Wow, I've never done this exercise before, but coach throws this little diddy into the mix and it is way tougher than I thought it would. It really hurts when this is thrown into a core workout superset. Here it is...The Squat Thrust (Burpee to others)
Description: For Squat Thrusts, squat down to the ground, bending your knees and not your back. Kick your feet back so you’re in push-up position, then bring your feet underneath you and stand up quickly, then go right back down for rep #2…
Demonstration: Click Here
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
the weekend recap
Igda and I chilled at home Fri night. My Saturday turned into a bust. I had only planned on going to the office for a few hours in the morning, but then all hell broke loose with a client that needed docs prepped and in NYC by Sat night for trial. Argh. I ended up getting home about 4 p.m. and then just hopped on the rollers for a couple of hours watching football.
Igda and I ran some errands in the morning. We are becoming big spenders at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Geez, stop the madness! I then proceeded to take about 3 hours hanging curtain rods and drapes...yippee. It was fairly funny when one of the drapes was about 6 inches shorter than others. Hmmm, the Chinese are slacking with their quality control. By the way, is anything actually made in the USA anymore?
Finally, around 4 p.m. I struck out to explore Alexandria. I ended up going down to Mt Vernon and otherwise just cruising around for a little over 2 hours. Got some good work in. Sticking to the plan. Not planning on shredding myself just, yet. I think I have a little recovery week this week but I'll still be commuting. That's a wrap.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
The Update
Wow, it’s been a busy month at the homestead. Igda and I moved into our new place in Alexandria on Sept. 30. We still haven’t unpacked everything but we are pretty well settled in. We are very happy with the home. I’ve been dusting off some of my home improvement books and taking a whack at a few repairs/upgrades. Nothing big, more or less replacing certain things we don’t like. Thank God Home Depot is so close. I’ve made many a runs there in the last few weeks.
I had forgotten how the seemingly easy home improvement projects can morph into a day(s) long projects. Nothing goes as planned. When you dive in, you’re bound to uncover something you hadn’t planned on seeing. Fun stuff. One of coolest things we did was have a flatscreen TV mounted over the fireplace in the living room this past weekend. Had to pay a guy to do that one but it turned out great.
I’m also loving the location as my bike commute is nearly perfect. After fumbling around for a few days trying out different routes to get to DC, I finally nailed it. Perfect commute which takes me about 45 minutes to get to the office from home. I also can add time and miles as I please by hitting Hains Point as much as I want since I pass by it each way. Sweet. Somehow I managed to put in close to 200 miles last week. I finally had to succumb to sending my training wheel with the Powertap back to Saris last week. I just couldn't get that thing to work right. So hopefully I'll get that back next week. Workouts just aren't the same. I like knowing and seeing whether I'm improving or not. No lies.
Onto my cycling. I hired a coach which I’m really stoked about, Kenneth Lundgren (www.eliteendurance.com). I’ve read a lot of his stuff on PE and was always impressed with his knowledge and approach. He’s out of New Jersey, but with the advent of the internet, he’s always a click away. There were a several key items which led me to him:
1) Experience
2) A successful bike racer in his own right
3) A plan for using commuting as training
4) New, fresh ideas to provide motivation for me
5) Tracks ALL workouts in wko. All I need to do is upload files daily. Perfect.
6) Accountability- For me this is huge. It keeps me ON plan and focused. I missed this last year by not having a coach.
7) Having a plan for peaking and building to that end.
So far, so good. Ken has me doing unique excercises in the gym which I think will help me push to another level. Right now we’re doing a prep phase and will be starting the foundation work in a couple of weeks time. I took a nice amount of time off the bike, but the fitness is coming back quicker than I expected. So with a little patience and consistent hard work, I’m really looking forward to 2010 race season. I’ve got my sights set on 2-3 peak races, but things may change over the next few months. Who knows?
I had forgotten how the seemingly easy home improvement projects can morph into a day(s) long projects. Nothing goes as planned. When you dive in, you’re bound to uncover something you hadn’t planned on seeing. Fun stuff. One of coolest things we did was have a flatscreen TV mounted over the fireplace in the living room this past weekend. Had to pay a guy to do that one but it turned out great.
I’m also loving the location as my bike commute is nearly perfect. After fumbling around for a few days trying out different routes to get to DC, I finally nailed it. Perfect commute which takes me about 45 minutes to get to the office from home. I also can add time and miles as I please by hitting Hains Point as much as I want since I pass by it each way. Sweet. Somehow I managed to put in close to 200 miles last week. I finally had to succumb to sending my training wheel with the Powertap back to Saris last week. I just couldn't get that thing to work right. So hopefully I'll get that back next week. Workouts just aren't the same. I like knowing and seeing whether I'm improving or not. No lies.
Onto my cycling. I hired a coach which I’m really stoked about, Kenneth Lundgren (www.eliteendurance.com). I’ve read a lot of his stuff on PE and was always impressed with his knowledge and approach. He’s out of New Jersey, but with the advent of the internet, he’s always a click away. There were a several key items which led me to him:
1) Experience
2) A successful bike racer in his own right
3) A plan for using commuting as training
4) New, fresh ideas to provide motivation for me
5) Tracks ALL workouts in wko. All I need to do is upload files daily. Perfect.
6) Accountability- For me this is huge. It keeps me ON plan and focused. I missed this last year by not having a coach.
7) Having a plan for peaking and building to that end.
So far, so good. Ken has me doing unique excercises in the gym which I think will help me push to another level. Right now we’re doing a prep phase and will be starting the foundation work in a couple of weeks time. I took a nice amount of time off the bike, but the fitness is coming back quicker than I expected. So with a little patience and consistent hard work, I’m really looking forward to 2010 race season. I’ve got my sights set on 2-3 peak races, but things may change over the next few months. Who knows?
Friday, October 2, 2009
Tradition...Kansas Basketball
Nothing bigger in Kansas than KU Basketball. A great clip worth sharing...
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
40 down, 40+ to go I hope
I went to KC this past weekend to celebrate my 40th birthday with my family and twin brother, Syd. It was a blast. I'll get some photos up soon. Syd's wife, Kim, hosted an amazing surprise b-day party for Syd. Needless to say, he was surprised by the party as well as my appearance. I'm so fortunate to be have a wonderful, loving family.
My Mom sent me a photograph for my b-day. The picture tells it all with the challenge of raising twins (take note of the destroyed room and my lookout to see if anyone is watching):
And to make it all that much better, my Mom sent this photo to my Grandmother at the time with a note on the back:
Not in her note but worth mentioning is the fact that my parents had to bolt all of the furniture down to the walls to keep us from causing more havoc.
My Mom sent me a photograph for my b-day. The picture tells it all with the challenge of raising twins (take note of the destroyed room and my lookout to see if anyone is watching):
And to make it all that much better, my Mom sent this photo to my Grandmother at the time with a note on the back:
Not in her note but worth mentioning is the fact that my parents had to bolt all of the furniture down to the walls to keep us from causing more havoc.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Bigger, Stronger, Faster
If you haven’t seen this documentary, yet, it is absolutely stunning and thought provoking. We watched it last night. I found it hilarious that Henry Waxman didn’t even know the drinking age in the US (he actually had to ask his advisor during the interview if it was 18 or 21….HELLO, this was filmed in 2008). Without intentionally meaning to, I found it a nice supporting argument I like to make that our Politicians are completely oblivious to what is actually going on in the world.
Here’s the synopsis:
The documentary examines the steroid use of the director Christopher Bell and his two brothers, Mark and Mike Bell (wrestler), who all grew up idolizing Arnold Schwarzenegger, Hulk Hogan, and Sylvester Stallone, and also features professional athletes, medical experts, fitness center members, and US Congressmen talking about the issue of anabolic steroids.
Beyond the basic issue of anabolic steroid use, Bigger, Stronger, Faster examines the lack of consistency in how America views drugs, cheating, and the lengths people go to achieve success.
The film looks beyond the steroid issue to such topics as Tiger Woods' laser eye correction to 20/15 vision, professional musicians use of anxiety reducing drugs, or athletes' dependence on cortisone shots, which are a legal steroid. It also takes a skeptical examination on claims to the health risks of steroids and is highly critical of the legal health supplement industry.
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