Three In One Challenge Week 2, Day 1: Stats, Photo, and a Slightly Different Trial by Water

On this lovely Halloween evening, rather than giving some annoying children candy and stuff, I'm updating my workout blog.
Let's get started!  Same rules apply; if there are any difference I'll make them bold and italicize them.
Here we go:

Neck Measurement: 16”

Shoulders at their widest point: 47.5” +0.50 inches

Chest (measuring tape right across your nipples and under your arms): 40.25” +0.25 inches

Waist 3 inches above your bellybutton: 31.5

Waist at your belly button: 31.75” -0.25 inches

Waist 3 inches below your belly button: 34.75"

Hips at their widest point: 39”

Thigh 9 inches above the top of your kneecap: 23"

Thigh 6 inches above the top of your kneecap: 21.5"

Thigh 3 inches above the top of your kneecap: 18"

Calf at its widest point: 16"

Bicep (flexed) measure the widest point: 14.75"

Forearm at its widest point: 12.75"
Weight: 163.6 pounds -0.4 pounds
Body Fat Percentage: 4.7% -2.3%
Beats Per Minute: 60
The thing I'm most surprised about: my body fat percentage.  When I want to lose body fat, I lose fat fast.  It's very bizarre about that.

That ain't photoshopped!

Any who, I did a slightly different version or the Trial by Water.  Still two seconds; still do each circuit four times through.  Here we go:
Circuit 1:
28" Box Jump: 8
Dead Lift @ 160 pounds: 8
Thrusters: 35
Pull Up: 8
Plyo Pushup: 8
Circuit 2:
Pull Up: 8
TRX Low Row: 8
Hang Clean @ 105 pounds: 8
Shoulder Press: 8
TRX Atomic Pushup: 8
Thoughts: The plyo pushup really made a difference in exhausting me, and gave me an extra little cardio.  Other than that, it was a pretty good time.
I did get to do some extra work, including a lovely little TRX circuit for my shoulders (building up their strength to do some really fun work), and some ab exercises.  Observe:
(Hanging Leg Raise x7, Hanging Knee Raise x5) x2
(Hanging Knee Raise x1, Clockwork Leg Raise x4, Hanging Leg Raise x1, Hanging Knee Raise x 5) x1
(Twisting Knee Raise x4, Hanging Knee Raise x5) x2
Also got to do some extra upper body work:
Shift Pushup: 4x20
Bicycle Crunches: 4x20/side
Shifting Pull Up: 4x4
I'm ending this rather short blog posting, I have to ask something: what do you guys think about this?  What do you guys want to see more of?
I'm asking this because I want to know who's reading this, and what you want to see.  I am writing this for me, but I also want you guys to get something out of it.
Let me know; write a comment.
That's all; gotta get ready for an audition tomorrow.  Wish me luck!

Motivational Monday: Holiday Spirit!

If you're living on the east coast, then you know we got battered by this very odd snow storm this weekend; the first of the winter season.  I only got around a foot of snow where I live, and I consider myself lucky; I have friends in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Hampshire and New Jersey who currently don't have power.  Seriously guys, stay warm and stay safe. 
And don't let no power or anything keep you down.  I read about a woman in Connecticut who, just a couple hours after losing power, threw an impromptu party for the neighbors.  Elsewhere, people are planning trick or treating.  I'm just saying: everyone should enjoy Halloween and every holiday, no matter what.  It gets your spirits up, allows you to laugh and have fun with each other, and it reminds us all about community and how we all depend upon each other.
I got into the spirit: check out my rad outfit:

I look good!

I even did my hair:

Rocking the fohawk!; kinda...

But seriously guys, enjoy the holidays, and have fun with those you care about; it could be a lot of fun.

Here are some other costume ideas I found on the internet; some people go nuts for this kind of thing:

Even Spot is getting into it!

Don't mess with his woman 

How cute is that?

How awesome is that?

Happy Halloween!



Three In One Challenge Day 7: Re-Cap!

Re-cap guys!  After a great yoga session today and some heavy shoveling (what with the foot of snow we got last night), I decided to do a video.  Here we go!

Look at me just lounging

Bring on week 2!

Three In One Challenge Day 6: Yoga

Another short but sweet one guys, since I've been preparing for the Nor'easter up here (seriously, it's October...that's just weird).
I did some yoga today to try and soothe my aching muscles.  Good times were had as I really went for it, finding the nitty-gritty in certain positions.
Tomorrow I will do a re-cap, just like in the 300 Challenge.  If I still have power.  For now, I'm gonna snuggle up and read a book.  Nighty-night all.
To all my friends who have experienced this crazy weather: be warm, be safe.

Three In One Challenge Day 5: I Re-Visit Trial By Water

Ok everyone, short but sweet today, as I've had a lot done today, including work and recording a comedy podcast (more on that when it's edited).  For now, let's discuss the workout.
You guys remember Trial by Water, right?  Well, in case you forgot, here's a refresher:

You have two circuits, and each circuit contains 5 exercises.  You perform each circuit all the way through, with no rest.  Then you take a minute to a minute and a half break, and do it again.  Perform each circuit 4 times through.  Then set up yourself for the next circuit, and repeat the process.

Let's do it:

Circuit 1:

24" Box Jump: 8

Dead Lift @ 155 pounds: 8

Thrusters @ 30 pound dumbbells: 8

Pull Up: 8

Shift Pushup: 8

Circuit 2:

Pull Up: 8

TRX Low Row: 8

Hang Clean: 8

Shoulder Press @ 25 pound dumbbells: 8

TRX Atomic Pushup: 8

Thoughts: the workout felt a lot easier.  No, really.  I was really starting to get into the swing of things.  The pull ups are probably the hardest thing, especially when it's the only move you have to do in both circuits.  I do have to admit though, your arms shake a lot during the atomic pushup when you've done a ton of crazy exercises.

Chia Thoughts: I tried something new today: I put a bunch in a bowl, mixed it with water, then let it sit overnight.  Added a squirt of lemon, and viola!  Not gonna lie, it still tasted a bit like runny eggs, but I felt so much more energized than I thought I would be.  I'm going to try and perfect the ratio that works best for me.  But the energy boost that I got from it (and am still getting from it) has been pretty constant throughout the day.

Tomorrow, I'm gonna squeeze in a workout before a (hopefully) long drive; let's hope we don't get a Nor'easter eh?

Three In One Challenge Day 4: Fasting and Running

So, I finished my half fast.  What I call a half fast is really going for 18 hours without eating or drinking anything other than water.
I have to say, physically, after about 16 hours, there wasn't too much of a difference.

See?

However, when I woke up, there was a huge feeling of lightness.  I woke up at 5 am feeling great; I was hungry, but in that sort of "I can deal with it" kind of hunger.  Despite all the lousy weather (tons of rain, about 40 degree), I was ready to go.  I thought I would do a quick reiki treatment before heading off to the gym.  Then I did the biggest mistake I've ever done.

I fell back asleep.

Apparently my body was telling me something: get up at 5 am.  Go to the gym.  It did not tell me "go back to sleep."  When I woke up, I was in agony: my hands felt shaky, I had knots in my stomach.  So I decided not to do a weight training session in the gym.  I decided to go for a run.  And don't worry, I bundled up ;-)

At first, I limited myself to 15 minutes.  But then I realized I forgot my watch.  Another oops.  So I went screw it and decided to ballpark it.  I started off at a fairly easy jog, and then the oddest thing happened: I got stronger.  I felt a lot lighter, like I had wings on my feet.  I began doing some surges in my run, and those felt pretty good, do I decided to try some wind sprints.  Again, it felt amazing.  I threw in something like 12 wind sprints and 15 surges into my run.  When I got back to my place, I check the time; apparently I had been running for an hour.  Oops again!

I grabbed some food, and when it touched my lips...man, I tell ya, nothing beats eating after 18 hours of not and a run in the cold and rain.  I had a fruit smoothie first, and I could taste everything: the apple, banana, the blueberries...man oh man, was it amazing!  

I think I'm going to adjust the fasting cycle and what to do.  More on that next week, when I try again.  

Three In One Challenge Day 3: TRX Work, Chia Thoughts and I Begin My Half Fast

All righty then, so for today's workout, I decided to give myself a taste of this Mission Readiness Challenge.  So I did this workout:
TRX Hamstring Curl: 15
TRX Low Row: 15
TRX Lunge (Left and Right): 15
TRX Atomic Pushup and Pike: 15
Simple right?
Oh, did I mention that I did it 5 times?
Yeah...not so simple anymore now is it?
I have a video of the exercises and tips on how to do each one correctly.  But first, let's talk about my thoughts, shall we?
Thoughts:
Hamstring Curl: This was the easiest out of the four, and it works your core, lower back, hamstrings, and butt.  It's great for balancing out a squat, and is perfect for toning up those butt and thighs.
Low Row: Works your entire back (trapezius, lats, some of the posterior chain); biceps; core; and even a bit of shoulders.  Not bad eh?  I love this exercise; it's so deceptively simple, yet can also be so painful.
Lunge: Works your quadriceps, core, balance, calves, butt, hip flexibility, cardio...aw hell, it's a great move all around!
Atomic Pushup with a Pike: Ooof.  Nice and painful.  Gives your chest, triceps and shoulders a good workout, while giving your core an extra burn.
What's that, you want to learn how to do these moves?  Well then, look no further than right here.
Check it out:

Work those straps!

Note: I've updated my challenge with the video; check it out here.

Since this is a Three in One challenge, I'm gonna talk about the other two things, one of them is something that I've done before, aka chia; the other is something that I haven't done before (in much depth anyway) and I hope to explore how this works and if it's beneficial at all: fasting.

Chia: I decided to add my chia seeds to my breakfast fruit smoothie, intent on no longer consuming my "frogs eggs."  Then I decided "what the hell," and had some more in water anyways.  I'm really starting to get used to them; they've got a slight greasiness to it, but they're really not that bad.  

Fasting: Here's where today gets interesting.  After my workout, I had my post workout/late lunch at around 2:15 pm; then decided to do my "half fast."  

The half fast will consist of me eating or drinking nothing but water for the next 18 hours (so until about 8:15 tomorrow morning).  Right before I eat, I'm going to engage in a very hard workout.  The idea is that, by the time hours 16-18 come around, my body is running off of my stored body fat, so I will burn off much more body fat in my workout than I would normally.  That's the theory anyway.

Initial thoughts: oye ve, 18 hours is gonna be a long time...

Hour 2: I want food!

Hour 4: I'm cranky!  Feed me now!

Hour 6: ...You know, this "lack of eating" thing is actually not that bad.  I'm getting things done!

Let's do a physical comparison.  Here's a shot of me at the beginning of the fast (hour 0):

In a towel no less; what a tease ;-)

And here I am at hour 7.5...

Check out those abs!

Will there be a significant physical difference?  I don't know; we'll find out in the weeks to come.