Okay for some reason it happened again. I've spent the last month injured and unable to run. I did force myself to go for a ride last Friday and the pain was bad in the beginning but subsided by the end. Yes, I still was in pain, but it was manageable.
For now it is one day at a time and with no events planned I can ease back into it.
My son wants to build a gravity catapult so that is on the project list. He is also very into robotics and we have a number of them around the house with more joining us all the time. My challenge is keeping things infront of him that interest and challenge him. Seeing that he is only 6, it is not as easy as it seems.
Thank god for Lego Mindstorm.
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Monday, May 13, 2013
Down Time
Well, its been a week. I took last week of just for a rest and to catchup on a few things. That only means that my exercises was down, but I was able to concentrate on eating better. Low and behold, I dropped a couple pounds. If I can keep that up, and get exercising again this week, the results have to be much better.
This week is going to be busy too, but I should be able to get some walks in. I may even try for later in the evening or go back to early in the morning. The morning workouts didn't last because of the hockey playoffs. Now that the Red Wings are playing in Chicago for the second round there should be no more 10pm start times.
I can't wait, the most recent app that I've down loaded was an interval timer. I've got it set to run 2 minutes, walk 1 minute. I'm thinking that is a good interval to start with. After that the plan is to up the run time by 10 seconds a week until it hits 3 minutes then drop the walk time by 10 seconds until that hits 30 seconds. That should take me out 9 weeks. At that time it will do me good to re-evaluate before I either take the run longer or the walk shorter. Time will tell
Live Beyond The Ordinary
Dream Without Limits
This week is going to be busy too, but I should be able to get some walks in. I may even try for later in the evening or go back to early in the morning. The morning workouts didn't last because of the hockey playoffs. Now that the Red Wings are playing in Chicago for the second round there should be no more 10pm start times.
I can't wait, the most recent app that I've down loaded was an interval timer. I've got it set to run 2 minutes, walk 1 minute. I'm thinking that is a good interval to start with. After that the plan is to up the run time by 10 seconds a week until it hits 3 minutes then drop the walk time by 10 seconds until that hits 30 seconds. That should take me out 9 weeks. At that time it will do me good to re-evaluate before I either take the run longer or the walk shorter. Time will tell
Live Beyond The Ordinary
Dream Without Limits
Monday, May 6, 2013
Keep on Trucking
Well, I wanted to include a picture or two of some of the fauna that is found during my lunchtime walks, but my phone died and I didn't bring a cord to charge it. So I guess I'll have to add them next time.
I was able to get a 34 minute walk in at lunch. After informing my wife that i would be running to the store at lunch she told me that she would do it because she had other things to get. So I went for a walk instead of going to the store. The weather was a bit cooler then last week, but the sun was out and so were the small animals.
After the walk I had to run and get gas for the automobile and then back to work. This allows me to workout and still get a lunch in at my desk when I get back. Today was leftover jambalaya with some chicken and shrimp. Not bad for a rice dish. this kept me away from fast food which is a good thing. With the addition of some fruit and pumpkin seeds my cravings have been met or thwarted.
I got a good map of my route today. Using Map My Run I was able to map it, but that also is on my phone which is dead at this time. But my calling up Map My Run on the computer, it looks like I am not far from running out of dirt and ending up on pavement. One of these days I will, but for now it is slow and steady.
There is another app that I was testing on my phone and that is from Gymboss. It is an interval timer that I had set at 2 min on and 1 min off. I wasn't sure how it would work and if I would be able to hear the signal to switch over the music or what ever I was listening to at the time. Well, the signal was definitely audible. I couldn't hear anything else when the timer expired. It actually was annoying when I was talking on the phone, but it did work. I'll have to use it more for my run/walks that I am planning for the future.
This week is going to be a tough one. Not only is it Teacher appreciation week, but we have 2 mid-week soccer games, swim lessons and a meeting with the superintendent of schools all to juggle. That is after I cancel two other meetings. this is going to be a high stress week if there ever was one.Just trying to get the things done that need to be done is one thing, but with all the additional items to accomplish luck is needed.
Well that is enough rambling for now
Live Beyond The Ordinary Without Limits.
I was able to get a 34 minute walk in at lunch. After informing my wife that i would be running to the store at lunch she told me that she would do it because she had other things to get. So I went for a walk instead of going to the store. The weather was a bit cooler then last week, but the sun was out and so were the small animals.
After the walk I had to run and get gas for the automobile and then back to work. This allows me to workout and still get a lunch in at my desk when I get back. Today was leftover jambalaya with some chicken and shrimp. Not bad for a rice dish. this kept me away from fast food which is a good thing. With the addition of some fruit and pumpkin seeds my cravings have been met or thwarted.
I got a good map of my route today. Using Map My Run I was able to map it, but that also is on my phone which is dead at this time. But my calling up Map My Run on the computer, it looks like I am not far from running out of dirt and ending up on pavement. One of these days I will, but for now it is slow and steady.
There is another app that I was testing on my phone and that is from Gymboss. It is an interval timer that I had set at 2 min on and 1 min off. I wasn't sure how it would work and if I would be able to hear the signal to switch over the music or what ever I was listening to at the time. Well, the signal was definitely audible. I couldn't hear anything else when the timer expired. It actually was annoying when I was talking on the phone, but it did work. I'll have to use it more for my run/walks that I am planning for the future.
This week is going to be a tough one. Not only is it Teacher appreciation week, but we have 2 mid-week soccer games, swim lessons and a meeting with the superintendent of schools all to juggle. That is after I cancel two other meetings. this is going to be a high stress week if there ever was one.Just trying to get the things done that need to be done is one thing, but with all the additional items to accomplish luck is needed.
Well that is enough rambling for now
Live Beyond The Ordinary Without Limits.
Friday, May 3, 2013
Just Keep Going
Okay now we're up to five days in a row. How many times do you have to repeat a task for it to become a habit? I've heard as little as seven and as many as 21. I'm at 5 so I'm either almost there or just getting started. If I were to place a bet it would be that I am just getting started.
My walk today was outdoors again. Now that the weather here in the Midwest is getting warmer it is much better for my mood if I get outdoors.
I walked the same path as I did yesterday. Rather then listening or half listening to a podcast, I switched over to music with no intention of concentrating on the words. Instead I just took in the surroundings.
The trail is a two track for the most part with little single track side spurs. Being an urban environment, there are plenty of squirrels, birds and ground squirrels running around. I can't count the number of times that something startled me as I walked by it. There are still a number of oak leaves on the ground that just amplifies any movement. Flowers are just now starting to bloom and I am having a hard time believing that earlier this week the trees were still in buds. Now the maple leaves are bigger then a silver dollar and is happened over night. It never ceases to amaze me what this warm weather can do. It won't be long before the view of the lake will be obscured by the leaves so I need to enjoy the view while I can.
The only thing that brought down my walk was that I turned my GPS watch off at the halfway point when I was thinking that I triggered a lap. Oh well, at least I know how far I went because it was an out and back walk.
After the walk I ran to the local health food store and got a green smoothie from their health bar for lunch. I am sipping from it as I write this post. This is one way for me to eat healthier. I anyone has suggestions of how to break away from the families normal foods and eat your own. The hard part is that I don't believe that we should be preparing multiple meals to be put on the table at one time. What one eats, everyone should eat. As it is, the kids eat differently from my wife and I and I don't want to add to that complexity. My only option may be that I just need to do it and not worry about it. Easier said then done.
I do believe that everyone should eat healthily, but for a time being, I am going to an extreme. Should I back that off and just prepare meals for my wife and myself that are healthy and not that extreme? If I answer my own question, it would be small steps are better then no steps so just back off for yourself and bring the others along. If we eat and healthy well balanced diet, then the kids will begin to emulate us and start requesting better food. I can't wait for that to happen.
Time to get back to the business at hand.
Live Beyond The Ordinary And Without Limits
Thursday, May 2, 2013
It's A Beautiful Day
Yes, its a beautiful day out. I stated in an earlier post that I was planning on getting up and heading to the gym first thing in the morning. Well, since I've planning on doing that, I've run into a couple of issues. One is Hockey Playoffs and being in the Eastern Time Zone an my team playing 3 time zones away puts the games late at night. A second issue is I've developed pain in my right knee so I've taking it easier then normal. And third is that the kids are requiring a chauffeur a couple days a week.
Even with those situations, I've been able to string some days together with workouts. Walking a couple days then having to switch to a swim and today it was back to a walk. At lunch today, I hit the local park and actually found a nice trail through the woods. Half the trail is paved that runs along a road and the other half is gravel and runs through the woods around a lake. Life couldn't be much better.
I got a 35 minute walk in that couldn't have been much better unless I wouldn't have had to go back to work. That being said, I have no idea how far I went and don't care. Will I find out? Yes, but that won't be until I download the data from my Garmin. The goal here is to get out consistently and not to worry about how far or fast I go. Just that I do go.
Eating is eating at this point. What should I do for tonight? I've got some spinach, apples and that is about it for fresh veggies. There is also frozen veggies that could get steamed on the stove seeing that the microwave is still broken. Anything else in the house is not going to be good for me and I don't have time between work and picking up the kids to shop. And by the time I get the kids, there is not enough time to shop and cook but that looks like what I'll have to do.
Question: Could one of my kids not like a lot of the foods because he has anxiety? From experience it is very hard to when your stomach is in knots. How do I get him past it? Should I find something that he will eat and make sure we have a lot of it on hand. What is out there to calm his stomach? I feel that is the reason he is so fussy about what is on his plate. At what age do they start eating better?
I have come up with more questions then answers so it is time to cut out.
Live Beyond The Ordinary
and
Live Without Limits
Even with those situations, I've been able to string some days together with workouts. Walking a couple days then having to switch to a swim and today it was back to a walk. At lunch today, I hit the local park and actually found a nice trail through the woods. Half the trail is paved that runs along a road and the other half is gravel and runs through the woods around a lake. Life couldn't be much better.
I got a 35 minute walk in that couldn't have been much better unless I wouldn't have had to go back to work. That being said, I have no idea how far I went and don't care. Will I find out? Yes, but that won't be until I download the data from my Garmin. The goal here is to get out consistently and not to worry about how far or fast I go. Just that I do go.
Eating is eating at this point. What should I do for tonight? I've got some spinach, apples and that is about it for fresh veggies. There is also frozen veggies that could get steamed on the stove seeing that the microwave is still broken. Anything else in the house is not going to be good for me and I don't have time between work and picking up the kids to shop. And by the time I get the kids, there is not enough time to shop and cook but that looks like what I'll have to do.
Question: Could one of my kids not like a lot of the foods because he has anxiety? From experience it is very hard to when your stomach is in knots. How do I get him past it? Should I find something that he will eat and make sure we have a lot of it on hand. What is out there to calm his stomach? I feel that is the reason he is so fussy about what is on his plate. At what age do they start eating better?
I have come up with more questions then answers so it is time to cut out.
Live Beyond The Ordinary
and
Live Without Limits
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Taking It Slow
Okay I'll admit it. I didn't get my sleep last night. Hockey playoffs began and the Wing's were playing in California. Short of going to the game which I wouldn't mind, I stayed up late to watch it. With the game not starting until 10:30 pm eastern, it doesn't end until about 1:00 am. That means if I am going to get up in the morning to work out then I will only get about 4 hours of sleep. So, I slept in. Shame Shame Shame.
Instead, I left work for lunch a few minutes early and hit the gym then. Due to the pain I felt in my knee yesterday, I figured that swimming would be a good cardio workout and give my knees the break they need. In my gym bag I always carry my goggles and a swim suit so that when I do make it to the gym and I'm not feeling up to it, I can always get a quick swim in.
With my swims this season, I've been working on my breathing. Never knowing what you will run into during the swim in a triathlon, I try to breath efficiently from both sides and not favor one side over the other. So my swim is spent breath from both sides equally. I started with 100 yds breathing bilaterally, rested for 45 seconds and swam 200 yds breathing half on the right and half on the left. nest was 300 yds split equally between right, left and bilateral breathing. The last 200 yds were split between right and left giving me a total of 800 yds in just about 18 minutes.
I noticed during my time in the water that I need to spend the next few sessions working on technique. I've swam that the current speed for a number of years and now it is time to improve the technique therefore improving the speed. Being able to breath comfortably from both sides is fine and will not suffer with extra work on technique. So after my interest in the hockey playoff is gone, I can swim in the morning before work and concentrate on drills.
My abs are feeling a little sore due to the work I am doing prior to getting on the treadmill. I am trying to follow the Legendary Abs II routine. This is a quick ab workout that only takes about 6 minutes to complete. With the back issues I've had over the years, getting ab working is crucial and this is the best focused set of exorcises that I've found to date.
My food intake hasn't changed as fast as it should, but I am going to be patient and take the time needed to make it. If I can change one thing a month then I'll be happy and this month I am going to concentrate on working out.
Live Beyond the Ordinary
And
Live Without Limits
Instead, I left work for lunch a few minutes early and hit the gym then. Due to the pain I felt in my knee yesterday, I figured that swimming would be a good cardio workout and give my knees the break they need. In my gym bag I always carry my goggles and a swim suit so that when I do make it to the gym and I'm not feeling up to it, I can always get a quick swim in.
With my swims this season, I've been working on my breathing. Never knowing what you will run into during the swim in a triathlon, I try to breath efficiently from both sides and not favor one side over the other. So my swim is spent breath from both sides equally. I started with 100 yds breathing bilaterally, rested for 45 seconds and swam 200 yds breathing half on the right and half on the left. nest was 300 yds split equally between right, left and bilateral breathing. The last 200 yds were split between right and left giving me a total of 800 yds in just about 18 minutes.
I noticed during my time in the water that I need to spend the next few sessions working on technique. I've swam that the current speed for a number of years and now it is time to improve the technique therefore improving the speed. Being able to breath comfortably from both sides is fine and will not suffer with extra work on technique. So after my interest in the hockey playoff is gone, I can swim in the morning before work and concentrate on drills.
My abs are feeling a little sore due to the work I am doing prior to getting on the treadmill. I am trying to follow the Legendary Abs II routine. This is a quick ab workout that only takes about 6 minutes to complete. With the back issues I've had over the years, getting ab working is crucial and this is the best focused set of exorcises that I've found to date.
My food intake hasn't changed as fast as it should, but I am going to be patient and take the time needed to make it. If I can change one thing a month then I'll be happy and this month I am going to concentrate on working out.
Live Beyond the Ordinary
And
Live Without Limits
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Training Log
For those that have stumbled onto this blog, I am a little scattered and not very good at keeping up with it. I rarely flag anything and when I did there was more traffic. But seeing that I am not doing this for the traffic, who cares
If I put in my head that this will be a record of my training with some of the other stuff mixed in then I'll probably do better so here we go.
I am still working on Z2 or as it used to be called LSD. Today was an early morning trip to the gym to use a treadmill. Since the treadmill in my house is worn out and the motor won't stay constant, I've given up on it an head to the gym. Maybe I should look into fixing it seeing that my wife won't let me replace it because it works for her. With that aside, back to the workout. I planned on 40 minutes of Z2 cardio and was tooling along fine until the 26 minute mark. At that point my right knee began to bother me so I called it at 30 minutes. The problem I've run into in the past is that I over do it and these little nagging injuries keep me from making any real progress. So to stay in it for the long haul, it was better to end it at that point.
On the food front, yesterday and last night were good. I didnt' overeat and what I did eat was well balanced. Not as many vegetables as I wanted at lunch but I think dinner made up for that.
For dinner it was a green smoothie. My son helped to make it and chose what ingredients we would put in. We started with a blender full of spinach, added a banana, some cherry tomatoes and apples. He loved watching the blender shred things. I tried to get him to lick it, but that didn't go over well. By the time he stopped running I had already poured it into a bottle. We did end up with a little extra fiber in the smoothie due to being over zealous with a wooden spoon. Needless to say the spoon is shorter and I am sure I've ingested the majority of it.
Breakfast has been oatmeal and some Fig Newman's again, only enough to curb the appetite. Now to just keep it up.
I was just thinking about my moods lately. In the past, co-workers would ask me why I was in such a good mood and my quick response was always the same thing. "Today I am going to change the World". That response was because I believe that even very small contributions can make an impact on the world. Recently I haven't been living with that type of attitude. That was until I heard someone describe the participants in the Boston Marathon as people that "Live Beyond The Ordinary". that phrase immediately struck a cord with me and I had to write it down less I forget it all together. I like it so much that I plan on designing a T-Shirt with it and hopefully will have a poster in each of my boys rooms with that on it.
Okay back to real life and time to stop rambling.
Go out and make a change today and remember "LIVE BEYOND THE ORDINARY"
If I put in my head that this will be a record of my training with some of the other stuff mixed in then I'll probably do better so here we go.
I am still working on Z2 or as it used to be called LSD. Today was an early morning trip to the gym to use a treadmill. Since the treadmill in my house is worn out and the motor won't stay constant, I've given up on it an head to the gym. Maybe I should look into fixing it seeing that my wife won't let me replace it because it works for her. With that aside, back to the workout. I planned on 40 minutes of Z2 cardio and was tooling along fine until the 26 minute mark. At that point my right knee began to bother me so I called it at 30 minutes. The problem I've run into in the past is that I over do it and these little nagging injuries keep me from making any real progress. So to stay in it for the long haul, it was better to end it at that point.
On the food front, yesterday and last night were good. I didnt' overeat and what I did eat was well balanced. Not as many vegetables as I wanted at lunch but I think dinner made up for that.
For dinner it was a green smoothie. My son helped to make it and chose what ingredients we would put in. We started with a blender full of spinach, added a banana, some cherry tomatoes and apples. He loved watching the blender shred things. I tried to get him to lick it, but that didn't go over well. By the time he stopped running I had already poured it into a bottle. We did end up with a little extra fiber in the smoothie due to being over zealous with a wooden spoon. Needless to say the spoon is shorter and I am sure I've ingested the majority of it.
Breakfast has been oatmeal and some Fig Newman's again, only enough to curb the appetite. Now to just keep it up.
I was just thinking about my moods lately. In the past, co-workers would ask me why I was in such a good mood and my quick response was always the same thing. "Today I am going to change the World". That response was because I believe that even very small contributions can make an impact on the world. Recently I haven't been living with that type of attitude. That was until I heard someone describe the participants in the Boston Marathon as people that "Live Beyond The Ordinary". that phrase immediately struck a cord with me and I had to write it down less I forget it all together. I like it so much that I plan on designing a T-Shirt with it and hopefully will have a poster in each of my boys rooms with that on it.
Okay back to real life and time to stop rambling.
Go out and make a change today and remember "LIVE BEYOND THE ORDINARY"
Monday, April 29, 2013
Back At It
Just a quick post. I can't believe that this is my first post of the year and that I only posted twice last year. Let's change that by makeing them quick and as short as they need to be. Who know's maybe I'll just ramble until they are as long or longer then before......
After going I got in bed the other night, I felt a pain in my chest. A very minor pain but a pain nun the less. This was after I had stayed up late that night to watch a hockey game and I was the last one to go to sleep in the house. This was one of those moments where you come to realize that something must change.
With two young boys, I want to be around awhile. My last physical was good, but my cholesterol was a little high. With heart desease running in my family something has to be done about this. In the past I've relied on excersise to get my numbers down and I plan on the same thing but I also plan on getting my diet in order.
The young boys aren't making it easy to clean up the diet. They are fussy eaters so the menu is limited. If I am going to do this I must break away from the family and eat my own food.
Here's the plan. I want to change the balance of food on my plate. Instead of a hearty portion of meat or protein, I plan on substituting vegitables. I am also looking to eliminate wheat from my diet. This means the elimination or the replace my beloved plain pasta with gluten free varieties. The holes and questions I have are; Do I give up beer? Should I eliminated Dairy and Wheat completely or just limit the consumption of them? For now, I am just going to limit them and see how that goes.
The other part of the plan is going to be the old tried and true activity of cardio excersise. I haven't completely stopped my cardio workouts, but life has gotten in the way recently and I've fallen off the wagon. I started the year out good and was making progress. That progress is gone. Normally I would just start back in where I left off, but I need to change something about my cardio or I'll just let life get in the way again and stop. So this time it is back to the basics. LSD or Z2 training is where it is going to be. That means that today for my half hour cardio workout, I kept my heartrate down in Zone 2. This ment that I only was able to walk at a brisk pace. I am good with that for now. In the near future that may not be the case but it is good now. Some people say limit your workout to the point where you question the value of it.
I am also going to change when I workout. It's been relatively easy to get a half hour in at lunch time, but I would like to stretch that out to an hour. To do that it looks like I'll need to head out of the house early in the morning and hit the gym and if I am needed at home to help get the boys off to school then I'll need to run home after my workout. If I start early enough than that shouldn't be an issue.
So in summary the workouts are going to be longer and early in the morning. The diet is going to change to become a majority of vegitables if not completely. I really want this to work for me and my family, So Wish Me Luck.
After going I got in bed the other night, I felt a pain in my chest. A very minor pain but a pain nun the less. This was after I had stayed up late that night to watch a hockey game and I was the last one to go to sleep in the house. This was one of those moments where you come to realize that something must change.
With two young boys, I want to be around awhile. My last physical was good, but my cholesterol was a little high. With heart desease running in my family something has to be done about this. In the past I've relied on excersise to get my numbers down and I plan on the same thing but I also plan on getting my diet in order.
The young boys aren't making it easy to clean up the diet. They are fussy eaters so the menu is limited. If I am going to do this I must break away from the family and eat my own food.
Here's the plan. I want to change the balance of food on my plate. Instead of a hearty portion of meat or protein, I plan on substituting vegitables. I am also looking to eliminate wheat from my diet. This means the elimination or the replace my beloved plain pasta with gluten free varieties. The holes and questions I have are; Do I give up beer? Should I eliminated Dairy and Wheat completely or just limit the consumption of them? For now, I am just going to limit them and see how that goes.
The other part of the plan is going to be the old tried and true activity of cardio excersise. I haven't completely stopped my cardio workouts, but life has gotten in the way recently and I've fallen off the wagon. I started the year out good and was making progress. That progress is gone. Normally I would just start back in where I left off, but I need to change something about my cardio or I'll just let life get in the way again and stop. So this time it is back to the basics. LSD or Z2 training is where it is going to be. That means that today for my half hour cardio workout, I kept my heartrate down in Zone 2. This ment that I only was able to walk at a brisk pace. I am good with that for now. In the near future that may not be the case but it is good now. Some people say limit your workout to the point where you question the value of it.
I am also going to change when I workout. It's been relatively easy to get a half hour in at lunch time, but I would like to stretch that out to an hour. To do that it looks like I'll need to head out of the house early in the morning and hit the gym and if I am needed at home to help get the boys off to school then I'll need to run home after my workout. If I start early enough than that shouldn't be an issue.
So in summary the workouts are going to be longer and early in the morning. The diet is going to change to become a majority of vegitables if not completely. I really want this to work for me and my family, So Wish Me Luck.
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