Workout of the Day

Two rounds of two-minutes for reps of:
4 strikes + sprawl
Double-unders
75 lb. sandbag cleans
Double-unders
Sit-ups

Set up like a Fight Gone Bad, there is no rest between exercises. You will spend two minutes at one station, completing as many reps as you can. On the call of "rotate" you will move immediately to the next station. You will get two minutes of rest between rounds. The "4 strikes + sprawl" is 4 jabs to a heavy bag followed by a quick drop into a defensive position (chest to the floor push-up position with feet wide), before immediately springing to your feet.
Score is total reps.

Score: 191

R.I.P.

Sammy
??/??/1990- 12/27/2007

Workout of the Day

Three rounds for reps, in one-minute of:
Row (for calories)
Ring push-ups
Double-unders
Ring pull-ups
20 lb. Sledgehammer swings

Rest one-minute between rounds. Score is total reps in all three rounds.

Total reps: 186

I still can't do double-unders, and my pull-ups are still in low numbers, but I had respectable totals on the other rounds.

Merry Christmas!

Workout of the Day

"Fran"
For time:
21, 15, 9 reps of 95 lb Thrusters, Pull-ups

Time: 12:04

Workout of the Day

"Tabata This"
Tabata sets are 20 seconds of work, followed by 10 seconds of rest, for eight rounds per exercise. Score is represented by highest number of reps achieved per set, over lowest number of reps per set.

Row (for calories): 6-4-4-4-4-4-4-4 = 6/4
Squats: 15-10-8-8-8-8-8-8 = 15/8
Pull-ups: 12-9-5-8-5-5-5-5 = 12/5
Push-ups: 19-8-5-5-5-5-5-5 = 19/5
Sit-ups: 12-8-8-8-8-8-8-8 = 12/8

Total: 64/30

Workout of the Day

Five rounds - 235 lb dead-lifts for max reps, 45 lb barbell (90 lbs total) shoulder press for max reps.

First number is dead-lifts, second is presses.

7-15
10-13
8-11
8-8
8-10

Total: 41 deadlifts, 57 shoulder presses.

Workout of the Day

For time, or 20 minutes, whichever comes first:

120 Ring-rows (assisted pull-ups)
120 Push-ups

Time: 17:18

I broke the exercise into 12 sets of 10 reps of each.

It still sucked.

Workout of the Day

FAIL!

Went to go work out yesterday, but became dizzy, faint and nauseous during the warmup. So I wnet home. I figured I was coming down with something (which is unusual), but that did not prove to be the case - I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I had a really lazy day, drank tons of my Arabic-style coffee, and let myself get dehydrated before going to work out.

Lame.

Workout of the Day

1 x 10 90 kg (198 lb) Front Squat

3 rds
10 x Turkish get-up sit-ups
10 x weighted sit-ups




Turkish Get-Ups! Photo by Daniel Carney

Sawyers Bay and Roseneath

Yesterday I did a 4 mile walk around Sawyers Bay, over the hill to Blanket Bay, then up the hills in Roseneath. It was one of the walks from the booklets I have from Paul Hayward. He fills the walks with stories of histories, past and present of what happened here, what's still here, what was here, who died here, who lived here, what almost happened here etc etc. I really enjoy them.

The pace is slower because of all the reading and gawking, but I get to places I never would otherwise and I climb hills I might have avoided otherwise and I walk a little further than I might otherwise as well. I'm tired at the end, but it's nice to tick another one off and think about which one I'm going to do next.

I think this was my first time to do longish walks on consecutive days. I wore new shoes, without the orthotics. Today, I'll try then with the orthotics for a short, strenuous walk up and down the hill to see how they feel. The weather is quite changeable here. I was too hot yesterday for the way I was dressed, yet it was chilly the day before. Ya just never know.....

NEW PR

Congratulations on the new pr!! Way to go!

I did a 3.2 mile walk today, in cold, drizzly weather along back beach road around Port Chalmers. It felt great - I love walking in cold, rainy weather as long as I keep warm and the rain doesn't drip in my eyes.

I also got new shoes today, with more support. I can get my orthotics in them but I am unconvinced the orthotics are actually right for my feet. the official Tiger Bombers hiking group is now down to 2 1/2, with Wendy and myself set for the whole shebang and Denny, her fiance (they met during the formation of the group) settled that his knees won't let him keep up with us. We started at 13, I believe, about 7 months ago. My average speed over the 3 miles was 19 min miles, which is good for me. When I'm carrying a pack and walking on uneven ground I expect the avg over long distances to fall to closer to 45 min miles. But who's counting?

In spite of foot problems, leg problems, back problems, I seem to be holding together, with the occasional Vit I. Nothing major, so I am encouraged. Now I just need to build up my mileage...

Workout of the Day

CrossFit Total:

Back Squat = 115 kg (253 lbs) New PR!
Overhead Push Press = 70 kg (154 lbs) New PR!
Deadlift = 135 kg (297 lbs) Under previous PR.

Total: 320 kg (704 lbs)

Previous CFT = 695 lbs

Others went down on deadlift weight too - Daniel thinks this is because we had lots of deadlifts on Tuesdays WOD.

Workout of the Day

For time:
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of muscle snatch+Turkish get-up, 25 lb dumbbell
25-50-75-100-125-150-175-200-250 reps of jump rope, alternate step

Alternate between muscle snatch+turkish get-up (MSTG) and jump rope. For example, 10 MSTG, 25 jump rope, 9 MSTG, 50 jump rope, etc. For the MSTG, begin with the dumbbell in the right hand, snatch then lower to the ground position of the Turkish get-up, transition the dumbbell to the left hand and stand up- that's one rep. You will then begin the second rep by snatching with the dumbbell in the left hand.

My time: Did not finish. Got to 4 MSTG/175 jump rope. Daniel called the end when the first person finished at 26:26. He was the only person out of the eight of us that finished.

Retune the Body With a Partial Fast

Here is a link to an NPR story that explains simply the benefits of intermittent fasting. It says fasting even once a week makes the metabolism more efficient at using insulin to produce glycogen (which is muscle food), which in turn better regulates glucose levels in the system.

The article also suggests that fasting may lower blood pressure, reduce cellular free-radicals and help protect against Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and stroke.

It really adds some more credence to theory that paleo habits are beneficial, as our ancestors would certainly have had periods of fasting.

Workout of the Day

As many rounds as you can in 20 minutes:

15 x 175 lb deadlifts
12 x 20' box jumps
9 x 80 lb shoulder press

Finished 5 rounds, plus 10 deadlifts

Workout of the Day

"Angie"

For time:

100 Pull-ups

100 Push-ups

100 Sit-ups

100 Squats

My time: 35:09

Now I am jello.

Sniff

Unfortunately, I am not doing as well as you...I have done a couple of walks, all with steepish hills in them and I really feel the hills.

Also, this place has not been dusted in over two years and I am suffering from massive allergy attacks, which has taken quite a toll on me. I think I've finally gotten the bedroom liveable, the office is still choking me up, and the living room is pretty good but I still occasionally get hit with sneezies, itchy eyes, wheezing etc. benadryl is helping, but it also knocks me out, so I'm not a ball of fire yet.

Excuses, excuses, I know, but I'm pretty miserable. I've been keeping up with my stretches, though, so I don't stiffen up too much.

Workout of the Day

Today, we revisited "Fight Gone Bad."

Three rounds for reps of:
20 lb wall ball, 8' target
75 lb Sumo Deadlift High Pulls
20" box jump
75 lb push-press
Row (for calories)

Each exercise is performed for one minute, with no break in between. There is a minute break between rounds. It is the shortest minute EVER.

I haven't done "Fight Gone Bad" since the fund raiser in September, where I got 198 reps. I was hoping to see an increase, but tonight I got 196.

Last time I did this, I did not do box jumps, but instead I did step-ups. Because jumping is actually harder, my total rep score decreased this time - but all my other scores increased, so it was not a real loss.

Workout of the Day

"Lynne"

Five rounds of 110 lb bench press, and pull-ups - for total reps.

I chose to do un-assisted pull-ups, even though I knew my numbers would be low. At least I will be able to clearly see what kind of improvement I've made next time I meet Lynne.

First number is bench-press, second is pull-ups.

12 - 4
11 - 3
14 - 3
12 - 4
11 - 2

Workout of the Day

3-3-3-3-3-3-3 overhead squats.

Complete seven sets of three overhead squats, increasing weight toward a three=rep maximum.

I did:
40 kg (88 lbs) - 42.5 kg (93.5 lbs) - 45 kg (99 lbs) - 45 kg (99 lbs) - 45 kg - 45 kg - 45 kg.

But even better, tonight I hopped up on the pull-up bar and cranked out 5 pull-ups in a row!!!

A Lot Going on in the Kitchen, and Some Blog Changes

Well, I cooked one of those Costco organic chickens last night, because the suspense was just killing me. It had about the usual amount of fat you would expect on a Foster Farms chicken, and the flavor was about the same. So, I suspect these chickens are feed the same type of feeds the other commercial hens are fed, only without hormones, antibiotics and non-vegetable ingredients. Still a healthier chicken, over all, but not like home grown.

So now, I still have leftover turkey from Thanksgiving, which I am making into a stock, leftover chicken from last night (which is becoming soup as I type) and still a bunch of deer heart and liver, which, along with some ground buffalo, will become chili today (legume-free, of course, but it will be impossible to avoid nightshades like tomato and hot peppers)...

Notice that I added some new links and broke the links up into nutrition and exercise categories.

The links in the nutrition category that are NOT Paleo links are blogs that I read. They feature articles that deal with the nutritional concerns we have been discussing lately, and when I say stuff like, "I read somewhere that carb intake leads to inflammation," or something like that, I likely read it on one of these blogs. These bloggers are staying up to date with the latest scientific studies on nutrition, and commenting on it for us non-scientists.

Also, reading them will make fine distractions from actually doing stuff you should be doing...

...Just like writing this blog entry.

Jet Lag

My workout of the day has been to try and stay awake, to drive on the 'wrong" side of the road without causing serious damage to me or anyone else, to visit with the neighbors, to try to remember what I own and where it is and to rejoice that the clothes I haven't seen in two years have not shrunk while in the closet. i think they grew a little.

The plane had wonderful sleeping pods, quite comfortable, bit I still did not sleep much. The Steward was a pusher and he was pushing Veuve Cliquot Champagne which went very nicely with the Duck Confit. It dawned on me that if I had ordered this meal in a fancy shmancy, high priced restaurant, I would have been pleased with it. To be eating this on a plane, was, well, something to celebrate! So I did.

I was very cautious with the delicious breakfast, though, to make sure my tiny bites were actually staying down while my head was pounding.

My plans are to get back on the exercise track tomorrow. It is after 9 pm and still light out there....yippee!

Workout of the Day

"Cindy"

Complete as many rounds as you can in 20 minutes of:

5 pull-ups
10 push-ups
15 squats

My score was 11 rounds - a new PR over my previous 9 rounds. The pull-ups were done with resistance bands, but not TOO much resistance, as my pull-up strength is really increasing.

11 rounds! - or as I like to call it, 55 pull-ups, 110 push-ups and 165 squats. This is, of course, on top of the already 30 pull-ups, squats and push-ups that come in the three rounds of the CrossFit warm-up...

Just when my quads were starting to recover from last Thursday's 250 squats... :<

Workout of the Day

Well, today I went to the UM indoor track to bust out a 1.5 mile run - the same distance I will test for the police exam. I kind of screwed this one up - the track is 1/10 of a mile, so 15 laps = 1.5 miles - if you keep track of how many laps you run...

I let my mind wander, and lost track somewhere around lap 6. My Nike+iPod thingy said I did 1.75 miles, but I haven't calibrated it to my running pace yet, so I can't vouch for its accuracy.

Anyway, my time, (for whatever distance it was) was 17:30.

I need to achieve sub 14:00...

More practice needed.

Rest Day

Workout of the Day

Well, the prescribed Work Out of the Day was:

Weighted pull-ups 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

This means seven reps of pull-ups, with extra weight attached and with the weight increasing each rep until you can't increase further and resting as you need in between each round.

Well, since I come to the game "pre-weighted," I did 4 rounds of bodyweight pull-ups, then another ten rounds with the assistance of rubber resistance bands. Probably the most pull-ups I've done since 1986...

I won't call this a personal record because technically my pull-ups weren't "in a row", but I'm proud I did as many as I did, nonetheless...

Workout of the Day

Five rounds for time:
10 jerks, 95 lbs
50 squats

Time: 22:48

So that's a total of lifting a 95 lb barbell over my head 50 times, and 250 squats.

Whoof.

Daily Workout

Today I walked to the knit shop for my last sit 'n' knit for some time. I actually left early because I was anxious to get back to the trail. I had parked at Whatcom Falls Park and walked the RR trail. My Nike Gizmo didn't work well at first, but finally kicked in after about half a mile.

I walked 4.78 miles at an average pace of 22 min per mile, a little slower than 3 MPH. I carried a pack - not a lot of weight, but more than I've carried before. It was refreshingly chilly on the way there, drizzling on the way back.

My leg was sore most of the way, but not bad. My foot is also a little sore from the orthotic.

Tomorrow I am hoping to make some turkey jerky for the AT with the leftover T'giving turkey.

It's getting close to the wire for getting everything done before leaving for Dunedin...I'll never get it all done. This keeping fit takes a lot of time!

Workout of the Day (and yesterday)

Today's WOD was:

Complete as many rounds as you can in 20 minutes of:
10 one-arm dumbbell snatches, 55 lbs
20 one-arm overhead walking lunges, 55 lbs
10 knees to elbows

Completed five rounds (walking lunges REALLY slow me down - hate 'em)

Yesterday was:

3-3-3-3-3 cleans. Go for highest 3 rep cleans.

Achieved 40 kg, 50 kg, 60- kg, 70 kg (fail), 65 kg

In non-metric: 88 lbs, 110 lbs, 132 lbs, 154 lbs (fail), 143 lbs.

But, MORE IMPORTANTLY, I achieved a new personal record yesterday, doubling my previous PR of one pull-up, I got TWO pull ups!

Daily Workout

Today I worked out by making beds, doing laundry, vacuuming and running up and down stairs a million times. You may laugh, but it was still exercise.

On Monday, I did 5 miles on the North Lake Whatcom Trail, listening to Science Friday all the way. My foot was sore and swelled a little that evening, but I had no lasting soreness the next day, and, best of all, my leg seems to be doing OK. I wore my newest and most expensive orthotic in my newest and least expensive shoes.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) I plan to walk to Apple Yarn on the RR Trail from Whatcom Falls park. And walk home again, of course. Map My Run says it is about 4.5 miles (round trip). We'll see what my Nike gizmo says. In any case, walking from the park is shorter than walking from home. I want to be home before dark.

For some reason, not all of my walking has registered on the Nike site as counting towards my goal, so it says I am already behind. I have logged over 10 miles, but only the last 6 are on there. Oh, well, I'll just have to walk more to catch up!

By the way. I had to recalibrate the gizmo. Apparently the calibration goes with the gizmo rather than with the IPod...

Workout of the Day

Deadlift 3-3-3-3-3-3-3 reps

195 lbs. - 200 lbs. - 210 lbs. - 215 lbs. - 220 lbs. - 230 lbs. - 230 lbs.

Workout of the Day

Complete as many rounds as you can in 20 minutes:
15 box jumps, 20" box
12 deadlifts, 120 lbs
9 push-ups

Finished: 6 rounds (90 box jumps, 72 deadlifts, 54 push-ups)

New 1 RM max: 60.5 lb Turkish get-up

Begin fasting 8:00PM

Workout of the Day

Complete as many rounds as you can in 30 minutes:
Run 400 meters
30 hang power snatches, 45 lb dumbbell

Rounds completed: 4

Broke fast at 7:00PM

Workout of the Day

Complete in as few sets as possible:
75 overhead squats, 30 Kg (66 pounds)

12-20-27-35-42-50-57-65-75

Begin fasting at 8:00PM

It's getting dark early here, not to mention cold. It snowed a bit today. I signed up today to re-join the University gym. Alumni and spouses of current students get quite a discount, so I will do my running/walking there, a bit of independent weight training practice and I'll enjoy the sauna for a couple months.

Mmmmm.... Sauna...

Workout of the Day

3 Rounds:

Run 600 meters,
65 lb overhead snatch, plus 3 overhead squats X 5

Time: 20:53

You are looking nearly svelt in that picture.

Yesterday I went for my first excercise walk since the latest surgery. I got new shoes in case my older ones were worn into an over-pronation pattern. I only did the 20 min (1 mile) prescribed in Prevention's Marathon trianing schedule, but it was enough. My foot was sore and my ITB hurt, but things are OK today.

Also had my checkup today and will do labs next week...Continuing on the Paleo diet, mostly, and have dropped about a pound even though it seems too soon to have that much of an effect. I don't think it's what I eat, but what I don't eat. I just don't have anything to snack on in the pantry!

Next I'll have to get around to entering my nutrition info on the web to see if I'm eating a balanced diet. One of these days....

From the Krav Maga seminar

Left to right: Moni Aizik, who re-vamped the Israeli Defense Force's current version of Krav Maga combat, Me and Skip Chase, owner and instructor of Mt. Baker CrossFit in Mount Vernon, Washington.

Workout of the Day

Wow, it was good to get back to working out.

Today's suck was:

5 Rounds, 1 minute each of:

Row (for calories)
Burpees (ugh.)
Pull-ups
Jump-rope
Knees to elbows

1 minute rest between rounds.

Workout of the Day

DEADLIFTS

5 X 80 kg (176 lbs)
5 X 90 kg (198 lbs)
5 X 95 kg (209 lbs)
5 X 100 kg (220 lbs)
5 X 105 kg (231 lbs)

Fasting Day. Broke fast at 19:00.

Today's (and yesterday's) workout

Oct. 30

Run 2400 Meters (16:26)
Then,
3 rounds, 1 minute each round:
pull-ups: 20-16-13
push-ups: 20-14-11
sit-ups: 23-15-13
squats: 21-20-23



Oct. 29
(Fasting Day)

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of:
Dumbbell clean thrusters (65 pounds)
L sit-ups
Ring Rows

Finished on 3s at 20:00

A big IF

I ended a 20 hour fast this evening at 7:00PM. I worked out, empty stomach and all, at 5:00PM. I picked today to try this because we had a pretty intense workout, and I wanted to see if and how my performance was going to suffer. Truth is, I don’t think it did – in fact, I had TONS of energy all day. I wasn’t that hungry, either. Funny thing is, I was sitting at my computer, trying to finish this story about the UM Native American Center and must have gotten up and opened the fridge or pantry a dozen times, before I remembered, ‘hey, I’m not eating today.’

I realized I went for food, not really because I was hungry initially, but because I was bored, and it was a distraction. Of course, having to consciously NOT eat at those trips to the kitchen made me think about food, which triggered hunger. But it was not an intense, cranky, achy, low blood-sugar kind of hunger.

It was kind of pleasant, actually. Like a nostalgia for food.

When I woke up this morning, my first instinct was to make myself some breakfast – not so much because I was hungry, but because of habit. Later, those trips to the fridge? Habit, more than hunger again. It reminded me of quitting smoking. Even after you get over the worst of the craving, you still want a cigarette at those certain times you would habitually light one up. That always ramped up the hankering for a smoke, and it was the only thing you could think about for a while.

Anyway, when I got home from CrossFit, I took my time in the kitchen preparing food, and did not eat for an hour after getting home. Still no painful craving for food. I had some sautéd cabbage with smoked salmon (which I smoked last fall), a curried chicken salad, made from the chicken I roasted last night and using a homemade mayonnaise of blended walnut and olive oils, and a sauté of spinach, onion and garlic. For dessert, and tomorrow's breakfast, I made a beautiful fruit salad of apple, pomegranate, pineapple and Kiwi (which has, like, TONS of fiber. Who knew?). A little lemon juice and cinnamon in there and Bob's your uncle.

Anyway, the plan, as it stands now, is that I will eat as much as I want UNTIL 7:00PM tomorrow – then fast again until 7:00PM the next day. This way, I get to eat every day, but I am still observing a 24 hour eat/24 hour fast schedule.

The idea behind this limited calorie restriction is that it seems to burn excess fat, increase lean muscle mass, combat insulin resistance, lower blood pressure and increase longevity, among other things.

Here are some links to articles that explain the benefits of Intermittent Fasting and calorie restriction better than I can - read them all - I'll wait...

Science News
Dr. Michael Eades
Art De Vany
American Academy of Anti-aging Medicine (originally printed in The Economist, March 31, 2005)

Ciao

This was origianlly a response to your Email, but what better subject to resurrect the blog...

Well, I was thinking this morning that with Wally gone, you have the opportunity to retune your eating habits. I would be honored to help design an eating plan for you – but with the caveat that I haven’t been eating like this for long enough to know if it’s benefiting ME or not. My seat-of-the-pants impression is that I FEEL better, but who knows how much of that is placebo effect – or “paleo-cebo” effect... (Sorry, you know I have no will power against bad puns).

As far as the ‘no grains’ thing goes, consider that grains, which are tough little critters, have to be found (or cultivated) in quantity, sown, husked, ground or milled and finally cooked in order to be rendered digestible to humans. (Otherwise the hard grains pass through the digestive tract intact). Our hunter gatherer ancestors did not do this, based on archaeological evidence of human diet and studies of the few hunter gatherers that still exist. (I.e. Africa’s !Kung tribe, Australian aboriginals, etc.) They ate wild lean meats, vegetables, fruits, seeds and nuts. These ancient and modern hunter gatherers had virtually no incidence of the diet-related health problems we have now, like heart disease and diabetes, and most cancers - for 400,000 years, or so.

For them, grains were “starvation foods,” eaten in really lean times. A mere 10,000ish years ago, came the agricultural revolution. Grains became a staple, as did dairy (hunter gatherers probably had little luck milking mastodons, or giant tusked deer). So guess when heart disease, cancers and other diet related ailments start showing up in the archaeological record?

This is all more eloquently put in “The Paleo Diet” by Loren Cordain, PhD. Cordain is an expert on stone age nutrition, and I’ll bring you the book, when I come – It is, of course, backed with tons of science. Over all, it’s like Atkins, except that it's not, because you eat (most of) those veggies with carbs as well as fruit, which we always suspected we should be eating, even while losing weight on Atkins. Cordain is very much in favor of eating meats, though he recommends game meat, grass fed beef and free-range chicken. Corn-fed beef is not only higher in fat than grass-fed cows, but has a much higher Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratio, which is not ideal. Not to mention, the hormones, the antibiotics, the petro-chemicals.

Anyway, I’m happy to do your shopping for you when I come – between Haggen and the new Trader Joe’s, finding quality food will be easy. Oh, and that Food Pyramid? Mostly driven by politics, and the economy of farm subsidies. Big surprise.

Going Strong

Looks like you are going strong! Wish I could say the same for me....I've been spending my time figuring out how to keep Shorty in! Much and varied fencing materials have filtered through my hands the last couple of weeks and I think I am finally successful in keeping him from visiting the neighbors or playing with the fast moving cars in the road.

So, while I haven't been "exercising" for exercise sake, I ain't been sitting on my hands, either.

However, I do really, really need to get a formal plan started, more than just walking the dog or taking him to the park. I'm stil having problems with the walking, though, so I have to do something about that, too.

Jerks

This is the Split Jerk. My form is slightly better than David's, as he has not locked his elbows. A locked elbow will make all the difference when there is a lot of weight on that bar.


This week in exercise:

Wednesday, May 16

3 rounds of:

50 foot walking lunges
30 squats
45 Romanian Dead Lifts

Time: 9:26

Then: 3 rounds 20 second L-sits, 3 rounds 15 second ring-holds

Thursday, May 17

As many rounds in 20 minutes:

5 rope pull-ups
10 dips
15 jump-rope double-unders

3 rounds completed

Saturday, May 19

Olympic weightlifting practice with low weight:

20 Cleans
20 Jerks
20 Split Jerks (see photo)
20 Push Jerks

Too cold

It has been too chilly here to swim. But I must get at least one good swim in before leaving here on Sunday.

Haven't been walking because my foot in bothering me still. The doctor said the screw he put in has migrated and if it doesn't feel better in a few months, the screw will have to come out.

That, plus all the stuff we are doing to clear the house and set it up for showing well - late nights and early mornings - have taken their toll on my best-intentions for exercising.

So, what's your excuse??

Begining Again.

At this point, I've been away from exercise for two weeks. Tomorrow will be new beginning for me, too.

I went to the running store on Higgins to get some new shoes. The proprietor was very helpful - he looked at my present running shoes, watched me walk barefoot and in shoes. He determined from my walk, and the wear pattern on my old shoes, that I have fairly flat arches and foot turns inward a bit. He picked out several shoes with strong arch support for me to try. He has a treadmill in the store, so I could actually run in the shoes which is a nice feature, though he even said I could go running outside, if I wanted.

Well, $90 later, I have a new pair of Sauconys that felt great on the treadmill. They weren' the coolest looking shoes, so I felt very grown up by choosing the most comfortable ones.

Then, later that evening, I came down with some kind of awful cold or flu-like thing, (undoubtedly from pulling two all-nighters in a row to meet a deadline), and I have yet to test-drive my new kicks.

On a side note, here is an easy, but very tasty recipe I tried a few weeks ago:

West African Lemony Okra Soup



I bought the okra frozen, and I substituted chicken breast for the broiler, and you can use brown rice or wild rice for more fiber if you want.

Really yummy and filling!

This is a good time to begin again.

With my new waterproof case for my Ipod, swimming is something of a joy. I set out to do 100 lengths yesterday, but did 120 instead. Instead of counting each lap, I used a system of counters, moved across the tiles to keep track of my laps. I didn't realize how many I had done until I actually stopped to count the number of tiles I had "swum" through.

And I've started a limited walking program - I walked a little over a mile the other day. I'm finding my method of walking wants to change, but I haven't figured out which way to plant my foot yet. The "new" foot did well, (although it wound up pretty sore) but I am noticing problems with the foot that hasn't been done yet, which is pretty distressing. I am not anxious to have it done and I really don't want to be laid up for so long again and, with Wally on the trail, I have no one to help me out either. Bummer!

Today will be a Pilates-type of day with stretches and core work.

Back on Track

Well, no posts for awhile, as you know, for various reasons (as you know).

My official excuse was that you were temporarily too gimpy to exercise, so why should I post all my wonderful progress and make you feel bad.

Plus, I think I'm giving myself carpal tunnel, with all the typing I've been doing for school lately.


ANYWAY...

I haven't been getting much exercise in the past week. I've missed so much sleep that I think I am coming down with something -- swollen glands, sore throat -- that sort of thing.

I did, however, want to update you about konjac/glucommanon. I've been taking it with meals. boy, does that stuff fill you up! I'm curious to see how it affects my cholesterol, etc. I bought it here, where it seems to be cheaper than the health food stores:

http://www.iherb.com/store/ProductDetails.aspx?c=Herbs&pid=NFS-03550

This is the brand that Dr. Mark "UltraMetabolsim" Hyman recommends. He also recommends not taking it with medication, or other supplements, because the gelatinous fiber tends to absorb other stuff in your gut while it's there.

Curiously, Glucomannon's scientific name is Amorphophallus Konjac. I wonder how closely it is related to our giant Sumatran flower?

In addition to the fiber, I've been taking fish oil, B complex, vitamin D (those sunless Montana winters...) and CoE Q10. I still get fishy burps for the first hour of my day.

Not so great with coffee.

Lame

LAME, LAME, LAME, LAME

Are we not lame?

Well, maybe just me....What have you been doing lately??

An Old Cholesterol Remedy Is New Again - New York Times

An Old Cholesterol Remedy Is New Again - New York Times

Better?

I don't know if I'm doing any better... I haven't lost any weight! For awhile, clothes were starting to fit me differently (in a good way) but that seems to have stopped happening. I am starting to see muscle tone in my extremities, and can feel stuff tightening under my belly, but the belly is still going strong...

Oh well, in time, hopefully.

Yesterday:

15 then 12 then 9 sets each of:

Pull-ups, dips and deep sit-ups.

Then, 3 X 800 meter run

Then, 7 X 3 sets 85 Lb push press.

I'll post this week's exercise next Sunday...

Better

You continue to do better than I...

I originally consoled myself with the knowledge that even though I didn't do all the tough stuff you are doing, at least I did something every day, a walk, a swim, some yoga or Pilates etc. but lately I can't even say that. My swimming varies with the weather - we've been having a cold spell. I do walk the puppy and have some good, although puzzling, news there. If I don't wear real shoes such as my good walking ones, but wear flip flops or even slippers, I don't have the leg pain and inflammation that has plagued me for the last several years.

I have no clue what this means since I wear good, supportive, expensive exercise shoes for walking normally (and wind up in pain). I am in a sort of holding pattern 'til after my foot surgery.

I am still very much planning on hiking the AT in 2008 - my resolve has strengthened even. And I continue to loose weight - seven pounds so far. So not all the news is bad.

Tim's Week in Exercise

I've been very good. Back to a more reasonable school schedule has made it easy to get to the gym regularly.

In my last post, I indicated what I did at CrossFit on Saturday monring, and that day killed my quads for a few days... I did, however, get back to the gym Monday, where I took it fairly easy on my lower body (though I did two set of 500 meter rows), and I attempted to "walk out" the soreness in my quads by walking 20 laps around the indoor track (which is 2 miles). Did tons of stretching too.

Tuesday I rode the bike: 23 minutes of high intensity interval training. I can feel my endurance increasing, and although my quads were still really sore, the bike did not hurt too badly. It still hurt a lot to go DOWN stairs, but going up was not so bad.

Took a break Wednesday, even though the CrossFit "way" is to go with a rest day every THREE days.

Yesterday (Thursday) I did 3 sets of 5 170 Lb. deadlifts, which is just lifting the bar from the floor to standing, but not lifting the bar - just letting hang straight-arm. It does not seem like it would do much, but you get winded, and break a sweat very quickly, Deadlifts works every muscle in the back, most in the core and legs, shoulders and arms. It also gives me a bit of a buzz -- don't know what that's all about, but I like it. I also did 3 sets of 5 dips, and walked (sometimes ran) around the track for about 20 minutes.

Topped it all of with a nice, 15 minute sauna.

Back into the swing of things

The last three weeks of making art was grueling, and left little to no time or energy for execise. Three weeks without activity really made itself obvious today, when at CrossFit I did:

3 times:

10 pushups
10 situps
10 ring rows (simillar to pullups)
10 second Samson stretches (deep lunge with full overhead arm stretch)

Then, 10 times:

95 lb overhead squats

THEN, 21 reps, then 15 reps, then 9 reps each of:

45 lb overhead thrusters
jumping pullups

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE!

4 times:

10 second L-sits (Hold yourself in "L" position suspended from a set of parallettes)

I'm toast.

Aww Hell.......

OK, so I haven't been so great -- yesterday I rowed 1500 meters and did some HIIT bike, the day before -- the same.

But frankly, this Wintersession metal casting class we're in is very time-consuming (about 7 hours a day - every week day....two Saturdays so far.)

But I should have some cool art to show for it.

Anyway, glad you blew some cobwebs off Shiftless Fitness.

It's been too quiet for too long.

Wh-a-a-a-t? No posts???

Nothing since Jan 4???? What is your excuse???

I have at least been swimming - I am now up to 100 lengths (50 Laps). Have done 1 hour with the exercise ball and 1/2 hour with an excercise bike. It is a little chilly for swimming right now, but I continue to take the puppy on short walks a couple of times a day and hope to take him on a longer walk once he starts accepting the leash.

I have lost 5 lbs. Only 30 more to go. Ha ha ha. As if...but I can dream.

What have you done for yourself?

From New Years Day workout

People who have exercised.

*crickets*

Happy New Year

OK, worked out today.

3 rounds of:

400 meter run (in 11 degree weather)
21 X 70lb barbell power cleans
12 70lb overhead push presses

I was almost about to quit at the second round, but toughed it out.

It took 10 minutes for the nausea to pass, but then the coach served a yummy New Year's Day brunch, which made it all worth it.

SO, YOUR last entry that indicated any physical activity on your part was December 13!

What's up with THAT!!??