I Run Out of Stuff to Write, Sometimes

…so I shoot basketball. This afternoon while waiting around I saw a chance to get sweaty. I grabbed the push broom and cleared the gravel and other debris from the concrete basketball court. And I played a game of Speed 100, thoroughly exhausting myself.

When I was done, I lay down on the parking lot to recover and see if I could make a sweat angel. It didn’t work.

Several cool things drifted across the September blue above where I lay: an American Goldfinch, a Common Nighthawk, a hawk too high to name without binoculars, one of the large yellow sulfurs, some dragonflies, and a feather.

Then I came inside, made the sandwich, poured a glass of milk, got cleaned up, and did some more waiting. Fridays can be good like that.

It’s Basketball, People

In case you have not been made aware of it, Duke beat North Carolina last night.

It just needed to be said.

Quick Thursday Morning Workout

With the temperature hitting the 80s for several days, I’ve been trying to spend some exercise time outdoors. Each occasion has been brief, but even a little bit of exertion helps. Exercise is one of the best mood enhancers and stress managers, and that becomes important during dark, cold, wet months that winter tends to be. So far I’ve not been able to grab a chunk of time big enough to put the kayak on the river, but there’s a chance for that tomorrow. This morning before office time and hospital visits started, I took the basketball to the concrete court in the church yard for a round of Speed 100

My time was 15′06″78. That’s a long way from the sub-thirteens I get when I’m in better shape and better practice, but still decent, considering I haven’t played since August. Plus, I hit five out of the ten speed bumps…better than average. By the way, I’m not sure I’ve ever played during the month of December before; the weather is usually not very inviting for it. Speed 100 is more of a backup workout plan, something I do at home when I can’t afford the time of the drive to the fitness center. When I DO hit the gym, raquetball is the battle of choice, along with weights, running or bicycle machines, and sometimes pickup basketball. I plan to get back to the gym in a few weeks, making sure I stay ahead of the winter/holiday sludge. A good assessment of that for me is to weigh less at the beginning of January than I did before Thanksgiving. So far, I’m there!

Sweat is a good thing!

Speed 100

For all of you who have been wondering: Speed 100 is a solo basketball game I devised in the mid-1990’s to help me feel healthier than I was feeling. It helped me burn off lots of fat and calories back then, and I still use it occasionally when I need some good sweaty exercise. This game should NOT be attempted by anyone whose health cannot tolerate extremely high heart rate and hard breathing. It goes like this:

The object is to hit 100 basketball shots as quickly as possible. You’ll need a stopwatch.

After warming up and stretching properly, place the stopwatch somewhere out of the way where it’s not likely to get dribbled or stepped on. Start the timer and immediately run to the three-point line at the top of the key for your first shot.

Rules:

Shoot from wherever you get the rebound.

If you make two consecutive shots from the low post position, inside the paint, move out of the lane to make the next shot.

Each time you hit an even ten (10, 20, 30, etc.), go back to the starting position at the top of the key for the next shot. This means every shot number ending in ‘1′ (1, 11, 21, 31, etc.) will first be attempted from the top of the key. This rule has the effect of slowing down the pace of the game and is called the ’speed bump.’

All fourth-decade shots (31-40) must be made with the off hand (if you’re right-handed, you must make these shots with your left hand, and vice versa).

All eighth-decade shots (71-80) must be made from the exact same location, which is any spot of your choosing outside the paint. The exception for this is if you hit # 71 from the speed bump position, then only shots 72-80 must be made from the same location of your choosing.

One of the last five shots hit (96-100) must be a foul shot.

When shot # 100 has been successfully made, run to the stopwatch (remember the stopwatch?), and stop the timer.

After cooling down, record your time and try to improve on it each next time you play.