Big Decisions

This was a pic taken up in Canada. I was on a run with Ben (who is Ben you ask?) and I saw this giant log thing and realized that it looked like the worlds largest turtle! It really looked like it might get up and walk off at any moment.


So this last week was filled with a few big decisions. The first being the Supreme Courts ruling in California on gay marriage. I am not going to get into that now but will later as the whole thing is more complex than it appears and I want to spell it out with all the facts. The second is related to my triathlon life. I decided that I am going to race one more year as an age grouper and have given up my pro card.

This was a decision that I was thinking about for the past few weeks. I talked to a few friends around here that I trust and it seems that everyone was in favor of me switching back. With the injury I faced this last year I don't think I am ready to step it up a notch just yet. I may still make the gains that I want to this year but I think that it would be a lot harder with the added pressure of racing pro. Even though racing "pro" is in some ways just a "classification" I still found that there are pressures around it that I really don't need right now.

I do eventually want to race pro but only when I am confident that I can race at that level. I see a lot of guys out there that have the talent but don't cut the mustard when it comes to results. Having a year like that will not benefit a guy like me. Gordo and I talked allot about the "enjoyment factor" and I realized that I wasn't enjoying what I was doing as much anymore. I think it came from this feeling that if I raced pro I was going to have to be spot on every time I came to the line. Granted, that is based alot on just worrying what other people think and maybe that is the case. I just don't want to go to a race as a pro and finish 3rd in my age. I think that's silly. But that's just me.

What I want to focus on now is having a solid year so that I do make even more gains that allow me to have the confidence to race pro. Part of that is going to be having an injury free year. So far we are still on track. If I raced pro I think I may have felt the need to rush things and that might put me back to square one with my foot. In the age group field I can relax a bit and go at my own pace. Besides, there are PLENTY of awesome age group athletes that make the field pretty damn competitive!

Some may ask how I was able to have a pro card and go back to age group this year. The simple answer is that I haven't raced yet. I never raced pro in 08 and called USAT to make sure all this was kosher and have been cleared etc.

With the switch back I also found some fire starting around an Ironman. I clearly don't have the fitness right now to do an Ironman anytime soon but as my body becomes stronger and the injury, plantar faciitis (AKA Schizophrenia of the foot) goes away, I think I would like to get a Hawaii slot and build up for it later in the year. I'm not totally sold on the idea yet but I will take my slot if I get it in Honu or anywhere else. I just love that race and had a blast last year. Having another crack at it as an age grouper seems like a great challenge to me. I was 97th overall last year so 75th seems like a nice target :-)

Training is going well and I just had a test on the bike over at Gordo's "Endurance Corner Lab". I showed signs of improvement and have actually found the testing to be helpful. I was such a skeptic before and really had no interest in it. But now I quite like it and enjoy using my power meter and dare I say heart rate monitor a bit. If anything I think it is fun to go in the lab and try and beat your last test or show that the bod is more efficient. Matt Steinmetz does the test and is really good at getting you to give it towards the end when it gets hard. And yes, this is a blatant plug for Endurance Corner! Those guys have been really good to me from the start and they have a good little show going on over there.

Well I am now a few days out of leaving for paradise to go race Honu. Lots of great friends racing from all over the world and Ben! "Whose Ben?"

Cheers,
bdc

Denver Academy Diversity Day

I haven't got my site complete yet so I am going to use this blog for a non tri post (like I said I wouldn't LOL) The pic above is an attempt to balance it out. Marky V had asked me if I wanted to go Snow Shoeing up in the mountains for some "cross training" and this pic is from that day. That is actually Mark in the pic....

This last week I had the privilege of being a guest lecturer at The Denver Academy High School for their Diversity Day. I was asked to speak about the Matthew Shepard murder and also share my own personal experiences with coming out and growing up gay.

The day was broken up into two 55 min sessions followed by a lunch session with all the speakers and students for a larger discussion section. I didn't have that much information on what the day would be like so I kind of went into it a bit blind. I had several things prepared and decided that I would make a really quick assessment of the situation and go from there. For the most part I am really good at "winging" it.

When I got there I found I was a bit nervous. I haven't really talked on this subject to a group this young and wasn't exactly sure how they would react. I figured it would go both ways with some kids being accepting and others not so much. I decided that I would try and make the sessions as interactive as possible and encourage questions and sharing. However, I was going to stay away from anything that dealt with sex, religion and politics. That isn't so easy to do with this subject because right now that is the "hub" of homosexuality. It is heavily in the political arena, religions battle about it and well, part of being gay obviously involves sex. So how was I going to go about this staying away from the big three?

It turned out to be much easier than I thought. Most of the kids were really interested in my story and I easily transitioned most of the talk into a larger scope that dealt with the way in which we all judge people. I think the idea is not to stop judging but rather, where do you go after your judgment? It would be nice if we didn't judge people as much as we did but it seems we are hard wired to do it. We need to start taking our judgments and question the reasons we have them. Much of the information that we obtain on a certain subject or group of people is not correct. Taking a moment to think about things a bit more will help with that realization. I catch myself doing it. I will have developed an opinion on something and then realize that my information on it is limited and sketchy.

In regards to homosexuality, many people have very strong opinions about it that are based on miss information. Some of the questions I get absolutely floor me. "So when you are in a relationship, who is the guy and who is the girl?" That is my favorite one!

All in all I found the kids at this school to be WAY smarter than most adults on issues of diversity. It gave me a lot of hope to see so many smart young individuals that get "it" on so many levels. My talk probably would have been more effective if given to the parents.

It really is all about education and obtaining truthful information. I try to check myself when I have an opinion about something that I don't have that much information on. Even if it is as simple as my thoughts on a movie that I haven't seen. I realize it isn't fair to comment on it. People need to stop making comments on things that they know nothing about. We do it ALL the time. I do my best these days not to. It is okay to not have an opinion on something and just say " I really don't know". Lets all try it.

UCLA Cross Country Alumni Race

What a difference a few weeks make! I have noticed that in the last few weeks things have really turned around. I was in a physical and mental slump in regards to triathlon for a decent amount of time and I am seeing a very bright light at the end of this tunnel. I say "this" tunnel because as we all know, it would be foolish to think that it would be the last "tunnel" when doing triathlons. It's part of it and the people who manage those times best seem to do quite well.

Anyway, as I said, things are on the up and up. I had made a quick last minute trip to LA this weekend. It just so happened that I had a meeting out there on Friday and the UCLA Cross Country Alumni Race was on Saturday. I had not been able to go to the race in the last two years so I was pretty stoked that I would be out there.

The race is a 2,400. I think we figure that is long enough but not too long while short enough but not too short. The race had been taken off the track because it was felt that the track was too intimidating and attendance became low. That was fine with me as I was in no shape to run a 2,400 on the track.

The race site was on our old stomping ground in Brentwood. We met at 26th and San Vicente which is one of the major running areas in LA. I can't begin to tell you how many times I ran up and down that strip while in college. Even when I was younger I ran and raced there as my parents always took me to the Brentwood 5K/10K race. I think I actually ran it when I was under the age of 10!.

San Vicente has a huge grass median that we run on and there are these really big trees that have roots that pop out of the ground about every 20 feet. If most people are not careful they are sure to go down. Back in college we could run that strip with our eyes closed and never hit a root!

So the race, which I decided to take part in, started at the top of SV and 26th. When I rolled up in the car I was shocked to see Bob Larson standing there. I had no idea that the "Bobcat" would be there. He had his mega phone in hand just like old times. Bob is now the head Olympic Track Coach and well known for coaching my former teammate and high school rival Meb Keflezigi. Meb had that extra something back then that we all lacked which took him to a Silver Medal in the Olympic Marathon. That extra something wasn't necessarily athletic potential. The guy was just mentally mature to a point none of us were. I guess that is what happens when your family flees a war torn part of Africa. Most of us were taking our college time for granted......

Meb wasn't at the race but he had planned to be at the UCLA/USC track meet going on later that day. A few of the guys I knew and ran with were there, most noticeably Matt Olin. He was my best friend in college and is exactly the same today. It was a real trip to be lined up on SV next to Matt with Bobcat giving us the workout.

I had debated not to do the run because of the fear of possibly injury. But I gave in and decided that I would do it. I figured I would have a "get out of jail free" card on this one. I was the most "trained" guy there and to sit on the sideline was just dumb.

After Bob got done making his jokes like he always did (some funny, others horribly painfull!) he sounded his horn and off we went. It didn't seem like we were running that fast but in a few min a could feel my lungs burning a bit. That could have been from the speed or the smog! I just kept chugging along and was laughing that I was so far back. I had to take it out a bit slower as I think all this IM training has made me slow. I haven't done any top end running in a few years other than races and boy could I feel it.

Bob was standing at the mile marker with his horn yelling out splits. I didn't have my watch on and figured we were running about 6 min mile pace. We came through at 5:01 LOL! No wonder my lungs were burning. Who knew I could run a 5 min mile out of the blue like that?? We kept the same pace for the rest of the race which was only 800 meters more. When it was done I felt like I had taken a shot of battery acid. To think we would do 8 of those at a pace much faster and not really even notice it until number 7.

Matt and I decided to go on one of our old runs since we were down that way. We headed to the Santa Monica Pier and actually ran our to the end of it. Matt and I were the only guys who used to run all the way to the end. We always felt that if we were down there we might as well enjoy it. The water looked really nasty and it pains me to think LA Tri Club people swim in it. I used to do that. Yuck!

Once back from our run which was about an hour total we gave a good stretch and then I had to rush off. I was doing a charity spin class for the Aids Life Cycle. It was an hour 30 class and was trying to figure out how I was going to be able to do that now. All in all the class was fine. Spinning is so hard if you don't do it. Even with bike fitness it still gives you a much harder workout. I think that is because it requires a strength that we don't really use on the bike. I liked it alot and found myself super sore the next day.

I was worried that my decision to do the race and the spin class would hurt me but it didn't at all and I really think I might be able to start training my top end a bit more. After the the Alumni race it made me realize that if I was injury free I could totally get myself back in to 15 min 5k shape. That is only 3x4:50 mile. If I can do a 2,400 at 7:20 pace off nothing a 15 min 5K is not that far off. But not that I am going to train for that. However, it did give me some confidence that I could get down to my 1:15 1/2 ironman run time. So we will see what happens.

As of now I am still going to proceed with caution. I have decide that Hawaii 70.3 (Honu) will be my first race. Looking forward to it and will keep the postings current on how the training is going. The new site should be up around Friday where I will be starting my other blog that doesn't talk about triathlon or sports.

Cheers,
bdc

Update

So I never wrote about that last day in AZ. It isn't really relevant anymore but lets just say it was a long day with a super climb and plenty of heat. Good times as usual.

I am not the best at keeping up on a blog and I think it is actually because I have too much in my head and I can't decide what to talk about and then I just end up saying nothing. I pride myself in being a triathlete that can think beyond SBR and don't like to blog on and on about training, watts and heart rate. But it seems that most of the stuff I want to talk about these days revolves around my training and I just decide to not geek out and end up with a blog that isn't updated.

With that said I think the best decision is to start two blogs. It may sound crazy but I think I will actually be more consistent with writing if I have one that is dedicated to training and one that is just about "stuff". I suppose there are people out there that might enjoy reading about my trials and tribulations in triathlon. It would also be a good exercise for me. Writing tends to ease my frustrations. With that said I will make this update about training....or lack there of.

It's funny that I use the word "lack" in my description of training because I am clearly not "lacking". I'm just not going as long or hard as I have in the past. This is a very deliberate choice. After my time in NZ, Canada, and AZ I got back to Boulder and just realized how deeply tired I was. Tired may not be the correct word because it seems to be both physical and mental, but none the less I wanted to slow down.

The reality is that my training has reached a point where gains are not really happening. I see repeated injuries and with that I see mental burn out. You can only go so long dealing with the S.O.S. I talked a little bit about some of the changes I made in the run department in a prior blog. That ultimately led to even bigger changes.

Gordo and I had a chat about things and we both came to the conclusion that it is in my best interest to not do an Ironman this year. I had been on a program that was geared more towards health but G and I made some big decisions that really back that up. Here they are:

* No Ironman this year.
* No rides over 3:30, runs over 1:30, swims over 4K.
* No Bricks
* No back to back hard workouts
* Riding only ever other day. Swim every other day. No swim, bike, run day.
* Get running consistant.
* No racing until healthy.

When I decided to make this my new training "law" I felt like a million brick were lifted off my shoulders. Don't' get me wrong, I still have some challenging goals in the sport, but I just dont see them coming true until I get a break. Not to mention I was turning into someone that just didn't really enjoy it anymore. Ultimately I enjoy training sooo much that it would not be wise of me to continue down a path that makes it my enemy. I mean, if that happens all goals in the sport are done.

In the past few weeks I have been following my plan and the great news is that my feet don't hurt anymore!!! I took my orthodics out of my bike shoes too and the very next day I didn't wake up with heal pain and I haven't since. You may think that is because I haven't been running enough but I have run 20 days in a row in racing flats with my most recent runs being between 30-50 min.

All the bike sessions I have done have been around 2 hours just cruising. I go out with Marky V on his easy days and ride with people that I don't normally ride with because I am just chillin. It is really nice. Too bad I am not straight as I am finding all sorts of hot girls to ride with LOL!

The funny thing with this new plan is that even with the time off swimming because of my shoulder, I am swimming faster than I ever have! I went to a Dave swim the other day and lead my lane in a main set of 15x200 and was hitting 2:40-2:45 (meters) on a good number of the back end with my slowest one being 2:55. I think it was one of the first swim workouts I have had in a long while where I felt truly present. I didn't have that tired feeling that I always seem to have. And then to know that I don't have to go ride 90 miles just put a big smile on my face! I went home took a quick nap and then went about my day. I think the reduction and rest is going to be really good for me.

So that is the athlete update. I should actually have a website up by May 9th and I am very excited about that because with the reduction in training I am going to focus a bit more outside myself with some added coaching. I get a huge kick out of helping people meet their goals and pride myself with getting people under 3 hours for the marathon!

I will make the switch to two blogs once the new site is up. It will be brandondelcampo.net as I lost the .com on accident and now some British guy owns it and wants $1,500 dollars for it. Good luck with that!

Cheers,
bdc

Arizona Training- Final Days

Well the last three days of camp are done with and I am back in Boulder. It was basically a 2 day block for me as I only did a 45 min run on day 6. It was too bad that I wasn't running more as we went to the Cactus Forrest which is filled with some really awesome trails. I was jealous of all the guys that got to do a 2 hour+ run. I still noticed some twinges in my feet. Honestly I am more concerned about the right one now as it is "new". The left one just feels bad in the AM but seems to go away. I am making some changes that I think may help in the long run (no pun intended)

My last two days at camp were really solid. On day 7 JD, Matt, Jonas and I went out for a separate ride. The main group was going on a two hour ride in preps for the long day 8 "Kit Peak" ride. I opted to go longer because of the lack of swimming and running. Plus it gave JD and Matt some extra people for their ride.

We went out on 86 which would be the direction we go out on Day 8. The plan was to ride 40 miles out to the base of the Kit Peak climb and then turn around. We turned off onto 286 at some point which was the wrong way to go. We just went out until we hit 35 miles and then turned around. Going out we had a bit of wind and some rollers that were more "up" than down. It was a main ride for JD and Matt so they were going at a good clip. When we turned around we dropped Matt but I think it was just that he didn't have any aero bars on his bike. Gordo seems to think we smashed him which may be the case as he has ridden pretty hard all week. But I am sticking with "lack of aero bars" as my story :-) Jonas randomly turned back 10 miles into the ride. He had a blister or something LOL.

When we got back we did a little run in the trails behind the compound (camp home base). The run was pretty good for me and I am always thank full when I get to run. I have noticed that one of the problems I have is that running on a surface that is not flat or level like a street, I really run a high risk of twisting my ankles and feel totally unstable. This should not be the case with me given my cross country background. I love trail running but over the last years I have noticed some issues with it.

What I have decided due to a few things I have read and some basic common sense is that I need to get out of my current shoes and orthodics. When I ran in High School and College I was not accustomed to running in super supportive shoes. We ran in light trainers and even lighter racers. I have a pair of my old CC racers at the house and was looking at them. I put them on and could not believe how "nothing" of a shoe they are. Then I put on my current trainer and felt like I had on platform shoes that someone might wear because they have issues with being short.

Here is what I think happened:

Over time shoe companies started making training shoes that had more and more support and over time most people ended up in a much firmer shoe than is needed. I did a decent amount of running in shoes like that but would also switch down to an ultra light racing shoe that didn't have anywhere near the support. So over many miles in the more supportive trainer, my bodies own muscles that are used to keep me stable became weak. Finally one day when I put on the light racer and ran hard I injured my foot because I was overworking weakened foot muscles and tendons.

Of course when you get injured you end up being told that you need more support, motion control, orthodics etc. And maybe you do in the early stages of the injury. But after a while you become so "addicted" to them that you find walking bare foot or without the support terribly uncomfortable.

It has been argued in several articles that I have recently read that states people who wear cheaper, less supportive shoes have lower rates of injuries. Some of these articles have also stated that the impact your body takes in these heavier shoes can be worse than if you were running with bare feet. Hard to believe for most. I was for me but when I really sat down and gave my running some thought certain parts of this theory started to ring true.

For one thing, not only do I feel less stable in the "more stable" shoe, I also feel that my body is not reacting to the surface of the ground as fast as it needs to. Think about it, When you walk or run your body is sending signals to your brain that tells your body what muscles to fire to keep you up and going. If you have all this shoe under you, well you are going to be getting "blurred" messages and delayed signals. Running for me in the past two years has taken a toll on my hips as well and I am wondering if it is because my form is being altered due to the thick shoe?

The question now is really to figure out what is going on. I can't continue on the path I am on. I am often angry and unhappy about my injuries and if they continue I will need to stop all together. That would suck. But at least at this point I have less to loose with decisions I make.

Here is what I have done:

I got out my racing flats that I ran in all year. They are much "less" of a shoe than my trainers. I took out my orthodics and put in the standard insole that comes with the shoe. Then I proceeded to put on way too many clothes as it is cold as crap here in Boulder and went out for a little jog.

I could tell instantly that I had a better "feeling" of the road. It almost felt barefoot to me! But I kept on and ran out for 10 min and then turned around. The feet felt pretty good on the run. I understand that making the switch back to a basic shoe is going to take some getting used to. I won't be able to jump right into this but I am hopeful that if given the proper acclimation period, I will get back to my roots of injury free fast running. Like I said, I have nothing to loose at this point.

Here is my plan:

I was scheduled to race Wildflower and Ironman CDA. All that is on "pause". It is uncertain if I will do either. It is also uncertain if I will even do an Ironman this year. The stress of trying to train for a race while you have multiple injuries going on is too hard and ineffective. This is a bit hard for me to digest as I love to race and proved it last year by racing a ton. Granted I did quite well for where I was but it seems I am left now in a state that is unproductive. Is that due to all the races I did on an injured body? Maybe? Does that mean that racing alot is a bad thing? Not in my mind. There are plenty of people out there that race all distances all the time and do VERY well. I think the key to that success is that you can only race a ton when you are injury free. As of now, I am not.

This week back in Boulder is going to be filled with VERY short runs in the lighter shoes paying close attention to how the feet and body are adapting to the change.

The bike is going to be cut back as well. There will be no long rides and nothing too fast. That won't be hard with this weather! For the most part my riding focus is going to be about recovery. Gordo and I both agree that I have put some decent work in and that letting the body absorb it is not a bad thing.

At camp I got a second cortisone shot in my AC shoulder joint and that took a large majority of the inflammation down but swimming still aggravated it and I have pain throughout the day. However, I took the last few days off from the pool and have noticed that many of my muscles in my arm and shoulder are sore from that one simple 2K swim that I did on Day 8. That is probably a good sign because it just means that the surrounding muscles need to get back up to speed in order to support the joint. Dr. J thinks that that shot may take a few days to have a full effect and that I can work swimming back in at small doses. I am also going to schedule an MRI as the burning sensation I feel might indicate a tear. If that is the case then we deal with it. I know plenty of people that have had a tear there and a simple procedure can be done to fix it and the success rate is very high. But I would really prefer avoiding that route. I am going to try a 1,500-2K swim every other day and see what happens. Again, nothing to loose.

Once I get some of these things sorted then I can figure out what a good basic week will look like for me. Until then it is operation "Fix BDC"!

I guess I never got to Day 8 of the camp. I will write about that in a separate blog as it was a very decent day and deserves it's own blog. I am SOOOOOO glad to be off the road and back HOME! IT has been a long 3 months.

Cheers,
bdc

Tuscon Heat Fest-Day 4

Today was a step in the right direction as I was able to get back in the pool! That was very exciting for me as it has now been a good two weeks since I last swam. I only did 2K but to be honest I didn't notice much difference from where I left off. The shoulder does hurt a bit now but seems manageable. The cortisone shot arrived so I think I will give it until the end of the week before we use it.

Our ride today was pretty good. It was by far the hottest day for us and felt like it was well into the 90's at certain points. I still can't get over the dryness factor and have had a huge headache for the last two days. I know it is just dehydration but I can't seem to get back on the plus side with the water. It's not really effecting my ride except for the fact that it feels like a hammer hitting me all day LOL...

We got on the bikes after the swim. The guys from Wheels on Wheels had transported them all for us to the pool. The service they provide is EXCELLENT and my bike has never been this cleaned and tuned for this many consecutive days. I got a nice demo on how to quickly clean a bike thoroughly from one of the guys. I think I might get some OCD on bike cleaning when I get to Boulder.

I rolled out with the A group and Matty got on the front pretty early on and had the pace rollin a bit. I was second in line and when I pulled through we split up a bit. Jonas and I took off but honestly I wasn't trying to drop them. I think I just took advantage of a larger gear I have on the slight down hill. We didn't know where we were going so we eventually had to stop and group back up. Plus it was so damn hot and dry that we figured we could grab a swig of coke from JD who was in a SAG van crewing.

Once we regrouped we did a bit of pace lining which is always fun to do at a camp. I was a bit concerned of our choice of road that we decided to do it on so I decided to lay back for a while. Somehow I got back on the front and Jonas, Jeff from North Carolina and myself took off again. We broke away (unintentionally) and finsihed the ride together. I think Gordo and Matt doubled back to check on the group as it was so hot that a double back was probably needed today.

The climb was unusually easy for me today. We did have a slight tail up it but I can tell that my legs and "pep" are bouncing back. I think that I haven't felt fresh because I have taken a bit longer to adjust to the new time zone from NZ. Even though I was in Canada for a week prior I wasn't able to make the time change happen. I wasn't able to get up before 12 noon to train. I'm cursed with extreme sensitivity to things LOL! At least I know it.

Sitting here now I can finally feel a break from my headache. I think I will take some clothes up to the house and do a small run when it cools a bit or maybe even after dinner. The feet feel good and I just read an interesting chapter in a book about shoes that I will write about later. Plantar Fasciitis seems to be the most chronic of injuries in the running/tri world and the more I get the feet under control the more I feel I have to offer about how to deal with the injury when it first comes on.

Anyway, time for some of Brook and Russell's AMAZING cooking. Brook is coming over to my place when we get back to Boulder for some crock pot cooking lessons!!

Tuscon Camp- Day 3

Today was a very nice recovery day. We are all sitting here outside now after a few workouts enjoying the shade and nice views. I got a little bit of a sleep in as I am not going to the pool in the AM with the crew. Hopefully I will be joining them very soon.

I rode with the second ride today that was about 30 miles or so that had a mini climb and some scenic views through Old Tuscon. Jonas and I basically rode by ourself as we opted for a slightlu faster pace. It was perfect for me to get the legs loose and some kinks worked out of them.

JD had a run planned this afternoon that left from the house into the trails. It was of course in the middle of the day with the sun beating down on us pretty hard. I like running in the heat because all the joints and muscles feel nice and loose. The trail was a bit unstable for my taste (at least until I feel more confident in the foot) but I faired well and the feet feel quite good right now. The run was 50 min.

Tomorow should be a pretty big day.