truparad0x is a dork!

Channing Tatum Guitar Solo in "The Vow" Guitar Tab

2012-02-26T14:50:00.000-05:00

So just watched "The Vow" last night with my fiancee. My fiancee left the theater feeling like the movie promised more than it delivered, but I thought it was a great story of the loss felt by a very loving husband. It was definitely interesting how the movie was received depending on whose story you sympathized with: Leo (Channing Tatum) or Paige (Rachel McAdams).

One particularly touching scene was when Leo hits a particularly tough spot and goes to his recording studio to pour his grief into a touching solo. Being an amateur guitarist, I loved the solo and scoured the internet for tabs. No such luck. There were quite a few tutorials on basic attempts, but all left out the last part, the bridge if you will. Here's my lame attempt at tabs (Pasting in Notepad makes it more readable):

Remember
by Rachel Portman and Michael Brook
as performed by Channing Tatum in "The Vow" (2012)

Tuning: Standard

C (0,3,2,0,1,0)
Em? (0,2,2,0,1,0)
Am (0,0,2,2,1,0)
G? (3,2,0,0,3,3)

C Em? Am G?
e|----0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0------3-3-3-3------
B|----1-1-3-3-1-1------1-1-3-3-1-1------1-1-3-3-1-1------3-3-0-3------
G|----0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0------2-2-2-2-2-2------0-0-0-0------
D|--------------------------------------------------------------------
A|--3--------------3-2--------------2-0--------------0----------------
E|-----------------------------------------------------3--------------

C Em? Am G?
e|----0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0------3-3-3-3------
B|----1-1-3-3-1-1------1-1-3-3-1-1------1-1-0-1-0-1------3-3-0-3------
G|----0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0------2-2-2-2-2-2------0-0-0-0------
D|--------------------------------------------------------------------
A|--3--------------3-2--------------2-0--------------0----------------
E|-----------------------------------------------------3--------------

C Em? Am G?
e|----0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0-0----3-3-3-3------
B|----1-1-3-3-1-1------1-1-3-3-1-1------1-1-3-3-1-0-1----3-3-0-3------
G|----0-0-0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-0-0------2-2-2-2-2-2-0----0-0-0-0------
D|--3--------------3-2--------------2---------------------------------
A|------------------------------------0-------------------------------
E|--------------------------------------------------------------------

*Repeat to heart's content

Aramark Airline Cleaners Set to Strike at Logan Airport

2009-12-31T11:44:00.002-05:00

Aramark airline cleaners are set to strike in Logan Airport. "They are worth more than $9/hr," said the union rep while citing other workers who make $14/hr. I remember interning for $10/hr and having to actually work - crunch numbers, perform financial analysis, run reports. Who knew I could've been paid more just cleaning!

I still think the time for unskilled unions are long gone. I'm cool with skilled trade unions, but other than that, unions hinder free market.

Veggie Topped Baked Chicken

2009-11-03T16:41:00.007-05:00

I was reading Men's Health the other week, and at the end was an article by Chef Eric Ripert. He had to cook for his son after work, and he was lauding the convenience and prowess of the ordinary toaster oven. A toaster oven is a great size for small meals, yet it's nearly the same strength of an oven. Plus, the size means it heats up faster and more evenly. If you wrap the tray in foil, cleanup is super easy. Out of the five recipes he described, I liked his recipe for a fennel topped chicken, so I modified it a bit for an easy chicken entree. Check it out:

Ingredients
Olive oil
Bell pepper
Tomato
Onion
Dried basil
Chicken breast
salt and pepper

Method
1 Preheat oven/toaster oven to 400.
2 Julienne onion, bell pepper, and tomato; cut sticks in half if desired
3 Butterfly chicken breast completely (into two pieces) or pound into 1/2 thickness. Salt and pepper both sides.
4 Wrap baking pan in foil. Brush with olive oil. Place chicken breasts in pan
5 Toss veggies in olive oil and place over chicken. Add dried basil over top. (Lately, I've been sprinkling garlic powder and crushed red pepper, too)
6 Bake for 20 minutes
7 Serve with the juices

You can serve this with another veggie side and/or a starch. In the picture above, I had it with sauteed swiss chard as side. Prepare the swiss chard like spinach. Last time I had it, I had it with blanched broccoli and some sliced potato for my starch. This is a light and easy meal to make, and you have time to clean up/cook your sides while waiting for the chicken!

You're probably wondering why there isn't any details to the ingredients, as in how much of what. Well, after cooking for a while, I no longer confine myself to numbers and counts. I think of how the dish should turn out and adjust accordingly. But, if you must know, the meal in the picture took 2 chicken breasts, 1 small tomato, 1/2 a medium bell pepper, 1/3 of a small red onion, and about 2 tbsp olive oil. It produced two servings; one for dinner and one for lunch the next day. The swiss chard cooks like spinach, so one bunch barely makes two servings. I'd buy more, at least 3/4 bunch per serving.

VIA from Starbucks is actually good

2009-10-20T09:16:00.003-04:00

Like most Americans, I drink coffee. Unlike most, I drink mine black. But no matter how you drink your coffee, most can agree that instant coffee blows. Well, VIA from Starbucks might make you change your mind.

So my preferences for coffee are different from other New Englanders who drink theirs "regular". I know Dunkin Donuts are on every corner around here, but their coffee can seem watery at times. Sure with enough cream and sugar, it tastes "good", if by good you mean you like to drink cream and sugar with a bit of coffee. I usually prefer Starbucks' Pike Place roast. It's cheaper (don't argue with me, I did the math by the ounce) and the flavor is more robust. I'll admit it's not the best coffee, especially since it's too acidic and the roast too strong. But it's better than Dunkin Donuts.

When Starbucks announced that they were releasing an instant coffee and that it is nearly as good as their Pike Place roast, I thought they were stupid. One, why compete with your in-house brand. Two, $1 for an 8-ounce serving? Seriously? And I have to make it myself??? Well, I've tried it the day it came out. It was good. Maybe because it's instant, but it was smoother than their Pike Place roast. It was a lighter roast with less acidity. I mean, I was surprised it was instant coffee. Could you tell that it wasn't Pike Place? Yes. If you drink coffee at all, you can tell right away. But it was good enough that I'm thinking of stocking VIA at home for coffee cravings and guests. I don't have a coffee maker at home, so this is the next best thing (that and my Maxwell House is not cutting it - yuck).

So go out and buy some VIA. It's about $3.00 for a 3-pack and $10 for a 12-pack. And no, I have not been paid by anyone to write this. But here are some of my thoughts on coffee:

Dunkin Donuts: Okay. Be prepared to be slightly disappointed. Black is okay. If you hide your coffee with cream and sugar, then you'll like it. They're heavy-handed.
Starbucks: Good. Nice strong taste, but a bit too strong. Be prepared for the strong roast and a bit too much acidity.
Green Mountain: Bland. If you must, go as dark a roast you can get, otherwise you're getting dark water with a hint of coffee.
@ Bickford's: Nasty. But it's cheap and bottomless. Drink it for the caffeine.
@ Cheesecake's: Pretty good. Lighter than Starbucks.
@ Finale's: Good stuff, but a bit pricey.

There are others I can't remember, so whatever.

Two Rail Passengers Killed After Complaining of Humming

2009-08-03T16:49:00.003-04:00

Hmm...so a guy is humming to his music a bit too loudly. Three passengers confront him to complain. A fight breaks out and the three passengers gang up and wrestle the music-listening guy to the floor and proceed to beat him. The man manages to pull out his knife and stabs all three. Two die, one is recovering. Man with knife goes to jail. Why do I not feel any sympathy for any of them?

Well, for one, I am never a fan of people ganging up on one person. If you're going to be "man enough" to fight, then fight one on one. Don't grab your "crew" and/or your "boyz". Just honorably tell the person to step outside. And unless your life is in danger, no biting, no kicking where the sun doesn't shine, and don't kill the guy. I have no idea how society in general degrades into animals when fights break out. But anyway, that's why I have no sympathy for the three people who decide that humming is an act that deserves a beating. I understand that it might have been annoying, but unless it was against the rules there's really nothing you can do about besides asking politely for him to stop.

As for the knife guy. He might be able to argue that he was acting in self-defense. It is tough to determine if three guys beating you up is out for your life. And who knows what happened when he pulled out his knife? Did he tell them to stop? Did he say "back off or I will protect myself"? Beats me. For now, it'll stand that he went beyond what was necessary to protect himself. I wasn't there, so I can't really say. But he must have went for some vital points for one guy to die at the scene and another to die later that night.

In the end, all this could've been avoided if the three people requested the man to stop humming. And if he didn't, then they should've sucked it up or move to another car. There's no way to justify beating up the guy for humming. That's just ridiculous.

Acer Aspire One back to form!

2009-07-29T17:10:00.002-04:00

After giving up hope that my netbook is dead, my cousin has managed to fix it. So again, I am a proud owner of a netbook I can take with me anywhere. It's still not as powerful as I would like my primary machine to be; that's a lesson I have to live with. But I don't have to run out and get a replacement right away. But I must say, it is such a relief to not have to sit through stuttering music and videos. Not much more to say. Just wanted to update my situation.

Henry Louis Gates Jr. arrest

2009-07-23T16:52:00.003-04:00

If you have been following any news at all, I'm sure you are aware that one of our local police department is under the spotlight after the arrest of Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. The arrest has somehow become a racial issue, and we have all heard from the supposed representative of all things racial, Rev. Al Sharpton. My issue is that there ISN'T a racial issue to begin with!

Let's breakdown the events leading up to the arrest minus any racial cues. A thoughtful neighbor witnesses a man attempting to wedge a door open. She calls the police. An officer arrives to find a man in the residence. What would an average person do? Duh. The officer asks for identification. Man in residence refuses and starts yelling. Officer attempts to calm man down. Man continues to yell. At some point, officer and man exit residence. Man continues to yell at the officer. A crowd builds; public peace has been disturbed. Officer arrests man.

Reading the simple facts, there appears to be nothing wrong with the arrest. The officer was in the process of investigating a supposed crime in progress. The man did not cooperate with the officer. The man then proceeds to disturb the peace. Open and shut case if you ask me. So what went wrong? Well, the man was Henry Louis Gates. He was black. Second part? The arresting officer was Sergeant James Crowley, a white man. There you go. State of the nation. A white officer arresting a black man better have overwhelming evidence or Al Sharpton will be on your a**.

Now, I'm no racist. I'm Asian, and I've dealt with racial crap throughout my life. I just have it easier because Asians are stereotyped to be weak, quiet, and really really REALLY good at math. Blacks on the other hand have a harsher stereotype. It sucks. But it doesn't mean we have to walk around with a chip on our shoulder. If I just broke into my own home, and a cop comes into investigate, of course I'll prove to him I live there. Go take my ID. Check the pictures in the house. I'll even identify what's in the fridge. Why the heck would I say things like, "This is what it's like to be an Asian man in America!" How does that help anything?

As law-abiding citizens, we are required to work with police officers. They are doing their duty to investigate crimes, even if it's stupid. That's what we pay them for. What would we rather Sgt Crowley do? Should he have thought, "Oh man, this guy is yelling really loud. I should leave and let things take it's course"? Of course not. He was answering a breaking and entering call. It was his duty to check it out and to verify identities.

I admit, I can get pretty heated when some idiot comes up to me and makes fun of my native language. I can be annoyed when people do the stupid slanted eyes thing. And I get embarrassed for the other person when they mistaken me for another Asian race. But I always try to take a minute and make sure if they've just made a horrible embarrassing mistake. You have to place yourself in their shoes and see what they were thinking. Take the stupid chimpanzee cartoon a few months back. Stupid Rev. Al Sharpton started this whole thing about the cartoonist making fun of President Obama. The TARP act was written by Pelosi and a chimpanzee just died. Where did President Obama fit in?

Maybe Sgt. Crowley should have slowly backed down. Maybe the arrest shouldn't have taken place. But Mr. Gates should've cooperated when asked by a law enforcement official. There was no need for yelling. No need to claim racial prejudice. And definitely no need for our President to claim the Cambridge Police "acted stupidly." In fact, I am ashamed President Obama has chosen to put himself into the issue like he did, especially since he admitted he doesn't have all the facts. He is our President; our face of the nation. He no longer represents one race or one friend (The President and Mr. Gates are friends, for those not in the know). Just as there is still racism in the world, we have to be careful not to let that turn into reverse racism. An officer cannot do his job if he needs to second-guess himself before he arrests someone.

I know this might be offensive to some, but this is how I feel. We are one world, one people. One. Stop all this race, class, gender nonsense.

Disclaimer: I am basing my thoughts on what I have read in the news and police report as of this afternoon. I may or may not have the full details of the Gates arrest, so please forgive me if I have interpreted things wrong.

Ball Square Cafe & Breakfast

2009-07-12T15:54:00.001-04:00

This past weekend we made it to Ball Square Cafe & Breakfast for some...*gasp*...breakfast. We had previously gone to Soundbites next door on a recommendation, but I didn't like it. The atmosphere was just a bit too busy and the space too big for the service to manage. It felt more bar-like than a breakfast place. Not so with Ball Square Cafe!

I've been to Ball Square Cafe a several times now. First visit, the place wasn't hard to find. Right on Broadway near the Powderhouse rotary tucked in with all the other breakfast places and restaurants. Walking in, it's a nice cozy atmosphere with a brick wall on the left and a finished wall on the right. Just wide enough for three rows of tables it's not too big and not too small. We were told to sit wherever we wanted and service was very pleasant. We heard the specials right away.

Food came promptly, even if service isn't the speediest. Drinks are self serve, which gives it a slight at-home feel. Food is where this place shines. I've done the whole IHOP/Bickford's deal. Chain breakfast is so...commercial. And Polly's Pancake Parlor is a seasonal roadtrip. But this place is chic, cozy, and tasty. The omelettes are generous, the breakfast combos are filling. Even the diners can be attractive. It's not the regular gramas and grandpas like IHOP.

Ball Square Cafe only opens until 3PM, so definitely a breakfast place. They also serve lunch, but I'd stay away from the burgers. My friend got one medium-rare, but it looked dry and tasteless. Go for breakfast. And if you get an omelette, get the Tabasco Habanero sauce. It's got a great kick!

Behind in summits

2009-07-06T10:50:00.001-04:00

I didn't do so well in the cardio area last week, but I hope to change that this week. Running hurts, but I know it's good for me. So gotta do it. Here's the breakdown:

Sunday: Chest/back/abs
Monday: Run
Tuesday: Shoulders/triceps/biceps
Wednesday: None
Thursday: None
Friday: Pushups/pullups, heavy weights
Saturday: None

You know, I was doing some thinking this past week. I made a goal for the summer to summit two of the forty-eight 4,000 footers in NH. But if I continue that very modest goal every summer, it'll take me 24 years to finish the summits. That's not something I want to do. To finish within 2 - 4 years, I need to do 8 - 12 summits a year. To achieve this with some semblance of a social life besides hiking, I would need to open up hiking into spring and fall as well. Otherwise, I'd be hiking every weekend in summer, which can be difficult if weather and/or social life is not accommodating. We had a horrible start to the summer season so far with nearly 4 weeks of rain, but it should be better now. I should be able to do at least two this summer and hopefully a couple more in the fall. But I need to get going and get this started.

I'm getting a bit closer to my current goal of 170.0 lb. I know my last weigh-in hit that mark, but unless I see that consistently, I'm not convinced. After 170.0 lb, I might aim for 165.0 lb with increased strength. This should give me a lean strong body with enough endurance to do the more taxing activities like hiking, biking, and running. As I've read somewhere, it doesn't mean crap if you can bench press 2 - 3x your weight if you can't do 40 pushups in a row. Being able to do that many pushups shows you have the strength and endurance to do something like, carry a kid on your shoulders out of a burning building. I want practical strength, not bragging rights.

I mean, have you ever looked at pictures of active-duty soldiers? Most pictures I see of Marines and armed forces are of men with lean tight bodies. They need to be strong, but efficient enough to lug their gear on long marches or last through a long battle. Another example? Rock climbers. Again, lean strong bodies. These are athletes that can out-pullup anybody...on their fingers.

Anyway, that's all for this update.

Last weigh-in:
170.0 lb

Getting there...

2009-06-27T16:45:00.002-04:00

Blah...I'm not as consistent as I used to be with this. Aw well. Here's the breakdown for the past two weeks:

Sunday: Chest/back/abs

Monday: Bike (Minuteman Trail - Arlington to Bedford and back)

Tuesday: Shoulders/triceps/biceps

Wednesday: Run

Thursday: None

Friday: Pushups, pullups

Saturday: None

Last weigh-in:
171.0 lb

Sunday: Chest/back/abs

Monday: Run

Tuesday: Shoulders/triceps/biceps

Wednesday: None
Thursday: Pushups/pullups
Friday: Run
Saturday: Run

I must be nearing my "ideal" weight. I'm at 170.5 lb, but that goes up and down depending on my week. Weight loss isn't happening as fast even though workouts have been mostly the same. Diet, of course, could be better, but I'm doing what I can. I give in too easily when it comes to food. I can say for certain that strength is increasing. I haven't checked in with body fat lately, but some of my shorts barely hang onto my hips. There's a quick trick to determine if you're losing body fat/retaining muscle mass. If you're losing weight, but can do more pushups than before, then you're doing fine.

My shoulder seems to be pretty good. I was able to play around with some kids (kids I know, I'm not a creep) at a playground. I was able to do the monkey bars and such. Shoulder held up. I'm also up to three sets of 8 pullups, so that's pretty good. I would say I can go start rock climbing if I wanted to.

Well, I'm just gonna keep going at it.

Last weigh-in:
170.5 lb

Biking!

2009-06-19T14:38:00.000-04:00

Yup, late with my update. So I'll just throw it down real quick.

Sunday: Chest/back/abs
Monday: Run
Tuesday: Shoulders/triceps/biceps
Wednesday: Run
Thursday: Heavy weights - chest/back/quads/calf
Friday: None
Saturday: Bike (Minuteman Trail - Bedford to Arlington and back)

My cousins just got some hybrid bikes, so the biking bug is back. Did a loop at the Minuteman Trail. It's nice to be back in the saddle, though the saddle hurts when you've been gone for a while. It's less impact than running, but it's nice to have alternatives when it comes to cardio. Treadmill running can get boring, and street running is inconsistent.

Diet was a bit better, though still very hard for me. I've been upping my weight workouts a bit every week, and my shoulder is still in one piece weeks after removing glucosamine from my daily routine. Things seem to be looking good. Now if the weather gets better, I can't wait to tackle my goal of summiting two 4,000 footers this season.

Last weigh-in:
172.5 lb

Oban 14 Year Single Malt Scotch

2009-06-19T13:59:00.005-04:00

So after sipping my Balvenie Single Barrel for awhile, I decided it was time for another bottle of single malt scotch. I've stopped by a few liquor stores during the past couple of months, but all I did was browse the scotch aisle.

Last week on my way to Finale's, I stopped by the wine place next door. They were closing, but the owner was gracious enough to let us in and browse. I struck up a conversation with him, and we discussed my scotch experiences. After describing my progression from blends to single malts, he commented that my palate seems to be developing right along and gave me a brief summary of his journey. I left that night with a bottle of Oban 14 Year Single Malt Scotch ($64.99), which was what the owner described as a nice "next step" on my single malt journey. He encouraged me to stop by and tell him what I thought.

Well, I didn't really have a chance to sip it right away, but a couple nights ago before bed, I poured myself a bit to try. On the nose, it smelled sweeter than the Balvenie. So that right away got me a bit excited. I took a nice sip and let it linger in my mouth. There were hints of sweetness and spice, and it finished quite nice (haha..). I didn't get a lot of burn, and I couldn't really remember how the Balvenie was like. So I poured myself a bit of the Balvenie and went back and forth. In the end, the Balvenie definitely left a presence after the sip. The burn lasts a bit and really warms you up. I also thought the Balvenie was bolder and demanded attention, whereas the Oban was smoother and softer. I don't favor one over the other, just as I don't favor one particular beer, but it was nice to have a different single malt. I'll enjoy this bottle for a bit before moving on to another step.

One thing I do have to note is that after trying the single malts, the Johnnie Walker blends just aren't the same. Granted I've only had the Black Label and the Gold Label, but I had some of those a few months back, and they are lacking compared with the singles. I've had a shot of Blue Label once, and I'll admit that was very smooth, but I haven't had that for a while and can't give that a good comparison. Maybe, when I have a spare couple Benjamins, I'll get a bottle to keep on hand. For now, the Oban will be good enough!

Note: After writing this, just found out Oban is owned by Diageo, which owns among all their liquor companies Johnnie Walker! They also own some other names such as J&B, Guinness, Crown Royal, Captain Morgan's, Bailey's, etc....

Done with glucosamine

2009-06-07T09:02:00.001-04:00

Well, I did it. I weaned myself off of the glucosamine sulfate. I was paranoid about going off of it, but someone had a knee problem from running and I gave my mostly full second (and only) bottle to him. I've been off for about a week and the shoulder feels mostly the same. Is it a 100%? No. But the fact that it made it through a heavy workout says quite a bit. Here's the breakdown:

Sunday: Chest/back/abs

Monday: Run

Tuesday: Shoulders/biceps/triceps

Wednesday: Run

Thursday: Heavy weights - Chest/back, calf raises, lunges

Friday: None
Saturday: None

For my "heavy" workout, I actually made it to the gym. I had access to whatever I wanted. I started off with body weight chest dips/pull ups supersets. Three sets of five. It felt awesome to be able to do a decent amount of pull ups again. Then I headed over to a bench and did supersets of dumbbell chest presses and one-arm rows using 45-lb dumbbells (I did one set with 60-lb and decided that was too heavy for now). I followed that up with some incline presses and finished off at the lat pulldown with 130-lb. Then I did some box jumps and a quick cooldown at the treadmill. Boy, it was nice to have all that stuff available. Very nice. I know my "heavy" isn't quite heavy right now, but considering that I have never benched my full weight and the fact that I'm getting over a shoulder injury, I'm doing just fine.

I knew the workout was pretty good, because I started feeling some tightness by the end of the day. When I woke up the next day, My chest and lats were sore. It was a feeling I've missed for awhile. Then I started feeling sick. Well, at least I thought I was sick. My gut felt pretty bad. It took me a while to realize it was my core that was sore and even longer for me to piece together that it was from the box jumps. I haven't done box jumps for a while and didn't think it did more than work out my legs. But anyway, I've recovered from that workout and even finished my regular chest/back work out. It feels pretty good.

My first 4,000 footer summit is this coming weekend. I feel pretty confident in my physical state, so I hope to summit and descend just fine. Mt. Osceola is a bit more than Mt. Monadnock, so if I finish in a better state than Monadnock, then I've come a long way.

As for my diet. Yeesh. From Thursday on, it was trash. I even gained weight, though 0.5 - 1.0 lb may be water retention from some salty foods I ate. I was so bloated yesterday that my eyes hurt. Need to concentrate more this coming week.

Last weigh-in:
174.5 lb

Don't go cheap on razors

2009-06-02T12:52:00.003-04:00

So, I was at Target restocking on everyday items. I was out of razor cartridges for my Mach 3 razor (No Fusion for me, the three blades work just fine). I pick up a pack of 8 cartridges and it was $20.49 or something. Unit price was $245.00 per 100 count. I look down at the bottom of the shelf and saw a pack of 8 disposable Gillette three bladed razors. Unit price was nearly half. I'm thinking, "Shoot, I change cartridges all the time. Let's try the disposables. I also had one or two disposables lying around at home too.

Cut to the next day when I had to shave for work. Every stroke was torture. My dull cartridge was better that the new disposable. So I'm thinking, maybe it's because I'm not in the shower (I usually shave in the shower). So this morning, I wait a bit longer after applying shaving gel. No such luck. It didn't hurt as much, but I definitely notice a difference in the quality of the shave. Just not up to par at all.

In conclusion, the price difference really is warranted. The quality of the shave is much better with a non-disposable razor. So, don't go cheap! Or if you have, try the cartridges. It's niiiicce.

Beware the Brazilian BBQ Buffet!

2009-06-01T11:35:00.000-04:00

So, I ate too much again. Man. Buffets are a killer. I went to a Brazilian BBQ Buffet the other day. This is a meat lover's dream. They bring large skewers of meat over and slice it right at the table for you. So...much...meat. But it was really good. But sooooo much.... I gotta really watch myself. Anyway, here's the breakdown:

Sunday: Chest/back/abs
Monday: None
Tuesday: Run
Wednesday: Shoulders/biceps/triceps, run
Thursday: None
Friday: Pullups, elevated pushups
Saturday: Run

I added pullups and elevated pushups to try to sneak "heavy" weights back in. I'm only doing three sets of five to start out just to be safe. My shoulder feels pretty good now and it only feels weird once in a while. I'm still taking glucosamine, mainly out of paranoia. I'll stop after I finish the bottle. Eventually, I'd like to get back to bench presses and some lat pulldowns/weighted pullups. For my regular weight workouts, I'm up to three sets of 14, so I upped the dumbbells to 25 pounds. We'll see how that goes next update.

The main thing now is getting ready for my hike. I'm still doing stairs at work, two at a time. Really gets my heart pumping and simulates short bursts going up a mountain. I need to make sure I do my squats and lunges though. Been kinda lax on that since running. Gotta work on my diet some more too. I'm pretty good at work, but I still get too relaxed outside of that. But the guilt's there, so that means I'm paying attention at least. Blegh, fitness is a life long struggle.

Last weigh-in:
173.5 lb

New goals

2009-05-24T11:10:00.000-04:00

After weighing in at my usual time, I realized I have finally cracked 175.0 lb. I had been wavering around there and was starting to worry that was my body's comfortable weight. Anyway, I was working out and I started to evaluate my journey here.

I left high school at 155 lb. Okay weight. I had the benefit of my younger faster metabolism. I graduated college at 165 lb when I added some bulk from periodic exercise. Then something happened. I started to work. I was still able to squeeze in workouts, but as my responsibilities grew, my stress grew. I had a job where I was pretty much 24/7 and I didn't feel like working out at the gym at work after work. It took my 45 minutes to get home. By the time I unwound it was 7-7:30PM. Dinnertime. My workouts were further and further apart. I hit my goal of "bulking" up to 175 lb. But I hadn't been working out. It was fat.

Then a couple years ago, I went on a hike to summit Mt. Monadnock. It was supposed to be an easy summit as I had done that before. My legs were screaming when I was halfway down. I told myself to start working out. The mini-workout was born. But I did nothing with my diet. Finally the wake up call. I weighed myself and I was at 189 lb; just shy of 190 lb. I knew I had to do something. And though it wasn't a quick-fix, I gradually made my way to where I am today.

Anyway. Since I've never felt better. I'd like to make some new fitness goals. I'd like to be sub-170 lb. I think that's a good weight for me. There are some pretty fit guys out there who are taller than me at my current weight. I must be carrying excess. I'd like to be at 8-11% body fat. I'd like to run a faster mile. I'd like to have a good right shoulder again. All these goals have an ulterior motive. I want to be fit enough to tackle some of the more physical goals in my life list. I mentioned before that I want to summit all 48 4,000 footers in NH. Kinda hard if I'm not in shape. There are some more items on my life list, but no need to list them all here. Anyway, here's last week's breakdown:

Sunday: Chest/back/abs

Monday: Run

Tuesday: Shoulders/biceps/triceps

Wednesday: Run
Thursday: None
Friday: Lunges
Saturday: Calf raises

Last weigh-in:
173.0 lb

Got sick

2009-05-18T14:13:00.001-04:00

No running at all last week. I caught something over the weekend when I went to NYC. Had a sore throat for a couple days then just felt blegh for a few more days. I managed to squeeze in the weights, but it was tough. Here:

Sunday: None
Monday: Chest/back/abs
Tuesday: None
Wednesday: Shoulders/biceps/triceps, weighted calf raises
Thursday: None
Friday: None
Saturday: None

I hung out with my cousin midweek and was able to use her body fat machine. I lost 2.2%. So 1.8% to go! I doubt I'll make it by June 1st, but I like the changes I've made to my life, so I'm gonna keep it up. I just added the 48 4,000 footers of NH onto my life list, so I'm going to need to be in good shape.

Last weigh-in:
175.0 lb @ 13.5% body fat

Two week update

2009-05-11T13:32:00.001-04:00

I was a bit busy last week with my office move, so I didn't post a fitness update. So, I'm just going to put the last two weeks together:

Sunday: Chest/back/abs
Monday: Run
Tuesday: Single leg calf raises, shoulders/biceps/triceps
Wednesday: Run
Thursday: Lunges
Friday: Run

Saturday: none

Weigh-in:

175.5 lb

Sunday: Chest/back/abs

Monday: none

Tuesday: Run

Wednesday: Shoulders/biceps/triceps, calf raises
Thursday: Run
Friday: Squats
Saturday: none

Overall, I've been mostly good. I've been sticking with my weights workout and keeping with a 2-3 times run every week. I'm making very good progress in terms of my running. When I started I would break up my half hour run so I can preserve myself. Typical "run" was a 5 minute warmup, 10-13 minute run, 4-5 minute fast walk with incline, then a quick 1 minute of a fast run followed by a gradual 0.5 mph drop every 30 seconds until I hit 3.5 mph for a cool down. I would then walk at 3.5 mph at an incline until my heart rate drops to a more or less stable rate. However, my last run was warmup followed by 21 minutes of running. I went straight to my fast run with an incline then a cooldown. I felt very accomplished. I just wished I tightened my shoes beforehand. Had a small blister on my right foot afterwards, but that went away by Saturday.

As for weights, I'm at 20lb dumbbells with sets of 10 reps. I'm pretty satisfied with the healing of my shoulder, but I do notice that while strength is returning, power is not. I haven't tried throwing anything, but whenever I make sudden movements with my right arm, there's a twinge of discomfort. Not pain, but something. And with my paranoia, I am pretty slow with my reps, which probably is a good thing because I am working out with good form. I'm just worried about how I can't seem to do fast things with my right arm. One thing that was good about the last couple of weeks was my office move. With the move, I was the go-to person for most things heavy. I was very careful whenever I had to move or lift anything. And I feel the moving was a real-world test of my shoulder, and the stress of real-world lifting helped with the rehab a bit.

I went away for the weekend, and as you know, going away means eating. I didn't have my normal weigh-in, but a quick weigh-in after a dinner post-trip was at 178.0lb. The last weigh-in at my normal time and conditions was before my trip and is listed below. I did hit my goal of 175.0lb, but now that I've been working on cutting fat, I'm not placing as much emphasis on my weight. I haven't measured my body fat lately, but I'm paying more attention to how my clothes fit and how much I see my veins, which is a simple test to see if you've lost fat. Veins are more visible and "pop" when you have less fat (for a guy anyway). Based on what I've observed, I've lost some body fat, but I doubt it was 4% loss. I started at 15.7, so my goal is 11.7%. And I don't look like I'm at 11.7%.

Last weigh-in:
175.0 lb

Run. Run. Run.

2009-04-27T16:06:00.002-04:00

Well, so far I'm keeping up with my workout schedule. I'm doing my weight regimen with plenty of rest. I'm running three times a week. I'm pretty excited about sticking to this. Here's the breakdown:

Sunday: Chest/back/abs
Monday: Run
Tuesday: Squats (50), shoulders/biceps/triceps, ab work
Wednesday: Run
Thursday: Squats, lunges
Friday: Run, ab work
Satuday: Small hike in NH

One change I made is that I'm running in the morning before work. So yeah, I'm actually waking up earlier than usual for something that isn't quite fun. Plus, I shower at the gym...*shudders*. But the feeling of knowing you got a difficult workout out of the way is out of this world. It beats getting off work and knowing you have to spend an hour to hour and half working out and showering. Leaves time for the other wonderful mundate tasks of my work week routine.

Again, diet is still a toughie for me. Friday night, instead of going for Subway for a $5 footlong, I opted for Boston Market. Bad decision. The grease made me feel sick. Let's not even talk about the weekend. I know I might be a bit harsh on myself, but I aim for 100% adherence to my diet mainly because I know I would only achieve 70 - 80%. If I aim for 80%, I might only hit 50 - 60%. Hence, the bland healthy food during work. I know I won't eat as healthy at night and on the weekends, so I build insurance in. I work against my weakness. But anyway, with the consistent workouts and a critical eye on food, I've managed to lose quite a bit this week. Check it out for yourself.

Last weigh-in:
175.5 lb (on a Sunday!!)

Finally made it to the gym

2009-04-21T10:38:00.001-04:00

So I finally made it to the gym for my cardio sessions. Only did one last week, but for this week, I've already made it in once. I'm on track for my 2-3/week. Here's the breakdown:

Sunday: Chest/Back/Abs
Monday: None
Tuesday: Squats (50), lunges (25 each), shoulders/biceps/triceps
Wednesday: Run
Thursday: Lunges (25 each), squats (50), weighted squats (20, 20), weighted calf raises (60 total)
Friday: None
Saturday: None

I'm not sure if it's because of my ab routine, but I was able to run longer than usual without cramping up (that's how poor my cardio health is). But I thought I made a great effort on the first run. I went back last night and made even better progress. I'm pretty excited about running 2-3 times a week. Weights-wise, I'm still sticking to my 2-3 times a week. I stuck to that pretty well, except for the legs routine. Hope to change that as I go to the gym a bit more.

I made a change to the weight routine. I went from 10-lb dumbbells to 15-lb dumbbells (will drop reps from 15 to 10). My muscles can support it. It's just the shoulder I have to worry about. I'm also going to cut out the rotator-cuff exercises like I did with the diagonal raises. I've already determined that my injury is not muscle related, so I want to limit the stress my joint goes through. When the shoulder gets better, I'll add the exercises back in as a preventative measure. I'm going to feel out how the heavier weight feels. I might start a cycle where I lay off the weights for a week or two at a time to give it more rest. In the past, whenever I took a week or two off, I actually got stronger and didn't have to lower my weights when I went back to it.

Diet-wise, I'm still pretty bad at nights and weekends. I'm still eating breakfast and good snacks to keep my metabolism up, but some of the dinners I eat are not what I'd ideally eat. I'm good in terms of keeping my portions in check. I'm pretty good with keeping bad snacks out of my system, such as skipping snack size Butterfingers (85 calories!) or a stick of Twizzlers (35 calories) and going for a handful of low or no sodium nuts instead. I try to keep sugar to a minimum, which isn't so hard for me as I don't have a tremendous sweet tooth and I love my coffee black and sugar-free.

My weight is mostly constant, but what I'm curious about is my body fat. Haven't tested since the initial test, so I don't really have a good idea where I'm at. I do notice I'm a bit leaner and my clothes fit looser, but no hard numbers. Anyway, looking forward to a good week this week. Already at day three!

Last weigh-in:
177.5 lb

Dry steak??

2009-04-17T11:26:00.003-04:00

I went to Stockyard Restaurant in Brighton off of I90 the other week with some friends. I didn't pick it, but I always see it when I'm on the Pike, so I thought why not? I wasn't quite pleased with the experience.

The restaurant itself has a sort of charm to it. The interior was very woody and gives you a sense that it was around a while. Who knows, it might've been. We sat in the main dining room and there was a this huge bar in the middle. Very open. It took a while for us to get served. There was this larger set waiter that kept flying from table to table, and I was hoping he wouldn't be serving us. I was wrong. After managing to flag him down, he hastily took our order and rushed off. Our first impression of him was that he was either new or a very bad waiter. We mostly agreed on the latter.

I ordered a "Land and Sea" - 8-oz sirloin and three stuffed shrimp. As usual, I got my steak medium rare. We also ordered an appetizer sampler. The sampler was decent, but fatty appetizers tend to be good. Fat makes food tasty. Entrees came a bit later. My steak looked good, but I was very surprised to find that my steak was not seasoned at all. I'm used to places where the kitchen has seasoned the steak enough so that it complements the natural flavors. I very rarely use any other sauces/condiments on my steak, but this steak tasted like unseasoned beef. Salt and pepper kinda helped, but I maintained my no sauce on my steak rule (I probably should've given in to some A1). The steak was cooked right; warm red center. However, it was dry. I was stunned. How can a medium-rare steak be dry? That goes against all laws of nature for steak!! I know it was a sirloin, but come on, it was blood red! To top it off, one side of my steak had this tough chewy fat running along it. Great. On a good note, the broiled stuff shrimp was good. Again, fat makes things tasty. I had a baked potato, too, but you can't get that wrong. One of my friend's had this steak covered in this mushroom sauce. He liked his steak fine, but the sauce probably covered any deficiencies in the steak.

After dinner, we passed on dessert and got the check. The waiter deemed our party of six as large and added an 18% gratuity on the bill. When I got my credit slip, there was a line for "additional tip". I laughed at that. For what I paid, I could've went to Texas Roadhouse for a dependable tasty steak. It's a "No" to Stockyard.

Taking glucosamine now

2009-04-15T15:54:00.000-04:00

So, my shoulder is starting to feel better. I'm on the new weights schedule, and it's definitely enough rest for my body. Just not sure how severe my shoulder is, so I'm paying very close attention to it to see if I should stop the weights. Here's the breakdown:

Monday: Squats (50), lunges (25 each), Chest/Back/Abs
Tuesday: Calf raises (90)
Wednesday: Squats (50), Shoulders/Biceps/Triceps
Thursday: Calf raises (90)
Friday: Squats (50)
Saturday: None

I did manage to sign up for Planet Fitness. I just haven't gone yet. Haha. I do plan on going tonight for a quick cardio workout. Most likely a short treadmill workout. My diet is okay. Nights and weekends still are weak spots. But I'm pretty good at work in term so breakfast, lunch, and snacks. I'm missing my mark with the water, but I try to make up for it outside of work. I feel I am leaning out a bit, even without the cardio, but I'm sure the cardio will ramp it up a notch. Besides, I want the cardio to condition myself for the hiking I will be doing this summer.

I also started taking glucosamine three times a day. There are arguments for which one to take - glucosamine sulfate versus glucosamine hydrochloride. I solved that with a glucosamine complex with 300 mg of glucosamine sulfate and 200 mg of glucosamine HCL in each tablet. Three times daily makes it 1500 mg. Seems to be helping, but then again the progress in my shoulder could be from the rest I give it with my new weights schedule.

I really really want my shoulder to get better in a hurry so I can start some rock climbing. It's something I've always wanted to do. But I don't want to put any unnecessary stress on my shoulder until it's done. One of my friends who had a shoulder injury said it took him five months of no upper body training for his shoulder to recover from tendinitis. Yeesh... Like I said, I'm willing to stop the weights, but five months is a long time. We'll see how it goes.

Last weigh-in:
178.0 lb (on a Sunday too!)

Okay week...

2009-04-06T10:48:00.002-04:00

I definitely overworked my shoulders. But I did switch to a schedule that's not as intense and has more rest time. I didn't make it to Planet Fitness to sign up; I had a few dinners during the week and didn't feel like walking in before bedtime to sign up. Here's the breakdown:

Monday: Squats (50), lunges (25 each), BBS
Tuesday: Calf raises (90), counter pushups (30)
Wednesday: Squats (50), lunges (25 each), CTA
Thursday: Chest isometric (60), calf raises (90)
Friday: Squats (50)
Saturday: None
Sunday: None

I'm still doing mini-workouts for the legs. I did take out any upper body exercises except for BBS and CTA at home. This week I plan on splitting my workouts differently with some cardio at Planet Fitness (I know, I say this every week). If after this week, my shoulder still feels weird, then I will stop all upper body workouts till it heals.

I'm still doing fine with my eating habits. Trying hard to resist certain foods. I don't deprive myself, but I'm pretty good during work hours. After hours and on weekends, I try to be picky with what I eat, but allow myself not-so-good food in moderation. For example, I had some sushi with spicy mayo (gasp!), one Popeye's Cajun french fry (soooo good), and sugar-free non-fat frozen yogurt with peanut butter cups mixed in (sugar!!) on Friday night. So I try to cut when and where I can while allowing myself some guilty pleasure. Besides, I know once Monday hits, it's back to bland-food-city.

Last weigh-in:
179.0 lb

So...maybe it wasn't such a good idea after all...

2009-04-01T09:50:00.004-04:00

I've had my Acer Aspire One for a bit, and while I appreciate the ultra portability very much, I'm not quite satisfied. I don't miss the CD/DVD drive that much. I barely use it, but it does stink a bit not having one. The main thing I'm frustrated about is the performance.

At first, I thought performance wouldn't be an issue for me. I mean, I only use my machine at home to surf and play music/videos. Problem with that is that I multi-task and I'm impatient. When I surf, I have multiple tabs/windows open. Sometimes, I might even have music playing. When I click on a program to open, I expect it within 1-2 seconds. The Intel Atom chip just can't provide that performance. So, as much as I hate to say it, the Aspire One probably wasn't a good idea. I suppose it's great for a vacation computer. I did take it with me on my road trip. It was very nice to have a computer last 5 hours. It was very nice to have it be so portable. But when I'm at home, it's lacking.

Another thing with the Aspire One was a manufacturing design issue. They placed the HDD too close to the right speaker. There was an article online that certain songs played at full volume causes vibrations from the right speaker to affect the HDD. It can disturb the HDD to the point of permanent damage/data loss. Anyway, I think that kinda happened last Monday. Now, my machine is sluggish with certain actions. Songs and videos lag now too. I suppose it didn't help that I've dropped my Aspire One a couple times, though it was a short fall to carpet. Powering on and hibernating is taking longer now too. So my slow machine has become even slower.

Overall, I miss having a full-powered laptop. I really really like the Aspire One's portability, but for me it sacrificed just a bit too much. I'll be looking for a deal on a nice 13.1" or even another 14.1" laptop now. And with my luck, I will go for a Dell with a SquareTrade warranty (I'll probably put in a claim for my Aspire too) or a machine from Best Buy with an extended warranty. I don't believe in manufacturer's warranties anymore.

Need to change my workout schedule

2009-03-31T14:08:00.003-04:00

I'm breaking from my norm of posting my fitness updates on Mondays to write about my shoulder. After a tiring back, biceps, and shoulders (BBS) workout last night, I realized I may be overworking the shoulder during my so-called "rehab".

Reviewing my last few updates, the first thing you notice is that I am aiming for 3 BBS workouts and 3 CTA (chest, triceps, and abs) workouts per week. Guess which joint is used during all six workouts? Shoulder. In fact, during my rotator-cuff exercises, I still hear clicking on diagonal raises. During lying external rotations, I actually heard my right shoulder move; as in, I heard the ball of my humerus move in it's socket with each rep. Very scary.

So, after doing some quick research and thinking, I will be changing my workout schedule. To what exactly, I haven't yet determined, but I will be looking at 3-4 weight workouts a week instead of the 6 I'm doing now. I'm looking at an alternating one weight day, one off day program. With my plans of signing up for Planet Fitness again, this could be easily achieved with cardio on the off days. I just need to decide what schedule would work best for me. Here's the main two types I'm looking at:

Workout schedule A
Day 1: Chest/Back/Abs
Day 2: Cardio
Day 3: Shoulders/Arms/Abs
Day 4: Cardio
Day 5: Legs/Back/Abs
Day 6: Cardio
Day 7: Free day

Workout schedule B
Day 1: Chest/Triceps/Abs
Day 2: Cardio
Day 3: Back/Biceps/Shoulders/Abs
Day 4: Cardio
Day 5: Legs/Abs
Day 6: Cardio
Day 7: Free day

With both workouts, I hope to squeeze in a quick 15-20 minute cardio session at the end of weight days (with rowing for Legs days). But both schedules allow for quite some time of rest/recovery, and both only have one dedicated shoulders workout once a week. I think this is important, as my right shoulder is still recovering. In fact, I've read that the shoulders are a small muscle group and it's important that I don't overwork it. Especially since the shoulders are part of nearly every upper body workout. I've also read that I won't need super high weights to challenge the shoulder. High reps and good form should do the trick. So even 45-lb dumbbells for the shoulder press should be good (when I work up to that anyway).

Since I did BBS last night, I'll try for some type of cardio, then do CTA on Wednesday. I'll follow up with a cardio day and cap the work week with a Legs workout. Next week, I'll probably go for Workout schedule A. The scheduling is more in tune with P90x, so it should prep my body for that in May (my target for starting P90x). I might start taking some glucosamine sulfate for the shoulder too. We'll see.

Last weigh-in:
178.0 lb (See what I mean about doing better on the work week?)