Archive for the ‘운동 Exercise’ Category
I exercised hard the first half of this week, but not the second half. I had a goal of getting to 84 kg by the end of the week, because I have been stuck around 83 kg for about a month. I ended up at 83.8 yesterday and 83.7 today, so I came close.
A friend of mine asked me to work out with him at a local gym in the afternoons, so I’m going to go once and check it out.
This was a good week for both my exercising habits and my weight gaining goal.
I worked out 4 times this week, and increased my weight on both main exercises. I’m up to 100 kilograms on deadlift, which is two big plates on each side. It’s a psychological victory, even though I used to lift more than this a few years ago. On the other hand I’m probably lifting too much on standing rows, because I can’t do all 5 sets. I resisted lowering the weight, because it would mean a lot more shifting weights around, but now I think I need to do it anyway.
I hurt my hand while deadlifting this week because of my grip, and got some good tips from Max on correcting the problem. In the next workout I corrected my grip and didn’t hurt my hands. My grip is still weak in my right hand (I’m left handed), but at least I’m not tearing my skin now. I may need to add some grip exercises to my off-days before my deadlift can get much higher.
My body weight went down the first week of Ramadan, but now I’m back up to where I was before, 83 kg / 183 lbs. I am bringing more food to the office, and I also am eating more for dinner. I’m feeling good and have eliminated my chronic back pain.
Next week I mainly want to stay consistent with my workouts. I may add grip exercises and look into setting up a pullup bar in the hallway of my apartment. My standing row weight should also go down so I can make sure to get in all my sets.
I did a good job of putting food in my house during Ramadan, but I didn’t exercise once this week and lost a bit of weight. My excuse was that I keep staying up late to send people off at the airport, and then couldn’t wake up early to exercise. But this isn’t a good enough excuse. I should be exercising anyway, regardless of the time or my sleeping pattern.
The only exercise I got in this week was a soccer game. That drained three kilograms out of me, but I recovered the weight by the end of the week. This coming week I will send off the last of my close friends and can start sleeping earlier. That should make lifting weights less of a burden.
The start of Ramadan makes it tougher for me to consume calories during the day, but I don’t think it will slow me down too much as long as I bring a bit of food to work each day. I’m thinking peanut butter sandwiches…
This week I gained a lot of weight. I only seriously exercised twice, but I’m not sweating it too much. It’s mostly a time issue, and with my friends still around it is going to be hard to do everything at once (exercise, dawn prayer, see friends, study…). Once they all leave I think it will be easier for me to go to sleep a bit earlier and exercise without feeling tired all day.
As for my weight…
2010-07-02: 76.6
2010-07-03: 77.2
2010-07-04: 76.4
2010-07-05: 76.9
2010-07-06: 77.4
2010-07-07: 78.2
2010-07-08: 77.7
2010-07-09: 78.7
2010-07-10: 78.5
2010-07-11: 79.6
2010-07-12: 79.6
2010-07-13: 79.7
2010-07-14: 79.9
2010-07-15: 80.4
2010-07-16: 80.7
2010-07-17: 79.3
2010-07-18: 80.4
2010-07-19: 80.8
2010-07-20: 80.5
2010-07-21: 79.5
2010-07-22: 80.0
2010-07-23: 80.0
2010-07-24: 80.0
2010-07-25: 80.9
2010-07-26: 80.1
2010-07-27: 80.7
2010-07-28: 80.4
2010-07-29: 80.1
2010-07-30: 80.7
2010-07-31: 81.0
2010-08-01: 81.5
2010-08-02: 81.4
2010-08-03: 81.1
2010-08-04: 82.3
2010-08-05: 82.8
Wow!
This week I got comments from four different people that I look “healthier”, which is definitely a good thing! I also feel a lot healthier and have zero back pain, even though it’s been a chronic problem for me for about ten years. I guess a strong back makes sitting in a chair all day a bit easier!
This week was a bit better than last, though I had some stomach issues for a few days and am still adjusting to waking up before dawn. I only seriously worked out once, but that’s better than nothing, and my strength has still gone up. My weight has been about level though.
Week 3 was a bit of a down week. I lost a bunch of water weight one day after playing soccer hard one night and then was sore for a few days. I continued to exercise, but then had a stressful day and didn’t eat anything for about 24 hours (my reaction to stress). My stomach is a bit weak still because of that…
All that said, I still was in the gym every day, even if I wasn’t doing much the past couple days. Also my weight is about the same as it was a week ago, so I didn’t lose any progress.
I solved my milk at work problem, so I have constant access to calories now, and completed one of my goals.
Next week I just want to get back on track exercising hard and eating and sleeping properly.
So I’ve kept up my exercise habit every day for another week!
I had a couple of goals for this week. First was to add a new core exercise, which I did. I’m now doing standing rows with my barbell after I do my deadlifts. My upper back was pretty sore the first few days, but it’s getting better. Second was to drink more milk and eat a bigger breakfast. I am definitely drinking a lot of milk – at least 2 liters a day, and every morning I’m making eggs and sometimes sausage and cereal.
Suddenly drinking a lot of milk gave me some stomach effects for the first two days, but now I’m used to it and my digestion is really, really good. Actually it’s even better than before I was drinking milk at all! (TMI?) My only real obstacle to drinking more milk each day is finding a way to store more of it cold in the office.
Other effects of working out are that I have more energy during the day, I’m sleeping better, and I feel much more alert than I had been. And as it turns out, being alert helps a lot with speaking in a foreign language! I’ve also increased my weight on deadlift a great deal and can do a lot more pushups before feeling any burn. I just feel great all around!
Oh, and did I mention I’ve gained weight?
2010-07-02: 76.6
2010-07-03: 77.2
2010-07-04: 76.4
2010-07-05: 76.9
2010-07-06: 77.4
2010-07-07: 78.2
2010-07-08: 77.72010-07-09: 78.7
2010-07-10: 78.5
2010-07-11: 79.6
2010-07-12: 79.6
2010-07-13: 79.7
2010-07-14: 79.9
2010-07-15: 80.4
That’s a gain of 8 lbs for my US-based readers. Wow. I think I’m no longer in the danger zone with my weight, which is a relief. I still think that 90kg is probably a good target, and we’ll see how long it takes to get there.
So next week, what sort of adjustments? First of all, I’ve been in the gym every single morning, but only lift weights every other day. The “off” days I mostly work on my flexibility, but I think I should research and find something else I can do. I had looked for a foam roller to do soft tissue work, but haven’t found one yet. So that’s one goal.
My second goal is to solve my milk-at-work problem. This is not too complicated, and I bought something to bring milk in a few days ago, but it didn’t work out. So this week I want to solve this problem once and for all.
I’ve been exercising every day for the past week (when I first wrote about it I was already a few days in). My first goal was to get in the habit of waking up early and exercising every morning. I met the goal and got my butt downstairs and in the gym for 20 minutes every day. I’m alternating weight training days with stretching and soft tissue work, but make sure to do something every day.
My second goal was to eat more, which I’ve done. I keep food around me all day and have started drinking a lot of milk, though not a full gallon a day like I saw recommended. My weight has also gone up a bit, but most of that is probably in my digestive tract!
Max recommended a really good website, Strong Lifts, which provides a lot of no-nonsense advice and myth busting. I will work towards a similar workout as the one recommended on that site, but I’ve found that big lifestyle changes are really hard to do all at once. Instead I’ll adjust and build on what I’m doing every week or so and will eventually get to a more ideal workout/diet.
While reading Strong Lifts I identified one of my limiting beliefs. I even wrote it out unknowingly in my first post: “I … have a naturally lean build” But my build is only natural because of my lifestyle choices. I’m not eating enough or trying to get stronger, and my body type is the natural result of that. I’m not self-conscious, but if I had a choice between being skinny or not, I would choose not skinny! Well, I finally realize that I have a choice, so I’m going to make it now.
On my weight training days I do stretching, deadlifts, pushups, leg raises, and a few other things. I don’t have all the equipment I would like, but there are a few more exercises I could do with just my barbell. This week I will try to add another core exercise to my routine and also look around for a power rack, because if I do squats I’m a bit worried about breaking the floor when I lower the bar.
In terms of diet next week, I’m going to increase my milk consumption and also be more consistent in making a more complete breakfast. I also eat after my morning workout, but find that I’m really hungry while exercising. I should find something to put in my belly that won’t make me throw up if I put some stress on my body.
Lastly, I’ve been pretty sleepy while working out, so I need to sleep a bit earlier than I have been.
A couple days ago I started exercising, and since I am drawing a lot of inspiration from my Korean study, I thought it was related enough to write about on this site.
Like learning a language, a bit of self-analysis can help set the plan for improving your physical health.
Some assorted facts about my current situation:
The only reason I checked my weight is because I saw a picture of myself recently and thought I looked dangerously thin. Now, I have tons of self-confidence regardless of my body-type and normally don’t worry at all about how I look, but I felt like I was getting to the point where my health must be suffering.
I also have wanted to exercise for a long time, but have not made the time for it like I did in the past. Perhaps my mind was singularly focused on Korean and I couldn’t pay much attention to anything else. But regardless of the past, now I have a purpose, just like Korean, and that will propel me forward.
Even before setting goals I think it’s important for me to just get in the habit of exercising. With Korean I got in the habit of watching StarCraft matches, meeting Korean friends, and listening to Korean music and, with minimal planning, the language seemed to learn itself. I also feel that if I get into an exercise habit, everything else will just work out, and I won’t have to worry too much about the details.
I want to take stock of what I have available and plan the absolute easiest way to get me exercising. Even if there are more effective options available, choosing the most easily available stuff will make me the most likely to maintain my habit.
The weather in Kuwait in the summer is pretty brutal. It’s about 50 degrees (that’s Celsius!) outside right now, which means that my preferred exercise of soccer or basketball is out of the question for the time being. There are lots of private gyms in Kuwait, but all the reasonably priced ones have an “atmosphere” issue that keeps me from joining. However, there is a little gym in my apartment building, which requires no driving, is free, and is private since absolutely nobody else seems to be using it.
The gym is fairly minimal right now, but I’m allowed to bring in my own equipment if I want. I’ve already bought a barbell set and floor padding so I can do dead-lifts. I’ll likely add more stuff as I continue, but I’d rather do this piece-wise than buy stuff that I won’t use.
Diet is another part of physical health, so I am planning to eat more, more often, and more healthy. This is another habit I want to build, and I think that just having more food around will make me eat more. I need to go to the grocery store more often and make sure I don’t run out of eggs, milk, fruits, and nuts.
My real goal is to be healthy, and right now I am not. My weight is a good index of that health in some ways, and 90kg seems like a good weight considering my height. However, I don’t think of 90kg as my goal, because that would turn things into a number game, and I think number games are bad! So I’ll measure my weight, but not place a whole lot of importance on it.
My short term goal is to get in the habit of exercise and eating more. I want to work out in the mornings every day before work. For now I’m keeping it simple and easy. I’m not allowed to leave the gym until my timer runs out (for now it’s 20 minutes) and I need to keep as busy as possible while I’m in there.
This is not particularly Earth-shaking stuff, but I think that my approach to this non-language project is illustrative of what I’ve learned through language learning. Lately I’ve been getting approached a lot more about how to get started with a language, and I think a calm, confident, simple approach like the one above is the way to go. Just do something!
Anyway, I hope to provide a positive progress update to this project soon!