Archive for July, 2006

John Smoltz = Baseball

Sunday, July 16th, 2006

I love this sport and I love to watch John Smoltz play. Pitching 6 shutout innings and then at bat he hits a double. “if you can keep your head when all those about you are ….” The Braves are in a deep sand trap at this half way point but with leaders like him why not come back. Here’s to catching the amazing Mets. The Atlanta Braves are up 11 to nothing at this moment and Smoltz is still going in the 7th with two up and two down. Make that three. 11 in a row out. Still a long way to go but today the Mets and Phillies lost.

Update – Sunday morning:

“I’ve seen enough of Smoltz,” Padres manager Bruce Bochy said. “It is remarkable how well he is throwing the ball. Great command. I don’t know if there is a better athlete on the field.”

I have to tell you – if they weren’t 12 games back, it would be so easy to be optimistic after that game last night. Either way – I love watching guys like Smoltz play, not just pitch. As I turn into an “old guy” watching a 19 year veteran pitch and play the game is what brings you back. Andrew and Chpper helped the cause and the young boys did their part too. That was the team I figured had a chance this year. Damn Mets.

Fleet Feet Sports – New Shoes today

Saturday, July 15th, 2006

Fleet Feet Sports – Atlanta – Sandy Springs, GA. On Mt. Vernon and Sandy Springs Circle. Good people, the better shoes. The runners there wear Nike’s in the store but not on the road. 

I went to Fleet Feet in Sandy Springs today. They did the deal and watched me run. Turns out I was using stablity shoes and it was messing me up. At least that is theory. I have a normal profile and this may have been what is putting pressure on my knees. I bought Saucony Grid Trigon 4

Lets see how they do tomorrow.

4 miles at pace Nike Triax Elite SDM/HRM Workout

Saturday, July 15th, 2006

I ran a “workout” on my watch today. 4 miles at 90% – my Max HR is set at 191. The thing is. I am out of shape. To keep my HR below 172 was a chore. I spent most of the time at 174. Imagine that I’m doing that and my pace was still 9 minutes. Now, there are lots of hills here but I took the first one as a 1/2 mile warmup. That’s what I get for taking a week off. The watch doesn’t split out miles on a workout – at least the way I set it. I will set it as 4 separate steps next time.

Warmup: 8:34AM .53 miles; 10′11″ pace; 5′23″; AHR 137

4 Miles: 36′39″; 9′10″/mile; AHR 173.
Mile 1 was approx 8′33″ pace, mile 2 at 8′48 mile 3 at 9′14″ and mile 4 at 9′30″

Cool down: .64 miles; 12′50″ pace; 5′23″; AHR 159

much talk about the finally released Nike+iPod at PaulStamatiou.com

Friday, July 14th, 2006

Nike Plus – An iPod Shoe? – PaulStamatiou.com

It doesn’t matter how much is written this new technolgy is misunderstood, mystified, magical.

I think its the broad market for the small market that was the Triax Elite HRM/SDM I have been using for a while now.  Its cool – those that run with music and compete with the masses, enjoy the fashon and fun – welcome to the pack and run!

Today’s run – 4 miles getting easier

Monday, July 10th, 2006

Ran today but with not enough time this morning to get the full 5 I wanted. I rant the 4 slow at first but found my wind much better then expected. My AHR is now tracking lower on the first few miles and my pace quicker on the last two. And it returns to resting pace quicker too. I did a comparison to runs in late May, early June – my heart is getting back in shape. This is good.

4.22 miles, Pace 9′33″, AHR 144BPM
Mile1: 10′27.53″ 131BPM
Mile2: 9′14.97″ 145BPM
Mile3: 8′54.97″ 150BPM
Mile4: 8′24.97″ 153BPM
Cooldown .22 miles 3′38.97″ 130BPM

Unemployment and “Deadbeats”

Saturday, July 8th, 2006

Time to rant again – this time about another inconvenient truth. I love the environment and work to spend my leasure time there in the woods or garden. And I want to see us make it better but what about our social environment and changing that behaviour.

Unemployment and our lazy poor, I wrote this once before. Its not that all poor are lazy or that all lazy are poor but the latter is closer to the truth. I read the paper. Its our Atlanta Journal and Constitution and its not the best paper in the nation but its reasonable. Two articles in our business section:

Job Growth Slower Then Predicted

Deadbeats or Hard Luck

The Unemployment Rate is at 4.6% the lowest in 13 months. Its a fantastic historical rate and it means we are at virtually full employment. The article on job growth points this out but doesn’t quite get to the point I’m about to make.

The Deadbeats article is about people in Houston from New Orleans who aren’t working. Houston has an amazingly low unemployment rate for a huge city. The article meanders around the point that these people don’t want to work. Maybe its the fact that some of these jobs are “beneath” them.

With so many “illegal immegrants” in our country who are working, such a low unemployment rate and people not even looking for the past 10 months it is clear to me that our National psyche is simply broken. I grew up with a privledged life, I know. I had nice things and for the most part didn’t have to work as a kid. But I did. I cut lawns, I pressed cloths, I put together little model trains, I sold coupon books door-to-door. And it all payed enough to get me where I needed at the time. In fact, I didn’t do that great in my last years at U of Maryland so my job choices weren’t fantastic. My first job had a base sallary below what most high-school graduate friends were making. It was a commissioned job though and the more I learned, worked – the more I made money. More importantly, I took it seriously and it allowed me to move onto a more lucrative job after prooving myself. Something is missing in these poeples psyche and our culture at the bottom. Its is dangerously close to the socialistic and passive people of Western Europe.

Socialistically Democratic countries with 10% unemployment like France and Spain are what they are. Born from Medieval Feudalistic states where people expected the worst and assumed only the rich were to have what they have and if something nice happened it was luck or divine intervention. Our country was founded on the opposite idea. People took crappy jobs knowing there would be a chance and to see that chance was the key. Or they are poeple living in the country that don’t want much, work for the next meal and are satisfied with that life – key word, satisfied.
Poor people started here as Indentured servants, later others worked in the cities under horrible conditions. Women had it the worst, they went west as cooks and whores as they were either connected to a man or cast aside. Many of these women became stronger and passively powerful. Their children even stronger. Chinese as RR workers and butchers, indentured servents broke away to farm a small piece of land or work on someone elses farm. Their children even stronger. Sure there was desperation but a these people’s children had more and thier children had more. It is no different with my relatives.

My Great Grandfather Basil Capizzi came to America as a pumice miner from Sicily and worked construction and hard labor here. He discovered the boom in telecommunications and dug trenches for underground cables. His sons got in the the same company and worked in middle management. His oldest didn’t but instead went to work in the shipyards another boom but not an easy job, this was my Grandfather Anthony Capizzi. He worked hard and also moved up to become a “Snapper” or forman and was recognized as a committed, hard and smart worker. He went on to help his men by organizing labor and getting better working conditions. His sons and daughters also worked hard and had even more opportunity. The story is similar on my Father’s side with my Immigrant Grandfather from Greece who got on a boat at 14 with his little brother to come to America.
I’m ranting I know, but anyone who thinks our Country is faltering is missing the point – its not our country or our government – its our people that have to change.

JimmyC.

4 Miles Slow 5:00PM

Thursday, July 6th, 2006

Nice warmup with Daniel – he cramped up in .5 miles. I jogged back with him and took off for 3 more; down Mt. Vernon to the JCC on Tilly  Mill.

4.36Miles   48:24 Minutes  Avg Pace 11:06/mile  AHR 146

Mile1: 11:29.34  132BPM
Mile2: 11:09.96  149BPM
Mile3: 10:41.97  151BPM
Mile4: 10:14.97  156BPM
Mile5 (.358miles): 4:48.16  138BPM

I rant – Jim Charanis

Thursday, July 6th, 2006

Well, I haven’t been ranting much. I have been running, working and spending time with the family. I also got a new toy that has been taking my down time – a Nintendo DS Lite. I have tried that Brain Age game and I’m like 50+ years old per that thing. I also play Animal Crossing Wild World – its kinda fun – interesting kick with Danile to share stuff, accumulate wealth, interact, etc.

Watching the braves blow perhaps thier 19th Save tonight – Its almost over – they were winning by 5 in the 9th inning and Hudson was looking good – now he is a sitting duck.

Tonight Steph went out with friends – we danced in the family room – only cool music tonight – Beck, Shins, Weezer. What the heck – I love being goofy with the kids!

400’s – Hilton Head 8:34AM

Tuesday, July 4th, 2006

Did a run in the neighborhood. Used the workout on my Triax Elite – SDM/HRM. Ignored the first stage – did the warmup for half mile; ran 8 intervals – first a little weak missing the audible prompts.

Warmup – .52 miles 10:11/Mile 121 AHR

41 minutes; 3.96 Miles 10:30/mile AHR 144 —>

Run 400 Meters at 80-85% X8
Jog 200 Meters at 60-65% X7

Cooldown .9 Mile; 14;34″ / mile AHR 134

9 Miles – Hilton Head – LSD

Sunday, July 2nd, 2006

8AM – Hilton Head – at Mom’s. Ran to the ocean – you can see in the middle – it got so damn hot!
9.02 Miles; 1:34′16″ Hrs.; AHR 151

Mile 1: 10:20.50 .982 Miles 127BPM
Mile 2: 10:15.40 1.01 Miles 134BPM
Mile 3: 9:59.72 .999 Miles 145BPM
Mile 4: 9:53.96 .999 Miles 155BPM
Mile 5: 10:01.98 .998 Miles 159BPM
Mile 6: 10:24.96 1.0 Miles 160BPM
Mile 7: 11:02.97 1.0 Miles 159BPM
Mile 8: 10:57.97 .998 Miles 159BPM
Mile 9: 11:03.96 1.0 Miles 161BPM

Walk it off – .018 miles 15 minutes – still 157BPM
Left the watch on – .27 milles in 6 hours. HR 127.