Geezer's Long March Toward the Elite Sneaking Up On the Finish Line

[Mark E. Hurling]

Hurling trees. What's not to like? Thanks, it was a very good article.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Weight: 271.

Hands, hands, hands, hands. All about the hands today. Rounds of speed bag, heavy bag, handball, and medicine ball tosses. Session 34 minutes burning 298 calories with an average HR of 129 bpm @ 84% of MHR and a peak of 144 bpm.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Lower intensity today running a little longer. The heart rate monitor was going in and out so I can't vouch for the calorie burn or average HR. The latter probably reasonably close, but the calories burned are calculated on the HR. Full body rounds of SciFit, rower, cable crunches, elliptical, stretching. Session was 36 minutes burning 176 calories with an average HR of 104 @ 67% of MHR and a peak HR of 114.

[Mark E. Hurling]

This was supposed to be the last of the re-entry sessions at 90%. But I bailed on the hip belt squat. More later.

Incline Press: Sets of 5. 160-170-180.

Hammer Row: Sets of 5. 320-330-340.

Session ran 55 minutes burning 471 calories with an average HR of 124 bpm @ 81% of MHR and a peak of 136 bpm.

My left side around the L-5 was achy along with my right knee. I can stand one of these and maybe grit through a session involving the lower body, but not both. Discretion being the better part of valor, it was time for another visit to the chiro. My knee, the one I injured in Judo nearly 50 years ago with a complex tear of the medial and lateral meniscus, must have been jinxed. I suspect because I was wearing one of my collection of ball caps with the Kodokan crest.

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Possibly the vengeful spirit of Jigoro Kano came to me in the night like the Shinto worshipper he was and visited his displeasure on me for having abandoned his art in favor of Jujitsu.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Weight: 270.

Beautiful day today, all the way up to 59 by mid morning. Time to get out the Dark Lady and ride. So off to the scenic winding road around Lake Murphysboro. Great ride for the most part. It ran 59 minutes burning 312 calories with an average HR OF 98 BPM @ 64% of MHR and a peak of 119 bpm. That spike was probably when a doe ran out in front of me on a sweeping downhill curve on the East side of the lake. Nice bit of LISS.


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[Mark E. Hurling]

Today was a random mix of rounds. Rower, SciFit, speed bag, elliptical, and stretching. Session was 32 minutes burning 206 calories with an average HR of 105 bpm@ 70% of MHR and a peak of 126 bpm.

[Mark E. Hurling]

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G showed tonight, but not E. I ran him through the blue belt techniques to assess his memory of all of them and execution. His memory was pretty good, albeit slightly wobbly, as were his executions. He did well on the more complicated foot positions of two arm bar takedowns, bless his heart. Making him and E concentrate on them for most of a class a few weeks ago seems to have paid off and I told him so. I give G a fair amount of good natured razzing, but he has mostly passed through the crazies and is buckling down and getting more serious now. Thus, some praise was due. He's very close to getting promoted up to blue belt 1st degree. We finished off with a demonstration, discussion, and practice of back fist and hammer fist strikes to the side.

The session burned 274 calories with an average HR of 94 bpm @ 61% of MHR and a peak of 116 bpm.

[Mark E. Hurling]

DB Push Press: R: 65, 3-3-3 L: 65, 2-1-1.

High Pulls From 18" Boxes: 180-3, 185-3, 190-3.

Cable Rotations: 160 for 3 sets of 5.

Session was 50 minutes burning 378 calories with an average HR of 114 bpm @ 74% of MHR and a peak of 140 bpm.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Upper body emphasis LISS today. SciFit and rower arms only, heavy bag flurries, cable crunches, medicine ball tosses, stretching. Session was 36 minutes burning 161 calories with an average HR of 97 bpm @ 64% of MHR and a peak of 112 bpm.

[Mark E. Hurling]

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Woof! What a week. I came down some killer bronchitis that had me cough so hard I sprained my illiopsoas and bruised it. It felt like I had been hit with a battle ax on the left side whenever I coughed for 3 days. Frighteningly painful and scared me until the doc 'splained what had happened. DB found the bruise yesterday. Apparently bruised internally and manifesting itself on the skin from below. Had to bail on Wednesday night Jujitsu and got notified by phone that a new student showed up. I offered him a makeup shot for Friday and hoped I could pass muster to make good on it.

Which I did tonight after carefully shepherding my resources and sleeping a lot. Also dosing with more prednisone and an inhaler. The new guy didn't show, but happily, K the grad student returned after a few month's absence. He not only retained most of what he had learned, but his movements and footwork actually improved! I made sure to praise him for it too. Sadly, the rainy weather brought out the smell of teen spirit in the blue belts. It took a lot of herding to keep them in line.

But altogether, an encouraging session nonetheless, with perhaps two new white belts for next week and some properly chastened blue belts. I was ready to promote one or both of them if they had shown better order and discipline. But alas, not tonight.