Tara Larosa on The Rear Naked Choke
Posted using ShareThis
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Snatch
Been following CrossFit.com, albeit a few days behind in the rotation. Instead of back squatting the other day though, I did an hour of oly lifting with the Atlas Lifting team at Fourth Power Fitness.
Can you say "Snatch"?
Good. I knew that you could.
Go say it to your mom.
Did your momma slap you?
Anyhoo my legs are still buzzing from an hour of nothing but oly lifting. And you know how that makes me feel? Super!
Can you say "Snatch"?
Good. I knew that you could.
Go say it to your mom.
Did your momma slap you?
Anyhoo my legs are still buzzing from an hour of nothing but oly lifting. And you know how that makes me feel? Super!
Sunday, March 23, 2008
On weekends it can sometimes be a bit hard to make it to the gym -- so I did some searching and came up with an extensive list of bodyweight only workouts from Eva T. That list, combined with my kettle bells and ring set mean I really have no excuses if I can't make it to class. Helen leaps to mind, using the rings for pull ups.
There's always something you can do, even if all you have is you. Push ups, situps, pull ups, burpees, walk, jog, run, sprint, squats, one leg pistols if you're capable. The list goes on and on.
**************
On a side note, I told a friend about the shopping on the periphery of the supermarket approach to grocery shopping and she's going to give it a try today.
There's always something you can do, even if all you have is you. Push ups, situps, pull ups, burpees, walk, jog, run, sprint, squats, one leg pistols if you're capable. The list goes on and on.
**************
On a side note, I told a friend about the shopping on the periphery of the supermarket approach to grocery shopping and she's going to give it a try today.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Sunday, March 09, 2008
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
1,2,3 Go!
Down to 202 lbs. Just deadlifted a PR of 150KG (330 lbs).
Nowhere close to doing the workouts of the day as prescribed by Crossfit -- but making great progress. Sitting pulse is now 58-60. Was 66-68 when I started.
Nowhere close to doing the workouts of the day as prescribed by Crossfit -- but making great progress. Sitting pulse is now 58-60. Was 66-68 when I started.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
From Kettlebells to Crossfit
Three weeks ago I started Crossfit training at Fourth Power Fitness in Carmichael, CA. Actually - they do SST (Sports Specific Training) & Crossfit there, so I guess I'm doing both SST & Crossfit.
The kettlebell workouts are great and all, but you can only get so far with them plus I needed some human interaction. There's only so much time you can spend in an apartment before it starts to feel like a cell. Maybe Dostoevsky's Underground Man digs it, but not me.
Anyhoo -- The workouts there just blow the doors off of anything I've ever done. Sure, there were similar sessions in Warrant Officer Candidate School at Fort Rucker, but even those workouts were more limited in scope.
As for the results, since I started I dropped four pounds and cut my body fat by five percent while on a Zone-ish, South Beach-ish diet where the food intake is basically 40% protein, 40% fat and 20% carbs with a concentration on low glycemic index carbs.
I'm watching my portion sizes but not going hungry -- just being sensible.
The kettlebell workouts are great and all, but you can only get so far with them plus I needed some human interaction. There's only so much time you can spend in an apartment before it starts to feel like a cell. Maybe Dostoevsky's Underground Man digs it, but not me.
Anyhoo -- The workouts there just blow the doors off of anything I've ever done. Sure, there were similar sessions in Warrant Officer Candidate School at Fort Rucker, but even those workouts were more limited in scope.
As for the results, since I started I dropped four pounds and cut my body fat by five percent while on a Zone-ish, South Beach-ish diet where the food intake is basically 40% protein, 40% fat and 20% carbs with a concentration on low glycemic index carbs.
I'm watching my portion sizes but not going hungry -- just being sensible.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Weight update & some MMA talk
Current Weight: 213
I dropped eight pounds in the past 10 days. I also cut my body fat percentage by 4%. It would seem sticking to the RKC Challenge and doing phase 1 of the South Beach diet is helping. One more week to go on phase 1 from here and then on to phase 2 and more food choices until I hit my goal of 175 as walk around weight.
By walk around weight, I mean a weight that's pretty easy to maintain with decent training. If I were an MMA guy like Rory Markham, who is a king of cutting weight, I would be able to cut 20 lbs in a day and weigh in at 155 lbs and fight as a lightweight in the IFL. That means I'd be able to take on Chris Horodecki, Savant Young or Erik Ownings.
Correction, that means I'd be able to step into the ring and get my ass beat at 155, which is not really 155 btw. Those guys start sucking down sports drinks and pedialyte like its going out of style right after the weigh in. It's not the healthiest of things to do and definitely not for normal people who aren't in the condition these guys are. The question I always have is, how weak does it leave you?
I know right now that my heaviest kettlebell, the 70 pounder is way heavier now that I've restricted my calories. I'm not quite as strong as I was. In contrast to me, who is trying to burn fat, these guys are generally just losing body fluids, which can be replenished quickly. How weak it leaves you, I'm not sure. None of the guys we interviewed on the R.O.N. Show have talked about making them weaker. Maybe it doesn't or maybe we just forgot to ask the question.
If the MMA stuff interests you at all, you can check out The Ron Show or go right to the podcast page on talkshoe.
Or just listen to the show. There's more to life than just talking about losing weight after all...
I dropped eight pounds in the past 10 days. I also cut my body fat percentage by 4%. It would seem sticking to the RKC Challenge and doing phase 1 of the South Beach diet is helping. One more week to go on phase 1 from here and then on to phase 2 and more food choices until I hit my goal of 175 as walk around weight.
By walk around weight, I mean a weight that's pretty easy to maintain with decent training. If I were an MMA guy like Rory Markham, who is a king of cutting weight, I would be able to cut 20 lbs in a day and weigh in at 155 lbs and fight as a lightweight in the IFL. That means I'd be able to take on Chris Horodecki, Savant Young or Erik Ownings.
Correction, that means I'd be able to step into the ring and get my ass beat at 155, which is not really 155 btw. Those guys start sucking down sports drinks and pedialyte like its going out of style right after the weigh in. It's not the healthiest of things to do and definitely not for normal people who aren't in the condition these guys are. The question I always have is, how weak does it leave you?
I know right now that my heaviest kettlebell, the 70 pounder is way heavier now that I've restricted my calories. I'm not quite as strong as I was. In contrast to me, who is trying to burn fat, these guys are generally just losing body fluids, which can be replenished quickly. How weak it leaves you, I'm not sure. None of the guys we interviewed on the R.O.N. Show have talked about making them weaker. Maybe it doesn't or maybe we just forgot to ask the question.
If the MMA stuff interests you at all, you can check out The Ron Show or go right to the podcast page on talkshoe.
Or just listen to the show. There's more to life than just talking about losing weight after all...
Monday, October 01, 2007
Get stronger and lose weight with kettlebells
Progress is being made. I've gone from 229 to 221 in a little less than a month. At the beginning of that same period I bought two 50lb kettlebells and a copy of Pavel's "Enter the Kettlebell". . Sure, the book said I should probably get 34 pounders, but my ego got in the way. Shocking.
At first I could hardly do anything with the 50 pounders. Presses were impossible, Turkish Get Ups were really impossible and swings were doable but smoked me fast, especially one handed. I kept at it though and went through the RKC Minimum program exercises 5 days a week and ordered a 35 pounder to use for the Turkish Get Ups.
The work's paid off. I've dropped 8 lbs and just got a 70 lb kettlebell because the 50's were getting a bit too comfortable for larger volumes of swings and presses. Next stop is the 88 lb one and I think that should be it for my lifetime kettlebell purchases. I'll let you know when I get there.
With a bit more progress I think I'll be ready to either BJJ train again or start in with the Crossfit WOD at Fourth Power Fitness in Sacramento . I was going to join earlier -- but I was just waaaay to out of shape. I would have gotten hurt in BJJ and probably put myself in traction with an SST / Crossfit workout. Soon though. Almost ready for the next level.
Diet wise I'm trying to keep around 1800 - 2200 calories a day with a gradual adoption of the Zone Diet as I learn more about it.
Anyone out there training with kettlebells? Doing Crossfit? Doing the Zone Diet? Buelher?
At first I could hardly do anything with the 50 pounders. Presses were impossible, Turkish Get Ups were really impossible and swings were doable but smoked me fast, especially one handed. I kept at it though and went through the RKC Minimum program exercises 5 days a week and ordered a 35 pounder to use for the Turkish Get Ups.
The work's paid off. I've dropped 8 lbs and just got a 70 lb kettlebell because the 50's were getting a bit too comfortable for larger volumes of swings and presses. Next stop is the 88 lb one and I think that should be it for my lifetime kettlebell purchases. I'll let you know when I get there.
With a bit more progress I think I'll be ready to either BJJ train again or start in with the Crossfit WOD at Fourth Power Fitness in Sacramento . I was going to join earlier -- but I was just waaaay to out of shape. I would have gotten hurt in BJJ and probably put myself in traction with an SST / Crossfit workout. Soon though. Almost ready for the next level.
Diet wise I'm trying to keep around 1800 - 2200 calories a day with a gradual adoption of the Zone Diet as I learn more about it.
Anyone out there training with kettlebells? Doing Crossfit? Doing the Zone Diet? Buelher?
Friday, September 28, 2007
Sleep Walking? How about sleep eating?
Any one out there sleep walk? How about eating in your sleep?
Late night eating has always been a thing with me. I've done it as long as I can remember. As a kid, I loved to polish off a bowl of cereal in the middle of the night. Usually it was a bowl of Rice Krispies with about 3 teaspoons of sugar on it. I'd let the cereal get all soggy and pound it down and go back to bed. Most of the time I was vaguely aware of my surroundings - but still almost asleep. And I HATED being interrupted while I was chowing down. Every now and then my father would get up at the same time or maybe I woke him up and he'd come downstairs into the kitchen and there I'd be eating my bowl of cereal and I'd have the most visceral angry reaction to it. Boiling over anger. All I wanted was to be left alone with my bowel of cereal in the middle of the night and here comes this intruder. I don't recall acting on it or saying anything during those times but it might be fair to say a "Go Away" or "Leave Me Alone" might have come out of my mouth.
I know, it's completely weird. Some sort of sleep walking snack fest.
Diet-wise, back then, it was no big deal. My metabolism was in high gear and I was super active with sports and just being a kid. We still played outside for the day back then. Remember that?
Anyhow, this late night eating / sleep walking chow fest is still around. It's not something that I do all the time, but is something that occurs when I am trying to restrict calories or am feeling a bit stressed out. I've woken up in the morning to find the strangest evidence of the late night raid that happened. It might be a cracked egg in a pot with a piece of cheese. It might be a cereal box with the bag ripped open and flakes all over the counter and Splenda scattered all over the place.
On the diet side, the progress I made during the day gets shot to hell when this happens.
On the life side I keep wondering if I'm ever going to try to start the oven or stove top and really cause some havoc.
On the psychological side of things it's disturbing because CK has caught me now and then during one of these raids and she says it's not me. Of course it's me, I'm right there, but it's not the me she knows. This guy is angry and even scares her a bit. It's the same deal as when I was a kid. Same anger, same inability to stop it while it's happening. I'll tell you what, it scares me too. I've managed to do this sleep-eating thing under sedation. The pull / trigger for the behavior is that powerful.
The thing is, I lost a ton of weight during WOCS and never took a sleep walking stroll to the vending machines. And that was a very stressful environment with a ton of activity and a calorie restricted diet. I also never did it during college.
It doesn't take Freud to figure out that this is stress related though. Here I am in the middle of a big life change and who knows how it's going to work out. Numerous life stressor calculators show I'm at serious risk to illness due to stress here with everything that's gone on / is going on. That of course, brings my ulcerative colitis into play. Is it due to stress? The short answer from my gastroenterologist, is "No.". Is it exacerbated by it? Sure.
So what's the plan? Well, I'm not so sure at this point. Some of the stressors will take care of themselves over time. We'll have jobs. I'll be taking classes towards my B.S. in Geomatics and things won't be so up in the air. In the meantime I'm going to concentrate on having fun and using this time off to my best advantage with a mix of activities, watch what I eat and remind myself to chill out.
Late night eating has always been a thing with me. I've done it as long as I can remember. As a kid, I loved to polish off a bowl of cereal in the middle of the night. Usually it was a bowl of Rice Krispies with about 3 teaspoons of sugar on it. I'd let the cereal get all soggy and pound it down and go back to bed. Most of the time I was vaguely aware of my surroundings - but still almost asleep. And I HATED being interrupted while I was chowing down. Every now and then my father would get up at the same time or maybe I woke him up and he'd come downstairs into the kitchen and there I'd be eating my bowl of cereal and I'd have the most visceral angry reaction to it. Boiling over anger. All I wanted was to be left alone with my bowel of cereal in the middle of the night and here comes this intruder. I don't recall acting on it or saying anything during those times but it might be fair to say a "Go Away" or "Leave Me Alone" might have come out of my mouth.
I know, it's completely weird. Some sort of sleep walking snack fest.
Diet-wise, back then, it was no big deal. My metabolism was in high gear and I was super active with sports and just being a kid. We still played outside for the day back then. Remember that?
Anyhow, this late night eating / sleep walking chow fest is still around. It's not something that I do all the time, but is something that occurs when I am trying to restrict calories or am feeling a bit stressed out. I've woken up in the morning to find the strangest evidence of the late night raid that happened. It might be a cracked egg in a pot with a piece of cheese. It might be a cereal box with the bag ripped open and flakes all over the counter and Splenda scattered all over the place.
On the diet side, the progress I made during the day gets shot to hell when this happens.
On the life side I keep wondering if I'm ever going to try to start the oven or stove top and really cause some havoc.
On the psychological side of things it's disturbing because CK has caught me now and then during one of these raids and she says it's not me. Of course it's me, I'm right there, but it's not the me she knows. This guy is angry and even scares her a bit. It's the same deal as when I was a kid. Same anger, same inability to stop it while it's happening. I'll tell you what, it scares me too. I've managed to do this sleep-eating thing under sedation. The pull / trigger for the behavior is that powerful.
The thing is, I lost a ton of weight during WOCS and never took a sleep walking stroll to the vending machines. And that was a very stressful environment with a ton of activity and a calorie restricted diet. I also never did it during college.
It doesn't take Freud to figure out that this is stress related though. Here I am in the middle of a big life change and who knows how it's going to work out. Numerous life stressor calculators show I'm at serious risk to illness due to stress here with everything that's gone on / is going on. That of course, brings my ulcerative colitis into play. Is it due to stress? The short answer from my gastroenterologist, is "No.". Is it exacerbated by it? Sure.
So what's the plan? Well, I'm not so sure at this point. Some of the stressors will take care of themselves over time. We'll have jobs. I'll be taking classes towards my B.S. in Geomatics and things won't be so up in the air. In the meantime I'm going to concentrate on having fun and using this time off to my best advantage with a mix of activities, watch what I eat and remind myself to chill out.
Friday, September 21, 2007
Gusmao comes on RON Show - Wins IFL Championship for Pitbulls
The New York Pitbulls completed an unbeaten season, topping the two-time defending champion Quad Cities Silverbacks, 3-2, to claim their first International Fight League World Championship, before 3,470 at Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, Fla.
AND THE RON SHOW WAS THERE THE WHOLE WAY FOR YOU!
Andre Gusmao (Rio de Janeiro) knocked out Mike Ciesnolevicz (Williamstown, Pa.) in the first round of the fifth and deciding match of the IFL World Championship in Hollywood Florida to give the title to the Renzo Gracie coached New York Pitbulls. Gusmao, btw was a recent guest on The RON SHOW.
Gusmao came in as the alternate light heavyweight in a team shuffle that started with Bryan Vetell injuring his hand and Jamal Patterson stepping aside and taking one for the team. The move paid off as Gusmao took out Mike C for the second time.
And nicely, there's going to be no long wait to see this great action for FREE:
The IFL World Championship can be seen on Fox Sports Net (Sunday, 5 p.m. in most markets, check local listings) and on MyNetworkTV (Monday, 8 p.m. ET/PT; 7 p.m. CT/MT).
Anyhoo - here's how the fights worked out:
No. 2 Pitbulls def. No. 4 Silverbacks, 3-2
- 170 lb.: Delson Heleno, Pitbulls, def. Jake Ellenberger, Silverbacks, via submission (armbar) 3:45, 2nd
- 155 lb.: Deividas Taurosevicius, Pitbulls, def. Bart Palaszewski, Silverbacks, via submission (armbar), 1:30, 2nd
- 265 lb.: Ben Rothwell, Silverbacks, def. Ricco Rodriguez, Pitbulls, via decision (unanimous), after three rounds
- 185 lb.: Ryan McGivern, Silverbacks, def. Fabio Leopoldo, Pitbulls, via TKO, 1:35, 2nd
- 205 lb: Andre Gusmao, Pitbulls, def. Mike Ciesnolevicz, Silverbacks, via knockout, 0:53, 1st
Preliminary Bouts
- 205 lbs: Jamal Patterson (Hoboken, N.J.) def. Chris Baten (Tampa, Fla.) via submission (choke), 0:56, 1st
- 265 lb.: Rolles Gracie (New York) vs. Sam Holloway via submission (rear naked choke), 1:49, 1st
- 170 lb.: Travis Cox (Naples, Fla.) no contest vs. Brad Blackburn (Olympia, Wash.) (unintentional knee to head of downed opponent), 2:32, 1st
- 155 lb.: Ryan Schultz (North Platte, Neb.) def. Aaron Riley (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) via decision (unanimous), after 3 round
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Icky sweat
A lot of people don't like to work out. They find sweating icky. They get wiped out. They want to lie down and take a nap afterwards. Worse, they feel like collapsing. They don't get the endorphin rush. They don't get a sense of well being afterward. They feel they are different from everyone else and they aren't getting what they should out of working out.
Well, when you're out of shape working out is going to be unpleasant and it's not going to take too much to get there. Simply put, you're fighting inertia -- your body is not used to the activity and your brain is not used to dealing with the discomfort. So, in the beginning you are going to suffer if you push yourself at all, but if you keep a consistent effort you'll never suffer so much as at the beginning. Keep at it and the rewards will come, and quickly in the beginning. You're not different. You will feel better. Now, if you smoke yourself, you won't, but a consistent moderate effort will generate that sense of well being afterward. Combine the workout with a decent diet that controls your insulin levels like The Zone Diet and you'll find yourself feeling much more even keeled than you have. And as you progress you will learn to listen to your body and know the difference between a hard effort and one that will crush you for the next few days. At the outset, it's going to be sooo easy to crush yourself, which in turn will probably turn you off to working out. As for the sweat - it's not icky! It means you're working! Good for you!
My problem has always been trying to reign in my workouts. I tend to go all gung ho and burn myself out. Not so much physically, but mentally I tend to quit after a few months because I was giving it so much focus and my mind goes "Ugh, that again?".
So, for me the trick is trying to make workouts it just part of the everyday routine rather than training for an MMA match. In other words, dial down the effort, dial up the consistency.
So here's what I'm trying to do:
Weekly:
Bike an hour
Swim an hour
Run an hour
Five days a week:
Kettlebell swings, presses, get ups, clean and jerks for about 30 minutes with varying intensity. Stopping when I feel I'm done. Only one really hard day.
Future workouts:
Crossfit training
Well, when you're out of shape working out is going to be unpleasant and it's not going to take too much to get there. Simply put, you're fighting inertia -- your body is not used to the activity and your brain is not used to dealing with the discomfort. So, in the beginning you are going to suffer if you push yourself at all, but if you keep a consistent effort you'll never suffer so much as at the beginning. Keep at it and the rewards will come, and quickly in the beginning. You're not different. You will feel better. Now, if you smoke yourself, you won't, but a consistent moderate effort will generate that sense of well being afterward. Combine the workout with a decent diet that controls your insulin levels like The Zone Diet and you'll find yourself feeling much more even keeled than you have. And as you progress you will learn to listen to your body and know the difference between a hard effort and one that will crush you for the next few days. At the outset, it's going to be sooo easy to crush yourself, which in turn will probably turn you off to working out. As for the sweat - it's not icky! It means you're working! Good for you!
My problem has always been trying to reign in my workouts. I tend to go all gung ho and burn myself out. Not so much physically, but mentally I tend to quit after a few months because I was giving it so much focus and my mind goes "Ugh, that again?".
So, for me the trick is trying to make workouts it just part of the everyday routine rather than training for an MMA match. In other words, dial down the effort, dial up the consistency.
So here's what I'm trying to do:
Weekly:
Bike an hour
Swim an hour
Run an hour
Five days a week:
Kettlebell swings, presses, get ups, clean and jerks for about 30 minutes with varying intensity. Stopping when I feel I'm done. Only one really hard day.
Future workouts:
Crossfit training
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
VJ is back.
Vanishing James was originally supposed to be a blog about what a pain in the ass it is for me to lose weight and share my successes, failures and joys and frustrations.
It didn't really work out that way. Well, I'm trying to reclaim that focus in the hopes of focusing myself on losing weight / getting in shape more and entertaining you all.
On the surface, weight loss is such an easy thing. The basic equation to solve the problem boils down to: Eat Less. Exercise More.
But there's a lot more to it than that though, eh? Well, starting tomorrow VJ is back with a focus on the weight loss struggle(s).
It didn't really work out that way. Well, I'm trying to reclaim that focus in the hopes of focusing myself on losing weight / getting in shape more and entertaining you all.
On the surface, weight loss is such an easy thing. The basic equation to solve the problem boils down to: Eat Less. Exercise More.
But there's a lot more to it than that though, eh? Well, starting tomorrow VJ is back with a focus on the weight loss struggle(s).
Monday, August 21, 2006
VJ is Dead, Long Live VJ
Bye Bye Vanishing James, Mister JimmyJam has a new blog.
http://itsthekitch.wordpress.com
See you there.
http://itsthekitch.wordpress.com
See you there.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Random Thoughts + an announcement...
Thought 1 - This Jon Benet Confessor is a wack job. Dollars to donuts this is not the guy.
Thought 2 - How much worse can it get for Floyd Landis and his family? What a tragedy. Hopefully it's true that the main causes were not the doping scandal.
Thought 3 - I have been with Riz, or he has been with me for both the worst loss ever in Yankee history, the longest 9 inning game in Yankee and MLB history, not to mention a Jet playoff collapse. What's that mean? Absolutely nothing.
Announcement -- My friend and family and the very scant few of you out there that read this fairly neglected blog might know that we have been pursuing adoption. We announced it and started the process and you'll have noticed that the adoption conversation has fairly dried up until right now. Our thanks to all of you for not pressing the issue at all. As you might figure, we freaked out about it for a bit, and then CK was going to get a new job. The freakout combined with the timing of her new job put the kabosh on adoption for a bit. By the time we had our minds wrapped around and committed to it, life threw us a curveball. A nice fat one though that we can drive into the gap. It just makes sense to let CK get time in her position at work so when she goes back to work if she takes some time off that she can go back into the same position. So we have pushed things back about a year and are working with Spence Chapin to make that happen.
So, we will be adopting, just not as fast as we thought. Adella Jennifer Kitcher will be with us soon. :-)
Thought 2 - How much worse can it get for Floyd Landis and his family? What a tragedy. Hopefully it's true that the main causes were not the doping scandal.
Thought 3 - I have been with Riz, or he has been with me for both the worst loss ever in Yankee history, the longest 9 inning game in Yankee and MLB history, not to mention a Jet playoff collapse. What's that mean? Absolutely nothing.
Announcement -- My friend and family and the very scant few of you out there that read this fairly neglected blog might know that we have been pursuing adoption. We announced it and started the process and you'll have noticed that the adoption conversation has fairly dried up until right now. Our thanks to all of you for not pressing the issue at all. As you might figure, we freaked out about it for a bit, and then CK was going to get a new job. The freakout combined with the timing of her new job put the kabosh on adoption for a bit. By the time we had our minds wrapped around and committed to it, life threw us a curveball. A nice fat one though that we can drive into the gap. It just makes sense to let CK get time in her position at work so when she goes back to work if she takes some time off that she can go back into the same position. So we have pushed things back about a year and are working with Spence Chapin to make that happen.
So, we will be adopting, just not as fast as we thought. Adella Jennifer Kitcher will be with us soon. :-)
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Cheating Bastard or Victim?
Given the witch hunt that's pursued Lance Armtstrong in regards to cheating during the Tour De Lance, specifically the charges levied at him by L'Equipe, a French rag and Dick Pound, head of the WADA; I was not going to be surprised if allegations were made about Landis -- who rode with Lance, and is an American.
Another American winning the tour, worse, one with ties to ESPY winner and Tour De Lance record holder Lance Armstrong is an anathema to the French. Well, not all French, but definitely Dick Pound and his crew.
Is it possible Landis cheated? Yeah. Thing is, it's retarded cheating if it was, because a one time steroid use is going to be enough to wreck a test, but not increase performance. That's according to Dr. Gary Wadler in an AP article published on ESPN right here. All Landis' other samples were clean except for that one day. Further - he knows they test for EPO, one of the substances found in his urine sample.
So, Floyd, if you did cheat, you are as dumb as you are tough, because if you did, they did not do a thing for you and you still won the tour and pissed it away at the same time.
Is it possible someone at the WADA is gunning for Floyd in Lance's wake? Sure. Just Google the backstory on all of that. They were after Lance forever. However, barring someone coming forward and admitting tampering, the burden of proof is all on Floyd, and unless he had some other samples taken and notarized on that day, he's got an uphill battle ahead of him.Bob Roll from OLNTV.com had some good questions though -- and they need to be answered by doctors from the cycling equivalent of Sweden. Here they are:
- Can one sample be nearly three times different in 24 hours than a previous sample?
- Can the body absorb, metabolize and convert any substance into a controllable sample that has been recorded to be a ratio of 11 to 1 of testosterone vs. epitestosterone -- almost three times the allowable ratio in one single day?
- Can any doctor explain the findings in a way regular people can understand?
You can read the rest of Roll's comments in this article on OLNtv.com. Here's my question, why only two samples - an A sample and a B sample? How about four samples? Two could be taken before the race by one anti doping agency two after the race taken by and and two after the race and those samples mixed up and sent off to different labs for testing. For so serious a charge, one would think they could afford the extra control measures. Of course my suggestion lacks some detail, but I think the general gist of it has merit.
Sigh. The French hate us winning their tour. Often athlete's cheat.It's hard to say I have anything but doubts and reservations all around.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Tour de France - Floyd Landis: A$$ Kicker
Kudos to Landis for putting forth what every cycling expert has already called the greatest single day effort in Tour history.
I know I'd written him off after he bonked and lost 11 minutes to his main rivals along with the Yellow Jersey as well. To me, it seemed to say that he had not been riding conservatively so much as he had said and had finally hit a wall and put himself out of contention.
That's what everyone else thought. Except for Floyd. He destroyed the peloton and his main rivals today in an amazing display of guts, determination and focus. When the stage ended he looked in good shape and was waaay fired up for a bit after. The stage win put hims in position to reclaim the Yellow Jersey in the upcoming 56K time trial of Stage 19 -- a race event he excels at. Barring a crash or a super-human performance from Sastre, Landis should take the lead and win the Tour.
They (his competion) thought he was out of it and ignored his early, unconventional break-away early in the mountains of Stage 17. No one attacks in the lower portion of Col des Saisies, about 65 kilometers into the 200.5-kilometer stage. Away he went and they let him go.
Everyone wanted Landis to put the hammer down so to speak, a la Lance, and then just when it seemed he had no hammer at all, he pulled it out.
Way to go.
I know I'd written him off after he bonked and lost 11 minutes to his main rivals along with the Yellow Jersey as well. To me, it seemed to say that he had not been riding conservatively so much as he had said and had finally hit a wall and put himself out of contention.
That's what everyone else thought. Except for Floyd. He destroyed the peloton and his main rivals today in an amazing display of guts, determination and focus. When the stage ended he looked in good shape and was waaay fired up for a bit after. The stage win put hims in position to reclaim the Yellow Jersey in the upcoming 56K time trial of Stage 19 -- a race event he excels at. Barring a crash or a super-human performance from Sastre, Landis should take the lead and win the Tour.
They (his competion) thought he was out of it and ignored his early, unconventional break-away early in the mountains of Stage 17. No one attacks in the lower portion of Col des Saisies, about 65 kilometers into the 200.5-kilometer stage. Away he went and they let him go.
Everyone wanted Landis to put the hammer down so to speak, a la Lance, and then just when it seemed he had no hammer at all, he pulled it out.
Way to go.
Friday, July 14, 2006
Tornado Hits North Of Elmsford.
An F1 sometimes F2 tornado hit towns just a bit north of our home in Elmsford on Wednesday afternoon this week.We'd been in a vacation bubble and had no idea it had happened until our car service guy brought it up while he took us back on Thursday.
To say the least, we were shocked and surprised it had happened. Apparently, at around 3 PM or so, the tornado developed on the Rockland County side of the Hudson River and raced across just north of the Tappan Zee Bridge and touched down in Sleepy Hollow. It then cut a swath across the county all the way into Fairfield County in Connecticut.
Backtracking the timeline of things, we discovered that the tornado hit just as we were on the "Twister" ride at Universal Studios. Freaky. As part of the experience, they show clips from the movie, including the bit where Helen Hunt's character speaks about how a tornado can miss this house and that one but come right after yours. She's right.
I got to see the randomness and wildness of the destruction when I drove up to work out at the NYSC in Hawthorne. The tornado touched down just east of the Eastview exit on the Sawmill Parkway, shreded all the trees it touched, cut across the parkway and through the exit, demolished part of a gas station, crossed 9A and somehow cut in between an Applebees and the NYSC I go to and took out the north wall of a California Closets building. Totally random. Totally destructive. The trees look like the trees portrayed during the Ardennes scenes in Band of Brothers. Exploded. Each one sheared off and spintered at about 15 ft.
I took some pictures with my film camera and if I can find a lab to print them at I'll scan them and post some here.
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Happy Birthday, Jenn
Happy 29th Birthday, Jenn.
Mom & Dad, Mary-Alice & Michael and a few other family friends are gathering in your memory today -- perhaps you know about it? There's a service with Father Rock, lunch at the Culinary Institute of America and then company over at the parentals. I know there will be fresh flowers on your grave from them and some other people that knew and loved you. As luck would have it, it's the first sunny day in these parts in something close to two weeks. I'll give you some credit for that. Thanks!
As for me -- I'm at work doing work things. I'm thinking about you of course, but that's not too different from any other day. I'm sad Jenn. We all are. God, we are so sad and miss you so much. Finally though, I seem to have worked past being devastated. The depression, the deeper depression and just when you thought you'd hit bottom and the bottom falls out depression have abated. Am I healed? No, I don't think so. Healing though. Getting better. Do I still have regrets about things between us? Yeah. I do. The difference is that I've learned to accept that. I try not to dwell on your untapped, unrealized potential or on how much pain you were in and how lonely you were or how frustrated you were. I know all those things were true and it hurts to know that but I cannot be consumed by it. I know you don't want me that way and I sure don't like being a wreck.
Anyway, I was laughing to myself back on the 26th of June, the day I spent most of my life thinking really was your birthday. I'm not sure why I thought that, but I did. Remember how I used to show up with a gift for you, on the 29th no less, with a belated birthday card attached? Or I'd be calling you and wishing you a happy birthday and you'd be wondering why? Speaking of which, I remember trying to enterain you and your gaggle of 1st/2nd grade friends in our back yard. Mom made me put on a clown wig leftover from your Halloween costume and I tried to be a clown with just the wig and perhaps some lipstick of Mom's I used as face paint.
You look really happy in the pictures from that day.
My one gift to you, if it is in my power to give at all -- is that you be happy just like you were then. No baggage, no crap. Just the happiness that goes with being 8 or so. Let the rest fall away.
Happy Birthday.
Love,
Jimbo
Monday, June 26, 2006
Not so big a confession
I love comics. LOVE them. What a great, compelling medium filled with great story lines, great art and great characters.Of course -- it doesn't hurt that the female hero's are drawn like an Amazonian CK alight in something from the Madame Xavier's Midnight Lightning Collection. Gotta love Ms. Marvel -- pictured over to the right there. She's ex Air Force, CIA, and S.H.E.I.L.D Agent -- a New Avenger -- an ass kicker and a hottie. Yeah yeah - typical male attitude. Thing is, last I looked -- the male heroes' aren't exactly hiding much either. Lets go to the tape of CK reading the latest installement of Civil War and pause a moment while we let her reiterate what she said when she saw the second to last panel of the book -- which features Spider Man.
"Holy Crap! That's Hot!"
And there you have it.
I've been away for a while -- decades I think, but now I'm back and the love affair has started all over again...thanks mostly to working two blocks down from one of the best, if not the best, comic store in all the land - Mid-Town Comics. It took a year for the store to work its voodoo on me, but now I've got an account there and find myself looking forward to Wednesdays more than ever.
Right now, these are my top reads:
- Civil War - The art is fantastic. Just compare Spider Man in it to the art in one of his titles, like Sensational Spider Man and you will see what I mean.
- Annihilation - It's fun to watch the Super Skrull get betrayed and the Silver Surfer reborn and once again, very very vengeful and PO'd.
- New Avengers - This is the best regular series book out there right now IMHO
- Daredevil
- Lucifer
- The occasional dose of Ms. Marvel or her DC equivalent, (kinda-sorta) Power Girl. Ms Marvel started out well enough, but this last one with her fighting a wizard and hanging out with Dr. Strange annoyed me. Fight the space creature and the world threat, not the magical ones. Ms. Marvel does not come from that base. Stay on your base!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
