Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Week 2 Update: June 26th, 2013

Week 2 Update: Jun 26, 2013

The past week was a relatively easy week for working out so I have more material to post. I lifted (4 x 30 minute sessions), swam my usual 7 hours, and did some minimal running (1.5 hrs), cycling (1 hour), and ellipitical (1.5 hrs) - my easy week for sure. I almost felt manic throughout the week and started getting more things done with the added energy. My students and I are working together on multiple projects - both writing papers and collecting data - and we really hit our stride this week. I attribute the extra energy to the decreased workout load. My friend Dave Sbarra suggested I lift while doing all this cardio training and his suggestion was a good reminder of my oversight. He is correct; you need to lift with the cardio but I was already do it. What I did was foolish. I folded in these lifting sessions into my total hours without actually recognizing them. To correct this problem, I changed the data sheet to reflect lifting sessions separately so I could track my progress and adherence to the schedule. Thanks Dave!

Workout Progress

I am supplying my usual figure but included the lifting part of my training schedule along with the cardio. Also, in the spirit of the quantified self, I am posting routine self-reported assessments of my mood.

plot of chunk WeekEx

Weekly Summary

All went well this week. I sailed twice (Sunday and Wednesday), got in all my workouts and even managed to add in an extra 30 minutes of swimming. Monday rocked for swimming. I got into a groove and swam for 45 minutes straight - trying to hold 1:30/100m and did so with relative ease. I don't get it. The more tired I am from the day before, the better I swim, run, cycle, and feel.

plot of chunk Mood

Updates for the week

Last week I promised to post my medication list but I have more pressing news to report. Friday morning I chatted with Brian Oestrike from Hypoxico.com. I plan to use their equipment to acclimatize and get a leg up on my altitude training. One drawback - and there are many - to living in northern Virginia is that I do not get to the mountains frequently. Instead, I need to bring the mountains here. There is only one way to move a mountain, you need to change the atmosphere. Brian's company makes the equipment necessary to achieve that aim.

I met Brian while climbing Denali in 2011. He ran up the mountain alone but was friendly to all those who asked about his expedition. We chatted briefly before he headed up - all in a single day push. Needless to say, Brian left an impression. I spoke with Brian this morning and I decided without much hesitation to purchase the hypoxico equipment. Kathy (my wife) is equally excited to give it a go. We both enjoy endurance sports and the hypoxic tent along with the hypoxic training masks will help both of us perform better at sea level and up high. So thanks Brian for the inspiration and the help. In the upcoming weeks, I will show you pictures of the equipment and me using it in my home gym. Latest word is that the hypoxico unit shipped on Wednesday, June 26th. Kathy and I will try it out once it arrives.

One other update. Recently (Monday, June 24th), I spoke with Dan Mazur on the phone about the climb. We had a really nice chat and I look forward to climbing with him. The most important update is that I have once again changed my mind about my climb - at least which side of Everest to climb. Initially, I thought about climbing the North Side (Tibet) with SummitClimb and then, after chatting with David Roskelley, I decided that the South Side (Nepal) might be a better choice. The Tibet side of Everest is less crowded but colder and windier compared to the Nepal side. Dan convinced me, however, that the Tibet climb would be a good option and I am now convinced that climbing from Tibet seems more suited for my climbing style. I want to avoid the crowds but not at the cost of enduring too much hardship (e.g., cold, frostbite, and general misery). The other added benefit of climbing the Tibet side is that Dan will be guiding next year so I get to climb with him. Dan and I plan to climb in the Pacific NW later in August. I will post our plans and pictures from the climb afterwards.

Hope you are enjoying the updates.

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