February 05, 2013

2012 Polar Bear triathlon race results (White Sands Missile Range NM) December

I had been having a hard time finding the results to the Polar Bear triathlon. It wasn't listed on The South West Challenge Series web page or anywhere else online that I could find. The Rd was nice enough to send me them so I thought I'd post the results here in case anyone else is trying to find them. Click on each page to view.
 
So far the Clydesdale open division points for the South West Challenge Series 3 races into the season are:
1st Michael Barrow 2 races/ 20 points
2nd T. Strasser 2 races/ 15 points
T-3rd C. Roehrman 1 race/ 9 points
T-3rd D. Wilson 1 race/ 9 points
T-5th E. Ytuarte 1 race/ 8 pts
T-5th Zapata 1 race/ 8 pts
T-5th Cody Hanson 1 race/ 8 pts
T-8th Greg Trujillo 1 race/ 7 points
T-8th John Barefield 1 race 7 points
 
 
 



February 04, 2013

Garcinia Cambogia Extract, appetite suppressant, emotional eating, and triathlon

Below the links is my post. The links are my posts about Garcinia Cambogia Extract:
Day 4 of Garcinia Cambogia Extract trial:  http://cody-the-clydsdale.blogspot.com/2013/02/test.html


Recently I watched an episode of Dr Oz where he explains how Garcinia Cambogia Extract helps people to lose weight, curbs appetite, and helps prevent emotional eating by increasing serotonin levels. This interested me because I'm an emotional eater and I've gained a lot of weight the last year. I've tried unsuccessfully more times than I can count to get back down to my race weight. So I've decided to try exercise and eating a Paleo diet (again) with Garcinia Cambogia to see how it works. I'll post my results here.

Last year I'd heard on the Dr OZ show that Saffron extract helps with appetite suppression, I'd tried it, but it didn't work for me. It was AMAZING at suppressing the appetite, but Saffron extract didn't help me at all because it doesn't help prevent emotional eating. Supposedly Garcinia Cambogia extract does.

FYI, I went to three stores before I found some Garcinia Cambogia extract. Since Dr Oz had it on his show and said great things about it it's been sold out and hard to come by. It was $24 for 60 pills at the vitamin shop I finally found it at. When I got home I Googled Garcinia Cambogia extract and found most sites sold 180 pills for $24.99. So if at all possible buy them online. You can buy 3 times as many for the same cost and not have to drive all over the place.

Below is the article I found on Dr Oz web site. It almost sounds too good to be true!

What Is Garcina Cambogia Extract?
Garcinia Cambogia is a small, pumpkin-shaped fruit, sometimes called tamarind. Though native to Indonesia, it is also grown in India, Southeast Asia, and West and Central Africa. It has long been used in traditional South Asian dishes, including curries and chutneys. Many also use the fruit for curing fish and preservation.

Adding this ingredient to meals is considered to be effective in making meals more “filling.” In some villages in Malaysia, garcinia is used to make a soup that is eaten before meals for weight loss because of garcinia’s appetite-blocking abilities.

This plant offers one of the least expensive herbal supplements on the market. The ingredient from the rind of the fruit could hasten your weight-loss efforts. The natural extract is called hydroxycitric acid (HCA), and researchers claim that HCA can double or triple one’s weight loss.

With proper weight-loss efforts (dieting and exercising), the average person taking HCA lost an averagw of 4 pounds a month.

Garcinia may also be great for emotional eaters. Those who participated in the study showed an increase in their serotonin levels; hence, it may also improve mood and sleeping patterns.

How Does Garcina Cambogia Work?
The HCA extract from garcinia cambogia supplement aids in weight loss by doing two things: It helps to block fat, and it suppresses your appetite.

HCA blocks fat by inhibiting a key enzyme that your body needs to make fat from carbohydrates: Citrate lyase. Usually carbohydrates or sugars that are not used immediately or stored in other forms are converted into fats. When HCA inhibits citrate lyase, the fat-making process is halted and the production of LDL (bad cholesterol) and triglycerides decrease.

HCA also suppresses appetite by increasing serotonin levels. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter in your brain that makes you feel good. It’s a target of many antidepressant medications. Having low levels of serotonin may make you feel depressed or anxious; it drives many people into emotional or reactive eating. By increasing serotonin levels, HCA improves mood and suppresses the drive to react to stressful situations with food. As you eat less, your body senses this and it releases stored fat in your fat cells.

Many studies have shown promise. One randomized placebo-controlled study followed 60 obese persons for 8 weeks. With a calorie-restricted diet (1200 kcal/day) and an HCA dose of 1320 mg/day, the experimental group lost an average of 14 pounds (compared to 6.1 pounds in the placebo group). The participants also noted reduced appetite.

Is It Safe?
The plant and its fruit have been eaten safely for years. The HCA extract is also likely in safe amounts.

However, don’t take this supplement if you are pregnant or breastfeeding. If you are taking a diabetic medication (like insulin or glyburide), talk to a doctor before taking this to make sure this is right for you, otherwise this supplement may allow your blood sugar to fall even lower than normal.

Those taking a statin (a cholesterol-lowering drug) should use this supplement with caution because it can increase the risk of harmful side effects, like rhabdomyolysis or muscle degradation. Those with Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia shouldn’t take HCA because of the risk of worsening dementia.

How Much Should I Take?
You can buy garcinia cambogia extract in health food stores or online. When looking for a supplement, look for “garcinia cambogia” or “GCE” with at least 50% HCA (active ingredient potassium). Some experts believe that the newly available HCA potassium salts are more effective than the other HCA formulations.

Take 500-1000 mg before each meal, and make sure to take no more than 3000 mg total per day.

When looking for supplements, make sure you can see and review the list of ingredients. Do not purchase if you can’t see any ingredients. Furthermore, there should be no fillers or artificial ingredients.

With no other changes, you may lose 2-4 pounds within one month. However, it is highly recommended that the person taking HCA also find time for moderate exercise a few times a week and eat properly portioned meals. Let the power of the HCA supplement work along with making healthier choices.

Also, understand that no pill is more effective than maintaining a regular exercise regimen and a healthy diet.

February 03, 2013

The Super Bowl, food temptations, and triathlon

I had a choice to make, watch the super bowl and be tempted with all the food at a Super Bowl party,
or go to work where I'm in complete control of my food. After my crappy performance at yesterdays duathlon I've decided I'm going in for a 12 hour overtime shift.

I gotta get back to my race weight. Not only was yesterday an embarrassment, but my body, especially my knees are beat up. It's not good to be racing or training carrying around as much weight as I am right now. Things change now.

On February 9th my wife and I are going to a functional nutrition lecture put on by BJ and Will, owners of Zia CrossFit. Both are amazing athletes. Both compete regularly in Olympic lifting competitions, the CrossFit games, etc. Will is a former collegiate swimmer. He's finished numerous triathlons up to the half Ironman distance. After the seminar they are going to be have a club nutrition competition. I'm not sure how long the competition is going to last, probably 6 weeks or so. I'm looking foreword to it. Not only will the info be helpful, but I love competition. The competition will be motivational for me.

My goal is to get down to 220 by The Billy The Kid Triathlon held on June 8th. I weighed in at 252.8 this morning.

duathlons, bloody nipples, and other uncomfortable things

I hadn't trained much in the last 14 months, so I knew I'd be sore the day after yesterdays race, but I forgot that there are things that hurt from racing and/or training other than muscles. One of those things is bloody nipples. Sounds painful doesn't it? It is. It's pretty common though. If you run and bike for long distances, and your shirt rubs your nipples each time you take a step running or peddle, it eventually rubs them raw. So this is the end result:   
 
And my arm pits are chaffed raw where my tank top style shirt ended in my pitts. The shirt got rubbed back and forth in between my arm and arm pitts as I ran, and this is the result:
 
And my butt crack is chaffed- don't worry, I didn't add a picture of that.

And my gooch is rubbed raw. Are you new to cycling and don't know what a gooch is? A gooch is a cycling term for the area of your body you sit on when cycling.

Makes you want to go out and do a duathlon or triathlon doesn't it?

February 02, 2013

The 2013 Missile Man duathlon race report

I left my house this morning at 1:30 am to drive to White Sands Missile Range New Mexico to race The Missile Man duathlon. I really enjoy racing any of the multisport races held at WSMR NM. They have excellent post race meals of pasta, french bread, and Gatorade. During the awards ceremony they have a raffle where free race entries are handed out for any White Sands Missile Range race. There are showers available so you can get cleaned up before you drive home.  The WSMR races are held on a military instillation, so there's little to no vehicle traffic on the bike course; which is important to me since I freak out riding my bike near vehicles thanks to a very large vehicle running over me and giving me a traumatic brain injury in September of 2011.

If you interested in racing a multisport race at WSMR here's the link to their 2013 race schedule:
http://cody-the-clydsdale.blogspot.com/2012/10/white-sands-missile-range-2013.html

The Missile Man duathlon  was my 83rd multisport race, and my 19th duathlon. It was a 7k run, 28k bike, 5k run. I was nervous about this race, I wasn't sure I'd be able to complete it since I've done virtually no swimming, biking, or running, and have gained 75 pounds since the accident.

The last triathlon I raced in was in September 2012. It was my slowest race ever, so I knew I had to do something to stop the gaining weight. I joined Zia CrossFit in Santa Fe NM the 1st week of January. I was doubtful that doing CrossFit 3 times a week for 4 weeks would make me race any faster. But before I knew it, it was time to see....

I started out feeling good on the 1st run of 7 kilometers, or 4.34 miles. I finished the 1st run of the day in 45:01, which is around a 10:21 per minute pace. I was pretty sure I was in 4th place in my division (it's easy picking out who the Clydes are), but I wasn't sure if I could pass anyone later in the race when I'd need some endurance- did I still have any of that stuff called endurance?

The bike is an out and back 17.4 miler, the 1st half is a gradual downhill. On the first few miles I felt fantastic! I was passing people left and right! At mile 5 my left calf started cramping, I did my best to ignore it and focus on my effort rather than the pain. Eventually the cramping went away.... On the return route I started the long gradual (dreadful) climb back. Climbing is all about fitness and being at a low body weight, so I assumed I'd suffer and be slow coming back because I'm heavy and I was pretty sure I'd lost most of my fitness..... I surprised the heck out of myself by doing better on the climb than I did going downhill! I'm not saying I was fast, I'm just sayin' I was climbing fast for a guy weighing 250 pounds. I passed at least one Clyd on the way back to the transition area. Progress! Apparently CrossFit does build speed! Who knew? Well now I do that's who! My end bike time was a dismal 1 hour 19 minutes which is a 13.1 mph average, but it was still faster than my last race in September! Like I said, progress!

After the race I started thinking.... I raced on aero dynamic wheels and wore an aero helmet, and I only rode an average of 13.1 mph. A cyclist has to ride at least 19 mph to make riding on aero wheels or in an aero helmet worth while. I knew I was going to be slow, so why use aero equipment? Why wear out my expensive equipment when it doesn't benefit me? That was dumb. Really really dumb. I bet I looked stupid out there. I bet I looked a lot like the guy in this picture.



On the 2nd run I was a mess, both calf's were cramping up and I was fatigued like crazy, but I didn't allow anything to take my focus off of running as hard as I could to the finish. I knew the clyd I passed on the bike was right behind and I didn't want to let that guy pass me! The thought of missing a podium finish got my competitive juices flowing and I can get REALLY COMPETITIVE! I ended up finishing the 2nd run of 5 kilometers in 23:51, which is a 7:41 pace. Yup, I'm mighty happy with the 2nd run time! Run fat boy run!!!

I finished in 26th place overall, and 3rd place in the Clydesdale 39 and under. So like I said, I did much better than I assumed I'd do, but I'm still a very long way away from my strreak of top 3 overall finishes back in 2010. No, you didn't read that wrong. Top 5. I used to be lean and FAST! I know it's hard to believe it by looking at me now, but back in 2010 I finished 5 races in the top 5 overall. My average sprint triathlon times were 6:16 for a 400 meter swim, I'd average just shy of 21 mph on the bike, then still be able to run just shy of a 7 minute per mile pace. I realize I'm a long ways from where I used to be, but this is a life long sport. It doesn't matter where I am right now, what matters is where I'm going. Next step is to start off supplementing CrossFit with a little cycling and running.

With today's 3rd place finish I have 8 points for the South West Challenge Series. 1 race down, 4 more races to go until I hit the minimum number of races needed to qualify for The South West Challenge Series series, and 4 more races minimun needed to qualify for the Chasing 3 Open Water Series. Yup, I'm going to try and compete in both deries this year.

January 31, 2013

2013 triathlon and duathlon goals

I have 2 goals I'd like to shoot for this year:

1) take top 3 in both the New Mexico Open Water Series and The South West Challenge Series. This goal will take a minimum of 10 multisport races, but may take as many as 16. I'm excited about attempting to place in 2 series in the same year. I've placed top 3 in The South West Challenge Series 7 years in a row, but trying to balance two series simultaneously will be quite the challenge indeed!

2) My 2nd goal is to get down to 220 pounds. This goal will be harder for me then racing an average of twice a month for an entire year. Food sucks.... well in all honesty, I guess food ROCKS! Which is why it sucks. I love food- no I hate it! But I love it..... I hate to love it! My relationship is with food is kind of like a fresh baked bear claw. Sweet, comforting, and kinda warm deep inside, but all twisted up and slippery.
 


My current weight is 250. I only have 30 pounds to lose to reach my goal. It's really not that much to drop in a year. I've lost 120 pounds before and kept the weight off for a year and a half, but right now losing 30 pounds feels virtually impossible. Honestly, it feels like I'd be more capable of a successful jump across the Grand Canyon with ankle weights on.

January 30, 2013

The New Mexico Open Water Tri Series

Since I'm planning on competing in the Chasing 3 New Mexico Open Water Series in 2013 I thought I'd post who the winners in 2012 were. I noticed Matt Gonzales placed 1st in the Open Water Series 25-29 AG and also 2nd place in the South West Challenge Series 25-29 in 2012, he completed a total of 11 races between the 2 series. Very impressive.

I highlighted my division in yellow

Male Overall
Name Age AWARD
Clay Moseley 42 $900.00
Alex Willis 24 $550.00
Rance Irvin 22 $300.00
Male Masters 40-58
Name Age AWARD
Michael Schneider 46 $500.00
Male Grand Masters 59+
Name Age AWARD
Lawrence Kay 64 $500.00
Female Overall
Name Age AWARD
Terry Moore 33 $900.00
Kristin Moriarty 34 $550.00
Sanna Sevanto 38 $300.00
Female Masters 40-58
Name Age AWARD
Lisa Broidy 44 $500.00
Female Grand Masters 59+
Name Age AWARD
Kathy Foucar 62 $500.00
AGE GROUP AWARDS
Male 19 & under
Name Age GIFT CARD
Alex Bradbury 18 $75.00
Male 20-24
Name Age GIFT CARD
Brandon Trout 24 $75.00
Male 25 to 29
Name Age GIFT CARD
Matt Gonzales 25 $75.00
Matthew Scarborough 28 $50.00
Male 30 to 34
Name Age GIFT CARD
Justin Newcomer 32 $75.00
Tom Fraser 31 $50.00
Phillip Sunderland 32 $25.00
Male 35 to 39
Name Age GIFT CARD
Marty Moriarty 35 $75.00
Todd Rinner 35 $50.00
Steven Montoya 35 $25.00
Male 40 to 44
Name Age GIFT CARD
Matthew Hess 42 $75.00
Kevin Dussart 44 $50.00
Male 45 to 49
Name Age GIFT CARD
David Sacoman 46 $75.00
Kevin Kandalaft 46 $50.00
Arne Leonard 49 $25.00
Male 50 to 54
Name Age GIFT CARD
John Madrid 51 $75.00
Male 60 to 64
Name Age GIFT CARD
Jeffrey Sweers 61 $75.00
Male 65 to 69
Name Age GIFT CARD
Elliott Foucar 66 $75.00
Female 25 to 29
Name Age
Misha Montoya 28 $75.00
Female 35 to 39
Name Age
Kari Wilner 38 $75.00
Jaime Aagaard 36 $50.00
Kimberly Brooks 38 $25.00
Female 40 to 44
Name Age
Debra Szymanski 44 $75.00
Female 50 to 54
Name Age
Noelle Sharp 51 $75.00
Amy Rehfeld 54 $50.00
DIVISION AWARDS
Clydesdale
NAMEDIVAWARD
Conan CastelainCLY$500.00
E.P. HiggsCLY$75 GC
Daniel VancampCLY$50 GC
Athena
NAME DIV AWARD
Holly Montoya ATH $500.00
Jennifer Newcomer ATH $75 GC
TEAM
Endorphin Power Company TRI Team TEAM AWARD
Adam Mollekoph, Bill Dahl and Sid Scheer $750.00

January 29, 2013

The Broken Spoke bike shop Santa Fe NM

Since my favorite bike shop, Frankie Flats went out of business late last year I've been searching for a  bike shop to do business with. The owners of my old bike shop suggested I go to The Broken Spoke here in Santa Fe NM. Earlier this week the battery to my bikes computer died. It would have been an easy fix for me to do, but this was the perfect opportunity to see if this shop was honest and reasonably priced.

The last bike shop I went to was Charlies bike shop and asked them to do a small swap of components. When I went to pick up my bike from Charlies they doubled the amount they had quoted me, refused to give me my old equipment back, and even stole my drivers licence.

At the Broken Spoke my bike was ready for me to pick up the day after I dropped it off. The fees were fair and they were super friendly. They even put new zip ties on my rear transmitter at no charge. Looks like I've found myself a new bike shop!

January 22, 2013

2013 triathlon, X-Terra, and Duathlon schedule

I had been waiting for the South West Challenge Series to come out with their schedule before I decided what my race schedule for 2013 would be, but I haven't heard anything from the SWCS since November. Not only have they not posted their 2013 schedule, or the 2013 points standings for the 2 races that have been held thus far, but they also haven't even had their awards ceremony for the 2012 top 3 age group and division athletes. I became anxious and decided to build my 2013 race plan based off of what race info is currently out. The Chasing 3 New Mexico Open Water series has had their schedule out for over a month, so it looks like for the 1st time in 8 years of racing I wont be competing in the South West Challenge Series, I'll be competing in the Chasing 3 New Mexico Open Water series instead.

Feb
1) The Missile Man Duathlon, White Sands Missile Range NM

April
2) The Spring Fling triathlin Rio Rancho NM
3) The Atomic Man Duathlon, White Rock NM

May
4) Jay Benson triathlon

June
5) The 4 corners X-Terra, Farmington NM
6) The Billy The Kid Tombstone Tri, Fort Sumner NM
7) Storrie Lake Tri, Las Vegas  NM

July
8) The City of Lakes Tri, Santa Rosa NM
9) Cochiti Lake tri, Cochiti NM

Aug
10) The 505 triathlon, Cochiti NM

September
11) X-Terra Dread Mon, Truth or Consequences NM
12) The Trinidad Del Muerto or Chupacabra challenge, Truth or Consequences NM

January 16, 2013

cold front in New Mexico


A cold front has been hovering over New Mexico. It got so cold in the level 5 tower last night that my water bottle froze and exploded before I had a chance to drink it.

January 09, 2013

weaknesses and strengths

Since starting CrossFit I figured out pretty quickly what I'm weak at and what my strengths are. What I'm best at is my upper body strength, which is surprising because I haven't done any upper body strength training since 2004. My weaknesses are many, but the three that I need to work on the most are my body weight bearing exercises such as burpees, push ups, pull ups, etc., my cardio, and my leg strength. During most of my CrossFit workouts I end up gassed out long before I reach muscle failure- the exception is when I'm doing strength bearing exercises, or a strength workout on the legs.

Since starting CrossFit a couple weeks ago I've already doubled the amount of push ups I can do. But I still need to improve a lot.

Yesterday I finished the WOD in last place out of everyone in the class, but I'm getting better quickly, and I'm finally eating well again. Yesterday after my CrossFit workout I rode the indoor bike rollers for 55 minutes while watching the biggest loser. I love that show. The 55 minute bike was rough. The Missile Man Duathlon at White Sands Missile Range on February 2nd is going to kick my butt! Hopefully there wont be many Clydesdale open division athletes showing up, because I'm in sad shape. This is the least fit and most overweight I've been in since picking up triathlon back in 2004.

January 08, 2013

an enviroment to succeed


Last nights CrossFit workout was brutal! I'm not sure if its because I didn't do anything physical during my week long anniversary trip to Sedona AZ with my wife and I lost fitness, or if its because I put on more weight- I'm tipping the scaling at a whopping 254 pounds now. Whatever the reason was, at the half way point of the workout I was exhausted, cramping up, shaking, and was seriously doubting if I'd be able to finish. I did end up finishing, but my time was HORRIBLE! After the workout I just laid there on the floor of the gym. I was too exhausted and... well.... embarrassed of my performance to get up. Within moments of finishing my pathetic workout a couple people came up to me and told me, "way to finish strong." And "way to push through iÅ¥". It's amazing how a few words of encouragement can change my perspective. I had been hurting beyond belief but still finished every rep and set of the WOD (workout of the day) when others may have quit.

After I recovered I noticed that when the other athletes in the gym were finished, they didn't leave until everyone else had also completed their workout.

As I was leaving, my chin held a just a little bit higher in spite of my poor workout at least 5 people yelled farewell to me. Zia CrossFit is like no gym I've ever been to before. It's more like a community. IÅ¥ wasn't until last night that I realized why every single person in that gym is in such great shape and looks so good: its virtually impossible not to succeed in an environment like that.

January 07, 2013

Changes to the Clydesdale and Athena divisions

USAT has changed the minimum weight of the Clydesdale and Athena triathlon and duathlon divisions. I copied and pasted this from the USAT website:

Weight Class Division - In events where a weight class division is offered, the minimum weight shall be 220 pounds for men and 165 pounds for women, monitored by the event organizer. The weight class age categories for men and women shall be 39 years of age and under and 40 years of age and over. Participants are not eligible to compete in a weight class division and in an age group division at the same event.

December 31, 2012

another New Mexico 70.3 distance triathlon

Looks like there won't be a 2013 Elephant Man triathlon or a 2013 Damit Man triathlon. Those two triathlons will be replaced by the Jornada del Muerto and the ChupaCabra Challenge, both being held on September 29th. The Jornada del Muerto is a long course triathlon which means its a 70.3 distance triathlon. The ChupaCabra Challenge is a sprint distance triathlon. Both triathlons will be on a very difficult course and can be guaranteed to be a suffer fest!

The Jornada del Muerto and the ChupaCabra Challenge are both part of the Chasing 3 open water series. The chasing 3 open water series is awesome. The NM open water series has done more in a couple years to promote multisport than any other group has in the 8 years I've been doing triathlons. The NM open water series offers tens of thousands of dollars in awards to the age group winners.

So far all of the other races that have become part of the chasing 3 NM open water series have ended up not being in the South West Challenge Series. If this continues there won't be anymore New Mexico open water triathlon races in the SWCS. If all the quality triathlons leave the SWCS I doubt the series will continue to be in existence. That makes me sad. The SWCS is the oldest and largest multisport series in the world. I've enjoyed the SWCS immensely.

I copied this from an email the race director sent me:
The Jornada del Muerto is New Mexicos 2nd long course triathlon! This race takes its name from the Jornada del Muerto, and should be as tough as the original, but not as death defying. With a bike turn around at New Mexico's SpacePort America this race will be an interesting combination of the past and our future.

Then at 8 am we start the ChupaCabra Challenge! Our newest sprint course. This beautiful hilly course will take you to places on the lake you have never been. The view from the east side of the lake is nothing short of amazing.

December 30, 2012

Saturday CrossFit competition class

At the CrossFit gym I recently started working out at they have workout competitions on Saturdays. I'd avoided going to one of the Saturday classes because.... well... so far I suck at CrossFit, and no one wants to be teamed up with the slow guy in the class. Because of a couple of unexpected mandatory 16 hour shifts and the Christmas holiday this week I was only able to hit 2 CrossFit workouts. 2 workouts is not enough to build fitness as quickly as I'd like. So yesterday I forced myself to attend the Saturday class. I'm glad I did. Everyone was just as friendly and accepting as they always are. Everyone encouraged each other, there wasn't a single person who was judgmental. It was the perfect workout environment.

There were 5 stations, at each station we'd row for a minute, then do a minute of strength training such as pull ups, burpees, wall balls, atlas stones, or kettle bell swings, then rest a minute. We did each station 2 times. The teams encouraged each team member and even encouraged the other teams. The competition fueled me to push even harder than I usually do. By the end of the workout I was BEYOND exhausted, and I had  blast! I'll be attending the Saturday classes fom now on for sure. What an amazing way to start the weekend!

December 29, 2012

The Missile Man duathlon

After almost a year without training at all I've decided to jump into the 2013 triathlon season head first. On Feb 2nd I'll be competing in the The Missile Man duathlon at White Sands Missile Range New Mexico. It's a 4.3 mile run, 15.5 mile bike, and another run 3.2 miles. The Missile Man will be my 83rd multisport race and 19th duathlon.

My current weight is 244 pounds. I'm a Clydesdale with room to spare right now.

December 28, 2012

week 1 of Zia CrossFit

Last week I completed my first full week of doing CrossFit workouts at Zia CrossFit. CrossFit is even better than I had hoped for. What I enjoy the most about CrossFit thus far is how friendly and encouraging the other members are. I've never done a workout like CrossFit before, the workouts are intense, challenging, and very enjoyable. Every workout is designed by CrossFit certified coaches and they're there with us during each workout to ensure we get the best workout possible while ensuring we're doing the exercises safely. Its like having my own personal trainer.

Since I haven't done most of these exercises in years I have been using lighter weights than is suggested for men. Even with the lighter weights I was still finishing the prescribed workouts last in the clas. There are 3 or 4 ladies in the class I outweigh by well over a 100 pounds and they are smoking me! How can they so strong being so tiny? I'm amazed.

By Friday I was prepared to attend my 5th day of CrossFit in a row, but I realized I needed a day off. My body was FATIGUED! I'm thoroughly enjoying CrossFit so far, but I realize I have a LONG ways to go before I get back into shape, especially CrossFit shape.

December 19, 2012

MY FIRST CROSSFIT WORKOUT

On Monday I did my 1st CrossFit workout. After a thorough warm up we did:
Clean + Front Squat 7 x 1+2
then
3 rounds for time
6 Snatch Balance @ 95/65 (click here for video)
9 Overhead Squats @95/65 (Click here for video)
12 Hand Release Pushups

On Tuesday my wife and I did our 1st workout together. She did her 1st two rounds faster than I did. She's a poor winner, she keeps rubbing it in every minute or so.
3 Rounds for time
10 KB/DB Swings @53/35
10 Squats with KB/DB in Rack position on right
Farmer’s walk down and back in rack position on right side
10 Swings
10 Squats with KB/DB in Rack position on left
Farmer’s walk down and back in rack position on left side

Very intense! I'm very sore and I'm hooked. I signed up with Zia CrossFit last night. I'm looking forward to many more suffer-fests like these to come.

December 16, 2012

personalized crossfit training

I'd been reading a lot about training techniques for endurance athletes. Many pro endurance athletes have started doing some light Olympic lifting to supplement their regular training.  Olympic training builds strength, power, explosiveness, and decreases muscle fatigue and damage in long training sessions. There are some common misconception about Olympic lifters, like they are all big, fat, and muscle bound. Turns out Olympic lifters are some of the leanest athletes in any sport and they have a vertical leap higher than all but basketball players and volleyball players. I decided I wanted to try to suplament my triathlon training with some Olympic lifting so I joined a CrossFit gym. I'm very excited about it.

There's a lot of training in CrossFit that I've never done. Things like Olympic lifting, gymnastics, and kettle bells. These exercises are foreign to me so I decided to get a few days of personal training with one of the coaches, Will O'Connel at Zia CrossFit before I tried a CrossFit workout. I was really impressed with the training I received. I feel ready to try CrossFit to supplement my multi sport training. My 1st day will be Monday. I'll let you know what I think.

December 15, 2012

Crossfit Santa Fe and Zia Crossfit

Triathlon training is not working for me right now. I'll build a perfect triathlon program for me that fits my fitness and schedule, and then I never end up doing anything! In the mean time I just keep getting more out of shape and unhealthy. A buddy of mine told me about crossfit. I seems intense and fun so I've decided to try it.

Turns out there are 2 crossfit gyms in my area, Crossfit Santa Fe, and Zia Crossfit. I went to each to decide which one my wife and I would go to.

Cossfit Santa Fe is located inside Undisputed, a mixed martial arts gym. A HUGE benefit to this gym is that if I purchased a gym membership for Santa Fe Crossfit I could attend all the jiu-jitsu, boxing, and cardio kick boxing classes for free. They have a ton of crossfit, grappling, boxing, and cardio kickboxing classes available everyday. It seems like they have a class starting just about every hour all day everyday of the week! They offered to help me with my diet and nutrition for free. Another big plus is that they have kids jui-jitsu classes available for my 5 & 7 year olds. The gym is owned by a guy who is a serious stud of a mixed martial artist. He was on The Ultimate Fighter a few years ago. The down side is Santa Fe Crossfit would cost $200 a month per adult membership, $90 per child, and we'd have to sign a contract for 3, 6, or 12 months. If I wanted to get a membership for my wife and myself for crossfit and get two of my kids into grappling it would end up costing us $580 a month. Or $400 a month for just for my wife and I. They also charge a one time $70 fee per member upon signing up. Don't get me wrong, for all they offer it's well worth it, but there's no way my wife and I could afford that until my wife graduates from college and we get 2 incomes for our family again. A big negative for us is that they don't have day care and don't allow children to hang out there while the parents workout, which would make training there virtually impossible for my wife and I.
On 4/5/14 I received a response from Heather at Santa Fe CrossFit concerning the prices at their facility. She said they offer a %50 discount on every other member in a family if one member is paying full price. That option wasn't offered to us when we visited their facility. I'm not sure if it was just oversight or if wasn't offered at the time. But I wanted to share this so anyone reading my blog can make a fully informed decision. There was also a change in Zia CF's prices, I updated those prices in red below. Both places offers a law enforcement and first responders discount.

Zia Crossfit has a much larger facility and more equipment. They don't have any martial arts training at their facility but The Santa Fe Brazilian Jui-jitsu academy offers a HUGE discount to any Zia Crossfit athletes. Zia Crossfit only offers 3 classes a day but the classes are at times that fit my wife and my schedules perfectly. The classes are 5:30-6:30 am, noon to 1 pm, and 5:30-6:30 pm. Zia Crossfit unlimited gym membership with no contract is only $120 a moth, or $240 a month for my wife and I both, there's start up fees. If your wiling to sign a contract the monthly dues go down significantly. The owners of Zia Crossfit are willing to build a free custom training program for any of their athletes who want to concentrate on a specific aspect of their training, such as strength, or endurance. Their gym is kid friendly, so we can bring our babies there when we train.

The updated prices Zia CrossFit as of early 2013 are:
2 times/week: $135/month (days can be combined)
Unlimited: $180/month (month to month, no contract required)
Unlimited: $150/month (6 month contract required)
Unlimited: $165/month (3 month contract required)
Members of Santa Fe Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: $110/month
10 Class Punch Card $200
Drop-in Fee: $25

My wife and I have decided to try out Zia crossfit because of the lower cost, the kid friendly environment, and no contracts. My wife and I start training at Zia Crossfit on Monday I'll let you know how it goes, I predict pain!