Oscar's birthday

 I sent my brother a Happy birthday message this morning. He responded he wanted to call me, so I called him. We talked about Assen and Sophia. He said he feels pretty healthy (although he is completely blind). He sounded like he is in a very good mood. He is now 63 years young. He has always amazed me of his intelligence. We had a nice chat. I told him I have plans to visit him in August. 

Bicycle Trip to Waterloo

 We decided to ride to Waterloo during the weekend of October 14-15, 2023. Probably not the best decision because that weekend was particularly cold, and days before were pretty wet. We gathered at Flanigan's at 7:30 AM, but we started riding the bicycles from home. 

We headed first to Waterworks and then headed north to the gazebo in front of Sugar Bottom Bicycle shop. We then headed our way on Mehaffey Bridge Rd. Decided to ride easy climbing the road to the corner of Mehaffey Bridge Rd and Sugar Bottom Rd.

Safely arrived to Solon's Timber dome. The next stop, was Ely's Casey's gas station. Time to fuel our body before lunch. 

We then headed our way to Cedar Rapids. We started riding on the Cedar Valley Trail which is very safe and flat. 

New FTP

 I started this plan on Zwift called FTP Builder. Today, I finished week #1. The plan's first week had two hard workouts, Strength and Tempo, and two easier workouts called Foundation. 

I was able to finish one minute at 320 Watts. The new FTP indicated was 241 Watts.

This test should be done maximum once per week. 

YouTube video: https://youtu.be/TV6uxMONgqw

Farrell's Upper Body Workout

 I loved today's workout at Farrell's. This workout was Density Sets. We did 10 reps for each exercise (six exercises in each set) using heavier bands. We did each set three times before going to the next set. 

I tried to use band colors that pushed me. For the push ups, I tried to do these on my toes. It was hard to do them slow. 

Farrell's Week #4 Second Round

 I started doing "Farrell's" since October 9th, last year. It has been a wonderful experience. I find it perfect to strengthen all the muscles that I ignored for many years. My short term goal is to decrease my body fat. This year, I want to be able to do more pullups, maybe up to ten. I will keep working until I accomplish my goals.

DATE	Weight	Body Fat Percent
10/09/2021	170.8	24.5
11/13/2021	166.4	22.3
12/18/2021	170.8	19.0
1/8/2022	168.4	18.7
1/29/2022	167.6	18.2

Why do I like Farrell's?

    Accountability. The instructor keeps us moving and working hard all the time.

    Consistency. Training six days a week is an excellent idea. Changes will happen.

    Coaches are excellent. 

FTP Test December

 Wanted to try the FTP test and see if my FTP has improved. Did about 5 minutes warm up and then the Ramp Test started increasing Power by 20 W. Every minute Power increased by 20 W. 

Got up to 300 W, then had to quit. I wondered how high I went last time I did this Ramp Test.

Farrell's Week #5

 Signed up for the ten-week plan at Farrell's Extreme Body Shaping (First class on October 11, 2021). I really like these workouts. Three times a week, we do kickboxing. I've been learning jabs, cross, upper cuts, and all kinds of things. The other three days, we alternate upper body and lower body strength. These workouts will make me a stronger athlete and will help me with my running. 

They have different instructors with slightly different styles. I love their philosophy. I have tried to modify my diet. I've cut the number of flour tortillas I eat in a day and also cut down the cereal with milk I used to eat. I cannot wait to see the results.