Jason Toney

The Star Trax Workout Playlist

1. It Wasn't Us w/ I-20 by Ludacris
2. Jump (feat. Joel Madden and Benji Madden) by N*E*R*D
3. Lollipop by Snoop Dogg
4. Bring The Pain by Missy Elliott
5. A Life In The Day of Benjamin Andre (Incomplete) by Outkast
6. Something In The Way Of Things (In Town) by The Roots
7. Put 'Em Up by N.O.R.E. w/ Pharrell
8. Intro by Clipse
9. 2 Many Hoes by Jay-Z
10. You Can't Hold A Torch (feat. Q-Tip & Chauncey Black) by Busta Rhymes
11. Gangsta Lean by Clipse

Bonus: Hot (W/ Pusha-T & Boo-Bonic) by Rosco P. Coldchain

An intense workout pumped by an overwhelming amount of Neptunes production.

It needed it.

I needed it.

Is it really only Tuesday?

Rosco P. Coldchain says, "Pharrell this beat is...Hot."

The How Does It Feel? Workout Playlist

1. Loser (feat. Clipse) by N*E*R*D
2. Intro by Neptunes
3. How Does It Feel by Pharrell & The Yessirs
4. Rolling Through The Hood by Kelis
5. Margarita by Sleepy Brown
6. All I Need by Amerie
7. Golden Boys by Res
8. Good Girl by Vanessa Marquez
9. Still Ray by Raphael Saadiq
10. Messed Up by Aaliyah
11. Sometimes by Bilal

Bonus: Frontin' by Pharrell

How does it feel? Like pain. I struggled mightily through the Max Interval Circuit today before giving up during the Full Body Drills. My hips just don't like it when I'm on the floor doing ungodly things in plank position.

Jay-Z says, "I'm too old to be frontin' when I'm feelin' like Denzel actin' like you ain't appealin' when you are."

Insanity Fitness Test 3

"They say sleep is a cousin to death so I sleep with my eyes wide open." - The Game, Dreams

I forgot to update the titles but this is actually closer to day 80, I think. It's taken me a good 5 weeks or so to make through the second week of month two. A mixture of motivation challenges, nagging pains, and stress have had me not as committed as I was during the first month and my fit test results showcase that. I didn't get much significant improvement from my last test and shoulder and hip pains made Power Jacks and Oblique Knees less effective than they should be.

I am really proud of the suicide jump and push up jack numbers. I struggle mightily with those exercises and to see such significant improvement (nearly doubling both) makes me happy.

It doesn't make them hurt any less, though.

I'm supposed to do a Max Interval circuit workout today, too, but I think I'll save that for later.

The Fit Test Workout Playlist

1. Public Service Announcement (Interlude) by Jay-Z
2. Everything I Am by Kanye West
3. Warning by Notorious B.I.G.
4. Go! by Common
5. Gold Watch by Lupe Fiasco
6. N.Y. State of Mind by Nas
7. Dr. Carter by Lil' Wayne

Bonus: Dreams by The Game

The Can't Stop This Workout Playlist

The Show by Talib Kweli & Madlib  
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01 The Show.mp3 (5629 KB)

1. African Rhythms by Jay Dee

2. Alien Family by Illa J

3. The Show by Talib Kweli & Madlib

4. Two Can Win by J Dilla

5. Low Class Conspiracy by Quasimoto

6. Much More (feat. Yummy) by De La Soul

7. Mcnasty Filth f. Frank N Dank by Jaylib

8. Stax (Strings) by Madlib

9. Not Enough by Little Brother

10. Busta's Lament by A Tribe Called Quest

11. Can't Stop This by The Roots

12. Time Travelin' (A Tribute to Fela) by Common

Bonus: Memories Live by Talib Kweli & Hi-Tek

A nice recovery day workout playlist. Nothing profound today other than, "Yay! It's Friday!" Also, I'm going to buy an iPad this weekend. 

It's decided.

Talib Kweli says, "I chose my direction in life like Spike Lee."

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The Hearts On Fire Workout Playlist

1. We Are Your Friends (Original Mix) by Justice vs Simian
2. Gravity's Rainbow (Van She Remix) by Klaxons
3. I Believe by Simian Mobile Disco
4. Love You Better by The Maccabees
5. Standing In The Way Of Control by Gossip
6. Arrows of Eros by Golden Silvers
7. One Minute To Midnight by Justice
8. One More Chance (Alex Metric Remix) by Bloc Party
9. Hospital Beds by Florence + The Machine
10. Black & Blue by Miike Snow
11. Apply Some Pressure by Maximo Park
12. Stop Me (feat. Daniel Merriweather) by Mark Ronson
13. Hearts on Fire (Midnight Juggernauts Remix) by Cut Copy

Bonus: Easy Love by MSTRKRFT

I woke up with "We Are Your Friends" in my head so it was a perfect start to an intense workout of Max Cardio Conditioning and a bit of Cardio Abs. I'm feeling a little defeated this week. The best laid plans can be thrown out of whack by the most absurd unforeseen circumstances.

It's putting a hitch in my giddy-up. Today, though, I'm going to try to shake it off and keep it moving.

What's next?

MSTRKRFT says, "Whenever you want me. Need me. Want me."

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The Dance My Pain Away Workout Playlist

Oh My God by Michael Franti & Spearhead  
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04 Oh My God.mp3 (9615 KB)

1. Dance My Pain Away by Rod Lee
2. Sweet Talk by Spank Rock
3. I'll Be Around (featuring Timbaland) by Cee-Lo
4. Miracles by Mambo Sauce
5. What We Do (feat. Jay-Z & Beanie Sigel) by Freeway
6. Cherchez LaGhost by Ghostface Killah
7. Cold World by GZA\Genius
8. Switch Board by Kid Sister
9. Roses by Mos Def
10. Hello New World by Clipse
11. Way More by Diplo
12. Two Can Win by J Dilla
13. Oh My God by Michael Franti & Spearhead

Bonus: ManWomanBoogie by Q-Tip

Starting off the week with a Max Recovery workout that still succeeds in kicking my ass. All the stretching is wonderful, though, on my back. I'm also trying Gatorade's new products this week: the pre-game fuel and the recovery formula. I'm hoping that will help my old bones recover more quickly from these intense exercise sessions. I have yet to be able to go 6 days straight as intended during this Max Workout phase.

In other news, I'm going to kick this week's ass. Last week was a beast. This week? I'm the beast.

Let's go!

Q-Tip says, "Let's go, come on!"

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Known To Evil (8)

"Until you see me, you ain't seen bouncin' back." - Mystikal, Bouncin' Back (Bumpin' Me Against the Wall)

Known To Evil by Walter Mosley (2010, Riverhead Books). When last we talked about Leonid McGill, I worried that he and his world were too similar to those of the Easy Rawlins mysteries set on the opposite coast and 50 or 60 years prior. I had none of those concerns here. LT's his own man and, in Known to Evil, Mosley seems to forgo the familiar rhythms of his most famous character completely, learning a new way to play these songs.

I won't repeat what I said in my review of the first novel. What strikes me about Leonid in this tale is that, despite his past, he's obviously a good man. This internal battle between good and evil he talks about constantly seems, at least to me, to have become a creation of his own mind. He's created a narrative for himself that says he doesn't deserve the good in the world. That he must pay a penance. What man with such a will for protecting those in need and a natural desire for knowing the truth deserves that?

He has done right by the world, if not made peace with it, and that struggle is compelling. What comes for this man once he realizes he deserves more? In the meanwhile, he'll keep taking cases that toe the line between the light and the dark. He'll keep company with bad men. He'll keep his hands and his eyes hard even as his heart softens.

And I'll keep reading.

Highly recommended.

The Sunday Morning Workout Playlist

Sunday (F/ Chaundon & Keisha Shontelle) by 9Th Wonder  
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05 Sunday (f_ Chaundon & Keisha Shontelle).mp3 (4478 KB)

1. Life of the Party Remix (feat. Skillz) by Mick Boogie and Little Brother
2. Delusional feat. Little Brother by Oddisee
3. My Mind (featuring O-Dash & Darien Brockington) by Rapper Big Pooh
4. Reunion (w/ J Dilla) by Slum Village
5. Sunday (f/ Chaundon & Keisha Shontelle) by 9th Wonder
6. Motown 25 (featuring Royce Da 5'9") by Elzhi
7. I Wanna Know by The Foreign Exchange
8. In Remembrance of Me by Blu & Exile
9. That Ain't Love (feat. Jozeemo) by Little Brother
10. A Day In The Life by Skyzoo
11. Special (feat. Thesis) by Strange Fruit Project
12. Close Call ft. Phonte of Little Brother by 88-Keys
13. Chemistry 101 by 9th Wonder and Buckshot
14. Love & Appreciate by Murs

Bonus: How Big Is Your World? by Median

A complete Max Interval Plyo (well, mostly...I did skip an interval for fear of death) on this Sunday morning. I've been eating like an ass. I had fried chicken twice yesterday. I'm not beating myself up about it. Work has been mad stressful and I'm a stress eater. That said, my belly isn't feeling it and neither is my back. So, while I'm not going to be mad at myself for not staying in Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, I am going to get some more veggies on the plan this week.

Median says, "They say cash rules everything but I'm not moved."

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Fables: The Great Fables Crossover (7)

"I've wondered all night about you." - Belle and Sebastian, Roy Walker

Fables: The Great Fables Crossover by Bill Willingham and Matthew Sturges (2010, Vertigo). I haven't loved Fables nearly as much since War and Pieces ended and, essentially, everything changed. I'm usually not one to complain about change but, in this case, I am. While I still get bits of what I have enjoyed from Fables (reinvention of familiar characters in compelling ways, fairy tale stories retold through contemporary lenses, maturity, wit, and humor), it's not nearly as consistent and engrossing. This collection continues that trend.

The first challenge is that it's much more of a Jack of Fables story than a main book one. I've rarely cared for the Jack character and I've not been able to get into his stand-alone series at all. So, strike one. Then, it seems to require pretty intimate knowledge of that series to appreciate the story. The best comic book cross-overs tell you a great story that doesn't require much back knowledge but presents the characters in such a way that it makes you want to read their stories because you've enjoyed them so much in the one you've read. This, for me, doesn't do that at all. I don't know why the blue ox is there or how Mr. Revise and Kevin Thorn and the Pathetic Fallacy are related or why they are are on the run or anything. And you essentially need to know all of that to care about what's happening here. Strike two. And, lastly, it's a story about writing. It's over 200 pages of Willingham and Sturges complaining about writer's block. This villain, which actually could be meaningful in a fictional world built around characters that know they are fictional, isn't bad in and of itself but it is never presented as a real threat. Unlike The Adversary, who seemed a worthy and insurmountable foe, Kevin Thorn is just an annoying guy with great power that he never uses to any great effect. Strike three, you're out.

I'm still a Fables fan and will continue to pick up the collections until I'm just totally bored but this doesn't bode well.

Not recommended.

What I will recommend, though, is Cinderella: From Fabletown With Love. Chris Roberson and Shawn McManus are taking a deeper look at one of the most compelling and under-utilized characters in Fables, Cindy the spy, and put together a fun read. I'm picking it up by the issue, too, and not waiting for the collection.-

Drown (6)

Cover of Drown

"Around the world. It's Saturday night." - Jody Watley, Saturday Night Experience

Drown by Junot Díaz (1996, Riverhead Books). I didn't love Drown as much as I did, and do, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. It has nothing to do with Díaz's writing style. All of the things I appreciate and admire about his work are there: his sense of pace and atmosphere; his gift with dialogue and language. He still provides an inside look at world's we may think we know but don't. He exposes the layers and complexity of people living in two worlds, of two minds, in between cultures without that ever taking over the real stories of the human condition. Of the absurdities and oddities of life.

No, my problem was not with any of the writing. My problem was that, as I went with breakneck speed through the stories, we spent less and less time with Rafa and Yunior and their world and more time with Mami and especially Papi—f'n Ramon—who, after the revelations of the early vignettes, I could give two shits about. I didn't want to empathize with this kind of father. I didn't want to know why he did the things that he did or feel compelled to forgive him. For all intents and purposes, Ramon could kiss my ass.

But, Díaz doesn't walk away from these tales. He doesn't give Ramon a pass. He doesn't even suggest we should understand him. We should just know him. He deserves to be known.

Okay. I'll give him that.

It's a lightning fast read and highly recommended.

Also, I read this a month ago. I've just been terribly slow with writing about books this year for some reason.