Dec 2-Dec 8

 

Again, a pic of me

At some point I'll have to do an "End of year " post either here or on Fb. 

As much as I am working these days, I am truly enjoying the solitude in the afternoons and evenings. I am journalling and other self-care modalities. Things are kind of tight with money, so I'm doing all of these while eating like a vegan and drinking a lot of tea. 

I'm also grateful my FIL bought enough coffee to almost drown me. I know he was trying, but I'm keeping my head above it at the moment. Tomorrow is tomorrow. 

Kept the morning routine up and stretching. My hip isn't liking it, but shrug. I'm pretty sure it isn't supposed to. I am using the TRX every day ... again. Getting back to bodyweight training as well. Need to focus on the training in the evening and getting back to endless cardio I had before the world ended. 

Ten minutes of basic yoga poses - 90/90 and worlds greatest stretch to begin. Downward dogs and all the hip openers that I can think of, push ups and planks.

Ten minutes of abs and more hip rotation - knee clamshells, side lying single leg lifts, bicycle legs in the air, BJJ leg pummel, knee tucks, v-Sits, swim kicks, all kinds of ab work here.

Ten minutes banded bicep curls, banded overhead presses, TRX squats and overhead pulls, kettlebell muscle stripping, kettlebell lifts/swings of various lengths and heights.

A nice thing I can say about the swimming is that I'm working on my front crawl - trying to make it a stronger stroke. 

It's just the evenings I need to take back. Batman I am not these days.

Nov 24-Dec 2

 

Can you see the red tape? I can see the red tape.

Slowly back at it this week. Finished my rings three times of seven - three evening sessions in the pool were the nights I got them close, obviously. The other nights were spent just plain old fashioned working. I feel good about missing those days, but I know I will not feel good some day soon. 

There are an awful lot of things on my "To Do" list that keep making it to the next week and the next week and then the week after that. As I write that, I'm thinking I need a day for that stuff either as. apart of the Break or a day before. Just a day where I plan to do the stupid things that are not getting done because they are just that:stupid. A Stupid Day. Hmmm...

Some decent adventure this week - I did sleep in on Saturday this week and go for a late night swim as a result. Lots of just sitting with my wife as we went and saw some pretty cool spots. Trying to be chill and get stuff done together. A nice trip out to the RV and got some planning discussed as well. 

More stuff on the ToDo List. Shrug. Get it done, man.

Morning workouts were done seven out of seven days this week. I mean some were done later in the day, but the workout got done every day.

Had to search for an image of me doing yoga

Ten minutes of basic yoga poses - 90/90 and baby post to begin. Just stretching and making sure things work. Downward dogs and all kinds of hip openers that I can think of, push ups and planks. 

Ten minutes of abs and more mobility - knee clamshells, side lying single leg lifts, bicycle legs in the air, knee tucks, v-Sits, swim kicks, all kinds of ab work here.

Ten minutes banded bicep curls, banded overhead presses, TRX curls and squats, kettlebell muscle stripping, kettlebell lifts/swings of various lengths and heights.

I'm planning on adding some plain old cardio with jumping on the air bike right beside me this week coming up - I had to slightly dismantle the garage gym. As a result it is in a bit of a mess at the moment. So we will adapt and overcome. 

Any way, progress was made this week. Onwards!

Nov 10 to 23

 

It's a yelling Blue Jay ... 

I'm sorry, dear readers. It is life again kicking my butt up and down this proverbial sidewalk these days. Can't catch a break if I fell on it or something like that. Life continues and I have to continue as well. 

Some adventure during this time was cool - a day in the park quietly enjoying the blue jays squawk and yell at me, at other birds or at the clouds for all i know. They enjoyed themselves, I enjoyed the quiet they otherwise shattered. Self care at it's finest.

Morning sessions continue uninterrupted, and some evening sessions in the pool only. For whatever reason I am not hopping on the air-bike in my garage in the evenings. If I do train in the evenings, it is in the pool.

Now, also during this time there was a racoon visitor to the indoor pool, so there's that. 

Morning sessions now look like:

10 minutes yoga and mobility. This morning used a kettlebell handle to strip the hip adductors. No, that was not fun. At all. Various poses, bodyweight training. mobility and a nice start on my big huge yoga mat.

10 minutes abs - leg lifts, hip ups, bicycle legs in the air. Etc, etc.

10 minutes training - bicep curls, overhead presses, TRX Squats to overhead pulls, push ups and kettlebell swings. I do also take a few minutes to just play with the TRX and see if I can recall anything I used to know.  

Getting out of the basement has it's appeals - no place to get the TRX anywhere else in the house, so I'm in the garage, I'mma using it. Now I just need to start doing my cardio in the evenings and we are all set up for success. 

Nov 3 to 9

 

Something like this, but I'm way colder in my garage gym

I keep closing just the two rings these days - standing and exercising. 

I keep getting the morning routine done in the garage gym these days - working on some mobility and some muscles. 

I think I am getting muscles just from how often I train the abs and the arms/shoulders. Just every day a little bit and every day I get a little bit better.

I really do need to get on my desire for "endless cardio". I miss the swims and my hips miss those swims as well. 

My shoulders do NOT miss the daily swimming - I got a massage done this week and I had a witness to my shoulders being "not bad" and my hip being "really messed up" - no I will not be providing any references at this time, so there...

But the morning routine is this:

10 minutes of mobility - hips, shoulders and ankles. yoga poses and gentle stretching of joints that seem to help. Downward dog to leg extensions, reverse arm cat and cow poses etc, etc, etc

10 minutes ab work - hip thrusters form the flow, ab crunches, leg lifts, standing leg tucks. All of that, all of it. 

10 minutes of banded curls, overhead presses then into two-handed kettlebell swings. 

I'll see if I can get to store one of the Apple watch protectors I've got somewhere and get back to kettlebell snatches and other single-arm moves for next week. Also ... swims are back on the menu.

Oct 20 to Nov 2

 

What was back on the screen this week

Whoa, sorry regular readers of this blog - forgot a week. In my defence, the week before and after the 24th was a bit of a nutter. Just dumb.

Anyway, I did close the rings twice during this time, which is a far cry from what it was a year ago. I would like to get back to that daily evening workout, but that exhaustion and fatigue at the end of the day is somewhat insurmountable to this time. 

Morning routine continue in the garage gym. Or I should say back in the garage gym. The basement is now dry, just I'm rethinking what the basement is for and training there was a bit of a drag. I'm doing stuff in my garage and the workouts are actually a bit more fun with the iMac playing movies. 

I did alter the morning routine:

10 minutes of mobility - baby pose, cat and cow pose, reverse arms, and all kinds of leg and upper body mobility stretches.

1o minutes of ab and core work - leg lifts, crunches, v-sits and the like. BJJ leg pummelling and general stretches for the abs and lower back.

10 minutes of bicep curls, presses and kettlebell swings. 

I'd like to get snatches into this last bit, but I need to put an Apple Watch cover back in the garage to make sure it's protected. I have one; I just need to pull it into the garage. 

Any case... life is good. Grateful the basement is dry. 

Oct 8 to 19

 

I got this classic running on the iMac in the garage gym

I was just filling out my weekly check-in with myself and noted that I am still trying to get the things I took on my RV trip last week to where they need to be. I have the coffee maker back at work, clothes, and food in my home. It is just weird that it is taking this long. 

I did feel something weird go on in my left foot again this week—I'm treating that. When I woke up last week, I had several ankle strains. I couldn't put weight on my left ankle one day, so I spent the day stretching it out until I finally got it pain-free. However, the right ankle was so painful the very next day. Odd that.

Sleeping injuries. 

Morning sessions are going well, except when nature has its way. The basement has some water in it, and when I was out in the RV, I had no space inside to do a morning routine. Still, I did get a cardio session done while in my garage gym on Saturday. 

There is so much crap from my FIL's house in there that needs to be tucked away or thrown out. I won't rant here, but so much stuff. 

TLDR - morning sessions continue if I'm at home and in a routine. Anything happens and then nothing. Got a cardio session in the garage gym done.

Oct 1 to Oct 7

Yeah, not a great week for training, but a good week for being a dad.

It's about trade-offs and I had to make those this week. I'll have to do the same next week as well. At least the morning routines are going well - I keep playing with different yoga poses for the morning session. 

I end with helping the shoulders, the abs in the middle and the hips at the start - but I add things like Table Top pose Variation 3 here:

The morning is going well - the evenings are just not going to plan. At all.