E&E Energy and Endurance™ Pre-Workout Formula from Beach Body. Helping Luigi make it through the tough P90X workouts.

Now that I’m almost done with my third week for P90X (to get in shape like Bond), I feel amazing and am extremely happy I started the program.

So when the folks from Beach Body sent me a free sample of their latest pre-workout formula, E&E Energy and Endurance™, I was more than happy to give it a try.

According to Beach Body’s official website:

It’s a powerful supplement scientifically formulated to help improve your energy, endurance, strength, and focus, so you can maximize every minute of your Beachbody^®workout!*

E&E Energy and Endurance will help you:*

• Burn more calories and fat to get ripped faster.
• Maximize muscle performance to build muscle faster.

What I really wanted it for was more energy to make it through the intense P90X workouts (more specifically, for the plyometrics part of the program).

Unfortunately, I received the E&E Energy and Endurance™ Pre-Workout Formula right after my plyo day, but have been taking it before every workout since.

I even had some before I played beach volleyball for a few hours yesterday.

The result?

Definitely had more energy, especially at the beginning to the middle of the workout.  When I did the legs and back routine of P90X, I wasn’t dying half way through the program.  When I played volleyball, I was moving around the court pretty quickly and easily.

I think it was a combination of both the P90X program and the E&E Energy and Endurance™ Pre-Workout Formula.

So far so good – I intend to keep using it before intense workouts.  However I do have a few notes on my experience, before trying it out yourself:

• I never drink energy drinks, nor do I drink coffee.  I played it safe by taking just one scoop of the formula and it seems to work fine for me.
• The packaging says to use the pre-workout formula on training days only.  I would definitely recommend the same.

So if you need a little more juice for your intense workouts (or are currently doing the P90X program), having the E&E Energy and Endurance™ Pre-Workout Formula could help you make it through your program much easier.

For more information or to purchase the E&E Energy and Endurance™ pre-workout formula, you can check out Beach Body’s official website at http://www.beachbody.com/product/supplements/p90x_peak_performance/energy-endurance-preworkout-formula-drink.do.

Two things in life aren't easy: 1) to Become Bond in 6 months and 2) the first week of P90X. Luigi passed out on the floor after a workout.

Becoming James Bond in 6 months isn’t easy.

When I first thought of the idea, I figured it was going to be fun. I get the perfect excuse to try things I had always wanted to try -  shooting a handgun, getting a new tux, evasive driving and hand to hand combat were all fair game in this article series.

For my first task, I decided to do the thing that would take the most time – getting into shape.

To get the most bang for my buck, I opted to do P90X, a wildly popular DVD set of exercise videos that combines strength training, plyometrics, yoga, kenpo and “muscle confusion” to get people “into the best shape of their life.”

But that’s the stuff that you see on their infomercials.

Here’s the stuff you don’t know about:

• It is freaking hard.  I thought I was in decent shape, but from the first week of the program the first thing you learn is how badly out of shape you are.  Case in point – on day 2 (plyometrics) I could only make 45 minutes of the workout before almost passing out on the floor wondering if I should dial 911 before losing consciousness.
• You will need to buy more equipment that just the DVD.  At the very minimum, you need a pull-up bar and some weights or resistance bands.  But after finishing my first week I realized I needed a heart rate monitor (to prevent myself from passing out), a jump pad (for plyometrics), a yoga mat and some healthy snacks to stick to the diet.
• There is a minimum requirement.  Unfortunately, because of how difficult this workout is, there is a minimum level of required fitness before someone can start the program.  Not everyone can jump into P90X and there are actually some tests you have to take before starting it.   And no, I didn’t bother taking those tests.
• The diet is a HUGE component to the workout.  The workout program is very specific about what you should eat for the entire process.  It changes from the first 30 days to the middle 30 days to the last 30 days.  Deviating from the program will reduce my chances of looking like James Bond.  Since I eat out a lot, I opted to do the “portion” option of the diet where I tried to match the amount of food I ate to the dietary requirements of the program.
• Beach Body is a one-stop shop for everything.  They’ve got a brilliant business model.  They sell the DVD’s, the equipment, the protein bars, the shakes.  Hell, all they need to sell now is the actual food.
• After doing the first week of the workouts, you know it is going to work.  If you are vaguely familiar with workout programs and dieting, you can see how P90X will absolutely work in getting someone into the best shape of their life.  The only caveat is following the diet and surviving.
• Although the people in the video are ripped, they are still people.  One thing I really liked about the videos was that people messed up on occasion.  They would fall out of poses in yoga, they would get tired and you could see them shaking when something was difficult.This made me feel like I wasn’t the only one suffering through the program.
• Get ready to invest in some pain medicine.  True story – on my third day (shoulders and arms) I thought I did pretty good with the workout.  That night I realized I was wrong.  My shoulder muscles were so sore I couldn’t even go to sleep.  I needed a buttload of icy hot and some serious pain killers.

So all-in-all P90X is a great way to get into amazing shape, but there are some things you should know before trying it out for yourself.

First off, I am a highly motivated individual because I am writing the Becoming Bond article series and I wanted to get into really good shape in a short amount of time.

Given the difficulty level of P90X, I am not surprised people give up on the first week.

It’s not easy, but I can see how it can get me to my fitness goals quickly and efficiently.  I can also see myself using this workout in the future or in the off-season when I am not playing beach volleyball without it getting old.

Additionally, what is great about the P90X workout is I can do it at home.  I don’t have to embarrass myself in front of other people.  I just look like a jackass in front of my dog and wife.

But you have to be committed if you do decide to do P90X.  There’s no way you are going to make it through the first week otherwise.

I will post my next update on my P90X training after I finish my first 30 days.

Wish me luck – as of today I am 5 days closer to Becoming Bond.

For more information about the P90X exercise program from Beach Body, you can check out their official site at http://www.beachbody.com/product/fitness_programs/p90x.do.

RRRAAAWWWR!!! I'm a bear when I eat in the winter! Image from iStockphoto/Thinkstock.

Bears hibernate. Some sharks and a certain species of birds also hibernate.

They pack on the poundage while food is plentiful then shut down all systems and sleep through the winter.

I must have that bear, shark, or bird gene in me.

How else would you explain why this time of year, I start to crave and give-in to comfort foods and sweets?

It starts around Halloween and continues through the holidays up until the end of the year.

To make things worse, it coincides with the end of the triathlon season. Mine ended last week after I did my last cycling century.

So, now I’m taking a much needed break.

To be fair, the off season is exactly when one should step away from rigid training schedules and relax.

Why not? It’s well deserved.  I know I need that mental break.  In fact, many coaches suggest doing things completely unrelated to swimming, cycling, and running.

As counter intuitive as it sounds, some even suggest doing nothing at all.

The problem is my diet goes with my training schedule: out the window!

I keep eating as if it was still in-season. Not only do I eat more calories than I burn but my food choices aren’t healthy.

Case in point, it’s a Tuesday night and I just got back from pigging-out at the Boiling Crab. After dinner, we ordered shaved ice to-go from Class 302.

Why is that odd?

If it were during the season, I would get off work, go a to a spin class, have a protein shake, and head off to yoga. I would end the day with a hardboiled egg and some Greek yogurt.

I’d make sure I had a decent amount of sleep for the next day’s work day which would be followed by a swim and a run.

When the weekend rolls around, I would have my system primed and gotten my gear ready for the long training days on Saturday and Sunday. Weekend distances and intensity increase steadily as events drew near.

Then, the cycle begins anew. I was essentially living the life of a monk.

In the off season, I live the life of Kung Fu Panda. No schedule. No discipline. No diet.

Yesterday, I was in Albertson’s trying to decide whether I should get the Lindt Dark Chocolate with a Touch of Sea Salt or the large bag of Lay’s Vinegar and Salt.

I got both.

The problem is winter weight is actually weight that’s gained in the fall season. Over time it gets harder and harder to drop. It also means that if I’m not careful, the weight I’m gaining right now may carry-over to next year and then there’s the risk of gaining more the year after that.

It’s a vicious cycle.

Some experts say shorter days and the lack of sunlight cause depression. They call it Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD. And that’s the reason why we tend to make the poor healthy choices. That’s why there’s a marked tendency to eat foods that are heavier and sweeter.

It makes sense except we live in California. No shortage of sunlight here.

Some claim we don’t have as many opportunities to exercise when it starts getting colder and our winter lifestyle kicks-in. I might agree if we were in the northeast which by the way is already experiencing snow.

But we’re in California. People are still surfing. Even in the dead of winter when we break out our Uggs and goose down comforters, it really isn’t that cold, relatively speaking.

So, why is there such a propensity for gluttony this time of year?

The experts with the most compelling argument are the ones who claim we belong to the animal kingdom. Consequently, we are predisposed to loading-up because of the age-old evolutionary method for preservation.

Essentially, we behave like animals because we have that bear gene, fish gene, or that bird gene.

That must be it. I must have the Kung Fu Panda gene and haven’t evolved enough to exercise self-control.

Whatever the case, when January rolls around, I resolve to get leaner, faster, stronger, and healthier.

But, I’ll worry about that tomorrow. I’m too busy eating right now.

Run For Your Lives! A runner falls into the blood pit to escape the clutches of zombies. Image from http://runforyourlives.com.

Zombies and running go together like… um… well… hmmm.

How about this – wherever you find one you will always find the other.

For those that truly want to experience both genres of movie and exercise in the same event, we would like to introduce “Run for Your Lives” –  a new type of 5k run which combines an obstacle course, trail running and zombies.

To be honest, it’s a little surprising Zombies that limp around at about half a mile per hour can really catch up to someone who is running what looks to be 8 to 10 minute miles.

But we digress.

Oh snap, looks like that runner isn't going to make it to the finish line. "Run for your lives" zombie infested 5k image from http://runforyourlives.com.

According to their official website:

Runners will navigate a series of 12 obstacles throughout a 5K course in an attempt to reach the finish line — all while avoiding zombies. At the end of this adventure race, you get to celebrate survival (or zombie transformation) with live entertainment and music, local celebrities, vendors, food, and of course, beer!

But I bet you are asking yourself: “What if I don’t want to turn into an actual zombie?”

We’ve got great news – the event planners have somehow convinced the zombies to grab runners’ flags instead of eating their flesh.

It’s rather amazing, really.

You can make it if you sacrifice your friend! "Run for your lives" zombie infested 5k image from http://runforyourlives.com.

So if you like to run and love zombies, this event is for you.  They’ve got the zombie 5k virus spreading all over the nation, from Baltimore all the way to Los Angeles.

Interested in joining or watching the carnage?  You can check out the “Run for your lives” zombie infested 5k on their official site at http://runforyourlives.com/.

Do you know the difference between pain and suffering when it comes to endurance sports? The invisible man training for his next marathon. Image courtesy of iStockphoto/Thinkstock.

In a recent Bicycling article, one of the greatest cyclists Eddy Merckx said something about cycling talent being more about the ability to suffer than giftedness.

That’s good news.

It means if you aren’t blessed with the physical attributes of elite athletes, there’s still hope for us mere mortals.

The bad news is to come close to even the faint shadow of the legend or any elite athlete for that matter it will involve suffering, a lot of suffering.

What exactly is suffering and how does it relate to endurance sports?

One definition I read is the capacity to endure pain patiently or willingly. I don’t know about you but I think there’s a reason why it’s called suffering. It hurts. And it sucks! Why on earth would you want to do it willingly?

What’s curious about the words pain and suffering is it is often confused with each other and often used interchangeably.

But, I think it’s important to distinguish the two particularly in this context.

In an often cited paper on suffering and cycling, Philip Moore of the University of Exeter provides that distinction. He uses the term “exertion pain” to describe what I consider suffering. He then uses the term “injury pain” to describe what I consider pain.

Here’s the difference:

Exertion pain is good. Exertion pain leads to positive emotions, improved performance, and a heightened sense of well-being.

Think of the feeling you get when you’re really tired after a hard workout. You’re spent. You’re hungry. You may not realize it right away but after eating and settling down you’re relaxed and happy. After resting a day or two you get stronger.

Injury pain is not good. It’s a feeling that results in negative and discouraging feelings. Examples include the sharp pain resulting from a twisted ankle or a torn muscle.

This condition gets worse the more you work-out.

You feel terrible and unable to do other things. The amount of rest required is substantially greater and rather than getting stronger, you’re just trying to restore equilibrium. In other words, you’re trying to heal.

Suffering, therefore, is the one that deals with exertion pain.

Learning to cope with suffering will help you break through to the next level. Image courtesy of Thomas Northcut/Photodisc/Thinkstock.

In endurance sports, it involves pushing yourself in training and in competition beyond what you perceive to be your physical limitation. It’s that exertion that creates the conflict between your body and mind.

Some experts consider the mental struggle greater than the physical one.

In an essay by Graeme Fife called, “Glory Through Suffering,” he says the greatest battle is not physical but psychological. It’s a struggle of grit and determination that repeats itself over and over rather than during one epic battle.

Here’s how he eloquently describes that struggle:

“The demons telling us to give up when we push ourselves to the limit can never be silenced for good. They must always be answered by the quiet the steady dignity that simply refuses to give in. Call no man brave, say the Spanish, say only that on a particular day he showed himself brave. Such strength of character radiates from every bike rider who has shown the requisite courage not to yield, has won his dignity, day after day.”

So, how does one refuse to give in day-after-day with courage, bravery, and dignity in the face of suffering?

A sports and mental skills coach, Carrie Cheadle, says preparation is key. In order to be competitive one must be ready to cope with suffering thus allowing the individual to go deeper and harder into what she calls the “pain cave.”

The best way to prepare to endure suffering is by utilizing the following coping strategies. The best time to practice it is during training.

Controlling Your Thoughts and Focus

This coping strategy deals with what you think about when faced with a stressful condition and you start to suffer.

Focus on something related to the task you are doing rather than on something that distracts you from it. Why? I think it’s because it teaches you to deal with the pain rather than avoid it.

She also says the perception of the pain has an impact on your ability to tolerate it.

So, associate the feeling of suffering with a positive result. Think about how strong you got or how good you felt the last time you endured a grueling work-out.

Relaxing Your Body

This strategy allows the body to deal with the suffering without creating unnecessary tension.

It includes things such as breathing deeply and allowing parts of the body to relax like the shoulders, the face, the jaw, the hands, and the feet. Believe it or not, a relaxed body can better deal with suffering than a tense one which increases the intensity of the pain you feel.

Suffering is part of endurance sports. It’s something that affects both the elite athlete and regular recreational athletes.

We may never reach the same pinnacles as the Eddy Merck’s and the Lance Armstrong’s of this world. But, by knowing the difference between suffering and pain you’ll know when to push yourself and when to back off.

Equally important, when you start to suffer during a swim, ride, or run, you can utilize some of these coping strategies.

Hopefully, it will elevate your performance and take you one-step closer to reaching your goal.

Image courtesty of Hemera/Thinkstock.

Steinbeck once said, “As happens sometimes, a moment settled and hovered and remained for much more than a moment. And sound stopped and movement stopped for much, much more than a moment.”

That’s exactly what happened in 1982 when Julie Moss crossed the finish line. That moment, in my opinion, defines what it means to be an Ironman.

Every year in October, the best traithletes in the world make their way to Hawaii for the Ironman World Championships.  That’s where it all began and where it continues to be the Mecca of all triathlon events.

But how did it all get started and how did it gain in popularity?

Its modest beginnings found its roots when runners and swimmers in Hawaii were debating which were the fittest.  Although I couldn’t find specific references, I suspect there was also alcohol and a whole lot of testosterone involved.

As the club members of the Mid-Pacific Road Runners and the Waikiki Swim Club debated, a US Naval Commander threw cycling into the mix. He mentions a Sports Illustrated article that claimed cyclists have the highest oxygen uptake.

Not to be outdone, the groups crafted an event to test endurance in all three disciplines.

That event later became known as the Ironman. It consisted of a 140.6 mile endurance event made-up of the longest swim, bike, and running distance events they already had on the island: the Waikiki Rough Water Swim (2.4 miles), the Oahu Bike Race (a 115 mile two-day event which was later reduced to 112 miles), and the Honolulu Marathon (26.2 miles).

In 1978, the first Ironman event was born.

Here an interesting tidbit. There were only 15 participants and 13 finished. It only cost $8 to join that first event. How times have changed! Thirty years later, many Ironman races sell-out in less than 15 minutes with thousands participating and entry costs skyrocketing above $700 excluding travel costs.

Here’s another interesting tidbit. According to navyseals.com, the name Ironman came from a reference used for Navy shipyard runners who could run 20-miles at the same pace they would run two. Now, the name is synonymous with determination, perseverance, and for some, insanity!

But how did it become so popular?

Ironically, no pun intended, it took a woman named Julie Moss to shape what it means to be an Ironman today. Back in 1982, Moss, then a 23 year-old Cal Poly San Luis Obispo student, participated in the Ironman event as part of her research for an exercise physiology thesis. She trained a total of 3-months. That’s not a lot considering she really wasn’t an athlete.

There was a convergence of events that sparked the flame behind today’s legendary legend. You could call it the tipping point.

There was broader ABC coverage of sports on television. There was an unassuming college student would find herself participating and leading one of the toughest endurance events. And, the world would be riveted by what ensued in the last 10 yards of the race, a scene that continues to be replayed by triathletes and non-triathletes alike.

Vincent Mallozzi of the New York Times best described the events of that day. He recounts, “Less than a mile from the finish, Moss’s legs had turned to jelly. With a national audience on ABC’s ”Wide World of Sports” looking on, Moss collapsed several times, trying in vain to stay on her feet and hold on to victory. Less than 10 yards from the finish, she collapsed for the final time. As Moss lay writhing in the darkness, she was passed by Kathleen McCartney, who was unaware she had won the race.”

He later goes on to quote McCartney who said, ”Julie inspired thousands of people that day,” she said. ”It wasn’t about winning anymore. It was about finishing.”

Here is the video of that moment in time.

That moment continues to inspire and draw many to the sport because despite her brokenness, she persevered. Despite all the odds, she succeeded. Despite the impossible, she finished.

Those few seconds illustrate what it means to be an Ironman; that the human spirit can overcome insurmountable odds. As McCartney said so succinctly, it wasn’t about winning. It was about finishing.

We may not all aspire to cover 140.6 miles in one-day but, if you’re like me, we all long to find strength, inspiration, and hope in overcoming many insurmountable and often seemingly impossible challenges in our everyday lives.

I doubt Steinbeck knew Julie Moss but if he did I’m pretty sure this was the kind of moment he was talking about.

Dude. This Axe Body Spray had the opposite affect! Image courtesy of Mike Powell/Lifesize/Thinkstock.

I was talking to a friend about things a person can do to improve triathlon performance. It involves something I like to call, “Free Speed”.

It’s free because it doesn’t involve spending money and it presumes the athlete puts in the required training. It excludes things like $8,000 wind-cheating time-trial bikes, $2000 carbon wheels, $800 wet suits, $300 teardrop helmets, or $150 racing flats.

It also doesn’t require work.

So, while the following things are arguably “free,” it also excludes things like fine-tuning your body position in the swim and the bike, losing weight for cycling and running particularly for climbing hilly events, managing proper nutrition and hydration, using the most optimum breathing technique (i.e., belly breathing), and visualizing a successful race.

The free speed I’m talking about comes about from…..sleep. That’s right. Sleep.

There are many articles that talk about the effect of lack of sleep on performance. I remember reading one that described how it affects driving performance. It found that lack of sleep is very similar to driving under the influence of alcohol.

I think we intuitively know how lack of sleep can affect what we do every day.

Take this for example. I keep a journal and log how many hours of sleep I get every night. In the last year, I averaged about 5.5 hours a night. It’s no wonder I need a caffeine buzz when I get to work in the morning. It gets worse after lunch!

If that’s what it can do to mental facilities can you imagine what it does to bodies?

Sleep and rest are important because this is when the body literally re-charges. It’s when muscles repair, rebuild, and strengthen. This is when the body adapts to training and increasing workloads. It is also when it replenishes energy stores and repairs damaged tissue.

Without it, the body continues to break down.

Some of the symptoms of overtraining and lack of rest and sleep include feeling weak, unmotivated, and sometimes even depressed. It also results in decreasing performance levels and increasing risk if illness and injury. It may also result in weight gain.

So how does it affect sports performance?

In a Runner’s magazine article, Melanie MacManus documents the plight of a runner who sought to improve his marathon time of 3:34. He followed the path to improvement that most athletes follow:  He worked harder. He also started skipping rest days.

The result: his time got worse.

Eve Van Cauter, Ph.D., from the University of Chicago Medical School, studied the adverse effects of lack of sleep on sports performance. Her conclusion was sleep deprivation can negatively impact physiology that is critical for athletic performance.

She is vibing you to clean the mess up in the garage. But sleep for better endurance sport performance is much more important. Image courtesy of Stockbyte/Thinkstock.

Lack of sleep over a period of time results in increased stress hormone (cortisol) levels. It also results in decreased growth hormone levels which are necessary for tissue repair and decreased glycogen reserves which mean less energy.

While her study focused on the ill effects of the lack of rest and sleep, Cheri Mah, a researcher in the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Laboratory, conducted a study that showed how basketball players could improve their performance by, you guessed it, sleeping more.

Here’s what she did.

She first looked into the effect of sleep on undergraduate students cognitive functions. By chance, some were also swimmers. Not only did they do better with their studies but they also beat their personal swim records.

So, she expanded her study to correlate sleep and athletic performance.

What she found was by increasing sleep time by at least an hour over a three-week period, basketball players improved in each performance metric: faster sprints and more accurate shooting both with free-throws and field goals. In addition, fatigue levels decreased and athletes reported improved practices and games.

Her conclusion was sleep improves athletic performance. Equally important, it needs to be prioritized over a long period of time, not just the night before game day.

So, what does this all mean particularly for recreational triathletes?

A low amount of glycogen stored in the body means that as endurance events go beyond 90-minutes the body starts to slow down. This when the body starts to experiences the lack of glycogen more commonly known as “bonking” or “hitting the wall.”

This feeling is compounded as event distances increase to the half iron, iron, and ultra distances. That’s why managing glycogen stores and absorption rates are so critical. Lack of sleep means you start with a tank that’s not completely full and an engine that can’t burn the fuel fast enough.

In addition, increased stress hormone levels impair tissue repair and growth. This could explain why some athletes who don’t sleep enough constantly feel tired. It’s why it’s hard to get a quality work-out.  Muscles haven’t completely repaired and the body just can’t work harder.

Finally, you can’t cram sleep.

It is just as important to prioritize sleep as with training particularly during the build period when duration and intensity of workouts increase. The true benefit comes with consistency—sleep isn’t something you can miss all week and fit into one weekend!

So, believe it or not, by simply sleeping more you’ll feel less tired, be able to push harder, and the quality of your workouts and races will improve. Yes, you essentially get: free speed.

Sources:

• Toporek, Bryan, “Study: 10 hours of Sleep Helps Boost Athletic Performance,” on July 7, 2011, http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/schooled_in_sports/2011/07/ 
• study_additional_sleep_helps_boost_athletic_performance.html , retrieved 9-22-2011
• “Snooze You Win? It’s True for Achieving Hoop Dreams, Says New Study,” http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110701083506.htm, retrieved 9-22-2011
• “Extended Sleep Improves the Athletic Performance of Collegiate Basketball Players,” http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110701083513.htm?+Brain+News), retrieved 9-22-2011
• Quinn, Elizabeth. “Rest and Recovery After Exercise – Improve Sports Performance,” http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/sampleworkouts/a/RestandRecovery.htm, retrieved 9-22-
  2011
• Quinn, Elizabeth.”Sleep Deprivation Can Hinder Sports Performance,” http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/conditioning/a/aa062800a.htm, retrieved 9-22-2011
• Chamberlin, Sharon. “Sleep For Muscle Growth – Rest & Recovery Are Critical For
  Success,” http://www.shapefit.com/exercise/sleep-muscle-growth.html, retrieved 9-22-
  2011
• Rainey, Alli. “Rock Climbing Training – Rest Days & Good Sleep,” http://allirainey.suite101.com/rock-climbing-training-rest-days-good-sleep-a100506, Retrieved 9-22-2011
• Radzicki-MacManus, Melanie. “Rest Easy,” Runners World, http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-241-285–8256-0,00.html, Retrieved 9-22-2011

Thinking about getting yourself a pair of Vibram Bikila's? Check out SamG's long term review first. Vibram Bikila image from http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/Five-Fingers-Bikila-Mens.htm,

This is a long-term product review for Vibram FiveFingers running shoe.

I’ve had my Bikila’s for over 9-months. I purchased it in December 2010 and have used it to train for a half marathon in March 2011, a full marathon in June 2011, and a half-iron distance triathlon in September 2011.  

I’ve trained with them on sidewalks, various roads surfaces (e.g., concrete, blacktop, etc.), trail, hard packed dirt, sand, and grass.

I’m very happy with them.

My new Vibram Bikila's. Give me five!

Bikila is the running shoe version of Vibram’s FiveFinger line. If you’re unfamiliar with the product, it’s a shoe that essentially gloves your feet. 

The upper is very light and has a Velcro hook-and-loop strap. The toes are reinforced for added protection.

The sole is made of rubber and polyurethane but compared to a regular running shoe, there is no cushioning or padding. The sole is the only protection provided by the shoe.  The shoe is very easy to maintain. Just throw it in the wash.

For me, the major difference between Bikila’s and regular running shoes is its effect on my body and on my running form.

Knees and ankles – My knees are really bad. It stemmed from many years of playing soccer. I eventually had to have reconstructive surgery on my left knee due to a torn Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL).

Vibram Bikila's help with knee pain while running. Image courtesy of iStockphoto/Thinkstock.

The meniscus that cushioned the upper bone (Femur) against the lower bones (Tibia) was virtually gone. The coating at the end of the femur began pressing against the tibia and it rubbed off a quarter-sized portion of the cartilage.

The good doctor at Daniel Freeman said I had an arthritic knee of a 60-year old and advised me to stop playing soccer. I didn’t. 

I’m now paying the price for that decision: It hurts when I run. It didn’t matter if I ran for a short period of time or if I ran on a soft surface. It hurt. The longer I ran, the more it hurt.

When I switched to Bikilas, the knee pain went away.

I think this is largely due to the way it changed my running form. The lack of cushioning allows the foot to land more naturally. That is, the foot tends to land with a mid-foot strike than a heel-strike.

I also noticed my ankles and feet didn’t swell-up as much when I did long runs. I suspect it’s because the shoe design causes the foot to be more active. I think the added activity creates better circulation. In addition, the foot is more sensitive surface so it adjusts to uneven surfaces.

Calves – The pain that I felt in my joints seemed to transfer to my muscles which are a good thing.

For the first two months, I felt my calves’ burn.  Fortunately, I broke into “barefoot” running gradually. First, I ran for 5-minutes a day for a week. Then, I progressed to 10-minutes a day for another week and so-on-and-so-forth.  By slowly increasing time and distance, my feet and body adjusted.

The other areas that started to hurt, at least initially, were the tops of my foot.

I have high arches and the top of my foot pressed against the Velcro strap. I started noticing it as we started building for the half marathon. I tried adjusting the strap but it didn’t help.  Believe it or not, the pain from the strap was nothing compared to the pain in the knees I used to feel. So, I stuck with it and the pain eventually went away.

Feet - The other noticeable difference was on the soles of my feet.

I thought it would really hurt when you stepped on a stone or a branch. You could definitely feel it but it didn’t hurt quite as much as I imagined. However, the soles of my feet did hurt when running over a hot road or a really hard rough surface for a long period of time.

I’m not sure if this improves over time but there were moments during the marathon and the triathlon when I felt like I was standing on glass bottles. I’m hoping the feet eventually adjusts to those types of surfaces but one thing is for sure, it didn’t take quite as long to recover after those events.

There was one other thing that started to bother me as my shoe began to wear down. There’s an area where I run with low lying grass weeds. It has what seem to be spiked seeds that attach to the bottom of the shoe.  You can definitely feel the barbs on your feet. I had to stop to remove them and make sure I avoided those areas.

A couple of other observations: transition time and wear and tear.

Transition time: I found that transitioning from cycling shoes to the Bikilas didn’t take as long as I thought. It may have a cost me a couple of seconds more but it wasn’t a noticeable difference. I also wore Injinji toe socks. I didn’t think it took that long putting them on between the swim and the bike portions of the tri.

Wear and Tear – The shoes have held-up really well. On average, running shoes are supposed to be replaced every 400 miles or around every 4 months. I think this guideline is due primarily to cushion deterioration.

Over the last nine-months, the Bikila’s show some wear in the ball of the foot, the big toe, and in the heel.

My used Vibram Bikila's. Not too bad considering the miles I have put on them.

The upper has also maintained its integrity. Here is how the December 2010 pair looks in comparison to a new pair.

As you can see, it’s held-up very well except it’s not as white anymore! I suspect the shoes still have a number of miles in them so that even if it costs around $100 they definitely last longer than regular shoes.

Overall, I’ve been very happy with the Bikila’s. Except for issues with hot rough surfaces and spiked seeds, the shoes are great on the joints and make running fun again.

My old Vib ram Bikila's beside my new Vibram Bikila's. A perfect 20.

I just bought another pair and already have my next one in mind: the Bikila LS. It uses a drawstring instead of the Velcro straps to secure the shoe.  

I can’t wait!!!!

Make sure you have the right wetsuit. Image courtesy of Hemera/Thinkstock.

Last Sunday, there was a noticeable opening by the zipper in the back of my wetsuit. One of my biggest fears of finally bursting out of my wetsuit finally came true. Haha!

Seriously, the wetsuit came apart at the stitching in the back portion near the zipper. I started to panic because my next triathlon is this weekend.

I had a few options. I could buy a new wetsuit or I could rent one. While they were both possibilities, I didn’t want to try anything new this close to the event.

The next option was to use the one I had and make repairs myself. Fortunately, I’m a terrible seamstress so I sought another option.

While at Sports Chalet in Brea, the folks at the dive shop suggested contacting a local repair shop. If you Google wetsuit repair the closest one is in Leucadia or Encinitas in Northern San Diego County. I was afraid he was going to send me over 100 miles to get it fixed!

To my surprise, the place he suggested is in Fullerton, California.

I dialed the place on a whim and left a message. Since it was Labor Day when I called, I didn’t expect a response until the following day. I also wasn’t sure how much or how long it would take.

So, I left the best and most creative “Poor-Me” message. Again to my surprise, the owner of New Wave Wetsuits called me back. She said come by tomorrow morning and we could probably fix it while you wait.

Performance depends on the right equipment. Image courtesy of iStockphoto/Thinkstock.

That morning I went to their shop and sure enough they fixed it right away. The total cost was $10.

Triathlon wetsuits aren’t cheap. They run anywhere from a low of $99 to a high of almost $800. Here are three main properties that differentiate triathlon wetsuits with, say, wetsuits used for surfing and diving:

• Buoyancy
• Flexibility
• Fluid Dynamics

Buoyancy in triathlon is designed to help with the swim. So, the thickest part of the wetsuit can be found in the areas that keep the body in a horizontal position.

Those areas are also the thickest and presumably the heaviest parts: the legs and the front torso. These areas have up to the maximum thickness allowed which is around 5 millimeters. The rest of the suit is a lot thinner.

Flexibility relates to the wetsuit’s ability to stretch and return to its original shape. It allows for the arms to move easily during the swim. Equally important, it provides the legs the ability to run effortlessly toward the transition area.

Fluid Dynamics refers to the wetsuit’s ability to move through water with the least amount of resistance. Some manufacturers claim swim improvement by almost 15 seconds for every 100 meters. I‘m sure those numbers are different for each person. But, if my math is right, that’s almost 10 minutes in an Ironman swim of 2.4 miles!

There are other wetsuit properties not listed above like comfort and warmth. Comfort is usually the result of proper fit and use of high quality materials. Most manufacturers base their sizes on height and weight. If you fall in between sizes chose the one that’s more comfortable.

Wearing a short sleeved suit versus a full sleeved suit is a matter of personal preference.

A wetsuit provides the benefit of warmth during the swim. I remember a triathlete at the last XTERRA Snow Valley triathlon who opted not wearing a wetsuit. He suffered from hypothermia and was in the transition area for over 20-minutes trying to recover. That’s a lot of time lost for only a 1,000 meter swim!

Warmth is important particularly in California where water temperatures range from the mid 50’s to the mid 60’s most of the year.

By the way, wetsuits are usually allowed during events when temperatures are less than 78 degrees according to USA Triathlon.

Wetsuits are useful tools in triathlon. Second to the bike, it’s the next biggest initial investment for a newbie so make sure you find one that fits you well. A wetsuit should feel tight and hot especially when you’re out of the water. When in the water, it should feel snug and comfortable.

There are many benefits to using a wetsuits in triathlon. Proper care and maintenance can extend the life of your wetsuit. Knowing a local repair shop definitely helps particularly when you’re in a pinch.

In my case, a stitch in time saved nine.

Training to train. Make sure you peak at the right time for your next event. Image courtesy of Digital Vision/Thinkstock.

Have you ever heard of the phrase, “Training to Train”?

During one Saturday morning ride, my friend Donald and I were talking about the start of the semester. Donald is a teacher in one of the local high schools. Like many teachers, Donald wears many hats. He is also the school’s cross-country coach.

We talked about his fear that students will begin the year out of shape. It becomes particularly challenging for him because he only has a limited amount of time to get them race ready.

I remember one phrase in particular that he mentioned as we were riding towards Azusa Canyon. He said, “We don’t train to train.”

I took that to mean his students wouldn’t be ready for the upcoming season if they showed-up from summer vacation out of shape.  He would spend most of his time readying the group just to be able to run the drills and work-outs necessary to compete.  However, if it takes too much time to condition them, it may take all season long they end-up training to train rather than training to compete.

What does that mean in terms of training for triathlons?

Triathlon training is cyclical and can be broken down into periods. At its core, training is about building-up towards an event. Most of the programs I’ve seen focus first on building-up base mileage, which makes sense.  

For me in particular, it’s hard to jump into high intensity work outs without first getting back into the routine.  It could be something as simple as calibrating my weekly schedule to accommodate training and rest days.  Equally important, it could also mean getting the heart, lungs, and muscles ready for the work load ahead.

I usually get really achy and susceptible to colds when I try to rush too quickly into high-mileage or high-intensity workouts.  Worst yet, I get injured.   Runners have this saying of not building up by more than 10% week after week. They also have a rule of cutting back after three weeks of increasing work. This helps ensure you build-up properly.

The base building period is followed by more intensity or speed. Having invested time to get your base in order, it is now time to add intensity into your workouts to allow the body to withstand the stress of competition. 

This is the time that training becomes more specific to race conditions and the time that nutrition should be dialed-in.

Make sure your nutrition is on point. Image courtesy of Thomas Northcut/Lifesize/Thinkstock.

This is also the point in the cycle when the body is working the hardest. As time and intensity increases, so too should the amount of time spent resting. After all, it is during rest that one reaps the benefits of all that work.

Following that is a period of tapering.  This is when the duration of exercise decreases while maintaining the same level of intensity. The objective is to peak just in time for the particularly race or races selected for the year without being too tired. 

This is also the time that you make sure that all your equipment (e.g., bike, wetsuit, running shoes) is ready to go.

Finally, tapering is when you fine tune your head.

This is when you make sure that you are psychologically ready visualizing the event and crossing the finish line. This is when you recall past humbling workouts and problems encountered during training and how you successfully overcame them.  It is when you find a mantra you use when the going gets tough. It is when you focus on the one reason why you’re competing. 

You’ll need to dial-in your head because things can get really tough while you’re competing.  Runner’s call it the Wall. Triahtletes lovingly call it the Beast.  Regardless of what you call it, it’s something that will happen and it’s best to be prepared. 

Once you’ve tapered down, then the next step is the event.

Now that you've properly trained and tapered down, you are now ready for the big event. Image courtesy of Hemera/Thinkstock.

In many ways, the event is the shortest part of the cycle. If you count all the time and effort you put into conditioning your body and your mind, the event itself is perhaps the least of all that time.  While it’s the shortest, it’s the reason why you train.

What follows that cycle is a period of rest.

Some take advantage of this period to do things completely unrelated to running, cycling, or swimming.  Many invest time with family knowing that the next cycle is just around the corner.  Some literally work themselves out of shape.

As we gear up for the next season, we work ourselves back into shape by focusing on weaker areas and the cycle begins anew.

Different athletes train and prepare differently. The amount of time we spend on each of these phases can vary but there’s method behind this madness. By setting goals, planning out the year, and remembering the training cycle, triathletes can be better prepared to train-to-compete rather than train-to-train.

Respect the swim. Image courtesy of Ryan McVay/Digital Vision/Thinkstock.

When I first got into longer distance triathlons, one of my mentors would repeatedly say, “Respect the distance.”  

I took that to mean taking time to prepare well and recognizing it is going to be a long day. Anything can happen.  

I didn’t think that involved dying.  No, I’m not dead but the risk is real.

The timing of this article is particularly interesting because, as you will read, there have been deaths associated with the sport and it mostly happens during the swim portion of the event.  This weekend, I am participating in a long-distance swim around the Venice Beach area.

Yikes!

The topic is also comes close to home. I participated in Ironman Cobra last year. There was a death at its inaugural season the prior year.  A relay team had a swimmer who did not make it out of lake and died due to an apparent heart condition.  

I knew the cyclist of that relay team.  He said because of the craziness during the swim, they didn’t know what happened until after most of the cyclists had left the transition area and they couldn’t find their swimmer.

More recently, there were two triathletes who died at the Nautica New York City Triathlon.  There were a number of articles written following that incident. Most the articles pointed to a pre-existing heart conditions as the underlying cause of death.  However, both occurred during the swim portion of the event.

Dr. Kevin Harris published a study on triathlon related deaths in the JAMA: The Journal of American Medical Association. He found that out of 2,971 USA Triathlon (USAT) sanctioned events between 2006 and 2008, there were 14 deaths. He also pointed out that 13 of the 14 occurred during the swim leg. One happened during the bike leg.

According to Dr. Grant Morrison, there were a total of 25 deaths that have been recorded by USAT with 20 of those deaths occurring during the swim portion of the event.  These statistics do not capture deaths that have occurred in international competition but I would venture to guess that it’s pretty darn close.

Notice the correlation here? So, you might be asking, what is the deal with the swim portion of the triathlon?

I think it makes intuitive sense that the highest risk of death would happen during the swim. The main reason: it is much more difficult to notice if anyone is in trouble and by the time anyone realizes, it’s too late.  And, yes, you can drown.

With cycling and running, there are many more opportunities to signal for help and there are many more opportunities to address severe issues.

If you noticed, the one USAT recorded death that occurred during the cycling leg involved a person who blacked out and died because of a heart condition.  Along those lines, most of the deaths during the swim involved issues with the heart and drowning. 

The stress during the swim makes any pre-existing heart conditions worst.

Participants gather for either a mass start or in smaller groups.  In both cases, there is a lot of jostling for position and high risk that one gets kicked, shoved, punched, scratched, and elbowed. Some lose their goggles while others get pushed under water for brief periods of time.

The water temperature is also a consideration particularly in North American events. Cold water increases the risk of over working the heart because the heart works harder to both warm the body and circulate blood into the muscles.  Consequently, an underlying condition could be triggered and made worst.

These recent events and statistics serve as a grim and sober reminder that we truly need to be careful out there. So, what can we do to mitigate or avoid the risk of dying during the swim? Other than avoiding the swim altogether, here are some of my thoughts.

For starters, I think we really need to take responsibility for knowing our own personal health condition particularly if it involves issues with the heart.  The research of Dr. Kevin Harris showed that 6 of the 13 deaths involved heart conditions.

Having cleared that first hurdle, we do need to train with as much specificity as possible. Granted it’s hard to replicate the mass swim start of an Ironman event but there are some things we can do to prepare.

We can get used to the feeling of being constrained by a wetsuit. We can do regular open-water swims to familiarize ourselves the water temperature and uncertainty of water conditions like waves, sea creatures, etc. We can practice dealing with problems like losing your goggles. We can also make sure that we’ve taken enough nutrients before the event starts.

There are a host of other things we can do to prepare but this one is easier said than done: back-out.

Ain't no shame in stopping if your body can't take it. Image courtesy of Jupiterimages/Comstock/Thinkstock.

This is very hard to do particularly when there is a significant time, money, and emotional investment leading up to an event coupled with the adrenaline rush at the start. Sometimes we don’t recognize something is wrong. Sometimes we’re just too stubborn to care.

I remember a fellow club member who was lectured by the doctor at the med tent at Vineman.   He finished the ironman distance event but was severely dehydrated.  As the doctor was inserting the ivy into his veins he asked, “What would you do if you felt dizzy or really sick during training, would you stop?”

My friend replied, “Yes.”

The doctor then looked at him sternly and said, “Then why didn’t you stop when you knew something was definitely wrong? You could have died!” He later clarified that a severely dehydrated condition can cause excessive strain on the heart which can cause heart attacks and ultimately death.

Granted this occurred at the run portion of the triathlon. But, I think it drives home the point that sometimes pride and stubbornness can get the better of us even after recognizing there’s a problem.

If you feel things aren’t right before you get in the water or when it starts, it might be a good idea to back out and call it a day.

There’s nothing wrong with deciding to race another time.

There are some serious risks with participating in such a grueling sport like triathlon. The risk of death exists regardless of distance.  

I do think we need to take precaution and do those things that are within our control. By doing so, we go into the event well-informed about our physical condition and the environment in which we are getting ourselves into. 

Sorry, if this is such a downer but deaths in triathlon are scary. Be careful out there.  Respect the distance.  Respect the swim.

Gotta stay off that white powder, man. Image courtesy of Jupiterimages/Comstock/Thinkstock.

Ah, the tragedy of being a self-coached triathlete.  On the one hand I long to improve my race performance yet on the other hand I’m reluctant to hire a coach. So, I resort to the next best thing: the Internet!

So here’s my predicament: Every time I transition off the bike I get muscle cramps. It doesn’t matter whether it’s an Olympic Distance, Half, or Full. I always get them.

For me, it starts with the hamstrings.  The bad news is as the race distance gets longer, the more it progresses to the calves and the sometimes to the front of the legs. On some occasions I’ve also had cramps on my feet. The good news is, the longer the event, the more time you have to work things out.

Walk, stretch, salt tablets, repeat.  Walk, stretch, salt tablets, repeat.

There could be many reasons why it always happens. Lack of fitness is certainly one of them, something that I work very hard to improve day-in and day-out.  Nutrition is another.

For this installment of ESM, I’d like to focus on the role of salt in reducing muscle cramps.

So, you might be wondering, what exactly is a muscle cramp?  Besides something painful that makes movement really difficult, muscle cramping is a condition that results in painful involuntary muscle contractions.

That explains why the last time I got out of my bike and started to run, my left leg wouldn’t extend and my foot would claw into a funny hook and I couldn’t do more than hobble out of the transition area. It’s kind of funny, really.

What causes it?

One reason is not enough blood getting to the muscles.  You may have experienced being stuck in a seated position for a long time and when you get-up:  Pow! Your leg cramps up and you walk like a debilitated senior.

According to Wikipedia, other common causes are muscle fatigue or electrolyte loss (e.g., low sodium or low potassium). 

This is where salt comes in.

If you remember your high school chemistry, salt is a mineral made up of sodium chloride.  Salt ions are essential in regulating water balance in the body and for electric signaling by the nervous system.  It’s those characteristics that reduce cramping, along with fitness, of course. But, just because it helps doesn’t mean you should take a fistful.

I remember when I did the Wildflower Triathlon. It was a very hilly bike course and as I left the transition area, I had to grab my left leg and had to almost help it forward with my arm. That went on for about a mile and was when another athlete came by and asked if I wanted salt tablets. I’d never taken them before, so I declined.

Big mistake!  That was when I started looking into using salt in training and racing.

Check out my Michael Jackson "on the floor" move. Image courtesy of Hemera/Thinkstock.

If there’s one thing triathletes like to do it is experimentation. I tried many different things from eating salty pretzels and salty snacks. I eventually settled into using Endurolyte tablets. Since then, I noticed I needed a whole lot of it to avoid cramping. 

I’ve even gone to the extreme of sucking on a beef bullion sliver after reading how ultra cyclists survived the Race Across America.  I stopped doing that because it was just too salty. I recently have been adding table salt directly from a salt shaker into my water bottle. I’m not sure how much salt I add but suspect it’s about a pinch. More importantly, it seems to be helping my transition runs particularly now that temperatures have been running in the 90’s.

The amount of salt required for daily functions is not a very large amount.  The USDA recommends a daily dietary intake of less than 2300 milligrams, any amount greater than that increases health risks such as high blood pressure. But, each body is different and each requires a different amount based on your sweat rate.

Obviously, the more sweat, the more salt lost. If you ever wondered what that grainy white stuff is on the side of your face when you run on a hot day, there’s a good chance it is salt and electrolytes leaving your body. 

For endurance athletes, the risk of salt loss increases because of long training sessions in the heat. So how much salt should be consumed?

I still don’t know and I continue to experiment but a well known company that produces endurance supplements called Hammer Nutrition suggests that you have to be very careful.

The conclusions in its studies suggest that, “…limiting sodium intake during rest and exercise. The harmful effect of more chronic sodium over-dose above the bodys daily need is a real and present danger to compromise optimal health.”  This means there’s a very real risk of over dosing on salt.

It goes on to say that “It only takes a few hundred milligrams every 15-20 minutes in the hottest environment to sustain aerobic pace. This assumes that fluid intake does not exceed 30-fluid ounces per hour or that calorie consumption exceeds 300-calories per hour.”

I guess it’s time to take another look at exactly how much salt I’m consuming.  While the muscle cramps do seem to be going away, I may be risking more by not measuring exactly how much I’m taking. 

Whatever the case, one this is for sure: I just want the cramps to go away.