Hitting the Gym

Hey there.  I started working out again.  As evidence by my belt, I've put on a few pounds since I've gotten with my wife.  I used to be a stick figure thin 118 lbs and I wasn't too happy about it.  Now, I'm sitting at 178 lbs which isn't so bad, considering that I'm 5'8.  But you know what... like I told my brother yesterday, I noticed my "guns" getting smaller and my gut getting bigger.  lol  I kid you not, friends.  There have been a few times where I'm sitting on the couch or whatever and the button on my pants snaps and flies across the room.  Yeah, you read that right... "a few" as in, more than once.  =o)  Now, I don't mind being bigger.  In fact, I like it.  I don't look sickly and the fact that I struggled to gain weight sucked.  I love all kinds of foods and I've always been one to eat until you're full.  This is mainly why I love buffets.  You need to put a lot of food in me to feel full. 

Well, a few weeks ago, when my wife and I started talking about renewing our gym membership, it got me thinking...  I'm a lot slower than I once was.  A LOT SLOWER.  I realized that my cardio fitness is nowhere near where a young man at 27 years should be.  There are times where I can't walk long distances, stairs suck to climb, and if I push myself a little too hard, I get shortness of breath.  I needed to get my endurance and stamina back.

So last night it happened.  I finally went to the gym on a mission to get fit.  I'm hoping that I won't lose weight, but that I'll be able to increase my physical fitness, focusing on endurance and strength.  I ran for a little over 2 miles yesterday on a "hill setting" on a treadmill and since I haven't done any kind of running since forever, I felt like I was ready to fall over dead.  So much for easing into it, huh.  I like the hill setting since it fluctuates the incline level.  Running at a constant 4 mph may not seem too tough but once you start hitting the inclines, it raises the difficulty.  I made it victorious.  I wasn't carried away in a stretcher and no one called for a wheelchair so I would call that a pretty successful run. 

I then did some butterflies, bench pressed, and curls to work on my arms and chest, but trust me, there wasn't much weight on those.  I was still feeling pretty tired from that run.  Before long, I headed home.  So my question now is what kind of "program" should I set for myself?  30 min cardio followed by 45 of strength training?  15 min cardio, 45 min strength, 15 min cardio?  As of today, I plan on going daily (except Sundays), is that considered too much?  I mean, it's only been one day, but I do want to be able to stick to a schedule to make sure that I build up those key stats. 

So now, I'm feeling a little sore in the legs.  I can't run the way I used to when I was in track and field (back in JR high!!!!) so I'm feeling the pain right now.  I guess as long as I don't topple over, I'll be alright.  Until then, later!

Motivational Sunday - Karma

Hey there. Today is Super Bowl Sunday, the unofficial holiday of football fans everywhere. The majority of Americans will be sitting in front of their TVs rooting for the feel good story of the New Orleans Saints or the no nonsense, get the job done Indy Colts. You really can't have a better Super Bowl. Two high flying offenses, 2 marquee QBs in Brees and Manning, the Manning family being torn between rooting for Peyton, or rooting for the city that Peyton's father, Archie Manning is known as a local legend.

This brings me to today's poster, Karma... Will the Colts be punished for not going for the perfect season? Will New Orleans finally be rewarded a championship on the team's first Super Bowl appearance ever? Well, have to wait and see what the football gods decide. Until then, later!

 

Where Did Metallman Go???

Hey there. I'm so so sorry that I haven't had a post in about 2 weeks. I'll be honest, I've gotten to the point where I opened up a new post, but no words were written. Canceled the post and figured that I would do it later. It just never happened. I still owe my readers cash and credits to the top blogs of the month and top commentators of the month. I just haven't gotten around to it. I also have some pizza coupons that I will be giving away soon so make sure that you stay tuned for that.

Work has been hectic, my cousin was in and out of the hospital due to a mental condition, which I have checked in on, I have now become a Lost addict (I know I'm about 6 years late to the party) and our son's birthday was this week. So there have been topics available for posting, it's just that for whatever reason, my fingers refused to write them down. Well, I guess that funk is over. We got the Motivational Sunday coming back tomorrow, as well as the Super Bowl! Valentines Day is on it's way and today, we're off to John's Incredible Pizza for our son's B Day celebration. Nothing big, but a place where I know he'll have fun. I'll make sure to keep you guys more filled in than I have in the last few weeks.

My son just got up. I'm helping around the house so it's my time to feed the baby. I'll catch you guys later!

Success! She's a Youtube Star!

Hey there.  Awhile back, I wrote this post about my daughter doing a Dwight impersonation.  Well, I finally got around to getting it up and here it is!  It's a small bit and she was a little shy but damn does this little one know her stuff.  lol  I forgot that I had a Youtube account so I think I'll start uploading some videos there.  This is the very first one!  Later!

Uncollected Thoughts

Hey there.  I've been MIA as of late.  I try to keep this blog updated to the tune of about a post a day.  And even though we've had events go down recently, I just haven't had the time to collect my thoughts and put them down.  So instead of organizing them, I'm just going to write them down and leave a quick comment.

First off, what a game between the Vikings and Saints.  It was definitely one of the most entertaining playoff game that I have ever seen.  Even though I did catch it at a later date.  Why is that? Well, because we went and took pics of my little one.  He's been growing so fast that he's wearing outfits only once before they no longer fit.  My wife was able to obtain an outfit that her youngest brother wore and we went with that outfit and a sailor suit for our boy to wear.  Here's one of the many pics.  Does my baby look spiffy or what?  lol

On a darker note, my cousin went missing for a few days late last week.  Now, I don't know the complete details of what went down, but from what my aunt told me not too long ago, my cousin (19) lost his job and that it might have pushed him over the edge.  He was not heard of for 2 days and then when he called my aunt for her to pick him up, he was extremely emotional.  To the point where he cried all day.  Once the crying stopped, the "weirdness" happened.  All he could talk about was how he owned everything and everyone.  How he even owned god and the devil and that he has all the riches in the world.  Kinda delusional, no?  But it gets weirder.  According to my aunt, he was hell bent on getting to church.  He just had to go to church for some reason that he would not state.  My cousin would laugh hysterically and state that he's been talking to my father (who passed away almost 20 years ago) and his nina (who passed away approx. 5 years ago).  On top of that, he's been talking to god as well.

It seems to be all of a sudden but as I was talking to my aunt she remembered a time a few weeks ago when my cousin walked into his parents' room and just gave them a huge hug.  It was odd to them that he would do that without asking for something.  My aunt was sure that he was going to ask to borrow the car or ask for some money, but nothing was asked of.  Thinking back on it, my aunt believes that maybe that was the start of it all.  Then, his younger brothers and sister claim to have heard him talk to himself and laugh hysterically by himself.  We now believe that maybe him losing his job may have pushed him into having some sort of nervous breakdown.  He's currently in the mental ward of the hospital for observation.  We plan on visiting him tomorrow.  Hopefully, I'll have more news on what's going on then.

So yeah, I've have my posts that need to get done, but my mind has just been occupied with other things.  Maybe this is what I need to get my head on straight.  A means to write down what's going on and clear my head.  I mean, that is what a blog is for, right?  Until then... Later.

Baby Soup for the Soul

Hey there.  I'm sure you've heard about all those self help books out there.  One of the more popular ones are the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" series.  I think that they're great in the sense that they may answer questions that many of us are thinking or feeling.  Honestly, I've never read any of those books and I think it's cause when I'm feeling down, I turn to my family.  They are my "soup for my soul".  Recently, work has been a drag on both my wife and I.  We're a few weeks into the year, but it's felt like an eternity.  Almost as if the week off threw our work schedule out of whack.  I'm still adjusting and I'm sure that my wife is too since she's been out of the office for close to 4 months.  After a day of damn near pulling our hair out at work, we get to come home to this.

Yup, that's our chicken soup for the soul, or better yet, baby soup for the soul. lol  It's funny how a young one can wash away many of the aches and pains that a working parent endures at work.I know that it does wonders for my wife.  Through all the financial reporting, balancing of the month, dilution report, meetings, and hold order reports, it's great to be able to have it all wash away by a smile.  Later!