Workout – Marcus Can Blog

Jump Around

We kept our house (or try to) minimalist so we’d have enough space for Marcus’ wheelchair and there is benefit to doing it. As I progress along my home workout routines I discovered I have room to do skip ropes indoors and I have been doing this for years now.

Once I thought I’d be happy to do crossover jumps but it got boring soon. Then I was able to achieve double unders though only sparingly and just in between fast skips. Nowhere to run, literally, this quarantine period I upped the skip rope difficulty.

Thanks to YouTube, I saw a video that got me interested. It was a CrossFit challenge featuring 45 double unders done in succession. One after the other. Next day I attempted it and found out I can do it. I have improved my double unders count since then but not yet halfway close to 45.

Like anything else, there’s a technique to double unders. It’s not just all about jumping high but rather it involves coordination of movements. The flick of the wrist to make the rope go around faster is key.

A lighter and smaller rope also presents a good challenge than using a heavier rope. Unable to just go back to my favorite sports store, Decathlon, whenever I want to, I found Jump Manila on Facebook. The page promotes jumping rope activities and also sells skipping ropes.

I was happy with Jump Manila’s skip rope but two months later it revealed its weak spot.

Jump Manila’s very simple and lightweight design has an Achilles heel. Without a bearing like Decathlon’s Domyos skip rope, the constant motion of the rope results to friction at the area close to the tip of the handle and over time a nick formed until the rope snapped.

Domyos skip ropes have bearings to prevent the rope from rubbing the edge of the handles.

Now I’m left using my trusty old Domyos skip rope. It’s slightly harder to flick but I’m good with it until I find another. I have my eyes set on buying from Decathlon ‘s online store as Ive seen on Facebook they have a weight adjustable skip rope. We’ll see how this goes.

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Mood: 2/10 Honks! (Weekend again.)

Internet Challenges: Keeping Our Sanity

The COVID-19 enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) or something that feels like a lockdown or house arrest has so far exposed talents that most of us never knew we have . Some friends have given in to TikTok even without the influence of alcohol, just driven by pure boredom. Thankfully I haven’t had any video using this app although I now have the TikTok on my phone ready when better judgment fails me. Or when the spirit of alcohol kicks in.

But there are things that piqued our curiosity more than TikTok dances and with nothing but extra time on our side, we tried a couple already.

Dalgona coffee challenge. First seen trending on Let’s Eat Pare Facebook page, this foamy coffee refreshment immediately captured my attention but comments about having to whisk like an hour waned my interest in it. Then wifey, as usual, took on the challenge armed with a manual egg beater.

It didn’t take long for her to churn out a Dalgona foam–long whisking myth busted. She was able make one serving in just about 10 minutes which we both shared, unequally, me getting the most of it. I don’t have a benchmark on how it should taste but ours ended up literally bittersweet which I like. Not bad for our first Dalgona coffee.

MyFitnessPal shows 300 ml is about 250 plus calories.

Handstand t-shirt challenge. My sister tagged me on Facebook on a post showing a video of the Spider-man star, Tom Holland, putting on a t-shirt while upside down. I got more excited when I realized it wasn’t really a strict handstand so in a couple of hours after finding a gap in my work at home I tried it.

First try was just to check how my video would look like. It was my first attempt to lift one hand while on face-to-wall handstand position so there’s some hesitation when I tested if I can wear the shirt. I gathered enough courage and balance on the second video recording and was able to complete the challenge in less than a minute. See video below.

The ECQ has been extended until April 30 so I now wonder what internet challenges I’d do next.

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Mood: 2/10 Honks! (Getting used to working from home.)

My Worked Out Hands Take A Rest

I must admit that I haven’t given my hands the care that it needs. Almost seven days a week I would have a workout that involves putting pressure on my palms and fingers. One day I’d be doing pull ups, next day push ups, and other days I’d do hand stands. Running days are only when the hands get its rest.

Then the bug finally hits me. Despite extra measures to avoid catching the dreaded cold virus that seem to have been all over since the start of this year, an unplanned trip to our clinic to visit a sick direct report caught me unguarded. The clinic was small and enclosed, I was in close proximity as we talked, I got nowhere to hide, and I forgot to wear mask like I would whenever I take public transport. Boom, sick me.

A week since then I had to take the needed break from intense physical activities. I was able to report to work but like the warning on my son’s newly downloaded F1 2018 game whenever he drives the cars too hard, I was forced to continue on low fuel mode. Slow pace in short, functioning in bare minimum just to survive the day.

But sometimes something good comes out of bad things. Sans workout sessions I noticed that my hands have become better. No more splits, no more cracks. Even the calluses are almost gone. “Looks like I have to change my workout routine, I’d do more running, ” I told my wife. “So?” she asked, question prolonged. “I need new running shoes, ” I joked, half meant.

Frankly, with or without new running shoes, I am excited to start fresh. I plan to workout again soon but I will pay more attention to hand care. I am currently using either O’Keeffe’s Working Hands cream (I keep this at work as it doesn’t have any scent that could annoy anyone nearby whenever I apply it) or Bag Balm which I should remember to use every after my exercise sessions. I also need to wear gloves consistently to prevent my hands from direct contact and pressure especially during heavy workouts.

Now that I mentioned heavy, I may have to change my routines soon. Stuck on our refrigerator is a printout of my exercises when I still have my strap for suspension training. Last February, however, I responded to Decathlon’s Domyos strap recall and was surprised to learn that the only option I have is to refund the item instead of exchanging it. Now my suspension routines are permanently suspended (pun intended).

Looks like pomade but it’s for the hands.

Then there’s also Marcus growing up and heavier. He is starting to fall off the small foldable stool we bought at S&R back in 2018 when taking a bath so this week I modified his Medline Bath Safety Chair that he only uses to reach the bathroom sink so that this time it fits our narrow bath tub. Some elbow grease did the trick to bend the aluminum legs within 14″ width. Bathroom scale also shows he is now 60 lbs (27 kgs) which is why carrying him is becoming a pain in the back.

All these factors considered, I need to align my workout to the demand. Heavy lifting requires strength which means, obviously, more strength training than running sessions. For a while there, I thought I could engage my hands lesser but it wasn’t realistic expectation. So at least until I have recovered fully, the hands take a rest.

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Mood: 2/10 Honks! (Tonight’ the night we make waves.)

Flex Monday

The challenge with working out at home is the need to ensure you execute the right form. So lately I’ve been recording myself doing my routines to check if my forms are spot on and if not, correct it accordingly. I can do handstand pushups but I’ve been wanting to do it without the wall.

Good thing YouTube has been helpful so far. I am following Chris Heria, GMB, and Athlean X among many others to get tips on how to perfect the forms through progression. Recently I also downloaded Heria’s Thenx app which as of now don’t have any annoying ads plus the videos are easy to understand. I’m now in the process of this app’s handstand pushup intermediate level.

It’s Monday. Preparing to be flexible at work.

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Mood: 2/10 Honks! (Summer is almost here?)

More Than Just Physical

What the mind can conceive, the body can achieve. It’s a twist to a quote by someone named Napoleon Hill (if Google is to be trusted) which everyone might have heard or read already. Such is cryptic however or sounds cliche, even irrelevant for anyone who hasn’t realized that at some point it has happened to them.

This concept became apparent when I started going to the gym. Like most noobs, I went to the gym without understanding fully what it takes to be there. I first set foot in a gym at Intel just because it’s free, cold, and equipment are mostly top of the line. I was there thinking I would lift whatever my physical strength allows me. If I cant, I won’t, I’ll just call it a day.

Few years later, I became more focused on strength training when we first learned about Marcus’ condition. It was something that we need to be prepared of, physically in one aspect. So I went back to the gym again. This time I paid some attention to my nutrition. I eat rice before each session and it was key to lifting relatively heavier weights. But other guys I see can do more.

I was back to the drawing board. Then I saw on YouTube about the mental aspect of lifting. It got me interested and excited. The last gym I had was few meters from our old home so I would time my visits when there are less patrons. I worked out noon time while Marcus is in school or after I have dropped him off. I gradually worked my way up the dumbbells and few sessions later reached the heaviest weights of the rack. True enough, I soon see myself bench pressing two 50-lb dumbbells. It gave me confidence to workout even when the gym is packed.

I haven’t gotten back to the gym for years but thanks to this free Kindle book by Dan Kavadlo, I continue to do my bodyweight workouts at home. Running too is now part of my training plan.

Time and again my body would make up alibi to stay sedentary. “It’s a weekend”, ” it’s cold outside”, “Netflix is calling”, ” bed is better”, and so many other temptations to stay put. Maybe it’s the body’s instinct to preserve itself from stress which is when it becomes more mental than physical. It pays to listen to your body but not all the time. You should know better.

Sometimes when the body says dizzy, you say 5K. That’s just what I did today. Same story as before. And guess what? In this dizzy state I broke my personal time. I’m now two minutes away from my sub 30 goal. See.

The leg says run, the mind thinks pizza!

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Here’s a confession. I haven’t heard Sunday mass for a long time–me and Marcus. But this doesn’t mean I have become less(er) pious. In fact, it is when I workout and run that I pray more sincerely than when I’m in church. In training, I’m alone, focused, no annoying churchgoers, no distracting females who continue to play dumb by defying the church’s dress code. Oopps. Sorry Lord, my bad.

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Mood: 2/10 Honks! (Getting gloomy, so it seems like ditching the Hot Air Balloon show was a good idea.)