SocialThumbs.com

I just started a new site with some friends called SocialThumbs.com

Basically, the site aims to help you solve your problems (dilemmas)...with the help of your friends and peers on the internet...

Check it out and tell me what you think .... socialthumbs.com

You Know Your in College When...

You Know Youre In College When...

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1. High school started before 8am, but now anything before noon is considered "early."

2. You have more beer than food in your fridge.

3. Weekends start on Thursday. No... Wednesday.

4. 6am is when you go to sleep, not when you wake up.

5. You know many different ways to cook ramen noodles or macaroni and cheese.

6. The health center gives out free condoms, and people take them… just in case.

7. Instead of falling asleep in class, you stay in bed.

8. You know how late McDonald's, Taco Bell, Qdoba, etc. are open.

9. You think it's the weekend on a Wednesday and you don't know what month it is.

10. You can't remember the last time you washed your car.

11. Your underwear/sock supply dictates your laundry schedule.

12. You check Facebook/Myspace more than once a day.

13. You get drunk dialed on any night of the week.

14. You wash dishes in the bathroom sink.

15. You've fallen off a loft bed.

16. You talk about beer pong like it's a sport.

17. Finding random people in your house is perfectly normal, and you even sympathize with them... sometimes when you wake up you have no idea where you are.

18. Your primary news sources are the Daily Show and the Colbert Report.

19. You open a beer at 10 am and your roommate asks you if there's more.

20. The standard of meals per day falls to two, sometimes just one.

21. Your trash is overflowing and your bank account isn't.

22. You go to Target or WalMart more than 3 times a week.

23. You wear the same jeans for 13 days without washing them.

24. Your breakfast consists of a coke or cereal bar on the way to class... anything with caffeine will do.

25. Quarters are like gold.

26. Your idea of feeding the poor is buying yourself some ramen noodles.

27. You live in a house with three couches, none of which match.

28. You try to study but seem to procrastinate by eating, going to study breaks, talking to people, etc...

29. You talk to your roommate on instant messenger when you're both home.

30. You ask people what YOU did last night.

31. Certain things are now deemed "facebook worthy." When friends take pictures of you, you wonder how long it will take them to post them.

32. You've seen a hit and run involving a bicyclist/pedestrian.

33. You see people you know you've met but can never remember their names or how you know them.

34. You sleep more in class than in your room

35. Your idea of a square meal is a box of Pop-Tarts.

36. You've traveled with bags of dirty clothes.

37. You go home to do your laundry because you're too poor to pay the $2... or too lazy to go to a change machine.

38. You pay $100 for a book you don't read once, return it four months later, and get $7.

39. More than 20% of your household furnishings are made from milk crates.

40. You recognize the meat in the dorm soup as yesterday's meatloaf, and thus decide to eat a nice bowl of cereal - a safe bet for any meal.

41. You use words like "thus" (see 40).

42. You throw out bowls and plates because you don't feel like washing them.

43. Your beer pong table is nicer than all your other tables.

44. It takes preparation... and 3 people... to take out your garbage.

45. Going to the library is a social event.

46. You wear flip flops in the shower your freshman year... you know why.

47. You start joining clubs because of the free food.

48. Visits home depend on how much money you have for gas.

49. You skip one class to write a paper for another.

50. You have no idea where your tuition money is going... technology fees? I think not.

51. Bicycles don't seem as lame as they did in high school.

52. You stay up late to finish homework then sleep through the class in which it was due.

53. Girls: You've balanced your foot on a shampoo bottle to shave.

54. Your backpack is giving you scoliosis.

55. You've written a check for 45 cents or stopped to get $2.00 of gas.

56. Your bill in the bookstore will be comparable to tuition.

57. Going to the mailbox becomes an ego booster/breaker.

58. Most of your T.A.s are foreign...what's the deal?

59. You never realized so many people are smarter than you.

60. You never realized so many people are more dumb (aka "dumber") than you.

61. Western Europe could be wiped out by a terrible plague and you'd never know, but you can recite the last episode of your favorite show verbatim.

62. Care packages rank right up there with birthdays.

63. You craft ways to make any game into a drinking/stripping game.

64. You meet the type of people you thought only existed in movies.

65. Printers break down only when you desperately need them.

66. Anything can be cooked in a microwave.

67. Two words: bike cops.

68. You have Safe Ride programmed into your phone.

69. Old school Nintendo... and guitar hero... are pretty much the best things ever.

70. Going to the grocery at midnight is completely normal.

71. You call restaurants that deliver more than you call your own family.

72. You've paid bills over $5... in coins.

73. You can't imagine life without your computer/cell phone/ ipod.

74. Hoodies and sweatpants become the norm - jeans are considered "dressy" at certain occasions... like school.

75. A canceled class is almost as exciting as Christmas.

76. Taking a nap in the library is perfectly acceptable.

77. Your professors speak English... as a second language.

78. Your teachers swear in class and no one cares.

79. Candles in your dorm room are considered contraband, but cigarettes are ok.

80. You take condiment packets and napkins from fast food restaurants - hey, they're free.

81. Betta fish are like your family.

82. You bring back socks from the laundry room that may or may not be yours.

83. You know what people carrying suspiciously heavy backpacks after dark are doing...

84. The elevators take forever but you'll wait 10 minutes just so you don't have to climb stairs.

85. Your roommate asks you to check the weather on your computer when they're standing 5 feet away from the door.

86. Showers become more of an issue.

87. You press the automatic door opener instead of simply grabbing the handle when you approach a door.

88. Christmas lights seem to be acceptable all year round.

89. Class size doubles on exam days.

90. You donate plasma even though you know it's pretty sketchy.

91. You are no longer thankful that fire alarms are here to protect you.

92. You've bought Christmas presents from the book store and charged it to your student account so your parents pay for the gifts because you're too broke.

93. You begin to include ketchup on your list of acceptable vegetables.

94. You stay on campus for hours in between classes when it's too cold to walk home.

95. People have to help you kick the vending machine just so you can get your 50 cent bag of chips.

96. There's always a "question kid" in at least one of your classes, and you really wish someone would just tell him/her to shut the hell up.

97. You steal dishes from the cafeteria so you don't have to wash your own.

98. Laundry is an all-day event.

99. You no longer find it uncool to take naps. In fact, you quite enjoy them.

100. It's illegal to drink in the dorms yet they sell an assortment of shot glasses, beer mugs, tankards, etc. in the bookstore.

101. You find your list of acceptable napping places expanding daily to increasingly uncomfortable locations.

102. You fill out credit card applications for the free food.

103. You've eaten cereal out of a cup... with a fork.

104. Dressing up for Halloween becomes cool again.

105. You know at least one person who has dropped his/her cell phone into a toilet.

106. You hang multiple shirts on the same hanger to save space/money.

107. You become increasingly annoyed with the "old" people in class - props to them for going back to college but they generally ask really, really annoying questions.

108. You admire people's alcohol bottle shrines.

109. You set your clock 5-10 minutes ahead so you can potentially make it to class on time.

110. You eventually realize that setting your clock ahead makes no difference to you and you're still late.

111. You check ratemyprofessor.com (or something of the like) before choosing your class schedule.

112. You text faster than you type.

113. You only find out a class is cancelled after you get there and sit for about ten minutes.

114. You actually start using coupons, especially those school coupon books.

115. You open canned food and eat it... out of the can.

116. You run out of black ink and, instead of buying a new ink cartridge, decide blue is a nice substitute... adds a little flair.

117. You have numbers in your phone with labels like "Sketchy Steve" and "Alcohol Guy."

118. The food in your fridge may or may not be older than your little brother.

119. The words "google" and "wikipedia" have become verbs. And you use them... quite often.

120. The names Morgan, Jim, Jack, and Jose could aptly describe either who you were with last night or what you had to drink.

121. You fill your empty two-liter bottles with pop from the school cafeteria.

122. You have a drinking buddy who can hold the most intellectual, deep conversations when drunk. Unfortunately, neither he/she nor you can remember most of it later.

123. Your floor has been dirty to the point that you've had to brush your feet off before putting on socks or getting into bed.

124. You're all for the free samples at grocery stores.

125. Energy drinks become your new best friends.

126. You realize that taking summer classes pretty much negates the fun connotation of "summer."

127. You know exactly how much food will fit into a mini-fridge.

128. You realize that said mini-fridge does NOT freeze ice cream.

129. You've made a sandwich on or eaten food off of your $1500 laptop.

130. Your scar stories involve alcohol and/or hearing what happened to you from your more sober friends.

131. It is completely acceptable... and encouraged... to party on weeknights. What would life be without Wasted Wednesdays or Thirsty Thursdays?

132. Most of your textbooks remain unopened (possibly still shrink-wrapped) the entire semester.

133. Waking up in the morning and driving somewhere to get a friend's (or your) car becomes a norm.

134. The local supermarket sells ping pong balls... right next to solo red cups. Coincidence?

135. You go home for winter/summer break and suddenly your life back at college seems so exciting...

136. You smell the clear liquid in your water bottle before you drink it... just to make sure it's actually water.

137. You discover new bruises on your body and wonder where the hell they came from.

138. You find alternate routes to class in order to avoid annoying organization booths and/or the preacher on campus.

139. Two (more) words: Power Hour.

140. You finish reading this and wonder how you can procrastinate next.

Training Negatives Can be Positive!

Taken From Bodybuilding.com-

When we're talking about gym training, the negative phase of a range of motion can be very positive. Learn the terms, the benefits, and the proper way to execute negatives right now!

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By: Matt Danielsson

When we're talking about gym training, the negative phase of a range of motion can be very positive. Let's start by defining negative, positive and static, which are the three phases a muscle can currently be in.

Definitions

• Positive: Contracting the muscle, as in curling a dumbbell up.
• Static: Not moving, bracing yourself against the weight.
• Negative: Extending the muscle, as in lowering the dumbbell.

Effects

Now, the interesting thing is how these phases affect our strength differently, and also what effect you can expect, growthwise. (There's been different studies regarding this, with slightly different results, so I'll generalize a little - but the main point still holds true)

From what I've read, the major effect of positives is increase of brute strength. Volume, on the other hand, is where negatives come into play. This is supposed to be related to the difference of increased Motoric Unit effiency (in the muscle fibers) vs. when the muscle fibers are being torn apart most effectively, to put it bluntly.

1 Rep Max

Frankly, I'm not too sure any of this really matters in real life. Strength does, though!

Assume that you can do a 1 rep maximum, 1RM, of bicep curling a 100 lb barbell. That 1RM is 100% power output. Now for the interesting part - if you stop and hold is statically, you're stronger! And if you resist on the way down instead of just holding the weight still, you're even STRONGER! If the positive 1RM was 100%, then Static is approx. 120% and Negative approx. 140%.

Explanation

Why is this? The most credible explanation I've heard is that it's a defense mechanism of the body. I mean, if it was the other way around we'd be in trouble. We'd be able to pick up a huge rock and hold it above our heads, but once we're there we realize that we're too weak to hold it there. Ouch.

Seriously though, it's mostly common sense. It's like a safety buffer to ensure that we can't pick up something we can't handle, and in a worst-case scenario we always have the power to give the item a controlled descent back down.

This is the key to WHY negative training works! And this is also why you have to be both disciplined and experienced to do it safely. If you focus on making the most of the negatives, as in having a partner spot you and assist you in pressing the weight down to make it harder, you trick your body.

Simply put, you override the safety by filling the buffer with extra weight, thereby forcing your muscles to work harder than elsewise possible. The downside of this is exactly that - you override the safety limit! You must be VERY sure of what you're doing, and if you have previous joint problems in the area - forget it.

However, if you're able to successfully pull it off you can reap the rewards of increased muscle mass. Take note though, that this kind of training is not for everyone, nor can be done for weeks on end as it is very taxing on your body. Avoid overtraining - mix ordinary workouts with negatives ... And why not try alternating with other ways of raising intensity?

Last Thoughts

Soon there'll be an article on Partials on here, and I've found switching between partials and negatives as intensity-boosters to be a good way to keep the training challanging, productive and fun!

But once again: Beware of overtraining!

Good Luck,

mattdanielsson@hotmail.com

A New Begginning...

After spending a semester in Boise (and failing), it became pretty clear that Boise was not the place for me. Even though I will probably never run track for Boise State again, I am not done with track. I am more motivated than ever to do my best. I am competing unattached in several meets this spring, and I'm hoping to do pretty well. I'm going to go to community college next year, and then hopefully get back into a university the year after to run track.

Keep you posted...

How to Get Away With a DUI

This was told to me by a good State Trooper friend I know.

Alright, you were out clubbing all night and you had a few drinks....

Now, you should be a good boy/girl and call a cab, but you decide that you really haven't had THAT much to drink. So, you're in your car, minding your own business when you see those dreaded flashing lights behind you. Shit! You realize you've already had a DUI when you were a lot younger (or you just don't want to get caught). You cannot afford a DUI! You know you should just pull over and take the punishment. You will probably become the so called “alcoholic” in your family, your spouse will probably leave you and you will spend years in rehab with real alcoholics, but that's O.K. Because you are doing the right thing. No! You have another choice, and it won't end up like an episode of cops.

Maintain the speed limit! Use your turn signals on every turn! Drive like its your license test when you were 16! The cop behind isn't going to call backup or anything, it's not like this is a high speed dangerous pursuit. This is just a nice drive through your residential neighborhood. Pretend the cop isn't even there! Pull into your garage, lock all your doors, and crack open the booze.

Now, that may seem retarded, but in actuality, it's extremely smart (and better than that DUI that will ruin your life). You leave the officer with three choices...

1. This is probably the most likely, since officers have better things to do---The officer just leaves your house and goes on to fight real crime. You got off scotch free (no pun intended)! Believe it or not this often works...even though this is the best case scenario, the other two are much better than that dreaded DUI.

2. The officer jots down your license plate number for later investigation. Once again, no DUI! You just deny that you ever saw anything behind you! The most they can give you is misdemeanor evasion, which will be a fine of $1000 at the most, which is a lot better than that DUI.

3. Officer hard ass decides that he is going to get into your house and bust your ass no matter what! The thing is though, you're inside drinking, and by the time he manages to get inside you are already hammered. When he asks if you were drinking and driving you say “No, but I am now, are you thirsty?” There is no way to prove that you were drinking and driving, since theres obviously nothing illegal about drinking in your own home. Once again, NO DUI! Officer hard ass is either going to take you downtown, or join you for a little bourbon fest. Even if you get taken downtown, just deny you ever saw anything, and the most they can give you is misdemeanor evasion.

Try it out tonight!

Dan Burcham

P.S. --make sure you subscribe to my blog to get some of the great prizes (weightlifting gear) I will be giving away soon!

New Site Location

I'm on a different server now, because I need more control over everythang.....check it outsss


acollegeathlete.com

peace!

Pulling an All-Nighter

For whatever reason (probably napping too much), I could not get to sleep last night to save my life! So, I just stayed up the entire night. This probably wasn't the healthiest thing to do considering the I have a pretty full day today, but at least I'm up, so I'm going to make it to my classes on time. I also got to eat some McDonalds for free which is always good. I know I'm trying to lose weight, but I figured I could eat some extra calories since I was up burning extra calories. There is only one bad part. I tried to play Madden 08 on Xbox Live and lost 71-7. That's really bad. I still kick the crap out of my roommates, so it's all good.

Danny Boi