Coach Ian – Week in Review:
What I’m reading:
Sacred Cow: Diane Rodgers and Robb Wolf
Something I Tried:
On Friday, I did a recovery session with my mom as we practiced some breathwork techniques and yoga. We started off with a 15 minute session of Ujjayi breathing and modified Nadi Shodhana Pranayama (alternate nostril breathwork). We finished up with 30 minutes of yoga.
I posted the breathwork and yoga session exclusively for our Dreamland members. You can also get access to this recovery session by becoming a premium member.
CGM Data:
I’ve been keeping up with my CGM for the past month. By far, the biggest spikes to my blood sugar are stress related. That can be work-related or, for the time being, from watching sports. The Los Angeles Clippers in particular have been a major cause for spikes and crashes in my blood sugar. This Sunday, the Clippers try to close out the Nuggets and the Bengals have their season opener. Yikes!
I’ve been pretty good at cooking every meal during the pandemic, but I’ve noticed if I eat out, I get a blood sugar spike to 150 that clears back down to 100 within an hour. My understanding from Levels Health blood glucose guide is that it you should try to keep any spikes to less than +30.
Sleep Hacks:
I’ve written about the importance of sleep in recovery and have tried to correct everything from meal timing, caffeine intake, room temperature, and blue light exposure to help ensure a good night’s rest. The latest thing I’ve been experimenting is our mattress and pillow. Of these, I noticed a significant difference in sleep quality upon upgrading my pillow to a firm pillow (I’m a back sleeper). My mattress change has had a limited impact.
I upgraded my pillow to the Tempur-pedic Cooling Pillow. I did it for the cooling feature, but I hardly notice the pillow as being much cooler. The big difference though, is that it’s a very firm pillow (it’s a 7lb pillow!) which seems to work out better for me. My Oura stats jumped up considerably after using this pillow. Previously, I was getting about 3.5hrs of combined REM and Deep Sleep, now it’s up at around 4.5-5hrs.
I got a new bed frame (upgraded the size) and bought a Sealy Cocoon Chill mattress, again for the cooling feature. Again, no noticeable difference on the temperature. It has two options, but both run on the firmer side. It’s a comfortable mattress, but hasn’t made much of a difference in my sleep quality.
A fun conversation I’ve had recently:
Recently, I’ve been catching up with members of our boxing, running, and fitness community to see what they’re up to! I enjoy highlighting some of the members of our community and bridging different communities – boxing, running, and fitness, so people can see a little bit of what others do.
This week, I spoke to UCLA Boxing founder and coach, Tony Gonzalez. Tony Gonzalez is the founder and current coach of UCLA Boxing. Tony fought long and hard for UCLA to start up a boxing program in 2011, and has remained committed to the program ever since.
We had a conversation about the formation of UCLA Boxing, how Boxing boosted his confidence, the safety of boxing, his transition to coaching and continuing education, and our influences (Teddy Atlas, Ramon Espada, Coach Mustafa, etc.)
Next week’s feature is on Too Legit Fitness Founder Bertrand Newsom.
What’s New at Dreamland Boxing
As you may know, I am currently donating my time to host virtual online boxing classes for the members of our 501c(3) non-profit boxing gym, Dreamland Boxing. As an active member of Dreamland, you will receive the materials and video recaps of each lesson through my website under the “Premium Drills” section. This week had some fun footwork drills and kettlebell progressions.
I had to cancel my Friday class due to the air quality. Safety first! Fingers crossed that the air gets better soon!
Meanwhile, Santa Clara County has been upgraded to allow 10% indoor capacity for gyms! I am taking things cautiously, and am keeping my classes outdoors for the time being, but Dreamland does have indoor options to suit your needs.
Visit http://www.dreamlandboxing.org or email dreamlandboxing7@gmail.com for more information on how to sign up today!