359: Body Weight Workout, and Cheering for Team Mates

Body Weight 60X60s	Set 1	Set 2	Set 3	Total Reps
Squat	28	36	27	91
Lunge Lt	24	25	24	73
Lunge Rt	17	20	18	55
Row, Gr Band	38	43	45	126
Push up, Mod	40	30	24	94
Crunch	33	35	31	99
Bench Dips	18	20	20	58

HTML Tables

I am stuck at a weight plateau. I've been at 263 for weeks now. It doesn't make much sense to me, since I'm running consistently, and eating pretty well, I think. Melissa from the Y suggested that I workout more often and mix up my program and diet to shock my system out of balance. I've decided to eat more, smaller meals, and spend more time on strength training, especially body-weight training at home.

Today, I tried a workout based on one of the beginner plans from The New Rules of Lifting. The author, Lou Schuler suggests that you really should master these moves with body weight before you get too serious about weight lifting with them. Makes sense. Not much point in bench pressing 75 pounds when you can't even do a push up yet. I've been doing most of these for some time, now, but I want to come up with a workout I can do at home with the equipment I have on hand: my body; a yoga mat, straps, and blocks; some resistance tubes; a big yellow inflatable ball; and a couple of those springy things that are supposed to give you a grip of steel and forearms like Popeye. I wanted to challenge myself, so rather than setting a number of reps to complete, I set 1 minute intervals on my watch and tried to see how many reps I could complete in that period of time. I moved down the circuit, completing one set of each exercise, with one minute to rest between sets. When I finished the last exercise, (Dips, in this case) I took a two minute rest, then went back up to the beginning again. The whole workout took 45 minutes and set a bench mark I can use to compete with myself. I'll try to better these totals next time.


I learned one surprising thing. My balance is much better when I lunge with my left leg than it is when I put my right leg forward. I have a feeling this has something to do with the way I'm using my upper body. It seems to improve when I clench my butt, but I can also get a lot more reps out with my left leg. I'll talk to the trainers at the Y on Wednesday and see what they think.


One thing that did not surprise me is that my upper body is weak. I still have to do those modified push ups with my knees down on the floor, and I wasn't able to do bench dips for the full 60 seconds at all. Some of this is because of my weakened shoulder, but I've never been very macho in my arms and chest. Building strength and endurance up top will help my running by helping me to maintain my form when I start to fatigue, so it's valuable to my training. Plus, big bulging arms will make me even more arousing to Mrs P. 

Pennsy, Pam, Clare, Ladonna, Shelia,
Lynne, Jake, and Melissa

I went to a 5K today. I didn't run, but I cheered on some good friends. Most of my group from LIVESTRONG at the YMCA ran in the race. I am recovering from yesterday's long run, so I didn't join them on the course, but I did cheer them on at the start and the finish. In between, Jake, Clare, and I walked a couple of laps around the dog park. One of my team mates is training to run the LIVESTRONG half-marathon in Austin next spring, so she ran and she finished before the rest of the group who were walking. She did great, and looked fantastic after a hard, HOT 3.1 miles. The rest of the team finished together, including Coach Melissa. They walked across the finish line proudly in their black and yellow "Survivor" tee-shirts. We all posed for this sweaty photo after the race. I am really coming to love these people. We are each on our own journey, but we share this victory: cancer tried to take us, and we wouldn't go. A lot of people lose that battle. We are the lucky ones. And we are determined to pass our message of hope and health on to as many people as will listen. We aren't just surviving. We're LIVING STRONG! And so can YOU!


Peace,
Pennsy

Pennsy and his ugly friend from Markey

The One for the Five project is going great! More than $650 raised as of this writing. You can help sponsor my first half-marathon, and support the work of the Markey Cancer Center by clicking this link, or by handing me a check made out to the Markey Cancer Center. You write the check. I'll run the miles!

#355: Under the Weights, In the Water, and On the Boards

For most of my life, "muscle confusion" meant muscles asking, "hey, why are we moving all of a sudden?" Now, that I'm running, my muscles are more likely to ask, "hey, are you just going to sit there typing all day?"

Muscle confusion is a popular trend in training based on the principle that your body adapts very quickly to stress. If you do the same exercise over and over, your body learns to perform it more efficiently, and it has less and less of an effect on your growth. Eventually, you hit the dreaded "plateau" where you're doing everything right - eating clean, running long, sleeping deep, lifting heavy - but you don't lose weight, you don't get any faster, and you can't pull that new, heavier dead lift. You're stuck. How to get unstuck? Try cross training.

That's what they tell me, anyway.

Elliptical trainer

Since starting LIVESTRONG at the YMCA, I've been doing all kinds of cool stuff. The trainers have me doing cardio on the elliptical machine. That's cool, because it works my legs in a very different way than running does, and gives me a workout without interfering with the recovery day between runs that is so important to my old joints. I liked the machines at my first gym, Promatx, because they seemed to have a nice long stride that fit my legs. Many of the other machines I've tried seem to have shorter steps that make it a little harder for me to keep my balance. It took me a while to find a setting that let me work the foot pads without bumping up and down, but I think I've finally got it down. The elliptical is a funny machine. It's easy to fake it... lots of people watch TV or even read while they're working out. On the other hand, if you set an aggressive goal like maintaining a high pace or heart rate, you can really break a good sweat on the thing without banging your knees and hips. Sure, I'd rather  be running, but working those big muscles in the legs and butt, as well as the big one inside your chest, can only help when it's time to hit the road again.

Chest Press machine

I've never been a big fan of the weight machines, I find them restrictive and a little boring compared to free weights. On the other hand, when a group is training together, like we do, it's a lot easier for the trainers if we're all on machines that are easy to teach, easy to execute, and easy to adjust. Carrie and Melissa, our trainers at the Y, have designed a program for me that emphasizes balance between upper and lower body. My legs are pretty strong thanks to the running and the amount of weight they got used to carrying around on a daily basis for so many years. My upper body is much weaker. During radiation, I lost a lot of muscle mass in my shoulders and chest. I've never been very macho at the pull-ups/dips/push-ups stuff anyway. Hard for those little arms to haul that great big bottom around. The other thing that wants attention in my upper body workouts is my right shoulder. The nerves and muscle the docs had to remove around my tumor has given me a very limited range of motion in that joint. We're working very gently with very light weight to make the muscles that are left stronger so they can compensate for what's missing. It's pretty stiff and sore a lot of the time, but I'm going to keep working on it. I lose a lot of value around the house if I can't reach the top shelves anymore.

Dormont Pool, Dormont PA

Then there's swimming. I haven't been in the pool for a long time.  I remember swimming on a regular basis at Westminster, when we had to pass a swimming class as an all college requirement. From the time I was a child, swimming was considered a skill that everyone was just supposed to have. Not that I ever expected to be adrift at sea, but if I were, I'd be able to cope. I remember reading about JFK's long night swimming miles to save his crew from the PT-109. I'm no Mark Spitz, but were I on Tom Hanks' raft, I could have saved Wilson. We went to Dormont Pool all summer, back when summer actually lasted three months but felt like 10 years. All of us took swimming lessons starting with putting your face in six inches of water and finishing with lifesaving training over at the deep end. Swimming was a given. As I grew older, I swam less and less. I splashed around in the ocean a couple of times. One summer, Jim Ripper and I paddled across Lake Chautauqua. On my first tour with the National Shakespeare Company, we managed to swim in all five great lakes. Huron is surprisingly cold, even in August, by the way. But I've never been a lap swimmer. I found it too tiring and a little bit lonesome. That black line down the middle of the lane was just never enough scenery to hold my interest. Of course there was the biggest obstacle of all. When you're 200 pounds overweight, swimming trunks just aren't your best look.

Bemus Point on Lake Chautauqua, NY

So, there were a lot of things keeping me out of the water, but after a long sweaty workout, that pool at the Y just looked too good. I went to Meijer and found trunks on the clearance rack, then bought myself a pair of those weird little goggles. The good thing about swimming is there is a lot less tempting gear to by. Running culture is full of garments and gadgets that sneak up on you, once you're hooked on a sport that is only supposed to require a tee-shirt and sneakers. I already have a watch to count laps, and don't feel the need to wear a little rubber cap, so  my swimming spending was pretty much done. I was ready to give it a try.

I got to the pool about an hour before class. I took my shiny new suit and goggles out of my bag and padded naked to the shower. Even though the pool is chlorinated enough to take coffee stains out of a white shirt, it just seems like common courtesy to me to rinse off before jumping in. I pulled my trunks on and tightened the drawstring, then put the black goggle thingies over my forehead like I'd seen them do in the Olympics. I realized that I had never worn these things in my life, and wondered how stupid and bug-eyed I looked. Then came the few steps to the door, and out onto the tile pool deck.

Fat Man Swimming

The pool is inside, but there are huge windows on one end of the room. You can see the sun and the grass. The Legacy trail crossed at the far side of the field, so you can see runners and bikers knocking out miles in the sun. The pool is 25 meters long, and during the afternoon there are two lanes designated for lap swimming. The rest of the pool is for summer camp kids who laugh and splash and dunk each other: stuff kids have been doing in the water ever since our ancestors crawled out of it, I guess. I put my goggles over my eyes, jumped into the shallow end and got three surprises. First, the water is warm. Like bath-water warm. Those big windows produce a greenhouse effect that I hope is as effective in the winter as it is now.Then there was the depth. It's only three feet deep. Sure, the water slows you down, but you're still jumping down onto a concrete surface in your bare feet. It's a little jarring. Finally, there were those goggles. Remember how afraid I was that I might look foolish in them? That issue was settled when I splashed into the water and they flew up off my face, twisting crazily around my head. I looked around to make sure nobody saw how stupid I was, and then pulled the little cups back over my eyes. Then I took a deep breath, turned my back to the side, and pushed off down the lane.

I tried out all the strokes I learned as a kid. The breast stroke was always my favorite. I swam it smoothly and slowly, pleased with the way my body slid through the water. The elementary backstroke was probably the second one that my dad taught me, and I always liked it because you could see the sky while you swam. The side-stroke and the front and back crawl strokes were not so successful. They all require a degree of shoulder rotation that I just don't have anymore. So I stuck with the wide, underwater arm strokes. Nobody is going to confuse me with a competitive swimmer, but I do go forward instead of downward, so that's a plus. As I grew more comfortable in the water, I made my strokes a little longer, pulled the water a little harder. I could feel my sides and back working to move me along. Before I knew it, I had  been swimming for 20 minutes. My heart is strong, my breath was even, and my muscles felt energized. I popped into the sauna for a couple minutes, then went back to the locker room. After spinning the water out of my suit at the extractor, I rinsed some of the chlorine off in the shower and padded back to my locker. How about that? I just went swimming!

I think it's a great way to train between runs. Swimming is the lowest impact exercise I can imagine, and there's no question that it's a full body workout. You don't sweat. You don't get blisters. I won't say I enjoy it as much as a run in the woods, but I do like the sound of the water as I move along through it. It's good to be back in the water in a body that can actually move through it without gasping for air.

Tonight, I'm doing the Midsummer Night's Run 5K downtown. I'll be running with some friends, which will be a new experience for me. I'm usually a loner. The forecast is for fairly mild temperatures today, which means less than 100 degrees lately. It should be pretty pleasant by the time the gun fires at 8:30. Mrs P will be there, and Mum is going to see me run for the first time... first time ever, I think. I don't usually think about spectators when I run, but knowing she'll be there cheering me on makes this one kind of special. Not going for any PR tonight. Just a nice run with some nice folks.

Click the poster for info and tickets

My cast moved today's rehearsal so I could get out in time to run. They are so generous and kind to me. It just makes me want to work that much harder. I know I promised to blog more about the rehearsal process, but I've been pretty distracted lately. I'll try to fill in the blanks in the next few days, but in the meantime, just know that End Days is going great. The show is dangerously close to being really special. Actors' Guild's last show was completely sold out before opening night. Don't get closed out of this one. I hope you'll come see it if you're near Lexington.

Peace,
Pennsy

#334: Faster and Fitter Than Ever

Part of the beauty of being a new runner is that you can make progress in such big chunks. I ran the Legacy Loop 5K in 35:41. That's more than a minute and a half faster than my previous best from last week. Of course, it was also about 20 degrees cooler. It was nice to run three sub 12:00 splits. Ran the whole race using 1:45/0:30 second intervals. By staying patient and sticking to that discipline, I was able to keep my strength for the whole race. At around 2 miles, I encountered a woman who appeared to be about my age. We jockeyed back and forth for a while, then I finally settled in beside her and we ran together for the last mile. We even chatted back and forth. Amazing for me to be able to run 3 miles and still be able to carry on a conversation. The race finished inside the baseball park, at home plate. I was able to run strong all the way around the warning track. I finished a couple of seconds ahead of my partner, after I took a few breaths, I looked over my shoulder and we smiled at one another. We had both run a good race.

That was Saturday. Today is Monday, and I couldn't wait to get back on the road. good thing, too. It's going to be a hot one. An early morning run is the best way to beat that. I was awake at 7:00, grabbed a SlimFast for breakfast, and read the news. At around 8:00, with the temperature at 70 degrees, I hit the street. This was a new route for me. Lots of shade, some rolling road, and a short span where there was no sidewalk. Real road running. I encountered lots of folks out for their morning constitution, run, or dog walk. Even saw a little girl zooming around on her Razor scooter! Only one glitch: as I said, this was a new route for me. I made one wrong turn that took me a few blocks out of my way, and added about a quarter mile to my workout. It was a slow, easy run, so I'm not worried about the extra distance.

One other milestone: I have crossed the 275 pound barrier. This morning I weighed in at 272, with 25% body fat. I feel terrific, and may have to buy new pants again soon. My goal is to be down to 240 pounds by Labor Day. Baby steps.

I'm so pretty now, there's no telling how irresistible I'll be at 240.

Peace,
Pennsy

#332:Running 4 the Sole: A New Personal Best!

This was the out-and-back course for today's 5K, "Running 4 the Sole."


So what's behind the funny name?

Here's the description from their Facebook page: This is a shoe drive for kids around the world who don't have footwear. It's a great cause as your donation can prevent foot disease and send a child to school. The registration fee was one pair of old shoes. I donated a pair of 13s that were a little short and narrow for me. Some big-footed boy is going to be very happy with them. By the time I got there, they had a pickup truck full. It was so inspiring! The event was organized by a Lexington 5th grader named Kasey. She did an amazing job lining up sponsors, organizing the marketing, and finding a lovely venue that was a fun run for everybody. But man, was it hot. As best I can figure, it was about 80 degrees when I arrived at 1:00 to warm up for the 1:30 start. "Warm up" may be the wrong word to use. I sure didn't need any warm up clothes. I had put on sunscreen at home, and was already wearing my Nike Pegasus shoes and knee stabilizers. When I left the house.  I drank quite a bit of water before the race, but I was glad I did. I used it all. To warm up, I did a nice, easy walk/jog/run around the park. I probably did about a mile-and-a-half, including what I thought was going to be the last quarter mile, down the big hill that usually leads to the finish line. Throughout my warm ups, I had a little twinge in my right calf, so I resolved to start out very slowly and drop out if I couldn't get comfortable. The race started a couple of minutes late, which gave me time to check out some of the other runners. There were a couple with baby strollers. I love these things. I always hope that the kid continues running once they're out and moving on their own. There were some beautiful dogs, A couple of setters and three Weimaraners in particular. The heat would have been murder for Jake, but those big old short hairs seemed to thrive in it. Most of their humans would have had much better times if they had just brought skate boards and let the dogs tow them. "I hope that guy is wearing suncreen." There was one young man in particular who caught my attention. He had the long-limbed look of a real runner and was not wearing a shirt. "A choice only a young man would make on a day like this," I thought to myself. It's probably a sign of my own geezerdom that my first thought was, "I hope that guy is wearing sun screen." He was doing some pretty esoteric warm ups, hops and butt kicks back and forth in front of the starting line. I wasn't sure if he was for real, or just showing off. But, judging from the way he looked when he passed me, headed back for the finish, right after I reached the 1 mile point, I'd say he was for real. I gave him a couple claps and an "attaboy." When you can run like that, you can look as goofy as you want before the start. Instead of the traditional gun or air horn, the race started with two young girls counting down "Three. Two, One... GO!" . It really set the tone for what was a "Fun Run" from start to finish. I was a little thrown when the leaders did not make what I expected to be the first turn. We were not following the route I had run here in the past: the one I had trained so strongly on when I came out on Thursday. I decided to throw away my plans, and just enjoy the trip. I started the interval timer on my watch so I would know when to walk and when to run. After the first 90 second trot, I walked and took stock. I checked in with my right leg, and whatever was twinging earlier had worked itself out. The right knee showed no signs of complaint. Back? Straight and strong. Sunglasses? Staying firmly in place. Sweat band? Sopping up the drops and keeping my eyes clear. But what was going on with my shorts? I have this pair of shorts. I really like the way they feel. They are a dark sort of pewter color with a black and yellow stripe down the leg. They looked fantastic in the store. Not as great on me, but I don't have to look at them, and they've always worn just fine. Thing is, today, they started to creep. Not creep up. The legs stayed down where they belonged, fluttering lightly against my compression shorts. It was the waist. For reasons I can't begin to explain, the waist of my shorts was moving in a clockwise direction around my body! Several times during the race, I would reach down and hike them back around, lining the back seam up with my own back seam. They would be OK for a while, then a few minutes later, I would feel them over on the right again. I assume this says something about my running form that someone with a trained eye is going to have to fix for me. For now, it's just part of the whole comical package that makes up Fat Man Running. I used 90 second/30 second run/walk intervals, and that really seems like a good place for me. Sure, a lot of people zoomed past me at first, but, I caught a lot of them before it was over. I also discovered, after confirming the distance on mapmyrun.com that my Nike+ sportband measured this run about .16 miles shorter than it actually was. Not a big deal when I'm training, and in a measured race, I can always go back and do the math later. I finished the race at a gallop, or maybe it was a gallumph, but it felt like galloping to me. I finished strong and well ahead of my previous personal best. I had done that crazy Krispy Kreme challenge on a cool, hazy morning in 38:36. Today, my time was 37:08. That's an average pace of 11:59/mile, which means that somewhere in there, I also met my personal goal of breaking a 12 minute mile, set back in the winter, when I could barely finish in 15. Time to move those goalposts out a couple more minutes. I gratefully received my cold bottle of water at the finish, then took a nice long walk to cool down. After that, it was a quick drive home, get out of the wet clothes, find the ice pack for my knee, and pass out with Mrs P and the dogs for a few minutes. What a great day! Sort of makes me glad the Rapture didn't happen yesterday after all. The little angels who put this race together would have been taken up for sure. And running in the blazing heat would have taken on a whole new significance. Peace, Pennsy

#331: Ain't Got Time to Die

.

"Gonter?"

 No matter. Like the song says, I ain't got time to worry about cancer. I have things to do. I just left yesterday's worries out on the road.

I ran the course that this weekend's 5K will follow. It's one I've run a couple of times before, so this time I was able to see a little more than just the ground in front of me. I've learned how the hills are laid out. I know where I need to save energy and where I can let the downhills boost me along. I ran the 5K in 39:22. My personal best, on a much flatter course than this one, was 38:36. I don't know if I can top that, but I'm going to try. I did 90 sec run/30 sec walk intervals, which felt pretty good. My third mile was my fastest, so the longer runs didn't wear me down. I'm going to use that ratio in the race. If I warm up a little longer, I might even be able to start faster than I did today.

The knee feels better and better. These knee stabilizers fromn Ace are the bomb. Right now I'm enjoying a nice tall Gatorade and icing the right knee down. It doesn't really hurt, but I've been icing it after every run, and I don't want to change something that works.

I met someone new online today. He writes a blog called Vegas Runner and he's the kind of runner I'd like to be. He's a 58 year old marathoner. He's even finished Boston. A few weeks ago, he was diagnosed with cancer. We met through another blog I've been following for a while called, funnily enough, Old Man Running. Alan, the author mentioned he had a friend who was a runner and had cancer. I posted a comment, so he got us together. I think you'd really enjoy getting to know both of these guys. I know I am.

We've moved quite a bit of the furniture to the new house. The really heavy stuff is left, and I'm going to have to recruit some of my big handsome show business friends to help me haul them across town. Progress is slow, but it's progress nonetheless. It's as if we're moving on a U-Haul glacier.

With a night's sleep, some household chores, and a good run under my belt, I feel a little silly about being so worried yesterday. I guess I just needed an anxiety break. The truth is, I feel fantastic. Although, thanks to all the IVs and my steady diet of blood thinners, my arms are bruised pretty comically. I look like a junkie with really bad aim.

It was great having Moses drop by yesterday. I'm hoping he'll write some more for FMR. I'll also be inviting other writers to contribute from time to time. There's a lot we can all teach one another.

Mrs P asked what I would do if a woman ever wanted to write for FMR. We'd work something out. Maybe we can launch a sister site: "Rubenesque Woman Running?" "Big Beautiful Runner?"  Or maybe...

Not sure I'm the right person to edit that one, though.

Well, we'll rattle that bridge when we come to it. Gotta go fold some laundry and try to match some you-know-whats. (I swear, that single sock basket is NOT coming to the new house with us...)

Peace,
Pennsy

Last workout before Saturday's 5K

Last night I ran a simulated 5K on the treadmill after my Yoga class. I wanted to squeeze it in so I could have two days of rest before Saturday night's race. Of course after all that yoga I was plenty warmed up, but I still did a quarter mile of easy walk/jogging before starting the 5K Trainer program. I ran the simulation in around 46 minutes (I forgot to record the actual time) which is just slightly slower than my peresonal "best" which tore my legs up for months afterwards. There were probably five walk breaks in there of one to two minutes each.

Rather than shower at the gym, I jumped in the car, stopped to pick up a Gatorade and a bag of ice, came home, filled the tub with cold water, dumped in the ice, and sat down in the cold bath for about 15 minutes, dreaming I was actually in a chilly mountain stream in the Catskills.

This ice bath trick is something I read about in a couple different places. I also checked in with my marathoner friend whose eyes rolled back in her head in extacy at the very thought of plunging into a freezing tub. I did it Wednesday morning with a little ice, and Thursday night with a whole bag. I could probably have used another bag, to be honest, but my goal is therapy not machismo so I'm working my way up to the hard stuff. I leave my compression shorts on, not so much to conserve body heat as to protect a bit of manly pride when Mrs P walks in on her fat old husband whose - um - "Wee Fellow" has shrunken to the size of a cashew in the icy tub.

While soaking, I ceremonially presented my bride with a yellow "LIVESTRONG" bracelet. I picked up one for each of us at Dick's Sporting Goods (a fine Pennsyltucky corporation, by the way). Unlike many of the online merchants for whom Satan is preparing a special chamber in Hell, Dick's sells them for $1 each - same as livestrong.org.

The totem is appropriate for us in several ways. Mrs P is a social worker who has spent plenty of time counseling cancer patients in hospice care. Like every other family, we each have a long list of loved ones who have fought the disease over the years. And like everyone else, we are always struggling to find a little more strength to do the work God has given us to do in this world. Knowing that this little yellow rubber band links me to my bride, and to thousands of people who have fought to stay alive -- it inspires me.

Tonight I'll get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow we'll do some household chores, and then in the evening I'll make my way downtown to the starting line. My goal is to finish the race without getting hurt so I can continue training for a 10K run at the end of the month. In spite of the fact that I'll be wearing a timing chip, I'm just going to let that take as long as it takes. (though it would be nice to finish before a few of the walkers, anyway.

I'll probably spend some time looking over this post. One of the best things about a blog like this is that it helps me remember and learn hard earned lessons.

And no chasing coeds this time!!!

Peace,
Pennsy

Bushwacking

That's what my training feels like this week. Like chopping through vines with a dull machete.

Running is all I really want to do, and each run leaves me with sore calves and ankles, a stiff, limping gait, and the nagging feeling that the dream may not happen. I don't know if my legs will ever be able to run me around the Bluegrass.

I've tapered my weight lifting way down to save energy for running, but instead I just feel logy. I guess these feelings of doubt are part of the journey, just like the achievements. That perspective ought to give me some comfort. Ought to.

I have a 5K training run scheduled tomorrow morning, after two days off. I'm hoping that the rest will help my legs to come back. I really don't want to limp for three miles in next week's race, and I also don't want to blow it off.

Yeah, I'm listening to my body like the trainer told me. I just don't care for what it has to say today.

Thanks for sticking with me. I'll go chop some more vines now.

Peace,

Pennsy

Video: What Mrs P Saw