Monday May 30th Workout

1 Lap around the park 1.2 Miles

5 ROUNDS OF...
10 Single leg hops on to the 1st step
10 Full Push Ups
10 Squat Jumps
10 Handstand Push ups (or pike push ups)
10 Sit Ups
10 Burpees

For time!

Post coments and time when complete and sign up as a follower please.

Have a great day

Paul

LAS VEGAS MARATHON 2012

LAS VEGAS MARATHON BABY!

Hey everyone,

It started as a suggestion early one morning at conditioning camp and it sounds like it has exploded into a group goal.

We were chatting about a group event that would be cool to do together and I brought up the Las Vegas Marathon. I have had a few clients do the event and said it was awesome. It was supposedly such a cool event that they wanted to return every year after.

Now most events start @ 7am and you are done by 9 or 11am (Depending on if you are doing a half or full marathon and your speed). This event starts @ 4pm for the full marathon and 5:30 for the half marathoners. You run down the fully lit strip with thousands of spectators cheering you on (are you in yet)?

This years race is December 4th and the early bird cost for the half is $130 and $140 for the full. Can you believe it? For only an extra $10 you can run a full marathon ;-)

This is a long term goal (14 months away from today actually) but a great way to get started and think about what you need to do to get there. The more people that we could get out the better it would be. Plant the seed and recruit friends and family.

I will be planning some weekly group runs to pump up the team. We dont want anyone waiting until 16 weeks out to start training (or 3-4 weeks like some people I know). Think about the results, gains, and fitness you can achieve by then.

Write it down and pin it up where you can see it "I WILL DO THE LAS VEGAS MARATHON (OR HALF) IN 2012"

The more you run it into that head and plan it the better the chance you will stick to your daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly goals. Start small and go from there.

http://runrocknroll.competitor.com/las-vegas

Are you in?

Paul

Back At It

Hey Everyone,

I am starting to feel better after Ironman Wisconsin. I was doing some fun workouts and races afterwards but have just been feeling flat. I felt like I didnt have that extra gear but now that I have a rough idea of what next year is going to look like I have started putting some plans and training into action.

I have put together a weekly routine that I will be following and changing my schedule accordingly.

I Have planned 3 Runs a week (Sunday long, Tuesday some speed work, and Thursday a medium distance run at a faster pace with some strides to remind the legs what it's like to run faster).

I found that running longer for me = running slower. To not have this happen again I must keep to my focused workouts and not slack on them.

I will be swimming 3 x a week 2 times with Triathlon Manitoba on Monday's and Wednesday's and 1 other session on my own or with Masters. Getting faster in the water is my goal for this year and know I will need to bump up my pool times to do so.

3 strength/Metabolic training workouts a week is also on the schedule. Monday, Wednesday & Friday along with some time for Yoga.

I am still out biking but not as much as over the summer. I am down to 2-3 bike sessions a week and the volume is a lot less too. I try to commute and take the long way or ride to training appointments but sometimes that doesnt always work out with my schedule.

Now is a good time to sit down and look at what you have going on and what you can fit in where...

Here is a cool video I found on YouTube... There is always good stuff on there.

Keep moving

Paul

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_2eU1ykV3k&feature=topvideos_sports

Get Motivated

(Me at the end of "Menocross" started 60th place, finished 1st. Not bad for a second time racing this sport. There was no drinking and dancing at the finish line).

What are you doing this fall to spice things up... I am not talking about candles and satin sheets. I mean with your workout routine.

Now is a great transitional time to try something new, set some goals, and step out of that box.

I have decided to try cyclocross racing and it has been awesome. Lots of suffering on the bike in a zone that you aren't normally used to and a lot of fun to boot!

I have decided to set some goals for next year as I am not going long for Triathlon. I know I can finish an Ironman. I have four under my belt and I know where my weaknesses are.

The goal next year is to go shorter and faster. What are my specific goals?

5k under 20 min

10k under 40 min

13.1 miles (half marathon) under 1:30

How will I get there? I will be doing some lactate testing on my bike and run to see what optimal zones I need to train in. Finding you proper zones is critical to training otherwise you could be doing too much and not getting a lot out of it. Once these are determined you can start planning your program (Base, Build, and recovery cycles). I will still be doing triathlon so the workouts will be very speed specific and always keeping in mind that I will have another session tomorrow and not to burn myself out.

I have been training long for 3 years now. When you are doing long distance and putting in high mileage its harder to do the speed work. Sometimes when you have the time and you do the body says "what the hell are you doing to me?" If you train faster to begin with and get the body used to it it wont be such a shock come race day. The goal is to not train slow because you will race slow.

Now I am just having fun with training and doing a bit of everything... Its nice to be free from a strict schedule (which actually wasn't very strict).

What are your goals?

Happy training

Paul

Tuesday September 20th Trail Run Canceled

Hey Everyone,

Due to today's constant rain (and an injury I sustained) there will be no run this evening at Birds Hill Park.

Normally I would still go and see if there were any brave souls that have chosen to come out and enjoy the trails but having finished an ironman just one week ago I am better off not pushing through a run and hurting my calf further.

Sorry for the late notice but I was waivering on having the run and chasing people on bike. The past few runs in the rain were solo runs for me anyways...

PLease post if you have any questions, concerns and coments. I hope to see you out next tuesday @ 6pm Birds Hill Park Stables.

If you decided to go and run anyways please let me know by sending me a pansy text or e mail :-)

Sleep it off

Hey Everyone,

Its amazing what some extra sleep can do for the mind and body. after bailing on my 2 workouts and getting a solid 7 straight hrs of sleep last night I feel great today!

After feeling terrible, sick, or run down its always a good idea to ease back into your workouts slowly. The faster and harder you come back the better the chance you are going to get injured or sick.

Keep in mind that fitness is a lifetime journey for a lot of us. Its not about how quick you can get there then fall off the wagon again. Take you time follow the plan and you will be there in no time... After being sedentary for 3, 5, 10, or 20 years is 2 years of hard work all that bad? Yes and no. Sometimes you feel like you are getting nowhere (thats when its time to change it up) or ask yourself if you are really doing all that you can do the meet your goals.

I hear people saying all the time that they have tried everything to get fit but it must be their body that just cant lose the weight... NOT TRUE!

1. Are you making a 100% honest effort to your goal/goals? Look in the mirror and ask yourself that. See what the answer is. Some times it changes when you look at yourself rather than just asking yourself.

2. Are you getting in your workouts? 2 a week isnt going to cut it... 3 a week is not going to cut it. If you want to get FIT you need to put in the work. That for most people is 6 days a week with one rest day.

3. Are you eating too much? How about enough? I always tell people "you can work out 7 days a week for 3hrs a day and not lose weight if you are still eating too much. Remember you need to create that defecit to drop the pounds. Sometimes you just need to tweak your eating habits other times you need a complete overhaul. Either way this is boing to be a big part of your success rate. You cant just start exercising and continue to eat crap. If you do you may still make some positive gains but just think about how much faster you can progress when you make the changes you need to now instead of 6 months after you start exercising. Sit down with a nutritionist or dietician and see what you need.

On the other hand if you are not taking in enough calories to support yourself (exercising or not) your body can go into starvation mode and keep what it has (fat/mass) or start to break down precious muscle tissue to supply itself with energy. You dont want to go this route.

With my Ironman training I am eating 8-9 times a day and am maintaining 165lbs @ 6'0" and a body fat percentage of 5% My eating habits stay close to the same all year around as I keep active all year around. The amount of food changes when my training volume decreases. You cant do less and still eat more and stay the same!

Yes you do tend to eat more when you are training more but you cant restrict yourself from taking in some extra calories to support yourself. If you deny yourself thos extra calories you are not fueling your body for the recovery it needs to take after your workout and before the next one.

4. Are you getting enough rest? Sleep is just as important as training. If you dont let yourself recover you are just letting yourself break down. The more you do that the more you are prone to injury and burn out. Rest can be sleeping, just laying down, sitting reading a book or relaxing in the hot tub. You need time to relax and recover.

Personally when I am done a long or tough training session (2.5hr Run, 5+hr Bike, Longer brick workout) I will take in some recovery food (mix of carbs and protein to start the rebuilding and regenerating process), take a shower, and the best part lay down for a nap 30-60min Once I get up from that maybe a light stretch and I feel like a million bucks.

Everyone recovers differently so find what works for you and plan it in to your day.

Keep Training

Paul

Check out this video 48hrs in the life of Tim Don a top level Triathlete. This guy is insane. Who ever said it would be great to train as an athlete full time?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BaDYnpTA2Y

Alive.... Just barely

Well its been a long time since I have posted anything. I am 25 days out from Ironman Wisconsin (Sept 11th 2011) . This has been a busy time for me as I have had a lot on my plate and blogging has obviously not been one of them.

Training has been going well but has its ups and downs just like everything. I have had a lot of other things going on like looking at buildings for a training studio, pricing out equipment for the building, making a business plan, working on a proposal for the building I like, working more than full time hours and training for Ironman.

I must admit that I thought training was going to go differently for this event. Sometimes we always see things clearly in our minds but they dont aslway come out like that when you live it out loud.

I have already been thinkking about goals for next year and weeknesses that I need to focus on. There are always things here and there that can be changed but I need to make them a priority!

I have already told Lorrie that next year will not have any full distance IM's because the training takes up so much time and energy. Now I should be swimming but felt run down all day and had trouble keeping my eyes open. Even on yesterday's group ride with the Wellness crew I closed my eyes a few time while pedaling down a straight away. You know when you come to a red light and just close your eues for a few seconds... Yes well I was doing that on a bike @ 30+ km/hr. NOT GOOD. This is my body trying to tell me something. When you body says "stop you are running me into the ground". You had better listen, especially when you are 3 weeks out form a big race.

I dont think I will make the time I had originally thought and will have to seriously re think doing another IM event in the future. I know there will be more but when? I will not be happy just doing them. I know I can finish it. I know I can qualify. All I need to do is give it my all. I have not been doing that to date.

Sometimes to get better at something you need to take a step back and analize what you are doing and where you are. As we age our training needs to change too. We have to be smarter with our workouts and training schedules, volume, and intensity.

Treat yourself well!

Paul

P.S. This is not me giving up. I am still goin to get out there and give it everything I have just like I have at any other event :-)