The T-bone Report

December 24th Challenge

2011-12-24T07:15:00.000-05:00

December 24th Challenge: One Arm Snatch - 12 reps per side, no rest right into Lateral Jumps (See December 20th Challenge) for 12 jumps each way - jump as high as you can!!, Right into Planks w/ Leg Lift - perform a plank on your elbows and keep the glutes tight as you slowly lift one leg, keeping it straight, don't bend at the knee, about 1 foot off the floor, hold for 2 to 3 sec, lower slowly then lift the other foot, hold for 2 to 3 sec and lower. this equals one rep. Do 20.

December 23rd Challenge

2011-12-23T06:41:00.001-05:00

December 23rd Challenge: 80 push-ups and 80 v-ups! Easy

December 21st Challenge

2011-12-21T06:00:00.001-05:00

December 21st Challenge: 2/3rds of the way there, don't fold now! Push-up Rows - get in a push-up position but holding/supporting your weight on two dumbells (10-25 lbs), directly under your shoulders. perform a regular push-up, then at the top of the push-up, balance and perform a row with one arm, pulling the dumbell up towards your side/waist. Lower the weight and go directly back into a push-up, then back into a row with the same arm. perform 10 reps on the one arm, then next time through the circuit, use the other arm for rows. After the first set of Push-up Rows, go into Standing Alternating Shoulder Press - standing, holding two dumbells of medium weight at each shoulder, palms/hands facing inwards towards your head, press one directly up overhead while simultaneously rotating palm/hand from the shoulder so that when arm is fully extended overhead, the palm/hand is facing forward, then lower back to the starting position, then do the other side. this equals one rep. Perform 10-12 reps, then move on to woodchoppers (see Dec 12th Challenge for woodchoppers description). 12 reps per side or 24 total. Do 4 circuits of the above three exercises.

December 20th Challenge

2011-12-20T06:23:00.000-05:00

December 20th Challenge: Angled Lunges w/ Anterior Raise - standing, holding either two 5 to 8 lb dumbells or a 5 to 10lb medicine ball, Step with your right foot across your left side and not straight forward but at an angle, moving towards your left. As you step out, drop into a lunge, lowering the left knee towards the floor and simultaneously raising the arms straight forward to about eye level. Then push off the right foot and spring back up to the starting position, lowering the arms as you do. Then do the same lunge w/ anterior raise but this time lunge out with your left foot and towards the right side. Perform 10 reps towards each side. Then go right into 10-12 lateral jumps - place an object on the ground like a dumbell, medicine ball, small stool, ... Stand next to it so that it is just to the right side of your right foot. Squat down and jump forcefully and as high as possible laterally over the object landing in the squatted/loaded position on the right side of the object. Then forcefully jump as high as possible back over the object, landing in the starting position on the left side of it. Move right into a set of 15 per side bicycle crunches (see dec 13th challenge). 3 circuits of these three exercises.

December 19th Challenge

2011-12-19T06:01:00.003-05:00

December 19th Challenge: Squat/Shoulder Press Combo (increase the weight you have been using for these and do 10 reps), move right into 15 reps of Bench Dips (if these are easy, put your feet up on a physioball or another bench. Remember, lower your butt slowly towards the floor and get a good range of motion before pushing back up), then go right into 20 supermans. 4 sets/circuits!

Dec 17th Challenge

2011-12-17T07:20:00.000-05:00

Dec 17th Challenge: Jumping Lunges - stand in a split leg stance, left foot out front, right foot behind, nice and wide. Lunge downward, dropping the rear knee close to the floor, keeping the front lower leg vertical, and the torso straight, then explosively jump upwards as hard and high as you can and simultaneously switch leg positions so that you land with your right foot out front, and your left foot behind, land in the lower lunge position with your left knee close to the floor, then jump up again back to the first position. This equals 1 rep. perform 10 reps, then go to Plank Rows, 10 reps per arm (up the weight from previous times I've had you do this challenge), then go right into Double Crunches for 20 to 25 slow reps. perform 3 sets.

Dec 16th Challenge

2011-12-16T05:20:00.000-05:00

Dec 16th Challenge: One Arm Snatch again for either 10 reps per side with a heavier dumbell or 15 reps w/ the same dumbell you used on the 1st and 9th. Right into Punching - holding lighter dumbells (4 to 12 lbs) in each hand, hands at your shoulders, elbows back, standing with knees slightly bent, throw out a quick left punch/jab and twist the waist into it, pull it back and quickly throw out a right punch/jab. left, right, left right for 1 minute quickly. Right into side planks - lie on your side, prop yourself up on one elbow, hips/legs off the floor and body aligned, hold for 30 to 45 seconds, flip over and do the other side. 3 circuits of these 3 exercises.

Dec 15th Challenge

2011-12-15T06:25:00.000-05:00

Dec 15th Challenge: Front Lunges - stand in a split leg lunge position but place the rear foot up on a bench, chair, step... lower into a lunge position, remember to start with the feet spread far enough, one in front, one behind, so that the front lower leg stays vertical. Focus on lowering the back knee towards the floor, keeping your torso erect and head up. Once the rear knee is an inch from the floor, push back up to starting position, perform 11 more reps, then switch feet position and do 12 reps for the other side. You should feel this a lot in the quad of the front leg. If it's easy, hold dumbells in each hand. Go from the front lunges into 12 reps of Standing Curls/Shoulder Press Combo (you should know what these are by now, but if not, look back at previous challenges). Next go right into a set of Supermans. Lay face down on the floor with arms extended as though flying. Raise one arm/shoulder off the floor using the low back, while simultaneously raising the opposite leg off the floor and squeezing the glutes. Your range of motion is small in this. Hold this position for 2 to 3 seconds then lower and repeat w/ other side. 12 reps per side. Do 3 sets/circuits of the above.

December 13thh Challenge

2011-12-13T06:13:00.000-05:00

Dec 13th Challenge: Bench Jumps - stand in front of a bench, feet shoulder width apart, do a deep squat, then jump as high as you can, landing ontop of the bench with knees soft/flexed, step down easily and repeat. 13 reps. Go right into Plank Rows (see Dec 4th Challenge) for 13 reps each side, then go right into Bicycle Crunches; 13 reps per side or 26 total, and do these slowly, not fast. Perform 3 sets/circuits of the above three exercises.

Dec 12th Challenge

2011-12-12T05:58:00.000-05:00

Dec 12th Challenge: Walking Lunges - hold 2 to 20 lb dumbells in each hand, do 10-12 reps per side (step forward w/ right leg into a lunge, come back up and then step forward with left leg into a lunge, come back up; this equals one full rep), Curl/Shoulder press combo for 10-12 reps, then woodchoppers for 10 reps - hold a 10-15 lb dumbell w/ both hands, standing, feet shoulder width apart, slight bend in the knee, bend and touch the weight between your feet to the floor, then come up in a swinging motion and twist towards one side as you reach the weight up over one shoulder/overhead, then swing/bend back down as though chopping wood and touch the weight to the floor again between your feet, come back up but twist to the other side; this equals one rep. Keep your abdominals strong/tense so that you don't experience low back pain. If you do, slow down the movement and control it. Perform three sets/circuits of the three above exercises.

December 11th Challenge

2011-12-11T06:25:00.002-05:00

Dec 11th Challenge: 10-12 reps of Squat/Shoulder Press Combo (See Dec 3rd Challenge below. Remember to press the weights overhead as you push/stand up out of the squat position. Many push the weight up as they go down into the squat which is incorrect.), go right into a set of Plank Rows (see Dec 4th Challenge) for 12 reps per arm, then go right into a set of Bridge Leg Extensions on the physioball or bench - lie back on the physioball and walk forward so that just your head and shoulders are touching (same if on a bench - lie perpendiculiar to the bench), and butt is up, torso parallel to floor, lower leg vertical (see picture of bridge below). While in this position, do a leg extension with the right leg, extending from the knee so that the right leg is straight, even with the torso, parallel to floor. Hold for 2 sec, then lower and do the left leg. 10 reps per side. If having trouble balancing, take your hands/arms off your chest and and extend them laterally like an airplane. 3 sets/circuits of the above.

Dec 9th Challenge

2011-12-09T05:22:00.000-05:00

Dec 9th Challenge: One Arm Snatch (see Dec 1st Challenge) for 12 reps per arm, then right into Lateral Bench Hops - straddle a bench or chair, then place your right foot up on the bench, left foot on the ground still on the left side of bench. Step up and hop switching the right foot on the bench with your left foot, and landing back on the ground on the other side of the bench with your right foot. Then go back up and over to to the same starting point (left foot on ground, right on bench). For a bit more of a challenge, hold light dumbells (5 to 10 lbs) in each hand and at your hips/waist. Perform 12 reps (remember, up and over AND BACK is one rep!), then go right into a sets of 20 Ab Twists/rotations holding a medium dumbell - seated on floor, holding dumbell in both hands, knees, slightly bent, torso twisted towards one side w/ the dumbell touching the ground and elbows in close to sides, lift the dumbell up and over your legs using your torso, twist to other side and tap dumbell to floor, lift and twist back - this is one rep. Do 3 circuits of this routine.

Dec 8th Challenge

2011-12-08T06:06:00.000-05:00

Dec 8th Challenge: Single Arm Chest Press - use a physioball (big blow up ball) as a bench if you have one. If not, use a bench but dont lie back on it like you normally would. Instead, sit in the middle of it, then slide forward so that your body is perpendiculiar to the bench and just your head and shoulder blades are on it (same if on a physioball, meaning just your heads and shoulder blades should be on it, feet on the ground, knees at 90 degrees, body straight like a board), hold a mid to heavy dumbell (12 to 50 lbs) in one hand and place the free hand on your stomach. Keep those glutes tight and up, as though your body is a bridge.

Then, perform 10-12 reps of a basic chest press with one arm, then switch and do the other arm. Get a good range of motion, and lower the weight slowly, press it up quickly. Go from this right into a set of v-ups - sit right at the edge of a bench and keep your legs straigt out in front of you, heels barely touching the ground, leaning back at a 45 degree angle - your body should be straight. Pull your knees up and in while simultaneously pulling your shoulders in and downwards, as though curling into the fetal position, then return slowly to the straight position.

Perform 15 to 20 slow reps. Do 4 supersets of these two exercises.

Cheers,
EH

2012 Plunge and Dec 7th Challenge

2011-12-07T13:29:00.000-05:00

We have built a great annual tradition with the Plunge, where 100% of the raised funds have gone to ill children, tsunami survivors, wounded soldiers, … I am more than appreciative of the contributions made throughout the previous seven years. Asking for charitable donations is something I’m extremely uncomfortable with, especially in our current global economic recession. So this year, we are going to switch it up.
First, for those that don’t know what The Plunge is; each year, I recruit a bunch of other dopes (myself being the biggest dope) to jump into Long Island Sound in Southport in January (January 14th this year), representing a great cause, and also beginning the New Year with a fresh, sadistically fun baptism of sorts. My wife came up with the rule that only one family member needs to plunge. In return of our idiotic effort, we get sponsors to represent us towards a greater cause, which leads to 2012.
Over a year ago, my father found out about a nice older woman who was collecting goods and distributing them to the homeless under a bridge in Bridgeport, CT. He took action of this more than worthy cause and got his church involved. Every third Sunday of each month, he and my mother and a group from their church collect goods and bring them to the bridge in Bridgeport and pass them out to the homeless. Each time that I have been there to assist, I was blown away by the experience.
This year, instead of collecting money from your coworkers, relatives, piers in support of this Plunge, the goal will be to collect goods for the homeless. My father has provided a list of what is needed:
Heavy winter coats
gloves
hats
socks
underwear (mens XL)
canned foods (soup, stew, chili, etc.)
canned vegetables
pasta
sauce
toothpaste
tooth brushes
shampoo
deodorant
any personal care items

I will be much more accurate with the tide charts for this coming years Plunge, and send out the exact time that we will plunge soon. We will do this on Saturday, January 14th, at Southport Beach (between exit 18 and 19 off i95). For those interested in assisting at the bridge the next day (Sunday, the 15th), I will provide directions and information. Please let me know if you will be attending (you don’t even need to plunge) by emailing me at ehods@earthlink.net , and have a great holiday!
Cheers,
EH
www.hodska.com

Dec 7th Challenge: Step-ups w/ Rhomboid Squeeze - stand in front of a bench, chair or stairs holding mid to heavy weight dumbells (10 to 30 lbs) and place right foot firmly on the bench, chair, or second stair. Step up and raise/drive the left knee upwards as though trying to knee someone in the chin in front of you. Simultaneously squeeze the rhomboids (pretend there is a chalkboard eraser between your shoulder blades and you are trying to pinch it to hold it there with your shoulder blades) and subtly push the dumbells backwards slightly as though placing them on a table behind you. return down with the left foot and do 9 to 11 more reps, then switch feet. Go right from this into a set of Plank Rows from the ground - hold mid weight dumbells in each hand (10-20 lbs), place them on the ground, but still hold them and assume the upper push-up plank position. Keeping your balance, perform a row with one arm by pulling the dumbell up towards your waist/side, then lower and switch to the other side. Perform 10 to 12 reps for each side, then go right into a set of 20 Ab Toe Touches (See Dec 4th Challenge). Perform 3 sets/circuits.

Dec 6th Challenge

2011-12-06T06:24:00.001-05:00

Dec 6th Challenge: Deep Squat Knees High Jumps - standing, feet shoulder width apart, no weights, slowly do a deep squat as though sitting on a low bench, then powerfully jump as high as you can and bring the knees up high as though you are trying to do a cannonball in a pool, land with soft knees back in the deep squat loaded position. This is a great plyometric. Jump as high as you can. If you are dealing with a lower extremity injury, do the squat and then just come back up quickly but dont worry about jumping. After doing 10 of these, grab two medium weight dumbells (10 to 30 lbs) and go right into a set of Curl/Shoulder Press Combos. Standing or seated, keep the stomach tight, do a biceps curl and when the dumbells are near the shoulders in that biceps flexed state, go right into an overhead shoulder press. Do 10 reps then go right into a set of double crunches X 20 reps. Do 3 sets/circuits of these three exercises.

Dec 5th Challenge

2011-12-05T13:05:00.002-05:00

Dec 5th Challenge: Reverse Lunge w/ Anterior Shoulder Raise combo - standing and holding 5 to 10 lb dumbells in each hand or a 5 to 10 lb medicine ball, step backwards and lower that knee towards the floor until it's only an inch from the floor. The stationary/front lower leg should remain vertical, and your torso upright, not bent at the waist. As you step back into the lunge, simultaneously raise the weights forward with straight arms until they are at your face level. When you return to standing position, lower the weights, then alternate and do the other side. 10 lunges PER leg, for 3 sets. ALSO, today do 44 push-ups! You can do these in sets of 11, starting with the push-ups and doing teh lunges in between each set of push-ups, or you can break them up into smaller sets or do them throughout the day - just get them done!

Dec 2nd Challenge

2011-12-02T05:13:00.001-05:00

Dec 2nd Challenge: 40 push-ups. Correct push-ups! place a tennis ball under your chest and lower yourself slolwy until you touch the tennis ball with your chest, then press back up to the starting position forcefully. No girl push-ups! If you can only do one real push-up, then do 40 sets of 1 push-up throughout the day. You can do these in sets of 5, 10, ... Just get them done. Also, 3 sets X 15 to 20 reps of slow double crunches (lay on back, hands next to ears, knees bent up slightly, feet on ground. Do a slow stomach crunch, contracting the abdominals and bringing the shoulders slightly off the ground, force the lower spine to the floor. Simultaneously lift the knees up and in towards the chest. hold this contracted state for 2 sec, then return to starting position.

December Challenge

2011-12-01T16:58:00.001-05:00

I started up the December strength challenge on my Facebook EH Coaching and Training page and thought I'd also post it here for those who are interested. The idea is to do a strength exercise or three every day throughout the month of December, in addition to any other training you may happen to do each day. Here's Day 1:

Dec 1st Challenge: 3 sets x 10-12 reps of a one arm snatch (Stand w/ feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent, one arm behind your back, the other holding a dumbell in front of you. Bend/squat slowly down touching the dumbell to the ground in front of you, then quickly and using primarily the legs, push up to standing position and simultaneously raise the dumbell up directly overhead, arm fully extended. The dumbell should travel close to your torso as it goes overhead, with the elbow bent and high, out to the side, as though doing an upright row. Do 10-12 reps per arm, resting 1 min between sets.)

Kona from the armchair

2011-10-17T19:29:00.004-04:00

A few comments on Kona (I wasn’t there but I'm going to share my view anyways):

*Craig Alexander is a stud. Chris McCormick had a great race last year but he runs his mouth a bit much for my taste. He went on and on about how Alexander is just an 8:20 IM guy and yes, he’s an incredible runner, but he can’t ride (paraphrasing here). Alexander doesn’t discuss it all. When he was interviewed about this the past year, he just smiled and mentioned that Macca is a friend. Then, he races Vegas 70.3 World Championships and wins the race, not on his run (which was the fastest as usual), but on his second fastest bike split. A month later, he wins Kona in a new record time and has once again, the second fastest bike split! In my opinion, his performance this year makes him arguably the third best triathlete ever behind Mark Allen and Dave Scott.

*Chrissie wellington is a bigger stud. Chrissie moved ahead of Paula Newby Frasier as the greatest female triathlete ever. Please don’t take this too seriously as it’s really my opinion. I do know that Paula has more Kona victories. But Chrissies dominance is truly amazing. If you just look at the splits, it appears that it was a close race with Miranda Cafrae. I like Miranda – I think she’s a brilliant athlete. I don’t mean this in a demeaning way whatsoever, but she and Chrissie aren’t in the same league, and to give her so much attention prior to the race thinking that it could be close between her and Chrissie is an insult to Chrissie. The reason the race was as close as it was is all because Chrissie was in a bad bike accident a week before Kona, and raced with severe road rash and fractured ribs! Dave Scott, her coach, informed her to let all the swimmers go since her swim stroke was compromised. She typically swims 52 minutes in Kona. She swam 1:02. She painfully rode the bike probably 10 minutes slower than she would have had she been healthy. She had close to a three minute lead on Miranda off the bike, and all the so called tri experts felt that Miranda is such a better runner and that she’d run her down. Miranda ran a brilliant 2:52. I think there were only four or five men faster! Chrissie was only 30 seconds slower running a 2:52 as well, and she slowed in the final 800 meters to slap high fives and wave to the crowds. The scary thought is that if she was healthy and hadn’t crashed; she could have been 20 minutes faster, placing her amongst the top 12 men!

*Milos Kostic is the biggest stud. This guy is 70 years old and went 11:45!!! He biked 5:47 and ran 3:52! Again, he’s 70! He won the age group by an hour. Poor Eli Ewens who went 12:45, another amazing time for 70 years old and came in second.

I’ve spoken with a few friends who were there and they said that the lack of winds and a bit of cloud cover made this year’s race the best conditions yet for Kona. That still doesn’t diminish whatsoever the incredible performances.

I can’t wait to get out there to the Big Island in March for my camp. And hopefully again next October.

Cheers,
EH

Reconnecting

2011-10-02T08:00:00.000-04:00

In 2004, I had a good friend, Rick Moisan, who was diagnosed with lung cancer. Rick was one of those anomalies. He never smoked, took great care of himself, didn’t have any family history of lung cancer, … I spent a great deal of time with him while he underwent his chemotherapy treatments and battled this viscous disease. At one point, it looked as if he was going to beat it, only to quickly have the rug ripped out from under him when they found the disease had spread through his spine and into his brain.

I was training for the Hawaii Ironman that summer as Rick’s condition worsened, and I dedicated my race to him and tried to raise some funds towards cancer research. This was the first time I had witnessed someone close go through something so awful and it really touched me. About a month before I headed out to Kona, I came up with the idea of hosting a bike ride in Rick’s honor. The idea at the time was to get a group of friends together, meet in Rick’s town of Woodbury, and do a scenic ride. I planned on riding this with Rick on a tandem. I sent out an email calling it “The Ride for Rick”, and Lisa Moisan, Rick’s wife, loved the idea. In fact, she gathered a group of her friends and took it to another level, by creating a raffle, getting a DJ, having things for the kids to do. We even had Conan Obrien MC it (Rick was an amazing architect who designed a house for Conan). I plotted out four different ride routes from 5 miles up to 50 so that anyone could participate. I still remember that it was a bitter cold September morning and Rick’s oncologist showed up to ride the 25 mile route in tight khaki shorts with the palest legs I think I’ve ever seen. By the end of the ride, his legs were so red and raw from the cold and wind that it hurt me to look at them. But this guy hadn’t ridden his bike in years and yet he pushed himself through the 25 mile hilly route in honor of Rick! That to me was and is what it’s all about.

Rick passed away that winter. Each September, we continued putting on the Ride for Rick. The event was generating a lot of money towards some really great charities and it really brought the community of Woodbury together. It continued to grow, and in addition to the rides, I added on a 5k event for runners. Yet, as it grew, I could see that it was becoming a bit overwhelming for Lisa and her crew. They had made this event huge, and it was becoming a full time job. Sadly but understandably, Lisa decided to put it on hold a few years ago. She was torn about this but also realized that in this economy, she didn’t feel right in asking the local sponsors to step up year after year. She did an amazing job organizing this event and it was time to pass the torch. Lisa decided this year to hand it over to a local scholarship fundraising organization.

I didn’t hear much in the way of advertising for this year’s event. I didn’t even know they were holding it until 10 days prior. When I did, I found they had changed the name of the event – it was no longer the Ride for Rick, which upset me. The event was yesterday, and I awoke to hear the sounds of pouring rain outside. It would have been really easy to stay in bed. As I drove to Woodbury, I thought about the fact that each year, over the last seven years, this event has been the one thing that reconnects me with my friend Rick. The first few years after he died, I thought of him and his family often, but then as time passed, I got lazy. I’d talk with Lisa periodically and catch up every once in a while through email or a Christmas card, but as time passes we get caught up in our own busy little world and tend to forget. At least I did. And I felt like shit thinking about this. But then I realized one of the really important lessons that Rick taught me subconsciously; since the first Ride for Rick, I realized how important loyalty as a friend is and how people put on these charity events all the time and even though they are raising funds towards a very worthy cause, for them it’s more about the support and the remembrance. To write a check yesterday contributing towards the event and cause would have been a way to justify the fact that I was too lazy to go represent and do the ride. It’s an easy out that gives us a sense of justification. Don’t get me wrong, the contributions are important and necessary and all good. But I needed to be there riding and as I stood at the start of the ride, rain drenching me before I even took one pedal stroke, I knew that this ride was going to be fine. In fact, I knew even sooner when the first three people that I saw there as I got out of my car were Lisa Moisan and her two daughters. I know that when I do my polar plunge, I always appreciate any donations made towards the charity we choose, but what really hits me is those who make time out of their busy day to come down in person.

Because of the weather and lack of advertising, the turnout was poor, but Kenny O. met me there and we headed out to ride, and it was a great way to start the day and the weekend. And to remember a good friend who taught me some great life lessons even after he passed away.

Cheers,
EH

Feel up for a ride (or run) this Sat?

2011-09-29T14:41:00.000-04:00

In 2004, I started the Ride For Rick out of Woodbury, CT as a tribute to my friend Rick Moisan who was battling cancer at the time. This "Ride" evolved into four rides and also a 5K run and became quite the fundraiser towards local charities involved in cancer and scholarships. Lisa Moisan and her friends did an excellent job of running this event, however, it started becoming a full time job, and when the economy began to decline, they decided to put it on hold for a couple of years. Lisa then gave the event to Go The Distance ( http://www.wsf-gothedistance.org/ ) who will be putting it on for the first time this Saturday, October 1st. I will be heading out on my bike there at 7:45am to do the 50 mile ride if anyone would like to join me. It's a great course that winds through some beautiful countryside and around Lake Warmaug.

I'm hoping that they get a decent turnout for the event although I know the marketing and advertising was a small fraction of what it was when Lisa and her crew were running it. In all honesty, raising funds for local charities is surely a great thing, but my main motivation for participating is that it's one thing that still connects me in some way to my friend Rick.

There has been a lot of racing lately and I wanted to just give brief congratulations to two of my athletes who have done some quite impressive things:

Travis Funk - he pr'd every distance he raced this year from 5k to Olympic Distance Tri to IM. He did a 10:20 at IMLP, then came back not too long afterwards with a 10:15 at IM Wisconsin. And he managed to squeeze in the VT ride between these two IM’s!! Feeling lazy?

Next, Greg pelican, owner of Bethel Cycle, who at 52 years of age will battle any 20 yr old. He just raced Duathlon Worlds in Spain and finished on the podium in third place, 12 seconds out of first! He’s known for his cycling, but Greg had the fastest second run of the day in his age group!

Summer BS

2011-09-02T21:26:00.000-04:00

It seems that every time I post, which clearly isn’t often, I'm starting with "it's been awhile" or "apologies for the blogging hiatus". I’d like to jot some thoughts down about this summer since it’s labor Day already and summer is apparently over, so that’s exactly what I’m going to do.

Let’s begin with IMLP. In fact, I’m going to break this summer up into a few posts since I have quite a few memories. Baker and I went up to coach and spectate and drink some Ubu. Besides some of the antics that make this annual event fun for us, like heading up without hotel reservations, it’s always fascinating to me observing the race and racers. Being in this sport for quite awhile, Rob Straz and I often joke that we are just bitter old bastards who are annoyed by the compression wearing, everyone-thinks-they-are-way-faster-than-they-are, talkin the talk present athletes. I happened to coach a group of 14 who raced LP and who proved Straz and I wrong for sure. One thing that I love about ironman racing is that IM racing is truth serum, just like over imbibing is. It shows who has done the work, who hasn’t, and it particularly shows this to the athlete themselves. When we finish an Ironman, we should be extremely proud. 99% of the population can’t even fathom what we have just done. An ironman is really hard! Yet, as we train, we begin to build expectations. Some of these expectations can be grandiose. But I’d rather see most swing for the fence than play it safe all the time. We also tend to hang around with other tri-geeks and so we take for granted the fact that what we are competing in is quite a feat. It’s a long day that will run you through the mill. It’ll show you fun parts, but it’ll definitely show you very hard, very low, very shitty parts of yourself. When we finish slower than we expected, 99% of the time we know exactly why. We can try to convince ourselves that it was nutrition, weather, or something… More than often when a race turns out slower than we’d like or when we don’t finish it, we either didn’t prepare properly or paced wrong, simple as that. As I said, the truth can be hard. I won’t turn this into a lecture on proper IM training but let’s just say that if you train at 16 mph on the bike all the time and run at 9 minute mile pace most of the time, how can you expect to ride at 20mph and run at 8 min/mi on race day? What I love about an IM is that it’s shown me exactly who I am, and I can tell exactly who others are by watching them race an IM. People often say this about a round of golf, but an IM shows your true personality that much more.

Two of the most memorable moments of IMLP 11’ however were the following:

The Molson family once again hosting a Friday night pre-race party/dinner for my athletes and friends. They have done this the past few years and it’s always a fun time – this year was exceptional. It wasn’t the food (which was awesome; tenderloin tips and grilled halibut with multiple pasta and rice salads), but more so the group of athletes, with their families, convening at Jeff’s lake house. It was just a very comfortable, genuine, fun group. The kids were paddle boarding and rowing on Mirror Lake and playing lacrosse while the adults relaxed and enjoyed some non-race-stress time. This sure beats any race carbo dinner that I’ve ever been to. Jeff and his wife Antoinette were way overgenerous. I do question their intelligence though as they even had Baker and I back the next night for dinner?. This night made me really appreciate the group of athletes that I worked with for this race this year.

The other was a small thing, but one that I loved. Baker has been out of it this year. He ebbs and flows with his training. I push him hard because I know that it’s not only good for him, but it spills over into his everyday life in a positive way. He was nervous about this trip because he was not in great shape and knew I was going to challenge him a bit. I mainly just advised him to get out there each day and do something on his own. Saturday, July 23rd was Baker’s birthday. I told him he should ride down 86 and up to the toll booth, then take these back roads we ride at camp which are beautiful – he felt this was a solid idea. We both headed out around the same time on our bikes but at different paces and with different goals for the day originally. Baker sends me a text a while later saying “I’m on top of whiteface” with a picture of the summit. On paper, he wasn’t in shape to do this climb, yet he did it, and I have to say I was not surprised yet quite proud of him. He’s mentally one of the toughest bastards I know yet at the same time doubts himself significantly. If you happen to read this Baker, don’t let it go to your head – but very well done! Way to walk the walk.

Lake Placid appears to be in a political turmoil with the future of this race. The bureaucratic WTC combined with bitter yet dependant local Lake placidites makes a sticky situation, one that I feel can be easily worked out and hopefully will be. It would be a real shame to see this race go away. I have been fortunate enough to witness most of the domestic Ironman’s and Lake Placid is the top of the food chain here, leaving Hawaii out.

Bye for now.

EH

Guest Blogger Molson recaps the VT ride 2011

2011-08-19T15:55:00.001-04:00

I go on streaks with my blog postings. I've been quite lame lately, as Jeff pointed out on the ride up to Vermont when he mentioned "You havent posted since July 12th!" I always said I wouldnt force anything up here just for the sake of posting, but I have to admit this lapse was a bit ridiculous. So, I delegated. Here's Jeff's recap of the recent Vermont ride:

Vermont Ride 2011
With the 2011 Vermont Ride still fresh on my mind I thought I would share a few comments about this year’s event with fellow Hodska clients and followers.
Let me start by saying that I am not a big fan of Karaoke! So how in the hell did I wind up in a Karaoke Bar in Brattleboro, Vermont this past Wednesday evening listening to some townie butcher an Alanis Morissette song.
The Hodska Annual Vermont ride is how!
Since 1997 Eric has been riding to VT from his home in Monroe, CT . The deal is to ride to Vermont (140 miles from Eric’s House), stay overnight, and then return the next day. 280 miles in 2 days. Eric has used this ride as a Kona build in years he was racing, but the ride has also become an annual tradition. Over the years many Hodska cronies have jumped on this ride, and there have been more than a dozen in some years and others it has been 2 or 3 people. This year we had 6 riders. Eric, Travis Funk, Baker, James Graham, Farber and myself. Farber is Eric’s friend and is one of the original founders of the Vermont ride.
Eric, Travis and James all departed from Monroe at 7:00 Am on Wednesday. The plan is for them to ride to Simsbury, CT and meet Baker and I who live in that area. It is 60 some odd miles from Monroe to Simsbury, and this year Eric, Travis and James hit it hard early and arrived ahead of schedule in Simsbury. I have done the VT ride from Monroe in the past and I can tell you that the most difficult part of this ride takes place in CT. After Simsbury the ride is actually fairly tame. So after a brief pit stop in Simsbury the group of 6 now started heading towards Massachusetts.
There are portions of the ride when you are riding with others, but for the most part you are on your own to set your own pace. After Simsbury there is one road all the way to Vermont. No need for directions you just follow Route 10 until you get to Vermont - where Route 10 becomes Route 5. The plan was to re-group again in Northampton, MA which is about 45 miles from Simsbury. This would be the 100 mile mark for Eric, Travis and James. The group kept a great pace for this leg and we all arrived within 5 minutes of each other at the Starbucks here. Northampton is one of the best people watching towns in New England. Every year it never disappoints. This year was no exception as we had a very nice conversation with the tattoo parlor owner who was outside her shop holding her bowl of fresh sage that she was burning. She saw the EH on Eric’s new uniforms and was intrigued that we would have her initials on our bike shirts.
After Northampton there are no more scheduled stops on the ride. The plan is now meet at the hotel in Brattleboro, VT which is about 45 miles from Northampton, MA. At this point it is every man for themselves. Fatigue was starting to set in for the 100 mile guys and the humid weather was starting to zap everyone a little at this point. The ride however does become very scenic at this point as you travel through Northern Mass. Brattleboro is not the first town that you come to in VT. So after you cross the state line you still have about 10 miles to ride. This part of the ride has some pretty good rolling hills and I think we all pretty much wanted to be off the bike at this point. The final few miles for me were not very quick and when I finally got to Brattleboro I was happy to get off the bike.
Eric was already showered and making our dinner plans when got to the hotel. So after a quick shower we headed over to a local restaurant called Fireworks in Brattleboro. Fireworks is an upbeat little place with a nice menu of Pasta’s and Brick oven Pizza’s. They also have some nice brews on tap as well. After a really good meal we realized that it was 6:15 PM. Too early for bed, although I did contemplate it. So what do you do in Brattleboro to kill time? You drink!!!
We head over to another pub across the street that has huge selection of draft beers. We ordered up a round and Eric began giving the history of the ride to Travis and James. Originally the destination of the VT ride was a local bar called McNeill’s pub. A great “old school” bar that makes their own beer. For some reason we have not frequented this bar the past couple of years. There was not a good reason as to why so it was decided that we were going back this year. More beer!
McNeill’s has not changed it bit and was quite nostalgic going back. We briefly spoke with the owner who remembered our group from prior years and was grateful we came back. We played some darts and finished off our beers and decided to call it a night.
Not quite sure how we wound up in a wine bar sipping alcohol infused fruit drinks but that was our next stop. The bartender was happy to see us and was so proud of his new establishment that it was hard to walk away from the bar. Drinks were again ordered up and the conversation kept flowing. After thanking the bartender for his hospitality it was time to rest up for tomorrow.
Baker and James were not quite ready though – the bartender had mentioned that it was karaoke night at the pub a couple of doors down and before we could walk by the place Baker was inside. To be honest if the townie was not butchering that Alanis song we probably would have stayed. The combination of miles on the bike and yards of beer had taken their toll.
The alarm went off at 6:00 AM on Thursday morning and let’s say that my head felt a little heavy as I attempted to get up. With the stock market in state of flux these past couple of weeks I needed to get back as soon as possible to monitor things, so I was on the road heading back at 6:30 AM. Eric and Baker were on the same schedule – in fact Eric was gone prior to 6:30 AM.
The first few miles out of Brattleboro are uphill on a great country road. Yesterday morning had a touch of Fall in the air as some light fog and dew made for a great New England scene. Legs felt better than expected as I climbed out of town, and as the miles clicked off I sweated out the beers from the night before and I got locked into the ride. I opted to make only one stop on the way home and it turned out to be a good decision as it really started to rain hard as I rode the final mile of my ride. For me it was 175 miles in 24 hours. A nice workout indeed – but for the boys who did 280 miles in 24 hours I tip my hat. That is some serious miles. Eric if you have stats on your ride you should post them – you were hauling ass out there.
I look forward to this ride every year and this year did not disappoint. We had great weather, good food, plenty of libations and great company. Over the past few years Eric, Baker and I have been on some great adventures. The Vermont Ride 2011 ranks right up near the top.
Travis and James it was great getting to know you guys a little better.
Travis I am now convinced that your real name actually is Travis Funk. You cannot blame me for being skeptical as your name is just too damn cool. I figured you made it up to get more chicks. I thought Molson was a cool last name, but Funk puts it to shame. All you single female Hodska clients (or those female clients that are in a bad marriage) get on the Travis Funk train now! This guy is the real deal. His impressive Ironman LP time is going to be shattered in Wisconsin in a couple of weeks – this guys stock is rising fast - get him in your 401k now!
James (aka Russell Brand in 10 years) you did New Zealand proud on the Vermont ride. With very little long rides in the saddle going into this you did great. Man you can drink! I hope your in-laws have a great visit here to the states. I am sure that Baker will show them a good time as promised.
Mike Biehl, Kenny Osborn and Gus Ellison – you should have been there.

Molson

RI 70.3

2011-07-12T15:38:00.002-04:00

I picked up Big Rocks early Saturday morning - we wanted to get a jump on the anticipated beach traffic. My mind was not in the right place on the 1 hr 45 min drive - not in race mode. Instead, I was thinking about the nusance of racing. I used to love to race! But for some reason, now it seemed as though it was more of a hassle. I was going to be away from my family for the weekend. Many will say "bring the family and make them a part of your race!", but i cannot disagree more here. No spouse wants to spend the day before a race with their anxious, nervous, not-wanting-to-over-exert-at-all significant other, only to spend the night in a cramped hotel room, then on race day, entertain kids while they wait long periods of time for a 15 second glance of you. All that I was thinking about on the drive up was that I could have stayed home, trained early, spent time with my family, saved cash on race fees, hotels, and slept in my own bed. I never used to think like this - maybe I need a break from racing? If anyone has been reading my blog the last few years, it's been obvious that I've been dealing with my motivation to race. Sometimes I cant wait to get out there on the race course, and sometimes golf isnt looking so bad. OK, that's not fair - as I said, I love to train, and golf is hardly training. Golf's a fun hobby - I can't even call it a sport. But I'd much, much rather be on my bike. I have been racing since the early 90's. I did my first IM in 96'. Perhaps I was finally getting a bit burned out on it all? I still love to coach, and I love the camps, and I love the training. Maybe i just didnt have that competitiveness anymore?

We made it to Providence traffic free, and I was checked in and registered by 10am. Our hotel room wasnt ready, so we drove over to the lake to check in my bike. I changed in the car and did a 30 min easy spin in the park where the lake was for the swim venue. The trigeeks were out, compression socks and aero helmets everywhere, getting in their last minute speed sessions. I still wasnt in race mode yet? Bike checked, we stopped back in the little italy section of Providence to get some lunch, then went to check into our hotel, which still wasnt available. Finally at 3pm, we were able to check in, however the possibility of an extended checkout the next day was denied by the front desk. Now I'm even more irritable. My dad and I often discuss how he's very anxious - a worrier, where as I let things roll off easily and typically don't sweat the small things. However, this day before race day, i was not my typical relaxed self.

We joined Mark Rothbaum out for dinner, a client and friend of mine who was racing in the 60-64 age group the following day. Typically, I have pizza the night before a big race. It works and even though I don't condsider myself superstitous, I had this one ritual that I followed for dinner the eve of every big race. However, we went to a steak and seafood restaurant called Merrimans (very good) and I had rare Ahi tuna and a couple of glasses of wine. Mark and my father were into some deep conversation. they are both interesting and it took the already lackluster race day focus completely away.

There were three weddings being held in our hotel that evening, which made things loud and restless. A shame since I was sleeping on such a comfortable pull out (yes, the hotel was booked and the only rooms they had left were suites with a king size bed which I gave to Big Rock's and a pull out sofa).

The next morning, BR drove Mark, Kenny, Gus and myself over to the swim venue. As we prepped our transition, I realized I had forgotten my aero bottle and my swim goggles. I never do this stuff?! What the hell was going on - were these more signs that I should be taking a bit more of a break from racing? That maybe my competitive tri days have run there course? To make things better, I was in the 10th wave, 50 minutes behind the first one! F%$k. At this point, I was appreciating that much more the low-keyness of St. Croix's venue and atmosphere.

Finally, our wave was called to the lake and I instinctively moved to the front row, lined up with a straight shot at the buoys, even though I had only swam a handful of times since St. Croix, all open water. The gun sounded and I took off like a bullet, dolphining a few times then asserting a quick tempo to get out in front. I had a nice five foot lead to the first buoy! I wanted to get out quick and then try to hang in behind some faster swimmers. Maybe I am still a bit competitive? The lake was pretty gross. It was warm and murky and you can tell that it really wasnt hygenic to be swimming in there. I liked the non-wetsuit swim though. Soon, very soon, we began catching athletes from the many waves in front of us. I felt ok - I guess a bit better than I expected given my lack of swim prep. I came out of the water in ninth place and ran into Kenny in T1. Time to ride!

My legs felt pretty good right away - I'd say an 8.5 on a 1-10 scale. I immediately began motoring past droves of the 1500+ athletes that began ahead of our wave. Then, I got another sign. Subconciously, as I caught the guys in my age group who beat me out of the water, I would ask "how many more in front?" I was anxious to get to the lead. OK, I am still competitive mentally! This course was challenging - and I loved it. It's harder than Timberman, and on par with Rev 3. Around 25 miles in, I began hearing this thwacking noise coming from my bike. It was getting louder and louder until I pulled over. I thought I had broken a spoke, which had to be on the front since I was riding a disc. Turns out I didnt, and couldnt find anything wrong. I hopped back on and jumped back into the race, but the noise was getting even louder. My second stop! I inspected the whole bike and couldnt find out what was causing the problem?! Finally, i noticed that the black electrical tape that hold a magnet on my disc was loose. As I rode, it flapped almost all the way off and thumped against my frame, the disc, ... I ripped this off and I was back in business. As I was getting back up to speed, a guy in my age group came by. He was riding quite strong, and I hung about 10 meters behind. I wasnt overly concerned though - he would sit-up on most of the climbs or stand and rock hard on his bike so I knew he wasnt going to run very fast. In a 70.3, there's a fine line between riding hard enough and not cooking yourself. The pace for these races on the bike should feel closer to an Olympic Distance instead of an IM, but you cant go full tilt if you want to run well. We caught another guy from New York who we assumed was the leader, so now we figured it was us.

Out of T2, i'd assumed I was in second behind this strong rider. My legs felt solid right away from a looseness standpoint, but I didnt feel confident in running too aggressive with the first loop for fear of blowing up. It was beginning to get hot, and my wave started almost an hour later than the early waves meaning we were dealing with more heat. I made a pee stop at mile two, then, at mile six, I caught the strong rider. I figured I was now leading since on the out and backs i didnt see anyone in our age group. At mile eight, just before the big uphill, the guy from New York moved passed me! I didnt panic, but instead tried to stay within 15 meters of him. He looked fluid but wasnt gaining. Then, I closed the gap on the downhill at mile ten and sat on his heels. At mile 11, as we approached an aid station, he began frantically yelling for sponges, electrolytes, gels. I knew he was in trouble and so I surged. I didnt look back and tried to sustain a hard, quick tempo, all the way to the finish. I crossed the line thinking I had taken the age group, but actually, there was a 40 year old from Canada who beat me out of the water by four minutes and I never saw him all day! Hats off to him, he was fast. So I ended up second in my age group and 11th overall.

More importantly, I realized that I'm still competitive both mentally and physically. Maybe my day before funk was nerves? Perhaps it's just that I'm entering a different mindset? I'm big on changing things up physically all the time in training, so maybe I just need to switch it up a bit mentally? In any case, fun stuff to work out and I will keep racing until the one day when I'm in a race and subconsciously I don't care about the race going on around me.

LP Camp (Guest Blogger Cupcake - because i'm lazy)

2011-06-27T19:53:00.001-04:00

We just finished up my LP Camp. This group was truly amazing. Despite the rain, we accomplpished everything I had planned on the schedule, and not only did the group do it quite well, but they did it in style by adhering to my "no whining" rule. Great group of campers and I'll try to recap the experience this week, but for now, the young gun of the camp, Jon "Cupcake" Campbell recaps his mvp day:

Apparently pontificating on and on about cupcakes will catch up with you. My friend the week before was up in Lake Placid and found this amazing bakery tucked inside the restaurant, Pan Dolce. I checked it out and scored a Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosted Chocolate Cupcake with a Peanut Butter Chocolate Delight on top. I saved this for after Wednesday night's initial 30 minute swim in Mirror Lake and for after a yummy Mexican dinner at Desperado's. I figured I needed the calories! After all, Eric is keeping his cards tight regarding the agenda and I might as well play it safe and stuff as much down me as I can.

I chose right. On tap for Thursday morning was a 2 hour trail run up to Avalanche Lake. I know Eric and I know he loves trail runs. This was going to be epic! And to make it even more epic, Wednesday night it POURED. The sound of the rain was deafening. Was this going to be a trail run, or a trail swim? Fortunately the rain stopped and things started to dry out by the morning. Unfortunately mother nature's drainage system doesn't work that fast. We knew our feet were going to get wet.

Halfway up the ascent to Avalanche Lake, the group splintered. Not gonna say names, but a certain leader *cough* Gus *cough* took our group on one wrong turn and after some deep pockets of mud, we backtracked and found our way back onto the trail. Meanwhile the group behind us already passed by. Upon arrival to Avalanche Lake, the cliffs were so large it was hard to gain perspective on just how large they were. What an amazing place! I like the Lake Placid run course, but this run was WAY better! I am a novice trail runner, so running downhill over rough terrain is a new concept. With a steep learning curve (pun intended) my body quickly learned how to have agile and quick feet. I only bashed my ankle up against one rock. Gotta give up a little blood!
With only about 30 minutes of running left, someone mentioned Ice Cream. I said, "Why Ice Cream? Why not a cupcake?" The deal was done and a camp nicknamed earned: CUPCAKE. Why oh why did I open my mouth again about another cupcake?!?! To my defense, THAT cupcake was worth the nickname. But with a camp nickname comes responsibility, especially staying on your toes at dinner when the jokes and teasing starts flying! Eric sure knows how punish you out in the field with the serious training, but also makes sure you relax and come back down to Earth at dinner.

After a calorie rich breakfast at the Downtown Diner and a quick stretch, it was onto the bike for a loop of the bike course (minus the out and back) with instruction and Indian drills with Eric. How do you knock off the flats of Rt 9 between Keene and Jay in record time? Do intervals! A whipping tail wind along that flat section may or may not have hastened the pace a tad. Ok ok, it probably propelled our confidence and speed and egos a few extra mph!

Before we knew it, we were climbing up to Wilmington. I don't mind the hills up to Wilmington. They are steeper than the hills from Wilmington to Placid, but for some reason mentally they are easier. Again, that tailwind I think pushed us up those hills.

But my demons on the Placid course ARE the hills leading up to Placid, especially through the notch. My first experience of riding the course was a year ago and I encountered the most demoralizing headwinds through this section. I thought I had two flat tires I was going so slow through them! Because of that tailwind on Rt 9 to Jay, that meant one thing for this ride: A headwind through the notch. Round #2 you say? This time I was prepared with a compact crank and lots more miles and power from Eric's coaching. That wind was NOT going to get me this time!

And it didn't! I was able to mentally break down this section of the course and realized that there are a lot more flat sections here than I remembered. Did the course get flatter? Or did Eric's coaching really finally whip my butt into some serious form? I am gonna go with the coaching.

Of course the day wasn't over yet! After another quick stretch and some more food down, we suited up, peed in our wetsuits and did a quick 1.6 mile loop of the swim course while dodging the kayakers and rowers. Kenny wasn't too thrilled when I tried to grab his ankle for a free tow back to shore. Me at a short 5'7" and Kenny at 8 feet tall, he clearly would have pulled me back to shore in record time.

We rounded the night out at Nicola's with some Ubu ale, pizza, lots of laughs, and listened to the next day's agenda. Epic just got more epic! Whiteface was on the menu, or I think we were on the menu about to be eaten by that mountain.

- Jon "CC" Campbell

New Kits Finally!!

2011-05-26T14:39:00.000-04:00

I know it’s been awhile, but the wait to look great is no longer! Bicycling magazine just stated in its last issue that the colors I’ve been using for years (navy, light blue, yellow) are the power colors since four pro tour teams are using them this season. Below is a sample of the new kits – there are a few other logos added as well, including Bethel Cycle and Nineteen wetsuits. Pactimo is the company I went with because:
A) there clothing is great! Super quality w/ great chamois, flat stitching, no elastic leg bands,… Many pro teams are using them and they ride all day meaning it’s gotta be comfortable!
B)There delivery time is five weeks max guaranteed versus 8 weeks plus for most.
C) They allow me to set up an online store where you can log in and purchase!! See below for all the details on how to order. Please note that there is a $10 dues fee – this is shipping. If you are ordering something and need it shipped (all the kits come to me), then you need to include this $10 fee and send me your address, but only include it once.

We have mens cycling kits, womens cycling kits, vests, sleevless cycling jerseys, one piece tri suits, mens tri kits, womens tri kits, …

Please contact me with any questions. Place your order within the next week so we can have the clothing by LP Camp!!

Dear EH TRAINING Member,

Pactimo is very pleased that EH TRAINING has chosen us to be their clothing provider. Pactimo has developed an online team ordering store exclusively for our Elite customers of which EH TRAINING is one. The store will accept your individual orders and then will consolidate those orders into one team order, which will be delivered to one address. We hope that utilizing this system will make life easier for each of you and especially for your team’s clothing manager.

Important Pactimo Policies for Online Team Stores
Your use of Pactimo’s Online Team Store is in accordance with the following policies. Your use of Pactimo’s Online Team Store is an agreement to be bound by the below policies.

1. All sales entered and paid for on Pactimo’s Online Team Store are final. Customers should double check their quantities and sizes before proceeding to payment. Sizes and quantities cannot be changed once an order is paid for.
2. Clothing only is paid for in full at the time the order is placed. Shipping, design charges and any other fees paid for by the team may be passed on to its members at the team’s discretion.
3. All orders are consolidated and will be delivered only to your clothing manager.
4. All questions or problems related to the clothing must be communicated through the designated team clothing manager. Pactimo will be every effort to satisfy its customers, but will only be able to communicate to a designated clothing manager.
5. Team Passwords must be obtained through your team’s clothing manager and not directly from Pactimo.
6. All other Pactimo policies available though our online ordering system also apply.

SEE BELOW FOR INSTRUCTIONS TO ACCESS YOUR TEAM STORE

In order to access your team store follow the below directions.

1. Go to the website: www.pactimo.com and click on Custom Team Login and click on Looking for a team store

2. Enter your Team Store Password. Team Store Password for your store is: Hodska
3. If you already have an account set up in this store, Login by entering your user name and password. If you do not have an account click on Register as team member

4. Fill in the required information to create an account. (You are creating your own personal account within the store, so enter a personal password as well) Please note that passwords must be at least 6 characters long and are case sensitive

5. Begin shopping Carefully selecting the items and appropriate sizes. Please note that –

All sales entered and paid for on Pactimo’s Online Team Store are final, and sizes and quantities CANNOT be changed once you have paid for your order.

6. Enter your credit card information to complete your purchase.

Note: If you have difficulties logging into the site using Explorer, please try switching to Mozilla or an alternate browser. Thank you.

EH Racing and Pounding The Pavement

2011-05-24T20:30:00.000-04:00

Lots of EH racing going on; Greg Pelican and Scott Beauregard raced American Zofingen in lousy conditions. Greg had two flats but managed to overcome these and still win his age group. Scott had more technical issues on the bike that derailed his race - what sucks is that he was in a great position until this happened. Mike Kane completed yet another IM at IM Texas. Get this, he dislocated his shoulder during the swim which made riding in the aerobars a no go, and the jostling of running very challenging, but Mike doesnt stop until he crosses that line! Gus Ellison and his new bride Jen Ellison both ran a 5k in rowayton, Gus winning it outright. Dena Kramer and Lisa Lou Joaquim both ran in the Ragner relay, logging over 20 miles each. Lou was asked in the last minutes to fill in on a team! Jeff "Manny" Molson represented well at the Shamrock Du. Mike Biehl rode his bike the 25 miles with a 25 lb pack over bear mountain to the Harriman OD race, raced and won his age group, then rode home. And Travis Funk raced the Harriman 1/2 IM and finished 2nd overall!! Congrats everyone, keep it going!

I was away recently, and did what I always do - took my running gear, checked out a map, and went for a run. I love maps. I love exploring and seeing where I went and where I'm going. While I was out, I was thinking about all the places over the last 20 years that I have ran or ridden in. I thought of back roads, side roads, trails, mountain roads, and dangerous roads that I have traveled by my own power. I thought about how I know roads and directions that most don't. I know just about every road west of i91 in Connecticut. I know the roads of my inlaws town in Pennsylvania better than they do. I thrive on taking the roads less traveled. Yet at the same time, I thought about the amount of hours I have put in, leaving my house, some house, a hotel, moving constantly for long periods of time, only to end up right at the same place where I started. As much as I pride myself on my knowledge of the Atlas, I remind myself of the simpleness of the task, and somewhat emptiness of it all. I joked with my wife that if I had spent this time studying, I'd have a few phd's by now. Think about it - what is it that sends us out the door, in hi-tech clothes, on expensive technology, sweating, making our hearts and muscles strain, for hours, only to end right back up at the same place where we began? One time, I was running by an old guy sitting on a bench, and as I passed, he calmly lectured "Be careful, you only have a certain amount of heart beats in you." Of course my mind raced after that comment thinking "what if he's right? What if our ticker is like an odometer on a car, clicking off heart beats like miles, the more ticked off, the closer to becoming expired?" Then I snapped out of the dopeyness and reminded myself that yes, my heart rate may be at 150 beats for 2 hrs, but the remaining 22 hrs in the day, it will be 20 to 30 beats lower than the norm. But the reality is that I'm a different and better me when I get a chance to get out and explore and elevate my heart rate and fatigue my muscles. Besides the fact that my mind seems to be the clearest when I am out there training. So what one may call wasted time, I call invaluable. I'm sure those who may be reading this get it.

Cheers,

EH

Happy Birthday Big Rocks!

2011-05-18T21:20:00.000-04:00

My father turned 69 today! he sent me part II recently of his mind set post which is below:

Eric,

Two incidents got me thinking that the Devil might be playing with me. Yesterday morning at 5:30 AM since it was raining I decided to ride my bike in the basement. As I was inflating the rear tire I heard a hissing noise and bent over to check out the tire. My pump went BAM! and the gauge exploded. The plastic cap, ring and some metal hit the ceiling and grazed my cheek removing some skin. If I was not bending down it might have taken out my eye. Now, my mind started saying "this stinks, but you can buy a pump later today and ride then", but I thought no way, I came down here to ride so I put an old bike on the trainer and did my workout. This morning I went out for an early run. In about 5 minutes the sky opened and it started to pour cold rain. As I stood under a tree I thought that I should go back home where its warm and dry, but I said screw it and had an excellent run. Both these incidents got me thinking that every day we face obstacles in our lives. They could be physical, spiritual, mental or relational but they will always be there. What is important is how we choose to respond to these obstacles because while we cannot control what is thrown at us everyday, we can control our response. I chose to go on with my workouts and it made a significant postive difference in both my days.

Dad

My second rule at camp is "check your ego at the door". I've been thinking about ego quite a bit lately. It's evident daily to see how much trouble an oversized ego can get us in. Just ask California's Governor. One thing I have learned is that true champions may a bit arrogant, but they're ego is in check for the most part. they arent afraid to take chances, expose who they are, and even lose. They kknow that in the long run - the big picture, they need to do this to reach unknown levels.

Cheers,

EH

EH CT Camp Video by Greg Pelican

2011-05-16T13:50:00.001-04:00

http://youtu.be/JwvQliOrmlE

Some after thoughts, and Yes, my race report is finished now.

2011-05-11T06:45:00.000-04:00

This saga just won’t end! Probably the most important experience of the race for me occurred afterwards though, and since I use this blog as my own journal, I want to make sure I record these thoughts.

After my race, we cheered in Gus, who did amazingly well. This race happened to be Gus’s first ride outside for the season. He likes to ride inside so that he and Jen can hold hands while they ride. In all seriousness, he worked his ass off on the computrainer with some of the crazy sessions I had him doing and it showed. Gus pulled down a solid seventh place in his age group. Next, we cheered in Jeff Molson. Jeff loves a challenging course and is already signing up for next year. I always have fun hanging out with Jeff and this trip was no different, with the exception that Lisa also got to hang out with us and laugh a bunch.
I then rode back to the Buccaneer, showered up and went down to the beach grill for a burger and a beer. What I love about ½ IM’s is that after racing hard at a challenging distance, there is still half the day left to relax, relish in your accomplishment, and have some unhealthy food and drink.

The awards were at night on the other side of the island at a resort. This is where they hand out slots for Hawaii and Las Vegas. Originally, there were supposed to be three slots for the Hawaii Ironman. They allocate the slots based on the number of finishers in each age group. Typically, the biggest age groups in triathlon range from 35 to 49. So they call up the top three in each age group, and when they bring my group up, they announce that there are only two Hawaii slots?! I later realized that 1/3rd of my age group DNF’d and therefore they allocated the third slot to another age group. Lisa looked sad for me. She said “Go race Buffalo Springs and get your slot – you always do great there.” That night I hardly slept. I woke Lisa up early and told her I had sort of an epiphany, which was “Lis, I don’t think I want to do Hawaii this year.” “What?! Are you sure??” she replied.

Here’s the thing; twice before since 96’, I went to qualifying races and didn’t qualify, narrowly missing the slot. When this happened, it really pissed me off, and I couldn’t wait to sign up for the next ½ IM qualifier (I still call them ½ IM’s. For the newer tri generation, this means 70.3.) - I have only qualified at ½’s (besides 2000 where I qualified at IMLP but turned the slot down) because I know that I am only good for one IM a year, and I love the ½ IM distance. But I really wasn’t that pissed at the awards last night and I didn’t have much desire to go chasing the next ½ with Hawaii slots. And then it hit me that this year, I just want to get back to racing, but it doesn’t have to be Hawaii. I love that race and respect it like no other. But I’ve raced there eight times and I’ve done it quite well while keeping balance in my real life. This one race doesn’t need to define me. Maybe I still felt as though I had something to prove there? By saying that I wanted to take my kids there to see this incredible race, was that just an excuse for me to not feel selfish about going back? Am I trying to recapture something by going back often? Do I need to prove anything to anyone else by racing there again? I love Hawaii. I love the race, I love the island and I’ve had some amazing experiences there. And I’ll go back again to participate in that great race. But I realized that it doesn’t need to be this year and that I don’t even want to race a full IM this year. Lisa was smart. She asked “Maybe you need to wait a bit. Maybe the harshness of the heat and humidity from yesterday’s race is still too fresh?” But I almost felt a bit relieved and my mind felt clear. If I wanted to go back that bad this year, I would have been angry at the awards and I would have been on the computer as soon as we got back to the hotel. I was helping Molson pack up his bike just after breakfast and he said to me “You know, I like how I feel now after racing a ½. Maybe I will focus on ½ IM’s for a while.” I agree.

Listen, I realize how fortunate I am to have had the opportunity to race there once, let alone eight times. And I realize that triathlon is just a passion. I’m excited to race a few more ½’s this year, including Las Vegas, the new ½ IM world championships. I also want to do some more Olympic Distance and sprint races.

Lisa and I did a catamaran trip that day out to Buck Island where I snorkeled along the underwater trail in the national park and came face to face with a big old barracuda. On the ride back from Buck Island, the captain hoisted the sails, put on some Bob Marley, and passed out some rum punch. And I thought “You know what? Life is pretty good!”

Cheers,
EH

And we're running...

2011-05-06T11:11:00.000-04:00

Mitch was once again quick out of transition, with Mike and I following about 100 meters behind. I dropped my salt tabs and stopped to grab them and Mike took off to catch Mitch. My legs felt solid and by the ½ mile point I had bridged the gap up to them. The sun was on us though – it felt like a direct ray was hitting me. I was an ant being burned through a magnifying glass. And even though my legs felt good, I could feel my internal temperature rising. I hate this feeling. I know it all too well from Hawaii. It sounds as though I’m terrible in the heat, but for a bigger guy, I’m really not that bad once I’m acclimated. I’ve used the word acclimate quite a bit in these race reports which should indicate the importance of this.

The three of us ran together towards the Buccaneer Resort where the run goes off-road and you hit the main hills, before heading back into town, turning around, then doing this out and back lollipop again. We had been racing neck and neck and neck all day, and the three of us knew that we were bringing out the best in one another. Mitch said “Best of luck guys, let’s hope there are three slots” as we headed into the Buccaneer. The pace was slow. I felt my legs were easily capable of a 1:25, however, I also knew too well the effects of the heat. And as expected, even though the pace was slow, I was showing signs of not being able to handle the temperature. I still had a good sweat going, but my skin felt on fire and the pressure in my head was beginning to build, as if my brain was being squeezed by a vice. I was looking at the ocean on this beautiful course and I was so tempted to run down and dive in. I could feel my gate shortening and my foot lift decreasing with each stride as my body went on a mission, diverting blood flow from my working muscles and sending it to my organs/skin for cooling. The stride no longer feels fluid – in fact, it’s anything but fluid. The simple task of placing one foot in front of the other becomes extremely painful. Through the aid stations, I dump water on myself, chew ice, sip coke, pound saltstick capsules, and dump more water on myself.

Then, I see Lisa. When I’m having a great race and feeling strong, I love seeing Lisa on the course. Just the opposite though when I’m in a bad way. I don’t like to see the worried look on her face – I hate seeing her in any angst. In 2009 in Hawaii, I was experiencing a very similar situation during the run and she looked panicked. Well, not this time. She and Jen were cheering away as the three of us ran by around mile three. But the sun kept beating down, and just before mile four, I had to let them go. This crushed me mentally, but I was so overcooked. I stopped to pee quickly behind a palm tree, and then walked up the steep hill on the golf course in the buccaneer. Lisa appeared again and I turned to her and said “Sorry Lis, I laid it all out there. I’m frying.” Instead of her reacting very sympathetic and consoling me during my small moment of self-pity, she said “You can still do this! You get to the top of that hill and you start running again – YOU HEAR ME!!” I responded with “I need some shade!” and just then, and I know this sounds like bs but it’s the honest truth, some clouds moved in. I crested the hill and Lisa yelled again “START RUNNING!” And I did. I kept running back towards the turnaround in town, and I was awaiting the contention of athletes to come pouring by me now, but they weren’t. In fact, I was moving quite slow, but I was still picking off some runners. Now I’m not going to lie and say I felt good. In fact, it was just the opposite. Every step hurt, and I had a splitting headache. I remember thinking to myself “who the fuck do I think I am that I can come down here to this climate off our winter and race? A dumb mother fucker, that’s who.” Sorry for my English, but just relaying the truth here.

As I approached the turnaround, I saw Mitch and Mike together still, coming back out for loop two, and they weren’t that far ahead. But they were still running solidly, and I was at my red line. I now just tried to stay at this pace and hoped that one of them, if not both, would falter. But they didn’t. Listen, I know this sounds dramatic but when you are in this world of hurt, it’s easy to think to yourself “I still have seven miles left to run!” and unless you have been there, you can’t comprehend how bad it does hurt. I remember reading an article about Mark Allen where he mentions he can pin point two distinct times where he went a bit too deep into his well and could almost sense somehow that he did some eternal, molecular or metabolic damage. I try to stay present and I count my foot strikes and think of music. Anything to numb the mind.

Running through the Buccaneer on the second loop, if I had had a room key on me, I would have ran inside and taken a cold shower probably. I have to hand it to the volunteers – they were amazing. Around Mile 10, I was asking for coke and the volunteer missed the hand off and dropped the cup. He yelled “keep going, I got you!” and turned back towards the aid station. About ¼ mile later, he comes sprinting through the fairway on the golf course towards me with a full can of coke and a cup of ice!

Now at this point, I was just trying to hold onto third. I was exiting the Buccaneer on the second lap, and with two miles left to go, no one seemed to be coming. After racing side by side by side through most of the day, I was hoping to just cruise in. I had now accepted my third place. But with around one mile to go, I hear foot steps right on me. I could see peripherally a guy dressed in white clinging to my left shoulder. He wouldn’t come up next to me, and he wouldn’t pass. As we went through the last aid station, I slowed to almost a stop to check out his calf, where our age is written, and sure enough, he’s in my age group. And I’m back to racing! He slows as well and stays tucked right behind me. As you enter town, you come within 100 meters of the finish, before this cruel course that constantly seems as though it’s playing a joke on you takes you away from it on a ½ mile loop through town, finishing on a straightaway lined with spectators. My buddy here just sat content on my back as I set the pace through town. Now I’m talking to myself again in the third person which means you know I’m wasted; “Be patient Eric! Don’t get anxious. Let him make the first move. Hold until that cross walk (maybe 70 meters out from the finish line). Don’t go yet, hold, hold, hold…”. Then, I can feel him start to move quickly around me and I leap forward and start my mad sprint as though I hadn’t been racing at all for 4 hours 45 minutes. He and I are going all out, heads back, chests out, arms pumping, and the spectators are loving it! I manage to gap him and end up crossing the line two seconds in front of him.

The two of us bent over and exhausted at the finish line, I said to him “Man, great finish!” and he responded “Que? Mi Englis nots o goot.” This guy was from South America and a previous amateur world champion, so this was a small consolation after losing the first two spots.

Cheers,

EH

St. Croix Swim and Bike

2011-05-05T11:38:00.001-04:00

The regular triathlon pre-race process (body marking, transition set-up, …) could not have been easier. I can’t stress enough the coolness of this race in regards to the laid back feel/attitude. There was no waiting in line, even for the porta-potties. The only issue I had was that my bike wouldn’t shift into my 25 on the back. On this course, this is a big issue. It’s my own fault since I switched my cassette onto my race wheel just before I left and put my bike together the evening before the race. I joined right in with the laid back island lifestyle, and I have no regrets. In fact, we were lying on the beach Saturday afternoon when Lisa said, “don’t you think you should go get your bike unpacked?”. Well, Sam from Cannondale, and Mandy’s boyfriend, who was also here racing, saved me. He took time out of his race morning prep and adjusted my derailleur so I was set for the challenge ahead. On top of things, I had a slow leak in my front wheel and with no time to change it, was hoping for the best.

As I laid out my transition area, listening to “Dog Days Are Over” by Lungs on my ipod, I ran into Mitch Gold and Mike Montgomery, two very fast guys who I knew were some of my main competition, along with a couple of foreigners for this race. I also ran into Chris Peeters. Chris is a doctor from Colorado, and an incredible triathlete. He and I have raced hard against each other in the past, the last time being in 2004 at the Disney 70.3 were I had a lead on him off the bike and he ran by me like I was a street sign, posting a run split around 1:18 and only 2 min behind pro winner Simon Lessing. It was great seeing Chris – I have been fortunate to make some solid friends through competition in this sport across the country like Mitch, Chris, Bruce Gennari – all guys in my age group who share a common thread which is a passion for this sport and for enjoying the competitiveness between us. Chris, began telling me how he was diagnosed with MS in 2007 and hasn’t raced since then. I was blown away. I could tell he was anxious about racing again, finding out where he stood – similar to I who hadn’t raced since 2009, yet my time off was self-appointed and minor – a bit of perspective. Chris just turned 45, and for his debut race back into the sport, finished 3rd in his age group and qualified for both Hawaii and Vegas. How’s that for a return to the sport, and with MS to boot!

I jumped into the warm, salty water and swam easily over to the small island 200 yards off shore where the race begins. I chatted with a few strangers while we awaited our wave start. It was all very low key. Keep in mind that although I have mentioned often how low key this race is, this represents the feel. But the competition here is second to none regarding 70.3 races. The challenge of this course, the early season qualifier, brings out major competition. Most here are here for a purpose. Gus went off in the wave directly ahead of mine, a two minute head start and a nice carrot. Gus was primed and ready to have a great race and his fiancé Jen seems to decompress some of the pressure and stress that I’ve seen overwhelm Gus in the past. I could tell he was ready for a special day. After his wave left, they called my wave down to the start and it was on. I’m typically nervous up to this point and then sure enough, the nerves dissipate, and I make my way to the front and center of the group and prepare for just the immediate start of this race, or the run and dolphin into the water and first 100 meters around the buoys and assuming position.

I got a nice jump and was actually in the lead for the first 100 meters, but I know my lack of swimming doesn’t allow me to maintain this position and let a few guys move in front, hoping to get on some fast feet. Those feet happened to be Mitch’s. The swim was choppy, and felt long. In fact, I wage the swim was maybe 300 meters long, based on the swim times by many, including the pros, and by the fact that I wanted out 2/3rds of the way through. Maybe that was more due from swimming only seven swim sessions in preparation? Regardless, I exited the swim in fourth place in my age group, right behind Mike, Mitch, and a bit further behind a Spanish guy. I fumbled with my cycling shoes. I often stress to my athletes the importance of practicing transitions so why don’t I? Note to self, Mavic cycling shoes are not quick for a tri transition. While re-threading my Velcro straps through there loops, I watched Mitch and Mike disappear up the road. I remained calm though and finally mounted my Cannondale and headed off onto this bitch of a course. I began passing younger guys from earlier waves immediately, and by mile 5, I had reigned in Mitch and Mike. My bike plan was to ride at 80% effort. I know this seems low, but I knew my bike fitness was there and as I mentioned in my previous blog post, since I couldn’t acclimate, I wanted to be fit enough to ride at 80% effort and still be in the hunt so that I could get off and maybe run in the heat. I stuck to this plan and it seemed to be working given that I kept reeling in younger athletes from earlier waves. I caught the Spanish guy just before the beast and was now leading the age group. I tried to ride up the Beast as easily as possible, but I forgot just how hard this climb is. If someone tells you in the future that it’s not so bad, they are full of shit. Some spectator perched on the side of the beast yelled to me “Relax, there’s a lot of racing left!” I wanted to respond “I’m going as easy as I fucking can!” but I was too busy just trying to breathe. Mitch is a great technical rider and would come around occasionally on the technical sections, but I’d soon move back ahead, setting the pace. It remained like this for the rest of the ride. A few other guys jumped on board along the way, but I pulled 90% of the time up front. The thing is, the pace felt a bit too controlled! Even comfortable. There are many times in a man’s life where you must throw caution to the wind, release the reigns, and go for it. This wasn’t one of them. I was nervous about the heat taking its toll and remained relaxed and patient. The course certainly lives up to the hype. The hills and beat up roads keep coming, and the wind wasn’t being that nice either. During an Ironman, I will let my mind drift in and out of the race, thinking about random things that divert from the monotony of racing an Ironman, only to occasionally bring myself present and self-analyze and address the race. During this race though, I was very present as we were in a tight race. One thing that pissed me off just a bit was that after pulling the majority of the ride, with less than a mile remaining before dismounting, Mike came around. The bottom line though, the three of us had been racing neck and neck since the very start of the race, and we still had a little run ahead of us! Most importantly, in my two previous races here (and I use the word “race” very loosely since a better description would be ‘event”), I was mainly surviving. I was finally racing here. And it felt great, especially considering I hadn’t raced since Hawaii 09’ which, after this amount of time off, makes you wonder if you still have it.

More soon.

Cheers,
EH

First race of the year - part 1

2011-05-04T11:44:00.003-04:00

After taking 2010 off from racing, I am motivated and anxious to get back to toeing the line, and chose my first race to be a course that I have raced twice, and both times, this course beat me down. My first time racing here was not so much racing but, as dramatic as it sounds, more about surviving. It was in 2001 and after over-heating early on in the race and becoming severely dehydrated; i was pulled off the course by the medical team, still with 6.5 miles to go. The second time racing on this course in 2002, I finished but it was ugly - and i certainly wasn't racing, but instead just trying to finish. Lisa planted the thought in my mind that I could leave this race alone now - I had crossed the finish line regardless of my time. I never bought this though and in my mind, I had always planned on going back at least once more. It’s like a young kid who stands up to a bully and gets his ass kicked, then attempts to take on this bully once more and even though he may land a few weak punches the second time around, he still gets his ass kicked. Well I'm that kid, and St. Croix is the bully. The first time fighting this bully, I didn't respect him. Maybe in my mind, because i had fought the world champion of bullies well, I became a bit arrogant and let my guard down thinking I would breeze through this fight which was "only" half the distance? - Hence came ass whooping number one. Then, the second time around, I clearly remember thinking that I just had a bad day last time. I didn't make many adjustments training wise, and experienced my second beat down. I went back nine years later for round three, and this time, I prepared as well as I could while still being involved with my family and running my business - I mention this because the biggest unknown factor was how would I handle the heat. I have lived in Connecticut my whole life and we were coming off our most severe winter yet. Without being able to escape to a warm and humid environment to train, I knew that acclimating to the severe temperature and humidity would be the biggest challenge. I have greatly studied the science of trying to acclimate in a cold climate for a hot weather race, and I have come to the conclusion over research and years of trial and error, that the best way to be ready for the weather is to be as fit as you can possibly be. Yeah, sounds obvious, but what I mean is that overdressing for training, saunas, bikram yoga, sodium loading - these methods work minimally. The only real way to get acclimated is to spend a couple of weeks in the environment you are trying to acclimate to. Since this wasn't possible for me, my approach was to be fit to the point where I could pace a bit easier so that my heart rate was more controlled, my physiology could function easier, and yet I'd still be competitive and "racing".

I can tell already this is going to be a lengthy write-up, and so I'll keep the details on my training preparation for this race minimal. St. Croix is unlike any other 1/2 Ironman I have competed in. This swim is typically choppy, the bike course has constant hills; rollers along with steep ones like the infamous Beast at mile 20 were the gradient reaches 21%. The last 20 miles are always undulating and typically extremely windy as well. The course is also very technical - if you aren't solid at handling your bike, you can crash easily or lose a lot of time. Oh, and the road conditions are terrible. There are potholes everywhere and the road make up is chip and seal. The run is two loops consisting of road and trails and also constantly rolls. Throw in the heat and humidity and you have a 1/2 Ironman that is typically 30 minutes slower than most, and feels more like racing a 3/4 Ironman. Since my Tucson training camp, I had two key cycling sessions each week; a harder 75 to 90 minute computrainer session done in ergo mode with the majority of this being at a wattage greater than what I planned to race at. The other ride was a three hour session done outdoors where I dragged my training partner Kenny O. up every hill within a 40 mile radius of my house at an effort again that was slightly higher than my goal race effort. To accommodate the bad weather and roads in Connecticut coming off our winter, I did most of these three hour rides on my 29'er mountain bike, converted with a road saddle and road pedals. My other few rides each week were on the ct, done in ergo mode or on a created course with some quality, but mainly just aerobic conditioning. Every session had specific cadence work. I did two brick runs per week, along with a tempo or interval run and a 90 minute to two hour run with some tempo or progression in it as well. I strength trained, and managed to get in seven swim sessions.

Lisa and I booked our trip to arrive in St. Croix on Friday, with the race being Sunday. I have found that if you cannot get out to a hot and humid race venue at least a week beforehand to acclimate, you are better off going out right beforehand. Going out three or four days prior is the worst case. Same goes for racing at altitude. Besides seasonal allergies that I was expecting, my taper was going well and as planned and I felt solid. However, the Thursday before the race, I missed all my training due to a busy work schedule, last minute packing, and spending time with the kids. Then, due to a mechanical issue with the plane, we were stuck in Miami an extra three hours and I missed all my training on Friday as well. No worries though as race week taper is just about staying loose and conserving energy, not expending it. Save it for race day.
While waiting in Miami for the connecting flight to St. Croix, more and more triathletes
became present. It can be quite hard spotting triathletes. Look for the emaciated, hairless people wearing compression socks, a finishers t-shirt from a big race or some sort of sponsor gear to let you know they are sponsored while you are waiting at the airport, and completed w/ a pair of racing sunglasses perched atop their noggins, even though it may be raining out or 10pm.

My bike arrived with our flight, which is a major concern for this race. The next morning, I met Jeff Molson outside of our rooms at the Buccaneer and we ran two easy loops of the run part of the course that takes place on the resort premises. I forgot how beautiful this course actually is. The green golf course contrasts with the white-ish, soft sand of the beach coves and turquoise waters of the Caribbean. Palm trees are interspersed throughout and even though it is hot and humid along the resort route, you get an ocean salty breeze that just makes you want to lay in a hammock with a rum punch. Lisa and I then hung out at the resort beach with the soon to be newlyweds Gus and Jen, and I took a nice swim in the ocean. I was relaxed, which was odd considering it typically takes me a few days to unwind. Perhaps I’m getting a bit more complacent? Not according to Lisa.

I put my bike together in the afternoon, and went through registration which was a piece of cake. This race is so low key, compared to all the other WTC races. It definitely embodies the Caribbean relaxed attitude. I loved it – it had the grass roots feel of races of old. We had a light dinner and I crashed around 9:30pm.
At 1am though, I was up! And pre-race nerves hit me with a one two for the first time. I reminded myself that this was good – that this meant that the race meant something to me. I also reiterated the fact that I couldn’t dwell on my two experiences here, for if I did, I’d race in fear and more than likely blow up. “You can do this; it’s just another ½ IM and you are prepared well for it!” I drifted off again at some point, only shortly before my 4:15am alarm sounded. Lisa slept right through it. In fact, I had to wake her up to tell her I was leaving. Jeff and I rode our bikes the 2.5 miles to the race start. It was pitch black out and hard to see, which made the ride kind of fun.

OK, I’ll get into the race tomorrow.

Cheers,

EH

Guest blogger Big Rocks; "It's the mind stupid!"

2011-04-20T19:07:00.000-04:00

My dad sent me this email today. I asked his permission to post it. He at first said it was too short, but I loved the to the pointness. Most of the time, clarity is in succinct, direct, simple explanations, and not about reiterating an issue to death. I'm all about taking the road less travelled. I found his email motivating. Honestly, how cool is it to receive an email like this from your father?!

Eric,

I did a 90 minute run today. If I were writing this as Big Rocks I would call it "It's the mind stupid!". Today was a perfect day for running, cool and damp. I ran a route that has two hills I always avoid. My mind usually says "you shouldn't do these hills because it will take too much out of you. Do them on a shorter run". Of course, on a shorter run I never take this route. As I neared the first hill I felt good so I decided to go for it and powered up, over and down. I felt great. When I got to the second hill I thought screw it, I'm going for it. After that hill I honestly felt I could have done both of them again.

On my way back I realized that my biggest limiter is my Mind. Now I have always known this but I guess I need runs like this to remind me of my potential and not my limitations. I hope you have a similar experience today.
Cheers.

Dad

Passion and Technology

2011-03-23T20:56:00.001-04:00

I have been involved in the sport of triathlon at all levels for quite a long time as a coach, and as an athlete. I've witnessed the sport go through many changes, some bad, but mostly good. But for some reason, the early part of 2011 has me in a bit of a quandary. I am thrilled with the group of athletes that I am currently coaching - they are driven people who are optimistic, not wanting the easy road, and fun! I am also really excited about racing this season. My own training is going well, I feel strong but mostly (maybe the training going well and feeling strong quantify this) I am psychologically really motivated to do well.

So where is the quandary? It has to do with passion and technology. First, passion. In order to really, truly excel at something, you need to be passionate about it in my own point of view. In regards to passion, I'm talking about really being engulfed in what it is you are trying to do. Not doing it as a chore, but rather something you love, live, eat, breathe, dream for. Yeah, maybe it sounds corny, but I lie in bed at night thinking about a) what I need to do tomorrow training wise to "make me better" and b) what my game plan will be at my first race which is over a month away. I don't know how common this is and I'm certainly not trying to say that I represent what passion is. I just know that I think about this stuff at night while lying in bed because I love it! Call me pathetic but it is what it is. Im guessing that this love has got to be passion - so I'll try different training protocols, routes, and locations, and I'll choose races that are new and exciting or old but still exciting, to keep this love/passion. And I won't race for the sake of racing. Again, I'm not stating here that this is the way to do it, but rather what I will do to keep the passion, and not get into a rut and race because I worry about getting love handles or because my tri-friends are racing a certain race.

Another trend that I feel is setting us, as triathletes, back a bit actually is the dependency of technology. I just recently returned from my Tucson Camp. Just before heading out, I experimented by taking the power meter off my bike. I did this primarily for one session at camp. At camp, I could care less where my power output is since my main concern is to spend some time riding with each athlete attending camp. However, the day we climb Mount Lemmon, everyone is on their own. No one wants company on this climb as is evident by the abundance of iPods. Everyone wants to dictate their own pace. The past 5 years, I had paced myself using wattage on this climb. This year, I wanted to go by feel. I wanted to hold back when I felt I needed to and go for it when I wanted to. If I blew up, I blew up - and then obviously, I mis-paced the climb. Surprisingly, I rode my fastest ascent up Lemmon this year, and my condition was not much different than previous years.

I know many athletes who have never achieved what they are truly capable of because they are so locked into their gadgets - they trust these more than they trust their own feel. You could argue that heart rate and power meters don't lie so they are doing what they should but my argument is that the athletes threshold is higher than they realize. In regards to much of the testing done by athletes, and the testing many coaches give their athletes, I would wage that 90% of the time, this testing is inaccurate. Some coaches that may be reading this are probably saying "not my testing" , but why is it that threshold heart rates are usually much higher in a true race than in a test? Many coaches out there now have read the latest books on training with heart rate and power and are overly locked into minutiae like TSS, CP30, ... They are losing track of what we are training for in the first place; to race. Rob Straz recently sent me a link to a great article by Chris McCormack - this is a two time Hawaii IM champ who discusses in his blog how he trains ONLY by feel and he constantly thinks about what he needs to do to race a triathlon well, not just swim well or have a fast bike split.

I'm not saying that tech toys don't have their place. Feedback from these tools make my coaching job more accurate as they give me an accurate depiction of where my athletes are at. I'd prefer my athletes to cover up their power meter or heart rate monitors during quality sessions and review the data afterwards. I find that using these devices on easy training days becomes more valuable. Most triathletes train too hard on their easy days - using a heart rate monitor or power meter to set a ceiling not to go over holds the athlete back, so that they can recover and put more into their quality sessions. I do like for my athletes, and myself included, to use a heart rate monitor or power meter on the bike for ironman races and to have a specific plan so that they can get off and run.

On the last day of camp, we ran a spectacular trail through Bear Canyon called the Seven Falls Trail. This is easily one of my top two favorite runs. It can be technical in parts, but I find this instability makes your footwork lighter, more stable and better at reacting to any obstacles or uneven surfaces. Plus, the trail is easier on your joints and musculoskeletal system. I was quite surprised when a small group opted to run the road instead. One thing I try to express at all camps is to do things that you may not or cannot do at home. Anyone can run roads anywhere. If you are worried about rolling an ankle (by the way, trails strengthen your ankles), then back off the effort and run more cautiously. The road group really missed out on an incredible "experience", and that's what it's all about. Not heart rate or power, but experiencing something. At the end of the run, as we soaked our tired legs in the cold brook in Sabino Canyon (something the road runners missed out on), more than one of the campers expressed how amazing the run we just did was. A few mentioned how they truly felt like a kid again, running free and laughing and taking in the experience. And when they are back home in April having a tough run on sone of their regular routes, they will think of this Seven Falls run and smile, and it will boost their passion meter just that much more.

Cheers,

EH

Barry Bonds is a tool

2011-03-22T18:30:00.001-04:00

To all my athletes; when I recommend that you take Flax Seed Oil, that's not code.

Todays Run Playlist

2011-03-20T19:33:00.003-04:00

I had a great 2 hr run this morning; at the 1 hr 10 min mark, I did 40 min of tempo that just clicked - a feeling I have been looking for the past few years! The sun and crisp temperature certainly helped, but my playlist was also a catalyst;

Day Dreamin - Lupe Fiasco
Runaway - Lincoln Park
Already Home - Jay Z
Let It Die - Foo Fighters
Total Life Forever - Foals
Fight The Power - Public Enemy
Sweet Disposition - Temper trap
Super Bon Bon - Soul Coughing
Sun Is Shining - Bob Marley vs. Funkstar de Luxe Extended Club Mix
Bawitdaba - Kid Rock
Uprising - Muse
Cinderella Man - Eminem
Friends - Band Of Skulls
Ride To California - Paper Tongues
The Choice is Yours - Black Sheep
Shattered - Rolling Stones
The Distance - Cake
Hello/Goodbye - Lupe Fiasco
Free Fiddy - 50 cent/Tom Petty mix
Off That - Jay Z
Power - Kanye West
Pumped Up Kicks - Foster The People
Waiting For The End - Lincoln Park
Somewhere Only we Know - Keene

Yes, I am all over the place - with the exception of country. If anyone wants to share their playlist, that would be cool.

Cheers,

EH

Demo a Nineteen wetsuit today!

2011-03-20T06:35:00.002-04:00

For those in the CT area, I'll be at Cornerstone Aquatics Center in West Hartford today between 2 and 4pm with a fleet of Nineteen wetsuits for you to demo. Come visit and try out the best wetsuit!

Cheers,

EH

Tucson Camp Day 2 and 3

2011-03-01T22:40:00.002-05:00

I'm a bit tired and it's been busy, but many of the MVP'ers have been recapping their camp experience - their stories should be up on my home page soon (www.hodska.com).

Winter in CT has been beautiful. How could you not like dirty piles of snow, iced over roads and driveways, houses leaking, roofs collapsing, and temps in the teens? Well it makes things very challenging out here in Tucson. I mean, today was in the low 80's and there wasn't a cloud in the sky! We had to swim in an outdoor pool with mountains as our scenery and ride five hours on our bikes through rolling desert parks. I am doing my best to cope, but it's been tough.

Tucson Camp Day 1

2011-02-28T08:40:00.006-05:00

In 2006, I was hosting a camp in Palm Springs with a friend of mine. We had a large group and needed some staff so my friend, who was a military guy, brought in some two of his friends, also military guys. One was Scott Jones who is a class act and now lives in Boulder and has gone on to form a great coaching business of his own there. The other guy was Brian Grasky who lived in Tucson. He asked in Palm Springs if I'd consider coming out to Tucson to host a camp with him and I remember me replying "well what does Tucson have to offer?". It was an easy sell and plus I liked Brian. After my first camp there in 2007, I knew I had found my winter training camp local. It's been great to also watch Brian grow his coaching business.

So we are back again, and just like last year, the first day, weather wise, turned out a bit auspicious for Tucson. It was colder (40's) and there was snow in the mountains. But we were still heading over to Sabino Canyon bright and early to run the phoneline trail. This is probably number five on my favorite run routes of all time and i love beginning the camp this way.

There is something about running that i love. I don't quite know what exactly it is - trust me, not all runs feel light and fast and smooth. But I know I don't take any run for granted - I'm always appreciative of just being able to go out and run. To do so in a place like Sabino Canyon, well that's just takes it to another level that's hard to describe. We have a big group this year with 18 campers and it was easily apparent on the phoneline trail that they all shared in my appreciation. The group ranges from 32 yrs of age to 63. We have a mix of beginners to advanced with goals ranging from Olympic distance to Ironman. There were the pre-camp nerves - people nervous about what's in store and if they will be able to keep up, but after putting on more than 30 camps, that's never been an issue. I'm enjoying the diversity and personalities in this group. We once again have a really nice bunch of athletes. It makes it a lot easier to run the camp when there isn't a lot of ego and bs attitude to deal with.

After the run, we had some breakfast, and then met to do some strength training. I brought out my TRX as well as Kevin Crowell, and we rigged them up in the courtyard outside our rooms. For the next hour, with no weights or other equipment, we put them through a functional session addressing a lot of lateral movements.

Next was off to the University of Arizona's pool for a 2 hour swim session. They have a huge plaque on the wall at the pool with all the Olympians that have come through the university - really impressive. We did a lot of drill work and stroke analysis and then did a solid session before calling it a day.

At dinner that night, we gave out some MVP awards to Doug, a 52 year old from Kansas (flat) who had never run trails, Sue from New jersey who just had the right attitude all day, and Molson, who deemed his as the lifetime achievement award.

Cheers,

EH

Some things I've learned...

2011-02-23T20:25:00.002-05:00

One of the things I've truly enjoyed about triathlon is that, coming from a background and career in exercise physiology, it has provided unlimited margins in regards to experimentation and defining what the "right" plan or approach is. After all, we are all after optimal results - meaning given our genetic makeup and time constraints, we want to see just how fast we can go.

When I first began training myself post college (1991), I applied all the principals I had learned in the classroom and books about endurance training. I combined this with my constant studying of Triathlete magazine, and mainly, what the big four were doing for training. The big four were Dave Scott, Mark Allen, Scott Tinley, and Scott Molina. I began to believe that unless I was cranking out 250+ miles per week on the bike and 50+ miles per week on the run, there was no way I was going to succeed. Mind you, during this time period, I was training for sprint and Olympic distance races. Most of the exercise physiology books had yet studied triathletes and therefore most of what I did was self-experimentation. The big four were winning everything so there must be something to the mega mileage they were putting out weekly in training. For these athletes though, training and racing was their lives. I was soon to be engaged and working full time as the director of GE Capital’s Corporate Fitness program which meant I had higher priorities.

In 1996, I qualified for the Hawaii Ironman. This was going to be my first Ironman and I thought I had to up my training even more. I have been blessed with a very strong structural system. I may have the flexibility of a crowbar, but I don't get overuse injuries. My immune system did begin to break down frequently though. I was catching one cold or sinus infection after another. I convinced myself that I needed to get in a specific high volume of training each week to perform well, and thus needed to find other ways to boost my immune system. I made many radical nutrition changes thinking, hoping that this was the root of my immune stability or instability. I took lots of nutritional supplements as well - trying anything that would bolster the immune system - except reducing my training volume (which i thought would make me slower) or get more sleep (which I didn’t have/make time for). Most of my workouts felt sluggish. I was spent before even beginning them. I chalked it up to the fact that I was training for an Ironman; of course I'm going to constantly be tired! I would push through these sessions though, thinking it was making me not only stronger, but tougher.

Ironically, I began my coaching business at this time and was working closely with athletes, monitoring their progress. At the first signs of over-fatigue, I’d back them way off, or even have them take a few days off! I was a total hypocrite.
I continued to study, reading books on exercise physiology and endurance training like "The Lore of Running" by Noakes. And I continued to experiment. It has been a trial and error process and I love it. This field is my art. Working with others, be they athletes, average joes looking for fitness, or ill or broken down people looking to rehabilitate- this is my opportunity to be creative and find out what specifically works for each individual, and what also motivates them and brings out the best in them. Through working with others and through self-experimentation, I have built up quite a knowledge base of training. It also appears that everyone else on the planet is an expert at coaching and training. Tell anyone what you are doing health and training wise and more than likely you will get their opinion, and probably on what you are doing wrong. Triathletes are the worst when it comes to this. Anyone who has spent a cumulative hour reading slowtwitch.com now has their own degree in coaching and exercise physiology. Tell a triathlete you are running 4 hour per week in training and they will tell you that it's not enough and to harden the fuck up. Tell a triathlete you are doing intervals during the winter months and they will chastise you saying that you are going to peak to early and should be focused on just building a base, yet train with them and watch their ego take over as they run above threshold, yet tell you at the end that they were still aerobic. You'll hear "you are doing too much, too little, too hard, to easy, ..." Many listen to this crap to. Maybe they think that because the person offering advice is fast, they are an expert, which isn’t always the case.

Well, here are a few of my definites:

*The majority of us are not pros, and therefore, have a limited amount of time for training AND recovery. We don't have the 30+ hrs per week to put into long, aerobic base building miles, and therefore, need to make our sessions count.

*Most that have been training for a few seasons have established cumulative base, meaning their cardiovascular system is efficient and comes around quickly. What is a bigger limiter is their muscular endurance system.

*Most make the mistake to go long too soon. Why is it that the best Ironman triathletes today were the best Olympic Distance athletes five years ago?

*If going long in training, dial down the intensity. If going short, make it count. Duration usually doesn’t cripple us. Intensity doesn’t either. It's combining the two that gets us into trouble.

*On your easy days, train alone. This is when a heart rate monitor and power meter is especially useful. These tools set ceilings to assure we keep the effort dialed down, so that we are still building our economy yet we can recover easily so we can go hard on the days we are supposed to go hard.

*Power meters, heart rate monitors, and gps devices are great training and feedback tools, yet learn to "feel" your rhythm. Yes, rhythm is one of the main things that every athlete should continually seek. And when training in beautiful locations, it's far more of an experience to take in the surrounding scenery rather than stare at the numbers on your devices.

*Stay consistent - this is key, however, don’t be afraid to take a day or two off now and again. If your race is built off of one day of training, you are in trouble anyways.

*Throw out your cycling clothes from two seasons ago. Especially if training with others - please, it stinks.

I just returned from Napa which was awesome, although I over-ate and over-drank w/ no regrets, but I’ll pay the price as I head out to Tucson Saturday.

Cheers,

EH

Cleveland Winterfest Camp in the books - take aways...

2011-02-11T08:08:00.007-05:00

We have been having quite the winter here in CT. Record snowfall, roofs caving in, ice everywhere, ... February is a time typically when many CT'ers escape the winter and head away on a little vacation. When I think of February vacation, I think of Cleveland. Actually, this may have been the first year of this camp where there was less snow on the ground and the temps were warmer in Cleveland than in CT - And the sun even popped out for part of a day!!

I flew direct out of Hartford on Thursday afternoon with no issues, arriving in Cleveland to be picked up by Scooter. We went straight from the airport to his ART guy who managed to work some nice cracks out of my back, neck and shoulders, even though I had no issues going on - but it always feels good to get realigned. Friday, the camp officially began bright and early east of Cleveland at a cross country ski center. The majority of the 18 campers had never skied before and their slips and falls did not disappoint. CC skiing is great cross training and Ange and I wanted to kick off this camp a bit different. Everyone seemed to enjoy it and how could you not? If you have never tried it, it's peaceful, great activity, and really beautiful in the snowy white woods. From skiing we went straight to the pool and did drill work, instruction, and a workout, then right to a spin session that I taught, then we had a USAT official who was attending the camp discuss the USAT and WTC rules and regulations where we learned about the WTC no nipple rule. So as long as you are wearing tassels, you're legal.

Saturday began with a strength/TRX session, then a swim session, then a track session w/ drill work and heart rate testing, then a bike fit session that took quite awhile since many of their old fits were atrocious, then a bike test on computrainers.

Sunday was a 45 minute trail run in the snow followed by a two hour indoor bike session led by yours truly, followed by another 45 minute run.

So it was a busy weekend activity wise, but here's what I always take away from this camp personally;
**The attendees of this camp are always extremely nice, genuine, good people. In the northeast, we get used to rudeness and a defensive, aggressive way of living that you really don't realize much of until you venture westward. I greatly appreciate their honest friendliness, as I'm sure most CT'ers would, yet for Cleveland, they probably don't realize how refreshing their attitude is until they come to NYC and get a taste of their opposites.
**I may not be great at much but I do believe that I have a natural sense of what people are capable of and what they can handle physically as well as emotionally. Combine this with the fact that I have been training, racing and coaching for a long time now and I've run over thirty tri-camps. This year for some reason, and at least right now anyways, I'm really appreciating the pure and simple things, like an athlete who gets excited about going for a simple run or ride, or one who learns they are capable of quite a bit more than they believed, or one who is not afraid to try a different approach than what they have typically been doing in the past. I feel that lately, many question to much what bike they are riding, what software package they are tracking their info on, should they be wearing supportive shoes or minimal shoes, should they be eating gluten free, carb restricted, ... Which gel works best for them, which power meter should they invest in, ... Listen, I love my gadgets and appreciate all this stuff, but it's all just fun. I've said it before that Nike's brilliant simplistic ad "just do it" is the motto to live by. I used the word restricted and maybe that's what I'm trying to express here? We are becoming too restricted instead of saying "you know what? Fuck it - I'm just going to put aside my inhibitions and overthinkings and walk the walk." Many at this camp were novice triathletes and pretty much everyone at this camp embraced this "just do it" attitude.
**Most of the stuff that we did at this camp, in temperatures in the teens in February, we would have never done on our own. Amazing what happens when you get a like-minded group together with a plan. At the end of the camp, I mentioned to all the campers that I was willing to bet there was no one east of the Mississippi that did what we did over the past three days.

Ange dropped me at the airport Sunday afternoon. I was actually looking forward to just chilling out on the flight and reading and relaxing after a very busy few days. I boarded the plane last (why get on so early and sit more?) to see an eight year old kid sitting in the seat next to me who yells "cool, I was hoping I didn't get stuck next to some old person!" He then proceeds to run his mouth for the next 1 hr and 45 minutes of my flight, talking loud, asking tons of questions, spilling food on me, fighting me for the armrest. Near the end of the flight, he says to me "mister, you may want to move, I think I'm gonna be sick" - as I fished for the barf bag for him, I was looking simultaneously for hidden cameras because this had to be a joke. I made it home though, just in time for kickoff.

This camp was just the motivation I needed to amp up the training a bit and cope with the remaining winter here, and hopefully all the attendees feel the same way. And yes, winter here will end soon.

Cheers,

EH

Jan 2011 (Disney, Plunge, ...)

2011-02-01T06:49:00.007-05:00

January was an interesting month here in CT, to say the least. I want to record some notes her that I'll do in two installments over the next few days, to remember the kickoff of 2011. Record snow fall has my house looking more like an igloo. it was a busy, fun, fast month - yes, time passes and spring will be here before you know it.

I had three sessions left to go with my Saturday morning swim clinic. The group impressed me; No whining and lots of progress as I threw many drills and instruction at them. The last day, I had them doing a set of 5 X 100's towards the end of the session, and 90% of the field held all of them under 1:30, as opposed to maybe 20% of the field in week one of this clinic! I plan on running this swim clinic again in March and April.

In early January, I headed down to Orlando for the Disney 1/2 and full marathons. I coached a team for the American Liver Foundation that was competing in these events and I went down to support them. I arrived on Friday night late because of a flight delay and went right to Hollywood Studios for a dinner with all the teams representing the ALF. Marla, my connection with the ALF, informed me that they registered me for both races so I could get out on the courses to see my athletes if I wanted to, but registration closed that night at 8pm and it was now 7:30 - and I had to get over to ESPN studios! Thanks to one of my runners husbands who drove me there, and a long sprint through the studios, I made it and was the last person to register. The 1/2 marathon began at 5:30am on Saturday morning. The team was taking the bus over at 3:30am - I told them I was going to jog over to the start from our hotel and that I'd meet them there. I ran an easy two miles in the dark towards the loud, growing noise of the race start to find 28,000 registered runners waiting in their corrals! The race began and I waited at the starting line on the side of the road to meet up with some of my runners, maybe run a couple of miles with them, then cut across the course. As a sea of runners went by, I realized that picking them out in the dark this early on would be challenging, and I was getting cold, so I jumped in and started running. I was locked into 6 min/mile pace and began clawing my through the crowded course, which takes you through Cinderellas castle in the Magic Kingdom which was pretty cool. Near the end of the 1/2, I pulled to the side and cheered on the ALF runners. Many of them were running their first 1/2 marathon. I had one women, who when we began back in September, couldn't run for more than two minutes, and she finished strong. I then jogged the two miles back to my hotel room, running 17 miles that day and the 1/2 which I hadn't planned on doing.

The next day, I met the team at 3:30am to take the shuttle over to the start so that I didn't miss them early on. We hung out in our corral, the very last corral in the very last wave, awaiting the starting gun. Again, many of the ALF team were first time marathoners and you could easily sense their pre-race anxiety. They were discussing their goal times and I spoke up and said that they were all giving themselves too much cushion, that most of them should be in the five to five and a half hour range (they were estimating 6+) and that Alyssa, the youngest runner in the field (not in the ALF field but out of every runner in the marathon) at 18 yrs old should be around four hours. The race began, and I again figured I'd run out to the four mile mark with them, then cut across and catch them around mile 12 and 18. It was so crowded in the back of the race as we weaved our way slowly through the field. We went through the first mile in a blistering 13 minutes, the second in a speedy 12 minutes. At this point I told Alyssa to follow me as we picked up the pace and began ducking and weaving through the thousands of runners. I kept turning to see if Alyssa was still with me, and she was right there. At the four mile mark, she said to me "I was going to run with my mother" and I quickly responded "oh, I'm sorry Alyssa, we could wait up for her", and she came back with "no, I could see that she'll be fine with the group - when you mentioned that I should aim for four hours, that's what I really want to do!" So after a seconds thought, I decided that I was going to pace her through the marathon and kept running with her. She was carrying a camera and I got some shots of her running into and out of the castle, and on some other parts of the course. She was running well, smiling, and taking in the whole experience. I have to say, after training and coaching athletes for twenty years now, longer than Alyssa is old, her attitude and determination impressed the hell out of me - and this would be her first run longer than 18 miles! I was wearing a garmin and had us locked into an 8 to 8:45 pace but didn't tell Alyssa as I didn't want the pace to get in her head - and she was talking quite a bit meaning she was handling the effort just fine. She was anticipating hitting the wall at mile 20 since that's what's supposed to happen in a marathon, right? This is what she had heard and what every runner hears. Yet she ran through mile 20 fine. Around mile 23, the effort started to catch up with her a bit and this is where you truly show your cards. She remained tough and focused - the pace slowed slightly, but she was still running, and smiling for the most part, even though she turned down the chocolate at the chocolate aid station. I have to say, this was one fun marathon to participate in! I like the early start in the dark, the temperature for running was perfect, the race was entertaining and it was cool running through all the parks. Now I'm not a big Disney fan. I've taken my kids there and we had a great time and, well, I feel we did that so no need to go back. We didn't get close to seeing everything you could, but we saw enough. We aren't into huge crowds, waiting in lines, crappy food - regardless of what I've heard, it's hard to get a decent meal in Disney! But it is easy to get caught up in the excitement of the parks and realize the spectacle that they are as you run through them. Alyssa and I crossed the finish line in just over four hours and she was beaming - I felt very proud of/for her. We then waited for her mom and the rest of the group to finish up. I was really proud of this whole group. Many back in September seriously doubted that they could run a marathon. A few even signed up for the 1/2 but then switched into the full marathon. All finished. I spoke with Marla maybe a month out from the marathon mentioning that this is a cool project that the ALF is doing but that next time they should use a novice coach since it requires a lot of time, something I am short on considering my current businesses. Coming off this weekend however, I'm glad I was involved this first year. We then waited for the shuttle to take us back to the hotel, however, I got impatient and ran back, registering 29 miles of running for Sunday. Not a bad weekend considering I hadn't planned on running either race.

Alyssa's marathon reminded me of when I did my first Ironman. I had a naive, young attitude and didn't overthink it, and it allowed me to lay down a solid time that would set the tone for many of my up and coming IM's. Us veterans now, we overthink, overemphasize, overtrain, overanalyze, ...

More to come.

EH TRX

2011-01-21T06:50:00.000-05:00

Eric Hodska's Polar Plunge 2011

2011-01-17T06:27:00.001-05:00

I'm back! Happy belated New Year- it's going to be a great one! Check out Bakers footage from the Plunge:

Eric Hodska's Polar Plunge 2011

December Challenge and Cool Stuff

2010-12-06T19:16:00.006-05:00

First, I'm doing the December Challenge again on my EH Training and Coaching Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/group.php?gid=279447542288 - I post an exercise or two for you to do each day in December. Check it out.

It's holiday season - most trigeeks have more than they need already but are all about the gear, so I thought I'd share my two cents on what is, again, in my opinion, a good gift to add to your wish list. The following are five very cool items:

* compression socks compression gear is all the rage and believe it or not, it actually works - to a degree. The idea behind compression clothing is to compress (duh) the surrounding musculature and keep your vascular system circulating. The best compression products are the socks since circulation tends to decrease and pool in lower extremities. Compression socks assist at keeping that blood circulating back upwards. I do have some rules though w/ compression socks - they are great for travel, yet only with pants, not shorts. There is no need to sit in an airport, decked out in your Harlem 5K race t-shirt, Desoto running shorts, zoot racing shoes, and compression socks, awaiting your flight. Please... Compression socks are great for after hard training and races. Many wear them to train and race in. Call me old school, but this just screams geek. Save them for recovery. If they cost you fifteen seconds during a race (which is the biggest time advantage they are going to gain you if wearing them in a long race), then run a bit faster.

* Oakley Jawbones and Thump Pro's Let's face it, Oakley's really are the best shades. they are extremely functional, and they have the cool factor. You can try some other glasses which may offer a better deal, but Oakley is the top of the food chain and there is no close second. The Jawbones are extremely versatile and look great - while training! For casual use, please pick up a fitting pair of Oakley's like the Felon or the Oil Drum. The Thump Pro's have the built in mp3. I don't want the blue tooth capability - I don't want to be contacted while out training and I also want things simple. The Thump Pro's are probably my favorite training item. Ever.

* Lululemon Run Response Shorts Lululemon is not just girls clothes and it's not just yoga clothes. These run shorts may be a bit pricey, but they are second to none. For years, all shorts chafed me if I didn't apply lots of bodyglide. No need with these shorts. They are unbelievably comfortable that you will want to wear them all the time, and they look great.

* Zoot Running Shoes I prefer a low profile shoe without much support or extra crap built up in the heels. In my opinion, most shoes are overbuilt and create more problems then they help. Yet, I do feel we need a bit of cushioning since we tend to run mainly on pavement, and on tired legs. Zoot has figured out just the right balance. A tie is Nike Free's.

* TRX Let me preface this by saying I am in no way associated with TRX. I have been using this device for over a year now on myself and with my personal training clientel and I am really making a hard push for all my athletes to purchase one. I have been in the exercise physiology, coaching, and training field for 20 years now and this simple little device is the best individual training tool I've come across for functional strength conditioning. Quite simple, this device is just awesome, and I love coming up with new torturous exercises and routines for it. If you get one thing this holiday season, a TRX should be it.

More to come...

Turks

2010-11-30T19:21:00.006-05:00

We (my family) were away last week celebrating Thanksgiving and my wife's 40th birthday on Turks and Caicos. Yes, it was tough leaving the tradition of thanksgiving at my in laws in always grey and cold Pennsylvania, but we managed.

The first couple of days there, I awoke and ran the roads of the island, which are mainly inland and are less than scenic. The majority of the Caribbean is quite poor, and running through these sections make you significantly question your safety. But even more than that, I found myself just overly focused on getting in my run and getting it done rather than enjoying the process. I put a lot of time and effort into my recreation, like most triathletes, and I strive to enjoy the process, because otherwise, what's the sense? I mean seriously, if you aren't making a living at your recreation and you aren't enjoying the process, then you really need to, in my opinion, re-evaluate what you are doing.

We were staying on a long stretch of beach that was pitched a bit, and loose sand, yet it was gorgeous. So on day three, I woke up, put on a pair of running shorts, left my shoes in my room, and hit the beach. There's something so simple and liberating about running in general, and to head out with just a pair of shorts takes it to another level. I ran along the coast line for four miles, then turned, splashing through the rolling tide on my eight miles. It was challenging - in fact, I was sore in my lower legs the next day which hasn't occurred with me in a long time. I developed a nice blister on my right big toe from pushing off. And yet, I enjoyed this run so much that I never even thought about the slower pace, lack of push off, or blisters. It's a lot more enjoyable training with a smile on your face.

I also swam a lot in the open water. Lisa and I have been fortunate enough to visit quite a few islands and Turks and Caicos had the best water and beaches we've ever witnessed. In fact, on one snorkeling excursion aboard a catamaran, we stopped about 100 meters off shore from a small island that's part of the T&C chain and swam into shore. This little island (pictured above) had the best beach that I've ever experienced, with sand that looked and felt like sifted flour, and water that was so green and clear that describing it doesn't do it justice. The captain of the catamaran brought his son (Steven) along - an extremely nice college aged kid who also happened to be blind. I couldn't help but think of the irony of this kid growing up blind in one of the most visually beautiful places. The next few days running along the beach, snorkeling in the beautiful ocean, and looking at my kids faces, I felt so appreciative.

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! And switch up your routine a bit now in the "off season" and make things fun and interesting! I've been doing more strength and TRX training, jumping rope, hitting the heavy bag, and riding the mountain bike. All fun, productive, and a nice diversion from the typical S,B,R.

Cheers,

EH

NYC Marathon

2010-11-11T13:43:00.008-05:00

I was at the NYC marathon last Sunday as a spectator this year. My wife, Lisa, was racing this time. I was up at 2am with her - she was nervous about the race, and I was nervous for her. I was more anxious about the three hours leading up to the start for her rather than the race itself. The NYC marathon is logistically a nightmare. Starting in Staten Island at the foot of the Verranzano Bridge, just getting to the start is a pain in the ass. Lisa was catching a bus that my friend Bob Sabre organizes every year. I had to have her at the pick-up in Stratford by 5am, and this was the last time I'd talk to her until after the race besides yelling to her a few times on the course. Lisa was quite emotional race morning and I could see her sitting on the bus wiping tears as I drove off. Don't mistake Lisa for some wuss though - she's tough as nails and I'll get more into that in a bit.

Once you get to the start of the race, you have to sit around waiting for three hours until the gun goes off. It was very cold out that morning, so I sent Lisa off with sweat pants, ski pants, a fleece pullover, a fleece vest, and an old winter jacket, plus hand and feet warmers and a hat and two pairs of gloves. Some homeless person is going to get a decent score since everything she was wearing would be donated as she stripped down to her running shorts and top just prior to the start.

This waiting period sucks! You desperately just want the race to start and you are trapped in a tight area with 48000 runners, most waiting in port-o-potty lines. On top of this, Lisa was in the wave that started on the lower level of the Verrenzano which is where you don't want to be. You see, the runners on the upper level that are couped up and overhydrated begin peeing wherever, which drips down and onto the lower level - disgusting! Lisa was really freaked out about this but thankfully, she didn't experience any showers.

Baker and I drove into Manhattan and parked near the finish area on the west side of central park, then purchased a one day subway pass, and headed over to Brooklyn. First, we watched the elite/pro women come by. They started 33 minutes earlier then the pro men/first wave. We were positioned between miles eight and nine, and a pack of pro women rolled through looking comfortable in 47 minutes. Then there were some smaller groups and solo women, before the pro men came cruising through, again, the leaders in a big pack, looking effortless in 41 minutes. The crowds of spectators in Brooklyn were amazing, yet nothing compared to Manhattan later in the race. Lots of runners began coming through although they were still thinned out until the 7 minute per mile group hit us. For the next 30 minutes, it was a sea of runners that was so dense, it made you dizzy viewing it. I was nervous I'd miss Lisa, but I had a hunch she'd be running on the right side of the road and sure enough, she came cruising through, looking great!

Lisa is not your typical endurance athlete. I'm assuming that if there are a few of you reading this "random gibberish", that you are endurance athletes of some kind. Either that or you are really bored at work. Endurance athletes have a mindset that's different then most. They love to train, and eat and breathe endurance training and racing. It's a huge part of their life whether they admit it or not. I'm an endurance athlete. Lisa is not. She is an unbelievable athlete, who was CT state champion in high school in the 200 meters, and who was a multiple college all American in the 400. Her raw athleticism towers over mine. But a two mile run for a 400 meter runner is distance. Lisa was burnt out on running and so didn't do much after college. Then, after seeing me race in Hawaii a few times, she was inspired to the point that she committed to run the Philadelphia marathon a few years ago. She did well considering her training. Lisa's running form is a thing of beauty and I'm not just saying that because she's my wife. But solid genetics and years of honing her form on the track in her youth have implanted a flowing, light, land on your toes stride that looks effortless. She's fortunate that she is such a gifted runner because she ran on average twice per week training for her first marathon. She did a long run on the weekend and a mid week easy run. That's it. Again, she's not an endurance athlete who panics over a missed or shortened session. This training garnered a 3:46 virgin marathon. Lisa had talked about doing New York one day and so put her name into the lottery the past few years. This year, she was picked! Most endurance athletes would think "Awesome!!! I'm in!". Lisa's response was "Oh, fuck!". However, even though she's not an endurance athlete by mindset, she is amazingly determined, and her work ethic in everything she does, her conscientiousness, and her humbleness are attributes that I am daily impressed with. Lisa is the type of person that is a bosses dream. She sets her mind to something and she does it. Simple as that. I very, very loosely coach Lisa. I know that coaching or working with your spouse is rarely a good thing. So I direct her with an idea of what she should do each week, but her training mainly came down to her weekly long run. Not much changed from her training for Philly to her training for NY. She ran once or twice per week on the treadmill for 30 to 40 minutes, and then got in her long run on the weekends.

Back to the race: Baker and I subwayed up to Queens, and yelled to Lisa although she didn't see us there, then we went back to Manhattan and watched at the 18 and 24 mile mark. Lisa was really struggling at the 24 mile mark, and I gave her some tough love yelling "Lis, be tough! Finish this thing!!!" She did finish in 4:01 and she left it all out there. For the next day and half, she swore "never again!". I can tell though that the 90 sec she needed to get under 4 hours is haunting her. She's not done yet. Maybe for awhile, but not yet. And I'm also willing to bet she runs New york again. Besides Boston, there isn't a cooler, more festive marathon experience.

Anyways, i rarely talk about my family in this blog, but I wanted to record here in my archives how impressed and amazed I am with my wife. Everything she does, she does more than well. What a very cool way also for her to exit her thirties. Alright, enough of the sappy stuff.

I plan on starting up my daily challenge on my website right after Thanksgiving, so stay tuned.

Cheers,

EH

Just Do It!

2010-11-03T19:31:00.005-04:00

Lisa is attending a two day Franklin Covey workshop down in Greenwich. When I was in corporate, I attended one of these workshops. It's all about time management, goal setting, staff building, ... Is it productive? I guess. I know, this is an indecisive answer, but to be honest, two days is a lot of overkill in my opinion. I'd prefer the cliff notes version which could be summed up in three seconds by the brilliant folks at Nike; "Just do it!". I mean, how simple and smart is this slogan?! Words to live by. Big Rock's (my father) is way into time management, which is a good thing. However I often bust his big rocks in that the time he spends writing goals and things he "needs to do" down in his day-timer, he could be getting a hell of a lot accomplished. I know there is a secondary purpose to Lisa's company attending which is uniting everyone in trust exercises, but power clapping and trust falls are long forgotten once your back at the office. At the end of the two days, when they ask what have you learned, I'd stand up and say "I learned that I just lost two days of being productive and getting things done had I been back at the office!". OK, maybe this is a bit hypocritical seeing as how I'm a firm believer in writing down goals, having a plan, and, well, just doing it. Maybe I just feel that two full days of this training is excessive. But then again, what do I know? I pay an exorbitant sum of money to swim from a starting line and bust my ass for hours on end only to finish up right back at the same spot from where I started.

On another note, I was recently contacted by an athlete inquiring about me coaching him. After talking with him for a bit, I had come to learn that he was currently working with a coach and two other coaches prior to this one. He mentioned that his present coach wasn't doing anything wrong really, but he wanted to be faster than where he presently was racing at. Yet his development seemed quite good considering his prior results and ability. Often times, people look at others instead of looking at themselves. A friend and colleague of mine who coaches was telling me last week about an athlete of his that left. This coach is a very knowledgeable guy and hard worker. I know some athletes that bounce around from coach to coach, mainly because they haven't accomplished what they might dream of. So instead of being patient and developing a working relationship with their coach, they leave and find another hoping that this new one will be the answer. But in their hearts, I'm sure they realize what the answer is. It's happened to me before in the past and I used to take it personally since I'm a big believer in loyalty, yet I get it now after time. Often it's a better situation for everyone involved.

Met with a good friend a few weeks ago and his motivation has been a bit low. He mentioned how he's left his front door to run, and has gone left 1000+ times, and gone right 1000+ times and it's leaving him a bit unexcited. What he needs to do is switch it up a bunch - go right but do 30 sec fast, 30 sec easy, ..., or go left and find a hill and do bounding hill repeats. As I believe, now is the time to switch it up, focus on some strength and yes, speed. Be creative. Think as though you are brand new to this recreation and make each training session way different then it's been in years. It can only help!

Cheers,

EH

Goals, Nostalgia, Playlists, ...

2010-10-26T19:49:00.006-04:00

Now is the time to begin planning your 2011 season. I am having all my athletes fill out a goal sheet for 2011 - I want to know what their "A" races are, what they feel their limiters are, their strengths are, their dream goals, ... We all know that when you write things down, they become that much more real. I have therefore filled out the same sheet that I send my athletes for myself. My big limiter is the fact that I don't swim. I am a decent swimmer and I rely on this, but I should really be swimming more consistently, and begin this in the winter months. It's too easy to wait again until it's necessary and then begin. I'm no longer taking the easy route. I want to switch it up so that my own routine feels different, new, awkward, and challenges me to reach - outside of what I have typically done over the last 20 years. Listen, if you have been doing the same thing every November, December, January, ... for the past bunch of years, it's time to make some changes because we are all in this to grow and move forward, right? I'm all about the present and future. I could care less what I have done in the past. Oh, and for those of you that feel your off season should go from October until January, again, this is my opinion and my blog, unless you are a pro who significantly could use the r&r, now's the time to focus on strength gains and maybe running base/speed. Yes, speed.

OK, enough of that. This past Sunday, I had to give a nutrition seminar in New Haven at Lululemon, so instead of running in Monroe, Ken and I met at our alma mater - Southern Ct State University. This is where I really began running, 22 years ago. I was Ken's RA at Neff Hall. I haven't been back to Southern in maybe 15 years and I could hardly recognize it. There are so many new buildings and the campus is really impressive - It's a real University now!

Ken and I met in the parking lot for Moore Field House. I suggested we run north towards West Rock and Hamden on Wintergreen Ave. I had vaguely forgotten my run routes around Southern - I knew that there were a few areas where the wrong left or right would leave you in a dangerous neighborhood (a baseball bat to the back and wrench thrown at me back in 90' while riding through one such neighborhood still remains in my memory). But as we headed north on Wintergreen, it all came rushing back. We made the left up towards West Rock, and then picked up the trails that circled lake wintergreen which is beautiful and the trails are covered with pine needles just as I remembered. Funny, 22 years ago when I began running these trails, I never gave thought to the fact that I'd still be running and competing 22 years later. I thought about this as Ken and I circled the lake twice. Back then, my dream was to race the Hawaii Ironman someday. I wanted to do the race just once in my lifetime. All these memories came flooding back. And all that we were doing is running, placing one foot in front of the other - something so simple that doesn't require much, yet has provided me with a ton. I don't know - the nostalgia on this day was quite cool. It didn't make me sad at all about the fact that 22 years have past and time has flown by, but rather made me smile at what the past 22 years have brought. This place was where I found my passion, decided on what I wanted my career to be, and most importantly, met Lisa.

I've been running a bunch lately and with that I've been adding more playlists to my ipod. Some of the stuff I've been listening to:

Foster The People - "Pumped Up Kicks" is a cool track.
The Temper Trap - "Fader" and "Sweet Disposition" are great tunes, in my opinion.
Linkin Park - "The Catalyst" - these guys are always solid.
Band Of Skulls - "Friends" - great song.
I also listen to a lot of Jay-Z, as well as some Keane, Paper Tongues, The XX, Civil Twighlight, to name a few.

Two final notes; I don't edit this "journal" since I want it more organic, so apologies if there happens to be anyone reading this who may find type-o's, bad grammar, boredom, ... More importantly; Congrats to Gus and Jen - Lisa and I are really thrilled for the two of you.

Cheers,

EH

2010-10-18T20:08:00.000-04:00

What's doin... (VT, Hawaii, ...)

2010-10-14T19:42:00.002-04:00

Man, I apologize to Molson, the one person who may be reading this! I've been neglectful. it's not that I don't have anything to say... For some reason, I'm never short of that. Time is the main issue. Seems every time I post now, it's an apology for not posting in awhile and how I will begin to post more often.

I do have a follow up to my post on mental attitude/outlook that I posted recently. I'll get on that. This is more of an update for my archives on the past few weeks and what's happened.

First, we did the annual. Baker, Ken and I did the annual Vermont ride. This is my 16th time doing this ride since 97'. If anyone truly is reading this and doesn't know about the VT ride, you can look back in the archives over the past few years and get a basic history on this event. The short of it is 146 miles from my door in Monroe to our hotel in Brattleboro on day one, and on day two we reverse it and ride home the 146 miles. It's not easy, the route isn't that great, but it's always entertaining!

We had a perfect weather weekend this year, albeit a bit hot on Saturday and into a headwind. But the sun was out all weekend, except for early Sunday morning which I'll get to. Ken and I rode out from my house, and Baker, at my encouraging, rode from his house this year which makes his route about 99 miles each way, but he was sick and coming off a stressful week so it was the right call. I've been coaching Ken for over 10 years now and yet there are some things he never learns. Not even 10 miles out and he was hitting the hills quite hard, telling me that his legs felt great. I Kept my mouth shut, waiting for the inevitable. And sure enough, his ride from Northhampton to Brattleboro, the last 45 miles, was painful. He arrived spent and all cramped up and proceeded to lie on the hotel floor probably getting eaten by bedbugs as he whined like a biatch in pain. One thing about Ken and Baker though - they are self sufficient, adventerous, and fun. We went out that night for dinner and beer and laughed our asses off. There was even an episode that left Baker and Ken ragging on me for the rest of the evening - and still to this day. Baker and I still cant figure out why Ken shipped a box of clothes up to the hotel yet didn't include clean, fresh cycling clothes for the next day?! Yes, he rode back in the same clothes he rode up in. I'm sure this kept Baker from drafting much on Sunday.

My son had a soccer game at 2pm in Monroe on Sunday and I wanted to try and catch it, so I rolled out of Brattleboro in the pitch black darkness at 5:30am solo. Very stupid on my part, although it was also really cool! I didn't have a light, and besides the occasional light from some shack in backass Vermont, I couldn't see a thing! I did see three skunks, two raccoons, and something larger that I was hoping at the time was a deer although could have rhymed with deer. The worst part was that I couldn't see any potholes, cracks, or beat up roads. The best part was that I rode right down the middle of the road and it was amazingly peaceful. The sun finally popped up, and the weather was significantly cooler than Saturday, but it was clear and beautiful out. I felt solid and was making great time - in fact, I rolled into my driveway in Monroe at 12:30pm. Take away a few refuel stops, and the 146 miles took me 6 hours 45 minutes. Ken and Baker rolled out at 7am and they both paced better and had no issues getting home. Another VT ride in the books.

I was concerned a small bit about how I would hold up on this ride. My long ride all summer, besides camps, have been maybe two hours. Most of my riding has been in the 75 to 90 minute range. But also, most of it has been at a high intensity and with focus on technique, form and cadence. I felt great both days on the VT ride. This just once again re-enforces some of my coaching principals; residual base, form and technique, and that if you are crunched for time, train with more intensity so that your longer pace feels easy.

The Hawaii IM was last weekend and congrats to Megan Seerfoss, Ryan Haug, Chris Thomas, and Mitch West for outstanding races! Man, it was tough sitting at home and following them online. I not only missed the race, but significantly missed the race week activities, and spending time out on the big island with Lisa. It was great for motivation.

Most right now are in off-season mode. However, I feel that the offseason is too long. I'm not saying you have to keep racing, but if you want to make progress, taking October through February low key each year is not productive. the weather is great for training right now! You don't need to hit it hard, or even do anything to structured, but stay consistent and get out there! Take a break from Thanksgiving until New Years, doing more low key training, but now is a great time to work on strength, running, and setting up the groundwork to have a productive winter training season.

Enough for now...

Cheers,

EH

Annuals

2010-09-23T19:27:00.003-04:00

This weekend, I will be honoring an annual that started in 97' with Farber. I was never a big traditionalist or one that was into annuals. These annual events with my friends growing up always revolved around golf trips and food and drink - maybe a bit of fun, but in reality, not productive or of any value. Why must an annual be productive and of value you ask? It doesn't need to be either honestly. Just personally, my views are that as we age, we need to evaluate where we are at and, ... ok, as I write this, I realize i could come off a bit douchey and preachy - that's not my intentions. I just feel that the annual golf trip or Vegas trip is so cliche and kind of corny. If you are going to do an annual (again, this is my opinion, and my blog) then do something out of the ordinary where you actually grow a bit in some way or form. Honestly though, the real reason for an annual is to get together with great friends, right?

Well, as I stated, I began this annual in 97', and it's been a great one. Every year, you reach a point where you are absolutely miserable during this, but the challenge, the memories and the camaraderie far outweigh these miserable spots in the long run. I have to admire Baker (don't let this go to your head you bastard!) - he knows he is going to suffer like a son of a bitch, yet he understands the value in this annual. He hasn't missed since 98' and as busy as we all are, Baker realizes the value and meaning behind this annual. It's not just my annual anymore but it's one for the core group who have done this with me the past decade, and Baker gets that.

Anyways, this year, we are all a bit off at the moment in regards to being prepared, but that's not the point and I'm positive we will take away some great memories and keep this annual alive for at least one more year.

Race this Sunday in Avon (please)!

2010-09-14T21:17:00.002-04:00

My good friend Jeff Molson is putting on another hat this weekend as race director for the Avon High School Booster Club Falcon 5K. The race is dedicated to the memory of Melissa Anne Andrew, and all proceeds benefit the Avon High School Booster Club.

If you are in the CT area, come out and support Jeff. Listen, I know that there are a ton of races to support and to choose from and why drive to do a 5k? I'll tell you why; because it's important to support our friends and fellow athletes who take the time to put on these races and a 5k is one of the best training runs you can do. I hope to see a bunch of you there. Here's the info:

This gets you to the application online to print it out:

www.thelastmileracing.com/application/10avonbooster.pdf

This get to the online application to sign up with credit card:

http://register.thelastmileracing.com/Search/event.aspx?event=8888c06e-bc8f-40e1-b101-997e76d8be50.aspx

Cheers,

EH

Head Games

2010-09-01T08:50:00.007-04:00

During my ride yesterday, my ipod died (go ahead and chastise me for riding with music) which left me ample time to just think.

What percentage of our outcome of events in life is determined by ones mental state versus their physical state and proper preparation? I know - this is a quite vague question, but think about this; Tiger Woods is still the same physically and physiologically as he was before his "behavioral outcoming", yet he's no where near the golfer he was pre-outing. I'm positive he could bench press just as much, swing the same way, hold his breath for the same time, ... So why is it that he went from being nearly unbeatable to becoming an average PGA player just trying to stay in the mix? Look at Monica Seles as well. She was on top of the rankings in tennis, then some nut job tries to stab her and since that event, she spiraled downward and into retirement. With both these examples, the only change came mentally, that created their descent.

I have athletes I coach that deal with chronic conditions. When they are alone and out training, they are constantly aware of these chronic nagging "injuries". However, get them in a group scenario with communication taking place putting their mind elsewhere and they train basically pain free. I've experimented with my personal training clients often, creating a mental image that either boosts or hinders their performance. I have some that just by having them focus on the wrong things prevents them from doing one or two reps of an exercise, and then by placing them mentally in a different place, has them banging out sets of 10+ reps of that same exercise that was impossible for them. I have athletes who are trained unbelievably well, talented and extremely fit and prepared, and yet they will do themselves in on race day. Then I have others that toe the line maybe not as physically prepared or not as physically gifted yet they are gamers and get amazing responses from their bodies on race day. I work with two people who are the same age. One of them outperforms the other in training all the time. He trains faster, longer, more consistent, ... Yet the other one will be faster on race day nearly every time.

The point I guess I'm getting at is that we can swim, bike, run, lift, stretch, row, jump, ski consistently and smartly, training our bodies to perform unbelievable tasks yet if we don't also spend some time training and conditioning the mind, it may all be for naught. For some, mental toughness comes naturally. Ego is a big part. I typically despise dealing with egos at my camps (who enjoys it?), yet look at someone like Tiger, or Lance, or Aroid - these guys have HUGE egos and are at the top of their sports. But the majority need to train their mind and condition it - to find the right catalyst that places them in a state which allows and almost premeditates optimum performance. Based on the above examples, don't feel you need to become a major prick to perform near the top!

Often times, when something isn't working well, we give up on it. We decide that maybe we just aren't cut out for a certain situation and accept that. I am a bigger guy from a northern climate who has had two awful races at St. Croix 70.3. The first time there, I dnf'd. The second time, I finished, but it was ugly. At first, I told myself that at least I finished and that this race wasn't for me and there are plenty of other races to choose from. That is me running away from or giving up on a particularly tough challenge. Mark my words; I'll go back there soon and take that course on again. After two tough races, I feared this race. Now I'm angry at it. Anger works well for me. I can control it and use it productively, to stay more consistent with my training, to get more out of each tempo or interval training session, to rebound on race day when something may go wrong, ... Anger makes me more alive and positive actually. It prevents me from feeling sorry for myself in a tough situation and slipping into an abyss of defeat. The key is to control it. If an unfortunate situation happens to you during a race making you angry to the point where you go on an uncontrolled rampage to make up time or ground quickly, well this is reckless and typically ends bad. There are some though who won't let anger creep in and instead remain too mellow and accept certain situations too easily. They need to release their inner Leslie Chow trapped in a trunk with a tire iron.

Give some thought to where you perceive yourself in sport and in life and ask honestly if you are content. Then ask if contention is a good thing? Is it OK to never be content? I think so. As long as you think positively, and are in a good place mentally. The main thing is to treat the mental training as serious, if not more so, than the physical training. And not close yourself off to anything.

Cheers,

EH

Camps and Clinics

2010-08-24T20:15:00.001-04:00

Hi All,

Hope you are having a great season and 2010! Below is some information – I hope to see you at one of these fun and informative camps and clinics;

2011 Tucson Camp – Your chance to save $100 is closing fast! Get in your deposit soon to reserve your spot. You don’t want to miss out on this one!

http://www.hodska.com/arizona2011.html

Triathlon 101 Camp – October 15th, 16th and 17th; This is a camp designed for those new to triathlon, intimidated by other camps, wanting to accelerate there tri growth and have a great time in a non-ego enviroment; If you want to learn or work on the following: swim stroke analyzed, their bike position dialed in, learn how to ride hills, or descend hills, how to move through transitions efficiently, how to run well off the bike, proper running form and shoe analysis, how to incorporate heart rate monitor and power training, how to incorporate strength training into your swim, bike, run schedule, how to eat right for optimal health and body composition and fueling for races, how to taper, … This camp will be based out of Monroe, CT. The cost for the three days is $375 which is a bargain (hotel and meals not included). Please contact Eric at ehods@earthlink.net for more information or to register.

Progressive Functional Strength Training for Endurance Athletes - If any of you have attended one of my strength training clinics in the past, this is the updated, advanced version including more overall strengthening exercises utilizing dumbbells, physioballs, bands, and a TRX. This is a course that will teach you how to incorporate an effective, optimal strength routine into your endurance training schedule. It’s designed to strengthen your system, with emphasis on the core, and to build functional strength, raise your metabolism and alter your body composition favorably. The first two dates which will be outside in Monroe are Saturday, September 18th, and Saturday, October 23rd, from 8am until 11am. $60 for a clinic. Contact Eric at ehods@earthlink.net for more information or to register.

Cleveland Winterfest Camp – February 4th, 5th and 6th 2011, contact Angela Forster at coachaft@att.net or Eric at ehods@earthlink.net for more information.

More clinics including swim clinics will be conducted as well so please tune in to www.hodska.com for more information.

Sunday group runs will resume once again in mid September out of Monroe at 7am at the Monroe Rail Trail.

Other 2011 Camps:

May = Connecticut Camp

June = Lake Placid Camp

August = CT Dos Camp

Cheers,

EH

www.hodska.com

Where's the summer going?

2010-08-09T08:22:00.006-04:00

The last two weeks have been a blur. First I was in Lake Placid for the Ironman. No, I wasn't racing this year, but I had 15 athletes that were, all crossing the finish line, a few even qualifying for Hawaii. I know it sounds cliche but I'll say it anyways; I was quite proud of everyone. As I remind everyone that completes an Ironman, whether it's their first or their 20th, it's a rare feat and they are in select company. Because we train quite hard for months on end, associate mainly with other triathletes, and see some very fast competitors, it's easy to take for granted the fact that you just swam 2.4 miles, biked 112 miles and ran 26.2 miles all in one day. Gus was unbelievably fit and the most prepared he's been entering a race. He had a tough day out there on the run and he knows now that it's not nutritional or mispacing but that it's mental. The IM is in his head and giving him the beat down. He'll figure it out though - I'm confident in this. He's a determined, talented and smart guy(Hope this doesn't go to his head). I've often said that the body follows the mind. If you anticipate something going wrong during the long day and focus on it, it'll happen. I mentioned to Gus that when he did his first IM at IMFlorida a bunch of years ago, he was relaxed and seemed at ease for most of the day. He had a stellar race. He needs to revisit this. Jamie finished in 10.5 hrs and looked solid out there all day. Morgan was right behind him and hanging tough on the marathon. She was doing her first IM and her determination and race intensity is something to see. Kramer, racing his 17th IM or something like that, pr'd this course and he did so with a huge hole in his ankle - we did mainly all his run training as water running. His wife Dena was racing her first IM and she embraced the day. Not only did she stay solid all day, but she did so with a smile and with character. It was honestly motivating for me to see this enthusiasm. Again, I don't want to take this great sport for granted. I race very selectively now because I want to get excited about the process and about the race. I want to be able to get myself up for a big day. Often, after being involved in sport for a long while, we mentally get stale, not physically. I remember Michael Jordan upon his retirement saying that he physically still felt as though he could compete, but that mentally he just couldn't envision getting himself "up" for each game in a full NBA season. I don't want to enter a race just to participate personally. I want to be competitive whether it's with others or with myself and my own times and personal records. I have no desire to race if I can't challenge myself in this way. It seems that in my 40's, the system for me is to race one season, then go easy the next, to let my mind recharge and get motivated to compete once again. Seeing and working with someone like Dena - her commitment, her nervousness, her excitement - it's organic, it's refreshing and it's inspiring to me. There were lots of cool performances in Lake Placid and Alan, Molson, Baker, Dan, Clint, Scott, Jen, Robin, Megan, James, Mark, Linda - you should all feel proud of your day. Of course it's easy to use hindsight now and pick apart how you could have gone faster but the bottom line is you took on the challenge, prepared well for it, and crossed that finish line.

I left LP at 3:30am on Monday morning to be in Greenwich early to see my PT clients, worked Tuesday, then on Wednesday, Lisa, the kids and I headed to Marthas Vineyard for a family vacation. the weather was ideal on MV and I actually got in some solid training. The kids participate in a kids camp each morning from 9 to noon, so I'd head out for a bike and run each day. I even ran into Sue Flemming out riding up near Chilmark one day decked out in her Bethel Cycle kit. I ran a pathetic 5k race while there and to punish myself for the slow time, I ran another 90 minutes that evening. The cool thing was the whole family ran the 5k, as well as our friends the Neumeyer's, the family we were vacationing with. The race was actually 3.24 miles according to my garmin (and a few of the other competitors concurred), but nonetheless, I was slow.

I was up in Hartford twice late last week, once for an information meeting for those interested in running the Disney Marathon for the American Liver Foundation. There will be two more information meetings this week, Tuesday in New Haven and Wednesday in Branford, so if you are around and would like to run the Disney Marathon in January with yours truly writing your coaching schedule, show up or send me a note. It's a great cause and the Disney Marathon is currently closed for applications so this is your only way in! Then Lisa and I were back up the next night to see the Black Eyed Peas. Say what you want but they are unbelievably entertaining. And Fergie is easy to look at.

That's all for now.

Cheers,

EH

I'm back up in LP

2010-07-24T19:31:00.002-04:00

Big race tomorrow! I have 15 athletes primed and ready to roll at 7am ET. I arrived here in LP Thursday night around 5pm and I've been meaning to post but honestly, I haven't had a second to get on line.

As soon as I got out of the car Thursday, I went for a run, and by chance, met up with Molson, Gus and six other athletes I work with. Lots of familiar faces up here in LP, and also lots of attitude. It seems like IM's are getting more and more intense race week. Hawaii has, unfortunately, always been like this. But it was never intense like this at the domestic races and especially here in LP. Well, that's changed and I found/find myself shorter in patience. A few notes/tips for those considering doing an IM or for those that are doing them but may not know any better - You don't need to dress during race week like you can break into a race at any minute. Compression socks and Oakley Radars w/ a lycra shirt aren't really restaurant attire. And I definitely realize the sacrifice and effort that goes with preparing for an Ironman. Yet you don't need to stare down every other athlete as though they are your nemesis (unless they actually are). It also seems way more crowded here than last year which must represent the economy on the upswing.

Friday, I woke up early and did a solo ride up Whiteface posting my fastest ascent on this mountain to date which was a cool, small, personal victory. I then rode the course in reverse and met my athletes at the top of the big downhill on the race course on rt 73. We rode the downhill two to three times, having family members drive us back up. There was a light drizzle, yet everyone did well. Baker and Molson went down one more time as I rode back to LP. Next I met one on one with a bunch of athletes and then headed out for a run before finishing the day off at Molson's house who once again (third or fourth year now), kindly hosted a dinner party for my athletes.

This morning, I rode with Mike B. and the Bethel boys on the course (hot and humid ride!), met with more athletes, got in a nice swim including saving a pregnant women who was exhausted and didn't think she'd make it in to shore, then dinner w/ Baker and Ben and Jerry's.

All of my athletes look great - a bit nervous, yet injury free, slightly confident, and rested. Gus won the mossman sprint race in Norwalk CT outright last week so watch out for him tomorrow.

Cheers,

EH

New Site Is Up!

2010-07-13T19:27:00.003-04:00

My new web site is up. Actually, it's an early version still as Alan is still going to tweak a few things, but the main thing is the content. Check out a new article from Straz, Big Rocks, a profiled athlete feature on Jeff Kramer, as well as info on the AZ camp and other cool stuff. We are still looking for pictures (big pictures) for the site, as well as some race reports, camp mvp write ups,... And also stay tuned for some more featured columns like "Advice From The SloPro's" - the much anticipated column by Baker and Molson. I'd love some feedback.

www.hodska.com

Cheers,

EH

Tri Changes?

2010-07-07T09:00:00.001-04:00

I'm done training, hanging it up, retiring, ... Between viewing the World Cup and the Tour De France, there's no time. I'm actually enjoying training a bit in this heat wave we are having. I don't love training and racing in the extreme heat and humidity so this dose of it will be good for acclimating. If you are training mid day in this, just be sure to back off the effort a bit to acclimate properly and not blow up, and of course hydrate lots.

A few weeks ago, I was out on an early Saturday morning ride and just after nearly missing a coyote who dashed across the street in front of me (I've had two solid coyote encounters recently?), i ran into Marty C. who was working his corner. That is, his corner controlling traffic that he always works at the Griskus OD race. He tells me that he's getting back into it (he had a nasty crash last year) finally. Marty has been around the sport for awhile and I always enjoy seeing familiar faces who were around in the 90's racing, still at it. I even ran into LJ Briggs at Rev 3 this year - LJ began racing in the 80's! Anyway, Marty and I were discussing the sport a bit and how it's changed. I'm not a bitter person, and i don't sit around talking about how things used to be. But I'm gonna here: I think there has been some significant changes for the better in our lifestyle sport. However, one thing that Marty and I both agreed upon is that triathletes feel too entitled now adays. Race atmospheres have changed from athletes happy to be there at a race, feeling fortunate that good people organized events for them, to everyone and their mother walking around in compression socks with their $10K bike thinking they are a pro and bitching about what's wrong with the race they are about to do. It seems as though it's always something now; the swim is not accurate, the bike is dangerous, there's too much drafting, the waves aren't fair, or my favorite - the course is too challenging! Sure, race directing has become a business, but it's a headache of a business and, I don't know, I still feel that we should search out hard courses for the challenge and not find flat easy ones just to say that we did such and such a time for a 70.3, and that we should appreciate the fact that we have an outlet for our passion. It's even interesting how training protocols have gotten softer. I've heard often that people that haven't worked with me or don't know me have heard that I'm a high volume, aggressive coach. I like to think that I personalize each athletes plan according to the time they can realistically commit to their passion and also based on their goals. I also have a lot of respect for triathlon and racing in general and want all my athletes at the starting line confident and ready to race, and also ready to recover well from their hard race effort.

Another thing that's changing in regards to training is that we are becoming much to dependant on tech toys. As a coach, I depend on these tech toys like HR monitors and power meters to take the guess work out of how my athletes are handling the training load I provide. I love the technology in our sport as well, and I enjoy keeping updated on all the latest gadgets and science. Sometimes though you need to just feel. You need to get on your bike, without looking at a computer or watch, and just ride. And if you feel strong, cool, up the ante. If you are not feeling so studly, then keep it in the small ring up front, and take in the surroundings on your ride. Look around a bit instead of staring down at some instrument displaying numbers. Just feel. I have both sets of athletes at my camps; those who shun technology, in which I try to get them to use it just a bit more because typically, these athletes are training too hard on their easy days which doesn't allow them to recover well and make the most of their quality days. Then there are those who are way to dependant. I've taken away the toys at camps and had them just run or ride and at first it's like Aroid without a new girlfriend, but soon they not only adapt, but actually feel way less encumbered. There is a middle ground in everything.

So Alan promises me a new website this week and I've been a nag, holding him to it because I'm anxious to switch it up. We have some really good content so please check out www.hodska.com this week and look for the new site. I'll also send out an announcement about it when it is ready to release. And if anyone has any race reports or anything of interest they want to contribute, please do.

Cheers,
EH

Sat and Sun of LP Camp

2010-07-02T13:53:00.003-04:00

Forgive the last sterile post. I'll try to be a bit more candid. I like to document what we did but I also feel it's important, yes, very f'n important, to post the extracurricular activities at camp. Not the Kenny and Alan gay experience - they can tell that story (they insist it was just once), but stuff like how much food Gus really eats, and how we found out that Mountain Mist Ice Cream is a drive through.

Saturday: We began at 6am at Mirror Lake for a swim. Today is a full tri day. Besides my group, the lake was empty. Most triathletes brick ride and runs regularly in their training, however, I feel most don't realize the importance of swim bike bricks. There is a significant metabolism and muscular change from swim to bike and it's important to practice this if you want to make this transition that much easier on race day. We all swam about an hour give or take and I don't know about anyone else, but the last thing I wanted to do at 6am on Saturday morning was get in the lake. But you know what, I really enjoyed it after the initial five minutes of being a pussy. It was peaceful and loosened me up a bit. I swam easier and it was almost relaxing (almost). We scarfed down some breakfast and by 8am, we were on the bikes. The plan was to ride two loops of the course, some doing the two loops without the out and back, and many doing the out and back along rt. 9 past 86 to Ausable Forks, which we now know will be the out and back on race day. The weather was comfortable and overcast. I started a few of the athletes fifteen minutes earlier, and took the main group out, instructing them as we began the climb after the bridge by the ski jumps on 73 on how they should ride today. Then Gus moved to the front and began pushing the pace a bit. Next moved up Alan who just told me he was going to ride easier today and now is working it up front, then Kramer shot to the front and was clearly working it, claiming he needed to warm up a bit. I decided I didn't want to be part of the shenanigans since they should mainly be riding steady/aerobic today, so I moved to the front and took off on my own to catch the earlier group. The previous day, I didn't pay much attention to my own hydration, paying mainly attention to all my athletes from camp, and I paid for it in the last 30 minutes. Today, I kept my hydration up and my calories coming and rode really strong. I rode with just about every athlete from my camp today. I never rode with Molson or Baker but I'm sure now that they never even rode Saturday. It started to rain lightly for the last 45 minutes or so of the ride but it actually wasn't a bother. One thing that really impressed me was how well my group rode today. They had done an extremely hard ride the previous day that I guarantee no one else up in LP had done and yet they looked stronger and more relaxed than most on Saturday. Yes, they all settled down after the initial cat and mouse stuff on 73 and rode smart. Yes, my group of athletes are the best and most well trained:) We ran 30 to 45 minutes as a brick on the run course, each on our own today. Finished the day with a discussion on mental/attitude, did some mvp's and watched the US lose to Guana. A 22 ounce UBU Ale from Nicola's was necessary and is also quite strong after a day like this. Two leaves you feeling really nice!

Sunday: The main session on Sunday for all my camps is the long run. Today was 2 to 2.5 hrs. I took a vote the day before for running on trails to Avalanche Lake versus running on the course and it was split which sucked because I sent Baker and Ken w/ some athletes to run the trails while I ran with the other athletes on the course and I would have 100% preferred to run the trails. A few wanted a bit more knowledge of the course which is great for the bike course but running is running. What they really want is confidence that they can run well on this course but that's tough to ask for after doing this run on the last day of a very busy and strenuous camp. I am all about experiences. You get a hell of a lot more of an experience from a trail run up to Avalanche Lake than from pounding the pavement. A few mentioned how they wanted to keep their normal stride and felt that the trails inhibit this, especially the really steep stuff. My answer here is that they will soon enough be right back to running their typical training routes back home and that the one run on trails, even if your stride may be shorter, won't effect their conditioning whatsoever. More over, the trails are much less punishing on extremely tired joints, tendons and ligaments, and the heart rate still is elevated quite high on some of the technical steep trails. Anyway, we ran the course and it was fine. I always offer some optional sessions on Sunday, either an easy swim or ride, but everyone is usually done after the long run both mentally and physically and they are anxious to pack up and get on the road. And you know what, the fact that no one takes up the optional sessions is actually not a bad thing. It would just be junk mileage. Plus they are all more than likely quite sick of me.

On my drive home, I thought a bunch about signing up for the 2011 LP IM...

Cheers,

EH

LP Camp come and gone

2010-06-30T06:28:00.004-04:00

I've mentioned too many times that "I'm back" after taking a blog hiatus - it's getting old and so I'll save the bullshit. Yes, I've been lazy about blogging. Funny, I still feel as though this is just a personal journal and that no one would be interested in reading it - it still seems so self absorbed. I have been called out quite a bit lately though, from many that I haven't blogged in awhile, and especially while I was in Lake Placid.

I just finished up my Lake Placid Camp and I'm quite tired! This camp was busy from the get go. Here's my documentation/notes on each day:

Tuesday: Camp begins on Wednesday evening, yet I recruited Molson and Gus to meet me up there earlier and do some reconnaissance. Jeff and I got a swim in in Mirror lake, my first swim (besides a quick splash in Tucson) since Kona last year. I actually felt ok?! The Vasa trainer must pay off a bit. It's always great seeing Jeff and Gus who have become two of my better friends.

Wednesday: The three of us ran from the Marriott about a mile and half to a trail that was great! It was hilly and well maintained and we did ran a few loops and a bit over an hour later were back and ready for breakfast. Next, we worked on Jeff's bike a bit then watched the US beat Algeria in extra time before heading out on the bikes. We rode the course in reverse including checking out the new out and back section. The roads were in really shitty condition, but the weather was good. The long climb up rt 73 (the big downhill on the course) is not that bad to ride up. It's just long. But ride Whiteface and this seems like a bump. The group began arriving and we met for another swim. Mirror Lake's water temperature was great - very comfortable. This early day up here really allowed me to escape CT and relax I guess. I really do love it up in Lake Placid. I mean, if you are an outdoor person, how could you not.

Thursday: First official day of camp. We started with a wet trail run near Mount Marcy (the highest peak in NY). This was a 1 hour 45 min trail run through pine forests, bogs, up steep hills, to an amazing lookout, then back. It rained on us, but when your running, rain doesn't matter. In fact, it kept the deer flies away and the conditions cool. The pace was comfortable and I kept the group together for the most part. Shoes were lost temporarily in the bog, Gus was thrown into puddles, and all laughed and played as though they were 10 again. Next was a bike ride on the course where we stopped every 20 minutes or so and I described the course and how to race it. The rain let up and actually, the sun popped out. We then met at Mirror lake for a swim. Afterwards, mvp awards were passed out to Scott B. and Mark M. and then it was already dinner time! Day one done.

Friday: Early start as we were riding up the Whiteface Mountain access road to the top of Whiteface, and you need to be off this road by 8:30am when the open it up to cars. Ive done the climb up Whiteface numerous times and it's always been rainy, foggy, freezing, ... This day, conditions were ideal - cool and not a cloud in the sky. the views were absolutely amazing. There were many training camps taking place this week/weekend and I never saw any of them leave the IM course. To miss out on this climb and these views is a shame! I guess if they have never seen it, they don't realize what they are missing. Still, in my view, it's a shame. We descended Whiteface where I had some amazing speed wobbles on my road bike to the point where I thought for sure I was going down. Need to figure out what's going on there. Then we took a back road we call "the land of the lost" which is once again, off the course, yet connects in Ausable Forks on Rt. 9. We then road the course in reverse. The sun was getting strong, yet riding up rt 73 once again seemed easier after ascending Whiteface earlier in the ride. five hour day in the saddle. We followed this up with a brick run on a nice shaded trail, then we drove down 86 and soaked our sore legs in the gorge while and had a discussion. We followed this up with stretching and Brennan gave an overview of MyAthlete. More MVP's to the chicks (Dena, Morgan, and Gus) and then dinner.

I'll finish Saturday and Sunday and an overview later. I did a lot of thinking at this camp which can be dangerous and I have a lot to express here. Although I'm not promising anything!

Cheers,

EH

Two Interesting Training Runs

2010-05-30T06:53:00.003-04:00

Everyone is or should be in full training mode right now for their up and coming races. I've had many people asking me if and where I'm racing this season which I appreciate. As a coach, I'm providing my athletes a path that hopefully builds their fitness, expands their mental and physical limits, and puts them on the starting line of their goal races confident and ready. Because I've committed myself to an "every other year big goal" plan as of lately, it's easy for me to get distracted with others on my in between years and forget that I also need some carrots out there to pursue. I also feel it's important for me to practice what I preach. I want to race in a 70.3 or two, but need to find some that fit in my calendar. June looks shot as of right now between recitals, soccer tournaments, Camps, ... My main goal this season will most likely be Olympic Distance Nationals in Tuscaloosa in September. I need a qualifying race first though.

I've been running a few days a week with my wife, including a great run that we did last Saturday in Central Park. We stayed in NYC last Friday night to celebrate our 15 year anniversary. Saturday morning was beautiful weather and as we made our way warming up easily to Central Park South, we merged in with a bunch of runners that were being paced by official Nike pacers for the up and coming 1/2 marathon taking place in NY. This worked well since they new the trail system through the park. Honestly, there were maybe 10,000 runners in the park that morning! I'm used to running all alone in the trails near my home so the visual stimulation was fun. Lisa is more competitive then me - if she lived in NY and ran in the park regularly, she'd get injured or burned out quick. She hates getting passed and all her runs would end up as tempo.

Speaking of running in the trails alone and running tempo, I had a cool experience yesterday in the trails near my home that I run in all the time. I had about 90 minutes to work in a run in between soccer games and I planned to work the hills and also work in two by 20 minute tempo efforts. About one hour in, I was working a hill over on a single track trail and as I crested it, about fifteen feet in front of me, I startled a pack of young coyotes. There were maybe 10 or 12 of them scrambling everywhere and I froze in my tracks, turned off my music, and looked everywhere for A) their elders, and B) a big stick. This was the first time I've ever seen coyotes in these trails that I've been running weekly for the last ten years.

There are only four weeks left until my LP Camp! If you haven't signed up yet, what are you waiting for???

Cheers,

EH

2010-05-19T06:35:00.002-04:00

Here's a picture of some of the group from CT Camp after climbing over Mt. Everett from MA to NY. Notice all the Cannondales!

I am finally all caught up with 24 - Holy shit! They are going out with a bang.

Stay tuned for the new Hodska.com website.

Cheers,

EH

Last Day of CT Camp:(

2010-05-16T19:16:00.004-04:00

I'll be brief here this evening since I'm limited on time and have a bucket load of emails in my inbox to get to.

Jeff molson and I were chatting a bit after the long run today (more on this run in a bit) and he couldn't figure out why this camp wasn't filled up and with a waiting list. I told him it was due to two things: 1) Most have no idea how great the training venue is in upper Northwest CT. I often think back to Gus E.'s first time considering coming up to this camp. He said point blank to me "why should I attend a camp in Connecticut? Convince me to go." I convinced him and he's been back many times since. 2) the camp seems a bit expensive at first, but what most don't realize is how much you get and that it's a one time fee basically, unless you are Q ordering pricey bottles of wine at dinner. Jeff's words were "this is the best camp", and this is coming from a guy who has attended all my Tucson and LP camps and also my Palm springs camp. I happen to agree. the terrain is harder than all the other camps. The roads are in the best condition compared to all other camps. The pool is incredible. The food is incredible. Listen, I love my Tucson Camp and my LP Camp. they are both amazing places and we have managed to find the best of what these places have to offer as well. However, the CT Camp is still the top of the food chain.

Back to today: Today was long run day. We began from the Interlaken Inn and ran 2 miles to a trail that parallels rt. 41. We followed this trail north for a few miles until it popped out on rt. 44. From here, we ran pavement for maybe 1/2 mile until connecting with the Appalachian Trail. We then ran the Appalachian Trail to what Jeff dubbed "Eric's Lookout" which is an amazing lookout on the Appalachian Trail in the Berkshires. There is a ton of uphill to get there and everyone was quite quiet and plugging away. The lookout is well worth the climb. It was perfect weather and a beautiful run, mostly on trails. We then went down to the lake and soaked our tired legs for a bit before heading to breakfast and calling it a camp.

Thanks to all who participated. I had a blast working and training with all of you and hopefully, you had fun as well.

Oh, Morgan set the EH CT Camp TT record for the women. My post from Friday suggested she set the overall record and I don't want the guys laying into me.

Cheers,

EH

CT Camp - Day 3

2010-05-15T21:19:00.002-04:00

Saturday at camp is always a big day. Typically, I like to work in a long hard bike followed by a solid run/brick. Today, I added in a swim first thing to make it a full tri day.

We went over to Hotchkiss pool at 7am to get in a solid session of shorter intervals, but decent yardage. I gave Morgan and Quentin a set of 5 100's and told them I wanted them all done in 1:10. they looked at me as though I had two heads and then proceeded to bang out five all in 1:06 to 1:07.

Breakfast and then onto the bikes. It was a beautiful day in northwest CT; sunny and in the low 70's. Lot's of wind but that just adds to the fun in my book. I took the group on a killer ride in both altitude gained and scenery. For those that know the area, we rolled down 112 to the junction of rt7 where we gave Dangle the nine finger salute, then headed up over Music mountain (first solid climb), then right onto rt 63 where you climb forever, albeit gradually, up to rt 4 in Goshen, back to cornwall, south on 7, then up Carter Hill which is the hardest climb in CT. Q reached the top and declared it was the hardest climb he's ever done including the long epic Spain climbs. Descend to Warmaug then climb Anderson Acres out of warmaug, descend Geer Mtn and stop in Kent for some gelato, ride north on 7 then west on rt 4 which is a 4 mile climb and back mudge pong/indian Mtn rd.

We split basically into two groups and my group was very compatible. Morgan, Q, and Kevin. Morgan will be the top amateur female at Lp, mark my words. I hope she doesn't read this so that she doesn't feel any added pressure but she is solid across the board.

We topped off the five hour ride with a 50 minute run with again, you guessed it, more hills. Hills make you strong. Repeat. Hills make you strong.

OK, boring post but it's late and honestly, it was such perfect weather and such a great training day that I really cant do it justice anyways.

Cheers,

EH

Day Two - Testing Day

2010-05-14T08:48:00.004-04:00

I don't know what was in the dessert last night but I had some funky dreams and slept erratically. Molson, Q, and I made an early morning 6:15am coffee run to Millerton, then we met the group in front of the Interlaken to jog the 1/8th of a mile to the Hotchkiss track next door. Hotchkiss just rebuilt their track and inner field and they pulled all the stops - this facility is nicer than most university tracks. The group did a mile and a half warm-up and then we jumped right into the testing. We were establishing threshold heart rates and setting up run training zones. After the cooldown, everyone met for breakfast before suiting up to ride.

This ride is simply amazing. No, I'm not embellishing. If you ride a bike, than you can certainly appreciate the ride we did today. It rolls out for an hour before hitting a solid longer climb, then there is a beautiful rolling country road and then 1 hr 45 min in, we begin the eight mile point to point time trial on another rolling road with no cross traffic. After the TT, we spin around beautiful twin lakes then ride the rollers out to a monster 5+ mile climb from MA into NY, then switchback descents that make you feel as though you are in Europe, then a bike path and country road of rollers for an hour back. A 4.5 hr ride with some serious elevation gain, a time trial, nice rolling roads, a super descent, no traffic, great road conditions, and oh, it was in the 70's and sunny for most of the ride!

I sent out everyone on the TT in one minute intervals. I held many of the bikes while the athletes locked in and prepped for take off. Jeff Molson was up and said "Ready Eric?" Problem was I wasn't near his bike. He thought I was holding it and tried to clip in and went right down on his side. After we found out he was fine, we all had a good laugh. OK, I was actually laughing before finding out he was ok. It was like one of those trust exercises where someone falls backwards trusting someone else to catch them, only I wasn't there. Morgan C. rode further today then she has ever ridden in her life and she also set a new course record for the EH CT Camp eight mile TT - how cool is that!

We had to high tail back the last hour because I had the Hotchkiss pool booked for a late afternoon swim. We had the whole pool to ourselves - actually, both pools. I was anticipating a lot of leg cramping so I gave them a long set that included some of everything to keep it interesting and that put them all around 3000 yds give or take.

Before you know it, the day was done and we were back at the Interlaken Bar enjoying a round before dinner. The group has already bonded quite well making the dinners fun and relaxing and less about triathlon.

Time to get some rest because we have a big day planned tomorrow and I always love the Saturday CT Camp ride. We are missing Gus though - you should be here! And I miss Annmarie yelling at me.

Cheers,

EH

CT Camp - Day 1!

2010-05-13T21:10:00.002-04:00

I'm back! Not just on my blog, but also back up in Lakeville at my CT Camp, and today was a kinda perfect training day I must say.

I don't need to reiterate how much I like it up here or how one day up here puts me in a good place. We met up here at 10am, ready to ride. It was sunny and in the high 60's and no wind. The ride was 4 hours including some controlled hill reps thrown in. Over 5000 feet of climbing on day one. We followed up the ride with a beautiful trail run that winds on single track over creeks, and up and down rolling hills, finishing along a hidden lake. OK, I got us a bit lost, but that just adds to teh adventure. We then did some running technique drills followed by assisted stretching and soaking our legs in the lake. Cap the day off with a great dinner and a few nice dark ales and all is well.

I'll talk more about the group as the camp goes on but one thing I stressed a bunch today was that we need to start training more with our race day efforts in mind. not only physically, but nutritionally. I've had the opportunity to train recently with quite a few triathletes training for ironmans and 70.3's and I'm amazed by the inconsistency in their training efforts and their ignorance towards fuel. To be more specific, a triathlon is about sustaining a steady effort. It doesn't mean that you ride easy until you get to a hill, hammer up the hill as hard as possible, then recover until you get to the next hill. It also doesn't mean riding three hours and drinking only one bottle of fluid and eating hardly anything. If you really want to screw up your race, keep doing this (if this type of training seems similar for some reason). But if you want to truly excel an tap into what you are capable of, lose the ego, and train like you plan on racing.

Big day tomorrow, so time for bed. I'll try to be a bit more animated tomorrow.

Cheers,

EH

Running on the treadmill in Cabo

2010-04-24T10:09:00.009-04:00

I was in Cabos, Mexico with my family this past week while my kids were on spring break. I loved Cabo, however, running on the roads there was less than desirable. I ran the beach one day which was great for my cardiovascualr system, but lousy for my running form and injury prevention considering the beach was steeply pitched and had very loose sand. So I hit the resort gym on Monday morning to put some time in on the treadmill. The treadmills looked out over the beach and at the famous rock formations in the ocean at the southern tip of Cabo where the Sea of Cortez meets the Pacific - not a bad view while torturously running and running in place. There was no AC in the gym. Just a slight breeze blowing in through the open windows. This run was going to be a hot one considering I wanted to get in some tempo work. I brought the treadmill up to 8.5 and hopped on expecting to settle into a 7 min mile pace and almost ran through the front of the machine as the dope in me soon realized the machine was set up in Kilometers per hour.

During the warm-up I was still feeling the omelet I ate less than an hour earlier because I showed no self restraint at breakfast. This is a family vacation and my training shouldn't interfere with that so if I can sneak in some training during the trip, bonus. If not, I've done this long enough to know that A) a week isnt going to seriously effect my plan, and B) some things are more important. However, my son coincidentally had a buddy staying at the resort (what are the chances of us running into a familiar family - one of Ryan's teammates - 3000 miles away from home staying at the same resort?), and Kate had no trouble meeting friends within minutes of arriving at the resort, meaning I could sneak out at the right opportunities for a little bit of me time.

Out in the Sea of Cortez, a few surfers were patiently waiting for the right set to come rolling in. Surfing is something that requires a tremendous amount of fitness, yet surfers don't consider it training whatsoever as they paddle vigorously, pop up and balance using much of their core and lower body. They are engulfed in the thrill which is quite contrary to endurance sports. Going out for a run is not fun like surfing. Don't kid yourself - the outcome and of the training makes it rewarding. Yes, there are times during runs that can be fun, but as a whole, it's really feeding the endorphins and the reward of the accomplishment. There isn't the thrill of excitement like there is in surfing, or playing a pick-up game of basketball, or skiing. As I watched the surfers, my motivation for running on the treadmill dipped a bit, yet viewing the majority of chubby people poolside in their bathing suits kept me going. But am I really that caught up in vanity? I've been married now for 15 years and I don't think Lisa is going anywhere. Not that I would stop training anyways, but just entertaining the fact that part of the reason I was sweating buckets in place at the moment was to not feel guilty about overindulging a bit on vacation. I feel better plus of course I know that I'll go faster with little bodyfat, but I'll also generalize that every endurance athlete is somewhat vein. Maybe it just bothers me a small bit that we are, but it is a reality.

With the warm-up done, I brought the treadmill up to 15 km per hour and did 6 X (2 min at a 6% grade, 3 min at a 1% grade). A heavy, older guy is now huffing and puffing as he walks on the treadmill next to mine. By interval number two, I was focused on just the training and I felt strong. I was zoned in on only the task at hand and all the previous distractions dissipated. I stayed in this clear headed, single focus mode until the cooldown where it hit me; sessions like this are the catalysts that help me relax. Trying to relax beachside, my mind is all over the place. But when I'm doing a harder training session, I'm focused only on one thing and it naturally kind of blanks out my mind. And for the rest of the day I feel better because of it and I'm much more tolerant of anything thrown at me.

As I stopped the treadmill, exhausted yet feeling great, the fat old guy next to me says "is that all you got you big pussy?".

Sorry for the long blog hiatus. I'm back now.

Cheers,

EH

Riding to Warmaug and training w/ power

2010-03-24T08:22:00.003-04:00

I've been able to log a few decent outdoor rides since arriving home from Tucson a few weeks ago. I did my first Lake Warmaug ride last week on a beautiful 65 degree sunny day. Riding around Lake Warmaug is extremely popular to any cyclist in Western Connecticut. I have done this route so many times and yet it never loses it's allure. It's not just the eight mile beautiful loop around the lake though - to me, this part of the ride is just an easy section to recover and get in some nutrition along with beautiful scenery. The round trip ride from my house is roughly 85 miles give or take (I have a few different route options that can lengthen or shorten the trip by a couple of miles) and the whole ride is picturesque, riding along New Englend country roads. The ride out through Southbury and into Roxbury, then Washington is relentless with hills. Nothing to big, but there is one right after the other and some very steep. The return trip is not much different. This course takes it's toll on you. But I love it and just like putting the top down on a convertible or opening up all the house windows on that first spring like Saturday of the year, it signifies a change of seasons for me, putting a period on the end of winter. Sure, we may get a few crappy, cold wintery days still, but my mind is now focused on Spring time and, again, I love it! I love the thought of early Saturday bike rides, and running in daylight at 7:30pm. As much as I try to make each year a bit different, there are traditions and events I've become accustomed to that just feel good. The Warmaug ride is one of them.

I took my Cannondale Slice out for the first time of the year on this loop. I rode my road bike in Tucson and do most of my early season training on my road bike, but I felt like taking out the rocket. The combination of my position being dialed in on this bike, the fact that the bike is just plain fast, and also that it looks extremely fast (yes, there is a huge placebo effect here) meant that I was riding probably harder than I should have, but that's ok. Sometimes you need to bend the margins a bit. When you do it regularly, that's when we get ourselves into trouble.

I was thinking a lot about training with power while riding out to Warmaug and keeping an eye on my own wattage. Training with power has become extremely popular and yet I feel most really don't know how to use their expensive power meter correctly. There are some great books on training with power yet, they can be overly complicated and take some of the enjoyment out of training in general. plus, I feel that many of the tests that are set up for testing threshold are inaccurate. Take functional threshold for example; this is measured by the average power you can exert by going as hard as you can for an hour. many athletes and coaches do and give this test and then extrapolate training plans based off of this number. Yet, most don't really get a super accurate depiction of one's functional threshold because it's extremely hard to push as hard as you can for one hour. Many will do the test and come up with a number. Then, they race an Olympic distance triathlon or bike race and see that they maintained a much higher average power output during an hour portion of the race. So how do you figure out what power zones are correct for you? You ride a bunch, and review your power information and/or have your coach review it. I have athletes that are training for an IM, and they give me their average watts for a 5 hour training ride, yet this number may be front or rear loaded. I want to know where there power was early in the ride, late in the ride, and what their heart rate was doing in correlation to their power, and also how they refueled during the ride. I'll also have them ride a set course at a certain heart rate every six to eight weeks and we will analyze their power output for this course. If their weight hasn't increased and the conditions are similar, then it's a pretty accurate depiction on whether you are making decent training gains, not recovering well, training ineffectively, ... The point is, don't get to fixated on a certain number because it may in fact limit you. It's quite similar to all these triathletes and cyclists that spend a good amount of hard earned cash on a bike fit where they are analyzed on a trainer indoors, and even though the fit may take over an hour, they are pedaling easily on the bike for maybe 10 or 15 minutes. Well, then you see them 90 minutes into a hard outdoor ride and they are sitting on their bike in a totally different manner than their "professional" fit suggested mainly because they are uncomfortable, not generating decent power, ... What I'm saying is that real world analyzing and testing trumps a lot of the lab junk.

Enough on this though, the main idea behind this post is that Spring is here, so get out there and enjoy it!

Cheers,

EH

Finally finishing Tucson Camp Report and other crap.

2010-03-05T08:11:00.013-05:00

I came back from my Tucson camp into a busy life that included catching up on my PT business, working with some new athletes to the EH coaching group, my kids busy schedules amongst other things and before you know it, over a week has passed. I wanted to get down my final thoughts on the Tucson Camp since this camp not only went off really well, but I also had a hell of a lot of fun.

Five years ago I put on a camp in Palm Springs/Joshua Tree National Park area. Brian Grasky from Tucson was there and asked if I'd be interested in putting on a camp in Tucson - in which I did the following year. The very first time I rode up Mt. Lemmon, I knew that this was the place for my winter camp.

Day 5 of camp began with a swim session. The group was in the pool at 7am and I put them through a short yet challenging session, banging out a bunch of fast, descending 50's. Big Leo did most of them under 30 seconds! Quick breakfast at Jamba of course and then we all prepped to ride up Lemmon. I broke the camp into three groups, leaving at staggered times from the hotel, with the idea to get everyone to the top of Lemmon around the same time. It was in the mid 70's at 2500 feet as we spun the 30 minutes over to the base of the climb.

Once you hit "mile 0", the constant elevation begins. The first seven miles are probably the most challenging on Lemmon. There are some steeper gradients higher up, but the first seven miles is a very constant climb. The temperatures were still warm during this early climbing phase. At my camps, whenever we have a big challenge in front of us like Lemmon, or Whiteface in NY, or the Saturday CT Camp ride, I can tell right away that most of the campers really want to do their own thing for the session. The fact that everyone shows up with their ipod headphones in ear is a subtle hint that says "leave me the f'k alone today!" So as we started to climb, I settled into a rhythm and just rode, instead of worrying about spending time with each camper. I did ride up on most and spend a few minutes with each one, gaining a sense of how they were doing and if they did indeed want some company. But for the most part, everyone was focused on doing their own thing and probably solving life's problems as they climbed and climbed listening to whatever it is that adds that touch of rhythm or motivation.

About half way up, I was alone and so I turned on my Oakley Thumps and the first song that pops on is ironically the Foo Fighters "Times like These". I'm riding in shorts and a sleeveless jersey in March up one of the best climbs one can do, pedaling my bike on this gorgeous sunny day and thinking it doesnt get much better.

I had good legs this day, yet kept the pace controlled and aerobic, reminding myself often that it's only March, and so I just relaxed and enjoyed the scenery. At about mile 20, the climb descends for a bit then rolls. Now you are up over 8000 feet and there is a few feet of snow on the ground and the temperatures were in the low 50's. I'm still in shorts and no sleeves and I felt fine except for my hands which were getting numb from the cold. I hit the right turn for the ski area at the 25 mile mark in two hours flat and climbed the last two miles - the steepest two miles out of the 27. People were skiing at this small ski slope on top of this mountain!

A quick descent and we all gathered at the cookie shack for a snack, before adding a bunch of layers of clothing and descending back down. There were lots of cyclists riding Lemmon today, including a few from the Garmin Transitions squad.

Over two hours to climb, and maybe 45 minutes to descend. The descent is a blast, with big sweeping turns and nice roads. You barely have to touch your brakes. Some of the snow run off up top did make me a bit nervous, but otherwise, it was let er rip.

These days, the ones where you do something that you can only do at certain places in the world, are the ones that mean something. These are the days that make these training camps memorable and that give you confidence to carry into the big training towards the season when you get home. On December 31st, 2010, when one is reflecting back on what they did in 2010, this is a day that will stand out.

We all regrouped at the hotel and did an easy 30 minute brick run, and followed this up with some great food from Zona 78 including some great beer and wine.

The camp wasn't done however. Friday, we awoke to make the short drive over to Sabino Canyon to run the telephone line once again. I gave the campers three options, all which would take somewhere between 90 minutes and two hours. The two hour option was to run the telephone line trail up, over, and down to the road, then turn and head back up, over and down, traversing back the way we came. This is a grueling yet beautiful run. Kerri from last years camp and a friend of hers joined us for this run. The sun pops up over the mountains sometime between 7:30 and 8am and seems to warm you instantly. Sabino Canyon is just incredible - I sat next to a guy on the flight home who's lived in Tucson for 18 years now, maybe 5 miles from Sabino Canyon, and yet he's never been there!? That's just pathetic, and I told him this.

Molson was heading out Friday afternoon which meant he'd miss the last long ride. Jeff, who has had his share of back issues, did amazingly well with the training this week. He seemed to get stronger each day as well. But where he really shined was the energy he added to the camp. Jeff seems to really embrace the experience and enjoy every moment of it. This enviroment - this is where he shines. He had us laughing all week, so thanks for that jeff! He and Gus have become very frequent campers. These two have attended almost every camp I've hosted over the last six or seven years, and as much as I appreciate their loyalty, I appreciate their friendship more. Enough on them though because they may actually read this and I don't want their heads to swell.

The final camp ride left from the hotel and headed west on a bike path through town to Gates pass, climbed over Gates pass and then did the McCain loop through Saguaro Park west. Very solid ride, everyone held up really well and yes, it was sunny and in the 70's. I could elaborate more but this post is already lengthy and I'm getting a bit bored with it, so until next year, adios Tucson!

OK, the other crap is going to have to wait until my next post.

Cheers,

EH

Tucson - Day 4

2010-03-04T08:15:00.010-05:00

Day 4, everyone is typically a bit tired and emotions can run high when you are tired. It's easy to overanalyze and over dramatize. I was suprised at, given the fact that many were quite tired, attitudes were still excellent. So we decided to be adventerous and start the day with one of my favorite places to run which is back at Sabino Canyon and this time we would tackle Bear Canyon/Seven Falls. I knew that with the wet winter Tucson had and the snow melting from the mountain caps, the river would be flowing, so I told everyone to prepare to get wet.

This trails follows against the river, go up the canyon. it's a constant elevation gain on the way out and you have to cross the river six or seven times to stay on the trail. the water crossings were deep and most had fun spplashing through the cold water as though they were kids again.

I'm always interested at these camps to see who responds well to some of the training I throw at them. Running these trails takes an adventerous heart. Many endurance athletes are to focused on numbers. Their pace per mile, their heart rate, their distance, ... But in March, when most arent racing for awhile, the benefits of a run like this far surpass any other type of training run they could be doing. Why? because it builds aerobic fitness, strength, agility and lateral stability, and most importantly, it's a blast and something you will remember. I reminded those with me that soon they will be back at home running there same old routes and that they should cherish this experience. Gus, Brad, and Brian took it all in, and the huge grins on their face was enough to let me know they were loving this trail run. They all commented that it was the best run they have ever done, and you know what? I have to agree.

Tucson - Day 3

2010-03-03T07:33:00.002-05:00

I always think that I'll get some solid sleep while at my camps given the fact that we are usually back in our rooms by 8:30pm, I don't have the kids who may wake me up, and we begin each day around 6:30am compared to 4:30am when I am home. It never happens though - the solid sleep that is. I've been up at 3:30am everyday thus far, and I usually adapt quickly to a time change so I don't think it's that.

Tuesday was a great "typical" day at camp keeping in mind that no camp day is typical compared to what we are used to back home. I thought I'd run through what takes place:

6am: Starbucks run (I get a grande quad americano)

6:30am: meet in hotel lot to drive over to Saguaro Park East for a 1 hr run

7-8am: run in the park which was amazing this morning once again. The run starts on a hilly road that has you feeling as though you are on a roller coaster. The sun was just popping up and the air temps were perfect for running in - in the upper 50's. The views in this desert park seem fake, given that everything looks perfect. The trail that cuts through the center of this park is one of my favorites. it's a constant gradual climb, something the campers are getting used to out here, and to me, it's just amazingly peaceful.

8:30am: breakfast at Jamba Juice and Brueggers (i prefer the peanut butter moo'd shake with a whey protein boost and a couple of bagels with nothing on them)

10:30am: meet to drive up to Oro Valley Pool.

11am: ride from the pool north up to Oracle. This again is a constant gradual uphill on the way to Oracle. It was bizarre in the sense that it felt like the crest of the hill was just ahead yet it never came?. The pace started very social and then some of the campers were feeling a bit jumpy and it started to get fun. The descent back was a blast yet there was also a strong headwind which meant that you couldn't just coast. The group was still hitting it hard and i have a feeling that they are going to be a bit beat today (Wednesday). I reiterate constantly that this is base training and stay aerobic the majority of the time since we are piling on some solid volume, but hosting camps for over ten years now has taught me that most athletes want to hammer without thinking to much about the next few days.

3-4pm: swim - We did mostly drill work and stroke and form evaluation.

5-6pm: Bill Daniels reviewed video of the campers swim strokes.

6:15pm: Dinner at El Charro. Gus out did himself this evening, putting on an eating clinic. They had negro modelo on tap which meant that I was happy. Dinner was followed by Frost gelato once again.

Solid day! Great day.

Cheers,

EH

AZ day 2

2010-03-01T23:04:00.002-05:00

ok, super short because it was a very busy day and I still have a bunch of schedules to write. But it was a great day! Sunny and 70 - hard to beat. started with a 90 min swim at an amazing outdoor pool with what appeared to be 80 lanes, sitting at the foothills of the mountains. Breakfast, then 4 hour ride out to Colossal Cave and then a few loops in Saguaro Park East, and I wore just bib shorts and a sleeveless jersey - nice! Followed up the ride with a short brick run. We just came back from dinner and Frost gelato, which we will hit every night this week. Tonight I went with 1/2 peanut butter crunch, 1/2 vanilla. The group did really well today. There's been no bitching at all. Everyone is fun - not a single person getting on my nerves!

For a more detailed version of today, check out Molson's blog post that includes description, pictures, elevation charts, ... He got the MVP last night and he still angling for more I think.

www.hodskatricamp2010.blogspot.com

Tomorrows a big day, including a 12 mile climb up Kitt Peak.

Cheers,

EH

Tucson Camp Day 1 and 2

2010-02-28T22:06:00.002-05:00

Arrived in Tucson yesterday afternoon. This is my fourth year hosting this camp here and it's great once again to be back. I feel like I really know the place now. Gus and I traveled out together and had smooth travels. Not as exciting as Tom and Huck (Molson nicknames for Jeff and Brian from Missouri) who saw Gwen Stefani on their flight from Vegas to Tucson. Molson had the woman beater Chris Brown on his flight from Dallas to Tucson. I had Gus.

We have a very solid and compatible group this year and once again, what's more important is that they are all fun and like to laugh.

Today started with an early Starbucks run because that's the tradition now. We then made the very short drive to Sabino Canyon to start this camp off with a run over the telephone line trail - one of my favorite run routes ever. For the first time that I've ever experienced here, it was raining steadily. It was cool yet perfect running weather. The water was rushing through some of the usually dried out river beds and overflowing the lower road and trail that starts and finishes this great run and it was cold yet fun sloshing through the knee deep water. There something that takes you back to your youth about running with sneakers and clothes through water. This group didn't blink as we splashed through the first stream which sends a subtle signal my way that we have the right crew here. Molson sent over some elevation charts from the run which you can see on his AZ camp blog here: http://hodskatricamp2010.blogspot.com/ We climbed over 1000 feet in 2.5 miles!

The day was damp and cold, yet the rest of the week calls for sun and 70's so all is solid here. If anyone is interested in seeing what we are doing out here training wise, check out: http://www.trackmyathlete.com/vemap.aspx?name=025176

More tomorrow.

Cheers,

EH

Cleveland Wrap Up

2010-02-18T18:50:00.002-05:00

I've been a bit hyper lately and it's because of one thing as far as I can tell. That one thing is the fact that I'll be in Tucson in nine days. I'm not over-exaggerating here. I am craving some warm bright days and long time in the saddle without wearing eight layers of clothing that takes 45 minutes to put on. I HATE wearing booties. Just the stupid name alone, booties, kills me. OK, enough whining. It's not camp yet so I can bitch a little bit. I'm also way behind on training at the moment and Tucson will snap me straight. I'll be paying me dues there, but I actually look forward to it.

I know I'm a bit behind here, but wanted to jot down the final day of Cleveland Winterfest while it's still in my mind. It was, in my opinion, a very cool day of camp! The final day of the camp, where many were tired from the previous two days, yet we still had a long indoor training ride to do. We met bright and early at Kyle's gym "Euphoria" to set up everyone on their bikes in the spin gym. A big thanks once again to Kyle for letting us use his state of the art facility. Letting us use the place was huge! The fact that it was really cutting edge was a big bonus. Ive been training people for twenty years and have set up my fair share of fitness centers and gyms and this place is really great. If you are in Cleveland or visiting, check it out. It's right near the airport. I was on a spin bike leading the session and Jay asked if I had planned a good playlist for the session and I laughed and said "Jay, we don';t plan anything here! Everything is spontaneous and it seems to work." The fact is that Angela is more than organized and made the agenda flow so smoothly. But I wasn't lying about not having a playlist set up. I had my two ipods and just let it roll. I'll give up another secret and that is that I didn't have a bike session in mind before we started to ride on Sunday. I like to assess the group and see where they are at and also see what I feel like throwing out there.

As we warmed up spinning along, I asked Liz, the mvp camper from day one, if she wanted to say a few things about the charity "Girls With Sole" that she was raising funds for in her IM quest (she's training for the Rev 3 IM in Ohio). She was eloquent and confident in her description of her charitable organization and her story also blew me away. If anyone is actually reading this, please do me a favor and look up her charity "Girls With Sole" and make a small contribution. I know - trust me, I hate soliciting. But us fortunate people can contribute a few dollars to a charity that raises funds and awareness for young foster girls.

We then got on with the session and I put a lot of quality in there and we rode for three hours! This wasn't just a three hour indoor spin. Again, I put a lot of quality in because i don't believe in long spinning indoor training rides - you know, just sitting on the trainer to log time in the saddle. I feel it's extremely boring and also a waste of time if you could get in some solid quality in a shorter time frame. This three hour ride was equivalent to 4.5 hrs on the road. The time seemed to pass quickly though. Well, at least it did for me, but everyone seemed to enjoy the session, whether they liked my music or not! We only had one mishap, when Mikey Donuts wiped out on his rollers. yes, he showed up with rollers. I think he did this just to entertain us though.

A brick run off the bike followed by a camp wrap up and I was off to the airport to catch my flight home and hopefully make the kick-off for the Superbowl (I made it with less than one minute to spare).

Based on the feedback that Ange and I received and the fact that I had a blast, I plan on putting on a Winterfest Camp here in CT in late March.

Cheers,

EH

New Stuff

2010-02-15T19:30:00.003-05:00

This is my new Cannondale high mod super six race horse that will be guiding me up Mt. Lemmon in less than two weeks! 58 cm w/ all durable components and weighs 15 lbs even w/ pedals, cages... Awesome!

And these are the Zoot's that will carry me over Telephone Line and up Seven Falls!

Cheers,

EH

Leadville thoughts part 2

2010-02-13T18:51:00.003-05:00

OK, I've had a few days to simmer down and more importantly - think. I definitely understand and support a lottery. I guess I would just prefer if there were two options; a lottery and a qualifying standard. I guess my anger is more that the whole selection process is left up to a lottery. I think that the NYC marathon has a good system in place where the majority of it is through the lottery, yet you can still get in with qualifying times. Hawaii, I feel should have more lottery slots. Yes, that's right. I respect that race so much and I wish more would have the opportunity to experience it. Selfishly, I was voicing out my emotions immediately following receiving the news that I didn't get selected. I'll find something else to do this season, and I don't want to come across as whining or complaining. I try to post my raw emotion here in this blog because I feel this is my journal and years from now it will depict what I've done. I'm assuming it also makes things a bit more interesting. I promised myself to never filter or edit my thoughts/beliefs. So basically I'm over it and I'm already excited about a few new ideas. I need something each year that makes me reach or else I feel bored and stale, so I've got a few things brewing.

One of the things I'm really excited about regarding Leadville is that two of my best friends got in. Baker and Kenny will be toeing the line in August and they will both do great and hopefully I will be out there to support them. But I will certainly have them race ready for this experience.

On another note, I'm fired up about the Olympics. Vancouver looks really amazing. Watching the opening ceremonies, my thoughts were a) this is kind of cool, then b) this is boring, then c) man, this makes you appreciate that much more what they did in Beijing, to d) this is kind of cool again. I'm a patriot and will root for anyone US, although Bode Miller makes it very hard to root for him.

Cheers,

EH

Bummer

2010-02-11T13:14:00.003-05:00

I realize I need to finish up my Cleveland Camp report and I will.

I entered the lottery this year for the Leadville 100 mountain bike race in August. If I were to get in, this would be my key race for this season. Well, I received an email yesterday from Leadville that began with "We regret to inform you...". I am truly bummed! Lisa said to me "you knew that it was a lottery and there was a good chance that you would not get picked!" Sure, but I have a tendency to focus on what I want to happen. My emotions following this decision were interesting to me. You see, I've never been in a lottery situation before concerning getting into a race, and I found out I hate it! Yeah, I know - of course I hate it, because I didn't get picked. However, I hated it before any decision was made. I've never been a fan of any type of lottery. Maybe that's why I don't care for gambling. I'm sure it's more of the control freak in me. I like to control my destination or make my luck happen, not wait and hope for it. I've always been the one who was in control of whether I got into a race or not. I realize that there has to be winners and losers with a lottery system, and because I lost, the immature, cutthroat side of my emotions automatically feels resentful towards this event. As I read further along on my dejection letter, there was a part that said "if you attend a Carmichael Camp, you can still get in" and I thought to myself "those bureaucratic f'ers", and then there was another part that said "think about still attending as we can always use help to pass out water bottles" and again, I thought F'K THEM! I don't like this side of me but I'm just noting my initial raw reaction. I was upset I didn't get in and I'm still upset. But you know, I've had a pretty good athletic run so far and I'll find another goal, so I really can't complain. Anyone have any cool ideas for a big goal this year?

Cheers,

EH

Saturday - Cleveland Camp

2010-02-09T14:23:00.003-05:00

Friday night into Saturday morning, it snowed quite a bit and the wind was viscous. We needed an early start for the day since it was to be chock full of activity, and we headed out from Anges house at 5:30am towards downtown Cleveland and the Case-Western University indoor track. The roads weren't even plowed yet which made the commute interesting, however, everyone made it! After an easy warm-up couple of miles jog, I ran all the campers through running drills like high knees, ass kickers, skips, ... This is where you get to see the true coordination of each camper, which is always fun. Well, it's amusing for me anyways. After a bunch of drills, we split the group into two and began the heart rate testing. One group ran first while the other group recorded heart rates and splits and then we switched. This test is tough, yet accurate and allows us to set very specific and accurate heart rate training zones for each athlete. After a cooldown jog, we made a short trip to a yoga studio for a one hour yoga session from hell. The instructor was unbelievably evil, yet also very, very good. She kicked my ass big time. I mentioned to the group afterwards that I don't do yoga nearly enough, yet every time I do, I tell myself that I really need to try and do this regularly. I'm sure I'll say the same thing in three months or so after I take a yoga class again.

We then had a short break for coffee and muffins in little Italy before heading back to the Case U. pool for a two hour swim session. We worked on strokes with some drills and then we hit the main set hard. The group was really working - I remember Denise spat out at one point while gasping for breath awaiting the next sendoff; "you upped the game this year!" I capped this session off with some underwater and butterfly relays.

Next was a quick lunch and then back to Euphoria where we had a physical therapist run the group through functional stretching. This session was interesting, and well needed, even after doing yoga earlier in the day. The emphasis was on loosening up for the range of motion of the activities that we participate in.

Angela and I then did a discussion on nutrition, and specifically race week and race day nutrition, and the do's and don'ts. This somehow seamlessly led into a lengthy discussion on mental strength and the mentality of the endurance athlete. Whenever I speak publicly, I always seem to get side tracked and go off on other topics. The group seemed to actually really enjoy it though. Ray didn't even fall asleep.

So after we let them sit around for awhile during these discussions, it was time to get the campers moving again. This time, I worked them through a specific strength routine for an hour. A few of them sweat more during this killer strength routine then they did during their track session this morning!

We finished the busy day with some final bike fits and a daily wrap up. So, to sum up Saturday:

Indoor Track Session
Yoga
Swim Session
Functional Stretching Session
Nutrition and Mental Attitude Discussion
Strength Training Session
Bike Fit

That's a very cool day if I do say so! And everyone seemed to really be holding up well. Only Sunday left now...

Cheers,

EH

Cleveland Camp

2010-02-08T18:48:00.003-05:00

I've been traveling to Cleveland once a year now for a bunch of years now. I'll be honest, I'm never excited about heading to Cleveland in February. Besides the fact that even if it's not, it always seems colder there then here in CT, and it's just always grey there. Throw that on top of a busy winter and being gone from the family through a weekend and maybe it's somewhat understandable why my motivation is always on the lower side to board that short flight westward. There are definitely a few things though that I really look forward to and that will keep me heading back there for as long as they will have me back there; The Forsters - I count Angela and Scott as two of my true friends - You know, the friends you will give an arm or leg for. I don't get to see these two enough so any opportunity is one taken. The other reason I will always head out to Cleveland (again, as long as I'm invited!) is the people. The athletes that attend these camps, I have yet to meet one that really drives me nuts. They are very genuine, outgoing people and make every trip very memorable. I was hoping this would be the case this year. I knew that there would be some returnees like Bruno and Batman - two guys that have a ton of potential in triathlon and also have their values, in my opinion, in the right place. These two guys are a blast, but I cant kiss their asses anymore in case they are reading this. I need to keep them on their toes. My man Jeff J. who is a loyal incredible athlete looking for some motivation to decide on what to do this season was also back. When I heard that Tina was signed up again, I was pleased. She has a way of subconsciously making things comforting, I'm betting not just for me, but for everyone. Maryprimrose (that's her name!) was back again, without her husband for the first time, and she actually seemed a bit nervous, but again, it was great to see a familiar face. Also returning was Ben, Amy, Denise, Ray (who's turning 50 this year on May 1st, the same day as IM St. George in which he's participating - very cool), and also British Bob murphy who is returning after a couple of years hiatus and who just has the right attitude period. There were a bunch of new comers (we had 22 athletes participate!).

I arrived Thursday night and spent some quality time with Angela, Scott and their son Wesley. The camp officially began Friday morning and I knew that once it began, time would be very sparse until I was sitting on that plane home on Sunday.

We met everyone at a restaurant Friday morning for a quick "meet and greet" before a short drive over to some great trails for a 2 hr run. yes, we were kicking off this camp with a 2 hr trail run in the snow. Everyone looked quite nervous. When you sign up for a tri camp, you are always nervous I guess. The attendees are questioning where there fitness is at and where they fit in with the other athletes. Ange and I - our main first job at these camps are to eliminate the egos and show everyone that we could care less about abilities. We are looking for attitude and energy, that's it. We split into two groups quickly, I paced the first group, and Ange the second. Jay and I talked quite a bit while Ray listened silently. Jay lives right near these trails and trains in them all the time yet that didn't stop us from getting a bit lost. In fact, at one point, all the Ohio athletes were following the directions from the guy from CT. Jay and Kenny O are on par for their navigation skills. You know what though? It didn't matter. It was in the upper 30's (shorts weather for me), peaceful, and beautiful in the trails! So why not just run? We ran a bit longer than two hours and regrouped with Ange's group at the parking area, then we all headed over to a pool to swim. We worked on form and did some drills and put and then did some fun relays. British Bob tried skipping out of the swim session by taking a spill in the kiddy pool, but I was onto him.

A quick bite and then we met at Kyles great gym named Euphoria for bike fitting and an indoor bike session. Scooter and I made some major changes to just about everyones bike fit (man were there some horrendous positions) while Ange led the indoor ride and Liz kept us all entertained. This was Liz's first camp and I may have to higher her for entertainment for all the camps. She's like a cheerleader on amphetamines but not in an annoying way - rather in a way that makes those around her better. Her presence at this camp was very much appreciated by myself and I think I can also speak for Angela here. She was/is just fun to be around.

So not a bad first day of camp in Cleveland in February! I'll post more tomorrow.

Cheers,

EH

Passion

2010-01-27T17:06:00.002-05:00

I have two pt clients (and more importantly friends) that I have worked with for a long time now - since the mid 90's! These two were both at the top of their respective career fields. Both extremely successful and both sinking 100% of their energy into their work. I watched them both retire six to seven years ago and I've watched them both become depressed, and age twenty years in that time. I've tried every trick in the book I know to inject some form of passion into these two guys. I've learned a major life lesson, one that is often heard and more often probably blown off; One needs to create their own passion and motivation. You can find motivation from another person but it usually doesn't last. These two guys sunk their whole lives into their work. You pull that out from under them and they have nothing else to fill the void. I've watched them try different hobbies, only to get frustrated because they couldn't pick it up easily, their patience has diminished with age, and they're used to being great at the one thing they were passionate about. It's an extremely sad thing to witness. Hindsight showed that maybe they shouldn't have retired. I also work with a guy the same age as these two who did just that. He's continued to work, although at a much less commitment than he once did. He also developed other passions in his life at a young age and pursued them - his passions being tennis and skiing. His outlook on life in general is the polar opposite of my two other guys, and I base this on the fact that he never left his passions.

Bill Gates and Warren Buffett were recently doing a Q&A on some show. Two of the more brilliant and successful minds of our time and also they happen to be friends with each other. They answered many questions on the current economic situation in our country. One young woman who was in college and had yet to select a major asked them what career they thought would be the hot, up and coming one that she should focus her studies on. Gates gave a technology answer and went into more specifics. Buffet, for the first time during this show, disagreed with Gates. I'm paraphrasing, but he answered with something like; "Pursue a career in something your passionate in. Just pursue passion. Then, you will be successful. There aren't nearly enough young people these days truly pursuing their passion."

I don't care what you're passionate about, but have a passion and pursue it daily. Give it just a bit of time when that's all that you have or a lot of time if you can spare it, but each day, work on your passion.

Cheers,

EH

2010 EH Plunge Recap

2010-01-19T13:35:00.003-05:00

Saturdays Plunge - you couldn't have asked for a better day in January here in CT. I was actually hoping for some single digit air temperatures. Temps that make you scared to expose any skin in fear that it may turn grey and crack and die and then turn black. OK, a bit dramatic since the plunge isn't held on Mt. Everest, but mid 40 degree air temps felt as though we were cheating. However, no matter how cold or warm the air temperature was, there was no denying just how cold the 35 degree water felt upon diving in. I gave a brief talk before we plunged and talked about how easy the plunge is, in that you run down, dive in, then run out. We did the plunge for a young man named Alex Convertito who was struck by a drunk driver in September and is currently undergoing the toughest battle of his life. He cannot run down the beach and dive in the water then run out. He's presently paralyzed from the waist down. Compared to what Alex is going through, The Plunge is a piece of cake. Through the generosity of friends of mine and strangers to Alex, we raised quite a bit and Alex's dad Mark said that they were going to use these funds to purchase a wheelchair for Alex. Thanks everyone for your support and generosity. Alan Neo Cyberpunk Starbuck Apollo Consuego Madonna McDougall raised over $600!!! Awesome Alan. I know I hit you guys up often for these charitable events and you all always come through. You have no idea how much I appreciate this support.

We stuck with tradition and headed out to The Bar in New Haven the night of The Plunge for some fun, pizza and beer. The Bar is a one stop shopping place; they have great brick oven pizza, microbrewed beer, big TV's w/ the playoff games on, pool, and even a night club in the back. The place was packed and there was a great turnout from The Plungers. A group of 15 from here in Monroe rented a driver and van to take us in in case it got a bit silly, in which it did. It was a late night and made Sundays training a bit more of a challenge but was well worth it. We need to do this more often!

Cheers,

EH

Devastating

2010-01-13T19:33:00.002-05:00

I started a group on Facebook (I've been really standoffish about Facebook, but it's actually been beneficial for things like this group forum that will become a great message/sounding board for many of yours opinions hopefully) and I just posted this, which I thought I'd also post here:

Off topic for this group, but the devastation of Haiti has leveled me. Text "HAITI" to "90999" to donate $10 to the Red Cross if you can. The US State Department very quickly put together this number to channel relief contributions directly to first responders who will be on the ground there. Anything must help, right?

Cheers,

EH

Zoot!

2010-01-11T21:06:00.001-05:00

I’m very excited to welcome Zoot Sports on board as a sponsor for 2010! As many of you know, I only represent companies that I truly believe in and that offer products that are proven and a cut above. Their running shoes are the best. I will soon have a discount code for all my athletes who are interested in ordering Zoot products.

Cheers,

EH

ps - keep checking my homepage ( www.hodska.com ) for the daily strength challenge!

Some 2010 And Cleanse Thoughts

2010-01-05T13:07:00.003-05:00

We are moving the Daily Challenge to my homepage at www.hodska.com! Please go there each day to get your daily assignment. It's not that hard.

So we are off to another new year and with that , many of us feel a need to wipe the slate clean, dig up some motivation, set some new goals. I'll admit that I am one of those that likes to refocus during January and lay out a plan. The problem is that the average person usually is back on their "old" track by mid February. What do we do to not be average? Part of this is that we don't focus enough on the process and instead look more at what we "hope" the outcome will turn out to be. Another part is that we don't switch things up enough and stay with the new routine long enough to establish new habits. I hear a lot of people "hoping" they have a great new year. What about taking control and making it happen? I think that we make choices of hope more often than decisions. Choices of hope are obviously when you "choose" to do something and hope it turns out well. It's a lucky process. Where as decisions are about thinking it through and owning it. I know that some will think there is no difference but think about it a bit more. Now what are you going to do this year that separates it from all the other years in a positive way? Furthermore, what's the process going to be to assure this happens?

All my athletes and quite a few others are currently on my cleanse plan. I certainly am enjoying the detoxing after this past holiday season! In regards to The Cleanse, it's not nearly as bad as most make it out to be. We live in a society that doesn't know what it's like to feel the slightest bit of hunger. It's actually OK to be a bit hungry. No we're not starving and we don't need to stuff our pie hole the minute we feel the slightest hunger pain. If you are doing The Cleanse, hang in there, the results are well, well worth it - trust me!

Cheers,

EH

Cheers,

EH

Jan 5th Challenge

2010-01-05T11:25:00.001-05:00

Today, do 5 supersets X 20 reps of:

Pointer Planks
V-ups

Cheers,

EH

Jan 4th Challenge

2010-01-04T07:40:00.002-05:00

Today, do 5 giant sets of:

push-ups (if new, do 10 reps or do 20 reps from knees, if strong already, do 20 reps w/ feet up on bench)

Squat/Shoulder Press Combo - 15 reps

Sit-ups w/ Twist - 20 reps (10 to each side)

Cheers,

EH

Jan 2nd Challenge

2010-01-02T08:38:00.002-05:00

Back at it again today! I have much more to post and hopefully will find some time today but more than likely it'll be tomorrow. I have decided to switch the challenge to Twitter. I'll be setting this up this week at some point. For today:

5 giant sets of:

walking lunge/snatch combo (16 reps)

pointer planks (go into a standard plank position, then lift your right arm off the ground and point it straight out in front of you while simultaneously lifting your left leg off the ground, hold for a three count, return to plank position and do the left arm and right leg. This equals one rep. Do 10 reps. these are tough.)

two count toe touch stretch (bend at the waist yet keep your back flat. stretch towards the round about 6 inches in front of your toes as far as you can comfortably go and hold for a two count, come up slightly, then try to stretch a bit further again for a two count. exhale while in the lower position and try to relax. don't bounce. You can also do this in front of a step if you are very inflexible and aim to touch the step. Do 25 reps slowly.)

Cheers,

EH

Dec 31st Challenge

2009-12-31T15:33:00.003-05:00

For those that stuck with the challenge this month, pat yourself on the back! Seriously, you should feel great about how you ended 2009. The good news is that because of lots of great feedback, I'm going to keep the challenge going through January. If I finally figure out how to post from my blackberry, I'll get the January Challenges up much earlier. I am actually tempted to go against my own boycott and sign up for twitter since this would be the best way to get these out according to the tech geeks I know. If you didnt do the December Challenge, now's your chance. Anyone can and should do this!

OK, for today, since it's already getting late, here's the deal, I want 50 squat/shoulder press combo's. You can do 50 sets of 1, 10 sets of 5, 5 sets of 10, ... Just get it done!

I'll be posting tomorrow a more detailed note on making 2010 your year. No time right now. Have a fun evening everyone but be safe!

Happy New Year and thanks for reading!

Cheers,

EH

Dec 30th Challenge

2009-12-30T06:28:00.002-05:00

Back to basics:

5 supersets today X 20 reps of:

Push-ups (the even sets are normal push-ups, sets # 2 and 4 are done with your feet elevated on a bench)

Twisting Sit-ups

Cheers,

EH

Dec 29th Challenge

2009-12-29T11:13:00.002-05:00

You are on the home stretch! For those doing this challenge, I'd love some feedback on how you managed, and how you feel presently. OK, today:

4 giantsets of:

Seated Curl/Shoulder Press Combo (15 reps)

V-ups (20 reps)

Woodchoppers (20 reps)

Cheers,

EH

Dec 28th Challenge and NBC IM review

2009-12-28T13:49:00.003-05:00

Today, here's the plan:

4 giant sets of:

Jumping Lunges - stand with one leg/foot out in front of you and the other behind as though in a stride. Kneel the posterior knee down, going into a lower lunge position, then explode up, jumping as high as you can towards the sky, simultaneously switching leg positions in a scissor action while in the air and landing in the lower lunge position but with the feet opposite of when you started. Immediately jump right back up and switch leg positions again. Throw your arms into it by swinging them upwards as you jump upward. Do 16 reps of these bitches.

Balance Rows - 15 reps

Supermans - 20 reps

I had a chance to watch the NBC coverage of Hawaii once again. Here's my take: I'm typically a bit more forgiving with the coverage because a) watching this race on Wide World Of Sports in the late 80's is what got me involved in triathlon, and b) i"m just excited that triathlon is getting a bit of air time. Having said that, I found this years coverage a bit lame. First, the race itself - I felt like it was barely covered. I wanted to see more footage of the bike and in particular, some of the battling on the queen K amongst the pros. I also wanted to see more coverage of the pro race and the race in general on the run course. It was a brutal day - show the energy lab and people suffering out there. I felt they didn't cover this at all. Plus, I enjoy seeing people cross the finish line and their emotion, which they hardly covered. In regards to the special interest stories, I have a softness for them but there were too many this year and unfortunately none of them seemed to finish. Also, I love the Navy. They are also a big sponsor of the IM and seeing them get publicity and use of their sponsorship was great although I found it a bit too much as well. Finally, the commercials seemed often and long (Don't hammer me, I do realize that this is what pays to air this in the first place!). Reviewing previous years coverage often when riding my trainer, I know that NBC can do way better.

Cheers,

EH

Dec 27th Challenge

2009-12-27T17:40:00.002-05:00

My apologies - took off early with the family today and forgot to pot. so today, just bang out 3 supersets of 20 reps of push-ups and double crunches and all is well.

Dec 26th Challenge

2009-12-26T08:49:00.002-05:00

Back at it today - time to work off some of that sticky pudding:

4 giant sets X 12-15 reps of:

Lunge w/ Twist: Hold one dumbell or a medicine ball with both hands and 90 degree bend in elbow w/ the weight at your torso or chest, Step down into a lunge, lowering the rear knee to an inch from the ground, while at this low position, twist at the torso/waist towards the side away from the forward leg, then twist back and return to starting/standing position. Lunge down again with opposite leg going forward this time and twist the opposite direction as well. Return to starting position. This equals two reps.

Straight leg bent over dumbell rows

V-ups (20 reps)

Cheers,

EH

Dec 25th Challenge

2009-12-25T13:22:00.002-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone! Today is a day to rest and spend time with family and friends. In an effort to have no zero's in December, todays session is quite simple:

3 sets X 20 reps of Double Crunches.

That's it, plain and simple!

Have a great day!

Cheers,

EH

Dec 24th Challenge

2009-12-24T06:49:00.002-05:00

Happy Festivus! For today's feats of strength:

5 supersets X 20 reps of:

Standard Push-ups (you should be getting good at these by now! remember that if you cannot knock out 20 yet, then do what you can. If you cannot do 5 sets all at once, then spread it out. just get it done.)

Ab Crunch (reaching up with arms/hands) Toe Touch (one straight leg comes up on each rep, alternating)

Cheers,

EH

Dec 23rd Challenge

2009-12-23T13:26:00.001-05:00

4 giantsets of:

Squat/shoulder press combo (20 reps)
Bench Jumps (15 reps)
Full Sit-ups w/ Twist (20 reps)

Great session!

Cheers,

EH

Dec 22nd Challenge

2009-12-22T14:19:00.002-05:00

4 supersets X 20 reps of:

Woodchoppers
Push-ups w/ Goodmornings - do a standard push-up, and while at the top of the push-up, take your right arm and bring it around and pointed up towards the ceiling by using your waist so that your body is in a T position being held up by your left arm, torso turned to the side. Return to the upward push-up position, do another push-up and this time raise the left arm up. This equals two reps.

Cheers,

EH

Wish List

2009-12-21T20:16:00.003-05:00

I just posted the following article on my home page, www.hodska.com :

As if a blog isn’t narcissistic enough, I thought I’d also give my personal opinions on some great products out there. The following material items are things that I like. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you are going to like them. I mean, come on, I may be posting a very self absorbed write up but I don’t expect everyone to agree with me on what are the best gifts to give or get this holiday season. I do realize that there are quite a few people out there with bad taste. Hopefully they’ll read this post and learn. Keep in mind that these items are by no means necessities. I love tech stuff but I also love seeing the guy with the 15 year old bike fly by those with the latest and greatest. OK, having said that, here are some cool things I like:

Body Glide and/or Assos Chamois Cream; I am still amazed at the amount of triathletes that still don’t use any creams that are designed to lessen friction while they train. If you take a shower after a long run or ride and need something to bite down on as the water hits your nether regions, you are way over due. Every person I know that uses chamois cream for the first time cant believe it took them this long to try it.

Deda or Fizik Bar Tape; Treat your ride with some love. Not only does new bar tape make your bike look that much better, it feels better. I prefer either Deda or Fizik because it feels nice, looks great, and lasts long.

Oakley Thump Pro’s: http://www.oakley.com/pd/4685/15318 I cant say enough great things about these glasses w/ a built in mp3 player. It’s great having no wires, the battery life is excellent, they are light and don’t bounce around when running with them, the sound is great, and they look cool. You don’t want the O Roark which is the mp3 with the built in blue tooth also. Well, maybe you do, but I like to escape from those trying to reach me when I’m out running and riding in these. And I know that you shouldn’t be riding with headphones so save the lecture. What’s great about these is that you can leave the headphones off of your ears so that you can hear what’s going on around you.

Custom Nike Free 5.0: http://nikeid.nike.com/nikeid/?sitesrc=uslp#launchBuilder,running.7081.0,_667265653530303830392e2e31,INSPI_34095_v9_0_20080825 These are for just kicking around in. You won’t have them in time for Christmas or Chanukah but the wait is worth it. These look great with anything. Remember that jeans + your regular running shoes = dork.

Garmin Forerunner 310 XT: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=142&pID=27335
You get heart rate, pace and it’s water proof! You want to know if you are gaining fitness; map out a course and run it at a specific heart rate and see what pace you average. Then retest six weeks later at the same heart rate and see if you are faster. You want to run a specific pace in your next race? You need to know that pace while doing tempo runs in training. For brick sessions, this watch is key.

A session with a personal trainer: I am constantly amazed and appalled by the form I see in most doing strength training. Learning proper technique and form are crucial to not only make sure you are benefiting from what you are trying to do but for avoiding injury and maximizing your time. A session or two with a good trainer is worth more than the $$$ you may spend on another toy and can actually save you a bunch of cash you may end up spending in orthopedic and chiropractic bills.

Big Ticket items:

Computrainer: http://www.racermateinc.com/
I have had my same ct since 97’. Every time I ride a regular trainer be it wind, mag, fluid resistance, it reminds me just how great the ct is. And no, a regular trainer with a power tap on the bike is not even close to being the same.

Cannondale Supersix: www.cannondale.com I have been riding competitively since the late 80’s and I’ve had the chance to ride a ton of different bikes and also build up a valuable opinion (at least to me) on how a bike should ride. Forget the fact that most should be on a Slice (which rides way better than a Felt or Cervelo P3 – I’ve ridden both these and the wind tunnel may say different, but these two bikes don’r come close in ride quality to a Slice), more should be training on a road bike. And once you ride the Supersix, you won’t want to ride any other bike.

SRM Power Meter: Training and racing with power is where it is at. It’s time to accept the fact that there are modern day tech items that really can benefit you and help you go faster and get stronger and this is one of them. I’m not saying that you can’t do it without one, it’s just a lot more estimating and less pin pointing.

A Coach!: Sure, this may be the gratuitous self-promotion plug, but a knowledgeable and experienced coach will direct you towards achieving your big goals without you getting in your own way. Do your research because there are plenty of coaches out there. I’m not plugging my business but more just coaching in general. I do feel that the abundance of coaches out there now has made a bit of a mockery out of endurance coaching, however there are still quite a few really good coaches underneath the heaps of “I read a manual and passed a bureaucratic certification” coaches.

A Training Camp: A valuable camp should do more than just take you away from work and family to train for a week. It should allow you to learn about yourself and take away memories and friends for years to come.

Have a great Holiday Season!

Cheers,

EH