Archives for January 2018

Does Shakeology Expire?

January 27, 2018 - Updated November 16, 2018

Shakeology does have an expiration date. The good news is you won’t or at least shouldn’t have to worry about Shakeology ever expiring due to you using it everyday.

But yes, Shakeology will expire after 2 years.

The easiest way to find out when yours will expire is to look on the back and then top right side of the packet or bag. Beachbody presses the expiration date into the plastic. Here is a picture of a Greenberry packet I have. Little tricky to see but it says 07/14 as the expiration date.

Does Shakeology Expire — Shakeology Packet Expiration Date

Does Shakeology Go Bad — Shakeology Bag Expiration Date

Can You Use Expired Shakeology?

I have drank Shakeology that was past its expiration date once. My parents had misplaced a bag in their pantry and found it two years later. We had just ran out and we’re waiting on ours so my Mom said I could have the old bag if I wanted.

Was curious to see if it was still good so I took the bag and started using it. The two year old bag of Chocolate Shakeology tasted just like a brand new bag and everything worked like normal. I’d say you’d be ok using a bag of Shakeology past its expiration date.

But I’m me. I’m ok with that sort of thing. I probably would have tried a four year old bag of Shakeology.

But again, no need to worry when your Shakeology will expire. You’re supposed to be using up your supply within 30 days anyways. Just like how I’ve been a good boy and using it everyday for the past 7 years.

Body Beast Supplements Review

January 26, 2018 - Updated November 26, 2018

If you’re gonna do Body Beast then you will have to get the Body Beast supplements. Its mandatory. Sagi says so. It’s probably the only way you’ll be able to get the additional proteins and calories you need to get the best results possible.

(**The entire Body Beast supplement line has been discontinued and replaced with the Beachbody Performance line of supplements**)

Otherwise you might come up short and not have the fuel needed to blast through the workouts and GET BIG. Without going into what each of them in-depth I’ll just share with you a little bit about them.

I bought and used all four of the Body Beast supplements during my round of Body Beast. I even made a mistake and used too much of one. You will have to read my Body Beast review to learn more.

Technically they are not Body Beast supplements as they are branded with the Beachbody name. Lets be honest though, these supplements were designed for Body Beast and you only see them mentioned during and after each Body Beast workout. In no other Beachbody workouts are these even mentioned.

Hardcore Base Shake

18 grams of Whey Protein and 9 grams of maltodextrin + dextrose. Only has 130 calories. Quick and easy way to get amino acids into your body after a workout due to it being quickly absorbed. Can be used with the other Body Beast supplements in a shake, by its own, pre or post workout, and up to 2 doses a day. It says its flavorless but I say it tastes like a very light Vanilla. The Body Beast meal plan shows how to make some Beast-O-Matic shakes with the Hardcore Base Shake to help you get everything your body needs to get through Body Beast.

Fuel Shot

Fuel Shot works together with the Hardcore Base Shake. What Fuel Shot does is provide you with the right amount of carbs to blast through Body Beast. It also comes with lots of electrolytes that keep you hydrated and energy levels up. Another flavorless supplement that does taste a little like Vanilla. Is designed to be used right before or right after a workout. Can be mixed in with the Base Shake. Comes with 200 calories per serving. It’s recommended you have two scoops per day but its ok to have more.

Super Suma

Also known as Brazilian ginseng – its been used by indigenous people of the Amazon for generations as a cure-all. Was used in the 1970s by the Russians in the Olympics to give their athletes more muscle-building and endurance without the side effects of taking steroids. Super Suma is not steroids. This is all natural. It will help with strength, energy, rejuvenation, and other physical effects. Take two a day any time during the day. Preferably before a workout to help give you a little extra pump.

M.A.X Creatine

Designed to be used within 30 minutes of a Body Beast workout. Will help you crank out a couple extra reps. What it does is help your body supply the things your body needs to create more oxygen for your muscles to breathe. If you want to put on mass with Body Beast, then you need to be using creatine. Take two scoops a day preferably with the Hardcore Base Shake and Fuel Shot right after a workout.

You can buy all of the Body Beast Supplements separately for $130 total. It would be best to buy them with one of the Body Beast Challenge Packs as you get all of it at a considerable discount. Go to the Beachbody Store and click on the nutrition tab to buy them or to check out the ingredient list a little more. Feel free to leave a comment if you have questions about the Body Beast supplements.

Observations From 4 Years Off Facebook

January 22, 2018 - Updated January 24, 2018

Sometime around March in 2018 it will have been four years since I logged into Facebook. I don’t know the exact day or if it was February or even April. All I remember is it was about three months prior to my son being born in July 2014.

I was talking to a friend of mine a couple of months ago who was amazed I still had not logged in and said I should write about it.

After thinking about it I decided to. And as I started jotting things down the list kept growing. It didn’t occur to me how much Facebook was apart of my life prior to logging off.

Now here’s the thing. I wanted to get all of this out there so I can come back to it later and re-evaluate if the things I have written below are of value or if my logging off was silly.

Facebook Missed Notifications iPhone — I hardly notice it anymore.

Because for the past five months or so I have been telling myself to log into Facebook and yet I have not. How messed up is that? Open a new tab. Type in Facebook. Go. And I still have the Facebook app on my iPhone staring at me with a red 35 on it but yet I have not touched it in 4 years.

Every time I want to log in I talk myself out of it. In my mind I’m trying to get psyched up as if its a big game that I’m about to play in. And I just can’t do it. Maybe I know its a game that cannot be won and spending any effort on it is a waste of time. Maybe I’m just being silly.

So Here We Go

One day four years ago I noticed myself starting to get anxious every time I was on Facebook. I logged in over 20 times one day and did nothing. I was not posting, commenting, liking, or sharing. Nothing. Then I realized I had been doing this for over a month. It got me thinking.

What on Earth am I looking for?
Why am I doing this?
Why does Facebook make me feel sad?
Why am I self-editing everything I want to post or comment?
Why am I comparing myself to my friends?
Why am I comparing myself to acquaintances?
Why am I checking Facebook on my phone and computer all the damn time?
Why does it feel like I need to use Facebook to prove my existence as a human being?

Its like this wave of thoughts kept building over the years with how I used Facebook along with what role it played in my life. It had become quite powerful. The thought of me becoming a dad in four months was the crest of the wave followed by the break. Seven years of heavily using Facebook came crashing down.

I realized I probably had some sort of addiction to Facebook and it needed to be addressed. Going cold turkey and not logging in was the only way. Swimming sideways out of the rip tide of Facebook was what I needed to do to get back to a clear mind. Not charge head on back to it.

I figured nobody would miss the posts I was not posting and nobody would miss the comments I was not leaving. In the month prior to not logging in I had not sent or received a message nor was I tagged in a post. Its as if I wasn’t using my account at all even though I was on it all the time.

I was not quiting Facebook. Merely stepping aside until I deemed fit to return.

I did not forget about Facebook. Its like homecoming weekend at my alma mater (Central Michigan). I made it to every one of them for seven years following graduation including flying back from Colorado one year. We would start making plans a month out every year and it was always a blast.

And then life got in the way. I haven’t been to a CMU Homecoming weekend in seven years.

This is what happened with me and Facebook. I know its there but life got in the way again. What used to be something I would keep up to date with was now buried in the back of my brain.

But what happened when I did not log in was interesting. You don’t understand how engrained Facebook and social media are in our lives until you step away from it. I call them the:

Six Phases Of Facebook Separation

1. Detox

Try to not log into Facebook for a month and pay attention to how many times you reach for your phone. I bet you can’t sit anywhere without logging in.

It took me two weeks to detox. My guess is because I had not really been using it the months prior so it wasn’t like I went completely cold turkey.

2. Did You See What So And So Posted On Facebook?

“No. I did not. I haven’t logged in in awhile. What did they post?”

This happened a lot during my first six months. I’m guessing 30% of conversations started with this question which is quite impressive.

3. Wait, What Happened?

Is what I said a number of times when a conversation was going on with friends. And since I did not see the original post and comments it made me the odd person out. Nobody wanted to tell the story again to bring me up to speed.

4. You’re So Annoying

Is what was said to me a number of times since I had not logged in. I was annoying people because I did not see everybody’s posts. Whats up with that? How is that my fault?

5. You Still Haven’t Logged In?

Somewhere around year two people forget not seeing you on Facebook and then they ask, get ready for it, “Did you see what so and so posted on Facebook?” And I would tell them I still haven’t logged in. Amazed they were at first and then, get ready for it, “You’re So Annoying.”

6. You’re Dead To Me

Around year two and a half you no longer exist except in folklore. Basically, you’re Bigfoot.

When people see you its a “sighting.” When you see them its “exciting.” You see the difference?

Party Like Its 2008

It felt a lot like 2008 in that there was just enough technology available outside of a phone call to stay in touch without always feeling like you had to know what was going on. Or even care to know what was going on with your friends day to day lives.

You (at least me) were never on your cell phone outside of calling and I think texting occasionally. Internet was making its way to cell phones with the BlackBerry and iPhone but they pretty much sucked. So you did your browsing on a laptop or desktop.

In some ways it was nice.

And thats not all. “The Six Phases Of Facebook Separation” were reminders on how much Facebook was apart of my day to day life and the impact it made on society as a whole. Which lead into…

FOMO

I think we can all agree the “Fear Of Missing Out” is real. Facebook reminds you of that everyday. I remember one day five years ago seeing three people I knew posting from a ski trip, a tropical vacation, and a European vacation while I sat in my home office in Huntington Woods, MI.

I wanted to be on those trips.

But as time passed from me not logging onto Facebook, I never felt I was missing out on anything. It was refreshing.

For the first time in years I was able to be in the moment. To not only be where I was at physically but to be there mentally too.

Mindfulness

With no reason to check my phone 20 times a day it kept the distractions at bay.

In Public – I cannot tell you how many times I would be the only one out in public with my head not down in my phone checking Facebook or some other social media site. This meant my head was always up. So when somebody looked up from their phone I’d be the one they’d make eye contact with.

And they would give me the “why are you staring at me creepy guy” look. Even from dudes. No. You’re the creepy one. I’m the one being the human being.

With Kids – I cannot tell you how many times I caught my son (now 3.5) and daughter (now 2.5) from falling or about to fall off something at the park and at home. What if I would have been on my phone scrolling through the Facebook app? Who knows how many concussions I saved them from.

What pisses me off the most is when something that could have been stopped happens when I’m on my phone. I’m not perfect here either. I’ve definitely checked my email and fantasy football teams at the park and at home but those are one and done sort of things. Nothing to scroll.

As an adult, I know better. And thats the worst part. It causes an overreaction and anger which in turn I’m basically admitting to myself that its my fault.

Keeping Up With The Joneses

Would I get a little jealous seeing pictures of somebody’s new house, new car, and just about every other toy I saw posted on Facebook? Occasionally.

I probably bought or wanted to buy something because of the daily barrage of pictures I’d see of things posted on Facebook. And I’ve never been like that. But Facebook was different.

After not seeing any of that for four years I can say I’m back to no longer comparing myself to the Joneses. I never want anything anymore. I’m back baby!

Image

I don’t feel I really got into trying to portray an image of myself on Facebook. Maybe a little bit. But every time I did so it felt forced. It wasn’t real. Think about how powerful that is. Facebook was trying to get me to portray an image of myself that I was not.

And to think how much effort was put into trying to portray myself in a particular way to my friends and family. If they are my friends and family I shouldn’t have to do that.

Time

You would not believe how much time I freed up by not logging into Facebook. It is insane how much time I was spending on Facebook doing nothing on Facebook. All of that time was sucked up by my kids of course but I now had it to give.

There is no need to link to any sort of study showing how much time we spend every day on Facebook because it comes back to one simple question.

Do you enjoy Facebook?

If yes, then it doesn’t matter how much time you spend on Facebook. Its something you like to do. For me, I was not enjoying Facebook. I was wasting vast amounts of time.

Attention Span

There are so many things that can be going through your mind in a minutes worth of Facebook posts. Anyone of which can suck you in for hours distracting you from whats in front of you.

I noticed being a lot more attentive to the things which were right in front of me. Again, the kids took up a lot of my attention but I could now offer my full and undivided attention.

Emotions

Isn’t it amazing how Facebook can mess with your emotions? You could be having a great day and then see a story about animal cruelty, human cruelty, wars, a political post, or a rant. Hello bad day!

I did not like how Facebook could tap into my emotions. The unpredictability of it all is so powerful.

What I noticed from not being logged on is I have better control of my emotions. All I can get emotional about is whats going on in my house and the things I seek out.

Politics

I will admit to posting a lot about Politics during my Ron Paul phase from 2008 to 2012. I thought what I was posting was helpful and people need to know what this guy was running on. Bring home the troops. Close the IRS. And others. Who wouldn’t vote for this guy?

Turns out that nobody voted for Ron Paul.

I thought I was providing great information for friends and family. Turns out I was wasting my time. No one cared. And they still don’t care.

I missed the entire 2016 Presidential Election cycle on Facebook. That might have been a good thing.

When I heard people were losing jobs and students had to get counseling because of what was being posted on Facebook I thought how lucky I was missing all of it. I could come up with zero reasons to publicly support Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton. Zero.

Oh, I heard friends were getting into intense debates on Facebook. A few times I was read what was said and all I kept thinking was man am I glad I missed that.

A close friend asked me what I thought about all of the Political stuff going on Facebook four months before the election. After reminding him I had not logged in and him telling me that’s so annoying he went on to tell me he spent an hour going back and forth commenting on a Facebook post and had to stop because it was getting late. The next morning while brushing his teeth all he could think about was if the other person replied.

I did not miss any of that stuff. Think about how much time and effort was wasted.

I concluded after the 2012 Presidential election that if I could not impress upon my friends who are mostly college educated working professionals that they should vote for a guy who wants to stop wars and reduce their income taxes to 0% that I am wasting my mother fucking time.

What I Missed About Facebook?

Groups – My fraternity, softball teams, and Beachbody Coaches had private groups which I’ve missed out on. Most of it was bantering but was on topic.
Invites – I’m sure I was invited to a few things on Facebook that I never knew happened.

I almost put “Networking” up there but I feel that falls into the Groups function.

Housecleaning Items

Facebook is the only social media site I’ve used in a heavy way. I have a Twitter account I haven’t posted to in five years that I occasionally log into to read articles from a few websites I used to follow. I haven’t followed a new site or person in over five years. And I have a YouTube account that I occasionally post a video to but I don’t consider YouTube social media. It takes too much time to post something there. Basically, I’ve been social media free for 4 years.

It was never my intention to stay logged off this long. Throw in what I said in the beginning with the thoughts of becoming a dad and something had to give. Facebook was what had to go.

Right around when my son was five months old and I felt like logging back in due to getting a grasp of this parenting thing I heard some life changing news.

My dad told me he had Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. A incurable lung disease that was going to take his life in 3-5 years. He made it 18 months.

A week later we found out we were pregnant again.

My life was so full of emotions now that the thought of logging back into Facebook only happened when somebody asked me. I had no space for Facebook and for a whole lot of other things.

Its only now, almost two years after my dad passed and my youngest being 2.5 and oldest being 3.5 that I feel I have space in my life for the things I used to do before. Like keeping in touch with friends and possibly seeing whats happening on Facebook. If those events didn’t happen so close together I probably would have logged in by now.

The good news is I somehow managed to exist without logging into Facebook. 🙂 I should write a survival guide or something.

It should be noted I did log in once and that was only to put a link to the speech I gave at my dads funeral luncheon after many people asked me for a copy of it. I typed it up on my site, logged in, posted, and logged off. I didn’t even log back in to see what people had to say. It was all too much at the time.

Concerns

There is really only one thing that concerns me about not logging into Facebook. And thats if I burnt bridges. If there are important messages waiting there for me from somebody who doesn’t have my phone number. Something like that.

I remember seeing people post “I’m taking a break from Facebook” before which I thought was silly. Maybe its something I should have done.

Facebook has been emailing me with the subject line “a lot has happened since you logged in” for awhile now. Up until six months ago did I actually open the emails. Typically I’d delete them. This is the most recent one.

Facebook Missed Notifications Email — 273 friend requests? I have barely left the house the last 4 years.

There’s a number of things in that picture that tell me I have to log onto Facebook at some point. There are real friends in there. Not just acquaintances.

And while I’ve somewhat enjoyed being disconnected during these emotional past couple of years I do miss some of it.

My guess is so much has changed on Facebook that its going to look so much different than what I remember of it. If anything, maybe I’ll be better equipped to let the aspects of Facebook I like back into my life.

Because if not, we know I have the power to put Facebook in timeout for another 4 years.

An Un-intended Experiment

Thats the best way I can summarize this. I was never quitting. I wasn’t even taking a break.

Its more along the lines of I was at a party and left to go on a beer run. During my walk to the party store I stopped for a slice of pizza. While eating the pizza I got into a conversation with some stranger that lasted for an hour. On my way back to the party I noticed an old lady with a flat tire so I stopped and put the spare on for her which took an hour.

After fixing the flat I realized I drank my beers while eating that slice of pizza and while changing the flat tire. So I headed back to the store to pick up more. On my way there was another party going on where somebody said “Hey, you, – we need one more to play bags” as they noticed me walking by. I said no but was offered beers to play and winnings from a tournament I did not have to buy into. Sure as shit me and my teammate win ten games in a row never giving up the board.

Being so intuned with what I was doing I forgot about the party and have to head back. But I’m out of beer again. I probably don’t need anymore but I have to bring a few back. So I head back to the store.

On my way back to the party with new beers in hand I start thinking about what people are going to say when I open the door. Three things come to mind. They’re either going to say:

“You’ve been gone for six fucking hours. Where the hell have you been?”

(Insert crickets)

“Brrrraaaaaaddddddd!!!!!!!”.

Why Is Shakeology So Expensive?

January 22, 2018 - Updated November 16, 2018

One of the most asked questions about Shakeology is why is it so expensive. At $130 a bag, Shakeology is by far the most expensive meal replacement shake out there. Even I had sticker shock when I first started buying it seven years ago.

Unfortunately, too many people stop right there and won’t even think about buying Shakeology due to the price. The reality is that you get so much from Shakeology when you use it daily that the price ends up not being an issue.

It’s Shakeology’s ingredients that make it expensive. We’re not talking about a tub of Whey Protein and some vitamins. We’re talking about 70+ ingredients that make up Shakeology. Most of which are not grown in the United States. In the development phase of Shakeology, Beachbody sent Darin Olien around the world to find ingredients.

After they found which ones worked they went back to those countries and purchased tractors for the farmers to grow more of them. Not in all cases but in some. Many of those areas are under developed and don’t have the capacity to produce at the levels which Beachbody needs.

Those costs start adding up. Most of which are logistic costs. If you flip over a bag of Shakeology and look at the ingredient list you’ll see quite a bit of stuff. Have you heard of or seen any of those ingredients in your local grocery store?

Greenberry Shakeology Ingredients — Greenberry Shakeology Ingredient List

What you really need to think about when it comes to the cost is the breakdown of each one of the ingredients in Shakeology. Here is what they look like individually and if you were to buy them on your own.

Beachbody Shakeology Ingredients — Shakeology Ingredients At Beachbody Corporate Office

Shakeology Expensive — Shakeology Ingredients Bought Separately

Would you rather spend $461 to buy the ingredients separately or $130 from Beachbody? Would you rather have 25 different bags and bottles of ingredients taking up counter top space or one bag of Shakeology?

When you take into account the cost of acquiring the ingredients, shipping them back to the U.S, combining them, packaging, and so forth that you get the $130 price. Yes, Shakeology is expensive but it’s for good reason. Beachbody is not trying to rip us off. It’s amazing how they can sell a 30 day supply for $130.

I really hope this helps in breaking down why Shakeology might seem so expensive. If you use it once a day it breaks down to about $4 per serving. Less than fast food or a cup of coffee at Starbucks and has like a billion % more nutrition than those.

I’m a big fan of trying the sample pack of Shakeology to find out what flavor you like before going all in and buying a bag.

Boombah Review: Very Good Athletic Gear

January 19, 2018 - Updated March 16, 2018

When somebody is wearing a shoe, shirt, or jersey that looks pretty cool from a brand you’ve never heard of you might find your way into asking who makes it.

This is what happened ten years ago at a softball game. I noticed two guys on my softball team wearing shoes with a B on it. Since I had never seen that B before I asked them what it stood for. Boombah they replied.

I went to the Boombah website the next day and bought a pair of turf shoes. And since that first pair of shoes ten years ago I have bought a number of shoes, T-Shirts, and pants. The Boombah brand slowly made its way around the softball fields I’ve played on until it became the brand everyone was wearing.

Here’s the thing. I like writing reviews. And I’m sure you are excited to see pictures of old dirty shoes. But instead of writing separate reviews about dirty shoes and for all of the Boombah products I’ve bought over the years I decided to put them all on one page. When I buy something new I will update it here. In no particular order.

Turf Shoes

I have bought at least four pairs of Boombah turf shoes over the years. I don’t have the first couple of pairs with me to review anymore so this is what I’m going with.

Showstopper – I bought these turf shoes in 2014 and was still wearing them at the end of our 2017 softball season. These were the most durable pair of Boombah turf shoes I have owned. Outside of them starting to tear near the pinky toe on my left foot they would probably last another season.

I did not play during the 2015 season but in 2014, 2016, and 2017 I played double headers once a week for the spring and fall seasons including an entertaining 7 games at the Octoberfest Tournament at Total Sports. Lets say these shoes have 150 games on them. I do not know what the Micro Weld Technology does but it held these shoes together.

When I bought the Showstoppers they cost around $50. Too bad they stopped making them and also that they don’t have my size in their clearance area. If you can find your size then you cannot go wrong for $25. Mine were the Royal Blue/Black combination.

Other turf shoes I’ve owned include the Flash and Resistance. Both of which are old styles but can be found in the clearance. The Resistance were cooler looking but I preferred the Flash.

Training Shoes

Boombah started offering training shoes after I bought my third pair of turf shoes so I figured I give them a try. I’ve bought two pairs.

Phaser – These are very lightweight shoes which I used to play racquetball in. Comfort was average and they looked decent.

My only problem with these was quality. The blue four square thing you see on the soles ripped off the first time I played racquetball in them. I made one cut and there was this blue thing dangling off my shoe. I ripped it off and kept playing.

When I got home I contacted customer service and told them about what happened. They made me send a picture to them. After looking at the picture they told me to keep those shoes and that they would send me a new set for free. That was nice of Boombah.

The picture you are seeing is of the second pair of shoes. The first ones are long gone. And yes, they were turned into yard work shoes after the soles wore out. You can still buy the Phaser in the clearance area for $25 but I’d recommend one of their newer shoes as the soles gave way pretty fast on these.

Softball Pants

C-Series Pipe Pants – I bought these pants in 2014 and have been solely using them. They’ve been washed a few times and are starting to show some wear but I’m thinking I can get another couple of seasons out them.

I’ve predominately played 1st, than 3rd, with some occasional 2nd base and catcher mixed in. Rarely do I dive for a ball and even more rare do I slide. I’m not saying it has to be a Championship game or something for me to do those. Its more of a “the jet has lost a step or two and I know instantly if I’m going to make it or not” sort of thing.

This is why the pants in the picture still look brand new even though they have over 100 games use on them. The quality is great and they are comfortable as hell.

With 8 different color combinations to choose from you’ll probably find one that matches your softball teams colors.

For $30 you really can’t go wrong with the C-Series Pipe Pants.

C-Series Venom Pants – These were my first pair of softball pants bought from Boombah. If I remember correctly I bought these in 2010 and used them up until 2014. One of my teams (Jim Kelly & The Bills) decided to get jerseys made up so I had to get something with blue in them.

I kept these Venom pants for my other team but preferred the Pipe ones more. The pants you see in the picture probably have close to 200 games on them and there are no rips or tears anywhere. And when I was wearing these I would slide or dive occasionally.

It says something about their durability. I could use them this upcoming season in 2018 if I wanted to.

The C-Series Venom Pants style has been updated a little since I bought them and they are a little bit more expensive at $40 a pair. Basically, you’re paying for some more style with these versus the Pipe pants.

T-Shirts

Sweep T-Shirt – Before the teams I played on decided to put some money together and buy jerseys of our own I figured it would be best to pick up something that resembled a jersey.

And sure enough the year after I bought these our teams bought jerseys. So this T-Shirt only has one year of use. Maybe twenty games total.

I bought this T-Shirt in 2010 and its 2018. It’s basically brand new as I haven’t worn it since. I’m pretty sure I’m going to wear it golfing next season. It is very comfortable.

This is an older style but you can still buy the Sweep for $13 in the clearance area.

Explosion T-Shirt – Along with my purchase of the Sweep T-Shirt I picked this one up too. After wearing this one twice I figured it would be a better idea to wear the other one. Wearing a black T-Shirt in the middle of the summer on a hot day was not a good idea.

It was a comfortable shirt. I just made an idiot decision in buying it in black. And by the time the fall season came around I’d just wear long sleeve shirts.

And then where the white is on the shirt it some how picked up some pit stains. I don’t know how as I only wore this shirt a couple of times but it did.

The Explosion shirt is an older style but can be picked up for $4 in the clearance area assuming you can find your size. Just buy any color combination different from the one I bought.

Golf Shoes

Verve – Boombah makes golf shoes? Yes, Boombah make golf shoes. I was on the Boombah website in 2015 looking to get a new pair of softball shoes when I noticed a tab for golf shoe.

At first glance they reminded me of the Boombah turf shoe. The soles looked almost alike and for being a golf shoe they looked cool. I was not planning on getting golf shoes at the time but was in need of a pair. Decided to buy the Showstopper Turfs for softball and added the golf shoes for $49.

This is what the Boombah golf shoes look like after 35 rounds of golf in the past 2 years.

What I liked most about the Boombah golf shoes was how comfortable they were. You could go from the golf course to the softball field in them and not know the difference.

What I liked least about the Boombah golf shoes was the short length of the soft spikes as they don’t dig into the grass enough. There were a couple of times where I slipped on the follow through due to the short soft spikes.

Just like most Boombah shoes I’ve owned there is a durability issue. The soft spikes would wear down where I put the most pressure in my golf stance which caused me to slip.

I’m glad they had leather on the front of the shoe and not mesh. Half of the shoes I’ve bought from Boombah wear down so much that by the end of the season there would be a hole in it. There is some wear to the leather but otherwise pretty good considering the amount of rounds I played in them.

I’d like to tell you if the Boombah golf shoes were waterproof or not but I don’t go out of my way to step into puddles nor do I play golf in thunderstorms. What I can tell you is in a light mist with no standing water on the course your foot will stay dry.

Sadly, these golf shoes will not make you a better golfer. What these golf shoes will do is attract attention from people who are golfing with you.

What kind of golf shoes are those?

They’re Boombahs. You know, like the softball shoes.

Boombah makes golf shoes?

Yes, Boombah makes golf shoes.

Man, those are kind of cool looking. How much are they?

$50.

Really? That’s not bad.

That’s what I said.

That same Q&A happened every time I was paired up with someone. It happened 100% of the times I golfed with my softball buddies.

The Boombah golf shoes would be ideal for somebody who plays golf less than 15 times a year and is not overly serious about golf. For $50 you really can’t complain. They look cool, are very comfortable, and if you buy the Boombah softball shoes you’ll enjoy how they feel.

For somebody who plays more than 15 times a year you might want to look elsewhere if you’re concerned about durability. Most brand name golf shoes are $80+, last longer, and have longer interchangeable soft spikes.

Boombah golf shoes are an all in one shoe which means when the soft spikes wear down you cannot change them. What you have remaining are shoes you wear to do yard work in. But again – for $50 – not bad.

I am not sure if I’ll buy another pair as I golf more than 15 times a year. Some years I play 30 rounds or more which means I would be going through two sets of Boombah golf shoes a year. It would make sense for me to buy a more durable shoe but I would still recommend these shoes.

You can still pick up the Verve style golf shoe I bought in the clearance area on their website for $40. Otherwise you could pick up the new Verve 2 which looks pretty sweet.

Where To Buy

With Boombah being a direct to consumer company you are only going to be able to buy items at Boombah.com. You might be able to find somethings at the Boombah Amazon store from time to time. But it appears they rarely stock the Amazon store and Boombah is not available for sale at retailers like Dicks.

Summary

When I bought my first pair of turf shoes in 2010 two things became apparent. Boombah made cool looking comfortable shoes at a reasonable price that had durability issues. It was common to hear how you could only get one season out of a pair of turf shoes regardless of how much you played. And for $50 you really didn’t mind. Fast forward a couple of years and it appears durability is going up with their shoes at least.

I don’t know if I’ll buy jerseys or T-Shirts from them again as the teams I play on typically get jerseys made up from a friend of ours. And unless I start playing tournaments and double headers three days a week again I’ll probably get many more years from their pants.

Customer Service was lacking a little in the beginning but when I needed them to correct something they did. Even sending me a pair of shoes for free.

I can’t speak about their other products but you really can’t go wrong with their shoes. Prices are very reasonable, they look cool, and are very comfortable.

Why We Don’t Finish Workout Programs

January 18, 2018 - Updated January 18, 2018

Since becoming a parent in 2014 and again in 2015 my working out looks nothing like what it was prior to kids. From 2008 til 2014 I pretty much did whatever workout Beachbody released.

This worked extremely well for me. Throw in some swimming, bike riding, snowboarding, and playing a lot of softball kept me in shape. I probably did 5 rounds of P90X, two rounds of Insanity, one round of Insanity Asylum, two rounds of Body Beast, and many hybrid programs along the way.

But something hasn’t felt right these past couple of years since becoming a parent. The thought of doing another round of P90X or Insanity sounds exhausting. It’s not that I can’t do the workouts anymore. It’s that I can’t get my mind around doing them.

What’s Going On Here?

The other day I read an article on MarksDailyApple on the topic of rest and recovery. Mark gives his opinion about an article he linked to talking about how the High Intensity Training Obsession Has Failed Us.

The author, Joel Jamieson, talks about how when he was in college he did a workout routine the Bulgarian Olympic Weightlifters did in the 1980s. The program revolved around 2-3 short, high intensity workouts per day, six days a week. Joel did this for 12 weeks and got very strong.

Six years later Joel was in his mid twenties running his own gym, working 60+ hours a week, and training other people so much that his fitness slipped. To get back into shape he decided to do the Bulgarian weightlifting program again. It worked before so it must work again.

Turns out that was not the case and the program crushed him. His joints started hurting and halfway through he became sick of lifting weights all together.

Joel goes on to talk about how the “Intensity Mindset” does not work in the long run. Basically, “if you’re not seeing results than it’s because you’re not working out hard enough” is wrong.

He finishes the article talking about how everything comes back to energy. And that the brain controls where the energy flows. With fitness being the last place where the brain will allow energy to flow. We can push and push til we end up in what Joel calls “Recovery Debt.” You have pushed your body so far past the point of recovery that injuries start to pile up and the results do not follow because the body needs to recover to grow.

Essentially, each of us only has so much energy. Just because you’re working out doesn’t mean you are creating more energy. What he’s saying is the non stop working out you’re doing is taking energy from other places where you need it.

This was exactly how I was starting to feel about workout programs in 2012.

When I read him use “Recovery Debt” the “rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic” phrase popped into my mind. Along with when I hear people or Governments talk about refinancing debt and being happy about it even though there is no money coming in to pay it off. Eventually, all debts must be paid.

A Time For Reflection

I started thinking about being 25 years old working as a mortgage banker and how getting to the gym 3 days a week before 7am was all I had energy for.

Then how after I was let go and started figuring out internet marketing and working for myself that my energy levels increased. Even though I was working more I did not have the stresses of everything involved with that job. The commute, hitting the goals the company wanted for me, being asked to come in on weekends on Friday, and so on.

Without those stresses I had energy to put towards my fitness. I crushed P90X the first, second, and third time I did it. And then I crushed Insanity followed by Insanity Asylum.

The Beachbody Coach business I signed up for meshed in effortlessly with the other projects I was working on at the time. Energy levels were good. Stress was low. This is how it was for me from 2008 to 2014 (28 to 34 years old).

But during that time period I started to develop injuries and its my opinion they were caused from doing intense workouts all the time. I was stuck in the “intensity mindset”. I kept pushing through when I needed to scale back. It wasn’t until I threw out my arm did the thought of cutting back to maybe one workout program a year instead of 4 cross my mind.

But Now I Am A Parent

Me Max Sleeping — One of us is tired. The other is exhausted.

I remember communicating with customers of mine from Beachbody who were parents trying to do P90X. I’d say less than 10% made it through all 90 days. Same percentage goes for Insanity, Body Beast, and others.

I’ve always come from the point of view that if you haven’t experienced something yourself than you probably don’t know what you’re talking about and you probably shouldn’t comment on it. I was not in the parenting game at the time so I didn’t know what they were experiencing at home. Probably horror 🙂

And after having kids, the thought of doing a round of P90X exhausts me. Not doing P90X. Thinking about doing P90X. I know how much energy is needed to get through one workout let alone six workouts a week.

After reading the article it kind of makes sense. My brain is telling me it does not want to use the energy I have towards doing P90X again. At least right now. It’s telling me it knows I need a certain level of energy to take care of myself and to be a parent to my 2 and 3 year old. OMG – they can be so exhausting at times.

If and only if I take care of myself, take care of the kids, and everything else will my brain allow energy for fitness. Not the other way around.

Maybe this is why subconsciously I had been looking for a simpler workout plan (not a 90 day program) these past couple of years. When I found and started incorporating the simplicity of the Primal Blueprint workout 18 months ago along with one Beachbody program a year mixed in with something from Beachbody On Demand from time to time did I start to enjoy working out again.

It Used To Work For Me

For years, the intensity mindset worked. It was just me. I had very little stress. All I had to do was take care of myself which was easy to do since I’m kind of simple. I had massive amounts of energy available to do intense workouts. Not so much anymore.

Whats interesting is the timing of this article. Its January here in Michigan. Winter officially moved in the day after Christmas. Its been hovering around 18 degrees for three weeks. Winter and I do not get along that much anymore. It drains my energy. Throw in the fact I didn’t eat well over the holidays and put on weight.

And then our 30 year old furnace started squealing last week. For the past couple of days I’ve been calling HVAC guys to come over and give me quotes on installing a new furnace, hot water tank, and a/c unit as those are 25 years old too. After they left I’ve been researching the different furnace brands trying to make sure I pick the right one. From what I can tell the three brands I’ve been proposed are basically the same.

I wouldn’t say its been stressful but the thought of writing a check for $8500 is not a good one. But I had to address it. And it took up a lot of energy. Energy that I was not directing towards my fitness.

While all of this is going on I can’t bring myself to get back to working out and I was doing so well up until Christmas three weeks ago. I had just finished three straight weeks of a hybrid workout I made up without missing a day.

The weather, not eating well, and addressing potential house related issues drained the energy I’d otherwise be using towards working out. There was nothing left over so I haven’t done anything for three weeks.

Before I would have pushed through. I’d get a little mad at myself when I’d miss a workout. Not anymore.

I now know that workout is going to be a waste of time and its better to address those things acquiring more energy than normal first so I’ll have ample amounts to get back at my fitness when their completed.

In The End

It’s refreshing to read an article like that. Its something I’ve been thinking about more often since becoming a parent. Those first six months of being a new parent were exhausting. Throw in the fact we found out we were pregnant again when our oldest was five months old. My health and fitness suffered immensely. Doing P90X or something similar was a no go so I’d do random workouts two days a week.

Health and Fitness were important to me but I had this odd feeling all of my other things were getting in the way of me getting back to being healthy again. The kids now took up an immense amount of energy. My solution to get back energy was to go into a spree of selling or throwing away things.

First to go was my 1992 Feature Mustang that mostly sat around which caused me stress because I’d always look to see if it was leaking oil. Then went 50+ things ranging from $10 to $100 that I sold on Craigslist. Every time one of them left my house it got me one step closer to getting back to working out. It’s as if I got back a little bit of energy every time I sold something.

All of this freed up a lot of energy for having a new baby and a one year old. I found myself having energy to workout. Fast forward to my youngest being one and I rarely quit during a workout anymore. Its only when times like the past couple of weeks happen when things stack up on me where working out gets pushed aside.

I now have a plan for when its time to replace the furnace. Eating is getting back to normal. And with those being addressed I’m ready to overlook how cold it is in my basement and push on with month two of my hybrid workout.

All because my energy levels are getting back to where they need to be.