400 meters ITU style

Yesterday I mixed things up a bit and executed my 400 m 'track workout' on Pit Stop Court. This stretch of road is a hop, skip, and a jump from my office and is approximately .125 miles in length.

The goal of this session, which followed 40 min on the CompuTrainer (3 x 10 min @ 90% of FTP or 294 watts w/ 5 min of recovery at 100 watts) was to work short intervals w/ adequate recovery (2:30 min rest). 5 x 400 meters was consumed off the bike at slightly faster then threshold pace.

I also wanted to reinforce the neuro end of things by dialing in on leg turnover or stride rate. Enter the Vibram Five Fingers with a Garmin Foot Pod placed on the dorsal side of the 'shoe'. I have found that the foot pod settles perfectly just south of the velcro strap of my KSOs. No friction issues at all and great neuro data gathered.

Switching gears to the title of this post. Per the length of Pit Stop Court I was forced to 'round a cone' or make a complete 'about-face' before regaining top end speed. This break in momentum can really take the air out of your sails if you have not been exposed to this 'changing of gears'. You will notice that many ITU run courses are designed in this manner. For those who have raced Latta you also know that such turns exist. The one most noteable is experienced on the downhill towards the boat ramp.

If you have not dialed in on www.universalsports.com and watched some ITU racing please do so today. To see Gomez, Frodeno, Brownlee, etc go at it is simply inspiring. Incredible talent and mind boggling speed.

Tomorrow I will post my swim workout I executed today that focused on 'front end traction' and no 'back end traction'.

Train smart, think big!

Coach L

Food Demo at the Leo Campus

Last Saturday (February 5) we had the privilege and honor to have the ladies of Team Triumph over. Anne demonstrated (third year we have done this) how to prepare some incredible dishes that contained 'super foods'. It was fun seeing my wife in her element sharing the how and why behind what we consume.

Below is a quick video of this demo:

If you would like Anne and I to do this for you please let us know. We are eager to serve and to share.

I am truly blessed to have a wife that cooks from scratch! Truly blessed.

Stay tuned for the next "Action Step" for 2011!

Coach L

Corrective Exercise - "Action Step" One

Having been in the sport for almost 20 years I have experienced most of the injuries that plague an endurance athlete. The aches and pains that can sideline an athlete for a week to a year I have endured. One must learn from these setbacks and take appropriate action to keep these from returning.

Unfortunately, I have seen many athletes try to 'band aid' these injuries by not addressing the true issues. For example, the Cho-pat Knee Strap can become the superficial 'solution' to "Runner's Knee", Patelllar Tendonitis, etc. Although this device may reduce or eliminate the pain it does not truly solve the problem at hand.

Addressing and correcting the issue at hand takes work and attention to weak links within ones kinetic chain. When one looks at the primary movement patterns of endurance athletes like triathletes you will see that the majority of the time is spent emphasizing the use of the hip flexors. For example, take a look at how closed up my hips are below and imagine how many times you call on this muscle group in just one hour of riding:

What can happen after hours and hours of running and biking (hip dominant sports) an athlete can become unbalanced. In other words, the hips can become dominant and the opposing muscle groups can become neglected and weak per their lack of use.

I don't want that to happen to you. If you have never been taken out by a training/racing related injury before I am very happy for you. Lets keep it that way.

Please take 1 minute and 33 seconds to see the three exercises that are essential in bringing the glutes back into the mix. In other words, lets make the glutes less submissive to the overbearing hip flexors:

Suggestions:

• 1 to 2 sets of each exercise
• 10 to 20 reps per exercise
• can be done 3 to 5 days/wk
• execute prior to running or biking to prep/engage glutes
• slow is always better then fast; don't rush through them

This video touches only the tip of the iceberg in terms of Corrective Exercises one can use to prevent injury, enhance performance, eliminate weak links, and stay in the game for a life time.

Please check back again soon to see the next two 'Action Steps' that I consider to be essential in making this season one of your best.

Train smart, think big!

Coach L