Getting Back On The Wagon

My work blocked all access to social networking sites, so my ability to update my blog over lunch has been seriously restricted, and I try not to bring my computer home, because I end up surfing the web all night.

Okay. The last two week have been a slip for me. I haven't followed the workout program. I decided to take Week Seven off, basically, because I felt I needed to take a breather and recuperate. I didn't completely stop working out, but I cut my workouts to two or three a week. This week I intended to get back into things, but I was depressed and unmotivated. Part of it's the end of the semester, and I'm worn out physically and mentally. Part of it's spring, and I just want to relax in the warmth.

Whatever. Point of the matter, I'm not eating well enough and I need to get more sleep, and get back on schedule. I want to finish this program, even if I have some major mistakes along the way. Four weeks to go.

I'm going to the gym tonight and I'm going to go for a run tomorrow. Sunday I'll probably go for a bike, and if the weather holds, I'll bike to work on Monday.

Two weeks of classes, and summer officially starts for me. I need to pay special attention these two weeks and guard against slacking off. Once classes are done, I'll free up skads of time.

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Biking Into Work

I finally biked to work! I started at 6:45 and went sixteen miles, per Google. I did it in a little over an hour, and I feel great. I didn’t push myself, and I was dealing with a lot of stoplights because my morning route takes me through downtown Minneapolis, so I could probably have done it in under an hour if I had a more-ideal course. I’m no longer worried about the MS150, however. As long as I get a good amount of training in beforehand, if I keep it slow and steady, I don’t think I’m going to have a problem with the trip. Looks like my Body for Life training has helped me out more than I anticipated. Last year, I remember the first ride of the year being torturous.

Although I feel fine now, miles one and two this morning were cold! I took it down to a lower gear to warm up: in a lower gear, your bike moves slower (less wind!) and your legs move faster. After that first few miles, I was fine, but I was seriously wondering about the wisdom of the trip prior to that.

Ideally, I would bike into work 2-3 times a week for training, but I don’t know how realistic this would be. We’ll see. I’ll try to pedal in on Friday.

I need to purchase a few items for this years biking season, and bike equipment is pricey! Things I need include:

– Bike Shorts: ($70) I’m using tri-shorts now, and I need more padding!
– Gel Gloves: ($30) I want to go a little pricey on these as I’m getting wrist problems
– New Shoes: ($150?) I have a set of Sidi shoes I bought used, which a tiny-bit big on me. New shoes are EXPENSIVE. I’ll have to do some research on them.
– Panniers(?): ($50-$80) I’m thinking of doing this. I do a lot of commuting, but I’m hesitant to add the weight and I’d have to install a rack ($30-$50), which I just think looks lame.
– Wedge Pack: ($20) the little pack that goes under the seat, good for repair kits, which I also don’t have.
– Repair Kit: ($20) I’ll definitely want this for the MS150. They have bike mechanics, but I could easily get stuck in a bad spot between stations

This is around $350 worth of equipment, which is more than I want to purchase right now. I’ll check online to see what I can get as a deal.

I have a friend who I was going to use as ride if I wasn’t feeling up for the bike home, but I’m not going to have to pull that lever. I’ll be fine.

Cheers!

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Friday Update - End of Week 6!

I looked online to see if their might be adverse affects to using protein supplements, and found some studies that link over-consumption to kidney issues, which made me paranoid. I’d been having side pains which could be associated with kidneys. I’ve decided to drink a lot of water and cranberry juice for a couple of days, stay off the protein powders until next week, and then cut back the amount that I’m taking. I was taking around 80-100g/day, and I don’t think I need more than 40-60g/day protein powder. The “pain” was actually more like “mild awareness of kidneys,” but I don’t think I should be “aware” of any of my internal organs.

I’m pretty happy with the results of Body for Life so far. I haven’t been tackling the diet like I should, so I haven’t slimmed down as I would like to, but we’re finally seeing some warmer weather in Minnesota, so getting outdoors is getting easier and easier. I wanted to bike to work this week, but morning temperatures of 30 degrees kept me from venturing out. Next week looks like the temps will warm up to the upper 30s in the early morning and the upper 50s for the ride home, and that’s a much more comfortable ride.

I have a rest day tomorrow! Thank God. I need one.

I keep thinking that school is almost done, but I have four weeks left. I need to use my weekend efficiently so that I’m not working all week to get my homework done. I’m dog-tired these days. When I’m finished with the semester, I have a lot of writing to do, so I’m going to rent space at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis. It will be nice to have a writing routine uninterrupted by class. My schedule is, hopefully, clearing up soon, but for real, I need to find a way to go part time next year, because this is killing me.

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Wednesday

I'm having a tired, funked-out day today. No energy or motivation. I haven't been eating enough or drinking enough water. Or eating the right things. Grrr...

Good workout today, at least; I wanted to bike into work this morning, but it still seemed too cold, so I jumped on the exercise bike and did 30 minutes, which is as good as I get, on a stationary bike.

That's all.

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Alcohol Is Bad - Starting Week 6!

For real. Alcohol is not good. But Friday night my friends and I went out to a bar, and then a couple-friend invited my GF and I back to their place for a nightcap, which turned into two, which left us sleeping on their couch for the evening, which sucked. Saturday was basically a wash as we slept and recuperated, although I did get a run in. I had intended to bike, but it seemed like too much of a challenge, so I just jog/walked around the lake. Felt better afterwards, but seriously, by the time we fully returned to humanity, it was around 7:30 in the evening.

Today was better! I got a great morning of writing in. I went to work, finished a project I needed to finish, then I hit the gym.

Swapping Up My Workout Days

I'm swapping my workout days. My classes are on Tuesday and Thursday, which are also my cardio days, and it's just too hard to get a decent cardio workout in around my classes. It's easy for me to lift weights over lunch, so I decided to shift my schedule. Hence the lift today, on what's technically supposed to be my off day. Tomorrow (Monday) I'll do some biking indoors, but on Wednesday I'll bike into work (the weather looks great). Biking into work is an awesome workout--fourteen miles, each direction. The first bike of the season always hurts, but it will be good for me. I'm behind on my training for the MS150, and that's a race you don't want to screw around with!

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Finance and Workout Updates for Friday

Financial Update: Free (Bill Pay) At Last!
So I've been sucking up these charges for my Bill Pay account at Wells Fargo every month for a few years, and like everything, those fees recently went up. $6.95 a month! I still think this is a service that is worth the cost, because you save a good bit of money just in stamps, but other places offer it for free. I started using my credit union's bill pay service, which I didn't have to pay for, but I grew to hate it. The interface was okay, but the sticking point for me was that it treated each type of payment individually. E-payments were immediately deducted from my account, payments to businesses that were sent as checks came out three days after the check was sent, and (I just found out) payments sent to private parties weren't withdrawn until the person actually cashed the checks. It drove me batty, and I could see it rapidly spinning out of control. I called to ask if there was any options, and the customer service rep laughed at me. For real. And it wasn't one of those "I understand the boat you're in" kind of laughs, it was a snide chuckle that wasn't meant for me at all.

So.

I sheepishly called up Wells Fargo, as I should have a long time ago, and asked them if they could just wave the Bill Pay fees. Sure, they said. (That dull thud was the sound of me smacking my hand against my forehead). They upgraded my checking to a (free) souped-up account, and I then had to open a savings account and automatically deposit $75/month into it, but I'm also able to set up a second auto-transfer to put the money back the next day, so it really wasn't an issue. I asked Dustin, the nice guy I was working with at Wells, if he could give me back some of my old service fees I'd paid into Bill Pay, and he said he could go half-way, and then hinted I could probably get more back if I sent a letter or something, which I'm not interested in doing, because half is fine.

A while ago (I can't find the post!), I noted that Wells Fargo had drastically improved their customer service, and they seemed to have kept up this commitment. A few years back, they were jerks. I was too young and too indebted and too uncertain of my finances to switch accounts, so I stayed. I'm glad I'm with the new and improved Wells Fargo. They're still a big bank, so there's still issues with their fee schedules, especially with lower income people, but they have a really fantastic online interface, and they've really improved their customer service. I'm now officially happy to be with this bank.

Workout Update: End of Week 5 in Body for Life!


End of Week 5! Or almost. Things are going very well. I hit every workout this week so far, although I have to say, last night was rather hellish. I slept very little Wednesday night and I was just dragging myself through the day. Despite the overwhelming feeling of this sucks, I got into the gym for a quick run. The run did not go well, but I feel better for having done it. I definitely need to switch to biking for a week or two, however, because I'm starting to develop some shinsplints.

I'm just over a third of the way through the program and I'm starting to see benefits. My shoulder, arms and pecs are definitely getting larger and more defined, and I think my stomach is trimming down. I can see that by the end of 12 weeks in this program, I'm going to be looking pretty damn good.

I actually bought a huge box of the Myoplex Lite nutritional shakes a couple of days ago. They're discontinuing the double-sized packs at GNC (42 servings), and so I got a great deal. I got the box for ~$50, and I have enough to see me through a month. This will allow me to decided if they actually have a positive impact on my eating/workouts. So far? They taste good (I have the chocolate), and I like them for mid-morning and mid-afternoon 'meals.' They seem to work well--better than a snack, easier than real food.

That's basically it! Writing is going well. I got the thesis advisor I'd hoped for. He's very smart and has good, no B.S. insight into my work. We're going to meet in a week and he's got a reading list for me for over the summer.

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