Joey’s Gym Class

What happened to me?

When I came to I was lying on the ground, my lungs were heaving and gasping for air, my heart had found its way to the back of my throat, and was beating in my ears like a native indian war was about to begin. I felt like I would never catch my breath. My clothes were drenched in sweat, and there was chalk dust everywhere!

The last 8 minutes of my life were a total blur, but here is what I recall -

7:55pm - I realize I need to do some cardio on my off day, and definitely need to keep working on my KB snatches with the 24kg . . . so, let me do that.

7:56pm - Grab the chalk, take out the Big Boy (24kg KB), and decide I am going to man-up and not even refill my water bottle. I am a WARRIOR!!!!!!

7:58pm - I run upstairs and refill my water bottle. (I’m not that crazy!)

7:59pm - Take my shoes off, Doc’s orders, place my feet on either side of the KB and I get set. I had the determination of a Samurai in my eyes, and the heart of a beast!

8:00pm - GRAB AND GO!!!!

***

8:08pm - Im on the floor wheezing and sweating profusely, I think the temperature went up in the gym - (Did someone turn the heat on?) I dont know what time it is, or who was around me. My hands hurt, blood bubbles were building up under the skin of my palms. . . I was still alive.

I know I hit reps of 20, 15, 10, and 5 on each arm. I had to put the bell down after each set, but I made it.

I completed the task for the first time.

Its really an amazing thing, just a couple of months ago, I tried snatching the 24kg, and I said to myself, “There is no way I will be able to do 100 reps of this anytime soon! Its going to take me forever!”

I did it. I accomplished a pysical endeavor that at one point seemed IMPOSSIBLE to me. This same situation goes for women and pullups or pushups, or men going for a 300lb bench press or even a 185lb clean.

Remember this - Practice makes perfect and determination will drive you to victory!

Big special thanks to Dr. Cheng for giving me the motivation to complete this!

Stay strong,

Joey

P.S. Next goal is to get 100reps without putting the bell down!

If you have been a reader of my blog, you know I am not into running for weight loss. Personally, I love the challenge, and there is something truly theraputic to taking a long distance run or bike ride that just seems to clear your head of the daily stresses. However, having someone who is 80lbs overweight and having them pound the pavement for 5 miles 5 days a week is a sure recipe for injury.

Running for weight loss, and running for sport are two COMPLETELY different things. When people run for weight loss, they end up doing more harm than good usually due to improper body mechanics. When people run for the love of the sport - (with the right mechanics) it is a totally different story altogether.

Born to Run by Chris McDougall was one of the most exciting reads of 2009.

Part Competitive Sport Story

Part History book

Part Biomechanical Technique Manual

It tells the thrilling story of a group of ultra-marathoners and follows their journey to compete with a Native Indian running tribe that has an ancient history of running ultra-marathons with the latest state of the art running shoe technology -

Yes, they pretty much ran barefoot. The interesting thing is the fact that members of this ancient tribe had NO INJURIES! Compare that to North Americans who run - the injury rate for runners in North America is a staggering 80%! To pu it literally- 8 out of 10 people who start running will get get injured. Add to that the fact that this statistic has been remained unchanged since the 1960’s!!!! Most of this is due to poor body mechanics, and thick cushioned soles of running sneakers.

What is an Ultramarathon? - These are 50 to 200+ mile races that can last for days. Yes, they really do exist! And yes people are crazy enough to run them.

Ultramarathons make our NY Marathon look like an elementary school recess game!

Runners of this sport are highly dedicated and super competitive. Beyond that, Mcdouggal goes into a lot of the technical aspects of running, and why people get injured, what are the right mechanics, and how to run properly.

The book suggests that if you run barefoot, or close to it, as we evolved to do all those years ago, you don’t get hurt because the flesh of your feet and your joints can’t take the pain. Over years of barefoot running, our ancestors built up adequate tolerance to barefoot running over time, so that they eventually could run for long distances without pain. The addition of fancy-schmancy running shoes allowed turned running into a cardio exercise at the expense of our feet, knees, and backs–which haven’t built up the tolerance to barefoot running because of the running-shoe work-around.

It’s an interesting argument, and a powerful one, I think: if learning to run barefoot comfortably ensures good mechanics, then we cheat ourselves of the bio-mechanical learning process by wearing thick-soled running shoes. It’s a cheat.

The characters in the story are hilarious and you can really feel where each of them comes from. Mcdouggal’s prose just left me spell bound to the book, by the end I truly wanted to strap on my Vibram Five Fingers, and just run through the trails like a mad man!

I highly recommend this book to anyone who has ever tried running. You will learn a lot from this book, and the story will keep you hooked!

Enjoy!

Stay strong,

Joey

Just so you know, I totally dominated the supermarket today! I went in grabbed a basket and went to town on the produce section!

There was a woman behind me who’s cart looked like Haagan Daaz and Entammans were going out of style.

She was looking at my baskets (and yes, I carried 2 baskets - I was too lazy to get a cart, so I got in some farmers walks while shopping!) like what the hell does this guy eat!

So, I looked at her and answered her shocked expressions with these thoughts in my head -

“Yes, I eat alot of eggs.”

“Yes, I eat a lot of tuna.”

“Yes, I also eat a ton of vegetables.”

“Yes, I do like cookies.”

“No, I dont keep them in the house.”

“No, I dont eat them by the bag . . . anymore.” ; )

“No, this is not part of a New Years resolution.”

“Yes, I do shop like this ALL THE TIME!”

“Now turn around slowly, and PUT THE ICE CREAM BACK! Thank you.”

So here is a peek into my grocery bags - These are things I constantly buy and always have on hand, you know . . . to preserve my sexy!

Joey’s Shopping List:

• 2 Dozen Eggs - these will last a few days, I boil about 10 as soon as I get home and make an egg salad with a little salsa instead of mayo.
• Peppers - Red, yellow, and green, a couple of each. I wash and chop these right away also.
• 1Eggplant
• Tomatoes
• Yellow Squash
• Zucchini
• Celery
• Bunch of Spinach
• Kale
• 4 sweet potatos
• 4 cans of tuna
• 4 bags of tuna - (trying these for the taste test!)
• Black Beans
• Navy Beans
• Kidney Beans
• Garbanzo Beans
• Lemons
• Bag of Oranges
• Fresh spices - Rosemary, Thyme, Oregano
• Shredded Cheese
• Bag of Flaxseed
• Large Chobani Greek Yogurt

And thats it! I don’t consider my shopping over until I come home then wash and chop the veggies as soon as I get there. That way there is no excuse, its probably one of the best habits I developed in 2009.

Plus, hot girls in the supermarket want to hang with you when you shop better.

(Before you ask, yes, girls in my supermarket are figure models who always wear bikinis to shop for produce!)

Back to the story here - With the eggs, I boil about 10 of them, then peel and chop them up. Mix in some chopped veggies and a couple of tablespoons of salsa - and there is a quick breakfast for a couple of days!

As I have always said, if it is in your house, you will eat it. Keep the bad stuff out, and bring good foods in!

I mean after all - your body is pretty much MADE of veggies! -

Stay strong,

Joey