That is in terms of posting. I have been working very hard this month and I have not been posting as much as usual. I hope to change that. I did update my miles and am at a bit over thirty miles for the month. I have two thoughts about this ... really only thirty miles and wow thirty miles. I suppose that it is fair to say I am both disappointed that this is the number as I like to do much more than that and at the same time I have been a very busy lad so the fact that I got any miles in seems like a great achievement.
Last night was a very good run. I am a bit of a plodder when it comes to running. If I were a vehicle I would be a dump truck. Lots of power but not much speed, that sort of defines me. When I started running, well it is nice to call it running, I was doing 14:00 miles. Just to put it in perspective I did weigh around 300 lbs. Now I weigh in at 230 and generally do about a 10:30 pace. I have been trying to cut into the 9:00 range for the past year with limited success. I did do a 5k last year when I averaged 9:50 but I have not duplicated the effort since. Last night was a good step toward the 9: something.
The first mile of my 3.65 loop was at 9:56 and the last mile was at 9:48. The in between was my normal pace and I ended up with a 10:06 total pace. I am quite pleased with my effort on this one. I am going to go out tonight just to see what I can do. Nothing like a good run to get you all motivated again.
In other news, I had a belt test at my kenpo school on Saturday. I passed and now I am one step closer in my training. It is interesting the way things went down. I called my instructor at a little before 9:00 to see if he had some early room for a private lesson. This is when I learned that I was going to be taking a test that day. The good news was that I wasn't able to develop any pre - test jitters. I just went in took my beating and went on with my day. I may do a more extensive post on this later on.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
It Has Been a Time
Update:
It has been some time since my last post and all I can say is that I have been quite busy. Between the court time and the remaining work I have been doing I have not posted as much as usual. I have been running few days a week with a day or two of martial arts.
It has been nice getting outside again to run. I will say that. My calf has healed over the winter and now I feel fresh and well to be honest... pretty fast. My time on the treadmill has quickened me up a bit. I think I would like to keep a day a week on the treadmill (heaven forbid) to speed train. It does work and I do like the ability to try some speed out even if it is on the treadmill.
Sometimes I could use a good ass kicking:
I was going to private lessons first thing on Saturday mornings. It was nice but I didn't take the pounding that Kenpo is known for. If you are not being bashed, pummelled, thrown, kicked and elbowed it just isn't a good class. I have had to start taking a later group class on Saturday (I take my daughter to T-ball). The good news is that I get what I want. There is a certain black belt in the late morning class that hits like a piston and is as solid as a stone wall.
The stimulation of two older lions beating the hell out of each other is great. Sure I wake up the next morning with lots of bruises but it is worth it. The heart of martial arts is different for each art. For Kenpo, I believe it is in the clash. There is a certain purity of two artists mixing it up with no pads, no gloves, no head gear. It is the essence of it, that is what I love. In many ways it loves me back, with a good ass kicking that is, we have to find our humility after all.
It has been some time since my last post and all I can say is that I have been quite busy. Between the court time and the remaining work I have been doing I have not posted as much as usual. I have been running few days a week with a day or two of martial arts.
It has been nice getting outside again to run. I will say that. My calf has healed over the winter and now I feel fresh and well to be honest... pretty fast. My time on the treadmill has quickened me up a bit. I think I would like to keep a day a week on the treadmill (heaven forbid) to speed train. It does work and I do like the ability to try some speed out even if it is on the treadmill.
Sometimes I could use a good ass kicking:
I was going to private lessons first thing on Saturday mornings. It was nice but I didn't take the pounding that Kenpo is known for. If you are not being bashed, pummelled, thrown, kicked and elbowed it just isn't a good class. I have had to start taking a later group class on Saturday (I take my daughter to T-ball). The good news is that I get what I want. There is a certain black belt in the late morning class that hits like a piston and is as solid as a stone wall.
The stimulation of two older lions beating the hell out of each other is great. Sure I wake up the next morning with lots of bruises but it is worth it. The heart of martial arts is different for each art. For Kenpo, I believe it is in the clash. There is a certain purity of two artists mixing it up with no pads, no gloves, no head gear. It is the essence of it, that is what I love. In many ways it loves me back, with a good ass kicking that is, we have to find our humility after all.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Less Running and More Weights
I have not been getting in the miles I have in the past; however, I have been making sure to get strength training in. With my current economic situation I am not really sure if I will get a race in this year. Things are up in the air and I don't really think that spending money on registration fees is a wise use of the resources I have. So I have decided to change up my routine a bit. I am still running and will most likely still get between 12 to 18 miles a week in. I think this is decent enough. On the gym front, it costs me $100.00 a year for my membership so it is pure economics at this point.
I have been concentrating on my core. I have been doing a lot of squats, dead lifts, dumbbell swings and anything else I can think of to increase my over all fitness. The other night when I could not make it to the gym my work out included curling three gallon water bottles and doing other exercises with a five gallon jug. Your muscles really have to work to stabilize the weight when it is sloshing around. So I do push ups, crunches, run up and down one step and so on. I am sure that having a more general focus to fitness will have two results. First, my running ability will decline a bit. This is unfortunate but necessary for the short term. Second, my over all fitness will increase. Adding overall fitness will in the long run be the right move, I am pretty sure of that. Coming from a lineage of Vikings and Highlanders, I was probably never going to have a runner's build. I suppose I am saying that this is probably the right move. Also given my concern over spending money it makes me feel better as well.
I am going to be be kicking it old school on the gym stuff. I am going to be looking for ways to stress out my body. I will let you know how that goes. Oh, I warmed up today with 3.25 miles so as I said I am still running but just not as far. But I am running faster, my pace today: 10:05. Not bad for me. When I know I am only doing three I can get the lead out on the last mile or so and do about a 9:40 for that last stretch. Who knows I might just get faster, that would be a cool side effect.
I have been concentrating on my core. I have been doing a lot of squats, dead lifts, dumbbell swings and anything else I can think of to increase my over all fitness. The other night when I could not make it to the gym my work out included curling three gallon water bottles and doing other exercises with a five gallon jug. Your muscles really have to work to stabilize the weight when it is sloshing around. So I do push ups, crunches, run up and down one step and so on. I am sure that having a more general focus to fitness will have two results. First, my running ability will decline a bit. This is unfortunate but necessary for the short term. Second, my over all fitness will increase. Adding overall fitness will in the long run be the right move, I am pretty sure of that. Coming from a lineage of Vikings and Highlanders, I was probably never going to have a runner's build. I suppose I am saying that this is probably the right move. Also given my concern over spending money it makes me feel better as well.
I am going to be be kicking it old school on the gym stuff. I am going to be looking for ways to stress out my body. I will let you know how that goes. Oh, I warmed up today with 3.25 miles so as I said I am still running but just not as far. But I am running faster, my pace today: 10:05. Not bad for me. When I know I am only doing three I can get the lead out on the last mile or so and do about a 9:40 for that last stretch. Who knows I might just get faster, that would be a cool side effect.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Cross Training 101
I have been posting infrequently at best as of late. I can only say that my schedule has been a bit on the demanding side these days. This last week I was able to log 12.85 miles and did some cross training as well. I usually do martial arts to fill in the gaps but today I did some circuit training. I am usually worried about my lower back as most men my age start to have some issues there. I have thus far been blessed in that department. I think a lot of that has to do with my fear of developing problems so I do exercised my lower back on a fairly regular basis.
After my 3.5 mile run this morning I did some really basic exercises to blast my core a bit. Everything was done for one minute before moving on to the next exercise with no break in between.
1. Planks
2. Medicine ball swings. (legs more than shoulder width apart and swing a medicine ball from between your legs to over your head)
3. Stepping (up and down a single stair)
4. Crunches
5. Lunges
6. Jumping jacks
7. Standing back extensions (bend at waist and then come up and back further than a standing position)
I then took a two minute break and did it again twice more. I was a very tired at the end. Sometimes one does not appreciate the length of time that a minute encompasses. A minute is very short unless you are doing something unpleasant. This was hard, harder than I thought it should be. I can run well but I think my other muscles were suffering a bit from lack of use. I will have to do more of this type of exercise in the future.
After my 3.5 mile run this morning I did some really basic exercises to blast my core a bit. Everything was done for one minute before moving on to the next exercise with no break in between.
1. Planks
2. Medicine ball swings. (legs more than shoulder width apart and swing a medicine ball from between your legs to over your head)
3. Stepping (up and down a single stair)
4. Crunches
5. Lunges
6. Jumping jacks
7. Standing back extensions (bend at waist and then come up and back further than a standing position)
I then took a two minute break and did it again twice more. I was a very tired at the end. Sometimes one does not appreciate the length of time that a minute encompasses. A minute is very short unless you are doing something unpleasant. This was hard, harder than I thought it should be. I can run well but I think my other muscles were suffering a bit from lack of use. I will have to do more of this type of exercise in the future.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Finding Harmony in Uncertain Times
I have done my best to maintain harmony in my life through some pretty difficult times. It is easy these days to be discouraged and see things in a negative light given the economic news. This is more so as I came to work one day and was simply laid off once I left work for the day. I sensed the end was coming but when it came I was still a little taken a back. I just got a phone call on the train ride home informing me that my services would no longer be required, after two and a half years I thought I deserved better. In the end we can only be responsible for our own actions.
Keeping positive was difficult. I had sent out a ton of resumes but no response. I was getting discouraged and my attitude was starting to falter. I did find a temporary job but my skills were not really being used and I knew at the end of February or early March I was out of work.
I had to really look at myself. There are three parts of a person, I think: the mind, body and spirit. In the past, I had exercised my mind with much vigor but had ignored the body and my harmony was all out of whack. I find for myself that being balanced in my life requires that all three be exercised. When I keep healthy through exercise it helps to keep my spirit in check.
I find that for myself, I get pent up aggression. I need to work this out of my system. This has been the way for as long as I can remember. When frustration and anger would build if I could work it out of my system I would feel better. Martial arts became my release early in my life and more recently running has become part of this as well.
The anger and frustration that I harbored for whatever reason could be melted away. I merely had to focus my energies toward the physical and the spirit could come back to balance. This has always been the lynch pin for me ... the physical. The physical seems to have always held the key to the other two. When I find my moment of zen in my physical the rest of my life seems to up tick no matter what the other circumstances.
Today, while I was going through my techniques this morning I found perfection. It was elation, like hitting a runners high or hitting the perfect golf shot. It is when everything comes together into a single perfect moment. My speed, power and execution were dead on. It was simply stated ... Perfection, my moment of Zen. Perfection happens so infrequently that to find it seems in many ways a miracle. What follows?, harmony in my life. Now I feel great, hours later and usually when this happens it sparks weeks of progress and positive feelings that spill into every aspect of my life.
I think the next month is going to be pretty good.
Keeping positive was difficult. I had sent out a ton of resumes but no response. I was getting discouraged and my attitude was starting to falter. I did find a temporary job but my skills were not really being used and I knew at the end of February or early March I was out of work.
I had to really look at myself. There are three parts of a person, I think: the mind, body and spirit. In the past, I had exercised my mind with much vigor but had ignored the body and my harmony was all out of whack. I find for myself that being balanced in my life requires that all three be exercised. When I keep healthy through exercise it helps to keep my spirit in check.
I find that for myself, I get pent up aggression. I need to work this out of my system. This has been the way for as long as I can remember. When frustration and anger would build if I could work it out of my system I would feel better. Martial arts became my release early in my life and more recently running has become part of this as well.
The anger and frustration that I harbored for whatever reason could be melted away. I merely had to focus my energies toward the physical and the spirit could come back to balance. This has always been the lynch pin for me ... the physical. The physical seems to have always held the key to the other two. When I find my moment of zen in my physical the rest of my life seems to up tick no matter what the other circumstances.
Today, while I was going through my techniques this morning I found perfection. It was elation, like hitting a runners high or hitting the perfect golf shot. It is when everything comes together into a single perfect moment. My speed, power and execution were dead on. It was simply stated ... Perfection, my moment of Zen. Perfection happens so infrequently that to find it seems in many ways a miracle. What follows?, harmony in my life. Now I feel great, hours later and usually when this happens it sparks weeks of progress and positive feelings that spill into every aspect of my life.
I think the next month is going to be pretty good.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Getting a Bit Burned Out
I am currently working a temporary job and have been since early January when I was laid off. The hours are starting to get to me. I have been investing 70+ hours a week to this job since I started and have not had a proper day off in that time. I am feeling a bit worn down. I have been trying to keep up on my exercise so that I can fight off being sick. Today, I am tired.
Thursday is a down day so I can relax tonight. I will need it. It feels like someone has really taken the wind out of my sails.
For the mid week I have done two Martial Arts work outs for at total of 2.5 hours and ran 3.4 miles yesterday. I feel healthy but just a bit tired. I think a good deal of my trouble is that I started a stricter diet and I am taking in less calories. I don't feel hungry but I think the reduction in calories is making me feel more tired. I think once my body adjusts I will be fine.
I do apologize for not checking in on everyone's blog this last month. I hope to be better about it once this job ends.
Career wise things look tight. I am sure I will be able to land another temporary job but long terms looks very uncertain. I think I may have to start my own practice on the side. Anyone looking for Immigration, Family Law or Personal Injury representation let me know. :)
Thursday is a down day so I can relax tonight. I will need it. It feels like someone has really taken the wind out of my sails.
For the mid week I have done two Martial Arts work outs for at total of 2.5 hours and ran 3.4 miles yesterday. I feel healthy but just a bit tired. I think a good deal of my trouble is that I started a stricter diet and I am taking in less calories. I don't feel hungry but I think the reduction in calories is making me feel more tired. I think once my body adjusts I will be fine.
I do apologize for not checking in on everyone's blog this last month. I hope to be better about it once this job ends.
Career wise things look tight. I am sure I will be able to land another temporary job but long terms looks very uncertain. I think I may have to start my own practice on the side. Anyone looking for Immigration, Family Law or Personal Injury representation let me know. :)
Monday, February 16, 2009
Week in Review
Work: 73 hours
Martial Arts: 3 hours
Running: 15.51 miles
I did not get up to the 16 miles I wanted to. My long run on Sunday only made it up to 4.25 miles. I was just worn out by the time Sunday rolled around. This 70+ hours a week is taking its toll. The good news/ bad news is that this job will be over in a few weeks. The bad news being that I have nothing else on the horizon. These are lean times to be sure.
The running and martial arts are keeping me sane and I hope that I can manage 16 miles this week. There is a good deal of chaos in my life right now. All we can do is keep at it and hope things turn around.
Martial Arts: 3 hours
Running: 15.51 miles
I did not get up to the 16 miles I wanted to. My long run on Sunday only made it up to 4.25 miles. I was just worn out by the time Sunday rolled around. This 70+ hours a week is taking its toll. The good news/ bad news is that this job will be over in a few weeks. The bad news being that I have nothing else on the horizon. These are lean times to be sure.
The running and martial arts are keeping me sane and I hope that I can manage 16 miles this week. There is a good deal of chaos in my life right now. All we can do is keep at it and hope things turn around.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Long Time No Post
Well the week that was seemed pretty decent sitting from where I am. End Results:
Running: 14.75 hours
Martial Arts: 5 hours
Work (including commute time): 72 hours
The last number shocks me a bit and makes me wonder how it was that I got 4 runs in. They weren't great runs and 3 out of 4 were on the treadmill but given the amount of time I dedicated to work, not bad.
The nice thing was that I finally was able to get a long run in. Not a real long run but longer than normal: 5.6 miles. That was nice. On top of all this now I have to think about getting ready for a Kenpo test. I try to stay on top of material so that I don't have to rush like a madman at the last minute trying to hone my craft. But I still like to be ready. Given all this and the job market which is non-existent right now. My stress levels are pretty high. My temp job ends in about three weeks and then who knows what will happen. So I do need to keep the exercise up to keep my worry factor down. These are trying times to say the least.
This next week I will try to top 16 miles and put in 6 to 10 hours of martial arts practice. The unfortunate part is that I will have to put in an equal number of hours at work (and try to find a permanent job while I am at it.) Well there is a fat guy chasing me and I have to stay vigilant. It would be dreadful if he caught me.
Running: 14.75 hours
Martial Arts: 5 hours
Work (including commute time): 72 hours
The last number shocks me a bit and makes me wonder how it was that I got 4 runs in. They weren't great runs and 3 out of 4 were on the treadmill but given the amount of time I dedicated to work, not bad.
The nice thing was that I finally was able to get a long run in. Not a real long run but longer than normal: 5.6 miles. That was nice. On top of all this now I have to think about getting ready for a Kenpo test. I try to stay on top of material so that I don't have to rush like a madman at the last minute trying to hone my craft. But I still like to be ready. Given all this and the job market which is non-existent right now. My stress levels are pretty high. My temp job ends in about three weeks and then who knows what will happen. So I do need to keep the exercise up to keep my worry factor down. These are trying times to say the least.
This next week I will try to top 16 miles and put in 6 to 10 hours of martial arts practice. The unfortunate part is that I will have to put in an equal number of hours at work (and try to find a permanent job while I am at it.) Well there is a fat guy chasing me and I have to stay vigilant. It would be dreadful if he caught me.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Sad News
I had intended to run in the American Odyessey Relay from Gettysburg, PA to D.C. Unfortunately, it looks like I am going to have to step down from the race. I am currently working a temp job that has demands of as much as 70 hours per week. This leaves little time to train and I am lucky these days to get in 1o to 15 miles a week. This just won't get me ready in time. The other consideration is financial.
I would feel a bit selfish to commit to the race when things are so chaotic on the job front. I have hardly had a nibble in terms of jobs beyond a temporary one. The horizon does not look very bright right now. My attitude is fine but I have to realisitic. Until I find a job with more permanence than the one I have now, I can't really be commit to much in terms of racing. I feel bad for my team mates but replacing one person in early February seemed a lesser offense than saying the same thing 6 or 7 weeks from now when things didn't turn out right on the job front. These are trying times.
I would feel a bit selfish to commit to the race when things are so chaotic on the job front. I have hardly had a nibble in terms of jobs beyond a temporary one. The horizon does not look very bright right now. My attitude is fine but I have to realisitic. Until I find a job with more permanence than the one I have now, I can't really be commit to much in terms of racing. I feel bad for my team mates but replacing one person in early February seemed a lesser offense than saying the same thing 6 or 7 weeks from now when things didn't turn out right on the job front. These are trying times.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Good Intentions and all that...
I had intended to update a lot sooner than twelve days but you know how things can go. I am a new job, it is a temporary thing but the hours are demanding right now. I am singing to the tune of 65 hours a week right now. The good news is that I can put together a bank roll while I try to find something permanent.I have been trying to keep up on my exercise, the point of this blog after all. I managed three runs and 3 martial arts workouts last week and and 2 runs and two martial arts workouts so far this week. As this is the last day of the month I will be going out to do at least enough to get me to 50 for the month or 4.08 miles. I think 4.12 sounds good.
It is cold out there and I have been retreating to the gym in the cold but it is closed. So I have no choice tonight. There is always an excuse if you look for one, always. I say don't give in. It is always easy to seek comfort and difficult to force yourself to choose pain. That is in fact what we all do us "exercise people" as one coworker labeled us. We choose pain over comfort. It is the right choice. Here is my nugget of wisdom of the day. We are all choosing pain all the time those who do and those who don't. If you choose the couch over the road, you will pay for it. It won't be today or even tomorrow but it will catch you and the payment when it does will have a good deal of accumulated interest to deal with. So I say run and exercise now the payment plan is much more reasonable today.
It is cold out there and I have been retreating to the gym in the cold but it is closed. So I have no choice tonight. There is always an excuse if you look for one, always. I say don't give in. It is always easy to seek comfort and difficult to force yourself to choose pain. That is in fact what we all do us "exercise people" as one coworker labeled us. We choose pain over comfort. It is the right choice. Here is my nugget of wisdom of the day. We are all choosing pain all the time those who do and those who don't. If you choose the couch over the road, you will pay for it. It won't be today or even tomorrow but it will catch you and the payment when it does will have a good deal of accumulated interest to deal with. So I say run and exercise now the payment plan is much more reasonable today.
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