April 8 - 21

 

Yeah yeah ... I know

What's that line ... what's that line about habits eating everything ... yeah, I know now: "Habits eat everything."

Yeah, I got into some "lazy" habits these days - that's in air quotes because they are not really lazy, they are just habits that are not helping me out. 

Habits and injury have killed this resurgence I've been trying to foster for the last six or so months. Yeah, I was getting happier and the such. Shrug. 

I kept up my morning routine with stretching for the most part. I was still getting my walks done on my lunches. Still running an after-work session for others. But no evening workouts for me. No swimming, no HIIT workouts. I did take my wife for a swim Saturday night. Had a few date nights, too. Nice and boring husband stuff. 

I'm doing a lot of movement, just not making much progress. I'm not getting those confused, but I need to get my injuries healed and my mind back on track.

Dude, we'll begin again.

April 1-7

 

This is what is going down April 8

It was made readily apparent this week that "my habits eat everything". Don't credit me for coming up with that pearl of wisdom, dear reader ... I totally stole it from somewhere, probably Charles Duhigg. 

I got the circles all completed four times this week - and that was with myself dragging my own rear end over the finishing line, one centimetre at a time. Man, just ... ugh.

Most days looked like this:

Morning routine - mobility with some strength training before the day starts

Mid-morning walk to get some steps in and move the legs a bit

Later in evening swim in order to end the day and get some cardio done.

On Tuesday I did actually make a BJJ session. It is a tiny club near my house, but it has a committed instructor and mats. What else do you need?

March 24 to 31

 

Yeah, this was just bad. A real struggle - and I closed the standing rings, but not much else this week. 

Made some decisions about training, if not consciously, at least with my actions. I did get some rugby training done, but between having to work full time and be a dad, not much went well here. 

Shrug. I'll get back to it. 

March 4 to 23

Got this streaming in the garage this week. 

This was a weird time. Like life is just generally weird as I have to deal with people, but this was a weird time.

First of all, I had two teeth removed in the middle of this. Ugh, 2/10 do not recommend. Recovery was generally ok, but the memories of it will be something that will annoy my mind for a while. 

Just to add - during the setup, the dentist took my BP and it was not good. Higher than I had it taken at the doctor's office a few weeks ago. Yes, I was being put under some stress, but it shouldn't have been that high. I think the equipment was more reliable at the doctor's office, but I'll have to get that checked. 

Secondly, it was my spring week off and my ability to sleep and help myself feel like absolute doggy dirt is incredible. I lay in my bed and didn't do much the week I was off. No cool adventures, no trips to the pool or art galleries ... nothing. My spouse was dealing with the death of her father and so I was left to myself to take care of two teenagers. This is hard at the best of times, but during sad times it is that much harder. 

The week after the tooth removal was a lot better for my health. Slept well probably with the help of the anti-inflammatory meds as well as the antibiotics. Whatever, the days after the event, sleep was good and deep. Getting myself up to stretch was easy and getting back into the pattern of daily life was easy. 

Stretch in the morning, some sort of session in the evening. Once or twice I had to do a ten-minute yoga session later on in the day to finish off the circles. I also had afternoon rugby sessions which got my step count up, as well as my heart rate going. Friday was a swim which could have ended after ten minutes, but I stretched it out to be a decent workout. 

Saturday was a HIIT workout and a swim. At least rugby was added during this time, but I need something else, something fun. I'm thinking since the evening will be more sunlight, hiking in the local provincial park should be in order. That'll be awesome.

 

Feb 25 to March 3

 

This might have been unmotivating

Meh, the struggle to find discipline continues. Just all over the place and exhaustion is real at the moment. Swimming, when it happens is going well. Not much soreness in the shoulder. Had a massage this week and learned a few new stretches for the legs and shoulders. 

I really do need to get the limitless cardio from running started.  I did a HIIT session this week but did not close the rings three times. Meh, I am over 50 percent for the week, but just barely. Morning sessions did get done every day this week, so there is a silver lining here. 

I have been thinking about plans for a return to combat sports, but then money becomes the key issue. I think about expanding the side hustle, and then time becomes the key issue. Diet is also a thing to factor in these days as well. 

I am grateful that February is over and that the warmer weather means I can return to hiking and being out on the water. I look forward to that for sure. 

Feb 13 to 24

 

Thing of beauty

Whoa, this wasn't the best month for me. I'm just looking into the numbers and seeing them together to write this post, I'm just seeing that. Hmmm. Interesting.

I missed five of the ten days to be discussed in this post. I did a rugby session and went on a hike, along with a pool shutdown and a flare-up of my hip that was memorable. I also had a five-day weekend and enough free coffee to sink a ship. 

For several of the days I missed, I just didn't want to get my morning routine done. Period. I woke up and lay there with TikTok running through my brain. It was sad. I did do a nice 45-minute HIIT session a few times, but man, that wasn't enough for the circles.  

On Tuesday the 20th, I finally had enough and got back to stretching in the morning and getting my hips to move every day. On Wednesday and every day since I've been able to get back to an evening swim. 

Burn out, quitting and recovering all in one month. How exciting. 

I did get out on a hike this morning, out to the beach near my house. The rest of my family was sleeping and I got to see some very cold waves. 

Jan 28 to Feb 12

 

What was on the screen this week.

Whoa, let this get away from me for a second. To my loyal readers of this blog, I do humbly apologize. Life gets in the way sometimes and sometimes I just am overwhelmed by the stuff coming at me. 

I had a few days - especially the weekends, where I just got too busy or pissed off at the stuff going on around me that I basically abandoned training for the day. As a result, missed five days of sixteen. Still above a passing grade, but not really a great mark. 

The morning routine has gone in and out of favour, but this morning I did this:

10 minutes of stretching and leg/hip mobility

10 minutes of ab work and back/shoulder mobility

10 minutes of shoulder raises, meels, banded standing rows, curls and overhead presses

After that, I get on with the day, with sort of a glowing feeling until I have to get into my office. Shrug, at least it lasts that long. 

Monday I did a 30-minute swim and Tuesday I did a 30-minute HIIT session. 

It's all about balance. 

Just remember that the future is not set ... 

Jan 22- 27

 

Just the first one, the rest kind of blows. Until the last one. 

This week started off pretty well but ended stupidly.

Let me explain. I finished my rings four times Monday to Friday - Wednesday was the "I have to be a dad and husband" day, so I did not finish them that day. I did however stay married and stay in the lives of my children. Also important. 

I earned the January Challenge on the Apple Watch by doing 19 swimming workouts in a month. Neat, but not really why I'm doing these sessions. I also had a Dr. appointment on Tuesday after school. Blood Pressure was 120/80, HR was 81. That's why I'm doing these sessions. 

I did get the first three a day done on Friday, expecting to do the same for the rest of the weekend. Nope. The RV smashed me in the head Saturday at noon and I ended up having to get checked out by another medical professional. Nothing jarred loose, nothing too deeply cut, but it was a skull injury so it bled like stupid. 

May or may not have been me

Mah, whatever. I did get my morning routine done ahead of time and I took it easy the rest of the day. It is clotted up quite nicely at the moment and is good. I'll get a thing that goes on the head and get a swim done after some work Sunday.

I did also get some HIIT workouts done this week, as promised. They were a bit of fun - the DVDs are cheap from Value Village at the moment and are really helping with getting in there to get the work done. 

Friday's workout was for almost 40 minutes ... four rounds of

3 - 5 min Airdyne bike

2 min kettlebell swings - single and double-handed

90 seconds battle ropes - so cool when the car isn't home and I can use the space

20 step-ups on the 20 cm step. 

Jan 15-21

 

The Last Samurai was on the screen this week.

This is a day late, but not without good news. I mean ... I didn't finish off the rings every day. Friday, for example, I missed the standing ring by six minutes.

Eye roll. Yeah, I trained that day for 105 minutes and got 1500+ on the Move circle, but Standing I missed. Yeah, whatever.

In any case, the good news is that I had three days of three workouts a day during this time - Friday, Saturday and Sunday I had a morning routine, an afternoon HIIT workout and then ended the day with a swim. Good days for the heart and for the family - my wife came with me on Sunday night to bear witness to the greyness in the hot tub. Sadly, it was pretty gross. We got our swim done and got ourselves home. 

The HIIT workouts in the garage were a nice addition to the week. About 30 minutes long and they looked like this:

Rounds to get to 30 minutes:

3-5 minutes air bike

90 seconds 12-kilo kettlebell swings

20 step-ups on 12-inch step

80 seconds battle ropes

Not a bad workout, to be frank. Nothing exciting, but real steps towards the limitless cardio I crave for a return to rugby. 

Jan 8 - 14

 

I'll be honest - not a good week. I got through it and had a few things go seriously just wrong, but I didn't react as I should have until much later.

 Monday and Tuesday were wonderfully perfect: morning routine and evening in the pools. Then the pool called and told me that it would be closed for a few days.

What should I have done? Gone to the gym and done HIIT workouts. I should have gone into my own gym and done HIIT workouts. What DID I do? Took a zero-day. Then another. Friday at least I got two out of my three rings closed, but not the Move ring. Meh, whatever. At least Saturday I got things back in gear and got a HIIT done and THEN a swim. 

Sunday is going well so far - I'm doing this post early so there is a lot of time I can mess things up. 

Jan 1-7

 

Got it on the first try.

Woot! Welcome to 2024

...and so we start off this year with a bit of a bang - closed the rings ... almost all of the rings, every day this week. I missed one day of standing. Standing. Shrug. I wasn't annoyed until I saw the "Ring in the New Year" challenge on my Fitness app. 

Seven days in a row with all three rings completed. Need to have stood up for twelve minutes on Friday. 

Shrug

I'll get that done. It was chilling at home, getting to the pool at the end of the day kind of week. Pleasantly boring. I did a couple of HIIT workouts - and my body just bounced right back the next day.

Drove the eldest back to school in Ottawa today - back and forth ... about a twelve-hour drive there and back. I still have today's rings closed. Machine.

Here was tonight's swim:

100 m Breaststroke

300 m Freestyle

100 m kickboard

250 m freestyle - I miscounted... sadly. 

50 m breaststroke.

950 m in 32 minutes. Sniffle. At least I got the rings closed.