change it? It's like, woke up this morning and got me some Gabagool.

And they just say Gabagool in the song like a hundred times. No, but I love it already. Yeah, got me some Gabagool. Cause I do like that intro song to begin with. This episode is brought to you by our good old friends at the strength co check them out at the strength co They have the best made in America Olympic iron plates that exists. They're black e-coated. They're smooth easy to grip They have their lowest shipping prices ever right now and that includes plates It's actually shocking how cheap they can ship you a pair of 45s. I would say if you've never, if you're a home gym owner and you haven't had any

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Bruin boots for what, last two winters, Tanner? I mean, you go year round, you don't limit yourself just to wear time. Well no, I've only been wearing the, especially after my ACL terrier, I've just only been wearing my barefoot, what are the low top ones? The Ursus low top. Yeah, that's I just wear those all the time

I wear those literally 24 7 like a T say look are some strong feet you got my PT said Every PT I have has asked me about the shoes you got like straight up and I say barefoot shoes out of North Dakota There are friends check them out, you know, you're like every single one of the PTs asked me about the barefoot shoes. Yes. All right. Well, there you have it. Even the medical community is in awe. And I don't even want to change shoes. So I'll go to work and I'll wear them and then I'll just go to the gym and I don't even take that pair off anymore. I just wear them and then I'll go home and I don't want to take them off. So they're just my sleep in the house. Yeah. It's like the perfect. I take them off to sleep that is it well there you have it You never have to take them off besides to sleep

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It does. Well, it's $400 a boot, 10%. It's going to save you $40 right there. That's nothing to shake a stick at. No, no. Actually, put pen to paper. It's kind of hard to pass that deal up. That's like $40 savings in your pocket

then you can then turn around and spend on something else. Like a pair of String Coat 45s. That's my wife's thrifting logic. She says, this child's coat is normally $120. I got it for 20. That means we just made $100. Right, right, yes, yeah, yeah. Like we just made $100.

It's like now we now have a free $100 to spend on something else. Right, yeah, because it has to be spent no matter what. Right. It's, we just saved this. We literally just. Right, yeah, because it has to be spent no matter what. Right. It's that we just saved this. We literally just made money. So yeah, it has to be accounted for.

We just profited $100 that now is like house money that we can use for something else. I'm like, hmm, I don't know if that's how that works. My wife doesn't even think of any of that. She just goes, I bought this and I bought this. So that's what it is Nea knee update I can get around from I can go a to be without any crutch Oh, yeah now so all right not particularly fast But I do sometimes bring a crutch with me if I'm gonna go a long distance But it won't be long and I'll just kind of throw those away and burn me that the metaphorical sense

Like you bring a crutch with you or you saying a literal crutch Well, I have like a mental crutch that I take along everywhere with me at this point But I mean literally I might I bring it along with me to work But then once I get there, I'm not using it to go to the copier and that sort of thing, right? Okay, so you things are progressing then. Yep go in the right direction Like was there was there like a day where like, okay, yeah, things actually are getting better or is it just been a slow, slow process?

No, it feels like it's always not getting better. It actually is getting better. It's like one of those things where you like clicks. No, it's never clicking. And but that even just in the last couple days, it has for a certain amount with the walking thing where I'm like, oh my god I can support my body weight and it doesn't feel it doesn't feel good But it doesn't feel like that's borderline catastrophic. Yeah, my control over my quads getting a lot better. Although I did hit a new PR Oh this morning. I'm in the 220s this morning. I this morning. This about here this morning

I weighed two this morning. This morning. This about here. This morning I weighed to this morning I weighed 229 even 229 pounds. Just withering away over there. Where does he stop at next stop 198? That's I don't know where I don't know how far we're gonna take it. But I'm gonna have to put you into PT just to say he's suffering. He's withering away

I've not been in the 220s for a really really long time It feels weird getting on this being like wow I weigh in the 220s see and I would ask you a lot of questions here But what's throwing this all off is you had knee surgery so like nothing right normal, so I can't like normal Oh, do you feel like you move around better? No, no, I move around horribly, horribly. That's why no, I don't actually feel different in that way at all, though. Yeah, like, it's not like, ah, a weight off. It's not like, I don't feel like light. I mean, like you said, it's all

thrown off because of the knee surgery, I suppose. But also, there's a big difference between being like 270 plus at like six three versus being 270 at five eight, right? Like even even when I was 280 no one would look at me and be like, oh fat bastard, you know, they're like like You know, right? Uh-huh. Like I really wasn't fat like my body fat percentage was higher But you wouldn't look at me. Yeah, Like it was pretty well distributed from head to toe. Honestly, your body composition has changed drastically though. Or do you just feel like, Nope, it just, everything is just going proportionally.

That's I am a little bit leaner, you know, if I'm being fair, but yeah, mostly proportionate a little bit. Like, do you mean marginally like marginal? I mean, probably noticeably it's hard to tell on yourself over time, but like, I, I am like my midsection and stuff is pretty, I mean, I'll probably noticeably it's hard to tell on yourself over time. But like I I am like my midsection and stuff is pretty I mean it should be I weigh friggin 220 some pounds but it is like as lean as I've ever been there, but it's not really my goal. Yeah, I'm just While I'm going through this and not doing stuff I'm like, why am I I don't need to eat like a pig right now because I can't like I'm not even fricking I can't do

anything. So what am I using to recover if you're not pumping calories and do it at night? And also to be honest, I'm still eating like probably a lot more than most people you know that be surprised how most people eat. Well, I don't mean most like just your average fat American I mean like your people that are like trying to eat because of you know, dude, I hear you the last few nights I Maybe I don't know. Maybe it's just the way I'm wired man. But like the last few nights. I look at macro factor I'm at 2,700 calories. I'm like dude. I'm done eating for the day and I'm at 2,700 calories

Like that is way short of what MacroFactor determines, 3,400 being maintenance calories for me. So I'm like- Do you lose a little weight then when that happens a few days in a row? I mean, yeah, after a few, but it's like a pound or two would be it after a few days, because then I will try and catch back up with it.

Because then like the day- So what do you weigh right now? I'm very consistently at 214 for the last couple of years. Has that changed at all since you started MacroFactor? Well, yeah, when I first started MacroFactor, I was a little closer to like 210 to 11 ish. So you've gained a few pounds. A few pounds, yeah.

And that would be more because back then, I might have a day where I get 100 grams of protein and I might have a day where I get 100 grams of protein and I might have a day where I get 240 grams of protein. I might have a day where I get 70 grams of fat and I might have a day where I get 200 grams of fat. So like I'm just so much more even in my nutrition now. So your lifting is going good then too right? Yeah, lifting is going pretty good actually. So do you think the macro factor, I mean it's almost impossible to to say yeah, do you think the macro factor has any part in that? I think it does

like if I had to It is really hard to say especially when you have kids like almost so many real about it. That's there's it's like so many factors It's like how it'd be hard really hard to pinpoint that it is like I will say there's a lot of variables in my life really hard to pinpoint that. It is like, I will say there's a lot of variables in my life. Um, yeah, there's a lot of variables. Um, but I can say for sure though, that this is the most just dialed in. My nutrition has been not from like, I'm trying to get cut or lean, but just from like a consistency looking at macronutrients, the consistency on a daily

to weekly basis is the most consistent they've ever been in my life. And I do think that has a, has a factor in it where things, you know, workouts, I would just say on average do feel a little better. And I think once I start hitting the weights harder, like I think that the gains are going to continue to feel like they're consistently there too. Because I'm never, I'm never feeling like I'm just like running like I never feel like like the end of the runway is near. I just like oh, there's more there's more road there. Like it's right. This is gonna keep going and going just keep it just takes time. Yeah, that's what it feels like right now,

which is always a good feeling. That's the best feeling when it's like, all I need is more time. I just I just if I show it, I don't need to rush into work. Everything's gonna keep clicking. Like that's that's the best. Yeah, it's not like you're like counting on these enormous huge like PRs. Everything's gonna keep clicking. Like that's, that's the best. Yeah. It's not like you're like counting on these enormous, huge like PRs. It's just like, man, everything's just going right. It's also not the thing of like, oh, I have to go into the gym and absolutely destroy myself today. It's like, no, I just know if I go in and put in the work, this week's gonna build on the week before, which is building on the week before. And like, how many

of these can I chain together? Like I'm going on a 50 week combo here Whatever it is, and I know that I'll turn into something eventually well that reminds me check out juggernaut AI dot app That's the program all this week after week training and building and stuff. That's what Tommy's talking about right here is the progress He's making on that It is the program He's running has been running to do that and And it does give you that, that's, when it's working its best, that is what it feels like. We'll talk more about that, actually,

when this ad is up and I finish my ad too, okay. Okay, but that is really what it feels like when it's working the best is that you're gonna have hard training days, of course, especially like, I mean, some days are just hard, but it's fun when those come around, but like when it's doing your best, you're getting through those and you're almost like excited for the next time it comes

around. And like you're not just completely dead. And you're just making this like long, long, steady progress over a long period of time. And I think that that's what Juggernaut AI is good at. They're also great at giving 10% off with this count code, Mastinomics, possibly my favorite part about juggernaut AI would just when you sign up you got to make sure to sign up through the website and not through the app that's where you can use the discount code This episode is also brought to you by Swiss link and when I think of Swiss link I think of a eclectic an amazing collection of Goods from Armed forces around the world. And one of those items that really stands out to me is the Swiss Link water cans. They're available in 3-0, made from 3-0-4 stainless steel in 10 and 20 liter options.

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SwissLynx exceptional collection, or maybe get a water can of your own, head on over to SwissLynx.com. And while you're there, use code mass to save 15% on your next purchase Swiss link comm code mass save you 15% Thank You Swiss link Well, thanks, Swiss link. I did want to say so I did officially make the switch over from hypertrophy to

strength blocks noise and Even the first the even the first week of strength, you know, you're still riding that higher volume a little bit, but man, even going from sets of eight to sets of six, you're like, sets of six? Sweet, yeah. Man, like, I'm not even tired, man.

I'm just so conditioned right now. I'm just a machine. And it's really fun though. It's weird how that's, You're like, oh, sweet. It's like weird to walk away after between doing the bridge block, kind of being sick, getting back onto the hypertrophy block. I'm looking at, I haven't done really anything

for the main movements, less than a set of eight since the meet, which was July. It's been one week since you looked at me. That's right. The meat, which was July. That's right. And so now I'm like, uh, so August, September, October, November, I mean, almost four months of doing nothing less than eight sets in a rep are eight reps in a set. And so now it is crazy, but like going down to six, you're just like, oh, I just feel so fresh finishing up the six, six rep here.

Like it's and a lot of it its mindset, but also a lot of it is work like eight, eight reps is always hard. I don't care who you are. If you're putting weight on the bar and doing eight reps, it's really hard to do. And so I'm excited for the strength block to keep going. So you're what like, just like one weekend of this is the first week of it. I've only had one workout. So tomorrow will be my, my first bench workout of the strength block. Yep

sweet You had weight in here. Was that just what I was a body weight that was what your body weight. Yes Yeah, yeah. Yeah, so we're only a little over 10 pounds apart from each other right now. Yeah Yeah, it's probably the closest we've ever been Probably because that might have your heavy. Yes, you're in your two or 30s. I was probably like 270 So still would have been. Because when you were heavy, you were near 230, that was probably like 270, so it would have been 40 pounds spread there. It would have been way apart then. Yeah, I am like 55 pounds lighter than my heaviest right now.

Isn't that wild to think that you're... 55 pounds? That's a swing, isn't it? Yeah. And I feel like I I outside of my knee being like this I feel like I could come like with my training just being on point again I'm sure I'd gain a little bit of weight that you know It's not fair to say because I wouldn't end up being 220s You know, I would put some weight 20 is not optimal for getting stronger right at that right height

Yeah, but you also don't like to be to 70 either though. No being not that much heavier. I think I could still deadlift close to 700 pounds, you know, and that's the easiest lift of the big ones to hang on to me to make that at least for me personally benches the one though that's gonna fall off hard to 229. It's, it's hard, you know, I'm not gonna be benching 475 at 229. Yeah,. Yeah, that's, that, yeah, that'd be a much harder one to keep there. But the way, I mean, now obviously I have an uphill battle

on squat to begin with, but even the way my squat was feeling before I had a lighter body weight, it still felt like, I'm like, no, I just, it's just, I just had that feeling where I'm like, no, this just takes time, it keeps, like I'm improving all the time, it just, like, literally is just a time thing. But bench is the one on the body weight though, like. It improving all the time. It just like literally is just a time thing. Mm-hmm

But bench is the one on the body weight though. Like it does it's you almost can't replace that goes away Yeah, it's like having that less foundation underneath you just it just yeah, it doesn't work the same Like sometimes when I'm benching I'm like, why does it feel like I have to move it so far in all directions? It doesn't actually feel like that. Yeah, it does. Actually where I'm just like, it feels like my arms got like six inches longer or something, you know? And it's like, I guess it's just from like, cause you know, my chest is smaller by just a little bit.

My back smaller just by a little bit. Like even just like back fat and just stuff in there. Like everything normally like pinch together, you know, get less of that platform for everything to sit on. Right. Yeah, I'll do it. I Yeah, one other thing along training. I forgot to mention this. I am trying to make the switch over to low bar positioning again.

How does that feel? the switch over to low bar positioning again. How does that feel? And it feels, it's so funny now because, I mean, my ideal squat is like a nice low bar and it's always felt so great for me, but I do now what in my head feels like a low bar, like it's damn near falling off my back and then I watch the video, I'm like,

I can hardly tell the difference between these. I mean, I definitely can, like they're definitely- But it's not as low as like what you would have put it like five years ago before and I can't I can't go right into That positioning like what it right like I would definitely not be ready for that But I probably the biggest difference I can notice it in my knee travel like it's not as drastic as it is with with high bar You know does it feel like you could do more weight eventually? I think so I think so but man after doing it for the first, I was just starting to work into some before I got

sick for that crazy stretch. So I had a few days where I got some higher rep, low weight stuff in with high bar. But this other day I did what I do, five sets of six with 335 at low bar. And yeah, I felt pretty just like in control the whole time on it. Did really feel that soreness in like through your, you know, almost like your upper hamstrings, like glute area.

You don't get that with high bar. Like you, you don't get that soreness in there ever. So I'm like, Oh, maybe there is some, some growth that can be happening in the legs and even, even my back, like I never have an issue with my backgrounding, but even moving the bar a little bit, it does sit on your back and use your back muscles a little differently too. So maybe there's some growth that can happen in the, in the life.

I bet there will be. I bet with a little time, it probably only get better and better. Only time will tell. Yep. Speaking of powerlifting. Well, speaking of strong man, the strong man registration open for the 2025 lift hard, live easy classic to exclusively to our crew members and our supporting members and our Gym members and

Almost every single one of those spots filled immediately there were to our were Possibly still technically two super heavyweight spots open So if you're a super heavyweight, particularly if you're a supporting member or a gym member, you could get those spots we haven't opened it to general public yet, but they don't get taken maybe we'll do that and probably More important to more people the powerlifting registration Opens up to just supporting members and gym members here on The day that this episode comes out

actually right the Monday the eight actually. Yeah, you'd be so it'll be the day that this comes out. That's opening up to those supporting members and gym members and if the following week there's any spots left, you know, those are the rest of you could potentially get a spot there. But I have a feeling a lot of those 90 spots will get taken pretty quickly. I would sure think so. If if the previous years are any indicator of what could happen. So we're getting people signed up and ready to book their trips to sunny, beautiful western northeast South Dakota back in July 2025. Just tick it. It's like a circle, isn't it? We're just riding this merry-go-round, around and around, back and forth. Was there something else about the registration?

Oh, I guess we did say maybe we should put it out there. To a lot of people, this is not relatively trivial, but I did just feel like it's worth mentioning. So no one feels like they're caught off guard. The past couple of years, if you signed up as a lifter, you got a free meat shirt. Because of us changing a few things and because of us really looking into the books closely over the last couple years in an effort for us to maybe like not lose money, this year by signing up you do not get a free shirt. If you're a volunteer or a worker or helper, you still get a free shirt. Because that's one of the few things you get as a reward

for that what you're doing. But the lifters do not get a free one. However, we're going to do something like you can buy it at cost, you know, so it'll be for sale at like $15 or I don't know, maybe we'll do some other deal if you buy X number of dollars from our booth, maybe you get it free then. You know, the problem was, and I guess we don't even have to get any, even this many specifics, but what I would just say.

This is the part where we're gonna break down the legal, the legal structure of our business. What I would say for like the powerlifting part of it, specifically, we're not taking any of that revenue for people signing up and, you know, Mastodonics isn't getting that. But then yet we're giving out a shirt for that. And then some of the people,

a lot of them are supporting members who are gonna come buy stuff from us. And then we feel like it equals out in the end anyways. But some of the people aren't, they're just people that are doing a meet. And it's like, well, just gave away a shirt to someone that doesn't even really, you know, support Mastodonics much. So yeah, and like this does, it probably gets more of the details. Some people don't, we won't dwell on it too long, but like some people don't get this

distinction. Dave is the one that puts on and runs the meat. So Dave, who does an amazing job, Dave is the one that collects all of the money from the meat. We get no money from the meat fee at all. When you register and you pay your 100 bucks or whatever it is to be part of the meat, like Mastinomics sees zero of that, which is fine because Dave runs the whole meat. But we want people to understand that we see zero of that. And in the past, we've been spending over $1,000 of our own money just giving shirts away on top of all the other stuff we do. So yeah, when you look at just the sheer amount of time and effort that goes into this thing, just trying to make it feel a little less

like we're not working for minimum wage in the entire process. Minimum wage could even be generous. Or less, I should say actually. I forget minimum wage isn't, well, it's not $5 anymore. South Dakota minimum wage is slightly higher than that, but Slightly what is it even? I think it's like eight bucks right now. Maybe it's eight. I don't know. I'm not sure The Fed dropped rates again did they today or like a week? Um, no that was like maybe a week ago now

Yeah, well, you know a month ago. They had dropped a half a percent in a week ago. They dropped a quarter percent Let's come down three quarters of a percent in the last two months approximately Yeah, not directly related to minimum wage, but as long as we're talking to talk of the economy man Bring that down another percent or so, you know for anyone that Someone in this podcast happened to buy a house, you know, let's say in like 2023 is 20, you know, let's say in like 20, 23 is 20, you know, a rate drop would be welcome. Oh, well, I'm saying I would imagine that's, you know, that that's the that's got to be what happened.

I mean, I know that the. Prime interest rate isn't anything, you know, that that housing rates don't have to follow that to a T or anything like that, but I would sure think it's a leading indicator of where that would be headed to. Yeah, I think so. I think that's what they say, right? I don't know. Nobody, nobody. It'll only be a matter of time before interest rates are just magically down to like two and a half percent again and just the funny monies flying around.

Like, actually, Tanner, did you have been paying attention to some of the more non-traditional investment items this month, this week I should say? Like Bitcoin's up big, right? Like any, yeah, just all those things just going absolutely insane. Yeah, yeah. So that's, I'm just wondering like, okay, does that go? Like do interest rates get low? once NFTs start popping again?

Then I know we're in some funny money times. That's that's like the yeah That's I feel like the the key indicator there so be on the lookout if NFTs start happening Something we're overcooking things maybe My only advice on any of that is don't get yourself too high on the highs and then Conversely don't get yourself too high on the highs. And then conversely, don't get yourself too low on the lows. Everything else, there's balance. There's always balance. That's right.

Things balance out. Just a little teaser. We have an assortment of just really exclusive little odds and ends things that we're going to possibly, people will have a chance to get get their hands on when they like order early and just various things. But I'm just gonna hold up a couple of things right now

for our video watchers. We've got a couple different items. And we say show and tell, this is just show, no tell. There's Tanner's holding up exclusive. There's a lot of stuff. Yeah, I've seen most of these. Yeah, there's other things here. I'm not even holding up exclusive stuff. Oh, yeah. I've seen most of these. Yeah, there's other things here. I'm not even gonna hold all of them up. But there is just various

things that we've got coming. Yeah, like little little cool, exciting little additions to our merchandise offering. And also the awards for the 2024. Yeah Grip Gauntlet Challenge held at Crew Falls December to remember event. The awards came in. There's three awards. I don't have them. I do actually have them right here. Do we want to unveil them? Or should we save that for a little bit? Maybe we should save that. Maybe. But man, I really want to see those things. But yeah, maybe we'll save that for next week. Yeah, okay save well

We'll unveil the award so people can start getting excited over what they could win. So we got three awards You think one of them will go to the person that actually Does the best in the Grimp contest and the other two might we'll think of various ways of people to be able to win Those words, so it should be fun Anything else this week that's probably about it We kind of did the damn thing didn't we? Maybe our best episode we've ever made This might be

Angelo didn't talk as much as Zach from episode 449. He did not keep up with Zach. No, he didn't. He didn't. But there's always next time, I guess. That was a tough act to follow. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah, it is. That's it. That's all, that's all folks. We're holding our own. Tommy, where do they find you at? You can find me at tomahawk underscore D. You can follow me at Tanner underscore Bear. Just make sure to follow Mastinomics at Mastinomics.

See you. You