Honestly, I usually try to space out YouTube videos so that it doesn’t look like I’m too lazy to put up something of substance. This though…I just needed to share this one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bmhjf0rKe8
Yeah…I think I just hit my quota of cute for the month. Luckily it’s the end of the month, but still…
Well, this morning’s run wasn’t really that bad at all. I was kind of dreading it because I had a really rough sleep. I have the work pager this week, and it’s been relatively quiet all week. Then, all of a sudden at 1:45 a.m. last night it started beeping at me. I looked at it and it was complaining about something that it shouldn’t have been complaining about. I got up out of bed to head to my laptop to do some rudimentary poking around. So, I groggily wandered to the keyboard to start checking, but then the pager started sending up more alerts. It was a downright barrage of critical errors. I sent out an acknowledgement email that I was up looking at things. Seriously though, the alerts were pointing to something that shouldn’t even be working so I was confused. My living room was cold. I have my thermostat set to drop the temperature to 62°F at night. The lack of heat was messing with my sinuses. I was clogged and miserable. As I was blowing my nose, I got another barrage of alerts, but this time they were reporting that all previous issues fixed themselves. So…basically I got up in a panic for nothing. I didn’t get back to sleep for another half hour after that.
Anyway, like I said, the run was all right. It wasn’t awesome though. The whole way my legs were feeling particularly leaden. The feeling never really lifted throughout the whole 9 kilometres. I wonder if it’s because I decided to wear pants instead of shorts this morning. It was 0°C out there, but I think I would have managed. Even through all the problems, I still felt fine by the end. I kind of wanted a nap, but I knew that I didn’t have any time for that. See, later in the afternoon I was planning to do a plyometrics class. Instead I brewed some coffee knowing that I’d need all the help I could get to make it through.
Back on Wednesday, a fellow runner invited me to a free class at a dance and fitness studio that she goes to. For a while she’s been swearing by this plyometrics class that she’s been doing. Seriously, she’s been toning up for the past few months, so I figured that it would be worth checking out. Plyometrics are all about those big movements of explosive power, right? It’s full of leaps, bounds, squats, hopping, etc. It’s crazy! I knew that it would be heavy on leg and core movements, so I was really curious to see how I’d hold up. I figured that I wouldn’t make a big fool of myself. I mean, despite the fact that I have weight to lose, I have nice and meaty legs, and I have a decent core even if it doesn’t look like it. Plus, I had some experience doing plyometrics from grade school, and I still look back at it as a fun activity.
So, I made it there and met my running friend. Besides her the class had three others in it who all looked fit. I mean, while we were waiting two of the guys were doing fucking hand stands. I figured I’d be the odd one out, being the overweight one. As the class went, every time a new movement was introduced I just gave a wry smile. Then, I joined the line and just had at it. To my surprise, even if I was a little unsteady I was sort of able to keep up. I wasn’t careful to breathe enough though, and by the end of some sets I was a little light headed and winded. I also neglected to bring water, so my mouth was pretty dry through most of it. The rest of me though was soaked, my reputation as sweaty guy held up.
Hop hop hop hop hop.
Squat, jump! Squat, jump! Squat, jump!
Lunge, lunge, lunge, lunge.
At one point something of an obstacle course was set up. I just looked at it in disbelief. I made it through though, even if I was lacking grace. Squat, jump! Burpees! Rolling down an incline! Frog squats! Push ups on a Bosu! Crazy, man. I went through it three times. By the end I was exhausted but happy just to have completed.
By the end of the hour I felt like I had accomplished a great deal. My muscles were just a little sore, as they should be the first time they’d do a new activity. I was warned that everything would ache in a day or two, so that remains to be seen. Honestly, I was very impressed with the class, so I’m actually considering doing it on a regular basis. This could be the cross training activity that I’m looking for. If it helps me out on this health journey I’ve been on, then I’m for it. I need to relax now. We’ll see how I feel when the morning rolls around.
Just like I said a few days ago about needing to be in a cocoon now and then to do domestic stuff, I actually stayed at home today. I’ve been decked in a tank and sweats all day, cooking, listening to music, lying on the couch napping, watching TV, and being in a heightened state of meditativeness. I’m usually one who encourages this type of thing now and then but now at the end of the day I’m sort of regretting not doing more. Part of me is feeling like I would have been better off if I had at least left the confines of my place. Would it have killed me to get some fresh air? My parents called and were wondering about the next time I’d drop by. I actually passed on going today thinking that I needed time to bum around and do nothing. And so I got the time…why am I not happier about it? A friend suggest going to a mall at some point. I passed it up letting my inertia win out. Maybe I should have gone out and gotten some exercise.
I know, it starts to sound whiny when I talk about things this way. For better or for worse, deep down what I wanted to do was just get some isolation today. Instead of complaining about it, I just need to take ownership over it. Tomorrow is another day, and it looks like it’ll be a busy one finding me away from home for a good number of hours. Perhaps I can consider today as a way of balancing out the weekend.
Mission accomplished then? Bah.
Remember the other day how I was saying that Apple stuff hardly ever goes on sale? Well, guess what went on sale today? Ha! I used this as an opportunity to order the MacBook Pro like I had wanted last Sunday. The discounts weren’t what I had originally expected. Yesterday, a colleague told me that he was anticipating maybe $200 off of some laptops. No, when I went online this morning I found that the discounts where more like $100 or so. Sure, it wasn’t as big as the potential $200 off that I would have gotten if I went to that Best Buy sale a lot earlier, but it was enough to encourage me to make the purchase this morning.
I don’t think I’m considering myself a convert, per se. I did say in the other entry that I wanted to see for myself how big of a difference there is between using a PC and a Mac. I’m no longer in university, so the need to use a lot of the technical apps specific to PC is a lot less. These days I’m only doing average and mundane everyday stuff. As such, why not go for a system that has a little bit more polish? As much as it frustrates me at time, I’m not going to be chucking my laptop right away. My plan is to have both systems on hand, slowly making the transition to make the MBP my daily system. We’ll see how it goes. I have a lot of questions, but I have enough Mac-minded friends to guide me through my first steps. It’s going to be a fun and interesting time.
Chances are you’ve already seen this video because it’s been posted just about everywhere. Still, it’s worth sharing here. The Muppets do Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody! Great video!
I am full of rice, and regret.
Despite having gone to an all you can eat sushi place with colleagues at lunch, it looks like I still managed to have a decent run this evening. Going in to the Running Room I was still feeling full from all of the food excess. I was fearing that any attempts to run fast would result in me puking all of my stomach contents all over the route. I did well, though. I wasn’t running my fastest, but it was still a good run. I’ve had runs before where smaller meals gave me much more trouble.
Now, as I was going slower I felt at ease: my breathing was under control, and my heart rate was lower than it might normally be. I checked my watch and found that I was running at an average pace that would have been the extent of my running abilities even just a few months ago. This is telling me that my body really is making improvements. I don’t know if it’s the result of consistent training, or the fact that I’ve lost a little weight. Actually, I’m pretty sure it’s a combination of the two. Knowing all of this is just making me want to work harder. That may not necessarily mean pushing myself, but at least maintaining a level of consistency as well as continuing to take an intelligent approach to training. I want to become stronger. I want to become faster. If I keep it up, all of this will come naturally.
So, yesterday I left work a little bit early because I was feeling light headed. I put on a couple of layers before heading to bed in hopes that I could somehow burn off the sickness. Thing is, I guess you have to have an illness that raises your body temperature for that to work. So, no, that burning trick didn’t do anything. Since the onset isn’t sudden, and I’m not experiencing fatigue or anything severe I can rule out the flu. Heck, I don’t even think it’s a cold because I’m not coughing or clogged up at all. It’s just a headache.
Anyway, when I woke up this morning I was still feeling dizzy. So, I wisened up and just decided to call in sick. I then slept for an hour or two, then had breakfast, then slept again until 1 p.m. or so. I did some laundry, cooked some chicken and pork adobo, and overall had a good day just resting. It’s really quite amazing what even one day can do in terms of recharging your batteries, right? Some days you just need to be in a cocoon of sorts and do things for yourself.
I admit that right now I’m still not feeling 100%. Actually, I don’t think I’ve even made and progress on my recovery–I’m still feeling the same way I did on Monday. Again, we’ll see how I feel when morning comes around again. I doubt that I’ll end up taking another day off. I might not feel perfect, but I should be good enough after having a day all to myself.
I had a little bit of a rough go this afternoon. At around 3 p.m. I suddenly started feeling a little bit light headed. Immediately I knew that my body was beginning to combat something. I’m still feeling a little bit rotten this evening, though from what I’m feeling right now I feel like this is something that I can battle overnight with a bit of rest and quiet time. So, earlier, all of this uneasiness put me in a mildly bad mood. At one point, a colleague asked a simple question about me getting my resume done. I took offence. There’s no good reason why I felt offended. Maybe I just felt like I was being judged. Actually, everyone joined in tut-tutting me over the lack of effort. I didn’t take it very well. Thing is, I know that all of this is well-meaning. Why am I offended that people care? It’s almost comical.
About a week ago I spoke about acting like an ostrich when it comes to job hunting. A lot of that still applies now. I still feel like I’m failing a lot of people by not putting in the effort. There are a lot of people behind me that want to see me succeed. Why do I seem to be partaking in the act of self-sabotage? Tough call. I’m not wallowing in self-pity. I recognize that the easiest way out of this current funk is just to do it. I know that now’s the best time to get my things in order, because if I wait until my hand is forced then everything will just be that much more difficult. So frustrating.
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