#for a split second you can see my ankle in a 90 degree angle

[bellyjellyfish]

i got my first ever logboard fail on camera HA

i almost broke my ankle because of a fuckin stone 👍

[optimusphillip]

OptimusPhillip Reviews 20: Transformers: Studio Series 32 Optimus Prime

It’s hard to believe it’s been more than a decade since the original Michael Bay Transformers movie came out. As much as I’ve grown to dislike the film series, I really enjoyed them as a kid, and even still I have a lot of nostalgia for the first movie. Not to mention, they have had quite a large impact on the Transformers franchise in general, so it makes sense that Hasbro and Takara would launch a toyline dedicated to revisiting these films... if for no other reason than the original toys didn’t really age well. And while my focus as of late has been on the G1 style toys, I have accumulated my fair share of Studio Series toys, so I should probably take a look at them as well. And what better place to start than with the big bot himself, Optimus Prime? Specifically, this is the second release of Optimus Prime, based on his appearance in the 2007 movie.

Truck Mode

Like in the film, Optimus transforms into a Peterbilt 379 semi-truck. Unfortunately, however, I find this to be a rather weak mode. Just looking at him, you can plainly see the robot mode feet sitting on the truck bed, which do nothing to hide the massive gap between the two halves. There is a trailer hitch molded in, but it barely resembles anything in real life. Then there’s the sides. Looking at the figure from the side, you can see the sides of the robot thighs, the transformation hinges, and hints of the robot shoulders. Furthermore, the steps leading up to the door are comically undersized and recessed, and the toolboxes by the gas tanks are completely absent. Best I can tell, these are all artifacts of the remolding process. The original release of this mold, Prime’s Revenge of the Fallen body, hides most of the robot parts behind panels, and retains the proper steps and toolboxes. But the toy had to be remolded for reasons we’ll get into later on, so those parts had to be replaced, leaving us with a weaker truck mode. Though that doesn’t explain why they removed some of the flood lights from the roof.

It’s not just aesthetics that suffer for the remolding. Due to the way the wheels transform, it’s difficult to get all six of them on the ground at once. Plus there seems to be something keeping the front of the truck from holding together correctly. Again, neither of these problems were present on the ROTF version, so I can only assume this is the result of the re-engineered transformation creating clearance issues.

There are some positives, though. For one, there is storage in this mode for his gun accessory. It can either tab into the slots on either side of his sleeper cab, it can attach to a pair of tabs on either side of the nose, or it can store on the “truck bed”. Also, the colors are nicer here than on the ROTF version. The red is much brighter and there’s a lot more silver. It’s still missing the gold gradient on the nose, and the blue flames on the rear fenders, but it’s still much better looking color-wise than the first release. I just wish the mold was as good as the first one.

Conversion

Transforming this figure is very different from the Siege figures I’ve covered. While figures like Siege Prime or Starscream do have difficult transformations, they’re still fairly clean all things considered. Here, there are a lot of parts that clash together, and a lot of steps that need to be done at the same time. For example, the nose of the truck needs to be split apart and unfurled before the rear can be brought down, and the rear needs to be brought down before the sleeper can transform, and the sleeper needs to be fully transformed before the nose can be brought up to form the arms. Once you get some practice in it becomes easy enough, but it’s definitely not as clean as the Siege line. Just a consequence of the movie aesthetic.

Robot Mode

The robot mode is where most of the retooling comes together. While the Revenge of the Fallen release had a much cleaner truck mode, this version has a much better looking robot mode. Compared to that toy, the chest is slimmed down and lacks the center hinge, the backpack is far cleaner, and the tires on his thighs are far more visible. Though I will say that the armpit fenders still make him look a bit... overweight. Still, he is far more screen accurate than the initial release.

The movie Transformers are infamous for their intricate designs, so naturally this figure has a lot of molded detail. You can see all kinds of mechanical elements and panels molded into his shins and biceps, all the overlapping armor plates on his thighs and arms, and of course all the interconnected truck parts that make up his torso. They even molded in the ab detailing he had in the movie, even though most of it is barely visible. He’s a really nice looking figure, though the deco leaves some to be desired.

He’s also decently articulated. Ball-jointed neck, universal shoulders with adjustable guards, bicep swivels, 90 degree elbows, and wrist rotation. Below the belt, he has a waist swivel universal hips, thigh swivels, almost 135 degree knees, and universal ankles. However, the truck tires on his thighs do impede some of the motion, especially when it comes to turning the waist or thighs. Still, you can get some decent poses out of him, and he’s pretty easy to balance thanks to his large feet.

While the Revenge of the Fallen version came with his battle blades, this version includes the ion blaster he used throughout the original trilogy. While it doesn’t form out of his fuel tanks, it is sculpted to match the gun used in the films, and it even has a burn mark on the muzzle. It fits snugly into his hands, though it does look a bit small in proportion. Maybe that’s just my imagination, though. If you don’t want him holding it, you can store it on his back like in truck mode, but it looks a bit odd in this mode. I prefer to just pose him with it, though it can also be mounted on the bottom of his forearm. While I don’t own the first release of the mold, I’m told he can also hold that figure’s blade weapons, though it’s an awkward fit with his remolded forearms.

Of course, his final feature, and the other reason for all the remolds, is that he can combine with Studio Series Leader Jetfire... a figure I do not own, so I cannot comment on that feature right now. If I ever get him, I do plan to do a review of him where I follow up on the combination.

Backdrop

Just real quick, I would like to comment on the included backdrop that comes standard with all Studio Series figures. They’re all constructed the same way: corrugated cardboard, with the bottom folded into a box, and a flap on either side. In addition to extending the backdrop, the right flap has the Studio Series logo, with the figure’s ID number at the top, and the left flap bears the Transformers logo and an Autobot sigil. Then in the middle of the stand piece is the logo of whatever film the toy is based on. The only difference between the backdrops, aside from the printing, is that larger figures have larger backdrops, so I’m not going to go over this again for the other toys.

This figure’s backdrop is based on the “Highway Showdown” scene from the first movie. Specifically, it depicts the highway overpass off of which Bonecrusher tackles Optimus. It’s a decent enough match to the movie; not frame perfect, but very familiar. Though I question why they chose this specific shot to recreate: I would’ve personally gone for either the beginning of the fight at the top of the overpass, or the end of the fight below the overpass, since it feels like an unnatural angle for a standing backdrop.

While standing up straight, Optimus fits very nicely onto the stand in robot mode, though his backpack does butt up against the backdrop when he’s fully on the base. Also, some poses don’t quite work, due to things like his backpack or his arms knocking the backdrop down. On the plus side, the side flaps do fold out if you want to get some wider poses in. I take issue with the fact that there’s only enough room on the base for one figure when this is supposed to depict a fight scene, but that’s probably more of a nitpick than anything. He also fits surprisingly well in truck mode. There’s a bit of overhang on the ends, and he only really fits at one angle, but all six wheels are within the edges of the base, so I’d say it counts.

Final Thoughts

Studio Series 32 Optimus Prime is a mixed bag of a figure. On the one hand, he has great articulation, an impressive amount of sculpted detail, a better color scheme, and looks much better in robot mode than the first release. On the other hand, the vehicle mode suffers quite a bit for those upgrades, with visible robot parts and issues holding together. Not to mention, there are much better Voyager Primes out there, like the 2010 Battle Blades figure. Really, this toy’s main saving grace is its ability to combine with Jetfire, something that no Voyager Prime toy has done before. If that feature doesn’t appeal to you, I’d honestly recommend trying to hunt down the Battle Blades Prime over this. That said, however, the Studio Series figure is still decent enough, and if you can’t find the Battle Blades for a decent price, this is a pretty good alternative.

[the-real-xmonster]

(Probably) Last Mass Post on Olympic Technicals

I saw a GIF of Nathan's 3A from his Oly FS. Has he gone back to the toe-pick release, from the skid that Raf was teaching him? (Can't seem to link GIF, sorry! But the Olympic Channel has his FS.)

This is the moment I realized, with mild horror, that I’ve forgotten to DVR any of Nathan’s performances at the OG. And my current Internet connection is so crappy I can’t even get the Olympic channel video to play in full HD. But, yes, I also remember noticing that he went back to the toe pick takeoff for his 3A in the FS. Probably because the skid takeoff sure didn’t work out that well for him in that competition. Let’s wait and see what he chooses to do at Worlds this week.

Hi, I really appreciate your posts! You've made figure skating so much easier to understand with your gifs and explanations. I was wondering something, if you don't mind answering, and it was in concerns to step sequences. I remember hearing somewhere that Nathan Chen got a level 4 during his Long Program at the Olympics while Yuzuru got a level 3? If true, why is that? It doesn't seem like Nathan's is more complex at all. Thank you in advance for reading this inquiry --- @mystictrillium

Hi, it’s true that Nathan got a level 4 for his FS StSq at the OG and Yuzu got a level 3, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that Nathan’s StSq was more complex than Yuzu’s. Yuzu’s planned technical content for the Seimei StSq is highly difficult (more details here) and should be more than enough to earn him the maximum level if everything is executed correctly. The reason why Yuzu lost a level at the OG was because of one mistake that happened to occur during a turn, which, under ISU rules, was crucial for level evaluation purpose. I’ve discussed this here, in case you are interested in the technical details. 

Hi Alice! I was wondering, if Yuzuru got a Lv4 on the last spin of his SP from the Olympics (same GOE) would he have broken the WR?

No, a level 4 spin wouldn’t have been enough. He was 1.05 points away from a new WR. The difference between Base Value of a level 3 and a level 4 combination spin is only 0.50 points, and there is no difference in their Scale of Value, so Yuzu wouldn’t have got any extra GOE if he had received a level 4 for that last spin either. He, in fact, received higher GOE for that spin at the OG compared to at Autumn Classic. Well deserved, I’d say, not least because I love that variation he did for the A-spin when he placed his hand flat on his back instead of on his knee as usual:

(Aside from being pretty, this variation also affected his balance and actually made the spin harder to execute. But of course when you are Yuzuru Hanyu, judges hold you to an apparently much higher standard so, despite added difficulty and whatnot, if you miss your rotation by a hair’s breadth, you lose a level, no negotiation allowed).

Hi Alice! This ask is regarding spin. I understand Hanyu got only Lv3 on his last spin for SP for lacking rotation. But then Shoma Uno in his FS' FCCoSp, if I am not mistaken, lacked rotations on both his camel and upright position. So,,, why was that still counted as a lv4 spin? That's 2 basic position lacking rotations. I know counting spin is not my forte, but did I really make that big of a mistake there? Thanks! (also, if it's going to unleash the you-know-what, feel free to not answer)

No I don’t think you are mistaken about Shoma’s spin. At least if you count spin revolutions the same way I do. For a basic camel position, I count from the moment both the skater’s spinning knee and free leg are fully straightened, I stop counting when they start bending their knee to move to the subsequent position:

For a basic upright position, I’d count from when their body is fully upright (duh) and the spinning knee also fully straightened, same principle as camel spin for when to stop:

So, from how I see it, neither of those positions Shoma had was held for 2 full revolutions. As to why the tech panel didn’t invalidate his spin or give him a V sign at least, your guess is as good as mine.

In case anyone is curious, this is how I count the revolutions for Yuzu’s inside to outside edge feature: start when his blade is completely outside, stop when his blade is completely flat:

I remember Shoma said that if he had landed the 4Lo, he could have higher chance of winning, and Yuzuru replied that even if Shoma did land the 4Lo, Yuzu would still have won. Could you calculate/ explain this please?

Wait, when/where did this conversation happen? Just asking because it sounds very out of character for both of them.

But, well, the calculation is not hard to do. The final margin between Yuzu and Shoma was 10.95 points. Shoma got a total of 8.00 points for his 4Lo (fall), if he had landed the jump, and landed it perfectly so that he received the maximum GOE for it (which has never happened, mind you), his total point for that element would have been 12 in BV + 3 GOE = 15 points. So that’s 7 points added to his TES. Now you can also tell me that the fall on the 4Lo affected his PCS, so if it hadn’t happened his PCS would also have gone up, but it order to even the gap with Yuzu, Shoma would need an extra 3.95 points in PCS, which would mean a total PCS of 96.67. Considering that his personal best PCS in international competition is (I think) 94.42 at WC17, 96.67 is extremely unlikely.

So, the summary is, even if Shoma had landed his 4Lo, Yuzu would still have won.  

Hi Alice, I have a question about commentators, do you know who were the commentators for the official Olympic broadcast (the ones with the phrase 'liquid gold'😍)? They seemed so lovely and I could hear them clapping after Yuzu's fs, which was just heart warming.     

The female commentator (she of the “liquid gold” comment) is Belinda Noonan, former Australian national champion. Thanks to @chibura for the info :) I’m not sure who her partner was. Does anybody have a clue?

Hi Alice! Hope you're doing fine. I've heard people saying a lot that Javi should have got silver instead of Shoma. I haven't watched yet Javi's performance but I've seen a fancam of Shoma's and I've checked their protocols. Shoma's technique is flawed, that much we know, but there were a couple of jumps that were pretty nice. Javi has like 5 points advantage over Shoma in PCS but he popped that 4S and lost a level in one of the spins (besides less one quad). What do you think? Thanks :) --- @puniyo    

I also think the Silver should have gone to Javi, mostly because in the FS, Shoma’s 4Lo was clearly under-rotated and he shouldn’t have got the full BV for it. His 4T was borderline UR as well (more details on his 4Lo and 4T here), and as you see above, his flying combination spin was also dubious. Considering the very thin margin between him and Javi, any of those mistakes, if called by the tech panel, could have resulted in a different final standing.  

Please excuse me if this question seems silly, but I have not understood fs enough to withstand a debate, that's why I really need your help. I saw on an ask page someone raising questions about Yuzu's 4T in Chopin, so aside from the argument that 4T has an inherent degree of prerotations, how else can I prove that his 4T was not UR? And while Kurt said that it was not quite the 'perfect' landing, how would you describe that landing on average? Thanks a ton            

I think you’ve got PR and UR mixed up there :) PR is about whether or not the skater rotates on ice before the takeoff, where as UR is about whether they do that after they land.

So it’s true that a toe loop always has some degrees of PR inherent in it, more than most of the other jump types, because of the way the skater's hip is completely open to the rotational direction. Here’s Yuzu’s 4T takeoff in his SP:

You see there, with the way this jump works (left leg swinging behind for the pick), a skater can’t help but point their toe at an angle for the takeoff, and that’s what causing the inherent pre-rotation. However in Yuzu’s case, he picked and then left the ice with minimal timing delay, so his blade was fully off ice at no more than 90 degrees of PR, which made his takeoff completely valid in scoring terms (in order for a takeoff to be called “cheated”, it has to be done with 180 degrees of PR or more).

As for the landing of that jump, no, it wasn’t perfect. It was slightly under-rotated:

See how he clearly did have to finish his last rotation on ice? It was not called by the technical panel, likely because they deemed the lack of rotation not enough for a call (less than a quarter), but it was reflected somewhat in his GOE. 4 judges out of 9 gave him +2 only for that combo. With him hitting almost, if not all, of the 8 positive GOE bullets for that combo, a +2 can only be justified by the judges taking into consideration the mandatory deduction of -1 for the UR (yes, judges are allowed to, and are supposed to, deduct GOE for jumps lacking rotation even if there is no call from the tech panel).

Here’s how a perfect 4T landing looks, from Yuzu’s FS :)

(Straight up +3 for this one)

Hi Alice! I was wondering on yuzu’s SP (and really the FS as well tbh) when he was jumping his 4T-3T the foot picking the ice as he was jumping wasn’t his usual ‘quick hitting motion’ as I think you put it. Do you think it’s just bc he hadn’t been training his quads until 2 weeks before and he was just getting used to it or it could be something else?        

He did put a bit more pressure on the ball of his picking foot for the takeoff of that 4T (as you can see in that gif above), and same goes for his (planned) solo 4T in the FS.

I think it had to do with his right ankle not in its best shape: for a toe loop takeoff, while the majority of the push comes from your picking left foot, you do need to use your right foot’s ankle and knee to stabilize the takeoff. If you have some nagging unease in your mind about your right foot, it can lead to you taking a split second more to fully stabilize the takeoff, and therefore, a split second more of your toe pick being kept on the ice.

Or, he was actually altering his takeoff in that manner as a way to put a certain limit on the size of his toe loop so that it is easier to control, also because he was worrying about his right foot, which plays a crucial role in the landing. This alternative theory of mine came up because I noticed that in the second 4T he did in the FS, he used the usual fast takeoff and ended up with that step out:

For what it’s worth, his subsequent triple toe loop takeoffs in combos were all picture perfect though, as usual :)

[7fics]

i've been thinking about this prompt for dAYS lol. jjparents when yugyeom(5) watching his youngjae(8) hyung doing everything alone, from bath, choose his own outfit for school and sleep in his own room, and he decide he's big enough to do everything by himself too but when jinyoung feels his little baby has grown up, yugyeom still the maknae that they knew when thunders and nightmare take a visit:) thank you for taking this prompt:)

warnings: none? i don’t think? just copious amounts of cute i suppose!! and 1 kiss between jjp for 1 second!! 

author: joey

word count: 6.5k

a/n: first of all i’m so sorry…sdfdg…rly tooth rottingly cute tho…mostly a lot of jinyoung babying yugyeom and jaebum giving him a hard time about it…also my nephew is only 3 and i haven’t interacted w a 5 year old in a million years so i don’t rly know what they’re like i did my best!!!!!

Truth be told, having a five year old and an eight year old could be equated to having two highly active, untrained, untamable marmosets.

He never intended to not have children, but the days of being an uncle to his sister’s young children seemed to have left a much different impression on him than he had once thought. His sister’s children had always been well behaved and polite, calm and serious when they needed to be but a little wild when they were allowed. The quieter one between the two of them, it had been the ideal for Jinyoung: marry his high school sweetheart Im Jaebum, get a pretty house in the suburbs, and adopt two boys who would be little carbon copies of themselves. It was the perfect plan and even Jaebum had seemed to agree, despite wanting more kids than that, but he had conceded that two would suit him fine. It would be everything that they had ever dreamed and more.

Funny how life works, isn’t it?

“Appaaaaaaaaa,” Yugyeom whines, dragging out the last syllable in his high pitched voice until it’s practically unbearable. Jinyoung feels two tiny hands pushing at his thigh impatiently: it’s 7 o’clock in the morning and despite being dressed for work already, he barely feels awake. He’s standing in Youngjae’s bedroom doorway, waiting for the older of their two sons to get out of bed and lamenting the fact that he’s not in the kitchen watching his husband make breakfast. Presumably shirtless.  

Yugyeom reaches for his bicep, hands up and his arms stretched while he balances precariously on his sock-footed tippy toes. Jinyoung, despite telling him many times that it isn’t going to work, folds his arm into a 90 degree angle anyway and grits his teeth. Yugyeom insists that he’s tall enough to grab onto Appa’s arm and swing from it like a baby monkey, but Jinyoung knows he’s probably still a couple of years out from being able to do it. When he can’t quite reach, fingertips brushing against the material of Jinyoung’s power blue dress shirt, he whines and drops his arms to lean his face against his leg. Jinyoung reaches to ruffle his hair, glancing down and seeing the adorable way Yugyeom’s cheek is smushed against his thigh in defeat.

“Youngjae-yah,” Jinyoung warns, leaning his folded arm down far enough that Yugyeom can latch onto it with both hands. He grunts a little as he lifts him up, ignoring the way his shoulder begs him not to do this as Yugyeom giggles and hangs off his arm. Youngjae, however, seems unperturbed: he remains curled up under his blanket, messy black hair spread across his pillow and eyes squeezed shut against the light.

“Youngjae-yah!” Yugyeom mocks, sing song, planting his feet against Jinyoung’s hip and half standing, half hanging from Jinyoung’s arm. He mumbles a half hearted apology when Jinyoung shoots him a warning look and tries again, “Youngjae hyung!”

One dark eye opens barely a centimeter before it closes quickly, pretending that Jinyoung hadn’t seen it and that he’s still asleep.

He knows he’s not supposed to laugh, so he bites both his lips to hold it back. Them being late to school isn’t funny, per se, but watching his eight year old act like they hadn’t just made eye contact when he’s trying to get him up and dressed is.

“Youngjae-yah, if you don’t get up right now, I’m going to go get Dad.”

Both eyes open this time, blinking sleepily. His heart melts alarmingly fast: the only body part visible is his head, the rest of him covered up by a mound of blankets so that he looks like a little cotton turtle. Youngjae’s staticy black hair fans across the pillowcase decorated with various Pokemon and he wishes more than anything that they could just all stay home and pile up in their bed like they used to.

“Giving him heart eyes like that isn’t going to get him out of bed any faster,” a voice says behind him, and he feels Jaebum disentangling Yugyeom from his arm and hip to throw him over his shoulder. Yugyeom giggles and kicks his socked feet so that both Jaebum and Jinyoung have to lean their faces out of their trajectory.

With a sharp look, Jinyoung glances over his shoulder at Jaebum; despite the teasing smile on his face, Jinyoung is never not awed by his handsomeness and even this makes him soften, too. “I am not giving him heart eyes. You couldn’t even see my face, because you’re behind me.”

Jaebum wraps an arm around his waist and rests his chin on Jinyoung’s shoulder. Yugyeom seems to notice that his parents are being lovey-dovey and screeches eeeeew in an almost perfect imitation of his cousin Bambam.

“I’ve known you since our freshman year of high school. Do I have to be standing in front of you to know that you’re soft-hearted and don’t want to get him out of bed?”

Red faced and embarrassed like they’re still just teenagers, Jinyoung shoves his elbow backward into Jaebum’s bare stomach and grumbles under his breath when his husband just laughs. He half turns, holding his arms out and silently waiting for Jaebum to deposit their five year old wiggle worm into them. He’s still in his jammies and even though it is pretty cute that there’s a picture of Pikachu on each tiny butt cheek, it’s time to get dressed for school. He sighs: he didn’t think having kids, especially two hyperactive ones, would make him such a sap.

He’s not surprised, though, and he’s sure Jaebum isn’t, either.

Regardless, Jaebum smiles at him and dumps Yugyeom across Jinyoung’s outstretched arms. He immediately lets go of his back, almost dropping him until he’s got a good grip on both of his ankles and is holding him upside down. Yugyeom just screams laughter and if that’s not enough to get sleepy-eyed Youngjae out of bed, then he isn’t sure what is.

Jinyoung starts to walk Yugyeom down the hallway on his hands while Jinyoung holds him up by his feet, waiting in the doorway to his room while Jaebum quietly reprimands Youngjae for not getting up when Jinyoung had asked him to. He smiles softly when Youngjae throws off the blanket, sitting up and rubbing his eyes while waving Jaebum off like a tired parent. Jaebum slowly closes the door when he’s sure that Youngjae is up and at ‘em before joining Jinyoung in Yugyeom’s room.

“Breakfast is ready,” he says, folding his arms and leaning in the doorway while Jinyoung rifles through Yugyeom’s closet to find something to wear. The little boy leans on his leg impatiently and whines unintelligibly about God only knows.

“Thanks, honey,” Jinyoung says, finally finding a shirt and yanking it off the hanger. He orders Yugyeom to spin around with a circling motion of his finger while he looks over at his husband still watching them fondly from the doorway. “Yah, stop looking at us like that if you want to get everyone out of the house on time.”

He laughs, holding up his hands defensively before winking at him and leaving the room. Jinyoung rolls his eyes even if he doesn’t see it, helping Yugyeom to take off his pajama shirt and pull on the clean one Jinyoung had picked for him. Down the hall he hears Youngjae’s door open, and both him and Yugyeom glance up to see him heading into the bathroom to brush his teeth.

When Yugyeom’s head swivels back around, he looks much more glum than he had just a few minutes ago. Jinyoung waits until he buttons his pants and pulls on clean socks before scooping him up again; he wonders if he should ask what’s wrong or if it’s just another morning that he’s sad to leave Jinyoung and Jaebum behind. With a sigh too heavy for his little body, Yugyeom wraps his arms around Jinyoung’s neck and leans their heads together, now uncharacteristically silent as they wander into the kitchen for a quick, pre-school breakfast.

As Jaebum is getting the plates down, Youngjae comes into the room and yawns sleepily. He shuffles over to where Jinyoung is sitting in one of the higher chairs at the island and leans his head against his side. “Do I have to go to school today?”

Jaebum raises an eyebrow. “Of course you do. Why don’t you want to?”

He replies miserably, “I want to play Pokemon.”

Jinyoung again has to bite his lips to avoid laughing, and he makes eye contact with Jaebum at the sink where he’s doing the same thing. Both of their faces split in a smile and they look down in unison as to not give themselves away.

“You can play Pokemon after school and after you do your homework,” Jaebum says, much better at dropping the smile, and hands Youngjae a plate. “Maybe we’ll even call Uncle Mark and Uncle Jackson to see if Bambam can come over and play with you.”

This seems to cheer him up, and he brightens considerably. He smiles at both of them, a little checkerboard line of white and black where some of his baby teeth have finally gone. Youngjae takes the plate from Jaebum and steps up on the stool to carefully pick and choose between all of the breakfast items Jaebum had prepared to arrange on his plate. While he does, Jaebum reaches over his head to grab another plate and nods at Yugyeom.

Looking over, he can see that Yugyeom is still quiet and watching Youngjae intently. He’s slumped a little in his chair, lower lip pushed out and corners of his mouth turned down in an exaggerated pout like a humanoid grouper fish. He watches Youngjae as he makes his own plate for breakfast and sighs another little heavy sigh.

“Yugyeom-ah,” Jinyoung says softly, and feels a bit dismayed when Yugyeom doesn’t look at him. “If you ask Dad extra nicely, I think he’ll give you an extra strawberry.”

“Daddy, can I have an extra strawberry, please?” he asks, but it’s lacking in that usual Yugyeom fervor (as in, he didn’t scream it at the top of his lungs, so now neither of them are sure that he meant it) and they exchange a worried glance across the kitchen.

“Sure, kiddo,” Jaebum says, and turns around to pile more strawberries than he would usually get onto a small plate. Jinyoung rubs his back comfortingly and starts to worry about him being under the weather.

The rest of breakfast goes by uneventfully: Youngjae tells them about what they’re doing at school today with his mouth full, which earns him another reprimand from Jaebum; he does so with a grin on his face because he thinks it’s funny when Youngjae does it, despite knowing that Jinyoung thinks it’s rude. Youngjae just laughs and turns red to mumble an apology when Jinyoung shoots Jaebum a glare across the table. Which is, of course, just met with a grin and a kiss blown to him that, much to Youngjae’s amusement, gets pretend karate chopped out of the air. Normally Yugyeom would laugh, too, but he’s barely even picked at his strawberries. Jinyoung frowns.

“Ah, Jinyoungie, the kids’ bus comes soon,” Jaebum says suddenly, pushing up from the table. “Youngjae-yah, take Yugyeom and get your shoes and jackets on. It’s time to go to the bus stop. Hurry, or you’re going to miss it.”

All three of them turn at the same time to look at the clock perched on the kitchen wall right above the stove. Youngjae’s bus comes in ten minutes and though the bus stop is just at the end of their street, Youngjae has a penchant for pulling out his Gameboy and getting distracted. The next couple of minutes are a flurry of activity getting their boys shooed into the front room while they race to pack their lunches and grab their backpacks. By the time Jinyoung is coming back from both of their rooms with their school bags in hand, Jaebum is already waiting with them by the door to help them strap on and get ready to go. The both of them stand side by side on the doorstep and watch their kids run to the bus stop down at the end of the street, in just enough time that Youngjae is pulling Yugyeom by the hand up onto the steps and to their seats.

Left alone now in the silence, Jinyoung leans in to Jaebum’s shoulder and hums when he wraps an arm around his waist. They go back inside once the bus is out of sight, and Jinyoung sits down heavily at the island again with his face in his hand while Jaebum leans on his elbows across from him.

“What’s the matter?”

“Yugyeom seemed unhappy today.”

Jaebum clicks his tongue against his teeth. “Yeah, I noticed that, too. Was he feeling sick? Did he say anything about feeling sick?” Jaebum’s thick eyebrows furrow worriedly. “Should we have kept him home from school?”

“No, I don’t think he’s sick,” Jinyoung says, sighing. He reaches out for comfort and warms a bit when Jaebum takes his hand to run his thumb back and forth across his knuckles. “I think he’s jealous.”

“Jealous?” Jaebum stands up straighter, letting go of Jinyoung’s hand to come around and stand next to him. “Jealous of what?”

“Of Youngjae. Because Youngjae gets to do ‘big boy’ things, and he doesn’t.”

Jinyoung looks up and his heart contracts at the way Jaebum softens exorbitantly. It’s a wonder, Jinyoung thinks, that he could see such a softness in him when in high school he had been, for a long time, all razor edged angles. Dating had melted him a bit, though, and marriage even more so; during their wedding he thinks that Jaebum must have cried more than his mother did. Jinyoung didn’t think that Jaebum getting any softer was possible until they adopted two kids.

The hand that had been rubbing across his knuckles comes up to cup his chin and tilt it further so that Jaebum can kiss him sweetly before leaning away.

“He likes being babied, especially by you. Maybe he was just tired today, huh?”

Jaebum’s curled fingers bump his chin in encouragement before they wrap themselves up in his silky tie and yank suggestively. Jinyoung checks the clock again and is thankful that he’s the boss so that he can make his own work hours, and he lets himself be pulled to his feet by the promise of a good time lined in his husband’s devilish eyes.

“Don’t stress so much, Jinyoungie,” he purrs, “and let’s go back to bed.”

Despite Jaebum’s alluring words of comfort, he worries about it all day.

The hours stretch on in his office as he tries not to think about how sad his son had seemed that morning, even after waking up happy and getting to climb all over Appa like a jungle gym even though he usually doesn’t get to. He wonders when exactly it happened, and if the change had come even sooner before but him and Jaebum had been so preoccupied that they had missed it, because Jaebum was right: Yugyeom adored being babied. He loved getting scooped up and held in either of their arms, leaning his head against theirs when he was tired, or curling up in their laps as they read books, or nestling between them on their bed when he was supposed to be tucked away in his own. He had his moments of independence but for the most part he still adored being treated like the toddler that he is (even though Mark and Jackson think they’re maybe spoiling him a little too much, but hey, Jinyoung and Jaebum both ended up being too soft for their kids) and it bothers him that, somewhere along the way and fairly recently, it had changed without him noticing.

In any case, he’s exhausted from overthinking it by the time he gets home from work. He comes home and braces for the impact of Yugyeom tearing around the corner and careening into his legs screeching at full volume, but the house remains suspiciously quiet. The television is on in the living room and he’s about to get worried when he finally hears the familiar voice of his nephew ribbing Youngjae over video games. Jaebum must be outside with Mark and Jackson, then, so he goes into the kitchen to start dinner.

Their routine continues as usual, even with the minor disruption of Mark and Jackson coming over and bringing Bambam to play with Youngjae. The boys all stay in the living room until dinner time, when Bambam and Youngjae set the table and make their plates while Jinyoung calls Yugyeom to his side to make his for him. Jinyoung is disheartened to see that Yugyeom’s morose mood from earlier that morning has not dissipated, and it continues all throughout dinner. His uncles make an attempt to engage him, but they get quiet, half hearted answers that have all four of the adults sharing worried glances across the table.

After dinner, Jaebum tells Youngjae and Bambam to wash the dishes while the rest of them go into the backyard to sit on the porch and chat a bit. Yugyeom, normally content to sit in Jinyoung’s lap and doze off while they talk with his uncles, insists on sitting in his own chair and complains loudly when Jinyoung tries to pull him up into his lap.

“No, Appa, I don’t want to,” he says, voice raised in a whine, and he pushes Jinyoung’s outstretched hands away roughly.

Jaebum, who sees all of this, makes a noise against his teeth. “Yah! Yugyeomie, you don’t talk to Appa like that. Say you’re sorry.”

Jinyoung’s heart breaks. Even in the fading navy of dusk he can see that Yugyeom’s cheeks are red and his eyes are wet. His little hands curl into fists and he takes a deep breath before muttering an apology. He doesn’t wait for it to be acknowledged, instead spinning around and marching across the patio to climb up into one of the chairs. There must be a look on his face, because he feels Jaebum’s hand slide onto his thigh and search silently for his hand.

The next thirty minutes go by with Jinyoung watching Yugyeom swing his legs in his chair with a heaviness in his chest and Jaebum periodically squeezing his fingers for comfort. Mark and Jackson decide to call it a night; they need to get Bambam home and into the bath before they all watch a movie together, and the rumbling off in the distance gives them a good idea that a rainstorm is coming. Yugyeom leaps off the chair as soon as they stand, racing over to bury his face in Mark’s legs and murmuring something like take me with you.

If anything, it just makes him feel like a bad father. As Mark, Jackson, and Bambam make their way from of the house with Jaebum walking them out, he can’t help but wonder: did he baby Yugyeom too much? Did he actually hate it? It seems a little absurd to assume that a five year old would be smart enough to realize that it makes Jinyoung happy getting to baby him a little bit and therefore just pretending to like it to make him feel better, but nothing is impossible. He watches as Youngjae goes down the hallway to the bathroom of his own accord to start the bath while Jinyoung just sits heavily on the couch with his eyes closed and wonders where he went wrong.

A few minutes later there’s a warm hand on his cheek, and he opens his eyes to see Jaebum leaning over him with a pouty Yugyeom leaning against his leg. “Youngjae’s done with his bath. Do you want me to take Yugyeom, or do you want to do it?”

He blinks rapidly, aware that he had maybe dozed off a little bit, and stands up. “I’ll do it. Go tell Youngjae he has thirty minutes to read or play Pokemon before it’s bedtime.”

With a nod, Jaebum leaves Yugyeom standing in front of Jinyoung with his eyes on the floor. Jinyoung stares at the shock of messy brown hair on the crown of Yugyeom’s head and sighs. “C’mon, kiddo. Bath time.”

A sigh, one that matches his unfairly, follows as Jinyoung leads him to the bathroom.

Following their usual routine, Jinyoung sits next to the tub with his back against the bathroom wall and reads to him from Yugyeom’s favorite book. Yugyeom doesn’t goof around like he normally does; the humid atmosphere of the bathroom is unusually quiet and somber as Yugyeom sits glumly in the warm water and splashes at it listlessly. By the time Jinyoung is instructing him to rinse the soap from his hair and pull the drain plug, he’s so frustrated he’s going to explode.

Yugyeom steps into his Superman undies and just waits as Jinyoung drapes the hooded towel shaped like a bear over his head. Jinyoung crosses his legs and starts to dry his son’s hair as he says,

“Yugyeom-ah. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, Appa.”

He stops his hands but keeps them placed protectively on Yugyeom’s head. He turns his face up where it had been tilted toward the ground and looks into his eyes seriously. “Don’t lie to me, Yugyeom-ah. You know it’s bad to lie, right? Especially to Appa and Dad.”

Yugyeom nods and looks like he’s ready to cry. He opens his mouth like he’s going to deny it again, but then his little nose scrunches up and he wails, “It’s just…It’s just not fair!”

Jinyoung is taken aback by the sudden outburst. “What’s not fair?”

“Youngjae hyung gets to do everything by himself and I don’t get to do anything! He gets to pick his school clothes, and make his own plate at breakfast, and, and, take baths by himself, and––” he sniffles, tears starting to flow the more he talks. “I’m not a baby anymore, Appa, I want to do stuff like Youngjae hyung!”

Jinyoung feels stunned. Yugyeom sniffles again and wipes his arm across his eyes while Jinyoung just lets his arms fall into his lap. So he had been right then, in thinking that Yugyeom was getting jealous. It breaks his heart a little more to know that his baby doesn’t seem to want to be his baby any more.

Quietly, Jinyoung keeps his hands folded in his lap and asks,

“Do you want to be able to do stuff alone like Youngjae hyung?”

Another sniffle, bottom lip pushed out. He nods.

“Do you want Dad and Appa to let you do things on your own tomorrow?”

Repeat. Sniffle, pout; a brief hesitation, then a nod.

He sighs. “Okay. Tomorrow, we’ll let you do it on your own.”

The next morning starts off with their new routine: Jinyoung gets dressed while Jaebum sits on the edge of the bed and watches him, finally deciding that he’d had his fill of a morning ogling and goes to start breakfast. Where his morning was normally occupied by Yugyeom, he finds it strangely empty and boring when all he has to do is stick his head in both of their doors to turn on their lights to wake them up.

He joins Jaebum in the kitchen, doing his own sort of ogling while Jaebum cooks in just a tank top. There’s the distinct murmur of both boys in the bathroom, the sink running and the low chatter of their voices as he presumes Youngjae fills in his role and shows Yugyeom how to do things he usually doesn’t do by himself. There’s a slight pang in his chest that maybe Yugyeom really does want to grow up, after all.

The feeling is short lived, though, as a couple of minutes later he hears Youngjae’s loud laughter from down the hall. Yugyeom makes an audible noise of fear and then suddenly he’s coming around the corner with his shirt stuck on his head and halfway on a shoulder.

“Appa,” he cries, obviously frustrated that he can’t pull on a shirt (that is much to small for him now, which would explain why he couldn’t get his head through the hole) and he has to shoot Jaebum a glare when he hears the older male stifle a laugh under his breath. “Appa, I can’t get my shirt on.”

“Big boys don’t need help with their shirts,” he says lightly, but he still reaches down to pull the shirt off Yugyeom’s head. “This is one of your baby shirts. Your big boy shirts are on the other side of your closet. Do you need Appa or Dad to come help you?”

“No,” he says glumly, but he hesitates for a moment like he’s going to say yes.

Jinyoung feels a little triumphant. Just a little.

The next incident comes thirty minutes later, when Yugyeom is trying and failing to tie his own shoes.

He looks up, face red and blowing his long bangs out of his eyes with a defeated huff. “Appa, I can’t tie my shoes.”

“Youngjae hyung can tie his shoes,” he says, and feels a little more validated when Yugyeom looks like he just wants to hold his foot out so that he can do it, instead.

But their kid is determined, because he turns away to Youngjae and asks him to show him how to tie his shoes, too.

After they come home from school and wash up for dinner, Yugyeom slides into his seat at the long oak table while the three of them stand in the kitchen and make their plates. They all sit down with their food and suddenly Yugyeom looks jilted.

“Where’s my dinner?”

Jaebum points at the stool pushed up by the countertop and the empty plate by the pan. “Your plate is right there, Yugyeom-ah. You have to get your own dinner.”

When bath time comes, it’s obvious that Yugyeom is getting frustrated now. After multiple mishaps over the course of the day where he’d needed someone’s help anyway, Jinyoung wonders if he’s getting tired of being told big boys do that by themselves or you can do that on your own, can’t you, Yugyeom-ah? It’s such a departure from his own routine that Jinyoung is amazed he’s not disoriented from it all.

But, even though he’s frustrated, he still doesn’t give up. He helps his brother wash the dishes while Jinyoung snuggles up to Jaebum on the couch. They let the boys watch television with them for a while, before Jaebum is toeing at the back of Youngjae’s head and telling him it’s time to take his bath.

After he goes, Yugyeom looks up over a tiny shoulder at Jinyoung where he’d been sitting on the floor next to Youngjae. “Appa.”

“Hmm?”

He feels Yugyeom’s hand pulling on his pant leg, so he lifts it and looks down at him. “Are you going to start my bath for me?”

“Well, normally big boys start their own baths.”

Jaebum nudges him with his shoulder and laughs in his ear. “He’s only five, Jinyoung-ah.”

True, and it’s not like he was going to let Yugyeom potentially lock himself in the bathroom in a tub full of water by himself, anyway, so he nods in the direction of the bathroom when Youngjae announces that he’s finished. Elated, Yugyeom gets up and sprints to the bathroom for the first time in…well, ever.

Jinyoung sighs, disentangling from Jaebum and standing up to stretch. “He seems happier. I think he likes doing stuff on his own.”

Jaebum laughs. “Are you kidding? He might seem happy, but I can tell he misses getting everything done for him. Just watch the look on his face next time you have to tell him that big boys do that by themselves. It’s hilarious.”

Clicking his tongue against his teeth in annoyance, Jinyoung nudges at Jaebum’s knee with his own but Jaebum just laughs more. “You’re terrible.”

“You love me.”

“Yeah, I do,” he says, and softens.

Jaebum smiles at him, all kissable plump cheeks and handsome edges, and pats his butt. “Go keep an eye on big boy Yugyeom so that we can get them both into bed.”

In a normal continuation of their routine, Jinyoung sits next to the tub with his back against the wall while Yugyeom splashes around in the water. Bath time is more manageable when he lets Yugyeom have fun for a while and despite his insistence upon being a big boy now, he doesn’t get too invested in the idea and still makes cute little action noises with his mouth as he drags toys around in the soapy water. Jinyoung just observes quietly, head leaned against the wall as he watches his son get lost in his imagination. Though the few times he had proved that he wasn’t quite ready to grow up yet, even as Jinyoung watches his sweet, cherubic face he knows that the sand in the hourglass of time is slipping by more quickly with every day. He may want to be a big boy now, but he isn’t quite yet; however, Jinyoung realizes with a little pang that, just like Youngjae, he will be soon. And indeed he misses the time when Youngjae needed him, too. What will he do when neither of his children need him at all?

“Appa,” Yugyeom says, and Jinyoung blinks out of his stupor to see that the water in the tub has calmed with the lack of Yugyeom’s pretending. His dark brown hair curls against his face and his cocoa colored eyes are large in his chubby face.

“Hmm?”

“Are you going to read to me?”

Jinyoung smiles. “I didn’t bring your book with me. And besides, big boys don’t read in the tub.”

“Yes huh,” Yugyeom argues, his lower lip pushed forward in a pout. Water rushes away from him as he lifts his arms to cross them across his chest. “You read all the time in the bath, and you make Dad bring you glasses of that red juice that Dad says is yucky.”

He hadn’t been expecting his five year old to make such an accurate and compelling argument, and he can’t help but laugh a little. Yugyeom’s eyebrows furrow indignantly, so he just reaches for the pitcher on the edge of the tub and dumps it over his head to rinse off the soap. Jinyoung stands and waits with his back turned as Yugyeom grabs his own towel, lifts the bear hood up over his head, and steps up on the stool at the sink to brush his teeth. The entire time he can feel the sigh building up in Yugyeom’s chest: normally Appa or Dad participates in this with him, standing next to him or playfully drying his hair but rubbing the bear towel hard and fast on top of his head while he squeals with laughter. But the bathroom is oddly empty of Yugyeom’s glee now that he has to do it the grown up way.

Jinyoung looks down when Yugyeom tugs on his pant leg. His bear towel has been hung back up, and he’s dressed in the pajamas that Jinyoung had brought for him. Now that his teeth are brushed and his jammies are on, it’s time to go to bed. He looks distantly reluctant to tell Jinyoung that he’s finished.

“Appa, I’m all done.”

“Okay,” Jinyoung says, and he drops to one knee to give Yugyeom a hug. “You have thirty minutes to play Pokemon or read one of your story books before you have to turn off the light. Youngjae is going to come check on you to make sure you’re in bed after the thirty minutes. Okay?”

It is undeniable how satisfying it is that Yugyeom looks disappointed. But he is the child of Jaebum and Jinyoung and he will not show his face so easily, so he just nods and lets his wet bangs fall in front of his eyes before he marches down the hallway and into his bedroom. The house falls into its usual bedtime hush as Jinyoung pads in the opposite direction toward their own room at the end of the hall.

Jaebum is already undressed and laying across their bed with an arm under his head and a book held above his face. He glances over when Jinyoung enters, eyes lingering as Jinyoung strips out of his clothes but going back to his book when he realizes Jinyoung is just going to pull on a shirt and some sleep shorts. He flops down on the bed next to him, head resting on the arm holding the book up over his face to close his eyes.

“So?” Jaebum asks nonchalantly, lifting his head to use his other hand to turn the page and not disturb Jinyoung’s resting. “How’d it go?”

“I can tell he’s getting sick of it. He looked so disappointed when I told him that Youngjae was going to make sure his light was off.”

“You’re not even going to read to him? We even read to Youngjae sometimes still.” Jaebum laughs. “Harsh, babe.”

With a whine Jinyoung digs his fingers into Jaebum’s ribs, which makes him choke on a laugh and drop the book on his face. Jinyoung tries to roll out of the way but he’s in between Jaebum and the wall so once Jaebum pushes the book to the floor there’s nowhere for him to go. He laughs quietly as Jaebum reaches out for him, grabbing his hip and pulling until they’re slightly wrestling and giggling like teenage boys. Jaebum finally wins, both of Jinyoung’s wrists in his hands to stop the tickling and leaning down to softly kiss him on the mouth.

As Jaebum’s tongue parts his lips, distant thunder rumbles and rolls outside the window. Jaebum sighs happily, kissing him again before he drops down to his side and wraps an arm around Jinyoung’s waist.

“He doesn’t like thunderstorms,” Jaebum says, nudging him to turn off the light without saying so out loud. “The forecast said it’s supposed to rain tonight.”

Jinyoung slides back into his arms after sitting up to turn off the lamp by their bedside. From the crack underneath the door Jinyoung can see the illumination of a single bedroom light down the hall that goes dim followed by the soft sound of feet on the carpet. A door closes quietly and the house once more goes still. In the darkness of their room, Jinyoung smiles into Jaebum’s chest.

“He’s a big boy. He can handle it.”

But he can’t.

Sometime in the middle of the night, even Jinyoung is woken up by the echoing crack of a thunderclap close to the mountains. His heart jolts in his chest as he sits up, blinking in the milky, desaturated glow of the moon from their curtains as harsh rain pounds the windows like fists. Jaebum turns restlessly, half awake when Jinyoung sits up in bed. So far the house is quiet underneath the storm, but with how violently it’s raging he knows it won’t last much longer.

As expected, the door to their bedroom opens a few moments later. Yugyeom’s face is already streaked with tears, and more are falling as he rubs his fists into his eyes and makes his way to the foot of their bed.

“Daddy…Appa…” he hiccups, and Jinyoung’s heart bleeds. Though he hadn’t known that a storm would occur tonight, it had been on the cusp of becoming for days. He feels terrible that he had allowed his youngest child to suffer alone in his fear under the guise of letting him keep his pride.

“Yugyeomie…” Jaebum says sleepily, lifting his head and digging the heel of one hand into his eye. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m…” his voice quivers, as though he’s trying with all of his might not to cry but unable to hold it all in. Another crack of thunder makes him jump and utter a little terrified noise. “I’m really scared.”

Jinyoung opens his arms and immediately Yugyeom is climbing onto the bed to bury himself in them. Yugyeom’s soft hair tickles the bottom of his chin as he nestles his head right underneath it, arms wrapped tight around his neck and sniffling away the last of his tears. Jaebum leans up on an elbow to rub his back, singing softly under his breath the same way he had done to both him and Youngjae when they were babies. In the washed out light of the room, Jinyoung rests his cheek on Yugyeom’s head and aims his smile toward the rainy window so that Jaebum can’t see it.

Though Yugyeom had come to them for the comfort, Jinyoung finds that he himself is comforted in the way that his youngest son had still sought him out. He had been afraid that he was being a bad father by babying him a bit more than he should at five years old, but he misses the time that he had been able to do it with Youngjae and he feels as though he is trying desperately to hang to it as long as he can with Yugyeom. If he could freeze them right now, he would never let his babies grow up, and he would keep them all here in this room with him, arrested in this moment forever.

Yugyeom grows more and more tired as Jaebum rubs his back and sings quietly to them. Jinyoung feels the fluttering of his long eyelashes against his throat as his eyes slip closed, and just before he does, another little body is slinking in their doorway to stand meekly in the shadow of the dresser.

“Youngjae-yah,” Jinyoung whispers, still smiling softly. “Are you scared, too?”

He nods, even though he isn’t. Youngjae has always loved the sound of thunder, but he had likely woken up earlier as Jinyoung had and heard his father singing to his brother. Jinyoung lets go of Yugyeom for just a moment to pat the spot between him and Jaebum that opens as he scoots over just a little bit.

When their other son climbs in bed and settles down, Jaebum’s voice gets softer and softer until he falls asleep himself. Youngjae is next, head on Jaebum’s arm and leg thrown over Jinyoung’s thigh. Yugyeom curls up in the space between Youngjae’s hip and Jinyoung’s ribs, growing taller by the day and yet still just small enough to fit perfectly in the dip of Jinyoung’s armpit. His eyelids flutter as he fights sleep, and Jinyoung gently brushes off the hair from his forehead as he mutters one last thing before giving up:

“Appa, I don’t want to be a big boy anymore. Okay?”

He smiles even though he’s the only one who knows it. “Okay, Yugyeomie. You don’t have to be a big boy anymore.”

♡

[danithebookaholic-blog]

Countdowns - 60 Minutes.

First things first, please make sure that you consult with your doctor first before beginning any workout regimen. Second, if you need a break, don't hesitate to take it. You must listen to your body. Try to finish your workout, but stop, take a drink, and breathe. It's okay! Third, if you don't know what an exercise is, you can find a video or a picture of it located in the exercise definitions section or a deffinition listed below.  Last, modify any exercise as needed: slow it down, speed it up, drop to your knees, add weight, use a Bosu ball, what have you. Do what works for you.

Good luck and have fun!

From one fitness-addict to another, I hope I’ve helped you find your next fix. —Dani

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Countdowns - 60 Minutes.

“You find that you have peace of mind and can enjoy yourself, get more sleep, and rest when you know that it was a one hundred percent effort that you gave–win or lose.”

– Gordie Howe

Push-ups used to be just about impossible for me. I would be able to eek out one or two and then have to drop to my knees and modify them. But every time, no matter if I had to do 10 or 50 on my knees, I would always give 100% to get them done. And eventually I got to the point where I no longer had to drop to my knees. 

You've got 60 minutes to complete today's workout. That's 10 minutes per countdown set.  Go out there and give 100% for the entire hour, and sleep well tonight knowing that you did!

If you by chance are super amazing and finish your set before the 10 minutes is up, then work your way back up in number until the timer dings!

Don't finish your set before the time expires, No worries, you're super amazing, too! Move on to the next set anyway.

Have a great workout today!

Upper Body - Set One

Stacked-Feet Push-Up Bent Over Elbows-Out Row Combo Shoulder Raise Raised Feet Dips

Lower Body - Set Two

Iso-Explosive Jump Squat Single-Leg Bent-Knee Calf Raise - see below Rotation Single-Straight-Leg Deadlift - R Rotation Single-Straight-Leg Deadlift - L

Core - Set Three

Rolling Side Plank Alternating Sit-Up Raised-Leg Crunch w/ Leg Drop

Core - Set Four

Wide-Stance Plank w/ Arm Lift Hip Crossover w/ Leg Drop Core Stabilization 

Full-Body - Set Five

Hammer Curl to Lunge to Press Hang Pull Thruster Side Lunge and Press

Cardio - Set Six

Burpee w/ Push-Up Skater Hops Bottom Burpee Split Raise Jacks In-and-Out Squats

Stacked-Feet Push-Up - Place one foot on top of the other so that only the lower one supports your body. Make sure to switch up which foot is on the bottom.

Bent Over Elbows-Out Row - Keeping your legs straight, bend at the waist. Let your hands hang at arm's length from your shoulders, palms facing behind you. Keeping your elbows flared out, row your hands toward the sides of your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together. Your upper arms should be perpendicular to your body. Hold for a second before lowering to starting position. That's one rep.

Combo Shoulder Raise - Feet hip width apart. Arms hanging straight down from the shoulders. Turn your left palm so that it's facing the side of your thigh, and your right palm so that it's facing forward. Simultaneously raise your right arm straight out to your side - as you would for a lateral raise - and lift your left arm straight out in front of you - as you would for a front raise. When both arms are at shoulder level, pause, and lower back to the starting position. On your next raise, rotate your arms so that you do your lateral raise with your left and a front raise with your right. That's one rep.

Iso-Explosive Jump Squat - Feet hip width apart, push your hips back, bend your knees, and lower until your upper thighs are parallel to the floor. Pause for 5 seconds in the down position. After you pause, jump as high as you can. That's one rep.\

Single-Leg Bent-Knee Calf Raise - Cross your left foot behind your right ankle, and balance yourself on the ball of your right foot, with your right heel hanging off a step or box. Bend your right knee, and hold it that way as you perform the exercise. Lift your right heel as high as you can. Pause, then lower and repeat. Complete the prescribed number of reps with your right leg, then do the same number with your left.

Rotation Single-Straight-Leg Deadlift - Stand on your right foot, while holding your left foot slightly off the floor. Trying to keep your right leg as straight a possible, bend a your hips and lower your torso as you rotate it to the right and touch your left finger tips to your right foot. Pause, then raise your torso back to the starting position. That's one rep.

Rolling Side Plank - Start by performing a side plank with your right side down. Hold for 3 seconds, the roll your body over onto both elbows - into a plank - and hold for 3 seconds. Next, roll all the way up onto your left elbow so that you're performing a side plank in the opposite direction. Hold for 3 seconds. That's one rep.

Alternating Sit-Up - Perform a sit-up with your hands clasped behind your head, elbows pulled back so you cannot see them. As you raise your torso, rotate it to the left so that your right elbow touches your left knee. Lower, and on your next sit-up, rotate to the right so that your left elbow touches your right knee. That's one rep.

Wide-Stance Plank w/ Arm Raise - In a plank position, move your feet out wider than your shoulders. Raise and straighten your right arm - with your thumb pointing up -  and hold it for 5 seconds. Lower your arm and repeat with the other arm. That's one rep.

Core Stabilization - Sit with your feet on the floor with your knees bent. Hold your hands together straight out in front of your chest at arm's length. Lean back so your torso is at a 45-degree angle to the floor, and brace your core. Without moving your torso, slowly rotate your arms to the right as far as you can. Pause and hold for 3 seconds. Slowly rotate your arms to the left as far as you can. Pause and hold for 3 seconds. Slowly rotate back to center. That's one rep.

Hammer Curl to Lunge to Press - While weights are not required, if you have them, they are encouraged! If you have dumbbells, hold them at arm's length next to your sides, your palms facing each other. Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart. Step forward with your right leg and lower your body until your front knee is bent at least 90-degrees, your back knee should nearly touch the floor. AS you lunge, curl the dumbbells. Press the dumbbells directly above your shoulders, your arms should be straight. Push yourself back to the start, then lower the weights and repeat with your left leg forward. That's one rep.

Hang Pull - While weights are not required, if you have them, they are encouraged! Either way, do this exercise as fast as possible. If you have dumbbells, grab them with an overhand grip. Set your feet shoulder-width apart. Bend at your hips and knees to squat down, and hold the dumbbells just below knee height. Explosively pull the dumbbells upward. You should be bending your elbows and pulling the weights up to shoulder height. In this one explosive movement, you should be straightening your hips, knees and ankles so you rock up onto your toes. Revers the movement to return to the starting position. That's one rep.

Bottom Burpee - Start in the top position of a push-up. In one movement, jump your feet up toward your shoulders as you simultaneously push off the floor with your hands and land in a squat position. Revers the movement to the starting position. That's one rep.

Split Raise Jacks - While weights are not required, if you have a light pair they are encouraged! Grab your light dumbbells and stand on the balls of your feet in a staggered stance, your right foot in front of your left.  Raise the dumbbell in the left hand forward, and the one in your right hand back, so they are opposite of your feet. Now switch leg positions by jumping forward with your left foot an back with your right, while simultaneously switching your your hand positions as well.  That's one rep.

In-and-Out Squats - Stand with your feet about hip-width apart and lower your body into a squat. While holding the squat position, jump your feet out so that they're beyond shoulder width. Reverse the movement. That's one rep. Repeat the movement back and forth.

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Series: Part 1: Yoga In Your Office

            Are you married to your office? Do you love yoga but can't make it to class due to your work schedule? Have you fallen out of your yoga routine/practice because of your job? Are you all caught up with your life, career the stresses and competition to " make it ? ". If your answer is yes to any of these questions, then you will love this sequence. With simple instructions to follow alongside the chart, it will help guide you through each pose, explain what it works on internally, and how to progress the move when prompted and ready to do so.

 In Part.1 of " Yoga in Your Office Series, " you will experience all the major muscles in your body become stronger, stretched, and toned. 

You can do this sequence in 15 min if that is all the time you have and can spare. In 15 min you can get just what you are seeking to keep your day moving along the way you need it to. Ideally, though 20-30 minutes could create a particularly positive change within you and your environment. Chair yoga is beneficial for those who have mobility limitations as well. For full efficiency

Please remember to take shoes off before you begin this practice. 

1. Begin in a seated position with your spine upright and feet pressing to the ground legs wide open.Sit up straight inhale as deep as you can roll your shoulders up and back lift your chin and on the exhalation bring your upper body in betweem your legs allowing your head to hang freely and your neck to relax. Your hands can be placed in the direction that feels most comfortable and at ease for you. Remain in this position for as long as you feel the need to. Focus on your breath and listen to your heart beat, this will assist you to slow down. Stay here as long as you need to and when ready push hands into the ground and gently roll up to a seated position.

Forward bend provides internal focus while flexing the spine forward and massaging the internal organs, it can also offer quiet reflection just close your eyes.

  2. A: Seated leg lifted is a favorite of mine because it is two in one pose.Begin seated with spine straight hands to the side of the chair touching lightly. Inhale and lift the chin and chest contract your abdominal muscles, and on the exhalation extend your leg contracting the muscles on your leg especially the quadriceps maintaining the foot flexed toes up hold it and then switch to pointing for the same amount of time. When ready place foot back on the floor. Repeat to the other side.

B: Remain seated, extend the leg, and push both hands onto the sides of the chair, lifting your bottom up from the seat, your gaze should be between your thighs. The Leg on the floor can touch lightly or hover and if needed can add some pressure for assistance. Hold a minimum of 10 seconds then sit back down and release foot to the floor. Repeat to the other side. 

As you can see, how dynamic this pose can be working on the main muscle groups starting from depressing the shoulders, activating the triceps, and firing into the abs, tons of core work and the many ways to progress here as well.

 3. Seated single leg stretch, is a great pose to follow the last one we just did. Begin seated with your spine up right inhale bring the knee into the chest, reach to the lowest part of your leg if possible reach for the foot, exhale begin to extend the knee. Hold the position for as long as possible while simultaneously trying to lengthen the leg. Remembering to keep the spine as straight as possible. Try to hold for a few minutes, when ready repeat to the other leg. This is a great position to isolate the hamstring as you feel the back of your leg become straighter with time. Your spinal muscles are fully activated as you work to maintain keeping it straight. 

 4. Seated in the center of the chair both feet on the ground inhale and reach both arms behind the chair and wrap your fingers to get a good grip, continue to hold on to the chair. As you exhale maintaining both hands behind you on chair inhale again deepening the breath pushing the chest forward and tilting the head slightly back your gaze is upward, take a few breaths or hold it for as long as needed when ready just release the hands bringing them onto your thighs. This exercise is excellent for expanding the chest and extending the spine. While expanding the chest, the rib cage opens allowing to promote the flow of oxygen. In extending the spine, you counterpose pretty much your entire day as most of us spend time with our spines flexed forward adding unessasery pressure to the spine. My recommendation is to remember this one and do it throughout the day as many times as possible. 

5. Chair pose with arms extended up towards the ceiling. Begin with both feet flat to the floor hip distance apart or aligned with the legs of the chair. Inhale reach both arms up towards the ceiling palms facing each other shoulders pressing down, exhale as you tilt the body forward pushing your feet into the ground and lift your bottom up from the seat to hover. While in this position focus on reaching with long fingers and pressing the shoulders down. Hold this position not the breath for a minimum of 10 seconds or more. When needed just simply sit on chair and rest arms on your thighs. Repeat as many times as needed. This works on the arms shoulders abdominal muscles thighs and glutes. 

6. Please make sure the back of the chair is pressing up against the wall before you begin. Place both hands onto the edges of the seat while wrapping your fingers around the seat for a stable grip. Take one giant step back away from the chair with both feet forming a 90-degree angle with the body your torso is parallel to the floor.  Continue to reach your chest to the ground while lengthening the back of the legs. Your breath should be slow and profound as you deepen the stretch. It extends the entire back of the legs while strengthening the legs knees and ankles and opens the shoulders. Hold this pose for a few minutes, to feel its benefits. When ready step foot back up to the chair and stand upright or you can continue to progress toward the next pose number seven. 

7. While enjoying down dog position one of the many ways to progress this move is by lifting one leg. Reaching one leg straight up to the ceiling with the toes pointed for a little, and opposing the move by flexing. You can explore the variety of opening the hip and reaching higher towards the ceiling or by squaring off the hips. Hold for as long as possible to feel the benefits of this pose. This position strengthens the arms, core helps to improve hip flexibility and mobility while making awareness in the body whether the hips are closed or open. This position is also called a Downdog Split.

8.  Supported Front leg split is next to follow. Lunging with your leg on the chair from down dog position is quite simple just take a deep breath and on the exhalation step the right foot onto the seat of the chair hands are lightly touching the top of the chair for balance, as you slowly extend your knee and holding this position for as long as possible. Another option available for those who can go deeper simply place hands on the outer edges on the sides of the seat for stability and a deep stretch or place hands on the top of the chair, erect the spine, while the left foot is flat on the floor anchored. This helps strengthen all local stabilizers the glutes, and the psoas muscle group intensely stretches the hamstring.                                                                                         

9.  Warrior one with Foot on the chair. Inhale deeply, then exhale step the right foot on the seat of the chair keeping your knee bent, feel stable before you raise your hands to the ceiling. While arms are reaching upwards, your gaze should be forward, allow the shoulders to melt away from the ears, your fingers are fully extended and reaching upwards. Take a few breaths here feeling the solidity of this pose the " The proud and strong warrior " when ready if you want you can either a) Close your eyes as you continue to maintain this position and breath gently while keeping firm focusing on all the sensations as they come. There is also option b) which is just shifting the gaze upwards to the ceiling looking at the space in between your hands. Making things a little bit more challenging but feels uplifting when done. The standing leg is fully extended at the knee and the foot firmly grounded. Closing the eyes here is optional too. To release step the right foot down and repeat to the other side. While in Warrior 1 you can begin to feel the many areas being stretched starting from the chest, lungs, shoulders, neck, belly, the groin and psoas. Simultaneously strengthening the shoulders the entire arm and all the muscles on your back. Your thighs calves and ankles are also fully working here so they are being stretched and developing strength as well.  The benefits are many and there is yet another variation for Warrior 1 and it will be included in the next series.

10. Side angle pose is next, otherwise known as side lunge. From your Down Dog position with hands on the seat, inhale deeply and on the exhalation step the right foot in between your hands The right hand can remain on the outside of the right foot or place it on the inside as you lift your left arm to the ceiling opening and exposing the left side of your body. Your standing leg is fully extended at the knee, and firmly grounded by the foot. Take a few breaths here maintaining your gaze forward. After holding as long as you can bring down the left arm placing your hand back onto the chair straddling the right foot again, step the foot back down and repeat to the other side. Here we can feel the position strengthen and stretch the legs the knees the ankles the groins, spine, waist, chest, lungs, and shoulders. It squeezes and stimulates the abdominal organs increasing stamina. 

11. Plank position with your hands on the chair. Stand with legs slightly parted placing both hands onto the sides of the seat. The further back you move the harder and more challenging this can become. Stay in your plank position with both arms fully extended for as long as possible, then begin to bend your elbows wide out to the sides away from your body. Go as low or as high as you feel most comfortable as you explore what feels right to start with. Final but not least you can also bend the elbows wide and then straighten them to perform a push-up, even if the flexion in the elbow is a quarter of an inch. Do as many rounds as you can when done just step both feet up towards the chair and stand up straight. This dynamic pose is a total body exercise that will work your abdominal muscles and all of your upper body. The chest, triceps, shoulders, are working really hard to hold all of your body weight. You can fire into your thighs glutes and hamstrings too for a little extra sizzle.

  12. Seated twist. Begin by sitting towards the center of your seat with your back away from the backrest, both feet flat on the floor anchored so they don't move your legs should be slightly parted. Both of your arms are by your side dangling. Inhale lift the right arm then exhale begin to twist your body to the right while reaching with your left arm and your right hand towards the backside of the chair. As you begin this motion the right arm naturally follows, place both hands where you feel most comfortable. Making sure your knees are directed to the front allowing your spine to twist efficiently. Try to hold this position as long as possible. When ready twist back to the center facing the front of the room and repeat to the other side. Twisting the spine helps to release and lengthen your spinal muscles allowing for more mobility, benefiting the soft tissue and enhancing the health of your discs and facet joints between the vertebrae. Twisting poses also help ring out the toxins from your internal organs so that when the twist is released it allows more oxygenated blood to flow. Thus allowing you to feel refreshed and clear headed.

  13. Bridge pose. PLease make sure you don't rush the last parts. These final poses are just as important.  Lie on the floor your legs up on the seat of the chair,  with your knees bent. Arms are alongside your body palms facing down. Inhale deeply and begin pressing onto the feet, which causes you to fire into your glutes and hamstrings. As you lift your bottom off the floor, you will notice how your body creates a bridge. Hence the name of the pose. Hold as long as you can, when ready just place your bottom back onto the floor. Repeat as many times as you need to. This pose is a great way to begin to develop a  back extension so that you can work your way to a full bridge. Extending your thoracic spine, opening your shoulders and chest while toning the upper back muscles. It also strengthens the legs, while lengthening the hip flexors something that is especially beneficial for those who sit for long periods at a time. This is a great pose to do closest to the last pose to do because it helps to calm the mind and ease the anxiety one might have created throughout their day. Not to mention this pose also helps the blood flow go to the head, and this contributes to reducing the aging process. 

14. Resting pose. As we bring our practice to an end resting pose is very important especially after all the hard work you just did. Continue to lie on your back arms alongside your body resting. The back of your legs resting comfortably. The back of your head heavy but stable. Just simply close your eyes focus on breathing evenly fully and gently. Close your eyes to deepen your experience and allow yourself to feel at peace. Hold this as long as you can or need to.When ready open your eyes lower your legs to the right side of your body hold for a few seconds then gently push yourself up, bringing your yoga routine in the office to an end. 

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this series as we will continue to progress moves and explore other Yoga poses. 

Namaste                                                                                                                                           Thank you for participating  

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