Donating blood for selfish reasons

I hadn’t donated blood for years up until last month.  I donated for these reasons:

• giving blood is one way to decrease iron in the blood
• giving blood is a small stress for which the body might rebound to become healthier
• giving blood may help others who need the blood

One possible explanation for why women generally live longer than men is that they lose blood monthly until menopause and because having babies also helps to keep excessive minerals in check.

Here’s a quote from the website at  http://www.physicians-background.com/blood.html:  “The two studies involved over 6,500 men and were conducted by the University of Kansas and the University of Kuopio in Finland. Researchers believe by giving blood, men — and post-menopausal women — rid their bodies of excessive iron, which is thought to contribute to heart disease.”

I came up with the idea to donate blood from reading about an anti-aging product that chelates minerals from the body.

My experience with Tropic Thunder

I’m a fan of Ben Stiller; I start to smile just thinking about the characters he has played in past movies.  So last week, I was glad to hear he had another his new movie, Tropic Thunder, was coming out.  I started to laugh when I read that the plot involved actors in a war movie getting involved in real war-like action.

In previous posts (laughter to release growth hormone, 5 funny movie scenes)), I have mentioned that research has shown that even the anticipation of seeing something funny releases more growth hormone.  I felt some lightening of mood every time this week I thought about or talked about the fact that I would be going to see Tropic Thunder.

Tropic Thunder is a mock war movie so there are some scenes with blood and guts which some people won’t enjoy;  I don’t like seeing blood and guts but I still laughed at most of the bloody scenes.

Anyway, I was in good frame of mind and expecting to laugh when I went to the movie theatre on Saturday afternoon with my niece and her husband.  Although I didn’t hurt my belly laughing, I laughed throughout the entire movie.  One movie goer in my theatre created some contagious laughter from his frequent laughter outbursts.  By the time the movie was over, I noticed that my physiology was in a state akin to an exercise high and my face muscles felt tight.  Then I enjoyed recounting some scenes with my niece and her husband.

Today I still smile thinking about the movie and it lightens my mood while simultaneously decreasing my stress hormones.

Status update: a summary and appraisal of my progress

Here’s my view of my progress.  I am using the same format that I used in my progress post on April 13, 2008.

I have received more benefit from my program to stimulate growth hormone than I originally expected or hoped for. 

Cholesterol:  In February 2007, I became aware of exercise-induced growth hormone while researching how exercise could improve my cholesterol reading because my triglycerides were high and my HDL was low.  My growth hormone plan gave me a good cholesterol reading; my triglycerides in my last test were below 45 and my HDL was 67. 

Shortly after begining anaerobic exercise and cutting back on carbs, I had 2 excellent cholesterol checks in April and June 2007.  However, my LDL was high in March 2008, so I reduced my consumption of grass-fed beef and if I ate ground beef I drained the grease off; reducing the beef must have helped. 

Weight/fat:  After beginning my program to enhance the release of growth hormone, I quickly surpassed my original weight loss and fat loss goals; just wildly guessing in the first 3 months, I probably lost 20 pounds of fat and gained about 10 pounds of muscle which yielded a 10 pound net weight loss.  From about April through October 2007, I usually weighed between 159 and 162 pounds; from November 2007 to July 2008, I usually weighed between 163 and 165.  In the last couple weeks, I have lost about 3 pounds and usually weigh between 159 and 161.  My physique is better than I originally had hoped for, but I would still like to decrease my body fat percentage for reasons of health, vanity, and physical power.

Energy:  I have slightly more useful energy to accomplish work around the house than I had prior to my growth hormone plan.

Sleep:  For the first 8 months after starting my program, I generally slept about 7.5 hours which was half an hour less than prior to my growth hormone plan; I woke up naturally.  This benefit disappeared after the first 8 monts, but recently I have noticed that I sometimes wake up in 7 or 7.5 hours.

I have always fallen asleep quickly and I have always slept through the night.  I noticed after beginning my program in February 2007, that I often had waves of well-being while falling asleep; in February 2007 I usually exercised right before going to bed which must have caused a significant release of growth hormone; I don’t exercise right before going to bed anymore, but I still have some “waves of well-being” when going to bed for the night only I think it is now more related to my mental technique of remembering moments from my most relaxing and most carefree vacation.

Youthful appearance:  In my opinion, I appear to be more youthful because I have lost weight, my physique is more muscular, the skin under my eyes is not as puffy, and the skin around my eyes doesn’t seem to be as wrinkled.  In the last couple of weeks I have made progress towards having the chest and abdomen I’d like to have which reminds me of a physically-fit, slender 16 year-old.  I’m not there yet, but I’m closer.

Strength/athleticism:  From doing many new and old exercises over the months, I have noticed that I have improved strength, speed, and reaction time.  My sprinting times are the best ever.

Flexibility:  My flexibility has increased in a number of ways; I can twist my spine further when I back up my car.  I have been doing stretching exercises a few times per week since February 2007.  I have also been doing gymnast back aches and wrestler back arches.  In one of my exercise books, an author stated that he stretches even though he doesn’t like to do it and that it is painful; since reading that it was painful I have stretched further until I have a little bit of discomfort.  Of course, having lost weight in my abdomen also makes it easier to bend over.

Aches and pain:  My most significant and most amazing benefit from my growth hormone program is that my right hip healed completely after starting starting anaerobic exercise in February 2007; for the prior 3 years I had periodic pain in my right hip, my right leg was weaker than my left leg when running, and sometimes others would notice my limp.  Now my strength and range of motion of my right and left legs are equal.  My right leg never hurts and I haven’t had to limp while walking since February 2007.

From running sprints, I had 2 injuries that occurred in the summer 2007; my left hamstring muscle was tight for about 2 weeks and my left achilles heal was also injured for about 3 weeks; my left hamstring has been completely healed since August; I can still sometimes feel that my left achilles heal is a little tight when I first arise in the morning, but it does not affect me in any way.

My lower back has been a weak link in my body for my whole life.  My lower back has improved in that it is not as stiff and sore from riding in a car for 30 minutes or longer.  My back still gets tight from prolonged standing or if I do repetitive bending over.  I am still trying different exercises and other healing attempts to improve my lower back. 

Since beginning my growth hormone plan, I have had a number of bouts with delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).  I think I have been getting better at finding just the right amount of intensity and duration which will produce a good amount of exercise-induced growth hormone without overtraining.  

Handling stress:  I have noticed an improved ability to sail through stress since I began my program.  Generally my attitude is that I can handle whatever happens. 

Mental clarity:  Since I began my program, I think I have slightly more mental clarity which sometimes manifests in wittiness or faster “comebacks”.  I will never be the life of the party, but I have become somewhat more socially out-going.

There are many more things to try to enhance the natural release of growth hormone: I will write about my successful attempts.  I may or may not write about my unsuccessful attempts. : )

Being tough in the Pacific Ocean

San Francisco had a uncharacteristic heat spell recently and fortunately I happened to be vacationing there.  I say ”fortunately” because I wanted to go swimming in the frigid waters of Limantour Beach (north of San Francisco).  My cold showers in recent weeks prepared me for the cold ocean.  A few people were wading in the ocean up to their knees, but besides the dogs, I was the only mammal who fully immersed in the extremely refreshing and shocking water.  Then I used the warm sandy beach to help me warm up. 

 

While on vacation, I was off my usual diet and exercise routines.  I did manage to do brief anaerbic exercises a couple times and I did a 4 mile hike around a mountain lake.  A different sleep schedule and flying are a couple of ways to toughen up, as I described in my last post.

Monday exercise: plyometrics, running sprints, skipping, suicides

On Monday morning, it had been 48 hours since my last anaerobic exercise.  I wanted to do anaerobic exercise of moderate intensity using my leg muscles.

I didn’t have any pre-exercise protein or any post-exercise protein on Monday as I wanted to mix it up a bit and I was willing to sacrifice some muscle to become more slim; although I am already at a belt knotch which tells me I am at my slimmest in 15 years,  I would like to become even more slim for the summer.

I began my exercise session by jogging and then doing 2 plyometric sets each of high knees, butt kickers, and wall gliders.  I then did four 20 second running sprints separated by 100 seconds rest.  Since I have been running sprints for over a year, I can run full speed with little concern of hurting myself; today I seemed to run faster than in previous weeks and this was verified by my stopwatch on a marked distance.

Then I did 3 sets of 10 lunge jumps (5 on each leg in which I jump in the air when coming up from the lunge) with rests of 30 seconds between sets.  Then I jogged for a while before doing 3 sets of 20 skips in which I skipped as high as I could (10 each leg).  I finished the session by doing a couple 20-second sets of suicides (in which I sprint 10 yards and then reverse direction). The entire session took 22 minutes.

My shower session today went like this:  4 minutes of hot water, 2 minutes of cold water, 2 minutes of hot water, 30 seconds of cold water.  Now that I have been taking cold showers for 2 weeks, my body has accommodated to them somewhat.  Today I was able to go directly to cold water instead of gradually although I did have some rather loud spontaneous vocalizations.   Cold water apparently helps muscles heal faster and without pain from intense exercise; hot showers which raise body temperature probably increase the release of growth hormone; I have read some things about the effects of hot and cold exposure, but I am experimenting with how I respond; I wish there was more definitive research and instructions on how to benefit from hot and cold exposure.

About 2 hours after my exercise session, I had 25 grams of whey isolate.  And then about 1 hour later, I had a smoothie with yogurt, eggs, blackberries, banana, cocoa powder, coconut, and pecans.

In the mid to late afternoon on Monday, I will begin a 2 meal carb-loading routine to replenish muscle glycogen and to reset thyroid functioning.

More DOMS and more delayed exercise

Today is Monday, April 21 and once again I’m surprised to have some delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) in my quadriceps and hamstring muscles; I guess this time running sprints on Saturday morning was the cause;  interestingly I have been running 20 second sprints for over a year, but I changed the way I do them in the last month; from February 2007 through February 2008, I ran 8 sprints with a 100 second rest between sprints; in March 2008 I started running 20 second sprints with only 10 seconds rest in between (which naturally causes the speed of the sprints to be less).  So I was surprised that going back to the old style of running would cause DOMS; but now I know that running sprints with fresh legs uses muscles differently than running sprints with tired legs.

Because I have been having some trouble with DOMS and fatigued muscles in the last couple months, I am delaying all anaerobic exercise until DOMS is gone; this includes not only my 3 per week “long” 20-30 minute exercise sessions but also my occasional 2-4 minute anaerobic sessions.  After the DOMS is gone this time, I expect to only do my 3 “long” sessions per week and eliminate any 2-4 minute sessions. 

I’m going to try to follow Rob Faigin’s compound admonition in “Natural Hormonal Enhancement” which is:

1. never decide to do anaerobic exercise earlier than your plan because you feel like exercising
2. never do anaerobic exercise if you have pain or weakness.

Oh well, even when not exercising I can still do these things which may stimulate or help the release of growth hormone:

1. Use whey protein to act as a secretagogue when I get up in the morning.
2. I can take an afternoon nap to stimulate growth hormone.
3. I can continue to play around with my new “game” of taking cold showers.  A cold shower seems to reduce DOMS temporarily and it may speed the healing process by reducing swelling and increasing antioxidants created by the body.

 

Saturday’s exercise and a cold shower

It had been 72 hours since my last “long” 20-30 minute exercise session, but on this Saturday morning I wanted to dial the intensity back; although my hamstrings didn’t have any weakness or DOMS soreness, I am still concerned about over-training which could affect the release of growth hormone.

As soon as I arose this morning, I took about 15 grams of whey isolate and 2 grams of glutamine for a secretagogue/pre-exercise nutrition.  About 30 minutes later I did 3 sets of 10 each one-arm push ups alternating between the right and left arm with no rest between.  Then I rested a little while I put on my running shoes and took a drink of water.

At 6 minutes after starting the push ups, I jogged for 2.5 minutes.  Then I rested for 1.5 minutes.

Next on my agenda were 6 running sprints.  This morning I ran 20 second sprints every time my stopwatch showed the passing of 2 minutes; thus I had 100 seconds of rest between sprints.   It has been about a month since I ran sprints using this much rest in between; (I had been doing the Tabata Protocol recently with running sprints.); I think my foot speed has slowed slightly because I haven’t been running sprints from a rested state, but (of course) my speed was much faster than when running in the Tabata Protocol.

After completing my 6th running sprint, I rested for 100 seconds before doing 4 sets of moutain climber of 20 seconds each separated by 15 seconds of rest.  Then I jogged for 3 minutes to get home.  The entire session took 29 minutes.  It was a good workout in that my muscles feel fatigued although it was not near as intense as my exercise sessions in the prior weeks.

When I returned to my house, I drank some water and then took 25 grams of whey isolate protein.  As I write this sentence it is about 30 minutes past my exercise session; I feel good right now with a sense of increased alertness.  I am trying to get motivated to try a new health technique that may impact the release of growth hormone; I am going to take a break from writing to go take a COLD SHOWER!

. . .

Okay.  I did it.  I began my shower with 6 minutes of a normal shower, then I wriggled around in a cold shower for 3 minutes, then 6 minutes of a normal shower, and then I finished with 3 minutes of cold-shower-wriggling.  (I actually timed myself because the sense of time could be distorted while in a cold shower.)  Coming from a well, the water was cold enough for me. : ) I kept moving around in the shower to distribute the coldness everywhere and because my nose and hands would start to hurt if they were exposed too long.  As I write this sentence, it is about 30 minutes after the shower; my skin still feels a little bit tingly and the skin on my face feels tight.  And there is a feeling of accomplishment in that I was able to do it.

 Last night I came across a web page at Arthur DeVany’s website, that mentioned that cold swims increase the body’s production of antioxidants; here’s the actual research paper on cold swims.  Then I read quite a few anecdotal reports at another website that related benefits to cold showers/other cold shocks; anecdotal benefits include improved mood, greater ability to concentrate, elimination of headaches, and more energy.  Cold showers might help heal delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) because the cold water reduces swelling and may increase the body’s production of antioxidants.

Wednesday’s exercise: Pseudo-planche push ups, dips, double leg drop/raises; overhead tricep extensions

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I was once again surprised to have some delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS)in my hamstrings; I assume this bout of DOMS is due to the squats performed on Monday morning.  The last time I did squats (which was about 2 weeks ago) I didn’t have any DOMS.  The degree of soreness is not extreme, but I decided to avoid all leg exercises on Wednesday morning and to decrease the intensity of my session somewhat; if I wouldn’t have had DOMS I would have done burpees using the Tabata Protocol, but with DOMS burpees seemed like it would be way too tough.

About 7 am, I started with 8 sets of pseudo-planche push ups with about 10-15 seconds rest between sets; pseudo-planche push ups have the hands placed about even with the belly button and they really seem to pump up my arms.  Then I did 4 sets of dips. Then I did a few sets of double leg drop/raises in which I start laying down, then raise both legs to perpendicular, then raise legs into a shoulder stand, and then slowly lower the legs back down to the starting position.  Then I did 3 sets of overhead tricep extensions using my 35 pound dumbbell.

The entire session took 20 minutes. 

I want to avoid DOMS not just for the pain, but also to maximize the release of growth hormone; DOMS probably indicates catabolism is lasting longer than ideal.  I will try to dial back the intensity during my “long” 20-30 minute exercise sessions.

Status update: a summary and appraisal of my progress

I have received more benefit from my program to stimulate growth hormone than I originally expected or hoped for.  Here is my evaluation of my current status and some of my future goals that I hope to accomplish through the natural release of growth hormone.

Cholesterol:  My cholesterol is currently in an uncertain status.  In February 2007, my triglycerides were high and my HDL was low.  Then after begining anaerobic exercise and cutting back on carbs, I had 2 excellent cholesterol checks in April and June 2007.  However, my LDL was high in March 2008, so I plan on re-testing soon to see if my elimination of grass-fed beef will bring down my LDL.  (I know there is controversy on the implications of cholesterol readings.)

Weight/fat:  Since beginning my program to enhance the release of growth hormone, I quickly surpassed my original weight loss and fat loss goals; just wildly guessing, I probably lost 20 pounds of fat and gained about 10 pounds of muscle which yielded a 10 pound net weight loss.  From about April through October 2007, I usually weighed between 159 and 162 pounds; from November 2007 to now, I have usually weighed between 163 and 165.  My physique is better than I originally had hoped for, but I have a new goal to slightly decrease my body fat percentage and lose about 2 more pounds of fat.  (I am 5 feet 7 inches tall.)

Energy:  I have slightly more useful energy to accomplish work around the house.

Sleep:  For the first 8 months, after starting my program I generally slept about .5 hour less; I woke up naturally.  This benefit has disappeared and I now average a full 8 hours of sleep again.  I hope to fine-tune my program to regain this benefit.

I have always fallen asleep quickly and I have always slept through the night.  I noticed after beginning my program in February 2007, that I often had waves of well-being while falling asleep; I still have this experience occasionally but not as often; I hope to increase the frequency of this experience. Another sleep goal is to eliminate unpleasant dreams that occasionally wake me for a brief time.

Youthful appearance:  In my opinion, I appear to be more youthful because I have lost weight, my physique is more muscular, the skin under my eyes is not as puffy, and the skin around my eyes doesn’t seem to be as wrinkled.  I don’t want to have bulging muscles; I’d rather have a chest and abdomen like a physically fit 16 year old; I’m not there yet.

Strength/athleticism:  From doing many new and old exercises over the months, I have noticed that I have improved strength, speed, and reaction time. 

Flexibility:  My flexibility has increased in a number of ways; I can twist my spine further when I back up my car.  I have been doing stretching exercises a few times per week since February 2007.  I have also been doing gymnast back aches and wrestler back arches.  In one of my exercise books, an author stated that he stretches even though he doesn’t like to do it and that it is painful; since reading that it was painful I have stretched further until I have a little bit of discomfort.  Of course, having lost weight in my abdomen also makes it easier to bend over.

Aches and pain:  My right hip healed completely after starting starting anaerobic exercise in February 2007; for the prior 3 years I had periodic pain in my right hip and my right leg was weaker than my left leg when running; my range of motion bending down over my right leg increased and is now equal to my range of motion on my left side.   

From running sprints, I had 2 injuries that occurred in the summer 2007; my left hamstring muscle was tight for about 2 weeks and my left achilles heal was also injured for about 3 weeks; my left hamstring has been completely healed since August; I can still sometimes feel that my left achilles heal is a little tight when I first arise in the morning, but it does not affect me in any way.

My lower back has been a weak link in my body for my whole life.  My lower back has improved in that it is not as stiff and sore from riding in a car for 30 minutes or longer.  My back still gets tight from prolonged standing or if I do repetitive bending over.  I just recently started doing Superman push ups which I hope will furthen improve my lower back situation.

Handling stress:  I have noticed an improved ability to sail through stress since I began my program.  Generally my attitude is that I can handle whatever happens. 

Mental clarity:  Since I began my program, I think I have slightly more mental clarity which sometimes manifests in wittiness or faster “comebacks”.  I will never be the life of the party, but I have become somewhat more socially out-going.

Things that I will try to further enhance the release of growth hormone: 

1. I have been following most of Rob Faigin’s advice for the last 2 weeks and I will continue to experiment with his plan of limiting carbs on 5 days of the week and carb loading on 2 days per week. 
2. I also plan to continue to only do 3 “long” anaerobic exercise sessions per week; (“long” for me means 20 to 30 minutes).  But besides these long sessions, I will experiment with occasionally doing 2-4 minutes of anaerobic exercise as a means to release a small burst of human growth hormone.  For example I plan to do 2-4 minutes of exercise before I go to bed and in the morning (if it is not a “long” exercise day).  I will try new exercises, do old exercises in slightly novel ways, and not do the same exercise more than once a week.  When I do exercise, I will rest very briefly between sets in order to allow lactic acid to accumulate in the muscles.
3. I plan to take a 20 minute nap in the late afternoon whenever possible as a means to release growth hormone.
4. I will continue to do an intermittent fast, about once a week for 20 hours.
5. I will continue to eat frequent small meals as a means to assimilate protein and a means to keep insulin low.
6. I will continue to use whey protein, egg whites, and other protein as a secretagogue in the morning.  I will experiment with eating protein before an exercise session as a means to quickly replenish my muscles and shorten the catabolic period.
7. I will try to drink more water.
8. I will continue to experiment with listening to music as a means to stimulate the release of growth hormone.

Today’s exercise: one arm push ups, running sprints, tuck jumps, mountain climber

After last night’s carb loading, I wanted to do bodyweight exercises that focused mainly on my legs on this Saturday morning.  I began my session with 8 sets of one arm push ups, doing each set in this sequence: 10 with the left arm, 10 with the right arm, then 10 seconds rest; I started with these because I don’t know if I would have been strong enough to do them after sprints.

Then I went outside and did running sprints using the Tabata protocol.  Then I rested for about a minute before doing 3 sets of 10 tuck jumps with about 10 seconds rest in between.  Then I rested before doing 4 sets of mountain climber (taking about 20 seconds to do 15 steps per leg per set) and with 10 seconds of rest in between sets; I only did 4 sets because a week ago I did 8 sets of mountain climber and then suffered delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) for 3 days after!  To complete my exercise session, I improvised jogging, running sideways, running backwards, and skip jumping.  The whole exercise session took 23 minutes.

After completing exercise, I drank some water and then had about 25 grams of protein in whey isolate to replenish amino acids to my muscles and to act as a secretagogue to stimulate the release of human growth hormone; I’m “chasing” the whey with a glass of seltzer water.  As I write this post, it is about 2 hours after my exercise session; I feel good but my legs and shoulders are noticeably fatigued; I have slightly increased alertness which I think may be due to a surge of growth hormone.