It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten up at 5:45am on the regular to work out.  Today, I got to VERT at 5:50AM and met one of the trainers Avery Drost outside. The last time I remember working out before daylight consistently was when I was in high school and college training for football. It was never easy to do, and I never looked forward to it, but once I got going it was on! Today was Abe’s first day of school and I want to be able to walk him down to school regularly so about a week ago I moved my 7am workout back to 6am.  It’s been rough, but just adding that little bit of discipline to my day makes me feel like I can do anything. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve missed the discipline that athletics gave me when I was young and it feels great to have even just a taste of it again. We’ll see where I am when it's cold and dark and it doesn’t get light until 7am, but for now I know what I’ll be doing Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 6am. Thanks Avery! 

Surf and Stoke

I surfed Venice this morning for 2 hours with my friend from high school, Earl Richmond, who is one of the more diesel 42 year old guys I know.  He looks like a white Jerry Rice at 42 years old.  His fitness is purely functional, he does no lifting, no stretching, no classes, no training, but exercises 3 hours on a typical day. At the time of publication, he told me that he is running about 3 miles a day to stay loose, climbing, hiking, and surfing in a river near his home in Buena Vista. Exercise has always been a huge part of his life and the shape he keeps himself in allows him to enjoy any activity presented to him, whether it be a game of frisbee golf, a multi pitch rock climb, or just a good old fashioned surf in some waist high clean peelers in Venice on a sunny summer day. Of note, there was what appeared to be a group of surfing Hasidic Rabbis but on closer inspection it was a group of advertising and design types out for a Saturday morning surf and their stoke was fantastic...great to see.

Super Warm Up

I got to  VERT and was handed a post it with the following warm up. If you're not warmed up this will definitely get you there and if you are warmed up it's a fantastic work out on it's own, I was doubled over going into the third set of burpees...but I made it in 21:06. Next time I'll do better.

Warm Up by Zach 

2:00 Minute Versaclimber (ok to run in place with high  knees)

20 Burpees

20 push ups

20 jumps onto a 36 inch platform (substitute 20 broad jumps)

20 kettle bell swings (ok to substitute 20 push ups or 20 squat jumps)

20 V-ups

20 burpies 

2:00 Minutes on Versaclimber (ok to run in place with high knees)