Back to Clinical Fitness

I wrote in the other blog that if Jogging and Dumbbells at home is self-medication, then gym is medication in a clinic. Now, I have joined the gym again. The same Enigma Fitness. For 3 months.
I feel more comfortable and better in gym.
I shall write more on strategies and workout plans later, as and when I discover something significant.

A 9 kmph base speed runner !!

Nowadays it is more or less above 9 kmph running in the mornings. I do this running (not jogging, mind it !!) after I do dumbbells workout.
I do the following dumbbells exercises :-
Biceps curls, Shoulder Lifts, Triceps Back Lifts, Deadlifts, Bench press ; all these for 6 sets of 17, 13, 11, 7, 5, 3 reps. I also do squats with weights for 7, 5, 3 reps.
Protein drinks are happening, but many days I forget drinking them. I am continuing with utmost discipline in my regular food intake. Peanut slices for breakfast, chappati with vegetables for lunch and rice with vegetables at night. I do not take anything else in between.
My tummy is of a healthy Delhi guy of 45 years level. Flat and strong tummy muscles with a flab of 2 inches at the most.
I am mostly active and undergo calorie deficit. Also I am getting used to this. But that is how our body is. If you work you need rest. You may want to reduce fat, but then your metabolism may become low.  It is a battle of pros and cons and ultimately your interest in exercising matters.

My Dream IT Projects

I am an engineer working in IT. I am closely following the trends and growth in IT. The recent good idea I liked was tourist places based social sites. Another idea I read today in Economic Times is about the work done by Zoho. They are into building customer relationship. Probably they try to give a meaning of social sites to the system in an enterprise.
I have a few ideas on possible IT trends in future:-
1) Read object - This object should be highly polymorphed and should be able to read all languages, all types of files, namely video, audio etc. Also it should have AI and understand comma separated files.
2) More Peer to Peer - Though internet has promoted equality in the world and peer to peer technology, the range is restricted. Facebook promotes equality. But then there is a question of fairness too. The Measuring Behavior (http://measuringbehaviour-ravi.blogspot.com) can be an added dimension to the meaning of Internet.
3) Responsible Queues - Social sites can also help in queue management. E-governance will become easier with this. A person from one social group can recommend an advancement in queue to another person in another social group. Provided, no one in the beneficiary group has a clash of interest in the purpose for which the queue exists.
4) Equal Piracy Share - Today the audio and video industry is plagued by piracy. The entertainment industry works hard to keep the masses entertained. Digital technology can help a lot in controlling piracy. The artists and their fans should be and can be made to feel satisfied and entertained.
These are some of the areas where we must look forward to in IT world.

Rooftop View

I took this photograph from the roof top of our apartments. First of all the abbreviations. F - Flight; DC - Dussehra Celebrations; ML - Metro Line.
This photograph was taken on the evening of Dussehra. On this day the effigies of Ravana,, Kumbhakarna and Meghnad are burnt. You may also see the temporary giant wheel setup as part of Dussehra eve.
Hope you like it.

My Soleus Activity Tracker

 

Soleus Activity Tracker is a very useful device. The band has to be worn on the hand all the time except when charging which is once in 5 days.

Initially you need to feed the details about you. Your name, sex, weight, age, height. You must also set the right time and date.

After this you need to press buttons suitably 4 times only. First, exercising Start. Second, exercising End. Third, Sleep Start. Fourth Sleep End. I have not used the Alarm facility in the band till now. However I always keep it paired with my Android Phone and hence I come to know when a call or message arrives.

The Soleus App in my phone can be paired with Soleus Health Band any time. Pairing requires pressing of buttons in Health Band. And also in the Soleus App in phone.

You can see the data generated today. The state is as at 2 pm approximately. I did exercising today. Weights for about 30 minutes and cardio for about 30 minutes. I had walked 6686 steps totalling 5.71 km. I had spent 1797 calories till 2 pm. (These data includes exercising data). I had slept OK. For about 5 hours. 3 hours were deep sleep. 2 hours was light. I woke at 3 am.

I have to improve my sleep style. I normally sleep at 9 pm and wake up early. This I need to change. Also this device is made for aerobic (cardio) activities. The 66 % calorie targets achieved is based on my height and weight, I think.

Go ahead and buy this health band. It is very useful. But make sure you have an Android Phone before that.

Marathon 2015

I shall participate in a marathon in the year 2015. That is a promise I have made to myself.
I shall call myself ready if I manage to run at 12 kmph speed for 10 kms every alternate days regularly for 15 days. This will be my benchmark for participation.
As a first step, I have made plans to reduce my weight by 8%. This I shall do in 45 days.  I shall be also doing weight training with a aim to strengthen my muscles and make them efficient.
I also plan to improve my lung power by breath control exercises. I plan to close my nose and mouth for 1 - 2 minutes.
At home I am planning to include squats with 10kg pair dumbbells. I shall also do squat jumps.
As a mental relaxation and rhythm building, I shall do dafli playing for more duration. I shall sing a bit more loudly. I shall allow myself to be in dafli beats and singing to build rhythm.
Currently, I do 1 hour of gym everyday. I spend about 350 cal of energy. I have 4 slices of peanut spread bread for breakfast. 3 chappatis with vegetables for lunch. Two cups of rice with vegetables and yogurt at dinner. I have two protein drinks sessions.  I went out of control a little last week with festivals around. Now I am back with discipline.
Exercises include pec fly or chest press, shoulder lifts, Lateral Pull down, Leg curls lying or leg curls sitting, Abs pull down or abs exercises on decline bench, dumbbell biceps or dumbbell forearms. I also do two cardios for 15 minutes each.
I had stopped dumbbells at home. But I shall start them again soon. I shall also do foam rolling if needed.
I am not worried about energy during marathon. Because Energy Gel bars are normally made available on the way.

Half Forgotten Rail Journey

With flights available for travelling from one place to another, many upper middle class Indians have forgotten rail journeys. If not fully forgotten, at the least half forgotten.
It is said that if you get into bodybuilding, you forget the food you ate earlier, prior to bodybuilding. Also the image of your body in your mind is no longer the same. It changes and in my case I have half forgotten my earlier days.
Another point that I want to write about is of soy protein. Is it good? It is great to a very large extent. Especially for vegetarians and vegans. And for people who are not likely to be affected by claims that soy protein has compounds similar to estrogen and may cause "man boobs". Soy Protein, to vegans and vegetarians is absorbed by body just like any other routine food. A vegan or a vegetarian bodybuilder feels normal when having soy protein in a larger quantity.
Is soy protein as effective like Whey Protein? In my case, where I experience a little pain in muscle joint at the back side of knee area (calf muscle joint); I found Whey protein to be better and more soothing. Also I get better sleep on days I have Whey protein only.
I must also mention the importance of dal (pulses). For yoga enthusiasts and dieting individuals, dal is likely to be good. The aim here is not to build or develop muscles. But maintain health of internal organs like stomach, intestines etc. Dieting may cause repair of these organs and it is necessary to build them up. Dal and a glass of low fat milk is likely to act like a boon for them.
My aim is to make 12 kilometers per hour speed as my base speed( about 8 miles per hour). I manage to run at 10 kmph speed for 5 minutes at the max at present. I am more comfortable in elliptical and cycling. But it is cardio activity that inspires me more and my body feels at ease with speed activities. I do not like flexing and flaunting muscles. Maybe it is due to shyness.
But weight training is better for reducing body fat than cardio, as written in bodybuilding.com. And maximizing strength to fat ratio is athleticism. But is there a role for strong arms and strong chest in running better ?