Becoming an Athlete

I haven't been this lean in 7 years!  I'm down to 205, and dropping.  My waist is a solid 33" but my belly button measurement is going down fast.  I need to measure again soon.  I can see my 6-pack and even my obliques have some definition. The only disappointment is my face remains round and pudgy. For the next 2 months I will continue with a simplified / abbreviated strength plan which incorporates fat-burning MetCons at the end. What's Working: Teaching boxing class 3-4 nights a week.  5:30-6:30. I lead with a lot of 1-on-1 coaching and participating, so I get a little sweat going, but I'm there for them. M,W,F lifting session, ending with treadmill intervals.  Super-abbreviated push/pull rotation.  Push days are vertical  and horizontal pushing, with squats.  I vary the movements some. Pull days are vertical and horizontal pulling, with deadlifts.  Again, some variations to keep from hitting a plateau too fast. All sess...

I started my Monday with my normal leg training.  Lots of unilateral work, followed by front squats and straight leg deadlift.  All in all a very productive session. Since Monday was a school holiday, there were no kids at the boxing gym.  I got to devote 2 hours to my own boxing training.  I spent a full 30 minutes on warm-up and it was TOUGH!  More like a supplemental workout. Air squats 15 reps, every minute on the minute (EMOM) for 10 minutes.  150 reps total Pushups 5 reps, EMOM for 10 minutes.  100 reps total Situps 4 x 20 Flutter kick / Leg circle superset 3 x 40 / 10 each direction After that was an hour of heavy bag. The EMOM work was killer.  Didn't feel too hard at the time but everything was sore on Tuesday.

Sometimes you have to take a step back, assess yourself with a brutally honest eye, and answer the question "Do I really want  to do something about this?" Yes.  God, yes.  With all my heart and soul.  I want to address my defects of character, my shortcomings, my unwillingness to do certain things that are good, my unwillingness to stop certain things that are time wasters or even harmful. I want to be honorable and an example of compassion, self discipline, and service. I see my physique as a reflection of my self discipline and character.  Can I say no to crap foods? Can I dig a little deeper when I'm out for a run? Can I walk away from the TV and do something productive? The good news is as the months go by, this process becomes less shocking, less painful, and often times surprisingly affirming.  I've tackled all of the biggies and am just dialing in the refinements, or adapting to old injuries and changes that come with aging.   I honestly do...

7 FEB was awesome.  It started with a  terrible night of sleep.  I went out and had way too much tea, which kept me up till about 4:00 AM.  I woke up  at 6:30 and got ready for a boxing session. 7:30 - 9:30 AM It was just me and the guy with the keys to the gym.  We each did our own thing.  He left after a little over and hour.  I stayed and banged away for 2 hours.   Lots of emphasis on power. Lots of my old Thai skills & techniques. 2:00 - 5:30 PM Sand Volleyball at Hanover's in Pflugerville.  Let me tell you -  I SUCKED at this.  Toook 2 games before my breathing got back to reasonable.  And my timing was way off on attempts to spike.  My reflexes are still sharp, but I had no accuracy whatsoever on bumps.  Setting was so-so.  I was worst at the change of direction in the sand.  I felt heavy and flatfooted. Lessons Learned (Reminded): Since I don't enjoy jogging at all, I think I'm goin...

It's so good to be back to basics.  I'm using iron to build size.  These sets of 12 to 15 are already taxing me, but my joints feel fine.  Let's see if I can go 2 months in this rep bracket.  6 weeks will be plenty, but 8 is better. For athleticism, I'm doing a fair bit of mobility work before and after weights and boxing.  I feel more agile and flexible. This Thoracic bridge flow is PHENOMENAL ! DO IT EVERY DAY and you will feel like a jaguar cross-bred with a ninja whose mother was half Parkour goddess https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_aJXXGs6kg The body movement drills before boxing, in addition to stretching and basic calisthenics, are a lot of fun for the kids.  They aren't able to do the thoracic bridge flow, but they can do plank step-outs, down dog, monkey run, bear crawl, etc.  My elbow and shoulder pain has already diminished in a week of application. Heavy bag work is now my cardio, until I get better at jogging in the evenings. ...

I try and adopt a simple little mantra every year, in lieu of a set of resolutions.  Last year was the year of Self Discipline.  2015 is the year of Service Before Self.  I've been making it a habit to say yes to a request for help as often as possible.  The   cool thing is I've ended up in some situations that are way outside my comfort zone, but always a positive helpful experience.  The downside is I've been slacking on my physical development.  This week, is the first where I've reached a balance of coaching in the evenings and lifting on my own time where i can find the time. I'm starting off in a high rep range (12 - 15), and the weights are just sad.  The good news is that after 2 days, I feel invigorated and primed to start making progress.  I'm going to add 5 to 10 pounds, just every so often and make slow progress for as long as I can.  I want to temper my enthusiasm and eagerness for results.  If I go slower than my max...