Mama mia, Papa pia, Adam had to …
I didn’t push through my last two sets as much as I could (and should) have, but I got through them. It was cold again this morning, damn cold. Between that, the big dinner I had last night and waking up later than I’d planned, I got to teach myself a valuable lesson — You should always take a shit before running.
I didn’t have a brown out during the run, but my stomach was rolling enough that my mantra was, “Don’t shit yourself, don’t shit yourself, don’t shit yourself …”
You know how your muscles tend to vibrate when you’re on your last rep of a final set? Well, everything from my sternum to my asshole felt just like that. In a recent post I mentioned needing to step up my mental discipline. If you were to ask me today, I’d say it’s stronger than I thought, as I was able to avoid playing the part of Little Brown Riding Hood, leaving a trail of used breadcrumbs through the woods.
All’s well that ends well though, or rather, all’s well that ends up in the toilet bowl and not in my pants.
Now it’s time for some breakfast and some music and waiting around on Google to verify that I own this website. Hopefully, adam@adamlamar.com will soon be an actual working address, but Google is being extremely unhelpful as I try to use their software to make it so.
The phrase “We must go on” is applicable in many situations, and mine this morning was no exception. With that in mind, here’s the new Pretty Lights video.
By the numbers
A few times during my runs I’ve thought about how easy it would be to workout if there were a C25K type program for all exercises. I like my kettlebells and all, but with C25K I don’t have to think about anything. The only active participation on my part is putting one foot in front of the other. My iPhone app does all the real work. This time around I’m not even looking at the program from day to day. I don’t want to know how many minutes or how many sets I have to do tomorrow. I just want to keep running until my phone tells me to stop.
I did P90X for just over a month, but between moving houses, the holidays and my general sense of laziness (which I’m currently trying to shake again) it only lasted as long as it did. There were parts I liked. I still use the Stretch X DVD, but on other discs (Yoga X in particular) Tony Horton kicks up the annoying factor, seeming to put more importance on just getting through the entire workout, rather than actually benefiting from the individual exercises. Overall though, the program has its good points. I’ll more than likely go back to it in the future, but with three separate 90-day programs contained in the DVD set, I feel no need to purchase P90X2.
What I have run across is the 100Pushups program. Super similar to C25K, this six-week program lays out three daily routines for each week. In addition to a time investment of only 30 minutes per week, if one was so inclined, it could be done on the C25K off days and still leave seventh day each week to rest. How biblical.
The website even contains link to sibling programs such as 200Situps, 200Squats and 150Dips. And there’s an app for all of them. There’s even a 25Pullups program on the way, but while you wait they welcome you to order a copy of Brett Stewart’s “7 Weeks to 50 Pull-ups.”
I don’t plan on keeping a written record of my progress through these, but I thought I would share with those of you who might be interested.
And in the spirit of sharing, here’s some disc golf footage because there hasn’t been enough of that here lately. Thediscgolfvids tests the new Anode putter from MVP out soon!
Week one down, eight more to go
To be honest, I did have to argue with myself for over an hour before I finally went running this morning. It wasn’t necessarily me being lazy (well, actually it was exactly that), I just kept trying to hold on to the idea that “I can just do it tomorrow.” The fact that I can be done with my physical responsibilities for the day in just over a half hour or so has been some handy ammunition in the battle against resistance, but I definitely need step up my mental discipline.
On a more positive note, I haven’t been needing near the amount of water that I did on my previous attempt. I did begin this program last time in the middle of July. So there’s that, but I would drink a small bottle on the way to the track, and have another one or two in the truck for afterward, not to mention the water breaks I would take every couple of laps around the stadium. Maybe I’m more hydrated in general now, or maybe eating healthier has improved the way my body processes and distributes the water I put in it. Whatever the case, I haven’t needed a drink after my workouts, nor have I felt the need to increase my water intake, even throughout the rest of the day. I did make some bad ass Peanut Butter & Jelly Cookies yesterday, but that probably didn’t have anything to do with it.
Music this morning was The Roots “Dilla Joints,” but I’m feeling a bit more irie after my shower. So I leave you this morning with Dandy Livingstone.
Walking it off
I’m sure the cold helped, but that “just got high for the first time” “lay in the bed with your eyes closed” feeling was back after today’s workout. Pushing myself felt awesome this morning, because it was keeping me warm. In the cold dark I began to re-appreciate being tired during the workout. I’m still in an early enough stage to appreciate being fully recovered by the end of my cool down as well.
My legs have ached since my last workout due to the previous four months of self-induced atrophy, but I made up my mind yesterday to stop moving around stiff-legged just “walk it off.” The ache started to decrease almost immediately. Some pain is just mental. For example, when I suggested to myself that “we” go running this morning, my immediate response was something like, “No, our legs still hurt. We’re not ready.” Of course, once I’d made up my mind to stop being a pussy and just going running, it was as simple as that.
The thing I seem to have forgotten during my hiatus is how quickly resistance can build up, and how strong it can seem. (Thank you Dr. Stephen Pressfield). These aren’t my words, but that doesn’t make them any less true. “You have to do the work.” I know, at least in my case, I have to treat some things like a little kid finishing his homework before he can go outside and play. In other words, I there’s something you keep putting off, you should probably do that thing immediately. For one, you will probably get some benefit from have done it. Also, once it’s done, you’re free to do whatever you want without having some task you keep avoiding looming over your head.
It’s easy to just dismiss what’s being said whenever people start quoting ancient proverbs, like “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,” but that shit’s true. Stop being the typical American internet hater for one second and take a look at yourself. Is there something that you’d like to achieve that you’re not working toward on a daily basis? Setting aside an hour a day to only work on your writing, music or whatever is one way to start getting yourself in line with where you want to be. Some of you may be saying, “But I’m so busy. I don’t have an extra hour in my day to set aside.” Well, I’m not going to call bullshit, because you might actually be that busy. What I will say is this: If you can’t sacrifice one hour of sleep (or more likely, one hour of the time you usually sit on your ass playing video games) then how bad do you really want it?
OK, enough of the heavy. Besides, one of my other projects seem to be spilling itself into this blog about running.
Music this morning was provided by my J Dilla playlist, but as I sat down to type this, I cued up my Pretty Lights channel on Pandora. The result was a discovery that blended the two, which I will be downloading later today. I leave you with a track off the album “Delicious Vinyl All-Stars RMXxology.”
Back on the horse
I wish I could bottle the way I feel right now and keep it in my supplement drawer for later. It’s that tired feeling that comes from overexertion. Not a runner’s high, but like there’s not enough oxygen. You only get a bit hit of it the first time. I’ll be tired again later this week, but it won’t be the same.
Needless to say, I just finished Week1Day1 of Couch25K, again. I didn’t intend to quit back in September, but didn’t keep going. I wasn’t certain that starting completely over was necessary, but after the fact, I can say that I made the right choice. I also decided that I would run the program in my neighborhood this go ‘roud, and as luck would have it, my next-to-last set began at the foot of the hill that defeated me last time. The final set of my workout suffered as a result, but I powered up that hill and made it my bitch. That’s a big part of why I’m as tired as I am, but I feel accomplished.
Comparing this morning to the last time I began the program, I can definitely say that even with four months off, I’m still in better shape than I was back in July. I had to regulate my breathing after a few of the sets, but the uphill battle was really the only tiring part of it. If I had been at the track, I might not have even broken a sweat. What little advantage I do have this time around is certain to level itself off at some point, but adding hills this time and being able to start at a faster pace will definitely be challenges in their own right.
One interesting thing did happen during my cool down. I was walking through a particularly dark section of the neighborhood when I felt something try to grab my arm. Nothing touched me, but swing you hand as close to your arm as possible without touching it. Feel that cool air? That’s what I felt. When I turned around there was nothing as far as I could see … just me … alone in the dark … at 4 a.m. My guess is that a bat took a dive at me, but who knows.
In an effort to make this post a little less self-involved, my soundtrack this morning consisted of a couple of short mixtapes by Edison. They’re free to download on 900bats.com, but you can always show some love by purchasing something else or going to a show.
I’ll end this here for a couple of reasons. For one, it might get a bit long if I were to included the things I’d like to say about music. I’ll leave that for another post. Feel free to refresh my mind a la Twitter if you haven’t seen another post in a day or two. AND … I’m roughly 100 pages or so into A Feast For Crows, and I don’t think that’s where the lord would like me to stop for the day.
A late start
OK. I’ll admit I’ve fucked off for the first couple of weeks of the new year, but Friday the the 13th is as good a day as any to get back to work.
I’ve got a couple of layers of dust on the old running shoes, but they’re getting back to work too. I’d like to say that I pushed myself to hard, but I think we all know my lazy fuck status would render that a lie. I can, however, say that the level of bullshit in my diet last year wasn’t near low enough to keep me energized. So the forecast this year calls for healthier meals and less sand in my vagina.
Musically speaking, I’m still kind of just floating aimlessly, but Ableton makes a little more sense every day, and Logic is beginning to feel more comfortable too. I don’t know if or when I’ll be playing shows again, but if and when I do, odds are my laptop will be onstage with me. Multi-effects units, MIDI patchbays and mountains of stompboxes and cables … vintage tubes amps, modern solid-state amps, bass amps as a clean channel … I’ve tried many different things over the years trying to find the best balance between tone, portability and simplicity. I think I’ve stumbled upon what I’ve been looking for, or at least what I’m feeling at the moment.
I’ve recorded with Line 6 software as far back at ’99, but back then I was also into lugging around 100w Mesa Boogies, Marshalls and VHTs. I won’t even bring up my 2′x4′ pedal board. I dropped down to a 40w Blues Deluxe after my last Marshall and over time, I really began to love it. Presently, I’m a huge fan of both the Blues Junior and the AC15. Think of a ‘little brother’ to The Edge’s setup (minus the 2 full racks of outboard gear). My pedal board has gotten smaller, but not by much. I don’t have near as many things in my guitar’s signal chain, but I’ve added some vocal boxes and a loop station. A BOSS RC50 and a ME50 take up a lot of real estate on their own; so much so that I’ve taken to just using those two pieces. I’m mostly happy, but the ME50 doesn’t have MID in/out, so I can’t sync its parameters with my loop station.
Ableton and Logic have been game changers for me though. Session view has streamlined my work flow and given me a visual representation of what my brain was doing when I was building loops in ProTools and Garageband. After playing with Ableton for the past few months, I almost feel like it was developed for me. It’s designed to work the way I do naturally. Logic, on the other hand, is a beefed up version of Garageband, but the sounds and presets it has for live instruments sound incredible. It has everything Ableton was lacking. They aren’t true VSTs though, so getting them into Ableton takes some finagling. But with MainStage (comes with Logic), playing them live over Ableton is simple.
I could be talking out-of-school, but I think if I slave my RC50 to Ableton’s MIDI clock, then I could loop my guitar signal before the converter and then my entire guitar rig, nay, my entire band, will fit in my backpack. There’s also an experiment currently testing the use of 2 Macbooks: one running Logic/MainStage and processing all the instruments, sending it’s output to the line-in of the second one, which is running the main session in Ableton, thereby allowing all of Logic’s sounds to be recorded and looped inside of an Ableton session on the fly.
I’ve got family coming in this week for some early Christmas celebrations. We’ve got a few disc golfers in the family, but some of them are pressed for time this week. Since they won’t have time to travel to any of the courses in town, I’m giving them the next best thing. (Well, I really built it for me, but they can play too.)
I built a practice basket a while back and have been trying to up my Perfect Putt 360 score. My ADD kicked in during a session this past weekend, and I realized that even with just one basket, I’ve got a lot of room to work on upshots. So I began laying out the first hole of the Mission Valley Upshot Course, and I’ve got nine holes so far. I’m only using my Wizards at the moment, and that seems to be working fine. No run-ups, but the holes, while short, do have a few mandos and doglegs to keep things interesting.
Hole 1
Star at the corner of the house and throw to the right of the first big oak after the driveway.
After you’ve cleared the mando oak, it’s a straight shot to the basket.
Hole 2
Stand to the left of the light pole by the curb, and throw to the right of the small tree across the driveway.
Once you’ve cleared the mando tree, just hyzer around the bushes next to the garage, and you should be at the basket.
Hole 3
Stand to the right of the fire hydrant, and hyzer around the garage to the basket.
Hole 4
Stand at the curb, and line yourself up with the stump and the basket. There’s no mando. You can go around either side of the tree.
Hole 5
Stand at the curb where it meets the property line. There’s a straight alley to the basket, but you can choose any line you find.
Hole 6
Stand to the right of the flower bed, and throw an anhyzer around the left side of the big pine tree.
Once you clear the mando pine tree, you have a straight shot down the Perfect Putt 360 course.
Hole 7
Stand to he left of the utility box, and line yourself up so the corner of the garage is hidden by the tree. The tree is a mando so try to anhyzer around the left side of it.
Hole 8
Stand at the fence to the right of the the large utility box (not pictured). No mandos. Just get it there.
Hole 9
Kind of weaksauce, but I needed a 9th. Stand in the corner of the gate. You could thrown a tomahawk over the house, but you’ll be throwing blind.
Laying up or annying around the back of the house might not get you a birdie, but you’ll know where your disc is.
Winter is coming …
We don’t get much snow around East Texas. Keeping my feet dry is usually my main concern, but for those who live a bit farther north, you might have to make some changes to both you bag and your game.
A thread popped up on r/discgolf today that had some pretty good tips for winter play, so I thought I’d share.
This is a super short post, but I’ve got creepers to kill.
A full day of dyes
There’s three different dye methods that I’ve been wanting to try. I’ve been gathering all the necessary ingredients over the past couple of weeks, and I even built a gradient tool, which I mentioned in an earlier post. I couldn’t decided which method I wanted to try yesterday, so I just bit the bullet and decided to try all three. Like doing anything new, it was fun and exciting, but also, I pretty much messed up every disc I wanted to try. It’s a learning experience and my first dyes weren’t all that incredible either. So all in all, it was a good session.
The past couple of times I’ve sat down to work on a dye, I’ve ended up not doing it because I’d trash the stencil trying to apply it. I’d been using regular masking tape as transfer tape, and it ripped my contact paper. I’ve since snagged a roll or two of painters tape for “delicate surfaces” which has been performing beautifully.
After taking the time to put my gradient tool together, I really wanted to try a couple of gradient discs first. I kept a pot of black dye going most of the day to lay down the stencils, and once I got the first couple done, I started heating up two gallons of red dye, one pot at a time.
One of the first problems I ran into was having to cut down the length of hose I was using so the dye would run smooth. I also figured that it would take a good while to drain two gallons of dye, so once everything was set up and the drain was running at a trickle, I left it alone to start cutting out my next stencil. I didn’t anticipate the flow slowing down, first to having too long of a hose running into the lower bucket, and second because the volume of liquid in the upper bucket had decreased. Fucking physics!
So even though I had the flow problem fixed by the second dip, the fade still ended up less gradual than it could have been because the flow basically stopped for ten minutes during the first dip. I don’t think either one looks bad for a first try, but the Nuke SS definitely looks better than the JLS. Although, I didn’t think about the fact that the back of the disc would get dyed too. So even though I re-masked the stencil to keep the inside area blue, the red dye got on the back so the effect isn’t as strong. It’s still lighter than the rest of the gradient, so it still looks cool. Or at least I think so.
It’s hard to see in the photo, but the stamp on the JLS burned into the disc a little so the black ran under the mask, but once again, these are all test discs for the sake of argument.
The Reddit disc was off to a bad start from the first dip. I’d never dyed anything in Gateway’s Evo Pro-line plastic, and this disc was starting to wear away in the center, not to mention that it was an X-out. So the black bled under the mask pretty bad. I figured a white disc would be the easiest to try the plastic bag marble on. So I balled up 5 plastic grocery bags and put them in one of my dye pots. I then spooned blue dye on top of the bags. Some people heat the dye in the microwave, but I left mine at room temperature. I weighed the disc down with a jug of water and let it sit for about a half hour. I pulled it out and rinsed off the excess dye, but I decided it needed a second sit, and then a third and a fourth. Some people have talked about leaving discs on the bags for up to 12 hours, but I don’t think this is necessary.
The shaving cream marble disc was interesting, but ultimately a failure. A couple of SC marbles came across the dye-a-day thread on dgcoursereview that inspired me (including another Jimi Hendrix dye). I tweaked my idea so it would be a little different and cut my stencil. It was only after the black dip that I realized the way I’d cut the stencil, Jimi’s afro was also going to become an under-the-chin beard. Once again, not what I was shooting for, but you live and learn. Setting up the shaving cream bed was a trial as well. I really don’t think I got the mix right for the small bottles of dye, but I also underestimated the amount of cream I’d need for the bed in my disposable plate. With more cream I could have smoothed the bed by running a straight edge over the top, but since I only mixed up about 2.5 cups, it didn’t reach the rim of the plate. I had to use a spatula, but I got a decent surface nonetheless. The dye mix didn’t sit on top of the bed as well as I’d hoped, but after swirling it with a toothpick it still seemed to have the desired effect … even after I put the disc in (you can still see it through the disc).
I realized later that I’d mistakenly mixed black dye with the shaving cream instead of blue, but they pretty much look the same in the containers I store them in. It didn’t end up hurting the disc though. Even though I let the disc sit in the shaving cream bed for about 18 hours, because I didn’t get the mix right, the dye ran together in the shaving cream and didn’t stay looking as awesome as it did at first. The end result works, but the right consistency with the shaving cream mix would have yielded a much better final product. I’ve also just found out that champion/Z plastic don’t work as well as star/ESP with this method.
To cap off the last couple of days, I played a putter round at Pecan Park this afternoon and shot lower than I did last time I played with my full bag.
I’ve got some more plastic on the shelf and some more on the way to the house, so I’m sure I’ll take another crack at all three methods. There’s also a full line-up of discs in my Amazon wishlist if anyone is feeling particularly gifty.
So since Halo CE Anniversary comes out this week, and because dyeing is so awesome … here’s 100 ways to die in Halo Reach.
Many years of my childhood condensed to one awesome hour.
Someone made a tweet about a blog post they’d seen on Gizmodo.com. That post was about a video put out by Smash TV, and now I’m posting a link in another blog post which I’ll tweet later on and someone else will +1 it. See, we’re all sharing.
Long story short: Pour a drink, pack a bowl and settle in for one of the most awesome hours you’ve had in a long time.
Gizmodo called it “The Most Potent Orgy of Nostalgia I’ve Ever Seen,” and I’m sure Bill & Ted would find it most excellent as well. You can call it what you want, but I give you Smash TV’s “Skinemax”. Enjoy!
