» Fitness - Simon Lau

Fitness for the day – Feb 23rd 2008

bicycle

Another workout and the 1K workouts is becoming a regular event. Watching the Toronto Maples Leafs defeat the Atlanta Trasher in what could be Mat Sundin’s final game as a Toronto Maple Leaf. The rumors are spinning and it’s time to rebuild.

In my 50 minute and 1 second workout, I covered 12.94 miles and burned 1020 calories. Not bad. I finished my workout just as the game ended, good timing on my half.

Tags: Bicycle, exercise, Fitness

. 23 Feb 08 | Fitness | Comments (0)

12-Step Program to Eating Healthier

Leo Babauta put together a great post on his 12-step program to eating healthier. I’ve tweaked his list a little bit and I think everyone will gain!

The rules:

1. Apply these changes, one at a time, until you get used to them. You don’t need to apply them in order.
2. Focus as much energy as possible on each change for at least a couple weeks. Don’t deviate if you can. Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it.
3. If it seems too difficult, make a smaller step instead. For example, instead of cutting out sweets, just cut out cakes and donuts. Smaller steps make things much easier.
4. Always replace bad food with healthy food that you enjoy.

The 12-step program:

1. Eat fruits for snacks. If you snack on junk food during the day, have some fruits by your side at all times. When you’re feeling hungry for a snack, eat a fruit. One of those bags of small apples is a handy thing – you can’t go wrong with apples.
2. Drink water instead of soda or fruit juice. Soda and fruit juices are high in sugar and should be enjoyed in moderation.
3. Eat whole grain bread. If you eat white bread or bagels or whatever, replace them with whole-grain versions. Be sure to look at the ingredients – it shouldn’t say enriched wheat flour, but whole grain. Also try to avoid breads with high-fructose corn syrup (actually, avoid that ingredient in anything).
4. Add fresh veggies to dinner. If you don’t already, have some steamed greens with dinner. Cut out a less healthy side dish if you usually eat something else.
5. Cut out red meat. You can still eat poultry and seafood for now. You can later cut those out too if you want.
6. Make your own food instead of ordering out. Leo use\d the example of making your own pizza with regular store bought ingredients but you can take this much further. You can easily make your own Pad Thai, seafood linguine or potato fries. You get to cut back on the oil, salt and preserved meats while doing your wallet good.
7. Nuts instead of chips. If you normally snack on chips, try unsalted peanuts or raw almonds. Almonds have been known for some great health benefits.
8. Soymilk instead of whole milk. You get used to it after awhile, like all the changes on this list, but if soymilk is a problem at least drink 1% milk. I drink skim milk which has less than 1%, the lower you go the better.
9. Whole grain cereal. If you eat sugary cereal, try a whole-grain cereal instead.
10. Berries instead of candy. Yogurt covered cranberries are much healthier than Jelly Beans!
11. Scrambled tofu instead of fried eggs for a change.
12. Try some great veggie dinners. Mix in more vegetables than meat if you’re not a fan of all salad meals, which can be great for lunches.

Tags: habits, healthy eating, zen habits

. 23 Feb 08 | Fitness | Comments (0)

Fitness for the day – Feb 21st 2008

bicycle

That’s three work outs in a row where I’ve surged past 1000K calories. Maybe surged isn’t the right word, but the point is I went past it and it feels good. I think another two weeks of this and my body will be accustomed to the 50 minute workouts. After that, I’ll need to push it to go further or to work out at a higher incline rating. I currently cycle at level 12 and I believe the bicycle goes up to 16.

For today’s ride, 50 minutes covered 12.89 miles and burned 1016 Calories. This is a tiny bit less than yesterday (12.99miles & 1024 Calories) but I broke into a much bigger sweat today.

Tags: Bicycle, exercise, Fitness

. 21 Feb 08 | Fitness | Comments (0)

Fitness for the Day – Feb 20th 2008

bicycle

After breaking the 1K mark todays ago, I did it again. Today’s ride lasted exactly 50 minutes where I covered 12.99 miles and burned 1024 Calories. I could have gone longer and watched the last 6 minutes of the Raptors vs Orlando basketball game, but I wanted to do some more stretching and have a slow cool down.

I could still use a more comfortable seat and something like a Polar F1 but I don’t that will be happening soon.

Tags: Bicycle, exercise, Fitness

. 20 Feb 08 | Fitness | Comment (1)

Fitness for the Day – Feb 18th 2008

bicycle

It didn’t take long for me to break the 1000 Calorie burn mark, as a matter of fact it took me 48 minutes and 21 seconds to cover 12.7 miles which burned 1001 Calories on my bicycle at an incline/intensity level of 12.

While riding for the 48 minutes, I have added another item to my wishlist for fitness equipment related to cycline.

1) Polar F11

2) A new more comfortable seat for the bicycle.

Given that it only took 48 minutes to reach the 1K mark, I’ll keep doing it consistently and we’ll see where I end up in a few weeks.

Tags: Bicycle, exercise, Fitness, heart rate monitor, pulse, want to buy

. 18 Feb 08 | Fitness | Comments (0)

Fitness for the Day – Feb 17th 2008

bicycle

I never actually got around to changing how the blog works, but I will eventually. When I do, you’ll all see it happen.

I decided to work out earlier than usual on Sunday, mainly because I became frustrated over my Fuel Cells problem set. I did some stretching and cycled for 44 minutes coviner 11.41 miles and burning 900 Calories. My pulse rate peaked at 145bpm. I still want to get a portable pulse monitor, similar. The Polar F-11 would be sweet.

This workout is probably one of my longest and I didn’t feel sore afterwards. I’m going to break the 1K Calorie mark this week and see what happens to the computer. My guess is that it will reset, but we’ll see.

Tags: Bicycle, exercise, Fitness, heart rate monitor, pulse, want to buy

. 17 Feb 08 | Fitness | Comments (0)

Fitness for the Day – Feb 16th 2008

bicycle Depending on what I do with this site, I’m reconsidering how I organize my fitness pages. I might just make a separate page and add a new line with what I’ve done for that particular day. Or I might make these posts not show up on the main page unless it’s a significant event.

For today’s work out, I took it pretty easy. I cycled for 30 minutes plus another few for cool down. I burned 610 Calories and just realized I foolishly forgot to write down how far I travel. Give the time and Calories burned, I guess it would be at the 7.5 mile mark.

Tags: Bicycle, exercise, Fitness

. 16 Feb 08 | Fitness | Comments (0)