Wednesday, August 29, 2012

No Brainer Snatch workout

Could it be true?  Did I do more snatch reps than swing reps yesterday?  Yep, but barely!  I'll get back to that but here is the No Brainer Snatch workout:

2 minute work set/1 min rest 

repeat as many as you have time or energy for...I did 10 sets this way to equal a 30 minute workout, just sayin.

Ok, so there it is. 2 minute sets with only 1 minute rest. You have a lot of options and before I tell you exactly I did mine I thought I'd give you some ideas, or if you have another, please share!

#1 you can snatch as fast as you can for 2 minutes switching from L to R as many times as you want to.

#2 You can snatch as slow as you want within the two minutes switching from R to L as many times as you want to, but I suggest if you are working on "snatch holds" then switch as little as possible., and maybe use a heavier bell.

#3 You can make a game out of it and do you first set as fast as possible, and either try to match that first set as many more times as possible.  Remember you only have one minute rest!

#4 Snatch as fast as possible the first set (or two) and incrementally decrease you total snatch reps until you get to a comfortable pace for you.

#5 Chose a fast pace, but not "all out" and break up hand switches into a variety of increments...my personal favorite.....progressively, of course!  Here is my exact workout:


12kg

30 R, 30 L x 2 sets
25 R, 25 L, 5 R, 5 L x sets
20 R, 20 L, 10 R, 10 L x 2 sets
15 R, 15 L, 15 R, 15 L x 2 sets
10 R, 10 L, 10 R, 10 L, 10 R, 10 L x 2 sets

10 sets of 60 reps, 30 R, 30 L = 600 snatch reps in 30 minutes

I chose a very fast and challenging pace, but not an "all out" pace (pretty close though).

Challenging in a number of ways.  The pace itself was challenging, of course, but I also challenged my grip and strength endurance by not switching from R to L in the first part of each set, laddering down continuous reps until a comfortable 10 R, 10 L.  Who am I kidding!  There was nothing comfortable about those last two sets!  It was pure wonderful torture!  I gotta do it again sometime!

Without going into too much detail, I started out my swing training with a super fun, soon to be posted "100" swing workout that totaled 700 swings in 27.5 minutes.  700 swings, 600 snatches?  I thought I said I did more snatch reps that swings?  Here was the warm up before I started my snatch reps, in case you are interested,


Snatch warm up
sn/tr x 2 sets 30/30 = 16 reps
5/5 x 2 set 30/30 = 20 reps
30 sec 7/7 (30 rest)
1 min 14/14 (28) (1 min res)
1.5 min 14/14, 7/7 (42) (1 min rest)

120 snatches 8.5 min

There it is!  20 more snatch reps than swing reps!

total workout, swings and snatches, 1 hour 6 minutes. 700 swings, 720 snatches (give or take a bunch of transfer swings!)

PS this pace works out to 15 snatch reps per 30 sec interval.


Monday, August 27, 2012

Meal Prep...well, preparation in general. Oh, and Hot Wings!

Guy asked a great question;

 "how long does it take you on avg to prepare a weeks meals? "


When it comes to meal prep, I know I'm lucky in the fact that I don't have a 9-5, and I only have myself, while the foods I make will account fot 50% of Mark's meals.

Mark makes his own stir fry every afternoon, and eats at a favorite BBQ place or maybe some sushi a few times a week.  Mark eats the same basic food/meals every single day, and even his "off" day every week he'll spend having breakfast out with his training partners on Sat..

That being said I never eat out. If I forget to take something with me I may stop for some snacky kind of stuff.  A piece of fruit, a piece of candy, a cup of coffee.  And although I never "eat out" the only other time I purchase food is when one of the good markets is grilling meats and I'll pick up a big piece of protein, usually beef to take home, slice up and use for dinner and lunches that I prepare.

OK, so when I did have a job outside of my home I pretty much took the better part of Sunday to shop, prep and cook.  Sunday was yoga, Farmers' Market, food prep (wash, bag, measure), and usually put together a big salad, and one type of hot meal like a soup/stew, both types of meals started with #1 veg, #2 protein, #3 fat/sugar/flavor, #4 carb (bean/rice/grain, etc).  That's why I really like things that will last in the fridge for at least 5 days.  My other two regular meals were oatmeal, and a lunchtime smoothie (the smoothie on days I didn't work because I only like smoothies made in the blender!).  Oh, and I always had an apple every day.

Since I worked in a Salon, my other regular day off was Monday.  So what ever I did not get done on Sunday would be finished on Monday.  The equivalent of a Sat/Sun for most people.  Mark and I were never people to schedule or book socializing over a weekend so not filling our days off with birthday parties, dinners out, BBQ's/games, or even Holiday get togethers.  That made/makes it much easier to not be tempted or triggered to eat foods I really didn't want to.

Sure, I went "off" my diet with odds and ends, especially working in a Salon with candy dishes on every station and pot lucks every other week! And, sweets, like candy and cookies, were definitely "trigger" foods at the time so it was not unusual to have what I would consider, looking back and remembering, little binges (or big ones!).  Which is besides the point, but I thought I'd share!  The point is that I always had my lunch/dinner with me.  I established the habit of packing my foods/meals as well as preparing them.

Now I cook every morning I'm home.  For instance, yesterday, Sunday, I made a big pot of lamb stew with spinach and tomatoes.  It will be at least 3 meals.  I soft boiled a dozen eggs (one of my favorite snacks these days), and washed and dried the veggies I got at the FM after yoga. This morning (after I get some stuff done on the computer) I will make my favorite salad, enough for at least 4 days.  I might roast some corn because it takes 5 minutes, some baby summer squash and sweet onions, and I'll probably cut up a melon.  I marinated some chicken wings yesterday and when I get home this afternoon I'll bake them.

I love doing food prep early, the earlier in the morning the better! (it's not unusual for me to throw a pot of stew in the PC at 4:30am, before I train at 5:30am!)  I'm never hungry in the morning, in fact I'm less than hungry, if it's possible!  I have Monday morning, and up until recently Wed/Fri mornings too.  Now my schedule is changing and so I'll find ways to adjust.  Food prep is easy for me. I never find it a chore or a drag, it's kind of like a game to me.  Kind of like Tetris!  Planning, arranging all of the elements so they fit exactly in the right places.

The other time I may spend doing meal prep is after dinner (around 5:30-7:00pm).  This is usually the time I'm cleaning the kitchen at the end of the day.  I go through the fridge, see what needs attention, condense leftovers, pack for the next day, make lists for what I need, soak beans, etc.

This time of year the fruit choices are "off the hook"!  As much as I think I'm not going to, I find myself eating fruit as an entire meal!  And we all know fruit takes no prep except for a quick rinse. figs are making their second appearance, so a basket and 1/2 was my lunch yesterday, AFTER 2 nectarines I bought at the FM around 12:00 noon!  And if that wasn't weird enough, my next meal was an orange honeydew melon.  Dinner was 3 eggs, and some sliced steak, maybe 4-5 oz.  I finished the night with a handful of Mark's macadamia nuts.  Highly unusual way of eating, but after so much fruit I needed protein more that anything else, and the nuts?  Well, I confess, that was just boredom at the end of the night.

(Just FYI, Saturday I had a protein bar, yep, you read it right!  I had a last minute cancellation that left me with 30 minutes of realizing I was starting to get hungry!  Without food with me I went next door to the CVS and ended buying a protein bar instead of a candy bar....  A big salad when I got home with grilled chicken I picked up from the market grill, and then I went to a party and had 2 big ole pieces of cake!  Corner pieces with all the frosting!  To be perfectly honest, I was not expecting cake to be served and hadn't planned for it at all.  I would have never chose to eat a protein bar earlier in the day, or I would have been better prepared and left the party before the cake was served!  That was at 3:00 in the afternoon, and it pretty much cured me of wanting to eat anything else the rest of the day. I didn't eat again until the next day at the FM I when ate 2 nectarines)

Today I will have my salad, lots of veg and black beans and sliced beef steak.  I may have some yogurt and corn/blueberries, or I've been thinking about oatmeal again lately.  I'll have my chicken wings for dinner.  I'll pretty much pack the same foods for lunch away from home tomorrow, but with eggs to eat about an hour before the last class I teach at 11:00am.  I'm not planning anything fancy the rest of the week...oh, I do think I may test out the flan I made in the PC again this morning....

My favorite way of making Chicken Wings

2-3 lbs chicken wings
favorite hot sauce, or hot wing sauce

Check your favorite hot sauce/wing sauce for sodium content, you would be amazed at the differences!  Hot sauces are basically hot peppers and vinegar, maybe tomato paste, garlic, etc.  Other ingredients may include salt and sugar/molasses, just check.  If the sodium content is really low I season my wings with salt and then put them in a bag or a bowl with sauce.  I never trip out about how long to marinate!  If it's a couple of hours or two days!  The wings are baked with the sauce on them so it doesn't matter all that much!  What I like is how I cook them!

Place in a baking sheet in a 250 degree oven for 1 hour (lightly greased).  Turn oven up to 375 degree and continue for an additional 30 minutes.  That's it.

What I like most about this method is two things.  #1 you can take them cold out of the fridge and right into the oven.  #2 I take a nap for an hour while they are cooking at 250 degrees! When I get up I turn the oven up and in 30 minutes I have perfect hot wings!  Yay!  Just in time for dinner!

PS  Mark's daily meal.  Coffee/cream.  Nuts/protein drink/green tea until he gets home around 1:00.  Stir fry of 3 eggs, onion, spinach, bok choy, garlic, swiss cheese.  Yogurt with coconut. A dessert of some sort like an ice cream sandwich, a danish or cookie that I've picked up for him, but never more than one.  Dinner will be soup or stew that I've made, or something prepared outside of our home.  Maybe another yogurt?  A couple of glasses of red wine, and more nuts or a bowl of Corn Flakes w/milk before bed.  It's basically the same 365!

Friday, August 24, 2012

Where have all my mornings gone?

Early mornings are my favorite time to write, usually in between going back and forth to my kitchen while preparing foods for the week.  A big pot of coffee and I settle in for the morning before my first commitment outside of my home, 10:00am yoga.  But in the past couple of weeks I've taken on a few clients at 6:00am at the studio in Palo Alto, which means I have to leave my house at 5:30 (yikes, I've got about 15 min...).

Interesting how life changes and priorities change.  I'll be back later on, fingers crossed, maybe with a little bit of video, or at least some thoughts about training....training food and thought!

Saturday, August 18, 2012

20kg snatch Power Snatch

I snatched the 20kg today...just sayin'. I know there are lots of women in the RKC (and outside of the RKC) that have no problem snatching the 20kg on a regular basis, but I'm not comparing myself to them! I do plenty of training, but I'm no super woman, nor do I pretend to be! Because of the volume of ballistics I do on a weekly basis my focus is not on strength. I like what I do, if I didn't I would change it!

 

1 rep power snatches, 30 sec work/30 sec rest x 2 sets (12kg, 14kg, 16kg, video starts here, 18kg, 20 kg)

2 rep power snatches, 30 sec work/rest x 2 sets

15 sec/15 sec R/L intervals, 30 sec rest x 2 sets

total of 30 sets = 30 minutes (44 reps w/20kg)

Not a big deal as far as reps go. Maybe could have snatched more reps, but I was just establishing a baseline, since I haven't snatched the 20kg in months if not years.  I still have to show up and train another day, and this was only the first 30 minutes of a 3 hour training day.

On another positive note, my training partner Maribel snatched the 16kg for the first time today, which is why I put her on the video, and I can see that the my other training partners, Deepika and Sabina are all just months away from testing the 16kg snatch!  (maybe Christmas time?)  It was a great day in the gym this morning!

OK, so what I learned today.

NOT being able to transfer from R to L was way harder having to put the bell down between reps and or sides (R /L).

The 18kg is way lighter than the 20kg, in fact it feels like the 16kg to me.

Once I lay off so much volume, like I have been doing (not because of this, but for other reasons), my grip strength has more time to recover to be able to hold onto the bell handle of such a heavy weight...which was the limiting factor the last time I snatched the 20kg.

My last sets of a 30 minute + warm up workout were with the 20kg.  Next time I will get to the 20kg (and 24kg) sooner.  I was gauging my ability based on the 18kg.

Probably got to get a 22kg...

PS  Video starts at the last two rotations where I start with the 18kg and finish with the 20kg. I pulled Maribel into the video half way so she could review her own reps.  I had a couple of students come in at odd times based on my old schedule that changed this week so I was trying to explain and catch them up on what we were already doing.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Stay Calm and Chalk Up....experiencing some technical difficulties!


Yikes!  I have been so resistant to new technology because...well, I guess you could look at it two ways...  Lucky because I never worry about that stuff, you know computers and such. Or not lucky, because it's practically a foreign language to me and very intimidating.  Maybe the latter.

I've got a couple of video workouts I have yet to get the energy to figure out how to post from my iPad.  Also, I did a couple of new workouts this morning that will start to back up, so at the very least I've got to journal them so I don't forget!  One is called "See Saw" and the other is a killer "work into rest" variation.  Both of which I will repeat a few different ways this weekend...oh and I've got a "No Brainer" from Tuesday that is freakin' hard!  Luckily no brain cells required!

Really I just wish I could invite you all over to swing with me!

Funny thing happened this afternoon...

I introduced one of my newbies to chalk!  There is something hardcore about "chalking up".  She is relatively new to the problem of sweaty and calloused hands and was shy about using the chalk.  I walked over to her, motioned for her to hold out her hands and then aggressively rubbed a block of chalk thickly over her palms and fingers.

Rubbing chalk into your hands, walking back and forth to the chalk stand or whatever you've got a block of chalk sitting on or in, while doing hundreds of swing reps is cool!  And then when you get chalk dust all over your pants it's just bad ass (in a good way!)  So my new phrase is;

"Stay calm and chalk up!"

From that point on she was not shy about grabbing the chalk!  Guaranteed she is a different woman now!

Getting used to my new computer and stuff can feel like a drag, but in the mean time I'm so lucky to be married to a bad ass former gymnast and lifter that shared his chalk with me so I can chalk myself up and chalk up my peeps!

FYI  Above picture is of the chalk stand in our garage gym, also known as "Stone's Gym".  It was part of the original Iron Works Gym in Campbell CA that we purchased and took over 1989, renaming it World Gym, Campbell.  Iron Works Gym was the first major barbell gym in Northern California, and was host to some of the greatest Power and Olympic lifting athletes, as well as throwers, in the world.  This chalk stand is over 35 years old and maybe had the likes of Bruce Jenner, Mac Wilkins, Jim McGoldrick, Ben Pluncknett, Kevin Winter, Tore Gufstasson, and Scott Wilson, Nick Sweeny, as well as special guests like Louie Simmons for starters and many many more!  I was lucky enough to meet some of these amazing athletes (when I wasn't hiding out in shame about being fat!), and a few of them were some of Mark's very good friends (and still are!)

Another FYI  We purchased Iron Works Gym from it's original owner, the inventor and creator of Met RX Dr. Scott Connely...just sayin!

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Don't throw the baby out with the bath water!

There have been plenty of times in the past when I have tried to stick to a particular diet or eating plan only to end up eating foods, or amount of foods, not on the plan.  And there have been plenty of times when that has happened in the past that my thought process was something similar to how a lot of people think....

"What the heck!  I already blew it, so I might as well REALLY blow it!"  And then I would start grabbing everything I've been resisting, denying myself from, only to end up calling and ordering that 'Meat Lovers' pizza, and then some!  Call it a binge, a pig out, or losing control.  I never felt better afterward, never.

Never did I look back and think, "boy, I needed that".  I always felt regret, failure, weakness, and let's not forget fat!  But truly for me, it's rare when that happens anymore. Oh, the part when I eat something different from the "plan" is not rare, it's the out of control part, the binge, the pigging out above and beyond the first action of an extra serving (or two), or God forbid after eating a whole melon (is that just me?)

I am successful at stopping myself way before complete chaos.  How?  Well, first I relax about the judgement.  Eating a little bit more is not a big deal, eating a lot more, a ton more, is a big deal! The fact that I didn't, or couldn't be perfect and stay on whatever plan I had made with myself that day must not be that important or it would motivate me to act differently.  Hmnn, maybe some reflection, maybe not....move on, let's not throw the baby out with the bath water!

This mind set of "blowing it" can be very destructive, and is!  Because it's not just the extra calories, it's the feelings behind the judgements we make about our strength and character because of an extra serving once in a while.  And that's what it would be, an extra serving once in a while, until we turn it into a full blown frenzy of hating ourselves.  We say things to ourselves like, "there must be something wrong with me that I can't control this.  I have no willpower, I have no discipline, I will never lose this weight....I'll never be perfect...etc."

Personally I may have my extra servings, and find myself still triggered with that feeling of "F" it!  But I don't let myself fall into the trap. I already know the deal and it's not one I want to make anymore.  It's boring.  It's tiring.  Not worth it, in fact, really, really, really not worth it.

If you do find yourself eating more than you thought you wanted to just remind yourself to practice stopping sooner, maybe not completely, but sooner, and see how much better you feel!  Instead of looking back and beating yourself up you might feel proud that you relaxed a bit and didn't "blow it"!  Pride in how you didn't let a few cookies pull you into the depths of despair!  You might even feel successful and strong!

I know how much food can be consumed in one sitting!  Don't stuff yourself because you don't think you have another option.  You have all the options, all the choices.  Chose to feel good, and good feelings will choose you.

That reminds me....this is one of the reasons why I have really come to deeply disagree with all of the PC labels we've come to assign to foods and diets.  I'm really tired of other people putting themselves up on pedestals because they believe what and how they eat is "better", and making many of us to question how "good" do we eat?

But realistically I know at the end of the day, I'm the one making the choice to feel bad, or defensive....just a bit of a rant.  Maybe I'll write more in the morning....or maybe I'll waste another couple of hours trying to edit my video on my iPad (a little bit of anger and frutration?  maybe.)

Friday, August 10, 2012

No Brainer Swing Workout



If my two training partners agree to help me (in other words, be on camera!) I will video tape a version of this exact workout tomorrow, Saturday, that will be scaled for 3 levels of conditioning.  I will demonstrate how to change it to a 30, 40 rep per set workout, so don't worry if you are not up to swinging 50 reps yet!

Although the theme for the month is "49" I had to simply knock out some reps to end my workout yesterday morning and the easiest way for me to do that was 50 reps at a time.  500 swings was my goal and 20 minutes was about all I had left in me.  50 reps x 10 sets.  I really didn't want to do it so I had to trick myself and it worked!

I used all of my 10 rep swing combinations, and because I was concentrating on the order of it all, by the time I got to the 3rd set of 50 I had forgotten that I was thinking this was going to be torture and a new routine started to come together.  The first half is in fact a No Brainer, simply alternating 10 two hand swings with a 10 rep swing combination, but I changed a few things up instead of repeating the first 5 sets exactly...but you'll have to wait for that one if you are interested because I liked it so much I will repeat it this weekend.

No Brainer

#1 10 2 hd sw, 10 tr, 10 2 hd sw, 10 tr, 10 2 hd sw

#2 10 2 hd sw, 1/2 sw ld, 10 2 hd sw, 1/2 sw ld, 10 2 hd sw

#3 10 2 hd sw, 5/5, 10 2 hd sw, 5/5, 10 2 hd sw

these next two are a bit unexpected:

#4 10 2 hd sw, 10 R, 10 2 hd sw, 10 R 10 2 hd sw

#5 10 2 hd sw, 10 L, 10 2 hd sw, 10 L, 10 2 hd sw

In the last two set where I alternate 10 one hand swings with my 10 2 hd swings I return back to the same side within the set, so R and L are done separately.  It adds a little higher level of strength/difficulty which led me to experiment with the next progression, which lead me to the next routine.  But, repeat this starting again with the first rotation, or if you want to use a few brain cells, repeat it backwards, laddering down the progressions for the second half (rotation #5, 4, 3, 2, 1).


Thursday, August 9, 2012

Times Change

This past weekend was, well, "interesting".  Truly, I did not want to leave my last post of "Biggest Person" hovering over the weekend without my computer to follow up on my thoughts with another blog post.  When I write about "old" thought patterns and sometimes feeling "less than", or "lack of", or invalidation, I'm not wanting it to come across, or sound, dramatic because I don't feel dramatic about it.  I really don't have that much charge about old feelings, instead I can reflect upon them, look at them, and move on.

My favorite philosophy right now is reminding myself when "feelings are not facts".  When I "feel" like the biggest person in the room, it's just a feeling, not a fact.  And if it is truly a "fact" I know it has nothing to do with my value as a human being.  But ultimately I look forward to the day that I don't notice my size, or anybody else's size either. (that could be today!)

I share my old thought patterns because I used to be stuck in them, and I used them as an excuse to validate the choices I made to prove I was right.  I was a victim of my size giving into thinking it was my destiny.  I thought there was nothing I could do to change it, much less change it entirely, and permanently.

I once heard this story about two brothers.  One brother was "stronger", one brother was "smarter".

"Some men where born to move pianos, and some men where born to play them."

Wow.  This analogy was used by the mother of the two boys, one obviously strong, muscular and tough, the other, thin, frail, and academic.....I heard the story from the "strong" brother, but I wonder if the "smart" brother would have felt the same sense of invalidation for not being strong as the strong brother felt for not being respected as smart?

I get tired of hearing that we can't have it all.  What does that mean?  Did the brother that physically moved pianos not have to be "smart enough" to figure out how to literally move that piano and fit it into his truck?  Did the brother that played the piano not need to have the strength and stamina to perform for 2-3 hours, in concert, under hot lights and with the pressure of delivering perfectly?

I may experience some old feelings, but reacting, or how I react to those feelings are my choice, as I become aware of how those thoughts and reactions limit me.  I can chose to rise above and see myself separate from the comparisons I put on myself.  No one else is thinking about me!  Everybody is thinking about themselves!  And so it should be!

Do not limit yourself to old feelings.  Choose new feelings!  You don't have to feel like the biggest, smallest, dumbest, weakest, ugliest, shortest, most poor, least lucky, etc....  Imagine the opposite feelings!  Yes!  That's what I'm going to do! Imagine the best of times!

Personally I refuse to accept that I can't have it all.  My definition of "all" may not be your definition, and it doesn't matter.  I don't mind some of those old feelings, I recognize them for what they are.  Those old feelings are just a way for me to gauge how lucky I know I am!  No drama, just reflection.

Off topic....I was in the Apple store this morning getting some help with my iPad that wouldn't hold a charge.  Apple ended up exchanging the computer for me and apologizing for making me wait.....what?  Making me wait to exchange a computer, lol!  I'm so freakin' lucky to have such a high quality problem of exchanging a computer that most of the country can't afford to own, am I going to complain about waiting 10 minutes?  I could have felt inconvenienced and impatient, instead I felt lucky.

Feelings. not facts.  Change how you feel.  Feel lucky, feel valid, feel smart, feel strong.  It's your life, no one else is keeping track.  Times change, feelings change, and so can you.

Picture above....I may be or feel "bigger" than some of the other Bikram practitioners I respect, but what does that mean? It's just me, nobody else.  

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Snatch-aholics "49"

It's my birthday, it's my birthday....."49" is going to be a reoccurring theme this whole fabulous month of August, because it's my 49th birthday month!  Enjoy

40 snatch rep sets done 9 ways...or 9 sets of 40 snatches (progressively, of course!  Damn I'm good!)


I started with the 2 most difficult ones and laddered progressively down...

40 snatches R 
40 snatches L 
20 R, 20 L x 1
10/10 x 2 
6/6, 5/5, 4/4, 3/3, 2/2 downhill snatch ladder (this is the one I screwed up....forgive me, I'm 49!)
5/5 x 4
4/4 x 5
2/2 x 10
1/1 x 20

All sets with the exception of the last one took approx. 1.5 min, with a 30 sec rest.  So, I completed both work and rest within a 2 min interval.  9 sets = 18 min, 360 snatches....this workout also has almost 100 transfer swings!  (94 to be exact!)

PS It looks as if my Flip has done Flipped for the last time....sorry about the buzzing, I didn't notice it on the last video, but here it is again....time to start using the Bloggie or my iPad...argh!

Sunday, August 5, 2012

A little post....

One of the biggest compliments I love hearing is when someone asks me for the swing routine we did in class!  I will be posting it when I have time, but it was so much fun I'll be training it myself again soon!  Here is one of the photos taken after class, and a solid hour of swings!

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Happy 49th Birthday No-Brainer...49 sets of 25 reps

In celebration of my 49th birthday this weekend I did 49 sets of 25 reps w/16kg "on the minute"  That equals about 38 sec work/22 sec rest.  I did not do them consecutively though.  I did 15 sets with my first client (along with some snatches), I did another 15 with my second set of training partners (along with a different "49 theme swing routine and some presses), and I ended with 19 more set in my 2 hour of training.



I would have done them consecutively but that would have meant 49 minutes straight and my first appt is only 30 min, my sec 45 min, and my third another 30 min.....besides I couldn't do that to anybody else!  So I pieced it together.

BUT I do have to say that it felt harder than the 1000 24kg reps I did a few weeks ago!  Once I got to my calculator I discovered it came out to 1225 reps in 49 min!  And it felt like it!  Now I gotta go pack for St Paul!

See ya!