Road Back

2007-11-29T08:26:00.000-08:00

Christmas List 2007

*Updated 11DEC*

Amazon
I've got some pleasure reading, some supplemental Arabic CD's and books, a few Yoga DVD's (I took it up a few weeks ago) and even a few video games on my wish list (although I haven't been able to play video games in a while). Click the button below and it'll take you directly to my list.

Street Clothes:
T-shirts: I'm into a few new brands this year.
1. Fokai: online store here
I'm looking for these styles and colors:

-Island Tee in Navy

-Label Tee in Black

-Island 2 Tee in Black

2. Fairtex: online store here

-#TS4 - Fairtex Vintage T-Shirt

3. Purebred USA: online store here

-Purebred USA LLM Black Shirt Yellow Writing

-Purebred Koi Gray

-Yamatodamashii Forever Navy

Hoodie:
1. Nogi: online store here

-"OE" Hoodie in Brown

Jiujitsu/workout stuff:

1. HCK Gi/Kimono: online store here

-Standard Single Unbleached (get the $50 one, not the more expensive one(s)).

2. Underarmour shirts
Note: It's not necessary to get "Underarmour" brand since a lot of companies are making knockoffs of the same types of shirts for less (you can find these brands at Wal-Mart for instance) money and similar quality. All I'm worried about here is that they have some sort of moisture wicking properties (i.e. lycra or polyester blend) since I wear these to workout and wear them underneath my jiujitsu Gi's and I tend to workup a nice sweat when doing so. These shirts are more comfortable, dry out sooner, are more hygenic and don't weigh me down. I'm providing pictures and info for the UnderArmour shirts but, once again, they don't need to be "UnderArmour". Just so long as they're the same size and fit (Large and loose or compression respectively) any brand is fine.

Men's HeatGear® Tactical Full T $24.99
Loose Fit, Size: LG

Men's HeatGear® Tactical Full T $24.99
Compression Fit, Size: LG

Watch
1. I need a new day-to-day watch. One that I wear when I'm out and about and, more importantly, when I go workout. This Timex Ironman has served me well for the past 6-7 years (I've had 2 of them) and the one I have now is starting to crap out on me. There are 2 options here:

IRONMAN* Triathlon® 100-Lap with Flix

Price: US $70.00

Product Code: T519319J

IRONMAN* Triathlon® 100-Lap with Flix

Price: US $70.00

Product Code: T5E2619J

Ross Enamait Books (website here)
Note: I already have one of his books, Infinite Intensity, and love it. This guy's great and I'm going to get the rest of his stuff at some point.

Full Throttle Conditioning
$25.00

Never Gymless
$24.95

2007-11-20T08:45:00.000-08:00

L's new personal trainer (that's her to the left!!)

FitnesSavvy

Those of you reading this probably know a little of the background story on this already so I won't bore you with a recap. After a few weeks off from the time the sessions from her last trainer ran out, L decided to sign up with a new trainer. She and I discussed what her options were (yes, I threw in my "Crossfit-two cents") and decided to walk over to our apartments "fitness center" to see what trainers had flyers up. After taking one home with us L gave the lady a call to set up a consultation, meeting up with her last night, and has decided to start up with starting next Monday. I'm encouraged for a few reasons. First, outside of the 2 sessions a week that she will be meeting up with her the trainer will write out a program for L to do on her own the rest of the week (something that was missing from the last trainer). Second, the training package comes with a nutritional aspect to it where L will be keeping a food log and getting diet/nutrition consultation with her trainer (something else that was missing last time). Both of these things are supremely important and I think will go a long ways towards ending L's frustration. Finally, there's the matter of the trainer herself. Not too bad looking but more importantly, she used to be a normal looking chick who apparently just started working hard and applying the knowledge that she gained. Check out the website and the "about me" section (website's posted above).

2007-02-06T13:53:00.000-08:00

Stephen Colbert and Rep. Meeks, D-NY

I'm a huge Stephen Colbert fan and think he's doing some of the best comedy/political commentary out there. For those of you who've heard of him but maybe haven't been able to check him out here's a clip of one of his classic segments: Better Know a District. He basically picks a congressional district and after giving some basic info about the district gets to the good stuff: sitting down and interviewing that district's congressman, senator or whoever else is brave enough to sit down with him. This clip introduces us to New York's 6th District and Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-NY.

2007-01-26T12:50:00.000-08:00

USA 7's Tournament - San Diego

The USA 7's Tournament is one of several rugby 7's tournaments held throughout the world in places like Dubai, Hong Kong, New Zealand, England as well as the US. While I've never been to one personally I hear they're quite the social event and a great introduction to the sport. The USA 7's tournament is being held in San Diego this year at Petco Park (where the Padres play) on the 10th thru the 11th of February and I plan on being there. Care to join me? Check out the website here and let me know if you're interested in making it out.

2007-01-15T11:53:00.000-08:00

Dubai primer

I've been to Dubai and can't wait to go back. Maybe a few of you have heard about it (maybe from me or wherever else) and want to know more. Seth Stevenson from Slate has a five part piece titled, Looking for Mammon in the Muslim World , about his travels there as well as tons of pics that will tell you everything you need to know about the "Vegas of the Middle East".

2006-12-10T15:09:00.000-08:00

Christmas List 2006

Welcome to my Christmas list for 2006. Hopefully this will provide you with plenty of ideas regardless of whether you want to go out and shop or would prefer to order online. Most of the stuff can be found at my Amazon Wish List (which can be found below, click the link for the full list) and I've also listed stuff that isn't on the Amazon list and provided links and guidance as necessary.

1. Mama Mellace's Old World Treats

Get:

Variety pack at Costco
Cinnamon Roasted Almonds
Butter Rum Almonds
Pumpkin Spice Almonds
Tuscany Almonds
Cranberry Pecans
Cinnamon Cashews
Roasted Garlic Peanuts

Don't think of getting:

Spicy stuff (like Chipotle, Curry or Sweet Fire)

2. Athletic Socks

Get:

Wrightsock: you can get them at Roadrunner Sports

3. Magazine subscriptions

Sports Illustrated
ESPN The Magazine
The Economist
Business Week
Wall Street Journal
The Weekly Standard

4. Itunes gift card

5. Bed sheets

Get:

AT LEAST: 400 thread count, Egyptian cotton

6. Paper Shredder

Get:

Crosscut shredder

2006-05-30T19:30:00.000-07:00

More pics from John P's trip to Afghanistan.

I've been getting regular emails and picture updates from John. Check out the latest pictures here.

2006-03-01T20:44:00.000-08:00

My friend John.

John joined the Army about 2 years ago and is currently serving with the 10th Mountain Division in Afghanistan close to the border with Pakistan. He's a medic and from his emails it seems he's enjoying himself. I worry about him but ultimately I'm extremely proud of him.

John with his new friends.

2006-03-01T19:48:00.000-08:00

I'm back.

Sorry to drop off the blogging map. I've got a few ideas for posts, here's the first.

2006-01-15T12:15:00.000-08:00

PT

20 Super Sets:
Tricep Pushups 10
Regular Situps 7
Pushups 10
Reverse Crunches 7
Wide Pushups 10
1/2 Situps 7

Do 20 cycles of all six exercises. You have 2 min. to perform each cycle.
Total time: 40 min.
Total pushups: 600
Total abs: 420

Upper Body PT
Pull-ups: 16,14,12
Dips: 25,20,15
8-count Body Builders: 20,15,10

Neck Exercises:
Up/down: 40
Left/right: 40

Results/notes: Started hitting failure around set 14 and started doing pushups from my knees. Triceps are sore as hell 2 days later.

2006-01-12T20:28:00.000-08:00

PT

Swimming
2000m with fins

Results
2000m w/ fins: 39.29

2006-01-10T21:11:00.000-08:00

PT

Upper Body PT
Pull-ups 5 x 2,4,6,8 reps
Regular grip
Reverse grip
Close grip
Wide grip
Mountain climbers
Total pull-ups = 100

Pushup pyramid: 5,10,15,20,25,20,15,10,5
Situp pyramid: 10,20,30,40,50,40,30,20,10

Neck exercises
Up/down: 35
Left/right: 35

8 count bodybuilders: 20

Max pushups in 2 min.
Max situps in 2 min.
Max pull-ups

Results
Max pushups: 67
Max situps: 53
Max pull-ups: 13

2006-01-09T21:07:00.000-08:00

PT

Running
5 miles < 35 min.

Results
5 miles: 44.36 (PB/MB boardwalk)

2006-01-08T21:34:00.000-08:00

PT
Swimming
200m warmup
500m sidestroke
500m freestyle
500m with fins
200m cool down

Sprints
20m ½ pace x 2
20m full sprint x 3
40m ¾ pace x 2
40m full sprint x 3
60m full sprint x 5
80m full sprint x 4
100m full sprint x 3

Lower Body PT
Squats 10,15,20
Lunges 10,15,20
Frog Hops 10,15,20
Heel Raises 10,15,20 (each leg)
Jumpovers 10,15,20
Dirty Dogs 100 (each leg)

Neck exercises
Up/down: 35
Left/right: 35

Results
500m sidestroke:10.44
500m freestyle: 10.24
500m w/ fins: 8.50

2006-01-07T18:40:00.000-08:00

PT
Upper Body PT
Pull-ups 5 x 2,4,6,8 reps
Regular grip
Reverse grip
Close grip
Wide grip
Mountain climbers
Total Pull-ups = 100

Pushup pyramid: 5,10,15,20,25,25, 20,15,10,5

Situp pyramid: 10,20,30,40,50,50, 40,30,20,10

8 count Bodybuilders: 20

Max pushups in 2 min.
Max situps in 2 min.
Max pull-ups

Results
Max pushups = 71
Max situps = 57
Max pull-ups = 12

2006-01-04T18:30:00.000-08:00

PT
Run-Swim-Run
Run: 3 miles < 21 min.
Swim: 1 mile with fins < 30 min.
Run: 1 mile < 7 min.
Total Time = 1 hr. 1 min.

Results
3 mile run = 25.19 (8.26/mile)
1 mile swim = 43.02
1 mile run (treadmill) = ??

2006-01-03T22:00:00.000-08:00

PT

SEAL PFT
500yd swim: sidestroke
Pushups: max in 2 min.
Situps: max in 2 min.
Pull-ups: max (no time limit)
1.5 mile run: Run in combat boots and pants

Results

Swim = 10.20
Pushups = 73
Situps = 64
Pull-ups = 15
Run = 12.17

Last PFT on 15NOV05
Swim = 11.15
Pushups = 73
Situps = 63
Pull-ups = 15
Run = 12.22

PFT Goal:
500 yd swim: under 9:00
Pushups: 100 in 2:00
Situps: 100 in 2:00
Pullups: 20
1.5 mile run: under 9:00

2006-01-02T21:56:00.000-08:00

PT
Swimming
200m warmup
500m with fins
500m without fins
Hypoxic Swim pyramid (2-10-10-2):
10 x 50m freestyle sprints at 1 min. 45 sec.
200m cool down

Results

500 w/fins = 8.53
500 w/o fins = 10.55

2005-12-31T10:54:00.000-08:00

PT

Swim/PT
10 sets of:
100m freestyle
20 Pushups
20 Abs of choice

Pull-up pyramid:
2,4,6,8,10,10,8,6,4,2

Dips: 25,20,15,10

Neck exercises:
Up/down: 25
Left/right: 25

Results
Swim/PT = 37.43

2005-12-29T22:23:00.000-08:00

PT (back on the wagon)

Weird military facility holiday hours mixed with bad planning have pushed me right off the PT wagon. Today I got back on.

Swim/PT
9 sets of:
100m freestyle
20 pushups
20 abs of choice

Pull-ups 5 x 2, 4, 6, 8 reps

Regular grip
Reverse grip
Close grip
Wide grip
Mountain climbers

Neck exercises
Up/down: 25
Left/right: 25

Results
Swim/PT = 31.07

2005-12-21T14:10:00.000-08:00

Why an Ex-Reporter joined the Marines

Every once in a while I come across guys at work who aren't the usual 18-year old, fresh faced kid from high school. Sometimes you'll run into an enlisted guy with a college degree, closer to 30 than 18 with some civilian life history. My buddy Ed fits this bill. He's like....45 or something and worked a desk job and made great money after college. For whatever reason he decided to leave this all behind to join the life of cleaning, being away from family, not having much say over his life and not making nearly as much money to do so. The military intrigues some people for whatever reason (jet planes, bombs, top secret this, big guns, etc.) but the reality is that like many other jobs, there' s more downtime than "go" time. Apparently this is the case even in the high speed units (as my friend, stationed at SEAL Team 10 recently told me). Which brings me to this article in the College Journal section of the WSJ. I can't exactly tell you why someone would leave an established civilian life and join the military but it does happen and happens more than you might think.

2005-12-20T13:57:00.000-08:00

PT

Swimming
200m warmup
500m with fins
500m without fins
3 x 100m freestyle sprints at 1 min. 45 sec.
200m cooldown

Results
500m with fins = ??
(accidently erased from watch)
500m without fins = 10.25

2005-12-15T01:43:00.000-08:00

Malcolm Gladwell

Easily one of my favorite authors right now, you may know him from his recent book Blink or from his best seller The Tipping Point. The following describes his writing well and comes from Fast Company:

By the time you finish a Gladwell article, you feel as if you've watched a movie and read an academic journal all at once. Your brain is exercised and entertained, your perspective changed.

Check out this intro to Gladwell courtesy of Fast Company or check out his website listed to the right.

2005-12-14T07:29:00.000-08:00

PT in the middle of the ocean.

Crossfit WOD (in the morning)
21-18-15-12-9-6 and 3 rep rounds for time of:
35 lb. Dumbbell burpee, hang squat clean, thruster
Pull-ups

Note: The "dumbbell burpee hang squat clean thruster" is a burpee with dumbbells followed by a hang squat clean and then a thruster.

Running (in the afternoon/evening)
Mile sprints
Run 1 mile
Squats - 40
Run 1 mile
lunges - 40
Run 1 mile
Squats - 40
Run 1 mile
Lunges - 40

Results
Crossfit WOD:
Kicked my ass. Only finished first 2 rounds of 21 and 18 reps. Had to stop short due to time and pride issues. Time for first 2 rounds = 25.30

Running
Only finished first 2 miles before I was interupted because we had to move the treadmills around. Time for 1st 2 miles = 21.46

2005-12-12T21:43:00.000-08:00

PT in the middle of the ocean.

Upper Body PT/Abs
Repeat 10 times:
Pushups - 20
Situps - 30
Tricep pushups - 20
Reverse crunches - 30

Lightweight shoulder workout (5 lbs dumbbells)
Repeat 2 times:
lateral raises - 10
lateral raises (thumb up) - 10
lateral raises (th up/down) - 10
front raise (thumb up) - 10
cross over jacks - 10
military press - 10

Results
Upper body PT/abs total time = 45.25

2005-12-11T21:07:00.000-08:00

PT in the middle of the ocean

Running
4 mile timed run

Abs (2x's)
Atomic crunches - 25
V-ups - 25
Flutterkicks - 50
Scissors - 50
Leg levers - 50

Results
4 mile timed run = 34.46 (treadmilll at 0.5 incline)

2005-12-11T07:13:00.000-08:00

Jane vs. Jessica

Trophy wife or someone closer to reality? Perfect 10 or an 8/9 with some attitude? Chris Shugart at Testosterone Nation (once you get past the title you'll find a wealth of workout, nutrition and even steroid info) raises some great points about "plain Jane's" vs. Jessica.

2005-12-11T06:46:00.000-08:00

Blame Wal-Mart?

Came across an interesting article in the Nov 28 issue of Fortune. The author, Geoffrey Colvin, makes a good point: Wal-mart can't drive mom and pop stores out of business, only customers can.

2005-12-08T21:25:00.000-08:00

Todays PT

Swim/PT
8 sets of:
100m freestyle
20 pushups
20 abs of choice

Upper Body PT
Pull-up pyramid: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2

Dips: 25, 20, 15, 10

Neck Exercises
up/down: 25
left/right: 25

Results
Swim/PT time = 24.48

2005-12-08T16:40:00.000-08:00

PT for 07DEC

Navy PFA
Max situps in 2 min.
Max pushups in 2 min.
1.5 mile run

Lower Body PT
Squats 3x10
Lunges 3x10
Frog Hops 3x10
Heel Raises 3x15
Jumpovers 3x15

Results
Situps = 100
Pushups = 93
1.5 mile run = 10.58

2005-12-07T18:41:00.000-08:00

Australia: Drinking with the old man

Many of you know I went on vacation over the summer. One of our stops was Australia, a small town called Bunbury just south of Perth. Here's a pic of my buddy Ed and I with the old man at a bar in town (we're sailors, bars are where we go).

2005-12-06T21:48:00.000-08:00

As a few of you may know, pop culture recently suffered a great loss with the passing of actor Pat Morita. Bill Simmons has THE write up of Morita's seminal work: Karate Kid.

2005-12-06T21:40:00.000-08:00

Todays PT
Swimming
200m warmup
500m sidestroke
3 x 100m sprints (side)
4 x 50m sprints (side)
200m cool down

Tri-max
Max pushups in 2 min.
Max situps in 2 min.
Max pull-ups.

Results
500m sidestroke = 11.13

Max pushups = 71
Max situps = 66
Max pull-ups = 14

2005-12-04T08:30:00.000-08:00

Today's PT
Crossfit WOD
Five rounds for time:
135 pound Bench press, 21 reps
Run 400 meters

Results
Time = 22.25

2005-12-02T18:14:00.000-08:00

Today's PT
Running
4-mile timed run

Crossfit WOD
Overhead squat 1-1-1-1-1
Front squat 1-1-1-1-1
Back squat 1-1-1-1-1

Try to increase the load on each of the fifteen sets.

Results
4-mile timed run = 33.52 (8.28/mile)

Crossfit
OHS = 65,85,95,105,115
Front = 155,175,195,205,215
Back = 205,225,245,255,265

2005-12-01T16:19:00.000-08:00

PT
Swimming

Hypoxic Swim pyramid:
2-10-10-2

10 x 50m freestyle with 10 sec. interval (rest) in between each 50m (each level of the pyramid is 50m).

Upper Body PT
Pull-ups 5x2,4,6,8 reps
Regular grip
Reverse grip
Close grip
Wide grip
Mountain climbers
Total pull-ups = 100

Abdominal PT
Do 2 cycles of:
Regular situps 40
4-way crunches 40
(40 each way)
Leg levers 40
Flutter kicks 50
1/2 situps 40

8-count Bodybuilders 15