Love What you Do. Do What You Love.

      There’s that universal non-runner reaction that you get when you tell someone that you started off your day with a 6 mile run: “The only reason I would run 6 miles is if a bear was chasing me.” Or, sometimes they are less polite and simply ask, “What was chasing you?”  From one vantage point, training for endurance events is aimless or on the borderline of crazy. From another, it is a saving grace, a sense of normalcy, a constant. Sometimes it’s less poetic, and our reason for sweating for an hour or more is simply to make some room on our dinner plate. No matter the reason (and we all have our own), training has a special place in our lives.

       Endurance athletes are a unique group of people who share the same challenges of smashing PR’s, avoiding injury, and carving time out of every day to train. Most of us realize that although this lifestyle is built on the principle of staying healthy and fit, there are aspects of it that are clearly unhealthy. Recently I read about the “endurance athlete cycle”, which went something like this: train, injury, rehab. At first, I was angered at this simplification of the form of training that I love the most. But as I kept reading and pondering, I realized that this describes my training life perfectly. Oops.

     What are the reasons for this cycle? The list is extensive, but it centers around Type A personality, improper training technique, and (most surprising) overtraining. My eyes began to resist reading any further. It hurts to agree with an article bashing something that you love so deeply. Training high volumes is only healthy for those who can handle it, i.e. professional and elite athletes. These lucky people have the right combination of genes that allows them to handle more than us mortals. For those of us who are less fortunate, trying to train enough to crest our potential usually results in musculoskeletal injury.

    There is an important distinction between exercise and training. Exercise is purposeful movement with the goal of improving health. Training is purposeful exercise with the goal of improving performance. Honestly, most of us would be better off with the former rather than the latter.  Most of us wear our training hours like a badge of honor, but past a certain point, more is not better. I hate to expound upon the personality argument, but people like us think more is better in all situations. We race through grocery stores or to class. We’ll take any opportunity to make a competition out of everyday life, and strive to be the best if it seems within our realm. Training is sort of like following the directions on a medicine bottle. Take too little at the wrong time, and a less than desirable effect will follow. Take too much, and you’re in trouble. Unfortunately, people don’t come with labels, but we all have a level of training that our bodies respond the best to. How do you find that level, you ask? Well, as you may have guessed, the only way to really know is to get dangerously close to that threshold—which is like trying to walk a tight rope across the Great Divide. As someone who has been down Overtraining Road more than a few times, I know that you are aware when you get close to the edge. Doing something about it, however, is a whole other story.

     So, then, what is the reason for the endurance athlete cycle? Although the answer is complicated (as stated above), I can answer it in one, simple, word: Love.

    Love for the people that we sweat with. Love for that feeling you get when you cross a finish line and receive a “you did it” hug. Love for the sight of the sun rising over a morning run. Love for gossiping across the handlebars and laughing at stupid jokes after riding for too long. Love for the camaraderie that we share.

    No matter the reason, training is a light in all of our lives. It’s kind of like a faithful dog, always sitting there with you as it’s only attention. All of the other reasons aside, the most comforting thing about training is that it is always there.

Love what you do. Do what you love.

My Favorite Exercises, and Why

1. Squat
The squat is a two-joint beauty of an exercise. Nothing is better for strengthening the glutes, quads, and hamstrings all in one nice, fluid motion (at least it should be). I love the variations: front squat, back squat, wide stance, narrow stance...I could go on and on. My favorite thing about the squat, though is looking the knee-buckling bro's in the gym straight in the eye as I bend properly from the hips and get down past a 90 degree knee angle. And without the grunting. Okay, actually that is my second favorite thing. My absolute favorite (related) thing about the squat is how proper squat form can just make your hips...work. I don't really know a better word for it. Hip mobility is important for a wide range of activity; and one could argue that all lower extremity running injuries originate from a hip mobility/strength deficit. Squats are number one in my book.

2. Bench Press

Yes, I am aware that if I am not an offensive lineman who pushes people around in the sagittal plane all day, the bench press has no functional purpose. I suppose you could justify it if your looking for pectoral hypertrophy, but that's obviously not the reason, as I'm a girl triathlete who still desires to fit in my tri top. The reason I like the bench press is purely because  there's some weird sense of satisfaction that comes along with lifting more than your body weight off of your chest. Try doing that with half the muscle, boys!

3. Renegade Row

I love rows to begin with. They are great for opening up the chest, scapular mobility, and strengthening the back and lats-two really important swimming muscles. I like all the variations: Seated, bent over, single arm or bilateral bench, standing on a bosu ball...but I LOVE the renegade row. Any chance you get to work a major muscle group plus the core, do it. This variation work on your chest and core isometrically, all the while teaching your moving arm to generate torque and power with only one contact on the ground. BOOM. Great exercise.

4. Pull ups

Nothing says "I am classy, old school, and hardcore" as knocking out set of pull ups in the gym. In a world of heavy weight cheaters, you stand alone as one who doesn't need a bench to show you've got muscles. These have many variations as well, and it's easy to manipulate if you want to hit one muscle group more than the other. It's the perfect thing to cure someone of their "too much chest exercise syndrome" (also called hyperpectoria) and is the best way to load the lats. I argue that it's best for triathletes because it better mimics the way one pulls their body over the water than a lat pulldown does.

5. The Plank

It may not look like much, but the plank is the gold star of core exercises. It's one of the few that expounds upon it's role in everyday life: keeping us upright and coordinated in movement. The role of the core is stabilization, with the exception of sports that involve rotation such as swimming, baseball, and tennis. However, to train the core for these sports you don't have train the rotation, you have to train to control the rotation. The plank, along with it's variations, should be a staple in most exercise routines. Plus, it can be used as a mental toughness tool when performed for longer than 5 minutes (not recommended, your back will sag in a way you thought not possible)

6. Bicep Curls

Change

        "Everyone has the capacity for change, but not everyone is willing to change."

      Sometimes we are at a loss. We have these awesome, intricate, powerful, and frankly enigmatic brains in our heads, but yet most of the time we don't know how to use them. We oftentimes don't--or feel that we don't--have control over the only thing in this world in which we, in reality, have complete control. Our brains can integrate and respond so quickly to the environment because we fall into patterns of use based on past experiences and traits that are inherent to who we are. Another, more familiar word for these patterns is personality. All too often, people accept who they are as if they cannot change, or cannot grow. I'm not saying that everyone should psychoanalyze themselves, but I am saying that changing behavior is more possible than you think.

      Neuroplasticity is the concept that new synaptic connections can be made in the brain when performing new tasks or experiencing new things. Put simply, this means that neurons that weren't previously talking to each other are now in full conversation. This allows us to perform new exercises, learn a new song, or understand a new concept in school. This can be applied even to the most ingrained behaviors, it just takes a little extra effort and a good support system.

      The reason why people who want behavior change (for example, losing weight) have nutritionists, personal trainers, and training partners is not only because they need the advice and expertise, but also because they need to be surrounded by people who model the change that they want to see in themselves. Other people are our most powerful tool when it comes to change. For some reason, people are programmed to observe and learn from other people, perhaps sometimes because it is easier than deciphering a problem on our own. We all know this to be true. For example, when you are around one of those (rare) happy-go-lucky people, you start to feel that way too; even if you are in the midst of a terrible day. Attitude is contagious, and getting rid of a bad attitude isn't as simple as washing your hands.

     Of course, the aforementioned example is just in the time frame a a single day or moment. But what about chronic change? What about life shapes us into who we are in the present? That's right, it's the sum of those single moments and single situations that make us react and grow. But the only way we grow in change is through an intrinsic drive; an open door, if you will. Open-mindedness can be tough, especially when dealing with something as special as yourself. The effort that it takes to hold that heavy door open is worth it when there is something that you want but don't have.

   Nobody is perfect, and no one should want to be perfect. Imperfection is what makes the world go round and makes life fun. But if you want something of yours to change for the better, it is completely in your control. There is never a reason to believe that you aren't in the driver's seat of your life train. In the words of Dr. Seuss: "You have brains in your head and feet in your shoes, and you can take them in any direction you choose."

   

Opportunities/Suncoast RR

        As I receive e-mails about registration for the spring semester, I find myself absolutely terrified about the future. I have 2 more semesters and an internship left, and I'm wondering where the heck the past 2.5 years have gone. I'm coming to this bitter realization that college life must end and actual life must begin...and soon. I know that nothing is ever crystal clear, but the cloudiness ahead worries me. I'm not quite sure where I fit in this world.

    All of this had me worried sick over the past couple of weeks, but I've taken some time also to stop and feel grateful for all of the opportunities that I have been given while attending the University of Florida. I've had the chance to personal train at one of the best collegiate recreational facilities in the country. What had seemed like a dream when I asked about the personal training class during my first summer here in Gainesville is now a reality. I've learned so much from the great staff we have in the PT department and from training for 4 semesters now. Every time I walk into Southwest Recreational center with the letters "Personal Trainer" printed on the back of my shirt, I feel genuinely lucky to have been given the opportunity to train students and staff at UF.

    This year I also acquired a new job as the president of the TriGators triathlon club. I'm so proud of being able to improve a club that has given so much to me in my first two years in college. I've learned so much from the extra responsibility; I would even argue that I've learned more about life from the club than I have from any other single experience. I have wholeheartedly enjoyed every minute of it, even the few bumps in the road that I've hit. It's an experience that I'm glad I took on; and I have to thank all of my teammates for allowing someone like me to try to keep things in order. (key word: try)

Also, just attending this university was a huge opportunity in itself. I just have so much to be thankful for.

So, on to the race this weekend. Let me preface this by saying that I raced this same course 1 min faster than last year. That's definitely encouraging, considering last year I was in pretty darn good shape as I was gearing up for my marathon. But unfortunately I have no idea where that time came from, as my chip from last year has probably washed up on the shores of Mexico by now. If I had to guess, it probably came from the bike leg.

The swim was a bit of rough start, with all 78 collegiant athletes (men and women) going off in one wave.Beach starts have never been a strength of mine. I was slow at charging into the water, and then bottomed out on my first attempt at a dolphin dive. I literally dove into the sand (whoops, a little too early), and I feel lucky that I didn't emerge from the water with a mouthful of sand. I found a lot of contact out to the first buoy, but after that I had a pretty smooth swim. I sighted well and stayed on line, which doesn't happen that often. I also think that my effort was higher than usual, given the way I was panting upon trudging to shore. My legs burned as I waved through the water, and I was thinking "Man, this is going to be a long bike ride". Figuratively, of course. The bike course was short 9.5 miles.

   To my surprise, the bike actually went fairly well. I got a glimpse of the sun rising over the Sunshine Skyway, and a smile crept onto my face. I always stop myself a couple times a race just to enjoy the fact that I'm racing somewhere beautiful. Coming out of T2, I grabbed a cup of water and tossed it back too quick. I coughed and choked for a quarter mile or so, spitting up water and clearing the water from my lungs. People watching probably thought I was dying or something. I eventually got into a good rhythm on the run, despite my bum hip. Coming up to first aid station, I saw a flag for snowcones, so as the volunteers announced if they had water or Gatorade in their cups, I asked if I could have a snowcone instead. They seemed to get a good kick out of that. Most of the back half of the run was on sand, and it threw me off a little. I had a blank mind and good concentration for a while, but once I hit the loose footing, I had to focus to much about my footsteps and it annoyed me.

     I had a strong finish, with a good sprint at the end to pass the 4th place girl. I was kind of dramatic upon crossing the finish lone and sat down for a while before allowing the volunteers to take the chip off of my ankle. One of the guys helped me up, and I realized that I was being pathetic. Sometimes it just seems so right at the moment....but I hate it when I do that. Overall, I'm happy with the race. feeling undertrained has lit a bit of a fire under my...well you know. The triathlon season may be coming to a close, but I feel ready to put some solid training in to get ready for a solid spring.

Most of all, I'm just thankful for being out there wearing the orange and blue.

    

Battle Of the Bridges Race Report

   There a was an eerie amount of familiarity in the air. Driving over the beautiful Melbourne causeway, entering transition to a friendly voice on a megaphone, getting thrashed by the rougher oceanic waves that feed the river that hosted the swim course. However, this race was much different than the one I did 2 years ago.

         Two years ago, this race was my first of the Olympic distance, and my 3rd triathlon ever. I wore a sports bra and spandex, rode my Trek 1000 road bike, and entered transition as a ball of nerves. I doubted that I would even complete the race. But I did, with a decent time, I might add. I crossed the finish line thinking that it was the hardest thing I had ever done. This time, I woke up race morning as the TriGator president, unloaded my Speed Concept from my car, and sported my Kiwami tri-suit. I've lost count of how many triathlons I've raced, and an Olympic distance race is routine. But that doesn't mean that I wasn't a ball of nerves. I have a feeling that no matter how long I race, I will always have those pre-race butterflies. There's nothing wrong with a little case of the wiggles when you're about to lay it all on the line.

        The air was humid but tolerable from the large volume of rain the area received the night before. I chatted with the other college triathletes after I set up my transition area, which I can practically do on cruise control now. I love the atmosphere of the FCTC races; all of the teams know each other ans support each other (nowhere near the hostility displayed on the football field). I'm always in awe of the camaraderie of college triathlon. We made our way down to the water for the start, and after doing 2 Gator cheers (we just had to, we had beaten LSU in football the day before)it was time to press our watch buttons and dive into the water.

      The water was rough, just as I had remembered. I found myself Tarzan swimming over waves in order to get a glimpse of the buoys. Swimming the course correctly is always an issue for me. I know so because while my pool times have improved, my triathlon times have not. Open water swimming is just one of those things you have to practice; unfortunately it isn't easy to do so. Swimming is still a huge source of frustration for me. I've gone as far as blaming my body type for my poor swimming--which I'll admit is stooping pretty low. Work in=results out, in everything.

     After cursing under my breath and taking a very ugly run-in-to-T1 picture (thank you, race photographers for catching me in my element) I hopped on my bike and gutted out a decent bike split. I went by some volunteers with a radio at one point, and one of my favorite songs (Paradise, by Coldplay) was playing. I instantly started singing and pounding my pedals a little harder. It really pumped me up!

     The run is what I'm most ashamed of in this race. I'm aware that I'm not in very good run shape, but at the same time I had a stretch where I felt pretty darn good (mile 2-4), and then there was the bridge. The course had up run up an enormous bridge, run a quarter mile after descending, and then turning right back around and up the bridge again. What torture. It is here that I started to hurt. Some poor hydration on the bike led to the debilitating ab cramps that I'm famous for. I stood doubled over on the top of the bridge, grimacing in pain. I knew there was only a mile left, but it was so hard to even get my body upright so that I could run. I ran for a while with almost a 90 degree bend at my hips; I was doing anything to keep moving. As the finish line came in view, I was able to hold up for a bit so that I could look decent in front of the crowds of people towards the finish (a shallow thought, I know). I finished with a Gator chomp and a fist pump.

   Overall, I'm not incredibly happy with this race. It has nothing to do with the splits, place, or race difficulty. I hated how I felt. I know I'm undertrained, and I definitely feel it. My legs felt heavy, I was breathing hard, and I felt like I was merely surviving, not racing. I was spoiled with a really good spring season, where I was able to split off a 10K as if I hadn't ridden my bike 25 mile prior. I want that back. Really bad. My competitiveness is gone. I've decided it's a negative part of my personality that I was to rid myself of. I just want the feeling back. Place doesn't matter, and neither does time. I just want to feel like Kacy again, running as if I was floating. I'll get there, I just have to be patient.



        

The Unplanned experiment

     The past few weeks have been rough, for lack of a better word. I've had exams, increased work hours, and other odds and ends pushed onto my already crowded plate. I felt stressed, overly emotional, and weak. No wonder. I was doing all of the things that I tell my clients (and others) not to do. I got less than 6 hours of sleep at night. My diet turned into cereal and Clif Bars. Workouts were short, unproductive, aimless, and only made me feel worse.

Let's examine these factors of overall health one-by-one, shall we?

1.Sleep


Sleep is so important that it can be the limiting factor in advantageous responses to exercise . It is the only time that some of your systems get to rest (namely, the nervous system) and it is the main stage for bodily repair. Growth hormone is released during sleep, so to maximize strength and muscle gain, try paying some time to your bed rather than $30.00 on protein (sorry, to offend anyone, I have a beef about protein powder). Everyone's requirements are different in this department, but sleep has a lot to do with Circadian rhythms and internal body clock. Just because someone feels fine on 4 or 5 hours of sleep per night doesn't mean that their body appreciates it. They just perceive that amount as "normal" and therefore are simply used to it. Keeping a steady sleep schedule is key. Life doesn't always allow it, but if you can, go to bed and wake up at the same time, and have a routine for both ends of the day. In case you haven't noticed, your body loves routine.

2. Diet

Okay, so my idea of a bad diet week is probably a good week for most people. This week's diet was bad in a random way; not a cheeseburger and fried chicken sort of way. I ate my regular breakfast of oatmeal, an apple and maybe a Clif bar for lunch, and then cereal for dinner...with some vegetables sprinkled in, of course. Although this may sound fine to some, it was extremely unbalanced; mostly because I didn't have a cookie in each hand (kidding). Regardless, I know it contributed to my lethargy.

One of my favorite motto's when it comes to diet is that if you put good in, you will get good out. You can't put unleaded fuel in a Ferrari. It's amazing how good you can feel when you eat well. Neglecting to give your body the proper nutrients at the proper time forces your body to work without the resources it needs. It's like getting lost without a map: it's going to take a lot more energy to find your way back than it would have you had a map (or GPS, I suppose we are in the 21st century)

Adequate nutrition is a huge problem for endurance athletes, mostly because the problem can be unidentifiable. If you chronically train on low fuel, then you don't know what it feels like to train with enough fuel. You really have to be in tune with your body and constantly assessing your energy levels. This is where a training log comes in handy, so that you are forced to do a quick "body check" every day.

  Not only is it imperative that calorie intake is met, but extra nutrients are also needed as training volume increases. The only true way to know if one is consuming enough is to get a rough estimate of how many calories are typically burned on a training day and then matching intake to that. Making sure that your macronutrients (carbs, proteins, fats) are in check is important too. I think of them this way: Eat enough carbohydrates to fuel your training, enough protein to repair what you break down during training, and enough healthy fat to augment the two. There is much debate about ratios of the above, and it is different for everyone. But I can tell you that no matter what your goals or activity levels are, planning is key. If you know you have a busy week coming up, (or every week is busy) be sure to shop intelligently and have a couple of "fast meals" in mind for when things get hectic.

3.Workouts

When time is a commodity, the workout is the first thing to go for most people. I can't tell you how many times I've overheard people on campus say something like "Bro, I haven't been to the gym in so long, I've had 2 tests this week and an interview..." And then they say something about regaining their swoleness after these obligations are over. However, exercise is important in stress reduction and brain function. It helps you focus and feel better during rough times. However, you have to modify your workout to your current needs.

I did the opposite of the above scenario. I tried to keep up with my regular routine while my body was compromised in the way described above. I ended up just exhausting myself and having a string of poor workouts. What I should have done is reduce the intensity of my workouts and done them at a time that allowed me to sleep in (as opposed to 6:30 AM). Sigh, I  suppose I'm too stubborn for that.

Each workout needs to serve a purpose, and you have to think about what you are trying to achieve. Doing a hard workout in stressful times is borderline pointless; the hormones that are released at this time work against your body's adaptation mechanisms. One week of light exercise won't derail any training plan, regardless of how far along you are (or what phase, if you are fancy and have a periodized plan)

But if you are simply short on time, there is no excuse for why you can't get a good workout in. for example, One day last week I had only an hour to workout  and I was stuck at the gym. So I did an interval workout with a rower, box jumps, and ladder drills. I was drenched in sweat and satisfied 45 minutes later, including warm up and cool down. There is a short and intense workout that can be effective, no matter what kind of athlete you are. You just have to be crafty and tailor it to your goals.

So the moral of the story is to focus on the little things. We think too much about the details of our training/fitness routine that we forget to think about the little things that matter the most: diet, sleep, and tissue quality. Hopefully you can take away something from this little unplanned experiment of mine. I know I did.

Definitions, Redefined.

 We all have this ideas about ourselves in our heads: What we look like to others, what we are capable of, things that we always do, things that we never do. The reason why we are who we are is because we have a central construct that we follow, a normal of sorts. We also have definitions for what we can and cannot do. Even the most optimistic of people know that there are some things that they simply will never accomplish in life, just because it is so far out of their scope as a person.

But who said that these definitions can't change?

       I've been thinking about how much I have changed over the past few years (and even in the past 6 months) and I realize that I am doing things now that I would never even lay a pinky finger on in high school or before. Granted, a lot of it has to do with growing and maturity, but I can safely say that I've changed. For the better. I can talk to people on the phone in a professional manner. I can lead a workout without a single stutter or awkward joke. I can lead a meeting without panicking about this or that. I can study effectively for exams, accept bad workouts and injuries....the list goes on. After so many years of being unsatisfied with myself, I can finally sit back and say "You know what, I'm close to who I want to be." And that means so much.

 Changing isn't something that you can actively work towards, and everyone takes their own path. It could be an accumulation of experiences or an "aha!" moment that you have when you wake up one day. More than likely, it's a combination of the two. I can point to a single event, but I know that the things that I've piled onto my college plate have helped as well.

Workouts are the ultimate writers of our definitions. They show us what our bodies are capable of at that moment in time: in that fitness level, with that much sleep,fuel, stress level, and fatigue. Pushing yourself in a workout is the worst best feeling in the world. I swear, you can find clarity in the face of complete exhaustion. case in point: Over the summer, I did a swim workout ( I now call it the terrible 200's) that was 10x200 on an interval with short rest. Swimming is my weakest of the 3 sports, and it is always a source of frustration for me. So when I was already dying after 3 of them (read: 7 to go), I threw off my goggles, slammed them on the deck, and gasped "I...can't...do...this." This is a huge workout no-no. These are forbidden words, and I will never repeat them again. Luckily, I had coaches there to help me out. "It's ok, just go again at the top. You get an extra 30 seconds." I wasn't thrilled with this compromise, but I did it anyway. I finished the workout, with the last 3 200's 10 seconds faster than the absolutely awful first 3. At the end, I rested my head on the deck, still gasping, and thought "I did something special today." I redefined my idea of swimming. Maybe I could get better. The thought that kept me going that day was "I want this more than anything in the world." Keeping that desire in my mind helped me finish; because when you want to quit, you must remember why you started. Works every time.

Keep redefining yourself and your capabilities. Don't sit in your comfort zone, because nothing awesome ever happens there. Greatness happens the moment you step outside that zone, even if you fail. You are infinitely better just for taking that leap.

"Life is a series of unceremonious acts of courage." --Unknown (or, just me. not sure which)