So, some people run just because it burns fat. Some run because they must for the military, and some run because they want to work on their heart strength... but not everyone enjoys it. It can become a chore. When it becomes a chore, you will find every excuse to avoid it, and then find yourself not running at all.
I know this feeling. It happened to me near the end of the summer of 2010. I was been running all summer, getting fit and fast, but barely biking or swimming. If I did either of those more it would have been cross training. Cross training is much less boring and better for the joints. Granted, that year (before I pulled my hammy) I was as fit as I ever was. I ran a 5:05 mile and a 10:35 two mile. I could barely bike 7 miles though. My sprinting times were also pretty bad. My 400m was around 59 seconds. I then got bored of running distance. So this past year my mile time got much worse, a 5:35. I really didn't want to run as much. I didn't enjoy it.
I enjoy track. I love the races. The training can be fun. It's nice to mix it up because I'm running with a team and working on sprinting. It's rough, but enjoyable.
Part of the fun in running is blaring some good music and letting lose my energy. Because all you people who know me, you know I have an abundance of energy. It's even more fun to run through the woods now.
I also just enjoy feeling the sheer power the human body can yield. It can throw it's self miles, or travel a short distance within a few seconds. All it runs on is food, water and air.
Another thing that can make running more enjoyable for me is imagining something like a climax of a game of frisbee game or soccer game that I'm in. It makes me run faster and get that final kick out of my run.
Well, running can just be plain out fun. No real reason. It just feels good to run! This is what I feel like during those one week summers when the only thing I was running on before that was a boring old treadmill.
Running can be fun and all, and you may have cabin fever, but that doesn't mean you should start out running 5-10 miles once it's nice enough to go run. You should start out slow. You don't want to start your summer/spring with an injured knee or shin. I injured my knee that way. First week of track wasn't fun.
A good rule is to increase mileage 5-15% weekly. Then have a recovery week once a month where you run 20-35% less. Try and keep a log of your runs. This way you know if you need to rest, increase speed, slow it down, increase mileage or some other thing, like work on form.
If you still hate running, try mixing it up. Maybe you'll enjoy sprinting workouts, or nice long runs, like those crazy people who run 30+ miles per week. Or you just need easier goals. Maybe lose a pound weekly or bi-weekly, run a 7 minute mile, run 5 miles without stopping, etc. You don't only need that one huge goal of losing 40 pounds, or running a 5 minute mile or to run a marathon (26.2 miles I believe) without stopping. Find a way to make running fun. That might mean run less, and mix in biking and/or swimming... or just find a sport you love and play that a lot and then if you can't play it for awhile, run because you want to improve your game.
Happy running!
Monday, April 30, 2012
Soccer, Music and Knights
This past Friday us Clarkes had Corrie, Kevin, Millie and Grace over. I got home from track and only had a little time to get ready for a play we were going to that night. The play we were going to was called: Daze Without Knights. Sean and Josh (two friends of ours) were in the play. The play was pretty good and very funny! I know I had a good time... even though I was called on stage to be a 'knight' and fight with dried out bread sticks. Yeah. That was pretty fun!
After the play was over we went over to Moody's Diner with Sean and his family for pie. Everyone (I believe) besides me ordered ice-cream with their pie. You may think I ate less than everyone else... but I ended up finishing about 1/3 of Colleen's pie, 1/3 of Shannon's and 1/4 of Corrie's. So I got to try three different kinds of pie (Shannon and Corrie had the same) and had more pie... because everyone knows pie is a billion times better than ice-cream.
When we finished talking and eating we left for home. It was pretty late by now so when we got home we just crashed.
Saturday I slept in (yay! I've been really tired lately...), so I got up around 9 o'clock. I made pancakes and bacon for everyone. I didn't have any pancakes. I had a bit healthier meal. I also didn't make a lot of pancakes because we had homemade bagels, (not homemade) yogurt and fruit to eat. I had a well rounded meal. Said said to me at during breakfast that she always wondered how people could eat a balanced out meal... She said it was too hard. Then she said that it's easy for me because I eat so much. I guess that's true! Doesn't mean you can try if you eat like a fly. Did you see my rhyming skills?
Anyway, enough about food. I'm getting hungry again. After breakfast we pretty much just chilled and slowly got ready for the afternoon's adventures: Soccer, visiting and listening to a concert!
We headed out around 1pm. I don't remember the exact time, but that doesn't really matter. On the way we picked up Jolie. That filled our 7 seater van up to 8 people. She's not that small, do it's ok... but the way we were seated Kevin and I were the ones being double buckled. We probably would have rearranged, but we were in a rush. Still, I weigh 160, Kevin weighs around 135. Everyone else in the car was s girl, so I'm pretty (very) sure they were lighter. But I was told it made an entraining ride for everyone else.
When we arrived in Waterville Kevin and I were pleased to vacate the car. It was a bit chilly and quite windy. It was a good thing we were going to play soccer, not Ultimate. The wind would have made it very difficult to throw accurately.
Most of the girls in our car didn't want to play. They ended up quite chilled. I told them to play! It'd keep them warm! After we picked teams, I knew it was unfair. My team had more experienced players. I ended up scoring, then a little bit later we switched up the teams when some more soccer players arrived. I believe I was the only guy running track there. I run the 400 and the 800. Both require a lot sprinting and fitness. So I was probably in the best shape. Kenan (opposing team) was close, but he hasn't played soccer for 10+ years, like me. I knew how the flow went and had better foot work. My team also had all the Clarkes. We think and play alike. We also had a few guys from a local highschool team (class A or B, not sure), but the other team had more of them.
Now, I'm on a class B team. My team is actually pretty bad for class B... so I'm probably not all that good... but I guess I my fitness and skills payed off. In the second game I got a hat trick (3 goals) and helped out my defense. The team I was on ended up winning 4-0. It was really fun! About 2 1/2 hours of soccer has got to be fun!
When we finished a lot of us were coated in mud, which was half of the fun! We headed over to the Phillips, showered and ate hot dogs, potato salad, and chips! Not the healthiest, but it's still good once in awhile!
After supper we all just chilled, played games, and talked. In a couple hours we all headed off to a concert that Nick, Joel, Mr. and Mrs. Estes were in! It was an extremely good concert on the creation! I can't really explain it... I'll just say it was epic. Because, it was.
After the concert we hung out for a bit and talked with some SMASHers. It was so much fun! We were all pretty tired when we left. Which made for some pretty weird and random conversions. We dropped off Jolie and Corrie at their house on the way home, and the Kidds spent the night at our house again because we were just going to go to the same church in the morning, might as well save gas!
After a great service we relaxed for a few hours then headed over to the Almquist's for an ice-cream party! That lasted a few hours and was pretty interesting! We headed home once again... my family and a few folks from our church wanted to go to the concert (they were performing again) that we went to Saturday night. I wanted to go, but I was really tired. Track and Soccer does that to me, and I knew today (Monday's are usually the hardest) is going to be a tough workout and I barely even ate a supper, I needed my rest and food. So I didn't go and ate a large supper and got some good rest.
After the play was over we went over to Moody's Diner with Sean and his family for pie. Everyone (I believe) besides me ordered ice-cream with their pie. You may think I ate less than everyone else... but I ended up finishing about 1/3 of Colleen's pie, 1/3 of Shannon's and 1/4 of Corrie's. So I got to try three different kinds of pie (Shannon and Corrie had the same) and had more pie... because everyone knows pie is a billion times better than ice-cream.
When we finished talking and eating we left for home. It was pretty late by now so when we got home we just crashed.
Saturday I slept in (yay! I've been really tired lately...), so I got up around 9 o'clock. I made pancakes and bacon for everyone. I didn't have any pancakes. I had a bit healthier meal. I also didn't make a lot of pancakes because we had homemade bagels, (not homemade) yogurt and fruit to eat. I had a well rounded meal. Said said to me at during breakfast that she always wondered how people could eat a balanced out meal... She said it was too hard. Then she said that it's easy for me because I eat so much. I guess that's true! Doesn't mean you can try if you eat like a fly. Did you see my rhyming skills?
Anyway, enough about food. I'm getting hungry again. After breakfast we pretty much just chilled and slowly got ready for the afternoon's adventures: Soccer, visiting and listening to a concert!
We headed out around 1pm. I don't remember the exact time, but that doesn't really matter. On the way we picked up Jolie. That filled our 7 seater van up to 8 people. She's not that small, do it's ok... but the way we were seated Kevin and I were the ones being double buckled. We probably would have rearranged, but we were in a rush. Still, I weigh 160, Kevin weighs around 135. Everyone else in the car was s girl, so I'm pretty (very) sure they were lighter. But I was told it made an entraining ride for everyone else.
When we arrived in Waterville Kevin and I were pleased to vacate the car. It was a bit chilly and quite windy. It was a good thing we were going to play soccer, not Ultimate. The wind would have made it very difficult to throw accurately.
Most of the girls in our car didn't want to play. They ended up quite chilled. I told them to play! It'd keep them warm! After we picked teams, I knew it was unfair. My team had more experienced players. I ended up scoring, then a little bit later we switched up the teams when some more soccer players arrived. I believe I was the only guy running track there. I run the 400 and the 800. Both require a lot sprinting and fitness. So I was probably in the best shape. Kenan (opposing team) was close, but he hasn't played soccer for 10+ years, like me. I knew how the flow went and had better foot work. My team also had all the Clarkes. We think and play alike. We also had a few guys from a local highschool team (class A or B, not sure), but the other team had more of them.
Now, I'm on a class B team. My team is actually pretty bad for class B... so I'm probably not all that good... but I guess I my fitness and skills payed off. In the second game I got a hat trick (3 goals) and helped out my defense. The team I was on ended up winning 4-0. It was really fun! About 2 1/2 hours of soccer has got to be fun!
When we finished a lot of us were coated in mud, which was half of the fun! We headed over to the Phillips, showered and ate hot dogs, potato salad, and chips! Not the healthiest, but it's still good once in awhile!
After supper we all just chilled, played games, and talked. In a couple hours we all headed off to a concert that Nick, Joel, Mr. and Mrs. Estes were in! It was an extremely good concert on the creation! I can't really explain it... I'll just say it was epic. Because, it was.
After the concert we hung out for a bit and talked with some SMASHers. It was so much fun! We were all pretty tired when we left. Which made for some pretty weird and random conversions. We dropped off Jolie and Corrie at their house on the way home, and the Kidds spent the night at our house again because we were just going to go to the same church in the morning, might as well save gas!
After a great service we relaxed for a few hours then headed over to the Almquist's for an ice-cream party! That lasted a few hours and was pretty interesting! We headed home once again... my family and a few folks from our church wanted to go to the concert (they were performing again) that we went to Saturday night. I wanted to go, but I was really tired. Track and Soccer does that to me, and I knew today (Monday's are usually the hardest) is going to be a tough workout and I barely even ate a supper, I needed my rest and food. So I didn't go and ate a large supper and got some good rest.
Friday, April 27, 2012
Injured? Go Around it.
To start off this post I'll write about my meet I had last night. It was a home meet... and now that I look back at it, a kind of funny meet. My team (at least the boys) got second place. Auburn beat us, but then again, their boys team was bigger than our entire team. The first funny thing that happened to me was that the girls 4x100 team did their race, then walked off while my team talked to the 'clerk'. They had my baton. So I had a friend of mine run down grab me a baton. I could run faster, so I met him half way. And then ran back and got in my blocks. I got there and only had a few seconds to catch my breath and the race began. It was only a 100 meter so being out of breath didn't matter much. I handed off my baton, but our B team (I'm on the A team) dropped it, thus becoming disqualified to continue. Now, the really funny thing was that the girl handing out stickers for the relay teams didn't really know what she was doing. She actually gave us (the A team) the B team's sticker! So now online it looks like my team was DQed, and that our B team ran an amazing time for them.
My next event was kind of funny, but more frustrating. I was running the 800. That's a brutal race, so you have to conserve your energy the first lap. I planned on doing that and following the front two or three guys. That didn't happen. Within the first 5 to 10 meters I was, shouldered, spiked, and cut off. This made me mad... and made me want to get out of the group. That's what I did, I sprinted ahead to get out of the mob. Boom. There goes my end kick. I wasted the energy I needed to finish strong. I was now in the lead. That's good in most sprints, but not the 800. Second is usually the best. That way you trail the first place guy and beat him at in the last 200 meters with your kick. I slowed down a tad on the turns to try and tempt them to pass me on the turn. That way someone would be in front of me and they would have wasted energy passing me on the turn. One guy fell for it. The other guys that passed me didn't. Three guys from Auburn and one guy from Mt. Blue. The Auburn guys beat me, but the Mt. Blue guy was the one who passed me on the turn. My weak kick in the end helped me beat him. So I ended in forth.
My last run was the 4x400. That one was just fun. I started it, I was behind the Auburn guy by a few feet when I finished. The rest of my team did well, but one guy forgot to cut in. So he ran an extra 5-15 meters. Which actually was how close we were behind Auburn! But it was a fun race!
Ok. Now on to the injury part. You may have known that I had an injured shoulder. I injured (kind of) it durning soccer. Sleeping on that shoulder and stressing it with overhead presses and a Smith Machine. I took off around a month. It healed up, but was weak. I lifted for a bit, then recently I lifted heavy dumbbells from the floor with no spotter. Bad idea. I pressed a little to high and my left shoulder gave out, straining the previously injured tendon quite badly. This time the pain is more sharpe and isolated... which makes me think it is a rotator cuff injury. I won't be lifting upper body for a long time because of this. If it doesn't feel much better this weekend I'll probably go to the doctor. If I'm right, I'll probably have to take 2-6 months off of upper body. That would really stink, because pull ups are probably my favorite exercise. That's the sad truth though.
So what should I do? Train around it. My sophomore year I was it great shape. I ran a 10:35 two mile and a 5:05 mile by the end of the summer. Granted, I couldn't sprint as fast, jump as high, do as many pull ups, or lift as heavy weights. Those come with strength and some fitness. I've lifted a lot more these past years, and ran less. My mile and two mile suffered from that. I prefer lifting, but if I can't work on my upper body much, I'll be forced to build my endurance and lower body strength a lot.
I'll train my forearms, so that when I get back into pull ups, my grip won't be slowing down me.
I'll probably work on my abs as well. I just couldn't go as hard core with them because I wouldn't be able to do hanging leg raises or L-sits.
I may have a pretty wimpy upper body, but I'll probably have little to no fat and strong legs if I don't lift. I'll need to find a way to train my back though. Pull ups, rows, and dead lifts are the way I've been doing that. Those all require the shoulder joint. Who knows, maybe because I hurt my shoulder pressing, I could still do pulling workout!
Moral of the story? Don't lift heavy without a spotter, and if you're injured, don't give up. Train around it.
My next event was kind of funny, but more frustrating. I was running the 800. That's a brutal race, so you have to conserve your energy the first lap. I planned on doing that and following the front two or three guys. That didn't happen. Within the first 5 to 10 meters I was, shouldered, spiked, and cut off. This made me mad... and made me want to get out of the group. That's what I did, I sprinted ahead to get out of the mob. Boom. There goes my end kick. I wasted the energy I needed to finish strong. I was now in the lead. That's good in most sprints, but not the 800. Second is usually the best. That way you trail the first place guy and beat him at in the last 200 meters with your kick. I slowed down a tad on the turns to try and tempt them to pass me on the turn. That way someone would be in front of me and they would have wasted energy passing me on the turn. One guy fell for it. The other guys that passed me didn't. Three guys from Auburn and one guy from Mt. Blue. The Auburn guys beat me, but the Mt. Blue guy was the one who passed me on the turn. My weak kick in the end helped me beat him. So I ended in forth.
My last run was the 4x400. That one was just fun. I started it, I was behind the Auburn guy by a few feet when I finished. The rest of my team did well, but one guy forgot to cut in. So he ran an extra 5-15 meters. Which actually was how close we were behind Auburn! But it was a fun race!
Ok. Now on to the injury part. You may have known that I had an injured shoulder. I injured (kind of) it durning soccer. Sleeping on that shoulder and stressing it with overhead presses and a Smith Machine. I took off around a month. It healed up, but was weak. I lifted for a bit, then recently I lifted heavy dumbbells from the floor with no spotter. Bad idea. I pressed a little to high and my left shoulder gave out, straining the previously injured tendon quite badly. This time the pain is more sharpe and isolated... which makes me think it is a rotator cuff injury. I won't be lifting upper body for a long time because of this. If it doesn't feel much better this weekend I'll probably go to the doctor. If I'm right, I'll probably have to take 2-6 months off of upper body. That would really stink, because pull ups are probably my favorite exercise. That's the sad truth though.
So what should I do? Train around it. My sophomore year I was it great shape. I ran a 10:35 two mile and a 5:05 mile by the end of the summer. Granted, I couldn't sprint as fast, jump as high, do as many pull ups, or lift as heavy weights. Those come with strength and some fitness. I've lifted a lot more these past years, and ran less. My mile and two mile suffered from that. I prefer lifting, but if I can't work on my upper body much, I'll be forced to build my endurance and lower body strength a lot.
I'll train my forearms, so that when I get back into pull ups, my grip won't be slowing down me.
I'll probably work on my abs as well. I just couldn't go as hard core with them because I wouldn't be able to do hanging leg raises or L-sits.
I may have a pretty wimpy upper body, but I'll probably have little to no fat and strong legs if I don't lift. I'll need to find a way to train my back though. Pull ups, rows, and dead lifts are the way I've been doing that. Those all require the shoulder joint. Who knows, maybe because I hurt my shoulder pressing, I could still do pulling workout!
Moral of the story? Don't lift heavy without a spotter, and if you're injured, don't give up. Train around it.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Tired
Yeah. I'm tired. Not the usual tired, like had a tough day and lacking a little sleep. I'm tired as in I worked really hard, days on end, while getting sick. I've pretty much recovered from the sickness I received, but it hit me right after a very hard workout. Because of this my muscles took much longer to recover. Usually I feel fine by the end of the next day after I did my hard workout. Maybe a tad sore. That was not the case this week. I was lacking some sleep from the weekend, then I had a hard workout on Monday. Got sick. Had a medium workout on Tuesday (seemed hard because I was super sore). That night I slept in 3 different intervals of 2-4 hours of sleep. I slept a lot, but not very well. Yesterday I felt fully recovered from the sickness by lunch time. I was still quite sore and tired. Luckily we had a really easy practice, because of today's meet. My team had a pasta dinner(ish) at 3:30. Some of us kicked the soccer ball around for a ball around until the bus came to bring us to our towns. During soccer I moved my shoulder in the wrong position and now it hurts again. Guess I didn't ice it or rest it enough after all.
When I arrived in Greene I walked home, showered, changed into my dress clothes and got my bow-tie on. Then Shannon, Colleen and I headed over to a pasta dinner our church put on for a fund raiser for the Haiti trip some of our members are going on (Shannon and my mom included). I was a volunteer for the dinner, but I didn't do much. I did get to see an old friend of mine: Connor Crawford. Turns out he is competing against me in meet tomorrow! Sadly, this week I'm not doing the 100 meter dash or the 200 meter dash, which he is in. He is in the 4x400 meter dash, but he's on his team's B team and I'm on my team's A team. I still might race against him because A teams and B teams tend to race together in the 4x400. I'll also be running the 4x100 and the 800 meter run. Hopefully I'll have enough energy to do well!
Anyway, back to last night. I went go bed around 10:30... and slept into (after turning my alarm off at 6:45am) at 9am. Wholly sleeping in! I haven't done that in a long time. Guess I was more tired than I thought...
When I arrived in Greene I walked home, showered, changed into my dress clothes and got my bow-tie on. Then Shannon, Colleen and I headed over to a pasta dinner our church put on for a fund raiser for the Haiti trip some of our members are going on (Shannon and my mom included). I was a volunteer for the dinner, but I didn't do much. I did get to see an old friend of mine: Connor Crawford. Turns out he is competing against me in meet tomorrow! Sadly, this week I'm not doing the 100 meter dash or the 200 meter dash, which he is in. He is in the 4x400 meter dash, but he's on his team's B team and I'm on my team's A team. I still might race against him because A teams and B teams tend to race together in the 4x400. I'll also be running the 4x100 and the 800 meter run. Hopefully I'll have enough energy to do well!
Anyway, back to last night. I went go bed around 10:30... and slept into (after turning my alarm off at 6:45am) at 9am. Wholly sleeping in! I haven't done that in a long time. Guess I was more tired than I thought...
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Cool Exercises
Once my shoulder heals up I want to learn some 'cool' exercises. Luckily, my shoulder already feels fine, but I'm going to rest at least another week just to be safe. I already told you I wanted to learn the Planche and Lever. I've realized that those are going to be extremely hard. They probably will take me more then 6 months to get down. So, I want something I can work on that won't take as long so I won't get bored. I've added a few big weight exercises to gain some over all strength, but the cool exercises I want to learn are the one hand pushup, the one hand pull up/chin up and the pistol squat.
The main thing I have to work on for the one arm chin up is weighted chin ups. Because if you think about it, I'd be chinning 160 pounds per arm. Right now I'm chinning about 80 per arm (normal pull ups). I can do 20-30 pull ups this way, but I can't chin up much extra weight. I can barely chin 20 extra pounds for 5 reps for 5 sets. I also have to work on my grip: Last time I got into pull ups I got tendonitis from the grip. As you can see, this may take me around 6 months as well!
One arm pushups. These are much easier than one arm pull ups! I can actually do a few with a really wide leg stance. I don't really consider that a real one arm pushup. Almost any guy (or girl) who can do 30 pushups and lifts can do a wide leg one arm pushup. I want to get to the point where my feet are shoulder width apart. I'll be doing diamond pushups, weighted pushups and other pushup variations to work on my one arm pushup. I'll also do some core that consternates on my balance when only on three limbs.
Now, the pistol squat. What is a pistol squat? It's a squat, but with one leg. I'm pretty sure I have the strength for this (when I was squatting with the smith-machine I could squat around 300 pounds), but I need to work on my balance and the lowest part of the squat. Balance is key, because you're only on one limb. I read that there is a muscle transfer at the bottom of the squat that transfers the weight from your quad to your hamstring. Hence why the bottom part of the squat is the hardest. I may have to wait to work on this until track is over. My legs always seem tired from track and I don't want to over train them and get slower times in my runs.
The main thing I have to work on for the one arm chin up is weighted chin ups. Because if you think about it, I'd be chinning 160 pounds per arm. Right now I'm chinning about 80 per arm (normal pull ups). I can do 20-30 pull ups this way, but I can't chin up much extra weight. I can barely chin 20 extra pounds for 5 reps for 5 sets. I also have to work on my grip: Last time I got into pull ups I got tendonitis from the grip. As you can see, this may take me around 6 months as well!
One arm pushups. These are much easier than one arm pull ups! I can actually do a few with a really wide leg stance. I don't really consider that a real one arm pushup. Almost any guy (or girl) who can do 30 pushups and lifts can do a wide leg one arm pushup. I want to get to the point where my feet are shoulder width apart. I'll be doing diamond pushups, weighted pushups and other pushup variations to work on my one arm pushup. I'll also do some core that consternates on my balance when only on three limbs.
Now, the pistol squat. What is a pistol squat? It's a squat, but with one leg. I'm pretty sure I have the strength for this (when I was squatting with the smith-machine I could squat around 300 pounds), but I need to work on my balance and the lowest part of the squat. Balance is key, because you're only on one limb. I read that there is a muscle transfer at the bottom of the squat that transfers the weight from your quad to your hamstring. Hence why the bottom part of the squat is the hardest. I may have to wait to work on this until track is over. My legs always seem tired from track and I don't want to over train them and get slower times in my runs.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Stairs. Yup.
Stairs. Stairs are these useful things that help you get to higher or lower floors in buildings, to go up or down to your porch, and sometimes climb a mountain. That's good and all, but they can also be used to give you an extreme quad burn! Yeah. That's what my coach had us do yesterday. Run up a flight of stairs stepping on every step as fast as we can. 5-6 times with no rest. Brandon and I did it 7 seven because we felt like it. After we finished our 5-6 sets with no rest we did 30 crunches, 12 pushups, 15 burpees (pushup with a jump squat), 30 squats, and 30 lunges (15 each side). Then we did the 5-6 sets of stairs again. This time we alternated between two step and one step. So one was more power, the other was turnover. Then we did all the bodyweight exercises again. Once we finished we did the stairs once more and this time alternated between 3 step, 2 step, and 1 step. Of course, we did the bodyweight exercises again.
I can't remember if we did the whole circuit again or not. It kind of became a blur after the third set. I tell you what though, my quads are sore today! Doing all that with no rest really burnt out my quads. I couldn't really keep my legs straight when walking down stairs later that day. My quads just gave out. I love that kind of workout! Try it out. Maybe if you're not quite ready for this do so few less sets. So like 3-5 instead of 5-6. The point is to do it over again so you you are working hard after you're tired. Stairs can be a grand workout tool if you use then!
I can't remember if we did the whole circuit again or not. It kind of became a blur after the third set. I tell you what though, my quads are sore today! Doing all that with no rest really burnt out my quads. I couldn't really keep my legs straight when walking down stairs later that day. My quads just gave out. I love that kind of workout! Try it out. Maybe if you're not quite ready for this do so few less sets. So like 3-5 instead of 5-6. The point is to do it over again so you you are working hard after you're tired. Stairs can be a grand workout tool if you use then!
Monday, April 23, 2012
Ultimate!!!
This past Saturday was extremely fun, despite the fact I received a frustrating injury.
It started off with a good breakfast, and then I went off and helped my pastor's sons destroy their walkway. Don't worry, he wanted it done. They are going to replace it with gravel soon. Breaking the pavement was pretty fun, and surprisingly easy. Because of this, we finished a hour early! With that extra time ate some really good dessert that Mrs. Almquist made, played Pentago and then climbed trees to get large dead branches out of them. When we finished I went home to do some chores. After I did my chores I did a workout. Sadly, I wasn't very smart and choose a weight I could easily dumbbell bench press, but was difficult to get off the floor while laying down. On my second set I pushed them up, but half way up off the floor my left dumbbell weight slipped and it fell to the floor putting my shoulder in a weird position with too much weight; re-injuring my shoulder. Needless to say, once I heal I won't be doing heavy weight benching without a bench again. Too dangerous for my shoulder joints.
That evening a bunch of our friends over for the evening (Donahues, Estes, Kidds, Doug, and Kyle). For the first hour we just waited for people to arrive, ate snacks, played some basketball threw the frisbee around. I didn't play basketball because it required two hands and frisbee is obviously a better sport. After a bit Joel tried to get everyone to play Ultimate. At first only a few said they would, then a few of us yelled it and everyone got in the cars and went off to the field to play Ultimate. I had my shoulder wrapped, so it was a little harder to run and I couldn't really use my left arm to catch. Luckily I've practiced many times my one handed catches so it wasn't that bad. At first we picked team and they were totally stacked. So we redid the teams. Throughout the game we had tons of funny things happen, epic(ish) catches, and just a ton of fun (or so everyone claimed). Eventually the team I was on started winning by a lot. So I switched to the other team while Kevin switched to my old team. The first two points I was utterly useless. I had my teams mixed up and threw he frisbee to the wrong people and guarded my own team members. When I clicked with my team we had a comeback. 2-9, turned to 15-11, giving us the win. All I really did was throw the frisbee far and block the frisbee when they came close to our end zone!
One play we did was throw the disc to the other team then just lay down. It totally confused them. So they messed up near their end zone (dropped it) and we then eventually turned that into a touchdown. Overall, I had blast. A left shoulder injury won't stop me!
When we all were pretty tired (I think I was the only one properly hydrated for Ultimate, because they all were really thirsty), we all went back to our house and ate a ton of food. Well, at least I did. We had chicken, chicken is full of protein and potassium! I ate enough and soon enough so I wasn't sore the next day.
When is started getting buggier, cold and dark we headed inside. Inside we talked, joked a ton, ate food, and played a few games. That's how I finished my epic Saturday.
It started off with a good breakfast, and then I went off and helped my pastor's sons destroy their walkway. Don't worry, he wanted it done. They are going to replace it with gravel soon. Breaking the pavement was pretty fun, and surprisingly easy. Because of this, we finished a hour early! With that extra time ate some really good dessert that Mrs. Almquist made, played Pentago and then climbed trees to get large dead branches out of them. When we finished I went home to do some chores. After I did my chores I did a workout. Sadly, I wasn't very smart and choose a weight I could easily dumbbell bench press, but was difficult to get off the floor while laying down. On my second set I pushed them up, but half way up off the floor my left dumbbell weight slipped and it fell to the floor putting my shoulder in a weird position with too much weight; re-injuring my shoulder. Needless to say, once I heal I won't be doing heavy weight benching without a bench again. Too dangerous for my shoulder joints.
That evening a bunch of our friends over for the evening (Donahues, Estes, Kidds, Doug, and Kyle). For the first hour we just waited for people to arrive, ate snacks, played some basketball threw the frisbee around. I didn't play basketball because it required two hands and frisbee is obviously a better sport. After a bit Joel tried to get everyone to play Ultimate. At first only a few said they would, then a few of us yelled it and everyone got in the cars and went off to the field to play Ultimate. I had my shoulder wrapped, so it was a little harder to run and I couldn't really use my left arm to catch. Luckily I've practiced many times my one handed catches so it wasn't that bad. At first we picked team and they were totally stacked. So we redid the teams. Throughout the game we had tons of funny things happen, epic(ish) catches, and just a ton of fun (or so everyone claimed). Eventually the team I was on started winning by a lot. So I switched to the other team while Kevin switched to my old team. The first two points I was utterly useless. I had my teams mixed up and threw he frisbee to the wrong people and guarded my own team members. When I clicked with my team we had a comeback. 2-9, turned to 15-11, giving us the win. All I really did was throw the frisbee far and block the frisbee when they came close to our end zone!
One play we did was throw the disc to the other team then just lay down. It totally confused them. So they messed up near their end zone (dropped it) and we then eventually turned that into a touchdown. Overall, I had blast. A left shoulder injury won't stop me!
When we all were pretty tired (I think I was the only one properly hydrated for Ultimate, because they all were really thirsty), we all went back to our house and ate a ton of food. Well, at least I did. We had chicken, chicken is full of protein and potassium! I ate enough and soon enough so I wasn't sore the next day.
When is started getting buggier, cold and dark we headed inside. Inside we talked, joked a ton, ate food, and played a few games. That's how I finished my epic Saturday.
Friday, April 20, 2012
Busy Week.
I could write a really long post about this week... but I don't really have the time, because it's still busy. So I'll write a brief as I can.
I'll start this off saying that I had no track practices this week because it was vacation week. So that gave me a little more free time. I started lifting again this week because of that time. Hopefully I'll be able to maintain that when track gets busy again.
This past Tuesday I did my school, ran, lifted and then went with Millie and Kevin to the Richards' for a workday, Airsoft, and a cookout. When we arrived there, the Richards' were getting a grill in town, so we just threw my frisbee around until they came back. Once they did, the work started. We worked on cleaning out their basement for a few hours. It was actually pretty fun, probably because work is always 10 times better with friends.
When the cleaning was over, we all played Airsoft for a bit. Actually, more like 2 hours. That was really fun, despite gun issues in the middle of battles.
When we finished, Mr. Stuart, Colleen, and Sarah arrived and we started cooking. We only needed a few people to cook, so most if us went down in the newly cleaned basement to play darts. Most of us were pretty bad, so it was pretty entertaining!
Bonnie and Taylor came over a few minutes after we finished cooking the food. We all ate, talked over supper and relaxed.
When the meal tapered off slowly, Tucker and Kevin disappeared. Then we see Tucker do his 'stealthy run' with an Airsoft machine gun in hand. Then Tucker and Kevin have there little battle for a while. Sarah, Colleen, Millie and I soon joined. It was now the tail end of dusk, so you could actually sneak around more without being shot. It was pretty darn fun...
After all the Airsoft fighting, we did a bunch of weird/dumb/funny things for awhile, and then headed home.
Wednesday wasn't as busy. So I'll just skip over to Thursday.
Thursday I got up at 6:15am and got ready for my track meet. Ended up leaving the house at 7am. We got to where the bus was to bring us trackers to Waterville, and there was only 4 guys and our coach. Slowly, people started arriving. Only 18 team members were there. Two where going to meet us at Waterville, but around 15 people who said they could make it, didn't. We had about half our team. Our team is small, but it was tiny that day. We still competed. On the bus ride we actually changed up our events a lot. Because it was a relay only meet, and most (if not all) our relays were missing people. We had a few people try out new events for them. It made a pretty fun, and funny meet! I ran in the 4x800, the sprint medley (200, 100, 100, 400) I ran the 400, then I ran in the 4x200. It was a sunny day... I got pretty tired. I also got quite burnt.
When Leavitt was finished, I went with my fan club (aka: Shannon, Colleen, Mom, Nick, Joel, Corrie, Libby, and Colin) to the Phillips' house. There we ate a late lunch, played Spud, threw the frisbee around, and climbed trees. Sadly, we headed home after that. Corrie spent the night last night as well. So she'll be coming to the talent show I'm in today at Corner Stone Baptist Church. Over all I'd say it was a pretty epic day yesterday!
My hamstring was hurting all week. It hurt quite a bit yesterday from all the running. I think playing capture the flag the day after tough meet put it over the edge and made it hurt again. I pulled it really bad a few years ago. Guess it never healed all the way. Now I'm just wrapping and icing it. Hopefully it'll heal faster this way, because it's making me frustrated.
I'll start this off saying that I had no track practices this week because it was vacation week. So that gave me a little more free time. I started lifting again this week because of that time. Hopefully I'll be able to maintain that when track gets busy again.
This past Tuesday I did my school, ran, lifted and then went with Millie and Kevin to the Richards' for a workday, Airsoft, and a cookout. When we arrived there, the Richards' were getting a grill in town, so we just threw my frisbee around until they came back. Once they did, the work started. We worked on cleaning out their basement for a few hours. It was actually pretty fun, probably because work is always 10 times better with friends.
When the cleaning was over, we all played Airsoft for a bit. Actually, more like 2 hours. That was really fun, despite gun issues in the middle of battles.
When we finished, Mr. Stuart, Colleen, and Sarah arrived and we started cooking. We only needed a few people to cook, so most if us went down in the newly cleaned basement to play darts. Most of us were pretty bad, so it was pretty entertaining!
Bonnie and Taylor came over a few minutes after we finished cooking the food. We all ate, talked over supper and relaxed.
When the meal tapered off slowly, Tucker and Kevin disappeared. Then we see Tucker do his 'stealthy run' with an Airsoft machine gun in hand. Then Tucker and Kevin have there little battle for a while. Sarah, Colleen, Millie and I soon joined. It was now the tail end of dusk, so you could actually sneak around more without being shot. It was pretty darn fun...
After all the Airsoft fighting, we did a bunch of weird/dumb/funny things for awhile, and then headed home.
Wednesday wasn't as busy. So I'll just skip over to Thursday.
Thursday I got up at 6:15am and got ready for my track meet. Ended up leaving the house at 7am. We got to where the bus was to bring us trackers to Waterville, and there was only 4 guys and our coach. Slowly, people started arriving. Only 18 team members were there. Two where going to meet us at Waterville, but around 15 people who said they could make it, didn't. We had about half our team. Our team is small, but it was tiny that day. We still competed. On the bus ride we actually changed up our events a lot. Because it was a relay only meet, and most (if not all) our relays were missing people. We had a few people try out new events for them. It made a pretty fun, and funny meet! I ran in the 4x800, the sprint medley (200, 100, 100, 400) I ran the 400, then I ran in the 4x200. It was a sunny day... I got pretty tired. I also got quite burnt.
When Leavitt was finished, I went with my fan club (aka: Shannon, Colleen, Mom, Nick, Joel, Corrie, Libby, and Colin) to the Phillips' house. There we ate a late lunch, played Spud, threw the frisbee around, and climbed trees. Sadly, we headed home after that. Corrie spent the night last night as well. So she'll be coming to the talent show I'm in today at Corner Stone Baptist Church. Over all I'd say it was a pretty epic day yesterday!
My hamstring was hurting all week. It hurt quite a bit yesterday from all the running. I think playing capture the flag the day after tough meet put it over the edge and made it hurt again. I pulled it really bad a few years ago. Guess it never healed all the way. Now I'm just wrapping and icing it. Hopefully it'll heal faster this way, because it's making me frustrated.
Monday, April 16, 2012
Trail Running vs Road Running
Have you ever gone running? You probably went on the roads. That's what people usually do. It's easy to track your miles even if you don't have a GPS. All you need is Google Maps. Running on roads also allows you to run on the pavement or dirt. The only problem with that is: pavement is easier and pavement is worse for your knees and shins. The dirt is soft, so it's easy on your shins and knees, but is harder to run on. Usually people are tempted to run on the pavement because they don't feel the knee or shin pain yet, and they can run so much faster and farther that way. If you run with great form, then running on pavement is no problem. If you don't have great form, be carful. If you start to develop shin or knee pain, rest a few days or a week, then start up again, but on the dirt.
Now, what if you ran on trails? Trails are fun. It's like Parkour in a way; you have dodge roots, rock, and other various objects... not to mention jumping over large muddy puddle areas! This may not promote perfect form, but will likely strengthen your ankles and knees, unless you aren't careful and twist one. The nice thing about trail runs is that the dirt is harder than the dirt on the side of the road, yet much softer than the pavement, thus making it a faster run, without tolling your shins or or knees as much. As for me, I can see myself losing track of speed and how far I'm going because I'm just paying attention to keeping my feet going without hitting any stumps or rocks. This could be great if you are like me and get bored after 2 or 3 miles of running. It requires a little more athleticism than road running. You have to be aware of your soundings, and be capable of dodging things, all while keeping a good pace. I usually find myself running 1.5 to 2 times faster on trails, after all, longer strides means less rocks to dodge per mile! And it's just plain out fun.
Ok, so you can guess that I prefer trail running. It isn't really better though. You have a higher risk of twisting your ankle (and no cars drive by that could help you), it's harder to track milage, may make you run faster than you planned on thus not allowing you to complete a long run, your shoes could get muddier, and if you run slower there are more bugs to bite you. The view is much better though. My adrenaline goes up while I'm running in the woods... guess that's the boy is me loving to dodge things while I'm running!
So over all I'd say the pros and cons of each are:
Road;
Pros: easy to track milage, can run faster, safer to think about life stuff and it's safer to do interval training.
Cons: pavement can cause overuse or bad form injuries faster, boring, and has more sun exposure which can cause dehydration and sun burn.
Trail;
Pros: it's more fun, works on athleticism, could turn into a better workout with unintentional speed increases, better view, and promotes bringing the hips higher (dodging rocks).
Cons: more likely to twist ankle, if injured, cars can't help you, more bugs, doesn't promote perfect form, can cut milage short because of unintentional speed increases, you can't track milage as well and interval training isn't as safe.
Now, what if you ran on trails? Trails are fun. It's like Parkour in a way; you have dodge roots, rock, and other various objects... not to mention jumping over large muddy puddle areas! This may not promote perfect form, but will likely strengthen your ankles and knees, unless you aren't careful and twist one. The nice thing about trail runs is that the dirt is harder than the dirt on the side of the road, yet much softer than the pavement, thus making it a faster run, without tolling your shins or or knees as much. As for me, I can see myself losing track of speed and how far I'm going because I'm just paying attention to keeping my feet going without hitting any stumps or rocks. This could be great if you are like me and get bored after 2 or 3 miles of running. It requires a little more athleticism than road running. You have to be aware of your soundings, and be capable of dodging things, all while keeping a good pace. I usually find myself running 1.5 to 2 times faster on trails, after all, longer strides means less rocks to dodge per mile! And it's just plain out fun.
Ok, so you can guess that I prefer trail running. It isn't really better though. You have a higher risk of twisting your ankle (and no cars drive by that could help you), it's harder to track milage, may make you run faster than you planned on thus not allowing you to complete a long run, your shoes could get muddier, and if you run slower there are more bugs to bite you. The view is much better though. My adrenaline goes up while I'm running in the woods... guess that's the boy is me loving to dodge things while I'm running!
So over all I'd say the pros and cons of each are:
Road;
Pros: easy to track milage, can run faster, safer to think about life stuff and it's safer to do interval training.
Cons: pavement can cause overuse or bad form injuries faster, boring, and has more sun exposure which can cause dehydration and sun burn.
Trail;
Pros: it's more fun, works on athleticism, could turn into a better workout with unintentional speed increases, better view, and promotes bringing the hips higher (dodging rocks).
Cons: more likely to twist ankle, if injured, cars can't help you, more bugs, doesn't promote perfect form, can cut milage short because of unintentional speed increases, you can't track milage as well and interval training isn't as safe.
Plank vs. Crunch
It's the time of the season for abs. Well, doing a ton of ab workout still won't get you that. Eating healthy and doing cardio will burn the fat you need actually see abs... but abs are not meant for show. Getting ripped abs should just be a side effect of your fitness. Abs are part if your core, which is: abs, lower back, upper back, chest, shoulders, obliques, and a bunch of small muscles that I don't know. Your core is meant to stabilize your spine and give you good posture (a pretty straight spine). Now, I once did sit-ups and crunches for months without much back work. My posture suffered and my back hurt for awhile. All those exercises do is build up your abs. Your lower back actually is under a lot of strain when you do sit-ups. Crunches are ok... but I've done some research on crunches and planks. Crunches are good because you can isolate the abs and add weight to gain muscle faster, but the problems are that you can isolate the abs (build too much abs, not enough back), and actually, doing a crunch curls your upper spine in, just like you do when you're on a computer, an iPod, or just writing or drawing with bad posture. If you do a lot of back strengthening, I'd say the crunch is an ok exercise. Otherwise, you pretty much are reinforcing bad posture.
What about the plank? The plank is, in my opinion, better. Why? It works your core, not just your abs. You might say that you can't get a good oblique workout with the plank, while with the crunch all you need to to is crunch a bit sideways and do the bicycle-crunch. Well, try a side plank. That will burn your obliques. You might also the plank is too easy and the crunch is good because you can add weight. Well my friend, you can add weight to the plank... but you really don't need to. Adding weight can be risky, if your back isn't straight because of the weight. It could be bad for your spine. You don't need weight though! Try doing a plank, then lift one of your arms off the ground. Still too easy? Now lift the opposite leg while keeping your hand off the ground. Now you're working. This will also test your balance. Balance will build a bunch of smaller core muscles and your obliques.
There is a ton you can do with the plank. Side planks, normal planks, arm and/or leg lifted planks. You can even get more challenging if you'd like! Try the the cliffhanger plank: to start, do a plank. Now, stretch your arm out place your hand out in front of you. Go on your finger tips so you can stretch out farther. Do the same with your other arm so your arms are straight, but bent at the shoulders so your torso is off the ground. Try lifting a leg on that one, it's a toughy.
Renegade rows. This is like a plank, but challenges the obliques and requires dumbbells. Get into the pushup position with your hands on the dumbbells. Now, preform a slow and controlled row, but keep your core still. You'll feel it.
So if all these exercises are still too easy, try the flagpole, the L-sit, planche, lever, handstand, etc.
Notice that all these exercises are static holds, and maybe have a little bit of movement, but nothing on the spine. It seems to me that static holds are usually better for the spine. Crunches and sit-ups crunch the spine in and out... thus worse for your spine.
A down side to a plank is that your shoulders may give out before your abs. That just shows you that your shoulders are weak! Work on them. You can tell where your core is weak with the plank. So do it!
I know I once said the crunch is a great exercise, but I've learned through research and experience that is probably isn't that great of an exercise after all. Do a plank instead!
What about the plank? The plank is, in my opinion, better. Why? It works your core, not just your abs. You might say that you can't get a good oblique workout with the plank, while with the crunch all you need to to is crunch a bit sideways and do the bicycle-crunch. Well, try a side plank. That will burn your obliques. You might also the plank is too easy and the crunch is good because you can add weight. Well my friend, you can add weight to the plank... but you really don't need to. Adding weight can be risky, if your back isn't straight because of the weight. It could be bad for your spine. You don't need weight though! Try doing a plank, then lift one of your arms off the ground. Still too easy? Now lift the opposite leg while keeping your hand off the ground. Now you're working. This will also test your balance. Balance will build a bunch of smaller core muscles and your obliques.
There is a ton you can do with the plank. Side planks, normal planks, arm and/or leg lifted planks. You can even get more challenging if you'd like! Try the the cliffhanger plank: to start, do a plank. Now, stretch your arm out place your hand out in front of you. Go on your finger tips so you can stretch out farther. Do the same with your other arm so your arms are straight, but bent at the shoulders so your torso is off the ground. Try lifting a leg on that one, it's a toughy.
Renegade rows. This is like a plank, but challenges the obliques and requires dumbbells. Get into the pushup position with your hands on the dumbbells. Now, preform a slow and controlled row, but keep your core still. You'll feel it.
So if all these exercises are still too easy, try the flagpole, the L-sit, planche, lever, handstand, etc.
Notice that all these exercises are static holds, and maybe have a little bit of movement, but nothing on the spine. It seems to me that static holds are usually better for the spine. Crunches and sit-ups crunch the spine in and out... thus worse for your spine.
A down side to a plank is that your shoulders may give out before your abs. That just shows you that your shoulders are weak! Work on them. You can tell where your core is weak with the plank. So do it!
I know I once said the crunch is a great exercise, but I've learned through research and experience that is probably isn't that great of an exercise after all. Do a plank instead!
Friday, April 13, 2012
Personal Records
So, last year my personal record (PR) for the 100 meter dash was 12.26 seconds. That was after spending months on my start and training to become faster. I even used different and better spikes than I have now. I borrowed my friend's pair because he didn't have a race that day and it was my last chance at qualifying. Guess what I ran yesterday in my 100 meter? A 12.26. I tied my PR from last year, in the first meet. I'm pretty pumped. Guess weight lifting sure helps!
Last year I ran the 400 meter dash. I didn't do that well. My PR was around 59 or 58 seconds. That's not very competitive. Then again, I never ran it with spikes, which are a huge help. That event is tough and rough. It usually needs a lot of conditioning. This was our first meet. I ran it in 56.77 seconds. That a PR! On the first meet! I'm pretty happy about that. I was also in the 4x100 and the 4x400. The 4x100 we did in 48.64 seconds, and the 4x400 in 3 minutes and 59.80 seconds. That's not a great 4x400 time, but it's the first meet, we're just trying things out! But that 4x100? That's a great time! We averaged at 12.16 seconds per 100 meter leg. My PR time is 12.26, and I have the fastest time on the team. I think part of was that we handed off the baton at sprinting speed, so I was the only one who had to build up speed because I started the relay. Over all, I'd say it was a great way to start the season!
Something kind of funny to note, my abs are a little bit sore from yesterday's runs. Guess that shows that you really do use your core when you run, and that I need to work on mine!
Last year I ran the 400 meter dash. I didn't do that well. My PR was around 59 or 58 seconds. That's not very competitive. Then again, I never ran it with spikes, which are a huge help. That event is tough and rough. It usually needs a lot of conditioning. This was our first meet. I ran it in 56.77 seconds. That a PR! On the first meet! I'm pretty happy about that. I was also in the 4x100 and the 4x400. The 4x100 we did in 48.64 seconds, and the 4x400 in 3 minutes and 59.80 seconds. That's not a great 4x400 time, but it's the first meet, we're just trying things out! But that 4x100? That's a great time! We averaged at 12.16 seconds per 100 meter leg. My PR time is 12.26, and I have the fastest time on the team. I think part of was that we handed off the baton at sprinting speed, so I was the only one who had to build up speed because I started the relay. Over all, I'd say it was a great way to start the season!
Something kind of funny to note, my abs are a little bit sore from yesterday's runs. Guess that shows that you really do use your core when you run, and that I need to work on mine!
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Here We Go!
Today is my first meet of the season! It's at Lewiston Highschool. I'll be running the 100 meter dash, the 400 meter dash, the 4x400, and the 4x100! I hope I can qualify for KVACs in the 100 or 400 today. The 100 mainly depends on my start. The 400? That's a tough one. I don't know if I can break a minute this year yet. We'll see!
On a side note, I don't think I can hold the Tuck Planche yet. I'm just going to go back to the Frog stand, but with straight arms. After I master that I'll try the Tuck Planche again. I will start the Tuck Lever though. That's much easier to hold, and it builds some of the same muscles so it will actually make my planche easier.
On a side note, I don't think I can hold the Tuck Planche yet. I'm just going to go back to the Frog stand, but with straight arms. After I master that I'll try the Tuck Planche again. I will start the Tuck Lever though. That's much easier to hold, and it builds some of the same muscles so it will actually make my planche easier.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Weighted Vest
Yesterday I brought my weighted vest to track. I was going to bring it Monday, but it was too wet and it was raining most of the day. Anyway, yesterday we only really worked on starts, a little plyometrics and events. During the starts is when I use the vest. A few people wanted to try it out (even my coach), a few of them put it on, and didn't even want to try running. It didn't seem that bad at all to me. I felt a little slower, but it didn't seem to require much more strength. After all, it was only at 20 pounds... I must have been wrong, or light plyometrics have become too hard: My legs and lower back are sore! I think I'm going to work a weighted sprinting day into my weekly routine this summer to increase speed. After all, you can't have too much speed during Ultimate Frisbee or soccer!
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Planche Progression
Last week I started working on my planche everyday. I did work on it a few times before, but I've noticed great improvement from working on it everyday. My plan is to do a total of 60 seconds of static holds everyday after my workout. Monday last week I could barely hold the 'Frog Stand' for 15 seconds. The Frog Stand pretty much is putting your knees on your elbows, then leaning forward so that your feet are off the ground. All it really does is challenge your balance and wrists.
Now, the first half of the week I slowly improved. By Wednesday I could hold it for 20 seconds. For some reason, my balance skyrocketed from there. On Friday and Saturday I could hold it for about 40 seconds. I rested Sunday. Tried again yesterday. I held it for 60 seconds. So, I guess that means it's time to move on to the Tuck Planche! It's the same thing as the Frog Stand, but your knees are off your elbows. It wouldn't be that hard, but to make it count, I need my arms straight and my hips to be level or slightly higher than my shoulders. That's a lot of shoulder and core strength. I've read that this is going to be much more difficult. I'll probably only be able to hold it for 3-10 seconds, even though I can hold the Frog Stand for 60 seconds. I'm pumped though, I plowed through the Frog Stand in just over one week. It'll probably take me a month or a little more to get through the Tuck Planche. Should be challenging, but fun!
Now, the first half of the week I slowly improved. By Wednesday I could hold it for 20 seconds. For some reason, my balance skyrocketed from there. On Friday and Saturday I could hold it for about 40 seconds. I rested Sunday. Tried again yesterday. I held it for 60 seconds. So, I guess that means it's time to move on to the Tuck Planche! It's the same thing as the Frog Stand, but your knees are off your elbows. It wouldn't be that hard, but to make it count, I need my arms straight and my hips to be level or slightly higher than my shoulders. That's a lot of shoulder and core strength. I've read that this is going to be much more difficult. I'll probably only be able to hold it for 3-10 seconds, even though I can hold the Frog Stand for 60 seconds. I'm pumped though, I plowed through the Frog Stand in just over one week. It'll probably take me a month or a little more to get through the Tuck Planche. Should be challenging, but fun!
Monday, April 9, 2012
Sickness
So, let's look at this from the bright side. I'm sick, but when was the last time I was sick? I believe I had a tiny cold (didn't count) during SMASH, but before that, it was the first week in January. Now, I had probably the weakest immune system in my family. Hence why I always got sick first, stayed sick longest, and was hit the hardest. I've researched a lot about the immune system since then, and talked to friends who were more knowable in the subject.
After all that research, I've been eating much ('much' as in 'a ton') less sugar, eating more veggies, drinking green smoothies, having yogurt almost every morning, and using honey on things that I would usually use sugar for. I've felt much healthier, haven't got sick nearly as much, and as a bonus, I got myself a six pack! Now, that was not only due to my eating habits changing, but because I've been working them hard and have been doing cardio 5-6 days a week ever since track started, and 2-3 days a week before track.
I have gotten sick again though. Why? I believe it was due to having sick team members, sick family members, not resting quite enough, followed by a hard days work in the cold. That made it pretty hard not to get sick. My goal is to kill this cold before Thursday. Thursday is my first track meet. I want to qualify for KVACs on the 100 meter my first meet, because that'd be plain out epic.
On a side note, I shaved my beard off. Shannon said I looked more like a carton, round, and a caveman. Don't ask me why, she's just like that.
After all that research, I've been eating much ('much' as in 'a ton') less sugar, eating more veggies, drinking green smoothies, having yogurt almost every morning, and using honey on things that I would usually use sugar for. I've felt much healthier, haven't got sick nearly as much, and as a bonus, I got myself a six pack! Now, that was not only due to my eating habits changing, but because I've been working them hard and have been doing cardio 5-6 days a week ever since track started, and 2-3 days a week before track.
I have gotten sick again though. Why? I believe it was due to having sick team members, sick family members, not resting quite enough, followed by a hard days work in the cold. That made it pretty hard not to get sick. My goal is to kill this cold before Thursday. Thursday is my first track meet. I want to qualify for KVACs on the 100 meter my first meet, because that'd be plain out epic.
On a side note, I shaved my beard off. Shannon said I looked more like a carton, round, and a caveman. Don't ask me why, she's just like that.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Track Makes Me Hungry
So, I do eat a lot. You shouldn't doubt that. I eat more when I lift or do any exercise... but when I work my body really hard, I eat a ton. Yesterday after track we had a parent meeting. So I got home later than usual... I also ran 8 400 meter runs with an average time of about 78 seconds that day. With about 1-3 minute rest times, but I had a 5-8 minute break at the half way point. That's only part of my workout. We did a 1.8 mile run for a warmup, a little core and block starts. So my body was tired. I drank a protein shake and some Gatorade within 30 minute of finishing the workout. That usually holds me until supper. But the extra 45 minute delay and extra hard practice made me extremely hungry by the time I got home.
Colleen was making quasidillas with Nina and Kelsey. Because I had to wait a bit longer, I did my quick planche training for the day, and then showered. I told everyone I could eat three quasidillas. quasidillas are pretty big, my family members usually eat 0.5-1.5. I was super hungry. I ate two before anyone finished their first. I then ate my third. Colleen and Dad split the last one. I was fully. Not completely stuffed. I thought I was good for the night. Guess what? Less than two hours later I was hungry. So I had a couple of my chocolate/banana protein milkshakes. One batch fills 2 and 1/2 glasses. I gave Dad 1/2 a glass. No one else wanted any of it, so I just finished it off. I to top it off I had a few glasses of water.
Moral of the story? Don't starve your body if you're trying to lose weight with running. Your body will hate you. Granted, my metabolism is very fast, but part of that is because I eat a lot and pretty healthy. I'm trying to gain a little muscle mass, yet while eating all that I probably gained less than a pound of anything. Food is your body's fuel. Try driving your car while only filling it to just above empty. You'll be making a lot of stops and won't get anywhere fast. That's boring and won't let you reach your goal quickly!
Then try running your car on cookies and/or soda (but keep your tank full). I bet you you wont get very far. So make sure you feed your body with the right stuff to keep it running.
I can keep going on with these car examples... so I will!
If you keep your car parked for years on end, it will rust, degrade and it would take a lot of work to get it running again. Use your 'car' more: Run. Lift. Exercise!
...but, don't drive your car all the time. Driving your car hundreds of miles a day will kill it fast. Same goes for your strength. Too much exercise can be bad. Don't worry, this is hard to do!
On that note, don't leave your car idling all the time. That will draining it energy (gas). Sleep. Sleep at least 6 hours a night. 7-9 hours is best, in my opinion. That might mean going to bed earlier. Horror.
Ok, I'm done with the car examples... I don't know much about cars anyway! Just keep fit! It's easier than having to lose weight over and over again. If you have to get fit, remember it will take a lot of work, but keep with it. It's worth it!
Colleen was making quasidillas with Nina and Kelsey. Because I had to wait a bit longer, I did my quick planche training for the day, and then showered. I told everyone I could eat three quasidillas. quasidillas are pretty big, my family members usually eat 0.5-1.5. I was super hungry. I ate two before anyone finished their first. I then ate my third. Colleen and Dad split the last one. I was fully. Not completely stuffed. I thought I was good for the night. Guess what? Less than two hours later I was hungry. So I had a couple of my chocolate/banana protein milkshakes. One batch fills 2 and 1/2 glasses. I gave Dad 1/2 a glass. No one else wanted any of it, so I just finished it off. I to top it off I had a few glasses of water.
Moral of the story? Don't starve your body if you're trying to lose weight with running. Your body will hate you. Granted, my metabolism is very fast, but part of that is because I eat a lot and pretty healthy. I'm trying to gain a little muscle mass, yet while eating all that I probably gained less than a pound of anything. Food is your body's fuel. Try driving your car while only filling it to just above empty. You'll be making a lot of stops and won't get anywhere fast. That's boring and won't let you reach your goal quickly!
Then try running your car on cookies and/or soda (but keep your tank full). I bet you you wont get very far. So make sure you feed your body with the right stuff to keep it running.
I can keep going on with these car examples... so I will!
If you keep your car parked for years on end, it will rust, degrade and it would take a lot of work to get it running again. Use your 'car' more: Run. Lift. Exercise!
...but, don't drive your car all the time. Driving your car hundreds of miles a day will kill it fast. Same goes for your strength. Too much exercise can be bad. Don't worry, this is hard to do!
On that note, don't leave your car idling all the time. That will draining it energy (gas). Sleep. Sleep at least 6 hours a night. 7-9 hours is best, in my opinion. That might mean going to bed earlier. Horror.
Ok, I'm done with the car examples... I don't know much about cars anyway! Just keep fit! It's easier than having to lose weight over and over again. If you have to get fit, remember it will take a lot of work, but keep with it. It's worth it!
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Lever Training
Last post I wrote about the planche. There is another gymnast exercise that goes hand and hand with the planche. I won't be starting the training for that until I get to the second static hold of the planche. The lever is like a pull up... but instead your body is held parallel to the ground. A ton of core and shoulder strength required.
Now that you know what a lever is, why would I wait until I'm done the first static hold of the planche? First off, my grip is still weak from my tendonitis, and I don't want that acting up again. Another reason is that the first lever static hold is like the inverse of the second static hold in the planche. So I figured it would be good to be on the same step on each of them.
Now that you know what a lever is, why would I wait until I'm done the first static hold of the planche? First off, my grip is still weak from my tendonitis, and I don't want that acting up again. Another reason is that the first lever static hold is like the inverse of the second static hold in the planche. So I figured it would be good to be on the same step on each of them.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Starting the Planche
I have been saying I'll start training for a planche for almost a month, and I've decided to stop procrastinating. It's a new month, so it'll be easy to track how many months it takes for me to get a planche.
Now, not many people know what a planche is. Even experienced lifters don't know what this is. That's probably because it's a gymnast workout. If you turn it into a pushup, it would be one of the hardest pushups you ever do. Why? What is the Planche? It's the up position of a pushup, but your feet are off the ground. Sounds like death of the shoulders to me. I just started my training for this past Monday (being the first weekday of April). It's going to be tough to get this.
If you consider yourself pretty fit, let me know and then we can work/compete to this together. If you think you're not as fit as I am, thus don't want to try, think of it like this: I have a strong lower body. Strong lower body=heavy lower body=hard to do a planche. The reason I seem fit is because I run, jump, and now bike a lot. I do a lot of upper body lifting in the winter, but less during the spring/summer/fall. Just message me somehow and I'll let you know what I'm doing, and you can try!
If you can't do at least 15 (slow and near hip) pushups or at least 30 (fast and near shoulder) pushups, then don't try this. You need a good base of fitness. Also, to get the planche it will probably take you 4-18 months depending on your fitness and dedication. I'm guessing it will take me about 6-12 months. I'm excited though, I already had minor improvements in my balance from only two days of work!
Now, not many people know what a planche is. Even experienced lifters don't know what this is. That's probably because it's a gymnast workout. If you turn it into a pushup, it would be one of the hardest pushups you ever do. Why? What is the Planche? It's the up position of a pushup, but your feet are off the ground. Sounds like death of the shoulders to me. I just started my training for this past Monday (being the first weekday of April). It's going to be tough to get this.
If you consider yourself pretty fit, let me know and then we can work/compete to this together. If you think you're not as fit as I am, thus don't want to try, think of it like this: I have a strong lower body. Strong lower body=heavy lower body=hard to do a planche. The reason I seem fit is because I run, jump, and now bike a lot. I do a lot of upper body lifting in the winter, but less during the spring/summer/fall. Just message me somehow and I'll let you know what I'm doing, and you can try!
If you can't do at least 15 (slow and near hip) pushups or at least 30 (fast and near shoulder) pushups, then don't try this. You need a good base of fitness. Also, to get the planche it will probably take you 4-18 months depending on your fitness and dedication. I'm guessing it will take me about 6-12 months. I'm excited though, I already had minor improvements in my balance from only two days of work!
Monday, April 2, 2012
Fawnwander!
Last Friday I had a time trial practice at Track. It was terribly windy, but our times later this year will just seem so much more amazing because of that slow down. I ran a 6:06 mile, and a 1:05 400 meter. Not that grand, but I'm fine with the mile... really want to work on my sprint though.
After my practice Millie and Sean came over and spent the night so that they could ride with us to Fawnwander Saturday morning.
Before I go on further, I'll just say this is going to be a really short post compared to the extreme fun I had. I could write everything out in detail, but it'd take hours, most people reading this would not understand and then get bored and stop reading.
7:15am, Saturday morning we left. First off we went to my Aunt Debby's house. We help her move. That took pretty much the morning. We then continued on to Massachusetts, where Fawnwander is held. The trip down was surprisingly fun! Blaring Mumford and Sons, making lame (and some good) jokes, reading really dumb signs, and yelling at the GPS can be quite fun with good friends!
When we arrived, our voices were nearly gone already. Fawnwander usually involves yelling, so by the end of it all, I sounded like a smoker.
At Fawnwander we had a few good talks, but they weren't that deep. That's not exactly what we came for. We came for the fellowship... which was awesome! I hung out with some of my great Deerwander friends for nearly two days.
Part of the Fawnwander event was going to the YMCA. That was pretty fun. I got sweaty playing volleyball and dodgeball, then cooled off in the pool and used a paddle boat or two in the pool.
I must say, I really enjoyed the events going on at Fawnwander, but they still didn't compare to the fellowship... and that's saying a lot, because we played with the frisbee a bit!
When the epicness of Fawnwander ended, us Mainers and a few other people who were friends with Ben Vandyke, went to Ben's house for his birthday party. That was also, quite fun! We had to leave at 4:00pm that Sunday afternoon to get back at a reasonable hour. We had another amazing car ride... even though Sean's GPS took us through the back roads (some were sketchy). We stopped by my Aunts new house and picked up something we forgot, and then headed home, laughing probably about 1/3 of the trip, yelling for 1/3 of the trip, and singing, eating, talking or punching for the other third of the trip!
Overall, it was a grand weekend. If you could get an overuse injury from laughing, I'd have one.
After my practice Millie and Sean came over and spent the night so that they could ride with us to Fawnwander Saturday morning.
Before I go on further, I'll just say this is going to be a really short post compared to the extreme fun I had. I could write everything out in detail, but it'd take hours, most people reading this would not understand and then get bored and stop reading.
7:15am, Saturday morning we left. First off we went to my Aunt Debby's house. We help her move. That took pretty much the morning. We then continued on to Massachusetts, where Fawnwander is held. The trip down was surprisingly fun! Blaring Mumford and Sons, making lame (and some good) jokes, reading really dumb signs, and yelling at the GPS can be quite fun with good friends!
When we arrived, our voices were nearly gone already. Fawnwander usually involves yelling, so by the end of it all, I sounded like a smoker.
At Fawnwander we had a few good talks, but they weren't that deep. That's not exactly what we came for. We came for the fellowship... which was awesome! I hung out with some of my great Deerwander friends for nearly two days.
Part of the Fawnwander event was going to the YMCA. That was pretty fun. I got sweaty playing volleyball and dodgeball, then cooled off in the pool and used a paddle boat or two in the pool.
I must say, I really enjoyed the events going on at Fawnwander, but they still didn't compare to the fellowship... and that's saying a lot, because we played with the frisbee a bit!
When the epicness of Fawnwander ended, us Mainers and a few other people who were friends with Ben Vandyke, went to Ben's house for his birthday party. That was also, quite fun! We had to leave at 4:00pm that Sunday afternoon to get back at a reasonable hour. We had another amazing car ride... even though Sean's GPS took us through the back roads (some were sketchy). We stopped by my Aunts new house and picked up something we forgot, and then headed home, laughing probably about 1/3 of the trip, yelling for 1/3 of the trip, and singing, eating, talking or punching for the other third of the trip!
Overall, it was a grand weekend. If you could get an overuse injury from laughing, I'd have one.
Smith Machine... Bad Idea?
So, I've had my fair share of joint injuries this past year. Some of them made no sense to me: I warmed up, used a reasonable weight, and kept good form. I took off nearly a month of upper body lifting and one and weeks of lower body due to these odd injuries. Just the other day I was on site that mentioned the Smith Machine, and how it can be terrible for you. The Smith Machine is a benching or squatting bar (called an Olympic bar) but in a rack. This rack actually keeps the bar from swaying during an exercise. It keeps in moving in one plane. Now, that may sound good and safe, but it's not. It could be good if you can't bench 20 pounds, but otherwise. It's not that good for you. Why? Restricting the movement to one plane doesn't allow for the stabilizers to work. Those muscle are great for preventing injury and give you better balance. Also, I was reading on a few trainers' sites that using a Smith Machine takes tension off the hamstring in a squat. That gives you less of a workout! But even worse, where does the tension go? To your knees or lower back, depending on your foot placement. Those are two easy areas to injure. I have injured both before... and I have only ever used a Smith Machine for my weighted squats. I have never been to a gym where they had a real squat rack and I really want to now! A real squat rack is just a rack with a Olympic bar on it. You take the bar off, and then squat. You need to balance the bar, and you aren't restricted by one plane. This is much better for your joints than a Smith Machine.
The other exercises you can do are upper body workouts, such as bench press, shoulder press, upright row, etc... Same problem. The one plane doesn't work the stabilizers! Also, it can take a toll on your joints moving in the unnatural position... especially the rotator cuff and elbows. Same goes for the should press. These exercises put some strain on your joints when you use free weights, but they put a ton of strain on them when done in a Smith Machine. As for the upright row? I only remember the fact that it doesn't work the stabilizers.
So in my opinion, the Smith Machine isn't very good. It can be used for people who are just starting with light weight. If you're strong already and are just starting to lift, I'd say avoid the Smith Machine. It was probably one of my bigger mistakes... and probably was one of the main reasons for most of my joint injuries.
To sum this up, I'd say free weights and body weight are good as you're going to get! Even the Smith Machine (used in almost every gym) aren't that great for you! It's still better than nothing, mind you.
The other exercises you can do are upper body workouts, such as bench press, shoulder press, upright row, etc... Same problem. The one plane doesn't work the stabilizers! Also, it can take a toll on your joints moving in the unnatural position... especially the rotator cuff and elbows. Same goes for the should press. These exercises put some strain on your joints when you use free weights, but they put a ton of strain on them when done in a Smith Machine. As for the upright row? I only remember the fact that it doesn't work the stabilizers.
So in my opinion, the Smith Machine isn't very good. It can be used for people who are just starting with light weight. If you're strong already and are just starting to lift, I'd say avoid the Smith Machine. It was probably one of my bigger mistakes... and probably was one of the main reasons for most of my joint injuries.
To sum this up, I'd say free weights and body weight are good as you're going to get! Even the Smith Machine (used in almost every gym) aren't that great for you! It's still better than nothing, mind you.
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