Cardio Bootcamps

Been on and off working out for the last few years, kinda lost the mojo, but been trying to get back into the game.

Some interesting exercises that seemed to help with improving cardio and overall strength has been with attending cardio bootcamp classes. Also been doing the P90X program that BeachBody.com sells, essentially bootcamp with focus on muscle confusion.

Some good bootcamps that I've tried out in Vancouver have been:
Versus Training Center This facility is really good. Spread across two floors, bootcamps are really intense, good weights, and the team there also provide for private training. On the bottom floor, they also hold martial arts training sessions. Check out the website when you get a moment.

Nadeen Bowman Nadeen is a great trainer and offers bootcamp classes as well as personal coaching sessions. You may have seen Nadeen on TV where she is pitched as a nutrition coach and Tony Europe does the fitness. They're a good team and though Nadeen is a nutrition coach, it's just one component of the overall fitness program that she offers. Give her a shout, she's good!

...and of course, there's the "workout at home P90X program". It really works....just need the space to do it at home. Their supplements from Beach Body are good too!

Love yourself! We'll see you out there.

h.

The EDGE needs sharpening!!

Ok; ok....it's been a few months since the last EDGE update. My Bad!!

Let's see; the overall scenario is that the EDGE has been up and down.
The summer has been fairly good for activity and eating healthy. I've been hiking, running here and there, hitting the gym, and going for walks.

My weight is still under 180lbs (at 179lbs) but with one catch; I haven't worked out in the last 2 weeks. As Andy puts it: "You haven't been loving yourself!!".

It's true, I haven't been loving myself. No excuses (though I can whip up a few) other than that I just haven't focused.
Well, here's to changing that. Andy and I have been hitting the weights again this weekend; I'll be picking my bike up from mom and dads, and I'll be biking into work starting next week.

Prior to falling off the wagon; Keith, Andy, and I came up with what we felt was a revolutionary plan for keeping on track (at least, while we're on plan).
Now this plan had nothing to do with hitting the gym as it had everything to do with eating well (ie. diet).

So here's the plan:
1. One day every week - you get one free day to eat whatever you want (in moderation).
2. All other days, you stay on your diet plan (a plan that you develop). For example, I would say for me that pop and chips are a big no-no. No McDonalds or fast food (which is easy for me now as I haven't had any of that crap in months). In fact, in order to change my diet and spending, I actually stated that Starbucks is now limited to 2 weekday visits only. This should help me to keep my acid intake down.
3. You cheat - it's $5 a cheat!!
4. You cannot give you cheat dollars to the other guys. You can give it to charity but it cannot be a charity that is for a good cause. "Huh?", you might be asking. Well, the charity you have to donate to is one you absolutely despise!! Now if the charity you have to donate to (ie. like a political party you just absolutely hate or some social group that is just fucked up; you'd think twice about cheating wouldn't you). Needless to say; I'm very aware not to cheat.

Now the reward is to go to the gym or doing something active. This is a bit of positive mind association as well as getting active. This getting active part is what I've been missing these last two weeks so I'm glad that I'm getting back on plan.

I'm hitting the gym tomorrow night for cardio as well as on Wednesday. I'll need to hit the gym at work on Thursday, Friday, and Monday nights as well as full day Sat/Sun as I got a class out in Surrey. Beyond that, I've just got to make time.

Harvey

More cardio!!!

Wow!! The last month has been a rollercoaster for maintaining optimal energy.
I was mentioning to Andy that ever since I came off of the Herbal Detox, I've been feeling fatigued more often than not; just shattered!

Take last week for example. Andy and I are in the gym on....what...Sunday June 25th. So there we are, doing chest, and I could barely do the exercises that I normally do. In fact, I tried pushing myself even further by trying to lift weight I've never done before....and I can say that I still need to work on what I can do before trying to bench 80lbs dumbells again....ugh...I couldn't even lift them into the bench position.

Oh well....I'll get there.

Anyway, what has been good is that I've been getting out more to do cardio. In the last month, I've hit the Grouse Grind at least 3 times (with my all-time best of 1hr 18mins), gone running at a local park on the N. Shore that Tasha introduced me to, gone for walks, and hit the Seymour Demonstration Forest several times for 8KM runs.

Tasha is pretty strong at the cardio (she just whips me) and it's good as it shows me how much more I need to keep working. The theory I've been learning (which can encompass anything from business to health) is to surround yourself with people that are achievers, that are better than you at something. What will happen is that these people, with their enthusiasm, drive, and work ethic, will help you improve your game; and that's exactly what has been happening for me. My "game" has just been getting better and better.

I'm glad to say that I feel like I can keep running longer, running harder, and my weight is staying at a constant 178LBS - I'm super happy!!!

The exercises for form have been getting better. I'm finding that by keeping weight constant at levels I've been doing for a while or even by dropping the weight down (just a tad) is allowing me to do the exercises with better form. That should mean a lot better focus on the targeted muscle groups.

Anyway, this weekend is a weekend away travelling. I'm hoping to get in some cardio that includes running, hiking, or at least some physical activity.

Harvey

P.S. I've now updated the BLOG page to now include a direct link to Tony Robbins EDGE program. Again, this is the program that inspired the name for this fitness BLOG.

Keeping on keeping on...

The last few weeks since an update have been good. Some days have been hit and miss with Andrew bing on the road so instead of the gym and doing the heavy wieght, I've been doing a bit more cardio (hiking, or running, or something).

Getting back into it in the gym has shown me how fast I can lose strength if I don't stay focused....ugh. Well, that's changing!

So..a lot more hiking on the North Shore. Mainly it's been the Lynn Headwaters. Last time I went was with Shawn and we both got totally drenched. Last night, I hit the Grouse Grind for the first time this year and my friend and I both got doused with the heaviest rain I've encountered yet while hiking. It was like a shower!!
The good part was (because I got a little whiny...wah!!) that the rain wasn't that cold. It was coming down hard near the 1/4 mark but lightened up as we got closer and closer to the top. I'm glad I was pushed to keep going because I wanted to give up due to the weather - it turned out to be a good hike when all was said and done.

Since the last few times I've totally gotten soaked; I've learned from that lesson. I went by MEC and got myself some weather proof gear. It's a breathable jacket as well as some quick dry shirts. Pretty stylish if I do say so myself.

I'm ready for the weather now...rain or shine!

Harvey

Back on plan!!

Ok, so after two weeks of not eating so good (like more sandwiches, breads, and fried stuff that I haven’t had in months...I can't remember the last time I had french fries), I'm back on plan.

The weekend was really good for fitness. In Whistler on Friday, we went all along some biking paths and off-road swichbacks for at least 4 hrs. Saturday, Dan and I went hiking up Lynn Peak for just under 3hrs. Sunday, Andy and I hit the gym and worked on heavy weights (arms). The "guns" are totally coming in!!

So today, Les and I went running around False Creek after work. The run wasn't too hard - just started around Yaletown, ran around the seawall to Granville St. Bridge, and looped around again. Total time 25 mins but I found how easy it was for me to do the run. Granted, Les hasn't been working out and he needed and I walked a few times so he could catch his breath but overall - I felt great!!

We got back to the office and hit the gym. Got some back exercises in (I'm getting stronger on the pull-up machine; almost my entire body weight - WOOHOOO!!), and weighed in - 186lbs. Ah, ok....not so bad! If you remember my last BLOG update, I had feared I really lost focus and gained back a tonne of weight that I've kept off for months. I'm back on plan with the diet and have re-implemented my "1 free day" per week plan where I can cheat (hey....how can I say no to a De Dutch breakfast on the weekend...).

I was really happy to find out the results of the weigh-in. It's like the EDGE program I listened to stated - "If you get troubled or disturbed enough about something where you are driven to make a change; you'll make that change and stick with it".

Andy's back from Boston on Friday so we're in the gym. Tomorrow will be weights and Thursday will be cardio.

Harvey

Hike's, Bike's, and post De-Tox diet...

After the De-tox, I was happy to see how much weight I had dropped. As Andy put it, I was on my way to the 170's. In fact, I weighed an amazing 181 lbs!! That was an AWESOME feeling.

One thing about the De-tox though, the diet REALLY PISSED ME OFF!! There's a lot more ruffage that needs to be taken in (that wasn't a problem) but what got to me was all the foods that I was restricted from eating: like breads, peanuts (and peanut butter sandwiches which I love), anything that had wheat or flour in it, anything that had yeast in it (so no soups that I could get from the store as they use flour to thicken the soup), no pastas, portion sizes restricted on meats, no dairy...arrgghhh!!!!
So when I got off the De-tox, my diet went to pot. I haven't weighed myself, I'm going to do that tomorrow, but I'm sure I'm back at the 190's. I know, I know, the climb in lbs is because I did it to myself (so I'm no victim) but I am choked about the weight gain more than the diet. In reality I'm more pissed on my fitness reversal than on the diet restrictions.
This weekend, I'm sitting down to make up a more of a balanced diet plan, come up with ideas on making it easy to live that plan (ie. pre-cook stuff or plan and make sure I can prep things quickly), and just living the old plan of having at least one free day - that worked well for me.

As mentioned on "Harvey's World", I went biking for a few hours in Whistler on Friday; had hit the gym the night before, and today Dan and I went hiking up in Lynn Valley. The previous hiking trips on the Lynn Peak trail have only been excursions to certain elevations. Today, Dan and I tried to find the peak but after 1.25 hrs, we turned around and made the trek back down the mountain. Total time from parking lot and round trip was just under 3hrs....my legs are totally destroyed.
I meet with Andy tomorrow for the gym and it's ON for fitness for the rest of the week (including diet)!

Harvey

A climb up Lynn Peak...

Today was a funny day. Andrew is out in Boston all week so I'm working out on my own at the company gym; getting in some cardio and weights.

For today, I wanted to focus on cardio and had invited Summer to go on a hike with me up in Lynn Valley. Gorgeous day for a hike; sun was out and though a little chilly, the forest would stop any cold breeze from bothering us.

So before we started the climb; we both had to use the facilities. If you've been hiking or running along the Lynn Head waters, you've seen the outside toilet stalls. What they should call them are outside sewage pits. YUCK!! I've been up to the Lynn Head Waters a few times but never needed to use the facilities. It was like something I'd see in a 3rd world country! Even when I went traveling in Thailand, I never saw an open sewage pit...a squatter toilet sure; but I never saw an open pit full of crap. ICK!
I'm glad I had that hand sanitizer....so was Summer.

Anyway, that's the end of the gross story; the rest of this story is about the EDGE and the story wrapped around it.
Ok...so GREAT day for a hike! I like Summer; she's a great person to talk to, super friend, and like any of my friends, I really enjoy her company.

So we're making good time up Lynn Peak trail and in fact, we got to usual point in the trail where Andrew and I turn around. When Andy and I first started hiking, it took me 1 hr to get to the point in the trail where we turn around. Today, Summer and I did it in 40mins; my best time yet - woohoo!!! Ok, granted, there are no markers on the trail to tell me where I am when Andy and I usually turn around so I normally gauge the general area on when I can start seeing sky again through the trees.
So it's awesome!! My time is totally improving.

Ok, so now the funny part (at least, it was funny during the moment...maybe you needed to be there).
Summer is a great athlete; she's fit, never afraid to try stuff (I've seen her do gymnastics with some crazy flips, etc..) but I've never seen her timid. The trail was rocky coming back down and she took her time coming down the hill - which is good; most accidents on trails are generally on the way down, not up. During this time, Summer had her jacket (with a hoodie) tied around her waste and she had accidently gotten her foot caught in the hoodie while climbing down a steep part of the trail.
"Ahhhhhhh nooooooooooo....my jackkkk-eeeet!!!", she exclaimed ever so sweetly. I started howling! I was worried she had hurt herself but she was dissapointed that her super clean and white jacket got a little dirty. Totally reminded me of my sister.

Starting back down the mountain, she exclaimed again a few minutes later "OH MY GOD!!", and quickly hoped from one end of the trail to the other. So this spooked me because I didn't know if she got hurt. "What?! What happened?", I asked. To which she replied "Did you seeeeee that, I almost stepped on that slug! That would have been gross!!". Hahahahaha...normally Andrew and I joke around on the hill, talk about anyting, from the EDGE to cars, talk about women, how to hit on women, how to gawk at women (see a theme here?), normal guy stuff right? What Andy and I don't do is talk about stepping on slugs or worry about jackets....today was a total change from conversations with Andy and all I could do was laugh.
The bathroom story though, that was just plain gross. Sanitary stuff I don't joke around with but the little things Summer brought up on the hike down the trail just had me in sticthes.

She did suggest that if we head up to the trails again, we go trail running instead. That'd be AWESOME!! It'd be a total change from just running on the treadmill and the hills and dips in the trail would totally keep the body guessing and help me build my cardio up.

Harvey