Dad's Birthday - 2014

Dad isn't big on celebrating, or even acknowledging, his birthday. Was lucky he even showed up at my office today. Not unusual for him to avoid attention. But, right on schedule, he peeked around the corner to see what was happening. Had a card for him. And a present. Nothing major. Just something to hold the skyrocket of loose bills he keeps in his pocket. Funniest part? He shook the box and said, "It's a Gerber?" Then couldn't immediately figure out that it was a money clip. And took him even longer to press the somewhat-concealed catch to release the blade. Neat little widget: Gerber GDC Money Clip. He seemed to like it. Hope hit makes him happy and he thinks of me on occasion when he uses it.

Happy Birthday, Dad. Glad to have you around for another orbit of the sun!

Finding The Problem

Second day of finding the problem, with Dr J. Yesterday's x-rays point to several minor issues: improper curve in the neck, shoulders aren't level, slight kink in the upper back, lower back too straight, and hips aren't level. The back issues could be causing less force to be properly absorbed in the upper body, thereby transferring it to the legs. The shoulders and hips are bringing up my right left, making my left leg absorb excess force. With two different problems there's no wonder my left knee is complaining.

Pretty simple plan: treat the back with standard adjustments. Treat the knee with stim therapy. Should be much closer to normal in 4 - 6 weeks. In the meanwhile, training shouldn't be affected. Other than the diminished running.

Electric stim was pretty wild. Muscle jumping uncontrollably. Fun to watch. Had no idea what was really injured until they lit me up. Some muscle or tissue deeeeep beneath the surface would holler like a banshee when the current hit it. Probing the knee manually doesn't reveal anything. But the electricity finds it. Then they get into a slobberknocker fight. Hopefully the treatment will get me back on the road.

Tune in next week to find out!

The 4HB "5K to 50K" 12 Week Program - On Hold

Completed Week 7, but too far off schedule. The issues with my left knee/leg aren't conducive to thousands of meters of sprinting. Or clean & jerks. Or jump ropes. Or much of anything other than swimming and biking, right now. And neither of those two activities are actually part of the official training.

So with a heavy heart, this initial at the 4HB Challenge needs to be cancelled. Have to fix this lingering issue. Then finish a 70.3 in May. And start back over.

For now, many of my my initial thoughts remain the same: the program is too difficult for the vast majority of people, involves skills most people have not developed, and the program is the furthest thing from making somebody "effortlessly superhuman."

But, if you can master the basic skills, and if you can stick to it, the program will make you faster. It certainly started to improve my sprints and my longer runs.

Will it have you prepared to run a 50K? Still not sure about that. Have to find out, next time.

In the meanwhile, if anyone has actually completed the whole thing, pleas contact me! Otherwise, there is still a chance Your Humble Narrator will be the first.

Don't Drown

The number one secret to being a successful triathlete? Don't drown. And not just at the race. Or the training. Or the details of coordinating everything. Or with the family. Or with the friends. Or with work. Or with any other facets of your complex and highly sensitive life. You have to keep breathing and fight your way through it with as much poise and strength as you can muster on any given day. And as long as you don't drown, you win.

Minor victory of the day for Your Humble Narrator: No damage in the left leg! After an early morning (and very cold!) swim, Dr. Kat checked out the wounds and gave me the thumbs up for further training. Just have to work on more stretching and strengthening the left side to be as strong as the right.

So mostly good news. Just have to re-educate my legs. Somehow. And we'll see how that goes...

Stupid Leg

So despite the somewhat-slow pace last night, my left leg did not do well this morning. Unsure of what hurts, though. Very weird. Moving onto my toes results in very pronounced soreness around my shin and deep in my calves. Much more aggressive levels of hurt than previously experienced after the Seaside Half Marathon. Smacks me as double odd that running less than half the distance creates significantly more unpleasant results.

Spent a bit of time lining up an ortho visit for tomorrow. First call: April 1st, almost two weeks. Second call: March 26th, one week. And then I get (of all things) a Facebook message with an offer to see me tomorrow at 1:30P. And that's the plan.

My own current theory is that the inserts in my shoes (for high arches) are not needed, because the shoes themselves already have support for high arches. And the double dose is negatively affecting my form during running, which results in extra stress and strain. Hopefully the doctor can confirm nothing is torn or damaged, and then we experiment.

More as it becomes available.

Pub Run - 03/18/14

Trying to remember my last run at the pub. Late January? Early Feb? Either way, just not the same without the alluring comfort of a cold beer afterwards. Not to mention the foodery is closing (again) and what remains is only passable. At best. So little to entice a nerd to get his run on. Except the company. The main draw is social. Since training solo sucks.

The run went okay. My first one since Seaside. Took it easy. 5 miles. 9:26/mile pace. Even with several breaks along the way. Would have been closer to 8:30/mile, without slowing. Felt good. Just tired from lack of sleep and too many wasps buzzing behind my eyes. Good starting point for the final eight weeks before my next 70.3 (in early May.)

The rest is just rust and space dust.

Saint Patrick Hates My Sobriety

Made the decision to stay away from Da Booze on February 1st. Been sticking firmly to that decision. 44 days!

But Saint Patrick hates my sobriety. He taunts me mercilessly. "Stop by the pub, Jon!" he says. 

"It's okay," he says. "You can relent. For one day. You will be forgiven." His hands form the Warding Signs. Soothing my nerves. Lowering my defenses. 

"Have some delicious corned beef. And drink these sacred green beers," he says. 

Mainly, it is the the cider which calls me. Not just the taste. But the calming embrace. The serenity. Softening all my edges. 

Thoughts of moderation begin to infiltrate my local philosophy. Just lapse for one day. My will is strong. Three is my limit. That will be okay.

But it isn't okay. Too many calories. Too many sugars. Too many carbs. Totally NOT worth the damage it will do to my training and healthy efforts. 

My brain knows the juice not worth the squeeze. 

But my heart needs its embrace. To hear its song whispered so softly in my lone good ear. Feel the warmth. The glow consuming me. Turning my outside in. 

(sigh)

Moderation isn't really moderation if the cider sings to you on a daily basis. Maybe my non-problem is a problem despite my protestations and claims of self-imposed moderation. Only way to know for sure is to maintain the sobriety. Stand on the wall. Shake my fist and scream into the night: Leave me alone, Saint Patrick! Sell crazy someplace else, we're all stocked up, here.

Road To Traditions 2014 - Week 6

The morning wasn't pleasant or cooperative. Several inches of water in the front yard. Tornado warnings. Thunderstorm warnings. Shakespearean skies. My weather app reported 60% chance of rain at 2PM. Not good odds. So RtT was officially cancelled for today.

The Brave & The Bold went out, anyway. Mostly team members: Luke, Lisa, Jack, Onnie, JG, Eddie, Allen, Meg, Jaci, Peggy, me, and more.

Top of the water registered 67 degrees. Probably closer to 63 on the face and hands and feet. Then, as we skirted the back stretch, several natural streams dropped it by at least 5 degrees. If not more.

Four laps for Ye Old Nerd. Roughly 2400 meters. A personal record, in the lake. First one was with the men. Second and third were escort missions for newbies. Last one was solo. They all felt good. And strong.

Rain threatened by the time we finished. Some folks ran. Some folks biked. Jon just left. Wasn't going to risk the weather. My luck, it would have gotten ugly.

Six weeks until Traditions. Looking like a record year.

Our values

Me: Thanks for picking up new shoes for me. Needed them. Have you seen these old ones?
She: (looking at the worn soles) Should have done it sooner!
Me: We couldn't afford it.
She: You could have just spent less on training.
Me: Rather have holes in my soles.

She?New stuff. Me? Health comes first.

And those are our values.

Pi Day 2014

March 14th. 3.14.. Pi. Liam says the school used to celebrate it. Not this year, though. So we had our own celebration. He and Bryce joined me for a brief jaunt over to Irish Coast Pub. Burgers and chocolate cake topped with candles 3 -  1 -  4.  No drinks or free shots  (not a drop for me since quitting on Feb 1st!) But some unexpected life lessons for the lads from a nearby table of mildly inebriated but terribly angry 30-something women who loudly and venomously disclosed their not-so-private thoughts about the value of my particular gender.

We'll have a bigger celebration next year. 3.1415!

The Recovery

The recovery of my left leg has taken longer than expected. Complications of age? Severity of the issue? (shrug) Rest. Ice. Ibuprofen. They are my friends as of late.

The tendinitis resulted from over-aggressive training and pushing personal limits too hard for too long. Should have iced it sooner. Didn't get enough advice soon enough.

The week after my half marathon, the ache migrated north, deep into the left inner thigh. It may (or may NOT!) have been aided by overly-aggressive Crossfit. Especially back squats. And lunges. Either way, very unpleasant and unexpected results. Further training wasn't advised. (And may not have been possible.) So Tuesday and Wednesday became additional rest days.

Greatly improved today, however! Two days of rest has all but eliminated the previous aches and pains. Tested the leg with a 17 mile spin and then a long walk. If it had not been bordering on injured earlier in the week, there would have been a run on the agenda. But no need to push my luck.

Current plan is a bit of a swim tomorrow. More ice and anti-inflammatory doses. Then a 5K on Saturday morning. Anything after that is open to debate.

AWOL

My Muse has been absent recently. No energy to write.  No inspiration. Nothing even remotely creative.

Most nights, after training, there is little left in the tank. My routine is usually: hang with the kids while eating, decompressing briefly on the sofa (often while catching up on the DVR.) read for about an hour, then sleep.

The thought of getting on the computer after work has no appeal. None. It borders on torture. The intention is there. But the spirit is not.

However, it is time to catch up. Get this cob-webbed ol' brain of mine decluttered. Can decompress some other time...

The 4HB "5K to 50K" 12 Week Program - Week 6 (Parts I, II, and III)

The 12 Week Program hit a speed bump for several weeks (likely to include this one.) What should have been the ACTUAL Week 6 was hampered by what turned out to be pretty severe tendinitis. Plus, the end of the week was for recovering before a half marathon. The following week was better, but not according to plan. And this (the third) week was off the plan, too, due to different pains in the same leg. Likely caused by over compensating from the tendinitis. Overall, a bad drag on the training. Hoping to get back on track starting this coming Monday, with Week 7.

Week 6 - Part I only had a couple of sessions in the gym, then three days of rest, ice, and ibuprofen.

Week 6 - Part II had a swim on Tuesday, Crossfit + running + rowing on Wednesday, biking on Thurs, and another Crossfit session on Friday.

Week 6 - Part III (this week) will be somewhat bare, too, due to recovery.

Week 7 will get started on Monday the 17th, and details will be forth coming on Monday the 24th.

Sorry for the delay and deviation from the course. But the injuries were not expect. Nor welcomed!

The 4HB "5K to 50K" 12 Week Program - Week 5

A strange thing happened on the journey through Week 5: it transformed into a week surprises, small victories, and multiple personal records.Significant progress. At last!

Monday started off with a bang. Not one, but three workouts. Lifting in the morning (which actually SUCKED because my brain wasn't all the way up to speed and the workout was half-ass, at best.) Then 18.5 miles on the trainer. And finally, some magical, amazing 200m sprints. Not sure whose legs were bolted onto  my waist, but my sprints have never (EVER!) felt so strong or fluid. Knees rising. Breathing well. Arms pumping. Right pace. Right timing. Everything just clicked and the average was somewhere south of 39 seconds each. A new personal record.

Tuesday was a long run. Nearly 10K. 54 minutes and change. Foggy and humid, it required several stops just to clean my damn glasses. But Peggy said she couldn't keep up. Rachel said it was great pacing me. And Nancy said she'd never seen me go so strong. Ended up last across the threshold, but mine was the longest run. But still an excellent workout. Lots of strength throughout.

Wednesday haunted me all day. The workout was supposed to be: 5 rounds of 100 double unders + 20 burpees. To me, not being able to do double unders (where the rope passes under you twice each jump) means you have to double the count, to 200. Coach Sara said otherwise. If you cannot do double unders, you TRIPLE the count. So my workout would be 5 rounds of 300 jumps + 20 burpees. My previous record on jumps was one round of 200. Thinking of 5 x 300 wasn't good. But Sarah said to do it. And it was done! Over 44 minutes from beginning to end! And 1500 jumps along with 100 burpees leaves an explosion of sweat on the floor. Once again, the impossible became my new reality.

Thursday had 17.5 miles on the bike. And helped one of the newbies with swimming. Don't miss the days when more than one unbroken lap was impossible. But do enjoy watching people improve. And pleased to know that people are finding a new appreciation of all my efforts across recent years. Saying you can do this is definitely not the same as doing it.

Friday was a rest day. Feel asleep late Thursday night, and then a massive thunderstorm at three in the morning wrecked me for all of Friday. But some rest was deserved.

Saturday was biking in Pass Christian. 19.6 miles. Except it was all spent sweeping the newbies in the rear, so that nobody got lost. Enjoyed helping folks and encouraging them. But it was not much of a workout for me. Thankfully the seat didn't destroy me.

Sunday. Wow. SUNDAY was so full of awesome that it could be a post all to itself. Started with a decent 1200 meter swim and concluded with an epic 15K run. Broke my previous training 5K record with a sub-27min run. Broke my previous 10K (of any kind) record with a sub-54min run. And likely completed my fastest 15K ever and fast pace ever at 9:18/mile for nine miles. The spirit was upon me that night! Never felt so strong or fast or full of energy.

Hopefully all of this is a good sign. Midway through the program my mind is changing about it. Didn't have much (if ANY!) faith in it before. Starting to become a believer, though.

Tim Ferris may end up getting a written apology from me on here...

Week Six will be weird because of family events and the Seaside Half Marathon, but it still won't be easy. Never is!

The 4HB "5K to 50K" 12 Week Program - Week 4

Week Four was great with only one notable exception. (More on that later.) The workouts remain fairly quick and clean. Few significant surprises.

Been sleeping so well that it borders on unbelievable. In fact Saturday's workout exhausted me to the point of getting 10 hours of sleep that night. Something that hasn't happen in many years.

Eating like a bear but losing weight! Pants fitting differently. Shirts fitting differently. Waistline dropping back down. All around: significant levels of happiness!

If it hasn't been said previously, please allow me to stress: DO NOT TRY THIS UNSUPERVISED! Your interpretation of the 4HB Challenge may differ from mine, but my reading gives me the impression that anyone should be able to do it on their own. That's so far from the truth that suggesting it  pushes the book towards the fantasy genre. Your Humble Narrator is fortunate enough to be wed to a highly trained medical professional. My power lifting is directly supervised by a trained professional. And all of my workouts are done in a controlled, professional environment. It continues to be my opinion that only people in excellent physical condition should attempt these workouts. At a minimum, each workout should be personally adjusted to your specific abilities, rarely taken at face value. Some of them are significantly beyond my abilities and have to be throttle back to more reasonable limits. Your mileage may vary, but consider yourself warned.

How about the specific workouts for Week Four? Here are the highlights:

• Monday - Front squats, one on the minute for 5 minutes, then deadlifts on the minute for 8 minutes. Really wild because my legs and back were terrible when starting the workout but felt 900% better by the end of it. Very doped up on adrenaline and awesome sauce after this one.
• Tuesday - 7 Rounds of 7 hang cleans + 7 handstand pushups. Brutal and sweaty and very barbaric. Wanted to crush my enemies before me after finishing.
• Wednesday - OH NOES! Totally craptacular run. Worst in many moons. Supposed to do 5 miles and could barely do 3. Very depressing and had to eat mac and cheese to cheer up.
• Thursday - 1200 meter swim. Hate to say this but swimming is nearly effortless, now. Perhaps my pace needs to increase? Not sure but did 24 laps without getting winded. Supposed to do Tabata Runs on the treadmill, but skipped it after the terrible performance Weds.
• Friday - 6 rounds of 5 power snatch + 200m rows. Quick and sweaty. Actually enjoy rowing!
• Saturday - Ladder! Deadlifts then cleans then floor presses. 1 round x 10, 1 round x 9, 1 round x 8, all the way down to 1. Took 22:48 and felt like two hours. One of the longest workouts yet!

Being a middle aged Super Nerd is not conducive to power lifting. Squats do NOT come naturally to me. My coach politely yells at me all the time. But it is getting better. And the mechanics are slowly becoming natural. There's literally a complex, very specific science to it. Thrust with the hips, shrug the shoulders, pull up but close to your body, don't pull too soon, don't pull to far out, just as your momentum stops... ...slip UNDER the bar, land with your knees out, land on your heels, land with your butt out, land with your chest up... and all of this takes place in a split second. If you have not grown up with it, it isn't pretty and it isn't easy.

But here comes Week 5!

The 4HB "5K to 50K" 12 Week Program - Week 3

Week 3 went far better than Week 2! Despite recovering from a half marathon, eight different workouts still landed on my schedule!

• Monday - Recovery super set of Kettlebells, dumb bell press, and chin-ups. 3 sets x 15 reps. But nothing crazy on the weights.
• Tuesday - 10 x 200m sprints (which were brutal) and 2 Good Mornings on the minute for 10 minutes.
• Wednesday - Rowing in the morning. In the evening: 5min of jump ropes, 5min of Turkish Getups, then 100 Hand Stand Pushups, separated every two minutes by 5 x Pendley Rows and 5 Hanging Power Cleans. 
• Thursday - More ROWING! in the morning. And a 2000m swim in the evening.
• Saturday - Deadlifts & Hand Stand Pushups: 21, 15, 9. 

Sunday was an Off Day, thankfully. Greatly needed it. With only ONE a week, they're like a Godsend when you finally get there.

The workouts are still mostly quick and (once you are used to them) not very complex. Being a middle-aged, frumpy nerd, my output isn't the same as a 20-something. But there is still a tremendous effort. 

Feeling stronger. Maybe feeling faster. (Springing is getting easier.) Hungry all the time. Popping Ibuprofen like candy. But sleeping better than ever.

Nearly 1/3rd the way into the program, as Week 4 beckons!

Dipped

Perhaps this secret has been shared previously. If so, here it is again: cold & hot, cold & hot.One of my favorite secrets to rapid recovery involves alternating long exposure between the cold dip and the hot tub. The dip is between 40 - 50 degrees. The tub is around 100 degrees.

Exposure to cold makes your blood seek refuge in your core and major muscle groups, going as deeply as possible to remain warm. Exposure to prolonged heat makes your blood go to your extremities and where your skin is the thinnest so that it can radiate the heat and protect your sensitive organs from thermal overload. Alternating between the two causes lots of awesome blood flow to your major organs and muscle groups, helping with oxygenation, repair, and helping get rid of inflammation.

Here's my current routine: Twelve minutes cold. Twelve minutes hot. Within six minutes of being in the cold, you're numb to it. "Legs? What legs?" Within three of four minutes in the hot, your muscles will unwind and there will be lots of pins and needles as the blood circulates through.

Repeat at least twice.

Do daily. Or as needed.

Thank me later.

Turkish

Challenging couple of days with strength & conditioning. Especially on the heels of a half marathon. Recovery workout Monday. Two sessions yesterday, including 10 x 200m sprints. Two more sessions today. Including something completely new to me: Turkish Get Ups.

Start on your back, face up. Hold a 28lbs (or heavier) kettle bell in one hand. Do not let it down as you do the following: Sit up. Come to one knee. Stand up. Kneel back down. Sit down. Lean back to get completely prone. Then switch hands. Repeat. Over and over. For five minutes. That's Turkish Get Ups.

Cleaned Up

Haven't really shaved since NoShaveVember. Three months? Longest streak, thus far. Cindy said she liked it. Though she wanted more gray. (?!) That certainly isn't going to be allowed to happen. Not interested in "salt & pepper." Or "looking distinguished." Though, Cindy reminded me a couple of times a week that she liked it. So I kept it through December. And January.

Anyway, three months was enough. For me. Felt like Cookie Monster. Or a geeky wanna-be Duck Dynasty reject. So it all came off tonight.

Feels good to be cleaned up. Maybe it will help with my swim times? Or run times!

Until next November.

The 4HB "5K to 50K" 12 Week Program - Week 2

Week 2 of the 4HB Challenge fell on bad times. Between irritating work projects and aberrant weather (ice in South Mississippi?!?) only 4 out of 6 workouts made it onto the corpse of my schedule. The workouts that did make it were great! Like the first week, they were over quickly (rarely more than 15min each,) and very exhausting.

The lone bonus workout this past week was a half marathon. No small task!

Week 3 promises to be significantly more challenging. Tune in next week for details and feedback.