PenteKing’s BodyBlog

It’s only seven weeks until my 70 mile bike ride to benefit the ADA. I’m getting more and more excited as each day passes by. I so badly want to do well in this. I don’t expect to come in first, and I certainly don’t expect to be among the top ten. But I do expect to maintain a good 15 - 20 mph pace, and to FINISH the event. I’ve convinced 32 people to contribute so far, and I feel the weight of their collective expectations on my shoulders. I don’t think I’d be able to show my face again if I didn’t finish. (Barring an accident or some other unforeseen misfortune, of course.)

I’ve been biking pretty steadily, both on the road and in the gym. The weather here in San Diego has been unseasonably cool and wet, and I’ve taken advantage of the fact to build up my lung capacity and the strength in my legs. I’ve limited my rides to relatively flat terrain, but this weekend, I’m attacking a couple of hills in the area. It will be a test of both my endurance and gear shifting skill. I do okay with the rear gears, but am having trouble with the front derauiller. I’m still not comfortable on this bike and need to bond with it during the next few weeks.

Wish me luck, friends and neighbors. I mean to do this, come hell or high water.

Today, in addition to weight lifting, I took a thirty mile bike ride (in the rain, I might add), and then followed that up with a ten mile run. I sincerely have no idea what possessed me to do this, but I felt jazzed and energized and full of energy. Once I was rolling, I felt like I could go forever. It’s not often that one feels this good, and my theory is that when the good feelings are upon you, you should take advantage of them to the fullest extent possible.

The only downer (and it was a small one) was my inexperience in releasing my feet from the toe clips on my bike. I have the lollipop (which is the longest word you can type solely with your right hand on the keyboard) pedals. I know that I’m supposed to be able to release my foot simply by twisting my heel away from the bike’s frame, but for some reason, my right foot doesn’t want to cooperate. It hangs  and then I fall. The fall doesn’t usually hurt (’cause I can see it coming), but it’s damned embarrassing. Today, it happened just as a woman runner came streaking by, and I could hear her laugh as she went whizzing by. I guess practice makes perfect, but I have visions of this happening to me in traffic. I can’t disengage, fall in front of a semi with bad brakes, and WHAM! Lights out. I can see my tombstone now.

Done in by faulty toe clips. It’ll give other gravesite visitors something to mull over.

Anyway, all in all, it was a good day. Onward and upward. I hope you all have a happy week. Until next time, Ciao!

If anyone knows the answer to this question, please post a response. I’ve written the web master (or whomever it is that reads the emails generated by clicking the "Contact us" link), but have received no reply. Nor have I received a reply to the error messages I’ve been receiving when logging entries into Workout Tracker and when trying to upload photographs. I have several progress pics that I’d like to put up on the web site, but I CAN’T! I keep getting that "Fatal Error" message. It makes me vaguely uneasy, as though I’m singularly responsible for the death of the database (or if not its death, crippling it at the very least).

So, because the overseers of this site have failed to respond, I am reaching out the members of the community. Can anyone help a buddy in need? Anyone?

Has any one else experienced the problems that I’ve been having? Namely, the performance lately has been abysmal. It takes FOREVER to load a page, especially if it’s heavy on graphics and links. The Workout Tracker displays the following error message whenever I use it: Fatal error: Allowed memory size of 104857600 bytes exhausted (tried to allocate 71 bytes) in /mnt/www/bodybuilding/htdocs/workout/include/class.bwt_best_mgr.php on line 780. My body points has stopped accuring (not that that really matters because I don’t use them, but still…), and when I try to post forum messages, oftentimes my messages simply don’t appear, or mysteriously vanish after an hour or two.

Now, I’m willing to concede that it COULD be my PC, but I don’t think so. I’ve had this happen to me on my desktop, my private laptop, and the laptop that I use at work (Shhh! Don’t tell the boss!). I’ve written the web master, but haven’t received a reply.

What say you, my fellow bodybuilders? Am I the only one having these issues, or is this an endemic problem? Enquiring minds want to know.

I’m continually amazed at the things bodybuilders will do in pursuit of the perfect physique. They’ll get up at the ass-crack of dawn to go running in sub-zero weather. They’ll eat the same bland diet six weeks in a row in order to build muscle. They’ll wear hooded sweatshirts into the sauna in order to leach one last ounce of excess water from their frames. They’ll hit the gym first thing in the morning and the last thing at night. They’ll take supplements, protein powders, diuretics and herbs in quantities that would kill a lesser human being. They’ll sacrifice relationships, jobs and yes, even money, to chase their dreams.

Bodybuilders are a strange breed.

I’m proud to counted among their number.

On Saturday, I hopped on my bicycle, intending to go fifty miles to train for my upcoming event for the American Diabetes Association. I felt good; the weather was great, I had everything I needed, and most importantly, I was motivated. I had gone about 9 or 10 miles when disaster struck.

I have an older helmet, purchased many years ago. Either my head has shrunk (doubtful) or the spacers in the helmet’s lining have shifted or fallen out. Whatever the case, the helmet, after about five miles or so into the ride, kept slipping down over my eyes. It was an annoying problem, but not a show stopper. However, I did have to keep pushing it back up on my head into the proper position.

I was crossing a set of railroad tracks, when the helmet slipped down over my eyes. I took my hand off the handlbar to adjust the helmet. The next thing I knew, I was down, skidding about a yard before coming to a stop. I had, of course, gotten my front wheel caught in the railroad track. I was moving at about fifteen miles an hour when this happened, so I had momentum going for me. Luckily, I was wearing a backpack, and it absorbed a lot of the impact, but I hit pretty hard nonetheless.

The bike was okay, but I was not. I had to limp home. Yesterday, my back tightened up to the point where I had to use a hard foam roller to work out the kinks. Today, I’m still stiff and sore and cursing myself for such a dumb-ass move. I know better. When crossing railroad tracks, go over them at a 90 degree angle, keep your hands on the handlebars, your upper body relaxed, and your breathing controlled. I know better.

So how come I’m such an idiot? I’m paying for my folly today, and can only hope that I heal fast.

I’ve been ruminating about this for the past few weeks because I’ve wondered how come I don’t seem to grow any bigger. I’m doing all the things recommended by the experts on this and other bodybuilding sites, yet my body measurements have stayed pretty much the same. (An obvious exception is my waist, which has shrunk nearly four inches!) Still, my chest, thighs and biceps haven’t shown much improvement.

Yet, I’m waaayyyy stronger than I was only four months ago. Not only can I lift more, but I can last longer. (God, that sounds like one of those cheap Vigara ads!) I feel and look better. I have more energy, and all in all, a much more positive outlook on life. So why am I obssessed with getting bigger? Isn’t the whole point of bodybuilding to be fit and healthy? If I’m achieving that goal, why should I fret and worry about gaining mass my body can’t support. I don’t have an answer to the question and so, I’m soliciting the opinions of the community.

What say you? Is bigger really better? Chip in with your two cents worth. I’m all attention.

With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, I’d thought I’d take pen in hand (figuratively speaking, of course) and jot down a few thoughts on what to get for that special bodybuilder in your life. So, without further ado, here are a few suggestions:

• A gift certificate to a sexy photo shoot;
• Custom lingerie with a digitized picture of YOU on the front (or the rear if you’re really bold);
• Full body massages for the two of you;
• Footing the bill for that custom posing suit she’s had her eye on;
• A month’s supply of Healthy Glow;
• Two tubs of Pied di Pepper Foot Lotion (available at Lush. The stuff is GREAT!)
• A selection of organic soaps (almond, milk and honey, and oatmeal are perennial favorites);
• A bottle of organic wine (no sulfites) from Chile or Australia;
• A catered dinner in the privacy of your home (complete with wait staff, of course);
• An herbal facial (this works for men as well as women)

There you have it; PenteKing’s top ten suggestions for a perfect Valentine’s Day. It is my sincere wish that each member of the Bodybuilding.com community gets lucky on February 14^th. I want to see smiles on all your faces on the morning of the 15^th.

• Exercising aimlessly
• Let’s face it; we’ve all done this. We go to the gym without an overall plan. Instead of targeting and aggressively hitting a body part (or parts), we wander from arms to back to legs to chest without a single integrated idea. It’s best to have a clear plan in mind BEFORE you hit the gym.
• Using mostly machines & single joint exercises
• Not to be sexist, but more women commit this sin than men. They’re still afraid of the weights, afraid of “bulking up”. Restricting oneself exclusively to machines is to do your body a disservice. Free weights force your body to build complementary muscles in addition to the primary ones. Machines are good for isolation exercises, but for an overall body routine, free weights are the best.
• Repeating the same workouts without progressive overload
• Your body is extraordinarily adaptable. In fact, that is the most amazing thing about it. When first trying an exercise, you sweat, struggle and strain. Before you know it, though, you’re flying through the routine and then find that you’ve hit a plateau. Mix it up. Keep your muscles guessing.
• Lifting too much weight
• Steve Reeves once said, “It’s better to perform four correct repetitions of an exercise than twenty incorrect ones.” Do yourself a favor. Check your ego at the door. Your body will respond faster than you can imagine and you’ll lower your risk of injury.
• Exercising too intensely
• You’ve seen the type in your gym, I’m sure. This is the guy who’s all sound and fury – grunting and spitting; moving as fast as he can from exercise to exercise, never pausing to rest, recover or check his form. Don’t emulate him. The consequences are too dire to imagine.
• Not exercising intensely enough
• On the flip side, don’t pick up a five pound weight, do two reps, and then sit and read a newspaper article. You want to fatigue the muscles to the point where your last set is a struggle to complete. The only way to do this is to exercise with the right amount of intensity. If you’re not sweating and tired at the end of your routine, guess what? You didn’t exercise intensely enough
• Jerking or bouncing while lifting weights
• Jerking or bouncing weights is a sure-fire way to injure oneself. This is especially true when performing shoulder exercises. Keep your movements smooth and fluid.
• Using a weight lifting belt or wrist/grip straps
• I know what you’re going to say; Olympic weight lifters use them. Yes, but only because they’ve been lifting heavy weights for years BEFORE adapting the belts and straps. Their joints and ligaments are used to the heavy weights. Their nervous systems have adapted. Unless you’re in the same category, the only thing the belt and straps will do is give you a false sense of security. Do yourself a favor and abandon them until you’re Olympic material.
• Conducting resistance training every day
• Your muscles need time to repair and grow. Taxing them every day will only decrease your muscle mass. Over training is the single biggest mistake most beginning bodybuilders commit. Your body does its best muscle building work when it is asleep or resting. Give your muscles time to recover. Your gains will be impressive.
• Using the gym for socializing
• Do I really have to explain this one?

As you all know, I’m training to go the distance in the Tour de Cure, the American Diabetes Association’s bike ride to raise money and awareness. I’ve laid out a schedule that, if followed to the letter, should put me in shape to go the entire distance without puking my guts out at the end.

Today, I was scheduled to go forty miles, but when my on-board computer showed that I had covered the allotted distance, I felt so good, I decided to tack on another five miles. I may regret my enthusiasm in the morning, but right now, I feel great - mentally, emotionally and physically. I’m bummed that the workout tracker here on BB.com doesn’t allow one to account for intense cardio workouts. The calendar makes it look as though I’m slacking off. I’M NOT (except for last Wednesday). I’m training my a** off.

Tomorrow is back day. Seated rows, upright rows, lying T-Bar pullups, wide-grip pull-ups and dumbbell shrugs. Wish me luck.