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The Decade In Exercise

The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade. Today, we finish off the series with exercise, specifically my step performance between 2010 and 2019. I started tracking my daily step totals in July of 2011, thanks to a program at work that ““encourages you to track your steps and help you to focus on your fitness in a simple and accessible way.”  The GlobalFit Destination: You program lasted until late January, 2015.  At the point, I had enough invested that I wanted to continue, so, after looking at a couple of options, I purchased my first Fitbit as a replacement option.  The rest of the decade used one of 4 Fitbits I’ve had (with the most recent coming this past Christmas), giving me about 8 1/2 years of data for the decade.

In just over 3 1/2 years on the GlobalFit program, I finished with 6,511,500 steps.  This estimates out to about 35,197 steps per week, or 5028 steps per day.  My best day came during a 2013 trip to Disney World, where excursions to both Epcot Center and the Magic Kingdom ended with 24,988 steps.  I finished with 45 days over 10,000 steps, 4 days over 15,000 steps, and 2 days over 20,000 steps.  Over the last year and a half, my highest weekly total was 60,216, thanks to a trip to southern California in 2014, and my lowest total was a mere 15,800, thanks to a long Christmas vacation that caused me to lose data before I could check back in at work.

 

 

For the nearly 5 years remaining in the decade, I put up 13,041,430 steps tracked with a Fitbit.  That averages out to roughly 2.6 million steps per year, or 50,159 steps per week, or 7165 steps per day, over a 2000 step increase over the GlobalFit program.  My best day came during a 2018 trip to New York, where the day’s excursions included trips to the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, the Museum of the City of New York, Central Park, the Guggenheim museum, and, finally, the Empire State Building.  I finished with 216 days over 10,000 steps, 36 days over 15,000 steps, and 11 days over 20,000 steps.  My highest weekly total was 105,924, thanks to a trip to Washington DC last summer, and my lowest total was a mere 18,510, which really only consisted of 3 days as I switched over from GlobalFit to Fitbit.

Overall, I logged 19,552,930 steps in the 8 1/2 years I was keeping track, with 261 days over 10,000 steps, 40 days over 15,000, and 13 days over 20,000.  I completed 2 BTN 5Ks, 4 Sprint & Strides, 1 hike up a mountain, and numerous trips to foreign countries, amusement parks, and tourist destinations.  My highest step total by locations were: Continue reading →

by jim

The Decade In College Sports

The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade.  Today, we are wrapping things up with college athletics, specifically football and basketball.  On the gridiron, this was not a particularly successful ten years for the boys in gold and black, with only 4 bowl games, none of which were particularly prestigious.  Things were considerably brighter on the hardwood, with 8 appearances in the NCAA tournament, including 2 losses in the Sweet Sixteen and 1 Elite Eight appearance.  Not to mention 2 Big Ten regular season titles.

I only managed to take in 3 football game over the past 10 years, all at Ross-Ade Stadium.  The home team managed to win only the first of those, and were frankly somewhat embarrassed in the other two.

Team Records
Team Won Loss Winning Percentage
Northern Illinois Huskies 1 0 1.000
Illinois Fighting Illini 1 1 0.500
Purdue Boilermakers 1 2 0.333

Things were a little better on the basketball side.  I made it to 9 different contests over the course of the decade, at 5 different arenas.  Of those 9, 4 were tournament games.  Purdue was involved in 8 of the 9 games, mostly against the Illini.

Team Records
Team Won Loss Winning Percentage
Virginia Commonwealth Rams 1 0 1.000
Northwestern Wildcats 1 0 1.000
Butler Bulldogs 1 0 1.000
Purdue Boilermakers 5 3 0.625
Illinois Fighting Illini 1 3 0.250
Vermont Catamounts 0 1 0.000
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders 0 1 0.000
Iowa State Cyclones 0 1 0.000
by jim

The Decade In Travel

The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade.  Today, we are continuing with travel, specifically the 53 out of state trips that I took between 2010 and 2019.  The first trip of the decade came in September of 2010, as I traveled north to Detroit and Windsor, staying in Canada when I wasn’t watching the White Sox battle the Tigers.  The final trip of the decade, and a fitting bookend to the decade, came in December, when the family traveled to Ann Arbor, Michigan to see Angelina skate in a competition.  2018 was my best year, with 13 different trips/destinations, while 2012 was my worst year, with only a single trip.

My most popular place to travel was, unsurprisingly, West Lafayette, with 7 different trips.  Next came a 3-way tie, with Milwaukee, Boston, and Los Angeles each finding themselves under my feet 4 times.  The only other place I went to more than twice was Disney World, with 3 trips.

If we break down those 53 trips, we get the following:

  • 32 locations
  • 6 countries
    • United States
    • Canada
    • Italy
    • Ireland
    • Scotland
    • Northern Ireland
  • 19 states
    • Illinois
    • Indiana
    • Michigan
    • Wisconsin
    • Minnesota
    • Iowa
    • Massachusetts
    • New York
    • California
    • Nevada
    • Arizona
    • Mississippi
    • Tennessee
    • Arkansas
    • Ohio
    • Maryland
    • Virginia
    • South Carolina
    • Hawaii

 

 

 

by jim

The Decade In Baseball – Pitching Leaders

baseballs3The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade.  Today, we are finishing off our look back at 10 years worth of baseball with the pitching leaders for the 385 games I attended between 2010 and 2019.

In addition to the regular season, these totals include 2 wild card games, 3 trips to the NLDS, 3 NLCS appearances, and the 2016 World Series.  Not too many surprises on these charts.

Wins

Name Total
Chris Sale 21
Gavin Floyd 13
John Danks 11
Jon Lester  10
Jake Peavy 10

Losses

Name Total
Jose Quintana 17
Chris Sale 12
John Danks 10
James Shields 10
Gavin Floyd 9
Carlos Rodon 9

ERA (> 10 IP)

Name Total
Kyle Ryan 0.00
Colby Lewis 0.60
Brandon Kintzler 0.68
Matt Moore 0.79
Yovani Gallardo 0.82

ERA (> 20 IP)

Name Total
Kyle Gibson 1.59
Dallas Braden 1.71
Aaron Bummer 1.84
Zach Duke 2.00
Wade Davis 2.01

Strikeouts

Name Total
Chris Sale 313
Jose Quintana 208
Gavin Floyd 145
Continue reading →
by jim

The Decade In Movies

The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade.  Today, we are continuing with movies, specifically the 836 films I saw between 2010 and 2019.  Those 836 were released across 40 different years, with the earliest (Breakfast At Tiffany’s) released in 1961 and at least one film released every year of this century.  2010 was the most popular year, with 87 (10.4%) of the films I saw released that year.

929 actors starred in at least 1 movie that I saw over the past 10 years.  Only 283 of those starred in at least 2.  If you had told me that Jason Bateman would have led the field, I would not have believed it, but that does seem to be the case.  Not a single person starred in a film that I saw every year of the decade, with Jennifer Lawrence coming the closest, with a streak of 9 years starting in 2011.

2010s Films Per Actor
Actor Name Films
Jason Bateman 12
Anna Kendrick 11
Jennifer Lawrence 11
Amy Adams 10
Tom Cruise 10
Robert Downey Jr. 10
Mila Kunis 10
Matt Damon 9
Tom Hanks 9
Liam Neeson 9

The first movie I saw this decade was District 9 and the last was The Oath.  Comedy was the most popular genre, with 217 films, while Westerns was the least popular, with a grand total of 2.  2011 was my most prolific year, with 131 movies seen.  2018 was my lowest total, for numerous reasons.  Continue reading →

by jim

The Decade In Baseball – Batting Leaders

The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade.  Today, we are continuing with baseball, specifically the offensive leaders in the 385 games I attended between 2010 and 2019.

There is not a huge diversity of names on this list.  Nearly all played for the White Sox in the early part of the decade, when they were supposedly trying to win.

Home Runs

Name Total
Jose Abreu 36
Paul Konerko 35
Alex Rios 24
Alexei Ramirez 20
Tim Anderson 16

Hits

Name Total
Alexei Ramirez 227
Jose Abreu 193
Paul Konerko 153
Alex Rios 142
Melky Cabrera 121

Runs

Name Total
Alexei Ramirez 93
Jose Abreu 89
Continue reading →
by jim

The Decade In Books

The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade. Today, we move on to books, specifically the 229 books I read between 2010 and 2019. This decade coincides completely with my starting the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge, which I have never really come close to completing.

2015 was my best year, with 31 books completed.  2010 was by far the worst year in terms of finished books, with only 7.  Over the course of 10 years, those 229 books totaled over 77,000 pages.


152 different authors contributed to the books I’ve read this decade, 35 of which I’ve read multiple times.  The ghost writer for Richard Castle leads the way and is the only author I read more than 10 offerings from over the last 10 years.  The most surprising entry is Erle Stanley Gardner, who passed away in 1970. Continue reading →

by jim

The Decade In Baseball – Team Records

The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade.  Today, we are starting with baseball, specifically the performance of all 30 MLB teams in games I attended between 2010 and 2019.  Locally, things were good on the north side of town, as the Cubs finished their rebuild with 3 straight NLCS appearances in the middle of the decade, including a World Series championship in 2016.  It was much bleaker on the south side, as the White Sox failed to compete after a late collapse in 2012, finishing the decade on a string of 7 consecutive losing seasons.

I managed to take in 385 games over the past 10 years at 12 different stadiums from coast (Dodger Stadium) to coast (Fenway Park).  2010 was my high water mark, with 52 games, while 2013 and 2018 tied for the lowest total of the decade with only 29 games.

Games Per Year
Year Total Games
2010 52
2011 43
2012 33
2013 29
2014 35
2015 39
2016 39
2017 49
2018 29
2019 37

Two franchises went through the decade undefeated in games I attended, while another 2 teams went winless.  Both local teams finished just a shade under .500.  The White Sox are far and away the team I saw most often, while the Diamondbacks bring up the rear with only 2 appearances over the past 10 years.

2019 Team Records
Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Colorado Rockies 4 0 1.000
New York Mets 3 0 1.000
Boston Red Sox 9 3 0.750
New York Yankees 9 4 0.692
Washington Nationals 6 3 0.667
Houston Astros 6 3 0.667
Florida Marlins 2 1 0.667
Los Angeles Angels 9 5 0.643
Detroit Tigers 22 13 0.629
Pittsburgh Pirates 5 3 0.625
Kansas City Royals 21 17 0.553
Cleveland Indians 17 14 0.548
Toronto Blue Jays 8 7 0.533
Minnesota Twins 19 17 0.528
Oakland Athletics 7 7 0.500
St. Louis Cardinals 2 2 0.500
San Diego Padres 2 2 0.500
Arizona Diamondbacks 1 1 0.500
Chicago White Sox 159 164 0.492
Chicago Cubs 40 43 0.482
Continue reading →
by jim

Ballpark Tour: Blue Jays

With the offseason underway, we continue our tour of all of the different baseball stadiums I’ve been to over the years. This week, we look at the Toronto Blue Jays, the lone team currently existing outside of the United States. So, without further ado, let’s take a deeper look at my one game history with Rogers Centre.

Stadium Name: Skydome/Rogers Centre

Years in Service: 1989 – Present

Visits: 1

Following the Grey Cup game in 1982 at Exhibition Stadium, dubbed the Rain Bowl due to a torrential rainstorm, tens of thousands of people attended a rally at Toronto’s city hall chanting “We want a dome”.  After years of studies, they got their wish on June 3, 1989 when Skydome opened as the new home of the Blue Jays, featuring the first functional retractable roof in North America.

While the stadium quickly became an albatross for the province of Ontario, due to cost overruns and a recession, the Blue Jays became a force to be reckoned with.  The Jays won the AL East crown in 1989 and 1991, losing to the eventual World Series champions both years.  In 1992, they again won their division and became the first Canadian team to capture a World Series title.  They repeated as champions in 1993, becoming the first team to win back-to-back Series since the Yankees in 1977 and 1978.

Since then, things have been relatively quiet for the Blue Jays.  In 2005, the stadium was renamed Rogers Centre, after the new owners of both the stadium and the team.  After years of failed expectations, the Blue Jays finally have something to be excited about, thanks to Vlad Guerrero Jr, one of the most exciting young players in the game.

I attended my first (and, so far, only) game at the Rogers Centre in September of 2015 when I was visiting Toronto with my friend Hayley.  In addition to adding a new stadium to my resume, former White Sox ace Mark Buehrle was scheduled to start, so I was really looking forward to the game.  Sadly, Buehrle was bumped a few days due to a sore shoulder, so I ended up having to see David Price take on the Orioles.  He handled them with ease, picking up his 100th career victory.  I didn’t have the best seats in the house, sitting out in left field, but was in the shade, which was in short supply during a hot afternoon with the roof open.  I certainly hope to return one day.

by jim

The Joe Maddon Era Has Ended

After 5 seasons, the Cubs and Joe Maddon have agreed to part ways as his initial contract with the club expires with the end of the 2019 season.  Maddon, who was hired under dubious circumstances following the 2014 season, put together one of the best runs in franchise history, with 3 straight trips to the NLCS and a World Series victory that broke a 108 year curse on the north side.  The last 2 years, though, have ended in disappointment, with September swoons that led to a Wild Card loss in 2018 and missing the playoffs completely this year.

Maddon is likely to land on his feet, with attractive openings in San Diego and, potentially, Philadelphia.  The Angels, Maddon’s one time employer, have hinted they are willing to pull the same move the Cubs did 5 years ago, dumping their manager after one year for a shot at Maddon.  Wherever he ends up, he will try to rebound and re-find his winning touch.