Sri Chinmoy "PUFF PADDLE & PUSH"

Sunday 4th May saw the 3rd running of the Sri Chinmoy adventure race "Puff, Paddle and Push". Kaliegh and dearest friend Gab got up early, braved the cold and embarked on a 2.5km run, 3km kayak, 15km mountain bike and another run of 4km.

What a top event! The weather was sensational and as usual the Sri Chinmoy Races Team keep the spirit of endurance sport alive here in Canberra.

Since the week end i have told everyone that is willing to listen how good these types of events are especially if swimming is just not your thing. Why you wouldn't like to swim in one of Canberra's lakes is beyond me but hey, maybe murky brown lakes just aren't inviting anymore.

So i wanted to divulge a few insights on how to prep for an event such as this and give you a few key workouts that will ease the pain on race day.

Firstly endurance sporting events generally range from 30min- 50hrs. Most events that are "FUN" are around the 1-3hr mark. 5hrs+ is actually for the mentally insane and very damaging on the human body. So given that the main energy system used in these events is your "Aerobic Endurance System" your time in training is best spent building a good aerobic foundation. The "Aerobic Energy System" is reliant on fat for energy. This takes place in our bodies in the presence of oxygen (the air we breath). This process is called "Beta Oxidation".

So to train this energy system you would need to complete training sessions in each discipline of 1-2hrs 2-3 times per week. That's 2 rides, 2 kayaks and 2 runs per week, minimum. I would suggest doing this for 6-8 weeks. This will help teach your body to become more efficient at burning fat for energy. Then once you have completed your first phase of training you would then embark on another 4-6 weeks doing the same sessions but with a slightly greater intensity. This would mean adding in some intervals, surges, sprints and hills to lift your heart rate and fitness level. This will help get you "Race Ready" and help you adapt to the high heart rate of competing in races.

A typical Bike session in the "Race Ready" phase would look like this:

Ride 90mins at an easy -moderate pace and include 3x 30sec-5min intervals @ 90% (hard) with a 30sec-3min recover between intervals.

The same principles can be used in run and paddle work outs.

Simple..? I thinks so.

Go for it.

Ross

The big day

It's been ages since i lasted did a post and man have i been copping it. But hey, getting married is kinda a big deal!

Firstly.. My Wife.. Kaliegh Blake!! Kales looked awesome. The moment she walked down that isle i was a blubbering mess. I will never forget the intensity of that moment by Lake Conjola in front of so many friends and family.

Thanks to everyone who helped make the day possible, everyone who travelled from a far and sacrificed your week end for us. We had the time of our lives and look back on it all with such happiness...

Our honeymoon in Thailand was just perfect and only made possible by the many generous gifts and contributions. We are forever in your debit!! Thank you!!

I will post some more pics soon.

What now?

Back to making it happen. Kales and i have some very solid health and business ambitions that we are continuing to pursue and it requires a lot of knuckling down.

As for my training and races i will be starting the steady build up to the Canberra Half Ironman as of this week. I'm looking at fitting in 2 gym workouts, 1 swim, 2 rides (MTB) and 2 runs per week for 6 weeks just to build back some consistency. From there i will do a few road races, fun runs and mtb events for fun prior to heating up for some bigger klms in late winter. A close friend of mine has targeted a marathon in October and a 24hr mtb event so i better get cracking.

Eat Right and Train Hard.

Rosko

Training camp and races!

It's been a while since my last update mostly due to plenty of small races, a training camp, raising money for movember and a booming business!

Racing

Last month i raced my first Triathlon in over 3 years and was happy with how i felt. The race was the first in the CPS Credit Union series here in Canberra and otherwise known as the "Spring Fling". The skills are still there i just need some more specific training and equipment adjustments and i'll be ready to mix it up a little more. I tell ya, Canberra can cultivate some outstanding athletes! Look out for Elliot Wise, coached by one of the best Triathlon Coaches around (Ben Gathercole). Once this kid improves his swim he will rip limbs off other athletes!

1. Elliot Wise 50:19

2. Luke Grattan 50:39

3. Lindsay Wall 51:01

4. Ross Blake 52:45

Other races i've done of late have included some of the local crits with the canberra cycling club and the act cross country club. These races have just been training hit outs but with some faster sessions over the next few month i'll be ready to start having a crack..

Jindabyne Training Camp

At the start of December i headed up into the hills for a week end of leg bashing with Joshi Q and Ross H! That's right, there is nothing better then doing your total weeks riding klms over 3 days to kick your ass!

The weather was pretty up and down as was the terrain. We rode a bloody tough climb called "Dead Horse Gap" on day 2 which took 90mins to ride up!! It was an 11klm climb which should give you an indication as to how steep it was....

Camp details:

Day 1 - Ride 90klms (East Jindabyne - Berridale - Dalgety Jindabyne - East Jindabyne)

-30min Run

Day 2 - 135klms (East Jindabyne - Thredbo - Tom Groggin - Return)

Day 3 - 100klm (East Jindabyne - Charlotte Pass Return)

Big thanks to the Elvin family for providing us with fantastic accommodation!!

Team Swell: The Flying Fish

The Sri Chinmoy Triple Ti is one of the greatest events Canberra has on it's sporting calendar. It has everything endurance junkies (like myself) need to get off!! The race offers competitors the adventure of off road triathlon in a team format which, lets face it, if you're into talking to people rather then going hammer and tong for several hours on end alone this event is unreal!

I raced with some good buddies of mine in TEAM SWELL: The Flying Fish. We all had a solid day in our designated legs (9 legs shared with 6 team members). Stand out performances went to Dave Simpendorph with the fastest ride split for ride 2 against some top riders and Ross Hamilton who charged home with the second fastest run split for the last run.

Hopefully I'll have some pics from the event shortly.

1 The team with no name
21:53 1:33:26 1:20:48 44:00 1:55:20 46:33 16:58 1:08:36 1:06:03 9 : 1 3 : 3 7

2 Stuff the Puffs
21:43 1:39:09 1:28:01 42:17 1:56:51 47:37 15:35 1:07:43 1:02:04 9 : 2 1 : 0 0

3 Team Swell: Flying Fish
23:29 1:54:43 1:35:10 56:14 1:47:57 54:40 21:08 1:20:37 1:01:31 10:15: 29
Ross Anton Ross Ross H Dave Burn Steve Anton Ross H

ccc crit

Last week i raced the Canberra Cycling Club Crit. I felt pretty good considering i haven't raced one of these style of races for nearly 2 years! Apparently there was 290 starters through all categories! Which is a big sign that cycling here in Canberra is pumping!!

B Grade Men - 15 mins + 2 laps (39 starters)

1
Martin Mullin
Velo Canberra
2
Simon Dwyer
V-Mobile
3
Ross Blake
Juice Plus+/FiTREKS

Feeling it

Well my last two planned hit outs have both been passed in for safer training workouts. Firstly the Canberra cycling club canned the crit on Wednesday evening due to bad weather conditions and second i decided to not race the Majura Vineyards Classic on Saturday for i have a sore plantafacsia (sole of foot).

I'm not too fussed over not getting these events in because I've been pretty busted up this last week. I've really suffered with the addition of extra klms!

My foot and my fatigue levels should all be OK in a few days. I've got 2 easy/rest days starting today with a massage and hot and cold session planned. I've been down this road before and i know not to keep pushing it when you actually need rest.

Set your sights high, the higher the better. Expect the most wonderful things to happen, not in the future but right now. Realize that nothing is too good. Allow absolutely nothing to hamper you or hold you up in any way.
-Eileen Caddy

5 weeks till the 1/2 IRONMAN!

Healthy regards

Rosko

Training Update

It's been my goal to update this blog weekly however sometimes life gets it the way. Which could be a good thing considering the chasers blog page is blogsarefornerds.com!

So what have i been up to training wise?

Last week saw the end of "phase 2" and yeah you guessed it I'm now 3 days into "phase 3" and feeling it already! It feels good to know that by the end of the next four weeks i will have taken a big step towards getting my act together on an athletic level. It's amazing how much harder 9 sessions per week is compared to 6.....ouch!!

The biggest thing I'm finding hard to deal with is anticipating how my body will react to certain sessions. Some days I'm feeling great and almost like I'm not doing enough and other days I'm a busted man.. I'm learning that nothing can take the place of consistency and patience....

I had a great week end of training that included 3.5hrs on the bike, 1.5hrs in the gym, 30mins in the pool and 80mins of running. I felt great all week end and i pay this to keeping it simple over the last few months.

Anyway better be off. People to train etc.

Racing in the Canberra Cycling Club Criterium tonight. I will post the results over the next few days. I will post some pics from training shortly.

Healthy regards

Ross