It took me longer to post this follow up due to the fact the test bike ride to and from work ended badly. I was sort of cut off by a city bus, although technically I could have safely stopped, I chose to go around the bus by hoping back up on the sidewalk. The front tire hit the little lip where the road meets the sidewalk at an odd angle. My bike went one way and I went the other.
All told, 7 stitches in my forehead and a fracture of the head of the elbow bone (the part that rotates the wrist). Maybe I'll post the x-ray later for fun. Also, numerous contusions up and down my right side and general aches.
This will not deter me. Once I heal up I will attempt it again. Just as typing left handed is not going to stop me from posting updates to my blog.
In fact, this accident has hardened my resolve even more. I do not accept the fact I am getting older and spills like this hurt more now. I laugh in the face of pain and will press through!
Friday, May 20, 2011
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Biking to work
It has been awhile since my last post. Not much happening Primal wise except I have not been doing to good.
So, to get back on the wagon I've decided to start biking to and from work 4 out the 5 work days. A one way trip is 10.87 miles. At my current weight and going on an estimated time of 1.5 hours to complete I will burn roughly 1280 calories just on biking alone. That is 5120 calories just for my commute to work.
This time of year is a perfect time to start such an endevour. The weather is nice and I believe the wind is done for the most part. I am not that worried about being able to do this as I have been doing roughly 12 miles each weekend with the dogs.
I post an update on this on Monday.
So, to get back on the wagon I've decided to start biking to and from work 4 out the 5 work days. A one way trip is 10.87 miles. At my current weight and going on an estimated time of 1.5 hours to complete I will burn roughly 1280 calories just on biking alone. That is 5120 calories just for my commute to work.
This time of year is a perfect time to start such an endevour. The weather is nice and I believe the wind is done for the most part. I am not that worried about being able to do this as I have been doing roughly 12 miles each weekend with the dogs.
I post an update on this on Monday.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Gave in to Temptation Yesterday
Okay, so I am not perfect. I splurged a lot yesterday. A full day of old eating habits. 2 1/2 Mountain Dews, some Frito's and vending machine doughnuts. The only meal that was primal was my breakfast. Needless to say, I felt like crap at night.
I know exactly where I went wrong. Since it is getting near payday I was down to my last $11 dollars of discretionary cash and I opted for quick and easy instead of good and notorious. My food budget has to be increased to be able to maintain enough cash flow to cover the entire two week between paychecks.
Although I gave in yesterday, today is a new day and I am not letting a one day slip up from causing me to slip back into old habits. So, it was a good breakfast, a good lunch and tonight I will start a 24 hour fast.
There was also a positive side to yesterday. Those bad foods gave me little satisfaction and the dews tasted far too sweet and were actually a little unpleasant. I had 1/2 a glass of Dew on Saturday also and noticed the same thing. It tasted so sweet then that I could only drink 1/2 of it.
I know exactly where I went wrong. Since it is getting near payday I was down to my last $11 dollars of discretionary cash and I opted for quick and easy instead of good and notorious. My food budget has to be increased to be able to maintain enough cash flow to cover the entire two week between paychecks.
Although I gave in yesterday, today is a new day and I am not letting a one day slip up from causing me to slip back into old habits. So, it was a good breakfast, a good lunch and tonight I will start a 24 hour fast.
There was also a positive side to yesterday. Those bad foods gave me little satisfaction and the dews tasted far too sweet and were actually a little unpleasant. I had 1/2 a glass of Dew on Saturday also and noticed the same thing. It tasted so sweet then that I could only drink 1/2 of it.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
What Type of Excercise?
I attempt to get a walk in every day. Does not always work out of course. Along with that I throw in some P90 routines. Not the P90X, as I tried that and injured myself repeatedly.
Two days of light cardio, two days of heavy lifting and a day a plyometrics. I love plyo. Many times I will use that for the Play Hard rule.
I am still holding steady at 233 pounds. But I am on the last hole in my belt now which might mean my waist size might have dropped. Can't wait to see what the scale says on Friday.
Two days of light cardio, two days of heavy lifting and a day a plyometrics. I love plyo. Many times I will use that for the Play Hard rule.
I am still holding steady at 233 pounds. But I am on the last hole in my belt now which might mean my waist size might have dropped. Can't wait to see what the scale says on Friday.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Typical Sunday
Up at 6 or 7. Grab bacon and eggs. Two eggs, 7 slices of uncured apple bacon. A glass of water with some lemon juice squeezed in for flavor.
Walked the dogs in the big desolate area near my house for roughly an hour and half. Good walk, lots of hills and I get in lots of spear thrusts (lunges) in on the flatter areas.
Got back home, let the dogs rest and get a drink of water for about half an hour. We tend to play an easy game of fetch with the ball during this time. I take off my "Get Primal - Grok On" shirt and get some sun in while in the back yard.
Then it is off on the bike. The dogs go in pairs and run either 2 or 4 miles depending on the route I take. So, I get 4 or 8. Granted, primal man did not have bicycles but Jack Russells are very hard to tire out and they love sprinting along side the pack leader.
Back home and more intense game of fetch. More sun for me. Dang dogs wont drop the ball right in front of my feet so a little walking and bending thrown in.
For lunch, a slab of meat (NY steak today!) and veggies. Bake my egg bake (eggs, bacon bits, ground bison and shredded zucchini) for the next couple of breakfasts. About Wednesday I will bake up the egg and Swiss chard fajitas. Both are easy and quick for breakfast. Also, hard boil some eggs for quick snacks during the week. All eggs and veggies are organic of course.
At about 4 O'clock the dogs and I will be out on the bike again doing the other route I did not take in the morning run. So, the for the day, the dogs get 6 miles and I get 12 miles on Sundays. During the week there is not enough time for both routes.
If hungry during the evening I snack on unsalted nuts of various kinds.
Walked the dogs in the big desolate area near my house for roughly an hour and half. Good walk, lots of hills and I get in lots of spear thrusts (lunges) in on the flatter areas.
Got back home, let the dogs rest and get a drink of water for about half an hour. We tend to play an easy game of fetch with the ball during this time. I take off my "Get Primal - Grok On" shirt and get some sun in while in the back yard.
Then it is off on the bike. The dogs go in pairs and run either 2 or 4 miles depending on the route I take. So, I get 4 or 8. Granted, primal man did not have bicycles but Jack Russells are very hard to tire out and they love sprinting along side the pack leader.
Back home and more intense game of fetch. More sun for me. Dang dogs wont drop the ball right in front of my feet so a little walking and bending thrown in.
For lunch, a slab of meat (NY steak today!) and veggies. Bake my egg bake (eggs, bacon bits, ground bison and shredded zucchini) for the next couple of breakfasts. About Wednesday I will bake up the egg and Swiss chard fajitas. Both are easy and quick for breakfast. Also, hard boil some eggs for quick snacks during the week. All eggs and veggies are organic of course.
At about 4 O'clock the dogs and I will be out on the bike again doing the other route I did not take in the morning run. So, the for the day, the dogs get 6 miles and I get 12 miles on Sundays. During the week there is not enough time for both routes.
If hungry during the evening I snack on unsalted nuts of various kinds.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Record of Where I am Starting From
As embarrassing as this is going to be, I must make a record of where I am starting from. The following pictures were taken in mid December of 2010. Thankfully, I have lost some weight since. Around 23 pounds. These are a good starting point as this was the heaviest I have ever been, at a whooping 260 pounds. Here goes.
As everyone can see I was unable to button the button on the shorts. Also, my posture is completely out of whack. I have a feeling I was tilted like this for years. For some reason no one told me.
Time to Talk About Goals
Okay, that is enough space devoted to what the Primal Lifestyle is. Plus, Mark Sisson does a far better job at explaining it on his blog.
Now it the time to get done to the nitty gritty and lay out my goals.
1. Optimize my physical condition. This does not mean looking like a muscle head body builder that needs to special order his clothing. It means being lean and fit. Some muscle but with the flexibility of a gymnast. What I envision is something along the lines of the 300 actors.
Since the movie 300 is the new Ben Hur to those that are also huge fans of musicals and everything Barbra Streisand, achieving this goal will bring along with it some unwanted attention. Sort of proves that for every action there is a equal and opposite reaction. I will have to deal with this negative aspect when it arises.
2. Reduction of doctor visits. While modern medicine is great for actual trauma it is a little less so for diseases and chronic conditions. There is a reason for this that I will get into in a future post. Sure, a doctor's advice on areas outside of trauma is still good it is not above question. For instance, instead of informing a diabetic patient about the cure for diabetes they prescribe pills that will have to taken for an entire life time. (Yes, there is a cure for diabetes) Or, for my facial condition I was told there was no cure and I would have to fill a prescription for the rest of my life. Well, that was just wrong. But, for the most part a doctor's advice is solid. It is easy to just take that advice and never look further. To avoid that trap, it is better to reduce the reasons to visit one to begin with. Limit my exposure to faulty data. As the database administrator in me would say, garbage in, garbage out.
3. Enjoy life to the fullest. This of course is easier accomplished by fulfilling goals 1 and 2.
Now it the time to get done to the nitty gritty and lay out my goals.
1. Optimize my physical condition. This does not mean looking like a muscle head body builder that needs to special order his clothing. It means being lean and fit. Some muscle but with the flexibility of a gymnast. What I envision is something along the lines of the 300 actors.
2. Reduction of doctor visits. While modern medicine is great for actual trauma it is a little less so for diseases and chronic conditions. There is a reason for this that I will get into in a future post. Sure, a doctor's advice on areas outside of trauma is still good it is not above question. For instance, instead of informing a diabetic patient about the cure for diabetes they prescribe pills that will have to taken for an entire life time. (Yes, there is a cure for diabetes) Or, for my facial condition I was told there was no cure and I would have to fill a prescription for the rest of my life. Well, that was just wrong. But, for the most part a doctor's advice is solid. It is easy to just take that advice and never look further. To avoid that trap, it is better to reduce the reasons to visit one to begin with. Limit my exposure to faulty data. As the database administrator in me would say, garbage in, garbage out.
3. Enjoy life to the fullest. This of course is easier accomplished by fulfilling goals 1 and 2.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)