I have many goals I am wanting to achieve in 2021. I'm not into a lot of New Years resolutions, but with the year that 2020 was, it would be great to start off in a good direction.
In October I will turn 50, so my major goal for that is to get in 50 mile mountain bike ride. This past year I was able to hammer down a 26 mile ride and felt pretty good doing it. With some better nutrition before and during the ride, as well getting stronger off and on the bike.
Of course for a lot of people is setting a goal of losing weight, which wouldn't be a bad idea for me, but it's not the main priority.
There are a few training programs I have already, that I just need to buckle down and get strict with following them through.
Listening to music while exercising doesn't just relieve boredom — it can help improve the quality of your workout by increasing your stamina and putting you in a better mood.
The National Center for Health Research study, showed that music that is motivational or synchronized with your exercise is shown to have physical and psychological effects.
Listening to music while working out enhances your physical performance.
I want to introduce you to a great set up allowing you to bring your music playlist out on the trail with you.
This is the APHIX PODs system by Sound Helm. With this ’NEAR EAR SYSTEM you will let you listen to your motivating music while still allowing your ears to be open to your natural surroundings.
Aphix Pods by Sound Helm easily attach to your helmet.Before sticking to your helmet, place them where you are wanting to attach them too, then peel the double stick 3M tape already applied to the back of the speaker part and firmly press down.Run the connecting cables up in the helmet and they will be out of your way.Figure out the best place on the left side of your helmet to place the control buttons / on-off switch. This may be for some up on the visor or along the side of the helmet. Make sure the 3mm plug can still access the unit.
Pair it is easy with Bluetooth to your smartphone.Now you are able to play your playlist or streaming music service through the speakers.
Pressing the - button lowers the volume while pressing the + button raises the volume.These buttons can also be used to skip a track, simply by long pressing the + button.
Want to pause the music playing, hit the top arrow button, the same one you used to turn the device on.
Not only is it able to play music, but if you get a phone call (while Bluetooth attached to your phone), you can take phone calls with the APHIX.
I am getting faster on the bike, or so it seems. I have ridden a few courses I am used to on the new bike and am faster. This could be because of the bike, or fitness increased. I am not sure. However, I am going to start a new training program, to hopefully get me in better shape and increase my overall fitness. I have been doing some weekly weight sessions and I have tried getting them done during the week too, but it has been difficult.
I would love to drop 20 pounds in weight. That for sure would get me faster out on the bike.
I am excited. Last week, I rode a trail with some guys that I have had a hard time keeping up in the past, but I was able to follow close behind.
It will be great when the weather decides to switch to being cooler.
The foot issue is still bugging me, but I am getting the exercises done to hopefully correct that.
I am looking forward to the New Year. I have a bunch of projects I want to share on my blog as well as mountain bike races and running races. I am looking to increase my fitness level too. Of course it's not a New Year's resolution, yet this time of year the majority of everyone starts some kind of plan.
Even with the holiday's this year, I have been able to keep my fitness level the same if not higher.
I have a hard time getting motivated in the colder winter months to get out and run or bike. This year I have put on an extra layer, or two, and gotten out of the house way before the sun even thinks of rising. With some days, the overcast hangs around long enough, the sun is never seen, yet daylight appears eventually.
I am looking forward to a great 2019 and look to share it all here in blogs or videos in the upcoming year.
I was out yesterday morning and got my early morning workout in. A quick 12 mile ride, consisting of two loops. Nothing fast, but I tried to keep my cadence and speed up. Took me over just 22 minutes a lap, which I have been able to do previously in just under 19 minutes. I need to work on getting that down faster as I build my fitness up.
Later that day I needed to get in a run. I planned on a three mile run, just to get the heart-rate up and the legs moving. I felt fine the first two miles and then just hit a wall. Energy was totally zapped. I may have not eaten as much as I should have after the morning workout, but I kept moving.
I had to talk a walk break for a minute, but then just took the pace down a little. My hydration must have been down a little too, as I woke up this morning with a headache.
Looking to do a long run this weekend and a longer bike ride the next day to shake out the legs good.
Wanting to become a better runner and work on improving my foot strike, I thought I would give ShoeCue, a shoe insert for helping correct ones stride, a try.Totally impressed with them first off.Replaced my insoles in my running shoes to slipped these in the first day I got them for a two mile run.The insoles can be cut down to size to fit your shoe. With my feet being size 13 and my shoe size being 14, I didn’t have to cut anything off the ShoeCue insole.
So what makes these inserts so special and why will they be able to help correct my foot strike and stride? Theres a patent pending heel plate with raised bumps. Let me say also, that these are a training device.
So what happens if, while running, you do land on your heel, landing on these bumps?
If you land on your heel, you will feel a little sensation in your heel, which is then the trigger to not do it again, on the next stride and so on. Over time of training with them, your muscle memory will kick in to avoid you from heal striking. Landing with the heel first is a very inefficient form of running. With wearing these training insoles, I have improved my stride to be shorter and smoother.I can tell it will help develop some muscles in my leg that will keep my mid-foot striking and having a more fluid stride. About once a week, to keep myself from the bad habit of heel striking, slip the inserts in for a few miles.
Head over to the Trago shop and use my deal code "TimHacker" for 20% off discount. Jump on this offer as it will expire at the end of the month. Use the link below to find out more or order yours NOW! TRAGO
So here is what it's all about!
So what is a TRAGO water bottle. A 20 ounce water bottle with a BLE smart lid. Connect the water bottle to the app, available for both Android and Apple devices. Enter some information about your body, like body weight, male or female and the level of activity you participate in to all help keep you hydrated. Like with my food tracking apps, I have a difficult time often inputting my water I have consumed everyday. This app keeps me on my daily goal. It reminds me of how much I have to drink and reminds me a few times during the day to keep drinking. The app splits the day into three segments, morning/afternoon/evening. On the bottom of the app it gives daily tips on how hydration keeps your body working. So enough talk about the app, let me show you some of the screens the app shows and well as what the bottle looks like. The lid also works on some other bottles on the market. The lid is powered off a simple coin battery, it comes with. It can easily be changed when needed.
The different screens on the app show a running total of how much water you need to be consuming and what you are actually drinking. On the bottom of the screen it has a daily total and what you have been drinking. You can set the app up in units of measurement in ounces or milliliters. You also have the option of manually updating your total of how much water you have consumed. The “fluid thoughts”, help you stay hydrated and give you tips and information on doing so. These can be turned off in the app’s settings if you want. The app tracks then your daily hydration and keeps a log to be later looked at for the whole week and month.
Are your workouts boring? Doing the same exercises or routine every week. The Strength Stack 52 is an equipment free exercise card game. The card game is fun and ever changing. It can be used by oneself or numerous people and the skill levels are various. From beginners to very difficult the cards are very easy to understand and learn from. Each card has a picture of the exercise, a description of the exercise, name of the exercise, numbers of repetitions to be performed, difficulty rank as well as a QR code that can be used to link you to a video of the exercise being performed in a video segment. There is also a normal suite (hearts, diamonds, spades and clubs) that can be used on the card if you choose to use those in a desired game. There is a value given to each card, as this can also be used to develop or use in a desired game. The cards are also color coded with six different color, each color representing the dominate muscle group being worked. The Strength Stack 52 Fitness Cards Pack contains:
15 cardio exercises (Blue)
32 core/ab exercises (Red)
3 back exercises (Pink)
30 leg exercises (Yellow)
9 Arm exercises (Orange)
13 chest exercises (Green)
12 of the hardest bodyweight exercises known to man (Gold)
3 instructional cards
2 wild cards (used in games)
If you think or love the Strength Stack 52 your in luck, there are also the Strength Stack 52 Expansion Pack and Strength Stack 52 Insane Pack available. By the way the Strength Stack 52 was created by military fitness expert and scientist Sergeant Michael Volkin and used by the US Army in Iraq.
I was sent the Strength Stack 52 Fitness cards to test and review.
With 2012 starting tomorrow I have a bunch of goals on my achieve list. A few of them are improving my times on races I did last year as well as compete in my first Xterra triathlon. Sure it's easy to write down goals and dream big, my goals are not so far out there they can't be obtained with some hard effort and strong determination. I look forward to the new year with great expectations.
Here is wishing everyone a Happy New Year!
I can tell you this, if you want to take your outdoor workouts to the next level, the Mio Quest is the way to do it. I have been using the GPS enabled watch for the past three weeks. It takes a little getting used to, but after looking over the instructions you will on your way, and out the door in no time. The Quest has Waypoints, which are locations you can save. After saving the location you can then rename it for easy access for locations you wish to return to later. The watch uses chest strap to gather your heart rate too.
I have been using to track my workouts, the Mio Quest. The heart rate monitor with GPS is able to be downloaded and information can be then uploaded to MapMyRun.
Using the Fitstik I sat down this evening and performed a very easy and simple test wearing a heart rate strap. This test was done in under a minute and found out that my BioAge is 41, adding 2 years to my real age. I am hoping the training I am doing and stress reducing techniques will help bring this number down to my real or shooting downward even past it. A very cool test and just one of three that can be performed with the Fitstik. The other two tests I will take, in the next two days will be the HealthMeter and CardioCapacity tests.
