The Body Rabyd – Two Days No Posts / 500 Fitness

I must apologize for missing two days but I had already warned you that might happen because of my son’s wedding. the streak is over so the pressure is off and oddly I feel relieved about that.  I would have posted last might but the hotel WiFi didn’t like my computer and I wasn’t going to hot-spot my phone because I am fairly sure that I would absolutely kill my data plan for the month if I did with all that is going on.  That said I have some posts to make up for the missing two days but for today one will have to do because I am fried with all the driving.

I want to give a shout out to 500 Fitness for being my placement gym for a couple of days.  I must say your facilities are excellent and your concept is getting me to scratch my head a little about gyms.  The idea of limited membership appeals to me now and if anyone finds themselves in the Buffalo area I can definitely give a recommendation on this gym.

The Body Rundown:

Strength: Last week the two extra workouts definitely made up for things I thought I would be missing and I hit some problem areas as well as experimented with going in without a specific plan and working out.  It seemed to go OK but I still think keeping my log book keeps me honest.

Nutrition: Yeah, with all the wedding and stuff I was able only to keep all the carbs to a minimum with few slip ups.  My diabetic scores were in the mid 100s so I am where I have been for a while now.

Flexibility: No work here really but I ma seeing the value of it on the road.

Cardio: I did two walks at the beginning of the week.  I will get to back to a full week of everything this week.  Time to get it done.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

The Body Rabyd – What’s Important (Sabbatical Report #2)

If there is one thing that is going well about my sabbatical it is my focus to use the summer to get back into physical shape. I have had some decent results this summer so far and it has made me feel a lot better.  Between the hiking and the weight lifting things have gone well and now that I have declared beat mode, It is time to raise the intensity.  I have been doing this on the hiking but now it is time to hit the other end so to speak and intensify the weightlifting.  ever since my doctor diagnosed me with an upper abdominal hernia I have been heading the high reps / low weight route but I think I need to add exercises to increase the intensity .

The Body Rundown:

Strength: I am going to add some exercises to each day and see if that makes thing more intense.

Flexibility: Still no progress but it will hit me what and where I need to do this.

Cardio: The hiking is working really well.  I am now up to the point where I am adding a pack and such so it is getting progressively harder.

Nutrition: Much cleaner with a few small cheats.  The goal for next week will be to get rid of these.  My sugar levels ranged this week from 154 to 179 this week.  The high-end of normal being 95, I still have some ways to go but it is much better than when I first found out I was diabetic.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

The Body Rabyd – What Exactly is the Goal Here?

Yeah, with all the talk about diabetes and all that, it begs the question what is the goal for the Body Rabyd now? Honestly, I don’t think too much has really changed other than there is a new definition added for my understanding of victory.  For too long I have forgotten the goal of this was to kick ass and not just get by.  Time to kick it back into gear.  If this is the goal I am pretty sure that the diabetes does not have a chance.  Time to work to being a fit bad ass.

The Body Rundown:

Flexibility: This really is the one area I have left and I am think a good stretch before I take my walk might actually help things.

Strength: I now have done three weeks of lifting with no exercise or sets missed.  It is light weight and high reps right now but I also have to be mindful not to bend my upper abs too much with the hernia there but so far so good.

Cardio: The hiking training walks are really walking and I feel much better.  I think I have found a form of cardio I actually enjoy.  First time for everything I guess.

Nutrition: Can you say low crab diet for multiple reasons? – I not only can, I have to. Diabetes can be credited for one thing good so far and that is motivating me to get my nutrition tight.  Note:  added in here now each week with be my high and low sugar score for the week.  High: 205 Low: 133 (norm is under 95).  Still a little work to do.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

 

The Body Rabyd – Two Weeks Into Things

The truth is that I have had an enjoyable two weeks. It have been walking every day and hitting the weights as well.  I feel much better and i am really taking to this idea of hiking as an activity that I can do and enjoy well into my later years.  I suppose this was something I needed to do but the doctor’s diagnosis that I currently have diabetes has really caused me to look at activities I can do long term as in lifetime long term.

I have said it before because people are surprised that i would even venture outdoors.  It is not that I am not an outdoors person when I want to be.  I simply am a guy who has because of various allergies been forced to retreat from the outdoors. Flonase has changed that and oddly enough when I am in better health and fitness I have less allergy problems.

Hiking has a spiritual appeal to me as well.  There is something about seeing things that no one else has seen in hiking.  Other people sit at their computers and marvel at what others post live – I want to be the live post person.

The Body Rundown:

Cardio: I have been doing training walks and if you head to Rabyd Hiking you can see the full details.

Strength: Solid week of lifting so I am feeling very good.  The gym life is starting to be more appealing and as long as people don’t talk to me between sets I am good.

Flexibility: This is the part I need to work on.

Nutrition: The diabetic thing has really caused me to watch very carefully what I eat.  Avoiding pasta, bread and simple sugars has done wonders.  Junk food and all drinks other than water have vanished.  I do have other things to drink but it is usually once a day.  Otherwise it has been pure H2O territory.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

The Body Rabyd – Introducing Rabyd Hiking

I have started a new blog ( I know a shocking development considering why I started this one) specifically to chronicle my hiking experiences.  So far there is not too much to it other than an introductory post and a record of the five training walks I have had this week.  I wasn’t sure if I would share this here but I feel that it is going well and it is becoming and good record and accountability for me.  Here is the link: https://rabydhiking.wordpress.com/

I am still getting used to the diabetic thing but the doctors are not making it any easier.  I was supposed to have an appointment and consultation on Wednesday.  They cancelled and rescheduled it for the 24th.  You know it is really hard to have a sense of urgency when your doctors keep moving things back and don’t seem all that urgent to tell you what is going on.

This however, was a tremendous week:

The Body Rundown:

Weight Training: Complete five day week and hit all body parts.  It was simply good to be there every day and get something done.

Cardio: Hiking everyday with training walks

Nutrition: I really tightened things up this week and pretty much have avoided simple carbs and sugars.

Flexibility: This is the only downside.  I need to have a full stretch before I walk I think.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

The Body Rabyd – Yeah, I Am Being Redundant

I know it is another body Rabyd Post but that is where I have been thinking these days.  My health and body have on my mind all day.  I went and paid my gyms fees today so I am good up until September.  That however is the smallest part of things on my mind about my health and part of it is what goals I should have now.  I have also been thinking hard about how having diabetes affects what my goals are and really it does not change them much.  I have been debating though what the main goal needs to be and that is to find some way to reverse this thing and no longer be diabetic.

The Body Rundown:

Weight Lifting: The only thing that really affects my weight lifting these days is this hernia thing where the Doctor says I have to be careful not to do Crunch type movements.  Thankfully if good form is followed not a lot of exercises have this problem – I will still keep going with the lighter weights and higher reps for now until I get it repaired.  It can take one to six weeks to recover from surgery so I will have to make sure I don’t make it worse.

Cardio: Hiking Training will start by hiking.  I am thinking everyday on the rails to trials for a half hour each day trying to go farther each time.   Then add ten minutes every two days or so till I get to an hour. If the weather does not cooperate, then I can use the gym.  I want to be doing day hikes on the weekend in June.

Flexibility: This is hard as I think I will have to do it before weight lifting.

Nutrition: This is the key thing more than ever now.  I need to get control of this to the point my fat percentage drops and thus I can start to see progress against the diabetes thing.  I have only been drinking water so far and put a moratorium on simple carbs, we will see what the people suggest on Wednesday.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

The Body Rabyd – I Am Diabetic

I knew that when I went to the doctor asked for blood work their might be a problem.  I haven’t been watching my diet as closely since I started weightlifting because I figured it would be enough.  I must be getting older  to the point one thing will no longer be quite enough for what I want to do. The blood tests don’t lie – I am diabetic and I have to deal with that.  My main focus is to get my diet in check and get some of the fat off my body.  Weightlifting will stay at low weight and high reps until I get my hernia repaired and I need to start hiking training.  With school over I have decided I need to focus on my body for a while.

I guess the real thing that is bugging me is that this is a kind of a first for me.  I have lived 47 years without a health label of any kind and now I have one – diabetic.  A lot of things are still good – heart, lungs muscles and other things.  It is the internal chemical crap that is giving me trouble and it is something I have to fight more consistently with diet.

I would appreciate some prayers for those of you who pray.  I don’t feel let down by God, I actually feel the reverse of not taking good care of the body he gave me.  Can’t really do much about it now but I feel like one of my goals is slipping through my fingers and I need to grasp it again and hold on tight.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

The Body Rabyd – Doctor Visit (Part 2) – Post-Visit

Well, it didn’t take too much out of my day to talk to the doctor and get a physical today.  The guy is a physician’s assistant but younger than me and that is cool as I would like to have a doctor who won’t die on me.  That said there are indeed a few things wrong with me.

The bulge on my upper abs is actually a very minor hernia which he said explains why it does not hurt.  He asked me what I wanted done with it and I thought about what I do for fitness made the decision to be referred to a general surgeon to get it fixed.  It’s nothing major but it could get to be something worse and I don’t want that particularly when I start lifting heavy again in the Fall.  Better to fix it when it is not a major problem before it becomes a major problem.

I have a couple minor skin conditions: my psoriasis on my shins he thinks can be fixed up with a couple creams to the point it might actually go away for good.  I also have a minor fungus that is pretty much athletes foot but in a couple of places that are not my feet.  The treatment is the same though.  I wonder if my nudist friends could give me a comparison of how many skin diseases and fungi they get compared to when they wear clothes?  My thoughts are that our skin is designed to be open to the air and that makes it healthier.

The want to do some lab work but we need to check our insurance to see which lab tests they pay for.  Might be a Monday excursion for that.  Mostly they want to look at blood sugar and lipids.  And they told me to watch my low number on the blood pressure scale as it was a little higher than normal. Nothing serious to require medication yet but they want me to watch it to see if it changes.

My heart is good, my lungs are good, the rest of me is above average.  He says I should lose the fat around my middle to help my lower lungs and I might want to take cardio more seriously.  I asked about hiking and he said that would be OK as well as weight lifting as long as it is not too heavy.  Right now I am on my light weight, high reps part of my yearly cycle anyway.  No prostrate issues and all that.

My 47-year-old body simply has rust on it and needs a small repair and I need to improve the circulation a little and get a bigger filter.  Nothing to worry overtly about but some things I need to fix and more motivation to get back into prime shape again.  Between this check up and my son’s wedding in a month and a half time to get to work.

The Body Rundown:

Strength: I am going to keep to he high reps/low weight for now until the end of June at least.  I feel this will keep me safe from hernia issues according to the doctor.  It will also get my muscles metabolism up to burn some fat.

Nutrition: I really have to get a handle on this.  I need to avoid carbs like the plague.

Cardio: Hiking Training for the month of May. Treadmill fast walk at the gym and covering more and more distance walking.  Mini hikes on the weekend.

Flexibility: Full Body Stretching needed.  Should help with all the above.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

P.S. – Thanks for the prayers.

 

The Body Rabyd – Getting There

It has been an interesting week from a fitness stand point and I for one will be glad when the semester is over so I can have a reasonable time and probably five-day a week lifting schedule.  That will be very nice long with say a 10 am lifting time.  That said, I have to say the struggle of lifting very early has grown me and let me know what is valuable.  My body is rapidly adjusting to three sets of fifteen an I am pushing more and more weight so my body is reacting accordingly.  I was a solid week and I can’t complain.

The Body Rundown:

Strength: See above. Good Week. 

Cardio: The sun is coming up so walking on campus has become and affair of sweat and heat.  When classes are done I will be shifting to hiking training.

Nutrition: pretty good but need to continue to tighten it up.

Flexibility: Not a lot here.

Blessings and Cheers!!!

The Body Rabyd – Trifecta Perfection.

This week was a solid week for lifting not so much for everything else.  No excuses. That’ simple what happened.  I do think it is simply that my motivation level varies so I really need to lift when its highest but I have to lift at a certain time a day or it just dos not happen.  I have been thinking of a strength goal for when Summer draws to an end.  It is the age-old goal of 2-3-4 on the Bench-Squat-Deadlift line.  The numbers refer to the number of plates on both sides of the bar.  That would be 225 lbs. for Bench, 315 lbs. for Squat and 405 lbs. for Deadlift.  Before I get too old I need to attempt to get here.  Attempt is the operative word as I have only seen my Squat at this level.  Deadlift is my favorite but i have only been able to push 315. Bench was close once upon a time with 205 but I haven’t done that in a long while.

The Body Rundown:

Strength: 3×15 until the end of June with lighter weights.  Once July hits the Strength days until October and then we are back to muscle building.  Long way away.

Cardio: We hates it.  I do feel that thinking in terms of Hiking training might be a good way to go.

Flexibility: Some stretching

Nutrition: LOLZ

Blessings and Cheers!!!