Another Monday

Just 52 minutes of roadwork today. Even better news is that I received my replacement debit card and, unlike the previous replacement card I had, I was able to activate this card and use it. Now I can renew my gym membership (which used the old debit card that got stolen).

Automatic, recurring payments are great--as long as they work. Having my debit card stolen has been a very educational experience about how even simple personal finances and banking can become complicated in this electronic age when various accounts can be linked to one another.

It will be difficult to enjoy the same convenience without the complexity and the interrelationships among my PayPal account, debit card, and bank accounts. Nevertheless, I am developing some backup strategies to make things a lot easier in the event this situation happens again. I hope it wont, of course, but I plan to be prepared for it anyway.

Hey, Who Ordered the Snow???

It snowed a little yesterday. A little uncommon, but not unheard of for Chicago on March 27. It's weird because the previous day was partly sunny and very wam--about 60 degrees.

Anyway, even in the snow, I managed 46 minutes of roadwork, then another 30 minutes today. I haven't been to the gym this week (it's a long, boring story). Anyway, keep up the good work everyone!

Monday Brief Update

Nothing extraordinary going on in the training department here: just some roadwork (40 minutes today), shadowboxing, and mental training. Work has been consuming tons of time again. It's amazing how busy a guy can be doing essentially non-paying (or, as we lawyer like to call it, "non-billable" work). Oh well, just a temporary situation. Stay positive!

Slow Training this Week

It has been one of those slow weeks of training. I wanted to do more this week, but the demands of work have required me to spend more hours on my law practice. That's fine. While I'm a bit disappointed, I remember that I am learning my livelihood as a lawyer rather than an athlete, and I am able to keep things in perspective. There are also some really good aspects of this week, so I want to share those, too.

• After almost 14 years, I am still positively thrilled to be in solo practice. It is the right fit for me. From talking with friends of mine over the years, as well as blogging for the JD Bliss Blog, I have learned that I am really blessed to be working on my own and not at one of the "law factories" (or in "big law," as it's often called). Sure, I have made my share of mistakes in solo practice and I've learned better ways to do things, but going solo in 1994 was undoubtedly the very best decision I have made in my career.
• I have been working with a new client and they have presented me with a fascinating legal issue. Because of professional confidentiality and the attorney-client privilege, I can't go into details here, but the project is perfect for my hyper-analytical mind; my neurons can really crunch on it and savor it. It's taking somewhat longer than I originally expected it would. I appreciate the client's patience and the opportunity to be at the forefront of important legal questions related to doing business on the Internet.
• I earn part of my living by writing. I update my book quarterly, to keep it current, and doing that helps me keep up to date, too.
• I earn part of my living by blogging. How cool is that?

Overall, at least in this moment, I am blessed and I am grateful.

Tuesday Roadwork and Shadowboxing

36 minutes today. Gotta keep going.

Freezing Out There

I did roadwork and shadowboxing the last two days and it has been really cold! Yikes. 30 minutes on Tuesday and 16 minutes yesterday. I've been doing it on the street because the pavement is free of ice. The sidewalks are mostly free of ice, but at the end of each block, there is always a patch of ice, often black ice, that threatens to have me looking at the [street] lights, so staying on the pavement is easier and safer.

Friday Roadwork and Shadowboxing

1 hour today. It's like a swamp out there as the rain falls and the snow melts.

Thursday's Training

It warmed up a bit and I was able to break free from work. I managed to get in 43 minutes of roadwork and shadowboxing. Still, I need the sport-specific training. To the gym, I must go!

Two Midweek Days of Roadwork

Tuesday: 37 minutes
Wednesday: 33 minutes

I took today off. I hope to be back at the gym tomorrow.

Sunday Training

Quick roadwork and gym training yesterday. Here's the recap.

• 15 minutes roadwork (very cold out there!)
• 3 rounds shadowboxing
• 3 rounds on the heavy bag

It was a brief workout because I got a late start and wanted to get home to watch the San Diego Chargers vs. New England Patriots and the New York Giants vs. Green Bay Packers.

I'm getting quicker on my repeated jabs (double, triple, quadruple...), and in hooking off my left jab. Now I just need to perfect it in sparring. That will happen, too. I'm enjoying training.

Last Day of the Year

Ah, New Year's Eve. My training has gotten disrupted by the holidays. Yes, I know that's an excuse, but I am regaining focus. Today, out in the snow, I did 51 minutes of roadwork and shadowboxing. I wasn't trying to be tough by going out in the snow; I just wanted to get some activity in to close out the year. Best wishes to everyone for a great 2008!

Snow Training!

It's not the most conventional, but today's training consisted of 25 minutes of shoveling snow. I am hoping to get into a more regular gym routine this week. As for roadwork, with all the snow and ice on the ground (not to mention the cold air), the treadmills at GoTime Chicago are starting to look a lot more attractive.

Has anyone else noticed that Great Lakes snow smells like fish? I guess it's not really surprising, but still interesting.

Roadwork Recap

Recently, the training has been just roadwork and shadowboxing. (Yes, it's cold out there!) I know I need to get more sport-specific training in--and I will--but for now, here is the update.

• December 5: 37 minutes
• December 6: 44 minutes
• December 7: 25 minutes
• December 8: 28 minutes
• December 9: 14 minutes
• December 11: 18 minutes
• December 13: 31 minutes

Some Roadwork and Shadowboxing on Tuesday

Work has been getting nuts again. Somehow, I am going to balance all of this. 25 minutes today.

Returning to Lifting Weights

After about 2 years off from lifting weights regularly, I resumed that part of my workout routine today. To make a long story palatably brief, I took a break from weight lifting when I lost my personal trainer, Matt, due to circumstances beyond my control. Even though there was nothing I could do about it--and I still think he got lousy treatment from the athletic club where I used to train--I got into a funk where I lost a lot of enthusiasm for strength training and building muscle. It's funny how our emotions can affect our workouts; I have found it is good to honor them and not ignore them. For me, workouts have to balance the four basic aspects of our being: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.

Anyway, it was great to get back to it today. My friend Mark joined me at my new gym and we had a great time pumping the iron. Since it was my first time back, I took it fairly and avoided the testosterone-fueled temptation to push myself really hard with a lot more weight than I ought to use on my first day of using weights again. Also, I was careful to stretch after almost every group of 3 sets for each exercise. I stretched a lot at the end of the workout, too; I don't plan to be immobilized tomorrow!

Here's the recap of the workout:

• 44 minutes of roadwork (it's getting cold out there!)
• 3 x 8 on leg press
• 3 x 10 upright row
• 3 x 8 lat pulldowns
• 3 x 8 bicep curls with dumbbells
• 3 x 8 tricep extensions

I know it's an easy workout, but I have learned (the hard way) to ease back into a particular type of training after an extended break from it. I'll be increasing the number of exercises and the weights I use soon.

I didn't do any boxing-specific training today. I am close to figuring out how I want to work weight training into my fitness routine. I'll probably alternate one day of boxing training with a day of weight lifting. I'm still adjusting to the new gym and getting there in time to work out properly. I know it has been a few months already, but there have been a lot of things demanding my attention recently, so the transition has not gone quite as smoothly as I originally had hoped. That's alright. I tend to be very persistent and on the attack in boxing, and that is how I approach life generally. I'll keep at the scheduling issues until I get it where I want it to be.

Mark seemed to enjoy himself. I hope he'll join my new gym; it would be great to have him here. I am moving on from what was becoming an increasingly dysfunctional situation at my old club. There was no problem with any of our boxers and certainly not with our coach, but the board of directors, and particularly the president, of our club made a lot of choices that really stink. I need to put that part of my life behind me while I still have mostly pleasant memories of my 17 years there.

Hey, weight lifting: it's great to be back! :-)

Back in Action

After an unexpected break in training, I returned to the gym yesterday. My hiatus from training was caused by two computers breaking down over 3 weeks, which happened right at the time that work got really busy and I was scrambling just to try to keep up with the increased workload. Nevertheless, things seem to be getting more normal now, and I'm really grateful for that.

To be honest, Sunday's workout was not as good as it might have been, but it was something, and it was the beginning of my return to my regular routine. Here's the recap of Sunday's training:

• 41 minutes of roadwork,
• 2 rounds of shadowboxing,
• 2 rounds on the heavy bag, and
• 1 round on the double-end bag.

I cut my workout short because Sunday was a very busy day with a lot of other things planned. In addition to training, I had planned to do my laundry, to help my dad fix his computer, and to watch the Chicago Bears vs. Oakland Raiders football game. Well, I did make some improvements on my dad's computer and I got my laundry done, but I missed the Bears game. Oh well, there are still six weeks of regular play in the NFL left in this season.

It felt great to be back in the gym doing my first boxing workout in over a week and a half. It was good to see the guys, work up a sweat, and see that I hadn't lost too much of my speed and timing, as I had worried I might have. Even though the training was a bit rushed, I'm glad I did it. Getting back to it after a period of being away, the most difficult battle was against inertia. It was really tempting to take Sunday off too, and just chill out at home. However, once I started my workout -- and even more so after I finished it -- I felt great. It's good to be back.

The Best Laid Plans...

On Saturday, I invited my friend Mark to visit my new gym and join me for a workout. He is interested in joining, and is interested in boxing as well as weight lifting. So far so good.

Mark and I arranged to meet there at 1:00 p.m. Of course, even though I allowed plenty of time to get there, I had to wait for the 18th Street bus for half an hour--the longest wait I've ever had for that bus--and I got their late. Still, no problem, because Mark wasn't very upset about having to wait for me. He got a tour of our gym and some basic information about it, along with a 7-day trial pass so he can use the facilities and see how well he likes it.

The problem is that we did not get to do our workout as planned. Since it was nearly 1:15 when I got there and 1:20 when Mark returned from walking around the neighborhood, there was time just for a tour and a few questions, but no workout, because the USA team, in town for the world championships, is training at my gym! How cool is that? Here's a little more detail.

"The 11-man squad arrived early Thursday before checking into their hotel and taking part in their first training session at GOTIME Chicago. The team will train at the local gym through the opening day of competition. Following their first training session in the Windy City, Team USA enjoyed a team dinner of Italian food at a local Chicago restaurant.

"They will continue their final few days of training on Friday morning, getting in an early morning run prior to training at 2 p.m. at GOTIME. The 2007 event is the first senior world championships for nine of the 11 team members with only flyweight Rau’shee Warren (Cincinnati, Ohio) and bantamweight Gary Russell, Jr. (Capitol Heights, Md.) having competed in the 2005 edition. Both boxers took home bronze medals from the 2005 World Championships in Mianyang, China."

Source: http://www.usaboxing.org/92_2081.htm

The USA team was scheduled to begin their training at 2:00 p.m. It was my (perhaps erroneous) understanding that the gym was going to be closed to members for security reasons. I need to check into that because the news source I quoted above says the training sessions will be open to the media, so if media, why not members? I believe there is training scheduled for Monday, so I need to verify that. After all, as a blogger, I am part of the new media! It would be great to watch the team train, although it is probably in the early afternoon when it might be very difficult to get there, but we shall see!

In any event, I am psyched to be training at the same gym where the USA world championships team is training. Just knowing they are there is pretty cool. Hopefully, Mark and the other guys can join me there this week, and to see some of the tournament.

Today's Training

I had a pretty good session today. I worked with Ray, the boxing coach at my new gym, and he gave me a few pointers on how to polish my technique. Here's the recap of the training.

• 19 minutes of roadwork
• 4 rounds on the focus pads with Ray
• 4 rounds on the heavy bag
• 3 rounds of shadowboxing
• 3 rounds on the double-end bag
• 1 round of sparring

I still need to get my weight lifting in somehow, but I know I will. It's great to be back in a more regular training routine.

Updated October 12, 2007: "1 round of sparring" above should read "1 round of stretching." I haven't sparred at my new gym yet, but I hope to do it soon. Thanks to Marc for pointing this out!

Tuesday Roadwork and Shadowboxing

1 hour and 4 minutes today. Very warm and sunny day for October 2!

Brief Training Update

Things are going great at my new gym. The workouts are going well and I am getting to know some of the other people who train there. I'll post more details about the training soon. I probably won't post detailed information about each training session because that will take a long time. But I'll post the highlights here along with lots of other good stuff.