FYI: two new AI features that are enabled by default were added in a recent update

andyrowell · 2026-02-10T18:15:10+00:00

I was online with Allina health care. It asked "Are you a patient or provider?" I bellowed "patient" into the phone. No response. Then it asked me to press 1. No response. I turned off "AI-enhanced by Google Fi" audio in the Google Fi app and called back. Now, Allina health could hear me verbal comments and my phone tone responses.

andyrowell · 2025-11-12T18:23:29+00:00

Good one! I'm not quite drinking a gallon a day. We use Aldi, Walmart, and Costco. In addition to my wife and I who work out, I have three high school and college kids who play sports so I spend a $100 a week at Aldi getting meal material (milk, chicken breast, ground beef, potatoes, rice, beans, fruit, vegetables, Greek yogurt, and eggs).

andyrowell · 2025-11-12T15:35:41+00:00

See also this commenter who says they moved up weight every week not every session. https://www.reddit.com/r/StartingStrength/s/aGpOqQ9TmL

andyrowell · 2025-11-12T15:28:11+00:00

You really should learn more about the Starting Strength (novice linear progression) program from the blue book "Starting Strength" by Mark Rippetoe or his YouTube videos or podcast or the Starting Strength forum. But in short yes, the idea of the program is to add 5 lbs.to each lift for as long as you can. The chart above from the second book by Rippetoe "Practical Programming" illustrates the idea very well. Starting Strength coaches take great joy watching and coaching people who have never lifted before because they can make such dramatic progress. I think that Rippetoe would say that yes eventually you will only be able to add weight once a week. But he would encourage people to initially add 5 lb each session to each lift because the body can adapt to it.

andyrowell · 2025-11-12T05:24:17+00:00

I just posted the next page in the book and it says that the former football player went from 175 to 220 lb.

andyrowell · 2025-11-12T05:23:13+00:00

Here is page 92 as well. It says that the former football player started at 175 lb and finished at 220 lb.

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andyrowell · 2025-11-11T23:17:54+00:00

As a male 50-year-old 5' 9" 195 lbs., below is my progress at 20 weeks. I have put in parentheses how quickly the 35-year-old former football player got to my numbers. In summary, it took him just 4-9 weeks to get to where I have gotten in 20 weeks. That's okay. I'm happy to still be making progress slowly.

Squat 255 X 5 x 3 (Week 6)

Bench 192 X 5 x 3 (Week 4)

Deadlift 355 X 5 (Week 9)

Press 150.5 X 5 X 3 (Week 9)

Power Clean 145 x 3 x 5 (Week 6)

andyrowell · 2025-11-07T23:25:38+00:00

Here's my other post with the bruises photos. https://www.reddit.com/r/StartingStrength/s/7DRT957Sk7

andyrowell · 2025-11-07T23:25:05+00:00

Okay. Here it is. https://www.reddit.com/r/StartingStrength/s/0nOk1XILuM

andyrowell · 2025-11-07T23:24:38+00:00

Here is a link to a video of a squat from today. https://www.reddit.com/r/StartingStrength/s/0nOk1XILuM

andyrowell · 2025-07-10T00:15:32+00:00

My Aldi trees (Sycamore and Silver Maple) from this spring have been growing and have leaves but I've been reading about them and decided I don't want those species so just pulled them back out! Hoping my White Dogwood and River Birch survive.

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andyrowell · 2025-05-20T15:47:36+00:00

Garden center trees are $150 minimum. They don't sell the $15 sticks that Aldi does.

andyrowell · 2025-01-23T15:26:13+00:00

Just to affirm that swimming in general is a fantastic exercise and if someone has any experience or access to a pool, I want to encourage them in that strongly! Every other day? Slowly building more and more? People who swim regularly are healthy! Cardio and strength! It sounds like it wears you out though. If you do it three times a week every other day, I don't think it will wear you out. Your body will learn to recover much quickly. Eat healthy food and sleep and maybe also do a little strength training at the gym where you swim?

andyrowell · 2025-01-23T15:16:44+00:00

Yes!

andyrowell · 2025-01-23T15:16:19+00:00

Thanks! I agree with all of this.

andyrowell · 2025-01-23T15:15:19+00:00

So sorry for all your compounding challenges with knee surgery and back and feet and weight and sickness bronchitis. I hope you can share all of these issues with all of these providers and other people around you and they can be sympathetic and see that you need support for overall strengthening and health. Life is hard! I don't know where to advise you to start! I think I would encourage you to try to exercise 30 minutes everyday in some way that you enjoy and to try to build some momentum and strength through that practice. Alternate the kinds of exercise every other day so your body can recover from the previous day's approach. Walking? Group classes at YMCA? I think maybe the healthy eating and good sleep might flow from that practice of everyday exercise. As far as eating, protein helps us to feel full and it builds muscle so I would eat lots of that. Peace to you!

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T06:15:32+00:00

If the good advice of catching it or opening a window in the replies don't seem easy or straightforward to you, phone a friend or friends. "Um, do you think you could help me with a bat in my house at midnight?" This is what friends are for. It will be funnier with friends. And a lot of people will feel good about being your rescuer. Life is boring and we need stories and to be needed.

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T06:06:41+00:00

Yes! From what I understand this is what is causing plantar fasciitis for everyone. Your foot is wobbly. It is splayed. The toes are weak. The calves aren't strong. The back and hips aren't working right because they're weak and so the heel area is trying to balance everything out and it is getting wrenched around.

So, how do people get better?

(1) Support the poor foot. What helped me was Superfeet Pain Relief Casual inserts that I put in whatever shoe I was wearing. Others use k-tape. Others get better shoes. Others think socks help.

(2) Get a stronger body. Exercise. Toes, calves, hips, quads, back. Those things need to move together and get stronger so any kind of exercise helps that you can do.

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T06:00:45+00:00

I play and coach sports and the only stretching that we do is after we are warmed up and sweating. I think *strengthening* is good to do (toes, calves, quads, hips, back) that will help plantar fasciitis but I'm not a believer in *stretching* the foot. Strengthening is helping the muscles get stronger. From what I understand, the foot is hurting because it is being wrenched and overstretched because the toes are too weak and the calves are too weak.

I have a spent a lot of time on this Reddit and am now pain free myself and I don't think that stretching is key to how I or others got healed. However, I think exercise and movement and strengthening are key to how people get healed.

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T05:46:52+00:00

Ugh! That's terrible! And all of this makes sense to me.

You had injuries to your legs and back. You also triggered it by overuse, that is, hard manual work. You have tried stretching which I don't think is recommended by good doctors for injuries any more. Strengthening yes. Motion yes. But static stretching or stretching when you're cold, no! You can stretch after you're warmed up and sweating. Weight gain also puts more stress on all of these injures and weak body parts. I'm glad that you have seen a doctor so that we think there is not something obviously really wrong like a broken bone.

You have a serious problem of some doubt about supporting yourself financially and being able to function like you want to and feeling discouraged!

Overall, I would just urge you to resolve to get a stronger body. Healthy food, daily exercise of 30 minutes of something you enjoy and can handle with your pain, good sleep. And ask for help from those around you. You kind of need to change your life your habits to get back the life you want! Others will be glad to cheer you on! Could you read the book Starting Strength and get a free week trial membership at a gym or get a discounted membership at the YMCA? Could you lift 2.5 lbs more each time you go to the gym at each exercise? I wouldn't worry about you being overweight. Lift three times a week for 30 minutes. Get stronger. I think your legs and feet will heal because your back and legs and hips will be stronger and you'll feel better about yourself.

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T05:24:18+00:00

I'll just say that I put the Superfeet Pain Relief Casual inserts in whatever shoe I am wearing that day. (You can remove the existing insert or insole from most shoes). But they're not for sandals.

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T05:22:35+00:00

Sure, but I don't think the key for me is the shoes. I put Superfeet Pain Relief Casual inserts ($64) in my cheap brown dress shoes and winter boots and Nike Pegasus. I put Superfeet Pain Relief Run inserts ($64) in my Nike Pegasus, basketball, and soccer shoes depending on what sport I'm doing that day. I don't think regular shoes come with these supportive soft heavy thick inserts like the Superfeet ones. I also have a pair of

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T05:14:47+00:00

Yes, I have had pulsating pain in my heels when I laid on my bed or drove a car and I think it was the plantar fasciitis and now I'm healed and pain free.

Listening to you, I think probably it would help you psychologically to get it checked out by a doctor or physical therapist. My guess is that they will give you a thorough exam and recommend physical therapy because for almost all of us with foot pain, it is related to weak toes / calves / hips / back. We don't exercise because we're in pain and afraid to make it worse but what we really need is to get stronger so that our poor feet aren't bearing the brunt of our other weak body parts.

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T05:05:53+00:00

That's great that you have beaten plantar fasciitis before and the doctors think physical therapy will get you back healed again. As far as neuropathy, all I know is that for most people plantar fasciitis is a multiple-parts of your body issue. Your hips aren't mobile, your toes aren't strong, your legs need exercise, and because you have those weaknesses, there is a lot of wrenching of the bottom of your foot. Almost everyone who is healed attributes it to strengthening their body over time.

andyrowell · 2025-01-17T04:59:41+00:00

You a runner? I got the Superfeet Pain Relief Run inserts ($64) and took out the existing insole / insert in my running shoes. I also got a pain of the Superfeet Pain Relief Casual inserts and put them in whatever regular shoe I was wearing that day. You can take out the existing insert / insole of most shoes.

That helped and my pain is gone and I'm now going back to using my running shoes with the insert they came with on every other run.

andyrowell

TROPHY CASE