Pages

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Do What You Can Do

I've definitely noticed a pattern in my life.  During the fall and winter months, its not that hard for me to get my workouts completed on a regular basis.  I've done successful rounds of P90X etc the last two winters and done well.  Come spring, the world thaws in Illinois and I start into my routine.  For those of you that don't realize, competitive shooting (particularly modern rifles) is a passion of mine I've picked up over the past year.  I run a practical rifle program at my gun club and we have monthly matches.  Well, starting this program has taken up loads of my time.


We had a "Zombie Shoot" spin-off of this program which was another huge event I ran last year.  That drew 70 shooters and looks to be a huge event this year, with 150-200 shooters or more.  (If you want to learn more, check out www.thezombieshoot.com for more info.)

What does all of this have to do with fitness?  Well, on one level, physical fitness is a huge help in some of the events I participate in.  No matter how good one is with a rifle, if you're stiff, slow, or out of shape, you can't fire the rifle in a quick and effective manner.  This past weekend we did a drill (you can view a video  of the drill here) that required getting into some rather awkward and uncomfortable firing positions.  I'd honestly say the flexibility and strength I've gained from P90X helped me to perform some of these drills very well.  However, these hobbies and passions of mine take up a ton of time.  On a Saturday, I'll be up and out the door by 6 AM to set up for one of our shoots and might not return home until 6 PM.  (On a side note, I did wear my bodybugg along to one of these shoots and burned well over 3500 calories for the day without getting a formal workout in. I burn more calories in a day out at the range than I do when I am at work and get a P90X workout in when I get home.)

Furthermore, these events take up so much time that I frankly am pooped and don't get in my traditional workouts.  I've looked at my calendar for the next 3 months and it is packed solid.  I have things planned every weekend through August it seems.  I know that for the next 90 days or so, I'll have limited success getting an intense program like P90X completed on a consistent basis.

So, my plan is to give Tony Horton's 10-minute trainer a try.  My goal will not to have dramatic weight loss, but to maintain my current levels and maybe drop a few pounds mainly through getting my diet back on track.  Looking through the program, the title "10 Minute Trainer" is a bit misleading.  The 10-minute workout is a bare minimum.  There are 3 workouts every day, each 10 minutes in length.  The bare minimum is to do the first 10 minute workout, if you have more time, do the 2nd, if you have still more time, do the third.  So, I'm going to do 10-Minute trainer for the next 30 days and document the results.  My diet for the last month has been atrocious.  I've not planned well and have taken advantage of too many temptations. 

So, Check back here for my review on 10 minute trainer.  I'll keep everyone posted.

--John

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

A confession

Hey everyone. The last month has been pretty rough for me in a couple ways. The last day I updated here, there were some layoffs at my work. This meant that my schedule and such changed dramatically. Where I used to go into my office 1-2 days a week, I'm now in 4 days a week and more. On top of that, in mid March I got sicker than I can remember. I lost about 7 lbs in a couple days and couldn't eat solid food for about 5 days. 


Unfortunately, these setbacks were "ready made" excuses that I didn't overcome.  The last 3-4 weeks have been terrible.  My workouts have been non-existent and my diet has been terrible as well.  So, I'm back here writing, I need to get back on track.