A "Clutch" Vacation: Volume 2- Lessons Learned

Okay. I'm digging deep for this one. My goal today is to educate and inform you. Yes, just call me the messenger, and you know the golden rule about the messenger. You never shoot him. I'm just telling it how it is. On the first week of September during this year, two good buddies (and young strapping lads mind you) embarked on a journey to the South. The trip was taken in a mean and blue machine known only as "The Oasis". Things unfolded during this trip, but most importantly many lessons were learned. This is my side of the story:



Intro:
So the first question you're probably asking yourself right now is "what the hell is with the Proclaimers here"? Well my friend, you simply do not know the magic of this song. Seriously, this has to be one of the best songs of all-time. Think about it, everybody knows the lyrics (it's not very hard), and everyone wants to sound like one of the pencil pushin' geeks like the Proclaimers. It's just too fun. What's not to like? Seriously, you probably sang along with the song as you pressed play over and over again. Am I right? Of course I'm right. I'm the messenger, and the messenger is always right. Or wait... nevermind. Anyway, the song will probably be in your head for the entire week now. You're welcome. In reality, this song just kind of stuck and became the theme for this trip. But let's get back to business.

Feeling excited as a kid before Christmas for this trip, I went to bed at 2:00AM. Probably was a bad decision considering that the plan was to leave by 4:00AM. Whoops. Oh well, I've drove around places like a zombie before. Surely a scheduled nine hour trip can't be that bad, right? As I woke up, I felt strangely energized. Why? I luckily know a trick to never wake up tired. It's very simple. You just elevate your feet before you go to bed. All of the blood rushes to your head, and then when you wake up, the blood is already in your brain and you're ready to go. I cooked some breakfast (eggs and oatmeal like always), took a shower and then saddled up to pick up Chris. The road trip began.

Now, bare with me for a second. Let's imagine you are on a 500 mile road trip with a good buddy (hey, check that out, a Proclaimers reference!). What do you do to pass the time? Do you just sit and stare at the road the entire time? Hopefully, you don't do that. Maybe you play a little game like eye-spy or spot license plates from different states. Maybe you even sleep a little bit on the way down. Hopefully you don't do that if you're behind the wheel. But let's face the facts. All of those things are boring. Why not spice your trip up? If you're like me and leave early in the morning, you may need to keep active to in order to not fall asleep. Chris and I played some pretty creative name games on the way down (none which I'm able to talk about). Also, there was talk of what was on both of our bucket lists.

We hit Maryland pretty quick. I think we were surprised at how fast we hit it. It seemed like it only took two hours, but we lost track of time cause we were traveling so fast. We were traveling through states so fast that we must of actually time traveled. Hmm, interesting. Anyway, to make a long story short, we finally pulled into NC and Pfeiffer University after eight short hours. The trip was suppose to be about 9.5 hours. Guess we were just excited to be back in the heart of the South. Once, we pulled in, the real fun began.

Meet the Characters:
Kurt Kuklewicz - The hero in the story. He is also the narrator of the story as everything is seen from his point of view. Can be funny at times, but doesn't hit on every joke attempt. Can be a streaky joke teller. Loves himself. Perhaps too much. He's at his best when his ego is the highest, whether that would be receiving compliments from royal women, spilling drinks on females or eating raw hard boiled eggs like Cool Hand Luke. Despite all his flaws, he has a big heart.

Chris Carey - Often described as the "brain" in the operation, this character flirts with breaking the rules. His savvy wits and smarts are enough to motivate our hero character and provide him with the wear-with-all to do everyday tasks. Perfect wingman for literally every kind of situation. Master in the art of BS-ing (just see President's speech from high school). Has a bit of a reputation. Been reprimanded by police multiple times.

Jenna Gulledge - An important character in the story that is often described as the backbone of North Carolina. North Carolina probably couldn't operate without her. Has the brain and the looks. One of those classy girls you would like to show off to your parents. Also known as the "feisty one". Been known to break things at given times. Cell phones are not safe around this character. Also, protective eye-wear is a good idea around this one, especially during card games. Has a pretty good punch for being a girl.

Jan Brownfield - Character that loves to dance, especially in situations of fun. Loves the sound of music. Loves Justin Bieber. Enjoys hearing good one-liners from old high school friends. Dreams of living in the big state of Texas and maybe one day land a nice job there. Also known as the "short one", but she never comes up short in clutch situations, such as providing fun. Her weakness is water.

Rachel Ford - Character that is the hard working type. Knows how to make a chicken sandwich and chicken nuggets, a great one-two punch. Big fan of riding the autobahn, and loves to travel. Happens to be an avid fan of flowers and coffee. However, don't get her that cheap McDonald's roast. You better go classy with this character.

The Plot:
When we arrived, the girls were extremely happy to see us. They showered us with hugs, love affection and gifts. Okay, maybe that's not accurate, but in my own mind, they had a parade for our arrival. The first thing we did at North Carolina was go back to the room (talk about feisty girls)! We had a little fun at the house with pranks, random chit-chat and other entertaining festivities. Now, we only had two nights with the girls, so we had to really try our best to make these days count as memorable ones. We made a little pit stop for some food, and to harrass Rachel while she worked at Chick-Fil-A.

Chris and I had a very important mission during the first day at the grocery store. We were suppose to make the selection and payment of drinks while Jan and Jenna made a selection for a movie to watch later during the night. The girls thought we made a selection and then calmly went back to my truck, but no. This was not the situation at all. Let me indulge you. Here's what really happened. We went to the end section of the store where we heard a muffled yell. When we walked past the back aisle, little Timmy from town was stuck inside the refrigerator and calling for help- for he was about to turn into an ice-cube! I tried my best to signal for help, but no one ever saw us. Thinking quickly, Chris and I grabbed a nearby fire extinguisher and slammed it at the glass opening in the fridge. The glass shattered into a thousand pieces to the floor, and Timmy was safe again. Apparently, he said that the door locked from the inside and all we had to do was open the door, but how could we know that? We're from the North. At least we can say that young Timmy's life was saved that day. And we were responsible. We decided not to brag and tell the girls about our heroic act, and went on with our lives, just like how every superhero would do. On the way back to the girls' dorm, Jenna really showed her poise with controlling music in the Oasis. It was like a perfect match for her in the passenger seat. Country music was belted out the whole ride back.

We returned back to the dorm with the girls and proceeded to chill back a bit, and then watch a movie. The first night we watched "Just Go With It". I don't really remember too much from the movie mainly because we were talking during most of it, which is okay and dandy with me. Of course, when you're learning the art of cuddling, you tend to forgive things like that. My shirt did come off at one point during this night, however, I don't exactly remember when. It wasn't for an extremely long point of time though, unfortunately. We played a card game before the movie actually, which may have involved some drinks (powerade maybe?). The main objective is to follow a set of rules when each card comes out. For example, ten is waterfall. And everybody hates waterfall.

During the morning of the second day, I was feeling extra ambitious and decided to do a little mini-workout. I actually was going to go for a run during the morning, but decided against it mainly because I would probably get lost. Yes, even in the small college of Pfeiffer University. You have to understand that anything is possible with me. I just did a little mini-circuit of push-ups and sit-ups. I was surprised that my normal workout grunting didn't wake anybody up. Although, I could be wrong. Maybe it woke Jan up and she assumed that I was making out with someone again. I don't know, I didn't ask.

After everyone got settled and woke up during the second day, we went to a BBQ place. I don't remember the exact name of the place, but the atmosphere was pretty good. I felt like a redneck at heart. It was glorious for me. I was surprised to learn that they had hard boiled eggs available as a side, so I naturally ordered a bunch of them to gross out the girls. Following some good conversation at the restaurant and egg stuffing, we proceeded to get another movie for the night. This time it was "No Strings Attached". Yeah, I know. I was actually alright with the chick flicks. Certain things like the choice of movie doesn't really matter if you're having fun. I'm going to leave most of the rest of that night as a mystery here for you, but I will say that it was pretty fun. Jan had been wanting to show us that she could dance for some time now. She really showed her stuff when Miranda Lambert came on the speakers at their dorm. It was like an aura of light glistened from the sky. Jenna was ultimately impressed and also displayed some moves of magic. Actually, I think everyone was impressed. But sadly, the carbonation would end for Jenna and Jan after that for the night. We watched the movie and saw just a little too much of Ashton Kutcher's ass for my liking.

During the last day, the original gameplan was to wake up at noon and leave with Chris at 2:00PM to make it back home before midnight. Of course, we didn't end up leaving until about 6:30 or 7:00. I was tired as all hell driving back, but those extra minutes were well worth it. I mean, I learned how to play Go Fish!

Lessons Learned:
- Cuddling is an artform. There's a right and wrong way to do it. Unfortuantely, I cannot discuss the secrets of this fantastic art
- In the game of twister, sometimes you have to "take one for the team" and completely fall on your opponent in order to win the game.
- Swollen calves look pretty cool
- When my iPod died after we hit North Carolina in the truck, I panicked greatly for the lack of awesome country music that we were singing. Have no fear though in the South! Literally, EVERY radio station plays country.
- Shortcuts in Virginia are actually not shortcuts at all. In fact, they take you around an entire village, shopping mall, forest and everything else you could imagine.
- Everything in Virginia is connected to a gas station. You want to eat at McDonald's? Stop at the gas station. It's a two-in-one! Want to pick up some groceries at the grocery store? Don't worry, that also has a gas station in it.
- Lifetime has some really sucky movies (Main theme: never trust a man that owns a secluded cabin in the middle of nowhere)
- Smirnoff Ice is actually "carbonated" and not "caffeinated".
- I have girls' hips
- Really cheesy jokes work best at 4:30 in the morning (Jenna really loves them, especially if they have anything to do with chemistry or tomatoes)
- Women love Ashton Kutcher's ass (guys not so much...)
- Don't make rules to make Jan not dance
- The end of Valkyerie is an intense one
- Taking a bath is a BAD IDEA in certain situations

What I should have done but didn't get a chance to:
- Use Rachel's bathroom for old time's sake (I was getting ready to make my move, when alas, my efforts were blocked by a locked door)
- Buy a cowboy hat and wear it for the rest of the trip. I would of been prepared to sleep with the cowboy hat on if I had to. That thing would of never came off. That's how important it was, and I failed to cash in here. :-(
- I probably would have taken my shirt off more. I was itching to just rip my shirt off and start flexing randomly. I even cut little slits in all of my shirts so I could rip them off like Hulk Hogan for the proper occasion. This probably would have happened if the nine party wasn't botched (thanks a lot, Jenna). :-P
- More pictures so you wouldn't think I'm just making all this stuff up.

A Sad Ride Home:
You know that feeling you get in your heart when something you really like goes away? That's what happened to me as I packed all of our stuff in the back and left. It felt like something was missing, like maybe I actually belonged in the South. What if my destiny was to be in the South? I enjoyed it there so much anyway. Doesn't it make sense? Those were all thoughts that entered my mind on the way back. Excuse me for getting serious for a minute, but I really felt sad to leave the South on the way home. And Chris? Chris was so heartbroken that he slept like a baby the entire way home as shown.
Sleep is very helpful, especially if you are tired from what I hear. After Chris woke up from my yelling of non-stop country music (don't worry, it's as bad as it sounds), we BOTH started belting out country music on the whole ride back. The rest of the ride wasn't too bad except once I hit PA, I got pretty tired. I was running on Monsters and Red-Bull at that point. We also hit some pretty heavy fog. I couldn't even see in front of me at one point, which makes for an exciting ride. I have never seen fog like that in my life. I have to say, despite being a little scary, it was pretty neat for a ride back. To top things off, we were gonna hit Atlantic City, but ultimately decided against it. The girls wouldn't meet us there!

Conclusion:
I came to a really awesome conclusion to this story, and now I am going to share with you all (y'all?). I love the South. I love the lifestyle. I love the little stores and grocery markets. I love the food. I love the activities and fun stuff to do (even if there aren't any) and yes, I even love the people in the South.

The Bucket List

I'm sure everyone has a list of things they would like to do at some point during their life. Getting married, starting a family are probably some common goals people would like to achieve during their lifetime. But those are very cliche and boring! So, I decided to whip up a little list here of things I would like to do in my lifetime at some point. Sure, they may sound a little weird to you, but keep in mind that everyone has different things they would like to get done. Hey, maybe you always wanted to be a show dancer in Vegas. I certainly won't knock you for that. I might even come out to see you perform once (if you're lucky). I like to be entertained, and without further ado, I will now be entertaining you. Talk about a little plot twist, eh? I better have your attention.

Alas, here are some things on my list in no particular order:
1. Hustle someone in a game of pool: I actually had the opportunity to knock this one off the list one time, but I ended up losing (since the entire place I was at doesn't know the official way to play pool). I was down a few balls, he got overconfident and I ran the table at the end to the 8 ball. When I made a ball that slightly touched another and then went into the pocket, he cried and chaos unfolded. I have played in college pool tournaments and clearly know the official rules, but everyone goes by their own little rules that they think is right. Close, but no cigar.
2. Get hit with a puck while spectating a hockey game: Now, you must think I may be really nuts, but how great of a story would that be to tell for generations? "Yeah, I was at a hockey game and Alex Ovechkin winded up for a hard slapper and it deflected off of someone's shin pads and went directly at my nose". Imagine how impressive that would be. And who knows? If I get hit in the mouth with a wicked slapper, maybe the team's coach will notice and sign me to the team for losing teeth. Isn't that one of the requirements to make a professional hockey team?
3. Get pelted with tomatoes on a stage: This is a classic. If I ever have to entertain a crowd (lord help us all) and I'm struggling with it so bad, my only wish would be to get pelted with a ridiculous amount of tomatoes from the audience. That way, I can at least say I started a food fight. That's why if I ever am in a play, or whatever the event or gathering may be, I am going to make sure that tomatoes and salads are served to everyone as a pre-event meal.
4. Become a trending topic on Twitter: I don't care exactly how I become a trending topic, but I want it to happen at least once during my lifetime. I don't mind if people trend "Kuklewicz", the full name of "Kurt Kuklewicz", or even "Big Buff" (my nickname at my college gym). Therefore, I will be trying my best to make waves during my lifetime. When I see an opportunity to get publicity, you can be sure that I'm going to take it just for reaping the benefits of gaining popularity. If I have to save a bunch of kittens from a tree to become a trending topic on Twitter, then so be it. What can I say? I'm a drama queen.
5. Date a Kardashian: Probably a lot harder than it sounds, but come on? You can't argue this one. Even if you're a chick.
6. Go hand gliding: I can't think of a better rush than gliding through the clouds over dangerous terrains. It's a high risk / high reward activity. You may think it's stupid, but let's face the facts. First off, the view has to be incredible, and who the hell doesn't want to fly? I can fulfill the fantasies of being a superhero that I had since I was four years old. Also, nothing gets the heart pumping like the thrill of facing death in the eyes. Incredible cardio workout right there and you don't even need to run.
7. Record a studio album. It doesn't even have to be good. In fact, it could even be so bad that it's comical. Even if I suck at making songs, at least I can thrive at being so bad that I at least make someone laugh. Just look at William Hung. He went platinum. Any takers for creating a band, let me know. I got some good band names stored away.
8. Be in a heist: Yes, it's true. Every guy you know wants to be in a heist. Even the "nice guys". The role I would prefer to play in the heist would be mastermind who draws up the entire strategy. I always called plays in Madden football video games well, and I would imagine that operating a heist is very similar. What's that? A SWAT team is coming at us from the left? Fake it like you're going to take them head on, and then bootleg to the right. See something you don't like during the heist? Audible to a different plan of action. Easy.
9. Throw my coat in a puddle so a lady can walk over it without getting their shoes wet: This has always been on my bucket list ever since I was little. I may be overconfident and viewed as cocky sometimes, but you'll find out that I'm a big softie at heart. There is nothing more that a man can do to show a mark of great gentlemenship. So before you ladies start griping that chivalry is dead, just give me a chance and walk near a puddle. I will prove you wrong. Be warned though: if I think you're one of those "self-independent" females that scoff at such kind acts, I won't bother to risk getting my coat wet just for you to roll your eyes at me.
10. Become a fantasy sports writer: Write and complain about pro athletes while playing fantasy sports and getting paid for it? Dream job, anyone?

So there you have it. That's what I want to achieve in my life. Now, you might say to yourself "This guy is an idiot, he has no serious items on his bucket list". Let me warn you before you judge, I do have a serious (even inspring) bucket list as well. Of course you'll never get to hear it. It's top secret and for my eyes to see only. G-14 classified

Thanks for the read (I guess),
K-Dawg

Pad it and lock it: Workout update

Some progress pics:

I finished my 2nd round of P90X. Now, I gained up to 170 pounds in lean muscle (for the most part). I will say, that I have some belly fat I have to shred now, but I guess that's to be expected from doing a huge bulk from 145 to 170 in 6 months. I'm definitely over 10% body fat, so it's time to start a cutting phase. If I had to guess, I would say that I'm around 12% body fat because my abs are slightly visible still.

The goal: Shred as much body fat as possible while losing minimum weight for the summer. (I would like to not go under 160 pounds, but I'm okay with dropping down to 155 if I ABSolutely have to). I'll start bulking again at the end of August as it stands right now.

The plan: Diet is crucial here. I'm going to shoot for at least 300 grams of protein a day while logging under 170ish grams of carbs. Calories will be in the range of 2500-2700 calories a day. The key is trying to lose fat without losing muscle. It's going to be incredibly tough to achieve this.

The technical aspect: Logging more cardio while still weight training to preserve strength and muscle. One day of cardio will consist of running for 60 minutes. A great blend of pull-ups, push-ups and sit-ups will be included twice in the new weekly workout. Basically, you do half of your max for each one of those exercises and then take a 30 second rest. Then you repeat until you can no longer do so. So far, I have been able to do 8 circuits of 25 pushups, 12 pullups, 20 situps and 10 diamond pushups.

The mental aspect: Pretty simple really. Just stay motivated and on track. May require listening to some really good rap music.

The physical aspect: Increase endurance while trying to maintain the same strength if not increase strength. Core strength will need to be improved. I'll be taking punches in the gut from my brother for 15 straight minutes every day. (Not srs)

Raw Eggs

Hate washing dishes? Hate cooking? Now, there's a new way to get the protein you want and need in the morning! Just grab some eggs from the fridge, crack them into a glass and drink away! 6 raw eggs will give you around 36 grams of protein. I did this one Saturday morning not too long ago. I really didn't feel like cooking that morning and also had some motivation to try something over the top (I was listening to Eminem after I woke up). If you're wondering why I keep squinting it's because I don't have my glasses on. Don't try this at home, kids.

What are some advantages to doing this?
- No cooking required
- Minimal amounts of cooking required
- Fast protein (eggs have the highest grade rating of protein compared to any other food)

Disadvantages?
- Low chance of getting salmonella poisoning
- Taste is awful
- Terrible texture of each individual yolk going down

My final two cents on this: I think that having a few raw eggs here and there is fine for the most part. It's alright if you want to throw one or two in a protein shake or something. However, if you have too many, start combining it with some form of dairy, or just drink raw eggs for the hell of it, then I feel that it isn't worth it. There are so many other options I could of had in the morning to achieve that amount of protein. I could of had two scoops of whey protein and got an additional 14 grams of protein on top of that. If you got a strong stomach and don't mind the disgusting feel of raw eggs, then go for it. I, however, won't be eating raw eggs again for awhile. (I say that yet I'll probably be eating them raw next morning)

A "Clutch" Vacation

Yeah, yeah. I know. This post is long overdue. Don't worry, I didn't forget about it. I got a weird sudden writing rush after midnight and just needed to type all of this stuff. First, before you start reading... you need to get ready for this post by listening to this...



Intro
So now that you're warmed up, let's get to business shall we? Several Saturdays ago, I had plane tickets from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (ya know, that place by Scranton where they film "The Office") to Charlotte, North Carolina. First, things got kicked off on the right foot with a plane delay. Truthfully, it's actually probably a good thing it got delayed because I didn't have everything ready (Procrastination is the middle name, folks). Chris and I were able to head over to the airport and have plenty of time available to us.

The plane ride on the way to NC was pretty interesting. It was actually my first plane ride. You're probably expecting an embarrassing puke story here, aren't you? Well guess what? Sorry to ruin the fun, but I didn't throw up on my first plane ride. I pounded down a Dramamine before the flight so I wouldn't get any motion sickness.

The Plot
The plot unfolded after Chris and I landed in North Carolina. First, we were chased by vicious and hungry security dogs after we landed. Chris, me and some other random guy were the victims of being chased. We had no idea as to why we were being chased, but I can tell you this. Right then and there, the adrenaline rushed in and this brain starting working. I knew right away that we couldn't outrun a bunch of security dogs even despite how fit and buff we are. So the brain started ticking away as we were running for our lives and then - DING! This boy got an idea! We didn't need to outrun the dogs, we just needed to outrun the other guy. So as we were running, the other guy just couldn't keep up with us, stumbled and he was toast. The dogs were distracted and we made a safe getaway to the bar, where we preceded to pound down drink after drink after drink. Then, we met up with the girls. (Okay, so I exaggerated the plot a little bit there. I thought I would try to juice the story up). No, we didn't get chased by dogs, or hit the bar up before we were greeted by Jan, Jenna and Emily. In fact, we got in a car and drove to a dorm, which in reality, is pretty normal. On the way there, I stocked up on some groceries to last me for the trip. All I ate was eggs, oatmeal, tuna, cottage cheese and olive oil the whole time I was down there (not including some places we went to eat).

The rest of the night we played some good old fashioned board games (well technically it was more of a machine game, but you get the point). I was at my normal competitive self as usual. After the game, I saw a reality about myself that whenever there is a game going on or something where there is a winner, I just have to win. Why is this? Because I hate losing, naturally. DUH! Heh, I can think back to the Glory Days at my house, playing monopoly or any other board game. Whenever I think back to those times, there are always images that pop up in my head of me throwing a fit or crying because I lost at something. I once threw a nickel at my brother, who I missed. Instead, I hit and smashed a ceramic lamp in my grandmother's house INSTANTLY with the nickel. The poor thing didn't even stand a chance. And why do you ask would I do such a thing? It was over a game I lost. The fact is I don't know why I always took winning seriously, but the nickel smashing beast did not rear his head as the guys lost to the gals during the game. I guess I hate losing still, but don't throw hissy fits anymore (much).

The next day was full of events. It involved bowling. It involved a good Disney movie for $2! Eat your heart out, Wilkes Barre! The movie was Tangled, by the way. I gotta say that I was impressed with the movie. Unlike many kids, the only Disney movie I saw growing up was the Lion King. So, it was nice to get some more Disney movies under my belt. After the movie, we ate a Cook Out, which was rather good. I had a chicken wrap (no dressing of course!) and I was in chicken wrap heaven for several minutes. Seriously, I'm not even joking. Well... okay, maybe a little. During the night, we watched some funny videos. Lizard Lick Towing Company is hysterical Southern comedy at its best.

The next day was pretty eventful as well. It involved waking up in the morning and starting my day off like Rocky. I felt rather lazy to cook the eggs again, so I just manned up, cracked 6 into a glass and drank them. It was actually pretty disgusting, but cool at the same time because I felt more manly after drinking it. I'll tell you this, if I had a three wolves moon shirt on while I was drinking the eggs, I would of instantly became a superhero. I mean, think about it. It's simple math. Lean and buff dude with a mysterious shirt, spending breakfast drinking raw eggs in the kitchen of a dorm room in North Carolina. Obviously, the universe would of been mine for the taking at the very moment. Unfortunately, I wasn't even aware of the existence of three wolf moon shirts at this time, or I would of tried it. To be serious, the eggs were pretty nasty going down. To be completely graphic, the texture of each individual yolk going down was the worst part. I shut my taste buds off by simply not breathing in case you were wondering about the taste. Sorry if I made you lose your appetite, or worse yet, I'm sorry if you are eating while you were reading this. I'll buy you a new meal.

We all went to the playground. Derek and I spent some time being awesome and playing in the sand. Okay, okay maybe it wasn't that awesome, but we were awesome in my head at that time. That's what counts. They can't take that away from me. :-)

I gotta say, it was nice to get back in the old habits. Running around the playground, monkeying around the monkey bars, falling down the slide while walking up it; it made me feel like a young kid again. After the playground, we chilled at the dorm for a little bit. Then, Jan, Jenna, Chris and I ventured out to a Waffle House. Now, I hope you are ready for the next part of the story, because this possibly made the trip. No, there was nothing wrong with the meal. I had a chicken sandwich and it was actually very good. However, after drinking my normal 2-3 waters at the table, I requested for another. As it was sitting there, all fresh and well... cold, the unthinkable happened. As Jan reached for the bill, I being the great gentleman I normally am, grabbed it before she could look at it. As the bill was grasped loosely in my hand, I felt fine and dandy for grabbing the bill. Then there was a sudden plot twist. Jan made a move. She went for the bill, while catching me off guard. I was shocked at this stealthy attempt. I, being the clumsy person I am, dumped my water glass all over Jan in my attempt to grab the bill back. As the glass rolled in her direction, I heard a sudden shriek. It was the shriek of fear; for I had spilled my 24 ounce ice cold water directly into Jan's lap. I quickly looked around, and noticed that not all of the water was dumped. So I improvised. I grabbed the glass and poured the remaining water onto myself. Why? I have absolutely no idea. It was in the heat of the moment, I guess. For a minute, I actually thought Jan was going to leave me stranded in North Carolina and not take me to the airport. However, she wasn't sore about it and we just couldn't stop laughing.

Jan actually drove us all to the airport. Haha, I should of figured that she would be desperate to drop me off there. I said goodbye. Everybody cried because they wanted me to stay longer (alright maybe not, but that's what I told myself they did in the car after they walked out, haha). I rode home solo the whole way back and that was it. My trip was complete.

Learning the Southern Language
During my stay, I learned a few things about the Southern language. Now, there isn't really a different language in the South. It's still English of course, but there are some differences in pronunciations, words and so forth compared to what I heard up here in the North.

-All G's are silent in the South. Or at least most of the time they are? (Still working on this one)
-When southern people get angry, their southern accent gets that much stronger for how angry they get (basically, just run away when you hear a super strong southern accent)
-If you ever want to screw southern people up, they don't know the word clutch. I got some weird looks from everybody when I said it at least, haha.
-ING is changed to IN'. Going becomes goin', Coming becomes comin' and so forth.
-You all, becomes Y'all

Learning the Southern Ways and Culture
I am still what you would call a Southern n00b when it comes to culture and stuff, but here are some findings about the Southern culture during my 3 day stay at least.

-Everybody knows some good country music.
-Beer is sold at regular grocery stores (at least in North Carolina).
-Older people walk around in malls professionally and seriously (I'm sure there are people in the North that do this too, but I have never seen people that power walk an entire mall many times in decked out Lance Armstrong gear).
-Movies are cheap. This is obviously a good thing.
-NASCAR is a way of life.
-The food is pretty good. I noticed there is more of an emphasis on chicken and meat around the South- more places like Cook Out.

3 General Lessons I Learned during the trip
1. Don't lift your feet up when you land while riding on an airplane.
2. People can actually hear you when you sing in the shower
3. If you need to tow a car from a guy, persuade him that you'll give him $80 to tow it and then get him to hook his car up to the tow for you. Then, take his car and watch him chase you for it and the money he wants.

Differences between the North and South
You know, I gotta say there are some pretty big differences from the North and South. I got asked during the trip if I had to choose over the North and South where I would want to live. I gotta say, I seriously thought this one over. I think it goes like this - if there were no factors involved, I would choose the South. Hands down, it's not even a question. Now, when everything gets factored in (the roots and family I have in the North, the job I currently have in the North, the snow in the North, the cooler climates in the North) then it's much tougher to decide. I will say this though, if we look at girls, I'm choosing the South every time. The general gist is that they are much nicer, prettier and more... I don't know... fun? So wait, does that mean they are just way better than Northern girls overall? Ah, I don't know.

People are nicer in general. Usually people are more friendly it seemed like in the South. I also noticed that there is less talk of politics in the South. At least, that's the premise I gathered. It's okay, I think this is actually a good thing. Most of the time, when people talk about politics, it's negative bashing of the government or something to that extent.

There are definitely less things to do in the South. There's not much you can actually do in the South. The malls are pretty small, there aren't many options to eat and there aren't too many places to bowl even. As a result, you have to drive to a bigger city which can take a good amount of time. You can always find things to do in the South if you get creative though.

-Me monkeying around at the playground

Conclusion
So this is the part where I tell you what I think of the trip I had, right? What exactly are you expecting me to say? That I either had a good time or a bad time, right? Is that how these posts usually go? Well, you know what? I hate being unoriginal. So, I'll let you figure it out for yourself rather than telling you straight-up what I thought of the trip. But let's review shall we:
-I took a mini-vacation with some awesome people
-I met some new friends
-I took my first plane ride
-I had a day off from work
-I learned more about a culture I didn't really know too much of
-I learned some neat-o Southern slang (not just curse words, either!)
-I played some quick name game I have never played before
-I sang in the shower
-I ate raw eggs (top that one!)
-I ate raw oatmeal as a snack
-I ate at my first Cook Out
-I ate at my first Waffle House
-I watched a good movie for $2!!!
-I gave a very bad first impression with someone new I met (sorry about the bathroom, Rachel)
-I started a sing-along SEVERAL times during the vacation (Sorry, the old lady sitting next to me on the way home in the plane either didn't care or hear me. Curse you, hearing aids!)
-I swung on some swings and monkey bars showing off my awesome physique while doing it (okay not really, but I tried)
-I played in a sand box
-I accidentally played in water and caused quiet a ruckus while doing it (haha Jan) :-P

So you tell me, did I have a great time?

Thanks "Y'all",
Kurt

Just an update

Hey everyone, sorry I haven't been able to get on here that much recently. I just wanted to tell you all to not worry. I have gotten a few queries from people asking me if I still do P90X and work out. Don't worry, kids. I am still working out. I will always be working out from now on, as I have found something that I truly enjoy doing. I am currently in the midst of the 9th week of P90X. However, I had to stop last week due to a lingering cold which I think turned out to be just allergies. I'm waiting to get back in the game, but I should be 100% pretty soon (If I had to guess, I'd say I'm going to be good in two-three days). One problem is that I recently got a cold during the 8th week of lifting (the 2nd recovery week), so I just took a rest week that week. Then, I got back in the game last Monday to start the 9th week and something just felt wrong when I was finished. I got awfully sick the next day and that's where I am now several days later. To sum things up, I am basically on a two week rest due to lingering / recurring colds.

I also will try to continue posting here, but I think I want to do weekly updates instead of daily updates. Sometimes it's hard to get 7 or 8 hours of sleep after posting on here. I tend to ramble a lot... Actually, I am doing that right now in case you haven't noticed yet. So that's my Q.

Adios,
Kurt

P90X Round 2 Day 41: Chest workout / Day 42: Rest

Day 41
Another good run of Al Gonz's chest workout. This day was the first day I used the Ironmaster with this workout. I found the bench to be particularity helpful while doing incline flies and presses. Before, I was using a steel chair (Talk about ghetto lifting). Anywho, I defintely felt that this workout was killer on my chest. I felt a good pump going to the chest.

Day 42
I rested up and got some sleep. Pretty standard rest day.

Cheers,
Kurt

P90X Round 2 Day 40: Legs and Back & Ab Ripper X

The first day using the bench during Legs and Back went pretty well. I didn't really use the bench too much other than using it for balance lunges. I decided to not do calf raises with it. This day is my "bread and butter" day. I really feel that I still sweat the most in this workout and I'm slowly increasing my weights up to increase that leg size and strength.

Now why would I even want to bother working my legs out you may ask? My answer is simple. I'll provide my answer with another question- Why would I want to overlook my legs? I'm not going to build a strong upper body and then have chicken legs to support it with. That's a little silly. A strong and balanced body needs to be proportioned well or you'll look like this:
Now I love Johnny Bravo but he has some awful chicken legs. Point taken.

P90X Round 2 Day 39: Yoga X

Sorry, but this will be another short post today. I have fallen behind with updating the blog recently. When I came home from work today, I mistakenly took a 3 hour nap. I feel a little wired right now so I will probably get a low amount of sleep tonight. It's all good though, I can make it up by sleeping in Friday night into Saturday morning.

Yoga was about average today. I did skip a little bit of the warrior moves in the beginning because I was doing this exercise so late. No harm done though, I still did the stretches with nice form. I am beginning to like Yoga more and more each time I do it.

P90X Round 2 Day 38: Back and Biceps & Ab Ripper X

So, I managed to get a flat tire on the way home from work today while driving on the Interstate. How did this happen you may be wondering? The truth is that I actually am not sure how it happened. I was driving along on the interstate, and then noticed that the car was starting to rumble. I pulled over to the side of the road and had to throw the donut on. I didn't really mind too much because it was on the way home from work (on the way to work would of sucked). Also, when I got home I had the super bench waiting for me in front of my garage!

The Ironmaster superbench and all of the accessories I got for it took about 2 hours or so to assemble. The bench was probably the fastest thing to set up, but the metal rack for the adjustable dumbbells took a rather long time to get finished. I was almost exhausted from it actually. Needless to say though, I absolutely blasted on my biceps and back today. I started back and biceps using 65 pounds on lawnmowers. Then I used weights that ranged from 35-45 pounds for the bicep exercises. I could feel a super pump flowing in the biceps today, which is great. Also, it is super amazing to finally have a decent chin-up bar. I mean, I'm not complaining about the iron gym, because it is certainly well worth every penny of the $35 I spent for it. However, there comes a time where you just need to get more serious, and that time is now for me.

P90X Round 2 Day 37: Plyometrics

I have been making some pretty good gains the past few days, so I decided to dial in Plyometrics today. This is a great workout, and I really feel that I strengthened my calves especially today. As long as I can keep gaining weight, I'm going to continue this workout.

P90X Round 2 Day 36: Chest, Shoulders and Triceps & Ab Ripper X

This is a killer workout in my opinion. I love the fact that every movement involved in the workout is based around pushing weight away from your body. There's really not much to say about this workout other than the fact that I absolutely crushed it today. I am really making some strides with chest strength and it's starting to show too.

P90X Round 2 Day 35: Rest

Today was basically a very lazy rest day. I watched my fantasy hockey team propel into the championship game, which was very exciting to watch play out this week. Also, my buddy who I have been playing against this week was trash talking throughout the entire season, so it was nice to end his early. :-)

I made a trip to the grocery store to stock up on some tuna, eggs, milk and other things. I ended up dropping about $70, but I think that this food will last for about two weeks or so. I was also surprised to find my Tyson Chicken Breasts that I love so much at the store I went at. I usually get them at Wal-mart, but they haven't had them the past couple of times I went there.

Other than that, I watched a movie from Netflix. The movie I watched was "Lucky Number Slevin". Now, I have to say that I was pretty impressed with this movie. There were a lot of twists and turns throughout the movie, but they were unexpected. Therefore, it was nice to see the movie play out, and it really paced itself well. You know me, I'm already game for watching action movies with Bruce Willis in them. Throw in a whole bunch of cool twists and some mind bending questions and Lucy Liu and it's a lock for being 4 stars in my book. One thing that I wish I could do more of since I got a full time "big boy" job, is watch more movies. I really, really enjoy watching movies of any kind. Unfortuantely, that kind of took a seat to the back burner since I started working full-time. It's cool because I can still watch movies over the weekend, but I use to watch about 2 movies every 3 days or so. FYI, if you ever want to win my heart over with a gift, just treat me to a night at the movies or a movie night at home with some popcorn (preferrably action or drama will do). I always will enjoy it. Even if the movie is terrible, I won't care, because you can always still laugh at how bad the movie is.

I bid you adieu,
Kurt

P90X Round 2 Day 34: Kenpo X

Today I was originally going to sup Kenpo X for a chest workout, but I decided against it at the last minute. I will be attacking the chest fairly hard this Monday again, so why risk injury with it?

The first thing I noticed about doing Kenpo X today was that my speed was noticeably faster on all of the moves. Even when I did the first set with 5 pound dumbbells, I felt pretty fast. I can now nail the jab / cross / hook / uppercut combo under a second. Also, I feel like I am getting an extreme amount of power on all of my punches especially.

Another thing I have noticed in my progression with Kenpo is that the height on all of my kicks improved. I use to be able to barely reach my feet up above my waist. Now, I can get pretty close to kicking at a chin or jaw-line level.

The diet went pretty flawless again. From now on, you can basically assume the diet went great unless I specify otherwise. So far, I have done 34 days in a row of eating right and healthy. I have yet to have a single "cheat meal".

Cheers,
Kurt

P90X Round 2 Day 33: Legs and Back & Ab Ripper X

Legs and Back is a fantastic workout and I switched things up a little bit for it. I decided to do all of my chin-ups throughout the first round with no weights. Then, on the second round of Legs and Back, I did the chin-ups with my usual weight of 25 pounds attached on a dip belt. I thought this would make things a little easier for me, but I was wrong. I definitely felt the change from doing chin-ups with no weight to doing them with weight. I struggled and wore out for the second round. I had to pause the video a couple of times actually so I could catch my breath. As always with this workout, the sweat was pouring off of me like a waterfall. I noticed today that I when I did chin-ups with no weight I hit in the 20's a few times. I really felt like I got a full range of depth on my chin-ups today though.

Ab Ripper X went better than the last time I did it. I was still ripping up the abs and had energy to last the entire workout and hit all the reps again. I hit my second wind! It also helped that I had music playing the entire time. Today, my playlist of choice was titled "Fo' Sho" Obviously, this is a hardcore 'gansta' playlist. Jay-Z, Eminem, Kanye West, LL Cool J and Notorious B.I.G. were some featured artists of today's workout. "Run Rabbit Run" is a great underrated Eminem song especially for pumping some iron.

Cheers,
K-Dawg

P.S. I love it when you call me Big Poppa!

P90X Round 2 Day 32: Yoga X

Find your inner being. Alright, perhaps that was a little cliche. Today was Yoga X, a workout which I have been growing to like. I feel that my flexibility has definitely improved since the beginning of my first round. A reason I can tell that this is the case is because that I am able to get deeper during all of my stretches even after putting pounds of muscle on. I weighed 146 when I did my first round. Now, I am around 12-15 pounds heavier and although I can feel tightness from the muscle I added, I am still able to get deep in the stretch somehow.

Today at lunch I was actually reading about breathing and calming yourself down in my "Hockey Tough" book. There were some tips that were very helpful and I used today for Yoga X. First off, the key to remaining in the moment is to realize that the past is in the past and the future is not the present. The key to having the effective mindset for Yoga is to be live in the present. Slowly concentrate on inhaling a breath and slowly exhale. As you inhale feel all of the energy that is around you and visualize it flowing in your body as you exhale. It's a pretty neat trick and it is good to use for any life situation, not just Yoga.

On a side note, I finally made a purchase for the adjustable dumbbells. I will have the Ironmaster Quick Lock adjustable 75 pound dumbbells delivered to my house soon along with the Ironmaster Super Bench. I also purchased some attachments with the Super Bench including a pull-up bar, dip bars and a sit-up bar for doing decline sit-ups. It was part of a package deal, that I received much cheaper than purchasing everything seperately. I am STOKED that I ordered this and simply cannot wait until it arrives at my house. This system will be used for me for years and it makes sense for me to buy it since I am increasing strength and will be using it a lot. Next on the saving list is a barbell set and bench stand for doing bench-press workouts. Then, a power rack is next on the list for doing squats and such (although that won't be for another year or two).

The diet was basically the same as yesterday, except I only had 3 glasses of whole milk instead of my usual 5.5 glasses. For the subbed out glasses of milk I had some saltine crackers with my usual protein shake and extra calories in the morning with oatmeal instead of the toast.

P90X Round 2 Day 31: Back and Biceps & Ab Ripper X

Back and Biceps is a pretty enjoyable workout, but damn, is it tough with a lot of weight! This is arguably the best P90X workout for feeling "pumps" in my opinion. There are a lot of bicep concentrated exercises that really get the blood flowing in the arms. I literally could feel my pulse beating in my biceps by the end of this workout.

The specifics in this workout involves a variety of pull-ups and a huge variety of bicep curls. The toughest bicep move in this workout is the hammer in and out curls. It's a double move, meaning that you do a hammer curl on the inside and then one on the outside with both arms. That is one rep. As you can see, it would be tough to do a heavy weight with this kind of move, but since I am such a meathead I tried a lot of weight on this one anyway! I was literally dying by my 4th rep. I think I actually had to quick this move by the 6th rep, but my god was the tension present. The most difficult back related exercise in this workout is without a doubt the corn cob pull-ups in my opinion. You basically do a pull-up on your bar, and then move left to right like you are eating corn on the cob. I think it's pretty tough to keep the body up above the bar while moving from left to right with the shoulders. However, I did 9 today somehow.

I've noticed that the more weight I gain, the more difficult Ab Ripper X gets. However, I am still barely making my way through it completing every rep. It should get tougher soon though because I will still be gaining muscle weight throughout the duration of this round. I'm ready for it though!

The diet was basically the same as yesterday with just a few modifications. I had two scoops of casein protein before bed and only had 4 Tbsp of olive oil instead of 6 Tbsp.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 30: Controlled Cardio Confusion

Today marks the end of phase one. Therefore, it's time to get the pictures up for this week. First, I would like to talk about the workout for today though. I started today's workout after I came home from work with the 2nd week Couch to 5K workout. I scrapped Plyometrics which would of been today for this shorter and more moderate cardio workout. This workout is simply an interval workout of jogging for 90 seconds followed by walking for 60 seconds for a total of 20 minutes. However, I did it with a little twist. I ran most of today uphill. Here is just a small portion of the hill I run:


Obviously, as you can tell, this hill winds around the right and continues even further up. It eventually turns to the left and heads up another steeper hill. After running uphill for a good portion of the Couch to 5K workout, I decided to do some very moderate cycling. Nothing special here, just 10 minutes going at a below average pace on the bike followed by maxing out sit-ups. After that, I was all done.

Here's how today's diet went:
Breakfast:
- 4 poached eggs
- two slices of whole wheat toast with butter
- glass of whole milk
- orange

Mid-morning snack:
- Clif Builder's Bar (Chocolate mint)
- 3 Tbsp Olive oil

Lunch
- 8 oz grilled chicken breast
- banana
- cottage cheese
- 2 glasses whole milk
- Mayo sandwich (whole wheat bread)

Mid-afternoon snack:
- BSN syntha-6 with whole milk

Dinner:
- glass whole milk
- glass of V8 (low sodium)
- steamed broccoli
- cup of beans
- apple
- 8 oz tuna

Before bed snack:
- one scoop of casein protein with water
- 3 tbsp olive oil

So let's compare with how my body has developed over the past 30 days. As you can tell from today's diet, I have been eating a lot. I have gained close to four pounds in four weeks which is pretty close to the pace I want to be gaining weight per week at.

Day 1 on the left, Day 30 on the right


A couple things stick out to me here. First, the front view goes like this. You can clearly see that I have gained some weight. But the thing that really sticks out to me is the double-edged sword in that my shoulders have gotten much more height and width on them (which I like a lot) but at the same time, my abs are slowly starting to fade away. However, no need to panic. I know the abs are strong and still there as they feel rock solid when I touch them. They are just covered by more fat now. Hey what can I do? That's the downside of eating more food in order to gain weight. You're stomach has to get bigger. Eventually I am going to do a cut after gaining all this weight, so the abs will be more ripped than ever after that. I also noticed that my traps and my chest are getting bigger too.

From the back view, I am clearly making nothing but postitive strides. My arms look like they have gotten bigger which is a definite plus. Also, I feel like my back is the strongest body muscle group right of mine right now. When I have no weight added, I feel like I can literally do pull-ups all day long and not get fatigued. Having a strong back would instantly help in playing any sport.

P90X Round 2 Day 29: Chest, Shoulders and Triceps & Ab Ripper X

This is my favorite workout in P90X. Why? I'm not totally sure. I love doing the one-armed push-ups because it makes me feel like a show-off. Also, the workouts are totally different throughout the entire workout. You do not repeat anything which is very nice. It keeps things fresh during the entire time.

The diet pretty much stayed the same from yesterday. So far, I'm having a great week with the diet and am really starting to get hooked on those Clif Builder's bars. They taste pretty awesome in my opinion at least. Sorry for the short post, but I have been a little busy this week.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 28: Rest

I rested today and slept until about 1 in the afternoon again. What can I say? I'm a heavy sleeper when I don't work. I weighed myself (like I do every Sunday as soon as I wake up) and observed a little weight loss from the previous week (Bummer!). I currently weigh 158.6 pounds and last week I was 159.2 pounds. I lost a total of 0.6 pounds. Honestly, I expected this. I knew that screwing around with my macros would take my body a little getting use to so there were no surprises here. Less carbs in the diet means less fat, so I'll adjust accordingly. I know I'll hit my goal of reaching 170 soon anyway, so I'm not worried. Dominate.

I got a text to go to see the WB/S Penguins play (aka mini-Pittsburgh Penguins) from my buddy Ted. He had unused tickets so I gladly accepted and went to see the game. They played the Carolina Checkers who are apparently the farm team for the Carolina Hurricanes. I gotta say, the game was a pretty good time and the Penguins won 2-1 in regulation. After the game, I ventured to Wal-mart for some groceries and it was pretty jammin' for a Sunday evening. The first thing I needed was whole milk. I noticed that last week, I went through two gallons of milk like nothing. Obviously, I re-stocked with some more milk. I also re-stocked up on eggs, tuna and chicken as my protein intake has gone way up. By the time I had added a few protein bars, I ended up dropping $99 on groceries. I have definetly done a lot worse with groceries, so I wasn't shocked.

With the money I have won from playing poker the other day, I am highly considering spending to the "Kurt Kuklewicz needs a bench and new dumbbells fund". I have seen this pretty sweet bench combo that comes with adjustable dumbbells that go up to 75 pounds for a little over $800. It seems a little steep, but it really is a steal. The dumbbells normally cost $600 by themselves. I'm still scouting around but I'll probably go with the Ironmaster combo here. I am also considering getting attachments for doing sit-ups and dips, but perhaps I'll add those as I progress throughout the year. Stay tuned on this development, I'll be purchasing something by the end of this week most likely.

Today's diet:
Breakfast:
- 4 poached eggs
- two slices of whole wheat toast with butter
- glass of whole milk
- cantaloupe

Mid-morning snack:
- 2 Clif energy bar (Oatmeal Raisin Walnut)

Lunch
- big chicken wrap with 1/4 cup of cheddar cheese and lettuce (whole wheat wrap)
- banana
- 2 glasses whole milk
- Mayo sandwich (whole wheat bread)

Mid-afternoon snack:
- Clif Builder's Bar (Chocolate mint)
- 3 Tbsp Olive oil

Dinner:
- glass whole milk
- carrots
- celery sticks
- steamed broccoli
- cup of beans
- apple
- 8 oz tuna

Before bed snack:
- one scoop of casein protein with water
- 3 tbsp olive oil

P90X Round 2 Day 27: Blend of Yoga X, Jogging, Cycling and Sprinting

I slept in until about 1:00 today, and it felt awesome! I was well rested for anything. After I woke up, I went into the kitchen and made breakfast. I turned on Yoga X for the first 10-15 minutes. I did everything up until the start of the Warrior poses. It looked kind of nice out today so I went for a 10 minute jog around the neighborhood. Also, I wanted to modify and mix up my P90X workout again. It actually wasn't as nice I thought it looked outside, because it was very windy. Nevertheless, I jogged for about 3/4 of a mile at a very slow pace.

I did some stationary cycling for 10 minutes after jogging. I also did that at a slow and steady pace. I was able to cycle 2 miles in about 10 minutes and 30 seconds. I do not want to take anything really hard this week because I would like to recover as it is a "recovery week". I could definitely feel some fatigue at the end of last week (especially during Legs and Back day), so I would like to be fresh going into the start of my second phase for this round. After cycling, I did three quick sets of sprinting. The distance wasn't too far, but I would say for each sprint that it was about 200-250 meters. I didn't particularly care for the sprinting sets too much, mainly because I felt nauseous but it's a good change of pace.

When I came back to the house, I could just feel the dehydration. So I carbed up with a Clif Energy Bar and had a recovery drink. I was back kicking around in no time. After the nice blend of everything today, I played some at a poker cash game. I did PHENOMAL in case you're wondering. I bought in for $50 and ended up cashing out with $302. Not a bad profit, eh? What can I say? I'm a whiz-kid at these types of things. :-P

On a side note, I will be weighing myself in again tomorrow morning right after I wake up. I actually have a feeling that I lost a little weight, because the training was nowhere near the intensity level of last week. I was sweating really hard last week, and that showed from the muscle weight I gained from that week. Also, eliminating some of those carbs out my diet change will probably contribute to a loss of weight as well. Long story short, I am expecting to losing anywhere from 1-2 pounds tomorrow, but that's okay and I know I will make my goal of 170 pounds because I dominate at everything I do. I know, that sounds cocky, but that's my new mindset for everything I do from now on. Remember?

The diet went pretty well today, although I did get a LOT of calories logged in today. Since I feel like I am losing weight, the only logical thing to do would be to eat more. I didn't eat any junk today, so I am confident that the total of roughly 4500 calories from today's diet will help to get me on the right track again.

Breakfast:
- 4 poached eggs
- one serving of wheaties with 1/2 cup of milk
- glass of whole milk
- granny smith apple

Mid-morning snack:
- Clif energy bar (Oatmeal Raisin Walnut)
- Recovery drink (Endurox R4 Lemon Lime)

Lunch
- 8 oz tuna
- cottage cheese
- cantaloupe
- 2 glasses whole milk
- Mayo sandwich (whole wheat bread)

Mid-afternoon snack:
- Two scoops of BSN Syntha-6 (with whole milk)

Dinner:
- glass whole milk
- glass of low sodium V8
- steamed broccoli
- baked potato
- cantaloupe
- 4 oz grilled chicken breast
- 4 oz tuna

Before bed snack:
- casein protein with whole milk
- 6 tbsp olive oil

P90X Round 2 Day 26: Core Synergistics

I came home from work today and was just feeling simply worn down, so I took two scoops of White Flood before today's workout. Boy, did I really get going about 30 minutes after taking it. I felt that I had incredible power today and I took I really did a good job on all of the moves today. I logged a few more prison push-ups then I ever did before. I did about 9 without having to stop, and I use to get around 5-7 reps and then I would need to stop briefly.

The diet went flawless today I felt, but I the texture of the Arnold shake is really starting to bother me. I believe it is the raw eggs that makes it so nasty, so I may cut back on them for a little bit. I think that I'm going to do the Arnold shakes only 2-3 times each week. Here's how the diet looked:

Breakfast:
- 4 poached eggs
- two slices of whole wheat toast with butter
- glass of whole milk
- cantaloupe

Mid-morning snack:
- Arnold shake

Lunch
- 8 oz tuna
- cottage cheese
- apple
- 2 glasses whole milk
- Mayo sandwich (whole wheat bread)

Mid-afternoon snack:
- Arnold shake

Dinner:
- glass whole milk
- glass of low sodium V8
- steam carrots
- baked potato
- cantaloupe
- 8 oz grilled chicken breast

Before bed snack:
- Arnold shake

P90X Round 2 Day 25: X Stretch

Not too much to say about this video. It's pretty straight-forward. There is 50+ minutes of nice stretches. I really like this workout, but sometimes I feel as if I'm getting too much of a stretch going. As a result, I don't normally like to do the Stretch video during the seventh day of each week and instead take the rest usually everytime.

The diet went extremely solid today. I basically made one big Arnold shake today to last throughout the entire day (6 raw eggs, 16 oz whole milk, 6 tbsp olive oil, 8 oz water, 1 scoop of natural whey) Here's it mapped:

Breakfast:
- 4 poached eggs
- two slices of whole wheat toast with butter
- glass of whole milk
- orange

Mid-morning snack:
- Arnold shake

Lunch
- 8 oz tuna
- cottage cheese
- apple
- 2 glasses whole milk
- Mayo sandwich (whole wheat bread)

Mid-afternoon snack:
- Arnold shake

Dinner:
- glass whole milk
- big raw salad
- steam broccoli
- baked potato
- cantaloupe
- 8 oz grilled chicken breast
- 4 oz cheddar cheese

Before bed snack:
- Arnold shake

P90X Round 2 Day 24: Kenpo X

I love Kenpo X. It's such a balanced workout and it's fun too. I actually have most of the moves learned like it's second nature already. I decided to not add any weight to the exercise today. I also decided to jam out to some good tunes to get pumped, because I was full of energy during this workout. I took two scoops of white flood before the workout, which is a pre-workout drink because I felt I needed it today. I was pretty tired after I came home from work, so it was nice to get a good rush going into today's workout.

You may be wondering what I like to listen to when I get my groove on while working out. I actually prefer Ricky Martin and Enrique Iglesias. I'm just playing around, I actually like to switch it up from time to time. There are three main playlists I use for lifting / cardio. I have a heavy rap playlist filled with Jay-Z, Eminem, Ludacris, OutKast and such. I also have a heavy metal mix (which I rarely use and a balanced rock / punk mix). I decided to go with the balanced rock / punk rock mix today. I kicked things off with this song today:



Here's all of the songs from today's workout incase you were wondering:
"Have You Ever" - The Offspring
"Anthem" - Blink-182
"Brat" - Green Day
"Holiday in Cambodia" - Dead Kennedys
"Black Heart" - Slipknot
"March of the Pigs" - Nine Inch Nails
"Remember the Name" - Fort Minor
"Give it All" - Rise Against
"Black and White" - Static X
"Pitiful" - Blindside
"Parabola" - Tool
"Young Cardinals" - Alexisonfire
"Sweetness" - Jimmy Eat World
"Negative Creep" - Nirvana

Kenpo went OUTSTANDING today. I felt like I was an animal throwing all those jabs, kicks and blocks downstairs. It was mainly the White Flood that had me going. If you feel like you have difficulty with obtaining energy for a workout, then I highly recommend that you grab this bad boy. You can get it off Amazon pretty cheap. The diet was basically the same as yesterday's. I feel like I am doing outstanding this week on the diet. Almost flawless.

Thanks for reading,
Kurt

P90X Round 2 Day 23: Core Synergistics

I managed to get seven hours of sleep yesterday, so that's great right? Well, you would think so, but for some reason today I felt dead tired at work today. I was dogging it to make it through the day for the first half of work, but then got some energy after lunch. When I came home, I had some energy from driving and everything so I figured it would be a good idea to go into core synergisitics right away.

A lot of people seem to love Core Synergisitics. I'm not a huge fan. It's just I don't know, very tiring. This is a pretty good workout for the recovery week though, because I think it's good for maintaining muscle. A lot of workouts this week are not very intense, so I agree that this workout is needed for the week. This video is pretty well balanced and includes a variety of moves to hit all of the muscles. My favorite move in this workout is the prison cell pushup. Basically you do a pushup from plank, bring your right knee into your chest, do another pushup, bring your left knee into your chest and jump up into a standing position and repeat. They are an incredible burn and that's perhaps the reason I like this move the best. The most difficult move in this workout is without a doubt the Dreya Roll. It's a crazy kind of roll where you fall on your back and use your abs to pull you back up. Overall, the workout went pretty well today.

The diet has been going near flawless this week and it continued again today. Here's how it went:
Breakfast:
- 4 soft-boiled eggs
- two slices of whole wheat toast with butter
- glass of milk
- orange

Mid morning snack:
- Protein bar
- One scoop of BSN Syntha-6

Lunch:
- 1/2 pound of Chicken Breast
- 2 glasses of milk
- Whole wheat bread with mayonnaise
- banana
- cottage cheese

Mid afternoon snack:
- Protein bar
- 3 Tbsp Olive oil

Dinner:
- Steamed broccoli
- Baked potato
- 1/2 pound grilled chicken breast
- 1/4 pound tuna
- Big salad
- Glass of milk
- Granny smith apple

Before bed snack:
- 2 scoops Casein protein with whole milk
- 3 Tbsp olive oil

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 22: Yoga X

Today started the beginning of my first recovery week for my second round of P90X. I only got three hours of sleep from last night, but I surprisingly had a decent amount of energy at work today. I also felt no ill effects while working out during Yoga as well. Perhaps this new diet is the source of all this energy. Whatever it is, I'm not complaining about having extra energy.

I feel that this week will give me a much needed rest that I need. I also decided that I am going to take it easy with the cardio this week. Perhaps I'll take a week off from the Couch to 5K workout. I'm not sure what I plan to do yet, but if I do run, it will most likely be during Day 24, which is Kenpo. As far as the workout for today, things went much better compared to the last time I did Yoga. I was able to lock Crane down for 12 seconds or so today, so I am getting better at balance. I also felt I did very well on the Yoga Belly 7 portion of the workout too.

The diet went great again today. I actually had the same exact thing from yesterday but instead of two scoops of casein protein before bed tonight, I had a glass of milk and a scoop of natural whey protein powder.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 21: Couch to 5K / Chest workout

I woke up today and jumped on the scale to check my progress and I was impressed that I was 159.2 pounds. This is exactly the pace I want to be gaining weight at. At this rate, I'll gain muscle to 170 pounds by the end of this round. I wanted to keep gaining muscle so I thought I'd sub Kenpo out with something a little bit different today. I decided to finish out my first week of Couch to 5K and then do this chest workout below:



Couch to 5K went pretty solid again, and I finished my first week of it today. I haven't tried running with dumbbells for awhile now because I feel that my calves get enough work running uphill all of the time. Running with dumbbells only makes it that much harder.

When I came home from running, I couldn't help but be distracted by all of the hockey games going on today. My team needed to come back on my parent's team in order to make the playoffs, and somehow (by divine intervention), I barely made it by the skin of my teeth. It was extremely close, and my parents and my buddy Sam were in the running to take the final spot I ended up getting. I do feel bad that I foiled their great runs to make the playoffs, especially my parents who never played any fantasy sport before, but I guess that's how it goes. If I win, someone has to lose, right?

After the Couch to 5K run, I decided to do Al Gonz's chest workout. I like this workout for several reasons, but the main reason is that it is the most practical for me. I currently do not have a bench or barbell / weight plates that weigh a lot to get some quality benching done. Personally, I'm not even sure if it would be ideal for me to have a big chest, but I know it could be a lot bigger. A big chest looks good, and would only benefit any kind of atheltic thing that emphasizes upper body strength, but do I currently do anything like that? Perhaps down the road, when I start playing hockey I'll start building some mass in the chest, but for now I am content with strentghening and toning it up. This workout really challenges you if you are looking to build mass and add size, because you using your triceps slightly with your chest on every workout. Those 21 pushups really kick my ass, but I like to go super deep and touch the ground with my chest on them for an added burn.

The diet was pretty much the same for yesterday except I didn't make the Arnold shake to last throughout the day. Instead, I had two protein bars, a small protein shake and a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to go with it throughout the day. I also ended the night with two scoops of casein protein and a couple more tablespoons of olive oil. I had slightly more protein and carbs compared to yesterday, but just a little less fat overall.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 20: Legs and Back & Ab Ripper X

I slept in today and woke up at 11:30. It was nice to get this rest, because I have felt a little restless lately in all honesty. After waking up, I quickly dropped my grandma off at the grocery store and hit up GNC to re-stock on my supply of Mega Men Sport multi-vitamins. I also grabbed some carnitine formula to take because I will be upping my fat macros this month. Carnitine is useful for boosting metabolism and regulating fat. However, it's been argued that sometimes it's not necessary when you don't eat a lot of fat. In those situations, it's been argued to be ineffective and some people even say useless. I will be eating a lot of healthy fats such as olive oil, so I think it will come in handy in my situation. When I came back from my morning errands, I made breakfast and had four soft-boiled eggs with whole wheat toast and butter, a glass of whole milk and a cup of strawberries.

I jumped into the Legs and Back workout a little after breakfast. My energy level was just okay. I think this recovery week coming up is going to be clutch because I feel like I can use it. I added weight on most of the exercises and all of the pull-ups. I actually did better on all of the pull-ups but my legs felt a little worn down today. All of that uphill running has been brutal on my calves especially. I still dogged it out for today, but I had to take a break from using weight on toe is0-roll lunges, deadlift squats and a few others.

Ab Ripper X went decent today as well. I was able to pound all of the reps out but I had to stop briefly during the Heels to the Heaven exercise. Actually, it wasn't more like a stop, but more like my arms lifting my legs up for 3-4 reps so I could catch my breath. Other than that, ARX went pretty well today.

When I finished working out today, I looked through Arnold's Bodybuilding Encyclopedia and made this below:
This is a huge protein shake I made to last for 3 meals today. I took this shake in between breakfast and lunch, in between lunch and dinner, and right before bed. Here are the ingridents listed:
- 6 raw eggs
- 16 oz whole milk
- 1 scoop of whey natural protein powder
- 8 oz water
- 6 tbsp olive oil
- hint of vanilla flavoring
It's actually pretty tasty surprising. Last time I made this, I used soy and took the whole thing after a workout. Needless to say, this caused havoc on my stomach. As I split it up today, I was able to drink this shake throughout the day fine.

After the first shake, I had a 1/2 pound of chicken breast, a banana, two slices of whole wheat bread with light mayonnaise, cottage cheese and two glasses of milk. For dinner I had a huge selection of food. I had a large salad, steamed broccoli, baked potato (not shown in the picture below), an orange, salmon filet, two cans of tuna, and another glass of milk. This was a very large dinner but I was able to man it down.

The diet I followed today was the same diet Arnold Schwarzenegger use to roll with back in his bodybuilding days. The first thing I noticed about this diet is the large amount of diary that is used. Also, there aren't many carbs. The past few weeks of P90X I have been averaging around 400-500 grams of carbs a day. Today, I only logged 222 grams of carbs. I actually like this about the diet because with all the foods I ate, I felt like I had a good amount of energy despite having less carbs in the diet. Sometimes, it is tough to eat these meals though. It can feel like I'm on man vs food for some of these bigger meals. For example, I had about 14 ounces of fish for dinner. That's almost a full pound! Regardless, I'm going to try this diet for awhile because I am getting sick of following the same old diet I have been since the past 2 months or so. Also, I am curious to see how my results will look with this diet.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 19: Couch to 5K / Yoga X

When I woke up today at 5:30AM (30 minutes earlier then when I normally wake up for work), I noticed that it was pitch black outside. I guess I underestimated how dark 5:30AM is, and there was no way I was going to run in the dark while it was freezing outside. Instead, I went back to sleep for 30 more minutes. I love my beauty rest! I work up very tired and groggy, and work seemed like it went by very slow today.

I had a breakfast of four soft boiled eggs with oatmeal and an orange. Afterward, I had a protein shake and bar during my first break at work. For lunch, I decided to step my game up and ate an entire pound of chicken breast with a cup of whole wheat pasta and a granny smith. At the deli I live by, chicken breast was only $3.99 per pound, so I decided to stock up on it for this week. For my next break at work, I had peanuts, unsalted crackers and a peanut butter sandwich.

After I came home from work, I decided to do the Couch to 5K workout which was the same from two days ago. However, I did not add any weight or biking to today's workout. I was able to run 1.54 miles in 20 minutes with intervals of jogging for 60 seconds followed by walking for 90 seconds. I ran most of the time uphill, so my calves were on fire. I could literally feel my heart pulse pumping in my calves that's how much work they got today. After the run, I farted around on the computer for a little bit with my fantasy hockey team because I need to win this week in order to have a chance at making the playoffs.

I went into Yoga X a little after, and I have to say that I just wasn't feeling Yoga today. Of course, it didn't help that I ran uphill right beforehand, so I took it pretty easy in Yoga today. I actually skipped the last 30 minutes or so of Yoga X today because I got some quality stretching done after my Couch to 5K run and didn't feel I needed it today. Also, my abs have been sore from working them the past three days in a row, so I was afraid that the Yoga Belly 7 series would harm them. Some people claim that working your abs out everyday will not allow them to heal or grow, and yet others claim that the abs heal much faster than any other body part and they are okay to work on everyday. This is a widely debated question in bodybuilding. Personally, I go with whatever my gut tells me in this situation. Sure, you can support the idea of working abs out everyday with famous actors and celebrities who do it everyday, but everyone has a different genetic makeup. Ryan Reynolds use to pound out 500 sit-ups everyday before doing a different muscle group six days in a row. Others like Arnold Schwarzenegger recommend only a few times a week.

When my half session of Yoga X was over with, I had a protein bar, a recovery drink and 6 oz of shrimp. Before going to bed, I had veggies, cottage cheese and a scoop of casein protein. Tomorrow is Legs and Back day with Ab Ripper X and I think I'm going to switch the diet up a bit.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 18: Shoulders and Arms & Ab Ripper X

I came home from work and cranked out Shoulders and Arms. I also decided to man up and add some weight again to most of the exercises. I did all of the bicep workouts with at least 35 pound weights, so I definitely felt a good pump going through my arms today. I also threw a little change-up with the chair dips and held a leg up while doing them for more tension in the triceps.

Ab Ripper X was pretty exhausting today, and I had some trouble with the Fifer Scissors today. The good news is that I dominated the Crunchy Frog though. I feel that I have much more strength in my core, so I am making progress with the abs.

The diet went pretty good today as well. I plan on waking up around 5:30 in the morning tomorrow to do another workout for Couch to 5K before work. I will also be doing Yoga in the evening, so we'll see how this goes. If it goes well, I'll add it to the routine. If not, I'll just scrap the Couch to 5K workouts and sub them once in a blue moon.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 17: Couch to 5K

I decided to switch things up again and I subbed Plyo with a workout my buddy from work came across (Thank you Jason!). It's called "Couch to 5K". Apparently, it's a program designed for any scrub to run 5K (around 3 miles) after 9 weeks. It looks pretty interesting actually and at first glance I got the drift of the workout. It's interval jogging that is increased each time as the weeks progress to build up endurance. The first workout was as follows:

60 seconds jogging
90 seconds walking
*REPEAT intervals until 20 minutes is reached

Now, this seemed pretty easy to me for the first workout so I decided to intensify it. I ran with 5 pound dumbbells and uphill for the end half of the workout. It was pretty tough! I realized about halfway through the jogging that my shoulders were practically numb. Of course, it's pointless to turn back and drop my dumbbells off at the house, because I was about a mile from the house at this point. I decided to just dog it out. The jogging intervals basically turned into me "praying for 60 seconds to pass" intervals. I felt a ridiculous burn in my calves from running uphill with dumbbells again.

I finished the 20 minute interval running 1.49 total miles. I feel that's pretty good for running with dumbbells in intervals. Of course, I still wasn't satisfied so I rode the stationary bike for 20 minutes with maxed out ab crunches at the 10 and 20 minute mark of the bike ride. I really felt a good burn and I was pretty pleased with the workout. I am considering of actually finishing this program the same time of doing P90X.

After I finished the entire workout, I had a MASSIVE protein shake that I personally blended. Here's everything it had in it:

- 6 raw eggs
- 12 oz milk
- 1 scoop of unflavored whey protein powder
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 6 tsp oats
- vanilla flavoring

I will say that I surprisingly agreed with the taste of the protein shake. However, my stomach did not. I felt like I got punched in the stomach for the majority of the night. In summary, this protein shake is obviously pretty healthy (despite the talk of eating raw eggs). It contained over 1200 calories and 100 grams of protein. It is actually a shake that Arnold Schwarzenegger use to train with. Regardless of all the nutrients from the shake, I will most likely not be trying one anytime soon again.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 16: Chest and Back & Ab Ripper X

Jumping back into Chest and Back after two days of rest was difficult. I felt a little tired during the workout and perhaps had less energy then usual today. I still managed to log 65 standard push-ups without stopping today on the first set. This was a little off of my goal of hitting 70 this week, but I aimed that one a little high for motivational purposes.

Pull-ups were pretty hard today because on the second round I thought that I would up the added weight from 25 to 45. I was only able to crank out about 8 or so on each type of pull-up, but I still feel that is pretty good because with my body weight and dumbbells I was doing eight pull-ups with about 205 pounds of total weight. Talk about some major back work there!

Ab Ripper X was tough, but I feel like I'll be breezing through it in a few weeks. I felt that I was able to conquer most of my struggles through the crunchy frog today, which has me stoked. I think my legs were the problem the entire time actually. Today my legs felt strong during Ab Ripper X and then I noticed they got pretty sore around the 20th rep.

The diet went very good again. Today, I decided to soft-boil four eggs instead of eating them raw or scrambled. This is actually a pretty healthy way to eat them and it doesn't taste bad at all. Here's how it went:

Meal 1:
- 4 soft boiled eggs
- cup of oatmeal
- kiwi
- glass of soy milk

Meal 2:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- carrots
- 1 oz dry roasted peanuts

Meal 3:
- protein bar
- protein shake

Meal 4
- peanut butter sandwich (whole wheat bread)
- turkey on whole wheat wrap
- apple

Meal 5:
- multi-gran crackers
- orange
- cottage cheese and pineapple
- solid white albacore tuna w/ light mayo
- honey nut cherrios

Meal 6:
- recovery drink
- protein bar
- 1/2 lb of turkey breast
- glass of low sodium V8

Meal 7: (before bed)
- two scoops of casein protein

Sorry for the short posts the last few days, but I had to play catch up due to the vacation, which I don't mind at all.

Thanks for reading,
K-Dawg

P90X Round 2 Day 15: Rest

So yeah, I know today was suppose to be Chest and Back. However, I didn't get home from North Carolina until after 11:00PM. As a result, I decided to push everything back a day and then not take a rest on Sunday like normally scheduled, since I'll be doing Kenpo then. It's all good because next week is recovery week.

I decided I wasn't going to cook my eggs down in North Carolina today. So you're probably wondering how I ate them then. Yep, I ate them raw. I cracked 6 whole eggs in a glass and downed them. I guess I wanted to be Rocky Balboa for a day. I knew that there was some potential for it winding back up on the counter, but I held my breath and manned it down. I gotta say, the texture is probably the worst part of eating raw eggs. Feeling egg yolk after egg yolk go down is pretty disgusting. I couldn't tell you about the taste though because my taste buds were shut off from holding my breath and then I immediately had a big spoonful of oatmeal right after (which was probably the best idea I had).

Today was particularly fun at North Carolina (don't worry, I'm working on the post about it). Also, I apparently missed an entire snow storm back here in PA while I was at North Carolina. That's all fine and dandy to me (no, I am not trying to sound southern here either). When I got to my car from the airport, I had to scrape off about 12 feet of ice. I consider it a small price to pay though, because I had a blast in North Carolina.