30X30: Day 5

This is my 5th day of The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

Time: About 40 minutes

Exercise: Meditation breathing, inversion on HANGTUFF, Indian Clubs, ran over on Paseo path to water tank hill and did six hill repeats then ran home.

Comments: Felt better cardio chi today.  Added one front side hill but did not have enough time or gas to do more of the back side hills like last week.  Feeling in better "shape" on the run/bike side though. Computer challenges continue--as one issue is solved many more appear...staying the course for my 30 though.

I was thinking about the governor back east that said we have become a nation of wussies.  I agree.  I've now gotten to the point of having exercises of great benefit people can do in just 60 seconds to five minutes--many completely non-invasive, corrective, EASY, etc., yet people still whine about things being too hard.  Get over it!  Look around!  We are failing with fitness and health as a nation.  Obesity and diabetes is out of control.  A special I watched on Nightline the other night said we will go from 1 in 10 American adults with diabetes to 1 in 3 within the next 20 years!!!

It's time to step up and set the tone with some proper attitude!!! People can whine all they want to about things being too hard, being too busy, and wanting more political correctness with exercise and health, but again, at the end of the day we are losing ground FAST in America.  The time is now.  Let's roll...and let's "role" as in showing others including our children what can be accomplished with health and vigor.

"Just 30 minutes per day of exercise" should be the LEAST we do for our health and bodies--the MINIMUM.

Learn more about The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

http://www.theleanberets.com/30X30Challenge.htm

Keeping it steady, Coach RJ

30X30: Day 4

This is my 4th day of The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

Time: 35 minutes

Exercise: Meditation breathing, rode my Spinning bike at easy to moderate pace, hung upside down on my new HANGTUFF, did some biofoam rolling on thighs.

Comments: Today was MUCH better than yesterday! I truly believe that while "managing stress" with exercise is not as high-level as just eliminating the stress altogether, it is a good strategy to make things better by exercising to destress as opposed to just sitting on the couch worrying about the stress.  The session last night gave me a reboot to have a better day today.  

On the bike side, I felt much better than my last Spinner ride.  Like I admitted earlier, I have not been doing nearly as much cardio fitness the last year--much more on the joint mobility and strength side in 2010 left me "gassed" on the wind power end of fitness.  Enough!  I told my wife Candas last night--it was time to "force the fitness" and get my butt in gear.  I then marched outside to check the weather--under 50!  Cold for SoCal!  How I have softened since living in Atlanta where I would run through the icy forest in the winter alone with only the woodpeckers or ride my bike past ice sickles in the north GA mountains...alas...I opted to turn the heater on in the Mancave and ride the indoor bike, but nonetheless, I got my 30 minutes of cardio fitness.  I have to get 3 cardio workouts per week according to my goals--I'm running behind because of the computer issues.  I need two more cardio days before Saturday now.  Will get another one Wednesday I think...as my friends on the frozen East Coast laugh at me for being a weather wimp in SoCal...

Learn more about The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

http://www.theleanberets.com/30X30Challenge.htm

Keeping it steady, Coach RJ

30X30: Day 3

This is Day 3 of The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

Time: 35 minutes

Workout: I kept it EASY tonight.  I also did my five minutes of meditation breathing--3:00 first thing in the morning then another 2:00 right before bed.  I hide in the closet for the breathing--it seems to be a good place for it for now.  Tonight though--a bunch of Z-Health mobility and nerve drills, some other mobility work for my spine (neck, thoracic, and lumbar), some cat/camels, and lots of Indian Club shoulder exercises...very, very light...nothing more...

Comments:  After 15 hours of computer issues, I still knocked off my 30! This was about as close as you can come to bailing out...but I can't stop five minutes short of a miracle...or short of my 30!  I didn't get the mandatory computer issues dealt with until 9:45 PM, so by that point I was very tired and grumpy...once again, and even after over 1,440 days, I was glad I exercised for 30 minutes AFTER I completed the exercise session.  

To be honest on two issues, anytime I get started after about 8PM, I'm going to opt for something that is easy as in restorative or rejuvenating because I'm usually too tired especially on a night where I have to work the next day.  Also, from a deeper wellness perspective, managing stress with exercise is lower level than just eliminating the stress out of your life period.  This very important point was made on a fitness podcast I was listening to the other month...it stopped me cold because it's really true.  I talk a lot about "managing stress with exercise" but not enough about just getting rid of the stress--and I'm "talking" about my own life as well...easier said than done of course.  I've been reflecting on this a lot more the last few weeks.  The new Mac is supposed to be part of the stress elimination part...although this remains to be realized at least in the near future!  Nonetheless, it's better to manage stress with exercise than let the stress just sit there and ruin even more of you.  After the computer issues, I got short with my wife.  Not good.  After my exercise, I felt an apology was in order--mine.  The mood change with even 30 minutes of very light joint mobility was enough to snap me out of it--or at least enough of it to keep me from getting whacked on the head by my KB wife Candas.  :o)  *The next day was much better and largely I think because we went to bed less frustrated over the issues earlier that day, which again, were assisted by 30 minutes of exercise and "mood recalibration."

Learn more about The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

http://www.theleanberets.com/30X30Challenge.htm

Staying the Course for 30 minutes a day, Coach RJ

30X30: Day 2

This is Day 2 of The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

Time: 35 minutes


Workout: We had a freak snow storm in SoCal this afternoon!  I was lazy, and it was cold, but alas, NO Excuses!  I still needed my 30.  I opted to stay in the house watching football while I did the following: Z-Health joint mobility, other assorted mobility drills for my spine, biofoam roller, FootLog, ValSlides for quad stretches, Indian Clubs, and the wall press drill--plus I got my five minutes of dedicated meditation breathing which I will be doing all month as a pilot.

Comments:  We've had a lot of company for the holidays which has been pleasant because it's a sign of getting back to some degree of normal after moving and working back and forth across America the last six years.  After my friends left today we quickly did some housecleaning then it just felt good to go easy--especially with the snow.  The kids wanted to play outside, and the neighbors all came outside to check out the snow--so enjoying the snow and going easy with my exercise later tonight seemed much more appropriate tonight.  I still have to get my THREE days of quality cardio this week--part of this year's 30X30 goal, but I still have five days.

Learn more about The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

http://www.theleanberets.com/30X30Challenge.htm

From a snowy SoCal tonight, Coach RJ

30X30: Day 1

This is Day 1 of The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

Workout:  I walked a lot today at the Rose Parade.  We parked a ways off knowing we'd walk a bit which allowed for my 30 minutes too plus it was cold and we needed to warm up--some multitasking was in order!

Comments:  My last day of 2010 was a vicious hill repeat running workout, so it felt good today to just walk around with the family and go easy.  No major deal today in terms of exercise intensity or complications--just SIMPLE movement via walking in Pasadena.

Learn more about The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

http://www.theleanberets.com/30X30Challenge.htm

Keeping it ACTIVE but also SIMPLE, Coach RJ

The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge!

I'm taking The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge for New Year's again.  This will be my FIFTH year straight.  I've now exercised 1,460 consecutive days in a row as of December 31, 2010.  While that is a lot of sweat and exercise, it all started very simply with the 30X30.  30 minutes per day of dedicated exercise for 30 days in a row--NO BS Excuses! Get it done.

This year, I need more than just 30 minutes of "something" for exercise though.  I need to make some more specific and challenging goals.  While I always recommend "just doing something" for 30 minutes to the beginners, after four years, here's how I'm tweaking my own goals and why.

I've lost too much cardio fitness the last year.  I need and will ramp my cardio back up by hitting at least three good cardio sessions per week--NO excuses!

I've also just completed what was probably the hardest year of my life in my ways.  Way too much stress last year.  I need to get back to basics on many levels--I'll start with breathing by doing five minutes per day of meditation and deep breathing as part of my daily 30.  The exercise?  Breathing.  That's it.  Nothing else.  Just breathing without thought...easier said than done for sure, but nonetheless, a very important "exercise" to get me re-centered on the priorities for health and well-being.

The Lean Berets 30X30 Challenge...Get Some!  For more information on the 30X30 Challenge, see The Lean Berets link below:

http://www.theleanberets.com/30X30Challenge.htm

In Action, Coach RJ

HANGTUFF Suspension Trainer by Agelesstrength.com

RJ "Hanging Out" with new HANGTUFF by Agelesstrength.com

At last! I got my HANGTUFF from good friend Richard "Army" Maguire of Agelesstrength.com!  This is the very first HANGTUFF sold to anyone--I am honored to have it and use it.  Army is a good friend of mine--one that I trust both personally and professionally.  He is also mentoring me on the Indian Clubs and fighting sticks which are two more topics of future discussion, but today, my focus is his new HANGTUFF!

So what is the HANGTUFF?  It's a very simple yet effective suspension trainer.  It can do anything the other suspension trainers can do (many are available now in different forms), but it's a lot faster at some of these exercises--suspended push ups, flys, rows, core work, pull ups, and more.  For now, I'm just focusing on my low back.

I've developed some nagging low back pain.  I've tried everything--including all the stuff I use to fix nearly everyone else's back pain.  I've been very successful helping others with back pain, yet I'm struggling with my own! Oh I've tried it all--less work, more work, the same work, joint mobility, kettlebell correctives like the windmill, Turkish Get Up, arm bar, biofoam roller, trigger point release balls, body weight exercises.  Nothing "bad" about the above--it just has not worked for my own back issues that well.  Maybe it's all just me--who knows.  All I know is how I feel.


Some of the above makes my back feel "kind of sort of" better--I'll be sharing all this with everyone very soon by the way--but with the exception to just a few, nothing gave me immediate relief or led me to believe this is really something significant for "my" own back issue.  After just four minutes hanging upside down on Army's HANGTUFF, my back pain was nearly GONE.  Is my back healed from a few minutes of inversion on the HANGTUFF?  No.  I would be lying if I said otherwise.  I have more work to do, more experimentation, more endurance and discipline with certain tools and methods, but I can tell you straight up and NO BS, that the HANGTUFF is going to part of this solution and a most likely daily part of my routine.  The HANGTUFF will stay in my "permanent" bag of tools for serious fitness and health--I don't roll over time with anything less by the way.

Yeah...we can talk "root cause" and whether or not the inversion is really dealing with the cause of my back pain, but I'm here to tell you, when your back is a pain in the arse, you'll gladly take "natural" pain relief and like it!  I sit too much like most people!  In my car driving at times over 3,000 miles per month, at the computer (like now!), in meetings, etc.  All this sitting might not be the actual cause, but it surely makes things worse.


I've had guys tell me for years that one of the best things they did to help back pain was hanging or inversion, and as long as they did inversion, their backs were just fine.  The upside down "inversion" helps restore space between your joints without the compression of gravity pushing down--just this alone can alleviate some nerve pain pronto.  Historically, there have been all kinds of things from inversion boots to standing table things that flip you upside down, but often this equipment has been too bulky or too hard to use for most people.  I found once Army showed me the set up, it was quite easy to find my way with it.  The HANGTUFF is simple--like me.  I like that about it. 


I talked to Army Maguire about the construction and design.  He has only used high-quality materials--from foam to webbing to even the thread that holds it together--very high quality.  I felt safe hanging inverted on the HANGTUFF which is more than I can say about a lot of equipment I've seen and tried over the years.



The HANGTUFF is just now going into production.  If you're interested in having one, contact Richard "Army" Maguire at Agelesstrength in Los Angeles.  Army has another new product out too that I'm using called the "Chubby" strike bag.  Great for punching, Filipino fighting sticks, hand conditioning, etc. and small enough to be portable.  Really a versatile bag, and again like all of Army's work, it is a VERY high-quality product.  All the links are below including more photos of me hangin' on Army's new HANGTUFF.

• http://www.agelesstrength.com/
• Meet Richard "Army" Maguire
• All my HANGTUFF photos with captions

I'll will be doing more photos on the actual "fitness" exercises you can do on the HANGTUFF soon along with some video as well.  I'll also be interviewing Army Maguire soon for The Lean Berets too as he and his products are part of the solution for getting Americans MOVING and moving WELL. 


I hope you find benefit in Army's work and products--I know I have and so has my own family.  In Health, Coach RJ