Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Changing up the Survival Workout...

Monday, January 30, 2012
I’ve been dogging it lately regarding the Survival Workout.  I suppose dogging it isn’t completely accurate…my right forearm just below my elbow has been extremely painful when doing some of the routine and this has kept me away.  Since it never seems to get any better though, I took Marla through a full workout Saturday and returned today to have at it again.

I managed 90 push-ups to start, but skipped the log lift…something that has given me constant trouble with the arm.  Instead, I decided I’d do extra cardio/sprint activities throughout the course.  I started with 60 high skips down the trail and then turned from the trail and sprinted into the woods.  Leaping and dodging through trees and downed logs had my heart pumping and my senses alive for the next 60 seconds.  When I made it back to the trail, my heart was pounding around 170 beats per minute.  I jogged slowly to my next station…dips and then picnic table hops.  It was still icy, but I managed 60 seconds here before sidestepping up a steep bridle trail for two minutes.  I returned to the bottom and performed more lifts, but did another set of 60 high skips followed by a 50-yard sprint on an icy bridle trail. 

Getting over Clear Creek on slippery, ice-covered rocks was challenging, as well.  I made it to the swing set and climbed up the pole noticing that there was no pain in the forearm…then I came back down and found it.  Apparently lowering my body puts a strain on the muscle group that lifting me does not.  In any event, my climbing was through for the session. 

I did four more sprints and another set of high skips on my return to the car and managed a set of pull-ups on a tree branch without pain.  The movements that cause me trouble are very specific…which is good because I’m figuring out what I can’t do.  I had jogged between stations for most of the workout and found that the combination of the jogging and all the sprint and lower body exertions had left me more tired than I’d been on a Survival Workout since last summer.  It took an injury to get me to push myself in a different direction and the results were great.  I’d taken a workout that was getting maybe too easy and given it a makeover that had pushed to new limits.  I needed that.  Don’t we all.

Survival Workout: 60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100-150.
Calories burned:  600.

Hard to beat a hike with a happy dog...

Sunday, January 29, 2012
I started the morning with a 30-minute hike into and around the marsh with Dakota.  Our objectives were quite different.  She was looking for the perfect stick to chase…I was hoping to spot an eagle or two.  Neither of us achieved our objective, but both of us enjoyed the journey.

The thermometer hovered in the low thirties, but it was January and the sun was shining as we crunched our way through open meadows to the marsh.  I know it’s still a bit early for antlers to be dropping from the heads of the whitetail bucks, but I was looking down as much as up as I walked.  Dakota just runs back and forth, sniffing and listening, bounding and pooping and always wearing a smile.  I don’t think a person could be any happier than she is anytime we’re in the park.  Anyway, I made my way to the marsh armed with my high-powered binoculars and my camera.  I combed the trees on the edge of the marsh for 20 minutes, seeing only a red-tailed hawk for my efforts, but completely enjoying the serenity of the morning on the marsh.  It remains partially frozen, but there was no activity of any kind…including an absence of water fowl, which is quite unusual.  I managed a couple of nice pictures of Dakota searching for eagles…or beavers…or most likely…sticks…but could only spend a short time since I needed to pick Jack up from his baby sitting job at the church.  Though I’d spent less than an hour in the park…as always, it was time well spent.

I returned to the trainer and the summit of Everest.  The 71-year old climber from Japan began his final ascent at 1 a.m. in the morning from the final base camp at 26,000 feet.  He was monitored closely by a Japanese guide and a Sherpa each step of the way and made it to the top…slowly.  After only 30 minutes on the peak, he needed to return to base camp and the essential oxygen bottle refills that waited there.  His round trip took over 18 hours of steady hiking…always in his heart rate’s training zone…or, to put it another way…always working extremely hard.

I admire what the people on the expedition teams are achieving…climbing to the highest point on the planet.  And yet, they all are more than willing to acknowledge that what they’ve accomplished could not be done without the constant assistance of the Sherpa’s.   These incredibly acclimatized men string safety lines over the final six miles of the trail to the summit, install ladders where essential, put up tents at the five camps above the main base camps for overnight acclimatization hikes, lug all the oxygen bottles, food and other supplies, and do the cooking and cleaning.  From what the show details, I’d say all the members of the expedition climbing team do is hike…and wipe their own butts.  There are other ways to climb Everest…without Sherpa’s…but I don’t know what percentage of the people who summit Everest actually do this.  I can assure you from watching this program that the body count…210 dead through 2007…would be much higher without the Sherpa’s.  Maybe not…because the people they aid would never get near the summit without them.  Anyway…I know it’s not for me.  I want to do what I do without assistance …or spending $40-60,000.  I’ll stick to the amazing views I can get driving eight hours to the Adirondacks for the price of a tank and a half of gas.

Bike Duration:  90 minutes.  Hike duration: 30 minutes. 
Trainin Heart Rate: 120 cycling, 80 hiking.
Calories burned during workout:  1250 biking, 150 hiking.

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Marla Zwinggi does the Survival Workout

Saturday, January 28, 2012
Marla Zwinggi, Editor of Ohio Sports and Fitness, has been talking about doing a piece on the Survival Workout since we first met.  “You really need to do the workout first,” I’ve told her…and she keeps saying she will…but I’m not getting any younger.  Finally, I convinced her to join me and she showed up in my drive ready to go Saturday morning.

We arrived at my starting point and I gave her a brief explanation of what we’d be doing…and how hard it might be.  The trails were sloppy and semi-frozen with a couple of inches of new powder from an overnight dusting.  I told her boots were an option, but we both chose running shoes…our first mistake. 

I told her to start with push-ups.  “I can do regular push-ups, John.  How many should I do?”

Now…I’d already said everything is “too exhaustion”, but I know from being with her before, comprehension is a problem.  “Until you can’t do another one,” I said as I began to rip them off.  She dropped down and began counting, but as she approached her exhaustion point, started making some weird, high-pitched wheezing sound.  I chose to ignore it…for now.

I moved to my rowing log and after completing 15 lifts, let it thud to the ground.  “Can I try that?” she asked.

“You can try anything…once,” I said “but you’re not going to be able to move it.  I’m a beast, you know.”

She gave me a ‘I’m not a girl’ look and bent over to give it a try.  That ‘noise’ came from her gritted teeth…but the log stayed where I’d left it.  I promised I’d find her something she could lift at our next stop. 

She was game for everything and filmed many of the moves.  We did high skips, dips, overhead press with rocks and logs and she never complained…not that I thought she would.  She has a long history of distance running…and runners are not wimps.

“Let’s do some picnic table hops,” I said as I brushed the snow away to evaluate the slipperiness of the bench.  It looked okay, but I went first to be sure and found that the grip was good.  After sixty seconds, I leaped down and turned to her.  She approached with trepidation.

“I…I…don’t think I can do this,” she said, a little panic in her voice.  Sometimes I push people…sometimes I don’t.  I size up the person and the situation and determine whether I think they can safely do something.  She was clearly afraid…but I KNEW she could do it…and I pushed her.  Once up and over the first time, she seemed to relax…a little…and continued with some of the worst example of bounding I’ve ever seen.  I didn’t have the camera on her and she wasn’t willing to let me film her trying a second time, though I think she surprised herself with how well she did once she got going.   She would later admit that this was the toughest part of the workout.

We karaokied three quarters of the way up a steep hill and walked backward up the last 50 yards.  I was ahead of her and had to constantly warn her not to walk into the ditches on the side of the trail.  People come with all levels of training to the workout…but I don’t normally have to teach them how to walk.  Marla was…well…special.

When we arrived at the swing set and found it covered in wet snow, I knew climbing the poles was out, but as I cleaned my swing, she followed suit.  She was ready to sit on hers when I stopped her.  “Did you really think we were going to be swinging as part of the Survival Workout?” I asked.

I hooked my feet on the swing and placed myself in the push-up position.  I brought my feet forward towards my chest and raising my butt in the air, finishing the move with a push-up.  She tried…and loved it.  “Wow…can I feel that in my abs,” she said after doing a dozen.

Clear Creek was in our path and the water was running high…and cold.  The rocks were protruding…but not by much…and were slippery.  I went first, finding the high spots on the rocks and getting my feet wet…but not soaked.  Marla followed…but seemed to be clueless about looking for the high points.  Her feet were submerged, wet…and cold.

We did some sprints across the field as we approached the car and I aided her in some chin-ups on the tree branch before punching out our final set of push-ups.  Exhausted, she suggested I start the car.  “It could warm up some so I could dry out my feet…and that would be the nice thing to do.”

And that would have been the nice thing to do…but completely out of character.  “Quit whining.  Get in.”

We returned home to some fresh baked pinole.  She asked me about it and I mentioned again the book ‘Born to Run’ and how I’d suggested she read it.  Of course she hadn’t yet…and probably wouldn’t.  “I really don’t read, John,” which kind of had me wondering…she was an editor, and all.

“Are you going to be putting this in your blog?  You better be nice to me,” she said.  And I have been.

I managed another 90 minutes on the bike later that day and combined with the first full Survival Workout in over a week, I was quite exhausted by the end of the day.  As always, I work harder when I’m with someone and I was feeling it.

Survival Workout: 90 minutes.  Bike duration: 90 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100-150 for SW and 120 for the bike.
Calories burned:  750 for SW, 1250 for the bike.

"I...don't...want...the CAKE!"

Friday, January 27, 2012
I’d have been better off wearing water skis on the trails for my run.  The snow and ice was gone…melted…but they’d left behind a soupy, muddy slop that was difficult to run in.   Having no chance of coming through with dry feet, I plowed through some mud and got it over with early.  I’ve found that if I take my shoes and socks and stick them by the vent in our entrance, they’ll be dry in the morning and offer a sweet fragrance to the air downstairs while they’re drying…so get wet.

I have been making sure all my runs pass the marsh at some point, continuing to hope for another eagle sighting.   I met with failure on this run…but I still love running anywhere around that marsh since it always has something to offer.  My plantar bothered me for the first 10 minutes, but the remainder of the run was pain-free.  I finished in 40 minutes and could easily have done more, but elected to go easy on the feet and put in some ride time on the trainer instead.  I came home and put in another 45 minutes before getting a reminder from Holly that we had a surprise birthday party we needed to attend.

I know these things can have all the wrong kinds of food and that if I don’t do something pre-emptive, I’m going to eat poorly.  I loaded the blender with a banana, pear, blueberries, strawberries, yogurt and apple cider, and blended myself 32 ounces of a stomach-filling smoothie.  We went to the party and when I moved through the buffet line, I wasn’t even tempted by the pizza and sausage-stuffed mushrooms…which I would have devoured without the smoothie.  Later that evening when the birthday cake was cut and portioned, a woman at our table tested my metal by offering to get me a piece about six times.  I suppose some people are uncomfortable eating dessert when someone sitting across from them isn’t, but there are so many people trying to lose weight, that I can’t imagine trying to make a grown adult eat something they clearly don’t want.  I told her if she asked me again, I was going to push her face in what was left of the cake.  She backed off.

 Okay…maybe I just ‘thought’ that last part.

Run Duration:  40 minutes.  Bike Duration:  45 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 140 running and 120 cycling.
Calories burned during workout: 675 running and 625 biking.

Climbing Everest at age 71...

Thursday, January 26, 2012
I suppose many of you know I read the book ‘Younger Next Year’ recently.  Co-written by a guy in his 70’s, the book emphasizes that the human body can maintain much of its fitness and strength well into our 80’s if…and only if…we continue to exercise six days a week.  Though I had no intentions of stopping, this book surprised me with the evidence it offered on the potential to maintain levels so close to our prime years for so long.  Personally…I just want to be active for as long as I can.  I don’t care about living longer…though that would be okay…but I always want to be ‘in the game.’  Right now I am and I intend to continue…and maybe ratchet it up some.

And so I’m riding my trainer and watching another episode of ‘Everest: Beyond the Limit’ when I discover that a member of the current team is a 71-year old climber from Japan.  A year earlier, he had summited a 26,000 foot peak in the Himalaya’s from where he could see Everest.  He descended with a determination to summit Everest the following year, not knowing that if he succeeded, he would become the oldest man to do so.

I’ve been watching this series for some time and having a reasonable understand of the physiology required to make this ascent and  think it rather amazing that he was even considering it.  Yet…he’d done 26,000 feet at age 70 already!  This is a man that does not feel he has limitations based on age…only conditioning.  I want to be this gentleman when I’m in my 70’s, and really believe I can be so long as I continue to do what I’m doing without thinking that I have any limitations based on age.  It’s a state of mind…backed up by the willingness to just get out and do it.

Bike Duration:  90 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 120 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 1250.

Friday, January 27, 2012

Running the Marathon...or not

Wednesday, January 25, 2012
As a columnist for Ohio Sports and Fitness Magazine, I’ve been charged with writing informational and entertaining pieces on running.  Specifically, I’ll be concentrating on the Cleveland Marathon for our April/May edition, which makes sense since I’ve done fitness tests and designed programs for 8 participants selected by the magazine to run in the event.  It got me to thinking about my own marathon experiences…all painful, bitter memories.

The Revco Marathon was reasonably new in 1978, the year I decided to return to running.  I hadn’t run consistently since my last year of high school five years previously, and was working for the Cleveland Athletic Club where I had easy access to weights and food.  I had a plan to gain muscle mass by lifting and eating a pound of prime rib each day.  I gained mass…but it wasn’t all muscle.  I was in denial until I decided to go out for a run one day and struggled to keep an 8-minute pace for a few, lousy miles.  Another employee of the club was planning on running the marathon, and I decided I would join him.  I began my running plan with three straight days of 8 mile runs…24 miles in three days when I hadn’t run consistently in five years.  I ran in a pair of U.S. Keds tennis shoes…and had a very sore knee…by the end of the week.  I quit the quest for the marathon, but did enter and complete the 10K in around 44 minutes.

I’d caught the running bug again though, and continued to run over the next few years, entering road races of varying distances up to the half marathon, but specifically avoiding the marathon.  When I did visit that distance again, it was in 1983 in Cape Cod, but was after having swum 2.4 miles and ridden 112.  And it sucked.

I completed another marathon as part of the Iron Man triathlon the following year, but had still not run just a marathon successfully by 1988 when I entered the Columbus Marathon.  By then I had earned my Master’s degree in Exercise Physiology, trained hundreds of runners to meet their running objectives and had an excellent idea about what kind of training should be done to be successful at that distance.  I ran the right mileage, built up my long run appropriately, had my body fat down under 7%, tapered race week and ate the right mix of carbohydrates so that I’d have the energy and the right hydration to have a successful race.  And things went really well…for about 20 miles.  I was cruising at just under 7-minute pace when the wheels fell off…I hit the wall…and slowed to around 10 minutes per mile for the remainder of the race.

And that was the last time I attempted to run 26.2 miles.  I’m just not built for that distance.  My high sweat rate makes it practically impossible for me to be competitive at events that take so long to complete.  If I don’t get sick on race day, I’m sure to get sick somewhere along the way during training.  I’ve also found that I am much more susceptible to running-related injuries when I run on hard surfaces…the roads…as compared to the dirt trails of the parks. 

So, I’ll write about them…but I won’t do them.  I’m writing this as much to remind myself as anything else.  My running has been going strong lately…my foot pain is diminishing since buying the new shoes…and I don’t want to start having stupid ideas about returning to the roads.  I was able to run 45 minutes last night…my first back-to-back run days in a long time…with almost no pain.  A man has got to know his limitations…and when it comes to running…I know mine.

Run Duration:  45 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 140 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 750.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

The Babysitter

Tuesday, January 24, 2012
I’m kind of the point person for scheduling any of my children’s babysitting responsibilities with my next door neighbor.  She has my cell phone and likes to text…so I get the messages and am asked to pass them along.  I really don’t mind and had Jack set for going over later that night to deal with their 6-year old daughter and 9-month old son.  Then Jack got sick.

They couldn’t find anyone on short notice and she sent a text pleading with me to help her out.  Like Chris Perez coming from the Indians’ bullpen, I told her I would, and notched a ‘save’.  I was a little concerned though, because it’s been about thirteen years since I’ve done anything beyond smelling a dirty diaper…and I was going to be on my own for four hours.  I told her I could make it by six.

I had to get in a run, at least.  I went to the park knowing it would be short…and therefore fast…if I was going to feel like I’d done something.  The trails were clear again, though some ice remained where there had been the heaviest foot traffic.  Other than these small patches, I was able to run fast and hard and returned to the car in a little less than 30 minutes with what I thought was a good workout.  I did look overhead as I drove to and from…but saw no signs of my eagles.

I hurried home, showered, and ran next door in time to hear how to make the formula, where the diaper bag was, and that Sammie was into everything so I’d have to watch him constantly.  Now…I’d raised…well…I’d been around…my four children as they’d gone through this stage where everything goes into their mouths and I always thought watching them was way over-rated.  “Wait until they try to swallow it…then I’ll do a Heimlich on them,” had been my motto.  I should have mentioned this…that would have gotten me out of babysitting.  Anyway…I watched.  I also had to play non-stop with the 6-year old…she thinks I’m like this giant Sponge Bob that was placed in her house for her enjoyment…which really added to the workout and challenged my limited ability to watch an infant.  Mom returned at 8:30 p.m. to a baby without a messy diaper that hadn’t found anything to swallow…and an exhausted neighbor.  My first taste of being a grandparent convinced me that there needs to be two at all times.  And I’m giving her Jack’s cell phone number for future engagements.

Run Duration:  28 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 150 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 475.

Forks over Knives

Monday, January 23, 2012
My daughter Heidi has become what you might classify as ‘a health nut’.  She is particularly sensitive to eating habits...going organic and now considering becoming a vegan.  She was particularly influenced by the documentary ‘Forks over Knives’ and asked me to watch it with her…which I did.

In their own words…they have a web site…Forks over Knives examines the profound claim that most, in not all, of the degenerative diseases that afflict us can be controlled, or even reversed, by rejecting animal-based and processed foods.  The documentary focuses on the research in this area of Dr. T. Colin Campbell and Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn.  Campbell is a nutritional scientist at Cornell University and Esselstyn is a surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic.  Both are highly respected and their message is thorough, well-researched, and sensible. 

Jack was watching too, and wondered if he had to stop eating meat…now.  What I didn’t feel they did particularly well was differentiate ‘meat’.  All animal-source proteins are considered equal…unless otherwise noted…and they weren’t.  I’m not a nutritionist, but having done considerable reading and worked closely with one, I do know that the fat content of your average Big Mac is slightly different than a lean piece of turkey breast.  As someone trying to follow the Paleo Diet, I feel like I’ve met…and exceeded…much of what ‘Forks over Knives’ is all about…but lean meats and their attributes are part of my diet. 

I also wondered about the glycemic index as I watched the show.  They made constant referral to type-II diabetes, but encouraged all kinds of grains, legumes, breads and pastas, which, to my understanding, can have a significant impact on the glycemic index and thus type-II diabetes.

Though the documentary was focused on food and the ability to live healthier lives through eating, I would contend that many of the illnesses they determined were impacted by food choices…diabetes, heart disease, blood pressure, and obesity…are also factors of the lack of activity or exercise in the average American’s daily routine.  No mention was made of exercise and its potential impact…maybe they didn’t have time…but it’s a huge omission.  Still, though I’m not going to become a vegan, I concur that those who do can’t go wrong.

I was beginning to drag, both physically and mentally, as I pondered the workout for the day.  I came to the realization that I’d exercised 17 straight days with eight of those being doubles (two different workouts in the same day).  I don’t like to go on streaks and normally have a day off every week to ten days, so I needed it…and I took it. 

A pair of Bald Eagles

Sunday, January 22, 2012
I’ve been fortunate enough to have seen Bald Eagles in the wild on numerous occasions, but it never ceases to thrill me to see them soaring overhead.  I was driving to the park for a hike with Dakota when I noticed one heading over the park off Rt. 91.  Most of my spotting of eagles in the park has been at the marsh along Chagrin River Road just south of Wilson Mills…so that’s where I headed. 

Dakota hiked in a little ahead of me and when we got to the marsh, I began searching the skies…but to no avail.  Still…it was beautiful there.  The marsh had frozen over, though hardly strong enough to support my weight and so I simply sat and observed the snow blowing across the ice.  A few minutes passed when my ‘your being watched’ sensor started tingling.  I looked across the ice at the many dead trees still standing in the marsh…and then I saw them.  A large female (they’re bigger than the males running about 36 inches tall and with wing spans of 7 feet) was sitting on a limb with a smaller male at her side.  I’ve never seen a couple before…and I gaped.  They could probably see me looking stupid from their perch about a hundred yards away…they have ‘eagle eyes’ after all…but I bored them – or more likely…concerned them…so they flew to the far end of the marsh and again found a perch.  And there I sat…cursing myself for not having my camera…but thrilled to have seen a pair.  I texted four or five people who would appreciate the news and called Holly…who wouldn’t.  Her famous line was repeated, “they’re just birds, John.”

But they are so much more...and she really knows it.  After doing a little research when I returned home, I discovered there is a nesting pair on the Chagrin River...somewhere around the point where Chardon Road crosses the river in Willoughby Hills.  This may have been the pair I spotted...and it may have been a new one with a nest as yet undiscovered.  Their nests, to which they return year after year, can grow in size as they add to it over the years (they mate for life...like 50% of Americans) and get as heavy as 2,000 pounds.  The pesticide DDT, used to fight insects invading crops, had almost been their demise.  The chemical would find it's way into the streams and the fish upon which the eagle fed and caused their egg shells to become so brittle as to keep the chicks from hatching.  There was only 500 pairs left in the lower 48 states in 1972 when the chemical was banned.  Today, it is estimated there are over 5,000 pairs...200 in Ohio...and so our chances of seeing this most magnificent creature soaring the skies of Northeast Ohio are quite good...if you know where to look.

I went home to put in some time on the trainer and managed another 75 minutes while watching another episode of ‘Everest.’  The more I watch, the more certain I am of the lunacy of attempting this peak.  I cannot imagine any satisfaction if I had to traverse a route littered with the bodies of those that had failed in their attempt. 

I returned to the park later in the day with Heidi and my camera.  We went directly to the marsh, but were not fortunate enough to see the eagles again.  Heidi knows they’re more than birds and she wanted to see them, but mostly just to make me happy.  And it did. 

Dinner was something horrible…but delicious.  We had hot dogs rolled in Anne Ann’s dough and baked.  This meal would not be complete if not complimented with chocolate milkshakes…which I made with Ruggles ice cream.  I made some green beans, mushrooms, onions and spinach which I sautéed in olive oil…and ate instead of the potato chips…to compensate for the over abundance of fatty calories.  This led to the watching of the documentary ‘Forks over Knives’ which I’ll get into tomorrow.

Bike Duration:  75 minutes.  Hike duration: 60 minutes. 
Training Heart Rate: 120 cycling, 80 hiking.
Calories burned during workout:  850 biking, 200 hiking.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Four different workouts

Saturday, January 21, 2012
I started the morning with my first real snow shoveling workout.  There was about four inches on the driveway, but two feet plowed into the bottom.  I turn it into an aerobic workout by pushing fast and steady.  My neighbor had half his driveway done when I started and so I decided I’d hustle, get mine done and then go help him finish his.  I was sweating when I arrived at the bottom of his drive to help him finish and then shoveled out the bottom of the neighbor’s drive between us on my way back home. 

Since I was already sweaty, I jumped in the car and headed for the park and a run.  The trails were still snow packed and with the frigid conditions, I again found myself alone.  I started on the bridle trails and was having great difficulty with the footing.  This didn’t matter to me though, because I could tell my heart was pumping hard as I tried to maintain balance and manage any kind of speed.  I suppose I was running about two minutes a mile slower than I would normally, but when I checked my heart rate, it was 10 beats higher than usual. 

I’d decided to run a longer course, thinking I’d likely go more than the 50 minutes I’d run last week.  As I progressed on the course though, I could see that I might be closer to an hour before finishing.  I passed the sled riding hill and found the only other people using the park.  By the time I was approaching the car, I could see that I’d have around 56 minutes of running, so I passed it by and added the time I needed to get to an hour.  Later, I would check my log to find that it was the longest I’d run since October of 2010.  My legs are healthy and though my left foot is a little sore, it seems to be getting better since buying the new shoes.

I came home drenched, but cold.  I’d worn a short-sleeved t-shirt with socks covering my hands in 20-degree weather, and sweated like it was July.  I quickly climbed on the bike and put in another hour watching Everest: Beyond the Limit.  There was a particularly disturbing section when one of the climbers on the team the show was covering, came upon a person huddled under a rock at 27,000 feet.  In radio contact with the Expedition Leader, he asked what he should do to help the climber.  He offered oxygen, but the climber was too far gone to get up and walk and was slowly freezing to death.  Whatever team he’d been climbing with had left him there and offered no support in getting back down.  He would die later that night.

I suppose everyone that climbs on Everest knows the chances they are taking.  Over 200 people have died in the attempt and in many places, their frozen bodies can be seen by the climbers making their way to and from the summit.  It is an inhospitable climate where man was not meant to be.  The climber who had summited and then had to leave the helpless man to die, was devastated when he returned to base camp.  I’m sure the knowledge that he’d left a living, breathing fellow human to die will haunt his dreams for the rest of his life.

After the ride and a shower, Holly and I headed back to the park for a hike through the snow.  By now, my legs were spent and I was having difficulty keeping up any kind of pace for the 45-minute trek.  I’d burned more calories during the day than I had in months, but it wasn’t long before I was shoveling them back in.  I went to Pizzazz and picked up a Sicilian calzone…which is delicious and fattening.  Ah well, I’d done four workouts through the day and figured I deserved it.

Run Duration:  60 minutes.  Bike Duration:  60 minutes.  Hike duration: 45 minutes.  Shoveling: 45 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 150 running, 120 cycling, 80 hiking, 120 shoveling.
Calories burned during workout: 1020 running, 850 biking, 200 hiking, 500 shoveling.

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Louis Zamperini...a real American Hero

Friday, January 20, 2012
I thought I was pretty well read when it came to American runners…but clearly…I’m not.  I picked up the book ‘Unbroken’ written by Laura Hillenbrand, about the amazing story of a true American hero, Louis Zamperini.  The dust cover said he was an Olympic runner, had spent 47 days on a life raft in the Pacific during WWII and over two years as a POW.  It was enough for me to want to read it.

I love the way Hillenbrand writes…she did a phenomenal job telling the story of Seabisquit, which was made into a movie…as it appears the Zamperini story will.  He spent his early years brushing up against the law, but his older brother…a high school standout in the mile…convinced him he should try running.  He went on to run the fastest scholastic mile ever before finishing high school and managed…at age 19…to qualify to the 1936 Olympic team in the 5000 meter race.  He qualified for the finals…but barely…and with low expectations for his performance in that race.  He ran 4600 meters as expected…in the back of the fastest men in the world…but covered the final 400 meters in an eye-popping 56 seconds, passing many runners and moving up to eighth place overall.  He caught the attention of Adolph Hitler who asked to meet Zamperini and commented to him when he did that “you’re the boy with the fast finish.”

As he returned to America and his running career with the University of Southern California, the running world felt he would be the first human to run the mile in less than four minutes.  He thought so too, and planned to win gold in the 1500 meters in the Tokyo Olympics in 1940.  And then that nice fellow he’d met in Germany in 1936 went and started a war.

Zamperini joined the Armed Forces before Pearl Harbor and ended up as a bombardier.  On a search and rescue mission for a downed American bomber over the Pacific Ocean, his plane went down with only him and two others from the 12-man crew surviving.  Their experience over the next 47 days in a life raft…and beyond in a Japanese POW camp makes up the bulk of the story…yet there is so much more.  It is a hell of a read about a hell of a man and is a story all Americans ought to know.

I managed to reach 90 push-ups again…but 100 seems so far away.  I did the rest of the Survival Workout and hurried home to ride the trainer and enjoy another episode of ‘Everest’.  Afterwards, Jack, Holly and I climbed in the van for a trip to East Coast Custard only to find they…and Dairy Queen…were closed.  We swung by McDonald’s so Jack could get a milk shake…I won’t waste calories on their stuff…and he said they made the best milkshakes in the world.  Really Jack?  He definitely needs to see more of the milkshake world.

Survival Workout: 60 minutes.  Bike duration: 60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100-150 for SW and 120 for the bike.
Calories burned:  600 for SW, 850 for the bike.

'To Tell the Truth' starring Fausto Carmona...

Thursday, January 19, 2012
Fausto Carmona, 28-year old starting pitcher for the Cleveland Indians may not be who we thought he was.  Carmona was applying for his green card to visit the US and join the Indians in spring training when he was taken under arrest in his native Dominican Republic…because, they claim, he isn’t Fausto Carmona.  It appears he is Roberto Hernandez Heredia and really 31 years old.  Steven Ocker of the Akron Beacon Journal reported that what Fausto has done was not so uncommon ten years ago when agents in the Dominican helped their teen-aged baseball wiz-kid clients appear to Major League teams to be even younger than they were.  “Youth is highly prized in Dominican baseball circles, because major-league franchises operate on the theory that it takes an extra year or two to assimilate disadvantaged, uneducated kids into American culture and teach them the necessary skills to play as professionals,” he wrote.

Whatever Fausto/Roberto’s reasons, he appears to be in a heap of trouble.  He was contracted to be paid $7 million this year…but is the contract valid even if he can get out of the DR?  Apparently, the Indians still want him…they picked up that option at the end of last season and signed him to play…but clearly the knowledge that he is actually 3 years older than the league thought will hurt him if and when he goes to sign and extended year contract.  The whole situation appears to be another example of pro athletes pursuing the big dollar and doing unscrupulous things because of it.  And if the reports prove to be true, Fausto got caught because he stopped paying the family of the real Fausto Carmona for borrowing his name and birth date...causing the mother to rat him out to a local radio station.  In the end, I’m sure it will all work out and Fausto/Roberto will be pitching somewhere in the Major’s.  And if not…he’s already earned $15 million playing the game…so we can stop worrying about where his next meal will come from.

I pulled into a parking lot at the North Chagrin Reservation after work and with dark approaching.  The lot had been plowed, but was covered in ice…and I could have done doughnuts all over it and not hit anything.  I was alone. 

It was cold and the trails were covered in that crunchy, frozen snow that occurs when it’s been really, really cold.  It worked for me, though.  I started out slowly, trying to keep my balance and gain some traction.  I found that it wasn’t too difficult since there was enough new fall to keep me from slipping too badly.  The only sounds I could hear was the rasping breathes I was taking and the loud crunch that each footstep made.  As is always the case in these conditions, I was working much harder…and running slower.  My heart rate was running about 10 beats higher than normal and I had a good sweat flowing in spite of the freezing conditions.  I targeted a 40-minute run and was only one minute over at the conclusion.  Short, but tough and I knew I was heading home for more time on the trainer.

Except I didn’t ride.  Jason was there when I arrived and we were going to be alone for the evening and were both hungry.  I suggested we put together some spaghetti and meatballs, but would have to forgo the bike ride to complete the dinner.  I don’t get to sit down and eat with Jason often, so I decided to skip the ride…the double workout…and another ‘Everest’ episode.  After all…the bike would be there tomorrow and Netflix wasn’t going anywhere and a night with your son easily trumps that.

Run Duration:  41 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 150 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 700.

'Everest - Beyond the Limit' continues to fascinate...

Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Though I was able to start the workout with 88 push-ups, I felt flat and knew it was going to be an off day for lifting.  I’m already leaving out some things in hopes that my right arm will start to feel better, so to get more from the workout, I added extra high skips, sprinted off trail through the woods, worked the hills hard, and did some 50-yard sprints across a snow-covered field.  I could feel the difference in my legs as I returned to the car…I was quite tired…but I still felt like I was slacking since I haven’t been climbing the pole or doing my rows with the heavy rocks.  Both exercises accelerate the pain in my forearm…that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. 

I drove home thinking about riding the trainer and watching a couple more episodes of ‘Beyond the Limit – Everest’.  I’ve been enjoying the physical aspects of the program, but must admit that the instances of climbers dying are becoming more disturbing.  Its one thing to know it happens or to see it depicted by actors, but this is the real thing.  People who get in trouble in the death zone…above 26,000 feet and in the last phases of the summit…are often left to die.  Those around them would put themselves at risk in attempting to help and it seems to be the code of the mountain.  And when people do die, they are left there as frozen testaments to the enormous risks anyone is taking that challenges this landscape unfit for human…or any life.  It is a gripping drama.

I managed another 90 minutes on the trainer, watching two more episodes.  Two of the climbers will be making their push for the summit during the next episode and I’m looking forward to seeing it.  I guess that means I’ll be doing more riding tomorrow.

Survival Workout: 45 minutes.  Bike duration: 90 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100-150 for SW and 120 for the bike.
Calories burned:  450 for SW, 1250 for the bike.

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Climbing Everest

Tuesday, January 17, 2012
I left work heading for North Chagrin Metropark thinking that I needed to get in an abbreviated Survival Workout.  Having lain off for a couple of days had done little to improve the pain in my right forearm, but I knew there were some things I could do.  Driving north on I271, I couldn’t help but notice the pitch dark skies into which I was heading.  They were centered over the park, of course.

I arrived there in a driving rain and what seemed like hurricane winds.  Limbs and trees were down, but I climbed from the car to change thinking (or maybe not) that it would all change in the time it took me to suit up.  It didn’t.  I drove down to my starting point hoping that 2 miles away things would be different.  They weren’t.  The trail was under a foot of water and the pounding rain seemed to be saying ‘go home and get on the trainer’…so I did.

It has actually become something I’ve looked forward to.  I keep finding great nature programs to watch on Netflix…there seems to be and endless supply…that keeps me going.  After watching the Imax Everest program, I found an equally interesting series about a group attempting the world’s tallest mountain.  I think it was aired as TV special…it’s in episodes…and covers six men and what they must do and overcome to make the summit.  One man had lost both his legs below the knees to frostbite years earlier when he had been trapped for 13 days on a mountain in New Zealand.  If he reached the peak, he would be the first double amputee to do so.  Another is an asthmatic trying to be one of the few to summit without the aid of bottled oxygen.  A third was a former Hell’s Angel with more metal in his body from bike accidents than the Bionic Man.  I found it particularly interesting because of the depth they were able to go into regarding the necessary acclimatization, the amount of work done by the Sherpa’s to prepare the advanced base camps, the food they would eat and the gear they would wear and need to keep them safe for the 70+ days they would be on the mountain to complete their attempt.  Equally amazing…each man had spent $40,000 for the opportunity.  I managed two episodes while riding 90 minutes.

 Drenched and exhausted, I made my way to the kitchen to put together my energy replenishing smoothie.  I’d purchased a couple of mangoes while in the grocery store recently and began an attempt to peel one of them.  The potato peeler was not the answer.  Next, I reached for a knife and started a spot so that I might attack it like an orange peel…negatory on that, too.  Finally, I just tried cutting the skin off like it was a melon…and that seemed to be the answer.  I found quickly that it has a huge pit that runs the entire length of the fruit…bummer, since I’d paid so much for the thing and was now finding out that I’d be eating a lot less of it than I’d thought.  I dropped the fruit in the blender, added some frozen blueberries, a banana, yogurt, ice cubes and apple cider to make what was the most amazing smoothie I’ve ever had…better even than with the ripe pears.  At a buck-fifty per mango though, I’ll make it a special treat…since I’m now saving up for my trip to Nepal and the top of the world.

Bike Duration: 90 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 120 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 1200.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

ENT doc says, "I dunno..."

Monday, January 16, 2012
The Ear, Nose, and Throat guy was peering into my left ear with one of those things with a flashlight on the end.  I held up two fingers next to my right ear and said, “how many do you see, doc.”

“There’s too much wax in here for me to see anything,” he said as he reached for what looked like a drill.  This had me a little concerned…and defensive. 

“Though I’ve tried and failed to get it there, I’ve heard that you shouldn’t put anything smaller than your elbow into your ear,” I said.  “But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t stick Q-tips in there and try to clean them out.”

He said I was right about the ‘elbow’ thing and that ear wax was good.  “You can use a Q-tip to clean the outer edges of the inside of the ear…but don’t stick it any deeper.  You could push wax in further than it’s supposed to go,” he said.

I was there to try and find out why I’d had the dizzy spells just before Christmas.  I went through a battery of tests for my ears…I have some loss at the high decibel end but checked out pretty normal at the lower decibels…where the spoken language resides.  The clinician conducting the test managed to bring up hearing aids at least five times during her explanation of the results.  She kept jabbering and I kept saying “what?”  She ignored my idiot humor and continued her pitch…which I wasn’t even close to buying. 

When I got back with the doc and asked about my hearing, he said it was actually pretty good for my age…better than normal…except for the high pitch sounds.  I wouldn’t be responding to dog whistles anytime soon…and I didn’t want hearing aids so I could, either.  I really had to wonder why I’d gotten the hard sell on hearing aids, then.  He looked my sinuses over pretty well, too and concluded that he had no idea why I’d gotten dizzy.  “Whatever it was…it appears to be gone now,” he concluded…something I knew before I’d arrived since I hadn’t had a dizzy spell in almost three weeks.

So…with a clean bill of health, I headed for the park and a run on snow and ice covered trails.  The bridles were about 50% ice-covered, but the footing was reasonable and I was able to complete 45 minutes without a fall.  I returned home to the trainer and hit Netflix for the National Geographic special about Yellowstone National Park.  What amazing topography in the two million acres that make up our first national park, set aside in 1872.  I was particularly interested in the piece on the Grizzly bear attach on two hikers and what they did to avoid death in the jaws of one of the planet’s most fearsome mammals.  The bear had one of the hiker’s legs in his teeth when the hiker managed to get off a blast of pepper spray in the bear’s face.  It worked, and the hikers were on camera to tell their story.  I keep telling myself I’m going to get some of that and carry it in the Adirondacks, but put it off because they’re just black bears.  Well…they may be less aggressive and about half the size of grizzly’s…but if they decide I’m on the menu, I’ve got a problem.  I love watching these programs about the amazing parks and places I’ve yet to visit, but it makes me realize how much is out there…and how little time we have when there are families to raise and bills to pay.  As with everything I’ve accomplished, I need to make it a goal if I’m going to get it done.  I really must play that lottery thing more often.

Run Duration:  45 minutes.  Bike Duration:  50 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 140 running and 120 cycling.
Calories burned during workout: 765 running and 700 biking.

Monday, January 16, 2012

Apple pie...good. Ice cream...good.

Sunday, January 15, 2012
Dakota and I were in the Savannah’s Jeep and driving to see Dan.  She had told me that the windshield washer wasn’t working on her ride home from Columbus, so I told her I’d get it fixed.  On the ride out, I did.  I called her from the Jeep.  “Um…I’m driving to Dan’s and I tried the wiper fluid and it works fine.  Just what do you do to engage it?”  I asked. 

“Hmm.  I never really tried it on the way home because it didn’t work a few weeks ago.  Wow…that’s strange,” she said.  I’m not sure what she thought was strange…that it was working or that she hadn’t even tried it when she was driving and couldn’t see through the window. 

Dakota and I headed for the park and a hike through the snow.  We made our way down to the marsh  and then tried to climb out without the benefit of a trail.  It was a steep, slippery slope…slippery because the ground beneath the snow is still soft and muddy from all the rain we’ve had this year.  Once it’s frozen, the footing will be a little better but the good news was I managed a heart rate of about 110 because the climb was so difficult.

I returned home and again hopped on the trainer.  Netflix and National Geographic have me looking forward to the rides as I downloaded a documentary about Yosemite National Park.  I was particularly interested in the two climbers who were ascending the vertical face of Half Dome, a trek that would take them three days…which meant spending two nights sleeping in bags suspended on cables and hanging thousands of feet above the rock floor.  They made this tremendously difficult task look almost effortless, but it was anything but that.  It is vertical for the entire 4,000 foot plus climb and takes tremendous skill, incredible strength and fitness, and a lot of courage.  I have been to Yosemite, but not to climb and hike.  It had the most spectacular sights I have ever seen in any park and is a place I most certainly want to return and explore in the back country.

I finished that show and kept riding right through another National Geographic special…this time about Denali National Park…home of North America’s tallest peak, Mt. McKinley.  The show featured a group of 8 climbers ascending the peak, though this type of climbing has little interest to me.  All is done in frigid temperatures at altitudes that require considerable time for acclimatization (the peak reaches 20,20 feet), dangerous winter/arctic conditions, and lots of money.  I admire those who tackle these peaks…but it’s not for me.  The good news is that it got me through another 75-minute ride.

And I needed all that exercise.  Since Savannah was home for a visit, I’d stopped at Patterson’s Fruit Farm to pick up her favorite dessert – Dutch Apple Pie.  I brought it home in time for the evening dinner and since we would be serving it to guests, felt compelled to assure its quality.  I cut a little sliver and ate it…but…maybe I needed to check the other side.  I did and they were both okay.  Later, I added a scoop (or three) of Breyer’s All Natural Vanilla with Bean Specks ice cream to another piece…and it was okay, too.

Hike duration: 75 minutes.  Bike duration: 75 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 80-110 hiking and 120 for the bike.
Calories burned:  375 for the hike, 1050 for the bike.

Time to do the Appalachian Trail?

Saturday, January 14, 2012
Though I have been cutting back somewhat on my Survival Workout to try and ease the pain in my right arm below the biceps, I’ve been unsuccessful.  I do less and the arm gets more sore.  Still…I started the workout in four inches of new powder with a new push-up pr of 94.  I tried to do my log lift, but it hurt and I dropped it.  I did manage my dips without pain, though.

I found my rocks frozen to the earth again and they were much heavier when I broke them loose because the turf came along for the ride.  I was able to do overhead lifts, but the biceps and rowing motions were out.  I knocked out 87 push-ups on my second set and 80 for the final to crush my 3-set pr, pushing it from 249 to 261.

I knew I needed to burn more calories once home and hopped on the trainer for a longer ride.  I began searching through Netflix and locked in on a National Geographic special about the Appalachian Trail (AT).  I know many people who have walked portions of the trail, a 2,184 mile ribbon running from Springer Mt. in Georgia to Mt. Katahdin in Maine.  It passes through 14 states along the way. 

Much of the AT is through trees and has been referred to as ‘the Green Corridor’.  Though it does go through and over the Great Smokey Mountains and climbs the Whites of New Hampshire and Mt. Washington’s 6,288 foot elevation where the strongest winds on the planet have been recorded, I have never been attracted to it because so many of its miles are without views.  Watching the program though made the ride easy and had me thinking that someday maybe I should challenge myself to be a thru-hiker…someone who attempts the entire trail in a single season.  I like these kinds of goals…something that would keep me focused and training for a long time and had so much to offer along the way.  It would take upwards of 5 months to complete which kind of means I’d have to be retired, so I don’t see it happening anytime soon…and I’d need a partner because that’s a little too much time with only me for company. 

I suppose I’d really like to walk the Pacific Coast Trail first, but the National Geographic didn’t do a story on that.

Survival Workout: 45 minutes.  Bike duration: 75 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100-150 for SW and 120 for the bike.
Calories burned:  450 for SW, 1050 for the bike.

Testing myself on the AlterG

Friday, January 13, 2012
I returned to Precision Orthopaedics and the AlterG treadmill to determine just how much my training heart rate would go down if I lost weight…which this machine could simulate.  I’d told Mark that I thought the treadmill would be a huge motivator for people looking to lose weight.  It would be an amazing visual to get on the treadmill at normal weight with a heart rate monitor and then ‘lose 20 pounds’ and see what it did to your heart rate.  Suddenly, you would know precisely how much additional stress the extra pounds were putting on your heart.  “I’ve got to come back tomorrow and try this out,” I’d said at the conclusion of our interview.
 The anti-gravity treadmill was originally designed to assist NASA astronauts to help prevent bone and muscle loss during long periods of time in space stations without gravity.  In 2006, AlterG introduced their first proto-type treadmill and turned it over to former Olympian and coach of the Nike Oregon Project, Alberto Salazaar, to be used with the elite distance runners he was coaching at that time.  Though the treadmill can be used for rehabilitative purposes, Salazaar wanted the opportunity to do ‘overspeed’ work with his athletes…having them reduce their weight with the machine, which would allow them to run even faster than they could at 100% of their weight, thus improving turnover and enhancing the capabilities of the fast-twitch muscles involved in running.
I slipped into the patented shorts which would be used to gently lift me from the treadmill as I ran, simulating a decreasing weight.  I stepped onto the treadmill and into a plastic bubble that attached to my waist via the shorts and encased the treadmill beneath me.  Once calibrated, I began to walk and adjusted my weight…it moves in 1% increments…until I was 80% of normal or about 38 pounds lighter.  I took the speed to 7mph (this model would go to 10mph or the equivalent of running a 6-minute mile) and allowed my heart rate to stabilize before starting to add weight back on.  At 80%, I had a heart rate of 114 beats per minute (bpm), which increased about 3 beats for every 5% of my weight I added back.  When I reached 100% and was running unaided, my heart rate was 126 bpm.
I finished the workout and climbed from the treadmill to do some calculations.  Though I’d always known that my performance would improve if I lost body fat, I’d never had the opportunity to prove how much of an impact it could have.  My heart rate was going down about 3% for every 10 pounds I lost, which was the equivalent of being able to take about 14 seconds per mile off my running pace.  If I was running a marathon, I could improve my time by more than 6 minutes.
Mark is excited about having the treadmill for rehabbing patients, but he has also opened it to running community to be used for training purposes.  He mentioned that Jessica Beard, reigning NCAA Outdoor 400-meter champion and member of the US 4x400 gold medal winning team in the 2009 World Championships had just completed a session on the treadmill.   “She’s trying to work through and Achilles injury.  We were able to work her for 15-20 minute sessions at between 20-60% of her body weight.  Without the AlterG, she wouldn’t be able to do any running,” he concluded. 
For $100 per month, anyone can have access three times a week for 40 minutes.  His hours of operation will be 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., and making it very appealing to any runner trying to work through an injury as they are preparing for an important race.   It is his hope to eventually put one in his running store in Mentor.
I asked if he thought fitness clubs might take a shot at putting one in.  “I don’t think it would be practical.  They serve a particular population not found in your average club…and they’re pricy.”  But they truly have their place and for those runners who have been forced to rehab an injury…or adjust their mileage away from running with cycling and elliptical equipment…well…this may be the answer.  For further information, go to Mark’s web site at www.precisionorthopaedic.com or call 440-285-4999.  It works.  I know.
I returned home and shoveled the drive before heading inside and climbing back on the trainer for a 60-minute ride.  It was an exhausting couple of hours with a lot of sweat loss and a huge smoothie worked miracles on my recovery.

Run Duration:  20 minutes.  Bike Duration:  60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 120 running and cycling.
Calories burned during workout: 300 running and 850 biking.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Time on the AlterG treadmill...

Thursday, January 12, 2012
I’ve been doing some reading about the AlterG anti-gravity treadmill in preparation for my first turn on one and for the article I will be writing about it in the February edition of Ohio Sports and Fitness.  Mark Mendeszoon, the podiatrist I interviewed last month regarding minimalist/barefoot running has one of only three in the area and uses it in his practice for Precision Orthopaedics (their spelling) in Chardon.  In a nutshell, the treadmill is equipped with a chamber that encases the body from the waist down and works to ‘unweight’ the user by gently lifting them from the treadmill as they walk or run.  By so doing, it allows people recovering from various injuries to reduce their body weight to a level that allows them to walk, jog or run pain-free in an effort to speed healing.

I met Mark at Precision and listened to an explanation of what I was about to experience as I slipped into the special shorts that would be the method of lifting me while on the treadmill…and thus unweighting me.  They fit like cycling shorts and came with a zipper around the waist that would attach to the air chamber into which I was stepping.  Once inside and attached, an air tight seal was created from my waist down, encasing my lower body on the treadmill and making me feel like I was running inside a clear, plastic balloon.  After the calibration process, he demonstrated the controls that would allow me to decrease my weight in 1% increments down to a low of 20% of my body weight…or around 38 pounds.  I could also increase the speed to 10mph, its maximum, and the equivalent of running a 6-minute mile.

I started walking at 2mph and then began to decrease my body weight to a low of 70% and the point at which my heel stopped hurting.  And this is really one of the reasons for its popularity and importance.  I could perform the activity I needed to do without further damage to the injury…which in many instances can actually speed healing.  I walked for a couple of minutes to get used to the sensation before slowly increasing the speed to the point where I was running 7mph.  At this speed, I began to play with the weight control, taking my body from 70 back to 100%, running the whole time and experiencing the sensation of getting lighter and heavier…during a run. 

Now…keep in mind that to gain this feeling of weighing less, you are literally picked up as though someone was grabbing your shorts and lifting you from the ground.  It’s done gently and with air and wasn’t in the least as uncomfortable as it might sound…but I would recommend peeing before suiting up…not that I had an accident, or anything. 

I spent 10 minutes on the treadmill before bringing it to a stop and then spending some time with Mark to hear his story of why he’d purchased the equipment and his dreams for its use…which include introducing it in his running store ‘The Achilles Running Shop’ for easy access to the running community.  I’ll go over the ‘whys’ to this plan later, but it will be an amazing opportunity for local runners…both for working through injuries and for some special speed training.

I returned home and hopped on the trainer for a 75-minute ride, which I followed with an hour shoveling the drive.  It was a good calorie burning day and a great opportunity to check out a piece of exercise/rehab equipment that is truly cutting edge.

Run Duration:  10 minutes.  Bike Duration:  75 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 120 running and 120 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 150 running and 1050 biking.

Friday, January 13, 2012

New running shoes!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Where does my will power go each winter?  Maybe it’s just that I’m trapped inside too long and the days are too short.  Yeah…probably the dark that makes me want to eat the wrong stuff.  That… or Holly’s peanut clusters are impossible not to eat.  In any event…I ate the last six so I’d stop having to wonder when I’d stop eating them.

I’m also struggling to get myself to do the longer workouts I need to keep the weight in check.  Partially due to sore feet and the rest…well…commitment issues.  I’ve always found winter training the toughest.  Anything I’m preparing to do has always been a summer/fall activity and left me with the feeling that I can always make up the time that I’m missing.  Pretty normal.  Anyway, after spending the day walking around on tender feet, I stopped to purchase new running shoes on the way home.  I’m a big fan of Asics and have been running in them for the last 20 years or so.  I bought a pair in the middle of the price range, looking for something with a decent amount of heel cushion.  Before shopping, I’d decided to ride the trainer since it was raining and cold, but once I had the shoes, I knew I’d be running.

It was dark by the time I arrived at the park, but the bridle trails are easy to navigate even when you can’t see.  I figured a 30 minute run to see how they felt and determine if they would make any difference to my already sore feet.  I put them on and took a few steps…pain diminished.  Good sign.

I felt the heel with each step, but it really wasn’t that bad.  The true measure of the shoe would be how my foot felt later that night and the next day…so I’d just have to wait and see.  It was extremely sloppy…a good thing since I hate wearing shiny, new shoes…and that’s the last thing they were at the conclusion of the run. 

I climbed back into the car pleased with the way they felt.  I could have easily gone much longer, but my feet need some time to figure out what I’ve done to them since it’s been about 5 years since I’ve run in new shoes.  I take them on another, longer trial over the weekend provided we get less than the predicted blizzard.

Run Duration:  30 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 140 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 520.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

The 'good' ache...

Tuesday, January 10, 2012
In many ways, I embrace the aches that come as a result of my workout ritual.  I almost always know their origin and there is comfort in knowing that I have them only because I am fit.  I know they will go away, to be replaced by others when I do something foolish or try something new…but it is a constant reminder that I can do something new and that I ignore my age or make it the non-factor it should be…and persevere.  I’ve had some of the aches associated with aging and doing nothing…I think the ‘doing nothing’ is more the reason for the aches…and decided I’d rather have the ones from being active.  Anyway, right now…it’s my feet which I know will heal, but also a pain in my lower, right arm…just below the biceps…that has been bothering me off and on since I began doing pull-ups on a tree branch.  I cut that out at some point over the summer and switched to climbing a pole on a swing set.  It doesn’t seem to hurt quite as much…but it still aches.  I decided I’d try to give that some rest, too.

So…I approached the Survival Workout knowing I would be leaving some things out and wondering what I could add in to compensate.  I reached one of my rock lifting sites and was bending to pick one up, when I had the sensation of being watched.  It took me a few seconds to spot the deer that was only 50 feet away…motionless…and staring me down.  They are amazingly well camouflaged animals…as any regular hiker will admit…and if they don’t move and show that beautiful, cotton-like fluffy white tail, we’d never see them.  He continued to stare, challenging me to stay and looking, as Kim would say, into my soul with those haunting eyes.  “I’ve got to do this thing…so you can stay and watch…or go,” I said as I bent to grab the rock.  I did my lift and when I returned the rock to the earth and looked up, he was gone.  I love this gym in which I work out.

I was crossing the Rugby field the final yards to my car when I heard a thundering noise coming down the bridle trail I’d just left.  I peered through the woods separating the field from the trail to see a horse and rider galloping full tilt.  I know thoroughbreds travel at speeds in excess of 40mph…and this was no thoroughbred race horse, but it was really moving.  It was practically dark and I wondered at the wisdom of the rider.  I could see him going into a sharp turn without slackening his speed and with what would appear to be no regard for the many other users of these trails.  I know they’re called ‘bridle’ but let’s face it…there are about 200 hikers, runners, and other users to every horse on the trails…and this was just stupid.  His partner was a few minutes behind and moving at a more reasonable speed.  I’m glad I wasn’t on the trail as he’d passed…I’m sure I’d have had something to say that I would later regret.

Survival Workout: 60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100-150.
Calories burned:  600.