Odds & Ends

Last week was a mix of a week and it was also a week that seemed to last FOREVER!  A lot of time spent training but I also announced my new business.  Tri-Peaks Consulting on Thursday.

The totals for the week play out to be 36 miles of running and 115 miles of riding, and all of the riding was outdoors, no time was spent on the trainer. That makes a grand total of seventeen hours and thirteen minutes of training volume for the week.  Leadman training is going quite well.

It was a great weekend in other ways as well.  Melissa and I went to Joseph's for dinner on Friday night.  I wanted to surprise her since life was still chaotic and upside when our anniversary rolled around on the 8th.  As usual the food was amazing and we had fun chatting with Joseph and Rick and joking around.  I did cheat on Friday night and I actually had the creme brulee for desert.  It was worth it, completely worth it.

I am working on a nutritional presentation associated with the business.  One of the biggest problems that we face today I believe is not that we are stupid, or lazy, or just pigs... most of the dietary issues in the country are founded within the choices, or lack of, that we are so constantly and easily presented with.  Now don't take me wrong, I have eaten TONS of stuff out of vending machines for years, I mean that is why they are there... but it does beg the question, why isn't higher quality food made to be more readily available in this country? 

The standard workplace vending machine.  The only two things in here that are even remotely healthy would be the peanuts and the beef jerky.  And if you are only eating Paleo fare, not even the peanuts because they are legumes.  The beef jerky would even be suspect because I would bet money that the first ingredient after beef is HFCS. 

So just trying to get a foothold onto this week.  Enjoying my day off from training and trying to get data migrated to a single platform for the business.  I really hope to get out at sometime today and enjoy the weather.

Friday

I am definitely feeling better today.  I can tell because I woke up early on my own before the alarm.  Overall even with being sort of sick it has been a good week.  Riding on the track stand again, getting some small runs in and doing some short weight workouts all have me feeling like I am going in the right direction again.

Yesterday evening I rode the bike to Manitou so that I could go and do the Incline.  I tried to keep my heart rate between 130 and 140 BPM.  More importantly I was tying to find out what that range actually felt like relative to the level of effort pedaling.  Anyway the ride to Manitou was fun even if it was a touch chilly.

The incline was okay.  The full moon made the trip more interesting but I had to stand on the brakes a bit to prevent myself from overtaxing my lungs.  Made it to the top in 42 minutes which I feel is about right all things considered.

The run down Barr Trail was awesome and for the first time in a long time I felt like I was actually having a good run which was a treat.  About a mile and half from the depot I ran into a older guy going down the trail in the dark who was completely without a light.  Even with the moon the trail was not that illuminated and I could tell as I pulled up beside him that he was not having fun.  I gave him my backup handheld led light from my pack to use.  He asked how he could get it back to me and I told him that I would be at Kinfolks for a bit and that he could stop in and drop it off.

Of course I am a cynic and I don't have much faith in humans typically so I didn't really count on seeing my light again and if I didn't no big deal.  But I'll be damned if he didn't eventually show up and return the light to me.  Pretty cool!

Annie texted me the coolest saying last night.  I am not sure of the original source but she sent, "Don't let anyone tell you that you are too young to accomplish anything, a baby shark is still a fucking shark."

That text really made me smile!

Tomorrow is December first.  Leadman training offically starts, finally!

Tuesday (No Track)

No track today.  That is as first since the Tuesday after Leadville.  I did the Red Mountain run last night and my lungs protested violently... all night... until I dosed up on NyQuil and then I slept like the DEAD.

No running today at all.  I am going to wait until I don't feel that whatever it is in my chest and I stop coughing.  I don't want a repeat of last spring where I had this crud for a month or so.  I was still productive this evening though.  I did ride the bike on the track stand and I did do a weight workout which required me to re-baseline all of my weight bars, etc.  It felt good to do something.

More Paleo research today and I have decided that I want to wait until Monday to start it.  This way I have the weekend to splurge and Monday is typically the start of a training week and will also be the start of my Leadman training officially so might as well kick it all off at once.

To be honest I am actually excited.  I am curious to see how my weight changes in December.  I always try to lose weight and gain fitness most years between Thanksgiving and New Year's so that will be part of my focus in December.  They say the average American gains like 5 lbs every holiday seaoson, year after year, that they really don't lose... I am always wanting to buck that trend.

Speaking of weight and Americans... I saw this video yesterday.  Hear that sound?  That is the sound of the bar lowering even more folks.   They state that Americans are actually more accepting now, blah, blah, blah... no I just think that we are more lazy and have just given up more.  Anyway you can see the story here on ABC News.

But then again, life is full of trade-offs!

Where you be at?

Just thought that I would check in just in case anyone was missing me or wondering where I was.  I'd hate to keep the four people who read my blog in suspense.

Went to MD last week for Thanksgiving and all I can say is that I was physically a wreck by the time we got  there.  Completely and thoroughly exhausted.   As if that wasn't bad enough I didn't get much sleep at all the first seventy two hours that we were there either.  The schedule just did not allow for it.  The upside is that I felt a hell of a lot better and rested by the end of the week.

So... the Turkey Trot... yeah that... well, I had a total blow up.  I got a new mile PR for the first mile but that was it.  Between being so damned tired and my "system" just not processing things correctly for a few days and allergy drainage, I started coughing about mile 1.4 and then started to purge a little.  Again, an upside... I recovered and fell in behind Melissa without her knowing I was there for the last half of the 5K and just followed (or stalked) her to the finish.  It really was cool to run behind her as SHE at least got a new PR.  I kept my mouth shut so she would not know that I was back there and figured if I had to say something I would.... nope... she ran it perfect and had a super strong finish.

We saw Skyfall when we were in MD and it was okay.  I think that Casino Royal is still my favorite Danial Craig, Bond movie... But this was good.  I do like the fact that they showed an aging and slightly more human and mortal Bond for a change.

We are fostering a new dog, Reggie.  He is a trip.  Completely underweight and he is at 70lbs.  He is 2.5 years old and just as mellow as he can be.  He and Roxy are hitting it off okay, Asia is being a pretentious brat though.  Reggie has glommed onto me though and will not let me out of his sight.  I wanted to rename him to Peter for Peter Pumpkinhead because his gourd is so damned huge.  This morning I awoke to him perching his head on the bed and just staring at me.  He needs some work... I don't  think he was abused at all but definitely neglected as there are some basic skills he needs work on.  But as far as potential is concerned if someone has a strong personality and the time to work with him and nurture him I bet he would be one super awesome sweet dog.  It will be interesting to see what he ends up weighing in a week after sleeping a lot, exercise and a lot of good food and treats.

This is Reggie.  If anyone is interested in him please let me know and or contact All Breed Rescue and Training.

Reggie and I did go to the IC run yesterday but we did something different.  I could see everyone trudging up hill one on UPT and I was damned glad that I was not in that group.  I really don't like that trail and that hill in particular, up or down.

Definitely planning on transitioning to a more Paleo based diet next week.  I have done a lot of research and except for the "processed" part... I think that the Paleo diet and Atkins maintenance phases are very similar.  My weight fucking skyrocketed when we were in MD and that was before the race even AND that was after really not eating a whole lot.  Actually I was good in MD but my weight balooned anyway... If I am to take this Leadman effort seriously I do feel that I need to give it all that I have and truly cleaning up my diet for good is warranted I think.

Speaking of Leadman... Tim and I meet (teleconference) on Thursday and I guess that we launch on the first... personally right now I feel as if I am completely detrained and out of shape so I am looking forward to working again.   I think that if I have proven or learned anything this fall it is that I am not one of those runners who can maintain fitness and strength with just a few short but intense workouts per week... I think I need that base of high mileage and that is what works best overall for both speed and endurance.  I could be wrong but that is how it feels. 

That kinda sums it all up.  Happy Monday!