Archive for 2009
My Review of REI Adventures Pants - Men's 30" Inseam

My Review of REI Adventures Pants - Men's 30" Inseam

3:01 PM Add Comment

REI

You asked and we listened! The ever-popular REI Adventures pants have been spiffed up with new colors, an updated fit and a center gusset to meet your traveling needs like never before.


I love these pants

drfranktate Mountains, NC 6/26/2009

 

5 5

Gift: No

Waist: Feels true to size

Length: Feels true to length

Pros: Packable, Lightweight, Comfortable, High-Quality Material and Stitching, Breathable

Best Uses: Casual Wear

Describe Yourself: Casual Adventurer

I love these pants for everyday use. I get hot pretty easily, and these pants are wonderfully breathable. Plus, they're very stain resistant and hold up very well over time. Unlike a previous reviewer, I've found that they're exactly true to size.

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PhilipsSHS390 Headphones Are Great for Activities

PhilipsSHS390 Headphones Are Great for Activities

1:46 PM Add Comment
I just got a pair of the Philips SHS390 behind-the-neck wired headphones, and I think they're great. The price is definitely right at about $14 at WalMart, and the sound is really nice. Additionally, I've now tested them on a hard run, and I can tell you that you don't even notice them on your head. They don't have any strange sounds from the movement of the cord, or from the cord brushing up against you. The bass response is also really nice. There are LOTS of more expensive "headphones for an active lifestyle" out there, but these fit the bill very nicely for me.
The low carb diet has some neat features

The low carb diet has some neat features

3:46 PM Add Comment
I've been busy and sickly lately, so I haven't been able to run as much as I'd like. I've only run about 3 times over the last 2 1/2 weeks. Eating the way I previously did, this lack of exercise would have noticeably affected my breathing and stamina. However, I just got back from a long (for me) run with more hills than normal, and I felt better than ever. During the hills I was breathing a little hard, but it was just steady. AND I cut a significant amount of time off of my last uphill, even though I felt like I was going pretty slow.

The only thing I can contribute this to is the low carb diet. So I'm gonna stick with it as strictly as I have been until I drop another 25-30 lbs.
I REALLY like hills

I REALLY like hills

5:50 PM Add Comment
I just spent the week in Orlando, one of the flattest cities you'll find, and I didn't really enjoy running there. It was just too flat for my liking. Hills are more challenging and just more fun to me. Oh well, I guess I'm just a little off normal.
The low carb diet is still working

The low carb diet is still working

6:06 AM Add Comment
So far I've lost almost 30lbs eating low-carb. One thing I've found that's helpful is to have one "ice cream day" every week or two. I'll normally go on a long run on this day to balance things out, and it seems to oddly help my body lose weight. I'm guessing it's the extra effort, but I don't know. The weight loss is definitely slower than it was initially, but that's OK. Running has gotten quite a bit easier, which is nice.
Stairs can be your friend

Stairs can be your friend

4:54 PM Add Comment
I'm working in Montreal this week, and it's fecking COLD here. I ran outside one morning when the temp got above 20F, but below that I'm a wussy. Happily, I'm staying at the Sheraton downtown, which has about 38 floors. I'm on the 26th floor and the gym is on the 6th, so I've put myself in a good amount of pain by running/walking the 12 floors to the top, then down to the gym floor, then back to the top. It's only about 15 minutes, but the 9 minutes of UP in that feels like PLENTY. Plus, it's a nice temperature and it's peaceful (since I haven't run into another soul there).
Breathing gets easier

Breathing gets easier

3:28 PM Add Comment
I REALLY enjoy running hills. They SUCK from a pain standpoint, but I just love 'em. For one thing, they hurt, and you can only go so slow to try to lessen the hurt, but the hurt remains. As opposed to running on flat land, where you have to go faster to make it hurt more, hills hurt as long as you're on those sonsabitches. They hurt your legs and your lungs. And that lead to my observation today:

I felt pretty good, so I doubled back a little on the 1.5 mile run around my house, to make it a full 2 miles. This may not sound like much, but the extra half mile gave me about another 300 feet of climbing (my property is really pretty steep). So I got a total of about 7oo feet of climbing in that 2 miles. On the first  big climb, my lungs hurt a bit. They hurt on the second climb, too, but not as much. On the last climb - 200 feet over 1/4 mile, my lungs didn't hurt. It felt like my body was being truly efficient in using the oxygen my lungs were pulling in, and that was a very nice feeling.

The moral of the story is - pain temporary, and the more you endure, the better you will feel later.

Happy running.
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