I started week 3, which was pretty tough, and then went on vacation. At some point during my vacation I decided that I was on a vacation from pushups…. but when I came back I never started up the pushups again.
To be honest, it was also just getting really hard. I could feel my shoulder getting damaged, probably related to when I used to swim, and each day it would get worse.
So yah, I gave up.
However, the good news is that it may be better for me to have stopped given that I’m now training up for Cyclocross racing. For the last 3 weeks, I’ve been riding 3-4 times a week, 2-4 hour workouts. This week I’m starting to run a little bit too.
My goal is to loose about 20 pounds before the season starts in hopes that this will help give me a competitive advantage.
Well, another week is over. I gave myself 2 1/2 days rest after day 3 of week 2 before I did the test again. I have to say…. I am disappointed that I only did 5 more pushups than I did in the initial test, for a grand total of 30 pushups.
The good news is that I was able to manage the 3rd column of week 2 almost completely. I did come in shy of the minimum for level 5 on days 2 & 3, but that was a little better than week 1.
I can’t believe how sore I am. After Day 2, I was barely able to raise my hands over my head. Sheesh!
When I did the initial test and completed 25 pushups, that put me in the hardest pushup track. For days 2 and 3, I couldn’t quite complete levels 4 & 5 in the hardest track, so I think I might try the middle track in week 2…. we’ll see.
The good news is that as I progress, recovery time is dropping significantly.
The idea is that anyone can train themselves to do 100 consecutive push ups after 6 weeks of training only 30 minutes a week.
I just did the initial test and could only do 25. Henry did 60 on his test, so now, of course, we have to race to see who can reach 100 first…. but the twist is that it has to be after we drink 3 beers. (You thought I was joking, right Henry?)
Onree cynically comments on the self congratulatory nature of cyclists during todays Bike to Work Day. I didn’t get into the office until noon today, so I guess I avoided the masses… but there were a lot of hipster bikes in front of Ritual. Hmmm…. I wonder how they got there?
Unfortunately, there is a grain of truth in Onree’s rant…. this YouTube clip is, as Jason would say, so right on!
I got a sad call from my sister about an hour ago that Pepper, one of my parent’s poodles, had to be put down because of severely invasive tumors. Pepper was a great dog, and I’ll miss her.
Pepper
Sandy and Pepper kept me company in July while my parents were in Europe
After nearly a week of amazing weather here in San Francisco, it looks like we’re gonna get a ton of rain over the weekend. That’s ok….. this morning we were treated to one of the best sunrises I’ve seen in a long time.
My parents moved up to Cameron Park which is near Sacramento, a 2-3 hour drive from where I live in San Francisco. I also sold my car back in April, which makes getting up there to visit them an interesting event. Over Thanksgiving I rented a car to get there which ends up being a little pricey (but still costs me a lot less than if I owned a car).
Anyway, I wanted to make another trip up there to help them move into their new house, and so I thought I’d try the train. I assumed I’d get some work done on the ride up, something I definitely couldn’t do if I was driving, but I was having too much fun watching the view out the window.
Here are a few things you can expect to see if you take the train from Emeryville to Sacramento:
Sweeping views of the north bay. The train snaked along the edge of the bay for 45 minutes.
Lots of piers, many in various states of decay
A unique view of the Oil Terminals in Richmond
Fisherman fishing on the bay
Views from below the new Carquinez Bridge
Sweeping views of the Delta & Central Valley
The funny thing about living in the Bay Area is that you don’t see the bay very often because it’s obscured by buildings or hills. Even on the bridges, you don’t really get to see the bay because the railings are quite high. If you take a ride on this train, you’ll get some of the best views the bay has to offer.
There is a down-side of course. The train isn’t the most convenient way to travel. Just getting to the Emeryville train station probably took me an hour, and then the train was late. The train ride itself will probably be another 2 hours, and then I still have to get picked up in Sacramento, so now add another 1/2 hour to get to my parents house. All told, the journey will probably be about 4 hours, when driving takes between 2-4 hours depending on traffic. $18 one way isn’t bad though…. I’d probably have to pay $130 to rent a car for two days. Considering I got to enjoy the view and relax instead of stressing out in traffic, I think it was well worth it.
I was recently introduced to ThinkHost. I use DreamhHost now for this blog and my personal email, but I like the fact that ThinkHost is powered by 100% renewable energy.
Maybe my New Years resolution for 2007 will be to become as carbon neutral as possible. A few things I’m already doing to try and be carbon neutral:
* When I fly, I offset my carbon output with one of the many offerings out there
* When I still owned a car, I bought a TerraPass.
Some things I’m not doing but probably should:
* TerraPass has a home offering as well now, to offset the energy consumed in your home.
* GreenDimes aims to help you reduce the junk mail you get from the USPS.
I’m sure there are other ways to lower my carbon footprint. Any ideas?
Jason’s birthday was almost 2 months ago, but I still thought this was worth posting. Classic Jason style, his birthday party consisted of having burritos at Cancun and then off to “the club formerly known as The Top” to listed to Drum and Bass.
I think we were there for no more than 20 minutes when this guy with a bag of snakes sits down next to us and starts putting slithery critters on us.
Not only did I survive, but I think I’m no longer afraid of snakes. I guess facing your fears after you’ve had a good burrito, several drinks, and Drum and Bass pounding in the background really works.
