One Man's Battle

Insanity Workout Day 12 - Cardio Power

2012-01-27T07:08:00.001-08:00

Day 12 is in the books. Lots of jumping and hopping and push ups. Still not able to keep up 100% of the time, but each day I'm feeling stronger, and know that I am accomplishing something bigger than a 45 minute workout. This is about life change, and moving towards one of my life goals before I turn 50 in17 months.

I have to say that i breathe heavy and sweat a lot. But, I love the feeling I have right now when the workout is over and your body goes into relax mode. If this is Insanity, I am loving being insane.

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Insanity Workout Day 11 - Recovery

2012-01-27T07:00:00.001-08:00

Just what I needed. End of day yesterday my knees where sore again and I was a bit draggy. To only stretch and do some deep muscle work was a perfect switch from the cardio killer workouts the rest of the time. I couldn't stay with the squats or lunges the whole time, but am seeing overall progress in my fitness level. Also down 6 lbs which is really nice. If I keep that up I will be ahead of schedule for where I want to be mid summer. Making this the first thing in my day has been assuring that it gets done. Lesson learned, put first things first.

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Insanity Workout Day 10 -Cardio Circut

2012-01-25T07:04:00.001-08:00

I woke up today thinking it was the recover cardio day. All day yesterday my knees hurt from the jumping, I felt tired, and I was wanting something that sounded easy. Easy being "Recover." foolish I know, because the recover DVD was anything but easy last week. However, when I pulled out my calendar, imagine my surprise when it said circuit instead. My initial thought was "No Way! ". So reluctantly I put it, put on my shoes and hit the play button. I was amazed as I made it all the way through the three cycles of warm ups. I may not of matched their speed, but I made it through the routines without pulling out. The rest of the work out I pushed hard to complete. When it came to the arms I could make it through the first interval ok, but after that I needed the breaks. All and all this was my best day yet. I am smiling, sweating, and looking forward to a day of challenges. No that is Insanity for me.

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Insanity Workout Day 9 - Pure Cardio

2012-01-24T07:15:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure if it is because I am waking up earlier than normal, or if it just the normal signs of aging, but I missed a few obvious things that occur with insanity. First off, the DVDs do not rotate in order. Week #1 did, but not week #2. So not only am I working my body, I have to work my mind too. Second, just because the video says Pure Cardio and Cardio Abs, doesn't mean you've done both. You'll have to go back to the main menu and hit play again. All that to say, I may have done the wrong workout yesterday, regardless, I did something related to Cardio.

So today I didn't feel as strong, the arch in my right foot was burning during the warm up and stretching, and I felt twinges of pain in both knees during different jumping phases of the video. I needed to take breaks and did, and let myself not feel bad for not being able to keep up or. Complete each exercise. I keep telling myself that even doing one exercise is better than what I was doing two weeks ago. It just feels good to sweat. The time seems to fly by with these videos as compared with others I've done. I'm not sure why that is, but will give it some thought. Time to get ready for work.

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Insanity Workout Day 8

2012-01-23T07:04:00.001-08:00

Start of week 2. Felt stronger and lasted longer. Muscles not as sore. I also am sweating more and able to pay closer attention to what Shaun is saying. The power jumps and globe jumps are killer. I think I hit pause after both of them the second time. Good thing they are not in the same grouping. Waiting for tomorrow.

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Insanity Workout day 6 - feeling stronger

2012-01-21T09:20:00.001-08:00

Day 6 and back to the Cardio Circuit workout. What a difference doing a few of the workouts make. You know the routine, you know what's coming next, and your not surprised by your body yell stop!

Best part of today was I was able to push longer and a bit harder. I am now looking forward to the after glow, when my body keeps sweating and feels relaxed following the workout. Tomorrow is my first rest day, day 7. One week down 8 weeks to go. I'm liking it, sounds insane coming from me. Enjoy your day.

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Insanity Workout Day 5 - Pure Cardio

2012-01-20T06:55:00.001-08:00

Day 5 is in the books, and while I still needed to take more breaks than those on the video, I feel like I was capable of doing more today, and I'm smiling after the workout rather than trying to get up off the ground. Best reward in the first week, my daughter asked if I was losing weight. She said my face looked thinner. I'll take that as a visible result. She doesn't know I'm doing Insanity. Only my wife is aware and those of you reading this. My encouragement to anyone just starting, push through the sore muscles, the discouragement of not being able to stay up, and recognize the small gains each day.

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Insanity Workout day 4 - Cardio Recovery

2012-01-19T06:55:00.001-08:00

I'm sweating like a dog after the recovery day. What's wrong with that picture? This was a much need day of moving a little slower, and really stretching everything out. Even still I had to modify to get all the way through it. I only have 59 days left to complete the first circuit. My body is all ready starting to have more energy, and I am a lot more relaxed at work. The only thing killing me is the 5:30 wake up time. Here's to staying with it.

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Insanity Workout - Day 3

2012-01-18T06:52:00.001-08:00

Let's just say it kicked my ass. Shaun T is an animal.

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Insanity Workout Day Two

2012-01-17T06:51:00.001-08:00

It's dark outside as my alarm wakes me up. I can feel the ache in my left hamstring from yesterday. The voice inside my head asks, "what are you doing?". I lay there a few seconds longer and I answer, "I am ensuring a fit life for myself,". With that I drag my sorry self down stairs and subject myself to 41 minutes of Plyometric Cardio. When the warm up circuit kills you it means trouble. My word for the day was modify. No way could I do it all, so I didn't. I pushed when I could, slowed the pace when I needed and rested when I had to. 15 minutes later I am still sweating and feeling that great glow. Only 61 days left. Here's to a better, stronger, fitter, me. You should try it.

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Insanity Workout Day One

2012-01-16T06:48:00.001-08:00

I slowly came to life as my alarm started ringing at 5:30. Could it really be morning already? I jumped on the scale to check my starting weight. I was a good 16 pounds lighter than a year when I started P90X. As I laced on my shoes and put in the DVD for the fitness test I was feeling a bit nervous. As I hit play and started the warm ups I knew this would be a challenge. Switch kicks, power knees, suicide jumps, all quickly sucked the life out if me. I could not complete the cool down as I was completely spent. They say 60 days to a better me. Here is to 1 days and a few more to go. It won't be easy

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Insanity

2012-01-14T11:40:00.001-08:00

Last week I was thinking through my plan to live a healthy life. I realized I have slid back into a less than healthy lifestyle. Chips, ice cream and diet coke have replaced the fruit, veggies and water that I made apart of my life for the previous seven months.

Last year I did P90X with great results. Having tired of that work out I ordered Insanity. It arrived today. Reading through it I have to decide if I want to follow their diet or develop my own. I am dreading the initial soreness, but excited about where I might be six months from now.

Darla wants to climb Mt. Hood in a year and a half, and my goal is to beat her to the top. First up, the fitness test.

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It's You're Life

2012-01-14T09:57:00.001-08:00

I came across a picture today that really sums up my thinking this last week. As I have been wrestling with who I am and how I want to live my life, I continue to come face to face with my need to own my own stuff. Who would have thought an ad campaign for a clothing company would speak into my life. But, I was struck. The company is Holstee click on the name to learn more. They wanted to do more than sell clothing, the wanted to promote a lifestyle.

Here is the picture. Let me know your thoughts. As always, I am trying to take time to take a Deep Look Inward.

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Looking into the Mirror

2012-01-08T20:34:00.001-08:00

"The most difficult phase of life is not when no one understands you, it is when you don't understand yourself" ~Anonymous

Over the last few weeks I have been spending a bit of time in personal reflection. The problem is the more I look into the mirror, the less I like what I see. In the past if that would happen I would simply shut my eyes and move on. However, that is not working so well for me these days. So I am back to taking a deep look inward after taking a bit of time off. Only this time I am likely to go deeper and battle more, than ever before. It is starting with the simple truth that the only one truly responsible for who I am, who I've become, is me. The devil didn't make me do it, my parents didn't force me, each step that brought me to this point and time, good or bad, was a step, a choice, a decision I made. I am responsible for all the good, bad and ugly. And, from that step of taking responsibility for me, I will look into the mirror, embrace the good, change the bad, and work towards beauty. Time to go look at my reflection.

Self Care

2011-11-12T14:57:00.001-08:00

Recently I have been considering the idea of Self Care. For most of my life I would have considered self care to be selfish or self serving. For some, depending on the home they grew up in, it might even be considered as sinful. However, in this fast paced, life draining world that we live in, a world that wants more from you in every way, we must find ways to some how nurture ourselves.

The act of finding space to rejuvenate, to focus on what personally is needed to be restored, to breathe and feel, I believe is the start of self care. Without a focus on ourselves and what is personally needed to continue growing and thriving, we cease to exist. We might occupy space and be present, but we cease to be an individual who is able to contribute based on the uniqueness that each one of us brings. Today as I allow myself to relax and just enjoy a day of doing nothing more than what I want and desire, I am caring for myself. At some level it seems wrong for me to focus on me, but at the same time I feel better because of it.

If as you read this you find that you have no idea what you might need or want (I can identify), take a look at this list of 100 Extreme Self Care Ideas that I found. Pick one or two and see what kind of difference it make. Sometimes the battle is just to take care of yourself.

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Playing the Game

2011-08-04T07:40:00.001-07:00

We've done it! Darla and i have finally accomplished our goal of paying off our cars. It feels great to not have a payment, to know you are capable of doing what you set out to do. So how do we want to celebrate? By buying a car of course.

Two nights ago Darla and I were driving past car lots in Beaverton when we drove past a shinny, gray, convertible. If you have read any of my past blogs you know I have always wanted a Circle Car. A Circle car is of course a car with a circle emblem. Audi's, BMW's, Mercedes are all circle cars. We circled back to see what it was. I have been secretly wanting a Mercedes SLK350 convertible, or an Audi convertible. What we saw was something I had not considered. Pulling into the lot I came face to face with a Nissan 350Z convertible roadster. It was used, but i was definitely intrigued. To my surprise Nissan is a circle car. I walked around it once, I walked around again. The lines of the car were beautiful. Darla, smiling at me said, you have to drive it. As I was about to go in, the sales guy came out, and that is when the game began.

Abdul came towards me with a huge smile, "You like, it's a beauty." he sensed he had a fish on the line, and that fish was me. The car had only just gotten to the lot a few days before, it was sure to go fast. He went to get the keys and Darla parked our car. As Darla got in the 350Z there were the comments on how much nicer the car looked with her in it. I of course was thankful it was only a two seater and only Darla and I could fit. As I turned the key the engine roared to life. Abdul said something about a high performance package and we drove off. Wow, wind in my hair, power in my hands, and smile on my face. We zipped around turns, exploded off the line with each green light, then we started to recognize the rattles and squeaks that come with a used car. Returning to the lot I explained to Abdul that while I liked it, this was not the car. He then smiled even bigger and said he had two brand new ones out back that were only $3000 more. Like lambs to the slaughter we followed. It was white with a black top. 6 speed automatic, a 370Z convertible. This was a driving experience. Darla and I giggled as we drove. I envisioned a race track as I worked through the gears. No rattles, no squeaks, this could be it. Back to the lot, and it was time to be reeled in.

Abdul was waiting, he could tell "we liked." As we walked back in, he said, "which do you like better, the black or the white?" "The white one of course," came rolling of my lips. "Cash, or do you want me to finance for you?" He was good, leading me right down the path towards a close. I new the next question would be, how can we help you take this car home tonight, and on cue, that is what came out of Abdul's mouth. I gave him my, this is the first stop, we weren't planning tonight response, and let him know I was interested in what it would cost me monthly. Yep, I gave away the first point. Abdul now knows I don't care how much the car costs, only what the payment will be. And, Abdul zeros in, "What are you hoping for?" My reply was the simple, not sure just wanting a ball park. We gave him the stuff he needed and then he brought out Corry, the finance guy.

If Abdul was good, Corry was better. He was smooth and calculating. He didn't mind those long periods of silence designed to make you sweat and give in. He once again started to work on our monthly range, and got us to bite. He wasn't sure if he could swing it but he would try. He came back with numbers and term lengths. Darla was firm, she was set on the amount and no more than 72 months. Corry left to talk to the unseen manager to see what he could do. Back again, but still not at our spot. It was then that we noticed we were working with a higher price for the car then the one Abdul quoted. We were told that was a special price that ended on July 31, we just missed it, bummer. He went to see once again if they could flex, and again came back a little closer. Would we go with 78, or 80 month terms? We were only $24 per month off that way. We said no, and that we would be more excited to be $24 off in our favor. We got up, thanked them for their time, and headed back to the car.

Yesterday morning I got on line and was surprised to see the very car, listed at the price Abdul originally gave us. I sent a quick email to Abdul and told him how close we had been, and if the had used the right starting price we would have bought last night. I also said but since the had been willing to drop $5k off the price we were negotiating last night I might come in for a $4k reduction off the current price. Last night, Scott the sales manager left me a message stating he had good news. I'll call today to see what the news is. What a Game.

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Dreaming Away

2011-06-28T22:50:00.001-07:00

Sometimes the battle isn't to lose weight, or to get stronger, sometimes it's about doing your best to stay engaged. To stay engaged in relationship, to stay engaged in the job, to stay in community, to stay with the task. At times I find myself thinking more about change, maybe a new car, a new house, a new place to live. Perhaps it's a new job. The battle is about staying with it at times.

Sure dreaming is good. It can actually help spur on creativity and new ideas. But it can also be dangerous, causing you to check out, to disengage, to loose focus because your focus has shifted. I'm not sure how to fight it, or even if I should. I think it is most important to just acknowledge it and the impact it can have. For me dreaming is part of living. But living also has to do with sticking with it when things get hard or tough. Today however, I am dreaming of the warm beach, of winning the lottery, and of new challenging adventures. Tomorrow, I will be back at work Battling On.

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Dog Mountain on Fathers Day

2011-06-20T08:00:00.001-07:00

At ten O'clock we converge on the Dog Mountain trail head. By we I mean the Samuelson family. Some of us have boots, others have running shoes, and a few are in sandals. We have water, cameras, jackets, and energy. From the minute we hit the trail it is almost straight up. We are heading 3 miles to the top. Derek keeps telling us the easy stuff is ahead. As we keep going I become more and more out of breathe, my calves start to burn, and I start asking if it is really worth it. At a split in the trail we are given a choice. We can go a shorter more difficult path, or an easier, longer route. Of course, we go shorter. As I look up I see Gray running up the incline. there is no questioning the beauty of this hike. I am in awe of the trees and under growth. The wind is blowing in the trees and the sound is amazing.

Making one last push, we come into a clearing and all the pain is forgotten. It doesn't matter that you would have gone the less difficult route. You are here. The jackets come out as the wind blows. You watch the clouds race by. And you are taken in by the view, the accomplishment, by the wonder of nature. As you look around you see smiles and you enjoy a break from walking. We have climbed over 2800 feet in elevation to get here. We have walked for two hours. And, as you look at everything around you it doesn't matter.

We slowly start back down. Now the legs start to hurt in a different way. The knees scream, the steps jar. But the destination is more than the bottom and the seat of the car, it is Walking Man Pub. It is food and an icy beer that I am hiking down for. As we sit and recount the hike we are tired, relaxed, and glad for the time spent together outside in Oregon. Happy Fathers Day to each of you.

The Mind as it Relates to the Battle

2011-06-07T21:51:00.000-07:00

Tonight as I sit here thinking about life, I come back to the realization that the battle is all in the mind. Win there and you have won.

Some times the battle ends in death

2011-06-06T22:01:00.000-07:00

I recently had my 48th birthday. We hung out as a family, did some hiking, and had a small party. Throughout the day, I found myself thinking that I might be closer to the end of the race then the beginning. It wasn't a depressing or morbid thought, it was just looking realistically at life. We only circle the sun so many times, take so many breaths, have our hearts beat so many times. The real question is what are you doing with the time you have.

As I jumped on facebook today, I came across a post from my cousin Jill. After a short battle my Grandpa Louie has passed away. My cousin had this to say:

The world lost an amazing man today. A missionary, a lovely person, a very wise man, loving, caring, extremely smart, Knowledgeable in many languages, teacher of many things...love of my grandmas life...our grandpa. He went to be with God today: he waited until he made sure Grandma was settled in to their new living center and getting used to her new surroundings. We will all miss him and his presence. ♥

For Grandpa Louie he made the most of his time, and those who knew him were different as a result. Even so, his battle ended the way all of our battles will end. Make the most of the time you have. We don't know how much of it we have.

P90X - Day 60

2011-03-06T00:13:00.000-08:00

Sixty days of P90X are in the books. I have faithfully been at it everyday with the exception of 1. But I made it up by working out twice the next day. I have been sore, at times discouraged, but mostly I have felt great about myself. I debated about putting pictures up on this page do to embarrassment of how out of control I had gotten. Yet on the other hand I have worked hard for two months and have some great results to show. So take a look at what can be accomplished when you "Do Your Best, and Forget the Rest." Thirty days left and there is no way I won't make it to the end.

P90X - Day 46

2011-02-19T11:21:00.000-08:00

I want to stay true to the intent of this blog. My goal way back when it started was to talk about try to find a way to live healthy in an unhealthy world. A world that is constantly tempting you to take a short cut to happiness, health and wellness, and yet continues to produce more and more people who live unhealthy lives. Over the last 4 years I have made many great starts towards a healthy live style. I have also blown it and given in to the many messages around me. As a result i have yo-yo'd up and down with weight. I have been bordering on being diabetic, I have joined the ranks of those taking blood pressure medicine, and have like so many, resigned to the lie, that this is how life is going to be. Well no more.

This blog is about the battle. The biggest battle is the one I have with myself. I am determined to win this battle, to regain my life, and to start living the way I was meant to live. With that in mind, I started P90X back on January 5th. It is now February 19th and I just completed day 46 of the 90 day workout. While I am lossing weight, and changing the way my body looks, I am learning so much more. I am learning that by working hard I can change the direction things are going in my life. I am talking about more than health and fitness. I am learning that when I feel good about myself it has a direct impact on my job performance and my relationships. I am realizing that I do have the strength to stick with something and am determined to see it through to its completion. I am in my 7th week of P90X. I have lost 26 lbs. I feel like I am finally doing something important for myself that will reap life long consequences. This is all about becoming the best me I can be. I was looking at the pictures of me on the header at the top of this page. The picture on the far right is from me in April of '07. I had gotten down to 211 pounds. This morning I was 210 lbs. The difference is that I have been converting fat to muscle, so my build is much better today than it was when I was 43. I am starting to realize my dream of being in better shape when I hit 50 (yes, 2 and a half years away) than I was at 30. I am trying to decide if I will do another round of P90X after I finish in April, or if I will start training for a Marathon. My goal is to develop a life style of health, wellness, and fitness, that will carry me through the rest of my life. I am well on my way to winning this battle.

P90X - Day 39

2011-02-12T11:24:00.000-08:00

I am 39 days into P90X and starting to see some big changes. Over the first 3 weeks I dropped 15 pounds, but then have been stuck at 216lbs ever since. My wife keeps telling me not to let the scale be the determining factor, but I can't seem to break free from it. I was feeling a bit discouraged, realizing I was building muscle, that weighs more than the fat I was losing, but still discouraged. At day 30 I took the second set of pictures. While I didn't see a flat stomach and six pack abs, I did see that I was slimming down a little. I also noticed that there was some muscle definition replacing some of the sag. My chest was starting to look a little more like the chest I remembered in days gone by (still a long way to go). the start of this week I heard Tony H talking about '"Bring it," once again. Only this time I told myself, I am going to make sure I am drained at the end of my workouts. My muscles haven't really been sore since the third week, so I thought, turn up the intensity, do more, push harder, but be smart about it. As a result, I felt like I was going to throw up after finishing twice this week, looking in the mirror, there is even more definition. To top it all off, this morning I was 209. That means I am 27 pounds lighter than I was January first and 22 pounds less than when I started P90X. I am no longer among the obese, just at the high end of overweight. More than anything, I have maintained a fitness lifestyle for 39 straight days. Kind of amazing for a couch potato like me. I have just finished yoga, still can't do it all, but am doing a lot more than the first time round. I continue to wonder what I will do to continue this lifestyle when I complete the first go around of P90X. Maybe start again and work to get in even better shape. My future goal continues to be clear, to hit my 50's in better physically, spiritually, emotionally, and relationally, than I hit my 30's. At this point I am 39 days into my plan to get there. My your battle go well for you.

P90X Day 33 - Starting to see the difference

2011-02-06T11:10:00.000-08:00

I'm just over a month into the program. I've been sweating, I've been jumping, I've been doing push ups, and using bands (instead up pull ups). I also have been modifying the routines, taking breaks, doing my best and forgetting the rest. I have been stuck at 215 pounds for a week, but my kids and wife tell me they are noticing the changes. I can tell you I am feeling better about who I am as a person, my outlook on life is changing and I am excited about the future. Today I looked at my pictures I took on day one and compared them to day 31 (yes I was a day late). Guess what, there is change. Muscles are starting to show up, the man boobs are not as pronounced, the waist is starting to look different. There is a long ways to go, but I am definitely on my way.

My question now is how will I sustain this as a life style change. I don't think I will be able to do extreme workouts 6 days a week for the long haul, but how will I continue with what I have started? One thing I have been thinking about is my long term goals, and I have finally defined it in a nice little statement. "I will enter into my 50's better physically, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually than I entered into my 30's." I am currently 47 and a few months from 48, so I have time to work on this goal. I am currently working on my physical and emotional state of being. These impact my relationships and where I am spiritually. As I make progress physically with P90X, it is opening the door for growth in the other areas as well.

I can't wait for these next 4 weeks to fly by and hit the 60 day mark. I am excited about what is happening to me both outwardly and inwardly. My your battle go well.

P90X Day 28 - Still at it

2011-01-30T07:35:00.000-08:00

Yep - I am still at it 28 days later. Its a Sunday, I pulled the short straw and am weekend manager so it is up at 5:30am. So far so good. I am almost through the recovery week and the change of pace is welcome. Week three was the toughest so far. My muscles just seemed tired. Everything was harder to do. But I am motivated to keep it going. I am down 15 pounds which is a great motivator. Two more pounds and I am no longer Obese, just overweight. I guess I should cheer. Only 45 more ponds to go. I am beginning to notice changes in my body. Little definition here, less of a bulge there. I keep telling myself time is my friend. As I am thinking about the process of getting to the point I am at, and were I want to get back to, I realize my real goal is to develop a sustainable strategy of eating and exercise that I can carry on throughout life. I have two and a half years before I hit 50 (scary thought), and my goal is to hit 50 in better shape than I hit 30. That means consistent exercise, healthy eating, solid relationships, and meaningful work. At this point, P90X is a key part in getting were I want to be in life. I'll keep you posted on the battle.