Training 12/17 - 12/23

Monday: Strength : Pull up 5 x 5, Single Arm Row 5 x 10, Step up 2 x 20, Bent over row (straight bar) 5 x 15, Sit up 5 x 25 (circuit style not for time)
Run : 1 mile warm up, 800 in's & out's (Progressive straight away, walk the turn), Technique Drills.  10 x 100 meter run with 100 meter walking recovery.  1 mile cool down & stretch.

Tuesday: Strength : Press 5 x 5, 65# - 5 x's 10 DB Hang Power Clean, 10 DB Front Squat, 10 DB Push Press @ 25#
Run : 4.5 miles along the coast in Encinitas

Wednesday: 1h:43m ride, from Encinitas to San Marcos

Thursday: Strength : Deadlift (DE) 4 EMOM for 7:00 @ 135# - 3 x's 80m Farmer Carry w. 40# DB, 20 Step up 24", 20 KB Swing 53#
Run: 48:00 on the coast in Encinitas, the running legs are coming back, felt good to run again. knee pain was minor. Running slow hurts, simple run faster!

Friday: Strength Front Squat : 5 x 5 @ 155# then Tabata (8x :20/:10) Airdyne rest 4 minutes, Bottom to Top Squat resting in the bottom position.

Saturday: Run : Track 10 x 200 in :36-:34 (fast running = no knee pain)

Sunday: 1h:00m run around Encinitas Ranch (2.2 mile loop in reverse)

All in all it was a good week.  I know my body will thank me down the road but after three weeks off from running I felt pretty shitty running those first few runs.  Glad to be back on it and look forward to the SD Trail Marathon at the end of Jan.  The plan is to use it as a hard long run but you know how the goes once you toe the line and the gun is fired.  My self control will be tested.  Another good opportunity to practice race fueling.  Merry Christmas and here's to a healthy, happy productive 2013!

Training week of 12/10-12/16

With a slight pain in the left knee still,  I decide to hold off one more week before resuming run training.  I figure with the racing I'm planning on for 2013 there's no need to rush back into training.  This also allows me to focus more on strength training as 2012 closes out.

Monday: 90+ minute spin through the hills of San Marcos
Strength: 5 x 20 Russian KB Swing 53# w. 1:30 rest, 5 x 15 Goblet Squat 53# w. 1:30 rest, 5 x 10 Bulgarian Bag Shoulder to Spin (5l/5r) 36# w. 1:00 rest, 5 x 5 Good Morning w. Bulgarian Bag 36# w. 1:00 rest.

Tuesday: Strength only DB Press 5-5-5-5-5 (35# set 1-3, 40 set 4 & 5) rest 5 minutes then, 10:00 AMRAP 10 KB Swing(russian), 10 Burpee, 10 Sit Up (first Met-Con in months) 6 rounds + 3 KBSwing.

Wednesday: 1:40 Ride through Encinitas into Rancho Santa Fe and back.  Tough climbs in these parts. Stretch and ice.

Thursday: Strength : Back to basics Deadlift 5 x 5 @ 155 (first time pulling from the floor since late September or early October).
Conditioning: AirDyne Max Cal 10 x :30/:30 (still trying to wrap my head around 300 cal in 10:00.  How people average 424 watts for 10:00 is unimaginable right now.  Some day!)
Yoga: Yoga Tropics in Encinitas 60 minutes Warm.

Friday: Strength : Thruster (DE) 65# 4 EMOM for 8:00 then 3 rounds 10 Wall Ball 18#, 15 Slam Ball C & J, 20 Push up (hand release)

Saturday: Rest Day

Sunday: 2:05 Ride through Encinitas into San Elijo, lots of climbing fueled by the soothing sounds of Hi-Fi Mystery School.  Definitely felt my knee on some of the steeper climbs today.

All in all it was a solid week of training but after three weeks of from running I'm certainly ready to start logging some miles again.

December is for down time.

Now that the 2012 racing season is over for me, it's time to circle the wagons, regroup, rebuild and gear up for the 2013 season.  After a complete week of rest, post Quad Dipsea I returned to training with a week of light strength work and cycling.  Now into my third week of no running I've upped the intensity of the strength training (Mon, Tue - Thu, Fri) while keeping the time in the saddle about the same (90 minutes every other day).  The goal through December is to rebuild my body and regain strength lost during the last four months of volume training and racing three ultra marathons.  Training and racing really came together in 2012 and although some of the races with be different in 2013 I'm going to use the same template to prepare as I did in 2012.  

Early in the year the focus will be strength and speed specific with lots of focus on heavy lifts and track work with shorter races on the calendar.  As the season progress strength training will transition to Max Effort Black Box approach as well as an increase in volume of my running and the distance of my races.  Finally as race day gets closer on the calendar, strength training will transition into maintenance phase and run training will be very event specific for two months leading in to the start on priority race number 1.

Priority race number 1 will come in July, when I take another crack at running the 20in24 Lone Ranger, in Philadelphia Pennsylvania.  The 2011, 20in24 was my first attempt at ultra marathoning.  84.5 miles in 19+ hours, falling short of my goal of either running 100 miles or completing 24 hours.  Falling short of those goals has stayed with me ever since, so close yet so, so far away.  The need for redemption at the 20in24 burns even more then it did for NC50K or the QD.  Even though both those races broke me I still managed to finish them. The 20in24 forced me into submission after the 10th, 8.4 mile loop.  This years event I will have an added bonus of having my brother as my partner in crime.  Though thick and thin we've been through it all and now were going to run to hell and back, with a smile on our face the whole time.

Mantra: Are you present?

In my Quad Dipsea race report, I touched briefly on how I used my mantras to keep me present throughout the race.  Simple put a Mantra is a sound, syllable, word or phrase that is considered capable of creating transformation.  Mantra origins can be traced back to India and the Hindu traditions and is commonly practiced by Buddhist and others.

When I first started doing this in 2010, I couldn't believe how well it worked.  Some of my first mantras were phrases like "don't force, don't chase" and "smooth is fast". Over and over for miles upon miles these simple things would quiet the voice in my head that told me to slow down because I was hurting.

I've had several mantras since, some worked better then others and some have been more spiritual then others.  Because of the success of using mantras during races, I now find myself using them on a day to day basis.  If my thoughts begin to wander to events of the past or to dreams of the future I refocus on the present by repeating my mantra until my head clears and I'm satisfied that I've returned to the present.  To often it becomes easy to think about good/bad times of the past or to day dream about plans for the future but the only thing that matters is the here and the now.  When you're thinking about the past or the future you're not focused on the present and if you're not present your missing out.  Life's to short to be missing out.  Find you Mantra, stay present and do epic shit!  After all; If not now? Then when? StopMe

Currently I've been using a phrase I picked up from Vietnamese Buddhist Monk, Thich Nhat Hanh; I have arrived. I am home. In the here. In the now. I am solid. I am free. In the ultimate I dwell.

RunningWOD @ Gunx CF

This past weekend I ventured back to the East Coast for my final RunningWOD Clinic of 2012.  On Saturday I spent the afternoon at Gunx CF in Gardiner, NY teaching run technique to a dedicated mix of endurance athletes and crossfitters.  The gym had ample indoor space for drills and allowed use(me) to stay warm!  As we worked through the drills it was great to see the athletes movement patterns improve.  It's never a quick fix or an overnight process and I reminded the group that the drills are something that I still practice on a regular basis.  I usually incorporate the drills into my warm up for interval work and other harder efforts.  Remember  Practice does not make perfect.  Only perfect practice makes perfect.  -Vince Lombardi

Contact RichAirey@gmail.com to schedule a RunningWOD clinic in 2013

Quad Dipsea 2012

2012 was my year for redemption at the Quad Dipsea. No matter how crazy it has been at some points, my focus on the Dipsea trail never swayed.  Training had gone great leading up to the race; early in the year  the focus was racing at shorter distances(In February I even ran an indoor 1600 finishing in 4:47).  May, June and July I ran Marathons as my long runs, finishing all three in just over 3:00.  The focus there was controlled hard running and fueling.  In August I ramped up the milage and added some back to back long days with a good deal of climbing on the legs.  During the final tune up I ran 50k's in September and October. One with a good deal of climbing the other flat and fast.  My training log over the last three months can be found at RunningWOD.  This also includes my strength training as well.

All was good until Thursday morning.  I was finishing up my run and with less the 400m to go my right calf cramped.  I immediately stopped and walked back to my car. As the anxiety started to set in all I could think was, is this it?!? All this build up down the drain, am I going to have to tell everyone the Dipsea didn't happen?  When I got home I immediately downed a bottle of water and doubled up on the Nuun and went to work with the foam roller and the peanut.  This has happened to me before and it's put me out for a few days, so to say I was panicking was a huge understatement but I tried not to think about it and enjoy Thanksgiving.

When I woke up Friday morning my calf was still tight but mentally I felt better heading to the airport.  I was stoked to be flying Virgin America and I highly recommend it if you have the opportunity!  After landing and checking in to my hotel I headed to Old Mill Park to check out the start and the infamous steps.  I walked the steps, all 684 of them, hung out at the top to enjoy the sunset, take some pictures and thought about what tomorrow had in store.  My confidence was a little rattled but I knew if my calf held up it was going to be a good day. 

Saturday arrived and after I picked up my number I started my warm up.  5 minutes into my warm up I felt a slight twinge in my calf but tried not to focus on it.  I tried to relax and zone out to my music.  From my run I transitioned in to my dynamic movement drills being careful not to over do it and with 20 minutes to gun time I said to myself stop thinking about it and just go until you can't go anymore.  With that it was out of my head and I headed to the car to gear up and hit the bathroom one last time before the start.

The Quad is a race like no other, it offers some of the most challenging terrain I ever run but  it also has some of the most amazing, awe inspiring views I've ever laid my eyes on.  The race starts and within 200 meters you hit a wall of steps that is so long you can't even see the top.  As we hit the steps I over heard a spectator cheer for the runner next to me and his response was, "they can run the steps all they want." That runner ended up being Runner Up Justin Morejohn.  I agreed and decided there was no need to smoke myself within the first two minutes of a 28.4 mile race.  Once I had hiked the 684 steps I began my journey to Stinson Beach.  I had an overall memory of the course and a few select gnarly sections burned in my brain but for the most part didn't remember much course from last year.  All I remembered was that it was extremely difficult and when I crossed the line I was a broken man.  Knowing I was better prepared I still played it cautious during the first half of the race.  As we hit the first descent I heard footsteps rapidly approaching I moved to the side of the trail and three runners blew past me putting 100 meters into me in less the ten seconds.  At that moment I had two thoughts 1. How do people run that fast downhill without killing themselves and 2. I'll see you again as we climb to the top of Cardiac.  It was still very early in the race and the most important thing I've learned over the years is that first and for most it's a race against yourself. Once you start racing someone else's race your dead in the water.  Too many times I've ruined races by racing others and not myself. I race my best when I block everything out and battle myself.  

As it turns out I'm much better at going up then I am at going down and as we hit the base making our way up Hogsback I began to use my mantras.  My mantras are quick and simple things that I say to myself to keep me focused and present.  I use them so my mind doesn't wonder and to stay positive as the climbs gets steeper or when it has no end in site.  They keep me moving forward and when your running an ultra, moving forward is the name of the game.  The first one I used was "I am not the body. I am not the mind. I am something divine." Over and over I repeat this to myself, step after step.  A lot of times this does the trick, I stay focused, I stay positive and I get to the top.  At races like Noble Canyon or at the QD when the climbing can be relentless I pull out the big guns.  When I'm really hurting I picture my brother Jim (my pit crew) cheering for me saying over and over "you're climbing better then most Dawg!"  In the past, at times when I have tended to be negative, it's always my brother that helps me see the positivity of any situation and it's at those points on a climb when it can be so easy to get down on yourself, I use this.  

As I suspected by the time I had reached the top of Cardiac I had moved past the runners that had passed me early and sure enough as we ran down into Stinson they eventually caught and passed me again.  It was still early and the steps on the back side of the course are way more gnarly then the steps at the start and again, they disappeared into the forest in front of me.  When I reached the turn around I was in fifth, I handed off my bottle to one of the volunteers for a refill and mixed my SFH*.  I was feeling good, took a deep breath and headed back towards Mill Valley.  It's tough to say which direction is more difficult, both are equally challenging and the climbs are step. I continued on with my strategy of walking the steep sections of steps and used my mantras when I was running on the climbs.  I moved up to fourth on climb back to the aid station at  Cardiac but by the time I had returned to Mill Creek Park and made the turn to start the second out and back I had slipped back to sixth place. 

I refilled my bottle and headed back up the Dipsea Steps, again I walked.  Once at the top of steps I set my sight on getting to the aid station at 18.7 miles, focusing on my own race knowing that if I kept moving forward I was pretty sure I would catch the guys that passed me on the downhills.  One of the cool things I had noticed was the feeling of the pine needles under my feet as ran through the wooded sections and even though I was suffering on the climbs, I was enjoying myself.  I had moved into fifth and I was pretty sure my mantra of "you're climbing better then most Dawg" was on point and true as entered the aid station.  

A while back I read Sabrina Moran's blog (about her 24 American Record) where she had waited until 17 hours before she allowed herself to used her ipod and since last year I was over my ipod 10 minutes into the race I decided I would hold off until the later portion of the race.  Once I hit the aid station, I refilled my bottle and decided now was the time for some music.  I had just suffered over the highest point of the course and had a good stretch to push the pace before the steps and then the turn for the final 7+ miles.  If there was ever a time for a little musical fuel injection now was the time.  I made sure I put some effort into my playlist but didn't arrange the songs in any particular order.  However I did make sure that this was the first song I would hear.

As I hit play and headed to Stinson I was once again reminded that my pit crew is always with me and new I was good to go!  To the beach I went.

It might have been the music but I honestly felt like I was bombing the descents much like the runners that danced away from me early on in the race.  As I got closer to the turn I saw the leader and eventual winner Brett Rivers, this time he was all alone out front, smiling as he headed back to the finish.  Justin Morejohn had moved into second and the third place runner at the time looked like he was hurting pretty bad.  As we passed each other on the trail I smelled blood and when I hit the aid station at Stinson I told myself "you can get third if you run this last 7"

My strategy on the way home was simple hammer on the runnable sections, hike up the steep sections of steps and use my mantras to get up and over the climbs as efficiently as possible.  As I climbed back up out of Stinson Beach I had third and fourth in my sights as I got closer to entering the woods.  By the time I hit the steps I had caught fourth and each time I got to a level section a ran to the next section of steps trying to time into fifth place.  The wooded section heading back up to Mt Tamp is something out of a movie it's the most epic running I've ever encountered.  Even though steps there are ridiculously hard I was feeling good and was making ground on third.  Shortly after I saw third place  walking on one of the switchbacks and again "you're climbing better then most Dawg" gave me the push I needed to move into third.  When I arrived at the aid station at mile 23.7, I new the worst was behind me.  I knew I still had to roll in order to maintain third but I had a long descent I could bomb and one climb that was minor compared to what I had already done.

When I handed my bottle to a volunteer for a refill he said, "you look great, you're in third. second place has a sprained ankle and was limping pretty bad and first place fell and hurt his shoulder." I said really? No way your F*ck!ng with me!?! He smiled and said "yup!"  Traditionally something that would have caused a WTF Dick!,  reaction but those negative vibes don't do anyone any good.  I smiled grabbed my bottle mixed my SFH and took off running.  As I left the aid station this shot into my ears and I blasted off for the finished, determined to get a podium finish.       

Descending down Cardiac I was completely focused on moving forward using my matras and the music to push as hard as I could.  With just my feed timer going off every 15 minutes* and mile marks(which I wasn't looking for) on the course I had no idea of my time or or the distance covered or remaining.  Not having my GPS allows me to run on feel rather then worry about what sort of pace I'm running or what pace I think I should be running.  If your racing for results pace is irrelevant.  If you finish with a good placing your going to be stoked and any improvement in time is an added bonus.  With that being said when I passed the 3 mile mark I knew I had less then 30 minutes of hard running ahead of me.

With 3 to go my only concern that I was putting enough time into Greg Benson in fourth, so that I could avoid almost killing myself again on the steps at the finish.  Last year I fell, holding off the runner behind me on the Dipsea steps 400 meters from the finish.  When I hit the steps I gave a quick look back to make sure I was in the clear.  At that moment I was sure third was mine and I had secured a spot on the podium! With one hand I the rail I did my best to get down the steps as quickly  and safely as possible.  I hit the road and crossed the bridge finishing with a little fist pump checking the clock as I crossed the line.

When it was all said and done I had finished 3rd place over all running 4:41:57.  Mission accomplished! I moved up from my 18th place finish in 5:04 from 2011.  


*As I mentioned early I only ran with a feed timer that had set to remind me every 15 minutes to fuel and hydrate.  For fuel I used Stronger Faster Healthier In-Race formula Lime flavor.  Every 15 minutes I would take in 4-6 oz. of fuel and carried additional single serv. packets with me in my race pack to refill at the aid stations.  SFH has been my go to fuel source for all my marathons and ultras in 2012 (3 marathons and 3 ultras) 170 miles of racing fueled on protein and fat!

Here's the Track from my play list and the order they play from Mile 18.7 until I finished
1. My Brother the Gun - Mariachi El Bronx
2. Music Sounds Better With You - Stardust
3. The Night Out - Martin Solveig
4 Kick Out The Jams - MC5
5. Time Will Tell - Bob Marley & The Wailers
6. Recipe For Hate - Bad Religion
7. Trip (Teen Daze Remix) p Vacationer
8. Pyramid - John Dahlback
9. Bigger Than Kiss - Teenage Bottlerocket
10. Fire In Your New Shoes (feat Dragonette) Kaskade
11. Now is the Time (2020 Soundsystem remix) Layo & Bushwacks
12. In a Big Country - Big Country
13. Fu-Gee-La - The Fugees
14. Broken English - Rise Against
15. Vicarious - Tool
16. Cold On The Ceiling - The Black Keys
17. Nutshell (Live) - Alice in Chains
18. Next Girl - The Black Keys
19. Hard Times - Cro-Mags
20. Percolator (Claude VonStroke Remix) - Cajmere
21. We Found Love (feat Calvin Harris) - Rihanna
22. I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow - The Soggy Bottom Boys
23 Paper Wings - Rise Against
24. Your Worst Mistake - Strung Out
25. Beautiful People (feat. Benny Benassi) Chris Brown

I Love Camp

Yup It's true I'm a running geek and every summer I go to running camp. I've been to camp as a camper, a counselor, a guest speaker and finally as a coach. Now, not all of these adventures have taken place at the same camp but as a coach I've spent most of my time at RunningWorks Cross Country Camp which calls Camp Canadensis it's home once a week every August since 99'. Camp Directors Marcus O'Sullivan, Cricket Batz-Shaklee and Steve Shaklee assemble an amazing group of athletes and coaches every year to which I am honored to be included. It's such an amazing experience, I still go even though I've been living in California for the last two installments of RunningWorks. Like I said I love Camp, always have always will. With the exception of the food (which was a shock in 90 as Freshman at Colt Camp, I've been prepared ever since)it's the best week of the year. All you have to do is show up and train hard for 6 days. Nothing else really matters, it's about being in the moment completely focused on the task at hand. Since becoming involved at RunningWorks I become know as the "strength guy."

As the "strength guy" every morning after breakfast I present an hour long talk on the benefits of strength training for cross country runners. As runners our training needs to be specific, and in order to be a better runner you need to run, plain and simple. With that being said supplemental strength training can help young runners improve by leaps and bounds. I decided to keep the talk simple focusing on two movements; the push up and the air squat. After all is you cant do a push up of squat should your really be  doing anything else before your get that dialed in? Over the years I've observed thousands of young athletes performing these movement incorrectly most of the time under the watchful eye of there coach.  Heck I'm guilty of it, I admit it.

My goal was to teach each and every athlete how to move properly and or how to scale the movement so that proper mechanics could occur. Here's of how I broke down, the push up and the squat, for the Campers' at RunningWorks

 Key Cues for the Push Up:

1. Hand Position: Athletes often times have their hands to far apart, the key is to stack you joints over top one another. When holding the staring position, the shoulder should be over the elbow and the elbow should be over top of the wrist. Once the joints are aligned make sure the shoulder is over top of you knuckles. Finally spread your fingers, give yourself a wider base of support.

 2. Stay Connected: Often times athletes are only concerned with what the arms are doing and not what's going on with the rest of the body. All movement begins and ends with posture. If you have good posture you'll move better. If your disconnected and lack good posture you won't be very efficient. So how do we get connected? Simple squeeze! By squeezing I mean get your muscles engaged and become rigid like a board. Squeeze the abs, quads, hams, and glutes so that when you move through range of motion the joints move off the floor at the same time. As you push off the floor, the shoulder, hip, knee and ankle joint need to remain in a straight line.

 3. Range of Motion: All movements need to travel through complete range of motion. What I've found is lack of strength and fear of not getting off the floor restricts range of motion. In order to promote full ROM, I prefer to see athletes work from the floor up rather then go to the floor and back up. Starting from the floor each time allows us to relax and reconnect each time, before pushing off to complete our push up. When starting from the floor you know your connected (squeezing) when the knees and quads are not in contact with the ground. As you're learning this new style of push up I guarantee your elbow will fan out, remember to focus on external rotation and fight to keep that elbow stacked over the wrist brushing along your rib cage.

 4. Foot Position: Often time athletes do push ups with the feet together. Remember just like joints up top, keep your feet under your hip. Give yourself a wider base, you might find this wider base not only allows you to connect better, it will also help you move through ROM a little easier.

 5. Scaling: If after these corrections if you still find it difficult to complete a push up from the floor, chances are your core is not strong enough to stay active. So rather then continue to train poor movement patterns scale the push up back and go from your knees rather then from your feet. For some this can be a blow to the ego but it's always better and safer to scale then to move poorly. Poor movement patterns will eventually lead to injury and time off. When in doubt SCALE!

Key Cues for the Squat:

1. Foot Position: When squatting feet should be at shoulder width or slightly wider. Toes should be pointed straight ahead or at most at 10 and 2. It's very common for athletes to set up with the feet to close together. Also it should be noted that as the athlete begins to squat they should adjust their weight toward the back of the foot rather then up on the toes.

2. Knee Position: As with the push up the same is true for squatting, always keep the joints stacked.  As you move through the range of motion of a squat you need to focus on keeping your knee stacked over the ankle. The cue here is to push the knees out (as a demonstration I push the athletes knees in and had them push their knees against my hands). It is important to note the this outward push needs to occur from the start of the movement through completion of the squat.

3. First Movement: Most inexperienced squatters first movement will be a bend in the knee. Unfortunately when this occurs our knees shoot forward in front of our foot putting our knees in a dangerous position. When squatting properly the first movement is always push back of the hip. By pushing the hip back first this allows the knee to stay staked over the ankle (remember don't over over emphasize the hip push back).

4. Range of Motion: When squatting with full ROM athletes will have there hips below their knees. When done properly with good mechanics squatting below parallel is completely safe and beneficial to improving leg strength in runners (I allowed the athletes to use the fence to assist hip below parrallel).

5. Staying Active: As with the push up it is crucial that the athlete stay active and keep the core engaged. I saw many athletes in poor position, easily correct themselves with the simple cue of squeeze your abs, push your knees out (with this cue, athletes immediately picked their chest up putting their spine in a much better position).

 The goal was to make things as simple as they are (so that it was easier then camp food to digest). By focusing on these cues athletes were performing push ups and squats with better movement patterns with complete range of motion.




After one of the talks I was asked who my influences were in the Strength & Conditioning World.  Below is a brief description of my journey to learn more about Strength training for Runners.

Over the the last 2 years years I seemed to have become the CrossFitter in the eyes of my Running Friends and Circles and to my CrossFit Friend I've always been the Runner. But in my eyes I'm a Ronin , a coach wandering seeking information from sources outside the Running Community. It started off as fun MMA style conditioning, (flipping tires, pushing cars carrying kegs) which led to internet searches, that lead to CrossFit.com.  Whoa! Olympic Lifting! Gymnastics (always wanted to be a gymnast! bucket list, CHECK!) Deadlifts! I'm in.
Like I said I am a Running Geek and being that Geek I remembered my Father bringing home a book that had pictures of Seb Coe(in his white short shorts and his knee high socks) doing barbell movements like Clean, Press, Snatch, Deadlift.  I always felt that some added barbell movements would be beneficial not just for my training but for my athletes as well.  Only problem I had no idea where to start and if I can't do it I'm certainly not having my athletes do it.  So with that the CrossFit Level 1 Coaches Certification offered the most bang for its buck.  Without ever picking up a barbell out side of benching and curling or having been to a "Box" I got my L1 Certificate.  Now I could start lifting and eventually coach my athletes to do the same.  Hopefully I won't hurt myself or anyone and maybe I'll get a 1/4 of a Seb Coe in an athlete!  I spent the summer of 2010 practicing my lifts while giving my athletes body weight met-con workouts.  I seemed to be feeling better on my runs and these kids are starting to get shredded?!?  Something is up...

In September of 2010 I headed to CF Morristown to attend a CrossFit Endurance Seminar.  Why? 1. It was in New Jersey.  2. I had the $ to afford it.  3. Like CF it addressed addressed technique.  4. Like CF it covered nutrition.  5. Just like CF, it laid out its template(s) of the hows and whys.  It presented me with another opportunity to better educate myself and help me be a better coach.  I noticed on the CF Motown Community Board that they were having a Olympic Lifting Clinic.  I asked Coach Mike D "Hey can anyone go to this or is this for members?' "Dude you are more then welcome to sign up!" Another opportunity to learn more about Oly lifts for $20, I'm in!

Before the Oly Clinic I still had not had use more then a 45lb. bar for an Oly movement.  By the end of the night I had accomplished both and was stoked to had gain some more insight into the Oly lifts.  Well worth the $20 and 2+ hours of driving during Jersey Rush Hour.  By that time I was a loyal Tuesday/Thursday 6:15am at CF Motown.  Why? because the Coach Mike D was giving.  Helping me to move better as an athlete but also, how to cue my own athletes and how to better access their movement.

By December of 2010 I had be bitten by the CF Bug, the opportunity to learn more presented itself and off the California I went.  I spent 2011 in Southern California submerged in the "Scene"(this is a blog for another time and another place)  soaking up as much content as I could be apart of.  Along the way in my travels is where I picked up the techniques and cues I presented during my Strength talk at camp.

Say what you want about CrossFit (I will, soon enough) it has it's good and it's bad.  Like anything if you put yourself in front of the right people your going to learn things.  You might not agree with everything but then again you don't have to.  Thats what being a coach is all about.  It's about style.  Yes there is science behind it and it is an art (it's like college, it's not for everyone) but your style is yours and my style is mine!  It's 2012 people lets be real honest with ourselves, check your ego and realize no one is inventing or reinventing the wheel at this point.  The Law of Specificity is pretty simple if you want to be good at running you need to run.  How you choose to supplement your training or coach your athletes is up to you.

The most important take away for me is that when you hurt or get hurt that's your body telling you you're not moving properly and rest isn't the correct answer.  Correct the movement and get stronger you'll be able to run more and in turn you'll run faster.

RunningWorks 2013 is scheduled for August 12th-17th and there's no place I'd rather be then Canadensis, PA

I Love Camp!