April update

Numbers

Started the month at 174, aiming at 172, and ended the month at 170.

BJJ and musculation: Kept up the weekly goals.

And, the new one! Burpees. I kept up the burpees every week. I’m now doing two or three burpees per week, 100 per workout, trying to fit them into shorter and shorter times; currently I’m getting them done in a little over ten minutes.

Reflections

Starting the month, I really wanted to build the foundations of a cardio habit - more particularly, burpees. I felt like that would fit really well with the other things I have going on in terms of diet, musculation, BJJ, and other small goals on the horizon. And I felt like with the strength I’ve developed, and the physical hardiness from BJJ, and the cardio exercise I already get in intense bursts at BJJ, maybe my body is more ready to tackle burpees than at other times in the past when I’ve been inspired to start similar projects. I don’t know why I’ve never had as much success with being consistent with burpees as I have with musculation or even, on occasion, with running. Does the intensity of the cardio effort just make it so much more aversive somehow?

Anyhow, here’s how that went this month: At first I was just trying to add more burpees per week. I built up to two hundred, and then decided I’d get a better return on my effort if I start concentrating those burpees into a couple short time slots to make my heart and lungs work harder to keep up with the effort. Going to keep doing this, trying to improve my time. By the end of the month I was feeling the difference this was making for my BJJ.

As far as weight and calories, Easter Sunday’s feasting sent me back up into the 180s and it wasn’t until the middle of the month that I even saw 175 on the scale again. In the final week I saw a 170, but in the final days of the month I was hovering more around 172 or 173. I’m trying something a little bit different than before - smaller salads, and more tic tacs. I’ll keep experimenting with it this next month and maybe say more then.

I like how my musculation regimen is going. I keep on finding convenient places to slot in extra exercises (every time I wash my hands in the bathroom now, I try to remember to do a biceps exercise!), and refining the exercises themselves (I’ve had such a hard time getting my isometric row exercise to work but I’m finally getting to a satisfactory version).

Cardio is improving quickly. I hope I can get this burpee regimen locked in and sustainable and automatic as time goes on - then I can just be in great cardiovascular shape perpetually without needing eg running shoes or temperate sidewalks to run on.

I’ve signed up to do my first BJJ competition at the end of June. Focusing on that has already I think started to crystallize my BJJ game in a good way. I’m feeling very good about the shape my BJJ game is taking as time goes on.

I have also finally gotten started on some wardrobe plans. It took a lot of thinking to find an approach I like and then even longer to get it off the ground. Well, I don’t know if I should say it’s off the ground; I’ve ordered and sent back three items of clothing, and ordered and canceled before they shipped another two, and now I have two more on the way. So still no new clothes in hand. But once I start finding the ones I like I’m hopeful the basic wardrobe will come together relatively quickly.

Predictions

Ended the month at about 170lbs. This is ambitious, but I’d really love to get down to 165 by the end of next month. I’ve never been anywhere near that number but I’m thinking it might be possible.

BJJ and musculation: just gonna keep doing what I do, working toward the BJJ tournament, being consistent.

Burpees: let’s see; I think for this month what I’d really love to get to is 130 burpees in 9 and a half minutes. We’ll see if I can build to that by the end of the month.

Wardrobe: I should have at least a couple new items this month, with a couple more on the way, or even better would be just to be up four in total by the end of the month.