One of my fastest, hardest 2.5 mile mtn bike sprints. I think this was my second fastest. I needed it. A lot of butt time and a few extra lbs.
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 9:36
Avg speed - 14.1 mphMax HR - 175
HR over 156 - 9:49 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
HR over 170 - 4:12
Avg HR - 166
I hit the turnaround at 5 min flat, about 5 sec off record pace. It was hard, standing up most of the hills.
Needing to burn some calories today after overeating yesterday. I waited til the hottest part of the day and did the Roark's cove climb. It was 95º at my house with a heat index of about 100º, but was a few degrees cooler on the shady north side of the mountain. Training in the heat is great as long as there is shade.
Roark's Cove bike climb
Total time - 23:41
Avg speed - 5.9 mph
Max HR - 182
HR over 170 - 11:13
HR over 180 - 2:00
HR over 156 - 19:08
Avg HR - 163
Happy with the time considering conditions. Stayed seated the whole time. HR over 170 for 11:13 but it was probably over 167 for several minutes more.
My Hume pod says I'm at 12.0% body fat, which is inaccurate because I know I've been leaner and lighter than I am now and it said higher. I have been able to slightly increase muscle mass with a very small about of work, less than 5 min a day, but every day. Just one set of 21-23 pullups, and 30-35 pushups, (and ab wheel or hanging abs sometimes, dumbells sometimes).
Needing a quick compact workout, I did the 2.5 mile bike sprint again and it was exactly the same time as yesterday, same split at the halfway point, and same exact finish time. Very weird for an event lasting almost 10min. Oddly, the avg speed was 0.1 mph slower.
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 9:53
Avg speed - 13.7 mphMax HR - 173
Avg HR - 161 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
HR over 156 - 9:44
HR over 170 - 0:19
The only major difference was the HR over 170 was much less where the avg was about the same.
Was 3 lbs lighter today than yesterday, 146.3 yesterday, 143.4 today. Yesterday, my main meal was a blueberry and chia pudding with almond milk. Tonight, cod and salad.
Was practicing at the church yesterday at 1:30 am, so I got to bed by 4am, which is ok, was up by 10:20.
Pushing 90º at my house late this afternoon. Nothing but 90º weather and dry days in the forecast for this week. I was feeling bad about gaining some weight so I did a hard bike sprint. Perceived effort felt close to max, very hard, but still 14 sec slower than my previous, although HR data very similar. Seat was too low, had it adjusted for Roya but I'm off the seat about 20% of the time anyway.
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 9:53
Avg speed - 13.8 mphMax HR - 172
Avg HR - 160 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
HR over 156 - 8:37
Night before last, I stayed up til well past 4 am practicing. I've reasoned it's not good to do that and lose my entire morning, so I think, be to bed by 2:30 ish, unless I'm recording in the church.HR over 170 - 2:21
It had been a 5 days since I was on the bike. Still doing the daily pullups and pushups but a lot of time on my butt practicing, the musician lifestyle not as conducive to fitness than the full time sprint training lifestyle. I've often said there are great parallels between music training and athletics, but where they are different is time. Even in the most intense week of sprint training, I might up put in to 12 hrs a week between track, bike, and weights... 6 days a week. For concert preparation it can be easily 30+ hrs a week and always 7 days a week. There are no days off. It's repetitious and methodical.
Have gained significant weight. Was waking up at 142-143. This morning hit a month long high of 146.8. I'll be able to correct that.
Bike climb yesterday was not "easy" ... never is, but I didn't push hard as I did last week. Wanted to keep my HR lower. It was cooler, heat index in mid 80ºs instead of mid 90ºs.
Roark's Cove bike climb
Total time - 25:10
Avg speed - 5.6 mph
Max HR - 176
HR over 170 - 4:54
Avg HR - 159
Last weekend, HR on this climb was over 170 for 11:37 vs 4:54 min by comparison, and over 180 for 1:36, and almost 3 min slower. Afterward I went to the track and did a little stretching.
I need to do a more 2.5 mile sprints on my road. On Thurs had a weird issue with my left knee, I did some squats before I went to bed and it was sore when I woke up, almost bad enough to cause a limp. It went away and feels fine now.
Weather continues like summer, 90ºs forecast and no rain for the coming week.
Cooler today, 70ºs by evening. Got the bike out to campus to do the 400m sprint intervals. Hard workout and not as fast as usual. I even failed to remain standing for the full 400m on the bike. Did go hard though.
4x400m bike sprints w/ 2:30 rest
top speed: 27.6, 26.1, 26.0, 26.2
Max HR -164
Interesting that again, max HR recorded after reps, not during.
When I left the house, the heat index was over 105º, but I really think it was at least 10º cooler on the N side of the mtn where I bike up Roark's cove rd. This was a strong effort, I think my 2nd fastest of the yr.
Roark's Cove bike climb
Total time - 22:14
Avg speed - 6.3 mph
Max HR - 181
HR over 170 - 11:37
HR over 180 - 1:36
My post op PR was back around Memorial day when I did a 21:38. I was pretty tired toward the end of this and didn't do much stand up sprinting.
Was pretty light for this climb which helped, probably about 141.5.
Today, I have a miserable job to do when I should be protecting my hands and practicing. Have to go to Murfreesboro and clean out my newly rebuilt shed and throw a bunch of stuff away while the dumpster at my house is still available. It's not even noon yet and the heat index is already 111ºF. Better to do this today and not closer to my concerts. First concert 3 weeks from Tues.
Went out into the hottest part of the day to do a hard bike sprint. Heat index over 100ºF. This one was closer to a max effort and I have now resumed stand up sprints on the bike. I didn't do the entire 9:39 standing up but maybe 15% of it on the climbs.
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 9:39
Avg speed - 13.8 mphMax HR - 172
Avg HR - 162 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
HR over 156 - 9:46
HR over 170 - 2:23
My 3rd or 4th fastest run of this circuit, and hard due to the weather. Just 18 sec off my PR.
142.4 lbs this morning. Did my usual workout, 22 pullups, 35 pushups, dumbells.
My body fat is at 12.2% according to the Hume Pod.
Did my usual 2.5 mile bike sprint course today and yesterday, not all out but hard. The heat index briefly hit 101º today when the temp spiked to 94º hottest since July 3.
Yesterday's seated bike sprint
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 10:38
Avg speed - 12.9 mphMax HR - 171
Avg HR - 155 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
HR over 156 - 6:37
HR over 170 - 0:04
Today's bike sprint with a little standing
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 10:11
Avg speed - 13.4 mphMax HR - 164
Avg HR - 152 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
HR over 156 - 4:12
HR over 170 - 0:00
It was well over 90º heat index but it didn't feel like it on my shady road.
Been eating carbs again. Had a paella yesterday and quinoa today. Was over 144 lbs today for the first time in a while.
Heat wave is supposed to continue and peak on Friday or so. Temps in the mid 100ºs in Murfreesboro, could reach the mid 90ºs here. I like the heat. Maybe I'll do a bike climb during the hottest part of the day Friday.
Last two tests came in, ApoB high 127, Lp(a) low <10. About what I expected. May test homocysteine on Thurs to see if my coffee / tea abstinence had any effect.
WMAC Daegu
My age group 400m finals were as expected, WR holder John W. ran alone winning in 57.71. Second was Richard W. in 60.07 and Christian S in 3rd with 61.46. If I had recovered as I had hoped, easily would have medaled considering I was running 62 with just 6 weeks of training 10 mo ago.
Saturday did a bike climb in 90º+ heat index, and a long lake swim on Sunday. Summer continues, forecasts of 90ºs this week on the mtn, 100º down in Murfreesboro.
Roark's Cove bike climb
Total time - 23:39
Avg speed - 5.9 mph
Max HR - 182
HR over 170 - 6:38
HR over 180 - 1:09
Avg HR - 160
Seated the whole way, almost exactly the same time as last time, slightly slower, slightly longer duration high HR.
We went to the far end of lake Jackson and swam the entire length and back, taking it easy. Roya did well. It was a great swim.
Lake swim - Lake Jackson
Length - 1218 yds
Time - 53:00
Avg HR - 107
Still light, 141s - 142s have generally been my daily weigh in.
I see my PCP this Thurs. Going to try and make the case for a CCTA. Also should probably get my skin checked by a dermatologist, get a referred to a nephrologist, and maybe revisit the CA19-9 test to see if there's any changes.
Went to the track tonight to do a warmup stretch, some drills, and try the brace out with some high knee running and a few steps of actual running. Felt ok. Still not going to try and actually run for a month.
We went to the gym and I was bummed to see the new glute machines - two of the same kind, down in the varsity gym and inaccessible to me. This is a new policy that occurred after renovation and new equipment. I had been waiting for these forever. I doubt they'll give me special permission to go in there. It's a card swipe and I think the students go in as a team. Not sure. I know the track coach and the AD but I think that was his idea, so not going to ask, but I will tell him I'm disappointed to see both those machines down there. They won't get used so much that they need two. It's a stupid gym... has nothing but bars and weights down in this 'varsity gym' ... they have about a dozen benches, free weights, some plyo boxes, the glute machine is the only machine in there or one of the few. All the machines are upstairs in the 'public area'. It sucks, not what it used to be.
I did get an ok workout tonight. At least they have leg press, leg extension, ham curl, abductor machines, and a bench and some free weights. The usual machines for upper body but nothing for back and abs. Rowers are downstairs and accessible.
They also have wheeled weight sleds. Would not be a bad idea to start pushing those.
Music
Anyway, the music thing is snowballing. So far, 3 concerts set up for the next 5+ weeks. One of the most important concerts in a long while for me is 7 weeks from Mon. On Oct 19th, I will present likely the first ever faculty guitar and lute recital in the famous Sewanee All Saints chapel. This is actually the first public announcement of this event being confirmed. The way this community supports music, the rarity of the event and the way Sewanee publicizes things, I wouldn't be surprised if the crowd there is 4x that of my MTSU concert the following night.
I need to nail these and I need to get diligent. The 10,000 hour principle works. Really getting my technique back to virtuoso level. It's absolutely required to execute music as difficult as some of the music I'll be playing, particularly the Rameau. Haven't performed it in at least 15 yrs.
More Tests
These my PCP ordered long ago. Standard lipid panel. LDL went up 115 to 132 but Trig down 157 to 130m which was good. HDL also up from 35 to 42, improving my ratio. Still waiting for 2 more but here's the weird one.... my fasting glucose.
The BIG MYSTERY. Glucose was Extreme: 166. Must have been lab error. Claude Ai thinks it was because I was less than an hour after a huge concert I did for the Music School convocation, and Claude thinks it was an "acute stress event". I would say yes, it was very stressful, but it went well, and I felt 100% relaxed by the time I had blood taken, but Claude is sticking with the theory. I call BS on the machines. Lab error. Claude sticks with his own kind. Could be human error too. My A1c was normal, 5.6. I was absolutely 12 hour fasted, just water with a squeeze of lemon (few drops)... for 12+ hrs. Last night I was so hungry, I ate sweetened dried fruit, nuts, chocolate and an hour after I tested glucose at 108 (my home kit). The only time I ever measured glucose close to that high was after a very hard track workout. Anyway, will try to remember to repeat the test after a similar situation. Very strange. I test a lot. I'm usually about 100-105 in the morning and it goes down throughout the day if I don't eat which I usually don't til noon or after. Before dinner it usually below 100.
Anyway, hope it's not some 'condition.'
Swam across without stopping, about 100 strokes, 150 yds. Then leisurely swam along the opposite bank.
Did a water jog back, notice I said 'jog' instead of 'run'. This was just relaxed strides, not pushing hard like I do in the 60 stride intervals. It took a long while to 'jog' across the lake.
Lake swim
distance - 150 yd.
time - 2:40
Max HR - 158
Aqua jog
552 strides (R/L) - continuous
Avg HR ~ low 120s
Glad we went. Could have just stayed home and done nothing. Burned a few calories. Still doing daily pullups every morning. Today did 23 cheater pullups.
Really light. Yesterday at 140, today at 141 lbs.
Music
Tomorrow is a huge performance for me at the MTSU Music Convocation as one of the 4 featured faculty performers. I'm happy to play because it will probably be the biggest crowd and the most exposure to students and colleagues where I work than any event this yr. I'm playing Koyunbaba, an incredibly evocative piece that is really unforgettable for anyone hearing it the first time. I call it 'the machine gun' because of it's rapid fire final movement which is one of those pieces that sounds impossibly difficult but in fact it's not. 'Big bang for the buck' type piece. It has a huge dynamic range, really the biggest you can possibly get from an acoustic guitar due to the drone tuning specific to this piece.
Ready to rock.
Sunday, cooler weather, in the 70s, did another seated bike climb, the usual... up Roark's Cove rd. Was amazed that it was more than a minute faster than last time and with less effort. HR over 170 - 5:58 min compared with 9:17 last time. Avg HR was the same.
Roark's Cove bike climb
Total time - 23:38
Avg speed - 6.0 mph
Max HR - 182
HR over 170 - 5:58
HR over 180 - 0:32
Avg HR - 160
Felt fine afterwards, rode some more with Roya, stopped at Greens View.
Was really surprised to have the lake to ourselves for over an hour... on a Friday with all the students back. It was a great time. Did a set of water running then swam the 150 yd lake without stopping. Glad Roya could be there.
Water running
6 x 60 (R/L) strides with 60 sec rest
150 yd lake swim - 100 (R/L) strokes without stopping
150 yd return swim - easy
It was a decent exercise. HR max for the water running was only 145, avg 114. Seemed harder than that. Of the three types of exercises I did this week, I think the seated bike climb was the best, and the knee felt good afterward. Will probably do one / week.
141.4 lbs this morning (Sat).
Senior citizens now 65 and 66.
The usual bike 2.5 mile bike sprint with the offloader brace. A good effort, a few seconds slower than my last one.
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 10:04
Avg speed - 13.4 mphMax HR - 170
Avg HR - 162 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
HR over 156 - 9:29
HR over 170 - 0:40
Felt a bit harder than it probably should have. My previous was 10 sec faster with higher HR. I stood up to climb most of the short hills.
Started the day with 22 pull ups. Did a 15x slant board squats after the workout and some step downs.
Test results showed improved lipids, not optimal but improved. HDL is too low (35), Triglycerides too high (157), but a big 40 pt reduction in total cholesterol to 177, LDL from 147 to 115. No folate or B12 deficiencies measured. Marginal kidney function and the worst result was an increase in homocysteine to 18.6. Possible remedies for this are B6 and B complex vitamin supplementation and eliminating coffee and black tea. Need to test for B6 deficiency and possible thyroid cause.
Otherwise, relatively healthy, 141 lbs.
Just got cleared to perform a concert in the big cathedral Oct 19, and MTSU next day. Possibly the Villages on the 10th. Practicing a lot. School starts next week and I'm performing for the Convocation, which is a big deal.
Needed some good cardio work so Tues, I did a seated bike climb up Roark's Cove Rd. Not trying to set any PRs, just a good strength workout, burn some calories. Not as hot yesterday, heat index in the mid 80ºs instead of upper 90ºs.
Roark's Cove bike climb
Total time - 24:49
Avg speed - 5.7 mph
Max HR - 180
HR over 170 - 9:17
HR over 180 - 0:24
Avg HR - 160
Afterward I went to the track and did some stretching, resisted the temptation to run and did some skips. Knee really feels better. Did my first slant board squats in a while, much less clicking and popping.
After weighing less than 140 lbs past couple days, I was 140.8 lbs this morning.
Awaiting on one final test result from my recent batch. Will post about it next. So far, lipids markedly improved, kidney issues continue. Nothing severe. Claude AI has been really helpful with the interpretations and recommended next steps.
Ate a little more tonight, a stew with a little shrimp and quinoa.
Back to standing bike sprints with the offloader brace. I need this fitness level workout. Not all out PR-seeking, but a strong effort, especially considering the upper 90ºs heat index. I was going to swim today but I foolishly melted my goggles by mistake in the drier with my towels. So I punished myself on the bike for my misdeed.
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 9:54
Avg speed - 13.8 mphMax HR - 176
Avg HR - 168 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
HR over 156 - 10:19
HR over 170 - 4:49
I definitely feel this brace was what I needed to resume to stand up biking. No knee soreness at all.
After yesterday's first stand up bike sprint with the new brace, it got me using the glutes again and I started feeling the soreness on my sit bone from the old proximal ham injury. Something I haven't felt in a while. Need to start doing the band work again on my hams and hip flexors.
I should have been using this thing a year ago. Looking forward to my first runs with it in 5-6 weeks. Hopefully not sooner but I'll be tempted.
 |
| Donjoy Nano OA offload brace |
I joined a large FB group called "The Great Cholesterol Conspiracy" ... wow. I really am at a loss as to why in this day of the internet and easily searchable medical research via AI, people cling to these pseudo-scientific notions as widely represented by recent diet fads like carnivore, keto, etc... You look at these individual's pages, they are a mix of FB influencer followers, conspiracy theorists, they are often research and scientifically challenged, are often people who have "turned their life around" with a new short term diet, and often fall into the anti-vax - RFK Jr. - MAHA - MAGA groups. Their most common conspiracies are about vaccines, "Big Pharma", and generally mainstream science research ... often asserting they've been "lied to" or "victimized" in some way... by the gov't, drug industry, Fauci, etc... you name it, you get the idea.
From what I've been able to discern from the "advice" they give me, is that their entire concept hinges around these assumed "truths":
If the Triglyceride / HDL ratio is favorable (low) it negates all other potential cardio vascular risk
This is what Claude AI says:
Recently, a meta-analysis covering over 100 peer-reviewed studies found associations between keto diets and increased risk of heart disease, elevated LDL cholesterol, kidney problems, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, cancer, worsened outcomes for people with existing chronic kidney disease due to the high protein load. .... The honest state of the science is: short-to-medium term (up to a few years) data is reasonably reassuring for most people regarding cardiac health, but a meaningful and growing body of peer review-level and mechanistic evidence — including new animal studies — raises real questions about longer-term effects on the liver, kidneys, bone, and lipid profile. This is a diet where individual lipid response varies enormously, so, checking your ApoB/lipid panel would be genuinely informative a risk picture on a keto diet... there's no randomized trial evidence showing that lowering the ratio (e.g., by raising HDL specifically) reduces cardiovascular events.
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2021.702802/full
So no, eating lots of animal fat to boost HDL isn't doesn't generally seem to prevent heart disease.
Two days ago, I hit the lake and did a set of water running, and a swim. Pretty good workout.
Water running
60 (R/L) steps x 6 w/ 1 min rest
Max HR 158
Avg HR 129
Lake swim - 340 yds
I was happy to have the lake by myself. ... since a casual visitor to the lake who would see me water running might think I was struggling, maybe drowning. lol
This morning I tried 'strict' pullups - all from full extension, only 18. Definitely different than the 'near full extension' pullups I normally do.
Today, I got the DonJoy OA Nano offloader brace today, free with my insurance. I looked it up, it generally sells for over $600 new. I tried it out on a bike sprint with some brief standing hills. Yea, it works. It seems to prevent 180º full extension - maybe allowing up to just few degrees short of full extension, and corrects the valgus/varus angle, shifting load off the vulnerable compartment. It has to be worn tight or it doesn't work. Unlike the Ossur offloader, this one seems pretty solid and doesn't slip. I think it could even be affixed more securely with K-tape. Not really super comfortable to be worn for hours.
I did the usual bike sprint and even though I didn't time it or measure HR, that first hill where I'm standing for 30 - 35 R/L strokes is FAR more engaging to the cardio vascular system than anything I could do in a similar stretch sitting on the saddle. (True, Joe). Knee felt great afterward, but I'm not going to dive into standing bike sprints right away. A little at a time.
The pretty young nurse that fitted me with the brace just graduated from Auburn and is a friend of Ja'Kobe Tharp, new world record holder in the 110H, and Adidas track pro. It was fun talking track.
I'm definitely eventually going to try running with this thing at some point.
Still really light, mid 141s this morning. Meeting postponed so my next blood work postponed til Mon.
I joined this popular FB group called the "Great Cholesterol Conspiracy" and wow, the debate continues. Seems to me when you have research tools like Claude AI, people shouldn't have so much belief in unscientific notions. More on that next post.
Doing bike sprints while seated is really a difficult thing, to not stand and engage the glutes, strongest muscles in the body. Much more of a quad workout. However, that's what I'm doing during this healing phase of my workouts. Still doing daily resistance, 24 pullups this morning. Becoming routine. Situps, ab wheel, pushups, dumbells, hanging abs are my routine. Stopped doing the slant board squats for a while. The 2.5 mile bike sprint was a 'seated' PR. Almost a minute slower than my regular PR.
2.5 mile seated mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 10:09
Avg speed - 12.8 mphMax HR - 165
HR over 156 - 4:07
Avg HR - 150 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
Decent workout but not the real max HR sweat dripper that I'm used to. Really helps to have the glutes to get to that intensity.
Had a swim yesterday at Scott's party. Also ate some party food like chips and brownies, ice cream, but not a lot. Still 142.7 for today's weigh in.
I feel like my life has entered a major transition as I've now committed to playing full solo concerts starting in Oct. The lifestyle of a musician that I led for so many yrs is quite different than the lifestyle I led after the pandemic pushing toward athletic championships. It actually got a bit unhealthy during the peak as a performer in my early 40s. Was probably 10-12+ lbs heavier, didn't watch my diet as much, exercise wasn't a priority, occasionally ate poorly, spent a lot of time sitting and practicing, up late at night and drinking too much tea and coffee, even beer, occasional light use of cannabis - (which actually is proven helpful in the interpretive and creative process). Also, performing itself is quite stressful. When you say you're a guitarist, usually the next question is, 'are you in a band?' There is no more difficult, challenging, and stressful situation for a guitarist than doing hour long SOLO classical concerts in an academic or concert series situation. Period.
I did find a shirtless photo of myself from that era before athletics when my life was only guitar. I looked somewhat lean, but weak.
Been doing daily resistance work and my weight has been good, in the 142s last few days. In an effort to allow my knee to recover, I've eliminated hard standing bike sprints and hill climbs. But, I've been doing the same biking but seated and not as much. I do think this is compromising my V02 max but at least I'm pretty strong, yesterday another PR pullup set - 26 although the last one was a bit of a kip cheater. The remarkable thing is that I have gained a bit of lean muscle mass without eating much protein.
The last two 2.5 mile bike sprints in which I've stayed seated have been more than a minute off my PR of 9:21 for all out standing sprints. The first one wasn't a strong effort.
Aug 1 (seated) bike sprint:
Time - 10:48
Avg speed - 12.5 mph
Max HR - 156
Avg HR - 143
Aug 4 (seated) bike sprint:
Time - 10:32
Avg speed - 13 mph
Max HR - 172 (178 spike 50 sec afterward)
Avg HR - 161
I had that weird spike after finishing this run, (178). I think it's actually a sign of losing fitness.
I only plan on doing such rides 2 or max 3x / week. Really focusing on the rest and healing of my knee. I am getting an off-loader brace and may experiment with using it on the bike, rower, hiking, stairmaster, etc...
I was at a conference today and a music colleague asked me if I was retired from track I said probably but haven't made the decision 100% yet. As I become more involved with preparing myself to play concerts again, I find the decision to walk away from track a bit easier. It always tugs on me when I see colleagues racing but I am enjoying getting up in the morning with no knee pain, walking, and climbing stairs also with no pain. If I do test the waters and try to run a little, it won't be for at least 5 to 8 weeks (late Sept/ Oct.). I went to the track today and just stretched, no drills. Avoided the temptation to run, although I felt I could have.
As I am officially elderly now, I am most concerned with staying alive, well, and disease free. Speaking of that, I had a major round of tests and with the help of Claude AI, I was able to refine some of my issues.
Testing / wellness
I think the tests I had were a bit skewed by 2 consecutive meals of this high fiber protein fortified pasta I had not eaten previously - most affecting kidney and TriG readings. Regarding the tests, I had the usual moderately high small molecule lipids: LDL (147), Triglycerides (162), ApoB (130), and too little HDL (40). oxLDL was high (83), and kidney function low - GFR (58) due to high creatinine (1.36). Also homocysteine was high (16.2). AI suggests testing for folate and B12 insufficiency, which I plan to do next week. That would explain these readings and be an easy fix. I'm also going to repeat cystatin-C.
On the plus side, my inflammation markers, and glucose / insulin handling is very good. Both my inflammation markers hsCRP and IL-6 were optimal - below the minimum reference level - too low to measure. Fasting glucose good (92), fasting insulin optimal (4.2), and HbA1c 5.5 - normal.
Also, the innate lipid particle Lp(a) is optimal for me, below minimum reference level.
So in general, a mixed bag. I also found from my genome through Nebula Genomics, that I have a maximum (100%) polygenic tendency to develop high Apolipoprotein B. This makes sense and is confirmed by numerous relatives with heart disease. All of my testing, in particular my lipid fractionation tests, point to a very high risk assessment of cardio vascular disease, but fortunately not compounded by other factors such as inflammation, Lp(a), and high HbA1c.... not to mention no alcohol, no smoking, normal BP, low fat low carb diet etc... It is very clear that animal fat is not the only issue in developing heart disease, it also is caused by sugar and carbs. (Roya's younger brother is a vegan and had to have his heart stented due to heart disease).
It is very likely that my 400m training over the past decade+ has kept me relatively disease free, not to mention the low carb diet. Compared to the avg American, my diet is ridiculously clean. About the worst things I eat are high fiber Wasa crackers with fig preserves which I mix with psyllium husk fiber, and Royo high carb bread (30 cal a slice). Also occasional bowls of blueberries. I have a pretty big list of things I almost never eat... including common foods like pizza, chips, potatoes, butter, eggs, margarine, high fat dairy, fried food, boxed cereals, regular bread, regular rice, cookies, pies, baked goods, no beef or pork in 35 yrs. I replaced skim milk with unsweetened almond milk. The only fats I eat are small amounts of olive oil, walnuts, and sunflower seeds. I use the allulose/monkfruit sweetener. I even started filtering my espresso through paper to eliminate LDL increasing compounds like cafestol. Low protein and occasional fish / chicken. Sometimes go a week + vegan. Somtetimes I will eat canned skinless boneless sardines in water.
I will likely consider preventative medication, especially if I can get a CCTA scan to test for soft plaque and it is positive. That is the goal of my next appt. To make the case for a CCTA scan. I have been resistant to drugs up until now, but now may be the time to consider it - considering my small molecule particle burden as shown by my Apolipoprotein B1/A ratio.
I'm really digging the incredible self pay pricing on Goodlabs.com test broker.
To good health!
In Atlanta, doing a daily routine of exercises when I get up:
22x pullups
25x ab wheel
35x pushups
15x slant board squats / 10x step downs
15x dumbell runners/ curls / 10x press
Yesterday I did a very brief seated bike climb. Thurs was Roya's 65th and we did a long walk around Centennial Park in ATL.
HUME SCALE
So, after 2 months with the Hume body pod, my results are in the right direction. Interestingly, I've made some fairly significant changes in body composition without much change in weight. My weight has settled at about 143ish, about the same weight as I was in HS.
May 26 - July 25:
Body fat: 13.4% to 12.3%
Body fat mass: 19.2 lbs to 17.6 lbs
Subcutaneous fat mass: 16.7 lbs to 15.3 lbs
Subcutaneous fat %: 11.6% to 10.7%
Skeletal muscle mass: 76.9 lb to 77.9 lbs
Lean mass %: 80.7% to 81.9%
BMI: 23.3 to 23.2
Basic Metabolic Rate: 1472 cal to 1475 cal
Changes come slowly and are best plotted over time, not day to day. Also, depends greatly on when reading is taken. After last night's party, I weight 146.8 lbs, at noon today I was 143.1. The scale is not that accurate and may be off up to 2% on most readings. People who get a DEXA scan say it overestimates fat % by 1-2%. I'm thinking it's pretty accurate.
I prepared a lot for the Dr's visit and it was pretty short and inconsequential. Drove 95 min, he was nearly 90 min late, had to cancel my blood work appt. He spent maybe 10 min with me. Despite coming with pre and post op MRI reports, surgical report, laptop with images, he blew all that off and I had to get radiated again with their Xrays. The ones I had from just weeks ago, they couldn't download.
The only thing he looked at was the surgical report, he commented that "Justin's work is amazing" and this repair was far more involved than the LaPrade repair on my right, which I knew, but he emphasized it. He said I had some arthritis and due to my bow legged alignment / running form, running L turns, etc... my medial side is susceptible and he showed me xrays that showed 1/2 the joint space on the medial vs the lateral knee compartment. It was still not bone on bone. Bottom line, he thinks there is a chance to recover the knee with the goal of limited running, and seemed more than happy to do injections as needed, which I would only do as last resort. I got measured for an offloader brace which will help recovery. He seemed to think that biking, rowing, and weights were ok. I'm not so sure, but will return to seated only biking. Generally, not a great impression, and a guy I will likely not see again.
So, I got home after meeting with a contractor at my house and took a brief nap. Got on the motorcycle and went to the lake. Just as I crossed the lake, I looked back to the opposite shore and saw 3 police trucks and a small swarm of uniformed police standing around my motorcycle. I took off and swam a half mile down the lake. Back stroke, I can swim forever. When I was out of sight, I came ashore and and walked to the near shore opposite of the bank where I parked. I was thinking they'd just get tired of waiting and leave. They didn't leave. I reasoned that I'd better not keep them waiting any longer and swam back to face the music.
Well, it went ok. I just had happened to go around the gate when Nate the forestry chief was driving by. Just bad luck. He was there with a couple cops. The old cop gave me a stern warning and asserted the strict no motor vehicle policy on Sewanee protected areas. I told them I had been doing this for more than a decade and several times just this past week, and I how I've cleaned up this place and picked up garbage. It was fine. No citation. I could have been cited for multiple things - bike hasn't been registered in 6 yrs, uninsured, violation of protected property, etc... since it's a small friendly town, we just chatted.... about how great this place is, about motorcycles, E-bikes, etc... Nate knew my name and that I'm a professor. This is really the end of an era, I've been doing this more than a decade without any issues. It is literally the only place I ever go with my motorcycles. So it's quite significant. I wish I had thought to have gotten a group photo before I drove off. They did bring up an interesting issue... very gray area between an electric motorcycle and an electric bike. (E-bikes are ok on trail but must be below a certain wattage)
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4th day in a row at the lake. After dodging strong storms all day that kept the temperature just perfect, there was an evening break and the lake was surreal, quiet, smooth.
Did a set of water running but no significant swimming, as the thunder was rumbling in the distance. I really needed to burn some calories. My diet has been bad. Yesterday, just wasa crackers, fig jam, a banana sandwich and tea. Today only slightly better, sardines, spring mix lettuce, wasa crackers, Royo bagel w/ almond butter and honey.
Water running
6 x 60 strides with 1 min rest
Max HR 143
Spent 80 min at the cathedral practicing after midnight. It was actually pretty taxing. Got home, fell asleep in a chair and slept straight until 8 am. Got up, did my usual bedtime regime and went back to bed for 90 min.
I love the sound and the feel of playing music but, to pull off a concert of virtuoso repertoire, it takes an enormous amount of time and commitment, and even then, rarely is a performance perfect. Not to mention the stress involved. At this stage of my career, there actually seems to be more to lose than gain in some ways. The stress involved, the risk of a substandard performance. I never perform 'badly' but sometimes have had mistakes, memory slips, etc... and like a car wreck in an auto race, that's what people remember the most. That's why I wonder sometimes if I should even do it. Some of my colleagues have stopped or scaled back performing. Years past there were rewards involving academic standing, tenure, money, career, etc... but now none of those things are at stake or an issue. It's all personal. Making video recordings for Youtube is actually a better way to reach the public instead of giving a guitar recital. Rarely have I played a guitar recital for more than 80 people or so, typically it's like 40-50. Social media reaches so many more. But, to be a teacher and proponent of the rare art of solo classical guitar performance, since I can do it, I should do it. I need to set an example and attempt to inspire students. 20+ yrs ago, I inspired a bright kid from East TN who was a heavy metal shredder. Years later he was performing in Carnegie Hall and playing for ambassadors, now recognized as one of the best guitarists in the world.
Been working on the Rameau variations again. No one in the world played this piece but me until just the last few yrs, now a few have. Probably the single most important and unique piece I've ever played, but I stopped playing it in concerts about 15 yrs ago because of the difficulty. I'm fairly sure I will perform it this fall. Taking a fresh look at it. Fingers are still working.
Like racing a 400m... we do these things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard. Beautiful and expressive as well.
Back to the cathedral tonight.
Just an evening swim at the lake. Beautiful. 22 pullups this morning.
Hanging around 143 lbs.
Finally they got a day of competition in at Masters Nationals. Moved everything indoors because of air quality. What a situation! M65 hasn't been impressively competitive this yr. Happy to see people who've never won medals get them. Ron won the 400m easily in 61.02, and the 100m in 12.99. Dale got Bronze in 65.25. Happy for him. Silver was 63.31.
Sour grapes for me, since I was running 62 back in Nov with less than 2 mo training. Oh well. Also, ran 13.8 in trainers for a 100m after not running for 2 mo. My bronze medal time in of 57.59 in '23 would have won Gold this year in M60. That was one incredibly competitive yr.
Going to the cathedral to practice tonight at midnight. Love it.
Beautiful day at the lake. Had the place to myself for most of the time. About 85º, water temperature 88º.
Same exact workout as yesterday.
Water running 6 x 60 (R/L) strides w/ 60 sec restMax HR 144, Avg HR 118
Lake swim2 x 160 yds ~ 90 strokesMax HR 129, Avg HR 118
Started the day with 21 pullups, ab wheel, and 40 pushups.
Now time to practice.
Love this time of year. Had the lake to myself and did a decent workout.
Deep water running
6 x 60 (R/L) strides w/ 60 sec rest
Max HR - 160
Avg HR - 125
Lake swim
2 x 160 yds
Was able to finally make it across the lake freestyle without stopping. About 90x (R/L) strokes.
Started the day with 23 pullups and some ab wheel... and a couple hrs of guitar practice.
Knee feels good and I think limiting leg activity to water and maybe occasional gentle seated bike might be what I need. I don't know what to make of the comments on the last post. A lot of ridiculous hyperbole, snide BS. Bottom line, my knee is painless for daily activities, even when carrying significant weight up stairs. The identified possible medial condyle defect ("emerging subfracture") is tiny, about 1/4" square. I don't think it's unrecoverable for normal daily activities and may be recoverable with a significant healing period even for occasional running. Dubious I'll be training for the 400m at the same level as before the injury, but that's ok. Turf sprints once a week is really all I need + bike. I don't think that is an unreasonable goal. May try an under loader brace for biking, I'll ask the Dr.
Really light 141.3 lbs after workout. 12% bodyfat.
Sympathy to my masters colleagues who had their first day of competition at USATF Masters Nationals canceled in OH due to air quality. Fortunately, they have a 300m indoor track on site. The air quality forecast for Friday is also not good. That sucks, but they'll have to bring it indoors. Not the first time. It happened in '17 in LA when lightning forced us indoor at LSU on a 200m flat track for 200m semis.
I've been taking time off the bike until today, I couldn't stand it anymore I did a bike sprint but not full, effort. I also have been doing the usual few exercises and I'm regularly able to do 21-23 pullups every morning. Been walking a mile+ every morning including walking backward up hills.
I'll see what the new ortho Dr. says about recovery next Tuesday.
I'm fasting and purging for tomorrow's colonoscopy. Yesterday ate a 'low residual' diet which was new to me. Stuff I never eat, like simple carbs... specifically white rice and bananas. That's the stuff I probably should have been eating before races instead of high fiber bread and cereals. I should be able to drop close to 140 lbs by the time this is over. I had to drink a 2 L of polyethylene glycol solution around 6 pm, then another 2 L at 1:00 am. I'll be up most of the night. Fun.
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 10:16
Avg speed - 13.3 mphMax HR - 165
HR over 156 - 4:10
Avg HR - 150 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
I stayed seated most of the ride back, HR certainly wasn't up to what it normally is during this workout.
Hard to tell if these types of rides are degrading to my knee. The feels good afterward. Sometime I get a slight soreness later in the night or next day but usually not. Probably shouldn't do anything for a month with my legs, but I definitely would feel vulnerable to CV disease without pushing my HR, hard to do without legs. Maybe be forced to swim only. Water run at the most. I'll see what the Dr. says but I'm sure less is more at this point.
Judging by the comments, some people don't apparently understand that 'jogging' - running with heel or midfoot strike is more damaging to my knee than high knee running, stairs, hills, or running with forefoot strike on the ball of the foot in sprint form. FWIW, even when I raced 800s, my heel never touched the ground and I wore the same spikes as I would for a 100m race. Anything faster than a 72 sec 400m is a sprint for someone over 60, and that would be about my slowest 400m split in any of the 800m races I ever ran, my slowest being 2:22. Transitioning from high knee running gradually to full stride is the way I've been getting prepped for sprinting post injury.
Anyway, hopefully my colon is ok. Find out tomorrow.
Doing my usual pullups and core work, hanging about 143-144 lbs, did 25 consecutive pullups today, a lifetime PR.
The key findings in my MRI was that the posterior root repair as stated "remains intact." Curiously, no mention of stitching on the medial complex tear although a mention of a "Prior repair of vertical tear in the posterior horn which remains intact." This is relatively good news because a re-tear of the root would be unrepairable.
Basically, all of these stresses were likely due to overly ambitious and premature training after the repair in an effort to get back to competition last winter/ early spring indoor season.
All AI programs I've consulted on this say that I need a significant break from running 6-12 weeks and a slow cautious return. That means even limiting my cycling and any leg-centered stuff, probably including rowing. Swimming and water running seem the safest in the short term. I will probably take a 10 day break from all cycling until I meet with the ortho a week from Tues.
It seems that my natural knee health may be only barely salvageable, and this may very well be my last chance to get healed. Certainly any further trauma will only shorten the time toward a TKR, however, my pain has truly been minimal, probably due to strengthening. I have zero pain walking up and down stairs even when carrying significant weight. Although, I do sometimes feel soreness or stiffness after a long hike. There are also treatment options like subchondroplasty and injections which could be utilized as last option.
I have been pushing very hard on the bike, HR into at least the 170s at least 3x a week. I worry that a sudden cessation of hard cardio work will have deleterious effects on my CV wellness. Same day I meet with my Dr., I'm getting a barrage of tests I purchased from this new test broker: Goodlabs. Incredibly inexpensive. Should be a good CV risk assessment. Also, have a colonoscopy on Wed.
Fellow track mate Andrea asked me if I thought I might be ready to compete at worlds in March, I said I don't know. It becomes a game of attrition at this point. One guy I raced with in '21 just had a TKR and he's trying to run on it. Very slow progress. Another fellow world medalist in my age group had a heart ablation due to afib that caused his HR to spike to 250. That would be scary. He recently returned to race for the first time. If I am to compete in March, I would need to start my first conservative running by Oct. I have time.
Looking back, if I had just done one short turf workout every 2-3 weeks all summer, that would have been probably OK. But 2 track workouts with just 2 - 3x 90% effort sprints 5 days apart, I wasn't ready for that. Should have stayed on turf and kept intensity to 80%.
Again, I have time. Now, knowing what to do with it. Half jokingly (and half not) thought, maybe I should go non weight bearing, brace and crutches for a month? Nah, probably overkill. Then again, it couldn't hurt? Or could it... with the atrophy? Motion and flexibility are good. Should stimulate healing I would think. I think they still try and stimulate healing with micro fracture technique... not that I'm going to do that. But the body does respond to stimulus and to tasks.
Did my first training involving legs since last Saturday's running. Just a neighborhood bike sprint. Got the knee MRI. Definitely a mess.
2.5 mile mountain bike sprint - Laurel Branch Trl
Time - 10:01
Avg speed - 13.6 mphMax HR - 173
HR over 156 - 5:05
HR over 170 - 5:18
Avg HR - 166 (inc 1 min recovery at end)
Slower and higher avg HR but lower Max HR from last time.
Knee continues to feel better and will allow recovery til I do make any running attempts.
As expected, MRI showed a lot of problems. It seems that the game should be to expect trauma and to allow recovery.
On the plus side:
"Intact root attachment.... prior repair of vertical tear in the posterior horn which remains intact. Intact anterior root"
On the minus side:
"recurrent macerated tearing along the free edge of the posterior horn/root junction creating a small free edge flap with intact posterior root. Degenerative undersurface tearing of the meniscus at the posterior junction and partially extruded body segment without flap displacement ... Prior repair of vertical tear in the posterior horn which remains intact. Intact anterior root with reactive edema or root sprain. Diffuse chondral loss throughout the central and posterior weightbearing femoral condyle at least 75% chondral thickness with stress related marrow changes diffusely throughout the femoral condyle associated within
evolving subchondral fracture in the posterior weightbearing aspect measuring 0.7 cm transversely with evidence of remotely healed subchondral fracture in the more anterior weightbearing femoral condyle. Partial chondral loss in the tibial plateau centrally at least 50% chondral thickness with mild stress response peripherally and posteriorly... Full thickness chondral loss in the central, with highgrade partial chondral loss in the inferior medial trochlea with chronic stress response and preserved cartilage in the lateral trochlear facet."
Summary impression:
1. Prior medial meniscal repair posteriorly with recurrent free edge tearing of the posterior horn/root junction, undersurface tearing of the peripheral posterior horn extending to the body segment with intact root attachments demonstrating degeneration/sprain and progressive arthrosis in the compartment at least moderate severity with increased stress response throughout the femoral condyle associated with a evolving subchondral stress or insufficiency fracture of the posterior weightbearing aspect, likely a pain generator.
2. Intact lateral meniscus with degenerative fraying along the free edge and relatively superficial focal chondral loss without significant compartment arthrosis.
3. Intact cruciate, collateral ligaments without acute injury or tear, early mucinous degeneration of the ACL.
4. Patellofemoral arthrosis, moderate severity with chronic stress response related to highgrade chondral loss in the trochlea.
5. Moderate size joint effusion with chronic synovitis more pronounced suprapatellar fossa, medial compartment. Small loose osseous bodies in the posterior superior medial femoral recess measuring up to 0.5 cm.
Seems that the worst cartilage loss is not on the tibial or condyle surfaces, but behind the kneecap on the medial trochlea. Anyway, it sucks.
