Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Last workout of a very good year...

Tuesday, December 31, 2013

The final day of the workout year.  The final day of everyone’s year, as well.  It was a year of high’s for me personally and professionally.  Overcoming injuries and nagging pain, I managed to complete most of Tour Ohio in good form.  My biggest fear – completing the circumnavigation of the state on my bike – went remarkably well as I rode 1,100 miles in 11 days.  I followed it with two days on the Grand River, paddling 45 miles and dunking my phone and camera in the water.  The camera survived; the phone bit the dust.  I succumbed to my hip problems when trying to finish Tour Ohio with an 84-mile hike on the Ohio & Erie Canal Trail with a 35-pound pack attached to my back.  That hip is still bothering me and I’ve yet to visit the doc.  Nothing new there.

Professionally, I found the time during Tour Ohio to interview for the position of CEO for the Trumbull County YMCA.  I was offered the position and have been working there for two months now.  I’m walking the talk and trying to get as many others to join me in the journey as I possibly can.  It’s a task worth doing.

I finished the year much as I started it…with a solid double.  I drove to the North Chagrin Reservation on the way home and suited up for a run.  My plan?  Maybe 20 minutes to be followed by a ride on the trainer when I arrived at home.  The trails were snow-covered, icy, and the temperature was around 1 degrees.  I started with a covering for my ears, but packed my hat in my pocket in case my bare head needed help late in the run.  It did. 

I defied the law and parked in the horse trailer only parking lot since my normal spot was unplowed.  I ran towards Squires Castle, passing the sledders along the way and wishing I’d brought my Flexible Flier.  The top of my head was sweating…and crystallizing…so I put the hat on.  I was moving slowly due to the icy trail conditions, but the effort was there.  On clear trails I would have covered the distance in twenty minutes, but when I returned to the car in 26, decided I’d keep going for an even 30.  As often happens, this became 33 and so I pushed for an even (odd) 35 minutes.  I knew I was pushing my luck; risking re-injuring my bad left calf and finally stopped.  I was perspiring heavily and re-entered the car quickly to keep from turning into a Popsicle. 

Once home, I boarded the trainer, tuned in ‘Bear Attack’ on Netflix (I like to remind myself about the importance of precautionary camping in bear country) and rode for an hour.
I also continued my assault on the Christmas cookies and other goodies strewn throughout our kitchen.  I feel strongly about eating everything sweet so that none of my family members will be tempted.  I exercise more than they and feel I’m only serving a public service.  That, and I want them gone by 2014.  I’ve got a lot to do before the evening’s over.

Run duration:  35 minutes.  Bike duration:  60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate:  140 running and 120 bpm on the bike.

Calories burned during workout:  600 running and 850 on the bike.

Winter workout fun...

Monday, December 30, 2013
Living near Lake Erie in almost any community with the word ‘Heights’ in it can be a good thing if you enjoy lake effect snow.  It just so happens that I live in Highland Heights and I do enjoy shoveling, so it all works out.

Ice sucks, though.

It had been 50 degrees on Saturday and so I’d pulled my bike from its hangers in the garage and tried to go for a ride.  I hadn’t been on it in almost two months and quickly discovered that the inactivity had somehow frozen the gear cable inside the housing.  I was stuck in one gear and that wasn’t going to work.  I drove it to Performance Bikes and received a repair ticket and a promise that it would be ready for a ride the next day.

I returned home and boarded the trainer for a boring, indoor ride. 

Sunday came and went without a call telling me the bike was completed, though since a cold rain was falling, it didn’t really much matter.  I don’t ride in cold rains and tend to shy away from warm ones, as well.  I hopped on the trainer again.

Temperatures dropped overnight, hitting 17 degrees in the Heights, creating a thick coating of ice over anything outside – driveway and cars included.  After shoveling five inches of a fluffy, light snowfall, I went to work trying to chisel the layer of ice covering the Jeep – my preferred form of transportation to Warren in severe winter conditions.  I came to the conclusion that although the chiseling was a splendid workout, I wasn’t making much progress and elected to turn on the engine and try to melt it off with heavy defroster action.  Fifteen minutes later with an assist from the warm air blowing on the insides, I was able to clear the windows.  In all, I’d spent an hour getting the vehicle out of the driveway.

I did not consider this the entire workout, heading for the North Chagrin Reservation later in the day with Dakota for a Survival Workout.  There was 6 inches of powder on the trail, but I knew where my rocks and logs were located and after brushing the snow away and kicking them loose from the earth (they were frozen in place), was able to do some lifting.  I hiked the trail through the snow, itself a workout, with Dakota in tow and loving every minute.  We were alone as most sensible folks were inside, warm and smart.  We crossed Clear Creek where the water was running high and the rocks for crossing were covered in ice.  I jumped and managed to reach the far side without getting too wet, but Dakota walked through and would shortly be trying to chew ice from between her toes.  We shortened the workout trail to accommodate her ice build-up and discomfort.

I returned to the car pleased with the effort.  I find the tranquility of the park with a layer of virgin snow worth any degree of discomfort.  Was it a great workout?  Not really, but some days it is just making the effort and keeping the focus that counts.  It’s how we achieve goals and manage to stay in shape.  There’s also a little bit of pride in being able to handle the elements, which once you’re out, really aren’t so bad.

Survival Workout:  45 minutes.  Snow removal:  60 minutes. 
Training Heart Rate:  100-150 bpm for SW and 80-120 bpm on snow removal.
Calories burned during workout:  450 for SW and 400 on snow removal.

Friday, December 6, 2013

Fifteen years later...hanball!

Monday, December 2, 2013
  This grueling sport was the forerunner to racquetball, played on a court 20’ x 40’ with 20’ ceilings and involves striking a hard, rubber ball the size of a golf ball with hands covered only in thin, leather gloves.  Played well, it requires lots of running, ambidextrous use of both hands, and excellent hand-eye coordination.  Once upon a time I had them all.  Now…about 15 years since my last game…well…I can run kinda okay.
I hadn’t been at the Y too long before it became known that I had once played handball.

“John – quit ducking me.  When are we going to play?” Gil Rieger asked me for the tenth time.  He was so anxious to get me on a court so he could destroy me that he’d actually purchased me handball gloves and a ball.  I was out of excuses.

“Monday,” I said, thinking I could get hit by a car over the weekend and not have to go through with it.  That, or he’d forget since he’s so old.

But he didn’t forget and no one ran me over.

“We still on?” he asked when he stuck his head in my office.

“Can’t wait,” I replied with phony enthusiasm.

We jumped on court one and after a brief warm-up (his was lots longer than mine) and a listing of excuses we each shared about why we thought we’d likely suck, play began.  I got the serve first…suckers always do.  It was the only mistake he would make.

Serving is good and the only time you can score points.  You simply drop the ball at your side and whack it off the front wall so that it bounces back and towards your opponent.  It’s the thing that, like riding a bike, you don’t forget how to do and I do it pretty well.  I piled up six unanswered points before losing the serve.  Now I had to receive a serve.

The trickiest part of the game when you’ve laid off for all kinds of time is to again read the bounce of the ball.  It could strike any of four walls or the ceiling and you need to figure out where it’s going and be there to strike it when it arrives.  I ran around like the proverbial chicken and seemed to always be about one step off where I should have been.  I was sweating like crazy in no time and providing wonderful entertainment for Gil, though, and that was my goal.

We played three games; I actually won one of them and came off the court feeling every muscle and knowing I’d be sore everywhere the next day.  Gil had broken a good sweat, as well, and was anxious to do it again. 

“Next Monday, John?” he asked.  I agreed, of course.  I really do love the game and though I’d bruised the crap out of my hands…and my delicate ego…I’d go at it again.  It HAD been fun.  I had PLAYED for a workout instead of being stuck on a stationary piece of equipment.  Not a bad plan, after all.

Handball match:  60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate:  100-130 bpm.
Calories burned:  600.

Monday, December 2, 2013

Amazing members at the Y...

Friday, November 29, 2013
I’ve only been at the Y for five weeks now, but have already met 20 members with at least 50 years belonging to, and using, this the Trumbull County YMCA.  I mean think about it…that’s 1,000 years of combined history of sharing in the mission of our Y in only 20 people!  Pretty impressive and equally motivating to me to make sure we continue communicating our mission and thereby assuring this Y will be a vibrant, robust operation for coming generations of the Warren community.  I see big things on the horizon.

I went to work Friday with the intention of squeezing in a workout somewhere during the day.  That didn’t happen.  I was scheduled for a visit to my sister’s later that evening where we would be consuming large amounts of hollow calories, or at least I’d be expected to.  I drove home in the dark knowing a stop at the Metropark for a workout wasn’t happening.  Once home, I changed quickly and mounted my bike, stationed on its wind trainer in my office.  I tuned in ‘The West Wing’ on Netflix and began pedaling.

I rode thinking one episode…about 42 minutes…would have to suffice.  I reached that point and slowed my pedaling.  It was in that instant though that I considered I’d have to write a column reporting that I’d only ridden 42 minutes.  Guilt flooded in and I picked up the pace.  What’s another 18 minutes?  I’d get to the party 18 minutes later and have 18 minutes less time to eat immeasurably more hollow calories.  I completed an hour and dismounted, sweating profusely, but pleased with the effort.

Another perfect example of why it helps to make others aware of your workout goals.  Writing this blog has again become my conscience and pushed me to do something – or sometimes more – than I was going to do.  It just works.  I went to the party and because of the efforts I put in recently, decided against certain food items – basically those loaded with sugar calories that I only wanted, but didn’t need.  Yeah…it works.

Bike duration:  60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate:  120 bpm.
Calories burned during workout:  850.