Summer 2020 burpees x 100 countdown

On June 1st, I decided to get ready for Summer 2020 by chasing it every day doing a burpees x 100 workout.  This would be 20 days of 100 burpees a day or 2,000 burpees completed on the first day of Summer 2020 which in my part of the world is June 20, 2020.

Here’s my day 7 effort done Sunday evening in the park.  The weather was burpees-friendly at 73F degrees with low humidity and a pleasant breeze.

I can hardly wait for Summer 2020 to arrive and I’ll celebrate with my final day 20 effort during my Summer 2020 burpees countdown.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Because getting fat and weak isn't an option

Over the years, Pierini Fitness has “coined” and used several fitness slogans.  They’re chants for lack of a better term that cut to the chase with perspective that we all need in chasing our middle-age man upper-percentile fitness, health and wellness.

One of my earliest ones I recall was, “I am as good as my last workout and I am what I eat.”

Another one was, “The fitness training program has got to match the personality.”

Recently, I thought it was time for a fitness slogan rebrand.  Businesses do the rebranding thing all the time.  While Pierini Fitness is not a business but, rather, a “ministry”, a rebranding, getting ready for Summer 2020, still seemed like a good idea. 

So, here’s the latest – drum roll please – that you’ll be seeing more of as I continue marching forward sharing my fitness, health and wellness journey and perspectives, “Because getting fat and weak isn’t an option.”

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Can't do the gym thing any more

"Me and my parks are one."

I may have shared this before that once turning age 65 and becoming a Medicare Man a few months ago, I got a free gym membership with my health insurance plan.  I hadn’t belonged to a gym in probably five or more years so the thought of getting something “free” caught my attention.

It wasn’t as if not belonging to a gym was compromising my middle-age man fitness.  I’m fit right now by my middle-age man historical standards.  Since quitting the gym, I had used various public parks as my training landscape.  There are about five that I regularly frequent depending on what I’m doing.   

I have a favorite park for running, a favorite park for doing pull-ups and a preferred park for doing burpees and kettlebell workouts.  I enjoy my outdoors workouts at these parks.  I’ve found little nooks and crannies at these parks where I can pitch my fitness tent and get a good workout without calling too much attention to myself.  Trees abound at these training sweet spots that have become my training oasis. 

Nonetheless, the free gym membership thing enticed me so after exploring the various gyms that I could join for free, I chose a 24 Hour Fitness gym located downtown about one mile from my office.  It’s one of their bigger gyms that they’ve coined as a super-sport gym because it’s huge and loaded with every exercise equipment you can imagine, plus it has many other amenities like a swimming pool, basketball court, you name it; it has it. 

After joining, I decided that it would be a supplement to how I was currently training because all was going well doing it that way.  Pull-ups, bar dips, kettlebell complexes, burpees and running had been doing me good and I saw no reason to change anything.  As the saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

I’d say during the first month of membership, I visited only four times.  This gym frequency was unlike my past when I would go to the gym five days a week.  I found that my new gym was densely populated with people exercising and it was noisy with loud music.  I also learned that, unbeknownst to me, I had become a reclusive middle-age man fitness dude from several years training in the park solo style.

I tried my best to work around this gym density and noise by reminding myself how endowed it was with every imaginable fitness exercise equipment and weights under the sun.  Still, as time passed, I was continually dodging my new gym, taking a hike, instead, to one of my favorite parks.

Then, Coronavirus struck, and all gyms closed and remain closed to this day.

It was during this gym lockdown that I decided I wouldn’t be going back.  I cancelled my free membership about a week ago.  It felt good doing this because it got a monkey off my back that I wasn’t using my free gym membership.

It was a paradigm shift – a stepping over the line in the sand to the other side – and a realization that I can’t do the gym thing anymore.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Middle-age man morning report

When in the U.S. Army five decades ago, I remember how each morning there was a morning ritual leading to what was known as the Morning Report.   A fellow soldier friend of mine had as one of his many duties its daily preparation.  

The Morning Report was a document produced every morning for every basic unit of the Army.  It reported head counts of Army soldiers and changes in status from the previous day.  Once completed, it was reviewed and approved by the unit’s Commanding Officer and then punted up the Army chain of command. Basically, it was a daily measure of Army soldier resources, strength accountability and military readiness. 

Fast forward to my middle-age man present.   

Nowadays, I do a morning report of sorts with my middle-age man body to assess its resource availability and readiness for another day of fitness training.  In 2 Thessalonians 3 we read: “If any man will not work, neither let him eat.”   Pierini Fitness says, “If I don’t earn my calories from activities of daily living and exercise, let me not eat.”

My morning report assesses my body and mind’s readiness for planned daily living activities and fitness training.  Nowadays, it’s giving me much different information than a noon or early afternoon report.   

For example, yesterday, upon awakening and crawling out of bed, one of my first thoughts was how sore and stiff I was, and that perhaps my planned fitness activities for the day might not take place.   

My wrists, hands and ankles were sore, and the rest of my body “radiated” signals that perhaps a day of fitness training rest was a good idea.  My previous day’s workout included a short morning kettlebell workout and then later in the day, 150 burpees performed at a moderate pace. 

This has become a common morning experience for me that’s more pronounced than decades earlier.  I remember when in my late 40’s until my early 50’s hitting the gym at 6:00 am sharp, roaring, and ready to go, each Monday through Friday.  I don’t have the physical ganas to do this nowadays.  Did it, done it and gone! 

What I’m also finding is that as time passes, these morning report feelings begin to dissipate so that by noon or early afternoon, I’m ready to tackle my fitness training for the day.  Yesterday, for example, after my ganas woke up, I went for a great 6-mile early afternoon run.

So, my middle-age man morning report is often not a good measure of my middle-age man body's resource availability and readiness for another day of fitness training.

You may recall from what I’ve previously shared that my fitness training approach is an intuitive one.  I’m never quite sure what I’ll do even though I have some ideas and preferred exercises to select from in my fitness training cafeteria with workout duration and intensity depending on what’s being reported in my morning, noon, and early-afternoon reports. 

Works for me. 

Even though it doesn’t always give me the good report I’d like, I’ll continue each day preparing upon awakening and crawling out of bed, my middle-age man morning report. 

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Real men do burpees

I may have shared before, but pardon me if I didn’t, that one of my current goals is to perform 100 burpees in 10 minutes or less. My best modern time thus far is 11:53 so I have a way to go. It gets harder as you get older or at least that’s my excuse.

There’s no shortage of burpees junkies sharing their amazing performances on YouTube and the videos I view are a source of inspiration.  Yet, while they inspire me, I must pursue my progress within my own middle-age man abilities, limitations and terms.  

I’m not going to bang out 100 burpees in 6 to 8 minutes no matter how hard I train and try. But, a 10-minute goal is a sensible one so that’s what I’m shooting for by the end of Summer 2020. First stop, however, is completing 100 burpees in 11:00 or less. I hope to be there by the first day of Summer 2020 so that gives me two months to progress at a pleasant pace.

If you view YouTube burpees videos, you’ll see a couple different variations. One is the original burpee that was designed as a fitness test by physiologist Mr. Royal H. Burpee.

The original burpee

Other versions include ones adding a pushup and a jump with arms extended overhead, Navy Seals’ burpees and prison burpees. 

I prefer the version that includes a pushup and a jump with arms extended overhead jump for each burpee done. They’re all good and tough as can be if you do them fast enough and for many repetitions.

Why do I bother, or punish myself, doing burpees?  

Because they keep me honest that, no matter how fit I believe I am, burpees remind me that maybe I could be a little fitter. Not that being a little fitter makes me any better of a person. If I’m a jerk, doing a bazillion burpees won’t make me any less of a jerk.

Nonetheless, I’ll keep on doing burpees because real men do burpees.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Busy at work early morning 2-minute office workout

This is the time of year I'm extra busy with work so getting my middle-age man fitness training workouts in is more challenging. 

Knowing that something is better than nothing, this morning I did a quick 2-minute workout at my office where I have a pull-up bar and bar dip unit. First minute was a single set of 14 pull-ups.

Second minute was a single set of 25 bar dips.

Two minutes later, my early morning workout was done; I was ready to begin working.

Viewing the video, I'll admit my bottom range of my pull-ups could have had better extension. I'll do better next time but am satisfied with my 14-rep performance done cold with no warm-up.

Honest disclosure, I had a performance-enhancing beverage before my quick 2-minute workout - a strong homemade cup of Italian Roast coffee with no crème or sugar added, just the way I like it.

Later today, God willing, I'll do 100 burpees for time. This will be my workout for today.

Again, something is better than nothing.

I’ll be busy for the next month so being creative and time efficient with my fitness training is how I’ll get my job done, like this busy at work early morning 2-minute office workout.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Fitness and nutrition bullshit

Today is the 36^th day of this 2020 new year.  Already, undoubtedly, some middle-age men might be showing signs of weakness and pondering thoughts of abandoning their New Year 2020 fitness, health and wellness goals. 

It’s the nature of a middle-age man beast when the going gets tough; abandon the mission once the honeymoon ends and look for a new one that’ll tantalize and invigorate you.  I have, in the past, succumbed to this temptation.  Trust me, it’s a recipe for unsuccess.

Early last year, I shared what’s needed in these moments, calling them the pillars of strength, desire, discipline, patience and perseverance.  If you missed this pearl of wisdom reflection, consider reading what I wrote here:

Desire, discipline, patience, perseverance

Unfortunately, there’s no secret beyond these attributes, yet in moments of weakness, we might be tempted to looking elsewhere for something that might be easier; surfing the internet, talking to others, looking high and low for that needle in the haystack solution that’ll give us some relief from the daily grind drudgery, we now call it, we began with zeal slightly over one month ago.

Our imaginary visions are still possible of being a studly middle-age man by Summer 2020, prancing around the beach shirtless and wearing a pair of colorful speedos, sporting a killer middle-age man tan with a full head of silver streaked locks blowing in the wind thanks to a pleasant and warm summer breeze.

If only the effort getting us there was as easy and pleasant like the results.

Summer 2020 arrives in 136 days.  This vision is still achievable but only with daily and persistent hard work.  Abandonment isn’t a solution that’ll get us there, provided that which we started is a well thought-out and sensible action plan.  There are no quick fixes, only hard work fueled with incessant desire, discipline, patience and perseverance.

Don’t abandon your fitness, health and wellness ship.  Stay on course in the choppy waters of the sea towards your destination.  

Double down your efforts and avoid all fitness and nutrition bullshit.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

A speeding bus with my name on it

Last Monday, I shared my latest interest in heart rate recovery (HRR) after my workouts after recently reading an article written by a medical doctor cardiologist.  This article shared the doctor’s experience in measuring his HRR after a workout he did and how research evidence indicates that HRR is a simple and powerful predictor of mortality. 

Again, what’s HRR?

It’s the rate of decline in heart rate beats per minute (bpm) after you quit exercising and again a minute later (and/or two minutes later) and subtract one from the other.

There’s a 1999 study that examined the relationship between HRR and mortality risk.  This research revealed an average one-minute HRR of 17 bpm, but 26 percent of patients had an HRR of less than 13 bpm. Patients with an HRR of less than 13 bpm had a double risk of dying.

Another follow-up study of about 10 thousand patients found that an HRR of less than 13 bpm doubled the 5-year risk of death.

Yet another study reported that a 2-minute HRR of less than 22 bpm provided a better measure predicting mortality at seven years than the one-minute test.

Being an analytical beast, I decided to capture my HRR for three recent cardiovascular conditioning workouts.  Below is an HRR analysis executive briefing of them.  Note that my perceived maximum HR is 180 bpm.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Workout – Run 6.0 miles in 1:04:44. 

HRR analysis - end of run 160 bpm - 1:00 = 120 bpm (-40 bpm) - 2:00 = 111 (-49 bpm). 

Monday, January 20, 2020

Workout – Bodyweight squats for 110 reps completed in 4:48.

HRR analysis - start 110 bpm end of BW squats 147 bpm - 1:00 = 116 bpm (-31bpm) - 2:00 = 106 (-41 bpm). 

Wednesday, January 22, 2020

Workout - 20kg kettlebell snatch, right side x 5 reps and left-side 5 reps every minute on the minute for 10 rounds completed in 9:48.

HRR analysis - end of workout 157 bpm - 1:00 = 133 bpm (-24 bpm) - 2:00 = 117 bpm (-40 bpm).

These results indicate I enjoy a lower risk of cardiovascular-related mortality, so I’ll keep doing what I’ve been doing with my cardiovascular conditioning training.

But there are no guarantees in life regarding my premature mortality.    I could have an early meeting with the Grim Reaper if, for example, one day I’m crossing the street and am met by a speeding bus having my name on it.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum