Knee

I'm taking tonight off any kind of training and am skipping out on bikram yoga. It appears that Spak isn't the only one going through some knee issues. Mine started to develop a couple of weeks ago. The outside part of my left knee sometimes flares up once I start back up with training, however this time it's the inside of the same knee. I don't remember hurting it, but it hurts nonetheless.

I wanted to be proactive about this, so I contacted Mary last week to set up and appointment. Not only is she the best bike fitter in Ottawa, she's also a damn good occupational therapist. She's worked on my knee and elbow in the past.

I saw her first thing this morning. There's some swelling and she thinks it might be my meniscus acting up a bit due to perhaps the yoga and new funky moves I'm doing. Mary did some ultrasound, hooked me up to some alternating electrical stim and finished with some interferential electrical stimulation. In case you don't know what this stuff looks like, imagine using jumper cables to get your car going . . . . . same idea, but using electricity to make the muscles respond. (interesting article that explains it here)

Mary also gave me some muscle exercises to do at home. The injury, or flare up, doesn't sound serious and should be treatable with some muscle strengthening exercises. I'm glad I went - my knees always worry me when they start to hurt.

Weekend Training

Got out and up into the Gats for 2.5 hours yesterday with Gilles, Stef, Tobin and Dr. Kim. Probably skate skied steady for two of the hours, point five hours spent bullshitting and getting lessons from Dr. Kim (thanks by the way John!) Tough ski keeping up with the boys - but I am glad I went. Just like cycling, you become a better skier by skiing with better skiers/riders. Sorry no pics.

Today, went over to Mark's place for a trainer ride. Good day to do it too with temperatures dropping to minus twenty-one degrees celsius. The plan was to duplicate Mark's marathon ride on Thursday and get three hours in.

Doing his best Pantani impersonation.

I can't see the difference.

Just trying not to get dropped.
Killed some time watching 24 Solo - if Eatough and Gordan can ride themselves into the ground for 24 hours, we should be able to sit on the trainer for a few hours.

Just before the two hour mark - my arse was starting to get sore at this point.
Ended up with 2.5 hours, average HR = 153bm.

Popsicle

I underestimated how cold it was the other day when I went out for a skate ski. First half of the two hour ski was mostly uphill, so no worries about what I was wearing. However, the return trip was a bit chilly to say the least. I soon found out that I wasn't wearing enough below the equator as the family jewels, especially Mr Happy, started to get pretty damn cold. A quarter of the way back to the car I had to stop and take off my balaclava and stuff it down my pants for some extra warmth and wind protection. I think I was a little too late.

By the time I got back to the car my unit was numb and hurt and I was frightened. Images of Everest climbers with frost bitten fingers, ears and toes came flooding into my head - images of blackened body parts. Once in the car I was able to get my pants down for a look. Whew, didn't look any different from the last time I had seen it! But man did it start to hurt. The freezing started coming out and it stung. I was in so much pain, and perhaps due to it's location, I started to get nauseous. The only way to deal with frost bite is to slowly and gradually warm up the body part. So I cupped my tally wacker with both hands and held on gently.

Gradually it got warmer, the stinging sensation subsided and the nausea passed. I'm not making that mistake again. Going down to MEC to buy me a pair of the undies above for today's ski.

Weight: V.2

Seems lots of other bloggers/riders are talking about weight too. 'Tis the season I guess.

Was just over on Adam's blog last night and he's going through the same thing. He got the idea of posting his daily weight at the end of each post. I'm not going to steal that idea, but I might do it from time to time - just to let you know where I am at. And, again, like Adam said . . . .

"You then can heckle or encourage me as is appropriate."

. . . . say what you must. Both the positives and the negatives are going to inspire me. I may be wearing a muumuu now, but just you weight (like that play on words?).


Before I go, I'd just like to say 'thanks' to everyone who wrote me e-mails/comments with great advice and support. Much appreciated!

Weight

I've been dogging this post for a while now.

A couple reasons I guess . . . .

The first being that part of me which hates to fail and is bit of a perfectionist. If I don't get my weight down to where I want or think it should be I'll feel like a failure and my whole race season will be ruined. On the other hand, it's a great excuse to hide behind. Getting a glimpse into my sick little mind?!

Second, it's so hard to do! I've always struggled to keep my weight down. Food is just so damn good. I wake up in the middle of the night craving food. An hour after I eat supper, I'm hungry. Maybe I've got a tape worm? But if I did, I'd be skinny. . . . . Know where I can get a tape worm?

Like everyone else (almost everyone else), I put on some weight over the holidays. Got up to 206lbs. Holy cow - that's F'ing fat! [editor's note: some of that is muscle - bulked up a bit at the gym in October/November]

My goal is to get down to 183lb'ish. I've already lost 6.5 lbs (but who's counting?!) and it hasn't been too bad. Just eating smaller portions, eating regularly, eating smart - no empty calories, and exercising lots. The nights are the worse, cause there's nothing else that I'd rather do than eat a big bag of chips or a couple of peanut butter sandwiches.

However, I'm pretty motivated and it's been going well. Just got to keep on keepin' on with it. Say it with me . . . .

Nordic stepping, hiking, bounce about . . .

I refuse to call what I did today Nordic Walking.

Mark and I made plans to hook up today to do a classic ski, however, conditions weren't the best with all the warm temperatures and melted snow (which turned the track set to ice). So instead, to take advantage of the beauty day we had today, we decided to hike Wolf trail in the park. It was too beaten down to justify using snowshoes. Sections were so wide and hard in spots you could drive a car on it without fear of sinking in.

Mark on top of Wolf.

Yaktrax

I bought these to use on icy trails while walking Jacks, so I don't fall down and go 'boom'. They came in real handy today scrambling up some icy, hard packed sections of the trail. And yes, I used my snowshoe poles to help with the hiking - there was no attempt at trying to be trendy!

This new 'sport', Nordic Walking, is popping up everywhere as the new thing to do. All around Ottawa little old ladies and men walk about with ski poles. There are groups who get together and do it together. Places over lessons on how to do it and you can even take a course on how to become an instructor. Can you believe that?!? A lesson or a course on how to walk with xc ski poles in your hands!?!! Nutty. With the way the Olympic games are going, this might end up being a demonstration sport someday soon, right along side of underwater basket weaving and rug hooking.

However, if it gets people outside exercising, it can't be all that bad. To each his/her own.

Spinning with the Taliban

Well not quite the Taliban.

Headed over to Warren's this afternoon for a two hour training session on the trainers. Great to catch up - talking riding, bikes and training. Warren has become quite the 'roadie' over the past few years, leaving mtn biking behind him (that's how we met) to become a road machine here in Ottawa and Ontario, for that matter.

Earlier in the week, when the weather look like it was going to be nice for riding outdoors, he suggested that we should get outside for a ride. Glad that we opted to stay indoors - he wasn't able to drop me!

He gave me lots to think about and use this winter that will certainly help out with my upcoming race season. Thanks again Warren! Will have to do this again soon.

Two hours on the bike and two sweat soaked handkerchiefs later.
Avg. HR = 153 bpm for 2 hrs of riding.

Coffee

Chris had this handmade mug done for me for Christmas by a local artist. I love my mug!

Just getting my stuff to go this morning, enjoying a big mug of dark coffee, before I head over to Warren's place for a 2hr indoor training ride, then some core body work. Warren is a road machine and is very knowledgable in regards to training. Looking forward to picking his brain and getting some ideas to help with my training over this winter and lead up to spring.

Report and pics later.

Rest Day

Ever since New Year's day I've worked out everyday, either skiing, snowshoeing, spinning on the trainer or yoga. I'm taking today off and will find some time to so some stretching and let the body recover a wee bit.

The weather here in Ottawa, right across Canada for that matter, has been absolutely nutty. A week ago Mark and I skied in minus thirty degree temperature, today it's plus ten. It's been raining heaps and needless to say the skiing as gone to shit. Got to go with the flow and stay focused on training.

Bikram Yoga

Bikram Yoga, also known as Hot Yoga, is a style of yoga developed by Bikram Choudhury and a Los Angeles, California based company^[1]. Bikram Yoga is ideally practiced in a room heated to 105°F (40.5°C) with a humidity of 40%. Classes are guided by specific dialogue including 26 postures and two breathing exercises. Classes last approximately 90-minutes.

Christine has been trying to get me to go to this for quite a while now. Finally gave in last night and went. I was expecting it to be some airy-fairy, touchy-feely, artsy-fartsy thing. It was sort of . . . walked into this lighty dimmed room, filled with people laying on yoga mats on the floor in stifling heat (it was F'ing hot!), listening to some east Asian chanting and music. However, as soon as the instructor started it off, I was impressed.

I was flexing, stretching and straining muscles that I didn't know I had, all-the-while trying to keep the body balanced and breathing properly - a complete body workout. I lost buckets of water as I sweat the entire time - I was surprised by how much fluid I lost.

It is quite the workout and something that I am going to add to my training this winter - Monday night's are bikram nights.

Year

Seems lots of folks who blog are doing their year-in-review posts. I thought about it myself. I didn't start this blog until last February, so that's where my year starts. Here's my attempt.

February

- the start of my blog and getting my new Desalvo

March

- North Carolina road trip

April

- Uxbridge Icebreaker & hypothermia

May

- Mansfield 8 Hr Race

June

- Summer Solstice 24 Hr Solo

July

- ate lobster and had a bath (and I wonder why I'm fat!?!)

August

- Kindgom Trails road trip & Hot August Nights 24 Hr Solo

September

- Kingdom Trails road trip (part II) & Paul's Dirty Enduro

October

- registered for The BC Bike Race & formed Big Ring Racing team

November

- rediscovered the Chelsea trails and rode for fun

December

- obtained sponsorship for '08 season from Ergon and Vassago

Backcountry Night Ski

Last night's backcountry night ski with Mark was a stark similarity to the staggering, sprawling gracefullness of a Clouseau-like-French waiter. Nothing like trying to xc ski in the dark on narrow, ungroomed trails in the woods. Our downhill technique was something to marvel at . . . . really.

yup, it was just like that, but on skis.

Friggin cold out last night.

Turned my light off (wasn't getting very good light from it anyway) after ten minutes into the ski.

Headless xc skier? Freaky.

Coldshoe

Snowshoe, coldshoe. Brrrr . . . . it was damn cold yesterday.

Rick and I snowshoed Wolf Trail in the park yesterday afternoon. We were on the north side of the hill for most of the 'shoe', hence in shadow - it was friggin cold (with windchill - 30 degrees celcius)

We went about 9kms in just a tiny bit over 2 hours - just a steady consistent pace. By the end of the 'shoe' we could feel our legs - proof that we were working.

Training note: snowshoeing forces your legs to work on power & strength. Using poles gets your upper body working, thus providing a full body workout. Winter is the time of year to be doing some crossover sports. This strengthens the body and gives you a break off the bike. I don't know about you, but I certainly don't want (my only form of exercise & training) to be sitting on a trainer in my basement for three to four months. Living in a snowy, cold part of the country it's necessary to take advantage of the conditions and enjoy it!

Frosty build-up inside of Rick's jacket. Smelly, frozen sweat . . . . mmmmmmm, nice.

"Arrgggh . . . . have ye ever had ice crystals in ye nose mate?! Arrgggh"
This photo reminds me of . . . .

. . . . minus, of course, the big, burly forearms.
What's up with Popeye anyway? Was he some sort of freak that grew in-proportioned forearms and calf muscles because all he ate was spinach?
Let that be a lesson to you kids, steer clear of the veggies.

Belated Happy New Year . . . . I'm fat

I took a beating mentally over the holidays. My consciousness held the cat-0-nine tails and whipped my moral being to the bone. I remarked on someone's blog, before the holidays started (which I was already in full flight in over indulgence), that the key idea for the Christmas break would be "moderation". Apparently I follow the "do what I say, not as I do" rule. I over indulged, hardly lifted a finger and took part in slothfulness and gluttony like it was going out of style (is it in style?). I managed a few skis and some walking, albeit was back and forth to the cookie tin, to keep my guilt at bay. However, there is no escaping tight pants, man boobs and an overwhelming sense of uncomfortable'ness - the proof is there in the mirror.

Why is it that I seem to have to let myself go before I do something about it? Human nature or is it just me?

I was at my mother-in-law's place and she remarked that I'm too hard on myself, after listening to me whinge (I was a miserable son-of-a-bitch to be around over the holidays) about how I felt. That's further from the truth and opposite to where I should be . . . . harder on myself (and easier on other people).

So, what do I do? Make a resolution to do 'something about it' . . . . just like every other fat f*cker out there. Buy the gym membership, dust off the sneakers and workout suit, throw out all the leftover sweets (really, can you believe that I'd have leftovers?!?!), find a catchy daily affirmation to say to myself every morning to keep me on track and generally believe that this year things will be different.

I think that I am going to need more than my own self-will-power and reliance to help me drop some weight.

Snowshoe Workout

Got out for a snowshoe workout the other day. Environment Canada says that we have approximately 78cm of snow on the ground now. It felt like it - man it's deep in the woods!

South March Higlands showed signs of snow shoers, but no one had hiked it recently. I parked at the Huntmar side along side of the road, where all the new road improvements took place. Not a lot of room to park, and unfortunately they did not put a parking lot in.

I got onto Ridge, hiked to Gateway and then onto Outback. I didn't make it as far as I thought I would - traveling in the deep snow is slow going. Got as far as the first long bridge over the end of the pond, then turned around.


Coach wants me to use the snowshoes to work on power. My guess is that the snow shoeing is working on explosive power (explosive power!). After a good warm up (about 15-20 minutes of steady walking) I did one minute sprints, followed by a one minute rest - five times. By the end of it I was spent and my legs were screaming at me. The rest of the workout was a steady hike that kept my heart rate elevated into zone two for most of the time. All said and done, I was out for just over two hours. Next workout, I will do another set and add on each time, steadily improving duration and sets.

You could just make out some snow shoe trails from before the last big dump last weekend. The deer were making use of them, helping them get around and find food. Saw a couple out. This little one was feeding while it snowed heavily. They've got bushy coats this time of year.

Merry Christmas!

Just wishing everyone a Merry Christmas!

Hope you and yours' the best.

Possessed

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Ergon Sponsorship

Ever since Ergon grips hit the North American market I've been intrigued by them. I finally picked up a pair in May and have loved them from day one. See my "Naked Ergon Grip Review".

This past month or so I had been in contact with Jeff Kerkove, Ergon's front man in the States, about a possible sponsorship for the 2008 race season. Just found out today that I've been chosen to represent Ergon as a sponsored rider! Whoot!

Thank you very much Jeff and Ergon. Looking forward to representing in '08.
*Ergon team line-up
Cheers.

I'm buying a snowblower

Holy cow! What a dumping of snow we are getting. I was hoping to get over to the park for either a long snowshoe or xc ski today in the backcountry. Instead I spent most of the day shoveling snow.

When all is said and done we are supposed to have 40cm on the ground. Whoot! I've been out shoveling the drive and walkway three times today already, and it shows no signs of letting up.

Running out of room to pile the snow.

Just finished this section of the path, I turn around and it looks like it needs to be shoveled again. It was two hours between the last time I shoveled and when I just went out. It's drifting with all the wind.

Jackie Boy was loving it. He was especially having fun submarining under the snow when I threw his soccer ball for him.