Go Hard

I've had my rethink. I've scribbled plenty of ideas and different combinations on scraps of paper. Thought about it some more. Recycled all the paper and then rewrote all my ideas. Found some time at the computer and put it into a template. I now have my new training plan. The template looks similar to the last few months, but the real difference is in the implementation. The different coloured letters have slightly different meanings this time. I'll describe each in area more details later, but the overview is the Specific and Parkour training has been mixed throughout the other training more. Instead of being at the end of 4 days of the other elements, all are mixed through each six day cycle. This should allow for better training quality on the Specific training days. The elements listed for each day are to be the key focus on that day. This does not mean other areas are not addressed on that day, just that the priority is given to what is listed in the template. The new...

Simple run this morning. 20min progressive warm up, then 15min @ 8-10km race pace, 10min cool down. It wasn't overly cold this morning. I was wearing gloves and long sleeves, but the Raynaud's kicked in. The 4th and 5th fingers on each hand just got colder and colder until they became painful and then more painful. Yet despite that, the run felt awesome. A good fast effort, that had me feel as if I was floating. If it can be fun when it hurts. Then it must be great when it doesn't.

I've looked over my last few weeks of training. In my posts a few phrases stood out to me, signaling I should check on how the experiment is travelling. "Now I feel as if I have passed the novelty stage of the different style of training" Have the initial benefits been simply a result of just doing something different? "Time for a bit of a rethink" Self explanatory. It's been long enough to see what I am getting out of it. "From a training and racing perspective my main goal is to get the most out of a limited time commitment." Keeping the time capped at 6-10 hours per week. I need to make sure I am getting the biggest bang for my buck. I need to keep out the junk training. "Something more directed is needed to stop me from losing motivation, slacking off or not getting enough out of training." I have noticed with the random nature of my recent training there is a tendancy to fall back to a moderate intensity. It is my personality. Throug...

So I finished work late on Saturday night. This left me with only about 4 hours worth of sleep before it was time to be up and ready for the Run Melbourne half marathon. Tired and narcy, I swallowed some breakfast, gathered my gear together and drove along the wet roads into the city. To avoid parking fees or fines I chose a car park away from the race start. A walk through the light rain. Change out of the warmer clothes, hand over my bag and off for my warm up. Despite the weather it looked like a good size field was building. Of course all the toilets near the start had long queues. The advantage of a long warm up, meant I was able to find a toilet further away that no one else was using. So no waiting around, standing still in the cold. Warm up finished. A few minutes standing at the crowded start. A short speech from the starter. Then we were off. Well kind of. I was only a few rows from the front, but there certainly wasn't any urgency in the speed. The main influence was pro...

Some extra overtime shifts at work and now that's all I feel like I'm doing. I don't usually do a lot of extra shifts, but saving up in the short term for when the new addition to the family decides to make her appearane is the incentive. Catching a break during what has been a busy shift, I'm hoping I finish on time, with an early start for Run Melbourne. A quick review of the plan is simple. Start smooth, focus on good form. After the first two kilometres settle in to 4:10 pace. Hold this (taking into account the uphill/downhill segments) until I finish the first lap. Then its simple, either hold or see I can gradually pick up the pace over the last lap. Hopefully faster than the last half marathon.

Simple workout: 20min of repeated: Clean & Jerk 30kg x 15 Run 300m (approximate, to the end of my court and back) Only managed three complete rounds, plus a few extra C&J's. The tempo on the lift was slow, so that I could maintain a solid technique. Having completed it, I know I definitely could have increased the pace by significant amount. It's interesting how you can see changes in your body the next day after such a workout. The muscles know they worked, but somehow feel primed and ready for more. The extension and range of movement demanded from the clean and jerks really stretched me out. Looks like I am seeing some progress across all areas. I'll be curious to see if my half marathon time comes down a little after all the different training. Since Williamstown four weeks ago, the only specific training has been one 30km group run at a very, very easy pace plus an interval set of 2x2000 and 2x1000 at a bit faster than 10km race pace. Otherwise no running past ...

Power = (Force x Distance) / Time Increase force, distance or reduce time. Equals improved power. Which translates to improved performance. Apply this to all racing.

Over the last few weeks I have been following my 15x6 template . I've included a mix of gymnastics, weightlifting, powerlifting, plyometrics, circuit style training, parkour, flexibility, a little bit of swimming and cycling plus a fair amount of running. My plan is to keep training within 6-10 hours per week. Now I feel as if I have passed the novelty stage of the different style of training. Something more directed is needed to stop me from losing motivation, slacking off or not getting enough out of training. As mentioned before I need some directed goals to work towards. Here I offer some benchmarks that should keep me busy. The following are the standards I am working towards. The steps that will take me there, I'll save for another time. Of importance to me, is that I do not to follow a traditional periodisation plan. Instead of working towards a single race, I wish to develop an all round level of fitness that I can race from with short notice. A gradual increase in work...

Yesterday's main session was very simple on paper: OHS 5x3 with 3+min rest That's all I had written down in the plan. Of course this was preceded by a warm up of about 20 minutes of various mobility, technique and specific preparation exercises. After ramping up the weight for the Overhead Squat (OHS), I was at 38kg which is what I thought I could just handle for the five sets. The difficulty was in remaining tight and stable enough to hold the weight above my head. The actual weight being lifted did not feel like it was taxing my legs at all. While I had two failed lifts in the second the set, I managed to hold it for all other reps. At the end I knew I probably wouldn't be able to do another repetition, but still felt like I had hardly completed any work. There was no burn, no pain, nothing. If anything I felt like I had finished warming up. Strength training is very different to the endurance work I am used to doing. Getting out of bed this morning was a different story....

Having dabbled in some basic gymnastic skills over the last few weeks, I now have more an idea about where my abilities currently are at. Where they are lacking is probably more precise. While I am still trying to keep a highly varied and somewhat random exposure to different training stimuli, I also need some sort of progression to work towards. To this end I am currently thinking about how to better establish some workable goals. These goals will fall within the guidelines I have set up over the last few weeks. Currently I am trying to work what progressions will give me the biggest bang for the buck and lead to a good range of improvements. Another important factor is they have to be enjoyable (well, in the same way that a hard training session is enjoyable). The first I progression I will include is working towards a Model One Arm Push Up. My interest was sparked after reading the following forum post: Crossfit forum Model One Arm Push Up . In summary the first part of the progress...

Recently I read an interesting article: Definitive Guide: The Primal Blueprint I enjoyed this article as it put into words a good amount of what I believe. This includes humans evolving a certain way and in order to make the most of that there are certain things we should do. The author categorises these into ten good points: Eat lots of animals, insects and plants Move around a lot at a slow pace Lift heavy things Run really fast once in a while Get lots of sleep Play Get some sunlight every day Avoid trauma Avoid poisonous things Use your mind I also enjoyed the viewpoint that as a society we are generally happy to lay the blame on defective genes for developing any number of ailments. 'Hardly a week goes by without a new announcement of the discovery of a so-called “defective” gene that increases someone or some group’s risk of being obese, of getting cancer, of developing type 2 diabetes or arthritis.' This adds to the argument I have mentioned before in Taking Responsibili...

I never enjoyed the limited gymnastics at school, yet I loved almost everything else in physical education. At university while studying Human Movement, there were only a few things I liked in gymnastics. What I didn't like was anything that put me upside down. Balance has never been my strong point. Plus my body just doesn't feels right if my head is below the rest of me. So why on earth would I want to develop the ability to do handstands? In short, because I never have achieved one. It is something I find difficult. Developing the handstand along with a number of other gymnastic skills should see a significant improvement in a number of physical attributes. This morning I spent some time trying to kick up to a handstand to hold against the wall. I never actually held one properly. At least the concentrated effort gave me a little insight as to what is limiting my ability. Based on memory these were the same back in university. In point form the problems are: inadequate range...

A few days off. Extra sleep. Nanna naps are so good. This morning I was awake and feeling a lot better. Still not 100%, but much closer to it. I was itching to get back into some training. Not to be stupid I limited myself to an easy 40 minute run. Heading out into the fog cut through with rays of sunshine. Crisp still air. A perfect winter's morning for running. T-shirt, shorts, headwarmer and gloves were the perfect combination. Warm enough not freeze, but still able to experience the refreshing cool air. I was tempted to push the pace on the hills, but remained settled enough not to give in. This all seemed to result in kind of a rejuvenation. My muscles and joints loosened up. Any feelings of tiredness crept out of me. I finished feeling like I had gained energy from the run, instead of it taking some away. I believe Peter and Seb Coe termed these types of runs as a therapeutic . That is how it felt.

Up for most of the night with eye pain. Intense pressure that woke me up. So felt rotten today. Turns out I have conjunctivitis. That should be a lot of fun over the next few days.

Winter has officially started. What better way to see in the season with a few drinks. For some reason I'm struggling a bit today. The beers didn't seem to be a problem. The scotch and dry were okay. Must have been the Jaegerbombs. Had planned on a run before work, but I did my best to sabotage those plans last night.