Busy, Busy

Now that spring is in full effect, I have been very busy and have not had much time to organize my thoughts and update my blog. Also, I have not gotten nearly enough workouts in for the upcoming Duo in Fredericksburg. At this point, I probably cannot gain too much fitness before the race so I am not going to worry about it too much.

Last weekend was Easter. We enjoyed having my parents and brother John for the weekend. We had a nice time at church, enjoyed some good meals, and did some nice walks. Needless to say, I did not get to workout at all. I probably could have used the rest but I feel like I have been slacking off. In actuality I have been busy doing some yard chores and have had less time for a traditional workout. But these chores must be done. We have been preparing the garden and the yard for the bees. Melissa is picking up her bees this Saturday. You can read about her bee adventures on her blog at http://houseofbees.wordpress.com.

On Wednesday I was able to preview the bike course for the upcoming Duo. Myself and two friends went up to Fredericksburg to ride some of the trails. We did not get to all of them but we did enough to learn that the race will be very difficult. The run is going to be hilly and the bike is extremely hilly, twisty, single track with lots of log obstacles. Some of them are the kind that are angled across the trail and on the uphill. We really only rode a portion of the course so I am planning to go up again this Saturday to ride the other side of the course.

Earlier tonight I did manage to get my upper body strength and core training done. I pushed it hard and had a really good workout. I always feel really great after these workouts. I think I am satisfied with the hard work that I put in. In the past, I have always said that I would like to do more strength and core work but then never got around to it. But nowadays, I am super motivated to keep up with the core and upper body training. It is something that I have always neglected for as long as I can remember. In college I did some strength work in a physical education class but that was short lived.

Tomorrow is shaping up to be a long day. My plan is to get up and have a nice breakfast and then continue working in the yard. The section of the yard for the bees is complete. However, I still have a lot of leaves to remove before I can cut the grass in the back yard and side yard that is closest to the bees. I want to cut it short as I plan to only go back near the bees when absolutely necessary. I actually hate bees but I am going to try to overcome my fear. It is going to take some behavior modification tricks-something I know a lot about. But for now, I don't want to have to cut the grass near the bees for a while. I usually don't have to cut the back all too often. Hopefully I will be used to them by the time it needs cutting again.

After I finish up these chores including cutting the front yard, I will head out for my ride. I have to make sure I get back by 4PM so I can watch some of the Super Classico (Real Madrid vs Barcelona) before the bees show up. Then I will do my official job of shooting pictures and videos of the bees being installed. Hopefully some of the pictures will turn up on Melissa's blog.

One week until the race!

As the young people say, "It's ON!"

A while back I mentioned that I was considering an upcoming Duathlon in the Fredericksburg area. Since that time, the trash talk has been flying amongst my friends and bets have even been made. In the words of young people, "It is ON!" My friends and I are competing against each other with the loser buying the winner dinner. So now I have a new Mantra that I have been using in my training. My new Mantra is "Must crush Mario!"

Last time I mentioned that I did a 3 hour ride a week ago Saturday. I followed that up with a 2 hour trail ride on Sunday at a different park. I was pretty beat and was ready for the ride to be over for the last 20 minutes of the ride.

This past Sunday, I rode from my house to Poor Farm Park in Hanover county. It was about 18 miles of road riding to get to the park where I met up with Melissa, Rachel and Jeff who drove there. The four of us rode for about 45 minutes before Melissa needed to head home. Remember she had PRd the Monument Avenue 10k the day before plus she still had swim practice later that day. After seeing Melissa off, the three of us continued to ride for another 2 hours on the trails. My quads were definitely feeling it on the final climbs that we did. Rather than ride the 18 miles back home, I caught a ride with Jeff and Rachel back home. It was a really great bike workout and I was glad to get the miles in.

After I got back from the ride, I went to the grocery store to pick up dinner for the next couple of days and to reload my fruit supply. I was pretty tired when I got back but I still wanted to get in my PT. I managed to fight my way through all my PT exercises to further work my legs. After all that, I was truly pooped.

Monday brought big rain and even some local flooding. When I got home from work Monday I was tired and really just felt like taking a nap. But I knew I had to keep pushing it so I could get ready for the race. So I did all my upper body and core work followed of course by the fruit-protein powder-smoothie.

Today after work, I got a different kind of workout in. I mowed the grass and started working on the garden. We had some mint that was taking over the garden and we decided we better eradicate it. So I pulled up lots of weeds and old plants left over from last summer and went mint hunting. I filled up a trashcan with all the mint plants and roots that were living a few inches under the surface of the garden. I made lots of progress but we still have a lot to do on the garden to prepare it for the bees which are coming April 10th.

I still have a lot of training to do but there is not really all that much time between now and race day. Friday, I plan to boogie up to Fredericksburg after work and check out the race venue. I will ride some of the trails and see what exactly I have gotten myself into. I think I will have an advantage on my friends because I will get a sneak preview of the course. I still have not run all that much but I am working on it little by little. On race day, I will just give it my all and then be sore for a few days. Why not? That is what ice and Motrin is for.

This weekend is Easter so I won't get too many workouts in. My parents and brother are coming into town on Saturday. Sunday after church we will all go walk up an down Monument Avenue which will be closed to street traffic for Easter on Parade. It looks like the weather will be perfect for the event. I will likely wear my VFFs which will be good training in itself.

It is 2 and half weeks until the race. The countdown to the challenge has begun.

Logistical Mistake

Earlier today the 11th Annual Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K took place here in Richmond. As you all probably know, I am still recovering from knee surgery and have not really been doing much running. I am working on it and hopefully next year I will be able to run the race.

The Monument 1oK is a big race with over 39000 participants this year. The race is a fun spectacle with bands, cheerleaders, a dress up and run contest, lots of cheering spectators, and super organization.

This year, my wife's brother and son came to run. They had come once before a few years ago. It was really fun to have them stay with us and run the race. This year would have been my 5th 10K but instead I had a different job on race morning. It was cold this morning so the runners had to bring some extra clothing that they wanted to shed right before the start. I was charged with driving to the venue and hanging out with the runners and then holding their sweatshirts, etc during the race.

We made one big logistical mistake this year. We left the house too late and hit tons of traffic on Cary Street. I finally had to have all the runner get out and walk to the start while I sat in traffic waiting to get into one of the parking garages. Our nephew Chad was half way done before I even got parked. I had setup athlete tracking on the Sportsbackers.org website so I got email alerts sent to my Blackberry when my runners got to the half way point and when they finished.

After finally getting parked, I ran to the start and went looking for Melissa. I ran up and down Broad Street looking for the runners. I was slightly anxious because in my mind, I had fallen down on the job. I was picturing Chad giving his stuff to Dave and then when it was Dave's turn to run, he would give all the stuff to Melissa who was in a later wave. I figured they thought I would be there before Melissa's wave. I was imagining Melissa stuck with all this stuff and having to run with it.

Finally I decided I was not going to find her at the start so I made my way across the course and started walking up Monument Avenue. I figured I would walk towards the turn around point and try to wave Melissa down and take her stuff from her so she could at least finish the race without the burden of stuff. I got about a half mile from the turnaround when my Blackberry showed that she had hit the half way point in 33 minutes. Melissa was really cooking-running 11 minute miles. I stopped walking and started looking for her. But alas I never saw her and after a fair amount of time went by I realized that I just must have missed her. So I went over to a parallel road and starting jogging back to the finish. While jogging back, I got the email notice that she had finished the race in a record time. So I peeled off a few layers and picked up the pace. I estimate that I must have run about 3 miles or more in my search to find Melissa.

I finally found her at the finish area. I was so relieved. She had checked a bag with all of the runner's stuff. So she got to run unencumbered. And she PR'd. I was so happy for her. She looked great, had a smile on her face and seemed pretty excited about her result. Her hard work at Endorphin fitness, the University of Richmond Pool, and running around our neighborhood really paid off I think. Who knows what her next event will be. I am thinking that the more she does, the more fun she will have and I am very proud of her efforts.

For me, I ended up getting a little workout which will pay off in my own athletic endeavors. Tomorrow I am planning a jumbo bike ride from my house to Poor Farm. Melissa and our friends Jeff and Rachel are going to meet me at Poor Farm so we can ride the trails together. Then I will either ride home or take a lift from Melissa.

Putting in the Miles

Spring has sprung in Richmond it seems. We may still have a cold spell hit us but lately it has been super nice and finally drying out. The pollen count is high which has really got my allergies kicking. But I am enjoying this weather none the less.

On Wednesday, I was tempted to go for a ride but Wednesdays is my day to work my upper body and core. So I did a fast 2 mile run in my Five Fingers. I over did it a bit and my calves paid the price. More on that later. After my run, I did my upper body and core workout. I have really started to get into these workouts. Especially the post workout smoothie. The protein powder, fruit, and milk smoothie is a great motivator to work my muscles hard.

The next day I was limping along. When running barefoot, which is essentially what I am doing now, the calve muscles are engaged more so then when slogging around in shoes. Striking on the mid foot puts more strain on the calves and I should really work up to it gradually.

After work on Thursday, the weather was again super so I boogied on out to Poor Farm and did a hard 70 minutes of riding on the mountain bike. It was a great workout and afterwards I felt pretty good. Yes, I could feel it in my knees but it was nothing that some ice would not take care of.

On Friday, I was limping around work as my calves were still sore. That night I did my core and upper body workout again followed of course by the protein-fruit smoothie. We had a late dinner that night which of course puts me to bed later than I want but there was really nothing I could do about it.

On Saturday, I did not set an alarm and got up when I got up. I needed the rest. After my egg sandwich, banana and orange juice, I suited up for a long bike ride. I rode from my house down to the river which is about 10 miles on the roads in traffic. Then I rode all the trails and then rode back for a total trip of about 30 miles with about 10 on the trails. It was a pretty long ride for a mountain bike trek and I felt pretty good.

When I got home I worked in the yard for about 2 hours before heading out to dinner and then to Whole Foods to shop. Our cart was mostly full before ever getting out of the produce section. We got so many fruit and fresh vegetables. I just love the site of a cart full of fresh and nutritious food. Buying all this great stuff is the first step to eating right. We have gotten in the habit of eating better and it is really paying off. We both feel a lot better and have less and less cravings for junk food, soda, and other comfort foods. I don't feel like we are denying ourselves anything. On the contrary we are rewarding ourselves with proper food.

Now I am officially pooped.

Ups and Downs

It has been a while since I have had time to write. I have been very busy trying to exercise and do all the other chores of daily living. And of course there is work. If you think about it, we spend about one third of our lives at work and another third sleeping (roughly). That only leaves about one third of our day for all the things we want to do for ourselves plus all the things we have to do. Grocery shopping, laundry, cooking and cleaning, catching up with friends and family via phone calls, facebook, and email, reading books and magazines, and all of the other little things we do don't really leave us much time for exercise. Our modern life is filled with things that we need to do. Sometimes I actually just get tired and don't have the energy to write. And sometimes, I am waiting for something to inspire me-something new and interesting to write.

Since my last post, I have had some ups and downs. I have continued doing my PT about 3 or 4 times a week. I have also continued doing my upper body and ab workouts. In fact, I am starting to see and feel the results of my upper body and core workouts. My posture has improved I think and I feel stronger throughout my body.

Despite these positive outcomes from these workouts, I did have somewhat of a set back. On Saturday the 6th, I decided I wanted to do another ride followed by a run as I had done the previous Sunday. I rode for about an hour and then did just over two miles of trail running. This time around my left knee started bothering me afterwards more than it had in quite some time. In fact, the left knee felt much like it did before surgery. I did a lot of icing and the next day it felt a lot better. So I did a shorter but faster mountain bike ride that day. I felt ok during the ride but afterwards, the knee was complaining a bit. On Sundays, Melissa goes swimming with a swim team so I had time to myself for my PT which always helps my knee.

The next couple of days I was feeling a little down because my knee really felt like it did before surgery. The pain was not from the surgery itself. That pain has mostly gone away. My knees are a little tender and I still can't kneel on the ground but I can kneel for a few moments on the soft bed. Anyway, the pain I was feeling was exactly like the pain I had in the months leading up to my surgery. The only difference this time is I know what I need to do to combat the pain. I have to continue doing my PT, stretching, and icing. So that is what I am doing.

That said, by the end of the week, I was feeling a little better. The doctor said I would have some pain now and then and that I could control it with Motrin and ice. Of course I can't find Motrin anywhere since it was recently recalled. I have no idea when it will be back.

The following weekend was a washout. I did a lot of work on my trainer and worked on my core. When it rains it actually motivates me to do more core and strength training. There is nothing else I can do really since the rain puts a damper on things.

In a previous post I mentioned that I was looking forward to Daylight Savings Time. On this past Tuesday after work, I met my friends down at the river for a mountain bike ride. Before this ride, I had only ridden at Poor Farm. I love riding at Poor Farm but it does not really compare to riding at the river. The trails at the river are more technical with more rocks, twists and turns, and lots of elevation changes. It was supposed to be a "leisurely" ride but once you get five guys together down at the river, there is nothing leisurely about it. Sure enough we rode pretty hard. But I was able to keep up. Sure I was out of breath at the crest of some of the climbs but I was pushing the pace just behind my friend Mario for most of the ride. It was truly a blast.

After the ride, we were standing around the parking lot chatting when our friend Lee mentioned a race coming up in April that sounded interesting. Today when I got to work, I emailed Mario to ask about the name of the race. He send me the link to the race and I looked it up. It seemed doable and might be a good goal to get my more motivated. I sent the link to Melissa who also expressed an interest in doing the race. Throughout the afternoon, the trash talking between my friends was flying. I think I did enough to convince my friends to at least think about doing the race. I even was motivated enough to put together a training plan from now until the race. It is still not definite that we are going to do the race. We want to go check out the venue before we lay down our hard earned money for spot at the starting line.

The race is a Duatlon. There is a beginner and advanced category. The beginner race is a 1.1 mile trail run followed by a 6 mile mountain bike ride, followed by another 1.1 mile run. The advanced race is twice the distance 2.5 mile run/12 mile bike/2.5 mile run. The race is mid to late April. After thinking about this race all day and due to the really nice weather, I came up from work super motivated. Despite suffering from allergies and feeling like I should take a nap, I let my thoughts motivate me to overcome my fatigue. I did a 2 mile run in my Vibrams. But I also added some interval work on the second mile. After my run, I did my upper body and ab work.

Tomorrow I will see how I feel and start thinking more about doing this race. I am hoping to hear from the event organizers to see if we can go check out the course. So to summarize, I was up and then I was down but now I am back up again. We'll see how things progress. Thanks.

Gradual Build Up and New Exercises

In my last installment I mentioned that I did my first post surgery mountain bike ride on trails. I also mentioned that I felt a little out of shape and while I may not have mentioned it, I felt a little tentative also. That was Saturday.

On Sunday, I decided to go back to Poor Farm Park and do another ride. It was still kind of cold and windy but I have all the proper gear for such occasions. This time, I decided to also bring my running gear in case I got a wild hair and wanted to do a short run after my ride. Sunday's ride was much better than Saturday's ride. I felt more confident and stronger than on Saturday. I rode more hills, rode at a faster pace, and ended up with a longer ride. After my hour on the mountain bike, I put on my Vibram Five Fingers and went for a short run. I ended up with just over two miles of running. My running pace was slower than that first 1 miler I did on the road. Trail running always results in slower times. But I felt pretty darn good and was pretty happy about my workout. I also have started my gradual build up. I did about 40 minutes of biking on Saturday, and then 56 minutes on Sunday. Next time, I will shoot for an hour or more of riding.

After my workout, we made our grocery list and headed for Whole Foods where we stocked up for the week on healthy foods. Typically now I always make sure to get all my healthy snacks so that when I get hungry at work I have something good at my desk. I load up on bananas, oranges, and apples. I also have been doing fruit/protein shakes so I loaded up on fresh berries. I got all the popular berries. Straw, blue, black, and rasp. There is nothing like blending a small amount of milk, a banana, some straw, blue, black, and raspberries, some whey protein powder, some ice, and some chia seeds into a smoothie and having it as a post workout recovery drink.

After our trip to the grocery store, Melissa was off to the pool where she has started to do workouts with a group. I did the opposite. I actually took a nap. I had wanted to do some more working out but I guess my body had other ideas. After my nap, I did rouse myself and push myself to do all my PT exercises. It is important for me to keep up with my PT as I don't think I will be able to compete without staying on top of it.

On Monday, I did my upper body and ab workout. Recently I had added triceps dips and traditional bench press to my round of exercises. One thing that is nice about my upper body and ab workouts is that they don't take as long so I can finish up earlier and we can get started on dinner earlier.

On Tuesday, I emailed someone I used to work with at an old job to ask him some workout. questions. Nick is an accomplished weight lifter with National Championship awards. He has won the strongest man in Virginia award and is very serious about his workouts. In the strongest man in Virginia contest, they competition is pretty straight forward. Participants do bench press, dead lift, and squats. Whomever lifts the most combined weight wins. Nick's total weight that he lifted with the 3 exercises was 2000 pounds. Yes. That is not a typo, two thousand pounds.

Nick gave me some good advice for some exercises to add to my workout. I am getting stronger and had specifically asked him about whether I should get bigger dumbbells for my curls or get a curling bar. He explained the advantages and disadvantages of each pieces of equipment but also he told me not to forget about good old fashion exercises like push-ups and what not. I had been finishing off my round of weight lifting with push-ups on the BOSU ball but after hearing his advice, I realized there was a lot more I could do.

Tuesday was another night of PT but earlier tonight I added some things into my routine. I started with the dumbbell curls, then shoulder presses, then dumbbell flys, then some chest presses. Then I moved on to the triceps dips which incorporates your own body weight. Next I did bench press. None of this was really new but instead of waiting until the end of my workout to do dips, pull-ups and push-ups, I put them into the rotation. I do 10 reps on each exercise so after my bench presses, I did dips (not quite 10 as I struggled to get six), then pull-ups (2 and half maybe), and then 10 BOSU push ups.

I was breathing hard after this first set and I could tell that I was on to something. I did my second set and started on my third. About half way through my 3rd set, I started to tire out. This was another clue that I was onto something. I worked hard to finish my sets and I was even able to do 10 dips on my last set. But those last 10 BOSU ball push-ups were rough. When I was all finished, I was spent. While making my post workout smoothie, I noticed that the milk carton felt heavy and my arms quivered as I poured the milk. I was definitely onto something. This is the kind of workout I am looking for. I want to push my body hard. I feel like I accomplished that tonight.

Tomorrow is PT. And I got a new piece of equipment. I had been using two five pound ankle weights wrapped around one ankle to do my leg lifts. It was hard work just to get the one weight wrapped around the other. Earlier tonight, I picked up two 10 pound ankle weights so now I won't have to struggle with my five pound weights. Also these weights are adjustable which is a bonus. Let me just clarify that the ankle weights are not used to strengthen ankles. They are used to strengthen quads. Someday I will mock up some pictures and diagrams to detail all of these exercises. I will have to garner some help from a certain someone to help me take the photos.

Out of Shape

This past week, I decided I needed to set some short term goals and maybe a schedule. While the weekend is not over yet, I have yet to do so. I am still not sure exactly what I will be capable of in the coming months so it is hard for me to set goals. I have a long term goal of racing the Shenandoah 100 but I really don't know if I will be able to do that.

This past week I continued with my strength training but moved it from everyday to roughly every other day. In addition to adding some exercises to my rehab routine, I also added some exercises to my upper body workout. I have definitely gotten stronger since I started working my arms, shoulders, and chest but you would not know by looking at me. Not that my goal is to be a fitness model or anything but it is a nice validation to look in the mirror and see a few muscles.

I did reach another milestone this week. Last week I did a 1 mile run in my Vibram Five Fingers. My calves were really killing me for the next week afterwards. They were really tight and sore and with every step I took, I was reminded of that short little run. On Thursday, a week and a day after my 1 mile run, I put on the Five Fingers again and this time had a pleasant 2 mile run. The weather was cold and it was very windy. That part was not pleasant at all. But I ran with Melissa which was a lot of fun. I don't think either of us would have done it by ourselves but together we were able to knock it out. Melissa is training for the Monument Avenue 10K and is putting in a lot more mileage than I am.

Another positive thing about this 2 miler around the neighborhood was my calves did not hurt the next day nor the next. I did more stretching afterwards followed by all my rehab exercises so I think that helped. Also I tried a slight variation on my hamstring stretches that really made a big difference. Basically I copied a pose that I saw on the cover of a yoga DVD at the bookstore. I sat on a yoga block with my legs straight out in front of me. I put a strap around the bottom of my feet and then held the strap with both hands. To make the hamstring stretch even better, I pushed my elbows out to the side and upwards. Wow. That slight adjustment makes a big difference.

Milestone number 2 was my first mountain bike ride on actual trails. I have been riding my trainer and I have done some longish mountain bike rides on the roads around town but this was my first trail ride since I injured myself last year. I did pretty well. The course was pretty muddy in parts that made the ride quite a bit more difficult than if it had been dry. I mostly took it easy but there were some tough obstacles that I managed to make it over as if I had been riding all along. One particular one caught me by surprise and when I made it over the obstacle, I gave a little celebratory "YEAH!" There was no one else around so I let out a pretty nice scream.

One thing I did notice is that I am pretty out of shape. I do have pretty high standards but I could definitely tell that I was breathing harder than I usually would on the particular course I rode. But that is ok. I have been in this position in the past and think I can whip myself back into shape. But I am still not sure about the September race. I really won't know how fit I am until I ride with some of my fellow riders. I felt out of shape out there today. It is amazing how much harder trail riding is than riding on the road. Even though my average speed is much slower on the trails, I end up breathing a lot harder and heating up much more.

Tomorrow I plan to have a mega workout day. Since I did upper body on Friday, I plan to do another upper body workout tomorrow. I also have not gotten in a core workout in a number of days so I plan on doing that as well. Plus I want to get another ride in and it is time for me to do all my rehab work as I did not do any Friday or Saturday. That is a lot of exercising, probably 4 hours or more. And if I have time, I would not mind getting a short trail run in after my mountain bike ride. I am not really getting a good start as it is late and I should be resting up for my big day.

I may have time to do some extra core and upper body workouts next week as we are looking a the possibility of another snow storm that may keep the schools closed and me at home. Of course that means that we also have to stock up at the grocery store tomorrow. Actually we do that every weekend so that is really nothing new.

Finally, I heard that Erwan Le Corre will be putting out a DVD this summer. I am looking forward to incorporating his training methods. I will leave you with link to a video of Erwan "working out." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m61t3ObnSP0