3 More Days

254.

The weather sucks: high 30s and wind driven cold, cold rain. Impossible to walk or run, and not producing snow so no x-c skiing either. With 3 days left I have goals to meet! Specifically, I need 1 more Tabata, 16 more miles, and 130 more push-ups to hit my weekly targets. And we're stuck in this weather pattern so I'm stuck inside. Treaadmill and rowing machine, here I come!

Moderately Disappointing

257. This after a monster exercise day and a very successful exercise week. I guess I ate and drank too much although it seems I did neither in excess.

I did hit my goals: 31 miles (5 running, 6 cross country skiing, the rest walking). 4 X Tabata. 400 push-ups.

This week will be the last of the 6 week Tabata program. Running will start to increase as a percentage of my 31 mile (yeah, let's make it 50K rather than 30 miles) goal.

Must manage the intake.

One More Good Day

255.

I need one more good day to finish a strong week. I'm going to run and walk a combined 8 miles to get my 30 in. I'm going to do a Tabata to get my 4 in. I'm going to do 40 push-ups to get my 400 in.

Have I mentioned that cross-country skiing is great? It's great exercise, it's fun, and it can be beautiful. It's just a challenge to find snow. But these photos from Bear Notch (in North Conway, NH) prove that there is some snow out there.

The 30 Mile Per Week Threshold

257.

I need to get to 30 miles this week (last week was 26 miles) and stay there. Forever. Walking, running, X-Country skiing, and indoor rowing miles all count as a mile. There's enough variety in that composition to allow for injury, weather challenges, boredom, and other malaise and still get the 30 in.

The lack of snow continues. makes for great walking weather though.

Some Rules of Moderation

258.

1. Never drink enough booze so that you need ibuprofen (or aspirin or tylenol) the next day.
2. Follow the same rule in exercise: no medicine to get through a workout or to recover after a workout.
3. In eating and drinking, it's quality, not quantity.
4. Exercise duration should be short enough so that there is no need to worry about chaffing.
5. Follow the no chaffing rule and you can wear real clothes. No spandex, polyrazzmatazz, etc. is necessary.
6. Also, eat and drink real stuff: no gatorade, gels, powershots, hornet urine, etc.

These Boots Are Made For Walking

258.

I've just about walked them out, though. I bought these Merrell Somethingorothers for the winter of 06/07, and I need them for about 2 more months. They'll come through for me, I'm sure. They actually looked pretty good at one point. Now they look a little run down at the heel. So do I though. And I don't hesitate to pull them on to go for a long winter walk. I hesitate only a bit when I pull them on for a night on the town.

Signs of Progress

257.

Winter Walks

259. It's strange hearing about all the snow in places that normally don't get much snow. Stranger because we aren't getting any snow and we're supposed to get snow. It makes for good walking weather, though.

Hanging In

259.

The no snow trend continues, which really helps my walking possibilities. I've also been hitting my other workouts. I haven't had a weigh in below 259 since I started this, I'm hopeful about tomorrow morning.

I enjoy the walk (commute) for the most part. The city bits are interesting. Outer Congress Street has some nasty road noise and ugly strip mall like qualities. The iPod helps with the road noise, though. And there's some bizarre beauty in places like Johnson's Sporting Goods, although I've never been tempted by 357 ammo or Shiners (some kind of bait?). Espo's Trattoria is the exact midpoint in my commute--the 2 mile point.

Back At It

260.

Walked both ways yesterday, and did a rowing machine Tabata, in addition to my 100 push-ups. My hands prevent the snatch Tabata. The rowing machine is every bit as tough, though. Saturday's result was 101, yesterday it was 100.

The Seesaw

262.

Missed a Sunday workout. Ate, drank too much.

Walking and Jogging

259.

I can't call anything I do "running" yet but it's clear that even moderate jogging and walking really help with weight control. The snow is gone for now, and my walking has picked up as a result (I realized this morning that I hadn't driven my car in a week).

My back hurts a bit and my foot hurts a bit--typical symptoms for an uptick in walking. Both very manageable at this point.

My hands are the limiting factor in my kettlebell work. I'm about 1 snatch away from ripping my callouses off, which forces about a week off and is very painful. As a result, I've switched to the rowing machine for my tabata. Yesterday, my low score (the definitive score) was 99 meters--on the 6th of the 8 20 second pieces. The first time I tried a rowing machine tabata my low score was 91, so that's nice improvement. We'll see how it goes today.

Survival

261. Finished two business trips and I'm right where I started: 261. Need to kick start this thing now.