Unleash the Monkey Army

...as you've got older? I was asked that today and thought that it's not a bad question (damn whippersnappers!).  Yes and no. Firstly, I'm at that age where I have to work out how old I am! It just doesn't feature in much of anything! I don't feel old, most of the time, and as such occasionally have to remind myself, or silently shake my head when it comes up! Just for the record, at 36, I'm not old [36? How the hell did that happen?!] there's still plenty of testosterone kicking around my system and my hormonal profile has not been completely obliterated by working life and other abuses heaped upon it. So, I think I'm doing alright. On that basis, I'm not really sure that I'm best placed to talk about getting older! But, I'll throw my perspective out there for you anyway! I stack weight and body fat on quickly these days, that's for sure. What I can get away with, dietarily speaking, has shrunk in stark contrast to the growth...

126 days down 18 weeks have passed. 8260 burpees performed (thanks in part to an inclination to round up) Over the last couple of weeks this post has started and drifted away again in my head, several times. Not altogether unlike my love affair with burpees over the same time really! At one point this piece was going to be titled "Because...". I decided against that, partly because I doubt anybody really wants to read me wrestling with angst (again) and partly because "because" is the answer to the question "why?". I know and accept that disappointment takes preparation. For newcomers to the concept, let me explain. In order to be disappointed about something you need two conditions: first, an idea or an image however vague and cloudy, of how you thought it would be. Second, what you are actually facing to be different to that expectation.  Often we have the bitter taste of disappointment in our mouth without ever having been conscious of what we were expe...

It's been a couple of weeks since the last update and, frankly, not a lot has been going on. Life and work have a habit of throwing challenges into the mix with an apparent disregard for how they impact on us. Squad news: Sheldon ( Sheldon's blog) has carried on burping and blogging. Seriously, if you haven't stopped by, give him a read and drop a comment, his fashion sense is unreal and he could do with a t'internet hug. With each entry (and to be fair, updates from others in the Facebook group) I discover more things in common with people on the other side of the planet. There are a hardcore of other burpeurs/burpeuses confirmed as still quietly chipping away:- Monty, Charles; Hayley; Liz; Hoggy and Trev. We happy few, we band of...wait a minute. "Happy"? By the way, if you are in, with us and still going, drop me a line. It would be great to hear from you and share in your journey. So, happy? Maybe, maybe not. Another couple of drop-outs has been a...

Day 70 in the book. That's ten weeks in and as good a time as any to check in. My last check-in was eight weeks ago. That in academics is approximately a term, so let's have a loom at the report card.  Not altogether surprisingly, there is the customary "must try harder" and "could do better". But what else? Well, it's hard to say really. At risk of sounding arrogant and blasé (I have been accused of both before, and recently), it has been a little bit of something and nothing. That sounds appalling, let me rephrase. Remember, I did the #100dayburpeechallenge before, and relatively recently at that. So while my belly still jiggles, my lungs burn and my breath rasps, it is all with half an eye in the facts that a) I know this is doable, and b) this will get a lot worse. Actually that thought has cast an ugly shadow a couple of times. Something along the lines of "December will really suck!" It has been despatched. Sent away with thought "Pr...

It's time for me to both add some value and bring something a little bit old school to this party. Yes, that's right, I'm going to talk to you about the off-season.  Starting from an early age, the off-season was that fallow period when you wandered around like a lost sheep looking for something to fill the void. When I was 16 and just starting rugby, that was easy, rugby finished, cricket started. Then come July I got blend a bit of both before playing some matches of both in August and switching back in September. Then I played a bit of rugby league, then I went on a Summer rugby tour and between the prep and the reality of it, the nails were well and truly hammered into the coffin of my pursuit of gentle days standing in a field in white pyjamas.  Where was I? Oh yes, the off-season. It's May, you're not professional but even so, your almost 8-month long season has not long finished. For some, the time away came at just the right moment. For others, it...

Two weeks in, fifty to go. It seems easy when you say it like that! To some degree, it is. Just knocking them down one day, one week at a time. True, the amount of work is not going to get any less, quite the opposite in fact. But we are not at home to Mr Cock-up. We cannot let ourselves get distracted by the volume., nor dissuaded by some sort of pre-emotive boredom. The goal is chunky. It like fish one whale carcass, we can only take it one nibble at a time. In this first couple of weeks, the fitter see the reps as low and inconsequential. With no habit built in yet, the danger lies in missing a day or two semi-intentionally and then just overlooking a catch-up. And, as easily as that, you've slipped off the ladder. The odd catch-up day at this point can be a good thing though. At this stage a "two-for" day is just enough reps to get the heart going and act as a signpost to what lies ahead if we have to play catch-up further down the road. A warning but one that...

We're getting a little more interest in the burpee year, quite unbelievably! I say "we" with no sense of dissembling at all. The interest has little to do with me and more to do with all you closet nutters out there spreading the word to your friends. Which is brilliant! I'm not sure whether it should be worrying or reassuring that this appeals to you lot, but I am looking forward to your company over the coming months. Some people are new to the idea of burpees, some not so new but trying to get their head around the ladder. Some just like their life made easier (true, they're assuming more of a voyeuristic role in this exercise, but it is all good). So, while it is all on these pages so far, to help all of y'all, I have added an extra page as a primer . I have put links to relevant previous posts on there and will add links to more on there as I find/write more content. Burpee Primer Hope it is of use. But, since this is becoming decreasingly about me,...