We hit 5,000 views! Yay! Thanks so much for following guys.
The last couple weeks have been filled with packing and farewell parties in Japan, a quick trip to Bali (incredible!) and of course a bit of training. I'll fill in all the blanks later, but it's now T minus four hours to takeoff for Hawaii (interview on Wed).
Strange, sad and nervous are all in my head, but so is a lot of excitement. It's strange that my home will no longer be my home, sad to leave friends, awful to be apart with my wife for a bit (we're working on her US visa), and the uncertainty of where our future leads makes me nervous. But overall, we're chasing a dream, and that's just excitingly awesome!
Watch this space.
Monday 30 June 2014
Monday 16 June 2014
Change It Up
30/30/30 Challenge
Swim 11
Bike 3
Run 30+
Last week was a nice reminder of why it's good to change up your workout routine every now and then.
I was running on a trail and passed an outdoor workout area with a pull-up bar, so decided to do a quick routine: 5 => 1 => 5 pyramid set of pull-ups with dead lifts in between. Looking around for something to dead lift, all I found was some small rocks, about 3kg each. The weight was really low, so I decided to do 12 reps with each set (i.e. 10 sets x 12 reps).
During the workout, it felt like nothing, but the next day and the next and the next, you better believe I felt it. I've been doing dead lifts at higher weights in the gym, but the number of reps and sets was a total change.
Moral of the story, change up your workout! Just like medicine, your body builds up a tolerance and ability to handle the same exercises. After a while, your marginal improvement is very little or nothing at all.
For my strength and conditioning work, I like to change the routine about every 15 weeks. For me, this is enough time to see improvement, and it's about the time I start to get bored with a routine.
Most of my workouts come from the sites below or just watching what personal trainers do with their clients at the gym. My 15 weeks is up in about 2 weeks and it's time to change. If it's been a while for you, think about mixing it up.
Triathlete.com
Runnersworld.com
MensHealth.com
Swim 11
Bike 3
Run 30+
Last week was a nice reminder of why it's good to change up your workout routine every now and then.
I was running on a trail and passed an outdoor workout area with a pull-up bar, so decided to do a quick routine: 5 => 1 => 5 pyramid set of pull-ups with dead lifts in between. Looking around for something to dead lift, all I found was some small rocks, about 3kg each. The weight was really low, so I decided to do 12 reps with each set (i.e. 10 sets x 12 reps).
 |
| little outdoor workout area with pull-up bar |
Moral of the story, change up your workout! Just like medicine, your body builds up a tolerance and ability to handle the same exercises. After a while, your marginal improvement is very little or nothing at all.
For my strength and conditioning work, I like to change the routine about every 15 weeks. For me, this is enough time to see improvement, and it's about the time I start to get bored with a routine.
Most of my workouts come from the sites below or just watching what personal trainers do with their clients at the gym. My 15 weeks is up in about 2 weeks and it's time to change. If it's been a while for you, think about mixing it up.
Triathlete.com
Runnersworld.com
MensHealth.com
Tuesday 10 June 2014
Great Rides Around the World
 |
| pic from www.cnn.com |
Every once in a while, CNN.com has a great article about endurance sports around the world. Click HERE for one such treat about great rides all over.
I've had my eye on the Great Divide for a while and recently learned about the Shimanami Kaido which seems like the most basic of all those in the article. Should I get these two out of my system, the others would be next!
Wednesday 4 June 2014
Finally
30/30/30 Challenge
Swim 10
Bike 1
Run 30+
Got out on my bike! It was awesome. A bit shaky at first and not so impressive, but that didn't matter today. Overall, it was wonderful!
Also, side note, EverySecondCounts will soon be celebrating 5,000 views! Thanks for following everyone!
Monday 2 June 2014
The Latest, Early June
30/30/30 Challenge
Swim 9
Bike 0
Run 30+
The job hunt continues. Everything still rolling with the Hawaii-gig, but no offer yet, so hoping there's a decision either way soon.
As far as training goes, I've settled into a decent routine each week: 1 trail run (10-20k), 2 road runs (10k), 1 or 2 swims (1k) and 4 strength and conditioning sessions. The only thing missing is at least one bike! But, that all ends this week. Wed morning, I'm getting up early and heading out on the bike. The forecast says rain, but I've been making excuses for 5 months, so nothing is going to keep from getting out there.
While I'm enjoying this routine, the lack of clear training goal is frustrating. I can't wait til we find a place and settle, then I can sign up for races and have a few goals. Can't wait!
On the professional triathlon front, the ITU season is underway having finished 4 events with some great races and a few surprises (at least surprising to me). Javier Gomez leads the points for the men while Gwen Jorgensen of the US leads for the women. The surprising thing for me is that Alistair Brownlee, the 2012 London gold medalist, has not finished on the podium in either of the two races he's competed in. I'm sure it'll start going his way at some point in the season, and I can't wait to see those fireworks.
Read more HERE or check out the videos below. If you like all out sprint finishes, I highly recommend the first video.
Switching over to soccer, in case you missed it, Arsenal ended their 9 year trophy draught by taking home the FA Cup trophy last month! This is a totally different and more mature team than in recent years. On several occasions this year, they've gone down early only to charge back and take the victory. The FA Cup was another example of this going down 2 goals in the opening 10mins only to come back for a 3-2 win. Let's hope they carry this into next season!
Finally, with the World Cup around the corner, click HERE for a nice site giving previews of all of the teams. Of course, I'll be rooting for Team USA with a bit of love for Japan too.
Swim 9
Bike 0
Run 30+
The job hunt continues. Everything still rolling with the Hawaii-gig, but no offer yet, so hoping there's a decision either way soon.
As far as training goes, I've settled into a decent routine each week: 1 trail run (10-20k), 2 road runs (10k), 1 or 2 swims (1k) and 4 strength and conditioning sessions. The only thing missing is at least one bike! But, that all ends this week. Wed morning, I'm getting up early and heading out on the bike. The forecast says rain, but I've been making excuses for 5 months, so nothing is going to keep from getting out there.
While I'm enjoying this routine, the lack of clear training goal is frustrating. I can't wait til we find a place and settle, then I can sign up for races and have a few goals. Can't wait!
On the professional triathlon front, the ITU season is underway having finished 4 events with some great races and a few surprises (at least surprising to me). Javier Gomez leads the points for the men while Gwen Jorgensen of the US leads for the women. The surprising thing for me is that Alistair Brownlee, the 2012 London gold medalist, has not finished on the podium in either of the two races he's competed in. I'm sure it'll start going his way at some point in the season, and I can't wait to see those fireworks.
Read more HERE or check out the videos below. If you like all out sprint finishes, I highly recommend the first video.
Switching over to soccer, in case you missed it, Arsenal ended their 9 year trophy draught by taking home the FA Cup trophy last month! This is a totally different and more mature team than in recent years. On several occasions this year, they've gone down early only to charge back and take the victory. The FA Cup was another example of this going down 2 goals in the opening 10mins only to come back for a 3-2 win. Let's hope they carry this into next season!
Finally, with the World Cup around the corner, click HERE for a nice site giving previews of all of the teams. Of course, I'll be rooting for Team USA with a bit of love for Japan too.
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