Toughening Up

Sore Muscles!

Workout Room

I've been doing some organizing/cleaning in my workout room. 

Sit-up ......Thing

I just thought I would show you guys how my sit-up thing works.

Sleep Exercising...? (Video)

Apparently I was working out in my sleep.........which is super fucking weird.

Coming Soon to a Computer Screen Near You

I just thought I would give you guys a heads up on some things that I have planned for this blog in the near future.

1- Starting next week I will be posting a series of videos (which, by the way, are much better quality than my regular videos because my sister helped me with them) of me "reviewing" a selection of ridiculously hot peppers. The will include a ghost pepper, and at least two that are hotter than the ghost pepper. So yeah, hopefully you guys will get some amusement from my pain.

2- I think I can now say with confidence that my new body weight exercises are working! I'm pretty pleased with the results I've been getting, especially since I was half afraid I was going to end up losing the results I had gotten from my workout with the sandbags. Because of this, I wanted to get some new pictures taken, and my sister has agreed to take them for me. You guys probably don't care about this, but I'm kind of looking forward to them. I think I might get kind of ridiculous with them this time, do some crazy shit.

3- Okay, so I have this idea.......I can't decide if I'm actually going to go through with it or not. I feel like it could be fun, or it could just be really fucking embarrassing. I think I've mentioned a few times how I've always wanted to try acting, but never really had the opportunity? Well, at this point I think I can safely say that's never going to happen. I still think it would be fun though. So I had this idea that I might make some fake audition videos for parts that I would want to play. I don't know though...........maybe.....maybe......

Peach ghost pepper ^

I Think I'm Starting to Get the Hang of This

I went to my second Aikido class last night, and I really think I'm going to like it. We worked on some of the stuff that we did last week and, while I didn't actually remember how to do any of it, I definitely picked it up faster this time than last time. So hopefully that means that I'm retaining at least some of it.

We also did several new things, and it seems like most of the basic movements are pretty much the same; you just use them in different ways. So I feel like, once I really get those few basic moves down, I'll be able to improve much more quickly. Also, the sensei told me that I'm doing very well, so that made me feel pretty good about the whole thing. 

One thing we did that was not similar to anything else was "rolling" which is....exactly what it sounds like. We learned how to dive at the floor (backward and forward) and roll over back to a standing or kneeling position. I had actually practiced this before (you know, because I'm a dumbass) and, though this was a little different than the way I had been doing it because it was at an angle instead of straight over my head, I still feel like I got it quicker than I would have otherwise. According to my friend who invited me to the class in the first place, I am exceptionally quiet when I do it......I don't know..... maybe that's something that comes from practicing this kind of shit while living with other people? You eventually learn to slam yourself into the floor without waking the person sleeping in the next room, or disturbing the person watching TV downstairs. Or maybe I'm just that stealthy. 

Flexibility (Video)

Since I've already posted most of the rest of my workout routine, I thought I would go ahead and film my flexibility stuff. I filmed it with my back to the mirror, because I thought you would be able to see the reflection and tell what I was doing, but that didn't work. Oh well. Also, I hadn't realized what a very different color my legs are from my upper body. Oh well again. 

 

Something New

I did, in fact, go to Aikido last night. It was definitely a change of pace from Muay Thai, but I really enjoyed it. I'm still not sure if I will be able to go regularly, since it is on weeknights and I just don't know if I can justify missing a massage to go, but I would like to. For one thing I liked it but, more importantly, I think it would be good for me. Plus, I know someone in the class, so I would have someone to talk to about it who would actually understand, as opposed to just trying to tell my family about it and having them look at me like I'm a lunatic.

The reason I think it would be good for me is because it was totally different from my Muay Thai class. This was much more technical, there were a lot of small very precise movements, as opposed to the more general movements I've been doing in Muay Thai. It was a bit frustrating for me, since I'm not used to having to pay quite so much attention to my movements, but I think it's definitely something that I should learn how to do.

It was also a lot less physically intense than Muay Thai (which did bug me a little, since I kind of like feeling exhausted at the end). Everything I've done so far has been about getting as much force as you can behind every move to get more power, whereas this was about using as little force as possible by turning your opponents' momentum and body weight against them. I admit, some of it was a bit close for my comfort though. Turning the other person's body weight against them usually means having to get right up against them, and I'm not really good with the whole having people in my personal space thing. Of course, that is also probably something I should be working on. Anyway, it was a good experience overall. 

It felt a little bit like this ^ at times.

Updates

I have three updates for you guys- One, boring one, semi-interesting one, and one super exciting one!

The boring one is that I am taking this rib fiasco as a sign from The Powers that I should stop with the fucking sandbags, and go back to doing body weight exercises. I have my new sit-up contraption, which is even more difficult than I had expected. So that should be okay. Now I've been searching frantically for various leg exercises that will work as well as squats with the fifty pound bag. I found a few that feel like they are working pretty well, but I'm still probably going to be spazzing out about it months.

Speaking of my rib, it turns out that, at least according to the chiropractor that I work for, it is not cracked. Well, actually he said "it isn't broken" which I already knew, (I'm fairly certain I would have realized if it was actually broken) but I assume he would have told me if it was cracked too. Unfortunately, that doesn't really do me much good since it's obviously still fucked up. It does seem to be getting slightly better though, so I guess that's good. That was the semi-interesting update, by the way.

Now for the super exciting update! They finally released the official Deadpool trailer (Loud squealing noise) and it is amazing!

No stupid rib is going to stop me!

Does This Sound Like an Old Ship to You?

Sooooo....... I think there is a cance I may have a cracked rib. I don't know, I mean I've never had one before, so I'm not sure what it feels like. But it hurts when I breathe, and it hurts a lot when I move in certain ways. At first, I thought "There's no way that's what it is!" because I though for sure that if I had done something to crack one of my ribs I would remember it. Then, today, when I tried to do sit-ups with my 100 pound sandbag I realized what may have happened. See, when I layed back with the thing on my chest I was suddenly in an intense ammount of pain. Since I'm a dumbass, I went ahead and tried to do the sit-ups anyway. I found that I just physically couldn't. Then I started to realize that there is a chance that I have been slowly crushing myself to death for the past month or so. In retrospect, perhaps putting a hundred punds of weight directly on my ribcaged and then sitting up and then letting it smash me into the floor fifty time in a row every day was not the best idea.

Anyway, my dad and I were supposed to finsh my pump-house today, but that didn't happen because I had an emergency project that had to be done riht away. Since I couldn't use my sand bag (and I was obviously not going to let intense pain stop me from doing my workout) I had to find some other method for working my abs that would be as effective without the possibilty of ending up with a punctured lung. So we had to build a something that would allow me to hang upside down, and do sit-ups that way. I still don't think there's any chance that we would have gotten the pumphouse finished (it ended up being much more complicated than we had anticipated) but we certainly would have gotten a lot more done than we did. Oh well, at least I can do sit-ups without possibly dying. So that's something.

Claire- What does a cracked rib sound like?

Matt- ......an old ship.

The Volatile Vegan's Attempt at Bellydance (video)

I thought for this week's video, I would share my favorite bellydance workout with you guys. I've done several different ones, and this one is the most challenging (which is probably why I still look kind of goofy when I do it) and fun that I have found. Also, I have found that you automatically look less stupid if you wear a scarf around your hips when you do bellydance (in case you were wondering).

Hell of a Workout

Well, I think I did enough physical labor over the weekend that I should be able to count it as my workout for the rest of the week (of course, I won't ....but I should). On Friday I helped put up hay, yesterday I dug a ditch for the water to my camper, then today my dad and I started work on the pump house.

The hay went pretty smoothly. That is, until a drunk guy decided to park his truck directly in the middle of the road and then get out and walk away! Apparently, this guy and a woman in another vehicle met on the road and, as opposed to  just scooting over so they could pass each other, he just sat there and tried to force her to back up. When she didn't, he started yelling profanities at her, then got out and walked away. It held us up for a good half hour. We did manage to get plenty of hay to last for quite some time though. So I guess it worked out okay.

As for the ditch digging, digging is the one type of physical labor that I absolutely hate. I think the main reason for this is that our property is basically nothing but fucking rocks! Every time I stick the shovel into the ground *thunk*. Then I spend ten minutes trying to pry the rock out, so I can lift the shovel up, plunge it back down and *thunk*. Every fucking time! So yeah, when I said I dug a ditch, what I really meant was that I dug a half-assed ditch that I will now probably spend the rest of the week working on, trying to get it deep enough to be any good.

Today, before we could start on the pump-house, we had to move the world's largest rock out of the way. It was insane. My dad and I each had a bar that we used to try to pry the thing out of the ground. We had to pry it up, then slide blocks under it, then pry it some more, then slide the blocks, then stack blocks on top of each other, then pry some more. It took forever, and I'm fairly certain that I was almost no help at all since, every time I tried to pry the thing, my bar just kept sliding through the dirt. Anyway, we finally managed to just roll the thing over into the ditch (not the one I just dug, but the one with the little stream in it).

So yeah, good times.

Except the digging, the digging sucked!

Look What I Got!

Yesterday, my dad and I went to Home Depot to get some stuff for my camper. We got a hot water tank, and some plumbing stuff (not terribly exciting) but I also got something that I am pretty excited about. Try not to laugh, okay? I bought some of those weird puzzle-piece foam tiles, like they put down in classrooms for small children. Here's my reason, I have been thinking forever about putting some kind of mats down in my exercise room and I thought that, since we have to replace the floor in there anyway, I might as well go ahead and do it the way I want to. I've been working out on various rugs my whole life, and it's just awful! They slide, they don't provide nearly enough cushioning, and (here's my favorite part) they give me fucking rug-burn on my shoulder blades and tailbone when I do sit-ups! Now, for the first time in my life, I might actually be able to do my workout without slightly injuring myself every time.

And I don't even give a shit if it looks like I'm living in a kindergarten classroom.

The Volatile Vegan Learns Capoeira (Video)

I've mentioned a few times that I've been doing a capoeira workout. Well, I thought I would show you guys what I've learned so far.

Overthinking

Does anyone else find that they are only good at things when they can manage to not think about them? Pretty much everything I try to do, I do better if I can keep myself from actually focusing on what I'm trying to do. I don't know for sure, but I feel like most people concentrate on doing things when they aren't sure if hey can do them or not. Not me. I can do so much more when I don't think about it than when I do. It's like my brain intentionally tries to fuck me over. No matter what I'm doing, thinking about it makes automatically makes it shitty. I mean, even just speaking becomes difficult when I think too much about what I'm trying to say. I can have a half-way decent conversation if I just talk without thinking about it, but when I'm really trying to make a point I end up sounding like a dumb-ass.

The time when it's must obvious though is when trying to develop a new skill. Lately I've been practicing jumping up and swinging on the rafters in the pig barn. Sometimes I can do it right the first time, other times I miss four or five times in a row. The only difference is whether or not I can stop myself from thinking about what I'm trying to do. Of course, the problem is that knowing that I need to not think about it makes it damn near impossible to not think about it. It's super fucking annoying. I don't know why my brain does this to me!

Pig Barn Pull-Ups (Video)

My sister was kind enough to come and film for me, so I could show you guys how I do pull-ups in the pig barn. Sorry the lighting is kind of shitty. Also, please ignore the ridiculous boots.

Don't Worry, I'll Get There

You guys remember when I was talking about how I bought a sand bag to use as a weight? Well, I've been wanting to get a heavier one forever, but couldn't find any. I guess most people don't like the idea of picking up a hundred pounds of sand, go figure. Anyway, I finally decided to just "make" a heavier one. So I bought two fifty pound bags and poured them into a pig food bag then taped the shit out of it with duct tape. It was a pretty lengthy and annoying process, but I was really excited about trying it out. I used it for my sit-ups today, and that worked out pretty well. However, when I tried to use it for squats, I realized that I just physically couldn't get it into the necessary position. I was able to pick it up, but I could not hoist it up over my head to get it on my shoulders. It was rather disappointing. I was looking forward to being able to do less squats; I've been doing sixty of them with the fifty pound bag. Instead I still had to do sixty, but I had to do them after I had fucked around with the new bag for like ten minutes, trying to figure out how to get it to work. I guess I'm just going to have to practice picking the damn thing up until I get strong enough to lift it over my head.

Lazy

I'm sure you guys know by now that I have a pretty rigid schedule that I follow every day. You want to know something stupid though? Even if I manage to get all of my stuff done, if I put it ff too long I still feel like a lazy ass. Today I didn't workout until almost 3:00 and I felt almost as bad as if I didn't do it at all. I even had a (kind of) good excuse, I was cleaning the kitchen this morning and it took a long time, then it was time to feed the pigs, and when I got back from feeding them I was starving. Still, by the time I actually made myself do my workout, I really didn't feel like it anymore and I think I did everything kind of half-assed. So yeah, from now on I really need to get my ass in gear and get shit done on time.

I also didn't actually leave the house today, which also makes me feel like a lazy ass. Even though I didn't have anywhere I needed to go, I still just feel like I accomplished more if I go somewhere...anywhere.

I was even too lazy to find a good image today. So I just typed in "lazy" to Google images and picked the first one that I liked at all.

Scarlet Fever

I just thought that I would show you guys exactly what I did to my arm yesterday. In case you can't tell, it basically looks like road rash. I kind of wish it was road rash; then it would at least indicate that I had done something halfway interesting. Instead it just indicates that I'm a dumbass, and my life is stupid. I mean seriously! I've practiced that punch every day for the past several weeks, and not once did I kick through the wall or scrape my arm on the ceiling but, naturally, since I was trying to film it yesterday everything that could possibly go wrong did.

By the way, the post title is a reference to the Supernatural episode "Yellow Fever" in which Dean caught ghost sickness which caused him to develop spontaneous road rash, and be afraid of everything. Since I'm not really afraid of anything, but am pissed off all the time, I decided to go with "scarlet fever" (because yellow=afraid, red=angry)...... too convoluted?