My last planned activity of each day is 100 calf raises over the course of ten minutes. Without your inspiration, I may have already quit the calf challenge. Thank you.

If you’re lost, take a peek at this and rejoin us.

Monday through Friday I’m in the studio until around 10:30 PM. After a long drive home, my brain is relatively mushy, and I’m prepared to crawl into bed. What can I say? I’m a morning person. The last thing I want to do is perform a second workout at the end of the evening. To motivate myself, I think of you and our commitment to each other, then plow through it. Maybe I shouldn’t thank you; you’re directly responsible for my anguish and diminished hours of sleep.

A progress report is in order.

My calves are still tiny, but my endurance is improving. The first few days, I got to about rep number forty and broke. I needed a minute or so of recovery before I could complete the session.  Additionally, I was sore (cue the string instruments). Nearly ten days in, I can now get through rep eighty, and all aches are ghost (slang; gone, leaving, exited). Up, two three, down, two three. Boring as hell. Hell-o lactic acid. From scientificamerican.com:

Contrary to popular opinion, lactate or, as it is often called, lactic acid buildup is not responsible for the muscle soreness felt in the days following strenuous exercise. Rather, the production of lactate and other metabolites during extreme exertion results in the burning sensation often felt in active muscles.

This buildup doesn’t necessarily translate to muscle tissue development.

In fact, I have very little confidence that I’m going to see growth. I know, based on my research and personal experience, that the best way to add lean mass is the incremental addition of weight, coupled with ample rest and recovery and added calories. This workout is the opposite; it’s purely an exercise in endurance. That said, I put aside my personal bias to participate in a science experiment, and I fully intend to see it through.

As you know, I didn’t elect to tackle this challenge without company. I have you of course and the devoted Ben Linbergh, the former editor-in-chief at Baseball Prospectus. I wonder how he’s doing? One thing is for sure; he digs links.

Week one resulted in some soreness, which made it hard to maintain proper form. Workout plans normally recommend rest days for a reason! The soreness has subsided since then, though, which I choose to see as a sign of progress, even if I still don’t look like Mike Aviles in the lower-leg region. My biggest problem now is finding something to watch while raising myself slowly up and down and mentally replaying the “tippy toe” scene from Seinfeld.

Seems both Ben and I have some work to do. We’ll keep you posted (see?). Please add your progress to the comments section below.

No judging,

Kap