Author Archives: Travis Birt

Still going…

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So it has been since September 22nd or so since I started exercising again. I have gone pretty much every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for about 1 hour 30 mins to 2 hours 30 mins.  Sometimes I go with Terry down to the Anytime Fitness on 19 and sometimes I go to the one over on County Line Rd that is only like 3 miles from me.  If Terry is busy, I go to the closer Gym.  I have only missed one Friday during the last couple months, that being the Friday we took Bleys to the airport to go to his Aunt’s wedding.

That being said, I am happy with the results I have been seeing.. In fact, now I am starting to want to work out more, because I want to add a cardio day that is just cardio to help burn the weight faster.  I do a 30 min run every day I go to the Gym.. Normally do about 2 miles in that time and set the incline to about 4% Grade… Which does not seem like a lot, but it is amazing what a difference it makes to my heart rate.. I try and keep my heart rate in the 155-165 range.. I usually finish up with 3 mins of 6mph or so at a slightly higher incline.. like 5%.  I normally burn about 310-400 calories according to the machine. Some days I run a little longer, some days I run a little harder.

Either way, I now want to add a day where I either ride our Exercise Bike at home, or run to my local Anytime Fitness and do just a cardio blast day.  Maybe a 3 mile run, or some time on the eliptical trainer. Whatever I add, I have decided I want to add something, because I want to see more results, and I think that would help push me into that much better shape.  I think when I get over the hump, I will start losing at a slightly better pace then I have been.  I actually put on an extra 5lbs since I first started, although my waist is getting slightly smaller, and my arms, chest, legs and belly slightly more defined.  I have decided I want to go into my 40’s in better shape then I came into my 30’s.  Otherwise, how bad will I be by 50?  60?  Scarey… So I want to start putting the work in now and see how I do.. Of course, I been putting in a little work out time almost every year, my problem is normally staying with it for more then 3 months or so.. Hopefully, paying for a gym membership will help motivate me to use it!

Wish me luck!

Sad…

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I was sad that we could not get UFC 91.  It makes sense though.. We were busy yesterday, and would have missed the first match or two before getting home.  So I just read about the matches online.  Not as good as the real thing, but still better then waiting to find out the results.

I was disappointed that Randy Couture lost, but not really surprised. Brock Lesnar is huge, and very athletic.  Randy is 45, small for Heavy Weight and been out for a year.  Like I said, not a huge surprise that it went the way it did.

Was happy that Gabriel Gonzaga won and that Kenny Florian won. It looked to be a great UFC.  I am thinking we will probably get the next one, and probably the one that has Brock facing the winner of Mir vs Nogeria.

Woo! Go Obama!!!

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Ok, so I am thrilled that Obama was elected!  Unlike so many of my friends, I do not see this as the end of the world.  I am really getting a kick out of the Conservative Right acting as if Obama will be the end of Capitalism in our Country.  Isn’t it Bush’s Government who is bailing out Insurance Companies, Mortgage Companies and anyone else who needs money that day?

I really do not see what all of my Conservative friends are throwing fits about.  Have they actually read the plan?  Obviously not.  Obama plans on Taxing those making over $250000 a year more.  Not one of my friends that have been doing all the complaining makes anywhere near that.  In fact, they will probably make out very well with Obama’s tax plan.  Yet they whine like there is no tomorrow.  “Oh no, he will turn the whole country socialist!”, “Oh no, these idiot liberals do not know what they are doing!”.  This from the same bunch of people who elected a studdering idiot to lead the most powerful nation in the world.  Come on people, he makes up words.  He can not balance a budget to save our lives, and he has sold your childrens future worse than any Democrat ever dreamed of!

The other thing that bothers me with the whole thing is, they are all crying about socialism and how Obama will take all the money from those who worked for it….. but the working class is getting a whole lot of breaks from Obama.  If they are going to whine, I wish they would at least be informed.  Instead, they just make a bunch of ignorant blanket statements that make them sound as dumb as the last president they elected.  Many of these friends have either gotten help at some point from the Government, or a family member of theirs has.  Isn’t Public Assistance an evil thing as far a the Conservatives are concerned?  Yet, they will take the help when they need it, they just do not think it should be there for others?  Sigh.. Stuipidity at its finest!

Terrorism the new Communism?

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So I was thinking about the days often portrayed in movies.. The days of the witch hunt after Communist supporters in the USA back in the 50’s.  Anybody else remember learning about the McCarthy trials? How they were basically a witch hunt?  How basically anybody that did not believe the same as the Republicans and Conservative Democrats that were behind the trials were “linked” to Communism as a way of discrediting them?  One of the things I find most distasteful about the Republican party is the fact they like to lead these crusades and play on the common Americans fears.  Oh, what is the common America scared of this decade?  We can play on that to get elected.  Then we can abuse our opponents with the magnifying glass of suspicion.  Nevermind the damage done to our society.  Remember folks, the US was created with the idea of being the great melting pot.

I find it sad that a small group can play on peoples fears to this point, and find it disgusting that they do as often as they can drum up a common enemy to use to put themselves in power.  If you are curious about what I mean with this, just do some searching on Pat McCarran and Joseph McCarthy. A very scary time for America.  A very dividing time.. Much like now with Bush and Terrorism and linking everyone and anyone they get half a chance to to Terrorists. Now they are trying to link Obama to an activist from the 70’s that was a radical.. Who cares?  If we did not care about Bush being a worthless drunk in the 70’s, why should we care that Obama knew a guy who was a radical in the 70’s?

I get sick of the smear attacks this time of year.  I do not care who Obama knows, I do not care what McCain got linked to in the 80’s.  If he did not go to prison for it, who cares?  Like we don’t know they are all crooks to one degree or another. Who cares what John Kerry did in the 70’s?  Was he a war hero?  Everything I have seen says yes.. Did he come home and go to anybody who would listen about the stupidity of the war? Yep.. To me, that just means he was willing to speak up when many sat down or found ways around serving.  Why did Bush find that a reason to attack him?  To me, that made Bush that much more of a despicable person.  Attacking an actual hero as he was staying in the states being a drunk and a drug user.  Like I said though, this is history, not what we need to hear about.

What I really want to know is, what are they going to do to take care of the National Debt?  What are they going to do to help our old people who have lost all of their retirement in the break down of our economy?  Stop and consider the baby boomers who were just starting retirement and now many of whom have lost it.  What is going to be done to help them?  Great, we are helping the companies that screwed up, but what are we doing to help the every day Americans?  What will they do for health care?  Food?  Prescriptions?  Homes?  What are we going to do to help them?  What are we going to do to make the world a safer place?  Cause being a bully is not going to do that in my opinion.  As I recall from the play ground as a child, running around throwing things at people and calling them names is not the best way to make friends.  Neither is walking around with a bat threatening to hit everyone who says or does something you don’t like.

Come on people, lets vote on the issues.  Not the Issue.  I realize many are against abortion, and that is fine, but is that one issue really worth voting for people who bankrupt us and drag us into wars and ruin relations with other major powers around the world?  I think not.  Stop believing the hype they put out and the hate, and start looking at the issues. Personally, I think we need other parties if we want real change, but in the meantime, I will take the lesser of the two evils and vote for Obama just because I will never trust another Republican in office after seeing what Bush did to our National Debt and our Diplomacy with other Countries in 8 short years.

National Debt Graph

Weekly Exercise Table

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Machine Low Row Back Extension Abdominal Pectoral Fly Tricep Press
Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri
120 130 150 110 120 70 70 130 130
Weight
3 6 6 6 10 6 10 3 3
Sets
12 12 10 12 10 10 10 10 10
Reps
Machine Rear Deltoid Chest Press Shoulder Press Bicep Curl
Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri
70 70 75 80 50 50 60 65
Weight
3 7 3 5 3 4 3 4
Sets
10 10 10 10 10 8 10 10
Reps
Machine Glutes Seated Leg Press Leg Extension Seated Leg Curl
Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri
95 95 250 250 95 110 80 110
Weight
6 6 3 3 3 6 3 6
Sets
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10
Reps
Machine Lat Pull Down Assisted Chin Up Triceps Pushdown Assisted Dip
Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri Mon Wed Fri
70 115 40 115
Weight
3 3 6 3
Sets
10 10 10 10
Reps

Feeling better..

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So after almost two weeks of working out, I am feeling better.. Still have not lost much weight or anything, but I am now not as sore when I get home, and I am starting to tweak my workout to be more interesting. I do this of course by figuring out ways to keep track of my progress online and on my computer. How else does a computer geek keep his workout interesting?

So I now have a page just for keeping track of my progress. I will eventually make it list my time on the treadmill also, but for now, it is enough. As you can see, I am skipping some things some days and going a littler harder on something those days. Other days I will be just doing a bit of everything. My goal is to lose some weight and get back into a shape I like. Heh. Something other than just rounding would be cool. Eventually, I will be making it so I can just post Blog like entries to my Exercise page.

Working out Again…

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Ok, I know it is an on again off again thing with the exercise. However, this time, I am joining a gym.  I am actually joining Anytime Fitness. I have been going Monday, Wednesday, Friday for 2 and a half hours per visit.  It is a nice solid workout.  I do the complete round of their equipment, doing at least 3 sets of 10 on each piece of equipment at as much weight as I can manage.  The weight ranges from 30 pounds to 250 pounds depending on what I am working.  Mostly though, 70 pounds is about where I start.

I am hoping to work out for a month or two like this and get into good enough shape to feel comfortable going to MMA training.  Emmy wants to train MMA also, so I am really looking forward to it!  It should be a lot of fun!  After I get a month or so in, I will consider posting some pics and showing how I am doing.  As it stands, I know I need a lot of work before I even consider starting MMA training, let alone consider posting pics. ;P

House upgrades and such.

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Well, I have been a bit busy with doing house repairs.. We have redone the bathroom between the kids rooms and laminated the kitchen and utility room floor.  Now I finally got my Linux system put together and got it up and running today and am going back to playing Warhammer Online. 🙂 Thought I would at least stop off here to let anyone who actually glances at this now and then know what is going on..

Air and Gas combination car a real possibility?

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I was reading a story over on CNN that was very interesting.  It was all about a air/gas car that could get 106mpg.  It is a former french race car engineer’s invention.  It has recently been licensed by a US firm for possible production by 2010.  They hope to have a model that could get 106 mpg and seat 6 for less then $18000.  There are some questions on the possibility of a 6 seater getting that good of mileage, but if it is even slightly possible, it would be REALLY impressive!  Could make us consider getting a new car a lot sooner I guess if they triple the mileage possibilities for that kind of price!