2024 Fitness Results

While 2024 was horrible for the world in many ways, for my own selfish self it was a decent year in the pursuit of fitness.

(data in freedom units)	2024-01-01	2025-01-05	2025 Goal
Weight	172.6	171.4	168
Body Fat % (est.)	39%	36%	32%
Workouts per week	3	6	6
Average workouts per week	-	4.28	5.5
Miles walked per week	9	31	30
Biceps	13	13	14
Chest	39	40	40
Waist	38	37	36
Thighs	21	22	23
Calves	16	16	15
Pullups	0	0	1

While I would like the top-line weight number to have moved more, I did "recomp" to a fair degree.  The body fat percentage numbers are guesses, but I can feel and see substantial differences in several muscles, including side deltoids, trapezius, and pectorals.  At the same time, the amount of excess flesh around my torso decreased visibly.  I hope to see substantial muscle gains in my thighs and upper arms this year.

In addition, the amount of exercise I am able to do each week increased substantially, with the number of workouts doubling and the typical walking mileage tripling.  While the actual statistics are not terribly impressive compared to fit people, I have had several health issues in the past six years, including: frozen shoulder in 2019, what may have been COVID in March 2020, possible long COVID in late 2020, another frozen shoulder in 2021, and probable Lyme disease in 2022.  The frozen shoulders led to considerable loss of muscle mass in my upper body, while the long COVID and the Lyme disease led to general exhaustion for several months.  It is only in the past six months that my exercise capacity has reached an acceptable level.  Also, I'm well over 50 now.  That doesn't make getting fitter any easier.

Anyway, the general plan for this year is below.  Like any battle plan, it will change when new conditions arise.

Day/Activity	Workout	Walking
Monday	Upper, 50 minutes	6-7 miles
Tuesday	Lower, 50 minutes	4-5 miles
Wednesday	Upper, 50 minutes	4-5 miles
Thursday	Cycling intervals, 40 minutes	4-5 miles
Friday	Upper, 50 minutes	4-5 miles
Saturday	Lower, 50 minutes	4-5 miles
Sunday		optional

Still Got That Big Ass?

It's that time of year again, the time when people who monitor such things tell us what we don't want to hear: we're a bunch of fatty fat-asses. Still. And while Vermont and New England in general are less dimensionally-gifted than the rest of the country, the trend is in the wrong direct. Obesity increased in all six states.

There are some positive developments to be noted. One is that nearly every state, as well as the federal government, has developed programs to reduce obesity. Another positive is the trend away from driving by today's youth. Fewer teenagers are getting driver's licenses, though that doesn't necessarily mean they are using a more strenuous means of transport. But it may mean that cars are less important as status symbols. A weaker cult of the automobile means that people are more likely to consider and support transportation options other than motor vehicles. A third positive is the increasing support for bicycling as an option for commuting. The current Secretary of Transportation has voiced this, and support at the local level has been increasing for several years.

Unfortunately (I seem to use that word a lot), I don't see an overall improvement for a while. The trend towards increasingly sedentary lifestyles will continue because the number of jobs that requires a college degree and the ability to sit in front of a computer for hours will continue to increase. The ever-growing selection of electronic entertainment options will keep people indoors as well. Our diets will continue to be unhealthy as long as our agricultural policy remains in the grip of agribusiness puppets - a.k.a. Midwestern senators, which will be the case for the foreseeable future. And the most important factor (IMHO), our car-centric built environment, will remain in place for decades.