One month done, two to go! I slacked off a bit during the recovery week, skipped a couple days because I didn’t feel well, but came back with a vengeance yesterday with Shoulders Back and Triceps, followed by a systema class (1:30), I was exhausted, but today I feel great. I am still a bit unnerved by not losing any weight, even though I am more toned. Bye-bye love handles! Now do I see slight physical changes in my body. After some research, it seems like this is normal. Your body goes through a 3-4 week period when it doesn’t know how to react to the shock and stores water. Most videos I found on Youtube show a certain pattern depending on body weight. Overly overweight people change the most during the first month, losing a lot of fat, probably because of the diet change. Those in a decent, though not perfect shape, like myself, see changes mostly in the second month. Skinny or already toned people progress rapidly throughout the program. That is my observation anyway. My slow metabolism might require a second round.
I have by the way replaced Kenpo X, which I find ridiculous, by my Systema class. If it doesn’t fall on the right day, I will then modify it to be more Systema-like. I mean constant and rotational movements as opposed to stop-and-go action.
Yoga feels better, since I am getting noticeably stronger. Still, 1:30 is a long time. At least I mostly do enjoy it now, but for a few poses.
One word of caution here.. The temptation to slack off and quit is great at this time. Fortunately or not, I am stubborn and hate not finishing what I set myself to do. I might even up the ante by going to two or three Systema classes per week, as opposed to one. I was able to complete Ab Ripper X without pressing the pause button on Sunday, what a great feeling! I have only one regret after one month, and that it not being able to do a single pull-up yet.
X Stretch which I had not tried yet turned out to be a great routine. No sweating here, just a nice, comfortable warmth and great stretches, some of them you would have already done in the warm-ups and Yoga X. I would definitely suggest anyone to do it during their recovery day every week. It is like a nice body massage, and leaves you with the satisfaction of doing something that day.
Core Synergistics is a very hard workout. You pretty much work your whole body. I was not able to do all the exercises, and don’t expect to, probably until phase three. I suggest you to watch any workout you haven’t done before actually going ahead, because otherwise you lose a lot of time learning the moves and your first session gets botched up.
Shoulders Back and Triceps: Lots of push-ups, some I could not do like the one-handed version. I had to go buy ten-pound dumbbells for certain moves. You end-up with a lot of weight above your head, working those shoulders and triceps. I hit the pause button a few times to catch my breath, but finished nevertheless.
One third of the way through, and I am still impatient. The changes I see do not come fast enough, but I am pushing myself hard, and can’t do much more.. I will take my 30-day photos tonight and hopefully there will be a visible difference. A couple people have noticed and told me so, but I can’t see it much. Maybe on a screen side-by-side, it will be more obvious. I just need to be patient and not give-up. Tonight I have Plyometrics, followed by a Systema class, if I’m not too exhausted. That will be another 2:30 exercise day in a row.
Two weeks completed! Almost, I am about to do Yoga X on my day off, since I skipped it a few days ago and did Ab Ripper X instead.
To my surprise, I gained 5Lbs the first ten days! Disappointing, since I am hoping to drop 15Lbs during the twelve weeks. It turns out that this isn’t unusual at the beginning of each phase. The body reacts to soreness by storing water everywhere. I did reduce my calories intake a bit, and bingo, I am back down to 203.5Lbs. I know such small changes mean nothing, but it keeps me motivated. I hope to reach 195Lbs by mid July. That would be of course more than a 5Lbs fat loss, since I am also putting on muscle mass. I did replace Kenpo X by a systema class plus Ab Ripper X, and it easily made up for it. I was wondering about dropping Yoga this week, but I am committed to this program, and I can’t start cheating now.
Creatine: I got myself a kilo of creatine. It definitely seems to help getting a few more reps at the end, especially when doing abs. I didn’t load as much as product manufacturers suggest (20g/day for 5-7 days), but did 15g/day for five days. Now I take 5g 30 minutes before a workout.
Kenpo X: I have much to say about Kenpo X. Consider it a cardio workout, and nothing else. The P90X book calls Kenpo a “raw street fighting style.” I disagree. Do not hope to use your Kenpo X to defend yourself, or you might get in trouble. The punches are ‘stop-and-back’ classical karate style with a lot of tension. There are a couple problems associated with that. First, why hurt your joints by stopping your arm in mid air and pulling back? This sudden reversal of kinetic energy is wasteful and pulls quite a bit on your joints. Second, when you punch someone, you want the energy generated by mass and movement to transfer to your target, not bounce right back to you. Translation: You must keep a loose shoulder for your punch to be efficient. Instead of stop-and-back, I punch in a circular or elliptical motion. I do not slow down my punches at any time during this motion. If I was to hit something, most of the energy would be transfered. Same for the blocks. If you don’t have to block, don’t. Redirect attacks with circular motion. I try to keep constant motion during Kenpo X, no linear back-and-forth movements. You could do the same for kicks, but I left that part unchanged. After all, this is not a self defense workout, but a cardio one. I might post a video here later to explain those changes.
Legs and Back: Probably the easiest of the resistance series for me. Easiest doesn’t mean easy.. I think my daily bicycle rides, though short, helped me quite a bit. Not much to say here, just that it is a sound, classic workout, like most of the others.
X Stretch: I haven’t tried yet. The last day of weeks 1 through 4 is supposed to be either off or X Stretch. Since I skipped a couple days, I had to catch up during my day off.
After two weeks of training, I can’t see any difference in my body shape yet, and it is too soon for that. I am just happy to be sticking with the program. 1:15 of exercise a day actually takes much more time. Consider meal preparations (6/day), shopping, calorie counting on fitday.com, more showers, more laundry… So, I estimate more like a 2:00 to 2:30 daily commitment. I still try to go to my Systema class once or twice a week.
Two more weeks and I will be posting about the recovery week four and my results at the end of phase one. And now, on to Yoga X. I hate that one… Oh well…
I finally decided to get myself a new body! Well, sort of.. I have been practicing Systema for five years now, and reached a plateau which I deem to be physical. Problem is, I find it very hard to stay motivated as far as working out goes.. Forget going to the gym, although there is a lot of eye candy at mixed gender venues. Let’s face it, I need structure, something to stick to, a plan of some sort. So, I searched the net for something that would suit my needs.
Everything seemed to point to P90X. It is a very hard program, 90 days, about 1:15 a day of strenuous workouts, along with a nutrition plan that probably will make my French ancestors turn in their graves. The box came, containing twelve DVDs, a nutrition book and workout book. The only things you need are a pull-up bar (you’ll be doing a lot of those!) and dumbbells. I thought it would be one DVD per week, but you actually use different disks every day.
Looking at the nutrition book left me a bit puzzled. For the first month, I am supposed to eat 3000 calories a day, 20% fats, 30% carbohydrates, and 50% proteins. Let me tell you, that little fat and carbs is nothing. I find it difficult to keep them down, while consuming enough proteins. I don’t think I could do it without Whey protein powder. If you are thinking about getting into P90X, or any similar exercise regimen, plan on spending good money on quality food and supplements.
I am now 6’2”, 200Lbs. Not bad for a 43yo, but I could bulk up a bit, especially on the arms, and lose enough belly to see my six-pack abs (I know they are in there somewhere). I probably won’t have to lose any weight, just redistribute it. You won’t see my before photos yet, because I don’t like them. I will post them later, when I see some visible improvements. Who wants to see a half naked middle-aged Frenchman anyway, right?
Here is a brief overview of my first few days, and what I think of the different workouts:
Ab Ripper X: Only sixteen minutes long, you do it along with other workouts. I have always been good at abs, so no problem there, I can almost keep up with these guys, but for some reps in the last five minutes. You really feel a nice burn with these exercises, lower and upper abs, the later which I seem to have disregarded in the past, given the pain I feel now. There is only one way to get a six-pack, and that is to lower you percentage of body fat to at least 10% (15% for women). No amount of exercise will do it. Ab Ripper X though is certainly a good start.
Plyometrics: It’s all about jumping around, up and down. My legs are still sore from the day before last. One hour is pretty hard. I hit the pause button a few times to drink water and dry myself with a towel. Your heart rate goes way up, and you sweat buckets. I felt pretty good after, more from the accomplishment of finishing it than the workout itself. It’s a hell of a way to start the day.
Chest and Back: That’s when the dumbbells come in. I got a set at Goodwill for $23, the kind that use sliding plates. Bad idea… You end-up changing weights all the time, pressing the pause button every few minutes. A one hour workout takes one and a half. I need to get a few pairs: 10Lbs, 25Lbs, and 30Lbs, for now. 25Lbs is what I use the most right now. My friend Ted loaned me a pull-up bar you put on a door frame. It works fine, but I have seen better ones, allowing a wider grip, at Walmart, of all places. Right now I can’t do even one pull-up, so I put my feet on a chair. If one word defines “Chest and Back,” it’s “push-ups.” I did 23 on the first day, but I know I can go up to 30 on a good day.
Shoulders and Arms: Bring on the weights! Lots of curls, triceps, dips with a chair. It is hard (I suspect none of these twelve workouts will be easy..), but quite fun. My left shoulder is much weaker than my right, due to a dislocation a few years ago. My elbow joints hurt on the inside, I wonder what I could do to take care of that.. That is one workout however I will be looking forward to.
Yoga X: I’ll be honest here, the first half really sucks. I am as flexible as a cutting board and could do practically none of it. The book says it is based on Hatha Yoga, but the first half is more like Iyengar, which I do not like. I prefer a more dynamic yoga, without so many balance and holding poses (though I can stay in tree pose forever). I was almost going to give-up and replace it with something else, like Cardio X. The problem is that if I start making one concession, I will make others.. I really want to stick to the program as closely as I possibly can, without missing any days or avoiding exercises I dislike.
I just finished day 4, and will describe the last workouts of this week in a few days, namely “Legs and Back,” “Kenpo X,” which by the way is in my opinion practically worthless for self defense as presented in P90X (I only mention this because they did mention self-defense), and “X Stretch,” which you can do on your off day. Feel free to ask any questions or give me advise in the comments box below..
I have been interested in gyroplanes since the 80s. I was flying ultralights at the time, and those machines seemed so nimble. I still want to build a CH-701 from a kit, but the total cost of the project would probably be around $30k. A single-seat gyroplane will set me back about $9k. So, I will apply the saying here “Go small, go now!” The two-seater airplane will have to wait a few years..
I chose a design based on a well known safe gyro, the Gyrobee. The new model, called a Hornet, has some improvements, including, and most importantly, a line of thrust aligned with the center of gravity. It also has a large horizontal stabilizer. Those two safety features, though the Gyrobee has a great reputation of stability, will make the Hornet even more stable. Hopefully, it will reduce the risk of bunt-over to near-zero. Bunts are what unrecoverable flat spins are to airplanes.. You make the wrong mistake and wham, lights out, forever. That is why I will also seek professional instruction, even though I know enough to take-off and fly around..
Here are the parts I am starting with:
Airframe Parts
I will describe the whole building process here, on the Rotary Forum.
If you are curious about the helicopter’s Grand-Daddy, keep reading…
Gyroplanes are probably the least known and most intriguing flying machines. Invented in 1923 by Juan de la Cierva, a Spanish civil Engineer and pilot, they are the precursor of the helicopter. The first gyroplanes, or autogiros, had an airplane fuselage with a rotor mounted on top of a mast. The engine and propeller were mounted forward, as on a regular airplane. The rotor blades are not powered by the engine, but spin freely. they must be pre-rotated before takeoff, either by hand or using a mechanical system. The propeller ensures forward movement.
The most famous gyroplane is without a doubt “Little Nellie,” piloted by Ken Wallis in the James Bond movie “You Only Live Twice.” There was one also in the Mad-Max movie “The Road Warrior.”
The early machines had an excellent safety record. A gyroplane can not stall like a fixed-wing aircraft. However, a gyro can’t hover without a strong enough head-wind, which prompted the development of the helicopter. These amazing machines faded out of our aviation landscape, and probably would have disappeared if it wasn’t for one Russian immigrant, Igor Bensen, who simplified the design in 1955 by reducing it to a keel tube and mast, with a pusher engine in the back and a seat up-front. Bensen created the Popular Rotorcraft Association (PRA) in 1962, and the aircraft made a huge comeback in the 70s and 80s.
Unfortunately, people tend to modify designs, install bigger engines, and try new configurations. Many did not have Bensen’s understanding of the aerodynamics of rotorcrafts. Many of these machines did not have a horizontal stabilizer, and their high thrust-line above the center of gravity sometimes caused them to bunt-over. Pilots started dying, and the gyroplane developed a bad reputation. Today’s machines are much safer. Although much of them are based on the Bensen, a few went back to the tractor design of old days; notably the Little Wing models, which I find very attractive.
The Mecca of gyroplanes in the United States is in Wauchula Florida, where the Sunstate Wings & Rotors Club organizes the annual Bensen Days fly-in. That is where I met Joe Pires, a Bensen Days organizer who was kind enough to arrange a ride for me, and give me the information I needed for this article. Joe told me that the movement actually started in Immokalee Florida. When instructor Dave Seace left town for Wauchula, some followed, and the rest is history, as they say. Dave has trained a good number of pilots on his Dominator gyroplane, and I was eager to get a ride in his machine. The Wauchula airport welcomes gyroplanes, unlike many others, thanks to it’s manager, Jim Hay. About eight machines are based on the airport, in a hangar area called “Moron Ville,” name for which I didn’t get an explanation, but would probably be an interesting story. Around eighty five machines were parked on the tarmac, mostly Dominators from Rotor Fligh Dynamics, a few modified RAF-2000s, and numerous other designs such as the Monarch, Gyrobee, Sportcopter, to name a few. More are expected tomorrow, along with a few hundred visitors. Club President Scott Lewis also organizes fly-ins on the 4th of July and New Year’s Eve, though this week-end’s event is the largest.
Rotor Flight Dynamics Dominators
Monarch
Sportcopter
Mosquito XEL Ultralight Helicopter
Dave Seace’s Dominator gyroplane
The Tori Tanto is a Chinese made replica of a Japanese tanto knife. Mine arrived today, and I have to say, I am impressed. It is one of the first 50 that were made with T10 steel instead of the Swedish powdered steel Hanwei uses. They were recalled, but this one got away.
My first impression was “this is a big knife!” The blade is 11”1/4. Overall length is almost 17”. I had to grab some junk mail on the kitchen counter and cut it.. Wickedly sharp is an understatement. The blade goes through paper almost like it wasn’t there. The mount is solid, with a very nice ray skin tsuka. That grip won’t slip, that’s for sure. My blade is not folded, like the new ones. The hamon is very prominent and looks artificially enhanced, something I wish Hanwei would stop doing.
Cutting palm fronds was very easy, as you’ll see in the video. The Tori Tanto cuts even better than my Cheness Kaze Ko Katana. I did not want to try it on bamboo. It would be a shame to scratch that blade. I know what the result would be anyway, given how sharp it is.
The tanto must have been a formidable weapon in it’s time. They were worn by Samurai inside as a backup, when wearing a sword was impractical. A skilled swordsman could probably chop a wrist clean off with one of those. It is still as formidable today as it was then, as far as self-defense goes. My interest in knives has always been about how such a simple tool can take so many forms, as well as metallurgical and historical factors. The Tori is a lot of knife for the money. Priced at around $300 new, I believe it would still sell at twice that amount. So, when I found mine at $230, I couldn’t let it go.