Courtesy of History

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Rock star theme songs. Life and death occupations. Heated tensions, back-breaking work and the spirit of competition. There is a lot of testosterone flowing through our television sets this summer. An array of reality-themed, tough-job programming has sprung up on our cable channels, covered in sweat and looking for a fight. Some are kicking off new seasons this week. Others are finishing up. Here's what we still have to look forward to:

History's "Ice Road Truckers" (Season 2 begins tonight at 9) — Once documenting the big rig drivers that hauled equipment across frozen lakes to the gold and diamond mines of Canada's Northwest Territories, "Ice Road Truckers" has changed locations for its second season after its portrayal of Season 1 participants as cowboys got it the boot. Season 2 tracks truckers making their way across the frozen-over Mackenzie River and Arctic Ocean to get supplies to middle-of-nowhere villages and natural-gas exploration sites. Some of Season 1's participants, including Hugh "Polar Bear" Rowland and Alex Debogorski, have tagged along for the ride.

History's "Ax Men" (Season 1 finale is tonight at 10 ) — It's hard not to feel bad for the timber men of Oregon after watching the first season of "Ax Men." Aside from the usual hazards that come along with being a logger — falling trees and failing equipment — the housing bust has made life even harder for this hearty lot. No houses being built means fewer trees to topple. Epic rainfall and disastrous flooding have added insult to injury, leaving loggers unable to reach their equipment, let alone work. With many of the companies barely making it, it should be interesting to see who pulls through.

Tru-TV's "Black Gold" (Season 1 begins June 18 at 10 p.m.) — Welcome to West Texas, where home-state pride flows like water, and big oil is big, big business. "Black Gold" puts a focus on the "roughnecks" of the operation, the down-and-dirty crews that are hands-on in bringing that bubbling crude up from the ground. The series features teams from three drill sites as they snake pipe 10,000 feet underground for millions of dollars in oil.

Discovery Channel's "Deadliest Catch" (new episodes air Tuesdays at 9 p.m.) — Thought it sucked when you had to re-type that expense report? Try fishing alongside a crew of crabby crabbers while battling 40-foot waves and blinding snowstorms. "Deadliest Catch" has made an entire generation of television viewers appreciate where their Red Lobster Alaskan crab legs come from. It's now in its fourth season, and captain Sig Hansen of the Northwestern and captain Phil Harris of the Cornelia Marie are like old friends, leaving us waiting to see who will bring home the bounty.