Offensive Thinking
Brain tumors suck. Hi, I'm Patrick btw. This is my cancer blog. My "normal" stuff is over here.
On Working Out
My rings setup on vacation in Canada. I wish I had that view at home...
Happy holidays everyone! It is pure coincidence that this became a Christmas post though. My first blog post about my training regimen was back in 2013, please read it if you haven’t already. Since then, a couple of things have changed.
First of all, my weight. I peaked at about 82kg (180.7lbs) and am now at a still healthy 77.6kg (171lbs), with the goal to get up to 80kg (176.3lbs) again. At a height of 189cm (6’2"), 77.6kg make a BMI of 21.8. Weighting between 71kg and 91kg (156.5lbs — 200.6lbs) is considered normal for me. My lowest weight, after my first surgery, was 62kg (136.6lbs), with a BMI of 17.4. With a BMI under 20, you are considered to be underweight. Let’s see where I land after the holidays :).
Second, the training method. I am now training on the rings, currently with the great Rings 1 program from GMB. So it’s still bodyweight exercises for me, but the rings bring a unique challenge to it. I still get up at 5:15am to get my training done, three times a week. The only difference is that, with the rings, I’m training outside in our backyard. It’s the only way I can hang the rings high enough, as I can hang them from our balcony. Makes for some tough training during the winter, but proper layering is everything. The sense of accomplishment after getting up at 5:15 and having a workout when it’s freezing outside is totally worth it. I also really, really need to add a leg day to my current schedule…
To illustrate the difference this can make, here are some pictures. The left image is from 2012 when we visited Taiwan, the two on the right side are from now. I put on the same polo shirt to make the images as comparable as possible. The jeans are different ones though, I do not fit into the old ones any longer. Also: beard gainz! And no, I don’t have a mohawk, it just looks like that because I didn’t shave for about three days and I have a naturally receding hairline :)
Training is still my one of the ways I deal with my cancer, as it gives me something to do that might improve the further course of my illness. It might already have been an advantage during radiation treatment, as I didn’t suffer too much from it. I like to believe being as fit as possible played a role there. So get off the couch and do something!