How exercise taught me patience

I noticed something interesting the other day. I was mentally checking my progress on my Augustahon exercise experiment, and I realized I was just a bit over a third done. And right then, I told myself I knew I could complete it.

How do I know this?

I visualized myself on my treadmill. The clock said 15:00 ... 5 minutes of warmup, plus 10 minutes of a 30 minute run. And at that point, I know I'm a third of the way done, and I can do the rest.

I play all kinds of numbers games with myself, all the time. It's part of being so mathematically inclined. But the 1/3-done game is relatively new, and it certainly came from running such a regimented schedule during the latter part of my C25K program and the runs in the weeks immediately following.

The logic is relatively simple. Imagine you are at home. You need to run somewhere and back. Well, you immediately split that run in half. You know if you ran to someplace, you can obviously run back (I'm not crazy like some of you, running distances we clearly invented cars to traverse ;) ). Now, imagine you are running to your new halfway point. You are 2/3 of the way there ... clearly, you can handle the final 1/3, right?

You're 1/3 of the way done with your run, but in your mind, you've done the hardest part. You know you can do the rest.

Somehow, this stupid math/visualization trick has found its way into my daily routine. A third has magically become this milestone measurement.

After all, the hardest part is done.

(Augustathon update: upper-body workout with a side-order of "walking", immediately upon arrival from work. 25 push-ups, 50 sit-ups, skipped the squats, 25 minutes of walking. Next time, I think I'll go for 30/60 ... or put the squats back in....)

A case of the mondays

The alarm went off at 5:27 AM, and let me tell you, I did not want to hear it. I had gone to bed early-ish, but had not slept well. I felt like I wanted another two hours of shut-eye.

So of course I put on my gym clothes and hit the treadmill for 40 minutes. Because, hey, if you're tired and miserable, you may as well be burning Calories too.

I'm fine now, and quite thrilled to have completed my exercise for the day before breakfast. But at the time, it was a special kind of torture.

Monday is a tough day for me. I drive my wife to work, then I drive to work, have a busy Monday of work, then drive to my mothers' place, pick her up, take her grocery shopping, and then drive back to my wife's work and pick her up. Of course, she has a longer work today than I do, so she's dead on her feet just like I am (shorter work day, but a lot more running around). She usually drives home, and we often stop for dinner on the way back. This means we leave the house before 7 AM, and usually get home around 8. It's a long, tiring day.

That's why I had to get my run in when I did. Because getting on that treadmill at 8 after this day is probably harder than getting on it at 5:30 before it.

Eagerly choking

Yesterday's cookout was a good time -- got to see some friends, and some "friends of friends" (ok, really family of friends) that I don't know that well. My buddy Clint finally broke the news to everyone that he and his wife are going to be parents next year (congrats!), and we got to see the new baby that our friends who hosted the BBQ just had 3 weeks back (congrats again!).

And I smoked a cigar. Well, half of one.

I've never smoked a cigar, but what the hell? I mean, lots of runners smoke, right?

Seriously, though, I know it's not something I'd get into. I knew I would only get so much out of it. But you have to try new things, even stupid things.

You only live once, and I'm sure I've done (and will do) worse things on a whim than smoke a cigar :).

(Augustathon workout today was 1h45m spent doing yardwork, mostly pushing a heavy-ass lawnmower around.)

August is 1/3 done

And my silly exercise experiment is going strong.

I feel stronger and fitter, even if every day I'm thinking, god, why did I do this, I just want to take a day off and vegetate.

Plenty of time for that in the Winter, right? :)

Yesterday I had every intention of mowing the lawn, but it poured all day. I went to do my upper body workout and my arms and abs reminded me I need more than just a day of rest on that. So I did a 45-minute brisk walk to save my legs for today.

Today, we hopped in the car and went to the state park, where we did a bit less than an hour of running and walking along some really hilly roads through the woods. My legs are a little sore now, which is exactly what I wanted! We saw a tiny little orange salamander (we see them squished a lot, this was the first one we saw alive), a chipmunk, and some birds. Running at the park is, to me, the payoff to staying in shape -- getting to just get out there and enjoy the beauty of New England on my own terms.

This afternoon, we are heading to a BBQ with some friends. Burgers, beers, and probably a few games of cards as the day wears on. Not exactly healthy, but what's the point of living longer if you can't have a little fun with the days you're earning?

The "reality" of it all

So, yesterday I did another treadmill workout after work -- 3 miles of wishing I could get into a groove of running in the morning but knowing my long commute makes that much more difficult than it used to be.

I watched my DVR'd copy of the first episode of LA Ink, the spinoff of Miami Ink. I'm not sure why I enjoy running to Miami Ink -- probably because I see a lot of stories of people who have conquered something big, or are in a period of intense transition in life. They are celebrating, they are taking note, they are doing something to recognize an important event by permanently modifying their bodies.

I don't know that it's something I'd ever do, but I admire the idea behind it.

This first episode of LA Ink, though, tried my patience. We watch as Kat goes to her old friends and tries to convince them to come work for her at her new LA shop.

It was ... painful. You know all her friends are going to say yes. You know they've decided before the TV cameras show up and film the conversation. I mean, come on. "Kat, why are you here with a film crew from the Discovery network?" "Never mind that, just sit and let them fix your makeup before I ask you an important question. Oh, sign this waiver, but don't ask what it's all about."

We're not that dumb.

But then I wonder ... are we approaching a world where having people in everyday situations with a small film crew following them around "for a reality show" is actually approaching normal? Are we getting close to where real reactions happen among people when they deal with a person like that? Or have we been there for some time, in places like LA and NYC? And if so, how can people actually ever be normal?

That's just, your opinion, man

My job title may no longer refer to me as an engineer, but at my heart I'm still a problem-solver.

Last night, I decided I could afford to buy some new speakers for my living room. But I was smart, and before I pulled the trigger online, I decided to take some measurements. It turns out, they weren't going to fit where I wanted them.

I had trouble visualizing where they would fit, so I did what any good engineer would do -- I built a prototype. I sat down with some paper, made some folds, taped a few things together, and had a flimsy box that would let me see what the speakers I wanted would look like in various locations.

As it turns out, places I thought they would fit, they wouldn't. Places where they did fit, they looked too big. My wife patiently watched as I brainstormed different ideas.

I don't have an answer yet (I may just get smaller speakers), but it was strangely satisfying to perform the analysis.

In other news, the eighth day of my exercise marathon, I did an upper body workout with some walking thrown in to keep the heart moving. It wasn't that aggressive of a workout, and my body is thanking me for that (and the longer night of sleep) right now. So, 5 sets of (5 push ups, 10 sit ups, 5 minutes walking). The Big Lebowski was on the TV, and let me tell you, cracking up laughing is not exactly what you want to do while you're struggling to finish those last few sit ups!

August is a week old

Seven days, seven workouts. My body is confused. I've gone through periods where I was working out 5-6 days a week, but seven straight days is something I'm not used to. Can I handle 24 more?

I did a treadmill run yesterday, 30 minutes of running with 10 minutes of warmup/cooldown. It felt great and reminded me why I enjoy running, even on a repetitive boring treadmill. My nasty work day disappeared and it was just me saying, "come on, you can do this."

This morning, though, after getting only 5.5 hours of sleep, it doesn't feel so great. I'm tired, and my legs are sore and weak. I probably would be fine if I had slept enough, but I didn't. And now I'm back and work and back facing the problems I made disappear yesterday.

But, hey, at least they disappeared yesterday. And I know they'll disappear tonight when I do whatever workout I decide is best for today (given how my legs feel, likely upper-body).

I do have to be smarter about getting rest.

Going back to the beginning

A little sore from my bodyweight workout, and still able to feel Sunday's run in my legs, I decided yesterday was a recovery day. I walked, instead of running, for 45 minutes.

It reminded me of how I started this whole journey.

All my adult life, I've struggled with my fitness, but it wasn't until 2004 that I decided to make serious strides to do something with it. Things were quiet, at work, and I started going to the gym every day an hour before lunch. At first, all I did was walk. It started me down a road that took me to running a 10-K in April of 2005, wearing sizes I could last fit into a decade back.

Of course, I made mistakes, I got lost on the road, and I lost all that fitness and more. But here I am again, in 2007, making steady strides in the right direction, with even more "wisdumb" of what works and what doesn't.

There was a strange feeling of returning to the beginning as I sweat out those minutes at a brisk walk. A sense of accomplishment and yet acceptance of the fact that this is all a cycle -- that we advance, we fall back, we learn and we forget ... but until the ticker runs out, we still have a chance to do the right thing.

I am not Ironman

Sunday I watched the replay on NBC Sports of the Ironman championship in Hawaii.

I am not a triathlete; I'm barely a runner. But it's impossible to watch this program and not be moved and motivated. The excuses I come up with to justify my lack of exercise seem beyond trivial compared to the hardships these people put up with.

I laughed when they talked about how the elite athletes had finished and now the "everyman" finishers were trickling in. "Everymen" who are fitter, stronger, and more driven than any person I know (in the "real world"). To see a 76-year old nun complete something I'd never dream of starting shows just how much room I have to grow.

I don't know where this world is going to take me. But I know that I'd be throwing away what I'm fortunate enough to have if I didn't push myself just a little harder.

Speaking of pushing, I went for an "easy" run yesterday. I call it easy because I went outside without looking at the time, with no set route, no distance, no pace, and no goal. When I got back, it turns out I had run 3.25 miles, give or take. Not bad.

My muscles are more sore today than yesterday, by the way. I am still not Jason Bourne. I'll check the mirror again tomorrow.

Pros and Cons of Jason Bourne

(the movie itself is great; go see it)

The benefit of watching Bourne Ultimatum prior to your workout for the day?
You will want to push yourself to your limits. You will be motivated by the idea of having the kind of strength, efficiency of motion, and endurance that the character displays in the movie.

The drawback of watching Bourne Ultimatum prior to your workout?
You are not Jason Bourne.

My wife was on the treadmill and I decided to do some bodyweight strength training. This is not something I do often, but it's something I hope to integrate into my fitness plan. Forcing myself to exercise every day will make me do these more often, I hope.

So, I did 5 sets of:
- 5 pushups
- 10 squats
- 10 situps

I also did a few crab walks and bear crawls across the basement, which sound and look ridiculous but were damn hard. Through it all I added some walking to cool down, and some stretching. It was really ad-hoc, just trying different things out, getting a feel for it.

This morning, my muscles are still exhausted but not as sore as I was expecting. So that's nice.

The virtual world is abuzz

When I'm not trying to get in shape, I'm doing my best to get fatter by sitting on my behind and playing World of Warcraft. Today everyone's talking about the long-rumored second expansion to the game, which was finally officially announced. Those of you who even know what I'm talking about have already read everything about it.

One thing I keep hearing is that people are distressed that all their hard work is going to be thrown away, when the game "resets" everyone for the climb to level 80. This happened when the first expansion came out, and a lot of people quit.

Here's what I tell them:

I made a decision before I bought WoW, based on my experience with other games.

When I wasn't having fun, I wouldn't play. I wouldn't play in hopes of having fun later, I'd always aim to be having fun at the time.

If that meant progression, fine. If it meant playing 5 alts in rotation, fine. If it meant PvP, fine.

With that kind of attitude, there's no angst over a new expansion coming along and "ruining" what you've accomplished. You were having fun the whole time, so you got your money's worth.

If only real life was always that simple.

Speaking of real life, three miles run today. Progress!

Two down!

I've been linked! And now everyone knows about my crazy idea!

Jank dropped by and wished me luck, and even dropped a link to my meager blog over on his. So if you clicked that link and stumbled onto me, I apologize for not having thrilling race stories or epic trail run photo montages. You'll have to make do with my little public diary.

I shared my ambition for August with my wife, over the phone. There was a fairly long silence, and I said to myself, "maybe this is a mad idea." But she's being supportive, even if she isn't going to tag along every day. I explained my basic idea to her -- I need to exercise, and if I'm not running regularly, I need to find other things to fill in the gaps. Forcing myself to do something active every day will break down the flimsy excuses I use to end up sitting on the couch.

So, the tally so far:

Day 1: Mowing the lawn. This is not as trivial as it sounds; we have almost an acre, and the grass had almost 2 weeks of prime growing on it. In the late day heat, I poured out my day's sweat pushing a heavy mower around. Not a run, but certainly as strenuous as my usual workout.

Day 2: Took my wife out for a sunset walk around the streets of my neighborhood. We took some side roads we've never been down before, and ended up on a lonely dirt road through some woods. Half the mosquitoes in Massachusetts evidently live in those woods, and we ended up running to avoid the swarm. Far from a strenuous workout, but it's a lot more than I would have done today if I didn't have this plan in mind.

(And I would have stayed out an extra 15 minutes if I knew some of you were going to try and keep me honest!)

Augustathon?

I've written about my running slump before, and while I have been running semi-regularly, I have yet to get back into an exercise groove. The flimsiest of excuses will stop me from exercising, and I know from personal experience that an active lifestyle is the only way I stay fit.

So, I got inspired by reading about some folks running an Augustathon. These folks are running every day for the month of August, 3 miles a day minimum. Now, that's not what my body is ready for, but I think I'll use August as a way of refocusing my fitness achievements. The fact that my birthday falls in August is a nice way to bring in some extra motivation.

So here's my August pledge. I will exercise every single day this month. My plan is to try a bunch of different things, forcing myself to stay creative to prevent injury and boredom. These are the types of things I will do:

• 30 minute runs
• 45 minute walks
• 60+ minute lawn work
  
• Kayaking
• Hiking
• Push-ups and other bodyweight training

This is a complete spur-of-the-moment idea, and the only way I'll actually see it through is if I post it here and hold myself accountable.

August begins today. Let's see where this crazy idea goes.

This generation's Lord of the Rings?

I was thinking about Harry Potter the other day, and wondering how it will be looked back upon in 20 years.

We know it's a huge commercial success, making JK Rowling more money than she can possibly hope to spend in her lifetime. And we know it's had a huge cultural impact, with nonsense words like muggles being meaningful to (probably) the majority of the population. We know it's getting kids to read again, though some folks question whether it's having any significant impact on children's reading.

I can't really call it this generation's LOTR, though. LOTR was counter-cultural. It took decades for a successful mass-market movie adaptation to be made. LOTR became, in some ways, a commercial success despite the intentions of its author -- Harry Potter, not so much.

No, I think it's more accurate to say Harry Potter is this generation's Star Wars. A huge commercial enterprise around something which, once you look deeply into it, is more fluff than substance, but fun fluff nonetheless.

Maybe in a couple decades these kids can have their "new trilogy" where Rowling writes a prequel about the early years of James, Lilly, and Severus.... And we can all smile knowingly when they whine about how it's ruined their memories of the pure originals.

Punished my legs on Sunday

So, I broke my non-running streak and went for a tough run on Sunday. After all, what better way to reintroduce your legs to running after a week than with a big hill? So, I can feel it in my legs today, but much more importantly I feel good about getting back on the road after a short break.

I hit a weight loss milestone this weekend too. I was hoping to hit this weight by my birthday (Aug 20) and I'm almost a month early. So, that's encouraging, and exciting.

In unrelated news, I spent much more time this weekend reading the new Harry Potter than you'd expect, given how nice it was outside. Oh well. Gotta read it before the ending is spoiled for me. I've already heard more than I want to just walking the halls at work....

A week without running

For the first time since I started aggressively working on my fitness this year, I've gone a week without running.

I'd like to say this is part of my big plan, and that I am saving up my energy or recovering from an injury. The fact is that I've been busy, and it hasn't been enough of a priority to push other things out of the way.

So I thought I'd write about it as a way of trying to understand why this is. Why was it that during my Couch-to-5K program, I made time 3x a week no matter what, but right now I've managed to not find time for seven consecutive days?

I think I can break it down into several factors:

1. Running outdoors has spoiled me; I look at the treadmill and think boredom (but don't necessarily have time to do other than the treadmill)
2. I'm doing well, fitness-wise, and am making progress without the exercise
3. I'm not tracking towards a planned objective

So, assuming that I want to be a better runner (and I am pretty sure I still do), what can I do to address those three points?

1. Find time to run outside, even if it's just around my neighborhood. Accept that some workouts are just to maintain running fitness, not for fun, and sometimes the treadmill accomplishes that just fine.
2. Remember that I've never been successful at keeping weight off without maintaining exercise.
3. Plan an objective and track to it (pick a race, pick a training program to reach that race).

On the third point, many training programs are 9-12 weeks. So if I were to find a race in 2-3 months, I'd be able to track towards it. I've been talking about a fall race for a while, so maybe it's time to pick one and sign up. That should give me a motivation boost, no?

At the same time, I also want to open myself up to other options for point number two. If I'm just slumping on my running, I may need to pick up the slack elsewhere.

Series 3 "Lite"?

A few months back, I said that if the Series 3 TiVo was $299, I would have argued with myself but eventually bought it.

Well, looks like I may have to look at those words a bit more seriously, in light of some leaked news out of TiVo-land.

If the rumors are true, for $299 you're getting dual HDTV tuners, the big selling point of the TiVo S3. There are a bunch of other minor changes, but that's what it boils down to.

On the other hand, my cable box HDTV recently got its firmware upgraded. Most of the annoying bugs are fixed, and I've learned to deal with the feature gaps between the DVR and the TiVo. Is it worth $299 to close those gaps? Especially when we're talking about saving money? Probably not.

Probably not.

See what I read

I've added a new feature to the blog; a rolling list of items I've marked from my RSS reader. This is mainly stories I found interesting ... you probably won't :).

The best things in life are free

(or at least paid for by other people)

Last night, we got a last-minute invite to head over to a cabin by a lake in Phillipstown, owned by in-laws of in-laws. Said in-laws (Jess's brother and his family) were staying there for a couple nights. With no other plans, and an unexpected free evening, we took the long (well, 45 minutes) country drive (one of the more pleasant drives I've taken in this area) north, and ended up on a narrow dirt road that ended by a cabin on a lake.

We stayed for a bit over 3 hours, and in that time we fished, swam, sat by a fire, made s'mores, burned popcorn, and stood quietly on a dock watching lightning flash in the sky so far away we never heard thunder. The lightning-watching was especially memorable. We were looking up into the hills that surrounded the lake, seeing far-away lightning take a pitch-black sky and illuminate the shapes of distant clouds. Sometimes the lightnings would come with startling frequency, sometimes you could even make out the shapes of actual bolts of lightning. Other times it was just a vague flicker of light from afar. Either way, we realized we were seeing something special.

I can't remember a single more relaxing evening I've had on a work night. Those moments were precious, priceless even, and all it cost us was a willingness to say, "Sure, we'll go for a drive."

Who is that (un)masked man?

I'd had this goatee for six months now. I started it over the Christmas/New Years holiday, and maintained it until yesterday.

I'd been itching for a change, though. It kind of aggravated me, though it shouldn't have, that I had the same style facial hair as both my boss and his boss. And as it got warmer, the goatee got less and less appealing, trapping sweat and generally increasing the feeling of heat on hot humid days, especially days spent outdoors.

So in a fit of inspiration, I stepped out of the shower yesterday and cut the damn thing off.

I don't recognize myself in the mirror. It's honestly freaking me out. I see shapes and patterns in my facial structure which don't equate with "me". I reach for my face and pull back my hand quickly, in shock, like I touched something I unexpected and unpleasant.

I don't know how long it will take to get used to the clean face, but I know it's not going to be fun. I miss the scruffy bastard.