Product Reviews

Whoa! I just noticed that my iTunes account has 666 podcast episodes. What other sign do we need to prove we're living in the Great Tribulation?

Actually, I converted to Preterism some time ago, so I don't know what the heck's going to happen in the next seven years.

Some of the blogs I try to emulate have many followers and offer product reviews. My blog does not have many followers, and I have not offered any product reviews. Perhaps I don't have many followers because I haven't offered any product reviews. I shall rectify that today.

No, a sponsor (like, say, Under Armour) did not recently send me an item hoping I'd praise its virtues on my blog. That only happens to the popular bloggers, evidently. I did, however, receive some free workout attire some time ago that I shall review today. Full disclosure: These clothes were made available to me by the United States Department of the Navy. Go Navy!

The very comfortable matching sweat pants and sweat shirt I'm wearing now were manufactured by the Soffe company, right here in the USA! In NC no less! Not some soft, west coast state in the Pacific Northwest (or China). The style I have is a grey sweat pants color, which, according to me and Miley, never goes out of fashion. Think Rocky. Think Burgess Meredith. Think sweat. Perfect for boxing and pilates.

I can actually hear Bah ba ba Bah ba ba Bah ba ba Bah as I run through Philadelphia when I'm wearing these bad boys.  For some reason, I even put a towel in my collar. I don't know what that's for, but it was good enough for the champ.

Fifty percent fortrel polyester, fifty percent cotton allows for breathability. I'm not even kidding about that.  The draw string on the pants is superfluous for me as the elastic waistband is enough to hold 'em up.  The elasticized gathered ankles keeps the bottom of my pants from flapping all around like some kind of commie Oregon state flag.

Don't be a bum! You have to get some of these.  When they gave me these at Camp Geiger in NC (Marine combat training for the rest of us) in 1995 the idea was to make us all look the same.  That is not a problem here in the civilian world. Nobody ('cept Miley and pregnant girls) sports these grey sweat pants anymore. Stand out from the crowd with Soffe Sweats sweat pants and shirts.

And yes, you read that right, 1995. I've rocked these for 15 years, and they're as gray as the day I got 'em! Are your Under Armour garments going to last that long? Sheah, right.

(BTW, I love Under Armour and would gladly pimp my blog for them if they'd send me something!)

American Top Gear

It's not you, it's me.

Honestly folks, it's the same show.

Well, yes and no.

I've been down on the American Top Gear for a little while now, even before I saw it, which is proof of my amazing ability to prejudge. But now I have seen the first two episodes and have to conclude that all the elements are there, except the chemistry.

The banter between the above hosts, whose names I can't remember, seems awkward, forced, and most often, dull.  Also, when they directly address us, the audience, it doesn't quite resonate. It's a bit like trying to talk with a friend of a friend.

All of that, however, is probably just me.  Others may find these guys quite engaging.  And over time they may find their comfort zone and become more interesting.

Aside from that, it looks to me they replicated the BBC version of this show.  There are challenges, a Stig, a test track, celebrities driving a reasonably priced car, reviews of cars you can't afford, etc.  Surprisingly, at least to me, they even retained the standing studio audience. The graceful and artistic presentations of the cars they are reviewing is also a part of the American version. The theme song is even the same.

The American version is only an hour long, with commercials. I have not seen them do a news segment yet, so that is at least one part they did cut out.  The BBC version so far has gotten bigger celebrities to drive their small cars.  For instance, Tom Cruise holds the record with their current car on the test track. The American version has had Buzz Aldrin and Meriadoc Brandybuck. 

My favorite challenges on the BBC version are when they race from point A to point B across Europe, like from London to some ski resort is Switzerland, James and Hammond using traditional transportation, and Clarkson in a Bugatti Veyron, or some other fantasy car. So I hope that sort of thing makes into the American version, though I haven't seen it yet.

The first challenge on the American Version, however, was promising. Two of the American guys, in a Dodge Viper, had to elude a Cobra attack helicopter trying to get a missile lock on them.  However, the whole bit seemed overly produced, and the repartee lacking.  To be fair, though Clarkson and his fellows come across much more natural on the BBC version, I recognize that their bits and challenges are overly produced as well at times.

So, I wish the History Channel success with this endeavor, and I hope the show makes it. I believe they need to give it some time to gel. Perhaps some day the American hosts can quit explaining all the bits.  If you're a fan of the BBC version, you might as well watch the American version.  If you haven't watched either, it's worth looking at, just don't expect to like the hosts right off the line.

Oh, one other thing. When they are actually in the cars, driving, testing, what have you, if you watch through a mirror, it appears they are on the "correct" side of the car.

Pumped Up

You can hear me now and believe me later, but I am getting pumped up.  Scroll to the bottom of this post to see how my body is responding to all of my work outs.

Actually, I'm still weighing in at a girly-man 160 pounds, or 11 and a half stones for fans of Top Gear. But that's OK, I'm not really trying to gain weight, I dejectedly tell myself.  I'm just trying to get stronger and stay fit. Yes, that's exactly what I'm trying to do.

I'm not trying to injure myself, but I have this nagging pain in my left should and left side of my neck. There's been a stiffness on the left side of my neck for quite a while. Many moons ago, when I started riding a bike again, I noticed it was hard to look over my left should at traffic.  I have to basically turn all the way around in the saddle like one of those equestrian trick riders.  The pain, however, is not from lifting. I think it's my bed, but more on that some other time, including how I had to go to Wal-mart and buy a new pillow.

I've been reading this guy's blog about his 5X5 system.  He's sort of a self help lifting guru, and he's a bit of a contrarian, which always appeals to me. He stresses squatting and places a high priority on that lift.  Through the years I've always avoided squats, though I do believe you need to do them.  At home, however, what I can squat is limited to how much I can lift over my head. Needless to say, that's not a lot. I may have a solution, though. Some time ago I built some saw horses. I got to looking at those one day and here's what I came up with:

Now I can appropriately hurt myself by trying to squat more weight that I can lift. (I do not recommend this set up for you. If you try this at home, or anywhere, you will die and/or become seriously disabled and injured with no hope of recovery. The saw horses are designed for carpentry projects, not to act as a proper squatting rack.)

Speaking of musclely guys from Belgium, a movie you should see is JCVD. Jean-Claude plays himself, a once-popular actor still trying to get work, and gets mistaken for a bank robber.  There's a weird soliloquy in the middle, but it's still pretty good. Check it out if you get the chance.

And now, the new me:

So Easy

It's so easy to be lazy, especially over Thanksgiving weekend. Friday night is generally a rest night for me, but I didn't work out last night, Thanksgiving, so I figured I'd hit it again today.  It doesn't look like it's going to happen.  I should add, by the way, that it's easy to be lazy over Thanksgiving weekend unless you're one of the ladies in my family who do 99% of the cooking. So, I guess I'm thankful for the women in my life who cook all of that good food.

I've found it a lot easier to stay motivated when I have specific goals in mind. Right now, since I'm primarily working with free weights, I want to lift more weight, making small gains each week. When I was a younger man, I did a bunch of crazy lifts that I'd seen in magazines and videos (that's what we had to look at before the internet). Now I keep it simple: bench, squat, dips, curls, shoulder press, crunches, rows.  If I had a chin-up bar I'd drop the rows and do chin-ups.

Another thing I did in my youth that I don't do now is not logging my sets and reps. I write it all down now, and it is invaluable. When I started logging my work-outs I would record each day on one page. In other words, if I did bench, dips, and crunches, I'd record all those reps and sets on one page.  A few days later, when I did those sets again, I'd record it all, but it would be on a different page. This makes it difficult to compare your current sets with what you did previously.  So I started recording each exercise on its own page. For instance, if I do bench today, I record it and date it 11/26.  The next time benches come around, I record the sets and reps underneath my previous entry. That way I can see exactly what I need to do to improve on the last session.

But alas, I cannot stay in my garage forever. Soon I have to start running and swimming. Maybe even some biking. I'm not opposed to those things, but I need to get motivated. What? Set a goal? OK, I'll run 15 miles a week until the end of the year.  But first, I need to find a video about running to show me how.

Perhaps next time I'll include a reveiw of the American Top Gear. Or perhaps not. Who cares?

Nutrition

What I know about nutrition: Halloween candy is good.

I just listened to the Tri-Talk podcast about nutrition.  To date I have not done anything differently gastronomically since last January when I started "training" for a triathlon.  That's not to say I haven't thought about it.  It's always there, like that blender you can't remember turning off. "Isn't there something else I was supposed to do?" So I was pleased to hear the subject of nutrition come up. I have a lot to learn.

Turns out, I need to eat food.  Not too much, not too little. Don't eat a lot of Halloween candy. Eat healthy food. That's what I need to do.

Or is it that simple? The host kept using phrases like glycemic intake, post workout insulin uptake, and yam. I can barely run a can opener. You're going to have to tell me what specific foods to eat, and I'm talking name the brand, exactly what time to eat them, and how many times to chew.  Until then it's Casey's pizza and Little Debbie Oatmeal Cream Pies.

The Casey's/Little Debbie Diet may not be working, however. I've gained six pounds! For all of October I've been at 158 pounds, which seems scrawny enough, but over the summer I had hit 152.  I haven't weighed that much since I was in boot camp in 1993.  So, what have I learned about nutrition? When you're hungry, find something to eat, but make sure you're training for some kind of endurance race or getting yelled at while you do push-ups.

Due to the overwhelming number of requests I've received, I'm relenting and showing you a picture of the gym to which I belong. Enjoy:



Where the magic happens.

 PS. OK, Blogger is messing with me. I just ran the spell check and it doesn't like the "ver" in "over".

Still Going

After seeing the trailer to the American Top Gear, I realized I wasn't done going on about it.  Oh, it looks bloody awful! I haven't been this upset since they remade The Office.  So, am I going to watch it? Of course I am! How else will I find things to complain about it unless I actually watch. I'm only praying that the American version is only an hour long.  BTW, wasn't it great this season when the BBC in their infinite mercy decided to show us the entire one hour and twenty minutes version the Brits get to see? Absolutely fantastic!

My All Time Favorite British TV Shows (keeping in mind I've only seen a handful)

1. Benny Hill (This may top any of my lists)
2. Top Gear
3. Monty Python's Flying Circus
4. Fawlty Towers
5. Keeping Up Appearances
6. The Office
7. Dr. Who

Oops, I just named every British TV show I've ever seen.

Are the British known for their jazz? Heavens no. I was reminded of a song that is just brilliant while listening through my iPod today. Everyone loves Dave Brubeck's Take Five, as well they should. But there is another excellent song on the Take Five album: Blue Rondo A La Turk.  The actual video is rather boring; Dave Brubeck hardly moves at all, but here it is:

Disappointed

Just got done working out. Should I be embarrassed that I had to ask my wife to spot me? Probably not. Should I be embarrassed that she had to spot me for a buck fifty on the bench? Probably.

Lately I've taken to loading up my little iPod thing, what's it called? Oh, yes, the Nano, or something. Anyways, load it up, run through it all, load it up again with all new songs and podcasts, and run through it again. Since I have the Nano, that's two days worth of listening. So what's the point of that little report. Well there isn't one.

Every once in a while people will post what's on their iPod, or what their favorite albums or songs are, or which Streisand movie they like best (Meet the Fockers). It's always interesting to see the eclectic tastes of all your friends (Wha? He likes A Star is Born and What's Up Doc?). Not long ago my friends were posting what albums meant the most to their lives or something along those lines. One friend listed Paul Simon's Rhythm of the Saints. Now, I thought I was the only person in the world who owned that album, and here was someone listing it as one of his all time faves.

As mentioned earlier in various posts I'm too lazy to link to, I enjoy Pawn Stars and Top Gear. Honestly I didn't think anyone besides my wife and I watched those. When I say "those" I mean Pawn Stars. My wife doesn't watch Top Gear except when I force her to by turning up the volume while she's in the room. Anywho, I'm fine with being in the viewing minority (except when they cancel the show). It somehow makes me feel elite.

Only, it seems, I'm not in the minority. Recently I heard that Pawn Stars is one of the most popular reality shows on cable (sounds like a baseball statistic). More dishearteningly (is that a word?), 60 Minutes did a piece on Top Gear and said it was one of the most popular shows IN THE WORLD! Dang it! I'm not so elite after all. Steve Kroft did throw me a bone, however. He went on to say that included a small cult-like following in the U.S. Honestly, that's all I ever wanted to be a part of, a small cult like following, so I'll take it.

So, now I see they're making an American version of Top Gear. Come on! Do we need that? We already have a show called Top Gear, in English and everything. When I heard about the American version, the first person I thought of was Adam Carrolla, so you can imagine my disappointment when I read he was originally attached to the show for NBC's version, but is not slated to be on The History Channel's version. Dang you History Channel! How can you get so many things right, and then totally blow this one?

So much for things going my way.