Dec 29 and 30

Well, I got back at training on the 29th, just didnt get the blog updated.

Sorry, but three kids and a wife will fill ypur time. Especially keeping in mind that the 29th was my tenth wedding anniversary. For real.

I got home from a few days away at a cottage, then got the idea in my head that it was thursday - a rugby training day. So, i went to rugby and sprinted and sprinted- for an hour.

I felt pretty sore the next day, i have to tell you. Especially my hamstrings.

On the 30th, i started my day with a 4k run. Oh, man. I started slow and got quicker by the end, but it was pretty slow.

I will point out that i will not be doing the Resolution Run at the YMCA today, as i missed the dealine to register. Why didnt i register earlier?

Well, nosey, that is a good question. I will point to a cash flow roblem in my house, man. CC's are maxed out and my wife is finally getting a paycheque this week. Life will get back to some semblance of normal .. Soon, I hope.

Sat Dec 24 and Sunday Dec 25

I still don't like Christmas. At least this year I'm a bit better in shape than I was a year ago. At least this year I didn't spend all day in the Emergency department of the local hospital. At least this year .... I'm basically happy if not in the Cristmas spirit.

Hey, at least I said "Merry Christmas" to people instead of "oh, yeah?". It's the season, it just does that to me.

No workout on either day, just a lot of stretching and taking care of my family. Seriously, I'm getting a little worn down with stuff. I was awoken this morning at 2am to care for the year old, then awaoken again at 5am to open stuff that Santa brought. I wasn't moving too well, so the middle child walked into my room to tell the older one "No, he hasn't moved yet!" .... at 5:20 am.

Oh, God was that early.

Friday Dec 23

I woke up sore this morning and still am quite sore.

I did get some stretching in, just not as much as I wanted.

I ate ok, for the last day before a well needed break.

Breakfast: coffee, fruit

Lunch: pizza, water tea

Dinner: chicken with rice. Water to drink.

Ok, off to bed.

Thurs Dec 22

Ok, I'm doing this late and under duress, but I'm doing it. I'm making this quick.

I redid the banner for this blog today. I think it looks cool. Lemme know if you want the link for the web application that will set this up for you. Next, i did this workout after work:

A quick 4k run, at about a 5:10 per KM pace. For me, that's getting quicker.

After the run, I was pretty beat up, but I managed a 20 minute pilates/stretching and Yoga session in my gym.

I ate pretty poorly today:

Breakfast: smoothie and coffee after

Lunch: was invited to a work buffet. Had pizza and pasta. Water to drink.

Snack: tea

Dinner: more pizza.

At the end of the day, I'm sore from the run. Tomorrow, I'm doing a short recovery run with a quick BW training session. Last day before a break. Awesome. I'm pretty tired.

Wed Dec 21

Welcome to the longest night of the year - the sun was only a rumor today - seriously. It was grey and damp ... kinda the stuff ya just don't want to get on you. No snow, which, in my humble opinion, is a good thing.

I really really didn't want to run in the rain today - visibility was low and the stopping distance was long. So, I stayed in my (relatively) warm gym and got this done:

20 BW squats
10 BW TRX rows
20 feet up push ups
15 hanging knee tucks
20 KB swings (20 kilo bell used)

I got five rounds done in 24 minutes - I was pretty sweaty at the end.

Ate this today

Breakfast - frozen fruit smoothie and coffee after

Snack: tea

Lunch: tuna sandwich with veggies, water to drink

Dinner: roast beef and rice wrap, water to drink.

All in all, not a bad day, man.

Tues Dec 20

I thought I'd be in for a tough day when I forgot my backpack in the house after spilling my coffee on my driveway. It was a good indication, but when my six year old threw my iPad at a box in the van, I just knew I was in for a tough day.

Ya think?

Yup.

I ate this:

Breakfast: frozen fruit smoothie. Coffee after.

Snack: tea

Lunch tuna on crackers. No mayo, no salad. No veggies. Water to drink.

Dinner: chicken with a side of stir fry veggies. Water to drink.

Right after work, got a 7k run in with three rounds of:

20 feet up push ups
20 seated knee tucks

I was steamy in my cold garage. It was weird.

Monday Dec 19

Well, ya know .. in all that gloom in the previous post, I forgot to focus on the positive ... I won two twelve lb kettlebells from the fine people at Strength Box.

Innt that justawesome?

Cha! Ching!

I ate ok today - ok, not really.

Breakfast: coffee and a BELT one the way in. I have to stop that. Seriously.

Lunch: tuna sandwich and a slice of pizza. Water to drink.

Snack: tea

Dinner: pasta and water to drink.

After night school ... did some QC on the beef I had in the slow cooker. I wonder why I try to do that with a sleepy wife on Mondays. I should just leave it until I'm around on Tuesdays.

After work and before night school, I did manage a 6km run - got it done in just over a half hour. I'm thinking I just keep adding distance until I get to 8kms for an average run. After a few weeks of that, I can go stupid and see just how far I can go...

Friday, Saturday and Sunday

Friday was a let down. I did a run, did a decent stretch and then had to rush off to get my kids. Too much stuff to get done. I ate ok:

Breakfast: fruit, coffee to drink

Snack tea

Lunch: tuna straight from the can, almonds and prunes. Water to drink.

Dinner: chicken and salad. Beer to drink.

I felt really tired and got to bed early. I was just bushed.

Saturday my son got me up stupid early. I got up, fed him and cuddled with him until the rest of the family got up. Then I got my run in. I ate ok, for a Saturday.

Brunch: coffee and chicken/salad wraps

Snack: fruit and water to drink

Dinner: chicken thigh and pasta. Beer to drink.

Did the weekly shopping after the kids were in bed. I'm so glad my wife is back to work. Two full paychecks makes my kitchen full.

Sunday was a day of "rest" - I had to run around like a goof after church and then clean the house then rush off to a family function. Ate ok, felt like barfing for most of the evening. Meh, s'ok.

Wed and Thurs Dec 14 and 15

Whoa, Wednesdays are getting to me, really. That and the season is getting to me, too.

I ate decently Wednesday - too many carbs, though.

Thursday was also ok, but again, too many carbs.

At least I got a workout done on Thursday - a run with a this done for three rounds:

1 minute stretching/yoga on the mats
planks x 30 seconds x three positions
10 hanging knee raises

Like I said, a pleasant workout. Not bad, not hard... got a good sweat going on.

Tuesday dec 13

I did my usual morning - darn early.

I ate this:

breakfast: banana, coffe to drink

Lunch: banana bread, coffee

Dinner: soup, water to drink.

I did get a workout in, too. I was really sore, man. But I got a run in - a 5k run in about 27 minutes. I stretched, too. I also played with some applications on the Macbook and made some cool stuff, like this fotobabble.com thing.

looks interesting, hope it works.

I also editing this pic using the Photoshop exress app on the iPad:

Sunday and Monday Dec 11 and 12

Sunday was a bit of a wash - recovering from watching UFC 140 with a bag of chips was kinda painful. Lots of gas, if I can be frank.

Ugh.

I did manage to recover enough to do a 5k run after everyone was in bed, though.

I ate ok.

Breakfast: coffee

Snack: ham and water to drink.

Lunch: chicken noodle soup with a small ham sandwich. Water to drink.

Dinner was tuna on salad with water to drink.

Monday I was really sore in the morning. I went to bed stupid late and regretted doing that all day.

I got to work early after eating a decent breakfast and then proceeded to do as much as I could with my day. At the end of the day, I got this done for five rounds:


10 double kettlebell presses
10 double kettlebell rows
20 feet up push ups
10 seated knee tucks
10 hanging knee tucks

then got this done three rounds:

80 feet farmers walk 30 lb KB in each hand
20 bw squats

I did some foam rolling after this; it really hurt to do. Honestly. I did as much as I could stand, then went and got my parent stuff done.
I ate this for the day:

Breakfast: two bananas and a coffee

snack: tea with almonds and prunes

lunch: tuna on salad with water. Almonds for dessert.

Dinner: bacon and tomato wrap. Oh that was good. Water to drink.

After night school a little popcorn.

Fri Dec 9 and Sat Dec 10

So, I went through my old blogs and I'm just seeing if I can load this:



hmm ... I'm thinking that I wrote this already ... well, whatever. Technology is awesome it it's ability to eat posts. In any case, let's get this done.

Friday was an off day. I know that this week had a lot of off days, but I knew that I had a race on Saturday. I took it easy. Ate well though:

Breakfast: belt and coffee

Snack: more coffee

Lunch: gyro with salad. Water to drink

Dinner: pizza. water to drink.

Saturday was race day. That was cool. Next year, I bring my kids and we walk the route. Simply awesome.

Ate this:

Breakfast bananas and coffee

Lunch Chicken breast and salad wraps more coffee

snack chicken soup and water

Dinner: small bowl of pasta, water to drink.

While watching ufc 140 : beer and chips. Not a requirement, but it felt good.

Also saw this workout, and will be trying it some time this week.

Thursday Dec 8

You know, Thursday tried to mess with me, but I got the better of it.

First of all, my shift changed at work; I'm now mornings. I hate mornings. I'd rather train then go to work, but today starts with work, then training. I dunno, I'm just particular. I think I'm just whining.

Anyway, I ate this:

Breakfast: belt from Tim Horton's. Coffee to drink.

Snack: more coffee

Lunch: Tuna on salad. Cookie for dessert. Water to drink. (Why a cookie/ I'm sorry to say "because they were there."

Dinner: chicken breast and veggie wrap, water to drink.

So .. you might think ... how did you "beat" Thursday, Mark. Well, I got home after work, got my kit on and went for my run. I did 4kms in about 23 minutes. One of the faster runs I've done of late. I can hardly wait until all of the adhesions in my legs are gone - rugby is just brutal on my legs. After the run, I did some rolling on my legs for about 15 minutes. That friggin' hurt, but it is worth it.

After I got the day done, I was doing some surfing, watching Strombo interviewing Dana White. That is pointing me in a few other directions, too. Anyway, after I finished watching that, I went back into my garage/gym and did some very light stretching and got ready for tomorrow then bed.

Wed Dec 7

Ah, Wednesday, you jerk.


No morning workout, as I had to get into work early. Again. Meh, w/e. No afternoon workout, as I had to work late, too. No evening workout as I had my children then had to go to night school.

Yup. Busy.

I ate ok, though:

Breakfast: coffee

Snack: muffin, more coffee

Lunch: water and salad with tuna. Almonds and prunes. More water

Dinner: chicken breast with salad. Water.

I'm going to bed. Too much right now.

Tuesday dec 6

Today was ok; I had to get to work early, but I got a full run in before work. I just had to be organized. A full morning run for me is 4 km, by the way. At least for now; I plan on onceeasing that over the next while.

Ate this today:

Breakfast was a belt, again coffee to drink

Lunch was later than usual, but runa on salad with almonds and prunes ro eat. Water to drink.

Dinner was two slices of pizza. Water to drink

I'm getting this done a little early tonight, but. Planning on doing some stretching after my kids are asleep.

By the way, I dis this post wih the Blogger app in the iPad, just to say I did it.

Monday Dec 5

I really hate Mondays - especially the ones that have snow. Ugh.

I got to the time of my day where I train ... and got sidetracked by work. Instead of doing nothing, I got a short run in - about 3kms. I'm not impressed with getting distracted, but at least I got something done.

Ate well, though:

Breakfast: Belt from Tim Hortons - about 500 calories. Coffee to drink

Lunch: tuna on salad, almonds to eat. Water to drink.

Snack: tea

Dinner: small bowl of pasta, water to drink.

After night school: a chicken and salad/veggie wrap.

Not a bad day, just ok.

Sunday Dec 4

Ok, today. I woke this morning not feeling good; stuff nose, bloated. Ugh. Just not right. I slept in the basement, too. Just not good. No morning run. I'll have to not do that again.

After htat, the day went downhill. I did manage to stretch a little in the afternoon while my son had a nap, but that was about it.

Ate ok

Breakfast: roast beef on a piece of bread

Lunch tuna mixed with a little mayo on a piece of bread

Snack: some of my son's grilled cheese sandwich - lolz .. and tea

Dinner roast potatoes with roast beef. Water to drink. Piece of cake for dessert with a coffee.

Not a great day for training, but not a bad day for reconnecting with family, which is what birthdays are for. On with Monday.

Fri and Sat Dec 2 and 3

Friday was a weird one - an odd one, if you will. First of all, my youngest child turned one this week. Where I live, that means they are due for some more immunization shots.

Please, spare me the whole "Immunization causes Autism" hype. And I don't believe it.

I had to take him in the morning, which meant no morning workout for lil' ol me. Meh, one day of rest out of a whole bunch is ok. Besides, I got to spend time with my boy. After work, I picked the kids up and met up with one of his Godmothers and two of her relatives at a local Boston Pizza. Meh, I liked it. I ate a whole pizza.

In writing that, I am reminded of Bart Simpson's line "I wash myself with a rag on a stick." It was, however, delicious. Beer, too. A true cheat meal.

We got home and put the kids to bed and I got a chance to spend time with my wife watching a rather silly movie "One Day". I didn't eat or drink anything, merely marveled at just how fragile life really is. I also am glad that I see I am living the life that I have chosen, not one that has been grafted onto me. It also made me see that my children really are an astronomically hugely gift from the universe. And cute, too.

I got back on it Saturday morning, as I was up stupid early. I went for a run while the sun struggled to get it's butt out of bed. I thought of a video I'd watched Friday night after dinner of the Ultimate Warrior.

What a tool. I'll give you that the UW was quite an entertainer. He never entertained me, but a lot of the idiots guys I went to high school with liked that WWF crap. I never understood why they liked it. When the UFC came along, they couldn't understand why I liked it. Why would I like something the outcome of which was already predetermined? They allow gambling on UFC; you'd be an idiot to bet on a WWF match. I'm not saying Ultimate Warrior isn't athletic, but he's not an athlete. He's an entertainer. Like Charlie Chaplin. Except not nearly as nicely dressed.

By the way, did you know he legally changed his name to "Warrior"?

Anyway, after the run, things were chill around my house. I did a cool workout with my kids in the gym in the afternoon. I ate ok, but it could have been better.

Thursday Dec 1

Usually Thursdays I walk around like a zombie as I have worked a long day the day before and stayed up late. Not so today, as I was in bed by 10:15 last night. Heck, I got up early and did some reading about MovNat Fitness.

I got a 4.6 km run in this morning, did not have breakfast and then checked my weight. 232 lbs. I checked my back blog posts - I've lost like five or six pounds rather quickly. I'm not sure if it is because I've not been able to afford alcohol as of late, or that I'm running more, or perhaps my strength training wasn't helping me lose weight or a combination of all those factors... but it sure feels good to be that close to my goal weight for Christmas of under 230.

After the run, I got into my gym and did four rounds of 20 KB snatches for both sides ... imbetween sets, I did seated knee tucks, too.

I figure if I can make it to under 230 by Christmas, I'll be in a good position to make weight for Nationals, unlike two years ago. I'm also thinking about what I want to do this summer, knowing that rugby is something that gets in my way of keeping my weight down. Meh, we'll figure that one out when we need to, I guess. For now, I'm waiting to hear about a position at Tapout Burlington. That would be cool.

I ate this:

Breakfast: roast beef and salad wraps, water to drink

snack: coffee on the way in

Lunch small bowl of chilli, small piece of bread, water to drink

Snack: coffee

Dinner 3 pieces of pizza with the family, water to drink.

At work, I put this together using Animoto:

Try our video maker at Animoto.

Wednesday Nov 30

I'm so glad to have seen the rear end of this month. This time of year is the toughtest - eleven weeks of nothing from Thanksgiving to Christmas. I think it's even longer this year, as the holidays aren't until the last possible minute.

In any case, I got my nomination form for a public election in today. I felt pretty nervous, but I'm sure I'll be blogging about more about that later.

I had my usual Wednesday - that is to say a crazy day. I got a run in, though, and it felt pretty good. I'm gradually adding distance to my runs these days. I got to 4.5 kms today - perhaps a bit more tomorrow. After the run, did a lengthy rolling session on my legs and butt. Oh, my. I'm going to try and get a doctor's referral for massage .. oh my...

I ate ok today:

Breakfast: roast beef and poached eggs. Yes, that was as yummy as it sounded. Water to drink

Snack: coffee (i'm basically living on the stuff at the moment)

Lunch: pasta and water

Snack tea

Dinner: roast beef and veggies, water to drink

After night school was more water.

All in all not a bad day - feeling better as I am staying away from really poor food choices, although I'm not making "awesome" food choices. Meh, I figure I'm doing ok - I feel better and that's ok with me.