Sunday, February 17, 2008

Motivation, perseverance, denial and deceit...


Long time jogger, starting for building wind for three minute Karate rounds like a boxer, I ran twenty quarter mile laps on the track. At first difficult to stay positive, I found counting up to twenty a real drag, so I started counting down to one and fooled myself into thinking there was a difference. Same distance and the same time, but felt rewarded when each lap slipped away and I had less to go. Still lap running is boring, great for being coached, great for competing but without those two it is just boring. I moved to road work for the change in scenery, the Dogwood Marathon in North Carolina had the most beautiful gardens and homes to pass and lose oneself running through.

I weigh 204.0 pounds today, blood pressure is 107/81 with a heart rate of 43 beats per minute, if one were to believe the machines, they will be consistant and then the being measured is the variation (not the position of the planets, moon or season). Good start for today as I try to regain my fitness and better health.

When asked what made the real difference during these last few years of weight loss and better numbers on the blood pressure I have to answer that my doctor's prescriptions and a book titled Younger Next Year: A Guide to Living Like 50 Until You're 80 and Beyond, by Chris Crowley & Henry S. Lodge, M. D. And I add that what I paid attention to was what the young doctor kept telling me about human males from our evolution on the Savannah tuning our biology to respond to season, nutrition and activity levels. The doctor spoke to what I kind of knew about me, and so I could jump on his program easily. The old guy, that can't keep promises and relationships with women (three marriages?), I discounted except for his enthusiasm and testimony of change.

So I bought a Polar heartrate monitoring unit, with a chest strap to catch my beating breast rhythm. And once you run in the zone for fat burning and heart thumping combined with a little ragged breathing - the pounds of fat melt away. Well, remember not to eat cooked potatoes, white rice and white flour and stay away from refined carbohydrates - sugar, alcohol, and corn syrup... so easy, huh? Well, try shopping in common stores and not buying Chinese. Add a basic fifty repetitions of bent leg sit ups, push ups and squats done daily (if you can find the time - your mind will wiggle out of it if you allow it).

The Sunshine calls to me, for my motorcycling and for my heart rate run - which is only a jog but much better than nothing at all. Average heart rate 118 bpm, time in zone (140 to 110 bpm) 33 minutes 09 seconds, exercise time total 38 minutes 28 seconds. Fat burning 40% of 383 kcal. which doesn't sound like much but everyday and it works it off, remembering that I am building muscle to increase the calorie burn. Or so one says as he lies to himself, at least my mind didn't talk me out of doing. Now to move the chin up bar into place.

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