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November 2009
I’m back from Costa Rica
I’ve been in Costa Rica for the last week, hanging out in the jungle, spying on sloths and monkeys.
What an incredible place!
We spent a few days in the mountains near San Isidro, at an eco-lodge called Monte Azul. Then we moved down to the coast, staying at a very chic joint called Oxygen up the hill from tiny Uvita.
The highlight? An all-day visit to Corcovada National Park. It took 3 hours to reach the ranger station on the northern edge of this remote park, but the reward was incredible: Spider monkeys, coatimundis, scarlet macaws, poison frogs, sloths, huge blue butterflies and more.
I’ll be writing about my trip for the newspaper later this month. Stay tuned…
In the meantime, here are a few photos from my trip. I love that you can see the greenish tint to the sloth’s fur. That’s mold! The other shots show the beach at Corcovado, a scarlet macaw and a capuchin monkey.
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MS150 registration opens next week
General registration for the National MS Society’s 2010 BP MS 150, taking place April 17-18, opens next week.
It’s a new registration process this year. Priority registration for individuals raising $1,000 or more began in October, followed by registration for top teams in November.
Now it’s time for the rest of us. General registration takes place online at www.ms150.org on two days — Wednesday Dec. 2 and Saturday, Dec. 5. Registration begins at 11 a.m. and will remain open on each date until a pre-determined limit has been reached.
Proceeds from the ride help the 20,000 people affected by multiple sclerosis in 174 Texas counties.
I did the ride a few years ago and had a blast pedaling from Houston to Austin.
For more information, check the FAQ here. www.ms150.org
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Fitness freebies!
Austin trainer Christine Tusa dropped off a copy of her new fitness DVD, “tusafitness: Core Workout.”
“If you do this three times per week, you’ll see significant results in eight weeks,” Tusa says. Your posture will improve, you’ll lose weight and you’ll bbe more flexible, she says.
The workout was developed with Dr. Michael Luan, a biomechanics specialist in California.
Want the DVD? Post here, telling me why you need it. I’ll pick a winner next week. And be patient. I’m out of the office at the moment, so your comment might not go up right away.
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Who pays for bike infrastructure?
The city of Austin’s Bicycle/Pedestrian Programs fields questions about how bike infrastructure is funded all the time.
So often, in fact, that they’ve come up with a slide show to explain it.
Check it out Where.Does.the.$.go.ppt">here.
“The short answer is that if you have a job, pay a utility bill and live in Austin (i.e. pay property tax/rent), you are paying for the maintenance and construction of City of Austin roads. Gas taxes and registration fees goes to pay for state controlled roadways and highways; which bicyclists don’t tend to use as often,” says Nadia Barrera, Bicycle/Pedestrian Project Coordinator.
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Getting fit at home
Reader Lisa Weston sent over this photo to show how she stays fit at home.
She organizes her weight training sessions by making notes and posting photos on a dry erase board.
“I can change things around when I get bored and attach pictures of new routines or whatever I’m working on,” she says.
Thanks for the tip, Lisa!
What do you do to stay fit at home?
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A ciclovia, in Austin?
Imagine temporarily shutting down a city street to motor vehicles and letting cyclists, skaters and runners take over!
Austin officials took the first step toward doing just that, approving a resolution Thursday directing the city manager to work with the community to create a “ciclovia” as part of the 2010 Bike Month activities in May.
“Ciclovia” is a Spanish term that means “bike path.” Ciclovias are especially popular in South America. Every Sunday and holiday since 1976, cities like Bogata, Cali and Medellin block streets to motor vehicles. Bikers, runners and skaters replace cars and trucks, and exercise instructors lead outdoor group aerobics and yoga classes.
The idea is to promote physical activity and health.
In the U.S., ciclovias have taken place in Cleveland, El Paso, Chicago, Portland, Miami, New York City, San Francisco and Wayne County, Mich.
Officials haven’t decided where an Austin event might take place. First, they need to round up volunteers and get help from neighborhoods, says Nadia M. Barrera, Bicycle/Pedestrian Project Coordinator.
Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?
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Your weekend fitness events!
It’s Thanksgiving week. If you plan to overindulge, you should run or build trails or do something active. You’ll feel better, turkey!
- Trail Building Workshop: The International Mountain Bicycling Association will lead a sustainable trail building workshop Saturday, Nov. 21. A classroom session runs from 9 a.m. until noon at Briarcliff Community Center on Pace Bend Road. Field session follows from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at Pace Bend Park. A group ride is planned for Saturday at Lake Georgetown Goodwater Trail. To RSVP go here.
- Save a Turkey Trot: The Organic Athlete is planning a group run at 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 21. The unofficial 5K run starts and ends just north of St. Edward’s University, at the intersection of St. Edward’s Drive and East Side Drive. For more information go here.
- ThunderCloud Subs Turkey Trot: The 19th annual ThunderCloud Subs Turkey Trot 5 mile run, 1 mile walk and Stepping Stone School Kids K begin at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 26 at Waterloo Park, 12th and Trinity streets. The course weaves through the University of Texas campus. Proceeds benefit Caritas of Austin, a non-profit organization that provides food, shelter, education and other services directly to those struggling with poverty and homelessness. Cost is $25 for the timed run; $20 for untimed. Register online through Wednesday here.
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City of Austin gets Bicycle Friendly Business award
This just in from the City of Austin:
City of Austin receives prestigious national Bicycle Friendly Business award
Austin, TX - The City of Austin can now count itself as one of the best businesses in the country to work for if you are a bicycling commuter. The League of American Bicyclists announced 45 new Bicycle Friendly Business award winners at the end of September, including the City of Austin.
The BFB program recognizes socially responsible organizations who promote healthy, green workplaces that encourage employees to ride their bikes. The City of Austin is currently the only city in Texas to receive the award and is one of only three government entities in the nation designated.
BFB businesses make bicycle friendliness a core element in the workplace and use innovative tools to promote bicycling as an easy and fun option for transportation and recreation.
“There are a lot of very simple, effective and creative ways that companies are finding to get people back on their bikes, and we recognize those efforts with our BFB awards,” said League President Andy Clarke.
The City of Austin offers a variety of programs and facilities to promote cycling as an alternative commuting solution. A bike share program through the Austin Energy Climate Protection program called City Cycle allows employees to check out bikes and ride to meetings or appointments. There are also locker room and shower facilities in many city buildings to assist commuters.
The PE Bike program is a free fitness initiative for employees to attend indoor cycling classes and a League bicycle education component, Traffic Skills 101. The training is held in-house and led by City of Austin League certified instructors. Over 150 employees have completed the seven-hour training since the programs inception in January 2008. This all helps City employees be better stewards of the roadways, whether driving a bike or a car.
Mayor Lee Leffingwell will receive the award this evening at City Council during Proclamations. On hand to present the Bicycle Friendly Business Award is the Executive Director of Education for the League, Preston Tyree.
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Bicycles banned on Manor road
Did you read that Manor has adopted a city ordinance banning bicycles from a half-mile stretch of Brenham Street, also known as Blake Manor Road?
That sets a terrible precedent for cyclists.
Ban bikes from a rough stretch of public road in Manor today and who knows what roads will be off-limits to cyclists tomorrow.
“From our perspective … banning any legitimate road user from public infrastructure is never the correct solution, as it sets an ominous precedent for us all,” Lane Wimberley of the League of Bicycling Voters wrote me in an email. “The correct response is to figure out what needs to be done to accommodate the legitimate demand.”
City leaders adopted the ordinance on Oct. 21, saying they had concerns about safety and liability because the two-lane road is cracked and in bad repair. BikeTexas, the Austin Cycling Association, and the League of Bicycling Voters all say the solution to bad roads is not to ban cyclists, but to fix the roads.
Enforcement will begin at the end of the month at the earliest. Violators can be fined up to $200.
Read the entire story in the Austin American-Statesman here.
This is discouraging news.
Bicyclists are tax payers and have a legal right to the road. To ban them is wrong.
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Running stadium stairs
If you’ve ever tried running up stadium stairs, you know what a great, heart-pumping, quad-burning workout it is. The problem is finding a place where you can do it.
A reader has been using the 11 flights of indoor stairs at Bellmont Hall on the west side of Darrell K. Royal -Texas Memorial Stadium, but is looking for someplace outdoors to run stairs. (The public isn’t allowed to run the stairs at Memorial Stadium.)
A central location would be best.
One option is shown in the photo above — the stairs leading from the parking area by Auditorium Shores up to the pedestrian crossing at First Street. (That’s Scott Cary leading a group of Austin police officers in a workout.)
Here’s an article about why running stairs is a good cross-training workout.
Anyone know of other good places to run stairs in Austin? What’s a good alternative?
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Camping at Big Bend Ranch State Park
Lots of folks have visited Big Bend National Park. But have you been to Big Bend Ranch State Park?
It’s remote, rugged, thick with cactus that’ll grab your pant legs, populated by tarantulas and javelinas — and incredibly gorgeous.
I just got back from a four-day camping trip to West Texas. The park hosted a long-awaited and twice-postponed Fiesta to unveil miles of new biking trails, dozens of new campsites and give folks a look at the biggest state park in Texas.
I camped at an incredible site called Guale 2, about an hour and a half by 4-wheel-drive vehicle from the park’s headquarters, dubbed Sauceda. I pitched my tent high on a mesa that overlooks Rancherias Canyon. I ate chicken cooked in a dutch oven, sipped wine as the stars popped out, and laughed around the campfire with half a dozen Texas Parks and Wildlife employees. When the sun went down, I crawled into my tent, read by the light of my headlamp for a while, and was lulled to sleep by the sound of the wind flapping against the rain fly of my tent.
Heaven!
Other highlights? Riding a mountain bike on Horsetrap Bike and Hiking Trail, clattering through the rocky terrain around Sauceda on the back of a horse, learning about wilderness survival from a park employee and eating barbecue as a cowboy plucked away on a guitar.
Trust me, it’s worth the 9-hour drive to the park. Just make sure, as they say, that you bring two spare tires.
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Fitness freebies
I’ve got some freebies for you!
Post here, telling me which DVD you want and why you should win it. I’ll pick winners next week.
Here’s what I’ve got this time:
- Denise Austin “Body Makeover Mix.”
- Denise Austin’s “3-Week Boot Camp.”
- Susan Hyatt’s Rockstar Workout.”
Good luck!
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Your weekend fitness events
Once again, there’s lots on tap for fitness-minded folks in Austin. Check it out:
- Red Licorice Events birthday party: Stop by Mellow Johnny’s, 400 Nueces, between 6 and 9 p.m. Friday, Nov. 13 for discounted registration on all 2010 Red Licorice Events. Music, refreshments, prizes and the opportunity to hop aboard the Pure Austin blender bike. Ride your bike there and get an extra drink ticket! For more information go here.
- Pub Run: Explore a few of Austin’s bars, by foot. Departs 6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 13 from Hill Country Running Company, 215 S. Lamar Blvd. Bring money for refreshment s. For more information go here.
- Cyclist Davis Phinney: Olympic cyclist Davis Phinney talks about his early-onset Parkinson’s disease during the Capital Area Parkinson’s Society’s Daily Victories educational seminar from 9 a.m. until noon Saturday, Nov.14 at the Renaissance Austin Hotel, 9721 Arboretum Blvd. For more information go here.
- Mellow Johnny’s Swap Meet: Mellow Johnny’s, 400 Nueces St., hosts its second annual swap meet on Saturday, Nov. 14. Purge your garage or locker of gently used bike stuff. Or, get the deal of your dreams on the gear of your dreams. BBQ, beer and music. For more information go here.
- Diabetes Walk: Step Out to fight diabetes at a 5K walk that starts at 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 14 at Fiesta Gardens. Registration starts at 8 a.m. For more information go here or call 472-9838.
- Wing Ding 5K and Gobbler: The 5K starts at 8 a.m. and the fun run starts at 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 14 at Southwest WIlliamson County Regional Park, 3005 County Road 175 in Leander. Proceeds benefit the Brushy Creek Elementary PTA and Round Rock Serving Center. Bring a canned food item. Registration on race day is $25. For more information go here.
As always, please post your event in the comments section here if I missed it.
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Heading to West Texas
I’m rolling out of town before dawn tomorrow, on my way to West Texas in search of stories.
I love it out there — my husband and I go to Big Bend National Park for New Year’s every year, and I’ve also done a few trips to Fort Davis, Marfa and Big Bend Ranch State Park. It’s rugged, but gorgeous. It’s also reassuring to look out over the desert and confirm that undeveloped, wide open spaces still exist.
I took the photo above last January at the national park.
I’m stopping in Marathon to interview photographer James Evans, who published “Big Bend Pictures” in 2003. I love his wildlife photos — have you seen his javelina shots? From there I’m headed to Terlingua, where I’m staying at La Posada Milagro, an adobe lodge built on ruins of the old mining town. A trip to the Starlight Theater is in order, I’m sure.
Saturday, I’ll drive into Big Bend Ranch State Park, the more remote neighbor of Big Bend National Park. The park is hosting a fiesta to unveil new trails, campsites and biking trails to the public. I’ll be camping and hiking with a crew from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
I’m returning Monday night.
Tips, suggestions? What’s your favorite thing about West Texas?
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Bike markings going in around Austin
Have you noticed the cyclist icons appearing on streets around Austin lately?
The new colored lanes and sharrows, or shared lane markings, are designed to help motorists and bicyclists safely share roadways.
The special lane markings and signs are being installed as part of a joint study by the City of Austin Bicycle Pedestrian Program and the University of Texas’ Center for Transportation Research.
Check out these photos from Nadia Barrera, from the City of Austin Bicycle Pedestrian Program, of the markings going in this week.
The chart below explains where the devices are being placed. Do you think they’ll help?
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Running for Ryan Shay
Two years ago, long-distance runner Ryan Shay collapsed and died of a heart attack 5 miles into the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in New York City. He was 28 years old.
Now Sarah Shay, his older sister, is training for her first marathon with two goals in mind — to honor her brother’s memory, and to raise money for the Wounded Warriors Project.
Sarah, a single mom and military veteran who moved to Austin last year, is blogging about her preparation for the Austin Marathon at www.runningforryan.com. The marathon is Feb. 14, 2010.
Like lots of folks training for marathons, she’s facing challenges at every step. Last week, she did her longest run yet — 15 miles.
“My butt hurt,” she says. She also had a close encounter with an over-exuberant dog.
Even though he’s gone, Ryan is helping Sarah get through the training. She thinks about him whenever she runs.
“In the beginning, I couldn’t not cry,” she says. “When you have a brother pass away because he was running in an Olympic marathon trial, it’s impossible to not think about him when you’re running.”
She also thinks about soldiers, and the recent tragedy at Fort Hood. She plans to attend the Veterans Day Parade at 9 a.m. Wednesday on the Ann Richards Congress Avenue Bridge.
Sarah hopes to raise $10,000 for the Wounded Warriors Project, which offers programs to heal soldiers physically and mentally. It’s a cause she thinks her brother would be proud to support.
One night, she dreamed he was watching her run. Her legs felt like lead, but he smiled at her and asked if she was going to make it to the finish line.
I think she will.
Sarah is also coping with a recent diagnosis of lupus, an auto-immune disease. So far she’s managing the disease with vitamins and exercise.
She’s running five or six days a week. Most of her mileage is either around Lady Bird Lake or in the neighborhood where she lives. Usually she pushes her son, Max, in a stroller.
To donate to Shay’s cause, follow the link on www.runningforryan.com. If you’re interested in joining the fund-raising team by running or raising money, contact Shay at runningforryan@gmail.com.
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Take the piano, er, stairs
Given the choice, most folks take the escalator over the stairs.
That got the folks at Volkswagen thinking that the easiest way to change behavior is to make the new way more fun.
Voila! Check out this video.
After putting in a “piano” on this subway staircase, 66 percent more people took the stairs.
Of course, pianos aren’t an option on every staircase. But there’s a lesson here.
Do you take the stairs?
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Your weekend fitness events!
Plenty of sweaty fun on tap this weekend in the ATX. If your event is not listed, please post it in the comments section below.
And yes, what you see above gets my vote for best event T-shirt of the year. Awesome!
- Wurst Ride in Texas: This 26 or 62-mile ride starts at 8 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 7 at the LCRA Service Center, 3505 Montopolis, and finishes at the Comal County Fairgrounds in New Braunfels. Participants get a ticket to Wurstfest, long-sleeved T-shirt, beer and sausage at the finish line, and five well-stocked rest stops between Austin and New Braunfels. Benefits the Bob Woodruff Foundation. For more information go here http://www.wurstride.com/registration.html.
- Tennis Clinic: The Capital Area Professional Tennis Association hosts an open tennis event starting at 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 7 at Circle C Tennis Club. Includes clinics led by pros, a tennis show by Henri Bijou Elkins and Fernando Velasco, and a tennis exhibition by area pros. Cost is $4 plus $3 registration fee. For more information call 301-8685.
- Fitness DVD Launch Party: Core fitness and nutrition specialist Christine Tusa will launch her new DVD, “Tusa Fitness Core Workout,” from 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7 at Workshop Fitness Studio, 2210 S. First St. Fitness instructors will provide free circuit style workout sessions from 3 to 4 p.m. and prizes will be given away. For more information go here www.TusaFitness.com.
- Run for the Water: The Gazelle Foundation presents the Run for the Water 10-miler, 5K and Kids K at 7 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 8 at the First Street bridge over Lady Bird Lake. Packet Pickup is 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7; and 6-7 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 8 at RunTex Riverside, 420 W. Riverside Drive. Proceeds help provide fresh drinking water for people in Burundi.
And more on the horizon:
- Holiday Boot Camp: Title Nine Austin offers a six-week boot camp starting Monday, Nov. 9, coached by Sarah Stewart. Fit tests and body fat analysis are optional. All levels are welcome. Sessions are 6:15 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday at Title Nine - Austin, 500 N. Lamar Blvd. Cost is $250. RSVP at ppape@titlenine.com or call 512-322-9902.
- Inline Hockey Tournament: The Southern Collegiate Hockey League inline hockey tournament runs from 3 p.m. until 1 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 7 and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 8 at Austin Sports Arena, 3918 Gattis School Road. The tournament will feature nine college teams, including the University of Texas, Texas A&M, University of North Texas, Texas Tech University and Louisiana State University. Admission is $2 per person. For more information go here www.AustinSortsArena.com.
- Chris McDougall: Barefoot runner Chris McDougall, author of “Born to Run,” will speak and sign books at Rogue Equipment, 500 San Marcos St., from 2-4 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 11. For more information go here www.roguequipment.com.
- Cyclist Davis Phinney: Olympic cyclist Davis Phinney will talk about his diagnosis with early-onset Parkinson’s disease and how he has coped with it during the Capital Area Parkinson’s Society’s Daily Victories educational seminar from 9 a.m. until noon Saturday, Nov.14 at the Renaissance Austin Hotel, 9721 Arboretum Blvd. For more information go here http://capitalareaparkinsons.org/documents/celebratedailyvictories-brochure11-14-09.pdf.
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Win “The 10-Minute Total Body Breakthrough”
Think you don’t have time for fitness? Wrong.
Sean Foy outlines in simple terms just how to go from excuses to hill repeats (or something like that) in “The 10-Minute Total Body Breakthrough.”
The spiral-bound book is geared toward fitness newbies, with explanations of Body Mass Index, fitness tests that let you compare your fitness level to others, places to record your blood pressure and cholesterol levels, stories about real people who have whipped themselves into shape and lots of illustrated, easy-to-follow instructions on how to do basic exercises.
My favorite feature? The “create your own workout” section in the back. You put together your own 10-minute sweat fest by picking one each from the selection of 4-minute, 3-minute, 2-minute and 1-minute suggested exercises. You might end up with, say, 4 minutes of mountain climbers, followed by 3 minutes of chair push-ups, 2 minutes of crunches and 1 minute of seated side bends.
Do you need this book? Tell me why. Best answer gets my copy.
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LA doctor convicted of assaulting cyclists
Cyclists are paying close attention to a road rage case in Los Angeles, where a former emergency room doctor was accused this week of assaulting two cyclists by driving his car in front of them and slamming on the brakes.
One of the cyclists crashed through the car’s rear window, breaking his nose and shattering several teeth. The other suffered a shoulder separation and road rash, according to coverage by Velo News.
Christopher Thomas Thompson was convicted of six felonies and faces up to 10 years in prison in the case. The doctor, who has no prior criminal record, will be sentenced Dec. 3, Velo News reports.
The case stems from a July 4, 2008 incident in which the cyclists were riding up a two-lane, dead-end street in the Brentwood subdivision of Los Angeles where Thompson lives. Thompson and the cyclists exchanged words before he stopped his car in front of them.
Thompson was charged with two counts each of assault with a deadly weapon and battery with serious bodily injury as well as reckless driving causing specified injury and mayhem, according to Velo News. He was also convicted of misdemeanor reckless driving in another case.
Thompson’s argument? He said the cyclists were belligerent and bikes are inherently unstable.
Bikes unstable? What about the doctor? (That’s him above, in an Associated Press photo taken by Mel Melcon.)
Thoughts anybody?
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Radio jock JB’s on a mission to get ripped
You know those infomercials for a series of workout videos called P90X?
Disc jockey JB Hager got sucked in by them, and he’s now two weeks into what’s call the “90 day transformation.”
Hager, 42, half of the JB & Sandy Show on radio station Mix 94.7, competes around the state as a Category 3 amateur bike racer. But it’s off-season now, and he needed motivation to stay fit.
The collection of DVDs, led by buff trainer Tony Horton, promises that you can “get absolutely ripped in just 90 days.” All you need is a pair of dumbbells and a pull-up bar. The rest you can do in your living room.
“I was looking for something inexpensive that I could do on my schedule, so I bought this stupid thing,” Hager says. “Even my 7-year-old harassed me. She said, ‘You’re never going to look like those people.’”
That’s probably a good thing, JB.
“They talk about muscle confusion — I need muscle confusion,” Hager says.
Hager spends an hour a day working out to the videos, a series of 12 different workouts.
Day 1, chest and arms. Day 2, plyometrics. Then abdominal muscles, back and shoulder, etc.
And yoga. Woe the yoga.
“I thought, ‘Oh I have yoga today, how nice. That’ll be nothing,’” Hager says. “It had me reeling in pain.”
In fact, the whole experience has been humbling. “I get on a bike and I have strong legs and heart and lungs. Who’d have thought doing yoga I’d be winded and panting for air?”
“It’s so cheesy and silly and the guy that does the workouts, he’s that guy you hate, he’s the rah-rah gym guy talking about his guns and doing shout outs to his peeps, and he’s shiny and I hate the guy …” Hager say.
We’ll check back after the 90-day period.
That’s JB, in the photo above, getting after it. Think he’ll wind up looking like the happy P90X customer below?
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