Aug 1 - 2 months left until 5K.

Greetings!

Well, lots of things have happened over the last few weeks, unfortunately very little of that has to do with being in condition to run the 5k. Sad, I know, but I am still planning on doing the 5K.

SO, stay with me through the months of August and September to follow the big push to the 5K run. It is going to be interesting (note that I didn't say 'exciting' or 'fun').


HOT PREDICTION!

KSTP Radio (AM 1500) is planning a BIG HUGE announcement today at 2:00PM. They aren't saying what it is, but I am now predicting that this is an announcement that they have come to a deal with the MINNESOTA TWINS to broadcast the Twins games on the Hubbard Broadcasting Network. That is my prediction. We will see if it comes true.

Speaking of the Twins, they are doing pretty well and I am having fun watching them play. They are in contention to be a wildcard team and that is a good thing.

I did go to Cleveland to watch te twins and other events. More on this trip to come, once I have some time to think.

I have just been busy with work and non-work activities. It has been really super hot here - 102 degrees here, and I have lost power at my home now 3 times in the last several days, I believe due to the weather and everyone wanting to use their power. Seriously, 3 times is a bit overkill, and the power company has to do something about this problem. I haven't worked out as intense as I should, but I do blame the temperature as part of the problem.
Oh lord, I just heard that some idiotic newsperson in the cities actually did 'fry an egg' on the minneapolis sidewalk. What a moron. Betty: "Hey, John, it is so hot out here that you could FRY an EGG." John: "Betty, now it can't be THAT hot?!?" Betty: "John, let me prove it to you by cracking this egg, and putting it right here on the sidewalk. See it is really that hot. Back to you in the studio John."
What the hell? As an educated member of society, I ask for all newspeople to place a ban on doing stupid things like this that add NO value to a newscast.

The other news is that my gym, NorthwestAthleticClub, is now been bought by LifeTime Fitness. I found this out when going to the gym last week. Here is why this is NOT good news. 1) Northwest was laid back, helpful, and wanted to create a good environment for it's members. LifeTime is 'in-your-face', confrontational, constantly asking for you to join thier 'programs' and 'events' to squeeze as much money out of the customer as possible. They also treat the club as a meat market, instead of actually pampering their customers to increase buzz, therefore increasing membership by treating people well.
2) Now there is no competition for the big health clubs in the cities, and LifeTime is notorious for raising rates at double-digit percentages. The fact that they are the only game in town makes this price increase chance to be even worse.
3) They want all of the former Northwest customers to sign a new contract with LifeTime, instead of just grandfathering them in. This means that my month-to-month contract will turn into some yearly contract that I am stuck with forever, regardless if my personal life changes so I can't use the club.

Either way, this is NOT a good deal for me. I am thinking about joining a small club (if you can call it a club). This place called SnapFitness is within walking distance and is like a Curves for Women, except this is for men and women. There are no special pampering, no showers, no indoor track, but they have all the equipment needed, are open 24 hours a day, and the cost is 1/3 of what LifeTime is planning on charging. I will go there later today to see what happens.

I appreciate all the email encouragement and support. Here are some recent favorites:


From Dr. Chet Zelasko July 31, 2006
Determination
Through all those challenging times, your determination to succeed will get you through. Understand that no one can be perfect--sooner or later, youll miss a workout and youll eat too much. But if youre determined to succeed at attaining your better life, youll get right back on track. The type of body and healthy life you want depends on it.
Desire. Discipline. Dedication. Determination. These are the attributes you should develop to help you permanently change your lifestyle. Think about them. Apply them to your life, and before you know it youll have the body weight and fitness level youve always dreamed about. Believe it!


Dr. Chet Zelasko July 27, 2006
Running
Running is the best exercise. Period. It burns more calories in the shortest period of time and benefits your entire cardiovascular system. Having said that, I know that there are many people with orthopedic problems who cant run. An alternative is running in a pool. With equipment like the AquaJogger™, you can run without your feet touching the ground--the water supports your weight. With a little practice, you can get similar benefits to running on pavement or a treadmill without the joint strain.
But theres something else you should know: you cant outrun your appetite. I know that for a fact because while Im a runner, I still carry too much weight after running for close to 20 years. You always have to watch what you eat--and I dont mean watch yourself eat it. If you can control your appetite, running will help you achieve your weight goals faster. If you havent run before, check out the paper I wrote titled Preparing and Running a 5K for Beginners. http://www.betterlifeunlimited.com/healthtopics/display.asp?file_name=0073&m=wm&s=e You dont ever have to race but if you want to start a running program, this is a good way to begin.
On September 1st, Ill post a new paper titled Racing a 5K in the Health Topics section of our website. This will outline a training program for you to run a 5K for time. If youre ready to take your training to the next level, youll need to strengthen your body to do it, and this special runners package will help you get there. http://www.betterlifeunlimited.com/healthtopics/default.asp

From Men's Health:
Hot Fun in the Summertime
Studies have shown that the only way to learn to endure heat is to work out in it. You don't have to do marathon runs to build up this kind of tolerance, by the way; you can do it by biking, in-line skating, playing vigorous shuffleboard. And the sign of accomplishment is plain old sweat. Why would you want to get acclimatized? If you've ever tried for a third set of tennis on a sweltering day, you'll know the answer. The only way to get there is to exert oneself in the appropriate temperature setting. You can achieve it in a few days, and you lose it in a couple of weeks, but what it means is that you're training yourself to put out diluted sweat -- relatively more water than salt. Retaining salt means retaining more muscle tone. Interestingly, you also tend to grow thirsty sooner, making you more likely to drink and stay hydrated.

The process of acclimatization can be well under way in the first week of hot-weather training (and 100 minutes of hot work per day is the maximum the body can exploit this way). To understand why that's such an important commodity, let's look at the mechanisms by which the body cools itself.

On a temperate day, up to 80 degrees, our bodies at rest are quite comfortable in their surroundings. Above 80, depending on the humidity, the skin's heat receptors send signals to the brain, which in turn begins to slow down the body's metabolism and other body systems that produce heat. One result is a dilation (widening) of blood vessels, which allows greater blood flow at the body's surface as the skin turns from insulator to heat-shedding device. This explains that reddened look pale-skinned people get in a hot environment, as the skin's normal 5 percent share of the blood rises toward 50 percent.

But as the air temperature heats up to the threshold of 86 degrees, air and body temperature are too close for this ordinary cooling process. Now the sweat glands get a signal to give up their water, usually bearing "solutes," mainly salt, of about 2 percent of their volume. As this water passes through the skin and evaporates, it draws off more heat.

Humans sweat more than any mammal, even the horse family. Fine adaptation though this is, perspiring freely is what the physiologists call a "costly" transaction. To walk away from a nightmare plane wreck in the Mojave, for example, you'd need 2 gallons for every 20 daytime miles (1 gallon if you walk at night).

Rationing does no special good -- and for God's sake carry all you can. The sweat that carrying a given quantity of water costs you subtracts only 1 percent of the replenishment you gain in drinking it.

All right, maybe you're not planning on having to suck cactus to survive. That doesn't mean you don't have to be aware of the dangers of dehydration, especially if you're an athlete. If you're running at a typical training pace, you can sweat up to 2 quarts an hour. To keep up, you need to be drinking more than a quart an hour, says Col. John Gardner, M.D., a physician at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences at Bethesda, Maryland -- the military medical school. "If you're thirsty, you're already down at least half a quart," says Dr. Gardner.


and finally,

from Dr. Chet Zelasko July 10, 2006
Desire
Desire implies that there is a passion to change. It may be that you want better health or to change the look on your child’s face when you can’t play catch. Maybe you just want to look better at your high school reunion or your child’s wedding. Some goal in your mind or your life has to be important enough to you that you’ll do what you have to do to achieve it.You have to want it bad. How bad? Bad enough to be willing to do something about it, whatever it takes. That’s desire and the cool thing is that you can create that desire.
If you don’t have that desire, or you’re not really sure you do, start thinking about it and I mean really thinking hard about what your life might be like when you’re leaner and fitter. Write those things down, because desire wanes at times and you’ll need to be reminded. You’ll be able to pull out what you wrote and renew that desire again.So--how bad do you really want that new body?

Discipline
Once you’ve created the desire, the next step is to create discipline in someone who probably doesn’t have enough of it--you. At least not the discipline required in the eating-and-exercise area of your life. I think many people have a negative association with discipline, maybe because they confuse discipline with denial: denying oneself the food you want to eat or taking life easy as a couch potato.Think of it this way. Discipline is learning to do what you know you need to do to accomplish the goal of a better life. That’s not negative or denying yourself anything--it’s acquiring the desirable habits you need whether it’s eating more vegetables, eating less fried food, or working out first thing in the morning. Those are positive things, not negative. You’re not denying yourself of anything by invoking discipline into your life. You’re saying, “This is what I need to do to get the health and the body I want.” What starts as invoking discipline on yourself today will simply be a good health habit tomorrow when it becomes automatic.


more later,

Chazz