Gym Pact

has anyone used this yet? Interesting concept, and the business model seems to rely on complete honesty right now, but there definitely is potential once they get the user base up.. thoughts?

Gym-Pact is the website

Concept 2 Rower Review

Not sure who else out there uses a rower, but I say the best new item is a trash can to come with the rower b/c every time I'm on it, I feel like I'm gonna lose my cookies..so it's a great workout item.

The rower itself is at the work gym in my primary posting because we're so far onto base that it takes forever to get to the drill hall. I believe it's the Concept 2 D, but that's by picture only, so I may be wrong, but it's definitely a concept 2.

The system is pretty simple, adjustable foot straps and positioning for your heels, and a simple lever to adjust the difficulty level. The lever is there, but i always just put it to level 10...and row as hard as I can until i drop, or attempt up downs, so I can't attest to how well it adjusts the resistance, but I assume well.
The display is a intuitive and being that I've never seen an instruction manual I can figure out how to change the units, tracking settings and work til I drop. Most importantly for me though is it works. The only negative i have is that if you're wearing a longer shirt that is not tucked in, you can sometimes get it caught on your back stroke, but that's normal from what I've been told.

Sumary
Pro's: Easy to use, functional, kicks my butt
Con's: None that I've seen but i have no idea how much it costs...

Workout
I mix it with sprints and some X-fit items, but my favorite is as follows(if you like to hurt), but warm up the hamstrings first
250m Row
1/4 mile
250m Row
1/4 mile
500m Row
1/2 mile
250m Row
100m sprint
You should hurt, either that or I'm in horrible shape. Either way it feels god.

2012 Goals

Quick and easy here are my goals for 2012
1) sub 4 hour marathon, I want a 3:30, but will go for a sub 4 hr
2) maintain a 7 min/mile pace for a 10k
3) 20 consecutive pull-ups, somehow for all my upper body strength i cannot do pullups, 150 push-ups...easy, 5 pull-ups..not so much
4) Abs...the six pack became a keg this last year

 

*picture totally stolen from verydemotivational.com

Christmas Roast Leftover Chili

Simple recipe, guaranteed to make 3 day old leftovers delicious

1 container of Pomi brand diced tomatoes.
1 Can of Goya Pinto beans
1 red onion, medium sized
1 red pepper
6 garlic segments(think they're called cloves, but that requires research)
2 jalapeno peppers
1 tblspn ancho chili powder
1 tblspn chili powder
1 tblspn paprika
1 tspn cloves
1 tspn oregano
1 tspn cumin
1/4 cup olive oil(if needed)
1 healthy pour of bourbon, I use Beam or Jack..but to each their own

with the last ingredient being 'leftovers' the minimum is two 1 inch thick cuts of rib roast or 4 of filet, but if you're using filet, I'm gonna reach through my screen and smack you silly for being a douche. I mean seriosly, filet? for Chili...

-Recipe is simple, find a crock pot and combine the Pomi, beans and all the spices, turn it on low.
-Dice up the onion and red pepper, then add them to the crock pot as well, stir everything up nicely
-Slice the jalapeno's in half and add them to the mix in the pot.
-add the bourbon

-Slice the roast leftovers into small pieces, as small as you're able to do easily, and add them to the mix. By now it should be mostly solid. If the mix isn't more solid pieces(ie onion, pepper, meat) then cut up another 1 inch thick cut, or more. It usually takes me 2-4 depending on how well i sliced the roast.

-Once the mixture looks right( yes that's a scientific term) add the olive oil. I use less oil if there are fattier portions present, but more if the meat is leaner.

Leave the crock pot on low for at least 4 hours, i usually set it when i head to work and its done 8-9 later when i get home, but 4 seems to be the minimum. Then server

Top with cheddar, parm/reg or your favorite cheese and use sour cream to make it less hot. Enjoy..

-Note: If it comes out 'soupy' add more meat and/or vegi's next time around.

Where to Next

I need a trip, and I'm open to ideas. Right now I would like snow in order to get some skiing in, but other than Taos and Telluride is there snow anywhere in the continental US? East Coast is toast right now, and until the weather changes I don't see any skiing or boarding here, so what's good? Anyone out there know about Salt Lake? Montana?
Otherwise i guess its to somewhere warm..

Random Fact

The first helicopter flight trainer was constructed before the first Helicopter ever took flight. The reason is he wasn't sure he would be able to fly the contraption when it took off due to potential difficulties working with a collective and stick at the same time. The first helo is shown below the VS300...Goes to show you can make a simulator before ever making the real thing

Clean and Jerk mixed with a front squat

So this is one of my favorite exercises, and probably one any trainer would hate, but i like because it beats the crap outta me. The only other wise is the gym I work out in has the proper rubberized weights so i can get that extra one in without fear of cracking a plate when I drop it at the end.

The exercise itself is a hybrid of the Clean and Jerk, with a front squat in between the clean phase and the jerk motion....at speed, and by speed i mean as fast as i can move until i feel like booting. So great exercise. I think part of why I love this exercise is the muscles it hits, and adding in the front squat hits the hamstrings as well as the quads, for more burn and quick burnout, which is perfect when i have 15-20 minutes to work out. Mix this in with pull-ups and some rows for speed(500m fast as possible) and you'll be burned out quick.
 If not I'm a big wimp and need to hit the gym