Ben Harper

You can eat right, exercise all day long and be completely healthy physically... but how long should it take a broken heart to mend...? "They say time will Make all this go away, But it's time that has taken my tomorrows... And turned them into yesterdays". Just having a rough night of it folks... I should be back to my happy self soon.

P90X: Day 15, start of week 3. Chest and Back

Sigh... Week 3, I have to be honest, I bagged on yoga on Sunday and Kempo on Tuesday. It's OK I can handle the strong words I'm about to get from you. I'm beating myself up over it too. Sunday morning Is my second night of my 36hour work weekend and I was feeling it! My challenge in completing P90X truly is my work schedule. I love working nights but that was before the X. Now it seems that I just don't have the steam(motivation) to get off work and hit the training... Does this make for a bad person, I think not. week 3 is going to be my hit it and forget it week! I'm back and feeling better than ever, I'm not even sore like I was this time last week. Admittedly, I am getting tired and bored of the same routine, But I just have to remember that shortly I will be moving on to phase 2.

Phase 2 is where I see the big jump in result from all of the YouTube video's out there! This is that I can't what for... results! In the last 2 weeks I have got down to 212 and can tell some of my shirts and shorts are a little bit looser on me... So we will see I guess! My diet is still a high protien low carb with lots of fruits and veggies, Fish like salmon and tuna(canned or pouch... I'm not rich) and good for you nuts. Although I did cheat and enjoyed one of the new spicy chicken sandwiches from chic-fil-a the other day, Mmm! I am doing well otherwise, I'm going to finish this program if it kills me! Well back to the grind. Thanks for reading!

P90X: Week 2 start

Ok, so I haven't posted in a couple of days and I have good reason... I'm busy and tired! I was off Wednesday(Day 7, Rest day) and Thursday(Chest and back, Day 8). Well Wednesday for my rest day I played softball for my Depts league team and I had Kennedy that night too. Thursday I had the range for my annual Qualls... I got home from a long hot day in the sun at 2230(10:30) that night! To say that I was beat down is an understatement! I bagged the chest and back workout! "OH NO" you say?! Don't worry, I doubled up the next day, so Friday not only did I do Chest and Back, but I also did my PLYOMETRICS too! I;m not a beast but I felt good after words! I hydrated and fueled my body the right way and even took some berry's to work with me that night too. Yup I worked 12hrs that night also! I got home this morning and fell right to sleep and slept till 1400(2pm).

I completed Shoulders and Arms today and I do feel a little drained today, like I'm only at 65% energy level... Time to work another long 12hr night shift... and then in the morning I'm taking Boo out to breakfast1 She loves it when She gets to go to Breakfast with Daddy and I do too. After that, it's bed time till 1400 and then it's Yoga X before work(and no I didn't get to finish up the last session either, sorry!)Well I'm 3 days into week 2 and Iam starting to see some results in my performance just since last week, that's a good thing right? OK, back to work now, Post ya later!

Work stuff...

Few people understand the psychology of dealing with a highway traffic cop. A normal speeder will panic and immediately pull over to the side. This is wrong... It arouses contempt in the cop heart. Make the bastard chase you. He will follow... But he won't know what to make of your blinker signal that says you are about to turn right. This is to let him know you're pulling off for a proper place to talk. It will take him a moment to realize that he's about to make a 180 degree turn at speed, but you will be ready for it. Brace for the g's

P90X: Day 6 Kempo X

Again... I started late. This time it was because I had to go and Vote for a new District 2 VA Congressman, Go Scott Taylor. A former US Navy SEAL, an old friend and a supporter of REAL change and less wasteful spending in DC! Also I have a beautiful little 5yr old girl that for the most part is a good girl, but today turned into demon spawn! So I got a postponed start to my workout due to discipline issue with her... enough said.

As far as the workout went it was pretty fun and believe it or not very easy for me! For the most part we do this stuff twice a year here at work, so it was old hat to me. Tony and the crew started out with the normal stretching routine and warm up. We then moved into some balance stretching and for some reason this is where I have been having issues. My Balance is not the best, I assume this is due to weak leg muscle and new routines. Also I have noticed on occasions that if I'm just walking around I might have a slight swagger to the side. This might be a side affect of my ear piece I wear on the job so the bad guys can't hear my coms while I'm coming up on them. I believe it is messing with my equilibrium and balance, so I'm going to limit its use for a while to see if it helps.

The session continued with a barrage of punches, strikes blocks and kicks. It then moved into combo moves and more kicks. Due to being behind in my desired workout schedule, I FFWD through most of the breaks, again this is stuff I'm use to and it helped me gain some time back. I don't like doing that because I could really feel the fatigue towards the end, I did get a second wind and finished super strong in the last 10 minutes. For what it's worth I had a great time and was surprised at how well I did. Yesterday, I was getting all myself syked up about this evolution for nothing. This is by far one of my more favorite workouts so far. Tomorrow is a "Rest day", But don't forget, I still need to finish 1 whole hour of Yoga X that I bailed on Sunday night. Well 6 days down...84 days left to go! KEEP PUSHING PLAY!

P90X: Day 5 Legs and Back

After my tumble off the wagon yesterday, I jumped back on in glorious style! Today, I again started just a bit too late to get in my Ab RipperX, But I did get in the last one I missed so I'll just hit it in the AM when I get off work. This workout was a beast as are all the rest, but the fact that my quads are still burning(and I still have trouble bending down to sit) made this a real test of mental fortitude. But I did it. I did mod some of the routine to adjust for the fiery discomfort in my lower thighs and for obvious balance issues. I am starting to enjoy my workout time, I just keep thinking about my outcome in the end!

Also, I know I shouldn't be doing it, But I have a back habit of using the scale... I feel good and have been following my nutrition plan with no cheating, But I've gained 4lbs. Now I know that muscle weighs more than fat, but it's way to soon(4 days) to see that big of a change in my BMI. I am putting the scale up tomorrow and won't get it back out until day 30, that way I don't get discouraged. The only thing I can associate the gain with is either water weight or the combo of my Protein shake w/ L-Glut. tablets. Again, I'll just do what I need to do and stay the course. Tomorrow is Kempo X... wish me luck! Thanks for reading. 5 days done, 85 to go!( I'm not going to keep the day timer going for much longer, I'm just having fun!)

P90X: Day 4 Yoga X

WTF! I'm a pretty flexible guy even if I do weigh a metric ton(joke), but I was STRUGGLING to finish this workout. It has to be a combination of just being all in all sore from the level of workouts in the last few days and that I have never done yoga before. Getting the movements and proper form down was a jerky learning curve at best! Alas I have to admit defeat in my quest to concore the battle of the day... I stopped with a little less that an hour to go. Sad face here...

BUT! "A man can be defeated but not destroyed" as my good man E. Hemingway had said. I will pick up and finish this days session before the next time I have yoga on the schedule again. WORD! 4 days in...86 days out!

P90X: Day 3 Shoulders and arms!

Day 3 is in the books! Feeling a little sore and worn from the 1st day for some reason now. Mostly in my right tricep and forearm. Hopefully it will go away some. I am taking my supplements and recovery drinks, eating right and "trying" to get enough sleep as well. All in all I'm happy with the way things are going.

In this workout Tony(Horton) puts us through the ringer with 12 arm and shoulder routines...twice! This man is an animal!!! But I'm starting to see what he's got up his sleeve a month or so down the road(I'm smart) and I am Stoked! not going to bore you with a long post today mostly because my arms are on fire from today and from typing all this and I'm going to go out and watch a fight with some friends. Tomorrow is Yoga X... Some body help me! It's going to kick my ass. Oh well, 3 days down 87 to go.

P90X: Day 2 Plyometrics!

Nice! Well day 2 is in the bag and I didn't do that bad at all. The workout was just shy of 1 hour, but I'll admit it was a LONG hour. Plyo was difficult but fun, I definitely "brought it" and did about 90% without any mods. Also I didn't pause it until 29:14... and with that I only gave myself a 1min break. I'm so stoked and ready to keep going!

They say that this is the hardest workout of the series and I believe it too. During the session I did have a recovery drink as well as my water handy and can I say that I can def tell an improvement in my overall recovery speed with this drink. After I was done I cleaned up and took a cold bath(for the legs) and it was nice! I am working part time tonight and get off at 4am, at that point I will pick up my lost Ab ripperX that I missed yesterday. Well, If you care to leave any questions, comments or words of encouragements please feel free. More to come tomorrow Day 3: Shoulders and arms! 2 down 88 to go, keep pushing play!

P90X: Day 1 Chest and Back

OK, So today I started my journey down the P90X road. I've had this program just laying around the house for about a year now, I started it last June('09) and gave up after day2... well not this time! I'm in it to win it!!! Not only am I tired of being FAT and single(who wants a fat guy?), I find myself looking at my daughter Kennedy and can't stand the fact that she has me as a dad that is too out of shape to even take her to the park to play!

Change is GOOD:
In the last few months, I've been ramping up my nutrition and diet plan and I feel now that I know what I need to do. If not I can tweak it as needed. I have my supplements, have my food, have my gear, now all I have to do is BRING IT! I also tested myself a month or so ago, to see just where I'm at physically by running a 5K race. Not bad if I do say so at 36 mins in 40deg windy weather! I'm not a runner in case you didn't know.

Day 1: Chest and Back...
I got a late start to my workout today due to being a good dad for my little girl. Saying that the Ab ripperX had to be skipped until tomorrow morning, so that I could make it to work on time is a no-brainier. I have done this workout a few time before, so I knew exactly what to expect. Although I was ready for it, it was still a hard workout! What made it worst was the fact that I kept watching the clock so not to be late in getting ready for work. Kennedy kept coming in the room also making it difficult to concentrate on the DVD. She finally settled down and started to do modified push ups from her knees...So cute!

All in all I made it though the workout with no real problems. I did my cool down while making my recovery drink and getting the shower warmed up. Oh, I did have some muscle soreness when I was trying to wash my hair.LOL! That didn't last longer than a hour or two. I give credit to my recovery drink.

Tomorrow I need to get some protein bars from BJ's and hit up my GNC for a new can of protein shake mix(it's gold card week!). I also need to get some more fruit like Bananas, berry's and peaches, along with some salmon and tuna. Tomorrow is also the dreaded "day 2" which is plyometrics day... done this one too...not my favorite, but I'll just have to suck it up and drive on! The only easy day was yesterday. I know nobody reads my blog, but in the hope that someday someone does, I hope it inspires them to keep pushing play...

Michael Savage - Jo from Florida demonstrates how stupid she is on radio

You can't make something this bad up...

Day 3 of the Road to hope ride

Untitled by donald4149 at Garmin Connect - Details
I didn't have my Garmin charged for day 2.

Day 1 of The Road to Hope ride

Untitled by donald4149 at Garmin Connect - Details
MAX SPEED 51.2MPH are you shitting me?!!

From here to DC

Tomorrow, May 10 I leave for my annual trek to Washington DC. It will take us 3 days and 250 miles to get there. I will hopefully be able to post from my hotels along the way and be able to add some pictures of the Epic roads and sights of Virginia...Stay tune!

Chose to live...

Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fucking big television, Choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players, and electrical can openers. Choose good health, low cholesterol and dental insurance. Choose fixed- interest mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends. Choose leisure wear and matching luggage. Choose a three piece suite on hire purchase in a range of fucking fabrics. Choose DIY and wondering who you are on a Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing sprit- crushing game shows, stuffing fucking junk food into your mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pishing you last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, fucked-up brats you have spawned to replace yourself. Choose your future. Choose life... But why would I want to do a thing like that?

Wounded Warrior 5K

This is one of those days that I will remember for a long time. As you could probably tell I ran in my first 5k today. It was not a qualifier for the "Worlds" or even my best time clocked, but it was my first 5k and I have to start somewhere. It was also one of my goals for this year that I can check off the list too. One foot in front of the other...
Due to a laps of intelligent thought on my part, I scheduled myself to work part-time the night/morning going into the run. My day started at 1pm on Friday when I woke up. The rest of the day was my typical running around finishing up errands, spending time with Kennedy and all in all wasting time. that night I prepped my gear for the next day and headed into work for my 7hr shift from 11pm to 6am. Once I got off I changed out of my uniform and secured my weapon in the glove box of my vehicle(not at all worried about some bum taking my piece)... At around 7:30ish I moseyed down to registration and picked up my "chip" for timing purposes and waited in the lobby of the Hilton for the rest of my group to show up.
The weather was close to 40, but it felt colder than that due to the wind chill being around 30-33, but at least the rain had stopped around 2 that morning and it was now sunny. Sunny=warmth right? ...Wrong. It didn't warm up until about 1k into the run. The bad part was I had over layered and started to get over heated to fast, This is one of those learning curve moments in sport that you never repeat

Cold!

Ran this morning after work. 39degs!!! Did okay with a 8:51 .95 mile. Then I went in and "ran the rack" for my arms. I can't wait for spring!!!! I'm going to bed these 12hr shifts are hard come day 3! Take it light...

Getting it done

Its got to start somewhere...

You have registered for the Bellator Wounded Warrior 5K Run

As I ate the oysters with their strong taste of the sea and their faint metallic taste that the cold white wine washed away, leaving only the sea taste and the succulent texture, and as I drank their cold liquid from each shell and washed it down with the crisp taste of the wine, I lost the empty feeling and began to be happy and to make plans...

Valintines Day

My little Kennedy, is my world! Every moment I have her brings a smile to my face, and heart! If you have children then you know what I mean...if not, you will someday. I was thinking about how this Valintines Day will be a wash, when I then thought of her, and the years to come... I can't wait! The two of us will always have each other to love on the day that I used to hate. I may be lonely in life, but not alone with the love of my "Little Boo"...