Author: BC

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FiTech Weekly Summary – WEEK 3!! (VR for Fitness)

Three weeks are behind me, and five weeks in front. So nearing the half-way point. This week I ramped up both Cardio and the Spin Bike programs into “medium intensity” and “hard” respectively. I noticed an immediate difference. Things were much, surprise surprise, HARDER! So this coming week I am modifying my “wellness days” and ramping those down into true “rest days”. I will keep with my 5 mile bike ride in the morning, as I enjoy having a “commute to work” (as a remote worker). And I will keep “push up/sit up/plank/stretch” in the mix too, in order to keep that habit strong. Just dropping the jump rope and the treadmill on Tuesday and Thursday. I also am using the weekend as full rest, to allow everything to settle before diving back in. I don’t know how that will work out in the long run, but these feel like good adjustments to make three weeks into the challenge.

I also plan to begin sharing reviews of the products I’m using, but those will come out in a staggered format, versus a weekly cadence. Hoping to start with the Hidrate Smart Water Bottle this week (not sure if I’d be hitting my water targets without it!)

Stats are below. Modifying here as well to show how things change week to week. I will do a much deeper dive into the full data set once this thing is officially done (and who knows, I will probably keep tracking stuff).

Blood pressure continues to improve (I’ve switched from twice a day to once a day in the evening for a consistent measurement when my BP meds are at full impact). Water also improved based on some serious effort and smart bottle reminders. Weight was all over the place to due a short weekend trip where my food habits were disrupted, but I’m back on track now and the numbers are already dropping. So hopefully better news there at the end of Week 4!

Finally, here is a short video I created to show what it looks like to ride a Spin bike in VR. I will share more videos like this in future posts. I hope it inspires you (and me too!)

Spin Bike in VR (featuring Holodia by Holofit)

Stay tuned.

Week 4 is up next, and the half way point with this challenge!!

BC (on the VR-enabled Spin Bike)
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FiTech Tracking Day 15 (VR for Fitness)

My bike ride “to work”

Wrapping up Week 3 of the VR for Fitness Challenge. Today was a tough one because I have ramped up both the bike and cardio intensity. So working up more of a sweat than the previous workouts. But I think that’s a good thing. I am going to re-evaluate how I handle “rest days” going forward and make sure I don’t push myself too hard. But I am sticking with my morning 5 mile ride in Aurvangar (who else can say they start each day out racing a dragon!!)

Week 3 update coming Sunday night (or Monday morning) depending on how the weekend goes! Hoping to share some videos to show what biking in VR actually looks like. Fingers crossed. Happy weekend!!

Till Monday…

BC.

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FiTech Tracking Day 14 (VR for Fitness)

Another wellness day. I actually had a bunch of extra things happen today that distracted me from my fitness stuff. So I missed my situps/pushups/plank/stretch for the first time (sigh).

I did get my 5 miles in this morning and choose Zen mode where I could just bike at my own pace (and of course I decided to break a 3 minute mile pace…). Grabbed my jump rope for 50 quick jumps and managed to play a little minigolf with my team at work this afternoon (much needed team building!) Tomorrow it’s back to fitness to wrap up the week. I’m confident I can end strong!!

Till Tomorrow…

BC.

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FiTech Tracking Day 13 (VR for Fitness)

A very busy middle of the week, but I got through all my items and it’s not even 7pm when I am writing this (versus after 10pm like usual).

I am adding in my average “per/mile” pace for the Spin Bike, as I attempt to ramp up without overdoing it. Maintaining throughout the week, and push a little harder each new week sounds like a do-able plan.

I finished my 9 day “Fitness Reset” which featured all the Supernatural coaches and a “Low” intensity. Next week I’m starting another program, ramping up to “medium” intensity. Should be interesting. Not too slow, not too fast. It’s all about finding balance.

Till Tomorrow…

BC.

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FiTech Tracking Day 12 (VR for Fitness)

Tuesday is always very busy. Today was no different. My theory that grabbing my 5 miles first thing in the morning proved solid today. I don’t know if I would have had time for everything I managed to do today if I hadn’t jumped on the bike before my morning coffee.

VR Mini Golf is intended to be “low intensity” but standing. That’s the whole goal. I didn’t have anyone to play golf with today, but I did download a new application called “Fly”, which has you steering a hovering platform around 3D cities. I flew around the Golden Gate Bridge, under the Eiffel Tower, and straight down 7th Avenue from Times Square to Central Park. So I consider that my “low intensity” for the day.

I’m gaining back some of the weight loss that I backtracked on over the weekend, so that’s encouraging. It is encouraging that those moments can be corrected. But I also don’t want to become a servant of the scale. Fluctuations have to be okay. Anything else is not healthy, no matter how much weight I lose. So keeping that focus, and sharing that thought here, so no one who stumbles across these words gets the wrong idea about the scale. Back to Fitness Day tomorrow. Gonna go for the Grand Sablon again! 11 miles in the Sahara Desert sounds fun!!

Till Tomorrow…

BC.

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FiTech Tracking Day 11 (VR for Fitness)

I spent the weekend in Nebraska and off my Noom nutrition plan (read: I ate pizza and cheeseburgers). So stepping on the scale Monday morning meant I lost all my progress from last week. But the goal today was not to punish myself. I had planned to ramp up the bike from “medium” to “hard” and I did that. But I did NOT ramp up Supernatural VR yet. I have one more day of my current “getting started” program and then I intend to go from Low to Medium intensity there too.

I continue to love the spin bike. I have been using the music of Audiomachine, which is basically “film trailer music”. It makes every bike ride feel way more epic than it actually is, and it keeps me motivated. Stuck to all my goals today. I was thankful Supernatural was a little shorter than normal. Tomorrow is a longer session, ending my current 9 day program.

Getting back on task is never easy, but pushing too hard as a punishment for slip-ups is always the wrong choice. I’m confident I will again find my groove this week, and get back to losing weight, gaining strength and feeling healthier every morning.

Till Tomorrow…

BC.

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FiTech Weekly Summary – WEEK 2!! (VR for Fitness)

Week 2 had many ups and downs. But the weight loss continued, which was good. I’ve updated the “health metrics” so I can more easily see the change week to week. I will do a full 8 week analysis at the end of all this madness, but for now that will have to do.

I have been neglecting the treadmill this past week, so I hope to use VR to get me walking more. I want to improve my “inactive time” tracked by the Oura ring. Figure the treadmill will help with that hopefully.

Water consumption dropped this week, so that’s another thing to focus on. I don’t know what I would do without the Hidratespark smart water bottle. I need those visual reminders to drink!

Short post for Week 2, as I was traveling over the weekend. Week 3 didn’t start strong but hoping to turn things around now that I’m back home.

Stay tuned.

Week 3 has begun!!

BC (on the VR-enabled Spin Bike)
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FiTech Tracking Day 10 (VR for Fitness)

Today was a travel day down to Nebraska (where I’m writing tonight’s update). I wasn’t able to cram all 15 miles into my morning, but I got to 8.2, so that’s something at least. I also managed to get my Supernatural Cardio in (thankfully it was a shorter session today).


Taking the whole weekend off from workouts, since the majority of my gear is back in Minnesota (though I have a Quest 3 with me, so maybe I’ll squeeze in some cardio tomorrow if there’s time).

Till Tomorrow…

BC.

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FiTech Tracking Day 9 (VR for Fitness)

Another day out of sync, versus the pacing of the first week. We head out of town tomorrow, so it was a busy day wrapping up the work week, and getting ready for the road trip. So I had to bypass both minigolf and treadmill today. But I still managed my 5 mile bike, 50 jumps, and my daily standard stuff. Definitely missed the mark, but not by too much today!

Somehow I need to cram everything into the early morning tomorrow. We’ll see if I can pull that off.

Till Tomorrow…

BC.

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FiTech Tracking Day 8 (VR for Fitness)

Quick post tonight, as I was out most of the evening and don’t have time to think this through completely. Good Fitness Day. Did my cardio in the morning, since I knew I wouldn’t have much time in the evening. But I did have to do my 10 miles after dinner and cocktails. So that was fun. And for some reason I chose HIIT training for it, which can be kind of intense. But I tried a new course that was spectacular! You even bike through the Star Wars movie set at one point along the way! Not my favorite ever, but definitely high on the list.

Here are some screen images of the two courses I biked today.

Till Tomorrow…

BC.