Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Days 5-8: Weekend was insane....

Umm forgot to mention to ya’ll Thursday that I don’t plan on updating my blog on the weekends and yesterday I had a dentist appt. during my lunch break which explains why I am writing this at 630AM.

So P90X wants you to take a day off every 7th (thank you God?) but because my buddy B-Rye works for an NBA franchise we had to take that day off on day 5. So Friday was a party night, headed down town and yes went up and talked to some chicks. No numbers but I at least got out on the dance floor and reminded myself I can still keep my crouch on a girls ass to the same beat that she’s decided to move it. The issue tho came when we decided to post game back at my friend’s apt and didn’t go to bed til 4am (for me that was a 23 hr day). Got up at 9am a lil groggy to say the least and headed to our yearly intersquad scrimmage for the HS team I help coach.

After that came Day 6…legs and back with a lil ab ripper x. Let me tell you don’t do P90X after just eating a huge feast (our baseball parents grilled out for us and I downed food about 30 min b4 the workout). Day 6 was by FAR the worst workout of the week. Combine being hung over with a full stomach and you have  a reciepe for disaster. Luckily I didn’t vomit but man I just felt like shit afterwards. My body couldn’t maintain it’s own body heat and I was shaking. Figuring I was exhausted I took an 1.5 hour nap and thank you alissa I felt much better after it. Then I showered up and got ready for Jay-Z concert!!!!!!!

Jay-Z was incredible, it was everything $100 could offer you…and the best part of the night came when we were walking to our seats. We got randomly spot checked by the cops, that kind of freaked me out a lil bit. But I felt pretty cool that he thought I was under 21, cause I look about 25.

Day 7, Kanpo-X. This is like punching and kicking and it was pretty bad ass. Prolly the only time I’ve thrown a punch and not immediately turtled after the fact (minus my fights with my body Geir back in HS) and no we can’t count the douchebag who sucker punched me in the face st. patty’s day 2009. Overall first week was awesome, felt great. Confidence is making small improvements and I just feel like my life is getting into order.

Day 8, return chest and back. If you read day 1 you know how difficult it was for me. Day 8 was a 1000% increase in reps, energy, morale, etc. My pulls I still struggle in, but once I start shredding a few lbs I think I’ll be able to get more reps. I just remember during this exercise how much energy I had and how great I felt. Got tired toward the end but that is expected, this deft’ly made me feel good about what this program can do for you….and ab ripper X is fucking hard. Still can’t do all 339 reps, but I feel like I am somewhere near the 300 range now.

That’s all I got, these 5am-11pm days are getting tiring but I keep reminding myself that to do all you want in life you have to make sacrifices. Enjoy ya’lls day thanks for reading.

OOO shout outs…forgot. My buddy Jon. I’d like to give him a shout-out. He told me reading this blog gave him the motivation to get back in the gym and start exercising, so Jon keep it up. See you at the spring game in april..BABYBUHHHHHHH

[Via http://babybuhhh.wordpress.com]

Sunday, March 21, 2010

South European Sectional Qualifier – Day 2

Et voici le résultat final des South European Sectional Qualifier :

  1. Vanmeerbeek, Richard
  2. Dryden, Corbin
  3. Urh, Ziga

Richard Vanmeerbeek a donc REMPORTE CES QUALIFICATIONS, en faisant le deuxième temps (12:39) du WOD “Pizza Connection” :

For Time:

  • 10 Deadlift (140/70kg)
  • 20 Dumbell Push Press (20/10kg)
  • 30 Double Unders
  • 10 Power Snatch (50/30kg)
  • 20 Wall Ball (8/6kg)
  • 30 Pull-ups
  • 10 Thrusters (50/30kg)
  • 20 Box Jumps (60/40cm)
  • 30 Burpees
  • 30 GHD Sit-ups
  • 50 Meters OH Walking Lunge (25/10kg)
FELICITATIONS !

L’ensemble des résultats : http://scores2010.crossfit.com/scoring/p/69/

Les vidéos de Richard Vanmeerbeek : http://vimeo.com/user1547568

[Via http://sportiseverywhere.wordpress.com]

How To Find The Right Fitness Apparel For Any Sport

Sports apparel specialty stores always carry a great variety of sports related clothing as well as sports accessories that will help you with just about any sport. You will be able to find apparel for sports such as golf, aerobics, strength training, yoga, and football. You can even find clothing for extreme sports such as mountain climbing and motocross. In any sport the proper apparel is important to success.

If you are into golf you can find clothing for that almost anywhere. Most golf apparel will include a polo type shirt and nice trousers. One of the most important things in golf is comfort which makes Chinos a very popular choice for pants. Most people also will wear caps and hats which can be found in a diverse selection of designs and styles. If you are into more extreme looks you can find some of the crazy plaid stuff as well.

If you are into running it is best to buy clothing that will pull the moisture away from the body to prevent friction and chafing. These days there are high tech fabrics that are great for this as well as using absorbent cotton socks that will make your run more comfortable. It is also best to choose layers of clothing to help with the removal of moisture. One of the most important pieces of the puzzle is the running shoe which you can also find a wide assortment of at sports specialty stores.

When you are choosing athletic apparel it is also important to think about the climate and weather so that you will be comfortable no matter what the climate is. If you don’t choose the appropriate apparel you will be very uncomfortable and it can interfere with your performance. If you are an active jogger and live in an area of the country where there is a lot of inclement weather be sure to buy all weather gear.

If you are into riding horses then you will also want to have the best equestrian gear that you can find to be comfortable in your sport. This sport requires some special equipment that isn’t used in any other sport. For example the special riding pants and boots are only used in this sport. If you are in traditional equestrian activities you will probably need a plaid shirt and hat.

If you are into yoga the proper apparel is also important and the most crucial thing is for the clothing to be comfortable and loose so that you will enjoy the exercise. Yoga clothing is not expensive either. You can find comfortable yoga clothing at just about any reputable sports apparel store.

See Also : Dr. Martens MIA

[Via http://menathleticshoe.wordpress.com]

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Insanity Day 6: More Plyometric and Cardio Circuit

God, I hate this video!!! There is just so much jumping, suicide drills, push-ups….I am confident it is good for me and will get me great results, but Jesus! I am officially due for a 30-day (actually 28-day) weigh-in on April 11, 2010. I may weigh myself first thing in the morning tomorrow just to see if I have lost any weight this week.

I will also adjust my diet a little this week. I have sort of been giving myself a break because I figured that since my body is working so hard,  I should be able to go with my natural appetites. If I was hungry this week, I ate. Period. After doing such a difficult workout, I guess I felt sort of entitled. This week, however, I will have REAL carbs only: oatmeal, Ezekial Bread, fruits and veggies. I was considering purchasing that Beachbody Recover Drink, but I looked at the ingredients and discovered that it has an awful lot of weird chemicals in it. As I am trying my best to live as chemically-free as possible, I instead found a post-workout protein powder on Peapod, where I order my regular groceries online, which has a lot less of the scary ingredients in it. I can mix it with orange juice, soy milk, non-dairy ice cream, or water. I also may blend fruit with it as well. I chose vanilla instead of chocolate–thought it would be more versatile. I’ll let you know how that works out.

[Via http://skinnytherese.wordpress.com]

USYD photoshooting, and other randomsauce.

Today was a fun filled day, though I had some scares pretty early on in the day (one was that today coincides with Animania- nyahahah just keeeding, that’s not a scare). We went to USYD quadrangle to shoot after err- being inspired by a particular Youtube video and from seeing past shots. Ramille haven’t been, so it was their first time. For L and I, we were both going there again, so it was familiar. It was really HOT though – so sunny it was muggy and gross!

Anyway, scares:

Firstly, I almost thought that my Sony Cybershot needed some surgery.

Taken from my camera and watermarked as miketsu, but R was the one who took the shot.

As you can sort of tell, there was major vibration/ shaking in the camera mechanism for some unknown reason. It’s actually probably the battery, because it started working again! Unfortunately, it means that I didn’t get to take many photos :( Boo.

But I processed what I could using L’s photo processing techniques >:3 In particular though this was the most quickest point and shoot shot ever (I have a thing for shoes – clearly each photoshoot I just do it when I remember to), I reallllly like this. That’s why I threw it up onto tumblr.

Ramille/ ACSRAD = Secksay <3

Scare number 2 – my Instax spring went bust. Usually when you pop the lens back in to turn off the camera, the settings will rewind back to default, but for my camera, it doesn’t. I guess it’s alright since the settings still work and lock properly, but dayum, I’ve never dropped the camera or handled it incorrectly. It was probably like that for a while but I don’t remember when it started happening. I think it’s because I am a bit too harsh when I turn off the camera – plus I’ve taken quite a few shots (nearly 80), so well, yeah, expected-ish. But it’s alright. As long as the light settings work, I’m not fussed.

I won’t throw up the Instaxes here. I can’t be bothered >_>

We then went to Takeru for lunch with C and M – interruption – their omurice is reallllly good. You have to try it. Then we went to get Melona, and we played basketball :D

I got better at it? Hahaha – I could get quite some mean basketball shootage in stage one (second time round though), but I was too tired and R started throwing with me >_> Sigh. Stamina is crapsauce. I’m getting more efficient and accurate though! I’ll get myself to stage three – one day.

Fashion around the city is really really bad – nasty shorts, nasty… stuff. L would say something about a particular girl we saw, but I won’t talk about it. NASTY. Saw a cool art display (sorry I’m tired, I’ll skip over this…) and well yeah – just a bit of everything, really :)

We then headed to Kinokuniya since parking was around there, and I needed to grab 2 presents. I’ve wrapped them neatly now! Now I have no more wrapping paper left XD Oh well, I’ll think about it later.

I’m very tired. I didn’t sleep much last night so sorry for this blog of random. My fingers don’t want to type even >_>

I’m considering some serious freelance logo or graphic design jobs, so I’ll be designing a business card for myself soon. After that I’ll try to put up an advertisement online. Maybe I might be lucky and get someone who is willing to give me a shot. Otherwise you poor dears will be bombared with my crappy business cards XD

And speaking of that (direct word associations lol), I can’t wait until my next Gmarket order. I need at least another photo album >_> I ran out of space in my one lol. I don’t want to break the set I took today either, so I’ll be shuffling the order and saving those for the next album.

Had lots of fun! Tomorrow onwards will be work work work. Boring boring boring. But yay for thinking about possible design jobs – I’d be stoked if I got even just one XD Then hopefully things flow from there on… <3

[Via http://kmisa.wordpress.com]

Thursday, March 18, 2010

The Easy Home Circuit

I just want to point out from the start that I am not a qualified fitness instructor.  This means simply that any exercise routine or meal plans I post about are ones I use myself and have created through trail, error and research.  Please be aware of your own body and if you find something hurts when you do it then don’t do it.

Ok so this workout is called “The Easy Home Circuit” as it requires very few pieces of equipment (EASY)  and can be done in the HOME (rocket science this post naming lark).

I find it a nice one to do in the morning as it wakes the whole body up.  The other great thing about circuits is you can do as many (or as few) complete sets as you have the time or energy for.

Firstly it is a good idea to warm the body up.  There are loads of simple ways to achieve this, here are a few I can think of  -

  • If you have cardio equipment in the house use it for 5/10 mins on an easy / moderate setting
  • Have a brisk 5/10 min walk outside (unless it miserable)
  • Walk up and down your stairs while doing circles with your arms
  • Do some jogging on the spot while punching the air

The idea is to get the blood flowing through your muscles and get your heart rate up – so anything that does that counts :)

Main Workout: One complete circuit should take approx. 10 mins to complete.  If there are any exercises you are unsure of how to perform then check out the BodyBuilding.com exercise database it is a really useful resource.  The main point to remember is that proper form is more important than doing loads of reps.

I aim for 15 reps of each exercise but anywhere between 10 and 20 (or more if you feel the need) is a reasonable number to complete.  There are 12 exercises suggested which roughly divide into 3 groups of 4 ordered: Upper Body (back or chest), Legs, Arms, and Core (abs or lower back).  Feel free to substitute any exercise for ones you would prefer to do, but try to stick to the body group order as this ensures you are not overloading any one body group.  Remember to not rest between exercises complete one and move straight on to the next, by the end you will have completed an all over body workout (“Happy Days” :) )  You do need to rest between circuits though for about 1 minute or until you feel ready to start again.

You do need a resistance band and a chair, weights are optional.

  1. Press Ups (on knees or toes)
  2. Squats (weights in hands optional)
  3. Front Raises (using weights or resistance bands)
  4. Air Bike (15 on each leg)
  5. Lateral Pull Downs (using resistance band)
  6. Calf Raises (weights in hands optional)
  7. Lateral Raises (using weights or resistance bands)
  8. Dorsal Raises
  9. Seated Flyes (using resistance band and a chair)
  10. Seated Low Row (using resistance band and a chair)
  11. Lunges (weights in hands optional)
  12. Side Bends (15 on each side)

Just to expand on a couple of the exercises:  when doing number 9 the resistance band goes around the back of the chair while you are sitting on it.  When doing 10 it is best to sit on the floor with your feet against the chair legs and put the resistance band around the legs.

Finally stretch at the end of the workout – check out this Made Fit TV video pod cast for some ideas (another excellent resource).

[Via http://myfitnesstale.wordpress.com]

Some Hints and Tips on the Nikon D300



Image : http://www.flickr.com

The new Nikon D300 is a marvelous camera with a lot of extra functions over the D200. The larger viewing screen for one, is a big plus and is really just a mini LCD screen.

BUT like all cameras there are many shortcuts and ways to do things that are not always obvious, unless you read and understand the small novel of an instruction book that comes with the camera. What this article is about is showing a few basic shortcuts that will help make life a bit easier.

THE first simple one is that just by hitting the the info button (the one with the Key symbol) just below the Menu button, you get a display of all the camera information that is in the top info panel, very easy to see especially if your eyesight is not as good as it was.

YOU can make all your normal adjustments and they will change as you alter them.

The next thing is a quick way to zoom in on the subject, this is the way to set it up. Push the Menu button, then using the multi-selector button go to the Pencil icon.

Scroll down to “f Controls”

Right click on the multi-selector button which will show, “Multi-Selector Centre Button”.

Right click again and go to Playback Mode” Right click and go to “Zoom on/off

Again right click and you will have 3 options, Low, Medium or High, pick which one suits you best. Medium or High for checking focus, Low to get in close to see facial expressions when doing a portrait, you can still use the plus and minus buttons on the left to move in closer or move out as normal. And you can still use the scroll wheel to flick through all your photographs at the same magnification.

ONE other thing that could be of great use is that you can set up the back scroll wheel to flip through the photographs instead of using the Multi selector wheel.

This time go to f 7 “Customize Command Dials” right click and go down to “Menus and Playback”

Click that to “ON”

AND one last tip, make sure that the f 9 “No memory card” is set to lock, that way you will not accidentally take photographs without a card in the camera.

Hope these will be of use to you.

Tags : digital slrs camera

[Via http://nikond40x1.wordpress.com]