Vacation Eating

So I just splurged for the last 2 weeks eating while on vacation.  As long time Cyberpump readers are aware, I've had some massive weight gains in a short period of time while on vacation.  My metabolism tends to go into overdrive as well during this time which is interesting.  It's probably going "Whoa Nellie!" when it sees all the food to process.  My record from past years is 18 pounds.  Yeah, 18 pounds. :)  We also do a TON of walking as well.  Keep in mind though that some of that 18 is water as I don't normally scarf up pastries, pasta, and more!  This trip I gained about 8-9 pounds and I figured I would not gain as much because I didn't quite eat as much as past record trips.  Normally it takes less time to strip it off and again relates back to water retention being a big part of the weight gain. 

I have always encouraged Cyberpump readers not to be "freaks" when it comes to eating.  That is to "freak out" when they eat something off of their normal diet like it will KILL them instantly as they stand.  Or, to "freak out" because they missed a workout.  If you have been putting in the hard work over a long period of time, it won't even phase you as your body takes a lot more to de-program what's "normal".

I have decided to really tighten things up for about 8 weeks and see what my results are.  I won't cheat as much as I have been will be the main difference.

High Intensity Grass Cutting!

Those that have visited Cyberpump know that I pull a sled for "cardio". It's walking but it's like running sprints. During the summer I cut my grass as another form of activity to burn calories. I have a new sled coming that is really cool and I'll post about that in the future. I got an idea when I was about to cut my grass this last time. My lawn mower actually is self propelled. My lawn has various grading to it. Including slightly up hill at times albeit a small grade up. For a self propelled lawn mower they are really not suited to be pushed without engaging the gear train. Unless you want to add even more resistance to the push of the mower. Hey, what a great idea! High Intensity Lawn Mowing. So, for the front part of my house I tried cutting it without engaging the gear train. Sure enough, it was like PUSHing my weight sled. My triceps were burning. My quads started to burn. I was sweating like a pig (it was in the mid 80's and humid!) and I was getting a good cardio workout as well. Given how hard it was to push through the gear train and the fact that I pulled sled the same day earlier I decided to not continue on for the rest of my lawn. I would have died for sure! Just another idea for another cardio workout...HILM!

Flexibility

One component of health many neglect is trying to maintain flexibility. As you age, things will definitely go south if you don't do anything about it. Some people are naturally more flexible. However, this will degrade too with age and with no action.

I feel we are more advanced with respect to flexibility training than 20 years ago. Stretching the muscles cold? That used to be standard when I was in high school. Stupid. Never stretch a cold muscle. We also over did it as well with respect to how hard we stretched. All I can say is we were sure ignoring common sense back then.

Do you incorporate regular flexibility work into your training? If you don't, you should! There are so many resources for flexibility make sure you weed out the bad versus the good. Try not to go on information overload. Simple tends to be good. Remember that. It doesn't have to be complicated, take 2 hours a day, and cost an arm and a leg to come up to speed on a good basic flexility program.

Overtraining

I am in the midst of again coaching the throws during high school track season. We have averaged (so it seems) three meets a week. Very tiring even for the coach! Both my daughter and son throw. What is interesting is the recovery aspect of their training. The fact is that if someone knew the exact recovery formula and could predict overtraining to the minute, they would be a millionaire! I do believe though that it is better to be slightly undertrained than overtrained. Especially if you are a competitive athlete. Injury will often accompany overtraining and then the athlete is forced to rest. The last thing an athlete wants to do is overtrain. Sleep is often underrated for recovery. You cannot burn the candle at both ends and expect to be able to recover.

This year I have actually tried to be more aware of total body fatigue and try and put in more rest. There are plenty of factors that cut into recovery as well. Not just the training itself. When in doubt, an extra day or two rest will never kill your progress.

Intensity by Bill PIche

I guess you can probably call this cardio experiment Part II.

Fred and I have been talking back and forth or at least probing between the two of us on intensity of exercise, duration, etc. Don't let anyone tell you it's an exact science or that they know exactly the formula. The fact is, no one does. Which is why there continues to be studies coming out. I can tell you that you can wear your body out. Why wouldn't you be able to? Think about it. What I can tell you is you need to recover. And, I also believe there are different recoveries associated with the body. The nervous system is a whole animal that gets neglected because you cannot see it. But, it's the electrical system that drives the body including the muscles.


Overtrain or tax that nervous system and no matter if your muscles feel fine, you won't be firing on all cylinders. I did an experiment yesterday and until I follow through with it I won't be able to draw any sort of conclusion. I have not pulled my sled all winter. I jogged instead. I could easily jog a mile even at once a week without feeling too taxed at the end. Yesterday, I did two up and backs in my normal sled run and was sucking major gas. I was just walking fast. What gives?! The intensity of effort was much higher muscularly. No doubt. What I am going to do is drop the jogging and go to sled pulling only again. Then, go back and try and jog/run a mile. I'll give it a month. Now, if anyone cares to remember, Arthur Jones decades ago said that proper weight training done with minimal rest is the ticket.

A Little Cardio Experiment

Fred Fornicola and I recently had a discussion on exercise frequency. We talked about how often one should work out and also the possibility of working out being a detriment to your body. I did a little experiment this past week. Partly because I am strapped for time anyway. I did a jog of about 1 mile a week ago. I did not do the jog again until a week later (yesterday). I wanted to see how I felt with 6 days in between. Would I suck gas? Would I feel de-trained. Would I actually feel stronger than last week?

The answer is: I basically felt the same. Maybe a hair better than a week ago. This little experiment is another data point that backs up what I said that people don't need to freak about missing a workout or two. Or, taking a week off to rest and recoup (like a vacation!).

That's not to say I am going to decrease my exercise to once a month now! It was just an experiment to again let people know that it's ok if "&##$# happens" and you miss a workout.

On to another topic.

You should not get injured strength training. Let me say this once more...you should not get injured strength training! You should not get injured PERIOD in your exercise. If you do, you are doing something WRONG! The point of exercise is to BUILD the body. Not break it down and actually BREAK it as well! Now, if you do get injured, you better take a HARD look at what you are doing. You better find ROOT CAUSE. A lot of times it's just pushing the body for too long and too hard. This gets back to the rest part and the point I made above. You also need to identify exactly what exercise caused the injury and avoid it. At least for awhile. Sometimes if you made a big enough mistake you may have to totally dump them. Don't be foolish and continue to do an exercise that might be one to cause you injury over and over.

The Body Remembers - Part 2

The good news is the body remembers muscle and strength too. If you have put in the time for many years under the bar consistently, you'll reap these benefits even after you switch goals such as myself. I am more concerned about longevity and health rather than how much I can bench press. And, bodyfat levels and keeping muscle. Due to recent time constraints, I am probably averaging 1.5 workouts per week. No, I am not shrinking up. I still have my bicep peak and I do little direct arm work. Again, the body and it's memory. If I have carried extra muscle for 30 years out of 46 years of my life it makes sense. So, what's my message here? Well, don't freak out when you miss a workout. Or two. Or three. You'll gain it back and probably more!