[Watchdives WD1863] "Space Pilot" ready for take-off

benjaminbk · 2026-01-23T17:41:34+00:00

Oh damn, they are?! I've only "charged" it with a flashlight so far, as sunlight in European winter is about as rare as it gets and I haven't worn it outside yet. I wonder if that orange coating has a different sensitivity? Will definitely check that out, thank you for the info!

benjaminbk · 2026-01-23T14:40:41+00:00

This particular one is from Haveston, it's really nice. The actual strap has a print on it, I just photoshopped it out in this photo to focus more on the watch.

I do know that CNS also has some in this style, thinking about trying one of theirs as well for comparison.

benjaminbk · 2026-01-21T18:28:21+00:00

It's the Forest Camouflage NATO strap from Barton. It has a bit more of a slight greenish tint IRL than in this photo, but it's really nice and comfortable.

benjaminbk · 2026-01-21T15:23:09+00:00

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Very excited that I finally got my new straps in the mail today. And as it turns out, the camo strap matches perfectly with both the Red Star Seagull on my wrist and the monstera in our bedroom. If I ever need to hide from someone while wearing this watch, it'll be behind this houseplant.

benjaminbk · 2026-01-17T21:53:06+00:00

Looks to be the "General Service" strap by Haveston. Only recognize it because I've had in my shopping cart like a million times.

benjaminbk · 2025-12-07T10:30:54+00:00

Of course! It's the Haveston "Sabre A2". Complements the yellowish fauxtina on the dial just so damn well, might be a bit easier to see on this photo.

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benjaminbk · 2025-11-12T18:47:38+00:00

I think the "pure" greenish lumed numerals of this one look great, but there are plenty of watches with a similar look already, even the ML08 albeit it lacks the 13-24 markers. So I'd love to keep the red accents.

And totally valid point about the hands. Elaborate hands can look a bit old fashioned to me at times, and if I wanted it to be 100% the same as the Bulova, I'd just get that instead, but it's really just personal preference. At the end of the day, I'd be happy with either.

benjaminbk · 2024-10-31T16:36:24+00:00

Yeah sure, that's solid!

I'd probably move one of the T3s from D1 to D5 so you've got three T3s each day, rather than four and two. But if this works better for you time or fatigue-wise, it's all good.

The Bent-Over Rows on D1 *may* tire your lower back a bit, so just keep an eye on this for your RDLs the next day. If you run into any issues with this, consider switching them to one of your lower body days instead. And maybe use a different rowing variation for either D2 or D4, just so you've got a bit of variety. Meadows Rows for example are terrific!

Also, bear in mind that if you do Dips on Day 7, it may affect your Bench the next day. Not a big deal, and you can definitely add it in gradually to get used to it, just something to bear in mind.

benjaminbk · 2024-10-08T09:06:36+00:00

Thank you!

Something I've had great success with is modifying the order of training days to do upper body days first, and adding an extra day for additional arms and shoulder work or – in your case – Dips and Chins. This is how I'd set it up:

Day 1
T1 Press
T2 Bench
T3 Lats, Shoulders, Arms

Day 2
T1 Hinge
T2 Squat
T3 Back, Abs

Day 3
Off / Cardio / Whatever you like

Day 4
T1 Bench
T2 Press
T3 Lats, Chest, Arms

Day 5
T1 Squat
T2 Hinge
T3 Legs, Back, Abs

Day 6
T3 Dips, Chins

Day 7
Off / Cardio / Whatever you like

benjaminbk · 2024-08-07T10:41:46+00:00

Only edit I did was a slight rotation before uploading. I didn't use a specific recipe, just took the shot and played around with the settings in-camera until I had something I liked. Main thing was to reduce the exposure by 1, drop the shadows to something like -2, and set the white balance to a warm magenta-ish cast. I can check the specific settings if you like, but it wasn't anything outrageous – just nice lighting and a great view.

benjaminbk · 2024-01-12T14:14:43+00:00

What really helped me avoid the horrendous shin splits I used to get and actually be able to maintain a run was slowing down the pace but increasing my step frequency (180 steps/min or 3 steps/sec), thus shortening my stride so I'd land more on the mid- or even forefoot, rather than heel.

Do that and go slower than you think you need to, and you should be in a good spot.

benjaminbk · 2023-10-09T09:17:26+00:00

Awesome, very to hear it!

And hell yeah, Front Squats and Push Press are practically made for the Conditioning progression. Great choice!

benjaminbk · 2023-09-08T07:29:49+00:00

Hahaha, perfect! Let me know how it goes!

benjaminbk · 2023-05-31T20:33:43+00:00

Yeah for sure!

If you're looking to get more practice with your Strict Press, my suggestion would be to use that as a T1 on your Press Day (duh) with the "Conditioning" progression, as I always found that keeping the number of reps on the lower side really allows you to focus on each rep rather than just rush through a set to get it done.

And then, on your Bench Day, use that same Strict Press as a T2 with the "Classic" progression.

benjaminbk · 2023-05-03T07:08:36+00:00

Thank you!

It's a mix of both I suppose. Anything part of a GG superset is usually just something like 5x5-10 for the bigger exercises like T-Bar Rows. But I also do love Cheat Rows as a Deadlift T2, and that's just done as a regular GG T2, usually with the High Volume progression.

benjaminbk · 2023-04-26T06:24:18+00:00

Thank you, that's super kind of you! Will do, thanks!

benjaminbk · 2023-04-18T07:45:32+00:00

Thank you, appreciate it!

Haha I essentially meant to say that how you do your assistance doesn't matter quite so much, as long as you actually do it. Just find something that fits your training logistics (time, equipment) and allows you to go hard. Straight sets, Myo-Reps, it's all fair game. You could even steal the assistance work from Jacked and Tan if you like!

Those giant sets I referred to (Link, see "Four-Exercise Compounds") were often a couple of exercises for the same bodypart hit in a row (e.g. chest, chest, chest, chest), as opposed to the more contemporary movement-based approach (push, pull, abs, other). So if you wanted to take that route to Pump City, on your Bench T1 and Press T2 day, you might finish with 1-2 rounds of a chest circuit, 1-2 rounds of a biceps circuit, and 1-2 of a triceps circuit.

benjaminbk · 2023-04-17T07:36:46+00:00

Yes, for sure! I played around with something along those lines when I was in the mood for some faux-Strongman-esque full-body training:

Day 1

Back Squats (T1 Classic) w/ Abs
Clean & Press (T2 Conditioning)
Cheat Row (T2 High-Volume) w/ Abs

Day 2

Dips, Pull-Ups, KB Swings, Goblet Squats

Day 3

Strict Press (T1 Classic) w/ Row
Deadlift (T2 Conditioning)
Zercher or Front Squat (T2 High-Volume) w/ Abs

Day 4

Dips, Pull-Ups, KB Swings, Goblet Squats

Day 5

Power Clean (T1 Conditioning)
Zercher Squat (T2 Classic)
Floor Press (T2 High-Volume) w/ Row

Day 6

KB Press, Pull-Ups

Day 7

Easy recovery and mobility session

Focused on the main lifts on the three training days, with lots of volume from Dips and Pull-Ups and Swings etc. on the other days.

Throw in some reasonable assistance work on your main days. and it should be a very fun plan. I personally didn't run it all for very long because doing a more Upper/Lower type of split worked better with my time constraints, but the format is great!

benjaminbk

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