Missed My Weight Goal

I put some weekly weight loss goals on my Google Calendar. My goal for today was to weigh 249 pounds. On 08/26 I weighed 248.6, on 08/27 I weighed in at 248.8. I figured I had it for this week. Alas, I did not. I didn't complete my second 24 hour fast of the week. I went out for a big breakfast with my wife yesterday that was full of carbs. As a result I weighed in this afternoon after my workout at 251.8.

I was initially mad at myself but that's how it goes. I may have held on to some extra water. Also, I usually weigh in early in the morning but today I waited until the afternoon. Also, I didn't weigh myself yesterday. I hate missing data points.

Anyway, I did my normal training routine.

Warm up walk 0.50 miles in 10:30 for an average of 2.8 mph.

Warm up calisthenic circuits 5 reps per exercise,  (per side or direction if a unilateral type exercise) 12:00 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo  w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog

The Practice

• Kettlebell Swings 5x10x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 10x11x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 8x1x25# (per side)

Normal routine. I stepped up a little in the last 10 sets of kettlebell swings by doing one extra rep, i.e. 11 reps, per set. All 15 sets were done EMOM. I added two extra sets of Turkish Get Ups for a total of 8 sets. Working on getting up to 10 sets. I took about a two minute break in between swings and getups, which is longer than my last few training sessions. Total kettlebell time 33:31.

Three in a Row

Stressful day at work. Actually it has been a stress filled week. Haven't gotten home before 1830 hours even once this week. Felt like skipping my training session as I was winding down to come home. However, I was listening to episodes of the Half Size Me podcast with the express purpose of over coming the reluctance to get my exercise in. I think the one I was listening to near the end of the workday was episode 57. The interviewee talked about a small victory of getting her exercise in when it was dark and rainy after a long tough day. So I made up my mind not skip.

Warm up walk 0.48 miles in 10:35 for an average of 2.7 mph.

Warm up calisthenic circuits 5 reps per exercise,  (per side or direction if a unilateral type exercise) 12:02 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo  w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog

The Practice

• Kettlebell Swings 15x10x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 6x1x25# (per side)

Nothing new here.  Good session. Felt good but not overwhelming. Time to go on to Tracy Reifkind's Workout #2 again. I wonder if I should jump straight to laddering up to 15 in the second group of 5 sets or just add 1 rep to each of the last 10 sets, meaning 11 reps per set for the last 10 sets. I think I'll take it slow.

Yesterday I forgot to record that I walked 22 minutes and swam for about 15 minutes.

Kettlebells in the Evening

Yesterday I walked about 16 minutes after lunch. I'm going to try to walk for at least 15 minutes after meals as often as I can. Today after breakfast I started a 24 hour fast. I didn't have lunch but I did take my early afternoon walk.

This evening though I left work a bit late I was determined to get my training in and I did. I'll continue getting up earlier so I can start training in the morning.

Warm up walk 0.51 miles in 11:22 for an average of 2.7 mph.

Warm up calisthenic circuits 5 reps per exercise,  (per side or direction if a unilateral type exercise) 13:10 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo  w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog

The Practice

• Kettlebell Swings 15x10x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 6x1x25# (per side)

Same sets and reps as last time. Just trying to make sure my conditioning is solid again before I increase the reps. I was pretty sore yesterday from the race walk on Saturday and the kettlebells on Sunday. Felt better today. I'll probably be sore again tomorrow but it is so worth it.

A Week Later and Another Kettlebell Session

So, it was another rough week at work. I did't sleep well most of the week and didn't get up early to train. I also worked late nearly every day and didn't train in the evening, Excuses, excuses...blah, blah, blah. As a result it has been a week since my last kettlebell session.

I started out this weekend better with a Sorta' 5K yesterday and kettlbells today. I will do kettlebell training Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday this week. I will get in walks on Monday, Wednesday and Friday along with resuming the corrective exercises I was given as a result of my Functional Movement Screening. I'll do the FMS stuff on walking days. I would really like to resume the Couch to 5K program but I don't want to overload myself. Anyway, on to today's training.

Warm up walk 0.50 miles in 10:15 for an average of 2.9 mph.

Warm up calisthenic circuits 5 reps per exercise,  (per side or direction if a unilateral type exercise) 11:55 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo  w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog

The Practice

• Kettlebell Swings 15x10x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 6x1x25# (per side)

Since I haven't gotten back into my regular thrice weekly kettlebell training I'm still stick with Tracy Reifkind's Workout One along with the addition of Turkish get ups. I motored through the swings without too much difficulty. Last session my kettlebell time was 27 minutes, this time 29 minutes. Not sure where the extra two minutes crept in as I only rested about 1.5 minutes in between the end of swings and the beginning of getups. But it was still less than 30 minutes so it was all good.

BTW, my feet, legs and glutes are kinda' sore after the speedy walking I did yesterday. This is because I haven't been doing that much walking either. Got to get back on the ball. At least my weight hasn't gone up. I weighed in at an even 250 today.

Urban League of the Upstate Sorta 5K

My daughter, Gabrielle Baker, was on the organizing committee for the Urban League of the Upstate's first annual Heart and Sole 5K. Our nuclear family all signed up to show our support. In addition my brother-in-law from Aiken and his wife as well as his daughter from Rock Hill came to Greenville to participate. A couple of my wife's friends and one of Gabby's friends joined us for the race as well

I haven't been running so I decided to just walk the 5K. They also had a 1 mile walking route planned, but walking the 5K would be no problem. Unfortunately, the biker leading the the initial group of runners and the volunteers out in the middle of the course went and sent us the wrong way! They accidentally cut off somewhere between 0.6 and 0.7 miles. It was still a fun time. 

Even though I was walking I did exercise my competitive spirit. I started out in the middle of the pack of walkers. I would pick out someone walking ahead of me and set a goal of catching them and passing them without running. I did this time and time again over the course. No walkers behind me passed me. And speaking of competition my oldest son, Isaiah at the back left of the picture, finished third overall! 

It was a nice, partly cloudy and surprisingly cool morning for the race on the beautiful campus of Furman University. We all had a good time and then went for a nice big breakfast at Stax Omega.

First Training Session Since Vacation

Wow! This is my first training session since returning from vacation three weeks ago. It has been 22 days since my last workout. What threw me off track? I can't even tell you. One piece of good news is that I've still within about 5 pounds of what I weighed before going on vacation even with not exercising.

Warm up walk 10:20 minutes for 0.58 miles and an average speed of 3.4 mph.

Warm up calisthenic circuits 5 reps per exercise,  (per side or direction if a unilateral type exercise) 13:08 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo  w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog

The Practice

• Kettlebell Swings 15x10x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 6x1x25# (per side)

This was a pretty good return to my kettlebell practice. A nice sunny day, not to hot or humid with a breeze. It is only 87°F and feels like 86°F due to 40% humidity. Much nicer outdoor training conditions than the 102°F heat index at the beach. Maybe training 20 sets of swings and 10 sets of get ups in those conditions is what put my off my practice. I thought the heat and humidity at home in Greenville had conditioned me for that but maybe not.

Anyway, I did Tracy Reifkind's Workout #1 staying at 10 reps per set of kettlebell swings followed by 6 sets of turkish get ups per side. I worked up a sweat, got a little out of breath. I only rested about 1.5 minutes between the swings and the get ups which is good. I think I'll repeat the swings as is and add two sets up get ups on Monday. BTW, following the swings with get ups is a concept I got from Pavel Tsatsouline's Kettlebell Simple and Sinister.

Also, I would like to dedicate this workout session to a football teammate and friend from high school Derrick Leflore. Derrick lost an incredible amount of weight, over 100 pounds. However, he nearly waited to long to do it. He's had serious health complications, heart issues and issues related to diabetes. He recently had to have eye surgery due to complications from diabetes. Derrick I'm wishing you a speedy recovery. Don't give up the fight!

102 Degree Heat Index

By the time I goofed around, lazed around, helped cook breakfast, washed dishes and did some laundry it was about the hottest part of the day. The heat index was up to 102 degrees. And there I was beginning my kettlebell training like a crazy man. But I survived as evidenced by this post!

Warm up walk 17:02 minutes for 0.63 miles and an average speed of 2.2 mph.

Calisthenic Circuits 5 reps per exercise, 16:04 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo (each direction) w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog (5 reps per side)

Training

• Kettlebell Swings 5x10x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x11, 12, 13, 14, 15x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x16, 17, 18, 19, 20x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x20x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 10x1x25# (per side)

Man the heat made this very hard. I stubbornly trained outside. I did have a powerful electric fan aiding the nice ocean breeze. But still. It was HOT. I could feel my grip being challenged around set 12 or 13 and it just kept getting hard. I kept drying off my hands and the bell. I made it through the full 20 minutes, with the final 5 sets being 20 reps each as prescribed in Tracy Reifkind's Workout #3. I hope it will be much easier to complete this workout back at home. We'll see.

I took a really long break between the swings, probably about 5 minutes. I was just too hot and exhausted to hold that break down to one minute. I motored on through the getups after that break but it still took me another 20+ minutes. So very hot. Total time 50 minutes.

Steamy Midafternoon Training

Yesterday, I was on target to workout before noon. Probably around 1030 or 1100. Then I got a text message. Please come pick up Mom and Stephanie in Charleston. Plans derailed. We're staying out on Isle of Palms. Various members of the family take a bike ride from the house we rent on the island into downtown Charleston each time we visit IoP. This time my wife got overheated going up the Cooper River Bridge on the way to Charleston.

Once I got to town, picked up Laura, Stephanie and Miles and back to the island with a stop at the grocery store for water, gatorade and ice it was midday. I was also already hot and sweaty. I took some time to drink some fluids and cool off a bit. It was 1448 before I got out the door to start my training routine.

Warm up walk 16:08 minutes for 0.67 miles and an average speed of 2.5 mph.

Calisthenic Circuits 5 reps per exercise, 14:35 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo (each direction) w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog (5 reps per side)

Training

• Kettlebell Swings 5x10x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x11, 12, 13, 14, 15x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x16, 17, 18, 19, 20x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x20, 15, 20, 15, 20x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 10x1x25# (per side)

The warm up walk was hot. My t-shirt was soaked with sweat by the time I got back. Just as I got within a few hundred yards of the house a quick thunderstorm blew up. Before I finished my calisthenic warmup it was over. Instead of cooling things off it just got more and more steamy. Which made things harder. I'm really glad I've been training outdoors at home!

After I finished my swings and was a couple of sets into the Turkish get ups another thunderstorm started! This one was a serious downpour! I was training downstairs underneath the screen porch and deck so the first storm didn't bother me. The volume of water and high winds of this second storm forced me to stop training and take my electronics inside and also move my mat and kettlebells to a more central location as big puddles were forming and the wind was blowing in rain. This caused my workout time to be recorded as 54:13.

I did my planned number of reps upping the final 5 sets from 15, 20, 15, 20, 15 to 20, 15, 20, 15, 20 for 295 total reps versus 290 reps last time. The rain stopped before I finished my get ups.  The swing portion of my training is as outlined by Tracy Reifkind's Workout #3. Overall a good session.

Hot, Humid Sea Level Kettlebell Training

Long hours at work knocked me off my training schedule. I am still on call even though I'm technically on vacation and I got paged at 0330 this morning and didn't get back to bed until after 0600. I was determined to get in some training today.

Warm up walk 15 minutes for 0.65 miles and an average speed of 2.6 mph.

Calisthenic Circuits 5 reps per exercise, 12:33 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo (each direction) w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog (5 reps per side)

Training

• Kettlebell Swings 5x10x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x11, 12, 13, 14, 15x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x16, 17, 18, 19, 20x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x15, 20, 15, 20, 15x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 10x1x25# (per side)

As I mentioned I'm on vacation. I'm on Isle of Palms. It was so hot by the time, 1515, I started my workout it was so hot that just my moderately paced, short walk had me sweating like the proverbial pig. But then on to my calisthenic warm up. Talk about warmed up! The heat in itself is a warm up.

I went on to the swings. I wasn't too overwhelmed by the heat. I just worked my way up to 20 reps as normal. However, in my last set instead of doing 5 sets of 20 reps I alternated some lower reps 15, 20, 15, 20, 15 in order to not let the heat and humidity overwhelm me. I think I did pretty good since I've been doing my training outside at home where it is just as hot. I'll do 20, 15, 20, 15, 20 in the final five sets next session.

The get ups were hard at first but got better as I went on. It felt like I was getting strong as I went along.  I did the full ten sets as I planned. I finished up in 40:40 which was about the same as last time.

Stormy Evening Workout

Got home a little earlier today, 1800 instead of 1900 or 2000. Dark clouds were rolling in. I chilled for about 20 minutes then got changed and started in on my training routine. Two thirds of the way through my warm up walk it began to rain lightly. It grew stronger, though never really a heavy rain and very windy.

Warm up walk 14:11 for 0.73 miles and an average speed of 3.1 mph.

Calisthenic Circuits 5 reps per exercise, 13:21 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo (each direction) w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog (5 reps per side)

Training

• Kettlebell Swings 5x10x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x11, 12, 13, 14, 15x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x16, 17, 18, 19, 20x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x20x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 10x1x25# (per side)

I upped the max reps to 20 as planned. I am finally back to Tracy Reifkind's full Workout #3. I was soaking wet after the kettlebell swings. My breathing wasn't too bad. I was able to move on to the Turkish get ups after about 2 minutes of rest, maybe 2.5 minutes. I also upped the sets of TGUs to 10. Felt very strong. Total kettlebell time 40:33 about 2.5 minutes shorter than last time! Hooray! More work in less time!

Here is a picture of my outdoor gym. Simple. Kettlebells, a mat, a fan, my laptop for music via my Beats Pill, a little chalk and my smartphone.

An Hours Rest Then Late Evening Training

I hardly left my desk today. I did go to lunch, but not much else. Once again I didn't get home until 1900 hours. I decided to rest a bit. I stretched out in my bed, and listened to an episode of Half Size Me to help get me in the groove for exercise. I listened and dozed off and on then got up after a bit more than an hour and got busy!

Warm up walk 12:55 for 0.55 miles and an average speed of 2.5 mph.

Calisthenic Circuits 5 reps per exercise, 14:15 minutes.

• Prying Goblet Squat w/ 25# kettlebell
• Lying Hip Extension
• Halo (each direction) w/ 15# kettlebell
• Flying Dog (5 reps per side)

Training

• Kettlebell Swings 5x10x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x11, 12, 13, 14, 15x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x16, 17, 18, 19, 19x35# Two Handed
• Kettlebell Swings 5x19x35# Two Handed
• Turkish Get Ups 9x1x25# (per side)

Worked my way up to 19 reps set in EMOM fashion. This was my second time doing Tracy Reifkind's workout #3 at this rep level. Twenty minutes of kettlebell swings is not easy, but I think it's getting easier. After all this is my sixth time doing a variation of this training session. After my 20th set I took my pulse and it was around 122 beats per minute which is about 72% of my max which is nicely in the cardio zone.

I ended up taking about a 3.5 minute rest before getting started with my get ups. I stuck with nine sets again. The 25# bell is really feeling light these days but I'm going to stick with it a while longer. I was wobbly in a couple of sets but not too bad. I could feel it and corrected my form. I finished the kettlebell training in 43:31 which was not better than last time. Next time I'm going to do the swings with max sets of 20 reps and I'll bump up my get ups to 10 sets.

By the way, it was still so hot and humid at 2000 hours that I took a fan out into the carport and directed it at my training area. This made me think it was cooler but I was still soaking wet with sweat when I was done even with the fan.