10 Milers and More

No excuse. I was keeping the world entertained with about two posts per week and all of a sudden... nothing. I didn't write, I didn't call, I didn't text. I'm sorry. I missed you as much as you missed me, reader. Here's what I've been up to:

-Ran the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler in DC. Killed it. Murdered it. Destroyed it. Made it go bye bye in a mere 1:08:53 or something. Whatever I did, I did it a lot faster than I expected. A little technique, a little DNA, and a lot of heart can make you do awesome things. Here's the proud picture of me and my mustache at the finish. I'm holding up 7 which represents the number of minutes it doesn't take me to run each mile in a 10 miler.

-Ran the Tarheel 10 Miler in Chapel Hill. When you take me off a totally flat course, it does take me more than 7 minutes to run each mile in a 10 miler. Finished in 1:10:45 or so. 45 seconds off a 7 minute pace. Way too many hills for a personal record that day. Finished 133 out of ~2700 people, pretty happy about it. 

-Hung up the gi for a while. Lost some interest in jiu jitsu for the time being. I saw a lot of improvement but I never got the blue belt I was shooting for. I still have a lot of time this year so I may take a weekend seminar later this year to see if I can boost my skill and get the promotion. It was very sad to go in and talk to the folks I roll with. I learned a lot with the Royce Gracie program.

-Amped up the gym review spreadsheets. I've been buried in Microsoft Excel for the past month figuring out exactly how raw data translates into 1-10 scores for evaluated gyms. Keeping an evaluation as objective as possible has not been easy but then nothing worth doing is... right? This is ongoing and painful. 

-Made a workout routine for my dear mother. Assessed what she can do and what she wants to do and set her up with the best workout plan anyone could come up with. She may eternally, unconditionally, totally love me... but she ain't gonna do these workouts. I've faced the truth, you've gotta get in the gym with people to train them.

-Doing some other things: It's almost time for summer lacrosse, golf, surfing, and a friend just lent me his skates so I'm going to see what kind of an ice-skater I am since I haven't worn blades in 18 years. 

Coming up on LSF: "Reconstructive dentistry and physical therapy" OR "The Bruins better make room on the 2012-2013 roster because there's a new sheriff in town."

Keep training,
LSF

UPDATE: If stopping is not important, NHL here I come. 

I'm Really Lucky That I Have Super High Metabolism. Oh Wait My Metabolism Is Normal.

It's time to get emotional.

I'm tired of hearing this: "Long Sox, you're lucky you have high metabolism, that's why you can eat donuts and drink beer and not get fat. I am fat and have low metabolism, woe is me!"

Source.

BUUUUULLLLLLLL-oney

I exercise six times a week and burn 1000 calories each time which takes 60-90 minutes of HARD WORK. I do not lift a thing here, lift a thing there, dab my brow, chat up Suzie on the elliptical and spot Ronnie at the bench press. It's lift a lot, sweat a lot, run hard, train like a freak.

For some perspective, an average man burns about 1000 calories running 8 miles. That's 48 miles/week. Hit the road and we'll talk about who's lucky.

Angrily,
LSF

PS: If you're fat, you have high metabolism cause guess what, it takes a lot of energy to move around that spare tire.

Wait a Second. Weren't You Supposed To Have 6 Pack Abs By Now?

By the standards set forth in Article 1 of the New Years' Resolution Proclamation of 2012:

"Resolved: Get 6 pack abs in 4 months.
Plan: First 3 months, lose 15lbs of fat while maintaining muscle through Jiu Jitsu, running, cardio lifting, and yoga. Lose ~622 calories/day (4354/week, 18660/month). Maintain a daily caloric count to stay on track, weigh in weekly. Consult nutrition expert if plateau'ed, expected around ~1 April."

So the results for 1 Apr (plateau date) are in. When the light is just right, I pull the fat down, and flex you can see all 6 abs. So in a way, I did meet it, but I had a natural look in mind.

Big picture, what are the changes that took place?

-Eating Habits Changed: I cook more, eat more produce, and snack more. I don't do anything "less". In fact, I can count the times when I was hungry and didn't eat over the past 3 months.

I better understand when I'm going to be hungry or not. Obviously it's when there is a caloric surplus or deficit, but usually delayed until the day after.

-Exercise Habits Changed: I am in the best cardiovascular shape I have ever been in. I nearly ran a 90 minute half marathon (max training run was 7 miles, once) and a 10 miler in a sub-7 minute pace. If you had asked me on 1 Jan if that was ever going to happen I would have asked you where the rest of your clown posse is because you are insane.

Since adopting the heart rate monitor, I usually push for 1000 calories per workout which takes between 60-90 minutes of pure hustle. I have 100% converted to cardio-lifting circuits to maximize time spent at the gym and burn off flab.

-Appearance Changed: I hover around 156-159 (6-10 lbs less than the baseline) and have a much more athletic apperance. Veins are showing up sometimes on calves and quadriceps, frequently on my biceps, hip flexors (private viewing only), and all over my forearms. Freak status.

My cheek bones look higher and jaw is more defined. Chicks dig it.

Fitted shirts are looking gooooooOOD but pants are not. I suffer from the poopy-pants-effect from having to cinch the belt tighter on the same old pants. I'd go shopping but this weight is coming back in the fall when I'm busy with school. Also, I hate shopping for anything I can't find in a sporting goods store, electronics store, or booze store.

Source

So I reached a point at which I am happy but don't have a stand-alone 6 pack. Alas.

Keep training,
LSF

PS: The dude in the picture spent way more time on that 6 pack than it's worth. They have T-shirts for that.

Rating Gymtensity

Reviewing gyms is awesome. Here's how you do it. Just show up with your lime green book labeled "RECORD" (thanks US Government), start jotting down notes on your super-awesome color coded sheet of judgement, and ignore funny looks from people who wonder why you're such a creeper. You can sneer or raise an eyebrow to let everyone know something is unusual but don't directly look at anyone when you do. Make sure to do all this AFTER your workout: sweat cred.

So this is where your (you the readers's) feedback on "What To Look For in a Gym" is going, straight to the notepad of verdicts. I've gotten some good responses by keeping my eyes and ears open at the gym, office, and coffee shops. However, there's a knowledge gap on my part in a key area: the intensity factor.

People want a gym where the intensity matches their own -- where they can find the gymtensity* equilibrium. People go to the gym where they feel comfortable. You may be on the "chill" end of the equilibrium if people around you are sweating through their shirts and drenching their towels while you use your towel for the occasional forehead dab. And you may be on the "focused" end of the equilibrium if you find yourself rolling your eyes at the pizza and bagels your gym uses to reward its hard-working members.

I've started a list of evaluation criteria to gauge gymtensity in order to back up my hard-collected gym data. Here's what I've got:

+Grunting

Source

+Weight Dropping

Source

+Too little clothing: eg- short shorts on men, sports bra top for women

Source

+Staring: to observe an exercise for knowledge or lust

Source

+High weight: too high

Source

+Sweat on clothing

"Haha! Look how sweaty I got during my workout! Haha! Source

+Protein drinks

Extra gymtensity points for the no-look sip. Source

+Braggadocious clothing

Source.

+Competitive demeanor: hints of workout snobbery

"Oh just warming up." Source

And there are factors that would decrease the gymtensity score:

-Smiles
-Greetings
-Outgoing staff

This list needs some work but most of the bases are covered. I'll evaluate frequency as a multiplier and sum the point value.

To find the gymtensity equilibrium, you should evaluate whether you exhibit any of the qualities above. Be honest.

Feed me back!

Keep brainstorming,
LSF

*BTW, combining two words to make a new one is called a "portmanteau" and it's one of our favorite literary devices here at Long Sox Fitness. The writing snob in me thinks they are overused these days but the desperate comedian in me is having a good time. Either way, we have fun with them. You too can enjoy them at home on this website. Use it for personal entertainment, become the life of the party, or start your own fitness blog. 

What Do You Look For In a Gym?

If you read The Post of Revelations, you learned that yours truly is on a crusade in the Villages of Allston and Brighton to evaluate the highly competitive fitness industry as the one and only Boston Gym Critic. You may also recall the first post scriptum where I admonished, "I need some help figuring out what gets people into gyms and keeps them there..." Well now is that time.

"Why should I help?" you ask. Just think of the hours of free entertainment you've received by reading these side-splitting blog entries. Think of all the free personal training you've received by reading this blog. You've learned so much.  You've learned how to run barefoot on concrete. You've learned how many calories you burn in a day. You've even learned that short white socks don't go with black shoes on white people. (5th on the list when I Googled "Gym Fashion Faux Pas". Athankyou.)

Picture Source. Caption Source.

"But Long Sox, I haven't used any of that information." Not true. You've burned a bunch of calories by laughing at it. We've tightened up your abs, obliques, diaphragm, and increased your lung capacity. You are a better athlete from reading this blog. Don't go reading hilarious blogs all day and expect to be able to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro... But do you think you could pay it forward... back to me? Your feedback would be a great asset to the effort.

It would be awesome, IF, in the comments section below, in an email, on FB, on Twitter, on DailyMile, face to face, in the mail, or by Bat Signal, tell me why you choose one gym over the other. In other words, what do you look for in a gym?

The reason that I'm asking is because the goal of BostonGymReviews.com is to help uninformed gym-goers make decisions as to where to work out. Think about what gets you to go to the free 1 day trial, what gets you to commit to your first month, and what keeps you coming back.

The most obvious reasons are:
-Location
-Cost
-Vibe (intense, chill, etc)
-Features (pool, basketball court etc.)
-Hours
-Classes
-Staff
-Equipment
-Cleanliness 

So that's all folks. If you have anything to contribute, even as part of one of the bullets above, it would be greatly appreciated.

Keep brainstorming,
LSF

Test Results

Kaboom. Done. Need training? I got it. Belee dat.

Certification Test

The National Academy of Sports Medicine will be administering their certification exam this weekend. Time to study up. Go hard or go home. Git-R-Dun. Do it to it. Just do it.

Finish reading all text. Check.

Finish all workbook practice exercises. Check.

Finish watching all e-lecture lessons. Check.

Apply all lessons and practice doing exercises on own. Check.

Check NASM website for test contents and standards... Check.
Buckle down and study... Ongoing.

Score to pass: 70?! Psssssh.

Passing percent: 65% Say what?!

Is this actually going to be difficult? I'll let you know afterwards. You won't hear much between now and then.

Keep training,
LSF

Goal Big or Go Home

I know, everyone has been irrrking for the next sort of funny, somewhat informative post on the Long Sox Fitness blog. Well you can stop hitting refresh now, because it's finally here. And you're in luck because this one is relevant to everyone, fitness freaks and sedentary people alike. Whether you're fat or fit, young or old, injured or healthy, you need to set goals. You may be after a 6 minute mile, a 300lb bench press, a promotion at work, a road trip to Canada, spending more time with family, or a happier life in general.

Why should you set goals and how you can set goals to maximize results? According to the National Academy of Sports Medicine (the organization that will be certifying me as a personal trainer if I pass the big bad exam), goals should follow SCAMPI principles. What do they mean? They mean goals should be...

-Specific. Avoid less-concrete, nebulous goals of losing weight or increasing muscle. Know how much you want to lose or gain. EG burning off a single pound or increasing your squat by 5lbs. Instead burn 500 more calories per day than you eat. For muscle gain, try squatting to near-failure 2 times a week.

-Challenging. You'll push yourself harder. If you're running a 20:08 5k after setting the goal of 22:00, you probably could have broken the 20:00 threshold with a 20:00 goal.

-Framed as an Approach to something, not to avoid something. NASM sez: "Avoidance goals create memories of accidents or failures, and tend to make people less happy, healthy, and motivated." It's going to take some creative thinking for weight loss (IE avoid overeating) and injury avoidance. So reframe it, "I'm going to eat 2 salads a day and drink 4 glasses of water," or, "I'm going to buy better running shoes, ice after running, and change the way I run." And personally, I love pwning the to-do list.

-Measurable. So you can tell if the strategy is working, if not, adjust.

-Proximal. Have something near term to shoot for. Confidence booster.

-Inspirational. "Consistent with ideals and ambitions." I don't know how to not do this. Let's see... I like exercising... I like sustaining good friendships and a fun social life... I don't like exercising so much that my relationships and social life suffer... ipso facto, ergo sum: I will not set the goal of being a competitive marathon runner because it will take too much time away from other life aspects... I think. IE, if you don't want to do something, don't do it. Going into it with an "I guess I want to do that" attitude probably isn't a great goal to set. Probably definitely a 100% chance of the give-ups.

Set your SCAMPI goals. Be a better person, get more out of your 2012.

Keep training,
LSF

Fun Runs Are Dumberer

My place of work held the 2nd Annual Jingle Bell Fun Run last Friday. Didn't cost anything. Didn't know how long it would be. DID know that costumes were encouraged. DID see this dog on the flyer advertising it. Not going was not an option.

Digression: Seriously though, time out. I don't think anyone, of any species, has been this embarrassed to be photographed in a dorky costume since Ralphie walked down his stairs on Christmas morning. And here it comes, animal caption:

Just don't show the other dogs OK?

Just like Bob Saget owning video captions on AFHV. Now back to our show...

As I reached the starting line. The typical Christmas fun run costumes started showing up. Elves, Santa, a present. The guy organizing the race pumped everyone up with a sweet safety brief (wait, so I SHOULDN'T run into other people?). We got the, "Ready, Set, GO!" and took off.

8-10 minutes later I was the 2ND ANNUAL JINGLE BELL FUN RUN CHAMPION!!! Finishing 1st Overall with a time of... there is no such thing. It's not timed, there is no winner, it's just running. People are just running/walking/skipping the same route, untimed in ridiculous getups. That's what a fun run is. Anarchy.

So why run? 1.4 miles ain't going to challenge the old physical endurance threshold too much. You're not going to see beautiful sights along the run. You may break a sweat, but that's about it. I ran to socialize and race against actual people rather than my Garmin. Half of that I could have done in my office, in the cafeteria at work, or at the bar (at work. Yep, a bar at my work).

Oh well. First is first. It's fun to dominate even when it's small beans.

Keep training,
LSF

Jits

My Christmas lights are freshly strung up, I just made a grand return to the free-weight section of my gym, I have a beer in my Hofbrauhaus stein, and I'm hopped up on some major yogaphetamines. It is definitely time to get writing about the next great endeavor.

Drum roll please. It is a sport that needs no introduction. It is a sport and an art developed in the beautiful country of Brazil but derived from a predecessor in Japan. The most reliable encyclopedic website on the internet (and ever known to mankind) describes it as, "a martial art, a combat sport, and a self defense system that focuses on grappling, especially ground fighting." The scholarly article continues, "It teaches that a smaller, weaker person can successfully defend against a bigger, stronger assailant by using leverage and proper technique- most notably by applying joint-locks and choke holds to defeat the other person."

That hobby/sport/fighting style/way of life is Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, BJJ, JITS. The sport of grappling with other people that ends in one of two ways - tap out or pass out. No punching, no kicking, no biting, just good old fashioned strangling and joint breaking. Sounds wonderful. Why am I doing this?

Fine Grandpa we can go to Red Lobster at 4! Geeeez

Learning to fight increases safety: Although hand to hand combat has not been a totally relevant skill since the invention of the pointy stick, you've got a drop on bad guys if you ever find yourself in a mugging/a-hole situation. BJJ is not about seeing who can put whom on his back or get the throw, it's about putting someone in the hospital or making them quit.

Low(er) risk of injury than other styles: There will be days when I get home from the gym and feel like doodoo because I either pushed too hard or got my butt kicked over and over. But when compared to sports like MMA or Muay Thai kickboxing, BJJ is well controlled. Just tap and you're no longer at risk.

Cardio and resistance at the same time: Aside from kickbox sparring, I have never been more tired in my life than when I was fighting to keep my arm from getting broken off or my windpipe from getting closed shut. On the mat you are constantly totally occupied, mentally and physically... Like CrossFit if the kettlebells and barbell were trying to kill you.

Kicking butt is confidence: When you tap 50 times, you've got 50 mistakes to learn from and are a better person for it. When you make 50 people tap, you'll have some major mojo outside of the dojo.

Awesome gear: Nothing looks more studly than wearing a kimono with a colored belt that tells people how far you've progressed with your fighting style. NOT. I can't stand wearing a gi. I understand that the pure form of the sport demands it but chances are the fighters would look better in something other than geisha garb.


Anyway, I'm just dipping my toe to begin with. If it works out, I'll keep with it. Motivation, improvement, and injury avoidance will be key factors. You'll get updates.

Keep training,
LSF

PS: If you got all the way through that Ace Ventura 2 clip then BJJ is the sport for YOU. I know for a fact that there is no hold in the world that will make you tap out.

Should You Marathon?

I didn't just run the marathon to run a marathon. It was an experience I'll remember with pride for my entire life, not even sarcastic. I now understand the hardships, joy, and culture that surround this freakish sporting event and can recommend it or not to friends and future clients. So you, dear reader, are about to get the lowdown on something you may be considering in your future. The following are pros and cons of training for and running a full marathon based on the assumption that you are not increasing your workout time:

Physical:

+Athletic and Aesthetic:  From the waist down, you are going to look great. I don't care how slow your metabolism is, you can't eat enough to keep the pounds on when running 40+ miles per week. Dudes and dudettes, I hate to set a double standard but women are going to love the results on themselves a lot more than men.

-String Bean Arms:  Bros, it's going to happen if you sacrifice time with the free-weights to go running. I lifted a couple of times a week for the first couple of months but the road eventually catches up to the bis and tris. I maintained some good definition in my biceps, back, and shoulders from keeping my arms up for hours at a time.

+Good Hurt:  Like any kind of workout. Your legs let your muscles know when you pushed yourself. On a 3 month timeline this rarely happened to me because I was cautiously avoiding...

-Bad Hurt:  When you pushed bones, ligaments, and tendons too hard. A little pain turns into more pain turns into an injury. When you run 3 miles further than you've ever run in your life, it's going to shock the system. 

Mental:

+/-Confidence:  Setting the elusive PR (personal record, not Puerto Rico) is what every runner seeks to do. Knowing that you haven't peaked just yet is a great confidence boost. At the same time, there is ALWAYS somebody better than you. Maybe somebody smaller, older, heavier. He or she is out there and will smoke you. Hey at least your butt looks TOIGHT.

-Too Repetitive:  A lot of non-runners get caught up in this. I don't get bored on new roads, I kinda get bored on routes I've run 10 times, and I 700% get bored on a treadmill, even with WWE Monday Night RAW on a TV screen in front of me. Music, Podcasts or audio books help a lot of people.

Social:

+Friendly Folks:  It's a supportive, friendly community out there. People are humble, welcoming, and congratulatory when you accomplish your goals and they're sympathetic when you don't. I joined a social networking website to log my miles and people randomly friended me and congratulated me on good runs. No agenda, just super nice people. PS: Dailymile.com is a great place to log miles regardless of the social aspect.

+Easy-ish On The Wallet:  You'll go through a pair of shoes in just a couple of months. You'll spend some money on non-chafing shirts and skivvies, a GPS, a heart-rate monitor, cold weather gear, race registrations, a water bottle holder and maybe some mid-run nutrition or club fees. However, you're not paying for any rentals, pads, balls/pucks, mats, greens fees, or lift-tickets.

+Year Round Season:  If you're tough and get some non-slip kicks or live south of the Mason-Dixon.

+Solo:  You don't need other people to play but it's nice when you do.

+/-Spectator Sport:  How many people do you know tuned in to any fast paced, nail biting, edge of your seat marathons this year? I think I watched the NYC Marathon for about 10 minutes and switched it to football. Remember that repetitive thing I mentioned? Howeverrrrrr, I did use my lunch break during the Boston Marathon to see a buddy (and 2000 other people) pass. Everyone was having a blast. I intend to do it right and take the day off work to optimize my cheering this coming year. The marathon is a city-wide party in most places.

Bottom-line:

Ladies, absolutely go for it.

Gentlemen, I'm glad I did it. Going for it once was a great goal. I will probably continue to run 5Ks to continue the social and fitness aspects and this I recommend 100% for both genders. Really though guys, there is a "Je ne sais quois" aspect of marathoning that can be best explained in pictures. At the end of the day, who would you rather be?

vs. 

I'm giving Jiu Jitsu another shot this month. More on that later.

Keep training,

LSF

THE Marathon

So by now you've realized I'm running a marathon. Not just A marathon, THE marathon. It's the Athens Classic Marathon from Marathon to Athens, Greece. Discussed in another post.

Hey Long Sox, why go all the way to Greece for a marathon? I'm pretty sure they have one of those in Boston. Great question, there are a few answers to that.

1) The Bucket List
I just gotta do it. It sounds tough. The masochist in me won't let me NOT do it. I got a body built for long distance running. Use it or lose it baby.

2) You Don't Have To Qualify
Everyone running in marathons like the Boston Marathon has to either raise mucho dinero or run muy rapido. We are talking ~3,000 American pesos or 3:10:00 to register or qualify, respectively. I don't like asking people to pay for me to exercise. Some people love running, I do not.

3) Travel
Never been to Greece. Think I'll go to Greece.

4) Classical History
Love it. Balled at Latin in middle school. Been to Rome like III times. Time to hit up Greece.

5) Nope
Also, deep down, I want to be able to tell every man or woman who thinks he or she is hard because he or she ran a marathon that he or she is not. One foot in front of the other. All he or she has to do is not stop.

Keep training,
LSF

Yoga Hangover

Fitness Freaks,
I never have better jogs than on days after yoga. I somehow bypassed all nutrition considerations and ran 2x ~3 milers yesterday averaging under a 7 minute pace. A Big Mac and medium fries were jumping around my stomach like 16 year olds in a moon bounce. I can resist delicious fast food as well as the next guy but, come oooon, it's Monopoly season. It's the third best time of year behind March Madness and the Bowl Game Season. MacDo Monopoly is my gambling indulgence, my lottery tickets, my slot machines. I pretty much go into a gambling seizure like Fred Flintstone when I hear "Monopoly is back!" I don't even order food I want as long as I get to peel a couple squares off. "The large sweet tea doesn't come with Monopoly? Screw it, give me a medium."

Anywhoooo, the benefits of yoga are numerous.
-Increased flexibility: You'll be putting yourself into a bunch of weirdly named, awkward positions. If you've got a muscle that's feeling tight, it won't after yoga. Gals, flexible is sexible. Guys, it'll prep your muscles for your next workout. Like a massage, it gets the knots out, lengthens and untangles muscle-fibers. More on this
later...
-Strengthened core: If you eat right and yoga enough (that's right, I verbed a noun, get used to it), you'll end up with Bruce Lee-like17-pack abs, and great, balanced posture that will enhance everyday tasks and all athletic endeavors. More on this later...
-Increased balance: It strengthens the core, upper and lower leg and foot muslces, decreases likelihood of injury during running/lifting, ie twisted ankle, knee. More on this later...
-Yoga pants: wawaWeewa! Actually, I've spent significantly less time checking out bottoms in yoga class than expected. I get way too focused on not falling over to let my inner savage run free. Our instructor turns the lights off anyway, it's for the best.

The first time I yoga'ed, it was via youtube (there are tons of videos out there) to get a feel for what a class would be like and see if it was worth pursuing further. I started going to yoga once a week for 75 minutes and never looked back. Give a class a shot once, do your usual workout routine the next day and see how it goes. You'll dominate. Back me up WebMD!