Finishing the Year Fit And Strong

Are you one of those people who does New Year's resolutions?  THIS! is going to be the year I become the person I want to be. I'll start (pick new habit) or I'll quit (pick bad habit). I'll lose X lb. For 2 weeks you'll be motivated and by Martin Luther King day, you're back to your December persona.

Do you have a case of Screw-it-itis in December and let the foot off the pedal at work, hit the party circuit, and let the diet go? 

Have you ever finished the year at 100% capacity with momentum to fly into the next year. Or done both depending upon the year?  

I answer yes to all these questions. This year I'm choosing finishing the year with momentum and at full throttle. 

The catalyst to this is Hawaii in Mid-November. Went to a benefits/labor convention.  It was my 2nd time out there in 4 months.  I had a FANTASTIC time. My room faced the Pacific Ocean with a balcony at the Waikiki Sheraton.  Post convention there were parties galore with all the free food and drink you would want. Weather was 80 degrees with sun showers every day. I had the best steak of my life at Signature Prime. And finally, went to Pearl Harbor and saw my great uncle's plane at the Aviation Museum.  Pro tip, go to the USS Missouri first.  

It was great, and yes I did go to the gym every day. Walked 20,000 steps a day between the treadmill and too and from the convention center.  I wore out a path on Kalakaua Avenue.  But by day 4 I had had enough of the parties. Let's put it this way. The first full day was Sunday and my buddy and I found a sports bar to watch the NFL.  We were drinking beers at 8 AM.  At the convention, there is a LinkedIn photo of me.  My best friend called me after it posted saying, "Love knowing you were 4 beers deep when that was taken."  Terrific.  So the 4th night, we are at a rooftop bar and they were handing out complimentary Mai Tais.  I took 3 small sips and said, "I'm not doing this tonight,." and pounded water. Woke up feeling great.

Traveled home and arrived at my house on a Thursday and was junk for a couple of days between lack of sleep, fun and on an airplane for 11 hours. Decided middle of the month to turn it around.  

1. No alcohol. Been 3 weeks. Feel great, workouts off the charts good, hyper focused, and sleeping great.

2. A regular sleep schedule.  I always sleep 7-8 hours a night, But I wanted a consistent schedule. Meaning I'm in bed by 10 PM at the latest. Read 2-3 chapters of my Kindle, hit the bathroom one more time, and lights out by 10:30. In the last 3 weeks the only time I've broken this was last Monday watching the Patriots game.  This includes weekends. I awake naturally without alarms. Had 9 + hours sleep Saturday night.

3. Really focusing on my workouts.  Having a plan, not being lazy because I don't want to load the barbell to deadlift, and focusing on every rep.  Stopping with one rep in the tank and without pain.  Focusing on my conditioning using sleds, Ski Erg, Echo Bike or treadmill running. Not mailing it in.

The numbers are going up in my lifts and my conditioning is excellent.  Running 5 miles on the treadmill with a 1 degree incline in 44 minutes. (sub 9 minute miles), finishing 10 rounds of Ski Erg/Echo Bike sprints (more on that in a minute.) and pushing the Prowler combined with 300 two hand swings with a 70 lb. bell. 

I received a great tip from my work colleague about the Echo Bike. He is Captain CrossFit in Kansas City and tries to break Assault/Echo Bikes. I was complaining my quads get the shakes when I'm done. He advised me to lift the seat up one more rung.  The higher the seat, the more it focuses on hamstrings and glutes vs. quads.  THIS is a complete game changer. My wattage for sprints are at least 25 % higher with the higher seat.  Sure it still is a gasser, but it alleviated a lot of fatigue.

I ended up going back to me old gym as it is obvious to see from above.  Ran into a guy there who is older but always in good shape.  Saw him for the 1st time in 5 months and he looked great.  Slimmed down. I told him he looked awesome.  He told me he quit drinking and lost 20 lb. He became my inspiration.  I actually thanked him last week and told him so.  The only thing I'm not doing as much is outdoor walking.  I can deal with cold, it's the wind I can't stand.  Moving South next year is an active conversation that my wife and I are having. 

How's the diet?  Well, about a 6 out of 10.  Not terrible, but not great. I've lost 2-3 lb. I eat too much.  Not crap, because we don't have any in the house. I only eat out once per week.  Would like to push this to about a 7.5-8. I have some lunches coming up and a party with friends, so that's realistic.  If I don't booze, I let myself eat at parties.  Decided today was the day to start on cleaning up the diet.  23 hours into a 40 hour fast, 18 of which will be dry. From just before Noon today, until I wake up around 6.  

I've incorporated 24 hour dry fasting this year 3 or so times.  I like it from the time I start until, I go to bed.  I'm not thirsty and get through it easier than with water.  But it's bloody awful from when you wake up until the 24 hour mark. Say at 9:30 AM. So I'm adjusting that down to 18-20 hours.  When I wake up, have a glass of water. let that settle in so I don't feel lethargic and then black coffee.  So I'll get 75% of the benefits vs. 100.  Live to fight another day. 

Next big trip is Sales Kickoff in San Diego on January 4. It will be the 9th time since June 2024 that I've surpassed 2 time zones flying across the country. I wish it were in Las Vegas like our meetings in October, but what can you do?  The weather will be nicer than the 21 degrees we have her in Massachusetts as I type on December 8.  Hopefully I'll be under 190 lb.  Stay tuned. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year!

I Need To Change The Name of This Blog

 Why? You Ask?  I don't think I've picked up my kettlebells in my house for 5 months.  I just don't use them. At my gym you ask?  Sure, once in a great while I'll do swings. Or double swings for traps, but that's it!  Back in March, I was really into running on the treadmill 3x a week and getting good again at it. Being able to bang out 5 miles at a good clip. Well, I tried to do it for a 3rd time in a week, my shoes were probably wearing out and I pushed through some pain. For the record, David Goggins is an idiot. I got hurt.  IT Band Knee tendinitis.  Which took, 6 weeks to heal. To THIS DAY, I can feel it once and awhile. I also cannot squat all the way down because it catches. No more kettlebell front squats.  I run maybe twice a week on the treadmill and never over 30 minutes.

Current banned kettlebell exercises for Brian

1. Clean and Press

2. Snatch

3. Jerk

4. Front Squat and Goblet Squat

5. Windmill SI joint pops out

6. Turkish Get Up

As you see, the only thing I can do are Rows, Swings and Farmer's Carries.  Hence, collecting dust.

Not that my workouts haven't been good and consistent. I've been doing other things.  My replaced left shoulder is great; my arthritic shoulder is really good. I can't throw a ball 30 feet anymore, but I can play golf, shoot a basketball, and swing a bat. I'm having trouble serving a tennis ball overhead. My right arthritic shoulder doesn't enjoy it. I can do some dumbbell and machine chest presses with decent weight. I don't really go heavy. I don't do pullups anymore, but I can do lat pulldowns palms facing each other for 160 for 6-8 with great form.  Just adjustments.

My gym added a Ski Erg to its functional training room. Two great conditioning workouts I've done are

1 minute Ski Erg at 80-100% effort Resistance on 8

1 minute Rest

1 minute Echo Bike 80-100% effort. Watts usually around 324. 

1-2 minutes rest

Aim for 10 rounds, at least 5.  

This workout is a beast. Around the 6th round, fatigue sets in on the upper body doing the Ski Erg. The Echo Bike just sucks. They don't call it the "Devil's Tricycle" for nothing. The first 30 seconds are fine then the quads start fatiguing and when you get off of it you have the quakes in your legs.  Which is scary. I remember doing hard kettlebell complexes where fatigue set in. The leg quake I feared most, then then shoulder fatigue and finally the grip.  

Another workout is:

500 meters Ski Erg about 2:20

Rest 1 minute

2 minutes Echo Bike, around 220 watts

Rest 1 minute

10 rounds.  

This one might be harder. At least you know the 1st one is only a minute. 2+ minutes on the Ski Erg never seems to end. And on the Echo Bike it is never pleasant.

BRUTAL CONDITIONING

They also have a prowler sled to push on 25 yards of astroturf. The only problem is members of the gym lack etiquette as well as the basics of geometry. They will stretch or do a dumbbell workout in the middle of the field using the width, not the length. It's like playing Frogger. 

Alas, I put my gym membership on hold. It's 4 miles away and due to fixing a bridge in the shit hole town that I live next to where it is located, it takes 20 minutes to get there due to the horrendous infrastructure and traffic. So, I re-joined my old Planet Fitness and bought the black card for 3 months my ego uses my guest pass.  It's fun to see old friends, but I'm SO BORED. There has been no updates to the equipment. We were in Naples, FL last month and there are 3 gyms within 15 minutes, all with brand new plate loading equipment and HUGE. The miser in Milford MA, decided to cheap out. I understand, 60% of his clientele, was how do I put this nicely, guests who overstayed their welcome in this country. Place is CLEARED OUT which equals lost revenue.

I walk every day; lift every other day and cardio on both days I lift and don't. Weight is in the mid-high 190's. Not where we want to be, but I'm healthy. On a small amount of statin, 5 mg of high blood pressure medication and happy. One thing I did try a couple of times was a 24 hour dry fast.  Start at 9:30 AM, no water for 24 hours. The first 12- hours, easy, you're not that thirsty.  The last 3-4 from when you wake up, brutal.  Feel lethargic. But you can lose 6 lbs. in a day. I just think it's too hard on your kidneys.  My creatinine numbers have always been a touch high normal/a little funky so I don't want them to get any higher. 

I do think people are drinking WAY TOO MUCH WATER. 3 quarts is good enough. My wife constantly brings water everywhere.  I'm like a camel. I drink when I'm thirsty. My urine is clear, so I'm hydrated and not losing electrolytes. A gallon of water a day is just stupidity.  You don't need it. I had to drive 3 hours to Saratoga for work. No stops on the way up. One stop on the way home to get gas. Not to pee. My wife can't ride 100 miles without needing to use the loo. When we drive to NYC always need to pullover in Fairfield County.  

Off to Hawaii on a cruise in 2 weeks and then again for a labor conference in November.  Non-stop 12- hour flight from Logan.  I get itchy after 3 hours on a plane.  Not looking forward to it.  I've been on a plane almost every month this year. Phoenix in January on American (which couldn't produce a crew, 6 hour delay). Greensboro, NC in March with a knee that was popping, I was so gimpy the pilot asked if I wanted a wheelchair. Utah in April, Kansas City in May, Florida in July, 2 hour delay, what else is new. Hawaii this month, Asheville NC next month, Probably Utah again in October, Hawaii again in November and most likely Atlanta in December.  

Needless to say, the best airline is Delta and the worst is American. I try and avoid American like a masked up COVID Karen avoids people. 

Remember Friends Don't Let Friends Skip Leg Day

Left Shoulder Replacement 8 months later, FULLY HEALED

In reality it was fully healed around the 6-month mark. I stopped doing my physical therapy exercises at that point. The shoulder is 100% as good as it can be. It gets stiff once in a while, especially jostling it while running. And I can't shoot a basketball lefty anymore which was my strong hand. My form however righthanded is butter. I can play golf!  I hit balls in the middle of May and then went down to Naples. Broke 90 first time out with the new shoulder.  I couldn't do that with the old shoulder!  Then the third time out, did it again in Connecticut! I'm an out of state golfer.  Was supposed to play 36 this weekend, alas it's going to pour tomorrow. 

All I have a scar from the top of my shoulder to my pec. The bride thinks it looks bad ass.  Right shoulder has been good. My goal is to not try and mess that up too soon, though the flexibility is gone.  I can't throw a baseball 30 feet anymore and played 3rd base on the big diamond. These days, that throw is about a par 3.

Workouts are the same.  Total body, one exercise each body part, 3 sets of 8-12.  Mixing up the different plated hammer strength machines.  I can do safety bar squats, and double 55 front squats.  Holding the bells in the rack was a huge victory. I tried to press an 18 lb. bell on the left side.  No bueno. I can't extend fully.  Tried doing a double clean and jerk with 25 lb. bells, just out of curiosity, nope. For shoulder exercises, I do shrugs and double swings.  That's it.  Still do two hand swings every week. I use the wheelbarrow sled now instead of the prowler. 

As I said before, the Echo Bike has been the biggest game changer for my fitness. My heartrate runs between 47 - 51. In March, I found this blog with 30 Brutal Assault Bike Workouts. I was doing them 2-3 times a week, they get progressively harder. I have been stuck at number 19 for a while.  I try it once a week. The good news is I was able to do 12 miles at over 200 watts average which for me is cooking, and I'm able to run 5 miles at a clip outdoors.  My foot has held up well. I'm convinced one session on the elliptical machine screwed it up.  Never again. 

Diet has been meh.  Didn't drink for 8 weeks, lost 18 lb. gained 5lb. back. Went to a college reunion with my buddies in Springfield, MA at the MGM Casino. Made it to 11 PM and my buddy decided enough was enough and bought me a glass of 14-year-old Oban scotch.  Leaped and did a somersault off that wagon. Yes sir.  Then proceeded to lose $200 at the video poker and blackjack table. Was so bored trying to get things going, I doubled on a 9 vs. an 8 and split sevens for shits and giggles.  Hadn't been in a casino in 2 years since I was at the Mirage (RIP) and on a cruise ship to Bermuda.  I won on the ship and told the bride not to let me go back in there. 

Went to the doctor for a physical in April. I was so proud of myself until I saw my cholesterol level,  277!  Doctor told me it's from INTERMITTENT FASTING.  Told me to knock it off. Gladly.  My HDL (good) was 78 and I'm off blood pressure medication.  I eat too many eggs and have too much salt. 

In other big news, I have an old job back. The PT placement business was a disaster. What could go wrong did.  I left the placement industry 10 years ago because I started hating candidates.  They have gotten MUCH WORSE.  Over analyzing everything, too many questions, too many demands, unrealistic expectations.  The worst industry in the world to work in is physical therapy. Going in debt to get a Doctorate in PT just to make $85 K. Clinic owners' margins are razor thin and they can't pay fees or people. Lesson learned.  Good thing my stock portfolio is kicking butt and taking names.  Fantastic 5. 

What I love about my new/old job is it's a new company and all the trash got taken out. There's only 3 people left that I used to work with. Maybe 4.  Jumped right back in like Carl Yastrzemski going back to left field for the 1975 World Series.  God, I'm dating myself.  I just used 2 spaces after the period as well. Here's Captain Carl vs. the Reds that October. Red Sox won that World Series 3 games to 4. LOL

Very pleased with my Celtics winning their 18th championship.  The Lakers may have 17, but 5 were in Minneapolis. And does the bubble count with that poser/fraud Lebron James?  He's such a passive aggressive clown that the Lakers will never win with him again.

Words and phrases that have been driving me crazy.  "Vibe," The "vibe" of the MGM was really cool. Using "super" as a modifier. Whatever happened to the word "really." As in Hi, I'm Brian and I'm SUPER EXCITED to share this blog with you.  New one from my job, "robust data."  What does that even mean? And finally, the word "journey."  Everything is a darn journey these days.  We had a mid-year presentation and the vapid CHRO used the word journey 8 times in the first 7 minutes. Throw in she started off with "I'm super excited" to begin the presentation.  I hung up after 10 minutes.  Wasn't making me any money. Voyage, trek, passage anyone?  I told my soon to be finance major senior in college to get a job in HR. Big bucks for dumb ducks.

I'm late to the party. Get Your Ya-Ya's Out by the Rolling Stones and Live at Leeds by The Who (extended version) have been my go-to music while doing cardio.  One would think that a 13 minute My Generation might be a tad self-indulgent?  NOPE.  And the Amazing Journey (title of song, from 1970, not used as a word) medley into Summertime Blues HNNNNGGGGGGG.  The Stones sound SO tight and Mick Taylor ripping the lead guitar on Live with Me is phenomenal. 

Pick your favorite conspiracy. Michelle Obama was born a man, or we landed on the Moon in 1969.  The former bares the question, who is more confused? Joe Biden at the debate or Michelle's gynecologist? The latter, "I can't get Wi-Fi in some parts of my house, how did they stream film and have a call from the Moon?"