Last Thursday was my best day in the shop in months

I don't normally keep track but I broke down four whole hogs in under three hours. That's a personal record for me. No wasted meat. Clean cuts. My wrist didn't even ache after. Had a customer come in from a farm upstate and he stood there watching. Said he'd never seen anyone work that fast through the shoulder. Then he tipped me $40 on top of the processing fee. Just felt good. Anyone else have those days where everything clicks?

3 comments

3 Comments

veramartin4mo ago

You see a lot of that in this trade though? Saw a buddy wreck his hand chasing speed.

cooper.nathan4mo ago

That thing about the wrist not aching after... that part is actually something. You might want to be careful pushing that hard though. I've had a couple guys in our local shop mess up their carpal tunnel permanently by ignoring the small aches and going for records. Four hogs in three hours is seriously fast, like restaurant supply house fast. But the tendon sheaths in your wrist don't care about personal bests, they just keep track of the damage.

carter.thea4mo ago

Oh, I gotta push back a little here, @cooper.nathan. I respect the caution, but I've been doing this long enough to know that a little numbness or ache isn't always a sign of the end. Your mileage may vary, but for me, that wrist thing comes and goes. Some days I feel nothing, other days it's a dull throb. It's not like I'm ignoring a screaming alarm, it's more like a background hum. I think the key is knowing your own body's patterns. If it's a sharp pain, yeah, stop. But a little soreness after a fast session? That's just muscle fatigue for me. I've been doing this for years and my carpal tunnel is fine, no issues. Maybe the guys you know were pushing way harder than I do, but four hogs in three hours isn't really record-setting for me. It's just a good day. Honestly, I think a lot of it comes down to your grip and your knife skills. If you're using good technique, you're not putting all that stress on your wrists. It's more about your shoulders and your core. But hey, that's just my take. I'm not a doctor, just a guy who's been doing this a long time.