Goals, Life, Me

2017 was a good year

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I had a good year this year. Good, not great. But I will take it. It was the first good year I’ve had in my thirties. That isn’t an exaggeration.  The last 5 years were complete and utter shit. That isn’t me being negative, that’s just the reality of the situation. My perspective throughout those 5 years was mostly positive, but even still overall it was a sucky time. This year, however, something changed. I didn’t feel lost and confused. I didn’t make mountains out of molehills. I took everything in stride. It was good. Things were busy, as usual, but I never felt overwhelmed or scatterbrained. I knew if I just clamped down and chugged I could get a lot done. And I was mostly pleased with my progress. Slowly but surely I’ve been progressing in the game of life, leveling up where I can, stopping to smell the flowers where appropriate, and 2017 was pretty smooth in those regards.

Some of the highlights this year for me included getting Lasik surgery and hiring a private swimming coach. Both of these were huge. My vision has improved tremendously and I no longer need glasses and contact lenses. I cannot emphasize how much this has improved my life. The same can be said for hiring a private swimming coach. She was able to 10x my swimming ability and drastically improve my confidence in the water. I was so pleased with the results that I’ll be hiring her again next year. Lesson learned – sometimes you just have to pay up to have your problems solved. Both of these were investments into me and were worth every penny.

This was also a great year health-wise. Sure, I still can’t see my abs and I still have a bit more tummy then I did before I started my uber bulk, but the fat has slowly been melting away. I don’t mind, though. I’ve put on more muscle than fat and have had numerous people compliment me on my gainz. But much, much more importantly, I’ve been mostly injury free and a lot more durable this year. This makes me very, very happy. Strength training has gone well and progressive overload has been pretty much linear (or maybe step-wise). A first time in my 5 years of lifting. Injuries in the past have set me back time and again, sometimes for unbearably long periods of time, but this year everything just went well. This allowed me to sneak in some fun BJJ injury-free as well (though not as much as I would have liked). Things are just better without injuries so I’m hoping I can stay this way for a long time. I think I made the right adjustments this year and am quite pleased.

I didn’t do a lot of travel this year but did sneak away to Havana for a few days early in the year. I’ve always wanted to go to Havana because that is where my Grandmother was born and it always looked like it was trapped in a time capsule. It didn’t disappoint in the slightest. It was a fabulous place and the people were great. I also had short weekends in Chicago and New York City, my favourite city in the world. It was my first time in Chicago but hopefully not the last. I had a fantastic time there with some fantastic people. I will be traveling a lot more in 2018, for sure, starting with a month-long trip to India in January.

Aside from that, not much else to report. I didn’t think I read a whole lot of books this year but looking back at my Goodreads bookshelf, it looks like I managed to cram in over 20 books since the beginning of the year. I really enjoyed the books “Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World” and “Persuadable: How Great Leaders Change Their Minds to Change the World” (what’s with me liking books about changing the world? hmmmm).

Next year looks to be business as usual in a lot of ways, but there will also be exciting opportunities available. I think it will be a hard but rewarding year. And if it’s a good year like this one I’ll gladly accept it. I’m excited to see what happens.

Happy New Year! Much love.

Health, Reviews, Technology

Alex Wearable Posture Tracker Review

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Alex Wearable Posture Tracker Review

alex posture tracker and app
Picture of the Alex Posture Tracker and mobile app

The Alex wearable tracking device is a wearable tracker I backed on Kickstarter in early 2016. Its promise was to improve posture and help reduce neck pain, especially from poor phone and computer habits. As someone with 5 of 7 bulging discs in my neck as well as a mild case of spinal stenosis, the Alex wearable posture tracker is something I sorely needed. Find out if the Alex works as promised in my review.

Here’s the description from their Kickstarter campaign page:

alex your personal posture coach
alex your personal posture coach

End neck and back pain with ALEX!

ALEX is your wearable posture coach and posture tracker. It’s the first wearable to accurately measure the angle of your neck and the position of your head, so you can put an end to neck pain.

Thoughts on the Alex Wearable Posture Coach

I even backed their latest, second-generation version of the Alex on Kickstarter. It failed to achieve its goal, however, and announced that it does not plan to try again. I was kinda bumbed about it but also kinda glad. I was bumbed because I really wanted a version of the Alex posture coach that actually worked. But I was relieved because that means I won’t have to pay for a product that may or may not work and live up to my expectations. That’s kinda where I’m at with the Alex posture coach. It sorta worked, but not really. At least, not the way you would want a posture coach to work. Calibration was finicky, and to get it to vibrate you basically have to put your chin to your chest and hold it there for a few seconds. Not many people have posture that bad! From my experience, poor posture is usually much more subtle than that, and for this reason, the Alex isn’t a good product for me. I have since backed the Upright Go which I’ll write about in the future and almost backed another project, both related to improving posture. In my opinion, there’s definitely a need for products like these as we continue to chain ourselves to our desks and mobile phones more and more and poor posture becomes more common.

alex posture on a human. with posture tracking stats.
alex posture on a woman. You can see some posture tracking stats.

Alex Wearable Posture Tracker Review Conclusion

Overall, the concept of the Alex is an important one, but the product fails to deliver on the goods. It is simply not sensitive enough to give you fair warning and nudge you when you need it most. While it is lightweight and unobtrusive, it simply isn’t effective or useful. I would not recommend the Alex Wearable Posture Coach. Should you ignore my advice, you can buy it here.

Gear, Reviews

Wiivv custom insoles review

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Base Wiivv custom insoles review

wiiv custom insoles features
Features of the Wiivv custom insoles

The Base by Wiivv custom insole on Kickstarter

The Base by Wiiv custom insoles are a set of insoles I backed on Kickstarter. They are custom 3D printed insoles that are measured using your iPad or smartphone. The process to measure and receive the Wiivv custom insoles was painless. I simply followed the instructions, snapped some pics of my feet using the iPad app, and bammo. I received my custom printed insoles a little while later.

Here’s a better description taken from their campaign page:

BASE by Wiivv is a body-perfect insole that is engineered to maximize comfort, promote alignment and lessen fatigue. Your pair of BASE insoles will closely follow your unique foot curves to give you the support and stability that you need to keep going. To customize your pair of insoles and get measured, all you need is 5 minutes and a smartphone. With this kind of convenience, you’ll never want to go for off-the-shelf again.

wiivv custom insoles colors
The Wiivv custom insoles come in many colours and patterns

The Wiivv custom insoles review – initial thoughts

The Wiivv insoles don’t go the length of the shoe. Instead, they stop just past the mid-foot and start at the heel. There is one huge problem with this – it’s really damn hard to put the shoe on. The insole will slide to the front of the shoe as you are trying to put the shoe on. This was a MAJOR pain in the ass for me at the beginning, so much so that I emailed their customer support to request a refund. Eventually I made it work and didn’t end up following through on the refund, but even these days it is a pain in the butt if I’m in a rush.

They also don’t feel that comfortable to me. In the mid-foot especially, my feet begin to get sore if I’ve been walking with the Wiivv on for more than a couple of hours. I don’t have this problem without the Wiivv in place. At the edge of where the Wiivv insole ends you can also feel it across your feet – like a stiff piece of plastic slicing the bottom of your foot in half after prolonged wear. That sounds much worse than it actually feels, but just something to be aware of. I think they have full-length insoles that wouldn’t have this feeling.

wiivv custom insoles on foot
The Wiivv custom insoles are 3D printed to perfectly fit your feet

Conclusion

I don’t love the Base by Wiivv custom insoles, but I do wear them when I wear the one pair of Nike Free shoes I have them in. I still think they are a pain to put on and the rigidity in the mid-foot is not something I particularly enjoy, especially if wearing them for long periods of time. I do feel they nailed the fit of the insole and the process of measuring them and ordering them, though. So if you feel you need custom insoles, I’d say they are worth checking out.

Gear, Reviews, Travel

Element Pure Nanofiber Baselayer Review – Ultra Soft, Odor-proof & Sustainable

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Element Pure Nanofiber Baselayer Review – Ultra Soft, Odor-proof & Sustainable

element pure nanofiber baselayer tencel
Properties of Tencel

The Element Pure Nanofiber Baselayer on Kickstarter

The Element Pure Nanofiber Baselayer is a campaign I backed on Kickstarter last year. I ended up getting both a long sleeve top and bottom. These are made with a remarkable material known as Tencel. Here’s the product description taken from the campaign page on Kickstarter.

Welcome to the world of 21st century fabrics. Gone are the days when we have to use outdated textiles, such as cotton and polyester. We are now seeing huge leaps in garment textiles in terms of sustainability, comfort and performance. Tencel is at the forefront of this new wave.

An ultra sustainable, high-tech nano-fiber from Austria. Tencel is 100% natural and completely made from organic PEFC certified Eucalyptus wood through a non-toxic and renewable process. It’s full of awesome features, making our baselayer a perfect complement for your winter adventures.

Tencel is amazing. It is by far my favourite fabric that I’ve come across so far. There are so many good properties of this material, including the following:

  • thermal regulating
  • odor resistant
  • anti-bacterial
  • highly absorbent
  • quick drying
  • wrinkle resistant
  • form fitting
  • uber soft
  • durable
  • sustainable and eco-friendly

These properties make Tencel an ideal fabric for baselayers, underwear, and T-shirts. These are versatile items in your wardrobe for everyday wear, as well as various activities including travel, exercising, and enjoying the outdoors.

Thoughts on the Element Pure Nanofiber Baselayer

Suffice to say, I’ve been very pleased with the Nanofiber Baselayer by Element Pure. I only wish that I could wear them more often. I find that I don’t necessarily need them in most of my days. I do wear them a lot more during the winter months, but I tend to put them away and forget about them as the weather warms up, especially the bottoms. I also wish the good people over at Element Pure offered more colours besides black. I see on their website that they offer T-shirts now, but they also only come in black. I don’t really like wearing black T-shirts because I feel like they are magnets for the blistering hot sun in the summer, defeating the purpose of wearing a T-shirt to stay cool in the first place. But with Tencel, I’m pretty sure that’s less of a concern versus other fabrics.

Final thoughts on the Element Pure Nanofiber Baselayer

The Element Pure Nanofiber Baselayer top and bottom combo is a winner. They are the best baselayers I own by a mile. So what’s the con? Well, I think Tencel is expensive, and thus the price is reflected in the Element Pure products. Their T-shirt, for example, is $59 USD, which is close to $75 CAD on a good day. I don’t tend to spend more than $20 CAD on a T-shirt, so to pay close to 4x the price really needs to have about 4x the value add. For me, that’s a tough sell. As much as I love Tencel, I’m not sure I’m willing to spend $75 on a T-shirt made out of it. But don’t let that stop you. If you like what you’ve read in this Element Pure Nanofiber Baselayer review, then head over to their shop and check out their goods.

Gear, Reviews, Travel

The Carbon 6 Belt Review

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This is my review of the Carbon 6 – The Belt with Maximum Style, Ultimate Functionality

review of the Carbon 6 belt
This is my review of the Carbon 6 belt

​The Carbon 6 on Kickstarter

The Carbon 6 belt is a belt I backed on Kickstarter in late 2015. Here’s the pitch taken straight from the campaign:

The CARBON6™ is the ultimate go-to belt for every occasion. Designed with a clean, sleek look, it’s the only belt with no holes, no flap and no bulk. It’s extremely comfortable, low profile and lightweight. Made from premium carbon fiber and a custom engineered webbing, it was built to last forever and look awesome along the way. It’s completely adjustable and never slips. And frequent flyers celebrate! You can wear it right through airport security.

At the time, I figured I could use the belt during my travels. From the campaign page the Carbon 6 looked like a stylish belt that was lightweight and versatile, two qualities I look for in anything I take with me while traveling. It could be worn with many different outfits, from formal wear to hiking gear, and thus appeared to be a winner.

The carbon 6 belt is stylish and versatile
The carbon 6 belt is suitable for travel

​Initial thoughts of the Carbon 6 belt

The belt has an interesting, zero-hole, no-slip design. You slide in the belt strap through the buckle and voila, all done. The belt will hold in place and won’t slide. This beats belts with holes at specific points, because what if your waist is between those two points? The belt will either be on too loose or too tight. In practice, the Carbon 6 is harder to put on then they claim. I find I usually have to slide the strap through the buckle and then pull on the strap some more before the belt is sufficiently tightened. This isn’t that easy because your fingers and belt strap are sandwiched between the back of the buckle and the pant waist.

carbon 6 belt versatility
The carbon 6 belt is a versatile and stylish accessory

 

​Carbon 6 belt review conclusion

The biggest issue I have with the Carbon6 belt is the finish of the buckle. Through Kickstarter updates, the makers were forced to make some tough choices, and one of them was to use a gloss finish rather than a matte finish on the buckles. This, in my opinion, really cheapens the look of the buckle. If I knew from the beginning that the buckle had a gloss finish versus what is advertised on the campaign, I wouldn’t have backed it. Although the belt works as advertised, for the most part, I rarely wear it because I simply don’t like the gloss finish. It looks like it would scratch easy and then look even worse. With that said, I do still wear the belt from time to time and am starting to make a conscious effort to wear it out more often, but I don’t wear it nearly as much as I thought I would when I backed the Carbon 6 belt on Kickstarter. If you liked my Carbon 6 belt review or would like more information about it, you can buy the belt here.

Gear, Reviews

Comfortable Club Bliss Collection: World’s Most Comfortable Underwear & Tee Review

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Comfortable Club Bliss Collection Underwear & Tee Review

Comfortable Club Bliss Collection on Kickstarter

Hot on the heels of my Mr. Davis underwear and T-shirt review comes my review of the Bliss Collection’s Underwear and Tee campaign that I backed on Kickstarter shortly after I backed the Mr. Davis. They came out around the same time.  Mr. Davis underwear was successfully backed in late October, 2015 and the Bliss Collection Underwear and Tee campaign was successfully backed in late November, 2015, approximately a month apart.

From what I can remember, the Comfortable Club Bliss Collection also delivered around the same time that they promised and I’ve been happily wearing their stuff for over a year now. I ended up getting 1 Bliss underwear and 1 Bliss Tee.

Comfortable Club Bliss collection underwear and Tee initial thoughts

Bliss collection Tee types
I got the Monaco Blue V-neck. It’s awesome.
Bliss collection underwear types
Don’t get the trunks like I did. They will crunch your crotch.

The material for both the Bliss collection underwear and Bliss Tee are the exact same. It’s a custom Modal fabric blend that’s really soft and smooth. Like the Mr. Davis, the Bliss Tee is advertised as an undershirt. I wear this shirt as a regular Tee, but it clings to my body well enough that it would also make for a great undershirt. Colour wise I chose the Monaco Blue for both the underwear and Tee and really enjoy the colour. The Tee I got is a V-neck and for the underwear I chose trunks.

First let’s talk about the Tee. It fits beautifully and I am very happy with it. It’s very form-fitting. So if you’re in shape it’ll accentuate your muscles nicely. If your shape is round than it’ll definitely show that off as well. Live and die by the sword, I guess. This is why it makes for a great undershirt. It will cling to your body without bringing attention to it. Overall, I give the Tee a big two thumbs up. The make, comfort, and quality are very good.

The materials are apparently enviro-friendly and sustainable – always a plus. As a consumer you vote with your money, so it’s good to vote for the seemingly eco-conscious brands when you can, imo.

Now for the underwear. It is the exact same material as the Tee. However, I’m not as big a fan of the underwear as I am of the Tee. Why? Because I ordered the trunks, and they ride up on my little guys hard. Sitting down for more than an hour results in squished and uncomfortable balls. I wouldn’t recommend anybody get the trunks.

Comfortable Club Bliss collection underwear and Tee final thoughts

The underwear and Tee from comfortable club are made with some really amazing, comfy, eco friendly material. And the make and quality are of quite high quality. However, if you’re a man I wouldn’t recommend you purchase the trunks underwear because they will ride up on your crotch and it will get uncomfortable.

I received an email from the Comfortable Club as I was finishing up this review and it sounds like they are rebranding to Bensly and launching a Kickstarter campaign soon. It also appears they are having a clearance sale of all their Comfortable Club branded apparel, and there are some great deals on their website right now. If you’re quick you might be able to snag the underwear and Tee at a fraction of the cost.

Gear, Reviews, Travel

Mr. Davis Underwear Review – World’s best underwear?

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Mr. Davis underwear review – World’s best underwear?

I kind of obsess over underwear ever since buying a $30 pair in Seattle years ago from Ex Officio that felt so good protecting my little guys. I’ve since ditched the Ex Officio (although I still have a couple of pairs I wear from time to time), I’ve gone on to experiment with different brands, materials, and styles.

Mr. Davis worlds best underwear features
Features of the Mr. Davis underwear

The Mr. Davis underwear on Kickstarter

The Mr Davis underwear was underwear I backed on Kickstarter in late 2015. I got the T-shirt and underwear combo. Here’s the description from their Kickstarter campaign.

UNDERWEAR/UNDERSHIRT COMBO!

One pair of underwear in any size, cut, color and fabric AND one undershirt in any size, cut , color and fabric. This pledge level will also receive a $5 credit towards any future purchase at www.mrdavis.com.

I believe this came in around the time frame they promised to deliver. I don’t recall any long delays with this campaign and I’ve been wearing the shirt and underwear for over a year now.

The T-shirt is hella comfortable. It’s actually advertised as an undershirt but I wear it as a regular T-shirt and rarely wear it as an undershirt. The main material of the T-shirt is bamboo viscose. The bamboo viscose is a nice, soft, stretchy material that moves with you, but feels heavy when wet. So don’t get it wet. Aside from the heavy when wet remark, this is an amazing shirt that keeps you cool in the summer and warm in the winter. I wear it all the time.

Tell me about the Mr. Davis underwear already

Mr. Davis underwear fabric
Fabric options for the Mr. Davis underwear.

​

With the underwear, there were two options to choose from: either the classic, which is made of the same material as the T-shirt, or sport, which has less of the bamboo but dries quicker. I chose the sport option. The sport option is also more compressive than the classic. This may have been a mistake on my part, but I didn’t know it at the time. From 2015 to now I went from 140 lbs, up to 170 lbs, and currently weigh in around 152 lbs. At my peak of 170 lbs, the underwear was veryyyyy tight. To the credit of the Mr. Davis underwear, it did not stretch, tear, or distort in any way (unlike some of my Under Armor undies, which have seen better days). This to me goes to show the quality of the make of the underwear. Even at 152 lbs it is quite snug, and if I ever get back down to 140 I imagine the Mr. David underwear will continue to fit and impress. It hasn’t pilled at all and does dry quite quickly – a very convenient trait while traveling or working out. The only sign that this underwear isn’t quite new is there is some slight spot discolouring on the back of the underwear band.

Mr. Davis underwear selection guide
Three selections to choose from. I chose the mid-cut.

Mr. Davis underwear review conclusion – Is the Mr. Davis underwear worth it?

The Mr. David underwear is an awesome pair of underwear. I regularly wear them, especially on days where I know I’ll be out and about for the whole day. They stay dry, comfortable, and keep my little guys from overheating. If you liked my review of the Mr. Davis underwear, you can go buy them here.