The trip ended up taking a lot longer than expected… after a missed flight, terrible customer service from United, a 7 hour layover in Chicago and several cancelled flights, we finally arrived here at midnight yesterday.

We spent most of the day sleeping then went for a walk in the brisk (read: f’ing freezing) outside air. Before we knew it the day had flown by and it was time for an evening workout. Water intake is still sky high and the workout was medium intensity, medium length. I don’t have lots of weight to cut so it should be a breeze.

Today we did all the photos and video interviews for future marketing and pre-fight stuff for Saturday. I had to sign a ton of posters and stuff and fill out some paperwork too. It’s kind of cool being here but I’m ready to fight. I’m also excited to get home for my wife’s birthday… What a party it will be!

Tomorrow more of the same… Light nutrition (mostly fruits, veggies and raw unsalted nuts), low salt, high water and a medium workout.

So I leave in a few hours. It’s almost midnight but I have trouble sleeping before midnight or 1 am. I guess that makes getting up at 5 am more difficult but so be it. I’ll have time to recoup sleep.

It’s kind of a weird feeling getting ready to leave for such an important fight. I am excited to go but I hate to leave my family so soon after just getting back from being gone for 2 weeks. My son has been stuck to me like glue. I took him to Chuck E. Cheese today as a farewell, so to speak.

Once we get in to Columbus tomorrow I’ll try to rest then break a sweat in the evening. Still dropping a couple pounds so I’m watching my diet and as long as I stay away from the excess salt and fried food (which is pretty easy for me), I should have no issues. I still want a Twix though, or a Watchamacallit…

I must admit, I’m happy the weekend is here. Tomorrow I’ll play a few sets of tennis with my friend Daniel. He’s not a pro but he makes me work. Should be good for a light morning workout. He’s the guy with the beard in the second picture under the “lifestyle” tab here on my website. I’ll probably do a hard run in the evening.

Sunday… well. Sunday the ladies are having a baby shower for my wife. She’s 7 months pregnant with our second child, Gabriela. Life is still going on despite the UFC excitement and it really helps me remember who I am and what really matters to me. Don’t get me wrong, Sunday I’ll do a light weight, high rep, quick workout in the morning but then I drop her off and get together with the guys to play some Axis and Allies and/or watch the Blazer game and complain about the women or some nonsense. I’m actually looking forward to seeing my friends again after being gone for almost a month (1 week Hawaii, 2 weeks Big Bear, a couple days worth of travel and another hard week training here). When we meet up they’ll tease me and drink beer and tell me I’m gonna look fat on t.v. or something. Gotta have people like that around to keep it real. At night I may swim instead of run… It’s so hard, I sink like a rock after a few laps.

I just found out that my flight to Ohio leaves at 6:30 am on Tuesday… Damn that’s early.

I have a few more 2-a-day workout days left then it’s just focus and visualization with one workout a day to keep the blood flowing and cut a little weight. I’ll probably stop 2-a-days on Sunday. At this point the hay is in the barn and I need to keep myself healthy for the showdown. You know, get some oxygenated blood flowing to all the little sore spots so they are in tip top working condition by fight time.

Besides, I’m not cutting too much anyway, only coming down from 185. I’ll probably have to cut 8 in water by fight time. I’m usually 183 to fight. If it weren’t going to adversely affect me, I could probably eat chocolate pancakes everyday and not worry too much about it. However, clean food = better performance regardless of your weight, so I’ll nix the Twix bars until after the competition. I do love Twix bars…

It’s amazing what you can do with focused workouts, a clean diet and a great attitude. My strength is up, body fat down and I feel great. The soreness in the legs and shoulders is part of the great. Getting sore means you’re getting stronger. As long as you aren’t ripping or popping, chances are you are pushing yourself well.

So, back in Portland now… 

Today I sprinted stairs all around Mt. Tabor. 3 on the narrow stairs, jogging, 1 on the wide, more jogging then some interval sprints. That doesn’t mean too much to anyone who doesn’t know Portland, but I’ll just tell you… it’s hard. I felt the “jello legs” for sure. I’ll have my second workout soon. It should be a good mix of cardio and technique without too much heavy joint pounding. I got that this morning. Herman and Follis went to Tabor with me. buh-bye