How to test whether your Beano is good / whether your Beano works

I just got a new bottle of Beano(TM) drops, and tested them last night for activity. They are inactive! I wonder how many people are taking Beano to help their digestion, and are really getting no benefit at all because the enzymes are inactive! From now on I will test every new container of Beano I buy!

How to test:

Take a sample of peanut butter or cooked beans. Add a little Beano. Add water. The water should be 'absorbed' if the Beano is working.

Last night I scooped a spoonful of peanut butter out of the jar and put in in a bowl. I dripped two or three drops of Beano on the peanut butter, then mixed, then mixed in about as much water as peanut butter. What I got was soupy peanut butter. What I should have gotten (if the Beano was working) was very dry peanut butter.

The week before, I discovered that my Beano tablets were bad when I tried adding a few, dissolved in water, to refried beans. Again, what I got was soupy beans! :(

Background:

In 2000 or so I tried mixing Beano directly into a jar of peanut butter, and when I tasted the result, my mouth immediately went completely dry! I've never experienced such total dryness.

I'm no food science expert, but I happened to know one. A PhD candidate at UC Berkeley told me the way these enzymes work. They attach to a polysaccharide molecule, break a sugar-sugar bond, and recruit two water molecules to attach to the new broken ends.

So what happened was, the enzymes broke bonds and stuck water molecules on until they used up all the water in the peanut butter. Then they sat there waiting for more water so they could break more bonds. When I put the peanut butter in my mouth, they immediately grabbed all the water molecules they could and used them to break more bonds, hence the dry mouth!

I found that the peanut butter I was using could absorb a whole jar of water! I also found that when it was that broken-down, it quickly went bad, so I don't actually recommend treating a whole jar, but I do recommend testing any Beano you buy!

100 pushups for my 48th?

I'm starting my 3rd week of the 6-week hundred push ups training program.
If I can stick with it, I should be able to do 100 consecutive push ups by my birthday.
Sounds improbable, but I surprised myself last Friday by completing sets of 10, 10, 8, 8, and 11.
It's also motivating me to improve my cardiovascular health by taking hikes in the Berkeley hills.

2008 http://hundredpushups.com/
strict 1 min rests :: strict 90 sec rests :: strict 2 min rests
:: 14-10--8--5--5 : 42
07.25 :: 07.29 :: 07.31
14--8--5--5--4 : 36 :: 12--8--7--5--7 : 39 :: 14--8--4--7--5 : 38
08.02 :: 08.04 :: 08.06
15--8--7--4--4--5 : 43 :: 14-10--7--6--5--5 : 47 :: 12-10--7--6--6--5 : 46 (sore shoulder)

(real negative resistance)
08. :: 08.20 :: 09.03
10--8--3--6--3--4 : 34 :: 13--9--6--5--4--4 : 41 :: 13--7--3--7--4--5 : 39
09.05 :: 09.10 :: 09
14--7--4--2--4--4 : 35 :: 13--8--7--4--5--4 : 41 :: 14--9--7--4--6--6 : 46

(5 sets)
09.15 :: 09.17 :: 09.20
14--7--6--5--3 : 35 :: 14--8--6--5--5 : 38 :: 16--9--7--7--5 : 44
09.26 :: 09.28 :: 09.30
16--7--5--6--4 : 38 :: 16--8--7--5--5 : 41 :: 14--9--6--7--7 : 43
10.02 :: 10.04 :: 10.06
15--8--5--4--5 : 37 :: 16--9--7--7--7 : 46 :: 16-11--8--8--7 : 50
10.9 :: 10.13 :: 10.15
15--7--7--6--6 : 41 :: 17--8--6--5--6 : 42 :: 17--9--7--7--6 : 46
10.18 :: 10.20 :: 10.22
17--6--5--5--4 : 37 :: 14--9--8--6--5 : 42 :: 16--9--7--7--7 : 48
10.25 :: 10.27 :: 10.29
17--8--6--5--5 : 41 :: 16--8--8--7--6 : 45 :: 18-11--9--8--5 : 51
oct. avg: (39) (43.75) (48.75)
(4 sets)
11.03 16--9--6--5 : 36 :: 11.05 18-10--5--6 : 39 :: 11.08 18-10-10--8 : 46
11.10 19--8--6--6 : 39 :: 11.12 20-10--8--6 : 44 :: 11.14 16-10-10--7 : 43
11.17 20-10-7--8 : 45 :: 11.19 22-11-11-10 : 54 :: 11.21 19-12-10--9 : 50
(no belly bounce)
11.24 17--8--8--7 : 40 :: 11.26 20--8--8--5 : 41 :: 11.28 16-13--9--7 : 45
12.03 16--6--6--5 : 33 :: 12.06 16-10--9--6 : 41 :: 12.08 16-12--8--8 : 44
(2 min intervals)
12.29 14-10--7--6 : 37 :: 12.31 16--9--8--8 : 41 :: 01.02 18-10--8--7 : 43
01.05 15-10-10-8 : 43 :: 01.14 18-10--8--6 : 42
29.45

aug 05 days 211 pushups 42.2 pushups/day
sep 10 days 400 pushups 40.0 pushups/day
oct 12 days 526 pushups 43.8 pushups/day (5 sets) 8.77/set
nov 12 days 522 pushups 43.5 pushups/day (4 sets) 10.88/set
dec 5 days 196 pushups 39.2 pushups/day (4 sets) 9.80/set
jan 3 days 128 pushups 42.7 pushups/day (4 sets) 10.67/set

heart rate: per 10 sec
17 - 20 : Fat burning zone:
This amounts to 60-70% of the maximum heart rate.
Within this pulse range, most calories from fat are burned. Furthermore the cardiovascular system will be trained.
- 23 : Aerobic zone:
This amounts to 70-80% of the maximum heart rate.
Within this pulse range, carbohydrates and fats are burned for power production in the muscle cells. This range requires the cardiovascular system as well as the lung and the metabolism.
- 26 : Anaerobic zone:
This amounts to 80-90% of the maximum heart rate.
Within this pulse range, the body cannot cover the oxygen demand any longer. This range is for the development of power and muscle mass.
- 28 : RED zone:
This amounts to 90-100% of the maximum heart rate.
This pulse range should be handled with caution. It is dangerous for beginners and can be harmful for the heart.