It’s Friday. Looking for something to switch up your weekend, or to give you an excuse to relax a little? That’s what the Weekend Reset is for. Each week we’ll pull together five things to get your weekend started. Could be something to read or watch, something to eat or listen to, or even something to do. Enjoy the weekend fellas.
WATCH: Kaiser! The Greatest Footballer Never to Play Football
At its essence, this documentary is a heist film. A caper movie. An incredible con. For 26 years the man was, technically speaking, a professional soccer player in Brazil. Over his career he was signed to contracts by multiple clubs. But whenever he’d finally report for duty at a new team, he’d inevitably have a nagging injury. A doctor’s note would get him out of training… perpetually. And then, after being a flop who never actually took the field during a game, he’d move on to a new club, with the pattern repeating itself. And that was ideal for Carlos Kaiser. Because he couldn’t play. Imagine an art dealer selling fakes, only he nor any of his cronies ever bothered to put brush to canvas. That was Kaiser. He was that good. At not.
LISTEN: LeVar Burton Reads
This ain’t Reading Rainbow. Short fiction, read by LeVar Burton, and man can this guy (still) tell a story. Take a deep breath and let yourself fall away into the ether surrounding a piece of short fiction he’s hand-picked. Burton is a terrific narrator, no matter the age of the audience. And unlike regular, long-form audio books, this is short fiction. So you’re not anchored to one story for weeks.
BUILD: A space to exercise
- TRX Suspension Training: Home Gym in a Box – $149.99 (if you buy one piece of equipment, make it this. You don’t need to hang it from the ceiling. All you need to do is close a door.)
- Amazon Basics Speed Rope – $8.37
- INTEY Resistance Bands, Set of 4 – $42.99 (enormously effective when used with pushups)
- Exercise Mat – Prices vary
Set yourself up for success. That means carving out a space to get the work in. Make a space dedicated to working out, or, create one that can quickly convert for exercise purposes. Doesn’t have to be some massive swath. Heck, it can be an incredibly small space (like behind a couch). But having the space is critical. Also, if you’re thinking you don’t have enough equipment, that’s a lie. Use stuff you already have. Like your own body weight. Order a multi-purpose piece of (compact) equipment. Improvise… fill a couple spent milk jugs with water. Congrats! You now you have a pair of 8 lb dumbbells. Build pushup pyramids (do a pushup then rest 10 seconds, do 2 pushups then rest, 3 then rest, etc., then come back down the scale). Use a door-based pull up bar. Work on your plank time. Take some free online yoga classes. Do all the burpees. You’re not bored. You’re just not tired enough. In a few weeks or months we’ll all emerge and you, yes you dear reader, will be ripped.
EAT: Buffalo Cauliflower
Even I can do this. I bought a head of cauliflower at the grocery store this week simply because it looked lonely. Carrots? Gone. Bananas? Gone. Tons of cauliflower though. Recipe also features ingredients that you should be able to source with some relative ease.
JAM: Led Zeppelin Physical Graffiti
There is Funk within the walls of Physical Graffiti. “Custard Pie’s” chug-a-lugging organ + John Bonham’s caber tossing on the drum kit is such a fun combination. “In my Time of Dying” sounds like the bottom of a bottle of chilled red (yes, red) wine. The Wanton Song (doobie duh buh doobie duh boo) is a weirdly underrated Zeppelin tune. There’s no shame in a spontaneous Zeppelin induced dance party. I mighta twerked a little during “Trampled Under Foot.” (You’re welcome, Mrs. Dappered). It’s the perfect soundtrack to making Buffalo Cauliflower. Push play, make Buffalo Cauliflower, watch “Kaiser!” Sounds like a nice little Saturday.