Wednesday, April 20, 2016

What is strength

This week I have learned a new meaning of strength. How do we all define what strength means.  Is it, how much weight you can put up in the gym?  How many watts you can hold on the bike and for how long?  What about how high your IQ is?  There are so many ways to define strength, but this week I have found the one that is the most important.

Becoming a father was obviously a life changing event.  How could it not be?  But when things are going well, it's easy.  It's easy to run through a finish line with Riley in my arms, or to put him to sleep and have him sleep 12 hours and us be the ones to wake him up.  It doesn't take strength to do these things.  It takes being a father.  It's when things go slightly (or more than slightly) off kilter that strength is needed.

I have learned that having the strength to keep it together and be there for my family far out powers any strength that I have amassed during my years of training.  No 20 mile run, 100 mile ride, 95lb dumbbell.  Let's just say this week has been worse than the week from hell.  When you get information that cuts you like a knife but with the pain of cutting like a spoon you are left with only so many options.  No parent wants to hear news about their child, and no parent wants the week that the wife and I have had. 

As a result, I continue to reevaluate what strength is and how is it evaluated.  I have seen the strength that is needed to be there for not only Riley, but also the wife, the grandparents, the aunts/uncles and pretty much everyone else. Strength is needed to be there both emotionally as well as supportive while not allowing myself to digest, feel, or process things personally.  I have to be the one who holds it together so others don't lose their shit.  What I've found is that if I can't find the strength to make sure everyone is ok, then everyone won't be ok.  This also means that I need to find the strength for myself to be able to hold it together.  If I can't muster it up, then there are a lot of people who will have a difficult time. 

I wish that no one would ever have to be in a situation to find that inner strength, though I know that is not the case.  There are people who have to go through things a lot harder than I have to, which I wish wasn't the case, and these people have to find either more strength than me.  It's doesn't make it easy to say that, but it's true.

I considered myself a strong individual before this week, but nothing compares to the strength that I have developed this week.  Here's looking at never having to do it again




Wednesday, April 6, 2016

It's time to get some higher education and get a PhD


The good stuff


I have rarely been into supplements in my lifetime.  Yeah, the occasional protein powder when I was in college to bulk up (like that worked), but other than a few things here or there, I haven't really been in to the whole supplement game. I do take a multivitamin and fish oil daily, and then with the exception of Beet Powder for long workouts, that's really it.  Since joining Big Sexy Racing team, one of our great supporters is PhD Nutrition.  As a result, I have been introduced to some amazing products, so I wanted to write a quick review of some of the products I have been using, which I can say they have really increased the intensity of my workouts and training.

Pharma Greens:
The first thing I do in the morning is make a glass full of the Pharma Greens.  You're supposed to take these on an empty stomach and wait about 20 minutes before eating or drinking anything else, so I make a mixture, drink it, then go walk thunder and by the time I get back, I am ready for my morning coffee.  The Pharma Greens acts by balancing PH levels in the body, helps in post workout recovery, and cleanses the digestive system, which allows your body to digest important nutrients throughout the day. 
Pharma Greens is also about 7-8 amounts of vegetable servings for an entire day, so you know that if you take this, you are getting the nutrients you need every day. 
What I can honestly say is that within a few minutes of taking my Pharma Greens, I can feel my body getting healthier.  I know that sounds weird, but while I'm out walking Thunder and I don't have anything in my body, I feel a jump of energy and a clean feeling throughout my body.  It's hard to explain, but I definitely feel my body is better after eating these.
I recommend the Green Apple flavor, but have also had the Lemon-Lime which is good also

Battery +/-:
Battery is an all natural sports drink mix.  It replaces the electrolytes that you lose while working out.  I readily admit that I don't use it for the recommended usage.  What I do is add the Battery to my other drink mixes to help increase the electrolyte and salt that I am losing while working out.  I have my drink mix that I have been using for years and love, so the Battery is a really nice compliment and has helped solve some of my cramping issues that I had trouble with last year.

Glyco-Durance:
Glyco-Durance is a drink mix as well, but different than the Battery.  The Glyco-Durance is more of a carbohydrate mix to help deliver these plus calories during workouts.  It is a lot thicker than most other drink mixes that we're used to, but that's a good thing.  The Glyco-Durance gets absorbed in to the body faster than anything else on the market so you're not going to get the crash during long workouts/races as often happens.  In fact, you can freeze the Glyco-Durance overnight and then it will be a perfect mixture by the time you get to the bike leg during a race. 
What I do is mix the Glyco-Durance, the Battery, and my other electrolyte mix (HoneyMaxx) and this is the best tasting mix I have had and actually look forward to it on the bike leg.  I know I'm getting the calories, carbohydrates, electrolytes that I need so I can continue my training strong and get to race day in one piece.
I recommend the Strawberry Kiwi flavor

Pharma Pure:
This is a protein mix that I use after my workouts.  I won't go into much detail into the Pharma Pure since everyone has their own feelings about protein powders, mixes, what they like/don't like etc.  What I will say is that the taste is great, especially the Peanut Butter Chocolate Caramel.  It is like eating a great milkshake.

Ultra Durance:
And we saved the best for last.  The Ultra Durance.  This is possible the greatest supplement known to man.  The purpose of Ultra Durance is many.  It reduces Lactic Acid by 18%, increases VO2 Max, speeds recovery, reduces muscle soreness, or basically everything that a distance athlete would want.

In about 20 minutes after you drink Ultra Durance, your body gets this tingling sensation.  That means its "go time".  There is no caffeine in this, so I mix it with my Crystal Light Energy for the perfect cocktail of caffeine and awesomeness.

I can honestly say that when taking the Ultra Durance, my workouts are seriously kicked up though I don't feel it.  They feel easier to me.  I'm able to sustain a better pace for longer on the run, I swam the farthest I ever had last weekend, and I'm able to hold higher watts on the bike.  I cannot recommend the Ultra Durance any more.  I know that when I take it, I am going to have a great workout and be able to really take my training to the next level

I recommend the Orange Flavor

So that's really the gist of some of the new supplements that I have been taking.  I also want to share that every product at PhD is tested and are in compliance with every testing agency so there are no questions that what I am putting in my body is up to standard and legal.

I can go more into detail about any of the above products but I wanted to give a quick recap of some amazing products and keep this post relatively short

Check out all the products at
http://phdnutrition.ca/en-us/