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April 23, 2013
221
I got on the scale yesterday, for the first time in a week, and I was surprised to see I had lost some weight. My old friend (I thought adversary as I typed that) read 221 (down 3 pounds). After weeks and weeks (months?) of it reading 224 or 225.
And here’s the rub – that week I worked out less and rested more – took a nap or two – did 2 martial arts classes instead of 3. Just walked some days instead of walk/run intervals. Basically limited myself to one workout a day. I woke up more refreshed and I guess my body wasn’t superstressed as a result and said, ok – I’ll let go of a few then, we’re not in crisis after all.
Posted in Fitness, Martial Arts, Running
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April 17, 2013
Snohomish to Kalispell and Back Again
This looks like this would be a fun route for me and the motorcycle – Snohomish to Kalispell and back again - 1200 miles over 5 days
Posted in Adventure, Motorcycling
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April 14, 2013
Step by Step
On Friday, the running portion of my walk-jog interval training went from two minutes of jogging for every five minutes of walking to three minutes of jogging.
That was a big change! The first interval in, I started falling apart at about 2:15. By 2:30, I was grabbing the treadmill handbars (or whatever you call them) and somewhat frantically trying to drop back to walking speeds, sending my iPhone flying to the treadmill deck, and then launching off the back of the treadmill. It survived.
I was thinking uh oh – I’m going to have to do 5 and 2 intervals for a little longer (and more disaster thoughts like – I’ll never be able to do this) when it occurred to me that maybe I was simply trying to go too fast. I had set the walk speed to 5.5 kph and the jog speed to 8.5 kph, and perhaps that is just too fast for me right now.
For the second interval, I set it to 8.0 kph and I was able to complete the entire 3 minute interval! It wasn’t easy, but it (and the remaining jogging intervals) was do-able.
A bit of googling reassures me that 8 kph (about 5 mph) is a good speed for a beginning runner, and that I want to monitor my heart rate and not go crazy.
Saturday was a good Tae Kwon Do class, where I was actually able to do all 30 partner squats – with a couple short breaks every now and then – but I did all 30! My sparring took a step forward with incorporating attacks to my opponents sides (and not just front) – allowing me to land several good hits and kicks – thanks to advice earlier in the week from our trainer Ms. Trautmann. I also made a point of remembering to bob and weave more and that meant fewer blows to the head 
Saturday’s training wrapped up with a few laps inside out of the rain, to get over the 10,000 step count for the day on my Fitbit.
Sunday and I’m sore and looking furtively at my Fitbit which will clock fewer than 5,000 steps by day’s end, but that’s OK – today is supposed to be a rest day (something that is hard itself – resting.). I did take a couple hours to practice my form for martial arts, and I think I have the first half of the form pretty well committed to memory. Tomorrow night before class I will do my best to commit the next quarter of it to memory.
Wow, a lot accomplished, a long way to go, but this is a marathon, not a sprint. Step by step. Step by step.
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April 11, 2013
A Spring in My Step
I’m almost done with my 3rd week of 5K training, but earlier this week it became clear that the old pair of Adidas sneakers weren’t going to cut it – started to get some annoying pain in the heels, probably because the sneakers were old and the sole compressed from months and months of daily use.
So, I did some research and grabbed a pair of Asics Gel GT-2000s and they are wonderful. They really help cushion the heels, and now that I am starting the 5 minute waking 3 minute running interval I could use that comfort and support And they are only for running, not for wearing about.
I timed myself on the treadmill yesterday — the last day of the 5 minute walking 2 minute intervals — and I came in at 50 minutes, 20 seconds. A new personal best for 5K
I also added a display of my Fitbit steps in the sidebar of my blog – to keep and eye on the prize (and to remind myself to do the rest days too – especially with Tae Kwon Do three days a week.)
Weight is unchanged at 224#, but clothes are looser, can actually do a half dozen real situps now, and ability to run longer and longer times is wonderful. Must remember to rest too!
Mill Creek 5K is 3 months away.
April 1, 2013
Go, Panda, Go!
I want to run a 5K this year. I’ve never done that before. With my brown belt in TKD, and a black belt within grasp, I want to continue to slim out, strengthen my legs and increase my endurance, so I’ve decided to train for a 5K. Right now, I am on the second week of the beginner’s running program from Running Planet, and it has been awesome – five days a week you walk and run, with increasing amounts of running, and two days a week you rest.
This morning, with intervals of 5 minutes of walking and 1 minute of jogging, I decided to time the 5K on the treadmill so I can get a baseline and track my progress. I completed 5 kilometers today in 52 minutes, 13 seconds
For a guy who used to weight 335 pounds, and now is a brown belt and 223 pounds, even that is no small accomplishment.
I wonder what I will be able to do at the Run of the Mill?
Go, Panda, Go!
Posted in Running
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March 9, 2013
Fitness + Software = Magic
Looky looky – Fitbit has APIs (pronounced AP-ee, yes it is)
Time to combine software magic with exercise.
https://wiki.fitbit.com/display/API/Fitbit+Resource+Access+API
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February 24, 2013
Pollypanda
It feels good to be in love with a job again. Funny, ’cause what I am doing now feels so much larger and richer than that little three letter word, but there it is. It reminds me of the joy I felt working on projects like Globalstar, of working at Wavtrace and Terabeam. I know, and I’ve been told all companies have their problems, and that may be, but I think I was beyond glass half-empty and pretty close to just plain empty.
The glass is more, much more than half full now. Most everyone I have met at my new company is genuinely excited about their work, and quite a few proudly exclaim this is the “Best. Job. Ever.”
Perhaps that glass is something to watch for – before it gets empty – to do my best to keep it filled and to surround myself with people that fill each others’ glasses too . Company culture matters… A lot. Generosity, gratitude, helping not blaming, openness, cool stuff, rapid development and open source and giving people a voice and community on the Internet that might not otherwise have it or find it.
Some may accuse me of being a bit Pollyanna-ish, but it feels good to feel deeply happy about my work. This is a feeling to nuture, grow and share.
Posted in Miscellany
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