Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 81

For Day 81 I did lower body flexibility in XB and Upper Body Strength in 645.

The 645 workout was tough, even being a de-load week. And there were a couple of new variations on the moves that Amoila threw in there that made them a bit more challenging. Overall, however, it was a good workout even if it was a bit harder to get through.

Book Review: Code Red (Mitch Rapp Series #22)

 

Code Red is the 22nd book in the long-running Mitch Rapp series of novels started by Vince Flynn in the late 1990s and continued by Kyle Mills after Flynn's death in 2013. This is Mills' 8th (and final) book in the series, including the book that was started by Flynn and finished by Mills.

This book is partly a continuation of the story from the prior novels and partly a reset of the storyline. In this book, Damien Losa, the cartel kingpin, calls in the favor that Mitch owes him, specifically to investigate a drug originating in Syria and threatening Losa's European network. Of course, things go sideways pretty early on, and as the cover of the book implies, Rapp discovers that the drugs are part of a larger Russian plot.

The hardcover version of the book is just over 330 pages, which is similar in length to Mills' other contributions to the series. It has a good blend of action and suspense. Some of the main characters get pushed to the side for most of the book, but by the end, most of the characters you expect to make an appearance do appear. The book is a quick read, and chances are most fast readers will be able to finish it in a day or two, at most. It is a good swan song for Mills' contribution to the Rapp series and sets up possible future storylines well. It is absolutely worth the time to read.

Book Review: Star Wars: Starlight Stories

 

Starlight Stories is a book about the High Republic era of Star Wars, set around Starlight Beacon, the space station that is included in many of the High Republic novels. It is a cross between a coffee table picture book and a novel. In the beginning, there is a summary of the High Republic era stories, and then in the middle, there is a series of short stories written by 4 or 5 different authors, generally set around non-Jedi characters. Finally, the book ends with profiles of the authors who submitted stories for the book.

The Hardcover version of the book is very short, coming in just under 100 pages. The text is extremely small, and in some places, it is very light, so it is not always easy to read, especially if you are older and you are at the stage in life when you need reading glasses or bifocals/progressive lenses. It is not a book that I would describe as a must-read by any means, as it does not really add much to the High Republic storyline. I think it is a book that most people would read once and then put on a shelf.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 80

Day 80 was flexibility day again. I did the lower back routine in XB and mobility and stability in 645.

The 645 routine actually added a couple of new moves, one of which I was very surprised I could do as well as I did. One of them was a stretch I could do when I was a lot younger and in martial arts, but have not been able to do it for a long time. I am also getting a bit better at the kick-through variations.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 79

For Day 79 I got back on track, doing the lower body flexibility routine in XB and the de-load week version of total body power. Both of them went well, especially since I ended up getting a lot of sleep the night before. I definitely feel that I am getting stronger and I attribute that to the fact that during the 645 workouts, Amoila really focuses on working the stabilizer and non-show/glamour muscles. I really feel that my right shoulder, which bugged me all the way through Lift 4 and Job 1 is having far fewer issues during this program, which is very nice.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 78

Day 78 was a bit of a shit show. My mom had to go into the ER at about 3AM, and needless to say, I did not get much sleep at all. I did not do an XB routine at all, but I did manage to get the 645 workout in, which was the week 12 lower body strength workout. This is another de-load week, so other than during the EMOM blocks, we are doing just two sets of each exercise, but still lifting as heavy as we can. It was a tough workout, especially on very little sleep, but I did feel better by the time I was finished with it, which helped me rest a bit better in the evening.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 77

For Day 77 I did the Realign routine in XB. This one works all of my tight muscles and I do think that I have a little (very little) bit more mobility than I did the first couple of times I did the workout (because of the fact that all these muscles get worked a lot in 645).

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 76

Day 76 was Cardio in 645. It again ramped up the intensity of the workout a bit. This workout added bands into the last few moves of the circuit, not just in the warm-up.  We again just had time for three rounds of the circuit so there was no fourth round, but honestly, I think I would have been too gassed to do another round had they done a bonus round. It was tough, but good.

Book Review: The Essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson The First and Second Series

 

The Essays of Ralph Waldo Emmerson are basically a collection of relatively short philosophical papers that Emmerson wrote on different topics such as Love, Politics, Manners, Friendship, etc. The most well-known essay is probably Self-Reliance, his essay on individualism.

The Easton Press version has both series of essays in one volume. The book is relatively short, right around 300 pages (including the introduction at the beginning). Even though it is short it is written in 1800s old-style formal English, so it is not the easiest thing to read and grasp exactly what he is getting at without slowing down and re-reading some parts. But, if you are a relatively fast reader, you can probably get through it in a couple of days.

The essays are interesting, but obviously, a lot of what Emmerson says and opines on is informed by the times in which he lived. He discusses not only his own views on the various subjects but how different philosophers throughout history would have viewed (or actually viewed) those subjects as well. I would not classify this as a must-read book, but if you are into history and/or philosophy, it is absolutely an interesting read.

Book Review: The Rise of the Dragon: An Illustrated History of the Targaryen Dynasty, Volume One

 

Rise of the Dragon is an illustrated and condensed version of the novel Fire & Blood, detailing the history of the Targaryen rule of the 7 kingdoms in the Game of Thrones universe created by George R.R. Martin. It is the primary source material for the Game of Thrones prequel series, House of the Dragon. In fact, if you have watched the first season of House of the Dragon, that story appears about halfway through this book. This book will, in broad strokes, spoil what is likely to be the ending of that series (depending on at what point in the story the showrunners decide to end the series), as it outlines what will come next. Given that the book did not include all of the details that we saw in the first season of the show, it is not likely to spoil everything that will be seen in the show, but you will get an idea of where the story will go. This is probably the first of what will be at least two books, as this one ends before the events of Danyeres' father's rule and his downfall.

The hardcover version of the book is 342 pages, a lot of which are illustrations. As was the case with the book Fire & Blood, it can be hard to keep all of the characters straight, especially since many of the Targareyn characters have similar-sounding names, and names get reused over and over. Having illustrations that show some of the scenes that are being described in the text does help a little bit, but it definitely makes this a slower reading book than it would normally be. 

The book is very good, and the illustrations are great. Of course, many of us would prefer that Martin focus his time and energy on actually finishing the final two books of the Game of Thrones story, but the reality is that he is going to jump around from project to project and he seems content to finish GoT in his own good time. One good thing about this story being mostly finished is that the House of Dragon TV series will have a clear guidepost for where it is going whereas the later seasons of GoT did not, which will hopefully allow that series to end in a more satisfying manner.

Book Review: The Art of Star Wars: The High Republic – Volume 1

 

The Art of Star Wars is a book that is what I would call a coffee table book. It is a mix of artwork/pictures and text. The text talks about how the concept of the High Republic era (which is set a few hundred years before the events of Episode I) came to be, how various characters and creatures were conceived, etc. The pictures range from very rough sketches (almost scribbles in some cases) to the final artwork that appeared on the covers of the various novels and in the graphic novels. The text is written from interviews with the artists/illustrators and the authors of the various High Republic era novels as well as bigwigs at Lucasfilm. It also includes some concept art from the movies and TV series as well.

The hardcover version of the book is just under 230 pages. You can read it from cover to cover, but chances are a lot of people will skim it and mainly focus on the pictures. Either way, it is something that most people can get through in a few hours, or a day at most. It is also a good way for those people who do not get the graphic novels to see some of the characters who are described in the books but are not on the covers (or are not easily identifiable on the covers). It is probably not something that will appeal to casual Star Wars fans, but for the more "die-hard" fans, it is worth checking out.

Book Review: American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer

 

American Prometheus is a biography of Robert Oppenheimer, who was the lead scientist on the Manhattan Project and was, after World War II, called the "Father of the Atomic Bomb." This was the book that served as much of the source material for the 2023 movie by Christopher Nolan.

This book is best described as a slog to get through. It is very, very long. The softcover version of the book is about 600 pages of actual, substantive text, then there are about 100 pages of notes, a bibliography, and an index that pushes it well over 700 pages. And, the font used for the type was very small. Had a larger font that was easier to read been used when the book was printed, it would have been well over 1000 pages. 

The book details Oppenheimer's life from his time as a child to his death in 1967. Sometimes it goes into too much detail, a lot of which probably could have been cut out. The book portrays Oppenheimer as someone who was brilliant, but kind of crazy. In some ways, he was a walking contradiction. He was great at physics, but not at math. He was socially awkward but could charm pretty much anyone (and apparently was quite the swordsman with the ladies). He felt the atomic bomb was needed but regretted his role in its creation when he saw the arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union take off. 

The book is split into several parts, each covering a period of time in Oppenheimer's life, including his childhood, his time as a student and then a teacher, as the leader of the Manhattan Project, being swept up in McCarthyism and the Red Scare, the fallout from having his security clearance taken away, and then the end of his life.  I think it will take most people longer to read this book than it would take them to get through a book of equivalent size. I am a very fast reader and most of the time I can get through a 500-600 page book in 6-7 days (sometimes less depending on the book), and this one took me 15 days to finish. So, it is not an easy or quick read. It can be very dry in parts and like I said above, could easily omit some details. But, it is very interesting and worth the time to read or listen to.

Product Review PUERSI Cookbook Stand (Wooden Cookbook Holder)

 

This is a pretty simple, but very nice-looking, cookbook stand. It is easy to put together and does not require any tools to assemble. You just slide the two notches together and set it down.

The stand is smaller than the picture makes it seem, but it will hold a reasonably-sized book (a book with 8.5" x 11" size pages with around 400 pages, give or take). It is too small, however, to hold an oversized book or a book that has a lot of pages such as the "America's Test Kitchen" cookbook, which has large pages and is well over 1000 pages long. 

The stand can easily fit in the corner of your counter without taking up too much space. It is perfect if you have a part of the counter that is kind of a "dead zone" that is too small for prep space or to put something like a blender. The stand could be a bit larger to accommodate larger books. But, for the books that it can hold, it does a great job, it looks nice on the counter, and does not feel flimsy.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 75

 Day 75 was lower back in XB and Total Body Tempo in 645.

The 645 workout was a repeat of the week 9 exercises. Some of them were a bit easier, even with using heavier weights, and some were just as difficult as they were in week 9. I can definitely tell that my right shoulder is getting stronger and does not feel as impinged as it did when I was doing Lift-4 and Job-1. It does not have the full range of motion back yet, but it is getting there.

Product Review: Lasko 5435 Max-Endurance Oscillating Ceramic Heater

 

I use this as a space heater at work because my office can get a bit cold in the winter, even with the building heater running. It works very well to keep a relatively small space warm. It is a bit loud, so if you do have to be on the phone quite a bit, you may have to turn it off to hear the phone call. Other than that, however, it is a good option if you need extra heat in a single room.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 74

For Day 74 I did the lower body flexibility workout in XB and Upper Body Strength workout.

In the XB routine, I got deeper into the stretches on each side. The 645 workout did the same exercises as in Week 9's version of the workout, but decreased the amount of reps and increased the weight (which I was able to do on most of the exercises). Overall, the workout was tough but doable.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 73

Day 73 was flexibility day again. I did lower back in XB and the Week 11 mobility and stability workout in 645.

The 645 routine actually had a lot of lower back work in it, so I actually got a very nice lower back "workout" today. All of the moves in the 645 routine are those we have done before or slight variations of what we have done before, so there are no surprises. There are a few pretty hilarious moments between the cast members in the workout that make holding the positions a bit difficult because of laughing.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 72

Day 72 was lower body flexibility in XB and total body power in 645.

The XB routine went well. I could again feel that I could get a little bit deeper into the stretches on each side. I am still a long way from doing a split, however. 

The 645 workout was another sweat-fest (despite being a resistance workout). It was fast-paced and the last block, when I was already pretty tired, had two pogos jumping into two squats. Needless to say, I was dead tired by the end of the workout.

Book Review: The Threat: How the FBI Protects America in the Age of Terror and T***p

 

The Threat is a book written by former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe after he was fired in 2018. The book is partly a memoir of his time in the FBI, focusing on the significant cases that he investigated such as the Boston Marathon bombing, and partly a reflection on the lead-up to the 2016 election and his time working in the 2017 to 2021 administration, up to the point he was fired.

The hardcover version of the book, which was published in 2019, is just under 300 pages. It can be a bit dry in parts, which makes it a bit of a slower read than say a 300-page fiction novel. But, McCabe provides a lot of insight into the various investigations that he was involved in, as well as giving an assessment of the shit-show that was the t***p administration. He calls out the lies that the orange genital wart was spewing after he fired James Comey, specifically, that the FBI rank-and-file were not, in fact celebrating that Comey was fired. McCabe also gives a pretty brutal assessment of t***p himself, basically calling him nothing more than a bullshit artist and that McCabe did not trust much of anything he said. 

While it is not the most exciting book ever written and the amount of detail that McCabe could go into about the 2016 election and the Russia investigation was limited, as the Mueller investigation was ongoing at the time the book was written and published, it is still very much worth reading. And, since Agent Orange made sure he got fired 26 hours before he would receive his pension, I don't mind supporting him.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 71

 Day 71 was lower back in XB and lower body strength in 645.

This was the intensification week in 645, so we increase the weight, decrease the number of reps (to 10), and for the time-based exercises (there were not any in this workout) the amount of time you do the moves goes up to 1 full minute.  The workout was tough, but I can tell that I have gotten stronger over the course of the 10 weeks, as I am better able to do moves like front-load lunges without falling all over the place and getting deeper into the lunges so the exercises are getting a little bit easier. 

As far as the XB routine went, it was fine. Nothing really new to report about that one.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 70

For day 70 I just did the Restore routine in XB and had an off day in 645. There is nothing really new to report about the Restore workout. My flexibility was about the same as the last time that I did it. I might have had a little more mobility in my right leg, but that is about it.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 69

Day 69 was 645 Cardio. This was another intense routine that, as Amoila said the prior week, made significant use of the bands. The bands/loops are used on the first three of the seven exercises (although you can leave them off if you need to). The workout also incorporates more jumping/plyometric moves as well as more lateral bounds and shuffles (which use the bands as targets that you touch or jump over). Definitely a good (and tough) workout.

Product Review: DG Casa Bardy Upholstered Panel Bed Frame

 

I have a king-size bed on an adjustable base that my dog is small enough to get under. I am worried about him getting under there when I don't know it and getting hurt when I use the adjustable base, so I was looking for a frame that I could put around the bed to keep the dog (a 15-pound schoodle) from going under it. This is a bed kit (headboard, side rails, footboard, and crossbars) that will fit around an adjustable base (at least the Purple regular king adjustable base), but it is not a perfect fit (at least if the adjustable base is set up first). If you are putting it around an adjustable base you will use all the pieces except the crossbars.

The box is smaller than you would expect because most of the pieces are zipped into the back of the headboard. When you get it delivered, the box is just under 80lbs and it is helpful to have two people move it. But, once you get the headboard out and unzip the back, one person can move all of the pieces pretty comfortably (albeit not necessarily easily). There is some assembly required. For example, you do have to attach the legs and the sides to the headboard frame, connect the side boards together, and put the feet on the footboard. The instruction page is fairly clear on what all of the parts are, and what parts are to be used in which steps. All of the screws and washers are in a single bag, so it is very helpful to sort them out ahead of time which will make putting everything together much easier. The hardest part, if you are putting it together around an existing adjustable base will be to connect the side boards to the headboard and footboard. Basically, there are 8 screws, two on each side of the headboard and two on each side of the footboard that brackets on the side boards slip over and then you tighten the screws. It is not easy to get at the screws on the second side once you get one side put together. That said, the end product is very good.

I put this together by myself in about an hour and a half (aside from the crossbars which I obviously did not need). I love having a headboard that prevents my pillows from falling between the bed and the wall, and it looks nice. And, it does a good job preventing the dog from getting under the bed which was the main purpose I got this for. I absolutely recommend it.

Workout Update: 645 and XB Stretch Hybrid - Day 68

For day 68 I did lower body flexibility in XB and total body tempo in 645.

I definitely had more mobility in the XB routine, especially in my right leg. I did use my roller to work some of the knots out of my hamstring, hip flexors, and IT band before I did the routine, which helped a bit, but I think I was able to get a bit deeper even without that.

The 645 routine was a bit different this week. Amoila really focused on knee, back, and ankle mobility. He went into a lot of detail about how it is okay to have your knee go over your toes (if you have done P90X you remember that warning in the leg workout), as long as you keep your heel on the ground, and that it actually helps your back and improves your squats. And, it actually takes pressure off your knees. It was very interesting to listen to, so much so that I skipped a couple of reps here and there to look at what he was demonstrating. It was still a good workout, however.

App Review: Bodi

 

Team Beachbody has mostly moved away from putting their workouts out on DVD and shifted to streaming workouts through their Beachbody on Demand (BOD) app, which they now call BODi. The BODi app has the vast majority of the Beachbody workout catalog, including the programs that existed prior to P90X (such as Slim in 6, Turbo Jam, and the original Power 90, etc.) the workout program that really launched the company into the big time. It is not clear if you go on to the Team Beachbody website that the older programs are available on the BODi app, but I can confirm that they are. In fact, the only major programs that are not available on the App are the Les Mills programs (e.g., Les Mills Combat) because the licensing agreement between Beachbody and Less Mills had expired. As a result, Beachbody discontinued selling those programs and did not put them on the App. There may be a few other programs I cannot remember that are not on the App, but the vast majority are. And, some of the newer programs are only being released on the BOD App and are not being put out on DVD at all. This is very likely going to be the norm for the Beachbody programs in the very near future, so if you want any of their new programs, you will have to subscribe to the streaming service.

A couple of things to be aware of before getting this. First, even though the App is free, you need a subscription to be able to access the workouts or the workout materials. Beachbody has monthly, quarterly, or annual subscriptions available (the yearly subscription is $99). Second, Beachbody has added live classes as well, but those do not stream through the app unless you add a subscription to Bodi (which is $200 for the annual subscription), at which point you get access to the live classes as well as the two nutrition programs (Portion Fix and 2B mindset). Third, some of the workouts do have specialized equipment and, if you want those, you will have to purchase them separately. So, there are extra costs beyond the App if you want the equipment needed to do some of the workouts or get, for example, the portion fix containers.

Overall, I think the app is good, and it is nice to have all the workouts in one spot and not have to mess with DVDs. That said, you will likely need to spend additional money to do some of the workouts (such as those that require pull-up bars) and, if you want the documentation you will have to read it in PDF format or print out a hardcopy. One thing I would love is if Beachbody would convert the nutrition plans for every workout to the portion-fix container system so the people who do decide to get the containers can use them even with the older programs like P90x and Insanity that were created before Portion Fix. Thankfully, most of the newer workouts do key their nutrition portion to the containers. Also, one big drawback is that if you have the app downloaded on multiple devices, the synch is inconsistent, especially when tracking workouts. It seems to synch with their website pretty well, but not every workout I do on a fire device or on a Rouku gets synched with the BOD app on my iPhone. Which is a bit irritating. But, for the most part, I like the app and recommend it to people who have used the Beachbody workout programs.