Back to basics

Back to mountains; back to bootcamp!

Holiday in the sun with family and friends I don't get to see that often was truly wonderful, but you know that I was really really looking forward to getting back to some uphill training. Coming back home and going back to my routine training has been even better than expected. The few days back in Bergen have been full of wonderful training, and my legs are loving it. I have also been lucky to meet many of my running and training friends in just a few days, and I feel super energized with renewed motivation. I am still partly on holidays, and a few times this week I trained twice a day with some sleep in between. It is so nice that it strengthens my wish to be able to do this for a longer period some time in the future. I do keep telling myself, though, "Don't get carried away now; do not make the mistakes of the past". And believe me, I am cautious!

I wanted to do a real mountain hike as soon as coming back to Bergen, and I am blessed with friends who are so spontaneous that I could do it with them already the day after arrival at home. We had an easy pace hike up to Gullfjellet Wednesday afternoon, chatting and laughing all the way up and down. Still some snow there on the path towards the top, but much less than I was expecting, considering how much there was during the Gullfjellet Opp race in June. 

I also wanted to get back into serious strength training. Although I did quite a lot of it during the holidays, it is just not the same without an instructor or a trainer. Ketil is on holidays for another couple of weeks, and I wanted to fire up my muscles before resuming our personal training sessions. What better way to do it than to have double floor classes at Barry's Bootcamp?! My lovely training buddy Irene, who is by the way scheduled to give birth in three weeks and still in full training, and I made plans to go to some sessions together, and already Thursday morning I was at a core (abs) session under the instruction of Christian, and my goodness it was tough. I think I have left my abs a bit unattended during the past three weeks. Christian put high intensity and kept the heart rate going  high throughout the class, and I cannot ever remember to have sweated that much during a strength training session; sweat was dripping from my nose tip, ear flips, and elbows. Afterwards I was completely exhausted; I could not remove myself from the couch for several hours.

Christian is not only a great instructor; he is also an infinite source of motivation at all times. He has an incredible story, which is so inspiring that whenever I feel down or sorry for myself because of injury or pain, I read a couple of his posts to draw myself up. He has a serious illness, cystic fibrosis, which disables about 70% of his lung capacity. Without training he would actually die. In fact it is such a mind blowing dilemma. Thanks to his intensive training he is able to slow down the progression of his illness. However, he cannot become an old man unless he gets a lung transplantation, which he is not yet sick enough to get since he is fighting his illness so well. He improves his shape and runs marathons, and then comes a rainy winter with lots of infections where all training is lost, and he is back to square one. He repeats this restlessly over and over again. Whenever I feel like complaining, I think of Christian. He is so strong, and nobody should complain unless they fight at least as hard has him.

The same afternoon, Frank and I went for the regular Melkesyre Stoltzekleiven training. I pushed it but I was still a couple of minutes behind my personal record. A bit disappointing, since I was very close to my record just before the summer holidays, but OK since I had heavy legs from the strength training and the Gullfjellet hike, and it has after all been three weeks with no uphills. Fortunately, the race is still two months away, and I hope that gives enough time to get back into shape and improve my recorded race time. On the positive side, from the top of Stoltzekleiven we had a wonderful easy jog up to Rundemanen and Blåmanen, which was a lot of fun and went really well with respect to my injury.  My hamstrings are working quite well now for steep uphill fast walking and slow terrain running, although I am still no good at flat fast running. I think the treadmill intervals of Barry's bootcamp classes will be a nice way of getting back into speed training without putting too much strain on my injury, and on Friday I was planning to attend a regular class. But listening to my body (wow, I am good at this now!), I figured that it would be better to rest my legs, and I went again for a double floor class (no treadmill, just strength training for the whole hour). To my big surprise Ketil and his fiance Mona were there to attend the class, and I had the bench between Ketil and Irene, with Mona just behind; you can imagine the pressure I felt!

So great to meet and catch up with all these wonderful people all at once and so unexpectedly. The class was instructed by Tage the legendary, who brought Barry's Bootcamp to Norway, first to Bergen, then to Oslo, and soon to open a second branch in Bergen. No matter how good or bad shape you are in, bootcamp classes are a great way of getting into better shape. They can prepare you to start running faster or longer distances, in addition to making you stronger, or make you even faster and even stronger if you are already in great shape. I daresay it is more efficient than any other training for strength and speed.

In the meanwhile I am of course also back to my HSR training with the regular machines, and back to training sessions with Melkesyre. Although I do my own variant sometimes (walking up Stoltzekleiven instead of running intervals to Fløyen) it is simply wonderful to meet my gang before the start of a session and to rejoin them at the end. The HSR is going well, too. I was happy to see that I have kept or increased the weight on all exercises. On top of that, my injury feels even better now after a few days of uphills. The only disappointment is the leg curl which is still at the same weight and pain level as it was before the holidays. But I am able to do it properly and draw my leg all the way up to my butt. The day I will be able to increase the weight on this exercise will be a new milestone. I am looking forward to it!

Patience is power.

Holiday training - II : swim tracking issues

A man who has a watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure. (Segal's law)

For the first time ever, I own a gps watch that can be used for swimming! I was very happy with my previous watch (until its light stopped working a few months ago) but it could not be used during swimming activities. All these years, for tracking my open water swimming time during summer, I used simple cheap digital watches that are usually waterproof up to 50 m. Although these poor watches eventually get destroyed by salt and the sun, they work perfectly well for timing both intervals and whole swimming sessions for at least two or three summers. For checking my distance, I used Google maps to measure the distance between the endpoints of my swimming rounds. Of course since it is not possible to swim straight lines in open water, this was never accurate, but it gave a pretty good idea of my total swimming distance.

This year, I was excited and eager to test my new watch which is a Garmin Forerunner 920XT. It is a triathlon watch, which can be used for swimming, running, and biking, as well as combination of all three. I have had it for already a couple of months, but I never found the time to start using it before the summer holidays. When I finally hit the beach on the first day and took out my watch to set it up, I was happily surprised to see that its colors matched perfectly the colors of my goggles, my beach slippers, and my swimming equipment purse. I was so enthusiastic (you know by now how easily this happens) that I simply had to post the following picture on Instagram.

Nobody believed that the matching colors were a coincidence... But Frank, who bought the watch, can assure you that it was. Unfortunately it turned out that I was expecting a bit too much from my new watch. The heart rate belt is not to be used during swimming. There is no way the watch can get the information from the belt while in water, so the swimming functions do not at all contain a view of the heart rate. This was the first disappointment, as I was really looking forward to register the heart rate and to see how it changes between the different styles of swimming and between faster and slower swimming (the heart rate tends always to be quite a bit lower in water than when running, even during strenuous swimming). The second disappointment took me a couple days to figure out: the breaststroke rounds are not distance registered at all! It turns out that the gps signal is lost when under water. While forward crawl swimming, the distance is registered quite accurately, since the arm with the watch goes above the surface every second stroke, and just a second outside of water is enough to catch the gps signal and recap the distance. However, during breaststroke the arms are under the water all the time, and nothing gets registered. Since the watch has built-in movement control other than gps (as it can register things like distance and cadence while indoor running on treadmill) I was thinking that it could perhaps register the strokes due to the arm movements, but unfortunately not. When I do four rounds, alternating forward crawl and breaststroke, this is how it looks at the end:

Only two rounds registered. I simply have to add the missing two rounds manually. It is not so easy to see the watch while swimming, so to swim intervals while watching the time is not convenient. I think you can set it up so that it tells you when to start swimming fast and when to slow down (it has a very nice buzz which is pleasantly but clearly noticeable), but I haven't taken the time to read and learn all that. Instead, this is how I do my intervals: 120 strokes fast/60 strokes moderate for forward crawl, and 60 strokes fast/30 strokes moderate for breaststroke.

If you are interested, somebody has done a really thorough review of this watch, and he recommends it to wear it on your head (under your swim cap) for most accurate registration of distance. As I really prefer to avoid the swim cap, this is not an option for me. Don't think that I am not happy with my new watch, though; it has many nice features outside of swimming that I have already tested a bit and am looking forward to test more. When it comes to swimming, I have checked that there are devices that can register heart rate via your ear, and speak to you your heart rate while in water. Great idea, but this is a separate device from your watch. I have another idea: goggles that register heart rate and display it on the top part of the glasses! Attach a tiny antenna that sticks out of the water to keep in touch with the gps signal at all times, and you have the best swim tracker ever. Am I giving away an ultimate business idea too easily? In any case, here is another detailed review and comparison of several swim watches.

Holidays and swimming are great, but I really do miss my mountains! The first thing I am planning to do as soon as I am back in Bergen is to visit Stoltzekleiven. With Skåla Opp coming up in just four weeks, I will probably be alternating between Stotlzekleiven and Gullfjellet every second day after the holidays. Thanks to HSR training, I think I have kept my leg strength, but I am a bit worried that my uphill shape has declined during the past three weeks.

We will see on Wednesday...

Holiday training - I

"Remember that you are on holiday; don't rain too much." (Ketil Ola Skjelvan)

Every summer I spend 3-5 weeks in the Bodrum area, a peninsula where the Aegean sea meets the Mediterranean, with a large variety of wonderful beaches. Taking a complete break from training during these holiday weeks has never been an option. However, the type of training has changed quite a bit since last year.

2013 and before

Until last year, my holiday training consisted of about an hour fast open water swimming six days a week. Although my running activity and form improved over the years, and I became a regular Bootcamper since May 2012, I never considered the option of running or strength training during the summer holidays away from home. Mostly because it is simply too hot to run during the day, but also because I love open water swimming and I don't get to swim much otherwise since I am not that fond of swimming pools. Holiday swimming is very motivating, as it feels pretty hard in the beginning but gets easier and faster as the weeks pass by. What I do is to pick two landmarks (or perhaps I should call them sea marks), like two piers about 200 - 300 meters from each other, and do rounds back and forth between them and time my rounds. I always change between front crawl (freestyle) and breaststroke every second round, and I have throughout the years figured out that larger goggles that cover my entire eye area (including eye brows) work the best for me. (Leaking or foggy goggles can ruin the whole swimming experience!)

2014

2014 was when I started training seriously. By the summer of 2014, I had already participated at Bergen City half marathon and Bergen Fjellmaraton, and I had regular personal training sessions with Ketil since March. In addition, Oslo half marathon was coming up in September 2014, as well as Skåla Opp already in August, so I realized that no running could not be an option that summer. I did not want to lose my running form, neither did I want to lose my strength, so I made a plan to continue with both during the summer holidays of 2014. Ketil made a perfect strength training plan for me which was scheduled to last about an hour. The plan was easily dividable into three parts of 20 minutes each: arms and shoulders; abs; legs and butt. I combined this strength training with swimming or running every day, except Sundays. Because of the heat, the running had to be done early in the morning. Frank agreed to join me on the running program, and three days a week we hit the roads at 6:30 in the morning. It was hard to get up, but afterwards it was wonderful. The cool wind, running by the sea, the incredible early morning views and colors... When we got back, we went back to sleep for about an hour after showering and before breakfast. After that, we were as good as new to start a new day; I felt that we got so much out of those days. We also found a steep hill to do some uphill intervals, and this ended up being my weekly routine for four weeks last summer:
Monday: Early morning run 15 km; strength training arms and shoulders 20 min in the afternoon.
Tuesday: 2 km swimming during the day; strength training legs and butt 20 min in the afternoon.
Wednesday: Early morning uphill intervals, about an hour; strength training abs 20 min in the afternoon.
Thursday: 2 km swimming during the day; strength training legs and butt in the afternoon.
Friday: Early morning fartlek (irregular, fun intervals) 10 km, strength training arms and shoulders.
Saturday: 2 km swimming during the day; strength training abs in the afternoon.
Sunday: Rest
I made sure to separate leg and butt training from the days of running, and arms and shoulders training from the days of swimming.

This turned out to be the ultimate holiday training experience. I came back from holidays stronger and faster than before, and I was really happy about the whole program. If you are up to it, I can really recommend it. Getting up early during holidays is scary for most, but you can shower and sleep afterwards, and still reach breakfast at around 10:30; it then feels like you are starting a new day.  It is really a wonderful scheme. I do have early morning training even when I am not on holidays, but the sleeping part makes the whole difference!

2015

Of course, since I was so happy about last year's training program, the initial plan was to repeat it this year, too, but that was before I started my rehab program.  As it became clear that I would not be able to run this summer, and I was eager not to take a break from my HSR training, I decided to find a gym that provided the machines for my HSR exercises. My plan was to do my HSR exercises three times a week, and swim every day in addition (except Sundays - Sundays are always rest days during holidays). During my most depressed time due to zero activity at the beginning of the rehab period, Frank bought me a new sports watch which can be used for swimming as well, to cheer me up. I did not end up going to a swimming pool for alternative training, so I was very excited to finally use my watch for open water swimming at the beginning of this year's holidays.

I found a fancy training studio with all the equipment I need, and Frank and I signed up for a month's subscription. The place worked so well that Frank and I are now going there six days a week, instead of three. Frank still does a run or two out on the road every now and then, but he found that treadmill running also works fine, at least for intervals and speed tests. He is also slowly getting the taste of strength training (I must admit I had a tiny hidden agenda here). Hence this is now my holiday routine so far this year:

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: HSR exercises in the morning after a short warmup; 2300 m swimming in the afternoon (fast intervals).

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday: Strength training in the morning, mainly arms, shoulders, abs and back, after 30 min variety running on the treadmill; 2300 m swimming in the afternoon (long slow continuous swim).

Sunday: Rest

I am very happy about being able to run again, albeit only on the treadmill and short distance (max 3 km). I try to do variations, like a 10-15 min slow run (8-10 km/h), followed by faster intervals, for example 2 min 12 km/h, 2 min 13 km/h, 2 min 14 km/h, with a minute walking break in between, and then repeat. My injury is all the time noticeable but I can run without limping, which is new since many months. When it comes to the warm up before the HSR exercises, I use the elliptical machine rather than the treadmill, to get a variation (as you can see, variation is a key word). The swimming gives a very nice rehab workout for the hamstrings injury as well. Both during forward crawl and breaststroke, the hamstrings tendon contracts and stretches (in several different ways), and it feels better and better all the time. During the first days of swimming I could feel my injury all the time, whereas now when I swim I am able to forget it completely most of the time.

Summer swimming has a tendency to motivate me to try a triathlon. Last year, as a beginning I wanted to do the Os triathlon, but it was too close to Oslo marathon, and I did not want to lose focus or energy at that point. This year I am actually registered as a participant of Os triathlon (all these plans that were made before the rehab started...) and I feel that my swimming form is becoming pretty decent. I am still not sure whether the running part is doable, but it is a sprint triathlon with only 5 km running, so let's see what negotiations with Ane might bring after the holidays. Right now I am extremely impressed and motivated by the achievements of my friends Janne, Michal and Freddy who recently completed an Ironman race, and Caroline who just won an uphill triathlon.

Oh, I forgot to tell you about my experiences with the new swimming watch! Let me continue next week. By that time perhaps I will have taken a short run out on the roads or on the beach as well, which is the next milestone on the rehab plan.

Stay tuned, and enjoy an active holiday wherever you are!

Report from rehab - III : Ane the angel

You might have noticed that my current physiotherapist is the only one I have mentioned by name among all the different therapists I have tried. Ane Falck is her full name and she is simply amazing. She never stops surprising me. The treatment evolves all the time with new ingredients being added, and this is something I have not experienced with the other therapists. I want to emphasize that all other therapists I wrote about were highly recommended by people who are extremely happy about them, but they each specialized in one type of treatment. Normal massage, deep tissue massage, acupuncture, and intramuscular needles. I also tried chiropractic twice, so in total five therapists with each their five different specialties. It turns out that Ane specializes in all of these five treatment methods! In addition to ultrasound examinations and ultrasound assisted injections...

I did not think that I would write more about rehab until perhaps later to report on my healing, because I thought there would be not much to report about. I would simply be doing my exercises until I got better.  To my surprise, about a month ago Ane said "OK, now it's time to start treatment". Treatment? I thought HSR was the treatment. I was quite curious when I went to my next appointment with her, and it was above all expectations. She gave me intramuscular needles, deep tissue massage and chiropractics in one single session! I had been transferred to Ane from my previous therapist who is also at the same center as her, to have the injured area examined with ultrasound. So I thought ultrasound was her specialization. Then we started the rehab exercises, and as I wrote before, I am extremely happy with the way Ane is following up on my progress. Although we don't have an appointment, she very often finds me in the exercise room, corrects my posture, suggests advancements in the exercises, and simply genuinely cares. To be honest, I did not think that there was more. The fact that we have now muscular treatment in addition to the HSR training is such a nice surprise, and it gives me even more motivation to conscientiously and rigorously continue with the exercises. 

Another thing that impresses me about Ane is that not only she knows so much about so many things, but she is also interested in teaching me! She shows me pictures from books and explains how the muscles, joints or the tissue around them work, what out treatment is trying to achieve, why it works, etc etc. She also gives me links so that I can read more about both the injury and the treatment methods myself. This is, in my experience, quite non-typical of therapists. She is not only treating my current injury, but she also gives me exercises so that I can stay injury free in the future, and she gives me lots of examples from her own experiences. Ane is around my age, she is a very physically active person herself, and I have the feeling that she understands me completely. She is so compassionate and empathetic, and I have never experienced this, at least to this extent, with the previous therapists. During my last session with her before the holidays, she said "Our goals is to get you back at running, as a stronger and better runner than you were before". Wow: our goal, and better than before! I almost got tears in my eyes...

I experienced the ultimate proof of the level of her empathy when I was worried about some shoulder pain just a few days before the holidays. Ane knew that I was counting on swimming a lot during the holidays, so although she understood from my description that it was probably nothing, she gave me an appointment just the next day. I got a thorough examination of the shoulder, which was by that time already quite a lot better, and I was impressed how she was able to take it so seriously when she already knew that it would simply pass in a few days. She explained to me later that it is also important to stop the mental processes around pain and injury. In the end, pain is simply signals that our brain is producing, and sometimes it can produce these signals even when there is no physical reason. This is why many people struggle with chronic inexplicable pain. I learn so much from her...

On top of all these things, we discovered that Ane and my trainer Ketil are friends from way back! What a team! I have the pleasure of working with two of the people who are the most excellent in their work, who are among the few that understand me completely and take all my worries seriously, and whom I have become extremely fond of. My hope is to continue my collaboration with Ketil and Ane until we all retire :-) With this kind of a support team, I believe nothing can stand in my way to become and stay fast and injury free!

I am afraid too many of us hang on to therapies and therapists long after we have lost faith in them. If a treatment is not working for you, and you do not get an explanation that you are satisfied with, it might be worthwhile to look into alternatives. Do not hesitate to discuss it with your current therapist, and ask him or her to suggest alternative treatments. And when you finally find somebody whom you are 100% satisfied with, trust their methods and follow their instructions to the letter to get the results that you deserve.

Don't ever let go of people who enhance your life!