Week 6 - wheels done fall off

It's the holliday season, and I'm going thru a series of colds, coughs and sniffles. Feeling run down, both physically and mentally. I'll get back to it next year. Yeah. Right.

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Week 6 - Day 1

Missed some time, managed to bruise a bone in my thumb, and it really hurt to do push-ups, so I took a week off to heal. Tested for entry into Week 6 on 15 Nov, and I thought to myself "I need to get to 46." Guess where I stopped? Got to 46 (barely) and dropped dead (figuratively speaking) . I obviously have some psychological issues with push-ups.

Now, the actual run was 25/30/20/9/(dnf) on a spec of 25/30/20/15/40. Obviously I'll be doing this one again. The time off definitely hurt me. Hopefully I'll be back on a regular schedule and getting it on 3 times a week until I can get to 100.

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Week 5 - Day 3 - second try

Managed to do 13/13/15/15/12/12/10/25 on the spec of the same. This time I managed to complete it, but forgot to push the limit, so I got to 25 and ran out of steam. I'll see if I can get to week 6, if not, I'll do the middle column of Week 5 next time.

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Week 5 - Day 3

Managed to do 13/13/15/15/12/12/10/25 on the spec of 13/13/15/15/12/12/10/30. Missed it by that much... I was just flat out pooped. Need to do this one over again. I did write down that I should be aiming for 35, but didn't even get close.

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Week 5 - Day 2

Managed to do 10/10/13/13/10/10/9/25 on the spec of the same. The final set went well, until I got to 20, then it was the wall again. By 25, I was done physically and psychologically. I need to write down a different number for the final set, so I get to a higher point before failing mentally. I'll aim for 35...

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Week 5 - Day 1

Decided to do week 5 in the first column instead of re-doing Week 4 again. Sometimes the illusion of progress is more important that actual progress, as Column 2 in Week 4 is tougher than Column 1 in Week 5.

I wasn't paying attention to the actual numbers when I was doing the push-ups (kid wrangling and counting doesn't mix very well), so I ended up doing 17/20/17/15/22 on a spec of 17/19/15/15/20. Still having a bit of a wall when I get into the low 20's. Next is the switch from 5 sets to 8 sets - that'll be interesting...

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Week4.1 - Day 3

YEAH - finally got the third day of this "week" done. I managed 16/18/13/13/24 on a spec of 16/18/13/13/20. I was quite surprised. Did it before Dojo, so I was quite whipped while working on the new material.

I hope to be up to starting Week 4.2 using the 3rd column on Friday.

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Week 4.1 - Day 2

Waited this long due to a screwed up ankle - it went 'pop' last weekend, and has finally stopped being a pain. No swelling or problems when not standing on it. Odd. Back to normal now, so it's push-up time...

Oh boy. Got through it, but had to "cheat" on the last set and do them from the knees. 14/16/12/12/(19). This time the Pecs are OK, but the Triceps are what failed and needed the relief of knee based push-ups at the end. Looks like Week 4.2 may be using the middle column instead of the tough column. We'll have to see how things go over the next few days.

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Week 4.1 - Day 1.5

I have been exceedingly sore, even with lots of stretching and massive doses of Advil...

I was planning on doing pushups after Dojo (given how wiped out I was on Tuesday), but in warm-ups, Sensei switched things up & we did Burpies - or at least tried. I went straight down to the mat! My Pec's were still so shot, they couldn't hold me on the decent. Oh well. More stretching & more Advil - I'll try again over the weekend.

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Week4.1 - Day 1

Finally!!! Back at it. Due to the long layoff, I started Week 4.1 with the lightweight column. Good thing, too. Just barely finished (12/14/11/10/16 on a spec of 12/14/11/10/16). I planned to go to 18, but hit the wall at 10. I wasn't sure that I'd get beyond 15, but was able to force 15 and 16. My arms felt like rubber, and the martial arts class afterwords was much tougher. I hope to do Day 2 on Thursday, and continue with Week 4.2 in the tough column before moving on to Week 5.

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Week4.1 - Day 0.1

Still out of it - feeling lousy. The surgery went well, but I have been in a fair bit of pain. Going back to the Dentist tomorrow, to see if the renewed swelling in my mouth is an infection. Hope to be back at it next week. Stay tuned!

I expect I'll probably drop to the lightest load (column 1) for Week 4, then try the heavy load (column 3) if I can make it thru the week.

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Week4.1 - Day 0

Well, I went back and visited the hundredpushups.com web site, and SHAZAM!!! - it has changed. And I noticed I had badly misread the initial instructions. Week 4.1 will be a completely different animal (5 sets, not just the last 3), since my test score (28) puts me in the most difficult category. I may yet have a Week 4.2 - or more... Saturday will be crazy-busy, but I'll try to get it done anyway. See you tomorrow!

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Week 4.0 - Update

Saw the doctor today.  Good news and better news.  Blood pressure is way down (was 135/90, now 118/80), and agreement was reached to switch to a different med.  Doctor believes the symptoms, if caused by the prior drug, should be gone by the weekend.  Hope to start week 4.1 this weekend (at the Saturday Dojo class, of course).

I might skip the Monday push-ups, pushing them back to Tues or Wed, as I will have oral surgery (on Monday) to remove an old baby tooth and clean up some infection in the area of the root.  I can't wait!

In my absence last week, everyone at home bagged on the push-ups.  We'll all be going thru Week 4 again.  Nice to have everyone back on the same page.

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Week 4 - Test Day

Well... Not good. Only got to 28 before being unable to go up again. Most likely a problem with will more than ability, but in this case, there is no difference. The result is to repeat Week 4 again until I can score high enough to enter Week 5.

All the usual excuses, busy at work, then traveling for work, at a cheap hotel, 12 hour days, etc...

Back at it with Week 4 - Day 4 real soon now... (hopefully this Saturday)... See you then.

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Week 4 - Day 3

Today’s total was (22/20/30) on a spec of (22/20/29+).

Once again, I had problems getting thru and had to pause in the final set. I also got distracted and waited nearly a half hour between the second and third sets, and fatigue had begun to set into the shoulders and pecs. Not good.

It's been a while, as I was supposed to be on travel, but that fell thru and I ended up working all weekend on a different program instead. Lovely. Almost 40 hours over a holiday weekend. Such fun. But at least I managed to get my push-ups in - that's gotta count for something!

I hope to get back into a more regular pattern here soon.

Next time - the Stress Test - to see how many I can do as a seed for Week 5...
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Week 4 - Day 2.5

Thursday came and went. For all of the ups and downs it had, none of them were push-ups.

For some reason, Thursdays seem to be my 'CRUNCH' day, where I end up pulling extra long shifts (15 hours this time). I did get home before midnight, but had to pack, as I was going on a business trip. Got to bed around 1am Friday morning. Just 10 hours later (half a hour before I headed for the airport), the trip gets canceled. Such fun. I'm beat and going to bed.

The plan is to finish Week 4 on Saturday before Dojo. Then the fun begins - Week 5 is gonna be a cast iron you-know-what...

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Week 4 - Day 2

Today’s total was (21/18/28) on a spec of (21/18/25+).

Once again, before Dojo, we did push-ups. Once again (in the final set), I stalled at 22 and had to hold in the 'up' position while I gathered my energy for the final push. Still, it's nice to be able to push beyond the minimum and move on.

I'm still a little under the weather (I hope so, at least - today's sets were brutal - took a lot out of me). Hopefully I'll be feeling better by Thursday. We'll have to see. I may skip until Friday or Saturday, just for the recovery time.

Still, the short term ache didn't really impact my performance at Dojo, and (if things hold as they have been), it will not be much of a problem tomorrow either. If that's not the case, well, ... Isn't that why they invented Advil?

I've been lax in my stretches for my pecs and my work on biceps, so I'll get on that tonight and tomorrow. Need to try to keep symmetrical, at least a little bit.

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Week 4 - Day 1

Today’s total was (20/17/28) on a spec of (20/17/27+).

Just barely got thru the end of it. Worked really hard to get to 20 in the first set, but the second set went easier. The third set stalled briefly at 22 again, but a brief mental reset at the top was enough to get me on to 27. Then, I insisted I do one more, and almost didn't make it. I was surprised, as I thought I'd stall out on the way up, but made it up (and safely back down).

I didn't end up as tired or fatigued as I thought. Having completed the push-ups as soon as we got to Dojo, I was pleased as to how little impact it had on either class (we do a sword class and Tai-Jutsu class on Saturday). No real problems, just a little stiff. Still, I don't really look forward to the push-ups, but I am at least a little excited about the prospect of getting to 100.

The kids and wife are keeping busy with the program. The kids only one "day" behind me. They will probably do the program again, once they finished it and have had a chance to perfect their 'form' - they wobble like a scarf in the breeze when doing their porpises, I mean push-ups. My wife has her own schedule, and works out at a gym (she likes the treadmill - don't ask me why, it makes no sense at all), so she keeps her own notes. She says she's doing well, and she isn't necessarily tied to the idea of 100, she's just looking for a bit of a challenge and some increased bulk and strength.

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Week 4 - Day 0

Today’s total was ... zilch!

Another barrage of excuses. There's a stomach flu running thru the household, and I was at work until after 9pm. Hopefully we'll get back into the swing of it on Saturday...

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Week 3 - Day 3

Today’s total was (22/20/27) on a spec of (22/20/27+).

Didn’t think I’d make it to Day 3 without a failure, but plan to just keep on going. In the 3rd set, I hit the wall at 22 and had to stop briefly in the ‘up’ position and take a deep breath and focus, in order to pound out the last few. Again, despite chanting “30”, “30”, “30” to myself, got to 27 and locked up. Having a hard time fooling myself. I may need to update my “do” sheet to list bigger numbers, that way I’ll be working from the higher number from the start. Hopefully the next ‘week’ won’t be as long, and will include a steady stream of successes.

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