http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk en-gb fitnessfarm.co.uk 2009-11-23T00:00:00Z fitnessfarm.co.uk http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#53251 You could barely contain yourself I know. If any of the forums I used to lurk on in order to promote the now defunct Runners Daily site well the main site is defunct but I have revived the blog because I like blogging present a typical profile of consumers then people including runners put off purchasing something until they have asked on several forums about it read all the reviews in review sites read the reviews on the commercial sites and even asked people who blog about it. Ive had a fair few queries from the blogosphere asking for more information about Fivefingers so that the questioner can make their mind up about a purchase. In fact I think they have more fun asking things like Im a midfoot striker but tend to heel strike when I get tired do you think these shoes would still suit me than actually buying the damn things and using them.So youll be bursting to hear how my Feelmax shoes are bearing up especially since I mentioned that they seemed to have the potential for the sole... 2009-11-23T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#52519 Of course only barefoot is barefoot. No matter what barefoot shoes are on the market and out there in the best possible faith and Im not talking about Nike Frees there is no substitute for going barefoot.There are shoes however that represent a step see what I did there away from 2021st century convention and towards a barefoot experience most notably Vibrams brilliant Fivefingers although I understand that recent models have thicker rather than thinner soles.And now I am in a position to talk about Feelmax shoes or at least the pair I have. I know Feelmax sounds like a condom as much as a shoe now theres a barefoot thought why not stretch condoms over your feet You heard it here first.... Feelmax shoes are very much like the types of shoes worn for centuries by Inuits and Native Americans such as mukluks. The sole has no rigidity whatsoever mukluks soles are soft leather Feelmax soles are a special fabric that is supposed to be hardwearing without sacrificing softness flexibility and... 2009-11-13T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#52488 Two posts in one evening What can be happeningIm blogging now about my run this afternoon. Im in the habit of running shod in trainers or my beloved Vibram Fivefingers to my special venue kicking off my shoes and doing a session with nothing between the earth and my soles and toes. My special venue is a smallish clearing surrounded by woodland with a circular path round it that I use as a track to do reps on. As I arrived the sun had set clouds were gathering over what had been a clear sky. A soft grey light covered the clearing as I started my reps and the clouds suddenly blossomed into pink as the sky behind grew darker. The ground underfoot was wet and as a drizzle started grew wetter. I used to dislike running in the dusk light long ago when I was a road runner. It is treacherous you think you can see well but you cant judge distances. On a little path that I know well I still had to concentrate but there was no need to be constantly assessing the approaching surface as on the twil... 2009-11-12T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#52485 The moment the world no make that the universe has been waiting for Im back blogging. Just a quickie to get back on track.I was in prison workout mode yesterday getting a good intense session in a restricted space since I had November blues and couldnt be arsed to go out and after a quarter of an hour of slightly aimless bouncing around and sprinting on the spot I decided on this as the meat of my workout 1 pullup immediately followed by 5 pressups 20 times. I wanted to achieve 20 pullups and I felt like doing a big wodge of pressups too so off I went. I varied the pressups some elevated some splitgrip some wide some narrow. After about 7 or 8 reps it started to feel pretty hard but that levelled off straight away and 20 pullups and 100 pressups later I moved on to another segment of the workout Tabatastyle burpees feeling well pleased. And now my chest is nice and sore 2009-11-12T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#49299 I am proud to announce FitnessFarms first outdoor training session is to be held on Sunday October 4th at 11 a.m. at Waltham Forest Pool and Track. Not on the track on the field at the side.Its just a working title at the moment. Fitnessfarm presents Exercise in the field Outdoor training for everyone Exercise in the field is a nononsense training concept for all ages and all fitness levels. Its aimed at anyone who is thinking about toning up losing some weight getting back lost fitness starting on a new fitness regime getting into running or back into running pretty much anyone There are two main ideas behind exercise in the field. 1 Training outdoors 2 Establishing a broad base of functional fitness 1 Training outdoors. You can do so much better than the average gym. Dont get me wrong anything you do to get fit is a move in the right direction but compare recycled air swine flu anyone versus fresh air that gives you a healthy ... 2009-9-23T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#34989 Im back for the moment anyway. With news of a Barefoot Running workshop.Barefoot running workshopHuw DaviesBTA Level 3 Coach and Coach EducatorMatt WalldenMSc Ost Med CHEK IV CHEK Faculty Osteopath NaturopathDateSaturday March 7th2009VenueTBC but it will be in or near Weybridge SurreyThe low downLearn how barefoot running can optimise walking and running postureUnderstand how posture can optimise efficiency in running and enhance VO2max.Learn the importance of lower leg strength and range of motion through Achilles and calf.Find out why optimal foot function are critical in sports performance.Learn how the nervous system is key to results in your training and how you can effectively condition it.Discover why hamstring activation is a vital aspect of running performance and how to facilitate your hamstrings.Leave with a personalised program for your gaitCourse structureA primarily practical course with theory components punctuated throughout.The day will start with an introduction to t... 2009-1-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#15820 James one of my coachees is selling his training bike. I said Id mention it here.55cm Ambrosio Alloy Frame with Semi Compact GeometryCarbon ForkCampag Xenon Group SetShimano FCR Hollowtech Compact CrankVualta XRP Crosser Aero WheelsBontrager X lite TyresIn great condition only 2 years old you wont get a better specd bike for the money.163300Call 0845 23007441email jameshumancapitalsolutions.com for pixmore info. 2007-10-26T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#15816 Time flies when youre writing blogs...I have some gainful employment with www.runflux.com and one of my jobs is to write a blog which can be found at www.runflux.wordpress.com.These are good blogs and worth reading if you are a runner. Writing them has sucked a little of my fitnessfarm blog mojo however so that is why there has been something of a hiatus.These blogs here on fitnessfarm are written primarily with the people I coach in mind which is not good commercial blogging practice but which makes me happy. As I write I am addressing the people I am guiding as triathletes or runners and that feels as though it is the right thing to do. So there you go.I have just read Ultramarathon Man by ultramarathoner Dean Karnazes who has succeeded in becoming one of the best very long runners while still holding down a job and writing his running story so good on him. One nonrunning thing that struck me was his admission that i he is basically an obsessivecompulsive and ii he saw the woman he w... 2007-10-26T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#15457 There are two new Ironman World Champions as of today. One of them was a winner waiting to happen Chris McCormack one of the winningest triathletes ever one of the fastest IM athletes ever two sub8hr races I think second at Hawaii last year just failing to reel in the Norminator.But the womens race was won by a nearunknown nearnovice Brit And won at a canter. Chrissie Wellington only turned pro this year and her coach persuaded her to enter IM Korea which she won to cement her place at Hawaii. But to turn over a field of experienced Ironwomen so easily admittedly Natascha Badmann and Michellie Jones the top two favourites had dropped out is truly remarkable and I applaud her effort. 2007-10-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#15313 Its that time of year again. Time off training. Muffin tops coming back. Hair growing back on your legs maybe. And maybe the excuse the Rugby World Cup gives to have more beers than usual. After a while guilt starts to make itself felt and rash promises are made to stop drinking forever to never eat cake or chocolate and especially not chocolate cake again to lose 5 kilos. And so on.If youve done well this season the chances are you want to do better next season. And if your season didnt go as well as you would have liked then ditto. Ive never heard to my admittedly faltering memory anyone say Id like my season to be just the same as the last one. So it makes sense to have a good winter before the racing season looms again. Now for many people this is the time when all the talk is of building a base. And for many people there is the assumption that this involves mainly endurance training aerobic work at lowish heart rates and plenty of miles. I want to question this assumption. Even wh... 2007-10-10T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14864 Now you will see somewhere below photos of some rather unorthodox footwear. I got them a few weeks ago and wore them for the first time when I arrived in the Vosges for my Very Long Triathlon see further below to walk and jog in for 20 minutes or so. Today I did my first proper session in them and this is how it went.These shoes or whatever one might want to call them are made by the walking shoe sole company Vibram and are called FiveFingers. There is a very thin rubber sole and a very lightweight upper with an elasticated cord to cinch them tight around your feet. And of course those individual toes like the fingers of gloves.The idea is that you wear them when youd love to go barefoot but the ground underfoot would make it uncomfortable or also I suppose if the pace you are going would make it uncomfortable. I can walk barefoot on gravel for example but running barefoot on gravel would not be bearable. The soles have a little bit of grip and you also get grip due to the fact that yo... 2007-9-26T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14824 I remember the first time I saw the film The Commitments being amused by the scene where the older band member an exsession musician got the group to congratulate themselves after a good rehearsal. He got the group to stand in a circle and then to their bemusement to pat the person in front on the back. They soon got over the cheesiness of it as did I and realised that they did indeed have something to be proud of having made some decent music together.Ive recently carried out review sessions with a couple of my athletes who both for different reasons find it hard to applaud their own achievements. For me simply to say the words Youve done really well gave them pause for thought. Isnt sad that as adults living in a competitive world we find it so hard to give ourselves a pat on the back To just say Ive done wellIt seems there might be two big and different reasons why this is so rare. The first is when you want more more more and what you did wasnt the ultimate so it wasnt really qui... 2007-9-25T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14673 2007-9-20T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14471 The swim in a long race it doesnt make much difference to your time so take it easy. I swam around 1h 20 taking it extremely easy and some of the elites at the very top end of the field swam over 1hr but I can assure you that by the end there was just a little more than 1819 minutes between us Run shoes I will lose two toenails soon and one of those toes was damn sore during the race adding to the list of pain areas to overcome. The shoes I chose were great for short and moderately long runs but maybe I could have chosen another pair that wouldnt have caused me pain later on in the race. The reason The ones I chose have a relatively narrow last and I have ones with a broader last that would have allowed my feet to expand as they undoubtedly would do in c8hrs of riding and running. Maybe this would have made my life a little easier but its hard to say. Comfort I have some carbonsoled trishoes but my battered old Sidi Genius are far more comfortable on long rides. OK so I couldnt leave ... 2007-9-12T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14451 With 2k to go I got angry with shuffling along mentally moaning in pain and engaging in pointless and very slow dingdong battles with other such runners 2k to go youve run 28k biked 120k in the mountains and swum a rather chilly 4k youve done all that and youre just going to shuffle on home like the rest of them. So I tentatively lengthened my stride and speeded up and waited for the agony to increase. Nothing. A bit faster. All fine. So I ran properly ran those last 2k blew away the plodders whose ranks I had been very much part of and crossed the line looking pretty good all things considered.The jewel in the crown of this race is the bike course. The Vosges mountains are challenging enough for G233rardmer to have hosted a stage of the Tour de France and for Ironman France to have been run here for two years. For the XL as this race is called there were three 40k laps. Each lap had three climbs. The first was just over a mile and came straight out of town the second was about two mi... 2007-9-11T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14291 Irony of ironies. After urging a bevy of my athletes to do this Nice distance race in France and having been persuaded to do it by one of them my pal Mark it now turns out I am the ONLY one doing it. The words its not fair come to mind along with you are the athletes I am a broken fat unfit and very rickety coach. YOU do the races I plan them.But no. The universe is having a little giggle at my expense and thats fine actually. As I write this Wednesday I am getting my stuff ready to go on a triroad trip to Gerardmer with Mark who will hold my coat so to speak as I get to grip with the mountains of the Vosges. Two Ironman races in the space of two months proved too much for him and the spirit and flesh were both very weak when it came to this race.Even though I am as far away from a fitness level that would allow me to perform if that were ever a possibility over such a long distance race and in theory have no competitive juice to excite me for some strange reason I am slightly excit... 2007-9-5T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14290 A massive round of applause please for Dean though hes not happy with his race after having the swim of his life and then thinking he was behind not in front of his main rivals and riding his legs off to catch up then being drafted to death Jill top ten finish in second Worlds ever second full season and Chris in first full season and still getting over the knee injuries that prevented him turning pro a few years ago not triathlon. My hat goes off to you all. 2007-9-5T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14101 My Nicedistance event I use the the word advisedly rather than race since I am unlikely to be racing it is looming large on the horizon and in my mind. And just when I needed to get out for what would have to be my last long ride I came down with a 24hour bug that emptied my guts and gave me a short sharp fever to the extent that Caroline rented me out to the local pub as an outdoor heater one that groaned quite a lot so they asked her to take me back and got their rental fee back too so no one was the winner in a rather sordid display of moneygrabbing.The next day I risked a long ride long for many longdistancers would be 80100 miles. Right now 60 was plenty for me. I hope the fact that I found it fairly hard and that it put my back into spasm again was due to the short sick spell and not to worse levels of fitness than I thought. I didnt ride it easy but pushed the pace a little and trotted off afterwards for a 15 minute transition run to keep me honest. It really is debatable how m... 2007-8-29T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#14100 This weekend is crunch time for Dean Jill and Chris. Squaring up to the best athletes in the world allegedly and at least a higher level of racing than it is possible to have in domestic races. It should be good.My thoughts hopes fears nerves will be with you this weekend. Do good racing guys. 2007-8-29T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#13653 With my little trip to France in September pretty much inked in the urgency to get more training under my belt in order to limit what promises to be absolutely hideous damage on race day gets greater. To this end I accompanied a couple of my charges at a halfmarathon on Sunday held on a multilap course around Hackney Marsh. To make things a little more real I got out for a tough little ride beforehand including a standing bigring ascent of Lippitts Hill which is steep enough to suck most of the juice out of your legs when ridden up like that followed by a longish TT effort to get home in time to get out again for the race. Job done legs quite fatigued even slightly sore as I toed the line.Part 2 of making it real was to go out a little too fast in order to make the second half a battle against fatigue. Easy enough to go out a little too briskly it doesnt hurt then The heat added to the reality check. This is a nice lowkey race and 6 laps didnt seem like trial at all indeed it allows yo... 2007-8-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#13652 While I was slicing up a beautifullly ripe avocado for my lunch my mind wandered to Hawaii I am rereading David Mitchells brilliant novel Cloud Atlas part of which is set in Hawaii and then it wandered on to last years dukeout between Stadler and McCormack. And it made me think about what race fitness and the perfect race are and what our notions of being fully fit are.One of my athletes raced very well last weekend after a long layoff and said he was a long way from race fitness. I understand his point but I would also say that when you race you have your race fitness for that day and that is ALL you have All you have is that moment this moment and you cannot know what your fitness will be in a months time and if you were a lot fitter a few years ago then those moments are gone and you can never guarantee that you will be in a similar state. We change the world changes around us our race rivals change...Which brings me back to Hawaii Macca got stronger for Hawaii 2006 and a lot bett... 2007-8-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#13518 I was in Canada on Vancouver Island staying at a house on a lake. One of the friends I was staying with has entered the New York marathon race date Nov 4th and thus far had not run for more than an hour. I got him to run for a tad under 90 minutes early in the week and then pointed out that it would be a good thing to take the bull by the horns and get a 2hourplus run under his belt a prospect that he found frankly terrifying.I explained the importance of going beyond ones comfort zone of getting closer to race duration of building confidence of just fing training instead of poring over the schedule blah blah blah and a few days later I accompanied him on his first ever run of over two hours 2 hrs 12 during which we also covered over a halfmarathon a feat which amazed him no end. I helped but he did it.Then I thought how I had been avoiding my long swim. I had a wetsuit a lake enough time in any given day and I had been doing 2530 minute swims instead of the 70minute swim I had promis... 2007-8-8T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12833 Proponents of what is becoming known as Evolutionary Fitness and Primal Health take the view that regular highend aerobic and threshold exercise goes against our adapted design it puts too much strain on the heart and metabolism. One writer takes morbid glee in pointing out when an endurance star goes down with a modern metabolic disease Steve Redgraves diabetes for example due it is supposed to the vast quantities of sugary foods he consumed to fuel his gargantuan training efforts.Well one of the greatest marathon runners of the modern era Alberto Salazar has had a serious heart attack at the age of 48. He won the New York marathon three times on the trot in the 80s although his Olympic record was not remarkable and returned from retirement in 94 to win the 53mile Comrades Marathon in South Africa. One of the fittest men on the planet in his day according to conventional wisdom anyway has severe heart problems and the EF people will be pointing to this as further evidence of the lon... 2007-7-19T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12771 So what can I pass on in terms of race execution that may be of help to you What went well what I did right in this halfIM swim pacing and effort levels definitely. Didnt really get any good long drafts but when I did I swam catchup and glided as best I could to save energy I swam really good lines and didnt swim overdistance at all unlike many people in front who were zigzagging plenty. I really focused on my stroke on rotation and catch and glide and this made 2k seem to go by in a flash. So I got out of the water quite happy unstressed calm and ready for the bike. Cant think of any mistakes on the swim.T1 I had an aerobarmounted drinks bottle and I hadnt fastened well enough. Weighed down with water I had tested it unloaded duh and subjected to severe jiggling as I ran the bike over the ploughed field of transition it started to come adrift and I had to stop and redo it. Lesson test things as they will be in race circs.Bike I think I went out a bit fast for my fitness levels a... 2007-7-17T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12724 The Beaver middle distance triathlon swim 2k bike 80k run 20k. The swim a confusing asymmetric polka around a course resembling a ski slalom with T1 a good halfmile distant up a slippery hill of a field and the bike exit another few hundred metres on the other side of the field the bike three laps including one evilly steep grind and a lot of nasty lumps and twisty descents the run also three laps with a heartbreakingly long steep ascent just after the start of each lap and a psychologically damaging extra outandback loop where you could see runners pulling away or being clawed back.So the distances belie the evil cruel nature of this race. Before the race my take on it was Ive done one or two decent long sessions and I know I wont kick any arse but Ill get round ok how hard can it be Afterwards it was less a case of me walking my talk than hobbling my croak. I found it once the easier bits were out of the way swim first lap of the bike damnably hard. My personal travails were com... 2007-7-16T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12591 Having watched six young men try to come to terms with a Tarahumara race I now realise that the programme is so much about them and their individual battles that you learn little about the running culture and the country they live in. Its not an anthropology programme after all.The race that I was lucky enough to witness was similar one shortish loop of about 3 miles which my guide and I calculated by estimating the pace per mile of the various runners as they passed and timing the intervals between them passing in front of us run about 20 times. The race was also a battle between two villages and the distance was announced after much negotiating between the two village leaders immediately before the start. That really tickled us imagine turning up for a race and having to wait while the distance is decided upon. One significant difference was the terrain most of this race was run on a dry river bed rather than a mountain trail. We had to come up the river bed to get to ... 2007-7-10T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12543 Now that the Nationals are done I would like to say I how proud I am of three athletes who have done themselves proud so far this season. Chris Hill has beaten back a severe longterm injury problem to qualify for the Sprint Worlds in Hamburg. Dean Moy has qualified yet again for the Worlds and comfortably won his agegroup at the Dambuster. And Jill parker has not only qualified for the Worlds too but has become national Champion in her agegroup. My warmest congratulations go out to you.In case this looks bad Im proud of ALL of my athletes and there have been some really excellent efforts this season already but Im just thinking about the Worlds here ok 2007-7-8T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12477 Mark Cavendish 22 is one of the few Brits in the Tour de France this year. He has his priorities sorted if this excerpt from a recent interview is anything to go byWhen youre out cycling up a big hill and its cold and raining and youve 40 miles to go and youre aching all over and your directeur sportif is shouting abuse at you from the car do you ever think to yourself What the hell am I doing here I wish I had a proper job. Theres are times when you do think that but Ive worked in a bank before and Id rather do 300km on the bike in the pissing rain every single day than go back to that. 2007-7-6T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12475 Ive only bleedin been an gawn an entered a race ennI The Beaver 12 IM race. July 15th. A few days away. Am I mad When did I last race Cant quite remember. How far was it Standard distance. The feelings as I entered my payment details online were akin to those experienced just before walking out on stage or entering a dental surgery maybe. You know the feeling.Im not the impulsive sort but this was pretty much an impulse buy. I believe that normally one trains for such an event so Ill have to see how things go. I have a wetsuit a bike and some running shoes. I can get to the race venue. Im not thinking much further down the road than that for further down that road madness lies. 2007-7-6T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12391 Second in my occasional series of notinthetrainingplan workouts to inspire you. I was rereading my account below of the ascent of a Pyrenee and this one contrasts completely being flat and urban and run in cool conditions. I was living in Leyton east London and one Saturday Caroline and I were due to visit her cousins in Ruislip west LondonMiddlesex. A quick glance at the AZ showed me that there was a route there that went almost all on canal towpaths and that I could send Caroline off on the Underground while I ran setting off three hours earlier I estimated the distance as 30 miles.Armed with more knowledge and crucially more kit I selected a large Camelbak and a few gels yes we have moved from the 80s to the 90s for this story and decided my Asics DS Trainers were most apt. The night before I scrawled a few route notes onto a scrap of paper. This run divides neatly into four sections in my memory the first stretch while I was fresh took me across Hackney Marsh and onto the canal wh... 2007-7-3T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12389 The outlaws were staying with us last week to help look after Edith while our childminder was away on holiday. Edith really gets on with Mamma and daddad grandma and granddad so it was a great help. Anyway grandma cooked us a meal one evening that was fairly typical for her lamb with boiled carrots and roast potatoes. Nice. From the point of view of good protein no problem. From the point of view of moving towards a successful days consumption of fruit and vegetables it was not good. Shed cooked two large carrots between four. And I dont really count potatoes boiled then doused in oil and roasted as a portion of veg. So I make that 12 a portion of veg for the meal. And the carrots were boiled does that reduce their nutritive value I think so. So that becomes maybe 14 of a portion. Enter Captain Smug. So far today just after lunch Ive had 12 a large avocado one large beef tomato a yellow pepper a stick of celery a pear a nectarine and a large serving of raspberries plus two lots of nut... 2007-7-3T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12352 Time for me to get the latest trimagazinemodern world blues off my chest I suppose and Ill lead into it with the two clocks theory which has its foundation in the work of that wellknown triathlete Albert Einstein. When youre dealing with a long workout problems tend to be a result of the you having two clocks to refer to. Consider an evening spent with someone you are falling in love with it will seem to pass in an instant. That moment when you both look at your watches as the waiters pointedly start putting chairs on tables when you both gasp in mock amazement at how the time has flown and catch each others eye in acknowledgement of how human chemistry has warped time. Next is a cab home and make it snappy... Your own clock and the one in the restaurant were at odds but the odds were in your favour. Now at some stage in a 5hour ride when your crotch is sore you might be a little irritated when what feels like three hours of elapsed time turns out to be two. Since in general we tend to... 2007-7-2T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#12145 Well 2.10 of Zen rhymed nicely see post below and this weekend I went for 2.15 but cant rhyme it as well. Last time I decided to do an over time turbo as in over distance workout I blithely programmed 60km into the turbo trainer not thinking I would do it but wanting to throw down a hefty gauntlet to myself. This time I nervously entered 75km. Imagine my surprise when I cruised through 60km in 1.49. It was about then that it all started to feel a little stressful and instead of blissing out on highend aerobic and barely noticing the time pass I was looking at the time every halfminute it seemed desperate for it to end. I had to snap myself out of it and get back to all the focuses that got me through last time and that in itself was an effort but there we are 75km in 2h 15. And a sore crotch. 2007-6-25T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11969 It is 50 years since the first broadcast of the famous Go to work on an egg slogan. The British Egg Information Service planned to rerun a series of the original ads featuring Tony Hancock to commemorate the anniversary. Not so fast you dirty eggpeddlers said the corporate monsters They have been told by the advertising watchdog the Broadcast Advertsing Clearance Centre that the ads are in breach of current advertsing rules on promoting a varied diet.So let me get this straight. It is fine to run ads for breakfast cereals in which regular consumption is the religion. And unless Im very much mistaken Kelloggs used to run ads for its hideus unhealthy Crunchy Nut Flakes in which people were shown eating the cereal in the evening as well as the morning. Thats fine too is it But promoting a healthy and unprocessed food is not fine. Maybe someone at Kelloggs has had a word with the advertising watchdog. Cereals stink they are bad for you eggs dont stink well rotten ones do but when was the ... 2007-6-20T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11926 Ages ago I came home from coaching a client and packed my kit away then later when I looked for the shoes I had used for that session one was missing. Silly forgetful old Huw I told myself with a wry smile Youve left one of your shoes at the track. A month or two later I threw out the survivor with great regret because it was one of my favourite pair of running shoes adidas Davos. Designed for the niche market of mountain running it became a firm favourite with XC runners because of its very low profile with a tiny tad extra cushioning in the forefoot and excellent grip. The upper has heavy duty unrippable mesh and no support whatsoever so in effect it is like a topend racing flat just with a grippy sole and tough as fck. My first pair of Davos was so wonderful in my eyes that when I heard adidas had remodelled the shoe it morphed into the Swoop not nearly as good a shoe I rang round a load of running shops until I found one that still had a pair of Davos in the stockroom and bought th... 2007-6-19T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11909 Just a quickie really on reading about Welsh 400m runner Tim Benjamins return to form. Under the tutelage of Colin Jackson and his old school methods Benjamin has been running fast again and went on record as saying that he was told by Jackson that core strength was vital for him to stay strong right through to the final metres of his race. And this also ties in a little with a debate that must be carried on all round cyberfitnessworld perpetually is there merit in training the core on unstable mechanisms or is it better trained on a stable basePeople are leaping onto their keyboards to defend both methods but Benjamin is convinced that moving back to lifting weights as his primary provider of core strength and away from wobbly balancy ballerina stuff has been the re making of him. I freely admit that when as a coach I took a deeper interest in strength training I was sucked in by the functional hype surrounding swiss balls wobble boards bosu balls and the like to some extent I had n... 2007-6-18T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11813 So I emailed this American powerbased biketraining expert about some impenetrable US slang in an article he wrote that I thought was very good and he was kind enough to take time out of designing graphs with wiggly lines on to reply. What does run what you brung mean I asked him since that was an imprecation in his article and he said that in terms of power it meant that if you turn up to a race knowing you are a 280watts man and your opponents are 290watts men dont back out but race anyway and just get on with it. He said it derives from car racing where drivers would turn up with different sized engines but still race what they brought brung.And that made me think about all the things that psych out triathletes and make them negative about racing knowing your VO2 max is only average when your opponents may have higher values knowing your body fat percentage is higher than your rivals or seeing that this is the case having a bike that is too heavy not aerodynamic enough not carbon en... 2007-6-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11812 Bjarne Riis has been told that he no longer considered the winner of the 1996 Tour de France after his admission that he took EPO when he won it. This is not news so dont think Im trying to be clever and blog a hot new story like what proper bloggers do in the sexy political blogging climate. Nor is it news that most of the rest of the Telekom team of that era have also fessed up including the lovable Erik Zabel who won the green jersey on many occasions and showed himself to be that rare thing a bigthighed animal of a sprinter who rode the whole Tour mountains and all with competence and good sense.The big name missing here of course is that of Jan Ullrich. While he has been hit with a drugs ban and subsequently retired from bike racing he has not opened his mouth other than to protest his innocence while his teammates are coming clean and at least earning a few points for honesty. Who does he think he is fooling Are we to believe that when he finished a close second to a druggedup Ri... 2007-6-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11786 OK bear with me on this. This site is set up by me through a very nifty package called Mr Site. I am not in the least bit websavvy yet I set up this more than adequate site without the slightest difficulty and now have the capacity to talk through my blog to my clients and let new ones see what I can do for them. Im a fan. If anyone goes to www.mrsite.co.ukfriends and enters the offer code fitnessfarm.co.uk they will get Mr Site for a fiver off. Brilliant eh The fact that the fiver goes to me has not in any way influenced this blog. 2007-6-13T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11725 I have been doing some run coaching technique and it made me think about the whole idea of run technique as it is perceived by both athletes in general and the athletes I come across as a coach.The Pose Method is something that a few athletes bring with them in their brains when I coach them and I have observed that when I encourage a runner to do something it is done with an overlay of Pose that I never asked for nor wantedSo let me just give a few thoughts on my approach to run technique and on the Pose Method. We evolved from apes who are not able to walk or run upright. Humans are bipeds and we have a tushbootyderrierebacksidesitupon that apes dont. And ours dont go bright blue when we are in season which I am always grateful for. As we are now we are adapted as runners running is therefore an unlearned action in the sense that it is not learned cognitively. I have not taught Edith to walk or run she has done what all humans are born to do and worked it out for herself. I just tr... 2007-6-12T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11699 I never drink any fizzy drinks so I suppose I tend to ignore news about them because it doesnt apply to me I generally ignore The News for exactly the same reason. However I was just reading a post on a forum about aspartame which is the sweetener used in Diet Coke Diet Pepsi and any other diet drink as well as in a range of lowfat foods and ready meals and desserts yogurts hot chocolate drinks mints chewing gum and whatever else.When I did a quick check on aspartame one item that kept cropping up was a 1996 study that proclaimed that aspartame was safe because it didnt cause cancer. Phew. But the post I was just reading pointed to a 1996 study that separated out all the aspartame studies into those sponsored by The Industry and independent studies. I quoteAnalysis Shows Nearly 100 of Independent Research Finds Problems WithAspartameOctober 17 1996An analysis of peer reviewed medical literature using MEDLINE andother databases was conducted by Ralph G. Walton MD Chairman TheCenter for... 2007-6-11T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11656 I said in an earlier post that I would describe some of my most fulfilling solo workouts partly to underscore my assertion that you dont have to pay for a big race to do something that you can remember for the rest of your life barring senility and partly to remind all you athletes out there that changing the rules of how you train every now and then can bring great benefits.So there I was living in the Spanish Pyrenees and not that much into endurance still in limbo between team sports now forsaken squash not much chance in Spain and the occasional run that I knew would keep me ticking over. My boss on the other hand loved running and during the twoandabit months I was there turned my occasional into frequent and changed my horizons from short flat road to long mountainous trail.I wanted my last weekend there to be a good one and decided to run up Pe241a de Oroel the mountain just below the town of Jaca where I was living. Jaca is at about 800m and the summit is about 1800m so I made... 2007-6-9T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11602 Granny in The Beverly Hillbillies used to refer to the swimming pool in their luxury mansion as the ceement pond. Thats pretty much what Waltham Forest College pool is a postwar 33 13 yard concrete box hidden away in the basement of what used to be Walthamstow Art College where Peter Greenaway met Ian Dury if youre interested which is why Dury had a part in Greenaways The Cook The Thief His wife and Her Lover but thats moving away from blogmessage. It is ugly unsophisticated a bit grubby and it is for swimming in. No funky jets of water islands or mock beaches to distract kids from the serious business of swimming. No lockers so no need to wait 10 minutes for a pool attendant to come and retrieve your pound coin when it gets stuck. No diving boards. No mermaid mural. No palm trees the only vegetation being the film of mould around parts of the changing rooms. But as a swimming resource as used by Waltham Forests top swim squad the Gators and home to East London triathletes and erstwhil... 2007-6-7T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11436 You are all probably aware of the point I am about to make and it is only one piece in the jigsaw but it is a very important piece. I just read something that reminded me just how important this is so I thought Id share.Insulin resistance is bad. Insulin sensitivity is good. Remember that. Next the more carbohydrate you eat the worse it is for you. And the less you eat the less harm it can do you. Its a bit like alcohol in this respect and not like sunlight. Insulin resistance means blood sugar levels are hard to control are usually elevated and this leads to type II diabetes heart disease obesity TOFI thin on outside fat on the inside with intraabdominal fat being a right killer et al. The more sugar you eat whether in the form of starch or sugary foods the more resistant you become to the lifesaving effects of insulin. The less you eat the better your endocrine system can control blood sugar levels when it has to. A recent study showed that obese individuals following a low GL glyca... 2007-6-1T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11389 I was discussing with a client recently the pros and cons of doing a particular race he had his eye on in the medium term. The race in question is a long race and a hard race and the client in question would at best be surviving it rather than racing it. It brought me to the question of very long events such as Ironman and one aspect which is what the participants get out of them. Since median IM times are falling we can assume that fewer entrants are racing and more are participating as if IM was a mass event with racing going on at the sharp end like the big European bike events such as the Italian Granfondi and the French cyclosportives.Undoubtedly the completion of an Ironman brings with it a huge sense of achievement the same can be said for a Granfondo or a major Audax event. In general the event is a step up in terms of what the athlete was previously capable of and completing it is a major effort. Ive done some long events but for one reason or another some of the physical effo... 2007-5-31T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11341 Anyone remember when Evans Cycles consisted of a few stores based around south London There was Croydon Kingston Waterloo and the SpencerSmithsponsoring Wandsworth a shop to which I made a humble pilgrimage shortly after my entry into the the world of triathlon hoping that there would be some gofaster tri product that would suit my skinny wallet there wasnt. Now there are 29 stores at last count but they seem to be springing up every other day at the moment and they have branched out as far as Glasgow Kendal thats in the Lake District for you Londocentrists and York. For an independent retailer in a difficult market theyve done an incredible job of brandbuilding and expansion tapping into various demographics thats groups of people for you traditonal languageusers as they become aware of cycling in one form or another. And while they dont sponsor Spencer Smith any more they do carry a decent range of triathlon bikes just be prepared as with pretty much everything they sell to get som... 2007-5-30T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11289 I am in the middle of marking a Level 3 candidates coaching diaries and theory papers and to the answer to a question on hydration the candidate added the comment that by the time you feel thirsty youre already dehydrated and further added that research shows that a drop in hydration levels of 2 leads to a performance decrease of 20.Well I always had my doubts about the thirst means you are already dehydrated thing it just never seemed to make sense in the context of other bodily systems. And now I know more about the evolutionary model it makes less sense. The drop in performance Does 4 dehydration mean a drop in performance of 40 Id like to think not. 20 sounds like an enormous amount doesnt it If you were pedalling at threshold holding 300 watts and you were stupid enough to go 2 dehydrated this would mean you would go from 300w to 240w or 25mph to 20mph say.Both these facts are very common currency as well the you must drink 2 litres of water a day myth. As a coach and coach educat... 2007-5-28T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#11034 As I was trawling Google for ideas for a logo I came across my own name attached to an article. And was reminded that Id written one for a very wonderful guy called Micah True when I spent some time with him in Mexico researching a book I was writing.If you have a minute or two and are interested in the littleknown Mexican canyonlands then follow or paste this url to what I wrote for his website he edited a little but I dont mind.httpwww.caballoblanco.comarticle.html 2007-5-19T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10902 I have a client who when I recently took him on for the third time but thats another story had scaled down his ambitions from doing a triathlon to just losing a skipload of weight and getting fitter. Very wise to start at the beginning and put himself into a position to move on to the next goal. Anyway this chap and he is I hope reading this so again congratulations on doing a GREAT job and really turning things around mentioned to me that many of his colleagues carried out the same dire routine of lunching on beer and crisps and entertaining clients with wine and more wine and fat dinners yet they were skinny. And he was fat. I pointed out that although they had bodyshapes that he craved they were not necessarily healthy. And that he as an exrower had the potential to be much fitter then them like its a competition regardless of bodyshape. At that stage Im not sure how much that sank in because he was just not happy about his weight SO much happier now though. But I came across an art... 2007-5-15T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10892 As the lowering sky...er lowered in a grey soggy kind of way I made my way into the garage naked save for a tatty pair of bike shorts and a HRM cheststrap. It was long ride on the turbo time. My goals recently on the bike have been to get around 3hrs of aero riding at aerobic to high aerobic effort and I had been successful enough on my last three fortnightly rides to allow myself to be turned away from the attractions of the Epping road by the torrential rain and seek salvation on the turbo.I was wondering how long I could go rather than telling myself how long I would go and just for a laugh I programmed 60km into the turbo and just like getting quickly into cold water hopped on and started pedalling veree veree gently. Didnt think about anything just pedalling and just going easy in the aero position. Half an hour of gentle HR barely rising above 100 went by as if it were a few minutes so I started the arithmetic decided I didnt want 4hrs of turbo and set about chasing the average c... 2007-5-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10863 I tried to edge past the latest copy of Runners World without catching its eye but failed again. It always gets my goat. Usually there is a front cover shot of a goodlooking girl grinning inanely into the camera and doing running on a beach or a lovely forest trail. And the production people obviously think its better to catch her midstride looks dynamic but it always shows a heelstriking straightlegged gait that entails running along the trail to injury. Like thisThe latest copy showed a pretty girl stretching her quads holding her foot right at the end in a way that guarantees shed stretch her toes feet ankle ligaments knee ligaments and maybe after all that her quads although since her hips were ever so slightly flexed there would not have been a lot of good quad stretching going on. I dont know if this is the cover or another one but it looks like this 2007-5-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10812 When I first learned about the advent of a new concept in swimming wetsuits the De Soto T1 a twopiece suit I was swayed by the article that introduced the idea and then subsequent reviews. And I made a mental note that if ever I got the chance to trade up to this clever and deeply intuitive design then I would. And I have. And after two lake swims in it Im giving it a shout as I believe modern DJs say.When a design resonates with me I dont really mind going with it even if or maybe because but that is a winding and overgrown path into my psychologychildhood that we dont want to hack our way down just now do we it is a bit different as dull people say about things that arent really different at all. Triathlon geometry makes so much sense to me and I still remember my very first outing on my race bike nearly twoandahalf hours most of it aero followed by an insanely easy 45minute steady run. It didnt seem quite right that the run was so easy part of me wanted it to be the struggle I had... 2007-5-12T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10712 As I scanned the internet and munched on the second course of breakfast first course was 12 avocado small chicken breast sliced finely red grapes tomato a few small chunks of a nice Welsh cheddar lemon juice and olive oil oh yum I came across tri247s advice on running shoe buying. It was Question of the month and its a shame it didnt get Answer of the month. It got as you may expect the clich233d bland anodyne pappy answer that the writer could just as easily have copied out of a random issue of any running magazine dont go to a High St shop blah blah go to a specialist shop blah they know about shoes blah blah.But one piece of idiocy did catch my eye and I thought Id share it. The writer said that the people who serve you in a specialist running shop are regularly trained by the manufacturers my italics to give you the best advice they possibly can. Now then and hmmmm. If I ran a multibillion dollar sports shoe business and made my money from selling cushioned and stabilised shoes tha... 2007-5-8T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10586 One blog two sections1 Recent breakfasts large bowl of garden peas with a liberal sloosh of olive oil some lemon juice and soy sauce shoyu the one with out all the additives small bowl of dried figs 2 nuts and raisins freshly ground coffee made in espresso machine 1 wokked egg 12 avocado couple of sliced tomatoes lemon juice and olive oil over the saladies coffee and fignutraisin bowl finely sliced celery carrot 12 avocado couple of dollops of last nights VERY hot chilli con carne milky coffee changed seal in espresso and it is now boiling the living crap out of my lovely Ethiopian bean so milk is required to make it drinkable nuts dates and raisins those dates taste very sweet compared to the figs milky coffee goats cheese omelette with herbs 2 eggs dates and nuts and coffee espresso seal seems to be working so back to black as Amy Winehouse might have it2 Brief thoughts on getting fasterTheres this idea that we are at any moment the sum of all the choices we have made in our life w... 2007-5-3T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10465 The other day I was lucky enough to win an item in a bid on a wellknown auction site the item in question being a titaniumrailed triathlonspecific saddle made by those clever triathlon kit designers Profile.The saddle my lovely Guru was originally kitted out with is a nice saddle indeed one of the better ones I have ridden but it is a road saddle with a cutout and softer areas towards the rear while its nose is more than a little firm and the effect after riding on it for three hours is not a pleasant one.With the dollar being as weak as George Bushs intellect and with me being keen a to carry on walking my tribike talk and kit it out properly and b to have a painfree bottom I found a new TriStryke saddle on offer bid won cheered at the cheapness of it waited patiently fitted it to my bike and today rode on it for three hours in the aero position.What can I report back to you One pleasing aspect of its design is its length so you can shift up and down the nose and still enjoy the perfe... 2007-4-28T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10331 ...as I fell off my smug zerograinespeciallywheatwagon on Sunday. The background my longest hardest run of the year probably the longest and hardest for two years actually it took place at lunchtime instead of having lunch. Breakfast had been a little on the thin side a bowl of peas followed by some figs and nuts. And some friends of Carolines were due round for afternoon tea and a demonstration of their newish baby so when I arrived back after 1h 45 of steadytobrisk running I reckon I just got over 13 miles maybe 13.5 suffering from a brilliant negative energy balance that the evolutionary fitness people would have told me to guard jealously in order to get a good shunt of human growth hormone coursing my veins the house was full of biscuits. I limped downstairs afer my shower plated them all up offered them around and then hoovered them up one by one benefiting from the guests apparent disdain for Fair Trade stem ginger cookies and Dutch syrup waffles. After they left Caroline de... 2007-4-23T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10274 Out of work and happy to be on the dole Chipping away at a sixfigure trust fund that keeps you in the carbonand titaniumbased style to which you have become accustomed Awash with sponsorship deals that mean you can train like the pros Got a boss who smiles with glee as you absent yourself for three days every week using a variety of excuses while you wear out your bike chainThought not. You have quite a lot of time commitments dont you And you need to work for a living. And that work is generally of a sedentary nature maybe And you train a little each day and rather more at the weekendsThen suddenly one day you arrive in a Mediterranean country one with mountains and good roads and you go from one long ride a week to one long week of riding. Oh and a few runs in there too and just to add to the fatiguefest some swimming. Add in a few late nights converting training volume to booze volume and you have a good way of increasing your chances of getting injured overreached and even overtrai... 2007-4-20T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#10135 A week ago a Slovenian marathon swimmer Martin Strel became the first man to swim the entire length of the Amazon river an undertaking that required 66 days to complete as Strel covered the 3375 miles of the worlds greatest and second longest 100km shorter than the Nile river.Strel didnt take on this nearly souldestroying achievement just because it was there. In 2000 Strel swam the 1773 miles of the Danube to promote peace friendship and free navigation on the waterway and as an ambassador for the World Wide Fund for Nature. Swimming with and alongside the wildlife of the waterway is an important feature of his efforts whether positive as when he was greeted by the pink Amazon river dolphins or potentially negative when having to avoid piranhas and alligators.In 2002 Strel swam the 2360 miles of the Mississippi with same message of peace friendship and the importance of clean usable rivers. There was the additional bonus of a Guinness world record for the longest swim which he again ... 2007-4-15T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#9938 Britains wonderful triathlon magazine popped through my letterbox the other day and I eagerly ripped open the packaging glancing only briefly at my watch to time how long it took to get rid of all the shit sorry targeted marketing information that accompanies it.Just at the time of the year when an even vaguely authoritative voice such as that of this august publication should be encouraging triathletes to make their training as specific as possible there this magazine was trumpeting the benefits of group riding. I could stop here really and you would get my point but let me elaborate a little anyway. You can stop reading if you want anyway no ones obliging you to carry on are theyGroup riding isnt really racespecific says the magazine article but it can be very useful for the triathlete and well explain how. Well I was very interested to see how they were going to justify that one because usually what comes out of anything in favour of group riding for triathletes is that it educates ... 2007-4-7T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#9774 This weekend I rode my triathlon bike for longer than I have ridden it for over a year a mammoth 40 miler over the challengingly flat Cheshire countryside. I spent very little time off the aero bars because as you know that is how a triathlon bike is designed to be ridden even though I was not often riding at speeds for which aero bars would confer a significant advantage especially riding back into a very stiff wind my legs in tatters and my low back having a word with me about riding for more than the duration of a typical turbo session.There were one or two decent roadies out there and I detected some instinctive speed checking hes riding aero so he must be going fast...but he isnt But I gave up trying to impress other cyclists long ago and even though I am aware that to many cyclists it doesnt look right I was a triathlete riding his tri bike for his first long ride of the year staying down on the aero bars spinning up the hills putting some time in on those bars. And perfectly ha... 2007-4-1T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#9692 So just extend your hand and arm further out in front of you and youll be fine your stroke will be longer. Off you go 50m focusing on thatOK so what was I doing wrong with my hand and arm thenLook what part of extend your hand and arm further did you not understand Are you going to stand there asking stupid questions and getting cold or are you going actually to do some swimming Did you understand what I asked you to do extend your hand and arm furtherEr yes.Then bloody well do it. 50m now.A typical exchange in the life of your coaching guru. I may have taken a creative liberty with the dialogue but Im sure you get the general picture.Or.You looked more comfortable then so just keep your striking foot right underneath your body using the techniques weve just gone over and youll move more smoothly. Try the first one we practised and just run up to the cone and back.So Im still striking in front of my body Damn I thought Id sorted that last week. How far in front is my foot Is it less th... 2007-3-29T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#9604 I did my first major brick for quite some time today and it went astonishingly well 30 mins on the turbo about 3 mins of run drills as soon as my backside left the saddle immediately followed by16 deadlifts with a wimpy 45kg before transitioning into a 60minute lek run not true fartlek because I am not fit enough to hit the really high intensities off the bike but a mixed pace run working hard on hills pushing on now and then as if trying to drop someone and succeeding in dropping myself on occasion easing back here and there at an average that may have equated to 10k pace off the bike. I ran strongly for 60 minutes never jogged was able to push the pace and make sure I was quite fatigued by 55 minutes. I havent run for more than 50 minutes since the end of October last year which is almost five months ago. And I havent run substantially off the bike since the end of July last year a long trawl through my training log required to winkle out that data. That would be eight months ago. Y... 2007-3-25T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#9478 Were accustomed to 5000m and 10000m races on the track finishing with barely a whisker between the first two or three most memorably at the last Olympics when 0.6 of a second separated the first two women and Paula Radcliffe stepped off the track in the 10000m and Hicham El Guerrouj edged the 5000m ahead of Kenenisa Bekele by 0.2 of a second. These are fast tight races unlike say marathon swimming. But... The FINA World Swimming championships are under way in Melbourne and the mens and womens 10k open water races have been contested. Swum over four 2.5k laps the races were influenced by the presence of stinging jellyfish in the water indeed the early leader in the womens race was stung in the mouth and dropped back to 11th. And what were the winning margins in these slow arduous races In the mens race 0.6 of a second separated first and second. In the womens race 1 second was the margin with Brit Cassie Patten being overhauled in the very last few metres of the race. In case you were ... 2007-3-21T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#9342 Readers if you are out there and it ever comes to pass that you consume fizzy beverages look at thisSoftdrink quaffers consume the most calories17 March 2007 httpwww.newscientist.comchannelhealthmg19325953.500softdrinkquaffersconsumethemostcalories.htmlSOFT drink intake is related to poor nutrition and raised risk for obesity and diabetes. So says Kelly Brownell director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University whose team has reviewed 88 studies on the effects of softdrink consumption in a systematic trawl through the evidence.Of 21 studies that met the most rigorous methodological standards 19 showed that people who drank the most soft drinks also took in the most calories overall American Journal of Public Health vol 97 p 667.Part of the problem seems to be that sugary soft drinks dont make people feel full. With soft drinks it seems that the calories are invisible to the body says Arne Astrup of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark a veteran of research o... 2007-3-16T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#9194 The ultimate recovery food. Food.And maybe not as often or as much as the Establishment would have you believe. Current research in a variety of areas suggests that a glycogen depleted state is actually desirable for training adaptations to take place or rather for the metabolic scenario to be created that promotes training adaptations. One study showed how exercising in a glycogen depleted state made no difference to peak power output compared to the control in itself encouraging news but produced muscles that took longer to fatigue than the control which had carbs refuelled after exercise.It seeems also that Hgh human growth hormone is released more readily after exercise when glycogen levels are low so again rapid refuelling with high GI carb drinks or energy bars may actually put a damper on fitness adaptations and it has been suggested that one reason why some elite endurance athletes do so much training is to offset the slower adaptation rates incurred by the constant feeding ... 2007-3-11T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#8997 I was just having a little think about speed as I did away with a lovely ripe avocado attached to some scrambled egg and lightly fried tomatoes this morning and remembered a calculation I once did out of curiosity. A good Ironman athlete is thought of as having little speed and lots of endurance and a good ITU racer vice versa. And for agegroupers the gulf between the two is huge. Or is it I thought Id see how fast elite athletes go in the real world.Lets look at the splits of a decent elite Ironman athlete swim 55 mins bike 4h 45 run 3hrs 10 8h 50. Thats someone who is good across the board with a relatively slightly slow run the best runners go 2.45 and faster for the marathon and there will be 50 minute swimmers who run slower or 4.40 bikers who swim slower etc.Purely in terms of IM race pace 55 minutes for 3.8k 21.40 for 1500m 4h 45 for 180k 63 minutes for 40k 3.10 for a marathon 45 minutes for 10k which would add up to around 2h 10 for an olympic distance race all at an intens... 2007-3-5T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#8730 Cant remember where I read it nor any of the exact details but in an American city a chiropractic clinic or maybe a physio offered free screenings including Xrays and discovered that there was a big discrepancy between pathology and reported pain. There were people walking round with some quite serious supposedly spinal problems prolapsed discs squashed discs and reporting little or no pain or discomfort the injury not intruding on their life in any significant way and there were people with supposedly trivial pathologies reporting high levels of pain and severe intrusion of what ought to have been a minor condition into their daily lives.Someone once said that the keys to a calm existence were threefold not to judge others not to compare and not to ask why. Working through these could take years of philosophical discussion but Id like to highlight the importance of not comparing. If you are in pain it is your pain your experience and you need to do what you need to do to become bett... 2007-2-26T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#8516 Im no longer dazed and confused from my bike accident but still more than a little bruised. And one potentially confusing thing Ive been exposed to recently is a little paradox about changing habits or making changes in lifestyle. Now the change in life that I made a while ago that shattered my comfortable little world was to bring Edith into it. And since then Ive been aware of the paradox that easy is hard as a Zen text put it or that safe is risky as marketing guru Seth Godin says.The paradox is that it is easy to not do things that may make your life better. Not doing stuff not taking action is easier but not doing them can make your life hard or harder than it need be. Safe is sticking with what you know and not taking risks but safe is risky when not taking risks makes you stagnate or when not changing things makes you weaker or less able to cope with change when it inevitably comes along. Safe is an illusion.Heres an example form my own situation. Since Edith was born and then ... 2007-2-19T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#8372 The title of this blog is a Led Zeppelin track and I seem to be back into them which is a tragic admission and maybe a senile return to my teenage years. But the reason I am wandering about the house in a daze slightly confused and in some considerable pain unable to settle at my work is that I was taken down by a car last night. There I was trundling along the Lea Bridge Road almost home looking forward to hearing about Ediths bedtime well its interesting to me... when I saw a car starting to turn right into the sideroad I was about to ride past. No problem hes slowing well actually hes not thats weird cant he see me hes now accelerating into the road accelerating straight at me...I swerved and skidded and braked and held an arm out as the headlights bore into me and just as I was inches from being splattered over the car bonnet and everything was in slow motion by this point the driver stopped the last bits of my momentum took me to the other side of the car where I hit the road ha... 2007-2-15T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#7809 Am I having a crisis of faith Ive had them before notably when I was working as a reflexologist and hit a point where I decided that it was a scam or if not a scam at least a highly dubious therapy in terms of efficacy despite the fact that my clients were reporting improvements in their conditions.We humans have come a long way from the savanna thats for sure. Its thought these days that the first humans evolved away from primates about 6 million years ago and then modern humans seemed to have developed about 200000 years ago. What a lot of people are doing these days is looking at health and fitness from an evolutionary perspective and its something Ive been aware of for a while now without it ever being a problem as a triathlon coach or an endurance sports coach.But now it might be.I like studying conditioning and strength training and I like studying nutrition. These are aspects of being a coach that really stimulate me. And from a nutritional prespective Ive long been aware that t... 2007-1-28T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#7574 Yesterday I ran a coaching day for East London Triathletes the second of a series of three days aimed at improvers and middleofthepack triathletes.Id like to thank Mark K for his organisation kettle and Jaffa cakes and the attendees for their enthusiasm and stream of good questions and feedback.Mark KI enjoyed the day immensely. We covered planning for the precompetition phase of the year a practical strength and conditioning session a turbo session that included some visualisations for better pedalling technique and some tips for a thorough warmup and a run technique session looking mainly at posture. Jumping outdoors from a warm heated hall into a bitingly cold wind didnt appear to dampen anyones enthusiasm and the occasional little sprint challenges seemed to keep everyone warm. Heres to the next one 2007-1-21T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#7422 Identitee its the crisis cant you seeee identitee identiteeeee sang Poly Styrene of XRay Spex in 1978. When you look in the mirror do you see yourself she continued and that is what I am moved to write about today.Theres a very strong tendency to build our identity using things that are part of our outer selves. Our jobs our hobbies our cultural tastes our position in communities such as a family. And of course sport. We need to be careful because we are not these things our identity is not IT consultant or wife or triathlete and especially not owner of a Subaru Impreza WRX or rider of a titanium Litespeed Blade with DuraAce and Zipps. If you walk out on your husband and cease to be a wife if the filth ban you from driving your pimpedup Impreza if you injure your knee and can no longer ride your Blade or race triathlons are you still the same person In both Zen and in sport psychology exists the concept of detachment not being attached. Sports psychologists distinguish between proces... 2007-1-16T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#7345 A metaphor sprang into my mind the other day as I did swiftly away with a lovely ripe avocado. I observed how I dealt with the avocado and asked myself How much of a vehicle do I really needWould I be able to get by in life with a Smart car or a Citro235n C2 I used to get by very well indeed with a Citro235n Dyane in fact. Or do I actually need a Toyota Land Cruiser when the most I tote around is a small child in a car seat and a boot full of toys pushchair cases and maybe a bikeThe vehicle I used to wolf down the avocado was bread. All right and butter. I just felt as I eyed up the avocado sitting in the fruit basket that I had to put it into some kind of carbstarchy context in order for it to be palatable. But in doing so obviously I was comitting nutritonally unsound practice and had no real way of justifying it. A lifetime of carbs of the high GI variety a lifetime of using more vehicle than necessary to drive the good stuff down my gullet. Often bread especially in the form of th... 2007-1-14T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#7282 Britains only triathlon publication popped through my letterbox this morning to barely disguised yawns. Oh its not as irreverent as when I used to contribute to it. But that is not the point of my blog today. As my baby daughter tried to stop me flicking through the mag while looking after her honestly Dad how rude I just managed to look at the headtohead bike reviews. Finally after years and years of blinkered attitudes the mainstream has cottoned on to the fact that there are these machines called triathlon bikes optimised for racing triathlon note my terminology for later and has started reviewing them instead of road bikes which are optimised for yes road riding.So forgive me for pointing out the obvious but I was under the impression that in a race athletes are required to run after riding their bikes and this is one of the key elements to a tribike that it facilitates running off the bike. So forgive me for asking an impertinent question but how are we supposed to know how good a... 2007-1-11T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#7205 Just an ordinary little journey in the life of a cyclist two 20 minute thereandback rides. Midmorning bright conditions broad daylight not a huge amount of traffic about either. So why when a van coming up a road towards me veered over to my side of the road in order to turn did the driver not see me keep veering and oblige me to jump into the gap between two parked cars for safety Why when I was riding round Whipps Cross roundabout fortunately very close to the A and E dept at the hospital did one driver speed onto the roundabout just in front of me causing me to brake quickly and another driver almost drive into the back of me seconds later and look surprised then annoyed that there was a bike on the roundabout in his wayWhy are we invisibleAfter a decade of riding round London I am never ever surprised by drivers behaviour. And I know I am very lucky that my balance in the account of carinduced cycling injuries amounts to just a few bruises and lots of nearmisses due partly to luc... 2007-1-9T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#7090 On a freezing New Years Day in galestricken NewcastleuponTyne I gingerly stripped off my fleece and tights as I finished warming up for a 9k crosscountry race organised by the friends I was visiting over the New Year. My entry fee and a donation went to Amnesty International and WaterAid so I was in a good position to rationalise my participation as an effort for charity rather than anything to do with actually competing. And I had lots of good reasons to expect my effort to be a flabby trudge round the very challenging course near the back of the field since it is around the 10th anniversary of my being told to give up racing and because in the 15 months since the birth of my beautiful baby girl I have not once raced and because in the 14 weeks since Caroline went back to work I have had to pretty much give up all training and have run exactly twice.In the seconds leading up to the start of the race my mind was fairly empty no surprises there since I could think of very little to f... 2007-1-5T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#6727 I have recently been under attack from one of the candidates on a coaching course I tutored. As a result the Coach Education Office required me to defend myself ie they put themselves in the position of endorsing to some extent the content of the attack. I am so disillusioned with the BTA education having to deliver badly organised courses with malfunctioning equipment in poor venues and above all to groups far too large for them to get the attention and input they need and deserve and have paid for that this nasty little episode may mean an end to my commitment to tutoring. But while it has been unpleasant I was thinking about things that have happened to other coaches. Brett Sutton banned from coaching for having sex with one his swimmers aged 15. Bill Sweetenham accused of bullying his swimmers. Two US high school coaches accused of having put a starting pistol to a students head. Korean speed skating coaches accused of beating women athletes. A kids baseball coach accused of gett... 2006-12-24T00:00:00Z http://www.fitnessfarm.co.uk/page3.htm#6656 I know its Christmas not Easter but recently I a enjoyed a particularly delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs with a dash of Tabasco and a few slices of ripe avocado on the side and b saw a programme about Japanese cooking which included a kind of savoury and rather runny egg custard and I was reminded about the power of The Egg one of natures finest foods and faster than most fast food. Whenever I refer to the coach of the unparalleled Mark Allen a man called Philip Maffetone I do so with mixed feelings since much of Maffetones renown is due surely to the amazing qualities of Allen the athlete rather than Maffetone the coach and the training principles that he extols as being applicable to every athlete are probably not. However I feel he is very sound on nutrition and he does have a thing about eggs too.Maffetone regards eggs as the perfect food. We can live almost entirely on eggs he says adding that they contain all our essential nutrients except niacin and vitamin C. So vitamins ... 2006-12-20T00:00:00Z