6-2-10: It is always a bit frustrating when there is an extra day in the weekend, yet somehow every hour seems to be accounted for…and this from the world of a single guy…and from an Accountant (ba dum bum). So, while every day off should be a “gimme” in terms of fitting a workout in, I find it really does not turn out that way all that often. Still, not a terrible week. Still got five workouts in, which is great, but know, in my heart of hearts, how close I was to getting that coveted sixth workout in. Ah well.
Since climbing over the warm-up wall, I have yet to look back. Completing the power and resistance warm-up, still resists me, but I feel myself pushing a little bit harder and going a little bit faster for the other warm-ups. The warm-up is now my beotch. Never easy, always breathing heavy, with torrential downpours of sweat, I still will never go back to not being able to complete the warm-up.
The Pure Cardio workout intrigues me most. How am I going to get to that point where I can get through those fifteen minutes after the warmup and stretching? I barely get through any of the two minute segments of the interval training, and at least there are breaks in those ones. I feel I just need to make a conscious effort to get a little bit farther each time. Should I slow down a bit? Perhaps that is the trick. Go more for continuous motion rather than crazy intensity.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I am Shaun T and I say NO! Have you lost your mind puny human? Is the name of my program “Happy Comfy Slow and Steady”? It is Insanity and you will bow down to its awesome power. You will give 120%, 150% of the time.
Other than the workout, the meals were fun over the weekend. Got some delicious pizza one day, delicious ribs that Rich made (seven hour cook time) another day, and awesome chicken, sausage, brownies, etc. at the parents house another day. I tried my best to modify the other meals to make these not seem like such a blatant disregard to the meal plan and I think I succeeded.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I am Shaun T and you are a FAILURE! You think you are fixed it by eating less your other meals?!!! I will eat your soul puny human!
Next week will be a good week. I can feel it!
Showing posts with label pure cardio. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pure cardio. Show all posts
Monday, June 7, 2010
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 142: Moby Tree
5-26-10: “From hell’s heart I stab at thee…For hate’s sake…I spit my last breath at thee!” – Khaaan from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, quoting Captain Ahab from Moby Dick.
Ahhh…it was going to be one of the best workout weeks…EVER! Instead it turned into a pretty gosh-darned good week. I completed workouts four days in a row (Thur-Sun), and finished with a workout on Wednesday for a solid five workouts in seven days. The roadblock came on Monday.
All was quiet on Monday. Too quiet. The storms had settled. The clouds had opened. A ray of sunshine illuminated the seas like never before. Yes. Monday, like so many other days, would be a good day to battle Moby Tree. I moved bravely towards my foe, armed with only a shovel and the spirit of a man who had faced insanity, fallen to the brink of despair, but had never blinked.
I would strike the first blow that day. Energy seething through my veins, and an unshakable will helped me drive the shovel down again and again and again. But, Moby Tree had not survived for so long just to fall before my blade so easily. Every strike, every blow, every effort to uproot the mighty Moby Tree was met with fierce resistance and a quiet resolve. My enemy, mocking me, knew that it held the defensive advantage. I knew this. All he had to do was stay still and he would win. I had to find a way to prevent the monster from playing head games with me. I am in great shape (thanks to the wonders of the Insanity workout and world-renowned dancer, choreographer and fitness guru Shaun T) and need but continue my relentless advance while ignoring Moby Tree’s bizarre brand of psychological torture.
Much time has passed. The monster’s tentacles are fierce. They hold to the seas like a thousand anchors. I thought he had been contained, trapped in a plastic circle prison of doom. Alas, this was not to be. I will never know exactly when, but he had broken through his plastic prison long ago to entrench himself to depths I could barely fathom (though certainly less than a fathom).
It is past the hour and a half mark. The shovel whines and threatens to crack with every effort to displace the beast. I stare at the heavens, swearing that the battle will not be lost by me. Moby Tree will not beat me a second time. Blood filled my eyes and with a horrible vengeance I struck down at the tentacles. No more simple displacement. There would be blood tonight. I struck down again and again. A thousand times I struck down. The creature, originally so stoic, writhed in pain, and clinched with so few remaining tentacles to survival.
My arms, near dead to the world, would not continue. I remembered the powerful mantra from the wise man, Shaun T, “you can do it. Focus and go.” I raised the shovel above my head with both arms and crashed it down with the force of a volcanic eruption. The beast wailed, but would not submit. I brought it up again, slowly, energy dissipating, knowing that I had nothing left for the relentless assault of speed from earlier. I only had energy for a few remaining blows, so they must be mighty blows. The shovel, now an extension of my being, slammed to the earth with the power of a thousand meteors. The beast let out its last gasp, and I collapsed. Despite having killed the beast, I now know that neither of us won that day.
As far as the workout was concerned, I now consistently make it through the warm-up. I do not make it through the power and resistance warm-up, but make it through the regular warm-up every time. Excellent progress. I find myself cursing Shaun T less and less during the warm-up, but still at a moderate level during the actual workout.
During Plyometrics, I feel like I am getting really close to making it through the first half of the workout. So close I can taste it. The second half still has my number, but usually only the last two exercises (ski abs and suicide something or others).
Pure Cardio still has its moments, but I still feel light years away from being able to complete this at the level I feel necessary to move on to month 2. Still getting a great workout from it.
Power and Resistance…my old friend. The warm-up makes me very sore still. This makes the rest of the workout oh so fun. While definitely painful, I do feel I am making great progress towards completing this workout as well. Even the second half of the workout is not out of my future vision sight. The moving pushups at the end are brutal, but I can feel myself catching my breath a little bit during them. The floor sprints that follow sap any and all energy I have left, but it’s certainly all in good fun.
Well…good week. Must maintain at least a 4 workout a week average. Though, the fabled seven workouts in a week is not hopelessly out of range, considering this 5.5 (depending on how you view Moby Tree) workout week.
Ahhh…it was going to be one of the best workout weeks…EVER! Instead it turned into a pretty gosh-darned good week. I completed workouts four days in a row (Thur-Sun), and finished with a workout on Wednesday for a solid five workouts in seven days. The roadblock came on Monday.
All was quiet on Monday. Too quiet. The storms had settled. The clouds had opened. A ray of sunshine illuminated the seas like never before. Yes. Monday, like so many other days, would be a good day to battle Moby Tree. I moved bravely towards my foe, armed with only a shovel and the spirit of a man who had faced insanity, fallen to the brink of despair, but had never blinked.
I would strike the first blow that day. Energy seething through my veins, and an unshakable will helped me drive the shovel down again and again and again. But, Moby Tree had not survived for so long just to fall before my blade so easily. Every strike, every blow, every effort to uproot the mighty Moby Tree was met with fierce resistance and a quiet resolve. My enemy, mocking me, knew that it held the defensive advantage. I knew this. All he had to do was stay still and he would win. I had to find a way to prevent the monster from playing head games with me. I am in great shape (thanks to the wonders of the Insanity workout and world-renowned dancer, choreographer and fitness guru Shaun T) and need but continue my relentless advance while ignoring Moby Tree’s bizarre brand of psychological torture.
Much time has passed. The monster’s tentacles are fierce. They hold to the seas like a thousand anchors. I thought he had been contained, trapped in a plastic circle prison of doom. Alas, this was not to be. I will never know exactly when, but he had broken through his plastic prison long ago to entrench himself to depths I could barely fathom (though certainly less than a fathom).
It is past the hour and a half mark. The shovel whines and threatens to crack with every effort to displace the beast. I stare at the heavens, swearing that the battle will not be lost by me. Moby Tree will not beat me a second time. Blood filled my eyes and with a horrible vengeance I struck down at the tentacles. No more simple displacement. There would be blood tonight. I struck down again and again. A thousand times I struck down. The creature, originally so stoic, writhed in pain, and clinched with so few remaining tentacles to survival.
My arms, near dead to the world, would not continue. I remembered the powerful mantra from the wise man, Shaun T, “you can do it. Focus and go.” I raised the shovel above my head with both arms and crashed it down with the force of a volcanic eruption. The beast wailed, but would not submit. I brought it up again, slowly, energy dissipating, knowing that I had nothing left for the relentless assault of speed from earlier. I only had energy for a few remaining blows, so they must be mighty blows. The shovel, now an extension of my being, slammed to the earth with the power of a thousand meteors. The beast let out its last gasp, and I collapsed. Despite having killed the beast, I now know that neither of us won that day.
As far as the workout was concerned, I now consistently make it through the warm-up. I do not make it through the power and resistance warm-up, but make it through the regular warm-up every time. Excellent progress. I find myself cursing Shaun T less and less during the warm-up, but still at a moderate level during the actual workout.
During Plyometrics, I feel like I am getting really close to making it through the first half of the workout. So close I can taste it. The second half still has my number, but usually only the last two exercises (ski abs and suicide something or others).
Pure Cardio still has its moments, but I still feel light years away from being able to complete this at the level I feel necessary to move on to month 2. Still getting a great workout from it.
Power and Resistance…my old friend. The warm-up makes me very sore still. This makes the rest of the workout oh so fun. While definitely painful, I do feel I am making great progress towards completing this workout as well. Even the second half of the workout is not out of my future vision sight. The moving pushups at the end are brutal, but I can feel myself catching my breath a little bit during them. The floor sprints that follow sap any and all energy I have left, but it’s certainly all in good fun.
Well…good week. Must maintain at least a 4 workout a week average. Though, the fabled seven workouts in a week is not hopelessly out of range, considering this 5.5 (depending on how you view Moby Tree) workout week.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 135: The Above-Average Four
5-19-10: Four workouts this week. Should have been five, but was thwarted by laziness. That being said, I missed the Wednesday workout, which means I will be starting Thursday with a workout, which is usually a day off. This means I will be starting next week off right. This means that I will be invincible.
The continued best part about the workouts is my progress on the warm-ups. I made it through the warm-up two times this week (not the power and resistance one which is still pure concentrated evil). Now, I should point out that I may be a tiny bit sneaky sometimes. For instance, through the first iteration of the warm-up when I am transitioning from one exercise to the next, it is instantaneous. The last move of one exercise flows perfectly into the first move of the next exercise without delay. In the third iteration I sometimes come to a complete stop so that I can “get into a good starting position for the next exercise”. Now, at most it is a 2-3 second loss of time, so I can live with it, but I do acknowledge that the final battle will involve flawless transitions. My defense to Shaun T is that transitions while going at max speed can be somewhat dangerous. His response typically includes lightning being shot from his eyes or breathing fire or both.
Aside from Sunday, when I had Chinese (I love General Tso’s (alt. Tao’s) chicken. He must have been a great man), my meals for the week were, again, solid. Water intake has also become intriguing. On some days I now have three thermos’s of water. It is a lot of water, but water fixes everything so the more the merrier.
I got my splint off today. I still have to be careful and the doctor recommends putting a splint on for athletic endeavors and sleeping for three weeks. Still, it is good to know that the tendon has healed. Or is still healing. It still looks crooked. I imagine that this will most likely continue to get better in this last three week period, but I failed to ask the doc any questions about it. That seemed like way too many details.
The actual workouts went okay. I definitely feel closer on all of them. Plyometrics I know I’m getting the closest on. I can make it through the first seven minutes with minimal breaks now. It is when the final 9.5 minutes start that more breaks are needed. Whatever the break situation, I am closer. Where I was wondering if I would ever get to the month two DVDs, now I am certain that within 9-14 months I will graduate to “month 2” of the workout. It will almost be too easy.
The continued best part about the workouts is my progress on the warm-ups. I made it through the warm-up two times this week (not the power and resistance one which is still pure concentrated evil). Now, I should point out that I may be a tiny bit sneaky sometimes. For instance, through the first iteration of the warm-up when I am transitioning from one exercise to the next, it is instantaneous. The last move of one exercise flows perfectly into the first move of the next exercise without delay. In the third iteration I sometimes come to a complete stop so that I can “get into a good starting position for the next exercise”. Now, at most it is a 2-3 second loss of time, so I can live with it, but I do acknowledge that the final battle will involve flawless transitions. My defense to Shaun T is that transitions while going at max speed can be somewhat dangerous. His response typically includes lightning being shot from his eyes or breathing fire or both.
Aside from Sunday, when I had Chinese (I love General Tso’s (alt. Tao’s) chicken. He must have been a great man), my meals for the week were, again, solid. Water intake has also become intriguing. On some days I now have three thermos’s of water. It is a lot of water, but water fixes everything so the more the merrier.
I got my splint off today. I still have to be careful and the doctor recommends putting a splint on for athletic endeavors and sleeping for three weeks. Still, it is good to know that the tendon has healed. Or is still healing. It still looks crooked. I imagine that this will most likely continue to get better in this last three week period, but I failed to ask the doc any questions about it. That seemed like way too many details.
The actual workouts went okay. I definitely feel closer on all of them. Plyometrics I know I’m getting the closest on. I can make it through the first seven minutes with minimal breaks now. It is when the final 9.5 minutes start that more breaks are needed. Whatever the break situation, I am closer. Where I was wondering if I would ever get to the month two DVDs, now I am certain that within 9-14 months I will graduate to “month 2” of the workout. It will almost be too easy.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 128: Bad Week, Good Week, Bad Week…Good Week?
5-12-10: Curses. Another bad week of Insanity workouts. Though, I did maintain relatively healthy food consumption. Yes, if I can eat like I did for the past week, I will be healthy…and happy as the meals I make I do enjoy and I do not completely abandon the super-evil yet super-delicious items. Actually, while I have mentioned it before I feel the need to mention again that I have become extremely addicted to Cream of Wheat. I used to always have this as a kid. Then, from when I was about 12 to about 31, I did not have it at all. I gave it a whirl a month or two ago and remembered its magical powers. Cream of Wheat with a gob of peanut butter and a fair amount of honey (or chocolate chips if I have been a good boy). Fantastic. Yes, while initially I was saving this deliciousness for weekend breakfasts, now I struggle to not have it when I get home from work for dinner. Cream of Wheat, I salute you!
I could give excuses why this past week was not great for workouts, but Shaun T hates excuses. He tells me “when an excuse will give you endless endurance and a sculpted body from the gods, use it. Otherwise be silent or I will destroy you for your insolence.” So, in the end I only did three workouts. This is painful. One more workout makes it an okay week, but it didn’t happen. Worse, two of the “no workout” days were Saturday and Sunday. That just can’t happen. Those have to be the automatic days. That could have turned a poor three workout week into a brilliant five workout week. Disaster.
So the week consisted of Plyro, Pure Cardio/Cardio Abs, and Plyro. I hate not getting a Power and Resistance workout in. Possibly the most painful of the workouts (other than Recovery…I have to start throwing in a Recovery at some point), there is the obvious benefit of getting stronger for the other workouts or future attempts at the Power workout. Still, this just means that Power will be the first workout done next week.
I made it through the warm-up again. I now seem to be able to get through the warm-up once a week. Not there yet, but soooooo much closer now. Before I used to breakdown and cry during every warm-up. Now I’ve found that I can continue doing the workout while crying. Much more efficient.
Pure Cardio was an interesting beast this time. At the five minute mark I had nothing left. I’ve said that before, but this time it was brutal. I believe I must have malfunctioned and had to reboot. All I know is that it was the worst last five minutes I’ve ever had during this workout. He gives a warning during Pure Cardio at about the five minute mark. “Mountain Climbers” are coming. They came and I was defenseless.
Luckily stretching gave me time to recover and I was able to push through the Abs portion. I feel it might have been fatigue/diet related that caused this tomfoolery. A poor sleep and limited calories the night before which the morning shake could not offset.
The Plyometrics workouts went all right. Still wiped when it comes time to do the “Ski Abs” and “In and Outs” (both high plank drills that follow a push-up drill). I think there is going to be a slight delay in conquering these drills. I think my arms need to get stronger. The problem is that by the time I reach any arms related exercise in any of the workouts, I’m already exhausted, so the cardio aspect sometimes stops me before the arm pain does. Plus the legs hurt in those last two drills as well. Huh. They managed to pick two very brutal last exercises for the workout, focusing on every area that, by that time, should be too sore too continue. Shaun T is an evil genius. To combat this, I think I may need to work on some “extra credit” workout assignments. Simple exercises, such as simply doing a bunch of push-ups twelve hours after the last workout and before the next one. Still, this is tricky. One, it isn’t cardio, which is not the Insanity Workout way. Two, this is not a Shaun T sanctioned workout. He may get angry. I may need to scrap this idea.
I need to get back to consistently doing five workouts a week. It all comes down to the weekend. Two workouts must be done over the weekend or the world is doomed. The fate of the world rests in my hands…can I hold off Shaun T from unleashing Armageddon just a little bit longer?
I could give excuses why this past week was not great for workouts, but Shaun T hates excuses. He tells me “when an excuse will give you endless endurance and a sculpted body from the gods, use it. Otherwise be silent or I will destroy you for your insolence.” So, in the end I only did three workouts. This is painful. One more workout makes it an okay week, but it didn’t happen. Worse, two of the “no workout” days were Saturday and Sunday. That just can’t happen. Those have to be the automatic days. That could have turned a poor three workout week into a brilliant five workout week. Disaster.
So the week consisted of Plyro, Pure Cardio/Cardio Abs, and Plyro. I hate not getting a Power and Resistance workout in. Possibly the most painful of the workouts (other than Recovery…I have to start throwing in a Recovery at some point), there is the obvious benefit of getting stronger for the other workouts or future attempts at the Power workout. Still, this just means that Power will be the first workout done next week.
I made it through the warm-up again. I now seem to be able to get through the warm-up once a week. Not there yet, but soooooo much closer now. Before I used to breakdown and cry during every warm-up. Now I’ve found that I can continue doing the workout while crying. Much more efficient.
Pure Cardio was an interesting beast this time. At the five minute mark I had nothing left. I’ve said that before, but this time it was brutal. I believe I must have malfunctioned and had to reboot. All I know is that it was the worst last five minutes I’ve ever had during this workout. He gives a warning during Pure Cardio at about the five minute mark. “Mountain Climbers” are coming. They came and I was defenseless.
Luckily stretching gave me time to recover and I was able to push through the Abs portion. I feel it might have been fatigue/diet related that caused this tomfoolery. A poor sleep and limited calories the night before which the morning shake could not offset.
The Plyometrics workouts went all right. Still wiped when it comes time to do the “Ski Abs” and “In and Outs” (both high plank drills that follow a push-up drill). I think there is going to be a slight delay in conquering these drills. I think my arms need to get stronger. The problem is that by the time I reach any arms related exercise in any of the workouts, I’m already exhausted, so the cardio aspect sometimes stops me before the arm pain does. Plus the legs hurt in those last two drills as well. Huh. They managed to pick two very brutal last exercises for the workout, focusing on every area that, by that time, should be too sore too continue. Shaun T is an evil genius. To combat this, I think I may need to work on some “extra credit” workout assignments. Simple exercises, such as simply doing a bunch of push-ups twelve hours after the last workout and before the next one. Still, this is tricky. One, it isn’t cardio, which is not the Insanity Workout way. Two, this is not a Shaun T sanctioned workout. He may get angry. I may need to scrap this idea.
I need to get back to consistently doing five workouts a week. It all comes down to the weekend. Two workouts must be done over the weekend or the world is doomed. The fate of the world rests in my hands…can I hold off Shaun T from unleashing Armageddon just a little bit longer?
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 114: Pizza:Insanity Ratio Got Out Of Control
4-29-10: Bad week…bad week for Insanity. Bad week for eating. Bad, bad, bad. But…not terrible.
I did three workouts in that week long period. I want to be more in the 5-6 range, but really I hope to never drop below 4. In that respect, the week was definitely below average. Partial laziness and too many deadlines and timed events did me in. When there is nothing scheduled at work or home, things are much easier. When there are many friendly gatherings (every day from last Thursday to Sunday), coupled with work meetings, things get to be trickier. Still, no excuses. I need to re-find my resolve. And I believe that starts with eating.
So, I had way too much pop/pizza/Doritos/cookies/Chinese over the past week. Way, way too much. I find that working out and eating form a symbiotic relationship for me. Neglecting one adversely affects the motivation of the other. However, forming discipline around one also tends to prompt a desire for discipline for the other. Thus, I have eaten well Monday thru today and have worked out twice in that time period. The focus on diet (no going out for lunch this week) has helped me focus on the workout as well. The pop will be eliminated from the party atmosphere once again. Sometimes it just seems right to have a Coke when sitting around with friends. Somehow the talking must make my mouth dry so I must drink more. Large quantities of water are drunk, but pop sneaks in there as well. Clearly my only recourse is to stop talking to people.
Weight has magically remained constant throughout this past week. While that is good news, I should also use it as motivation. What would have happened if I HAD worked out and ate better this past week. I would be slamming. I am not slamming…and it is all my fault.
Probably only one more week left for the splint on the mallet finger. Though, I may test it out tonight. If Dr. Dave thinks it looks good tonight, I can probably cancel that last doctor’s appointment and de-smellify the finger. Man it smells BAD.
The exterminator came the other day, just to spray. My spider friend, Shaun T, was an unfortunate casualty. I was warned that there might be collateral damage. To get the ants, the spiders would have to be killed as well. Sad really. The spiders had done quite a good job on the ants…just not quite good enough.
How did the workouts go? Well, I did one of each. All three of them have things in common. I find myself completely exhausted by the end. The mental motivation of the last iteration never is quite enough to offset the physical fatigue. Still, I felt I had my best Power and Resistance workout today. Exhaustion and spitting sweat. I felt good as I started right after mowing the lawn after work and still managed not to blaspheme. Definitely too sore at certain parts to continue. Soon. Soon, I will get over that hump. There is going to be that point where my reduction in weight, increase in strength and endurance pass each other, where my weight is no longer sufficient to provide an impossible challenge, resulting in increased reps and an even more intense cardio.
The Pure Cardio and Plyometrics each were neither extraordinary or abysmal. Still falling somewhere in the third iteration of the warm-up. Still working on the 10 second rule. Many times I have pushed it to the five second rule. However, near the end, it becomes the 15 second rule and the breaks come more frequently.
Well, that’s all I have for today. Good luck all! You can do it!
I did three workouts in that week long period. I want to be more in the 5-6 range, but really I hope to never drop below 4. In that respect, the week was definitely below average. Partial laziness and too many deadlines and timed events did me in. When there is nothing scheduled at work or home, things are much easier. When there are many friendly gatherings (every day from last Thursday to Sunday), coupled with work meetings, things get to be trickier. Still, no excuses. I need to re-find my resolve. And I believe that starts with eating.
So, I had way too much pop/pizza/Doritos/cookies/Chinese over the past week. Way, way too much. I find that working out and eating form a symbiotic relationship for me. Neglecting one adversely affects the motivation of the other. However, forming discipline around one also tends to prompt a desire for discipline for the other. Thus, I have eaten well Monday thru today and have worked out twice in that time period. The focus on diet (no going out for lunch this week) has helped me focus on the workout as well. The pop will be eliminated from the party atmosphere once again. Sometimes it just seems right to have a Coke when sitting around with friends. Somehow the talking must make my mouth dry so I must drink more. Large quantities of water are drunk, but pop sneaks in there as well. Clearly my only recourse is to stop talking to people.
Weight has magically remained constant throughout this past week. While that is good news, I should also use it as motivation. What would have happened if I HAD worked out and ate better this past week. I would be slamming. I am not slamming…and it is all my fault.
Probably only one more week left for the splint on the mallet finger. Though, I may test it out tonight. If Dr. Dave thinks it looks good tonight, I can probably cancel that last doctor’s appointment and de-smellify the finger. Man it smells BAD.
The exterminator came the other day, just to spray. My spider friend, Shaun T, was an unfortunate casualty. I was warned that there might be collateral damage. To get the ants, the spiders would have to be killed as well. Sad really. The spiders had done quite a good job on the ants…just not quite good enough.
How did the workouts go? Well, I did one of each. All three of them have things in common. I find myself completely exhausted by the end. The mental motivation of the last iteration never is quite enough to offset the physical fatigue. Still, I felt I had my best Power and Resistance workout today. Exhaustion and spitting sweat. I felt good as I started right after mowing the lawn after work and still managed not to blaspheme. Definitely too sore at certain parts to continue. Soon. Soon, I will get over that hump. There is going to be that point where my reduction in weight, increase in strength and endurance pass each other, where my weight is no longer sufficient to provide an impossible challenge, resulting in increased reps and an even more intense cardio.
The Pure Cardio and Plyometrics each were neither extraordinary or abysmal. Still falling somewhere in the third iteration of the warm-up. Still working on the 10 second rule. Many times I have pushed it to the five second rule. However, near the end, it becomes the 15 second rule and the breaks come more frequently.
Well, that’s all I have for today. Good luck all! You can do it!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 107: You Better Not Cry. You Better Not Pout. Shaun T Is Watching.
4-21-10: Shaun T has many spies and they present themselves in unsuspected ways at unsuspected times in unsuspected locations. For instance, this past weekend I was in Kalamazoo helping my brother move (still Kalamazoo). We went to Red Robins for linner (or dunch). I was going to order myself a chocolate shake when one of Shaun T’s minions lashed out with uncontrollable fury and demanded that I stop. It was my sister. She has been converted to the dark side and Shaun T is the Emperor. Blood is thicker than water, sure, but I guess it is not thicker than chocolate. No shake was ordered. A temporary moment of weakness, thwarted by a minion. Shaun T is always watching.
From the dawn of time (3.5 months ago), Shaun T has slept 23 hours a day. He wakes for one hour to wreak havoc upon the Earth, before going back into hibernation. This one hour causes pain to all who see him. I was lucky enough to see him four times this past week. With one day of moving, this turned out to be a good week. Unfortunately, while he is always watching and has minions everywhere, I may or may not have been able to still have about two bags of Doritos, 12 pieces of pizza, 2 Cokes and 2 Pepsis. While this certainly was not one of my better weeks for eating, it sure was delicious. On a positive note, my weight remained constant. It is much like the good ole days where I could eat whatever I wanted, SO LONG AS I exercised regularly. I have never been so regular (insert fiber joke here). Still right at 210, with about a 35 waist. The year end goal was originally about 195 and 32, so I’m at a very good pace right now, even with the joys of evil eating. I just need the workouts to be maintained.
Blah. The warm-up is still blah. Since fully completing it the one time, I have yet to make it through a second time. I know right were the problem is. The third iteration of the Heisman. This is my wall. If I can make it over this wall, I will be able to force myself to make it through the last two minutes of the warm-up without breaking. Not easily. I will be gasping for air and be sore as a monkey, but knowing that there is only two minutes left will be just motivation enough to risk collapsing in death to make it through (thank goodness I do not have a heart rate monitor as this would surely only discourage me from trying to push through). So where am I? Either at the start of the Heisman or halfway through. Sometimes with 10 seconds left of the Heisman I say “screw it” and take a break. Oh yes. I am close. Yet, so far away. And, as usual, the warm-up for the power and resistance is overly brutal and I haven’t even made it over the moat yet to have a chance at getting over the wall. Another month perhaps? Plenty of time. No rush. Hopefully I will be ready for month 2 at the six month mark. :)
A quick note about Cardio Abs. I mentioned last time that Shaun T fails to congratulate us at the end of this workout. This is not true. He does give an “awesome job” at the end of the workout, but before the final stretching. It is that kind of encouragement that helps me get through. I still haven’t added this to any of the other workouts other than Pure Cardio. This is due to being completely exhausted after every workout (including Pure Cardio) and not feeling like doing after any of them. I only do it after Pure Cardio because Shaun T demands it on the schedule. To add it to other workouts would require a good deal of masochism that I may not have in me…YET!
I have found some extra internal motivation deep down within of late. While I can not define what it is, I do know I have been getting up early the past few days. Getting up early is the key piece of being able to do a workout every day. I just have to be mindful to not let the weekends completely mess me up (though, this past weekend I did have a 6:30 AM bedtime on one of the days…Gears of War 2 is a fun game and supersedes (apparently) sleep.
I find my attitude during Pure Cardio to be a problem. Since it is 15 exercises long and I have, by now, memorized the order with which each exercise comes, I have learned to dread each upcoming exercise moments before we switch to them. I need to convince myself to be “happy” about the upcoming exercises to be able to push through. I cannot be thinking “oh man…stance jacks are next…I should just give up” (stance jacks are exercise three). Yes, a better attitude during the workouts as opposed to the usual “I am in pain, kill me, kill Shaun T, kill someone, please let there be a power shortage” mentality might be just what the doctor ordered. Feigned excitement will be a theme for the upcoming week.
I find that Power and Resistance workout and, specifically, many of the exercises designed to rupture the quads, are not as bad anymore. Let me be perfectly clear. They are bad. They are painful. I still need many breaks for many of them. Still…they are not AS bad as they used to be. This is encouraging. I will use this thought as part of the “feigned excitement” theme this week.
Good ole Plyometrics Cardio Circuit workout. What can I say? I enjoy parts of it. At times I feel I will make it through the whole workout. At other times I wonder if I will ever make it through the whole workout. I feel a little more effort and I have it. I feel that the body is angry and refuses to push through. Stupid body. It’s interesting. I typically have energy to complete the last two minutes of the workout, which is Shaun T’s most violent part of all the workouts (jabs, uppercuts, “the attack”). The problem is that I have this energy because my last attempt at the last two exercises of the last iteration of the second set of exercises is, how you say, not the best. The last two exercises are Ski Abs and In and Outs. I seem to mishear him every time, thinking he says “Sleep Abs” and “Sleep and Sleep”. I probably get 10 seconds out of a possible 30 for each of these exercises. Thus, the energy to finish strong. So, I finish strong…but I was cheating. I am such a cheater.
Well, good luck all and good Insanity!
From the dawn of time (3.5 months ago), Shaun T has slept 23 hours a day. He wakes for one hour to wreak havoc upon the Earth, before going back into hibernation. This one hour causes pain to all who see him. I was lucky enough to see him four times this past week. With one day of moving, this turned out to be a good week. Unfortunately, while he is always watching and has minions everywhere, I may or may not have been able to still have about two bags of Doritos, 12 pieces of pizza, 2 Cokes and 2 Pepsis. While this certainly was not one of my better weeks for eating, it sure was delicious. On a positive note, my weight remained constant. It is much like the good ole days where I could eat whatever I wanted, SO LONG AS I exercised regularly. I have never been so regular (insert fiber joke here). Still right at 210, with about a 35 waist. The year end goal was originally about 195 and 32, so I’m at a very good pace right now, even with the joys of evil eating. I just need the workouts to be maintained.
Blah. The warm-up is still blah. Since fully completing it the one time, I have yet to make it through a second time. I know right were the problem is. The third iteration of the Heisman. This is my wall. If I can make it over this wall, I will be able to force myself to make it through the last two minutes of the warm-up without breaking. Not easily. I will be gasping for air and be sore as a monkey, but knowing that there is only two minutes left will be just motivation enough to risk collapsing in death to make it through (thank goodness I do not have a heart rate monitor as this would surely only discourage me from trying to push through). So where am I? Either at the start of the Heisman or halfway through. Sometimes with 10 seconds left of the Heisman I say “screw it” and take a break. Oh yes. I am close. Yet, so far away. And, as usual, the warm-up for the power and resistance is overly brutal and I haven’t even made it over the moat yet to have a chance at getting over the wall. Another month perhaps? Plenty of time. No rush. Hopefully I will be ready for month 2 at the six month mark. :)
A quick note about Cardio Abs. I mentioned last time that Shaun T fails to congratulate us at the end of this workout. This is not true. He does give an “awesome job” at the end of the workout, but before the final stretching. It is that kind of encouragement that helps me get through. I still haven’t added this to any of the other workouts other than Pure Cardio. This is due to being completely exhausted after every workout (including Pure Cardio) and not feeling like doing after any of them. I only do it after Pure Cardio because Shaun T demands it on the schedule. To add it to other workouts would require a good deal of masochism that I may not have in me…YET!
I have found some extra internal motivation deep down within of late. While I can not define what it is, I do know I have been getting up early the past few days. Getting up early is the key piece of being able to do a workout every day. I just have to be mindful to not let the weekends completely mess me up (though, this past weekend I did have a 6:30 AM bedtime on one of the days…Gears of War 2 is a fun game and supersedes (apparently) sleep.
I find my attitude during Pure Cardio to be a problem. Since it is 15 exercises long and I have, by now, memorized the order with which each exercise comes, I have learned to dread each upcoming exercise moments before we switch to them. I need to convince myself to be “happy” about the upcoming exercises to be able to push through. I cannot be thinking “oh man…stance jacks are next…I should just give up” (stance jacks are exercise three). Yes, a better attitude during the workouts as opposed to the usual “I am in pain, kill me, kill Shaun T, kill someone, please let there be a power shortage” mentality might be just what the doctor ordered. Feigned excitement will be a theme for the upcoming week.
I find that Power and Resistance workout and, specifically, many of the exercises designed to rupture the quads, are not as bad anymore. Let me be perfectly clear. They are bad. They are painful. I still need many breaks for many of them. Still…they are not AS bad as they used to be. This is encouraging. I will use this thought as part of the “feigned excitement” theme this week.
Good ole Plyometrics Cardio Circuit workout. What can I say? I enjoy parts of it. At times I feel I will make it through the whole workout. At other times I wonder if I will ever make it through the whole workout. I feel a little more effort and I have it. I feel that the body is angry and refuses to push through. Stupid body. It’s interesting. I typically have energy to complete the last two minutes of the workout, which is Shaun T’s most violent part of all the workouts (jabs, uppercuts, “the attack”). The problem is that I have this energy because my last attempt at the last two exercises of the last iteration of the second set of exercises is, how you say, not the best. The last two exercises are Ski Abs and In and Outs. I seem to mishear him every time, thinking he says “Sleep Abs” and “Sleep and Sleep”. I probably get 10 seconds out of a possible 30 for each of these exercises. Thus, the energy to finish strong. So, I finish strong…but I was cheating. I am such a cheater.
Well, good luck all and good Insanity!
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 93: Pure and Not Simple – Pure Cardio and Cardio Abs
4-7-10: Today was another fun workout. It kind of reminded me of another workout I’ve done before. Ah yes…It was when I did the Pure Cardio and Cardio Abs workout a billion times previously.
I had a pretty good warm-up…not great. Still, so long as I make it somewhere within the third iteration, I feel good. I was still fairly sleep-deprived going in to the workout today. I can always tell when things are not going to be as easy as usual (which is very, very hard) when I feel like sleeping when I’m putting on my shoes. I pushed through.
I tried the 10 second rule for the actual workout. It did not work as well as usual. Sure, I forced myself to start up, but I noticed myself taking a few too many more breaks. Ah well. I still like the rule. There are also a few exercises in this workout and the following Cardio Abs that I have stopped doing do to the mallet finger. Just too much motion with the arms. Unfortunately, all three seem to relate to jumping ability, which makes me doubtful that I will be able to slam immediately after the splint comes off. It may take a couple of extra weeks.
About the mallet finger. I went to the doctor today and he said it looks good, we tested it and saw some limited mobility that wasn’t there three weeks ago, and he said it should be good to go within four weeks. With this, I can safely conclude that the best way to heal a splinted mallet finger is to workout like crazy, play basketball and ultimate Frisbee. I am certain the complete lack of rest I gave it contributed to the healing process.
I had a pretty good warm-up…not great. Still, so long as I make it somewhere within the third iteration, I feel good. I was still fairly sleep-deprived going in to the workout today. I can always tell when things are not going to be as easy as usual (which is very, very hard) when I feel like sleeping when I’m putting on my shoes. I pushed through.
I tried the 10 second rule for the actual workout. It did not work as well as usual. Sure, I forced myself to start up, but I noticed myself taking a few too many more breaks. Ah well. I still like the rule. There are also a few exercises in this workout and the following Cardio Abs that I have stopped doing do to the mallet finger. Just too much motion with the arms. Unfortunately, all three seem to relate to jumping ability, which makes me doubtful that I will be able to slam immediately after the splint comes off. It may take a couple of extra weeks.
About the mallet finger. I went to the doctor today and he said it looks good, we tested it and saw some limited mobility that wasn’t there three weeks ago, and he said it should be good to go within four weeks. With this, I can safely conclude that the best way to heal a splinted mallet finger is to workout like crazy, play basketball and ultimate Frisbee. I am certain the complete lack of rest I gave it contributed to the healing process.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 85: Warm-up 56, David 1 Pure Cardio and Cardio Abs Official Workout 64
3-30-10: Hey! I finished the warm-up today. It was almost TOO easy. Well, that’s not entirely true and I would not be surprised if a repeat performance does not take place tomorrow. Focusing on today though, I did it…and it felt good. Perhaps my 1-2-3 Heismans and High Knees were not as insanely fast as I would have liked, but it certainly was not a cheap slowdown attempt at recovering. It was still with some good speed.
It did take me a little bit longer to start stretching (I had to catch my breath before the first part of the stretching which is to take four breaths). I did get through it though and the workout was not ridiculously bad. I stuck with the ten second rule for at least half of the workout. Then it felt like the breaks were getting a little bit longer.
Oh yeah…did I mention I beat the warm-up today? Yeeha!
It did take me a little bit longer to start stretching (I had to catch my breath before the first part of the stretching which is to take four breaths). I did get through it though and the workout was not ridiculously bad. I stuck with the ten second rule for at least half of the workout. Then it felt like the breaks were getting a little bit longer.
Oh yeah…did I mention I beat the warm-up today? Yeeha!
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 81: Pure Madness and Madness Abs
3-26-10: Another good warm-up. I was thwarted at about the same spot. Maybe 10 seconds earlier. Still, Shaun T was right there. I can do it.
I still feel light years away from being able to complete the Pure Cardio workout. Though, I am finding clever little in-workout mini-goals to complete. Simply put, no breaks longer than 10 seconds. It is amazing. When gasping for air, feeling sore, and with the heart getting ready to explode, break time seems to go WAY to fast. Now I monitor and even if it seems like I’m not ready (truthfully, at some point it feels like it would take 20 minutes to be ready…Shaun T is not amused by this idea at all), I jump back in. With this, I feel I am pushing myself a little farther each time and getting an even better workout on Pure Cardio days.
That pesky Abs workout. It is like driving till the tank is on empty, then attempting to drive it for 15 more minutes. Still, I do like this workout. It incorporates different moves than the main three workouts employ. The best part is that a third of them require being in the “C-sit” position. This means I can sit on the floor, which is, by this point, what I’ve felt like doing for about 40 minutes.
I also played some Cardio Ping-Pong with my sister from about ten to midnight to 12:40. Shaun T would have been quite proud. We both worked mainly on our forehands as opposed to our extremely defensive backhand posturing. Quite intrigued by the results.
I still feel light years away from being able to complete the Pure Cardio workout. Though, I am finding clever little in-workout mini-goals to complete. Simply put, no breaks longer than 10 seconds. It is amazing. When gasping for air, feeling sore, and with the heart getting ready to explode, break time seems to go WAY to fast. Now I monitor and even if it seems like I’m not ready (truthfully, at some point it feels like it would take 20 minutes to be ready…Shaun T is not amused by this idea at all), I jump back in. With this, I feel I am pushing myself a little farther each time and getting an even better workout on Pure Cardio days.
That pesky Abs workout. It is like driving till the tank is on empty, then attempting to drive it for 15 more minutes. Still, I do like this workout. It incorporates different moves than the main three workouts employ. The best part is that a third of them require being in the “C-sit” position. This means I can sit on the floor, which is, by this point, what I’ve felt like doing for about 40 minutes.
I also played some Cardio Ping-Pong with my sister from about ten to midnight to 12:40. Shaun T would have been quite proud. We both worked mainly on our forehands as opposed to our extremely defensive backhand posturing. Quite intrigued by the results.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 76: Cardio Pure-gatory (And ABS!!!)
3-21-10: Weekends continue to be lazy days for me. Oh. I still do the workouts, but I find little excuses to delay myself.
“Hey! I should workout after my second meal which will be more useful than the first meal shake I have.”
“Hey! I should finish watching to relax a bit before the workout.”
“Hey! I might as well play a little bit of Bionic Commando (Xbox 360 version) before working out seeing as it is almost time for meal 3!”
“Wow! I can’t believe I’ve been playing this game for four hours. I should workout now or I’m not going to have energy for tomorrow’s “recovery” workout.”
And, thus, results in my 4:00 PM start time. I think I have to just go right after the first meal shake no matter what. Too many distractions. Or, I’m too easily distracted.
Well, the warm-up was not terrible. Still not getting all the way through, but still pushing through hard. The workout was, again, miserable. On a minimal and rare bright note, some of the bazillion squat variations did not hurt as much this time. Some strength gain, though minimal, was noticed. Still plenty of collapses in painful heaps, but I feel I only stayed in the cocooned position for 17% less time than usual.
Cardio Abs were…there again. Definitely can feel it in the belly, so it’s not just a clever name. I do like this workout and plan to possibly add a second viewing during the week at some point.
The pinky is interesting. I wonder if it is healing at all or if I’m undoing everything by doing the workout. The sane thing to do would be to contact the doctor to discuss the kinds of activity and pressure that the pinky can handle. But…THIS IS INSANITY!!!!!!
“Hey! I should workout after my second meal which will be more useful than the first meal shake I have.”
“Hey! I should finish watching
“Hey! I might as well play a little bit of Bionic Commando (Xbox 360 version) before working out seeing as it is almost time for meal 3!”
“Wow! I can’t believe I’ve been playing this game for four hours. I should workout now or I’m not going to have energy for tomorrow’s “recovery” workout.”
And, thus, results in my 4:00 PM start time. I think I have to just go right after the first meal shake no matter what. Too many distractions. Or, I’m too easily distracted.
Well, the warm-up was not terrible. Still not getting all the way through, but still pushing through hard. The workout was, again, miserable. On a minimal and rare bright note, some of the bazillion squat variations did not hurt as much this time. Some strength gain, though minimal, was noticed. Still plenty of collapses in painful heaps, but I feel I only stayed in the cocooned position for 17% less time than usual.
Cardio Abs were…there again. Definitely can feel it in the belly, so it’s not just a clever name. I do like this workout and plan to possibly add a second viewing during the week at some point.
The pinky is interesting. I wonder if it is healing at all or if I’m undoing everything by doing the workout. The sane thing to do would be to contact the doctor to discuss the kinds of activity and pressure that the pinky can handle. But…THIS IS INSANITY!!!!!!
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 71: Pure Cardio, No Abs…Will Shaun T. Notice?
3-16-10: Did I skip Cardio Abs due to exhaustion? Heck no! Let me be honest with you. I am ALWAYS exhausted after Pure Cardio. Today was no different in that respect. I simply needed to be at work at a certain time, and those 15 minutes would have made things risky.
To answer the question…yes, Shaun T noticed. And he was not pleased. In fact, he demanded a goat sacrifice to appease him or at least the promise that I would do a workout tomorrow. I chose the latter because I have been running low on goats.
The pinky was not terrible. Certainly annoying, but I think I am past that small little mental barrier. Flying through it all or not, the workout felt good. Despite still not making it through the warm-up (it is only day 71 after all), I still fell progress is being made. In all honesty, I feel I am at a point where I could make it through the warm-up, just not at 100% intensity. I see the people on the screen. They are not at 100% intensity. I will be better than they are. I will eat their souls.
I felt really sleepy for the last 6 or so exercises. I put my head down. Wait…maybe I wasn’t sleepy. Maybe I was passing out due to exhaustion. Whatever it was, I felt beat near the end. To tomorrow I go!
To answer the question…yes, Shaun T noticed. And he was not pleased. In fact, he demanded a goat sacrifice to appease him or at least the promise that I would do a workout tomorrow. I chose the latter because I have been running low on goats.
The pinky was not terrible. Certainly annoying, but I think I am past that small little mental barrier. Flying through it all or not, the workout felt good. Despite still not making it through the warm-up (it is only day 71 after all), I still fell progress is being made. In all honesty, I feel I am at a point where I could make it through the warm-up, just not at 100% intensity. I see the people on the screen. They are not at 100% intensity. I will be better than they are. I will eat their souls.
I felt really sleepy for the last 6 or so exercises. I put my head down. Wait…maybe I wasn’t sleepy. Maybe I was passing out due to exhaustion. Whatever it was, I felt beat near the end. To tomorrow I go!
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 67: Pure Pinky Cardio and Cardio Pinky Abs
3-12-10: Well, I wrapped my hand before the workout. Figured that I didn’t want to drip sweat all over the splinted finger that I would not be able to wash off. The workout was not great. The pinky seemed to create a random mental obstacle. I kept being reminded of the stupid pinky. The pinky did not like sudden movements. The pinky liked to hit the ceiling. The wrapped pinky did not like to help lift my thermos to drink water. The pinky was not a big fan of plank work, though nearing the end I found a good position where I could do plank work without angling my body awkwardly to avoid using the pinky. Next workout I feel I will be better prepared for that tomfoolery.
All that being said, that is the beauty of the Insanity workout. If I am unable to go 100% into an exercise, thankfully another exercise follows that I can push myself twice as hard at. So, even though it was not a great workout, none of these workouts ever feel bad. If this ridiculous injury limits the level of insanity for a little while, I’ll be okay.
I am still amazed that this could take six weeks to heal. I am seeing a doctor next Wednesday, so maybe this outlook will change. What a weird injury. I imagine my self-diagnosis will be that the finger will be healed on 4/1/10 right in time for Sarz’s birthday party. There are many sports that need to be played and a dinky little mallet finger injury isn’t going to stop me.
All that being said, that is the beauty of the Insanity workout. If I am unable to go 100% into an exercise, thankfully another exercise follows that I can push myself twice as hard at. So, even though it was not a great workout, none of these workouts ever feel bad. If this ridiculous injury limits the level of insanity for a little while, I’ll be okay.
I am still amazed that this could take six weeks to heal. I am seeing a doctor next Wednesday, so maybe this outlook will change. What a weird injury. I imagine my self-diagnosis will be that the finger will be healed on 4/1/10 right in time for Sarz’s birthday party. There are many sports that need to be played and a dinky little mallet finger injury isn’t going to stop me.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 62: If You Can't Stand the Heat, Try Pure Cario
3-7-10: Fascinating. I found myself sucking wind once again today, and sweating profusely much earlier in the workout than normal. Heck, I was saturated before the actual workout even began. I think it has something to do with the change of seasons. I believe it is a couple of degrees warmer in the basement than it has been previously. This fascinates me. I did not anticipate a minor change in temperature causing such a wrinkle in my workout routine. I assume just something I will have to adapt to. But, still, very interesting. They should do a study about this for the planet as well.
I, again, managed to force myself through some of the drills, but by the end, it was hard to find that 15th effort. You see, Shaun T is not satisfied with 2nd efforts. He wants you at the point of breaking. I imagine it varies from person to person. For me it is the 15th effort that does it.
Cardio Abs as a followup is amusing as well. There just isn't any energy left of Cardio Abs. It is amazing how much of it I am actually making it through. Especially that last minute of plank work. I do not understand how my body has anything left for more plank work. Still, good times.
I, again, managed to force myself through some of the drills, but by the end, it was hard to find that 15th effort. You see, Shaun T is not satisfied with 2nd efforts. He wants you at the point of breaking. I imagine it varies from person to person. For me it is the 15th effort that does it.
Cardio Abs as a followup is amusing as well. There just isn't any energy left of Cardio Abs. It is amazing how much of it I am actually making it through. Especially that last minute of plank work. I do not understand how my body has anything left for more plank work. Still, good times.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 53: How Pure Is Pure Cardio If Done in Kalamazoo?
2-26-10: It is interesting doing these workouts in different locations. Normally I do them in my basement. This is nice because of the torrents of sweat I excrete. So, to offset this, I try to wear sweatpants and a sweatshirt to help absorb sweat (not just clever names). I really do prefer doing the workouts at home though.
Still, it is impossible to skip, even on the road. Shaun T will find you. Be forewarned that if you sign up to be in his special club, you are in it for life. There is no place to run. There is no place to hide. There is only Shaun T and his never-ending pursuit to make you DIG DEEPER…but only if you are able to.
This was not my best workout. The location made things a little awkward with the jumping, but not horribly so. Really, the location ended up being okay…just different from home and that caused mental roadblocks.
While not being my best workout, I do feel pretty good about it. Being dedicated enough to a workout program to take it on a mini-vacation is nearly unbelievable to me. In that respects, this was one of my best workouts.
There is nothing really to report about the actual workout. I did not do as well on the warm-up. The actual workout had some good moments in it, but overall there were far too many breaks.
My biggest worry is going to be tomorrow. Food intake and a possible need to skip a workout could cause massive hysteria and vengeance from Shaun T. I already sense his evil presence...a dark dream foreshadowing things to come.
Still, it is impossible to skip, even on the road. Shaun T will find you. Be forewarned that if you sign up to be in his special club, you are in it for life. There is no place to run. There is no place to hide. There is only Shaun T and his never-ending pursuit to make you DIG DEEPER…but only if you are able to.
This was not my best workout. The location made things a little awkward with the jumping, but not horribly so. Really, the location ended up being okay…just different from home and that caused mental roadblocks.
While not being my best workout, I do feel pretty good about it. Being dedicated enough to a workout program to take it on a mini-vacation is nearly unbelievable to me. In that respects, this was one of my best workouts.
There is nothing really to report about the actual workout. I did not do as well on the warm-up. The actual workout had some good moments in it, but overall there were far too many breaks.
My biggest worry is going to be tomorrow. Food intake and a possible need to skip a workout could cause massive hysteria and vengeance from Shaun T. I already sense his evil presence...a dark dream foreshadowing things to come.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 48: Pure Cardio’s Hurt Me Doc! Join the Nintendo Fan Club Today!
2-21-10: Hmm…the back was still not feeling great today. Really, only my upper right back was feeling fantastic. So, clearly, this means when doing the workout today I should focus all back energies to that section to prevent further pain to the other three sections. I am so smart.
Okay, I’m not quite that idiotic. I had quite the debate all day on whether or not I was going to do the workout today. Shaun T was not happy with the extra day off I took last week, and I certainly do not want to make that a pattern. So, really it was risking a more serious back injury or suffer Shaun T’s wrath.
The workout was better than expected. Maybe more breaks than usual, but there was also a bizarre moment where I thought that the Ski Downs were not too bad. Considering how annoyingly painful those have always been, this actually made the workout a win in my book. If you are keeping score at home, that is now 13 painful exercises and two not-super-painful exercises in the Pure Cardio routine (Suicide drills being the other).
Cardio Abs was all right. There are certain positions that are still blowing my mind. Sit on the floor, legs out. Lean back into a C-position (with your legs straight ahead, I would say an angle between 135 and 120 degrees for how far back you should be leaning). Then lift the legs up and back down, bring your legs in and back out. My angle is never quite right for this as I start to fall back every so often. This is probably for the best as the robots doing the exercises on the DVD seem to all need to take a few breaks when doing this one.
Well, should be all good tomorrow as it is Recovery. God help me.
Okay, I’m not quite that idiotic. I had quite the debate all day on whether or not I was going to do the workout today. Shaun T was not happy with the extra day off I took last week, and I certainly do not want to make that a pattern. So, really it was risking a more serious back injury or suffer Shaun T’s wrath.
The workout was better than expected. Maybe more breaks than usual, but there was also a bizarre moment where I thought that the Ski Downs were not too bad. Considering how annoyingly painful those have always been, this actually made the workout a win in my book. If you are keeping score at home, that is now 13 painful exercises and two not-super-painful exercises in the Pure Cardio routine (Suicide drills being the other).
Cardio Abs was all right. There are certain positions that are still blowing my mind. Sit on the floor, legs out. Lean back into a C-position (with your legs straight ahead, I would say an angle between 135 and 120 degrees for how far back you should be leaning). Then lift the legs up and back down, bring your legs in and back out. My angle is never quite right for this as I start to fall back every so often. This is probably for the best as the robots doing the exercises on the DVD seem to all need to take a few breaks when doing this one.
Well, should be all good tomorrow as it is Recovery. God help me.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 43: How Shaun T Beat Me – Dave’s Story of Pure Cardio
2-16-10: I woke up a broken man this morning. Sore, exhausted, and not wanting to get out of bed, let alone get beat up by Shaun T again. The program finally got me. Shaun T finally won. I was going to need to take a break day.
Or would I?
Certainly that “recovery” day yesterday would help me by the afternoon, right? My body feeling better after work and the adrenaline pumping due to another intense day of accounting, I knew that I had Shaun T right where I wanted him.
Somewhere in the warm-up I decided that I had made a terrible mistake. But, as a great karate master once told me, “Mercy is for the weak. The enemy deserves no mercy.” True in this instance and a good motto for life. I would push on.
I’m not sure if I was hallucinating or not, but I swear Shaun T was laughing at me when I started doing the workout portion. This angered me. This allowed me to push…oh…I don’t know…for another 5-7 seconds? The breaks felt good.
Collapsing in a heap when the final stretching was done, it only seemed logical to do the Cardio Abs workout as well. This is what Shaun T had intended. And I wasn’t dead (officially) yet.
Again, Cardio Abs was painful in its own special way. Breaking me more with pain as opposed to cardio, but breaking me with cardio as well just to be sure.
I believe tomorrow morning will be the first non-scheduled day off. Shaun T is going to be so angry with me…
Or would I?
Certainly that “recovery” day yesterday would help me by the afternoon, right? My body feeling better after work and the adrenaline pumping due to another intense day of accounting, I knew that I had Shaun T right where I wanted him.
Somewhere in the warm-up I decided that I had made a terrible mistake. But, as a great karate master once told me, “Mercy is for the weak. The enemy deserves no mercy.” True in this instance and a good motto for life. I would push on.
I’m not sure if I was hallucinating or not, but I swear Shaun T was laughing at me when I started doing the workout portion. This angered me. This allowed me to push…oh…I don’t know…for another 5-7 seconds? The breaks felt good.
Collapsing in a heap when the final stretching was done, it only seemed logical to do the Cardio Abs workout as well. This is what Shaun T had intended. And I wasn’t dead (officially) yet.
Again, Cardio Abs was painful in its own special way. Breaking me more with pain as opposed to cardio, but breaking me with cardio as well just to be sure.
I believe tomorrow morning will be the first non-scheduled day off. Shaun T is going to be so angry with me…
Friday, February 12, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 39: Diluted Cardio, Pure Cardio on the Rocks
2-12-10: Paying closer attention to the exercises, I get why the Frog Jumps seem to be so ridiculously impossible. This is the third exercise, in a span of 7-8 minutes, that heavily relies on squats. There are the stance jacks (power jacks with a twist (touch your left hand to the ground by your right foot while in the squat position, jump up and then move ahead with the other arm)), power jacks, and then the Frog Jumps. If the legs didn’t hurt enough, the Level 2 drills (8 pushups, run in plank position for 8 seconds, jump forward, jump up, drop down into plank position, repeat) make sure that any thoughts of…well…breathing go right out the window. Yes, when Frog Jumps start, the legs hurt and it is hard to breathe. Other than that I’m good to go.
I was close on the warm-up this morning. Aside from 10 seconds off of the jumping jacks, 10 seconds off the mummy kicks, and not going fast enough in the third iteration of the Heisman and 1-2-3 Heisman, I made it through. Tomorrow comes the Power and Resistance, which means the warm-up slightly changes. I just need to make it through the damned Power Jacks tomorrow. I do feel on pace to make it through the warm-up by the end of this workout week (I think this means I might push month 2 back a couple more weeks. Makes no sense to start it if I haven’t mastered month 1 yet). This morning felt good.
The usual suspects got me again in the actual workout. Other than the Frog Jumps, the Ski Downs, the Pedal, and the 12 other exercises in the workout, I was fine.
Cardio Abs were…there. I am not dead, so I must have made it through that workout as well. This is not a terribly difficult workout. Don’t get me wrong. I still need breaks, but I do not feel like every exercise is the end of the world. It is a nice supplement to the Pure Cardio madness that precedes it.
Today for lunch I had a microwavable bowl of soup. While, this seems random, and it doesn’t really connect well, I did find something sort of odd about it. After removing the metal top, there was still a metal ring where the lid had been connected. The instructions said that this remaining metal was fine to put into the microwave. Wait. What? So…there is microwavable metal? Is this more expensive to make? Shouldn’t things like Aluminum Foil be made out of this wacky metal substance? That’s all I’ve got.
I was close on the warm-up this morning. Aside from 10 seconds off of the jumping jacks, 10 seconds off the mummy kicks, and not going fast enough in the third iteration of the Heisman and 1-2-3 Heisman, I made it through. Tomorrow comes the Power and Resistance, which means the warm-up slightly changes. I just need to make it through the damned Power Jacks tomorrow. I do feel on pace to make it through the warm-up by the end of this workout week (I think this means I might push month 2 back a couple more weeks. Makes no sense to start it if I haven’t mastered month 1 yet). This morning felt good.
The usual suspects got me again in the actual workout. Other than the Frog Jumps, the Ski Downs, the Pedal, and the 12 other exercises in the workout, I was fine.
Cardio Abs were…there. I am not dead, so I must have made it through that workout as well. This is not a terribly difficult workout. Don’t get me wrong. I still need breaks, but I do not feel like every exercise is the end of the world. It is a nice supplement to the Pure Cardio madness that precedes it.
Today for lunch I had a microwavable bowl of soup. While, this seems random, and it doesn’t really connect well, I did find something sort of odd about it. After removing the metal top, there was still a metal ring where the lid had been connected. The instructions said that this remaining metal was fine to put into the microwave. Wait. What? So…there is microwavable metal? Is this more expensive to make? Shouldn’t things like Aluminum Foil be made out of this wacky metal substance? That’s all I’ve got.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 34: Pure Concentrated Evil (Cardio) and Evil (Cardio) Abs
2-7-10: I woke up bright and early this fine Superbowl Sunday morning. At around 9:00 I had started the warm-up and did a good job through it. Not perfect, of course, but I am entering that realm of break-less completion. I could smell it today. It smelled a lot like disgusting sweat and evil. Weird.
I made it through stretching today without breaks. Probably the least impressive of the three areas of the workout DVD to make it through, but progress nonetheless.
Then the workout. Starting with the suicides, I started well. Everything else had varying degrees of success and failure. Frog jumps were a failure. Level 2 drills were success-ish. Most of the one minute drills were again done for about half the time. Shaun T was not as mocking today, but he did peer into my soul today. Almost as if he knew I was preparing to break his nutritional plan. Oh, how he burns the soul!
Again, Cardio Abs was done right after Pure Cardio. Making sure the core is tight as to not hurt the back, makes for an intensely painful experience for the abs and obliques. Still, that wonderfully intense pain means it was working! Yay! No sit-ups and no crunches. Just Shaun T’s own special recipe of pain.
And the best drill to do, especially if you are doing this with other people, is the drill he saves for the end, which I call the F the ground drill. Line up in a plank position and give 8 pulses with the hips, go into low plank and give 8 pulses with the hips. Repeat four times. If I start thinking about Shaun T when I’m having sex I may have to start rethinking the Insanity workout. Until then, upwards and onwards.
I did not have pizza today. I did have meatballs, mosticelli, Doritos, Sun Chips, brownies, cookies, and chip dip. No pop however. Still, this was definitely one of those fun cheat days where I just pray Shaun T never finds out about. Now, the challenge becomes the large quantities of uneaten junk food residing at my house. This has just become the biggest challenge of the Insanity workout program.
I made it through stretching today without breaks. Probably the least impressive of the three areas of the workout DVD to make it through, but progress nonetheless.
Then the workout. Starting with the suicides, I started well. Everything else had varying degrees of success and failure. Frog jumps were a failure. Level 2 drills were success-ish. Most of the one minute drills were again done for about half the time. Shaun T was not as mocking today, but he did peer into my soul today. Almost as if he knew I was preparing to break his nutritional plan. Oh, how he burns the soul!
Again, Cardio Abs was done right after Pure Cardio. Making sure the core is tight as to not hurt the back, makes for an intensely painful experience for the abs and obliques. Still, that wonderfully intense pain means it was working! Yay! No sit-ups and no crunches. Just Shaun T’s own special recipe of pain.
And the best drill to do, especially if you are doing this with other people, is the drill he saves for the end, which I call the F the ground drill. Line up in a plank position and give 8 pulses with the hips, go into low plank and give 8 pulses with the hips. Repeat four times. If I start thinking about Shaun T when I’m having sex I may have to start rethinking the Insanity workout. Until then, upwards and onwards.
I did not have pizza today. I did have meatballs, mosticelli, Doritos, Sun Chips, brownies, cookies, and chip dip. No pop however. Still, this was definitely one of those fun cheat days where I just pray Shaun T never finds out about. Now, the challenge becomes the large quantities of uneaten junk food residing at my house. This has just become the biggest challenge of the Insanity workout program.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 27: Pure Cardio, Cardio Abs and Friend
1-31-10: Today I ventured out to Ypsilanti to do the day's workout with Vince. Trying to do the workout once a week with a friend is a good way to stay motivated. During the week I want to get better to put on a better show in the group setting. In the group setting I try to push a little harder. Amusingly enough I think I pushed a little too hard during the first iteration of the warm-up. This left me needing a break before the third iteration and a few more breaks than usual in the third iteration. Definitely started stronger though.
I did stretch better today. By myself it is the part I am most likely to take an unnecessary break...because I dislike stretching. It makes me angry. The group setting actually forced me to push through more so than usual.
The Pure Cardio workout was not my best workout, but it wasn't the worst either. I took breaks, but many were shorter than usual, encouraged to get back in the game. Vince, on the other hand, is a crazy man. His first break came during the frog jumps, which is about five minutes to the end of the workout, and about the time I take my 27th break. It sucks that something called Frog Jumps can be so difficult. It sounds like a stupid kiddie exercise...but it is a pure evil jump forward from squat jump back into squat rotation of doom. Still, a good day of Pure Cardio all in all.
I did better in Cardio Abs, but still not at the level needed to be. This may be the most important part to keep the core tight, otherwise it is working the back, probably in a bad way. Rule of thumb, if you feel it in the back, you are doing something wrong. If you feel it in the tummy, then it probably hurts and you'll want your mommy. And you will be doing it right. Good day of working out.
I did stretch better today. By myself it is the part I am most likely to take an unnecessary break...because I dislike stretching. It makes me angry. The group setting actually forced me to push through more so than usual.
The Pure Cardio workout was not my best workout, but it wasn't the worst either. I took breaks, but many were shorter than usual, encouraged to get back in the game. Vince, on the other hand, is a crazy man. His first break came during the frog jumps, which is about five minutes to the end of the workout, and about the time I take my 27th break. It sucks that something called Frog Jumps can be so difficult. It sounds like a stupid kiddie exercise...but it is a pure evil jump forward from squat jump back into squat rotation of doom. Still, a good day of Pure Cardio all in all.
I did better in Cardio Abs, but still not at the level needed to be. This may be the most important part to keep the core tight, otherwise it is working the back, probably in a bad way. Rule of thumb, if you feel it in the back, you are doing something wrong. If you feel it in the tummy, then it probably hurts and you'll want your mommy. And you will be doing it right. Good day of working out.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Insanity Workout Day 24: Pure Cardio Makes My Head Hurt, But At Least Ski Downs Following Mountain Climbers Makes Sense
1-28-10: I may have to make another small modification to the schedule. The day off is supposed to prepare me for the next week of hell. Only, I have been playing basketball the night before the start of the next day’s workout. Meaning that I typically have 24 hours in between workouts, except for after my “day off” in which I only get 10. I think my day off needs to be on Thursday, which would maintain a 12 hour spacing in between my last workout of the Insanity week and my basketball game, but would allow a day of rest to come after that hellish day. I think I could really use that day off to recover. This would also move Recovery day to Monday, which is also better as it is a shorter workout, meaning I should be able to start the work week off right.
I made it through the second iteration of the warm-up today. And the second time was at an increased speed. Excellent. I also made it through most of the initial sprinting of the third iteration of the warm-up before breaking. Still not where I need to be, but definitely some good personal improvement.
Rethinking most of the stretches, really there is only one that I hate. Sure, my form is suspect for the deep lunge, the one that kills me is the stretch that Shaun T tries to trick us with. He wants us to think it is a stretch, but it really isn’t. He thinks he can just throw a cardio exercise in the middle of the stretching and I’m not going to notice? Oh! I noticed Shaun T! The exercise comes right after the hip flexor stretch (my actual stretching nemesis). The idea is to balance on one leg, with your other leg parallel to the ground and your arms providing additional balance on the floor. The “stretch”, or so he calls it, requires moving the back leg in and out. This isn’t stretching. This is another “he hate me” drill.
The actual workout for Pure Cardio is terrifying. Still, I at least can make an imaginary story for part of it. This being where the mountain climber exercise starts. This is essentially high knees while alternating grasps at the ceiling with your arms. To the casual observer, it appears that you are climbing…well…nothing…you actually would look quite insane. Since this is the Insanity workout, you are clearly in the right state of mind then to imagine climbing up a mountain. I am good at climbing the mountain. Depending on the prior exercise, high knees are not the worst thing in the world. Then in a completely backwards twist, the ski downs start and so does the pain. In my mind I think this shouldn’t hurt. I’m skiing down the mountain I just climbed. Really I just have to let gravity do the work. But no, Shaun T has taken the fun out of skiing, making you feel like you are attempting to ski uphill, or down a hill with a disastrous coefficient of friction (that’s for my boy Sarz as he is most likely to actually read this.)
Cardio Abs again is like a distant memory even though it really didn’t happen all that long ago. I believe there is a severe lack of oxygen after Pure Cardio that prevents me from remembering Cardio Abs. Maybe I am blocking them from memory. Either way, what I can remember is an opening warm-up that isn’t awful by itself, just awful if it is following another workout. The floor exercises range from “not so bad” to “well, I did one, time for a break” to “Okay! I think I get what you are doing…oh…the drill is over?” Cardio Abs will make more sense when I perform Pure Cardio better. Pure Cardio will make more sense when that blasted warm-up is mastered.
I made it through the second iteration of the warm-up today. And the second time was at an increased speed. Excellent. I also made it through most of the initial sprinting of the third iteration of the warm-up before breaking. Still not where I need to be, but definitely some good personal improvement.
Rethinking most of the stretches, really there is only one that I hate. Sure, my form is suspect for the deep lunge, the one that kills me is the stretch that Shaun T tries to trick us with. He wants us to think it is a stretch, but it really isn’t. He thinks he can just throw a cardio exercise in the middle of the stretching and I’m not going to notice? Oh! I noticed Shaun T! The exercise comes right after the hip flexor stretch (my actual stretching nemesis). The idea is to balance on one leg, with your other leg parallel to the ground and your arms providing additional balance on the floor. The “stretch”, or so he calls it, requires moving the back leg in and out. This isn’t stretching. This is another “he hate me” drill.
The actual workout for Pure Cardio is terrifying. Still, I at least can make an imaginary story for part of it. This being where the mountain climber exercise starts. This is essentially high knees while alternating grasps at the ceiling with your arms. To the casual observer, it appears that you are climbing…well…nothing…you actually would look quite insane. Since this is the Insanity workout, you are clearly in the right state of mind then to imagine climbing up a mountain. I am good at climbing the mountain. Depending on the prior exercise, high knees are not the worst thing in the world. Then in a completely backwards twist, the ski downs start and so does the pain. In my mind I think this shouldn’t hurt. I’m skiing down the mountain I just climbed. Really I just have to let gravity do the work. But no, Shaun T has taken the fun out of skiing, making you feel like you are attempting to ski uphill, or down a hill with a disastrous coefficient of friction (that’s for my boy Sarz as he is most likely to actually read this.)
Cardio Abs again is like a distant memory even though it really didn’t happen all that long ago. I believe there is a severe lack of oxygen after Pure Cardio that prevents me from remembering Cardio Abs. Maybe I am blocking them from memory. Either way, what I can remember is an opening warm-up that isn’t awful by itself, just awful if it is following another workout. The floor exercises range from “not so bad” to “well, I did one, time for a break” to “Okay! I think I get what you are doing…oh…the drill is over?” Cardio Abs will make more sense when I perform Pure Cardio better. Pure Cardio will make more sense when that blasted warm-up is mastered.
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