Workout Summary: 12.14.16

It was my last training session with Trainer Nick (well, until I get back in the spring). Bittersweet, I know, but it was a hell of a workout to go out with!

He had me re-do the workout I couldn’t do last week because of my neck injury. On top of that, his boss was observing the session as part of an employee evaluation thing. Safe to say we both killed it 🤘.

He’s going to work up an 8-week plan for me to do on my own while we’re each traveling the world this winter. I’ll do my best to keep up so that when I get back in the spring, I’m ready to get right back to business.

Injured Workout Summary: 12.7.16

A workout which will live in infamy.

So, looks like my stupid neck problem is still a problem. I could only get through the first set of my HIIT session today before I cashed it in. I’ll be icing, stretching, rubbing, and epsom salting until Friday. Hopefully I can get cleared up by then.

Such a shame, too, because I was doing really well to start, especially with the burpees.

Birthday Workout Summary: 11.30.16

Happy birthday to me! I turned 36 today and feel better than ever! I started a tradition last year that I would do something good for myself on my birthday each year (I took a yoga class last year). It just so happened that today was HIIT day and I HIIT it hard!

Well, I did burn out a bit at the end. But I worked really hard and came away with a great workout.

Workout Summary: 11.18.16

Well, looks like fall/winter is finally upon us in the Midwest Great Plains. Perfect time for a HIIT workout.

Seemed a bit short but I didn’t care. It was super aerobic today. I think I did pretty good and even made a lot of progress on my cartwheel form.

Workout Summary: 11.11.16

I was welcomed back to my training schedule with an extra-long HIIT session. Not that I was at it for extra long but the HIIT sequences themselves were much longer than I’m used to.

I was a little sad I didn’t lift any heavy things but it did feel really good to push myself to exhaustion, especially after the week I (and most of America) have had.

Workout Summary: 11.2.16

Had an even more intense than usual HIIT workout today on account of Trainer Nick needing to cram for a test. Therefore, we cut my rest periods down significantly, which made me feel a bit like I haven’t been doing as much as I could instead of resting and trying not to whine.

We did stuff I haven’t done before, namely throwing around heavy medicine balls and partner exercises. It was fun and tough!

Workout Summary: 10.26.16

It’s Wednesday, which (if you follow me) we all know means HIIT day. Awesome workout today. It was really tough (when is it not?) and I almost gave up on my last set for the day. Luckily, Trainer Nick gave me a short breather and told me to get back at it and I finished the set. Still feel kinda bad for crapping out in the first place but at least I finished.

It’s a HIIT

As my first web design teacher was fond of saying,

The lazy shall inherit the earth.

Ernest Gregg

… by which he meant, “Anyone who finds a shortcut to authentic results out of sheer laziness has effectively set the new standard.” In the world of fitness, it seems to me that nowhere is this concept more prevalent than in High-intensity Interval Training (or HIIT).

When you think about it, the ideology behind HIIT sounds like an infomercial pitch: “Get insane results without having to spend hours at the gym! There’s no equipment to buy and you can cancel any time….” To the non-exercise crowd, HIIT seems like it’s making an already difficult thing worse: “Do the same amount of exercise in a fraction of the time, but make it as hard as it can possibly be!”

There have been many studies by medical research outfits applauding the benefits of HIIT, but here be dragons, also. Wanna know what I think? Of course you do.

Workout Summary: 10.19.16

I knew it would happen one day. One day I’d walk onto the field and there would be a giant tire and Trainer Nick would have that sadistic smile on his face. Today was that day.

All in all, the tire is a great exercise. You really have to break it down into phases or else you’ll get hurt. Also, it really keeps you focused during those fatigue reps because if your form starts to slack, you’ll get hurt. The first couple were easier than I thought they would be (I did use the smaller tire) but it got hard really quick.

I think I’m finally getting the hang of my pre-HIIT nutrition, too. No vomits today and I felt good (when I wasn’t getting my ass kicked). We also spent quite a bit of time working on my cartwheel form.

Workout Summary: 10.12.16

Whew! It’s been a little bit. Due to various emergencies and scheduling problems, I haven’t had a training session since last Wednesday.

I did have a great workout on my own (well, with my lovely, motivational wife) on Friday. But I don’t really know how to give 100% when I’m on my own yet.

It was HIIT day and I was worried that Trainer Nick would kick the crap out of me. He kind of did but it was good, too. I’m still working on nailing down my early-workout-day diet. Today, I only had a small amount of coffee several hours before my workout, which gave me a monster headache during my workout. Oh well; back to the drawing board.

Lots of new, fun stuff today.