Monthly Archives: December 2007

Nude Numbers (#24)

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Summary

This is the second week of my winter plan, and I’m still tracking well. No injuries, but I’m very fatigued by week’s end. Next week it gets a bit more intense.

Subjective Data

I felt very fatigued at the end of the week. My Friday spin ride (I normally do Thursdays) was really hard as my legs felt very weak.

My swimming is progressing well, but my kick remains very weak. My coach suggested a drill to do (also suggested in the Total Immersion program): standing upright in a pool, keep my head above water without using my arms. The problem is my pool is 4 feet deep.

My eating has been schizophrenic; some days I’m really good (yogurt, chicken, and complex carbs) and other days I’m eating whatever I can find (pizza, cookies, etc.). It depends heavily on whether or not I have to travel for work.

Objective Data

Blue lines == actuals; Gray areas == my target range for that week.

Assessment

I’m still tracking to plan, and as expected it’s hard. Come Sundays (my usual rest day) I’m really looking forward to doing nothing.

I’m working with a swimming coach once a week now, and my kick is getting better. But I need to find a better pool to do some drills in.

Also, I’m happy with my rate of weight gain, but not how I’m going it. I’m going to try to be more balanced in eating extra calories this week, and lay off the cookies (these things are my bane these days).

Plan

I’d like to see if I can get the use of a deeper pool for a few weeks to try some deep water kicking drills, but other than that, no changes to plan for this week. Next week my weight limits shift up a little (I’ve been at 45% of max, 13 reps, 3 sets, and 60 seconds rest for the past two weeks) to 50% of max, 12 reps, 4 sets and 90 seconds rest which will really test things.

Presentation Notes

I made one slight edit based on a friend’s suggestion – My yoga target no longer implies yoga is optional. I’m still only shooting for one yoga session per week due to time constraints, but I do think it’s important to improve my flexibility.

These notes are always presented in SOAP Note format.

Thanks for reading.

– Art

Nude Numbers (#23)

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Summary

It’s been a while, but I have now adjusted my tracking stuff for my new 2008 goals. I’ve just posted them, or you can look at the Objective Data portion for more information. Also big changes in presentation this week – please let me know if you have trouble viewing or understanding the data.

Subjective Data

Last week was really the first week on my new plan. I had planned to start the week of 11/11, but I got dog-sick that week and then hurt my calf returning to lifting the week after and decided to completely rest until all pain was gone. This week was a hard start. I’m switching to lifting three days a week for 60-90 minutes, as opposed to my prior 5-6 days at 30 minutes. And you know what, it’s exhausting!

Also, I’m finding swimming to be exhausting. My kick is nonexistent.

Objective Data

Blue lines == actuals; Gray areas == my target range for that week.

Assessment

This was a good start. I skimped on spinning but that was due to schedule more than anything else. I need to watch how quickly I gain weight – I’m eating OK but not great (a few too many cookies now that I’m trying to gain weight).

My swimming is pretty bad, and my kick actually moves me in the wrong direction, so I need to adjust that.

Plan

The major change for next week is I’m going to find and work with a swimming instructor for a few weeks to get my kick going. Otherwise, keep to plan.

Presentation Notes

I did a major rework of my dashboard for my winter goals, and hopefully to make it easier to see at a glance where I am. For example, if you look above you can quickly see I was “out of target” for spinning last week.

Lastly, these notes are always presented in SOAP Note format.

– Art

Help me raise money for people suffering from cancer

2008 Fitness Goals

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In the spirit of Running Naked, it’s time to declare my 2008 Fitness goals, and to lay out my winter training plan. Here goes.

Looking Back

Looking back on my former 2007 fitness goals, my performance was mixed. I did not succeed in running the New York Marathon. But I did successfully complete the following:

  1. Finished the Jack Brown charity bike ride.
  2. Got my body fat below 10% (9% at lowest).
  3. Without a doubt, I am now in the best shape I’ve ever been in (and yes Myfanwy, it is nice to know I can kick my 20-year-old ass J ).
  4. While doing this, we raised over $15,000 for Team Continuum (against a BHAG of $10,000) (thanks again everyone!).

So all in, I’d give myself a C+ or B- on the goals (big hit for missing the marathon), which I’m really really happy with!

Looking Forward

For 2008 I’m shooting for three large goals.

  • I have agreed to race the Philadelphia Triathlon with some friends on June 22th. I’ve never done a Triathlon before, so this will be a biggie. Let me know if you’re interested in joining me.
  • I am going to run a marathon. I’ll either do the New York (November) or the Dublin (October 27th) marathon, and I’ll decide which closer to the time. I have a guaranteed spot in both. If you’re interested in running either of those, let me know, and it’ll influence my selection (although if my aunt runs Dublin, I’m in too).
  • I’m going to try to increase my weight to around 175-180 lbs by end of 2008, but keep my waist around 32-inches (i.e. muscle, not fat).

Lessons Learned (Hopefully)

Those are pretty aggressive goals for next year, and if I ask myself what the major risks are they are:

  1. I need to more slowly ramp up than last year and not train through injuries.
  2. I need to learn how to swim.
  3. I need to add a lot of muscle to my frame.

Winter Fitness Goals

With those risks in mind, I have the following goals for the winter (while I freeze in New York):

  • Weight: Go from 158 lbs to 168 lbs +/- 2 lbs by 3/31
  • Abdomen/Body Fat: Maintain abdomen at 32 +/- 2 inches through 3/31, and ensure abdomen is at 32 +/- 0.5 inches on week of 3/31
  • Swim: Be able to swim 1,000 yards without stopping by 3/31
  • Strength: Increase my 1-Rep Resting Maximum (1RM) by 5% over my November test by 3/31.

Basically the prescription is lots of swimming, weight lifting and eating. I’ll do some spinning/biking to maintain cardio fitness, and gradually start returning to running as well to test out the foot. I decided on March 31st over March 1st as the end date to give my body more time, and I think the goals, while aggressive, are achievable on that schedule.

As usual, I’ll track progress against these for all to see in my Nude Numbers posts.

Thanks for reading,

– Art

 

    

A Return to Normal

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Hi folks,

It’s been a crazy couple of weeks for me and my blogging fell behind. Let’s see:

  1. Got the first functionally-complete pre-pre-pre alpha of Vlideshow’s first product working (and no, I’m not showing it yet) and proved that the technology I need exists and works! Remains to be seen if the market exists, but one thing at a time, yes?
  2. I won the Six Pack Charity Challenge; Thanks to all who voted for me and congratulations to all entrants. All said we ended up raising $3,800 for Team Continuum with this stunt.
  3. Got really sick with my usual fall flu. That sucked. And after the flu, I managed to injure my calves pretty badly as I returned to lifting with them. Stupid me…
  4. I officially switched from Marathon training to my new fitness goals.
  5. Interviewed and got volunteer gigs at two great New York City organizations.

But that’s just lame excuses. So, today I’m returning to my prior posting schedule.

Thanks for reading and stay tuned.,

– Art