Alright!
After the crossfit class yesterday I spent pretty much the whole afternoon vegging on a couch or in bed... First watching the finals of the Euro 08, then a Bruce Lee movie and in the evening the Track & Field and Swimming trials. Despite good refueling I was slightly sore today. But during the work day I got more and more restless. Upon coming home I decided to go for a run...
It turned out to be quite good! 4.55 miles in 36:49. A 8:05 pace. Not quite where I like to be but definitely a step in the right direction. Today the problem was endurance. I was not able to sustain a higher pace over long times. So I guess I need to get longer runs in. Perhaps that's something I should do in the mornings, when I am not able to run fast anyway :-/
I think my speed will benefit from crossfit. A lot of the class reminded me of my Track & Field workouts through high school and college. And back then I was able to run sub 5min 1500m at the end of a decathlon without specifically training for it.
During my run I thought that I should come up with a few goals I want to achieve in running, climbing, etc...
Something to think about more!
Monday, June 30, 2008
Saturday, June 28, 2008
CrossFit class
OK, after plenty of talk I took the 'Intensive Weekend CrossFit Fundamentals'-Class at my climbing gym this weekend.
The class entailed two 4-hour sessions on Saturday and Sunday morning.
On Saturday we started out be learning about the movements in some basic exercises like the squat, the shoulder press, the push press, the push jerk, the overhead squat, and the kipping pull-up. This was followed by a short jog around the neighboring building and a round of 'burpees' and a round of '(forgot the name)'. Back at the gym we went into a 'Fran' WOD. 'Fran' consits of three series 21-15-9 of thrusters and pull-ups for time. It was pretty intense! Just what I was looking for :-) It took me 6:16 to finish.
Gosh! My pull-ups suck!
The class continued At 8AM on Sunday morning. The basics covered on the second day included the deadlift, kettleball swings, Sumo Deadlift High Pull, the snatch and the clean & jerk. The class finished with another tough WOD. 'Fight Gone Bad' was on the schedule. The workout is a circuit of Wall Ball, Kettleball Swings, Box Jumps, Push Presses and rowing. All the exercises are done of one minute without a break in between. After one round there is a one minute break. Repeat 3 times. In the end the total reps are added up. I managed 286. I am quite happy about this :-)
Tomorrow will be a rest day... or perhaps I'll do an easy run.
The class entailed two 4-hour sessions on Saturday and Sunday morning.
On Saturday we started out be learning about the movements in some basic exercises like the squat, the shoulder press, the push press, the push jerk, the overhead squat, and the kipping pull-up. This was followed by a short jog around the neighboring building and a round of 'burpees' and a round of '(forgot the name)'. Back at the gym we went into a 'Fran' WOD. 'Fran' consits of three series 21-15-9 of thrusters and pull-ups for time. It was pretty intense! Just what I was looking for :-) It took me 6:16 to finish.
Gosh! My pull-ups suck!
The class continued At 8AM on Sunday morning. The basics covered on the second day included the deadlift, kettleball swings, Sumo Deadlift High Pull, the snatch and the clean & jerk. The class finished with another tough WOD. 'Fight Gone Bad' was on the schedule. The workout is a circuit of Wall Ball, Kettleball Swings, Box Jumps, Push Presses and rowing. All the exercises are done of one minute without a break in between. After one round there is a one minute break. Repeat 3 times. In the end the total reps are added up. I managed 286. I am quite happy about this :-)
Tomorrow will be a rest day... or perhaps I'll do an easy run.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
The last week in workouts
Last Friday I started to realize my plan of getting up earlier and get some workouts in before work. A quick and easy run would be a good start. I had planned on getting up at 6:30 and hit the trail at 7, but Lesley, who wanted to come along had an early morning meeting and wanted to go earlier. Ah well... 6:30 it was. The 3 miles on the Stevens Creek trail felt pretty hard, and were quite slow that morning. Perhaps it was related to the climbing session I had the night before, which was pretty good, and which had taken quite a bit out of me.
On Saturday I hit the climbing gym with Daniela, after a hilly 5 mile hike. The gym session was good again! We did several lead climbs, as well as some hard top-rope climbs.
Sunday I was back on my mountain bike in El Corte de Madera Open Space Preserve.
GOSH! The descent down Resolution Trail was scary! I need to practice on technical sections a lot! The climb bach up to Skeggs Point via the Methusalah trail was long, steep and fun...Bring on more climbing :-)
Monday was a rest day before hitting the climbing gym again on Tuesday. Here it was mostly hard top-ropes, a few cracks and a chimney. The chimney, rated at 5.8, took it out of me at the end of the day.
This morning I went for my second early morning run...4.5 miles this time. Again it felt hard and slow...Well, looking at the time...It was slow :-( Both nights I slept plenty before the runs, but they just don't feel like evening runs... Perhaps I have to change the snack I have before heading out.
Tomorrow I'll be in the climbing gym again. I'll also sign up for a intense crossfit class this coming weekend. I've been talking about this for quite a while now. So I am really excited to take the class!
In other news: I am excited to get to climb outside again! Yay! Tuolumne next weekend!
On Saturday I hit the climbing gym with Daniela, after a hilly 5 mile hike. The gym session was good again! We did several lead climbs, as well as some hard top-rope climbs.
Sunday I was back on my mountain bike in El Corte de Madera Open Space Preserve.
GOSH! The descent down Resolution Trail was scary! I need to practice on technical sections a lot! The climb bach up to Skeggs Point via the Methusalah trail was long, steep and fun...Bring on more climbing :-)
Monday was a rest day before hitting the climbing gym again on Tuesday. Here it was mostly hard top-ropes, a few cracks and a chimney. The chimney, rated at 5.8, took it out of me at the end of the day.
This morning I went for my second early morning run...4.5 miles this time. Again it felt hard and slow...Well, looking at the time...It was slow :-( Both nights I slept plenty before the runs, but they just don't feel like evening runs... Perhaps I have to change the snack I have before heading out.
Tomorrow I'll be in the climbing gym again. I'll also sign up for a intense crossfit class this coming weekend. I've been talking about this for quite a while now. So I am really excited to take the class!
In other news: I am excited to get to climb outside again! Yay! Tuolumne next weekend!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Dirt on the bike again
Yes! After not using my bike in pretty much exactly half a year, and cleaning it three weeks ago, I got it dirty again today. I rode a loop in Monte Bello Open Space Preserve. I have no idea on how long it was, but it was pretty fun. And although I had not been on a trail in a while I did not feel like a complete idiot :-)
The ride was also good to clear my head. After spending pretty much all of yesterday in a weird kind of delirium it was good to get out again. I also made the resolution to work out before going to work. I'll skip tomorrow though and start on Friday!
This was the third cool workout this week, after a long and good gym climbing session on Sunday and an amazing 4.5 mile run on Monday night. I hope to find a climbing buddy for tomorrow evening, or for the weekend to head to Tuolumne.
The ride was also good to clear my head. After spending pretty much all of yesterday in a weird kind of delirium it was good to get out again. I also made the resolution to work out before going to work. I'll skip tomorrow though and start on Friday!
This was the third cool workout this week, after a long and good gym climbing session on Sunday and an amazing 4.5 mile run on Monday night. I hope to find a climbing buddy for tomorrow evening, or for the weekend to head to Tuolumne.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Running...
Almost a week after the Diablo 25k I went for the first run today.
Since I realized that not running hills at all hurt me pretty bad last weekend, I decided to do a loop around the 'Dish', close to Stanford. My legs were still pretty tired, but I guess that not having slept much lately and not eating to well during the past week didn't help either. On the upside: I am definitely looking forward to get more miles in.
A possible race schedule for the rest of the year could be:
Jul 19 Sequoia 20k
Aug 23 Shoreline Park 10k
Sep 12 Palo Alto Moonlight 5k
Oct 05 San Jose Rock'n'Roll Half Marathon
Oct 26 Silly Valley Marathon
We'll see...
Since I realized that not running hills at all hurt me pretty bad last weekend, I decided to do a loop around the 'Dish', close to Stanford. My legs were still pretty tired, but I guess that not having slept much lately and not eating to well during the past week didn't help either. On the upside: I am definitely looking forward to get more miles in.
A possible race schedule for the rest of the year could be:
Jul 19 Sequoia 20k
Aug 23 Shoreline Park 10k
Sep 12 Palo Alto Moonlight 5k
Oct 05 San Jose Rock'n'Roll Half Marathon
Oct 26 Silly Valley Marathon
We'll see...
Restaurants in Moutain View
In an earlier post I announced the goal to eat myself through the restaurants on Castro Street in Mountain View, CA. So where am I in this project? As a start here's a list of all the restaurants in MV... Over time the I hope to get through the list:
Monday, June 9, 2008
Diablo 25
Yesterday was day 0.
The day of the PCTR Diablo 25k.
For me this was a special event for two reasons: First it was the first trail run I signed up for, and second it was the longest event I ever signed up for.
I could definitely have trained more for this race though, especially since the profile was quite nasty. Almost 4500ft of elevation gain, most of it in the first half of the course. Well, I had gotten most of my mileage in on perfectly flat grounds right at the Bay.
Anyway.
The start was scheduled for 8:30, so Lesley picked me up around 6:45. Sunday mornings are nice, since it's pretty much the only time in the Bay Area, that is not crazy with traffic. It took us about 55 minutes to get the the Mitchell Canyon trailhead in Concord. After picking up our bibs we sat down in the shade and waited for the start. The organization of the run was amazing, and all the folks around were super nice... Although there was an aid-station every 8km, the organizers insisted, that the runners took water along. Given the temperatures in the high 80's this was absolutely justified.
After a few words of motivation and a short description of the course the race started at 8:30 sharp. The course followed mostly a single trail from the Mitchell Canyon trailhead to the summit of Mt. Diablo. I thought it was a little disappointing that it was a single track, right after the start, since it led to quite a 'traffic jam'. Soon enough it became steep enough though, that essentially everyone was walking. It took me about 1:20 to get to the aid station at mile 5. I was almost right on my plan, which consisted of being at mile 5 at 1:30, at the summit (turn around point) at 2:00 and back at the finish at 3:00. I spent a few minutes at the station refilling my bottle and eating some pretzels and some candy. I also had two cups of Gatorade.
The next section of the course was amazing: it led slightly downhill through some meadows. It was a good cruising experience! After an other uphill section, exactly 2:00 into the run I reached the summit, turned around and headed back to the aid station. 15 minutes later the runner behind me heard me screaming! I had rolled my left ankle and was swearing quite a bit!
While he was going by he made sure I was ok, before heading off. I walked a bit, but was able to resume the run soon enough. Back at the feeding grounds I knocked back some Cokes, Pretzels and a few Clif Shot Bloks. After refilling my water bottle I started downhill again. The course back was different from the uphill section, mostly following a pretty steep fire road. Too steep for me! It showed that I hadn't done much hill work in my preparation and also the heat really started to take a tribute. All the way down I had to deal with cramps. Once one leg was fine, after stretching and walking the other one would cramp up. Again, the other runners were super nice and supportive, when they saw me struggling down the mountain. Finally the trail leveled out again, and I was able to resume running. Of course the second half of the run took way longer than anticipated, so it took me about 3:51,58 to complete the 25km.
The 14:58 pace is nothing to be proud of, but it felt quite good to complete this event!
I'll make sure to run more hills before the next trail event!
Since my legs are quite tired today, and my knees are pretty shot I'll take it easy on them in the next few days, probably only climbing at the gym, or doing some yoga.
The day of the PCTR Diablo 25k.
For me this was a special event for two reasons: First it was the first trail run I signed up for, and second it was the longest event I ever signed up for.
I could definitely have trained more for this race though, especially since the profile was quite nasty. Almost 4500ft of elevation gain, most of it in the first half of the course. Well, I had gotten most of my mileage in on perfectly flat grounds right at the Bay.
Anyway.
The start was scheduled for 8:30, so Lesley picked me up around 6:45. Sunday mornings are nice, since it's pretty much the only time in the Bay Area, that is not crazy with traffic. It took us about 55 minutes to get the the Mitchell Canyon trailhead in Concord. After picking up our bibs we sat down in the shade and waited for the start. The organization of the run was amazing, and all the folks around were super nice... Although there was an aid-station every 8km, the organizers insisted, that the runners took water along. Given the temperatures in the high 80's this was absolutely justified.
After a few words of motivation and a short description of the course the race started at 8:30 sharp. The course followed mostly a single trail from the Mitchell Canyon trailhead to the summit of Mt. Diablo. I thought it was a little disappointing that it was a single track, right after the start, since it led to quite a 'traffic jam'. Soon enough it became steep enough though, that essentially everyone was walking. It took me about 1:20 to get to the aid station at mile 5. I was almost right on my plan, which consisted of being at mile 5 at 1:30, at the summit (turn around point) at 2:00 and back at the finish at 3:00. I spent a few minutes at the station refilling my bottle and eating some pretzels and some candy. I also had two cups of Gatorade.
The next section of the course was amazing: it led slightly downhill through some meadows. It was a good cruising experience! After an other uphill section, exactly 2:00 into the run I reached the summit, turned around and headed back to the aid station. 15 minutes later the runner behind me heard me screaming! I had rolled my left ankle and was swearing quite a bit!
While he was going by he made sure I was ok, before heading off. I walked a bit, but was able to resume the run soon enough. Back at the feeding grounds I knocked back some Cokes, Pretzels and a few Clif Shot Bloks. After refilling my water bottle I started downhill again. The course back was different from the uphill section, mostly following a pretty steep fire road. Too steep for me! It showed that I hadn't done much hill work in my preparation and also the heat really started to take a tribute. All the way down I had to deal with cramps. Once one leg was fine, after stretching and walking the other one would cramp up. Again, the other runners were super nice and supportive, when they saw me struggling down the mountain. Finally the trail leveled out again, and I was able to resume running. Of course the second half of the run took way longer than anticipated, so it took me about 3:51,58 to complete the 25km.
The 14:58 pace is nothing to be proud of, but it felt quite good to complete this event!
I'll make sure to run more hills before the next trail event!
Since my legs are quite tired today, and my knees are pretty shot I'll take it easy on them in the next few days, probably only climbing at the gym, or doing some yoga.
Friday, June 6, 2008
The last run before Diablo
Wednesdays yoga class was not such a great idea.
It was the first class in ages (ok, roughly two months), and my hamstrings were really sore on Thursday and today. I did a very easy jog to loosen up my legs this evening...3.5 miles in 31 minutes... :-) Really relaxing!
Tomorrow I'll spend most of the day with runnung errands and working...
I'm looking forward to Sunday though!
It was the first class in ages (ok, roughly two months), and my hamstrings were really sore on Thursday and today. I did a very easy jog to loosen up my legs this evening...3.5 miles in 31 minutes... :-) Really relaxing!
Tomorrow I'll spend most of the day with runnung errands and working...
I'm looking forward to Sunday though!
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
A new category!
Welcome to a new category in this blog!
The Angry Rambling!
Ok, last night at the gym I pointed out a magazine, whick people read on the treadmills or the stationary bikes to Daniela. Her comment was: "If you want to read do it at home!" She is completely right! If you work out, work out hard! Doing things half-assed doesn't get you anywhere! Get the heart racing and the sweat dripping! If you can read during a workout you are wasting your time and use up gym space for people who want to work out!
Doing things in parallel seems so basic to this culture though! Doing the make-up, shaving, talking on the phone while driving for example. Do these things sequentially and drive safer!
The Angry Rambling!
Ok, last night at the gym I pointed out a magazine, whick people read on the treadmills or the stationary bikes to Daniela. Her comment was: "If you want to read do it at home!" She is completely right! If you work out, work out hard! Doing things half-assed doesn't get you anywhere! Get the heart racing and the sweat dripping! If you can read during a workout you are wasting your time and use up gym space for people who want to work out!
Doing things in parallel seems so basic to this culture though! Doing the make-up, shaving, talking on the phone while driving for example. Do these things sequentially and drive safer!
gym climbing
I had an awesome gym climbing session with Daniela last night.
We spent about 2.5 hours in the gym. In that time I climbed 8 routes, including a 11.d (a first!), 2 11c's, a 11b, and a 11a. before that I warmed up on a 10b and a 10d, doing a 10a in between the 11s to loosen up.
It felt really good! I didn't feel that pumped afterwards, which is very good!
There was an ad in the gym about an "Intense crossfit course" a 2 day weekend class with 4 hours per day, in the end of June... I think I will sign up!
Tonight I'll go to a yoga class the first time in forever. I am looking forward to it!
I am also deliberating on getting a hangboard and some rings...
We spent about 2.5 hours in the gym. In that time I climbed 8 routes, including a 11.d (a first!), 2 11c's, a 11b, and a 11a. before that I warmed up on a 10b and a 10d, doing a 10a in between the 11s to loosen up.
It felt really good! I didn't feel that pumped afterwards, which is very good!
There was an ad in the gym about an "Intense crossfit course" a 2 day weekend class with 4 hours per day, in the end of June... I think I will sign up!
Tonight I'll go to a yoga class the first time in forever. I am looking forward to it!
I am also deliberating on getting a hangboard and some rings...
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Diablo 25 -5 days
Ok, 5 more days to go before the Diablo 25k.
I did my last hilly trainings run this past Sunday. It was pretty good. Although the uphill part still kicks my butt, the downhill will be good :-)
Just figured out the logistics for race day...
Packet pick-up at 7:30, start at 8:30...Shouldn't be too hot at that time!
I did my last hilly trainings run this past Sunday. It was pretty good. Although the uphill part still kicks my butt, the downhill will be good :-)
Just figured out the logistics for race day...
Packet pick-up at 7:30, start at 8:30...Shouldn't be too hot at that time!
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