21 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - Week 4, Beginning Again

Another great point about doing pushups is that they can be done just about anywhere, including my cubicle at work. Per the Pushup Program, I did 111 pushups total.

I've been trying to compress the amount of time between sets because eventually I'm going to have to do 100 contiguously. I had been pumping them out, and then taking the program's word for it when they said that you could take longer if necessary. Well, now I've realized the importance of shortening the time between sets. Looking ahead, in Week 6, I'm to do less pushups in a set, but more sets, and with significantly less time between them. Aieeee!

I've been thinking about how I'm going to try to keep up with these pushups after I've done 100 consecutively and the program is complete. I'll probably not do 100 straight every day, but instead do more like 2 sets of 50 each day, just to keep the arms in good condition. This will probably be more than I have been doing because the program only calls for a workout 3x per week, but I'll be doing them each day. Again, this is possible because they're pushups! I can do them almost anywhere! Yay!

18 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - End of Week 3

That's another 124 into the record books. I even did an extra 3 on the last set, going until I couldn't go any more. I'm feeling good, but I'm amped to go into this weekend for a few days off.

I actually did my pushups over at my girlfriend's apartment while she was playing a computer game, so it's a great activity to keep me busy while she's doing something else. Yay!

16 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - Week 3, Forgotten Sets

I did my 105 pushups today, but I didn't do them in the set number prescribed by Week 3, Tier 3, Day 2 of the pushup challenge. I had looked at the website earlier in the day, but didn't have it available when I did the pushups. I had remembered that there were 105 total, and that it started with 27 and ended with at least 25. So I did 27, 19, 17, 17, 25. The program called for 27, 19, 19, 15, 25. So I moved a few around and made it slightly easier for myself, which is about the mildest level of chump-tastic-ness I can perform. I don't think I changed it that much, but I hope it doesn't come back to bite me on Friday this week.

Again, totally feeling great, and my biceps and triceps are actually showing now, so I'm pretty happy.

14 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - On to Week 3

I just pulled off 99 pushups inside of a half hour. Granted, these weren't all consecutive, but they were as prescribed by the third tier of the first day of week 3 of the pushup program. I'm really glad I can do this many, I've been feeling better, and I'm liking the way I look better.

For some reason, I'm significantly more thirsty now, so I've been drinking more soda. Then I realized that was just counterproductive. Thus, I have switched to having a liter of water and some aspirin for my morning wake-up cup. I'm still having a soda each afternoon, but it's been a goal of mine for a long time to really kick this need for it.

I quit drinking soda for a while in high school, then went back. In college I switched to diet, which kept me, as well as my roommates, from drinking my soda. Eventually, I relapsed. I keep thinking that it can't be that bad for me, but if that's true, why can't I give it up for a period longer than 6 months?

Pushup Challenge! - Do-over Test for Week 3

Oh yes! Eat that! 30 pushups! A week ago, I could only do 15, and 2 weeks previous to that, I could only do 6. I am now officially cleared to make it to Week 3 of the pushup challenge program. I'm even going to be in the highest tier!

I'm a little worried though. The ramp up is going to get up to 99 total. That's 30 more than I did on Friday. That's a bit crazy. We'll see how this goes this time, and if I just can't do it, I'm going to just shift down a tier, and stay with the same week. I'm going to push myself, but I don't want to hurt my shoulders or anything.

I've told my co-workers about the challenge, and a few want to join up. I think we're going to do an office challenge and see if everyone can get to 100 pushups by the end of August. I hope that comes true! There's a team building exercise if I've ever heard of one. Think we could do our pushups on-hours?

11 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - Do-over End of Week 2

This time, the increase in pushups wasn't so steep, only increasing by 4 total, but evened out the pace. Therefor, I did a grand total of 69. This is way more than I could have hoped to do inside of a day, just 3 weeks ago. We'll see if the test says this little do-over was worthwhile on Sunday.

09 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - Do-over of week 2, mid-week

It was tough, but I completed a total of 65 pushups today. This is a huge increase from Monday, where I only had to do a total of 50. I have no idea why the program ramps up so steep for this transition.
I really had to rest between sets, and after the last set of "Do the max, but minimum 15" (I did 15, shaking through the last 2), I collapsed to the floor, and then said to myself, "Ok Self, turn over onto your back." Then I tried to roll over, and my arm was in the way, and Self said, "Yeah, f$*% that. I'll roll over when I'm good and ready." So I laid there, breathing through the carpet, realizing that I should really do some more vacuuming around here...

07 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - Do-over of week 2, day 1

At the end of what became an 11-hour work day, followed by an hour of trying to return one video game for credit to buy another at the web-advertised price, I finally get home. As I'm tearing out of my fancy-pants work clothes, I whine, "Aaaaand I still have to do my pushups!" My apartment isn't cold enough to cool me down after running around for awhile outside and up the stairs to my door. I try to keep costs low by keeping the A/C at 78F, but with no breeze though the windows, and being used to 73 all day at the office and everywhere else, it's hard to find that satisfying.

Anyway, I did the highest tier of the first day of the second week of the pushup program today. That's 12 pushups, rest 60 seconds, do 12, rest 60, do 9, rest 60, do 7, rest 60, and until I collapse, being at least 10 pushups. For each of those rests, the chart says that you should rest at least that long, and longer if needed. I had to take a half hour between the 4th set and the max-out set, and I still shook on the 10th pushup, almost falling on my face immediately after completion.

That's a grand total of 50 for today though, so again, something to be proud of, and I can already see the payoff when I look in the mirror. I'm starting to look like I have muscles when I'm not even flexing, my shirts are becoming tight around the upper arm and across the shoulders. After only two weeks? I'm kind of worried I might have to buy new clothes before I even reach 100 straight pushups.

Countdown to Retirement

So there are some depressing things in the world out there, but this beats it all for me while I'm working a 10-hour-day today.


Waaaaaa! I want to retire now! How can I really expect to live that long?

Maybe instead of a countdown to retirement via days, I should figure out the amount of cash-ola I'm going to need to retire securely, and then update that counter on the front page. Thoughts?

05 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - Test for Week 3

So today, I did as many pushups as I possibly could without taking a break. Sadly, it was only 15, which means I don't qualify to make it to the third week of the pushup program. While I'm sad about that, I am very happy to say I can do 15 pushups straight, when only two weeks ago I collapsed after 6.

I will be now taking on the program's second week, but in the highest tier.

I'm also happy to report that my girlfriend is now impressed when I flex, instead of laughing at how silly I'm being.

04 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - End of Week 2

Today, the pushup program required me to do 10 pushups, breathe for 120 seconds, do 10 more pushups, breathe again, 8 more, breathing, 8 pushups, breathe, and finally, as many as a could, as long as it was 10 or more. I was able to do 11 for my final set. This gave me 47 total pushups for today! That's nothing to sniffle at, if you ask me.

Later on, before going out to watch the fireworks with some friends (who are also going to do the pushup challenge), I showed them my form by doing 6 more pushups which they said weren't as terrible as the girlfriend claimed it was. Note that she hasn't done any pushups in my presence, so she might do them with her feet up on a wall, basically doing vertical pushups.

Tomorrow I test to see if I'm ready to go on to week 3. We'll see how that goes.

02 July 2008

Pushup Challenge! - Past the Illness

Ok, so my stomach doesn't hurt anymore, and I've regained a bit of appetite. On to the pushups!

The Pushup Program called for 44 pushups today, so I pulled off 44. The last one nearly made my arms fall off. My torso wanted to just snap the arms off and take me to the floor. Just because I didn't let them doesn't mean I'm not hurting. They're resting on my knees as I type this anyway, and my fingers are messing up enough that I'm retyping every third word. We'll see how the aches go after this.

Ok, so I just sneezed, and I normally do so into my shoulder. Clean hands and all, ya know? Well I turned my head and sneezed, signaling for the arm to raise to catch the expectorant. Instead, the arm lifted about an inch and then fell off my knee and onto the floor, pretty much failing to do any good. That's how tired these arms are right now.