sick, work and a general bad attitude.

I have trained some, but not enough. Spent a good part of last week in Portland, got to train at Team Quest again. Spent most of this week down with the flu. Did squat some yesterday for the first time in a long time.
More of that to come.
Mahalo.

Grown @$$ man.

I've talked about this before, but getting older doesn't mean that you have to fall into the same pitfalls that your parents did simply because you're the same age. If treated properly your body should feel pretty dang good at 30, 35 and on up (I'm not yet qualified to say how good 'on up' should feel, stay tuned to this blog for updates).
Conversely this is not permission to shirk responsibilities. Shirking responsibilities has consequences. Please do not complain to me how 'unfair' it is when those consequences come to call.
Exercising into adulthood is about the 5 P's:
Planning: When you were 19 you could just go in and hammer out set after set, you didn't need to manage your time. Now time is limited, as is your recovery. Get in execute the plan, and get out. If what you're doing isn't working, change the plan.
Preparation: warm the hell up. Foam roll, get some mobility work, and get a little sweat before you get under heavy iron. Old age is the accumulation of injuries. Prevent aging by: not getting injured and treating the injuries you have.
Parlay: Negotiate. Make sure that those to whom you are responsible (boss, wife, husband, kids.. whomever) share your vision on the importance of exercise, and talk to them. Negotiate times that are for you to go play/exercise.
Priorities: I would love to train with a local wrestling club, I would love to go to a judo school and work on my gi throws, these are not a priority right now. So they get back-burnered for lifting and BJJ. When I lift I generally do 3-4 movements, I would love to do 5-6, but I have time for 3 so I prioritize the best most important movements for me.
Play: it's gotta be fun. Exercise should not be a grind unless it is a short term preparation for some sort of competition. Once it gets to be not fun, change it. Do something different. Nothing will make you seem younger than throwing yourself into an activity with an utter disregard for yourself.

Go play.
Mahalo.

In which I hand in my man card..

Hear me out. The wife and I try to balance our T.V. schedule so that neither of us has to suffer too much during our (fairly limited) T.V. time. One of the shows that she likes is the new 90210. Being a good husband, I read, write to you folks, or surf the internet while it's on and I do end up catching bits of the dialog. One of the characters had a throw-away line last week:
"You think my chest is getting too big?"
That was from one male character to another.
Completely through me for a loop.
Seriously? What high school male has ever said that?
Are the people who produce that show unhappy with the idea that they can only cause body image issues in their female viewers, and are now trying to get all the collateral damage they can?
Here's the part where I turn in my man card:
There is no way that character would have that sentiment. He's by the standards of the show the poor kid. I remember being that age, and killing myself in the gym for every ounce of muscle mass I could get. Muscle mass, and athletic ability are outward displays of power that cannot be bought. "The poor kid" in that group should be trying to get as big and strong as possible (especially since he's the token jock in the group).
High school males from Kansas do not worry that their chest is too big, they may have insecurities, but its always about appearing weak.
It makes me wonder are they out of touch, or am I?
Maybe it has gotten this bad.
I certainly hope not.
Mahalo.

Groundhog day.

It's February 2. Groundhog day.. do you know where your groundhog is? Wait.. don't answer that.
News and such.
The Friday fun group was sorta revived.
I offered up 2 days a week (Tuesdays and Thursdays) of conditioning for the 6 weeks leading up to the pan-ams.. for free. No one showed. Disappointing, but whatever less work for me. If no one shows on Thursday I'm canceling the whole thing.

I signed up for the perform better 1 day seminar here in Seattle on April 2. Should be interesting. Martin Rooney and the Cosgroves will be speaking.

My training has been going well. I'm taking today off mostly due to laundry issues (didn't a gi dry before I left for work this morning).
That's really it.

Mahalo.

Our meat is up to 35% meat!

According to a class-action suit filed on Friday in federal court Taco Bell's "Seasoned Ground beef" does not contain enough beef. According to the suit it is only 35% beef. The rest is "other ingredients including water, wheat oats, soy lecithin, maltodrextrin, anti-dusting agent and modified corn starch."
Article here.
35% of their meat is meat. Just over 1/3.
If that's what's in their "ground beef" what is in the "nacho cheese sauce?"

This is why I suggest to my clients to eat out as little as possible, and if they must, to go to small local restaurants. Large chains have long supply lines, and are all about hook (salt, fat, sugar combo that releases all kinds of feel-good chemicals in our brains) and using the lowest cost ingredients they can. Frankly, they don't care about your health. They care about their bottom line, and buying quality ingredients, lean well produced meats, and quality fats are bad for the bottom line.
More over I don't trust that the ingredients listed for their foods are exactly what is in their food (see above). In this case, someone who is trying to eat paleo, or low carb gets a giant dose of wheat, oats, maltodextrin (sugar) and corn starch. It wrecks their diet and they don't lose weight. The dieter "tried that diet and it didn't work." In reality they didn't. There were all kinds of starches and sugars hidden in their food.
The only way to know what you're eating is buy foods that don't need a label (meat, vegetables, fruits) and prepare them yourself. Failing that, eat at small shops and buy foods in a recognizable form (if it looks like a chicken, it's probably a chicken and not a soy bean).

As an aside, this goes for folks who are trying to put on weight too. Go to your local diner and you'll get more calories than at a fast food joint and you won't feel like re-heated crap afterward. Hell, go to your grandmother's house, and she'll put some weight on you for free.

Mahalo.