Placid Athlete

Green Smoothie Revelation!

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:50:31 -0600

I have discovered that I can drink my greens, and they do not have to be disgusting. It’s a revelation.

Recently I participated in a bike ride sponsored by the Austin chapter of Organic Athlete to visit various vegan restaurants around town. One of the stops was at a new place called Beets, located on 5th St near Mopac. Beets was offering the cyclists discounted smoothies, and so I tried one that was made of blueberries, orange, and either spinach or kale (I forget now which).

Almost 20 years ago, I embarked on a mission to become an expert juicer. I read Juicing for Life, got myself a juicer, and started juicing like crazy. I tried all kinds of combinations, including recipes that were supposedly tried and true winners. Frankly, I found most of them disgusting, and dealing with the juicer was a big hassle (cleaning too for-ev-er). Didn’t take long for me to abandon juicing in spite of the nutritional benefits.

Fast forward to the blueberry-orange-green smoothie. I was skeptical, but willing to try it. Lo and behold, it was pretty good, actually. Even my daughter said it was “okay,” knowing that it had lots of greens in it.

I went back to Beets a few days ago and had another smoothie: the tropical green. It was bright green, and again, I was skeptical, “knowing” it was going to taste just like ground up greens like back in the juicing days. Wrong. Tasted like mangos and bananas! Delicious. Amazing. Not just “okay” but rocking!

At the restaurant, they had for sale a book called the Green Smoothie Revolution, by Victoria Boutenko, which I picked up to give me some ideas. It is chock-full of green smoothie recipes, and so far I am 2 for 2 from that book and looking forward to trying more.

I’ve put in an order for a Vita-Mix (heavy duty) blender based on several recommendations, so I’ll report on that when it comes in. I’m told that using the Vita-Mix versus a regular blender is like day versus night, and that it is worth its weight in gold, so we’ll see…

Records broken at Ironman New Zealand

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 09:32:46 -0600

Records broken at Ironman New Zealand:

Cam Brown wins a record ninth Ironman NZ with a time of 8:21.52, while Jo Lawn sets a new women’s course record of 9:14.35.

Sunday Morning on the Barton Creek Greenbelt

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:39:02 -0600

This past weekend was so gorgeous. So many Texans were tweeting about how “beeeeuuuuutiful” it was — finally, sunshine and some warm weather!

Sunday morning was the allotted time for cycling, so we left the house about 7:45 AM. We rode around central Austin, then down to Town Lake where the trail overflowed with runners. After doing a couple of loops there, we moved on to Barton Creek greenbelt for some mountain biking. Although I am no Melanie McQuaid, at least there were no wipe-outs, and I had a fun time taking on the rocks and mud.

Because of all the rain we have been having in Austin lately, the creek was quite full. I should have taken pictures, but they would not have done it justice, because there were also the sounds of the creek to take in… Hard to believe that this lovely spot is right here in the city. No need to drive out of town for a wilderness trek!

A “Cosmic Trigger” from the Daily Juice hit the spot, and 3.5 hours after leaving home, we returned, smiling.

Injury as Opportunity

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 15:17:14 -0600

Next week was supposed to be the first week of training for an early June triathlon, but instead, it will be week two of a 6-week (we hope!) rehab for an ankle injury.

Yes, an athlete-friend is sidelined, just as the spring sun was starting to appear and training was about to begin in earnest.

Frustration. Disappointment. Anger. Depression. And let’s not forget Fear – specifically fear of gaining weight and losing fitness! Any athlete who has experienced an injury knows how easy it is to have all of these feelings when the training plan goes down the toilet.

The reality is you are injured — and that cannot be changed. Of course it is important to do the icing and the rehab exercises on the schedule recommended by your doctor or physical therapist. But the real key is to change the way you think about the injury! An injury can be an opportunity. For example, I decided to learn how to swim when I could not run for more than a month. I might not be a triathlete at all, if it weren’t for that opportunity.

Don’t get me wrong, injuries are a pain both literally and figuratively. But, in most cases, there is still training that can be done. For example, my friend with the ankle injury can still do core and upper body strength training exercises. This is the positive way to look at this injury. We can delay swim/bike/run training for a month, and by then, she will have developed a killer core. And we all know that a killer core is critical to peak triathlon performance, eh?

Let’s get training now, shall we?

The Austin Marathon -- by bike!

Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:49:01 -0600

What a great morning for running in Austin, Texas!

I was not racing this morning, so I took off on my bike from Placid Athlete Headquarters and headed north along the marathon route. It was still a little early for any runners to be on that part of the route, so I just enjoyed riding along Shoal Creek with the roads closed off to traffic. The weather was beautiful: sunny and mid-forties, or so — thankfully, not as cold as anticipated. It was terrific to get some sunshine after all the cold, rainy, miserable weather we have had these past few days/weeks/months.

I was up at about mile 18 on the route when the elite men came through, and they were flying — looking very strong and smooth. I watched their running form and all of them seemed to float with a light step, forefront strike, making it look so easy to run that fast! The number of spectators cheering along that section of the route was few, and I wondered how much a cheering crowd (or lack there of) makes a difference for those runners?

After following the elite runners for awhile, I took off into northwest hills to do some climbing. Later in the ride, I headed back down toward the race route where the average runners were struggling to stay on pace. Some were running, some were walking, and some just looked downright bad — like there was no way they would make it another 12 miles — but somehow I think they probably found it within themselves to make it all the way. Willpower is an amazing power indeed.

I continued south to the early part of the course — near Lake Austin — and the trucks were coming by to load up the road blocks and tables and pylons. By the time I returned home, there was no evidence of a marathon having come through.

Although I had been concerned about attempting a ride in central Austin on marathon day, it turned out to be a fun morning watching the runners! And, when yet another cold front came through this afternoon, and it got cloudy, windy, and cold again, I was so happy to have already done my ride when the weather was so gorgeous.

Happy Valentine’s Day, and congratulations to all the runners (and walkers) who participated in today’s Austin marathon and half-marathon! Cheers!

Thrive and Thrive Fitness - Brendan Brazier's books on nutrition

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 11:50:29 -0600

Thrive and Thrive Fitness - Brendan Brazier's books on nutrition:

I just finished reading Thrive Fitness, after having read Thrive a couple of months ago. There is a lot of interesting material here about a whole foods, plant-based diet is the best nutrition plan for anyone, whether you are a beginner athlete or a professional endurance athlete.

I’ve been thinking about whether to recommend just one or the other of these books, but both have different material to offer, so I think folks will benefit from having both books. Both Thrive and Thrive Fitness provide the basics behind why changing to a whole foods, plant-based nutrition plan has a positive effect on people. Thrive is more comprehensive in its discussion of the science, which is really great information, although it can be overwhelming if the material is all new to the reader. The list of recipes in Thrive is also fairly expansive.

Thrive Fitness, on the other hand, spends more time on the exercise part of the equation. This book includes a well-rounded list of exercises, with how-to photos and good descriptions for how to do the workouts. This is helpful information for beginning and intermediate athletes. However, I think that the recipes in Thrive Fitness will be more beneficial to advanced athletes, because a lot of the recipes are for performance sports drinks, gels, and pre- and post-workout food. Some of these recipes are not appropriate unless you are planning to workout for >90 minutes, so they won’t be too useful for the beginner. That said, I am really excited about trying some of the homemade gels for my long workouts, because for a long time I have been interested in trying to concoct something in my own kitchen but didn’t really know where to begin.

I’ve tried a few of the other recipes (sports bars, smoothies, cereal) and although I had one massive failure with the yam pancakes which would not cook at all (Brendan, what the heck?) everything else has been tasty so far. Some of the ingredients have been hard to find, but Whole Foods and Central Market here in Austin have mostly come through for me.

I recommend that y’all check these books out, as they are a worthwhile addition to your library. Remember that you do not have to become a vegan 100% of the time to reap benefits. Anyone will benefit from making incremental changes toward better nutrition.

Brendan Brazier's "Thrive in 30"

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:42:12 -0600

Brendan Brazier's "Thrive in 30":

This is worth a look-see. Brendan Brazier, Ironman triathlete and author of Thrive and Thrive Fitness, explains the principles behind the Thrive diet, which is a whole foods, plant-based diet. I saw Brendan give a talk recently in Austin, and he had a lot of interesting information to share.

Join the Placid Athlete Spring 2010 Triathlon Training Group!

Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:03:03 -0600

Placid Athlete is forming a Spring 2010 triathlon training group in Austin, TX!

This program is geared primarily toward triathlon rookies or those who have been inactive for awhile and want to ease back into a fitness program.

Goal Race(s):

We will be training first for The Rookie Tri, which takes place on May 9, in New Braunfels, at the Texas Ski Ranch. This race is a 300 meter swim, 11 mile bike, and 2 mile run. (Details at http://www.therookietri.com)

An optional extension program is available for those who also want to race in the (longer) Lake Pflugerville Triathlon on June 20. This race is a 500 meter swim, 14 mile bike, 3 mile run. (Details at http://www.lakepflugervilletri.com)

Program Includes:

A one-time, personalized one-on-one coaching session in swimming, biking, or running – Your choice!
Coached group workouts Wednesday evenings, and alternating Saturdays
A weekly training plan
Nutrition and mental training tips
Personal attention with access to the coach through email, telephone
A supportive training environment, new friends, and fun!

Dates:

10-week program’s first session will be on Wed, Mar 3. (Race date May 9)

6-week extension starts week of May 10 (Race date June 20).

Pricing:

10-week Training Program:$265

6-week extension: $155

Participants are responsible for race registration fees and any additional fees, such as park entry or pool fees.

Class is limited to 10 participants.

Contact Suzanne to join the group!

"I find ecstasy in living; the mere sense of living is joy enough."

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 15:49:58 -0600

“I find ecstasy in living; the mere sense of living is joy enough.”

- Emily Dickinson

'Tis Always the Season...

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 21:32:24 -0600

I was flipping through my journal and came across this golden nugget, which I had copied from Skinny Bitch, by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. This is a reminder that in this season of giving, we must not forget to take care of ourselves. (More later on the importance of training logs/journals…)

“Recognize that anything worth having is worth fighting for. Good health, vitality, more energy, more confidence, better sex, great abs, a tight ass —- you either want ‘em or you don’t. You can continue plodding along in your life feeling like you’re not living up to your glorious potential or you can dedicate yourself to creating the life you want. F—k excuses about not having the time or the money. You spend 40 hours a week working, or more if you’re a full-time mom. Certainly your health and your body and you are more important than anything else in your life. You are worthless to your colleagues, friends, and family if you do not value yourself enough to take excellent care of you. Yes, you have to put yourself before your friends, parents, boyfriend, husband, and even your children. It won’t make you a bad daughter or wife or mother; it will make you a less resentful, more confident, interesting, beautiful, patient, tolerant, and fun person to be around. Your bright, shining light will give everyone around you the permission and inspiration to shine more brightly. Love yourself enough to do whatever it takes to be the best you you can be.”

New Belgium Brewing Urban Assault Ride

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:43:00 -0600

New Belgium Brewing Urban Assault Ride:

You should definitely spend some time getting to know your city better via your bike! It is fun to explore neighborhoods and find alternate routes. One really fun way to do this is to participate in one of the Urban Assault Rides if you are lucky enough to live in a city that hosts one. These are really fun events where you ride from check point to check point (in any order you choose) and the main objective is to help people discover the city on bike, and become more open to the possibilities associated with cycling in the city.

In 2010, the following U.S. cities will have Urban Assault Rides:

Tucson, AZ
Berkeley, CA
Seattle, WA
Portland, OR
Charlotte, NC
Austin, TX
Fort Collins, CO
Denver, CO
Des Moines, IA
St. Louis, MO
Madison, WI
Chicago, IL
Minneapolis, MN

Bike Commuting – Don’t forget: It’s not just for work!

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:39:36 -0600

I’ve given you some pointers on bike commuting, with a focus on getting to work at a corporate job. Remember, though, you can benefit from riding your bike for other purposes as well. Most car trips are actually very short – maybe you go over to a friend’s house frequently, or to the grocery store, or to the local library or video rental store. You can replace these car trips with bike trips, too. No need to limit yourself to getting to and from work!

Bike Commuting 101 – Safety Tips

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 21:38:51 -0600

Here are a few key safety tips to keep in mind when commuting by bicycle.

The laws of physics always override the laws of the people.

In other words, even if you have the right-of-way, if you are cycling and get hit by a car, you lose. It is never the other way around! So the key take-away here is to ride defensively. Always assume that if there is something dumb that driver might do to put you in danger, they will do it. Always assume that even if you are wearing neon yellow and have lights a-blazing, you can’t be seen. It is your job to avoid getting hurt. Trust me on this. Every time I see a white Suburban I am reminded of that driver’s traffic ticket and my broken nose!

Try to be visible.

Notwithstanding the above, wearing bright and/or reflective clothing is a good plan, and front and rear lights are essential equipment for riding in the dark. Even if you should assume you won’t be seen, try your best to make sure that you are.

Drivers will forget about you once they pass you and/or they will often misjudge how fast they are going relative to you.

The following happens ALL THE TIME: I’m cruising along at the side of the road, and a car passes me. Then immediately, they turn to the right, and right in front of me, at the next intersection. As noted above, invariably they either have (already!) forgotten I am there, or else they think that I must be going wayyyyyy slower than I really am, so I have to jump on the brakes or else I will ram into them as they slow for the right turn.

Similarly, when approaching from the opposite direction, drivers will also misjudge how fast a cyclist is approaching, and they may turn right in front of you across your lane. You have the right of way, but no matter – you will have to brake to avoid hitting them.

It is a good practice to follow traffic laws.

Cyclists have a bad reputation for just blatantly running stop lights, and with good reason. However, this kind of behavior just fuels road rage against cyclists, which is neither good for you nor for me. Besides that, there is a benefit to having some predictability among drivers and cyclists. You can’t read their minds, and they can’t read yours. Therefore, if you signal your intentions with proper hand signals, stop when you are supposed to, and everyone follows the rules, then you have a lower risk of having an accident. (However, I recognize that sometimes traffic signals will not “trigger” with a bike, so if it is early morning or late at night and that red light is never going to turn green, then you are just going to have to go on your way when the coast is clear. Use good judgment.)

Even parked cars can be dangerous.

I’ve actually known more than one person to be riding along and just smack right into a parked car. One guy I know broke his wrist, which of course meant no riding for at least 6 weeks while he was in a cast. He was just yakking and didn’t notice the car was there.

Other cars may be dangerous in a different way. This is more of an issue in urban areas where cars are moving in and out of parallel parking spaces, but you could get hit either 1) from someone suddenly pulling out of a parking spot as you ride past, or 2) by someone swinging a car door open suddenly. Always be on the lookout for drivers in parked cars; when approaching from behind, look through the back windshield to see if someone is in the car. If so, slow down, and assume that anything could happen, including but not limited to either of the two above scenarios. Be vigilant and keep your distance.

Helmets aren’t just for small children learning to ride.

Okay, it goes without saying that you are free to do what you want here, but I am going to wear a helmet whenever I ride, no exceptions. My kids need their mom, not a “vegetable.” I make my kids wear helmets, too — no exceptions. And please, if you are going to make your kids wear helmets, don’t be one of those parents who then doesn’t wear a helmet when out on a family ride. Sheesh, set a good example! Why should your kid wear a helmet when you don’t?

2009 Ford Ironman World Championship Airs on NBC Dec. 19

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 21:33:23 -0600

2009 Ford Ironman World Championship Airs on NBC Dec. 19:

Mark your calendars and set your DVRs! Watch Chrissie Wellington ride to a new Ironman record!

Reblogging this video to provide some inspiration for everyone!...

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 09:37:17 -0600

Reblogging this video to provide some inspiration for everyone! Check out these awesome ladies!

ellehcimhael:

Crossfit women!

Bike Commuting 101 - What do I do about my clothes?

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 22:12:00 -0600

Maybe some of you are lucky enough to be able to wear casual clothes to work, like shorts, t-shirts, and sneakers. (I’ll bet the percentage of employees of local bike shops or outfitters such as REI who commute by bike to work is much higher than for employees of law firms or corporations for this reason alone!) But for many of us, a suit is the required dress code, or, at a minimum, it is “business casual.” In any case, it ain’t bike shorts and a jersey!

No worries! There are solutions! Consider these, for example:

Keep a wardrobe box in your office. I’ve had one in my office for well over a decade, and most people don’t even notice. These are the kinds of boxes used for moving, which have a bar across the top where you can hang clothes on hangers, just like a small, portable closet. They completely close up, so when someone is in your office, they don’t have to see your clothes. If they even notice, they will just think, “hmmm, wonder what’s up with that big box over there?” and then forget about it when they leave.

- If you keep suits in the ol’ wardrobe box, you can take them to the cleaners directly one day during your lunch hour and pick them up the next. Clean clothes? No problem. No need to transport them to and from home on the bike! Of course you will need to keep shoes, socks, hosiery, or whatever other accessories you need at the office, too, unless you want to transport them on the bike.
- Warning: the only downside to this solution is when you are at home and some particular item of clothing you want or need is at the office! Just try to plan ahead if you think you will need a particular item at home.

You can, of course, also pack clothes in your bike bag. The key here is to roll up each item of clothing to keep wrinkles to a minimum.

A middle-of-the-road option that works for some people is to drive a car once a week, with a whole week’s worth of outfits, and then bike on the other days. Then the next time you drive, take the dirties home and bring in new, clean outfits.

Rocket Shower

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 09:06:38 -0600

Rocket Shower:

I mentioned Rocket Shower products in my Bike Commuting 101 segment on showering. Here is a link to their products.

East Hamptoners adopt Engine2 Diet

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 21:04:00 -0600

East Hamptoners adopt Engine2 Diet:

Check out this article discussing the Engine 2 Diet and how some folks who tried it found it surprisingly easy.

Bike Commuting 101 – The Shower Question

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 20:43:52 -0600

Probably the most common excuse for not commuting to work by bike is because there is no shower at the office, and people are afraid they are going to be all stinky and sweaty when they get there. This is a legitimate concern, but in most cases there is a solution! Consider the following when formulating your commuting plan.

First, check to see if there is a shower at your work site! You may be pleasantly surprised, yet answering this question may not be as simple as you think.

Many times, people have a shower in their building and do not even know it. I worked at one place for months before I discovered by chance that there was a shower in the building. It turned out to be a really terrific facility with showers, lockers, and a dressing room!

At another place, I was smart enough to ask right when I started working there, but was told that there wasn’t one, only to find out from someone else that there really was! (Keep in mind that if people aren’t using it, they probably don’t know about it.)

Another office I spent time in was in the same building as a hotel, and eventually I was able to confirm (with persistent questions) that, yes, those leasing office space could indeed get access to the hotel fitness facility and showers as part of the lease deal.

At yet another location, there was not a shower in my company’s work space, but another company in the building had a shower that was secure (i.e., with a lockable door) and yet accessible from a public hallway (so you didn’t have to enter their work space) and hardly anyone ever used it, so they were nice enough to loan me a key and let me use it (until a couple of years later when they decided they needed more space for photocopiers! (what the heck!?))

So now, years later, I’m still in the same building, and I can’t use the photocopy room to shower, so I have come up with other options that I have used at one time or another. If you don’t have a shower facility at work, consider these possibilities:

Go ahead and shower in the morning at home and then ride to work, because chances are you won’t really get that sweaty in the morning anyway (especially in the non-summer months). It’s the ride home in the heat of the afternoon when you are more likely to get sweaty, and hey! Guess what? You can shower when you get home!

Ride to a gym that is close to your office and get in a workout, then shower there, and go on to work.

If all else fails and you do get sweaty on the ride in to work, then shampoo your hair in the sink in the bathroom, and/or use a sport cleansing spray or wipes (e.g., Rocket Shower) to sponge off. Just keep toiletries and a hair dryer (if needed) in a file cabinet or desk drawer, and keep a towel handy (which you can dry on a rack that hangs over the inside of your office door or on the wall of your cubicle.)

Many people will be deterred by what other people may think: “I can’t do that because it would be weird for me to wash my hair in the sink.” The Placid Athlete is not concerned about this at all. Who cares if you get a reputation as the girl or guy who cycles to work and shampoos in the sink? It is totally fine to be that guy or girl! You will be secretly envied. I promise.

Since I mentioned that cyclocross bikes are the best bikes for...

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:20:36 -0600

Since I mentioned that cyclocross bikes are the best bikes for commuting, I thought it might be helpful to explain a bit more about cyclocross racing. This video is a good intro to the sport.