Hello, Delhi!

This morning, as I peered out my window overlooking the city, I knew this was going to be a good day. Know why?

Because I had plans to go break a sweat at CrossFit Himalaya after work. I'd reached out to Piyush Pandey, the head trainer at the box, and arranged for my visit. I'd printed out the address for my driver and asked him to be ready to ferry me through rush hour traffic. It's been five days since my last workout, and I was getting antsy.

And as luck would have it, my evening workout would, in fact, coincide with the 6 a.m. class at CrossFit Palo Alto half a world away -- the one I'd be attending if I weren't on another continent.

Despite my plans, I was thisclose to missing the class tonight. After leaving my office, I had quickly changed into my workout clothes and headed straight for the gym, but the chaotic jumble of cars and buses and pedestrians and bikes and three-wheeled taxis had already choked the  dusty roads. By the time we made it to Chatturpur Hills -- just a few miles away! -- it was dark.

And my driver was lost.



It took another half hour and a couple of phone calls for him (actually me) to locate CrossFit Himalaya. Located down a flight of stairs from a busy stretch of 100 Foot Road, the box is a true basement gym, with equipment that Piyush proudly described as being entirely sourced from right here in India.

I'm a big fan of all different kinds of CrossFit gyms, but those that strip everything down to the essentials are among my favorite. CrossFit Himalaya has a whiteboard, a clock, pull-up bars, barbells and weights, kettlebells and jump ropes -- nothing cutesy, nothing extraneous to the mission of improving fitness.

Today's workout was a doozy. After a quick warmup, and skills practice (double-unders and wall balls), it was time to jump right into the metcon:

For time:

• 100 wall ball shots (10kg / 5kg)
• 100 double-unders
• 50 plate overhead walking lunges (15kg / 5kg)

That's right: One hundred wall balls -- two thirds of Karen! -- was just the start of the workout. By the time I finished heaving that damned medicine ball up the wall, my legs were fried. With numb legs, I stumbled and tripped my way through the double-unders. It wouldn't be accurate to say that I couldn't feel my legs anymore, though, 'cause I sure felt 'em during the walking lunges.

Result: 15:36.

Okay -- so my less-than-blazing time isn't going set any records, but I had a blast anyway. Plus, my goal of sweating buckets was achieved in spades. Can you tell?

[For more about my time in India, check out this post on Nom Nom Paleo.]

Workout, Interrupted

Wondering where I've been?

I've been up to my eyeballs with work these days, having recently shifted my responsibilities to cover international markets at work (on top of my existing workload). Practically speaking, this means my days are spent emailing people in the Middle East at 5 in the morning, tackling my U.S.-based workload during the middle of the day, rushing home to take calls from Hong Kong in the early evening, and talking late into the night with business partners in India. My free time's devoted to daddy duty and helping Michelle with Nom Nom Paleo-related stuff. Meanwhile, this blog has gotten the short end of the stick.

I'm still heading to CrossFit Palo Alto in the wee hours of the morning to work out, though my day job has managed to intrude upon even my sacrosanct exercise time. The most stark example came this morning, when my WOD was interrupted by an unexpected (and unexpectedly frantic) 45-minute cell phone call from overseas about an urgent work matter. Fun times.

This was particularly frustrating because I'd been looking forward to getting back into the gym this morning. This was likely my second-to-last CrossFit class before heading off on a three-week business trip to Asia, so I was hoping to get my sweat on. The first half of the class delivered, with a workout of 10 strict ring rows every 2 minutes for 10 minutes, interspersed with max height box jumps.

The ring rows felt fine, though the fatigue set in by the final couple of rounds. It didn't help that I'd gotten four (count 'em: FOUR) shots in my shoulder in preparation for my travel to India. I'm used to feeling sore, but not this kind of sore.

And then: The metcon. It involved rowing, which meant I automatically hated it:

• Row 1000 meters
• Rest 5 minutes
• Row 1000 meters

"Go all out," Tim advised. I did, and it hurt. The first 1K took me 3:47 to complete, and my stubby little Asian man legs were on fire. I logged my time into my iPhone, gritted my teeth, and stumbled back to the erg. Let's get this over with, I thought. My five minutes of rest were almost up when I heard my phone start ringing. It was an urgent work call from Egypt.

Being on call at all hours of day can be...challenging.

As much as I detest rowing, I wasn't exactly a fan of delaying the inevitable, either. Instead of resting five minutes between the two 1K rows, I ended up with over an hour in between. After a lengthy phone conversation, a short drive home, a half-hour spent making breakfast for the kids, and a few business-related emails, I grabbed my water bottle and headed into the garage to (finally) finish the workout on the rower in my garage.

"How was it?" Michelle asked when I staggered back into the kitchen a few minutes later. "3:58," I said. "I sucked."

But at least I finished it.

And then I showered, popped my typhoid fever vaccine pills (yum?), and went to work. Whee!

Crazed

It's been more than a little crazy lately.

The holidays are a busy time for all of us, but things are especially hectic in our household. Both of our kids have December birthdays, as do both of my parents. And my nonagenarian grandmother, too. There's a lot of celebrating (and gift-wrapping) to do.

Also: I'm taking on a new role at work, which means a lot of learning and juggling -- and prepping for international travel. (Hello, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Hong Kong. I'll be seeing you soon.) And I'm interviewing and hiring someone new for my team at work.

Oh, and we're in the thick of working with our developers to prep a new update to the Nom Nom Paleo iPad app in time for Christmas.

And the kids are sick. As is Michelle.

So it's kind of nice to enjoy the luxury of an extra hour of sleep on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Our class is full to bursting, but working out at 6 a.m. instead of 5 a.m. has made me feel a little more human lately. Here's what we've been up to at the gym:


Result: 4 rounds + 10 reps.

Result: 6 rounds + 2 reps.

Result: 1 round + reps.

 

Unfortunately, my right wrist is still -- STILL!!! -- giving me fits, so I'm nowhere near back to RX form. I have to be honest: My patience had been wearing thin, but now, it's completely gone. It pains me to watch my classmates crank out snatches and cleans while I sulk in the corner with a couple of kettlebells. I know I should just relax, chill out, and recover, but I'm going stir-crazy over here.

A Couple of Paleo Meals in Philly

Things have been nutty at work. I just flew back from Philadelphia yesterday (and boy are my arms tired! Wocka wocka wocka), where I spent 36 hours -- mostly in a courtroom and my hotel room.

But I did sneak in some Paleo-friendly chow while in town. I even took photos with my phone. See?

On the advice of my buddy Joe Petrusky of CrossFit Love, I hit Rouge, where I tore into a Bibb and endive salad with apples, tomatoes, and spiced cashews -- and a huge hunk of burger patty blanketed with cheese. (Okay, the cheese wasn't so Paleo. Whatever.) 

And among the restaurants recommended by Leigh of Paleo at Penn was Marathon, a farm-to-menu joint near my hotel. The pork chop with asparagus and chutney hit the spot.

Wish I had more time in Philly -- it's a beautiful town and the weather was perfect these past couple of days. But work beckons...

Be Right Back

No, I haven't fallen off the face of the planet. In fact, I'm in New York City -- the very center of the universe (at least according to a number of New Yorkers I know). 

We're spending a few days here on vacation before heading up to Boston for the 2012 Ancestral Health Symposium, which explains why I've gone radio silent for the past few days.

I'll be back to blogging soon, but in the meantime, you can check out Michelle's daily posts over at Nom Nom Paleo.

And yes, we're still on track for our 100-push-up challenge. (It's Day 47. Have you done your 47 push-ups today?)

Friday's Workout

A lot can happen in two days.

Between Wednesday's workout and today's:

• We finished the Nom Nom Paleo iPad app after months of intensive work, and submitted it to Apple for review;
• I sat in a plane on the tarmac for an hour and a terminal for two hours before being told that my flight to Southern California (for work) was grounded.
• I was booked on another flight, only to be told at midnight that it, too, was canceled.
• I drove home and collapsed -- only to be jolted awake a few hours later by my wife, who had awakened to a the sounds of water gushing out from below our kitchen sink. Three-quarters of our house was covered by a half-inch of water.
• We bailed water like crazy.
• An emergency crew came over and started tearing out our hardwood floors and baseboards.
• We packed up our stuff and moved into a hotel. The insurance company has us booked here for a month.
• Oh, and Big-O had a Little League game.

I'm a little tired.

But I was looking forward to getting back in the gym so I could work off some of the stress I'd accumulated.

Strength Skill:

• Turkish Get-Ups (1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3)

This morning, I didn't feel super-stable in my shoulders, and found my arm wobbling a bit. Perhaps my shoulders are still fried from Monday's and Wednesday's workouts, but then again, maybe I just need to get stronger.

Metcon:

AMRAP in 8 minutes:

• 21 chest-high kettlebell swings (24kg / 16kg)
• 15 push-ups
• 9 toes-to-bar

The swings and push-ups weren't too awful, but my toes-to-bar were slow as mud. I need to figure out a better way to generate momentum at the finish of each rep; right now, I end up in a dead hang position, which forces me to initiate a big wind-up before continuing onto the next rep.

Result: 5 rounds + 1 rep as RXed.

I tried but ultimately failed to catch the Terminator, who ended up with 8 more reps than me. Such is the way of things, I guess. It's a comforting reminder that even when life throws you for a loop, some things never change.

On tap for tomorrow: The Whole9 Foundations of Nutrition Seminar at CrossFit Palo Alto! And another Little League game.

Thursday's Workout: Family WOD

On this warm Mexican morning, "Death by Burpees" sounded like a good idea.

Here's how it works: Start a timer, and with a continuously running clock, perform one burpee at the start of the first minute, two burpees at the start of the second, three burpees at the start of the third minute, and so on. You're done when you can't finish your required number of burpees in a minute's time.

Once again, the kids decided to work out with us. Big-O went full-on beast mode...

...as did Lil-O.

M got through 10 solid rounds of burpees before tapping out.

I managed to eke out 15 rounds before collapsing.

The last time I did "Death by Burpees," I failed to complete fourteen rounds, so I was pretty happy about today's PR.

So happy, in fact, that I decided to indulge in some heavy-duty taco consumption.

Mmm...tacos...

Link Dump

I was going to post about my workout today, but that would require that I actually work out.



Instead, I've just been hanging out with the family and eating insane amounts of meat while on vacation here in Cabo (and plugging along on some extracurricular homework for Nom Nom Paleo). I did, however, gather a bunch of interesting reads for you to chew on:

• This op-ed piece in The Atlantic's been making the rounds. Three longtime vegetarians and vegans discuss how they came to understand that eating meat and other animal products is not only healthful, but also ethically and environmentally sound. Read it here.

• According to the New York Times, coffee can boost your athletic performance by "enabl[ing] more forceful muscular contractions and delay[ing] fatigue.” CoffeeWOD, anyone?

• You should already be reading all of the sites featured in Outside Magazine's list of the blogosphere's top ten fitness blogs -- especially MobilityWOD, Conditioning Research, and RunBlogger.

• Is Bob Harper really going to be putting his "Biggest Loser" team on a CrossFit-focused training regimen next season? I might actually have to start watching the show again.

• Serious Eats recently posted Pat LaFrieda's video responses to readers' meat-related questions. Good stuff -- especially if you're interested in butchery.

• I enjoyed the crap out of this post on Lift Big Eat Big: "10 Excuses For Not Exercising & Why They Are Horsesh*t."

• Health Tip of the Day: Do not eat cocaine out of your brother's butt.

Bye for now.

Monday's Workout: Cabo San Lucas

We're in Cabo San Lucas for the week, and we're planning on eating like rabid wolves this week, so to kick things off right, the entire family decided to work out on the balcony this morning (minus the three-year-old, who was wandering around somewhere, munching on a scrambled egg and playing with his LEGOs). 

 M got cranking on her double-unders... 

...and air squats... 

...while Big-O got his mobility on. 

I wish I could squat as comfortably as he can. 

I decided to dash off a quick home-brewed WOD: 

50 double-unders, and then 5 rounds for time of: 

5 handstand push-ups... 

 (Whoops -- nip slip.) 

10 pistols... 

...and 15 sit-ups. 

As you can see, Big-O decided to go rip off his shirt and join in the fun.

Result: 9:13. I cooled down with another 50 double-unders.

And then we proceeded to eat, swim, and do a whole lotta nothin'. (We did eat some worms, though. M'll do all the food-related play-by-play over at Nom Nom Paleo.)

Don't you love it when people bore you to death with their vacation photos?

In-Flight & Post-Flight Mobility

After sitting for hours on a plane today, my body feels like a gnarled piece of wood, and my lower back is killing me. The solution?

K-Star videos.

[Source]

Home!

I know I still owe you a summary of Days 2 and 3 of the CrossFit Games, as well as a recap of this weekend's Ancestral Health Symposium, but after driving all day, I'm just too zonked to blog tonight. For the past week and a half, I've been sitting waaaay too much (in cars, stadiums and lecture halls), eating on the road, sleeping very little, and not exercising much at all. And frankly, after spending so much time away from home, hanging out with these two little guys was much higher on my priority list than blogging:

Off to bed. Back to our regularly-scheduled programming tomorrow.

10 Items From Kauai's Costco That Your Costco Doesn't Carry

1. Two aisles of nothin' but macadamia nuts (chocolate-covered and otherwise).

2. A fridge case full of sashimi-grade ahi tuna.

3. Leis made of candy.

4. Fresh poke.

5. Poi, poi, and more poi.

6. Chicken & pork lau lau (surprisingly Paleo -- complete list of ingredients: taro leaves, chicken/pork, butterfish, salt).

7. Kalua Pork -- also pretty darn Paleo.

8. Char-Siu Manapua -- for people who want their pork slathered in sugar and encased in a sweet, fluffy bun.

9. Hawaiian Purple Sweet Potatoes (a.k.a., post-workout snacks).

10. My personal favorite: "Luau" fruit punch syrup -- obesity in liquid form!

But no matter which Costco you visit, please remember that cheese ravioli ain't Paleo.

One Week (So Far...)

Since arriving on Maui a week ago, I've not only stayed Paleo (you can read about our meals on M's blog), but I've also managed to abstain from all artificial sweeteners. Despite a fridge packed with Coke Zeros and other sugar-free (but chemically-sweetened) drinks, and although I brought tons of chewing gum with me, I've kept on the straight and narrow.

(Yes, I've had a bit more fruit than usual, but I'm not sure if this is because I'm craving something sweet, or because I'm on vacation and the pineapple here is really awesome.)

I wonder how long this'll last...

Monday's Workout

Miss me? Don't worry: Just because we're on vacation doesn't mean I'm not going to squeeze in my regular workout (and blog about it).

During last year's visit to Maui, my exercise routine consisted of some self-customized P90X-esque chipper workouts, and I started running in earnest in my FiveFingers.

This time, before leaving California, I'd arranged to drop into a local CrossFit affiliate. The island has several CrossFit gyms, and the one closest to where we're staying is one of the newest; it's not yet fully stocked with equipment, and most members are brand-new to CrossFit (even more so than me). But the owner/coach is open and friendly, and the programming seems solid.

Warm-Up:

Unlike my gym back home, where each of us gets loose and ready however we like, the warm-ups here are directed by the coach. Today, we were instructed to warm up with a little taste of Cindy: Instead of 20 minutes of pull-ups, push-ups and squats, though, we did just three rounds. In the sticky morning heat, it was enough to get me sweating.

It also reminded me of a CrossFit saying (that I've always disliked for its braggadocio, but with which I agree): "My warm-up is your workout."

And so, after the mini-Cindy, the workout began in earnest.

Strength Skills:

• Barbell Hang Cleans (5 sets of 3)
• Dumbbell Floor Presses (5 sets of 5 per side)

The hang cleans weren't difficult, but the floor presses were new to me -- at least in a CrossFit setting. (I'd been introduced to them before as part of my Turbulence Training routine from earlier in the year, but I often subbed in bench presses instead.) I like new things, so I had fun with them.

The best part: Practicing a compound motion requiring full-body neuromuscular coordination (hang cleans) and then throwing in some pure strength work (floor presses) for good measure.

Metcon:

CrossFit isn't CrossFit without a metcon, right?

For time:

• 10 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 9 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 8 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 7 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 6 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 5 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 4 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 3 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 2 overhead kettlebell swings
• Run 100 meters
• 1 overhead kettlebell swing
• Run 100 meters

I've done this one twice before. But it's one thing to do a crazy metcon in the pre-dawn chill of northern California. It's another thing entirely to do one in the mid-morning humidity of Maui. I still managed to fly through this one, finishing in 7:37 (7 seconds faster than my previous effort), but I'm pretty sure I've never before perspired that much in just seven-and-a-half minutes.

No Bun, On the Run

Canadians who visit the Truffles Burger Bar in Cornwall, Ontario can chomp on a "CrossFit Burger," which looks fantastically Paleo: a beef patty sandwiched between two portabello mushrooms in place of buns.

I'm not headed north of the border anytime soon, but M and I (and the boys) did get on a plane today for our annual trip to Maui. And although we were still packing when our friend came to drive us to the airport, we were hungry, and a pre-flight Paleo-esque burger sounded awesome.

It was too wet outside to fire up the grill, so I quickly grabbed some grassfed ground lamb from the freezer, defrosted it, and threw some patties on a lard-greased cast-iron skillet. After a few minutes on each side, I plopped each patty on a bed of romaine lettuce leaves, and tossed some avocado slices on top. I tore the meat in half, wrapped each piece up with avocado in lettuce, and slathered on some ketchup and mustard. (M had hers with salsa.)

It took just a few minutes to throw together, and a few more minutes to jam everything in our mouths before dashing for the airport. It was damned tasty, if I say so myself. (If M disagrees, she'll let you know on her blog.) Who says you can't eat Paleo on the run?