Toughest Workout Of The Year

Ok so we're only into one month of the new year but yesterday I had the toughest workout of the new year. Sundays are my rest day but I do the P90X Yoga workout.  I didn't start working out until 7:00 am and got about 35 minutes into it when I was interrupted.  After the interruption, I took all three kids for the entire day.  We left the house around 7:50 am and had a lovely breakfast at McDonalds and they played in the play area.  They lasted about one hour and then I took them to the Ontario Science Centre.  The last time I was there was a couple of years ago with Rebecca and my brother Paul right after Vanessa was born.  The two of us struggled to keep up with Rebecca.  It is a totally awesome place where you can easily spend the entire day looking and trying different things.  I went there tons of times when I was a kid and its still a cool place to hang out.

Now I've taken all three kids for several hours and I've taken a couple of the kids for all day, but not all three for all day.  In hindsight, I should have brought some GU gels.  We started in the Kids Place and as soon as we got in, all three kids ran in three different directions.  Now being the "experienced" dad, I simply stood by the one entrance and let them go wild.  That worked for that place but in other exhibits, there were multiple entries and exits.  I wasn't worried so much for Rebecca and Vanessa but Jake is another story.  If you turn your back on him, he's gone in an instant and for a three year old, he's fast.  A couple of times I almost panicked when I couldn't find one or two or all three of the kids.  It wasn't that busy but the place is so massive and so many different floors it would be extremely difficult to find a kid once they are lost.  It was mentally exhausting just trying to watch all three kids run around in different directions while I was standing in one spot.

Lunch was a joy as once again the "experience" kicked in and I made sure we were in the cafeteria before noon as I know the kids' patience is almost as short as mine and there is nothing worse than being in a long line up with screaming hungry kids.  As usual, no one ate anything except the fries and they wanted candy so why not?  Load them up on sugar and let them run around.  As they day rolled on, Jake began to tire and get whinny but one of the last exhibits we saw is the one they had the most fun.  It was a massive tube about 30 feet tall with air blasting from the bottom to the top.  The kids would put pieces of papers in the bottom and watch it blow out the top.  I think I sat on the steps for at least 45 minutes watching them running around picking up the papers and stuffing it in the tube.  After that, it was around 4 pm and it was time to go home.  We arrived around 10:30 am and I was bagged.  This was a pretty good workout.  Too bad I didn't wear my heart rate monitor.  I would have been interested to see how many calories I burned.

When I got home, I had to run a couple of quick errands and then cracked a beer, and another and another.  Tammy asked why I was drinking on a Sunday.  Because I deserved it.

This week is a recovery week and I ran for 60 minutes this morning.  It wasn't bad as the temperature was only -25 (C) with the windchill.

My weight has drifted back down to 173 again.  Yea man!  I told coach I would drop five pounds before the end of January and I was right.  Now if I can drop another five pounds before the end of February.

Suck It Up

Yesterday afternoon I felt really run down and in fact I could have taken a nap at my desk.  I felt better after taking some Advil but I can tell my body is trying to fight off a cold plus the interval workouts (swimming, biking and running) had drained me.  But by the time I got home, I felt better so I had a couple of beers.  I felt  fine in the morning other than a little dehydrated.  My run was for 90 minutes but I had to be back home by 7:00 am because Tammy wanted to go to the gym.  Overall the run was ok but I was a little tired and didn't go as hard as I should, staying in the lower part of Zone 3.

After the run, I changed clothes and did some glute workout that Kevin had given me.  I try to do it at least once a week.  I did about 30 minutes worth but began to feel a little crappy.  I started to get a chill and a headache.  It couldn't haven been from the beers I drank last night.  I only had three and I'd be downright embarrassed if three beers gave me a hangover.  I popped some Advil and felt a little better but had to take Jake to his swimming lessons.  I really didn't feel like getting in the water with him but it as it turned out, I only had to set on the side of the pool while he happily played.  His lessons are pretty basic as he's only three years old and most of the time, they end up playing for half the lessons.

On the weight front, I was quite happy the other day when I got down to 173 pounds but not so happy this morning when I came in at 176.  I know why I gained but wasn't expecting a three pound gain overnight and I didn't eat anything salty.

At the place where I work, a new manager has taken over and while I don't report to him directly, he can have a very direct impact on my success (or lack of) so I opted to take some initiative and host a customer appreciation day.  On the way to work yesterday morning, I stopped off at Dad's Cookies outlet where they sell their cookies dirt cheap.  I picked up several bags of cookies and set them on a up the table where customers could help themselves.  The trouble was every time I filled the plates, I helped myself to one or two chocolate chip cookies.  My three weakness are french fries, chocolate chip cookies and beer.  Every two cookies of Chunks Ahoy equal 170 calories.  Its pretty safe to say I ate more than two cookies.

Major Doh!!




This afternoon, the chills returned so I took a hot bath but I was so tired I fell asleep in the tub.  Is it a bad thing to have a nap while taking a bath?

Another Ride.....Another Crap Ride

Ok this morning I knew it was going to be a crap ride but I didn't think it would be that bad.  I barely managed to ride for the hour and my workout was suppose to be 2 x 15 minute rides at 145 bps followed by 4 x 1 minute all out sprints.  Not a chance.  I died about 25 minutes into it and my heart got no where 145 bps.  

I think last night's run really took a lot out.  Because there are hardly any hills that are worth doing hill repeats, I ran about 5 km before I hit some nice hills.  The hill took about three minutes to run up with a nice grade and I did four repeats but tried to go as hard as I could.  Then heading back home, I did 4 x 1 minute all out sprints which was not "all out."  I was bagged as earlier in the morning at swimming, we did lots of leg workouts and 4 x 25 metres of all out flutter kicking.  I really suck at kicking.

Right now, I feel like crap as I really could fall asleep at work.  It almost feels as if my body is trying to fight off the flu.  My body aches and I'm all congested although swimming sure helped that problem yesterday! 

Tomorrow's run is not looking so great.  Other than that, not much is going on other than closing my door and having a nap.......

A Crap Ride

I'm not sure what happened this morning but I pretty much mailed it in on this morning's trainer ride.  I was to ride for one hour with 4 x 2 minute one legged pedalling, 4 x 2 minutes riding out of the saddle and then 4 x 1 minute all out sprints.  I made it through the half of the one legged drill when I begin to run out of energy.  I dropped down to a easier gear and struggled.  In between sets I remembered there was a pack of GU gel somewhere in the basement.  I hopped off the bike and found it.  The GU did make some difference as I finished the one legged drills and moved on to the all out sprints but during the second set, I totally was dead after 45 seconds and the other two sets were pathetic.  I started a slow easy recovery ride when I realized I forgot to do the out of the saddle drills.  I did a couple but was barely hanging on for the last one.  The only good news was that I burned 715 calories.

I'm not sure why I was so low on energy but it might have to do with the winter blahs.  I have been using a light box when I ride for the last couple of months but I'm not sure if it really does anything.  Its probably more of the placebo effect - you think its working so you automatically feel better.

It also might have to do with playing hockey (pick up) last night for the first time in three weeks.  We got absolutely smoked and it was quite a pathetic skate.  I was gassed and had no timing.  The only saving grace was I scored in the last couple of minutes.  I chipped at the puck and it went up in the air, hit the goalie in the head and rolled down his back and in.....my work was complete.

Another small victory is my weight has been dropping since I started counting my calories last week.  On January 2nd my weight topped out at 180 pounds (race weight is 168) and today it was at 174.2 pounds.  It was really bouncing around so I decided to start counting again and was shocked on how much I was eating.  The biggest problem was the snacking after dinner.

A Little Chilly Run

This morning's run was a little chilly as the temperature hit a balmy -20 (C).  I had to do a 60 minute tempo run with 2 x 12 minutes at 140 bps followed by 3 x 1 minute full out sprints.  I wore my new(ish) riding jacket that I got several months ago, one heavy running shirt (no layering), the new windproof pants that Tammy got for me and the lobster riding gloves my brother got from Mountain Coop. I also wore a balaclava but after 15 minutes I couldn't breathe.  I was a little cold but once I got going after 20 minutes I was ok.  It was a little surreal running at 5:30 am and it being that cold.  There was nobody outside this morning, only people heading off to working thinking "is that idiot really running in this weather?" Last night's news kept saying it was the coldest day of the year but I didn't find it that bad.

By the time I got to the 3 x 1 minutes sprints, I was more than warmed up and let it rip but I quickly ran out of gas, although I wasn't quite sure how long I ran for as its impossible to read my watch in the dark even with the light one while running at top speed.  The main thing I was worried about was a) slipping on the ice so I ran in the middle of the road or b) some idiot pulling out and clipping me.  Nothing happened but I almost did get clipped earlier in the run as some asshole decided that its really not necessary for him to stop at a stop sign or at least look for people crossing the street just because its 6 am.

The one thing I did like about this run was that it gave me an excellent indicator of what to wear when the weather gets down to -30 (C) and/or I have longer runs than 60 minutes.  I have no problems running until it gets down to around -35 (C) or the winds get up to more than 30 km/hr.  It seems "some" people can't handle our "cold" weather ahem, not to mention any names, *cough* John "Whhaaaa I can't run if its too cold" Proc *cough*  SUCK IT UP BABY!!

Victory!!!

This morning at Masters, we were doing two sets of 5 x 100 metres of front crawl with a pull buoy and then 2 x 50 metres sprint.  I raced Brian on the set but he bailed on the second set of sprints so Serge had me race one of the kids from the Mallards.  I had a lousy start and basically forgot to dolphin kick after the dive start but I pulled ahead and smoked the kid.  Boy it felt great as some of you might remember last year, I raced against Serge's daughter.  The results were down right ugly but today was all about redemption!!

Oh the kid I was racing was 13 years old and was swimming breast stroke but I still crushed him!!!

The Importance Of Obedience

Counting Calories

As today is the "most depressing day of the year," I decided to add to some more misery.  I started to count my calories using http://caloriecount.about.com/.  I forgot what a pain it is to count and measure everything.  So far for Day One, I'm over at 1,800 calories but including the 60 minute bike ride this morning, I should have burned about 2,550 calories for a deficit of 750 calories for the day.

Nice except I'm fucking starving.  No wonder I've been gaining weight.

The Bleakest Day Of The Year

Toronto Star

Widely known as Blue Monday, this year it falls on Jan. 17. The origins of Blue Monday can be traced back to Cliff Arnall, loosely affiliated with Cardiff University.

Arnall, it seems at the behest of Sky Travel, signed his name to a marketing formula that blamed the combination of weather, holiday debt, and the inevitable failure of our New Year’s resolutions for a widespread, crushing case of the blues.

You get the idea. Cute, overly crafted formula from marketing agency + information on cheap airline tickets to sunny destinations = sales.

Arnall also used a similar formula (we use the term loosely) to sell ice cream.

Even if we disregard Arnall’s so-called science, we can all admit weight gain, holiday debt and lack of sun can have a serious impact on how we feel.

To demonstrate our devotion to you (melded with our love of research journals), we have created a list of tips you can employ to improve your mood.

Do Yoga: According to Dr. Chris Streeter from the Boston University School of Medicine, yoga can actually have a greater positive impact on your mood than other types of exercise. Streeter and his team found that after yoga, people had higher than usual levels of gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, “a chemical in the brain that helps to regulate nerve activity” according to anarticle in Science Daily discussing the findings.

“GABA activity is reduced in people with mood and anxiety disorders, and drugs that increase GABA activity are commonly prescribed to improve mood and decrease anxiety,” it reads.

Talk to your boss: If there are challenges in a certain area or just too much work, take time to really think about it and break it down to find solutions,” says Julie Holden, vice president of employer services with Banyan Work Health Solutions Inc. “You might want to talk to your manager.” Don’t just focus on the problems, she says. “Try to present solutions so you can work through them together.”

Create a healthy work culture: Holden suggests setting up group exercise like a walking or running group or an ice skating club at work and bringing healthy snacks to eat at your desk. She pointed to a recent study produced by pension and benefits consulting firm Towers Watson that proved healthy employees means higher productivity and profits.

“Companies that are doing more to help employees lead a healthy lifestyle are seeing benefits in terms of financial performance in terms of the company and increased stability in their human capital,” she said.

Chow down on chocolate: Chocolate has long been perceived as a mood elevator, but not exactly for the reasons you think.

In an article published in Science Daily Professor Peter Rogers, from the University of Bristol, UK notes that raw chocolate does contain chemicals associated with elevated mood including serotonin, tryptophan, phenylethylamine, tyramine and cannabinoids.

But “many of these compounds exist in higher concentrations in other foods with less appeal than chocolate,” particularly when one measures the levels in mass produced, high fat, high sugar versions we get on most store shelves.

Thus, your Snickers bar is more likely to give you a rush from sugar and guilt than mind-altering chemicals. But who are we to deny you any pleasure.

However, totally non-scientific testing has proven that multiple trips to Soma chocolatemaker in the Distillery District are guaranteed to improve your mood.

Get some sun: Bright, summerlike light is a good way to fight the blues, or at least stave off the dreaded disease of winter known as Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Prof. Noga Kronfeld-Schor of Tel Aviv University’s Department of Zoology with Prof. Haim Einat of the University of Minnesota used two groups of Fat Sand Rats to prove it. The professors put the rats into two groups, exposing one to light similar to that in summer months. The second got the equivalent of winter light. That group “behaved in ways similar to depressed humans, exhibiting despair, reduced social interactions and increased anxiety.” The anxious rats were also the subject of a Science Daily article.

Think like a kid: This is less of a scientific study and more of a distraction. The GrimsbyTelegraph filmed a bunch of school kids telling silly jokes to combat Blue Monday. Laughter really does boost your mood so seek out a funny friend, or head to a local comedy show.

Think like a teenager: Nothing says Blue Monday like making a mixed CD, or playlist. Good suggestions to start: “Blue Monday” by New Order and “Blue Monday” by Fats Domino. Alternate suggestions include “Manic Monday” by the Bangles or “Come Monday” by Jimmy Buffett.

Think like an adult (or teenager): Sex provides exercise, human contact, orgasm and it’s typically free. No further explanation necessary, one hopes. But if you do need more details,Forbes magazine gives specific information backing up those points in an article entitled “Is Sex Necessary” on Forbes.com.

Seek out positive people: If you are feeling blue perhaps acknowledging you have a problem will help. In celebration of the bleakest day of the year multiple people have started websites with suggestions on how to make the day a more joyous event. The nice people at www.bluemonday.org in the UK have selected Jan. 24 as the day they try to improve the moods of people around them.

On another note, I hurt my hammy doing yoga yesterday.......no running today.  Seeing that I drifted back up to 178, I'll ride instead.   

Red Bull Crashed Ice

I have a friend trying out for this....talk about mid-life crisis

What's Up?

Things are humming along.  My weight has dropped back down to the 175 pound range where I'm ok with but will continue to push it to 170 pounds (race weight is 168).  The only thing is the old scale said I weighed 174.4 and the new scale said I weighed 175.6 so which is right?

This week is a recovery week so not a lot to report.   

My shoulder/arm has been bugging me in fact last week my arm was aching just typing on the computer.  I saw Kevin (chiropractor) last Friday and he said that it was caused by swimming with poor technique.  I was either crossing over or my elbow was dropping putting more stress on my shoulder which the tendon running down my arm had become inflamed.  So this week, I asked Serge to watch my stroke and basically he confirmed what Kevin had figured out.  I tried swimming on Thursday correcting the problem but swimming is like golf.  There are so many things that can screw you up and swimming is all about the technique, which I have none.

Oh the other thing is, I'm so fucking hungry today.  I can't believe how much I've eaten (most of it good).  As of 1 pm, I've eaten......

Pre workout
14 crackers with PBJ
Breakfast
1 power smoothie
Snacks
2 tangerines & 1 apple consumed while driving into work
2 All Bran Bars
Lunch
Head of broccoli
Half a cup of rice
Five ozs of fish
4.5 litres of water

and I'm starving..........

The Du

I changed my workout schedule a little on Thursday and Friday.  On Thursday night I was supposed to run but when I got home I could tell it was in my "best interest" not to ask if I could go out for an hour run. Besides, it was snowing and blowing pretty good so I decided to run Friday morning, ride Friday night and run again Saturday morning.  I generally don't like running back to back days as my body needs a day rest in between runs.

Friday's run were hill repeats but the problem where I live is, its flat as a pancake with some hills but nothing really challenging.  The coach wants me to get access to a treadmill but I said no way.  After that workout, he maybe right.  The hill I ran up wasn't that steep but the second part of the workout was three one minute all out sprints.  Given it snowed the day before, the sidewalks and roads weren't all clear and sprinting could easily lead to a serious injury.  I mentioned the possibility of joining a gym to Tammy but she definitely did not like that idea.  "But I would go at lunch time during the week while I'm at work" I argued.  Nope, end of conversation.  Start looking around for a treadmill to buy.

After dinner Friday night, I rode for an hour.  This workout was twelve 30 seconds burst with 30 seconds rest in between twice and then three one minute all out sprints.  Its amazing how fast the hour went by.  The problem with working out at night is that a) I was too wired to go to bed and b) holy crap, I woke up soooo many times to pee.  Talk about interrupted sleep pattern.  This was one of the reasons I stopped playing Friday night hockey.

Saturday's workout was a long run for 80 minutes.  I went running with another triathlete that Tammy had introduced to me last week.  Rommell lives fairly close by and she's run into him several times including at Muskoka.  I agreed to meet at his place and we headed out.  By that time, it was snowing pretty hard and at times we had to walk some of the ways as the snow was too deep to run and very easy to twist an ankle.  We ran at a slower pace than I would have liked but we went way longer than I had expected.  I was still tired from last night ride and fortunately had a GU in my water belt.  My body was very sore from basically doing a "Du" - run Friday morning, ride Friday night and run Saturday morning.  The bottom of my feet were sore from running on the uneven snow.

My brother had ripped me a copy of P90X yoga disc.  I've done a couple of yoga classes and really should be doing more, so Tammy and I did about 45 minutes on Sunday morning.  The basement was freezing but within 10 minutes I was warm and by 20 minutes I was sweating like crazy.  The yoga disc is 90 minutes long and while its repetitive, I simply don't have the strength to last that long.  We did the first 40 minutes and then skipped some parts and did the last part of stretching and balancing.  It was ugly as I was shaking like a tree and falling over but it definitely helped the soreness.

The Real Way To Get To Kona!

Start them early

Some People Don't Deserve To Live

Good Mo(u)rning Canada

Serge the Masters swim coach was late for swim practise this morning.  We figure he was hung over from all the celebrating as his home country, Team Russia beat Team Canada in the World Junior Hockey tournament last night in Buffalo. 

On another note, my shoulder and arm is killing me.  Is it a bad sign for my arm to be aching by just sitting at my desk?  Time to see Kevin....again. 

Ride Forrest Ride

The results of the lactate test we're not that impressive.  I was first tested in May 2009 and while there has been some improvement, its nothing to write home about.  Similar to the BMI measurement, its not the end all be all.

Peter Takeda Test Results

May 9-2009                 January 3-2011

MHR - 179                    MHR - 175
RHR - 44                        RHR - 43
LBP - 160                     LBP - 160
89.4% of MHR           91.4% of MHR

Improvement of 2 %

I guess a more accurate time to measure would be in the spring of 2011 as I've had a 10 pound weight gain and lower level of activity in December.  Coach pointed out the most important take away is the 91.4% of MHR as an elite athletic would be at 95% but I think somehow going from 91% to 95% would probably be like a golfer going from a score of 85 to a 75....very difficult.
 
As we roll into January, the training begins to get serious and although this morning's ride was only for one hour, I actually did the drills that I had been skipping in December.  

Wed jan 5th
Warm-Up: 10 mins +/-
a)  Single Leg Drill: 6 sets 1 minutes with 1 minutes rest in between.
Cadence: 70-80 - HR: Zone 3/4
b)  Out of Saddle: 6 sets 1 minutes with 1 minutes rest in between.
Cadence: 70-80 - HR: Zone 3/4
c)  Interval - 3 set X 1 min - all out burst with 1 minute rest in between.
d)  Continous Ride for balance of time in Zone 3.
Cadence: 85-95
Cool Down: 10 mins +/-

The one legged drills hurt but the interval was painful by the third set. I actually didn't even turn on the DVD player on but I did have the TV on to a music station just for some background noise and watched the sports highlights during the warm up and cool down.

Tomorrow is swimming with the Masters again.  I decided to rejoin them as I was getting bored swimming on my own and also my shoulder was beginning to ache.  I think I've been pounding out too many laps of front crawl and need to mix up some of the strokes.  Several people missing from last year.


   

Ohhh That's What The Problem Was...

We bought a new scale yesterday.  This morning I weighted 0.8 pounds less on the new one than the old scale.

I have a lactate test this morning at 10 am.  This should be fun.  Basically I run full blast for about 50 minutes on a treadmill and my coach pricks my finger at certain intervals. Here is a good article on lactate testing.

2010 Year In Review And Looking Ahead To 2011

Well the second year of triathlon racing has coming and gone.  It didn't start out that great as in December 2009 ended with lots of injuries.  My orthotics were fried and as a result, I ended up with several foot and knee injuries.  Also my shoulder was bugging me (still is today) and so in January I joined the Mallards Swim Club in Markham.  I think it made a difference as my swim times got better.

Due to my  knee injuries I missed several races at the beginning of 2010.  I had planned to run Around The Bay 30 km race but had to bail in March and the Mississauga Half Marathon in May and the Milton sprint in June however we figured out what the problem Hammy-problem-solved.  For the Guelph Olympic I had already preregistered and so I changed it to Aqua Bike instead of the full triathlon as I couldn't run 10 feet let alone 10 km. Guelph Race Report.  Guelph was a C race

Next up was the Muskoka Long Course which would be an excellent test for Muskoka 70.3.  I did better than I hoped and overall was happy with the results. Muskoka Long Course Race Report.  Muskoka was a B race.

Orilla Sprint was in August and it poured cats and dogs but I was ok with the results of this C race.  Orilla Race Report.

The big finale was Muskoka 70.3.  This was the first attempt at a half ironman distance race and a big step up from 2009's final race of Wasaga Olympic.  I rated my performance a 7/10 and but disappointed with the fact that I got a flat tire which cost me a least 10 minutes and I walked the hills on the run.  It was a tough and gruelling course with relentless hills, in fact everything ended on running up a hill including the swim.   Overall I was happy but really wanted to break six hours.  I think that's quite a realistic goal for this year.  Muskoka 70.3 race report.

The last race of the year was the Hamilton Half marathon where I paced Tammy to her first half marathon.  Hamilton Half Marathon Race Report.  A great way to finish the 2010 race season.

2011 And Beyond

My race schedule has been set for my A and B races (on the right side of this blog).  The running races in the first part is pretty much what was supposed to be for 2010 but injuries put an end to that schedule.  Hopefully we won't run into that problem again.  Interesting I've never done a full marathon before and I don't think it will be a problem as racing for six hours in Muskoka will have helped.  As for the triathlon races, only the A and B races are listed as I'm sure the coach will fill in with C races.  You might wonder why I have Calgary 70.3 listed.  The reason is that my brother in law just had a baby girl and my wife wants see them.  So, if we're going to fly all that way, I might as well take my bike and wetsuit and get a race in.

I received my January schedule and while the training times don't change that much, what changes is the intensity.  No more tooling along at a Mickey Mouse pace but lots of tempo runs/rides with flat out balls to the walls sprints.  Looks like we're moving up the training ladder.  I'm beginning to figure out that its not the time you spend training but the intensity.  I think 2011 should set me up for Ironman in 2012.

This should be an interesting season if I only remember to do my strength training..........

Painful Resolution Run

Happy New Year and all that shit!   As usual I missed another New Year countdown crashing at 11:35 pm.  I could have made it but really didn't care.  I think New Year's Eve is the biggest over hyped night of the year.  Of all the nights, it is the worst excuse to go out, get drunk and act like a fool.  Lord knows I've done it enough times myself.   We did have our neighbours drop over for a couple of drinks but left just after 11:00 pm as the kids (ours and theirs) were really begin to get whinny.

The last couple of days, the temperature has been absolutely balmy.  In fact, right now on January 1st at 3:53 pm, the temperature is a ridiculously +12 degrees Celsius.  I ran this morning but debated what to wear.  Because of my "late" night, I didn't leave until 7:30 am which the temperature was 7 degrees.  I thought about wearing shorts but it was a little to cold but I did opt to wear a t-shirt with a sleeveless vest and pants.  As punishment for my two pound weight gain and the seven beers I consumed (yes I'm a light weight compared to Payne) I actually ran at the prescribed pace which was to keep the heart rate around 150 bps.  This resulted in running at about 5:00 minutes per km and ended up going about 15.5 km in 80 minutes.  At times, I wanted to barf but kept on going.  I was pretty thirsty as well and in fact I drank 1.6 litres of water before I left and drained my water bottle on the run.  Overall I was pretty happy to finish the run but more importantly, I burned 1,043 calories.  Whoo hoo!!!  I guess that covers some of the beer I drank but I still gained two pounds overnight

In fact, here is my bizarre weight over the last couple of days.  Up down, up down, up down.........

Date	Weight	Trend
	2011-01-01	179.80	178.84
	2010-12-31	177.80	178.66
	2010-12-30	179.80	178.66
	2010-12-29	177.40	178.46
	2010-12-28	179.40	178.58
	2010-12-27	178.80	178.48
	2010-12-26	177.40	178.24

I did another outdoor ride on Thursday but made the mistake of leaving in the late afternoon around 3:45 pm. The light was ok until I reached the half way point when I noticed it was getting quite dark.  I boogied home as fast as I could and headed along eastbound Elgin Mills Road as I normally do but this time I was in rush hour traffic and it was quite busy for a two lane road.  That was not fun.

Yesterday I talked to the coach (first time in six weeks).  We discussed January's schedule and while the total training time doesn't really increase, the intensity ramps up considerably as I prepare for Around The Bay in late March.  Lots of tempo runs, hill repeats and flat out sprints for both riding and running.  Any extra weight gain I've put on during the off season will begin to disappear by the end of January assuming I follow the schedule.  I think today was a good start...running until you feel like puking.

I'm still working on 2010 season review

The Riding Season Ain't Over Just Yet

Over the several weeks, the temperature dipped down to the minus 20s with the wind chill or the winds were howling at +20 km\hr but today's temperature warmed up to a balmy - 2 degrees Celsius and the winds died down enough to go riding outside.  I can't remember the last time I rode outside but it was probably in November.  In these parts of the world, we haven't had much snow while the US and Europe have been absolutely pounded.  In fact there is barely enough snow to cover the grass so that means the roads are free of snow so I layered up and headed out.

It felt great to be riding outside and my original plan was to put in a solid 80 minute bike ride but I quickly realized how badly I was out of shape and my "hammer time" turned into poking along.  Although I had ridden the route hundreds of time, I found even the smallest hill forced me to slip into the smaller chain ring.

At one intersection I stopped and waited for the lights but when I started to pedal hard, my rear wheel locked up as I was in the middle of the intersection.  It turns out that I hadn't tightened the fly nut enough and the tire slipped out.  That would have been a serious problem whipping down a hill.

Because of the wet road conditions, I came down Warden Ave which has a less steeper hill than Kennedy Road (which I usually hammer down seeing if I can get above 65 km\hr).  As I returned home, I started to run out of energy but I had a GU package in my bento box and tried to scarf it down.  It wasn't easy as it was half frozen just like my water bottle which I filled with "hot" water before I left.  Next time, I'll have to use boiling hot water

A much more enjoyable 80 minutes on the bike than riding inside.  Perhaps I'll be able to go out a few more times as Saturday is supposed to be eight degrees Celsius!!

My  bike needs cleaning after riding 40 km

Ok Seriously, WTF???

A Cry For Help

U.S. woman goes ‘all out’ with 30,000-calorie Christmas feast

Dec 28, 2010 The Toronto Star

A New Jersey mom who aims to be the world’s heftiest woman enjoyed what was arguably the world’s biggest Christmas dinner over the weekend.

43-year-old Donna Simpson, who currently weighs more than 600 pounds, sat for two straight hours and consumed nearly 30,000 calories worth of food, reports the UK’s Daily Mail.

The massive feast consisted of two 25-pound turkeys, two maple-glazed hams, 15 pounds of potatoes, five loaves of bread, five pounds of herb stuffing, four pints of gravy, four pints of cranberry dressing, and 20 pounds of vegetables.

In total, the huge meal cost about $230 to prepare.

Simpson also had room for dessert as she consumed a sugary “salad” made of marshmallow, cream cheese, whipped cream and cookies.

The mother of two young children said that while she always eats as much as she wants, Christmas gives her cart blanche to “really go all out.”

Simpson, whose stated goal is to reach 1,000 pounds, has drawn intense criticism for her intentional weight gain.

But Simpson insists she is healthy and says “people who feel guilty about eating are hilarious.”

As an Internet personality, Simpson earns an income from her personal website, where people pay to watch her eat. She reportedly consumes nearly 12,000 calories a day, spending more than $600 a week on food.

Wow Am I Ever Fast!!

I went for an one hour run this morning and according to my trusty Polar watch I ran 13.56 km at an average pace of 4.27 min\km!!  Clearly all the cookies and beers I've been chowing down have paid off.  Funny when I went to Google maps, I ran only 10.5 km.  I wonder which one is right?

On another note, my Road ID worked perfectly....

Server is too busy

Arrrrgggghhhh


Have you ever tried online boxing day shopping on Christmas Eve?  All you get is aggravation or "Server is too busy."  (*&^%$$$#^&*())

Best Buy and Futureshop open their Boxing Day Specials online at 8 pm on Christmas Eve and its impossible to buy anything as the server crashes or its sold out

Maybe Cevelo has some boxing day specials.....P2 perhaps?

So what does this post have to do with triathlon?  Nothing other than the fact that I weigh 180 pounds today but at least I swam 2,500 metres this morning.  I was the only one in the pool from 6:05 to 6:25 am.  The lifeguard was dying of boredom watching me flounder around

Hmmmm lots of bored people out there tonight.  Massive amounts of hits on the website eh L?

Winter Solstice

From Wikimedia

The winter solstice occurs exactly when the Earth's axial tilt is farthest away from the sun at its maximum of 23° 26'. Though the winter solstice lasts only a moment in time, the term is also a turning point to midwinter or the first day of winter to refer to the day on which it occurs. More evident to those in high latitudes, this occurs on the shortest day and longest night, when the sun's daily maximum position in the sky is the lowest.^[1]

The seasonal significance of the winter solstice is in the reversal of the gradual lengthening of nights and shortening of days. Depending on the shift of the calendar, the winter solstice occurs on December 21 or 22 each year in the Northern Hemisphere, and June 20 or 21 in theSouthern Hemisphere.^[2] The 2010 winter solstice (summer solstice in the southern hemisphere) will occur on December 21, at 23:38 UTC. This is 11:38 pm Western European Time (WET) or 6:38 pm Eastern Standard Time (EST)^[3]

In the northern hemisphere, today is the shortest day of the year.  Thank God as it probably explains why I've been in such a pissing mood for the last week.  Today a colleague gave me a bottle of Crown Royal for Christmas.  When I got home, I cracked it open and had a drink and then switched to beer....and its only Tuesday.

Any massive successes at work are over shadowed by minor irritants.  Grrrr

.          

Pigging Out

This is the most challenging time of the year as the eating and drinking binging begins.  All the chocolates and cookies begin to add up as the weight inches up to that magically line in the sand (10 pounds over race weight) which is where I'm at now.  Friday was my office's pot luck Xmas party where the branch manager's brother makes a killer turkey with equally killer gravy.  Some one else brought sushi which I could easily have eaten by myself.  I brought a 12 pack of Victoria Bitter (Australian finest beer).  Needless to say, I gained two pounds overnight.

Friday night was a downer as we went to a visitation.  Our former neighbour's younger brother passed away several days ago.  On Monday I ran into Joe who I haven't seen in a couple of years and we started chatting about running.  Joe just got into running and ran the Toronto marathon a couple of months ago.  He asked me about triathlon training and we chatted for about 15 minutes.  He changed the subject and asked if I remembered his wife's younger brother Stephen.  I vaguely recalled meeting him a couple of times and remembered he was a pretty big guy.  Joe explained that he had gotten bigger and had a massive heart attack the previous night and died.  I was shocked as he was only 36 years old.  He had put on quite a bit of weight and was around 270 pounds.  It was a very sad night as Joe's wife was absolutely devastated about her younger brother.  Such a waste.  The next day I called a friend who is about the same size and told him about Stephen.  I told my friend I was very worried about him and he needs to start to thinking about his young kids.  He agreed and said he was trying.

I ran Saturday afternoon for only 35 minutes to test the groin injury and it was ok but I only burned 340 calories which I easily consumed Saturday night.  We went to friend's for dinner and I grazed on the appetizers and then attacked a lovely T-bone steak.  It tasted awesome as I have really cut back on eating steak and red meat for that matter.  I think I have steak about three or four times a year when before I used to eat it almost every week.

Unsurprisingly, I gained another 0.2 pounds so rather than take the scheduled rest day, I opted to ride.  I toyed with the idea of riding outside as it was only -6 Celsius but only a slight wind.  The trouble was that while the main roads were dry, my street is constantly ignored by the city plows and sanders and thus there was a nice layer of packed snow.  As much as I hate to ride inside, I decided that was the safer course of action as the last thing I need was to wipe out and damage my bike.

The ride was barely pleasant as I ran thru my prescribed drills but more importantly I burned 643 calories.  Ok so I don't ride as hard as I should.  It must be that lack of mental toughness

Slap Chop

Yeah Man!!

I went and saw Kevin this morning for an analysis on my groin strain (that doesn't sound so good) but earlier I rode for an hour.  I didn't follow the training plan but just rode for an hour to see how my leg/groin would hold up.  It was no problem as I watched episode one of season two of Weeds.  Its getting interesting as Nancy's "boyfriend" who is a DEA agent confronts her about her drug dealing.

Later I went and saw Kevin and his analysis was that it was only a mild strain - grade one.  Not so serious.  I should be able to run on Saturday.....yeahhhhh mannnnnn!

Fuck

I played hockey tonight and pulled my groin.  This could be a problem as my inner thigh is sore.  In all the years of playing hockey, I've never ever had this problem.  Fuck fuck fuck.  Ok, maybe coach was right about not playing hockey.....fuck that shit

I emailed Kevin (chiropractor) for an appointment for tomorrow

On a different front, my weight this morning was 175.6  but will probably going up after a not so good Tuesday.

The Schedule Said Run, So I Did

This morning's temperature was a balmy -14 degree Celsius with winds at 39 km\hr which brought the temperature down to -23 degrees.  For those who don't know metric, I'll translate.....it was fucking cold and windy.  Perfect for a light jog. Yesterday's rain turned to ice and the streets were like a skating rink.  Fortunately Christmas came early and Tammy gave me my presents.  One was Yaktrax which worked perfect.



I pretty much ran a regular speed despite the road conditions.  However I did feel a little sore in my back and knees as the steel coils aren't as cushioning as the shoes itself.

The other item was new wind briefs which is a must in this weather.  It worked like a charm but I think if I was doing a two hour run, I would have to double up.

I headed out at 5:30 am and ran east for one kilometer and then north, straight into the wind.  Many times I wondered why I wasn't inside riding my bike.  I ran into the wind for two straight kilometers and then turned west onto Major Mackenzie where on the south side, there is a subdivision but on the north sides there just farmer fields and the wind just whips along.  I ran just under 10 km in one hour and totally ignored the run workout on the schedule as I was just content to get the damn run in.

PS:  Weight this morning was 177.6.  Down three pounds in one day.  Now if I can only do that for ten days in a row all my problems would be solved.  Well at least race related problems

A New Low Or Rather A New High

I stepped on the scale this morning and I knew it wasn't going to be pretty.



I've seem to gain five pounds in three days.  That's a pretty good trick as five pounds is over 15,000 calories. Yesterday I was tired from Friday night's hockey (went to bed at midnight and woke up at 5 am) and I hemmed and hawed about going out for a run.  Basically throughout the day, I was just grazing.  Too tired to do anything but sit around and eat.  Finally at 4:45 pm I went for an 70 minute run.  According to Polar, I ran 14 km at a 4:54 min\km pace.  Highly unlikely.

Then we went to my friend's birthday party where consumption of lots of food and beers contributed to my current state (mild hangover).  We did play ball hockey in his driveway with some of the kids.  I haven't  played ball hockey in over 20 years.  It was quite fun especially when I scored the game winning goal after which we went back in and had cake and more beers.  Good thing its off season.

Actually the large part of my weight gain has to do with salt.  On Thursday, Tammy bought a pasta dish that was very salty and my weight went from 175.4 to 177.6 and then last night, I was eating peanuts which again were salty and that's how I gained five pounds from Thursday night to Sunday morning.  Well that's my story and I'm sticking to it.  If my theory is correct, I should be back down to 175 around Thursday.

Going Postal Part 3

After joining the Postal Challenge on Slowtwitch in November, the object was to see how far I could swim in 30 minutes (1,700 metres) and then a month later see how much I improved.  On Friday, I did the challenge again and only swam 1,575 meters.  Doh!!  That's not how it supposed to work, unless I miscounted on the first test.

Thursday's 11 km run was a little brisk with the windchill, the temperature was -20 Celsius.  Brrrr winter is here.

Last winter I played hockey on Friday's afternoon at noon.  It was a very fast skate as there were some guys that played Junior A hockey.  I was clearly the worst guy there and this year I tried to get back in but they made in invite only.  In other words, I didn't make the cut.....for pick up hockey (doh) so I started playing with the guys I used to play with a couple of years ago on Friday nights at 9 to 10:30 pm.  I stopped playing last year because it was almost impossible to go to sleep around midnight and then wake up at 5 am to train.  I find that Saturday is pretty much of a write off unless I take a nap.  For instance, I'm supposed to do an hour run today but I might bail as I sure could use a nap.  I'll probably not play anymore once January rolls around and the schedule begins to build up.

Pretty much a boring update

Miami 5i50 - Fail

The Return Of The One Legged Drills

Well its pretty safe to say that outdoor riding is done for the year.  I was hoping to get out for one more ride but winter has arrived (along with the usual layer of salt) plus the temperature is colder than normal so I've returned to riding indoors.  This morning's workout was one hour ride with the beginning of one legged drills and out of the saddle.  I don't mind doing the latter but absolutely hate the former and if I skip the drills, they only get harder and longer so its easier just to start now.  Besides, right now the one legged drills are only three sets of one minute which is manageable.....barely.  At least it helped pass the time quicker.  I watched the rest of the episodes of Weeds Season One.  The last episode had one of the girls kissing her female friend.  Great except they're about 10 years old....epic fail. 

I also started on some leg strengthening exercises.  I asked the coach for some workouts and he mumbled a couple of exercise I could do.  Several months ago, I asked Rishi twice (a massage therapist who is also a trainer) to build a work out schedule and he never got back to me.  Annoying.  Why won't any get back to me?  I told Risihi I would pay him.

Swimming is going along ok but my shoulders are sore when I use the pull-buoys.  I told Bryan that I'd probably rejoin the Masters in January.  He was pretty happy as he has no one to keep up with him but I didn't tell him I'd probably only go once a week and swim on my own for the other day.  As mentioned earlier, the problem with the Masters is that there isn't enough focus on pounding out the laps and too much focus on other strokes although given my shoulders, maybe that isn't such a bad thing.

STOP ASSHOLE!!!

Ahh the joys of winter running:  wiping out on snow covered ice and almost getting hit by cars that don't stop at four way stop signs.

This morning, I debated whether to run or ride outside for a long time.  The temperature, with the wind chill, was minus nine degrees and a stiff wind of 15 km\hr.  Common sense prevailed and I opted to run as it burns it more calories than riding.  I don't mind running in this type of weather and given what my spring race schedule looks like, I'd better start getting back into running shape.

It was a pretty uneventful 60 minute run until I stepped on some ice that was covered with a fresh layer of snow.  I didn't fall down but as soon as my foot started to slip, its funny how the body reacted.  I tensed up and stayed upright but my triceps tightened up instantly and were actually sore for a couple of minutes.  I continued on until I was literally at the last 200 metres when I came up to an intersection with four way stop.  I ran through the intersection only half paying attention to a car that had sort of stopped and proceeded to roll through the intersection right towards me.  I yelled as loud as I could, "STOP ASSHOLE!!!" as he hit the brakes less than two feet away from me.  I must of have scared the shit out of an old couple walking by on the sidewalk.  As I ran by I gave him a dirty look and the finger.  The thing that annoyed me the most, was his windows were completely fogged up and he couldn't see anything other than what was directly in front of the car.  Moron

According to my Polar watch, in 62 minutes I ran 12.05 km for a pace of 5.12 min\km.....yea right.  I really need to get the foot pod reset.

Coach sent my December workout schedule.  He included a list of potential races for 2011:

                  2011 Race Schedule

Peterboro 1/2 Marathon Feb. 27-2011 - ???
Chilly 1/2 March 6-2011 - ??? 
ATB - 30K March 27-2011 
Sporting Life 10K May 2-2011
Goodlife/Miss Race May 15-2011
Muskoka Long  June 26-2011
Peterboro 1/2 Iron July 11-2011 - ??? 
Calgary 70.3 July 31-2011
Muskoka 70.3 Sept. 11-2011

Yikes!!  That's a lot of races although some races (???) would be either/or.  For instance, obviously I won't be running Peterboro Half and the Chilly Half Marathon the following week but I will be running one of them depending on how I feel and how training is going.  He also has me running the Sporting Life 10 km which I absolutely hate because its so crowded and its impossible to get any space.  Even though Yonge Street is completely shut down, it is a solid mass of runners from start to finish.

 

I'm In!

Around The Bay - Hamilton, Ontario. 

The oldest road race in North American, even older than the Boston Marathon.  I signed up.  This will be the third time I'm attempting this race.  The other two times, I didn't even make it to the start line due to injuries.  Last year would have been perfect as the winter was so mild.  This winter is supposed to be colder than normal.  Wonderful.  There is nothing more than I enjoy than going out for a 2 1/2 hour run in the middle of February.  I wonder what the temperature will be at that time of year?  This February it was zero degrees.  Perfect to run.  With my luck, next February, it probably be -30 with wind gusts of 30 km/hr.  Hello frostbitten toes and other frozen body parts!

This morning's workout was a 45 minute run.  Completely uneventful.  Yesterday's workout was a 61 minute ride on the bike while I watched a couple of more episodes of Weeds.  Totally uneventful. 

If I don't play hockey Friday night, I'll attempt one more outdoor bike ride Saturday morning as long as the roads are dry. 

As we head into December, I noticed with some of my fellow bloggers/triathletes, the level of activities and posting has dropped dramatically.  Tis the season.

Going Mainstream

You know triathlons are going mainstream when they're are featured in a TV show like the "new" Hawaii Five-0.

A cheesy storyline where four triathletes rob a jewelery store during a triathlon.  Apparently they used real athletes and a couple of pros.

http://forum.slowtwitch.com/Slowtwitch_Forums_C1/Triathlon_Forum_F1/Hawaii_5-0_and_triathlons_P3088674/

I tried to post a clip from the website but CBS blocks showing anything in Canada but found another site so if you have 42 minutes to kill or just fast forward to the last five minutes when the "action" takes place.

To get rid of the annoying ad, click on "close to play' button

Crap Swim

John P wrote about a crappy swim he had the other day and today I had one as well.  It was only 2,000 meters but it was a struggle to the end.  I did:

400 swim

9x50 0:10 (1-3 kick, 4-6 pull, 7-9 swim)
300 swim
300 pull (skipped the pull)
9x50 0:20 seconds rest
#1 breathe every 3 strokes
#2 breathe every 5 strokes
#3 breathe every 7 strokes
100 easy
2000 Short Course Meters

The thought of bailing around the 1,700 metre mark as John P's blog came to mind.  I hung in to finish but my form was pretty bad.  I was bagged from the night before.  I had a work function and didn't get home until 10 pm, had a couple of beers and then crashed but I woke up at 4 am and couldn't get back to sleep.
 
Tammy asked how was swimming when I got home.  I mumbled I was a "little" tired.  I can't really tell her how bagged I was if I plan on sneaking out for hockey tonight.  Worse case scenario, if I don't play, I'll ride tomorrow morning outside.  Hopefully the roads will be dry and it won't be as windy. 
 

2011 Races

Coach called today and we chatted a little bit about the goals for 2011. First race of the new year will be the Chilly Half Marathon on March 6, 2011 followed by Around The Bay March 27th and the "new" Toronto Goodlife Marathon on May 15, 2011.  That's a lot of fucking running!!!!!

While I'd be the first to admit that I am not built to run, its probably my better discipline of triathlons (which is really not saying a whole lot).  My biggest worry is if my legs can hold out.  If you remember that I had a lot of running injuries in December through to June of this year due to my orthotics being toast and the seat dropping on my bike which screwed everything up.  For 2010, I had minor issues with the hamstring and it flared up every once and a while.  If I'm going to be doing that much running, then its bound to be a problem.  I mentioned this to coach and we agreed to add more strength training as well as sets of specific exercises for me to work on.  Oh yea!

When I got to the pool this morning at 5:45, I noticed the parking lot there were a lot of cars there.  It turns out that the other pool is closed and the Masters swim club that I was swimming with earlier this year had moved over to my pool.  I saw several people there and they kept asking when I was going to rejoin.  I'm still undecided as one complaint that I have about Masters is that there isn't enough mileage and they mix in too many other strokes.  For instance, I swam about 2,500 yards today following one of the workouts posted on Slowtwitch.  I thought it was a good workout and while I'm sure there is lots of things that Masters can help me improve on, its whether or not its worth it.  I'll decide in January.

My Junk Is Frozen!!

I tried getting a couple of guys to go riding this morning but no one wanted to join me.  The weather wasn't that bad it was -1 degrees (Celsius) and with 20 km\hr wind brought the temperature down to -5 degrees.  I've certainly run in a lot colder weather but for riding, this would be the coldest.  I was really interested in how the new riding jacket would hold up.  The last couple of times I wore it, the weather was too warm and I was totally soaked in sweat.  Today was the perfect test so I wore:

1. Long sleeve running turtleneck shirt
2. leg warmers
3. winter running tights
4. riding shorts
5. two pairs of wool socks
6. one set of wool gloves and the lobster claw gloves over it
7. riding jacket
8. thick booties over the riding shoes
9. balaclava
10. sunglasses (not because it was sunny)

I felt like the Michelin man walking to the door but at least I was warm.

It was a struggle riding even though I was riding with the wind when I headed out as it was blowing south west.  I did the usual route straight up Mccowan Road until I hit Aurora road and then west until Kennedy.  Once I started south on Kennedy, riding into the wind, it was pretty strong.  As I headed back home, my toes began to get cold and eventually numb and by the time I turned east on Elgin Mills Road, I was riding straight into the wind where my junk was exposed.  I should have worn my running wind brief but thought the two layers of pants would be good enough.   Not quite, as I was in pain coming down the home stretch and even though the ride was only 1:15, I doubt I could have lasted much longer.

I've certainly run in much colder temperatures but when it comes to protecting the junk, there is no such thing as too much protection.  The new riding jacket was perfect but my water bottle had frozen and I started the ride with warm water.  Next week, I'll put hot water.

Tomorrow I'll try a short run and oddly enough the temperature has been climbing in the last couple of hours.  It will be about 10 degrees with rain by tomorrow morning when I run, which is better than the -20 degrees out in Calgary.  Suckers!

I think I found a new bike that I like.  It might take some time to get used to..........