Take it eaaaassssy Take it eaaaaasssy

Finally decided to take a break from running. I hate to do it but it was time so Monday and Tuesday, no running. Wednesday is a normal no running day because of basketball so that gives me a three-day rest period. I was going to do a week but I don't think I'll make it. 3 days is enough rest. If I get banged up some more I'll take another short break. That, of course, hasn't stopped me from lifting. I am going to head out shortly for tonight but I will post yesterday's results now.

Tuesday

Running	N/A	N/A	N/A
_	_	_	_
Lifting - Legs	Set 1	Set 2	Set 3
Leg Press	250 x 12	270 x 12	270 x 12
Leg Extension	190 x 10	190 x 10	190 x 10
Leg Curl	90 x 12	90 x 12	90 x 12
Rotary Calf	190 x 12	190 x 12	190 x 12
Ass Machine	137.5 x 12	137.5 x 12	137.5 x 12

Monday

Running	N/A	N/A	N/A
_	_	_	_
Lifting - Arms	Set 1	Set 2	Set 3
Overhead Press	25 x 12	25 x 12	25 x 12
Rear Delt	40 x 12	40 x 12	40 x 12
Arm Curl	20 x 12	20 x 12	20 x 12
Tricep Extension	45 x 12	45 x 12	45 x 12
Wrist Curl	35 x 12	35 x 12	35 x 5
Reverse Wrist Curl	20 x 12	20 x 12	20 x 12

If it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press

I'm tempted to hold off on running for a week or so. My knee is starting to bother me more. I'm not sure if I'm pushing myself too hard or if the knee is just weak. So I'm getting used to spending so much time alone. I'm working out twice a day everyday, I'm studying to become an MCSE, I made eggplant parmesan tonight (an ordeal) that came out great, and I'm saving to buy a condo. I'd rather not be alone, but if I have to be, this isn't a bad way to spend my time.

Running	2.41 miles	27 minutes	11.20 min/mi
_	_	_	_
Chest and Back	Set 1	Set 2	Set 3
Chest Press	90 x 10	90 x 10	90 x 10
Dumbell Fly	20 x 12	20 x 12	20 x 12
Overhead Arm Extension	30 x 12	30 x 12	30 x 12
Reverse Arm Curl	35 x 10	35 x 10	35 x 10
Wide Grip Lat Pulldown	75 x 12	75 x 12	75 x 12
Row	95 x 12	95 x 14	95 x 12

Another Saturday Night...

Wow, taxes suck. This year was just bad. Running this morning was not so good either. I think it was because I didn't really have dinner last night. The last 7 minutes or so was very hard to finish. I'm hoping tomorrow will be better.

Running	2.32 miles	26 minutes	11.21 min/mi
_	_	_	_
Lifting - Legs	Set 1	Set 2	Set 3
Leg Press	250 x 12	250 x 12	250 x 12
Leg Extension	170 x 10	170 x 10	170 x 10
Leg Curl	90 x 12	90 x 12	90 x 12
Rotary Calf	170 x 12	170 x 12	190 x 12
Ass Machine	125 x 12	125 x 12	125 x 12

TGIF

Lots to do tonight. Lifting, cards, taxes.

Running	2.3 miles	26 minutes	11.30 min/mi
_	_	_	_
Lifting - Arms	Set 1	Set 2	Set 3
Overhead Press:	25 x 12	25 x 10	20 x 10
Rear Delt:	35 x 12	35 x 12	35 x 12
Arm Curl:	20 x 12	20 x 12	20 x 10
Tricep Extension:	45 x 10	45 x 12	45 x 10
Wrist Curl:	30 x 12	30 x 12	30 x 12
Reverse Wrist Curl:	20 x 12	20 x 12	20 x 12

Ballin'

Wednesday is basketball night so no running or lifting. It's hard to start my morning now without a run but I can't run and then play ball at night. I tried it and I just get too tired. Basketball was great though. All this running and now the lifting is really helping I think. We play for 2 to 2 1/2 hours and usually by the end I'm beat. Last night I was ready to play a few more games and I'm getting closer to dunking. A (trivial) lifelong goal of mine. :) For lifting I decided to drop the squats and add another tricep exercise. Although I like squats I must be doing them wrong because my knees feel weak and invariably my neck hurts. I figured it best to just leave them off. I also added a reverse arm curl to focus on the brachialis and the brachioradalis (the upper bicep), since that's where I need a lot more work.

Thursday

Running	2.24 miles	25 minutes	11.16 min/mi
_	_	_	_
Lifting - Chest and Back	Set 1	Set 2	Set 3
Chest Press	85 x 12	85 x 12	85 x 8
Dumbell Fly	20 x 10	20 x 10	20 x 10
Reverse Arm Curl	30 x 12	30 x 12	30 x 12
Wide Grip Lat Pulldown	70 x 12	70 x 12	70 x 12
Row	90 x 12	90 x 12	90 x 12

Stock Traders' Proverb: "Never try to catch a falling knife."

The title, of course, refers to the very scary day on Wall Street. The idea the stock market can plummet 500 points (at least briefly) with very little news governing the sell-off is alarming. Yes China issued some statements about the absurd amount of day-trading now taking place there and the inflation of stock prices but 500 points! That's crazy. I'm hoping for a late week comeback to normalcy.

Tuesday - Running: 2.2 miles, 25 minutes (11.36 min/mi)
The Beasts are awesome. Whether it's because they are new or because they're just plain better than the 587s, they have better grip and much better motion control. I felt like I could have run more but I didn't want to overdo it. I have a tendency to push myself to hard. Example: last year when I tried to squat too much and bent down too much I thought I had a hernia and had to go to the emergency room. That's not good. I'm not one to overreact about that kind of stuff either. Anyway, the running continues.

Lifting - Legs
Leg Press: 250 x 12 x 3
Leg Extension: 150 x 12 x 3
Leg Curl: 90 x 12 x 3
Rotary Calf: 150 x 12 x 2, 170 x12
Ass Machine: 112.5 x 12 x 3

If the shoe fits...

Monday - Running: 2.10 miles, 24 minutes (11.42 min/mi)
Well my new running shoes arrived today so I'll get to try them out tomorrow. My last pair of running shoes were also my first, New Balance 587s. They were nice and comfy, well-padded and were known, even to me, to be good for flat-footed runners. I had a pair just to wear around previously and wore a hole in the left foot big toe section of the toe box. I was well on my way to doing that again but got a new pair of shoes because it's been over 9 months and I'm due for a new pair. This time I decided to try something new and, after some rudimentary googling, went with the Brooks Beasts. I was a little nervous because I read a review saying the toe box is narrow. When I first slid them on I thought so too, though mostly just in my right foot which is messed up and well on its way to bunion city. Anyway, the webbing gives plenty to avoid any pain though I may wear a hole in the side. Overall, they feel great so far. Plenty of support. I'll have to see how they do tomorrow.

Monday - Lifting - Arms
Overhead Press: 25 x 12, 25 x 11, 25 x 8
Rear Delt: 30 x 12 x 3
Arm Curl: 20 x 12, 20 x 10, 20 x 9
Tricep Extension: 45 x 10 x 2, 45 x 8
Wrist Curl: 25 x 12 x 2, 30 x 12
Reverse Wrist Curl: 20 x 12 x 2, 20 x 10

Sunday - Running: 2.09 miles, 24 minutes (11.48 min/mi)

Sunday - Lifting - Chest and Back
Chest Press: 80 x 10 x 3
Dumbell Fly: 10 x 12, 10 x 12, 20 x 8
Reverse Arm Curl: 30 x 12, 30 x 10, 30 x 8
Squat: 90 x 12 x 3
Wide Grip Lat Pulldown: 60 x 12 x 3
Row: 70 x 12, 80 x 12, 80 x 12

Lazy Saturday

Running: 2.0 miles, 23.5 minutes (11.75 min/mi)
No lifting today, just running. I did get on the ass machine too. Turns out it's called "glutes" which is the effectively the same thing.

Ass machine: 110 x 12 x 3

Two-a-days

So fitness is my new hobby. Well, not new so much as recommitted. I was never a runner but last last May I joined a gym for the first time in my life and really worked at improving my cardiovascular fitness. I love basketball but my lack of speed and stamina really hurt my game. I didn't realize how much until September when I started playing in a league I played in the previous year. Four months of running everyday made a huge difference in my stamina, speed, and vertical. I shouldn't call it running, it was more like a fast walk at first. Now I'm young and it was sad to be so bad at running but I do have flat feet and it makes things very hard what with shin splints and bad form and all but slowly I worked my way up.

So working out isn't exactly new to me but I recently upped the ante. For months my mom has been asking why I haven't been lifting as well as running. I knew I should for health reasons and to improve my appearance but I avoided it. I don't like lifting at the gym mostly because I bench about nothing. I'm 6' 2" and can't curl basically anything. It's embarrassing. Finally, I decided to just suck it up and develop a routine wherein most of my lifting can be done in the solitude of my basement. So in my new found spirit of fitness-ness I've decided to also transform my blog from whatever is on my mind to a chronicle of my progress. Though I know it may be slow and at first very embarrassing, many semesters of psychology and Robert Cialdini taught me documenting things make you stick to them. Plus, I already know I need numerical reinforcement I am improving because a glance in the mirror everyday just doesn't have the same effect. Progress keeps me going.

Running: 1.86 miles, 22 minutes (I think that's right)
I need to check this tomorrow. I just increased the speed from "6" to "7" on the treadmill, whatever that means. I tend to top out at 3 miles no matter what speed I go at. My knees just give out. They get weak and my form breaks down. If I go at the same speed for a while they calm down and I can increase my speed but right now I'm concentrating on a cardio workout. I think I could push myself to 4 miles if I could slow down a bunch but I'd rather increase to a faster speed and see how fast I can get the 5k down to. When I get to 3 miles I'll reassess my priorities. I can't imagine running much faster than I am now because I don't think my knees could take it.

Lifting: (It's the first day of recording so I'm going to backtrack a couple of days to get those in here too.)

Wednesday - Chest and Back
Chest Press: 80 x 10 x 3
Dumbell Fly: 10 x 12, 10 x 12, 20 x 8
Squat: 90 x 12 x 3
Wide Grip Lat Pulldown: 60 x 12 x 3
Row: 70 x 12, 80 x 12, 80 x 12

Thursday - Arms
Overhead Press: 20 x 12, 20 x 10, 20 x 10
Rear Delt: 20 x 12, 25 x 12, 25 x 12
:( Arm Curl: 20 x 12, 20 x 5, 15 x 8
Tricep Extension: 40 x 12, 40 x 12, 40 x10
Wrist Curl: 20 x 12, 25 x 12 25 x 15 (Yes, I am aware I can wrist curl more than I can bicep curl...)
Reverse Wrist Curl: 20 x 12, 20 x 9, 20 x 7

Friday - Legs (This is the workout I really need to do to improve my running and take the strain out of my knees)
Leg Press: 210 x 12, 230 x 12, 250 x 12
Leg Extension: 130 x 12 x 3
Leg Curl: 90 x 12 x 3
Rotary Calf: 130 x 12 x 3
Ass Machine ( I don't know it's real name. Couldn't use it. Too many people on it.)

All in all not a bad week. I'm giving it three weeks before I see any results but I think it'll be surprising when I'm running in the morning and lifting at night. I'm very optimistic. Given my stagnant girlfriend situation, it's a good way to spend my time. Tomorrow it's abs and back. Not sure which exercises it'll be but it will definitely not be at the gym.