Well that went better than I thought

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Dave

The warm-up for for the swimming element of Crossfit Endurance is comprised of a 500m warm-up, then 20 minutes of drills, and then the WOD.

500m as a warm-up? Right now that’s a workout.

It took four lengths for me to work out a few things. Firstly, SLOW DOWN. I am training for an endurance event, not a sprint. Secondly I am not fit enough to breathe every third stroke yet. I was gasping for air after every second length.

As soon as I changed to breathing every second stroke I found my groove, and was averaging 30-35 seconds per length at a level of exertion which felt the same as running nine minute miles for me when I was training for the marathon. Zone 2 if you know about that sort of stuff. It’s not good practice to breathe on one side, but it’s also early days. I’ll get to every third stroke eventually.

All in all I did 30 lengths and felt I could have carried on to 45-50 at the pace I was going. What surprised me was feeling annoyed that the length had come to an end and I had to turn around. It’s a hassle. I wanted to keep on cruising (but not in the Brighton definition of the word).

There’s a pool reasonably local to me at Faringdon. There were only a handful of people there, and I only counted three plasters which had slipped off their hosts body during their swim. That’s not bad for a municipal pool in my experience.

Be Sociable, Share!

Baggy Trousers

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Dave

Hello again blog. Remember me?

Since my last post I have been inundated by requests to get this blog started again (thanks Mum and John D). There are reasons for the news blackout, but I should be back on track now.

My life has had a bit of a change around recently. To cut a long and hassle-filled story short, my family and I are now in Oxford, UK, I’m back working in property for a company called Property Frontiers, and the grandparents can now more easily see their kids.

Quick summary:

New house: good

Job: good

Kids school: good

Kids: good

Wife: I would never be so presumptive as to second-guess a womans opinion…(because I am a coward)

Moving is a hassle as everyone knows. Moving, putting the kids in a new school and finding and starting a new job multiplies the hassle-factor tenfold. As a result something had to give and it was my training. Brighton marathon came and went without me, and TODAY was the first day of me getting back on the Ironman wagon.

Now seems a lot more appropriate anyway. This is supposed to be part of my midlife crisis and since I tipped over into my forties in April I need to get on with it. Laura was kind enough to inform me that the number of grey hairs I now have has suddenly increased, plus whilst dancing around the lounge with the kids to this song I found myself running out of breath. Time to tackle the old man that is evolving here.

I’ve decided to fully commit to the Crossfit Endurance way of doing things. That is, lots of weight training using functional movements, and a combination of short and long intervals with the odd longer sports specific session thrown in as well.

So today the WOD (Workout of the Day) was

Five rounds for time of

7 Cleans

21 Wallball shots

I managed three rounds before my legs were really complaining so I thought I’d leave it there as I’m just getting started again. The principle is the weights element builds the strength you might not ordinarily get from running alone. It’s a good job because currently the pipe cleaners I have masquerading as legs need some serious development.

Be Sociable, Share!

If a six year old can do it…

Posted on February 5, 2013 by Dave

…so can anyone.

Last Saturday morning Luke and I toed the line to start Hove Parkrun. In case you are unaware the Parkrun series are free-to-enter 5km runs which happen all over the country at 9am every Saturday. It was started by one chap and now hosts thousands of runners over many events every week. Simple and brilliant.

Luke has attended Parkrun before and managed progressive improvements in distance up to a maximum of 3km, and even then with numerous breaks to walk.

Last Saturday he ran the full 5km, with only two periods of walking for a maximum of 50m in total. It was brilliant and he loved it. He was easily one of the youngest there and although the time is irrelevant he certainly didn’t come last.

He just quietly trotted along enjoying the comments such as, “Well done young man” from the marshals and from a few friends that know him.

It’s a tough call to say who was most proud at the finish line, and I’m not sure exactly what made him go for it. Perhaps it’s the new diet, perhaps he was just ready for it.

In keeping with my involvement with my sons sporting activities I’m joining the coaching staff at Hove Rugby Club to train Lukes age group. For the first time in 20 years I’ve bought some (cheap) rugby boots. I attended a coaching session last night which included a game of touch rugby, which again is something I haven’t done for 20 years. I thought my fitness would hold up but I have to admit to finding it tough going – I guess my ‘fast twitch’ muscle fibres need some work. Naturally the slinky skills remained – you never lose that obviously. I just found focusing on the ball a little bit harder than I used to, and I kept forgetting my teammates names. I’m nearly 40. That’s allowed.

On Monday I got a new PB for my 5K time shaving a colossal 2 seconds off my time last week.

13 miler tomorrow. I am entering new territory for me now and will do so up to and including the Brighton Marathon in April. For me, Wednesday lunchtimes = squeaky bum time.

Be Sociable, Share!

5K in 23.30 – new PB

Posted on January 29, 2013 by Dave

Following a rather lazy weekend I was desperate to get out for a run today. Oh dear – I just wrote that without thinking about it. Have I crossed that line where exercise ceases being a pain and becomes something you need? Hope so because I’ve got an awful lot more of it to come.

I was a bit pushed for time today so chose to do a 5K run, with Cassie as always.

I completed the run in a PB time of 23.30 (or PR if you are viewing this post from over the pond). I’m pleased with that as it’s definite progress, and I worked my booty off to reach even that time.

I think I was driven to try the 5K after hearing that a boy in Erins class (aged 9) can do a 5K in 20.30. His Dad is ex-Olympic marathoner Richard Nerurkar so he clearly has the genes for this stuff. My own genetic enhancements extend no further than an above-average penchant for curry.

It’s my long-run tomorrow and I’m planning to trundle around Brighton for 12 miles, and increase one mile a week leading up to the Brighton Marathon. I’ve started listening to podcasts on my long runs, in particular one by Rich Roll, and if I fancy something more technically focused around training and nutrition I’ll listen to Ben Greenfields offering. Both are on iTunes if you are so inclined!

VEGAN NEWS

Laura and I have just about made it to the end of January following a vegan diet. I’ll admit to having had a little bit of cheese, rather a lot of chocolate (which will have animal products in them I suspect) and one chicken jalfrezi so it’s not been perfect. Overall however, we’ve both enjoyed it, feel good on it, and want to continue. The kids have been largely vegetarian during this month as we need to make it a slower transition for them we think. Green smoothies, where have you been all my life?

Be Sociable, Share!

Food, glorious-ish food and Les Dennis

Posted on January 17, 2013 by Dave

The Ball family are collectively now two weeks into a dietary experiment. We’ve gone vegan.

[Cue much laughter, eye-rolling, and comments along the line of 'That's two years in Brighton for you', from our friends and family].

Hear me out.

You know I’m training for an Ironman, and in the short-term I have Brighton marathon in April. As part of that process I have been reading loads, listening to podcasts, and surfing the web on subjects around training for these events. Ask any endurance athlete and they will tell you that one of the most important components of performance is nutrition.

I’ve been influenced by Scott Jurek (7 time winner of Western States 100 mile race) and Rich Roll (voted one of the worlds fittest people) and their books. Rich also has a great podcast about vegan nutrition and the illnesses that a Western diet, including meat, is responsible for.

So after much prevarication, discussion, and a Christmas where I drank heavily and ate like a man condemned Laura and I decided to give it a go.

Laura is now working full-time, and my work means that I can collect the kids from school and cook, so the responsibility for pulling this nosh together falls on my shoulders. Without a doubt Laura is the superior chef in our household so the pressure has been on.

Every time I plonk a dish of grub in front of Laura and the kids in my head I hear Les Dennis on Family Fortunes (I KNOW, I CAN’T HELP IT, PLEASE MAKE IT STOP), saying, “And the survey said..?” followed by the machine replying “Ur-Urrrrr“.

But that hasn’t happened. Even the kids like most of the food I’ve been creating. Even a dish made with black beans which no-one in the right minds would look at on one of those picture menus and think to themselves, ‘Ooh that looks lovely, I’ll try some of that.” They loved it.

Not only that but Erin has a new-found interest in cooking. I’m not sure if it’s about spending more time with me, or if it’s a genuine interest, but I’m making the most of it.

Here’s Erin working on a veggie chilli, which she did most of the work for. Note her ingenious method for avoiding ‘onion-eye’.

And the end result:

It was absolutely lovely, and is a new house favourite. Instead of beef mince we used quinoa – a very tasty protein-rich little fella that doesn’t clog up your arteries like red meat does.

Don’t get me wrong, the kids still like pizza, and we still let that happen. It’s just less than we used to. Plus they are still having the occasional bit of cheese for their school lunches but we will be slowly edging these out of their diet, assuming we stick to it ourselves of course.

And the weird thing is neither Laura nor I miss meat – at the moment.

Oh, and one other thing. I haven’t had booze since the 3rd January. Not that long ago I know, but it’s a start. I’m planning on being booze-free in January.

The Executive Summary:

Teetotal. Vegan. Wannabe Ironman. Midlife crisis victim.

Be Sociable, Share!

Time to get stuck in

Posted on January 9, 2013 by Dave

2013 is the year I need to get serious with my training. I am doing Brighton Marathon in April, and I want to do other events throughout the year.

I let my training slip over the Christmas period like all normal human beings should. When you consider that my stepdad used to be a chef, is now a wine merchant, and has ‘generous’ as his middle name it would have been silly to pass up anything that was offered. Plus my in-laws are equally as generous.

Not to mention my brother and I had bottles of Scotch that we needed to do the ‘Pepsi Challenge’ on. I don’t think either of us has ever been so indecisive.

So I’m back on it this week. I did a slow 7-mile run on Monday and then 5 x 400m repeats with 1 minute recovery jog (OK, walk).

My plan for running will be to do my long run on a Monday, short interval on Wednesday, and long interval on Friday, together with weights four times a week. I’ll do a separate post about that because it’s quite detailed. Based on past experience that will build fitness without getting boring or getting an overuse injury.

I was concerned about the long run on Monday but it was OK. I’ll soon be back to ten miles and then will keep pushing it onwards. The good advice of personal trainer / torturer Louise Fitches to use a foam roller on my IT band appears to have sorted out the knee pain I was experiencing. So far thats my recurring back pain that has been removed (by doing deadlifts) and now my knee feels better. Just my shoulder to deal with (I am 40 this year, I’m allowed to be falling apart).

I’ve got some news about how my family diet has changed which I’ll update you with another time. It is another of the unexpected outcomes of my training. I can’t do it now because Laura is watching a TV programme about how one of the girls from 90′s pop band Steps is a ‘yo-yo dieter’ and if I watch much more of it I may well slip into a coma from which I might not return.

Be Sociable, Share!

Lance Armstrong reads my blog

Posted on January 7, 2013 by Dave

OK the evidence is fairly ropey, but Mr. A claims the evidence against him is ropey too so I’m just joining his gang.

[For the record, my view about the whole LA affair has changed. He was still the best of his generation by far. It was a level playing field, albeit a juiced-up, illegal one. I appreciate all the nuances but the very nature of ANYTHING competitive means that the rules get broken. He was the best of the whole crowd that were doping at the time, and has become the scapegoat for 'bad cycling'. If he came clean I'm sure he could move on, and I think many people would respect the honesty. The guy is still a stunning athlete.]

A little while ago on this blog I did a book review about Tyler Hamilton’s book, The Secret Race, which began the hassle for LA last year.

I tweeted LA about it:

And whatd’yallknow I get a view on my blog from Lance’s (I feel like we are on first name terms now) home city – Austin, Texas.

Of course there is a possibility that it could be one of the other several million other people who live in the Austin area, but hopefully you’ll indulge me, reader.

In case you are wondering, erm, Lance hasn’t revisited my site. Yet. Probably busy. It’s been Christmas too and he has a big family. Bound to be back soon enough.

Sensible post about training will be on the way in the next day or so.

Be Sociable, Share!

We sow the seed, nature grows the seed, and we eat the seed…

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Dave

One of the many things I love about Christmas is the very week we are in now. I love the knowledge that in just a few days time we will get to stuff our faces with grub and drink our own bodyweight in booze. It’s not exactly in keeping with my new healthy lifestyle but IT IS CHRISTMAS!

That said, last year I went for a run on Christmas morning. Not because I was feeling like I train within such tight tolerances that to miss a session, even on Christmas day, would wreck my race-day performance, but because we were travelling from Brighton to Warwick and Cassie needed to be exercised to prevent any toilet mishaps on the way up.

Diet has become a significant focus for me over the last few months. It’s hand-in-hand with getting fitter of course, and I’d thought I’d found my ‘brand’ with the paleo diet. In case you are not familiar, the premise is that you eat what our hunter gatherer ancestors ate. This means meat, veg, fruit, nuts, and limit carbohydrate intake in the form of processed foods, grains such as pasta, bread and cereal.

For a while this worked for me. I certainly got a lot leaner but I still felt heavy in my legs when running. At the same time I read books by Rich Roll – an ultra endurance athlete, and Scott Jurek – seven time winner of a 100 mile race in the US. Their books espouse the benefits of eating a vegan diet, and their performances are used as very convincing evidence to support their claim that plant-powered is best. To get techincal read The China Study which promotes more of the same viewpoint.

If, like me, your view of vegans is more Neil from the Young Ones (great old clip) than high-performance athlete, you are not alone. I thought the same, but I’ve changed my mind.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not about to become a vegan, at least not in the short term. What I AM going to do is add more vegetarian dishes to our weekly menu. I don’t want to be one of those ‘awkward’ souls that never gets invited to dinner because I’m a pain to cook for. But I want to shift the balance a little more in that direction when I have the chance to influence it. This started yesterday.

It’s actually quite a depressing thought but yesterday was the first time in my memory that I went the whole day eating only plant-based meals, no chocolate, and no booze.

How did I feel? Well actually basically no different apart from a bit smug, and happy that it had happened. Was was more pleasing than anything was that Laura actually enjoyed the food I’d made, a simple pasta dish.

I’d encourage anyone to look into this more. Buy the books mentioned above, do some research and find out how many of the diseases that plague the Western world are caused by our diet – namely cancer, diabetes, heart disease and many more.

I’m going to write a lot more about this over the coming weeks, and give it a go as long as I can. And I promise, no tie-dye.

Be Sociable, Share!

It’s all this blokes fault!

Posted on December 5, 2012 by Dave

[Training note - I am nursing a sore IT band in my left leg at the moment. I went on a slow six-mile run this evening and it flared up again. Following the advice of the best personal trainer in the Warwick area (Louise Fitches - message me for her details) I used a foam roller after my run. IT HURT - A LOT. Hopefully doing this every day should give the desired result. I feel I could run for ages if it weren't for my IT band pain.]

Right then internet, this is the start of a new feature to my blog. I want to interview people who have already been through what I am putting myself through – ordinary people who have trained for and completed an Ironman.

My first interviewee / victim is David Pegler. David holds the dubious honour of being the chap that made me think doing an Ironman is the midlife crisis goal of choice. I met David through work here in Brighton and he’s become a friend. Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, David!

A bit of background about David. He runs the Brighton office of Brewin Dolphin, a FTSE 250 investment company and a devoted family man. For him to be able to fit his training around his professional and personal life is impressive, and shows that it can be done with a bit of planning, and an understanding wife…(Hi, Laura!)

David completed the same event that I want to do, Ironman Austria in a total time of 12.23.03 with splits of:

Swim – 1:24:08
T1 – 0:05:57
Bike – 6:06:23
T2 – 0:05:38
Run – 4:42:55

David Pegler Ironman

1) Please list ten words to describe yourself.

Approachable, motivated, excited, distracted (sometimes), trustworthy, fun (mostly), thoughtful, proactive, professional, resourceful

2) Please describe the trigger point that made you think:

a) I need to get in shape

39 years old – being told by my youngest daughter that she still loved me even though I was a bit fat;

b) I’m going to do an Ironman

Surrounding myself with other driven individuals and MAMILS (Middle-aged men in lycra shorts) that had previously completed an Ironman and thinking ‘Could I do that?’

3) What other events had you done before your Ironman?

3x marathons (London + Brighton x2);

2x 70.3 races, including Ironman Antwerp 70.3;

River Arun 3.8km swim;

London 2 Paris charity ride (3 days of 180km per day).

So all the components of the Ironman distance not always together. [Please see my comments on the following blog post – covers first 3 questions.]

4) Knowing what you know now, what proportion of training time should I spend on the swim / cycle / run?

Another one of my earlier blog posts listed my typical training week of 6-8 hours and how I thought I could increase it up to 10-12 hours for Ironman training. Mostly I kept with 2 sessions for each discipline per week, although during the build period of my training it increased to about 3 sessions for each discipline per week (may also include strength work – more important if you are 40+)

My heaviest week was probably around 14-16 hours but I did probably manage 10-12 for most weeks. Going on a training week in the Alps helped push the average up as you can easily spend 20-30 hours training a week when you have nothing else to do apart from work out, eat and recover.

Working on your weakest discipline (for me the swim) was a worthwhile step – increasing the sessions from 2 to 3-4 per week.

One of the biggest changes in the Ironman training was getting used to 2 sessions a day, even if they were relatively short, rather than one – this was simply how my Coach structured my plan.

5) What’s the best bit of advice about the Ironman you have that you didn’t find in a book or online?

It is a long day and certainly for my first attempt I felt it was more about ‘completion’ than ‘competing’. I was pleased with my efforts and got the result I was looking for but think I would have done a little better if I had thought about my nutrition and energy reserves a little more.

Conserving some energy and being better prepared for the run may have resulted in a slightly slower bike but I am sure I could have more than made up for that on the run.

Prior to the race get used to some long ‘aerobic’ brick sessions when you nail down your nutrition plans.

Visualisation certainly helped to calm the nerves – playing out each part of the race in your mind and thinking how you would deal with each challenge – section by section.

Try not to focus too much on the full distance and break it down into manageable chunks.

[Keep reading for more photos and questions]

Continue reading →

Be Sociable, Share!

Gee Dad, you are too generous!

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Dave

There’s little doubt that the Beckham boys are going to be pretty useful at football (and probably wooing my daughters generation). I also imagine any mini-Wiggins or mini-Cavendish aren’t going to moan about a bike ride around the park. Whatever people say, some sporting ability is based on genes.

So what genes have I been blessed with?

I’ll tell you. My brother and I are both grateful benefactors of what my Dad calls his “gammy knee”. He’s had the “gammy knee” for as long as I can remember, and in fact one of my earliest memories is of him dislocating it in Pingles Swimming Baths, Nuneaton, whilst trying to teach my brother to swim. I don’t recall feeling sympathetic, only ashamed that the pool had to be emptied to fish him out, and upset that my swimming had been cut short by the gammy knee.

Well guess what. I have the same affliction. Like Dad, it’s my left knee. I went out for a run last night and when I got to just over four miles, where I had planned to turn around, pain struck on the outside of my knee. I had to shuffle and walk to get home. I was gutted because I was flying (for me – I still got overtaken!) and other than the knee pain I felt great.

I’ve had problems before but using some KT Tape really helped. I think it’s time to break it out again.

I think also I need to add some heavy squats to my 5 x 5 training. Doing deadlifts has completely sorted out my lower back problems so I’m sure strengthening my quads will help.

It’s a real pain, but Brighton Marathon is not until April, and then I have over a year to the Ironman Austria. I was expecting hurdles along the way, which is the reason for giving myself so much time. I’m also going to hold off on running for a week or so and sub in swimming instead I think.

Be Sociable, Share!

Subscribe to my blog