Pho Ga Hung is an unofficial sponsor of Trac247 as Grandpa and Grandma continue to fuel me towards sectionals! Thanks Co Loan, even with pho, we can zone the ratios for a great meal!

By reducing about 2/3 the rice noodles, this comes out to be about a 5 block meal.

Fresh real chicken! Not the stuff you see in Food, Inc.

The idea of health, fitness, and wellness is like a mountain. There may be many ways up the mountain, but some paths will lead you to dead ends, others may drop off a cliff. Our goal is to find the safest, most effective, and efficient way to the top. We think we know a pretty good path, so now it’s just a matter of putting one foot in front of the other, and that’s exactly what Co Loan is doing.

On Ramp Day #5
WOD:
3 rounds for time of
0.30mi run
5 KTE (knee to elbow) progressions
10 push presses, 8lb med ball

Co Loan = 14:12

In the direction towards a healthier life

Huy amazed me again. We did one 500m row time trial yesterday as part of the warm up and he destroyed it in 1:41. If you look on the Games website, many of the top competitors are in the 1:30-1:40 range. That is a sick time Mr. Huyster.

Mann and I are still pretty darn sore from “Murph”. I feel muscles in my forearms I never knew were there, and my hands are finally getting back to normal. Yesterday was gymnastics based, so I worked on some midline stabilization exercises, or what some would call core, and others would call abs. On a side note, another awesome CF trainer and I are gonna throwdown a WOD this Wednesday. Love. This. Stuff!

“The Kitchen Sink”
Buy in:
500m row time trial
WOD:
8 rounds for time of
7x 40lb Goblet Squat
5x Clapping push ups
10m Weighted bear crawls, 2×10lbs
Cash Out:
Work up to a heavy TGU (Turkish Get Up = ultimate ab exercise)

Huy: Row = 1:41 (PR), KS = 14:45, TGU = 52.5lbs (PR)

Trac247 WOD:
Do 2 hollow rocks (not easy!) on the minute for 15 minutes
Do 10 slow hip-back extensions every 3 minutes for 15 minutes
Do 3min of cumulative L-sits

Huy’s the Juggernaut, once he gets going, no one can stop him!

Catching some air on push ups. Progression!

Moving up to weighted bear crawls now

New PR on TGU’s, 52.5lbs! Great Job!

Know where you came from. Look to where you are going. Live in the moment.

I hang up a rotation of motivational sayings on sheets of paper at my workstation. Seeing the sayings on paper helps me keep things in perspective as I go about my day. One of the sheets reads “Mushin” which is a Zen term meaning “no mindedness” in Japanese. Believe me, there’s a difference between mindlessness and no mindedness.

There’s a scene in the movie, The Last Samurai, where the Nobutada (Shin Koyamada) tells Algren (Tom Cruise) “Please forgive, too many mind…Mind the sword, mind the people watch, mind the enemy, too many mind… [pause] No mind.” as Algren struggles with his sword play. The idea behind “no mind” is to empty the mind of all unnecessary or negative thoughts, so that all focus can be applied to the task at hand.

I was reminded of this idea as Mann and I were going through “The Abyss” and he stated that working out has been an outlet for him to relieve stress. He and the other trainees have stated that they don’t (or sometimes can’t) think about anything when they are in the middle of the workout. I am pleased to hear this. That means that they are totally committed to what’s in front of them, and that what’s in front of them is demanding enough to take them there.

This is a crucial aspect of our training and carries over to our day to day lives (remember, we train to live). Everyone needs some type of outlet to relieve both mental and physical stress. By emptying the mind, it helps to clear out what can be described as chatter, noise, or static that may be constantly blaring in the background of the mind. Beyond the workouts, there’s other methods to carry over the practice of emptying the mind.

We were taught various meditation methods during our Taekwondo days and a lesson that I have kept with me (Master-4, Trac-0) to this day is to clean up my mind like a windows desktop. It sounds peculiar, but the idea is to replay your day in your head before you go to sleep. As you review your day from start to finish, pick out the good points or achievements that you made and picture filing them away for storage, because you want to draw upon those positive experiences in the future. Then, for all the negative things, review them, think about how you would improve the situation in the future, and then throw them in the TRASH and empty the recycling bin. The point is that you’ve addressed them and now its time to let them go. Holding onto negative thoughts, anxieties, worries, fear, etc. takes up valuable space on your desktop and keeps you distracted unless you throw them out. Picture those negative thoughts being shredded or incinerated into nothingness.

By clearing the mind, you can better balance a razor’s edge focus with a broader awareness of everything around you.

Cheers to a wife that knows my favorites:

No rice? Exactly.

Wonton Soup

Beef with Broccoli

Shrimp with Lobster Sauce

I’m prejudice. Because, I severely underestimated the speed the big men have. I had just finished up Murph with Mann and came back to check up on Huy and Chu Long only to see them busting 12.0mph sprints on the treadmill! What?! Totally awesome, I’m looking forward to our 40 yard time trials.

Sprint 8’s
8x
Sprint for 30 seconds, Rest for 1:30

Huy, Chu Long, and MyChau were averaging 11.0-12.0 mph.

Murph 1.5
1.5 mile run
150 pull ups
300 push ups + 50 dive bombers
450 squats
1.5 mile run
Trac = 1hr 40min

I don’t know about Mann, but I was running like a ruh-tard on that last 1.5 miles. I couldn’t really hold my arms up for very long so they were just flopping by my side. Fun!

Words are meaningless at this point. I’ll just simply say that I am proud of who Mann is, and so should he be. The numbers just affirm that the process is taking us in the right direction. What cannot be quantified is the training of the mind and spirit, which I know in my heart, have also strengthened in Mann. Congrats to completing your 3 months Mann, we’re only just beginning.

Mann’s 3 Month WOD
“Murph”
1 mile run
100 pull ups
200 push ups
300 squats
1 mile run
Mann’s Time = 1hr 38min

Thanks to my wife for picking up dinner:

Who inspires you?

The epitome of absolute resolve. He died so others may live.

In honor of Lt. Michael Murphy’s memory, and to signify Mann’s completion of 3 months of training, Mann and I will be doing a workout created by Lt. Murphy, a voracious Crossfitter, that has since been named “Murph” in his honor:

For time:
1mi run
100 pull ups
200 push ups
300 squats
1mi run
(Lt. Murphy would do this workout wearing his 20lb body armor vest)

Please send some support Mann’s way as he takes on this challenge.

———————————————-
MEDAL OF HONOR CITATION:

FOR CONSPICUOUS GALLANTRY AND INTREPIDITY AT THE RISK OF HIS LIFE ABOVE AND BEYOND THE CALL OF DUTY AS THE LEADER OF A SPECIAL RECONNAISSANCE ELEMENT WITH NAVAL SPECIAL WARFARE TASK UNIT AFGHANISTAN ON 27 AND 28 JUNE 2005. WHILE LEADING A MISSION TO LOCATE A HIGH-LEVEL ANTI-COALITION MILITIA LEADER, LIEUTENANT MURPHY DEMONSTRATED EXTRAORDINARY HEROISM IN THE FACE OF GRAVE DANGER IN THE VICINITY OF ASADABAD, KONAR PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN. ON 28 JUNE 2005, OPERATING IN AN EXTREMELY RUGGED ENEMY-CONTROLLED AREA, LIEUTENANT MURPHY’S TEAM WAS DISCOVERED BY ANTI-COALITION MILITIA SYMPATHIZERS, WHO REVEALED THEIR POSITION TO TALIBAN FIGHTERS. AS A RESULT, BETWEEN 30 AND 40 ENEMY FIGHTERS BESIEGED HIS FOUR-MEMBER TEAM. DEMONSTRATING EXCEPTIONAL RESOLVE, LIEUTENANT MURPHY VALIANTLY LED HIS MEN IN ENGAGING THE LARGE ENEMY FORCE. THE ENSUING FIERCE FIREFIGHT RESULTED IN NUMEROUS ENEMY CASUALTIES, AS WELL AS THE WOUNDING OF ALL FOUR MEMBERS OF THE TEAM. IGNORING HIS OWN WOUNDS AND DEMONSTRATING EXCEPTIONAL COMPOSURE, LIEUTENANT MURPHY CONTINUED TO LEAD AND ENCOURAGE HIS MEN. WHEN THE PRIMARY COMMUNICATOR FELL MORTALLY WOUNDED, LIEUTENANT MURPHY REPEATEDLY ATTEMPTED TO CALL FOR ASSISTANCE FOR HIS BELEAGUERED TEAMMATES. REALIZING THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF COMMUNICATING IN THE EXTREME TERRAIN, AND IN THE FACE OF ALMOST CERTAIN DEATH, HE FOUGHT HIS WAY INTO OPEN TERRAIN TO GAIN A BETTER POSITION TO TRANSMIT A CALL. THIS DELIBERATE, HEROIC ACT DEPRIVED HIM OF COVER, EXPOSING HIM TO DIRECT ENEMY FIRE. FINALLY ACHIEVING CONTACT WITH HIS HEADQUARTERS, LIEUTENANT MURPHY MAINTAINED HIS EXPOSED POSITION WHILE HE PROVIDED HIS LOCATION AND REQUESTED IMMEDIATE SUPPORT FOR HIS TEAM. IN HIS FINAL ACT OF BRAVERY, HE CONTINUED TO ENGAGE THE ENEMY UNTIL HE WAS MORTALLY WOUNDED, GALLANTLY GIVING HIS LIFE FOR HIS COUNTRY AND FOR THE CAUSE OF FREEDOM. BY HIS SELFLESS LEADERSHIP, COURAGEOUS ACTIONS, AND EXTRAORDINARY DEVOTION TO DUTY, LIEUTENANT MURPHY REFLECTED GREAT CREDIT UPON HIMSELF AND UPHELD THE HIGHEST TRADITIONS OF THE UNITED STATES NAVAL SERVICE.

SIGNED GEORGE W. BUSH
———————————

For more information on Lt. Murphy’s story, go here.

I finally got around to watching Food, Inc. (thanks Netflix). And boy, this puts the score between me and my Taekwondo Master at 3-0. He’s lectured me for countless hours about the food industry and about the effects of highly processed foods. I’ve seen videos of processing plants before, and although disturbing, I was able to shrug it off. But after watching Food, Inc., I don’t think anyone can look at food, especially processed foods, the same way.

This will be one movie I will ask all the trainees to watch. It even touches upon hyperinsulinemia, which I have been preaching to the trainees about.

This is straight up “Matrix” status. Some people will watch this, and they won’t want to see the truth, because the truth is too hard to handle. They rather go back and plug themselves back into the Matrix where everything was fine and dandy. I cannot. I will not.

It’s time to join the revolution. This is war, and this is a fight to take back this country’s health, well being, and moral values. This is my fight to protect my family and loved ones. Will it happen overnight? No. But like any problem or workout we tackle, we’ll take it one step at a time.

I will be visiting our local farmers markets and will be enrolling in our CSA (community supported agriculture) programs. Can’t wait to taste real food again.