Tuesday, December 27, 2005

What is a Spinerval?


I had a comment posted asking me what a spinerval is.

GREAT QUESTION!!

Here is the link and then I'll give you my interpretation of a Spinerval Video/DVD.

http://www.spinervals.com/index.php?main_page=index

Spinerval Videos/DVDs are training tools for you bike. They also produce running and swimming training tools as well.

You can purchase a trainer,

http://www.spinervals.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=58

on this site or on EBay or at your local bike shop. There are good ones and then better ones. I like mine which is the Kinetic SuperFluid Tainer. However ask those you know and trust that use trainers and they may have better suggestions.

The DVDs range in difficulty and length. I currently use the Team Clydesdales and Sweating Buckets Spinervals.

I get great workouts using the DVDs and I see progress in my road work as well. I am increasing speed and my endurance is getting better as well.

I hope this helps.

Have fun!!

Merry Christmas and I need to whine!!!!!!


Confucius say~
The place to look for a helping hand is at the end of your own arm.


The Holliday’s have been long for me this year. I am not trying to rub it in. When I say long, I mean the ongoing type of long, never ending type of long, or the, stuck at you in-laws too late after Christmas Day dinner, TOO LONG.

I have been pushing my body hard the last few weeks. I have received wonderful new toys to help me in my training. My Garmin, Forerunner 301 (Thanks Amanda my wonderful wife), a new pair of running shoes (Thanks Mom Donna), “The Stick” to roll out the knots in my calves, and so much more. However, I think I have tried to put too much into TO big of a body.

In the last 4 weeks I have logged, thanks to http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/default.asp , 140 miles on the Cyfac (my awesome bike), 47 miles on the pavement running, over 9 hours on spinervals, and a little swimming here and there. It has been tough to get in a pool up in Cincinnati where I have been for the Holliday’s.

I have been highly motivated. I have logged two 6 mile runs; I have put in several days that encompassed a 45 minute Spinerval set then a 3 mile run. I have braved 15 degree weather here to run, I have two large blisters on my feet, but through all of this I was highly motivated.

Since Sunday, Christmas, I have been highly un-motivated.

My wife is concerned about a Multi-Sports Training Camp I am attending in February. I look forward to learning the correct way to train, how handle my nutrition better, and many other things. Amanda is concerned that I may no be able to really take advantage of the camp because I may not be able to keep up. I hear her concerns. But I have been working really hard and my bike is really coming along and my swim has always been, well, acceptable.

I had pre-planned this week to be an off week as I prepare for the return to a heavy work load and just simply a little break from training so hard. I set this schedule back in November. So I am not really slacking, but mentally I feel bushwhacked!!

I know I must work hard and consistently since I have extremely lofty goals for the 2006 race year.

http://tri-ingfatman.blogspot.com/2005/11/revised-2006-race-schedue.html

Three Oly/Triathalon races, many sprints in between and a Half IM at the end of the season.

I am . . . scared to death. I think that is my motivation right now, fear. I am afraid to fail. I may, but I am afraid of it. Memphis in May is my first big race and I am feeling a bit flustered as I write just thinking about it.

My legs hurt, specifically my calves and shins. My lower back hurts, my feet hurt, is this how it’s supposed to be?? If so then I am fine with it. But I think I may be pushing it a bit too hard.

I know my logged numbers pale in comparison to many of you who read my diatribes, but think about this, in November and December, I have logged half of my 2005 training times/distances. Now I didn’t get started in Triathlons until May of 2005 with my training, but I was excited to see my accomplishments over the past two months. But, then I begin reflecting on my pains right now.

I had the greatest lower body massage on Christmas Day. My Mother in Law, Donna is a massage Therapist. She is trained in a plethora of styles of massage and teaches many as well. She got into my legs and did miracles. I wish she would move down to Baton Rouge from Cincinnati. She is a wonderful German woman, as is my beautiful wife. For those of you who know my wife, you can agree, for those who don’t, she is a gorgeous, 5’10”, blonde, blonde hair, blue eyed goddess!!!!! Ok, enough of that.

Why am I posting such an ongoing, complain ridden, whinny, post?

I want feed back. I want to know that what I am doing is normal and that the pains I am having are par for the course or, I want to find out differently.

I have not been on a scale the entire Holliday Season since I haven’t seen a scale that can measure over
350 lbs. Since I left at 365 lbs. I am hoping I am less, but I will admit I have indulged in the Cornbread Dressing a bit too much!!!

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukah, Shalom, and the many more faiths I am missing, may your New Year be bright and prosperous, and may you find a peace about yourself that leads to eternal happiness.

With much love,

Christopher

Monday, December 12, 2005

"I Have a Dream"


“I have a dream.
~Rev. Martin Luther King

I don’t want to minimalize such a powerful and courageous quote. Please understand that I truly have a dream. I am going to set this as one of my many goals for the year 2006, but to me it is more a dream or possibly fantasy, rather than a goal.

Towards the end of the training season this year I had begun setting tiny feel good goals. For example, my goal in the last three or four triathlons that I raced in was to not finish dead last. I actually accomplished this goal twice! I was excited. I was proud, not because I beat someone else, but because I had made a new stride or reached a new level of success towards my goal of becoming healthier.

I am in NYC right now visiting my youngest sister who I love dearly. While visiting I also had breakfast with my awesome cousin, Michelle. If you read my blogs, you may remember I did Try Andy’s Tri in Houston with my cousin Michael. This is his sister. We were discussing the NYC Marathon and triathlons and her coming down to race in a tri with us and so on so forth.

I became extremely motivated!!!!!

As I sit here in the LaGuardia airport I am going through my training schedule and looking at the camp in San Diego, and then I pulled up the Memphis in May Triathlon, which Michelle said she would be interested in doing. As of now it is no where near ½ filled, but out of probably 100 or so people signed up, there are only 7 Clydesdale’s signed up.

Clydesdale’s are men who weigh more than 200 lbs!!!! I laugh out-loud at this. If you happened to be in the LaGuardia airport on Dec. 11, 2005 around 1:30 PM in US Air terminal 7 and heard a large man bellow out, that was me. 200 lbs.!!!!!! HA!!!!!! I weigh an additional Clydesdale!!!!!!!!!!!! I would like to see the African Elephant Race division for the 300 + pounders!!!!!!

As I began to look at the list of participants I decided to check on the rewards or awards and saw that they give awards five deep for Clydesdale’s!

Therefore, I have decided to create within me the dream to “place” in the Memphis in May triathlon, which is in Memphis, In May.

I am working hard. I have been training hard. I hope over the next few months and when I go to San Diego for my training camp that I learn to train for strength in this sport. I am going to meet with one of my tri club members, Vanilla, soon to learn how to properly utilize my heart rate and all that jazz, but I am setting a goal to place in the top 5 of all Clydesdale’s who race in Memphis in May.

Keep that in your positive thoughts for me.

Here we go!!!!!
Chris

Friday, December 02, 2005

"The Biggest Loser"





The Biggest Loser . . .

I watch the TV show, “The Biggest Loser” and I find myself more depressed after an episode than before I watched it.

I am a fat man. However, I am not a lazy fat man. I am active. I try to eat correctly, but I fail miserably. I try and stick to a weight regiment, but I fail. The only thing I have done consistently is my triathlon training.

Tri training is brutal! I train 5 days a week, between 6 to 9 hours a week. I can run a 5k, ride 35 miles averaging 16 mph, and I literally can swim ALL DAY LONG! I burn between 900 to 1400 calories a day with training alone, however after watching the results I see in the brave souls that participate in “The Biggest loser” I begin to question the need. Not literally, but in my head. A war breaks out in my brain that questions, contrives, simulates, reasons, and regurgitates until I have fried myself and give up!

The question I am unable to answer is; why can’t I lose weight?

This war that battles out in my head continually attempts to answer that one simple question that I feel could unlock the door to my obesity, but I can answer it. But I can imagine what the answer may be.

I feel I succeed in one major category, currently, while I feel I fail miserably in two or possibly three other major categories.

Failures first:

1. Healthy, size appropriate eating.
2. Weight Training
3. Possibly, self motivation or self sabotage

I am from New Orleans Louisiana and I will tell you that there is/was currently, no city in the world that has better eating than my city. I realize Chicago, New York, and many other Mecca’s of exquisite dining will likely disagree with vigor, however for my sake of obesity I stand by my statement.

I am also from the South. In the south we have a unique style of socialization, eating. Our social scene thrives around food. Tupperware, I would assume, makes gigantic profit in the Southern Region since all we do here is gather and graze!

Combine the two elements along with my strong passion for good food and lots of it and you can see where my first failure, I feel is most detrimental to my life.

I enjoy picking up a weight and throwing it around. I am VERY strong. I play rugby. Not that that is the reason I am strong. Many times our opponents will underestimate my strength and only recognize the fat the covers the muscle. Soon they regret that miss-diagnosis.

Where the issue for me is, I am an instant gratification freak. I want it and I want it now. If there was one major issue I could change about myself, it would me that. I don’t see changes in y body that motivate me to continue the body sculpting portion of my recovery. EVEN THOUGH I RECOGNIZE IT!!!!!!

Motivation or could it me self sabotage? I don’t know how to keep myself properly motivated. I am learning one thing about myself, which is that I need results driven goals. Triathlons are an example of that. I have defined, results driven goals where, if I don’t follow through with my goals, I won’t complete the race and the one thing I never want to experience again is a DNF in a triathlon.

I also think I self sabotage my opportunities at times. If I find a situation to my disliking whether it be because of a socially uncomfortable feeling, i.e.; running in public and having the self imposed humility of wondering in the people driving by in their cars are laughing at me, or whether it is the physical sabotage, i.e.; not believing I can actually do an event or exercise because of my obesity.

That is one of the issues that fires me up the most. When I was at my highest weight of over 400 lbs I didn’t believe I could DO ANYTHING physical anymore. I had bought into society’s view of fat people. I had bought into the “laziness” idea of fat people.

If I can give one thing back to all of you that are struggling right along with me is, you can do it! Don’t believe the hype about being fat! It may not be easy in the beginning. It may down right miserable for you to just walk up and down your stairs or around the block, but you will, I promise you will get better! You are not lazy, you are sick right now. You are able to do those things society tell us we can’t. I did a triathlon at 398 lbs. I did all of them above 375 lbs. Don’t let anyone including you, tell you that you can’t.

My Success:

1. Training for my triathlons

That’s it. I get up in the mornings and I dedicate time and energy to fulfilling that goal so that I can reach higher goals with in the sport. And I think I know why and I think I know why I become more frustrated after a viewing of “The Biggest Loser”.

It has structure and most importantly, I understand it. Key there is, I truly understand it. I understand that if I am going to attempt this sort of triathlon with this distance, I need to begin training here, with this regiment, and these types of training. It is laid out for me and I have experienced it AND HAD SUCCESS at it.

As I watched the final episode, which by the way, all of many of my clients and all of my family and co-workers think I should try and do the show, including my wife. But as I watch the final episode and see the beautiful people that the participants have become, I am left empty.

Are you ready, here is my self sabotage. I feel empty because I don’t think I will ever be them. I don’t know how. I only know that I would give many things to be them and to know how they feel now. To know you will see your children grow into parents, to know you will be able to love your wife for many years to come, to know you feel beautiful now.

I feel empty because I am training so incredibly hard, but I am not seeing the results. I am empty because I don’t know how to do it . . . eat correctly. I don’t understand how to do it and I have never had success doing it, therefore I feel eternally trapped in this horrific shell and I know that is how many of us feel.

But, we have to keep fighting those battles because the more we begin to understand that we DON’T KNOW the more we will begin to learn what we need to know. It may be from trial and error, God knows that’s generally how I figure out what works and more often, what doesn’t. It may be through literature. It may be by the death of someone close to us that lost this battle, one of us may be lucky enough to go on a show like this and learn through experience and success so we can teach it to others, I DON”T KNOW, but we have to continue to fight this until we beat it.

I love each of you that read this, while I may not know you, I love you. Some might ask how? How is because, we are in a common fight together against a common enemy and when pitted against such and enemy as obesity we have a bond that is very strong and we understand the pain and fear that goes along with being fat. If a person has never been fat, they will never understand the daily and minute to minute battle we fight.

I do love you all.

So when you are watching “The Biggest Loser” or a show similar that transforms people, be happy for them, encourage them with positive thoughts, but when it effects you . . . However it does, good, bad, or indifferent . . . USE THAT! Use it to help you continue the fight. Don’t let it lead you to the refrigerator or to the phone to order Chinese delivery. Use it in your battle to beat it. I know we can.

This week, I WILL STAY AWAY FROM FAST FOOD COMPLETELY.

Be Brilliant.