What I’m Doing Now

This page is meant to be a minimally edited online journal of the projects and priorities I’m working on currently. I’ll update it as often as I can.

September 2023

17 Sep

I just finished up week 7 of my marathon training with a long run of 14 miles yesterday. On previous long runs I’ve been absolutely smoked for the rest of the day. On top of this, my HRV (heart rate variability) has been low which can be an indicator of under recovery. I’ve been seeing more and more that many advise running about 80% of your miles at a slow pace. Thinking this might help my recovery and also allow me to push harder on the remaining 20% of my miles, I tried to run slower yesterday. That sounds easier than it is though, lol. I aimed to run my miles at somewhere between an 11:00 and 12:00 minute per mile pace. I thought I did well during the run. It felt more manageable. And looking at my Garmin, most of the time it seemed that I was in the right range, but every now and then I’d get too fast and need to slow down. But afterwards, when I checked my stats it turned out that my average pace was 10:30. For reference, on previous runs I had targeted a pace of 9:00 min/mile and sometimes I had to push to stay there. Anyway, the end result was that I was worthless for the rest of the day (typically exhausted) so I will try again on upcoming runs to slow down better. If anyone’s curious, I’m following Hal Higdon’s Novice 2 marathon training program.

The running program above is a 4 x’s/week program, but it’s important to me that I keep lifting and trying to get stronger. I started off trying to lift 4 x’s/week as well, but that was unmanageable so I’ve gone down to 3 x’s/week. I’ve been doing a hypertrophy style program with a lot of volume. For the most part I’ve been keeping up with it, but as the miles increase I’m going to start reducing the volume at least somewhat.

Other than physical training, I’m really just trying to focus on building the website as much as possible. I’ve finally finished the Batcave series which has taken way longer than I had originally anticipated. I kinda backed myself into a corner on that one, lol. Anyway, now I’ll have time to write about other things and pursue other things related to UD. I really want to focus on getting more content up on the site (at least 50 pieces total), before turning my attention to other things I want to achieve. Most of the articles have been extremely long, so I’m going to see if I can write some shorter posts to speed this up. That’s all for now.

18 Sep

I have a habit of reading multiple books at one time. It keeps things interesting, but the downside is that I can stagnate and get stuck reading a book for much longer than it would take me were I to focus better. I’m trying to clear out my currently-reading list, so I can start a new stack that contains a healthy dose of non-fiction as well as the next installment in Frank Herbert’s Dune series, Heretics of Dune.

My current reads include-

Becoming a Supple Leopard by Kelly Starrett- This is a well-known standard in strength and Crossfit circles. At times it can be a little dry, as it reads like a textbook, but for the most part it has a lot of insightful and fascinating ideas and protocols for moving better, both in exercise and recovery.

Contagious: Why Things Catch On by Jonah Berger- Another standard, this time in the marketing space. This book has to do with how and why ideas go viral.

Alone at Dawn by Dan Schilling and Lori Chapman Longfritz- About USAF Combat Controller and Medal of Honor recipient, MSgt John Chapman. I had already listened to the audiobook version of this a couple years back. It’s amazing. Well worth the re-read.

22 Sep

Well, it’s been quite the week. After publishing an article on Monday, I spent the next two days painting the master bedroom. My long-suffering wife has to deal with the fact that my attention to the honey-do list is much less consistent than it should be. Nevertheless, I managed to get something done this week. This should buy me some time to attend to other things for a while.

I continue with the marathon training. I’ve done all my runs so far for the week. One of the reasons I’ve decided to take on the marathon is to build up mental resilience. In fact, that’s probably more the reason than anything, and the long runs have been great for this. I get to spend lots of time in my own mental headspace. That said, I’m coming to the end of Week 8, and this weekend is going to be the toughest yet. 15 miles tomorrow, followed by a half-marathon the next day.

In other news, our church had their annual book sale today, which I’ve been looking forward to. If you’ve never ventured out to buy books second hand, I urge you to do it! I am constantly floored by the amazing finds I come across and the incredible value that used book sales offer. Also, you’d be surprised at the condition some of these books arrive in. Many look like they were bought new, stored on a shelf and never read, and then donated. In other words…they’re still in new condition.

An example of a great find from today- Sometimes I’ll buy textbooks. I like to have something I can just grab off the shelf to learn something new, or pick up to reference without getting on the internet with its many distractions. I came across a 9th edition of Campbell’s Biology. I didn’t know it, but flipping through it, it looked densely packed with good info. After I came home I looked it up and found that it is one of the gold standards in Biology textbooks, used commonly in AP Biology or early level college courses. Although there are newer editions available (I think they’re up to 12), this one is still available on Amazon for $113. Used, it’ll still run you $57. Price at the local charity book sale…..$1.

Now just imagine the amount of knowledge, creativity, inspiration, and practical information that is available to you at one of these sales for $5, $10, or $20. It’s absolutely ASTOUNDING. 😀

25 Sep

Well I survived the weekend, lol. I actually didn’t end up doing the half-marathon run on Sunday. Something about that part of the training plan seemed funny to me, so I poked around on the internet some. Turns out, the Higdon Novice 2 marathon plan is available free online and it lists the half marathon as taking place the following Sunday. I cross-referenced the plan in the book and sure enough there is no long run listed for this upcoming Saturday. Super weird. So I think that’s a pretty big mistake in the book. Anyway, half-marathon coming up this weekend and the 15-miler this past Saturday went just fine.

I finished 2 books today and am raring to go for the next stack! 35 completed so far this year. I think I can get to 50 by the end of the year.

October 2023

4 Oct

Hey, new month! I can hardly believe it’s October already. I’m in the 10th Week of Training on Higdon 2. Had an 8-mile paced run this morning. It was kind of a mixed bag. I’m not hitting my pace of sub-8 minutes per mile and that sucks. I finished with an overall pace of 8:14 per mile. At least however, I didn’t bonk like I did in my last paced run. On that one I went out too fast and was in heartrate zone 5 the entire time. I know I can push myself in zone 5 but that’s not ideal for sustainability or speed. I’m focusing on trying to improve my pace while staying in zone 4. Tricky stuff.

My shoes, the Saucony Endorphin 3’s, are pretty worn out now, so I’ve upgraded to the Saucony Endorphin Pro 3’s. They seem good, lighter and more minimal. I don’t know if I’ll be able to tell much of a difference in performance as the Speed 3’s were already good, but we’ll see.

I borrowed a Pre-Algebra book from the library to practice on my own. I want to be able to help my kids with their math homework and keep helping them as they get more advanced. Right now my wife does this (former math teacher), but she’s not always available, so I think it would help them if I can sometimes fulfill this role as well.

I’m currently reading The Education of an Idealist by Samantha Power. Earlier in the year I read The Unexpected Spy by Tracy Walder. Both of these books have got me itching to read more and heavier history and political books. I’ve got some waiting in the wings, but haven’t gotten to them yet. It’s always the case that there are way more books I want to read than I have time to read. My interest in history and adjacent topics was non-existent before this year, but then I stumbled onto the IdeasInHat YouTube channel. If you want a really good source for (mostly) non-fiction books on all sorts of topics, take a look at this channel. It’s top notch 👌.

24 Oct

WOT 13 this week! I’ve already hit the high point for mileage in WOT 11 (36 miles), so after a bit of a break last week, the program returns with 34 miles. Training is going fairly well. I’ve been focusing on keeping my heart rate at around 150-160ish and to me, this feels like the top end of Zone 4. It feels sustainable. When I’m out on a paced run I’m focusing on running as fast a pace as I can while still staying in this zone and I think it’s been helping. It’s toeing the line between running a fast pace and bonking, which I definitely want to avoid. The past few paced runs in order of recency have been-

So I feel like I’m (back) on track, improving little by little. The marathon is just 5 weeks away. That seems crazy that it’s getting close after training all this time, but at the same time I’m ready to get back to focusing more on lifting. Lately I’ve been feelin’ pretty fat and like I’m just not doing enough. With how much time the run training is taking up, I’ve dialed the lifting back to 2 days a week, which I hate. I’ve put on some undesirable weight recently, so I’m going to dial back the calories somewhat, but focus on maintaining the muscle and strength I have.

Other than training, I’ve been focusing on the site. Have published 5 articles this month, so at more than 1 article a week that feels pretty good. I’d like to get to where I am publishing an article nearly every day, but I don’t know how realistic that is. For now, I’m just trying to make the next improvement, so my goal is to publish 3 articles in a week.

I’ve been brushing up on math still and practicing piano, each for about 30 mins a day. It’s nice to be able to help the kids with their homework and to be able to give them a little motivation musically, something to strive for. Both of these pursuits are less of a priority than training and the website, so I have to be careful not get too excited about them and put them ahead of what my most important goals are.

There was another library book sale, a big local one that they hold annually. This stack of books was only about $10. These are just the science books, and that doesn’t include the textbooks I got. Woot.

8 Nov 2023

New month! This is WOT #15 in the marathon plan I’m following. Just 3 full weeks of training left and then it’s race week. Crazy how it’s almost here after all this time. I am ready to be done with this running block though and get back to other things.

I’ve been meaning to start a YouTube channel in earnest for a while to complement this site and I’ve finally got around to purchasing the items and services I need to start crafting videos. I’m pretty excited, but a little anxious as well! Hopefully learning Adobe Premeire Pro doesn’t give me too many fits.

Haven’t really practiced piano in a week and that SUCKS. Progress on an instrument depends heavily on being consistent, so I definitely need to get back to it starting today.

I’m happy with the progress I’ve made with the site in the past few months. Although I always feel like there’s so much to do, I can see the effort paying off when I look at the stats. It’s nice when I go to check the numbers that people are finding multiple articles on different topics, not just the same few I had that were carrying the bulk of the traffic. I’m up to 44 articles published now, so making it to my initial goal of 50 published articles is going to happen very soon.

27 Nov

It’s RACE WEEK! Feeling pretty good about things. I’ve improved throughout training and now I’m just resting and recovering with only a few short run workouts this week leading up to Sunday. Race day. I know it’s gonna hurt, but I’m almost looking forward to it, the hurt that is. I want get in there in the crucible and test myself.

I bought an NSCA (National Strength and Conditioning Association) textbook. I’m going to start slowly going over it after the marathon and will begin studying in earnest sometime next year in pursuit of an NSCA certification. This is going to bolster my knowledge about strength training, particularly with regards to programming over the long haul. I do plan on writing about this topic on the website.

Oh yeah, and Adobe Premiere Pro is giving me FITS, lol. Actually, it’s not that bad, it’s just a very deep program and the way it works is taking some getting used to. And of course it’s taking longer than I want it to.

I don’t think I’ve touched math or piano for 2 weeks, so that has to change this week. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving, for those in the U.S., and everyone is getting into the Christmas spirit/Holiday season.

6 Dec 2023

Did the thing on Sunday, completing my first marathon with an official time of 4:03:31. I’ve been processing how things went and although I’m proud of the work I did leading up to it, I feel that my performance fell short of what I was capable of. So it’s a mixed bag.

The Good

• I completed the program, Hal Higdon’s Novice 2, almost perfectly, at least in my eyes. For the cross-training days, I completed some form of weight training even though I think the intention is to do an alternate form of cardio. If this hindered my performance, so be it. This was an intentional choice to remain a well-rounded athlete and I really didn’t want to lose much muscle if any while training. I didn’t skip any training runs and I definitely put out on the paced runs.
• Started off easy for the first 2 miles and then held an 8:30ish pace through mile 11. Last year I ran a half marathon around this pace (or tried to) but bonked towards the end. This year I felt way better through this distance. I’ve definitely made progress in terms of speed and endurance.
• Finished the race strong, after having issues after mile 20

The Not so Good/Room for Improvement

• Sensed some cramping coming on around the halfway point. For me, it’s a deep seated ache in the hamstrings and glutes that kind of feels like really bad DOMS after a tough leg workout. I did experience some of this on some of the long training runs. A new thing I experienced were some wicked charlie horse type cramps in the quads that I felt on walk breaks towards the end. Fun, lol.
• Miles 21-26 were super difficult. I managed it the best I could, but I did take a few short walk breaks, none longer than a minute or so.
• I HATE that I walked. Even though there was a physical component, I feel that this may have been more of a break in mental resiliency, even more so because I managed to run the last mile at a decent pace.
• In retrospect, I really should have aimed more for an 8:45 pace in the first 2/3rds of the race, rather than 8:30. I guess this is a common trap to fall into even for seasoned marathoners. I felt good, so I went a little faster but I probably would’ve had more left later on if I had run more conservatively in the first half.

Even though I could’ve gutted it out more at the end, I feel the main culprit was that the program only built to a single 20-miler. I just was not in shape enough for the distance. I think this particular program is mainly made to get people to complete the distance and not necessarily have them feeling strong at the end. Next go around I will start further out, build up to more mileage in general and for sure if not longer than 20 miles, at least multiple 20 mile runs, so that my legs are conditioned better to longer distances.

You live and you learn. I’m playing the long game here and though this race wasn’t quite what I hoped for it was successful in many ways, and most importantly I’m in a good spot to build on and improve on my fitness now. Plan is to maintain a solid base of running, maybe 20-30 miles a week, and focus back on lifting now. I want to boost my strength numbers up some and then later lean up some more.

21 December

After completing my last article and then the marathon I’ve been taking a much needed break for the past 2 weeks. I have done a few light workouts in there, but nothing too intense or very organized. Bad news is that now that I’m ready to start ramping up again, I stubbed a toe badly last night. It’s discolored and swollen, so I think there’s a good chance it’s broken. I’ll get it checked out tomorrow. If it is broken, it doesn’t mean I can’t train, but I’ll definitely need to modify my plans.

I haven’t had the chance yet, but it’s time to clean up and reorganize the workshop in the garage. Once I complete this, there will be enough of a difference to warrant an update post/article/video on the Dragon Lab. The office needs an update badly as well, but one thing at a time. I’ll be pulling some ideas from the Batcave series to make both of these spaces into the best, most optimized workspaces they can be.

Trying to finish up a book or two before the end of the year. Currently sitting at 41 books read this year. This past year has been the best for the amount of books I’ve read, as well as the quality and diversity of books read. Looking forward to continuing this trend in 2024.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to anyone reading this! We’re almost to the end of the year and I can hardly believe it. I’ll be spending some time reflecting on the past year, but I’m also stoked to think of the possibilities for the upcoming new year as well. If I don’t update this before then, Happy New Year to all as well!

25 December 2023

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Even though today is a holiday I couldn’t resist hopping on to say hello, give a small update, and wish everyone a Merry Christmas. This past week was a really great return to training, just getting used to working everything again on a regular basis. I lifted and hit all major muscle groups throughout the week. After a few days, the aforementioned toe cleared up and I was able to hit a 4-miler yesterday. Felt pretty good.

I haven’t published anything on the site in a while. I do currently have an article in the works, but it’s been difficult to make much progress on it with family responsibilities and the holidays. We have more family coming into town today, so I hope to get it out later this week or possibly next week.

The Dragon Lab reorganization is in full swing! I’m excited about this because it’s long overdue. I’ve got a new piece of storage equipment in place and am now purging and reshuffling so progress is being made in earnest.

I’ve been thinking about the past year, and I’ll probably sit down at some point and work through month by month how my plans and goals have played out (or not). However, I’m more pumped thinking about next year. I’ve already got so much I want to do I don’t know how I’ll fit it all in! Spoiler, I probably can’t do it all and will have to make some carefully considered choices, but I’m stoked to improve, learn, and make big progress next year. I hope everyone else is feeling the same kind of optimism. Also, I’m definitely not waiting till the new year to start. I’m already taking those steps forward that will pay off next year and you should too! Don’t wait!

15 Jan 2024

Wow, Happy New Year! Just wanted to hop on here real quick and wish everyone the best in the New Year. I have big plans and high hopes for this year so it’s an exciting time. Unfortunately, I haven’t been writing as much these past couple weeks as I would have liked, but I’m getting back to work this week. I have the next handful of articles planned out and I’m pretty excited to get them on the site.

I spent a few days last week working on my wife’s van. I’m not much of a mechanic, but it’s been something I’ve always wanted to learn more about, so whenever something comes up, I try to see if there’s an opportunity to learn. The van had been having issues, so we got it scanned and got a print out of things to fix from Auto Zone.

This past week I removed the intake manifold, changed out the spark plugs, an ignition coil, and the plenum gasket. After all that, the van…..did exactly the same thing, lol. Gonna take it in as I’m thinking it may be some kind of leak in one of the hoses. Well, it certainly doesn’t operate any worse and now I’ve learned to do some things I had no clue about before. I also bought and learned to use a torque wrench, so that’s another thing to check off. Pleased with the learning and the doing, not so much the result, lol.

I’m about 400 pages into the first volume of Edmund Morris’ grand biographical trilogy on Teddy Roosevelt. It’s amazing. Roosevelt, although not without fault, was amazing. Highly recommended!

19 Mar 2024

Hey there, long time no see! I haven’t been very present on here lately and for that I apologize. In retrospect, I think now that after the end of last year I was a little burned out, more than I realized. In the time since my last update, I’ve still been getting it in, the physical training that is, just less programmed and less intense, more of a keeping up the habit sort of approach. I’ve also been really getting more into books lately, not just reading them, but collecting them, learning about first editions and their various points, and even beginning to sell them a little on my Ebay page. Here’s my page if you want to check it out- The Book Dragon Rare Books and Records

Really, this is just to kind of bolster my habit of collecting books, but I do plan to start offering some books here on the site before listing them on Ebay. I have a couple aims with this. One, I’d like to be able to connect readers with books they might not normally be able to get themselves. Or not easily that is. I’ve lived in small towns before and sometimes your available choices are not many. One of the things I like about living in a larger city is the amount of material that is around if you know where to look. Hopefully I can source some unique items and pass those on to those interested.

Secondly, although Ebay is a large marketplace (the upside), the associated fees kind of suck and that inflates prices. I plan to list items of interest on this website first, at a lower price than I would list them on Ebay. This way the buyer saves some, I save some by cutting out the middle man, and hopefully viewers/customers will be able to find some interesting quality used books that they might not otherwise find for very reasonable prices.

Oh, I almost forgot! I just finally went and saw Dune, Part II! Wow, I’m still taking it in, sorting through things. There were a couple minor things that bothered me, but overall it was epic, a great, mostly faithful adaptation from the book and thought provoking to say the least. Go see it if you can.

I continue to have “too many interests” and not enough time. But it’s fun. We’ll talk again soon, so until then I’ll do my best to keep the plates spinning in the air and I hope you do too. 🤘