A few weeks ago, I mildly strained my hamstring while doing a sprint workout with Bailey. It wasn't horrible, I even did some jogging the next day. I'm still feeling a twinge at times when I've got to exert some effort, but it's gotten better for the most part. I switched to using the elliptical machine at work instead of the treadmill to take a little bit of the stress off of it.
I've been able to stretch my cardio workouts from 20-30 minutes to up to an hour a day. My legs aren't tiring out as fast now, which is good. I ran a 7:30 mile on the treadmill as the last part of my workout yesterday. I've incorporated a little bit of weight training into my workouts as well.
We just finished up our annual physicals with the fire department. My sugar reading is back in the normal range, which is nice. I've still got a few issues with my cholesterol, but nothing that can't be solved by losing weight and getting into better shape.
Other than that, there's not a whole lot to talk about.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Working Out
2 years ago, I was just getting out of the fire academy. A lot of guys in my class were probably in the best shape of their lives, and I only wasn't because I had spent a year on the track team at BYU working out 4 hours a day and 4 years in lots of different sports in high school. For age 33, I was in pretty excellent shape though. I ran my final mile and a half time in just over 9 minutes, was able to do tons of pushups and situps before getting tired, and was about as light as I'd been since after my mission. I guess I could say I was in the best shape of my adult life.
Once I got out in the field, and especially in a permanent spot, it got really easy to not maintain my shape. I still worked out occasionally, but nothing like I had been doing during the academy and probation. Illnesses played a small part, but mostly I just got comfortable not working out. Also, food at the firestation is generally pretty tasty, pretty plentiful, and pretty unhealthy. I've also got a really bad habit of feeling guilty seeing food go to waste, probably from my days of being a human garbage disposal, so I eat a lot more of it than I need to. Ask anyone I work with what a Fox-sized helping is and they'll tell you.
I've put on pretty much all the weight I lost getting ready for this job. It's kind of depressing. Jenn and I have started working out together. Jenn is doing a couch to 5k program with the goal being able to run a 5k non-stop in the next few months. I'm trying to get back to being able to run a 6 minute mile again. We've also got an app that we're using to do crossfit style workouts together. The cool thing about them is that you get out of them whatever you can put into them, so it is something that we can do together. I might end up doing more reps, but we're both getting a good workout. It's nice to actually be able to exercise with Jenn.
I'm also working on portion control. I still fail at it occasionally, but it is something I'm at least actively thinking about.
I started really trying to get back in shape right before Christmas when I tipped the scale at 259 pounds. I've decided not to make this new diet/exercise routine about losing weight, but about hitting that 6 minute mile. I figure when I get there, my body should at least resemble someone who should be able to run a mile that fast. I'll also figure out where to go from there when I hit that goal.
Once I got out in the field, and especially in a permanent spot, it got really easy to not maintain my shape. I still worked out occasionally, but nothing like I had been doing during the academy and probation. Illnesses played a small part, but mostly I just got comfortable not working out. Also, food at the firestation is generally pretty tasty, pretty plentiful, and pretty unhealthy. I've also got a really bad habit of feeling guilty seeing food go to waste, probably from my days of being a human garbage disposal, so I eat a lot more of it than I need to. Ask anyone I work with what a Fox-sized helping is and they'll tell you.
I've put on pretty much all the weight I lost getting ready for this job. It's kind of depressing. Jenn and I have started working out together. Jenn is doing a couch to 5k program with the goal being able to run a 5k non-stop in the next few months. I'm trying to get back to being able to run a 6 minute mile again. We've also got an app that we're using to do crossfit style workouts together. The cool thing about them is that you get out of them whatever you can put into them, so it is something that we can do together. I might end up doing more reps, but we're both getting a good workout. It's nice to actually be able to exercise with Jenn.
I'm also working on portion control. I still fail at it occasionally, but it is something I'm at least actively thinking about.
I started really trying to get back in shape right before Christmas when I tipped the scale at 259 pounds. I've decided not to make this new diet/exercise routine about losing weight, but about hitting that 6 minute mile. I figure when I get there, my body should at least resemble someone who should be able to run a mile that fast. I'll also figure out where to go from there when I hit that goal.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
It's been a while
I guess a lot has happened since September, and I'm sure there are more than a few people that only find out how we're doing out here by reading this blog.
For Christmas, we took some money (Thanks Grandma!) and took the whole family out to dinner and for a ride on the Riverwalk tour. It was a nice evening. We went to Chris Madrid's which is Jenn's new favorite burger, and mine after the ones I cook, and maybe Nic's Grill in OKC (someday I'm going back, it's almost worth the 7 hour drive by itself) This is a good picture of Cam enjoying his massive burger. He finished the whole thing, I guess he takes after me.
We then went downtown and walked around the riverwalk for a while looking for a short line to get onto a tourboat. Unfortunately, the Alamo Bowl was the next day, and Baylor and Washington University players, band members and fans were all down there clogging the place up. We finally found a docking station that only had a half hour wait to get on, and we stood there enjoying each other's company. The boat ride was fine, the kids liked it, and the sights and smells from all the tree lights and restaurants were amazing.
Earlier this month we finally were able to put some fruit trees on our property. 2 Cherries, a Peach, and a Fig. The cherries are a low frost tree which are fairly new so we're kind of guinea pigging them out here in this Climate. They're the same trees my parents are trying to grow in Apple Valley. It would be awesome if they would produce a decent harvest each year. Jennifer has never had fresh figs before so now she's only a few years away from her first taste. She wanted an apple or a pear tree, but I stuck to my guns about figs. I remember the fig tree that Grandma and Granddad Black had in Fullerton. I remember figs being very very good, but I suppose I also had sentimental reasons for wanting a fig tree. I really hope they all grow and provide us with some fun memories down the road.
We've put in some blackberries, and we're going to start some grapes soon. We'll figure out what else we want to plant as time goes on.
We are doing well out here. Could be better, but can't complain. We miss having family nearby but I guess we should have seen that one coming.
For Christmas, we took some money (Thanks Grandma!) and took the whole family out to dinner and for a ride on the Riverwalk tour. It was a nice evening. We went to Chris Madrid's which is Jenn's new favorite burger, and mine after the ones I cook, and maybe Nic's Grill in OKC (someday I'm going back, it's almost worth the 7 hour drive by itself) This is a good picture of Cam enjoying his massive burger. He finished the whole thing, I guess he takes after me.
We then went downtown and walked around the riverwalk for a while looking for a short line to get onto a tourboat. Unfortunately, the Alamo Bowl was the next day, and Baylor and Washington University players, band members and fans were all down there clogging the place up. We finally found a docking station that only had a half hour wait to get on, and we stood there enjoying each other's company. The boat ride was fine, the kids liked it, and the sights and smells from all the tree lights and restaurants were amazing.
Earlier this month we finally were able to put some fruit trees on our property. 2 Cherries, a Peach, and a Fig. The cherries are a low frost tree which are fairly new so we're kind of guinea pigging them out here in this Climate. They're the same trees my parents are trying to grow in Apple Valley. It would be awesome if they would produce a decent harvest each year. Jennifer has never had fresh figs before so now she's only a few years away from her first taste. She wanted an apple or a pear tree, but I stuck to my guns about figs. I remember the fig tree that Grandma and Granddad Black had in Fullerton. I remember figs being very very good, but I suppose I also had sentimental reasons for wanting a fig tree. I really hope they all grow and provide us with some fun memories down the road.
We've put in some blackberries, and we're going to start some grapes soon. We'll figure out what else we want to plant as time goes on.
We are doing well out here. Could be better, but can't complain. We miss having family nearby but I guess we should have seen that one coming.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Pizza
I've been too lazy to try making a good pizza crust from scratch. It always seemed like too much work for a payoff that might not be so good. Last night I was looking for pasta recipes online at foodnetwork.com and saw a little story about making your own pizza dough.
Emeril Lagasse had a highly rated dough recipe, so I tried it out. I had to add a bit more flour than he had before it wasn't sticking to my hands. I let it rise for about 30 minutes, stuck it in the fridge for 15 minutes, and then twirled it out. It stuck to itself on my last twirl, so I ended up just having to roll it out into a misshapen roundish mess. I added some italian seasoning to some canned spaghetti sauce, and topped it with cheese, pepperoni, fresh basil from the garden, onions, and red and yellow peppers.
It smelled amazing cooking in the oven. I was really setting myself up for a huge letdown. It came out of the oven looking like this:
It tasted amazing. The basil was a nice touch. The crust was crispy on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside. I also loved how the uncovered crust poofed up just like in a pizzeria but that the rest of the crust was thin. The kids were coming home just as it came out of the oven, and they loved it too. I had enough dough left over for another, so I made a second pizza.
I can't wait to make more, and hopefully someday with sauce made from our own garden. I'll never look at lower tier pizza chains the same way again.
Emeril Lagasse had a highly rated dough recipe, so I tried it out. I had to add a bit more flour than he had before it wasn't sticking to my hands. I let it rise for about 30 minutes, stuck it in the fridge for 15 minutes, and then twirled it out. It stuck to itself on my last twirl, so I ended up just having to roll it out into a misshapen roundish mess. I added some italian seasoning to some canned spaghetti sauce, and topped it with cheese, pepperoni, fresh basil from the garden, onions, and red and yellow peppers.
It smelled amazing cooking in the oven. I was really setting myself up for a huge letdown. It came out of the oven looking like this:
It tasted amazing. The basil was a nice touch. The crust was crispy on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside. I also loved how the uncovered crust poofed up just like in a pizzeria but that the rest of the crust was thin. The kids were coming home just as it came out of the oven, and they loved it too. I had enough dough left over for another, so I made a second pizza.
I can't wait to make more, and hopefully someday with sauce made from our own garden. I'll never look at lower tier pizza chains the same way again.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Addie the Musical Genius
Today, I was sitting around staring off into space with my mind a complete blank when Addie came to me and asked if I wanted to hear her song. I figured it was some lyrics or something that she would sing, so I started asking her if it was called I'm a Cucumber, and I started singing it. She said no, and led me to the keyboard that I just brought home from my Grandma Black.
She put a drum beat on, and started playing a song. All the notes seemed to go together well enough, there wasn't just key pounding, she seems to have thought it through. Anyways, she finished, and played it again, identical to the first time. I got the camera out and taped it for her. Here's the world premier of Addie's song "Untitled"
She put a drum beat on, and started playing a song. All the notes seemed to go together well enough, there wasn't just key pounding, she seems to have thought it through. Anyways, she finished, and played it again, identical to the first time. I got the camera out and taped it for her. Here's the world premier of Addie's song "Untitled"
Monday, July 25, 2011
Sea World
Today, I surprised Cam and Addie with a trip to Sea World. Jenn's parents were kind enough to pay for a trip to Sea World back in June when they visited, and paying for one day gives you a season pass, so it was free except for the parking and the gas to get there. Jenn stayed home with Bailey who was too chicken to go on roller coasters, Emery who is too small to go on anything good, and Joelle who is a little sick. I told them to be up in the morning to go shopping. As we pulled away from the house, I let them in on where we were going, and they got excited.
We got there about a half hour before the park opened. We speedwalked to our first rollercoaster of the day, The Steel Eel.
We went on it twice pretty quickly before all the other people showed up and clogged up the line.
We decided to try one of the water rides next, but that part of the park wasn't open for another half hour, so we went to the penguin exhibit. It was cool, but it's amazing how many penguins they cram into such a small habitat.
We went on the Rio Loco as soon as the clock struck 11. We got there well in advance of anyone else, so we were allowed to ride twice in a row without even getting back in line. Everyone got wet.
We went on the water flume ride, which was a long wait, made a big splash, didn't really get anyone wet, and wasn't worth the wait. We went on Rio Loco one more time and the kids decided they had had enough walking around, so we left.
On the way out, we posed with a Shamu statue, I guess Cam was pretty pissed off.
We got there about a half hour before the park opened. We speedwalked to our first rollercoaster of the day, The Steel Eel.
We went on it twice pretty quickly before all the other people showed up and clogged up the line.
We decided to try one of the water rides next, but that part of the park wasn't open for another half hour, so we went to the penguin exhibit. It was cool, but it's amazing how many penguins they cram into such a small habitat.
We went on the Rio Loco as soon as the clock struck 11. We got there well in advance of anyone else, so we were allowed to ride twice in a row without even getting back in line. Everyone got wet.
We went on the water flume ride, which was a long wait, made a big splash, didn't really get anyone wet, and wasn't worth the wait. We went on Rio Loco one more time and the kids decided they had had enough walking around, so we left.
On the way out, we posed with a Shamu statue, I guess Cam was pretty pissed off.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
All Moved Out
Today we turned in our keys to the mouse poop house. We've still got boxes all over the place at our new house, but no more hauling stuff around until we get our stuff out of storage from Utah.
The kids are all excited to be in their own rooms. So far, the surprise of surprises is that Addie is keeping her room the cleanest.
I think it's funny that we have this huge yard to run around in now, and Cam still insists on making jet noises and running around in the living room.
We love our house, it's got some personality. We hope it will be a great place to live for years to come, and we thank everyone who had any hand at all in helping us get here.
The kids are all excited to be in their own rooms. So far, the surprise of surprises is that Addie is keeping her room the cleanest.
I think it's funny that we have this huge yard to run around in now, and Cam still insists on making jet noises and running around in the living room.
We love our house, it's got some personality. We hope it will be a great place to live for years to come, and we thank everyone who had any hand at all in helping us get here.
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