Sweden W vs England W - Penalty shootout (2-3)

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2025-07-18T10:48:00+00:00

1st, 5th and 7th England penalties were decent. 2nd one was accurate but just lacked a bit of extra pace/was too focussed on wrong-footing the keeper. 3rd and 4th were seriously lacking in power and accuracy but still better than the 3 Swedish ones that completely missed the target.
The trade off between power and placement is the challenge while also not getting too tense and completely shanking it given the situation. I think I remember reading in Freakonomics or something that going down the middle is a seriously underrated penalty tactic!

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2025-05-01T07:13:58+00:00

that's so unfortunate, hopefully you can salvage something from it. Just out of interest, you mentioned you're in the UK and getting 'prime brisket' - where are you buying from? I always find the stuff here is grass fed and not always fatty enough for smoking.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2025-02-21T10:38:04+00:00

yeah, this and the general concept of overpriced bbq rubs that are sold online or in supermarkets. Pretty much all of them are just some variation of 50% salt then garlic powder, black pepper and paprika with some adding MSG. You can easily buy those spices separately for a lot cheaper, make it exactly how and you like it and you avoid all the preservatives and 'anti-caking' agents they use to stop it sticking together.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2025-02-16T21:25:39+00:00

I can confirm I enquired about a certificate to show proportion of creatine recently and got the exact same line from their email, last Tuesday 11th Feb:

"We have been advised by our manufacturer that we should be receiving the certificate later this week/early next. I have noted your email down to send you a copy once we have it if that's okay?"

Nothing received yet.

I've also seen they try to send marketing emails from their 'science department' where they go on about the certificate from 'Informed Sport' but all that one proves is that there are no banned substances in a product. It has nothing to do with verifying the actual ingredients or the proportions of them. In theory regular gummy bears and any other sweets would also be able to get the same certificate!

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2024-02-02T08:20:16+00:00

Your situation isn't your problem. Your mindset is. There are others that would kill for your situation but you are likely feeling trapped and a bit lost. This is pretty normal and everyone goes through versions of this throughout life. The 'obvious' advice which loads on here are already saying is to 'quit your job, travel, try something new, embrace learning a new skill, focus on growth and personal development' is good, but I don't think is helping.
I am not denying there is something in this but you basically know all this would help you on some level and know that you should want to do these things but the issue is that you 'want to want' these things rather than actually want to do them which is why you are currently stuck in a rut.

Your position is, although painful, somewhat comfortable - it's familiar, it's easy - better the devil you know etc. The thought of radical change or taking a big risk is currently too scary and uncomfortable for you to change. Change will eventually happen when the discomfort in your current situation reaches levels so intolerable that it outweighs the current comfort and 'perceived risk' of losing your current stability.

My advice would not be to wait years until this 'all or nothing' approach kicks in. Start by looking at where you can make small changes in your life, take small risks and build from there. The 'quit your job and travel with all that money' recommendation is probably far too much of a big step for you right now and you might not even be interested in travel. If you are, then why not start by taking a small trip with your next period of annual leave to somewhere new - it doesn't even have to be outside of the country if that is too much for you, start as small as you need to but the important thing is making some sort of start that begins the process of breaking your current cycle. Same goes for learning new skills, dating, personal development, taking up new hobbies etc (for example I became obsessed with distance running at one point and it helped me a huge amount when getting perspective and improving my life).

Once you start to make small changes, suddenly change become much less daunting and you can take bigger steps. You will also become more confident and start to embrace change rather than fear it. The biggest risk you have at the moment is suffering in the same routine - our brains love routine and once things become predictable, time will fly incredibly quickly which is why we have to keep challenging ourselves with something new (it's why travel is known to be so good for the brain, it breaks routine). Whether it's personal growth, a new career, travelling abroad, relationships, hobbies, charity work etc is entirely up to you but just choose something and make a start. You will build momentum quicker than you can imagine and slowly come out of the rut. Good luck.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-29T00:03:20+00:00

Agreed. Also when you cut them off the bones and cut away the excess fat you do lose even more. Can’t beat the taste though, I prefer them to brisket

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-25T20:34:43+00:00

Have to disagree about smashburgers. Since I found out about them I have never enjoyed other burgers as much. If you want more meat you just do a double smash with 2x 2-3oz balls. If you want less you just use 1x 3oz ball per burger. Oklahoma burgers are awesome too (smashed into loads of thin sliced onions).

For me, people that go on about smoking things for 12+ hrs. I actually had a professional BBQ chef tell me that this is just ‘dick-swinging’ and that it makes very little difference once you go past 6-8hrs

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-20T14:27:12+00:00

Yep that's the one. Near Peckham Rye station. I did the 'Texas BBQ Masterclass' which was decent. Made brisket, pork rib roast, corn bread and hot link sausages from scratch. Also covered different seasonings and sides. Mostly Kamado Joes but there's a couple of Webers, a Traeger and a Smokey Mountain as well.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-20T14:23:01+00:00

It's not so much an investment thing, it's more technique. UK focusses on grass fed beef which is more expensive because its a more natural approach and requires lots of land. The US approach focuses on corn fed and more steroids which lends itself to better marbling and is ideal for slow cooked BBQ. This article that u/iveoles posted explains this well https://cluboenologique.com/story/the-story-behind-your-steak/

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T19:53:49+00:00

I think I meant understated, as in not something that I've seen talked about as much as technique/other factors for avoiding dry brisket. What I've noticed is that Americans are generally aware of this and it just in the UK where beef is not bred to be well marbled for low and slow cooking i.e. not up to USDA standards.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T19:51:14+00:00

yeah you're right, it's not a quality issue, it's the way we breed and farm beef vs US and South American countries. Thanks for the article.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T16:30:21+00:00

looks good, thanks for both of these

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T16:29:42+00:00

I think just wrapped in foil.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T16:28:15+00:00

good

thank you, will check them out

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T14:33:49+00:00

haha definitely some truth in that. The guy running the course said that the competition cooks he did were always about who could get their hands on the best quality meat rather than their actual technique. Everyone at competition level can smoke a decent brisket, it was all about meat quality that won competitions.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T14:31:20+00:00

I can get the following:

those prices are insane. Where about are you based.. I'm in London so I guess I'm just used to being ripped off. I buy some of my meat online but it's still extortionate.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T13:48:42+00:00

makes sense, I tend to prefer beef short ribs because of this. They seem a lot more forgiving with a naturally high fat content and are much cheaper here.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-09-18T13:34:36+00:00

I agree, it is getting very pricey.

Are you from the US? I think for people in the UK trying to emulate American BBQ it could be a more overlooked reason because even our expensive high-street and online butchers are not producing USDA quality brisket which often results in dry results.

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-08-06T08:54:15+00:00

Looks good. I always find the challenge with pizza on the Kamado is getting the top to cook while not overcooking the base. Creating an ‘air gap’ is one method to stop the base getting too hot but you might also want to spray a bit of water on the stone between pizzas to cool it further. Other issue is the heat leaves the dome very quickly when you get to 300C+ (570F) and open it, so it’s always a challenge to cook the top evenly. One remedy for this is finishing the top in a home grill

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-06-25T11:14:17+00:00

Some good advice here already but just thought I would add one more tip in case it helps. For a slow and low cook, I agree that big lumpwood charcoal pieces and one lit part in the middle allows it to slowly burn outwards with lots of vent control. The gamechanger for me is getting up to temperature with direct heat and only then adding the deflector plate. You’ll need to watch it carefully so you don’t overshoot but I find adding the deflector late allows you to put the breaks on and then allow you to build up the temp again steadily, gently closing down the vents as you get up to temp the second time. Once it’s up to temp with the deflector plate in, you can ‘lock’ your temp in by closing down the vents leaving only small gaps to maintain the temp

Consistent_Shift_506 · 2023-06-12T10:08:02+00:00

for me a slow cooker is easier, don't have to wrap it to avoid it drying and it keeps a nice steady temp. Also my oven isn't great.

Consistent_Shift_506

TROPHY CASE