Just Another Day in Studville...

Did you know...

Did you know that the Tour de France starts this Saturday, July 5th?
Did you know that Ireland has had only one Tour de France victory? Stephen Roche won both TdF and Giro d'Italia stage races in 1987.
Did you know that Ireland is not a member of NATO? The reason is the country has a policy of neutrality.
Did you know that NATO is headquartered in Brussels, Belgium?
Did you know that Belgium hosted the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp?
Did you know that it was at the 1920 Olympics that the 5-ring Olympic Flag was introduced?
Did you know that the 6 colors on the Olympic Flag (white, blue, yellow, black, green and red) were chosen because they appeared on all the national flags of the world at the time?
Did you know that the flag of the country of South Africa incorporates these 6 colors?
Did you know that the Kingdom of Lesotho is an independent enclave completely surrounded by South African territory?
Did you know that one of Lesotho's primary exports is mohair?

1st & 10

Since the Super Bowl is fresh on our minds I thought a football analogy today might work for describing running. As a football team puts together a series of plays to go from one end of the field to the other with the end zone as the goal, we runners develop a plan to get across the finish line of a race. In football you have some play options such as rushing or passing that allow you to advance. In running, we train for an upcoming race by doing long runs, tempo workouts, easy runs, and speedwork. Its that combination of different things that allow you to improve.
With 11 weeks until my first Boston Marathon I'm approaching it in a football-like fashion. The end zone for me is crossing the Boston finish line in one piece with a smile on my face. But to get there I need a series of plays to keep advancing. Its 1st down and 10 yards to go. Get through this week and then tackle the next. If I can keep moving with this nagging groin problem then there's some hope that I can get to the goal. I've done decent training so far and 11 more weeks should be enough time. The big goal may seem a long way off but if I make more manageable, short-term goals of advancing week-to-week then I have a better chance of achieving it.

Why be a triathlete when you can be a pentathlete!

The growth in triathlons has offered a new option to many traditional runners. However, for those either turned off by its exponentially increasing level of competition or those seeking an even more diverse challenge I would like to offer the modern pentathlon. "The what?" you might ask.
The modern pentathlon is an Olympic sport consisting of competition in five events in a single day. Those 5 events are: running, swimming, fencing, shooting, and equestrian riding.
Now you're asking "Why would I want to be a pentathlete?"
Let me answer that question with some questions of my own:
Have you desired to be an Olympic athlete?
Have you ever dreamed of being a swashbuckler?
Do you like shooting things?
Do you like to run?
Do you fantasize yourself wearing riding boots, cracking a whip and seeing the animal obey your every command?
I bet you answered a resounding "YES!" to all those questions. So did I. Let's continue...
The most obvious reason why we should explore this option is that there are going to be A LOT fewer people trying to qualify for the American Olympic pentathlon team. This greatly helps our odds of representing our great nation. Furthermore, with the fencing and shooting skills we can go into combat at a moment's notice and protect our loved ones.
The Running event: a 3000 meter cross country race to be completed within 10:00. (That equates to a 5:21/mile pace for less than 2 miles.) That we should be able to handle so it would require little additional training.
The Swimming event might be the easiest of all: a 200 meter freestyle race to be completed in 2:30. Some of us know how to float and this is a short distance. Pretend there's a shark nipping on your feet and it will all be over before you know it.
The Shooting event: something about using an air pistol to hit stationary electronic targets. Boo! That certainly takes a lot of the fun out of it for me. I'd rather hunt down live game on a reserve with a sniper rifle, but that's just me.
Fencing: this discipline would require a lot of training, in my opinion. Something to do with having bouts using epee swords. I'm sure there are lot of silly rules to it but I'd want to just go crazy and swing away at the opponent.
I saved the best event for last. The equestrian show jumping. Using horses provided by the organizers, which are selected through a random draw 20 minutes prior to the event, you jump over hurdles. This event is clearly the least certain since you are relying on a large tamed animal to complete the course. Dig in those spurs, hang on tight, and pray you clear the jumps. Yeehaw!
Becoming a modern pentathlon competitor will impress everyone you meet. You'll be the most well-rounded person they know. Let's get training on these disciplines today. The Beijing Olympics are only 6 months away.
Think about it.

Will you "Feed The Warrior"?

Forget that "Shake and Bake" nonsense. That catchphrase suggests a playful approach to getting the job done. To be truly competitive means that you must get serious. You must expect nothing less than 100% from yourself. You need to train properly and hard to prepare yourself for the Big Day. Anything less and you risk some sort of failure on the battlefield.
The elite athletes take this approach and if you expect to improve at your level then you must adopt this mentality as well. Achieving your next PR requires you put in the effort when you train your body. But first you may need to (re)train your brain. Rocky needed to get the 'eye of the tiger' if he was serious about being competitive in the boxing ring again and you may need to do something similar. My own approach has been to ask myself "How bad do you want it?" ("It" being a PR or some other goal.) Its a reminder to stay committed by getting up early or training hard on days when I may not feel like it.
Lance Armstrong has been a role model and inspiration for many people over the past decade and now through a Nike commercial he demonstrates that internal fire. You can't overcome cancer, win the Tour de France 7 times in a row, and then after a short period of training run the NYC marathon in 2:46 without an amazing amount of internal drive. Lance embodies the eye of the tiger, 110% effort, and the competitive spirit. In this commercial he suggests that there is a warrior side to us and we need to bring that to the forefront if we want to be the best we can be. As he says, we need to "feed the warrior" by training the body to respond to the mind.
To achieve our best physically we need to push ourselves mentally. How bad do we want it? What are we willing to do to achieve something? Are we capable of "killing the coward"?
The battlefield awaits. Time to Feed The Warrior.