Want to run?

Are we born to run, or do we have to learn how to? Most people take it for granted that they can just start running when they want it.

There are so many running programs out there telling you how much and how far you should run, but not many to tell you how to acually run. There is a reason why we get shin splints, bad knees, bad hips, bad backs (list goes on and on). Then there are the questions of what shoes, does the suface that I run on make a difference, how does my eating and drinking play a role in setting me up for a better run and recovery. What about stretching, what does stretching do for me, before or after or both? There are so many qestions out there, and on Saturday July 31st, I'll do my best to answer them.

I have run since as far back as I can remember. I played soccer like every other Swedish kid, and then I ran track when I got tired of soccer. Running has been a big part of my life, and I worked hard on improving my running form. We all "can" run, the question is can you run properly? If you think that you could benefit from some of my many years of running experience, please join me for a running "talk" on Saturday. I look forward to seeing you at Sports Basement in Sunnyvale. Come for the chat, stay for some shopping (20% off for all of the MichRoFit registered guests) and stay further for some snacks and beverages!

Tri and tri again!

And then the day of the big race was here. All the things were neatly packed and ready to go. If you have ever done an early morning race before, you know that you don't want to mess with things when you wake up. Everything went just as planned, no traffic, parking was easy, and set up was fast. I was ready to go!

I started my warm up and then the nerves kicked in. My stomach got a bit upset, but nothing too bad. After all, it was more than a year since my last triathlon. I got my wetsuit on and got into the water. I swam for a while just to get used to the water. The moments before the horn sounds are nerve-wracking. Your hwER is racing and you start thinking, what if .... and then you hear the horn and you start swimming like you are Mike Phelps. After the first 5 strokes my goggles filled with water and I had to stop to empty them, and then again and again. I tried everything to make them work like they had done every other time, and nothing worked. Water kept splashing in my eyes, and I kept cursing. The water level in Almaden lake was very low so we had to do a 2 loop swim of 750m each. After I got out of the water from the first lap I had somewhat given up on the swim, but tried one last time to fix the goggles, and jumped in the water for the second lap. To my amazement, the goggles didn't leak! I finished the second lap strong. The transition to the bike went well except that my timing chip broke off. I tossed it inside my suit and kept going. The bike ride felt very good. I had told myself before the race that I was not going to burn all of my legs on the ride, but actually save some for the run this time. My biggest enemy has been cramping in the past, and this time was no different. At mile 11 on the bike my right hipflexor started acting up. After spending 30 minutes tucked down on the areobars, my poor hipflexor had had enough. I slowed down and did some stretching while on the bike, and eventually it got better. I finished the ride without any animal attacks this time (see blog about the deer), and went on to have a pretty fast transition. With plenty left in the tank I took off for the run. My body felt better than ever after a bike ride, and now it was just a fight against the sun and my cramps. I made sure to drink a lot on the bike, but after 2 miles the cramps started to tickle. I only stopped once when my hamstrings got really bad. I streched for a few seconds and was able to divert a potential hamstring seize. After that I ran like the wind, at 15 min. mile tempo. Not really! I ran the whole way after that, and as a reward Rowe greeted me at the finish line with a big smile! I finished!!!

So, what's next? I think a few days of rest is in order, and then... The Big Kahuna! The body held up and I felt good. The only logical step is a half IM in September :) Follow my journey to my ultimate goal of becoming an Iron Man!!

One week to go!

Next Sunday at this time I'll hopfully be sitting with my feet up and a big smile on my face. With only one week to go I feel ready to give it all I got. My times have shown that I'm going in the right direction. The other day I had the fastest 22 mile ride of my life, and it felt easy. This week will be light with some test races to get the body ready to swim, bike and run fast. Last year I did it in 2.42.59, so that is the time to beat. For you who want to be there and see me getting really "challenged", I'll finish around 10:30 AM July 18th at lake Almaden. See you there!

Humble pie!

With the triathlon around the corner I have stepped up my training yet again. Last week I got my first long (10 miles) run in. I also managed some 45 min swims, and a couple of 25 mile rides including a tire change. This will be my last hard week of training before tapering off next week. Yesterday, I chickend out on an open water swim after getting in the freezing Santa Cruz water. Today, after watching a very inspiring documetary about last year's triathlon world champioships in Kona, I swam 1500m and ran 10 miles.

Now, it might sound like I'm ready to take on the world, but the truth is that I just had a long road to get to this point. The leader of the group that I ride with alway tells them about me being this great athlete, and then they just leave me in the dust. Sometimes it's good to get a reality check, it makes you humble. Throughout life we tend to surround ourselves with people that make us feel good about ourselves. Every now and then it's good to step out of that comfort zone and see what's possible, try something new. That's what I have done with triathlon.

I'm still standing!

And there I was again, on the starting line of yet another race. This time it was only a ride, 56 miles to be exact. It was a beautiful morning in Mountain View, 65 F and sunny. However, the ride was not in Mountain View but in San Mateo: fog , wind and 54 F. Check-in went well, and on our way we rolled. Once we got out of San Mateo, the sun came out and the views were great. Grateful to be in my first race since June last year, I took in the great competitive atmosphere and the scenic route. As we got to the top of one of many climbs and started our decent, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. As I turned my head and saw a deer coming full throttle down the mountain side I thought: is this how peolple will remember me, the guy who got taken out by a deer? There was nothing I could do but to anticipate the impact. Seconds later the deer's head hit my hip and he spun like a tumbleweed in the wind, and I .... nothing! I kept going like nothing had happend. The only evidence that I was hit was the non-functioning speedometer. Who would have thought that getting hit by a deer on my bike would be my first animal encounter while on a vehicle?

The race went on and I finished in 3 hours and 23 minutes. In retrospect I feel really lucky that I'm in one piece after my, hopefully, one and only deer encounter.

How low is your Resting Heart Rate?

Here is a fun way of comparing power for endurance athletes, posted by Grant Lerdahl:

Ok, If you aren’t some sort of endurance junkie then you might not appreciate the significance of a low resting heart rate. Resting heart rate can be as exciting to endurance athletes as the bench press max and the 40 yard dash times are to pro football players. Its really exciting to see if you have a lower than normal resting heart rate because that means each time your heart beats it pumps more blood than an “untrained heart” would. According to Wikipedia the average RHR for health adults is between 60-80 BPM (beats per minute).

To illustrate how important this stuff is to us read the following story. One of my closest friends had his checked at the doctors office and it was 45. Since it was so low he made the doctor print it off on an official looking form and sign it. He has it framed at home right now. This makes perfect sense to me and I think its a great idea too. Of course this might sound silly but 45 BPM is wicked good especially for a 45ish year old man. If you check the fitness equivalency chart that is like bench pressing 375-400lbs (don’t look that it up its a made up chart but sounds cool).

I checked my RHR last night and it came out at 37 and 38 a couple times. I got pretty excited about my new/wicked low resting heart rate. I decided to check it for two minutes straight and it came out to be 77 or 38.5 per minute. I’m pretty pumped about it.

In order to spoil my little parade I decided to check Wikepedia for what the lowest RHR’s were. Turns out some guy no one has ever heard of, Lance Armstrong, has or had a RHR of 32. I should have just stopped there but two other great Tour De France winners Miguel Idurain and Alberto Contador have reported RHR’s of 28. Well I don’t feel as much like the man as I did 8 hours ago but I’m still pretty excited my new local bragging rights. Isn’t that what sports is all about anyways?

MIche Hoffer Four Time Swedish National Decathlon Champion - MichRoFit