Joey Mantia

What's Going On? Worlds 2011

2011-09-03T20:35:00.000-07:00

Its been almost a year since I last put my thoughts into this blog and I feel like now is probably a better time than ever to vent a lot of the things that have been floating around in my head and answer both the questions that people have been asking me and more importantly, the questions i've been asking myself.

As athletes, we strive to be victorious. It is our purpose. We understand, but struggle to accept the ideology that along with the great triumphs, there will inevitably be failures on some level. When we are serious about the goals we set, we do EVERYTHING IN OUR POWER to prevent those failures from happening, particularly when it matters most. Moreover, we do our homework with precision and consistency, we come to the show prepared and our senses are blind to anything other than the task at hand; we are machines.

Sometimes however, we are not serious about the goals we set for ourselves. We speak them, we write them down, we think about them, but we don't feel them. We say things like, "I want to win worlds." Sure those are words that sound great to the ears, but if they mean nothing to the heart, they are worthless, and when they are worthless, our minds tells us that it is no longer necessary to do EVERYTHING IN OUR POWER to succeed.

2004 was my first senior world championships. I was so close winning a gold medal i could taste it. Each race i skated i was certainly strong enough to win, but had so much fear racing against the veterans that i was missing just a slight mental edge that could have possibly helped me bring home a hand full of gold medals instead of the handful of silver and bronze that i actually came home with. I spent the entire next season reliving those races, they fueled me. Fast forward to the 2005 world championships, suzhou, china. I made it through each round of the 500m sprint on the track and found myself in the 500m final, again up against the veterans. David Downing was the coach that year. He sat me down before the race and pounded into my head that i was the fastest guy there and that i couldn't be afraid to be in control. Moreover, i needed to win the start and go full from the gun, taking matters into my hands and saying, "if you wanna beat me, you're going to have to BEAT ME." Those words belted down my confidence, as all year i had been mentally preparing for this very moment, being sure not to make the same mistakes from last year. When the gun went off, I had the perfect start, made it to the corner first, and never looked back. That was my first senior world title. It was literally what I had dreamed about for that previous 5 or 6 years as an athlete and the feeling that i had when i crossed the line was one that i've only felt a handful of times in my life, one impossible to explain with words.

The point of that story is to solidify the importance of goals driven by true desire and how effective they are.

I think the next several years of my career were kindled and driven from that very feeling i got when i crossed the line in the 500m in china. That feeling was the source of all my motivation; it was an addiction. From 2004 to 2010 i collected national titles, national records, world cup wins, world titles and world records. In truth, eventually each accomplishment felt less and less like that feeling i had in 2005, until finally, i found myself competing because it was what i was supposed to do, not because i wanted to. The addiction was no longer being fed, the motivation to train was no longer there and the goals i was setting suddenly became mere words on a paper.

I was spending the seasons barely getting by with the work done in previous years and the respect i had earned. I wasn't the same athlete i used to be. I only did just enough to prepare for the world championships-- i would spend a few months working on the details as opposed to spending a full season with a consistent program like i did when i was younger and fueled by that addiction. It seemed to be working okay for me, still having pretty good success, despite 'cheating' the system, but what i didn't know is that it would all catch up to me. I started only catering to my strengths at practice and stopped working on my weaknesses, because in my mind, all those little things just came naturally. I was wrong. Eventually, not working the weaknesses spawned more weaknesses until finally, i just began accepting not being good at the facets of skating that made me who i was before. I accepted not being good at indoor, not being good at corners, not being good at starts, not being good at hawks and not having great endurance on corners. I had intensity in my workouts, but i wasn't practicing the necessary things to be winning on a world level. Moreover, i wasn't working on any of those things that i ACCEPTED not being the best at.

So here I am. Failing to achieve my 'goals' at the world championships, or am I? Can i really accept my goals as genuine when they don't come from the heart? In the beginning, I knew I wasn't prepared. I was warming up for my races on the track trying to figure out the best body position in the corner, how to push efficiently, and where to have my hips in the corners, when in actuality, i should have been focused on what i was going to do in the race. Because I failed to do my homework, everything was 5 steps behind and it's too late to try to catch up now, particularly without having a residency program this year. Identifying my lack of preparation brought on overwhelming fear. However, this time it wasn't a fear of competing against the veterans, it was fear of letting the fans down and having people think I don't have what it takes any more.

This was an eye opener. My goals of winning worlds didn't really mean that much to me if my fears were based on other people's perceptions.

With each race that i come up short in, the frustration grows. What was initially fear, has now been completely transformed into motivation to prove my ability to myself. I do not want to fail, but I'm no longer afraid of it. I have 3 races left. Significant damage may have been done from lack of proper preparation, but opportunity still presents itself to be taken full advantage of, particularly now the mind is clear, the questions have been answered, and the goals are set for the right reasons again.

Heaven & Hell – Dabbled A Little Bit In Both Today.

2010-08-27T20:30:00.001-07:00

Today started off pretty good, with the typical 5x snooze button press; you know, i haven’t quite figured out why i do that to myself, but it seems logical first thing in the morning. I got up and had myself a little shave with cold water (cause that’s what was available)… not one of my better ideas, but if ripping the hair out of your face is what you’re going for, i totally suggest it. First things on the list today were some media interviews at the track, skating is realllly big here and apparently they wanted to know what i had to say… im not really sure why, but if thats what they want… who am i to keep that from them haha. After the interviews, i skated around with some kids that practice at the track here in medellin, took some pictures, signed a couple shirts, and then headed off to have some… you guessed it- sushi in colombia. Okay, you probably didn’t guess that, because i was shocked when they told me they had good sushi this far south of the border, but they were right, it was pretty enjoyable.

The sushi place sits right in this little part of town that houses a ton of good restaurants apparently; think of it like a mini down town i guess. Around this little area there were some interesting… ehh, things:

Im not really sure how to explain this exactly, but i’m going to give it my best shot. Man with weird shaped chest is gettin’ DOWN on his air flute whilst his lady friend, who has the biggest thighs on the planet, likes him enough to play along (he must have a good personality cause he’s definitely not well equipped)… or they’re both trippin on that colombian good good… either way, its different so i decided to give her leg a big hug, it was a good fit.

Moving on to street signs:

Ya. I don’t speak spanish, but my guess is this says, “calculators permitted, but only if they have the ability to print, oh, and they have to be about as big as your head.”

To me this one is pretty obvious, “people that walk like robots can cross here, but you have to be wearing a garter way high on your leg.”

“I used to be so tired all the time, but since i got this new back pack that conveniently allows me to carry 4 gallons of piping hot coffe on my back, im always alert and ready… thanks camelbak.”

I used to think all arepas were stupid, until i found this store. This is proof that all you need to be intelligent is a pair of glasses.

Ever get a tattoo when you were younger and regret it when you got older? Her neither.

And last but not least, you thought china was bad about making whatever they want… think again lol Colombia 1, China 0

Anyway, so you’re probably wondering about the title of this post… or maybe you were oblivious to the fact that it even had a title, either way, let me elaborate. Heaven: they found my bag, it was delivered, with all the contents, this made me happy. I got to eat sushi and mexican in the same day… 2 of my favorite foods… to you normal people that doesn’t mean much, but i love food. Hell: 1 lap on, 2 laps off, 3 laps on, 4 laps off, 5 laps on, 5 laps off, 4 laps on, 3 laps off, 2 laps on, 1 lap off, 1 lap on, 2 laps off, 3 laps on, 4 laps off, 5 laps on, 5 laps off, 4 laps on, 3 laps off, 2 laps on, 1 lap off, 1 lap off, 2 laps on, 3 laps off, 4 on, 5 laps off. Yea i typed that right. This is all on super soft wheels that made my legs not like me so so much. Probably the most miserable interval set i do… it never gets easier, it sucks just as bad each time.

After the workout, we started the clinic which was basically a 2 hour q&a followed by about an hour of me just talking about what will be covered in the camp and things like that. The original plan was to skate, but as you can see below, the weather didn’t like that idea so much.

Now the day is over and i want sleep. (abrupt ending i know)

VIVA COLOMBIA!

2010-08-26T13:29:00.001-07:00

Alright guys, kind of an interesting trip so far. First off, I got stuck in Panama City last night because there was maintenance issue with my plane from Houston to Panama, causing an awesome delay, ultimately resulting in me missing my flight to Medellin, and of course, losing my luggage… which is still no where to be found. On the bright side of things, as soon as i arrived in Colombia, my ride was there and super hospitable. We took a trip up the mountain to a little city called Guarne, where the world championships are going to be hosted this year. Below are some photos of the track I took:

From what i can gather, and you might be able to see some of this in the pictures, is that the track is very similar to the infield of the geisingen track in germany. It’s by no means smooth and my prediction is that after only a few laps of grinding, you’re wheels will have noticeable cat tongue. As far as layout and dimensions, it looks pretty damn good… not as wide as some tracks we’ve seen at worlds before, but also not so skinny that you can’t comfortably pass if you want. As with all flat banked tracks, the racing will be a little boring, with only 1 true fast line… I miss the parabolic style racing. One thing is for sure, if they choose not to resurface this track before worlds, you better bring a stock pile of wheels, because i think this guy is going to eat them for breakfast, lunch and dinner… oh, and don’t fall down, whatever you do.

The road course is yet to be built, but if you take a look at the first photo, the chick in the purple is standing probably about where the finish line is going to be (i think). Below is a little diagram i came up with from memory of the schematic that i saw, showing the shape of the road course, which should also be quite interesting with very minimal passing opportunities… this is a basic shape:

I didn’t get a chance to skate on the track yet, they asked if i wanted to, but seeing as my clothes are lost in limbo somewhere, i had nothing to skate in.

From the track, we got some food… and you know my inner fat kid suggested none other than the famous El Corral; for those of you that don’t know what that is, think of the best burger place you know of and its comparable to that. In the bathroom at el corral they had some interesting pieces of porcelain:

Yea, you pee into that little thing. I guess it’s logical, thinking about it, why are typical urinals so damn big?

Oh, and i cannot forget the toilet:

you know… in case you want to pee into a toilet, because obviously, they do not want you sitting down lol. But i mean they were courteous enough to put a little rail to hold onto while you’re doing your wall sits as you attempt to go to the bathroom… perhaps that’s why they’re so good at skating here in colombia- no toilet seats… they’ve been building a tolerance for that position all their lives lol.

Anyway, the host of the clinic is Jose Bustamante, he runs a skating company down here in Colombia; the guy is incredibly nice and selfless. He set up a room for me in his house that is furnished like i’m staying in a 5 star hotel, it’s comfortable to say the least. Seeing as i have no clothes, he hooked me up with a few items… one of which caught my attention of course:

Yes, that’s right ladies and gentlemen, it says “a underwear” to which i quickly contested, “NO, THIS is a v-neck” haha. Now i get to walk around colombia looking like justin stelly, kinda, this one isn’t made by hurley and doesn’t come with a little useless pocket on the front. lol (jk stelly, but seriously, you love you some v-necks from hurley with pockets on them that you never put anything in) hahaha

Now, i’m chillin at jose’s house relaxing a little until about 5, then it’s time to workout. There’s about 43 tracks here in medellin, so it shouldn’t be hard to find one to skate on… but the weather might not be so lenient, could be an off skates day, we’ll see.

Hill Run

2010-08-24T22:56:00.001-07:00

First hard workout since trials… felt good, i’ve missed the pain. Here is a clip from one of my 100’s- below was the workout:

5 walks
5 jogs
5 runs

4x100m   (2 standing, 2 rolling)
4x200m   (2 standing, 2 rolling)
2x300m   (1 standing, 1 rolling)
2x500m   (rolling)
1x1000m (rolling)

The efforts were supposed to be at 85% focusing mostly on technique, but i think the 1’s and 2’s were no less than 95%.

And this video doesn’t do this hill much justice… its tough.

Bein Fat, Unflexible, But Comfortable

2010-08-19T23:14:00.001-07:00

Road Trials, Making the Team, and Being Tired

2010-08-16T11:25:00.001-07:00

Track Trials Recap

2010-08-12T06:22:00.001-07:00

Going through each race at trials.

GOT A LOTTTT TO WORK ON.

2010-08-10T19:42:00.001-07:00

wow. rolled the front foot. set the right foot down too vertical on acceleration and swung too wide out of first corner. chicken armed the 2nd corner, sloppy and no extension. 2nd straight too reserved, left arm barely swung full, got scared of the speed and stopped stepping before i even got to the corner. took a terrible line going into the last corner, should have stayed high. once i slowed to enter corner, lost the lock in my hips and lost traction, leaned forward and just had a miserable exit because of it. a lot of upper body movement in the final stretch and really didnt finish my strokes. some kind of awkward hawk at the line hahaha i’m a barney, but theres 8 weeks to go, so lets get 2 fixin’

2010-08-06T22:37:00.001-07:00

Video Blog

2010-08-05T00:58:00.001-07:00

Bike Ride

2010-06-14T09:21:00.000-07:00

the weather in Florida has been hot to say the least. Yesterday i knocked out a 1h20m ride and the temp was probably hovering around 90, that was at 10 oclock. Today the ride was planned for 1h15m and i could only make 55m of it, i felt like i was about ot pass out from the heat. The temp is 93, weather.com says it feels like 102... they know what theyre talking about. Now at the gym about to do some more cardio. weighed in today at 165.7 (naked) before the ride... 163.0 (clothed) after.

New Tee Concept

2010-05-24T14:00:00.000-07:00

Video Blog - Skating Tip - Foot Pressure & Knees

2010-05-17T12:51:00.001-07:00

Monster Cardio continued

2010-05-16T19:16:00.000-07:00

I want to clear up a couple things about my diet and why i chose to go about it the way i did.

There are 3 major forms of energy burned in order: Carbs, fat, protein..

As a very overall perspective: When you run out of carbs your body will burn fat. When you run out of fat your body will burn protein (catabolism). There are certain areas where these overlap, but for the purposes of this post, it is sufficient. If you don't take in enough fat your body will eat your muscle for energy, this is why a low fat diet is not smart for athletes like speed skaters and cyclists. What matters more is the type of fat you intake. Good fat: animal fat, omega fatty acids, etc. Bad fat: most oils, unsaturated fats. (this info courtesy of my buddy craig, thanks)

Now that you have a little better idea of the process, I'll explain what i wanted to do and how i went about it exactly. The goal was to trim off the 'baby fat' i had built up from eating fast food and neglecting cardio, but more importantly than shedding baby fat was to trim down some muscle mass from my legs; i built up too much mass from the static plyos i had been doing and as a result, was having a hard time crossing- there simply just wasnt enough room. I knew that to do this i would have to limit my carb and fat intake and force my body to go through the stages to start actually burning muscle. I chose to eat a very light amount of turkey and chicken (i had to have SOME muscle fuel), lots of vegetables, high fiber cereals with soy milk, and cut out as much fat (good or bad) as i possibly could.

The results were fantastic; within just a week of that diet and upping the cardio quite a bit (cycling and skating) i shed about 13 pounds. The problem with this diet is that if you stay on it while trying to continue a brutal training schedule, you will eventually hit a wall and your body will shut down.

Now that I've dropped the weight and muscle mass i set out to, i decided to add the required carbs and good fats back into my diet; now more lenient with breads, nuts, natural peanut butter, eggs, and eating quite a bit more fish and poultry as well. Like i said before, i don't break down my diet to the exact number of carbs or anything, i just cut out all the fast foods, sodas, bad sugars, chips etc. and listen to my body... if i feel thirsty, i drink more... if i feel tired and my muscles are a little more sore than normal, i eat more protein.

So far i can tell a pretty significant difference in my lung ability and lactic thresholds, which i contribute mostly to diet and proper hyrdration.

Today's 30 min cardio:

This photo is of stadium high school in tacoma, you can see the stairs to the right of the track and there is another taller, longer set on the opposite side. If you look close you can see strips that go from the top to the bottom, those are the aisles that we run up and down. Up one aisle, jog to the next, down that aisle, jog to the next, up that one etc. Each lap of stairs takes about 11 minutes on average to complete.

Workout:

1 lap of stairs- alternating single/doubles- jogging - aprox 9 min
4 laps around the track- fast jog - aprox 6 min
1 min foot switches on bench
1 lap around track- fast jog - aprox 1.5 min
1 min side crunches
1 lap around track- fast jog - aprox 1.5 min
1 lap of stairs- alternating single/doubles- jogging aprox 10 min

The running has become much easier for me and my body is learning how to actively recover without actually doing a zero effort rest... Compared to how hard the stairs were, the running felt like a zero effort recovery. By the end of the 2nd stair lap, i could barely make it to the top from my heavy breathing and legs burning, but it felt really good to hit that threshold and push past the point where i wanted to quit

Monster Cardio!

2010-05-13T10:53:00.000-07:00

A few months ago i took a step back and analyzed my strengths and weaknesses; i came up with this:

my strengths are long build ups, marathon field sprints, elimination races, starts, and accels

my weaknesses are intervals, long consistent grinds without rest, and efficient corners

One of my goals has been to win the points race at worlds and with that you have to either race incredibly smart and be gifted good opportunities OR just be in better physical shape than all your competitors... admittedly, I've never been a racer of impeccable tactics, which means the majority of the time, i was better prepared than my adversaries, EXCEPT in the points races. That being said, i decided to bite the bullet and start doing the long boring, painful cardio that it takes to properly prepare.

With that comes responsibility of diet. You get out of your body what you put in... If my plan was going to be to reach a high amount of combined miles each week, my body deserved to have the correct fuel. I realized this when i started doing 2 hour+ bike rides and about 1h10m into the ride my calves cramped, then 30m later my hamstrings and quads... obviously a red flag. Now, ive always been known as the fat kid that just eats a million calories a day and relies on my metabolism to pick up the slack; with age comes wisdom i suppose, as i realised not only is it a detriment to your heath to eat fast food for every meal, but its also a LOT harder to do cardio with grease in your gas tank. I cut out all fast food from my diet, and started on a lean system of low fat and fat free everything. No soda. I now eat a TON of fruits and vegetables, chicken breast, i eat high fiber cereals (kashi), i still eat eggs but not every day because im trying to keep cholesterol down. I've been drinking g2 gatorade because when you do long workouts, water is not the best thing you can be drinking as its deprived of electrolytes that keep the body functioning properly when pushing the thresholds of exhaustion. I did order accelerade (before and druing workouts) and endurox (post workout) which will replace the gatorade when it arrives.

Not only have i been watching WHAT i eat, but also how much and when. I cut all my meals in half and double the amount of times i eat in the day. I try not to eat anything within 2 hours of going to sleep. I have been doing my first light workout of the day before i eat a full breakfast because when the body sleeps it burns calories so i wanted to continue that burning into my first workout- usually i'll just eat a piece of fruit and be on my way.

Something to remember when doing cardio is this- Its quality over quantity. By this what i mean is that its better to do a 1 hour bike ride at 85-90% ability than it is to loligag on a 3 hour ride at 60%. Same thing goes for running or skating. Don't waste your time if you're not going to make yourself hurt.

Heres the first workout i did today:

Each exercise is consecutive, no rest between.

Treadmill- 6.0 incline @ 7.5mph - i kept it running for the whole workout and just hopped off and on

5 min treadmill
1 min 2 foot box jumps at waist height
2 min free squats
5 min treadmill
1 mid side crunches
1 min jump, squat, thrust, push-up
5 min treadmill
1 min skating jax
1 min foot switchs on box at knee height
5 min treadmill
1 min high knees

With the jogging to and from the treadmill the workout lasted exactly 30 minutes and i was drenched. I like doing things like this because it teaches the body how to recover while still moving and being active, obviously geared towards interval training.

Later i have a 35 mile bike ride through the hills

Racing Is An Art

2010-05-06T14:09:00.001-07:00

There is neither a map not a manual that explains exactly how to create a masterpiece, the possibilities are limitless. From the preparation until the final moment that my first wheel crosses the finish line, I alone hold the brush and the palette.

Dinner

2010-04-27T17:49:00.001-07:00

Half of a filet, peppered

5 grilled shrimp

Mixed vegetables- most of which I could not identify

Water

Great day back to training... My legs are aching real real nice like
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

2010-04-27T16:03:00.001-07:00

Snack:

4 apples

1 banana

Baby carrots

Workout 2:

13 miles straight on road

Cramps galore... The ride put me in the hurt locker
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Whoa hurt locker

2010-04-27T11:11:00.001-07:00

Breakfast:

2 bananas and bottle of water

Workout:

2 hour bike ride - 39.2 miles with stop lights

Lunch:

2 pieces of grilled talapia with zucchini and strawberries

Water

The Directions Say Take The Next Right Onto 'Hard Work'

2010-03-08T16:33:00.000-08:00

Looking back through the years, its well beyond doubt that real success is a direct product of two key factors, hard work and time. I use the term real success because there are certainly instances where the system can be cheated; however, I'm starting to learn you cannot cheat it forever. Now, I think if you look a little deeper into the equation, there are key factors that affect effort, such as motivation and accessibility. Time however, in my eyes, is a constant; it never stops or slows down, thus the only controllable piece to the puzzle is effort. The difference between good and great is recognizing that time is far less important than the quality of work done throughout.

There will always be those who baffle the world by pulling off amazing feats without really doing their homework, but those are not the Michael Jordans, Muhammad Alis, or the Lance Armstrongs; they are the underdogs who pull off upsets from time to time and when they are gone, so is their name. It seems that all great athletes in history that have been consistently dominate over a respectable amount of time share one simple characteristic, quality of effort; it’s the simple phrase you’ve heard in sports since you were a little kid, “you get out what you put in.” I can remember telling people what I did for training when I was younger and they either didn’t believe me or they thought I was crazy, which is exactly what I think when I read through Jordan’s, Ali’s, or Armstrong’s training regimens. I’m not saying I’m even comparable to those athletes, however, I refuse to believe that it’s coincidence. The truth is that it’s been a very long time since I’ve been able to wow anyone with the quality of my training and unfortunately, I’ve only just recently decided that it’s no longer acceptable after consistent lack of capable performance.

“I just need time,” is a phrase that I’ve been abusing to the point that I started actually believing it and it’s undoubtedly caused lack of necessary effort in training. I didn’t want to admit it, so I kept making excuses and assuring myself that I would fix it later; I didn’t realize that time was a factor I couldn’t even control. I was able to finally comprehend this concept by putting myself in the same situation repetitively and expecting a different outcome without changing the key factor; the outcome stayed the same. I’ve been traveling along the 'time' path to insanity for far too long and I now find myself at the crossroads. I think now's the moment to get off this path filled with excuses and failures and back on the correct one filled with peace of mind and success.

Next right turn onto 'Hard Work'

2010-02-19T16:34:00.003-08:00

2010-02-18T10:57:00.001-08:00

Breakfast was a can of corn haha yea just by itself

Lunch: subway- chicken salad with 2 chicken breasts, tomatoes, lettuce, banana peppers, no dressing

2010-02-08T23:04:00.000-08:00

Today i woke up and had some left of chicken wings from yesterday with a glass of water. For dinner i had about 6 pieces of birthday cake, some chocolate milk, water, and topped it all off with some beef jerkey. I'm more or less just a big garbage disposal right now.

I went to the rink by myself for a couple of hours and just skated. Dave just made me a new pair of boots and i'm trying to get used to them before hickory. Other than than, just been writing the new layout for the next NSC event which is gonna be on march 4th... if you guys can make it, you're gonna wanna see this one. If you can't make it, you gotta catch it on the live feed. Check out the site. http://www.pronsc.com/

Remember me?

2010-02-05T00:29:00.000-08:00

Hello... My name is Joey Mantia and I'm a blogaholic... I've been blog free about 3 weeks now. In doing so, my life has been full of cheeseburgers, french fries, and just about anything else that has to be prepared in a deep fryer. I've been stressed beyond belief with my business- i have a new respect for those who run their own business. My weight is through the roof, but not cause im fat, but because before i came out to washington, i was doing some of the most intense plyo workouts ive ever done and just put on more mass than i wanted to, but it was a good start to a base for the season. My plan is to build strength and improve my lactic thresholds now regardless of the weight i put on or negative effects it has on my cardio (which are pretty noticable). Later in the season, having built a rock solid base, i will begin cutting back on the plyos and spend 11-13 hours a week on the bike to trim off the excess fat and muscle i dont need, while at the same time, upping anaerobic thresholds.

Im just going to run through a quick recap of my life the past 3 weeks or so. I skated west palm; I won a few, i lost a few, skated in the rain, had a little help falling down on the road, but ended up winning overall. I have to say, there's this kid that skates and when you watch you just shake your head at the things he does... The ability he has on skates is kind of remarkable actually. His name is Son Quin Yang, a skater from china taipei and i had the pleasure of training with him down in florida all of january. The kid is just a monster and he's a technical perfectionist to make it even worse. He hates to lose and loves to win, but never shows any signs of disrespect when doing either one. There are some American skaters that should take notes...

After west palm, i flew right to washington to prep for NSC 1 Tribulation. The turn out for this event was better than last time and we had a few changes to the production map of the event. All in all, we have only put on 2 events, one of which was an exhibition, and have recieved great feedback from those in and out of the skating community. I'm confident that between miguel and I we will see this thing take off and create a new benchmark for inline speed skating, both here in the US and abroad. After the event, i was supposed to head back to florida and continue training, but decided to stay here in WA where I've spent the last 8 days of my life glued to the computer, updating the site, doing graphic editing, learning how to edit video, creating post production highlight reels of our event, creating 2 versions of the production video, changing our web server, and whatever else that i can't think of right now haha... This has also been adding to the stress a little bit.

Someone asked me the other day if I ever got sick of skating and the answer was yes. There are times when i just don't feel like doing it any more- those times usually present themselves when im in a slump. I define slump as going to practice after practice and just not being able to figure out how to put power to the ground with my skates, getting tired quick, and just not having any real drive to work out (yes i get those). For some reason, which I honestly havent figured out yet, i deal with this insanity and it always seems to work itself out before long and I find myself thinking how much I love the sport again. It might have a little something to do with the fact that at some point, every person i know that has quit skating, says how much they miss it and most of them attempt a come back. I guess the moral of the story is dont quit skating cause one day you'll miss it.

I get the ice question more and more with the olympics coming up- i WANT to skate the 2014 games, but i don't want to quit skating inlines- its way too much fun, especially now with NSC. We have big plans for next season already, with talks of broadening the athlete roster from 12 per race to as many as 28 and creating heats at the event. Trials will be held some time around November- i think trials is going to be SICK-

Umm what else... i just got my new custom shoes from dave simmons, theyre pretty incredible. I got a new frame too because since i fell in west palm, my right foot has felt a little funky so i'm pretty sure the frame isn't as straight as it should be any more. Good timing actually, i got the frame and boots TODAY... put them on... only to crash pretty damn hard right into the wall tonight at practice. I just slipped- or something... i got up from the fall and the back of my helmet was crinkled in all cool like and my back wheel on my left skate was some how wobbling... thats how u know it was a good crash hahaha I'm sure i'll have some nice whip lash tomorrow.

That is all, im tired of writing. I'll pick up with the training journal on Monday (my birthday is sunday and i dont want to be ashamed of all the inadequate things i will have possibly consumed.

Records

2010-01-14T16:40:00.000-08:00

National Records

Road

Junior World Class

200m          2003         0:17.912

World Class

200m          2005         0:16.460
5000m      2004       7:15.151
10000m      2009         15:26.146
42000m     2005         1:16:48.165

Track

World Class

500m       2009          0:42.807

World Records

Road

500m          2006         0:38.660
10000m      2006         13:46.801
20000m      2009         28:56.189

Track

300m       2009           0:24.250
15000m     2009           22.32.644

Misc

Real Berlin Marathon Course Record 2008 1:00:33

2010-01-13T13:23:00.001-08:00

40 lb pyramid to 5

5 off top, 5 off bottom 40lb

30 skating jax 40lb

20 lunge squats 40lb

20 side squats 40lb

1 min of 10sec baby hops, 10 sec squat hold 40lb

12 split bench out and downs- 5 second up top

12 split bench in and ups- 5 second down bottom

Leg sled- 180lb 20 out ins

Leg sled- 180lb 20 skiers

2010-01-13T11:38:00.000-08:00

last night i did a lot of work with the bungee:

starts
full effort bursts
cross overs
90 degree sits

dinner was delicious and nutritious- wendys!

BTW, i will not be held liable for the adverse effects my diet could have on your body haha just a little disclaimer

double baconator - it just sounds like a heart attack doesnt it?
fries
10 spicy nuggets - if you havent tried these yet from wendys, i strongly recommend them
cinnamon cheesecake from bk

im thinkin i should change the focus of my blog from the journal of an athlete to the opinions of a food critic

Today i did spin class- 1 hour out of the saddle

chicken caesar salad with 2 pieces of plain white toast
water

spent about an hour doing turn cable, im starting to feel really comfortable with my corners and its about time- havent been this smooth in about 3 years... could have somethin to do with the new boots as well.

my Left IT band has been screaming on me, but i think its more of a growing pain than a pull or anything like that. Ive been doing a ton of crossing technique on and off skates so its constantly stretching that band to the max; it usually gets kind of sensitive when i do a lot of slideboard or max effort jumps as well, ive been rolling it out on a foam roller, its helping quite a bit

2010-01-12T10:27:00.000-08:00

Breakfast today was 4 scrambled eggs and a bowl of mixed fruit.

I spent a couple hours doing a private lesson for a skater today; it wasn't much of a workout, but was still really good for technique work. i have this new drill i came up with to really work technique that requires 2 foldable chairs, 4 45lb weights, and 8 of those little pads that slide across the floor. I'll come up with a video of it tomorrow and throw it up here, in my opinion, this new drill is better than slide board.

Lunch was a chicken caesar salad, broccoli and cheese soup, a piece of bread and some water

Also, i want to add something to my post about over training- if you're hurting because of tendon or joints aching and causing pain, you should ease up... if you're hurting because of muscle fatigue, keep going.

Lost Track

2010-01-11T19:41:00.000-08:00

i kind of lost track of my blog last week, tomorrow im going to film my entire off skates workout and post it on here, theres a lot of people with a lot of questions about the drills ive been doing, so to make up for a week of nothing posted thats what im gonna do... if you have any requests, send me a message on facebook, i wont reply, but i'll do my best to touch on everything

ive been doing a lot of work changing my technique and it's finally starting to come around, i feel like i can step into and power out of any corner, which makes skating overwhelmingly fun again. I'll be teaching some of the new things im doing in my upcoming clinics.

I kinda want to touch on somethin really quick also...

When you're training at a top level in skating, it requires that you push yourself above and well beyond the level of comfort; you are physically required to break your muscles down to build them stronger and more tolerant. This, in turn, will cause you to temporarily go backwards in terms of speed, strength, and endurance, which is completely normal and sometimes this breakdown period lasts a long time- it does not mean you're over training. I've been around some of the best olympians in the world and after observing their training habits, im confident that term "over training" is commonly misused; what you really mean to say is you're sick of being outside of your comfort zone. Every time i come back from being off for a long period of time, i put myself through hell to get back in the condition i was in before... sometimes i go weeks at a time getting beat by people i know i can smash, which drives me up a damn wall, but i know its what i have to do. The point is this, when you're hurtin so bad you cant see straight and you think it's because you're over training, bight the bullet and ride it out, you wont regret it.

you can always change your diet to make up for this 'hazing' period, it helps more than you could imagine. staying hydrated is probably the most important thing of all.

Road Relay 2009 - My Favorite Victory

2010-01-08T10:30:00.000-08:00

Simmons - Schankel - Pro M1

2010-01-03T22:23:00.001-08:00

click to view larger

outdoor and tampa

2010-01-03T22:11:00.000-08:00

yesterday's outdoor practice was miserable! we just did a 10mile straight race, but wow, my shins and legs were so rocked from the workout i just did at the gym that i could barely finish with the pack. im pretty sure it was from the last one i did- i dont want to keep dealing with this issue so im going to cut that one out of the line up from here on out

for dinner that night i had a large pepperoni pizza and cinistix from dominos- then late a couple of donuts from dunkin donuts... the diet has been out of control, i gotta fix that (hahaha said that before)

breakfast today was mcdonalds- chicken biscuit, hash brown, breakfast burrito, and an oj

indoor practice was a 2 lap burn pace, squat drills, push starts, 50 lap open

i tested a new right pro m1 boot today and we're getting very very close to where i want it, should be done really soon, which is great becuase i cant take much more of putting on a new boot every 4 days haha

lunch was pollo tropical- chicken caesar wrap and mashed potatoes with sweet tea

outdoor practice

off skates:

circuit - progressive alternating lateral leaps, then baby steps with 3 periodic high jumps, then broad jumps forward and over each jump- complete the circuit 3 times

1 leg squat holds x 4 on each leg about 20-25 sec on each

1 leg squat holds-5 sec then explode up x 6

countdown

school track-

16 lap warm up
10k (yea the shins blew up again, miserable)

dinner was chicken pot pie, chicken strips, mashed potatos, biscuit and water

had a couple more donuts cause im a fat fat fat person

IMG00011-20100102-1329.jpg

2010-01-02T12:12:00.000-08:00

Deep Squats- Controlled up and down, the foot never touches the ground. Weight stays distributed evenly over entire foot

2010-01-02T12:11:00.000-08:00

Breakfast today was biscuits and gravy, 2 pancakes, a piece of bacon and water

Gym Workout-

all 1 leg exercises are done on each leg-- ie 3 x 10 means 3 sets of 10 reps on EACH leg

5 min light spin
3 x 10 1 leg squats 40lb
3 x 10 1 leg box deep squats 40lb - see photo above
3 x 10 1 leg step ups - no push off bottom 40lb
4 x 20 sec 1 leg squat hold, switch legs, repeat
2 x 10x5 sec 1 leg squat, explode up
2 x 40ft baby steps 40lb
3 x 10 1 leg box steps from side - no push
3 x 10 1 leg explodes off bottom- no push, pause between each
2 x 10 1 leg balance squats on straight curl bar

Right after my workout i had a muscle milk - protein replacement

I'm trying to group my workouts into specific types: a. single leg squat, b. single leg jump, c. normal squat & normal jump (i combine these because normal is much easier), and d. max effort jump (i do these by themselves because i want to avoid any kind of fatigue- achieving my max or as close to it each time i jump)

skating is all about balance and explosion off of one leg at a time, this is why i stopped mixing normal and single leg squats- really the only time i do normal style any more is to target my butt and hamstrings. Personally i am dominant on the left leg, my right needs to get stronger, single leg squats and single leg jumps will help tremendously with this.

2010-01-02T09:56:00.000-08:00

Thursday night i had some turkey and a few drinks

Yesterday morning i had popeye's chicken- 6 strips, mashed potatoes, a biscuit and lemonade

Gym workout:

5 min light spin
active warm up
3 x 10 1 led lateral box jumps - side, top, side
3 x 10 1 leg alternating box jumps
3 x 10 lateral 1 leg alternating box jumps
3 x 10 1 leg broad jumps
10 1 leg up down and outs - up to a big box, down to ground, over a medium box
10 1 leg squat box jumps- 5 sec pause at bottom

total jumps each leg- 150

Indoor practice was after the gym workout-

right foot left foot pace line
push starts
situation passing drill
every lap relay

dinner was spaghetti and bbq pork on toast- later that night had a chicken sandwich from BK and some fries

Tuesday- Wednesday

2009-12-31T13:33:00.000-08:00

Tuesday after my gym workout there was outdoor practice:

10k for time
10k with 6 hill sprints

Afterward i went back to the gym and had a shake before i got in the hot tub and sauna

Wednesday morning i had an omelet with mushrooms, ham, and american- i aslo drank a muscle milk

Lunch was BK- 16 tenders and a double cheese burger with lemonade

Indoor practice:

corner technique- right foot pushes, steering wheels, slow exaggerated pushes

2 lap burn pace

squat drills

push starts- double drop in

Off skates:

1 leg - 5 squats, 5 strokes x 3

1 leg - 5 squats, hold for 5 x 3

1 leg - 5 squats, hold for 5 x 3

10 max effort high jumps

Dinner at hooters-

10 wings hot, loaded tater tots, cheese fries, peanut butter pie & sweet tea

Today i skipped breakfast and lunch was 3 pieces of fried chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy, 2 biscuits and lemonade

today is the off day

Box for max effort high jumps

2009-12-29T11:51:00.001-08:00

Gym

2009-12-29T11:19:00.001-08:00

Breakfast today was 4 scrambled eggs, a bowl of mixed fruit, water and a shake- peanut butter, chocolate milk

5 min treadmill warmup

Short active stretch

3 x 10 full effort high jumps, 15 second between each rep

3 x 10 box jumps from yard back, to hip crease height, max effort

12 max effort high box jumps from squat- to just under chest height

3 x 10 max effort broad jumps, minimum pause

3 x 5 max effort jumps with 40lb, immediately drop weight, 5 high jumps no pause

Cajun chicken caesar wrap, fruit, water

Indoor

2009-12-28T19:06:00.001-08:00

Lunch was Burger King-

16 chicken tenders, double cheese burger and a small lemonade

Indoor practice:

Right foot left foot pace line

Squat drills

3 person pick ups 2 times thru

4 person - 5 laps twice

OFF SKATES:

1 leg squat pause- 5 second, explode off the bottom x 10 ea

1 leg squats x 50 ea

Side leg switch with high jump, 5 second pause x 20 jumps (100 seconds)

1 leg squat jumps- jump pull knee to chest, land on same leg x 10 ea

Leg extension crunches x 20

Dinner was cici's pizza buffet- had all kinda pizza and dr pepper and desserts

Workout 1

2009-12-28T09:48:00.001-08:00

5 min light spin warm up

10 slow 1 leg deep box squats

3 x 10 1 leg box steps- slow and controlled up and down, no push off the bottom. - 40lb

3 x 10 1 leg explodes off the bottom, no push off the ground- 40lb

3 x 10 lateral 1 leg alternating box jumps- one leg up and over to the opposite side- last set pause between each jump

10 1 leg squat jumps- 5 second pause, jump to upper mid thigh height

1 leg bosu ball jumps- I just did as many as I could before I lost my balance avg 5 each leg- 3 sets

30 full incline crunches

3 x 10 leg up, hip up - 15lb

10 side crunches on flat bench- 10lb

Right after my work out I had a cajun chicken caesar wrap and fruit with water

The dreaded marathon

2009-12-28T08:03:00.000-08:00

Sunday morning i got up and did a mock race marathon with the team, i used it as training and just made constant attacks, i have to admit i was blown up from the squats saturday in the gym, but i just kept trying to destroy my legs. By the end of it i could barely even make a break away. I ended up gettin snuck on the sprint by son, caught me sleepin. After the marathon my legs were so tight i could barely get on my bike.

For lunch i had some loaded french fries and a philly cheese steak - this is the secret (philly cheese steak) hahaha and i drank water. Normally i would have just eatin what they brought me out, but after my recent trip to PA, i now know what a real philly is supposed to taste like so i sent her back with it and told her to LOAD it up with cheese... when it came back it was good, but it was no philly cheese steak. I do have to mention when i ordered the 'philly cheese steak' she asked me if i wanted chicken of beef-- i said is that a serious question, who the hell orders a philly cheese chicken lol

For dinner i had a couple cookies and some lemonade- i gotta work on getting my diet back on track.

2009-12-26T16:34:00.001-08:00

I skipped breakfast and lunch was a chicken caesar salad, broccoli cheddar soup, 2 pieces of bread and water from panera.

I had chips and salsa at chilis too

Had a brownie and milk

Workout 2-

30 full incline sit ups

20 leg lift, hip lift with 10 lb

30 straight leg lifts with 10 lb

50 180 degree twists on ab bench with 10 lb

10 controlled fall specials

10 full specials

10 side crunches each side 25lb

20 reverse crunches

Finally Back

2009-12-26T10:13:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't been keepin up, just account for a lotta unhealthy food and mediocre workouts... But the holidays are over so its time to shift to the next gear.

Gym workout:

3 x 10 1 leg squats each side 45lb bar
3 x 10 1 leg step ups each side 45 bar
3 x 10 1 bench crosses each side 20 lb in each hand

3 x 10 1 leg box leg switch jumps- knee to chest, each side

3 x 10 1 leg lateral box jumps- side, top, side=1 - each side

10 up down and outs- one leg jump to box then immediately down to the floor, then immediately over the smaller box on same leg (see pic)

4 20 second 1 leg squat holds each side- knee behind ankle

3 x 10 1 leg bench deep squats each leg

10 x 5 second squats, explode up every rep- each side

2 x 40 ft baby steps 20lb in each hand

Tabata interval on treadmill- got thru 6 and the treadmill stopped so I reset it and did 4 more

Whitehall PA Clinic Recap

2009-12-13T18:34:00.000-08:00

I love teaching camps where everyone wants to learn and has fun doing it- this was one of those. The weather was cold and today was mostly rainy, but despite the bad weather, the people were incredible; i felt very welcommed and everyone was just really nice.

The Ristines were responsible for organizing the clinic and did a phenominal job with everything. They were great to hang out with, they made me feel like part of the family. The kids were a blast to be around; as with the family in Colombia, it's the people like them that make me love doing clinics.

The turn out was great, we had 2 days of the clinic- each day was from 7am to noon. The first day we started off with start work, straight away technique, and a little bit of static dry lands. They had me hooked up with a wireless micrphone that just clipped onto my shirt which ended up working perfect; I was able to critique people and explain drills as i was doing them with everyone in the building able to hear what i was saying.

We had a pretty wide variety of ages at the camp, which for me doesnt make much of a difference because i dont teach any kind of super special secret drills that make you fast over night- i teach stuff that you can do no matter how hold you are or what your skill level is. Everyone did great with the exercises and i felt like everyone was able to take something away that will help improve their skating, regardless if they want to be a world champion or just skate for fun.

On the second day we focused on corner technique, hawks, dynamic dry lands, mental toughness and goal setting. I enjoy explaining to skaters what they should be feeling when they skate and what they need to work towards, because many don't know exactly what that is. Personally, i believe that understanding WHY you do something helps motivate you to do it, because now there is reason behind doing a drill that otherwise seemed kind of pointless.

Everyone attending the clinic got a tee shirt and a disk that has videos of all the drills i was instructing in the camp. I want to say thank you very much to everyone who attended, i had a great time and look forward to coming back for another one before too long.

Above you can see on my right foot my prototype stock shoe that ive been working with dave to make called the M1. I've been developing a new shape of the footbed that i call the Edge Control Platform- essentially what it does is gives you a much bigger and more reliable surface to push off for each stroke... this maximizes efficiency and just makes the whole skating experience 'feel like it should'. Like i was saying before, many people dont know what a boot is supposed to feel like, this will show you exactly what you've been missing. The shoe should be available before long... I cant wait.

If anyone is interested in organizing a clinic, feel free to contact me - JoeyMantia@gmail.com

A lot of people have been asking what im doing for my sponsor next year, i am signing 2 years with simmons/schankel, thats a done deal... and am seriously considering working with hyper as my wheel brand, but nothing is set in stone yet.

2009-12-13T17:50:00.000-08:00

friday lunch was chips n salsa at chilis with water. I had a snack in the airport- dried fruit and cashews with green tea. When i got to philly i had my first authentic cheese steak with mushrooms and onions - i know that doesnt exactly follow the diet to the T, but i couldnt miss out on the experience... it was pretty good (apparently it wasnt good by PA standards, but i dont know the difference).

Saturday morning the clinic started at 7am so we had to get up pretty early and drive to the rink. I had 2 bananas and some water. Lunch was lone star steak house- baby back ribs with a plain baked potato and steamed broccoli and water. Dinner was outback steak house- 6 ounce sirloin with shrimp and lobster topping and mashed potatos and a ceasar salad. I had 2 wallaby darneds- girly drink, but its too good to pass up (no homo). That night i had some dessert that johns wife made called strawberry surprise- has like angel food cake, strawberries, ready whip, vanilla pudding- really good, im a fat kid still.

Today for breakfast i had a banana again and some water. Lunch was 2 cheese steaks at the "good" place... now i know what a good philly cheese steak is! After the clinic i skated an indoor practice in bethlehem-

warm up in opposite direction- left foot pushes only
pace line right foot left foot
2 lap pace line double backs
passing drill
starts to the finish line
burn pace- laps dictated by coach
cool down pace line

i liked the practice, gave me a lot of time to focus on my pushes and start working on stepping into the corner, which is coming along very nicely.

Dinner was fridays- broccoli and cheese soup, about 4 strawberry lemonades, vanilla bean cheese cake, and peanut butter chocolate pie- still fat hahaha

2009-12-11T08:17:00.000-08:00

Spin class yesterday, 1 hour out of the saddle

Dinner was left over chicken wings, spaghetti with marinara sauce and chicken, corn, cashews, apple juice, and orange strawberry banana juice.

Breakfast today was 4 eggs scrambled with tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, ham. Shake with chocolate soy milk, banana, peanut butter

about to travel to PA today to put on a camp

Indoor Practice

2009-12-10T15:05:00.000-08:00

Lunch yesterday was 3 scrambled eggs and some cold cut turkey with water. 2nd lunch was 2 grilled chicken breasts, a pickle, and some guacamole with water.

Indoor Practice:

warm up
pace line right foot left foot hold
squat drills
push starts 1 lap with double back, 2nd time through was 2 laps (beyond painful)
30 lap open
4 x pace 4, sprint 2

reaching farther and farther with my left foot now that im becoming more comfortable with indoor. Im turning my hips and shoulders into the corner before i get there now, which is something i was having problems with before. I've been skating on all orange atoms- the first practice back i was squeeling and barking everywhere and couldnt keep up... now i can step into the corner with no noise and get a solid push with no bark... this is a sign that everything is starting to click.

Dinner #1 was grilled chicken, mandarin oranges, lemonade. Dinner #2 was some kashi and banana nut cereal with soy milk and cashews.

Breakfast today was 3 scrambled eggs with turkey sausage, ham, and tomatoes. Lunch was banana nut cereal with soy milk and some strawberry orange banana juice.

The Recap

2009-12-09T09:06:00.000-08:00

I've been without internet for the past few days, here's what I've been doing:

Friday for breakfast i made a 3 egg scramble with sausage and ham in it, water to drink. For lunch my dad made me this really good stir fry with shrimp, broccoli, asparagus, and mushrooms (minimum butter and seasonings) with water to drink. For dinner i just kinda snacked on some cashews, banana chips and peanut butter with water to drink. Friday was my day off.

Saturday morning i made a mixed scramble with 4 eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, ham, sausage with water to drink. I did 1 hour of spin at the gym all out of the saddle, i pushed myself hard, its important to go beyond the comfort zone when trying to get back into shape. For lunch i snacked on carrots, tomatoes and a banana. I decided to do 1 cheat meal a week on my diet, so that night i had chicken wings with sweet tea.

Sunday's breakfast was just an apple and a bottle of water. Practice was indoor in tampa sunday morning:

warm up
2 lap burn pace (i fell down, ive been clumsy indoor)
squat drills
push starts with drop in
30 lap open
4 person relay - 5 laps x2

Sunday lunch was at zaxbys- i got a plain chicken salad with extra chicken and sweet tea. Outdoor practice was next:

Plyos:

progressive lateral jumps
baby steps with high jump after 5 steps
progressive up and overs

the above was set up like a circuit, we did it 4 times

one leg cross holds - at least 10 secs on each leg x 10

squat jumps x10

On skates:

pace line
boot taps
cross glides
slalom
single foot slalom
10k

Dinner that night was another stir fry, this time add chicken and 100% wheat pasta with orange strawberry juice.

Monday i had 2 bananas for breakfast and picked up my new motorcycle :-)

For lunch i had all you can eat chicken at sonnys with a plain baked potato and corn on the cob with water.

Gym workout:

treadmill tabata @ 12.5 mph
3x10 reps 1 leg box squats
10x down and over box jumps
20x lateral jumps over bench
20x 180 jumps knees to chest
20x down and outs
10x down up and outs

Indoor practice:

warm up
pace line - right foot, left foot
push starts with drop in
figure 8's
passing drill
15 lap open (i fell again, still clumsy apparently)
2 line relay

Did I say I decided to have ONE cheat meal a week on the diet?... lol monday night we went to a chinese buffet after practice.. i think it would be easier to write when i didnt have than what i did:

crawfish
egg rolls with sweet n sour
fried rice
sushi
fried peppered chicken
mango chicken
fried shrimp
fried talapia
vanilla pudding with strawberry sauce and a banana
ice cream

(one cheat meal was the plan, but i fell victim to the powers of the chinese buffet!)

Yesterday for breakfast i had 3 plain scrambled eggs with water. Lunch i just snacked on some carrots and strawberry orange banana juice.

Outdoor practice:

20k
squat drills
corner technique

Gym:

incline bench full sit ups x20
specials (scoops only) x10
reverse specials x10
side sit ups x10
dirty 30
2 candle sticks (trying to keep body off the bench as long as possible)
3 full russian leans going deeper than parallel (after 3 my hamstrings cramped

Dinner was a chicken breast, 2 plain baked potatos, soy milk, peanut butter, and banana chips.

Breakfast today was an apple and a banana.

Dinner

2009-12-03T18:45:00.000-08:00

Before dinner I snacked on some cashews, banana chips and peanut butter with grape juice

Dinner was Seared ahi tuna, plain baked potato, diced tomatoes, water

Workout Number 2

2009-12-03T16:04:00.000-08:00

Tabata squat interval with 45lb bar

lunges with 45lb dumbbell in each hand

Baby steps with 45lb in each

20 dumbell squats with 45lb

Split bench jumps squat 5 on top, bounce down and up x 10

Split bench jumps squat 5 on bottom, jump up and back down x 10

Yesterday & Today - Intro To Training

2009-12-03T13:31:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning for breakfast i had 3 plain eggs scrambled with water. For lunch i had 2 pork chops, pea and corn medley, applesauce and water. For dinner i had a grilled chicken breast, cold cut roast beef, tomatoes, guacamole, and a pickle with water and a sweet tea.

Dave and I somewhat finalized the last we wanna use for my boot - the M1. I skated indoor practice with renne in tampa and realized how out of shape i really am. Given i was on all oranges, i was technically terrible and my legs were on fire... but that was expected.

warm up
2 lap pace line right foot left foot
2 lap burn pace
squat drills
push starts with a drop in, finish at the 1/2 mark
15 lap open
5 laps x2 - 3 person relay

OFF SKATES:

step cross- balance on each leg in squat position for about 20 sec
1 leg jump ups
baby steps
broad jumps
2 foot jump onto wall- x10
back to back wall sits - 1min on, 30 sec off, 1 min on

TODAY

today for breakfast i had 2 eggs srambled with mixed fresh fruit. Lunch was a chicken salad- 2 chicken breasts, tomatoes, lettuce, banana peppers, jalapenos (no dressing) with water.

First workout today in the gym was:

spin 30min, medium tension - getting a good burn
immediately into jumps:
jumps from knee high box to ground to waist high box x10
jumps from knee high box to ground to waist high box with 90 degree rotation- trading sides each jump x 20
20 straight jumps to box and immediately back down at waist height
16 lateral jumps (left right) over a bench

* i weighed in today at 166, a little over a week ago i was 174. My ideal race weight is somewhere around 159, so with the training schedule and diet ive been on it should happen really quickly. I can already feel some of the benefits from the diet... i have more energy each day after my workouts, despite my legs' lactic threshold being stupid bad right now, i physically have pretty good energy.

Yesterday, Today- My Terrible Luck

2009-12-01T19:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning for lunch was quiznos- i had a turkey bacon and gauc with chips and a dr pepper

I was testing a new mold that dave just made in the morning and was rolling down the road really slow, i went to turn and i dont know what the hell happened, but i fell right on the same wrist i hurt just a couple weeks ago in NSC. Luckily no one saw me... not too bad haha.

I skated with tyler about 10k, i felt really good. Took it pretty easy, just worked on double push technique. Right now, i have to think about what im doing too much, everything should be happening naturally, its just going to take time.

That night i skated indoor practice. We didnt do any drills in particular, i really just spent the whole time trying to get the feel back for indoor and figure out what i wanted to change in the new last. We did do a few 10 lappers, i felt good in those, but wow indoor hurts the legs a little bit.

Dinner was pork chops at bonefish grill with a cesar salad and water.

Today

Today is the first day of the diet that i tried to get on a month ago, but with all the traveling it didnt work out...

Breakfast was 3 scrambled eggs and grape juice

Lunch was 2 grilled chicken breasts

Dinner was grilled salmon and white beans

All day long i was snacking on fruit and nuts- bananas, grapes, and cashews

At night, jenefer made me some fresh guacamole, so i snacked on that as well.

Banana chips and natural peanut butter

So more about the bad luck... earlier in the day i was doing some circles on the new boot, and was really close to the edge of the road, my foot slipped, caught the edge of the pavement, and i flew... this time i was kinda bloody and of course, hurt my wrist again.

Bad luck comes in 3's - Then, right before we skated today i was turning around in someones driveway right? WRONG, i was sliding and falling down on someones driveway. I was literally was going 5 mph, but i guess they were resurfacing their driveway and it was really really chalky or something- bam, right on my wrist. Im assuming that if it wasnt broken before, it probably is now lol i cant wait to have arthritis when im 35

The workout was good- the hardest workout since worlds, which isnt saying much. we just skated a solid 13 miles.

Ravioli and R & D

2009-11-29T19:47:00.000-08:00

Yesterday on the plane they served some ravioli, nice and dry just how i like it hahah, i had 7-up to drink.

Brittany Bowe picked me up from the airport- I left my car at her place in boca raton while i was in colombia. When we got back to her place i had some dunkaroos... i haven't had them since i was in 4th grade, if you don't know what they are then I'm sorry your life has gone on thus far without the experience lol

This morning i woke up and drove to Dave simmons' house because we're working on creating a new stock last (a last is the shape that each stock is made out of) that is based upon my shoe and incorporates all the little tricks that i like in my boots. I have to say, the guy is pretty amazing at what he does; he is an artist when it comes to shaping a last. We grabbed lunch when i got in, this cool place on the water called the joint- i had a turkey club with pasta and water. Dinner was taco salad courtesy of chef jen simmons lol.

The progress of this stock design is coming along great, i want to get it to where I'm confident enough in the quality and shape of the design that i will be able to grab one off the shelf, put it on, and race with comfort and efficiency. I feel like people don't know what a great boot is 'supposed' to feel like, thats what Dave and i want to change. I have some new interests in the importance of pressure points related to power transfer into the skate, all of which will be incorporated into this design.

The upper (upper is the leather on the outside) is still being designed, but i fooled around with a gold marker and kinda liked the outcome...

The plan is to have a black and gold frame packaged with the boot. Should be pretty cool. I've been on my simmons for a while now, but wanted to see what other boots felt like so i did this...

Jokes aside, some are turned off by the price of a simmons, but i can assure you that it is a work of art. Would you rather spend less money on a boot that will give you countless head aches, falling apart and breaking in a year, or pay the worth of a quality product that you'll love and be able to re-sell or pass down?

Bucaramanga Airport

2009-11-28T10:07:00.000-08:00

The airport in bucaramanga sits on top of a mountain that overlooks the city, its a really cool view. It only has 2 gates, so I do believe it is the smallest airport I've ever been in... There are more places to eat than there are gates to fly out of haha. I just ordered a filt mignon, we'll see how that goes.

All in all the trip was incredible, the people who put on the clinic were very very nice- they offered me their bed to sleep in while I was there, which I graciously declined. I plan to go back to south america and do a tour of clinics in countries including colombia, venezuela, argentina, chile, brazil, and costa rice- if not more.

Dinner last night was a few pieces of left over chicken. Breakfast today was frosted flakes. Lunch right now is filet and fries with nestea.

I LOVE COLOMBIA

2009-11-27T17:11:00.000-08:00

Anybody who says our sport is dying is a) an idiot and b) apparently not colombian or has never been to colombia. I just went to watch the 8,9, and 10 year old nationals here in bucaramanga (yes just a 3 year window) which had over 400 participants.... maybe you didn't catch that the first time so here:

400 kids limited to the ages of 8,9, and 10

I got there and started signing a few autographs and that turned into zoo...

These kids were awesome, they were literally climbing over eachother trying to get an autograph and picture. After that, the organization wanted me to skate a few laps and say some words in front of the people, which was a great idea in theory... until the mob of kids got involved hahah

Theres a road around the outside of the track, i literally got pushed around the track while kids were running around me screaming, just losing their minds; it was one of the coolest things ive ever experienced. After the lap, i slowed down and after about 10 minutes managed to get all the kids off the track so they could play the national anthem and have me say a few words. After that i took a lap on the track shaking hands and giving high fives.

After that i had to crank off the track and back to the booth to finish up signing autographs. My shirt started off a medium and now its at least an XL from all the pulling and grabbing haha; i thought to myself, i couldn't imagine ACTUALLY being a legit famous person, it would be hard.

I wish there was as much passion in the states as there is in south america for this sport...

Here's a little clip, its hard to see, but u can sure hear em

Dinner, Breakfast, Lunch And A Little Workout

2009-11-27T16:19:00.000-08:00

Dinner last night was el corral again, i cant stop eating it! Double cheese burger with onion rings and nestea

And there you have it ladies and gentlemen, the reason i skate is so i dont become a fat person haha

After dinner i went to a local track and skated around with some of the kids. I did put in about 20 hard minutes (well what i thought was hard) but i havent really touched my skates for a workout in well over a week, so it's probably just my inability to breathe that made my workout worht while lol

Breakfast today was just eggs with bacon, fresh fruit, and some juice (they spoil me)...

My favorite part is the mickey mouse place mat every morning

Lunch was this chicken place called frisby... fried of course (i wouldn't have it any other way haha)

Little Update From Colombia

2009-11-26T10:08:00.000-08:00

Friday night i went to some person's wedding i didn't know, but it was all good, cause the food was delicious. Apparently Louisiana knows whats up with the seafood. I had some crab cakes, coconut shrimp, and a few crackers.

Saturday for breakfast before i started my drive to ocala, i ate some home made biscuits and a cinnamon roll, which were all pretty good if i may say so. The drive was a little rough because i was too stubborn to stop and eat anything, i wanted to get to Florida as quick as possible. The start of the drive was beyond obnoxious; the traffic had me yelling at people with the utmost aggression (yes i know they cant hear me, but for some reason i felt a lot better after). Once i got into Florida, the traffic was OK, plus it was a 3 lane highway so i was Ricky bobbying my way through those goons. i eventually had to stop to get gas so i picked up some chex mix and a bottle of water, such a nutritious meal. When i got into ocala, some friends wanted me to go out so of course dinner was greasy bar food; chicken tenders, jalapeño poppers, and potato skins- how i haven't had a heart attack yet i don't know.

Sunday morning my dad showed me around the new gym that he's just been made president of; it's a beautiful gym, maybe the nicest one Ive ever been inside. This place has EVERYTHING; tanning, manicures, pedicures, hot tub, a special tub for doing body fat percentages, like 3 aerobics rooms, a sick spin room, a palates room, a kids center, a bar with any kinda health food you could want, tons of exercise equipment... its awesome, needless to say, i will be utilizing it quite frequently while I'm in Florida. Breakfast was ihop- country fried steak, scrambled eggs, pancakes and water. Lunch was nothing because again, i was too stubborn to stop on my drive from ocala to Boca. Dinner was cheesecake factory- nachos and vanilla bean cheesecake with water.

Monday morning i headed to Miami airport to fly here to Colombia to teach a camp in bucaramanga; sounds like a ghetto, its actually a nice little city. Anyway, brunch was McDonald's- quarter pounder with cheese, nuggets, fries, and Dr pepper. That was really all i ate the whole day, which is probably why i felt like garbage when i woke up Tuesday morning; i was congested, neck hurt, i was really dehydrated- you know when your lips are cracked and stuff, yea that was me. Oh, before we went to the house from the airport, they asked if i wanted anything, i said juice, thinking they were going to buy some the next day... WRONG. We went to this drive up juice bar, honked, some chick comes over and takes the order, 2 minutes later she walks back with a glass (yes a glass glass) of the best juice I've had, maybe ever. We then just sat there while i drank my juice, which was slightly awkward haha, and then honked again, she grabbed the glass and we drove off.... ahhh Colombia.

The family that I'm staying with for the clinic is great, very hospitable. They made me eggs with bacon, cereal, fresh fruit all cut up and juice... and it was delicious. In the afternoon i went to a small track here with a team full of little kids and just skated around with them, took some pictures, kissed some babies, you know the day to day... For lunch, they took me to this awesome place that was apparently traditional Colombian food... it was just a bunch of different kinds of meat (no homo). Also, they make this little corn thing called an arepa, soo good with a little bit of pico on top. The night we had a conference where i sat in front of the coaches and skaters of the camp with a translator and just talked about equipment, training, and anything else they could come up with to ask me. For dinner we had some el corral, you white people reading this wont know anything about no el corral, its a burger place in Colombia that just clowns McDonald's or bk or wendys... its kinda like In-N-Out status; I had a doble con queso y tacineta, papas fritas, y nestea limon.

Wednesday was the first day of the clinic, which has been going great. It does kind of concern me however, that they have never seen over 1/2 the drills that I'm teaching here; If they are already as good as they are without really knowing HOW to skate, I'm a little scared to see what could happen when they do. Breakfast was just cereal and fresh fruit with juice. Lunch was fried chicken, i ate it with a plastic glove on (cause thats what they do here... apparently its 'safer' that way haha), coke and juice to drink. Dinner was pizza at a place that overlooked the whole city, it was a really cool experience. My nose was cashed from being in the sun all day long and i can tell I'm out of shape because between each one of the off skates exercises i was dizzy and wanted to fall over.

This morning i woke up early because i had to keep working on the burning the 76 disks for the people at this camp; everyone gets a tee shirt and a disk with the videos of all the drills on it. You don't realize how long it takes to burn 76 Cd's until you actually have to do it by the way. Breakfast was just eggs and bacon with juice. Lunch was fried chicken and arepa again, with coke and lulo juice- lulo is this tangy sour fruit in Colombia, I'm an addict.

Busy & Worthless haha

2009-11-20T16:13:00.000-08:00

Alright, last time i wrote it was thursday afternoon so I'm going to try to catch this up as much as possible going on memory... I've been traveling from colorado to florida by car, updating the nsc site, doing all the bios etc, and visiting friends, thats where all my time has gone... no training unfortunately

Thursday night we had practice and i skated the new hyper wheels... i actually liked them, i wouldnt mind working with them next year maybe.

Pace line
50 lap open
3 man relay - everylap
2 man relay - 50 laps

This practice was the fastest ive been indoor in a really long time, not too sure why

Dinner that night was cheesesticks and quesdaillas

Friday i had jack in the box for breakfast:

sausage egg and cheese biscuit
stuffed jalapenos
hash browns
double cheeseburger

I cant remember what else i had to eat that day, but you can bet it wasn't healthy

Saturday i traveled back to colorado from seattle. I had mcdonalds for breakfast

chicken biscuit
hash brown
breakfast burrito
OJ

lunch was a bag of pineapple chunks

dinner was pizza from dominos

Sunday breakfast was a belgian waffle and water, lunch was left over pizza, dinner was sushi and water-- i think i drank about 5 dr peppers sunday as well

monday for breakfast i had scrambled eggs, hash browns and water

i started my drive from colorado to florida on monday, which is really the reason i decided to 86 the diet until i get back from teachin the clinic in colombia- its so hard to eat right when you're traveling

lunch was mcdonalds

nuggets
fries
dr pepper

dinner was left over turkey, potatoes, ham, and stuffing at ringers house- i also had a chic-filet orea shake-- those things are like crack

tuesday i drove from dallas to shreveport louisiana and then to broussard... breakfast was 2 belgian waffles and turkey bacon with water

lunch was long horn- firecracker raps and ribs with water

dinner was wendys

nuggets
fries
spicy go wrap
dr pepper

wednesday breakfast was hot wings , dinner was sushi and hibachi steak

thursday breakfast was quiznos- turkey, bacon, guac with chips and water, dinner last night was boiled crawfish... my first time ever eating crawfish, definately an experience. You have to yank the tail out and then peel and stuff, its work if you're a newbie like me.

Today breakfast was waffle house- texas bacon egg and cheese plate with a waffle and chicken biscuit, i drank water. Lunch was quiznos again, same sub... also a slice of pizza

ive been completely worthless lately when it comes to training and diet. I plan on fixing all that when i get back from colombia and get a real chance to start a legit training program again with renee.

NSC 1 Through Today

2009-11-12T13:57:00.000-08:00

Monday i had so much to do for the event i literally just ate breakfast and nothing else the entire day. The event was really cool, considering the time frame miguel and I had to put on what we did, it went smooth. I can't wait for the next one, which should be sometime in january. I did end up falling a couple times and i rocked my wrist pretty bad, after that i was skating too timid, but it was the most intense racing i've been a part of in a really long time.

Tuesday i woke up and my entire body was sore... both of my wrists, my hips, burns on my legs... haha it was intense. I decided that i was in no mood to worry about my diet, and pretty much just 86'd that guy for a week or so... breakfast didnt happen because i woke up too late, lunch was sushi- i had 3 rolls and water, dinner was burger king- double cheeseburger, fries, cheezy tots, 8 tenders, bbq sauce and lemonade... i feel real sick after putting all that down, i think i grew an extra chin too. I didnt go to practice tuesday night because my body was battered, i wanted the rest.

Wednesday's breakfast was country fried steak, scrambled eggs, hash browns, a biscuit and water. Lunch was a few slices of pepperoni pizza from pizza hut with water, and dinner was a ahi tuna ceasar salad from outback with water. i went and did a 30 min private lesson outside, teaching double push... that went really well.

All in all, i realize how easy it is when you're younger and all you have to worry about is going to practice and skating hard. Not that i have many more responsibilities than i did when i was younger, but now its harder. Taking on the challenges of NSC leaves me with less time to be lazy, i'm finding i have to utilize the time i have each day more efficiently... i'm having to map out everything more carefully to maintain productivity. It will be nice to get to florida and be able to train around the clock with the weather permitting.

Today for breakfast i had some banana nut cereal with soy. Lunch was red robin- ceasar wrap, french fries, chips and guac, with water... i know, i know... food is my weakness

Yesterday And Breakfast Today

2009-11-09T09:45:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I skipped breakfast, we got up really early and went to a meet to promotw NSC, whcih went really really well.

Lunch was mexican buffet, I tried to stay away from the bad stuff, but its mexican:

Chips and salsa, refried beans

Beef taco

2 beef things (yea I have no idea what they were)

Refried beans

Chicken fajitas

2 pieces of bacon (it was a brunch buffet)

Water

Dinner was outback steakhouse:

Sautéd mushrooms

NY strip

Dry baked potato

Water

Yesterday we went to the rink to set up the spot light for the NSC entrances and ironed a few things out. We skated around a little and let the guys get used to the floor... That's when it started sinking in how sick this event is going to be.

Today for breakfast I had to cheat the so called diet I'm on haha, I'm usually pretty disciplined with things, but hunger and maybe a little stress got the better of me-

Country fried steak

Scrambled eggs

Hash browns

Biscuit

Water

Now I'm goin to the rink to set up the computer for the live feed which should be really clear and smooth (we didn't go cheap on this event)

Support me tonight by coming to the event or if you can't make it, watch the live feed at www.pronsc.com

Thanks!

Dinner Last Night

2009-11-08T07:14:00.000-08:00

Wheat penne pasta with marinara
Water

Today we're heading to a meet in everette, wa to do a little promo for NSC 1

Scattered

2009-11-07T07:11:00.000-08:00

With the world cup and NCS 1 coming up quick, my mind has been completely scattered. I forgot to write about practice the thursday night.

i put back on the boot i skated worlds on and was much faster, so im going to skate the event on it. The difference is that my new boot is much more stiff and has very little padding, which is extremely precise- something that will take a little getting used to when i have more time.

warm up pace line
15 lap race
30 lap race
passing drill
30 lap 2 man

Also, yestedays diet after breakfast consisted of:

lunch-

red robin-
2 grilled chicken breasts with salad (ne dressing)
tortilla chips with guacamole and salsa
water

2nd lunch-

apple
carrots
grapes
water

Dinner at the rock-

chicken cesar wrap
french fries (little bit of cheating)
beer (i dont condone drinking)

______________________________

Today for breakfast i had an apple and a banana

Breakfast

2009-11-06T08:53:00.000-08:00

Breakfast today is 5 eggs with 4 sausage links, 5 pieces of ham and salsa. Also, a banana and grapes with some cran-raspberry juice. Breakfast is the easiest on the diet, the others, not so much

Without Further Ado... The Rundown Pt 1

2009-11-05T23:35:00.000-08:00

Where to start, where to start... ah yes, the flight. For me, flying is easy because i just sleep the whole time, which is exactly what i did for the 4 hour flight from atlanta to caracas. Now, getting to venezuela was a little bit sketchy because it wasn't exactly clear who (if anyone) was going to be meeting me at the airport and bringing me to the hotel; i had to stay in a hotel for the night and pick up a flight to margarita island in the morning. Luckily, when i walked out there was a cute venezuelan chick holding up a WIC sign- perfect; She brought me to the hotel and got me all set up for the next day.

I gotta mention that venezuela isnt the safest place for an american to be considering the politcal situation... that of which i have absolutely no knowledge, but i hear its bad, so i'm running with it. Also, an american athlete got kidnapped and robbed last time i was in venezuela, needless to say, i was a littttle nervous.

Anyway, the hotel had internet- ahhhhhhhh bells were ringing and the clouds parted to shed the light of heaven directly down on my computer... just kidding, but seriously, that happened so I spent all night conquering the internet. The next morning i went down to eat a delicious continental breakfast right? haha WRONG. It was a continental breakfast, but delicious it was not- runny eggs, funny tasting bread, and ahh yes, who could forget the hot dog flavored sausages (yes, just like china). After the delightful meal, i caught the shuttle to the airport and checked in; nothing too exciting.

In venezuela, unlike the US, you have to pay departure taxes when you fly; its not that much money, but its a little confusing if you're not used to it. I payed in dollars and got bolivars (venezuelan currency) back in return and i do believe they took one good look at me, knew i was a gringo that wouldn't know the difference, and pulled me pants down on the deal haha.

Security for a domestic flight there consisted of a refrigerator box cut to look like a metal detector with a person standing off to the side making beep noises as people walked through. Jokes aside, it was slightly more laxed that what we're used to at home. I got to the gate i was supposed to be at and waited for my flight when i realized that it was boarding time and no one was getting on a plane, which made me question the reliability of the monitor... luckily i got up and checked, becuase these damn people were trying to hoodwink me... my flight was boarding a few gates down. Mantia 1 Venezuela 0 hahaha

Off the plane in margarita they took me straight to the race, where it was a million percent humidity and a few degrees cooler than hell. I ended up missing the 100m drag races, but picked up with the 500m and the 10k points. After the races, we headed to the hotel. Oh, i forgot to mention, we were driving around in circles for about 30 minutes when the translator looks over at me and says, "you want to know a secret?" I said, "We're Lost," everyone laughed and we eventually figured it out... and by we i mean they.

I ended up rooming with my old team mate max presti, which was cool, because he was one of the 10 people that spoke english at the event haha... he also speaks pretty good spanish, which was handy. We went to the mall that night and grubbed out on hella american food; this place had: burger king, mcdonalds, subway, kfc, sushi, hard rock cafe, cinnabon, to name a few- i chose BK. I had a nuggets, a double cheeseburger, fries, and sprite; BK never tasted sooo goood.

That night was the 'white' party and presentation of awards and money for the day's events... you know i couldnt miss that, the only problem was that i didn't bring anything white. I actually considered wearing all black, but decided against it for whatever reason. I borrowed a white shirt from someone and just rocked some black shorts... the only jerk there not wearing completely white was of course me haha oh well. At one point it started raining and one of the chicks from chile got her pants all wet... water + her white pants = smile on my face... the guy filming the event knew what he liked too, he didnt take the camera off her hahaha good times.

The next day was the off day before the marathon so everybody kicked it in the pool... at one point there was about 50 people coming down this long slide at once, no exaggeration... it was interesting to say the least; i think i saw one of the guys in a neck brace the next day. The food at the hotel was just about as good as the continental breakfast so we at at the mall for just about every meal. I did forget to mention that this little resort we stayed at had a round the clock open bar... i didnt really take advantage of it, but A LOT of people did haha.

I'll pick up with the rest tomorrow... as for the diet today:

Breakfast-

pistachios
5 eggs scrambled with a little bit of salsa
4 sausage links
banana

Lunch-

Subway salad with lettuce, tomato, pickles, peperoncinis, and 2 chicken breasts - no dressing
water

i had some pistachios for a snack

2nd Lunch-

apple
roast beef
carrots
soy milk

more pistachios

dinner-

wheat pasta
marinara sauce
orange juice

Venezuela

2009-11-02T14:21:00.000-08:00

Hey guys, i know its been a few days since i wrote, but internet is kinda sketch here in Venezuela. I won the 2 road races i skated and got 3rd to Diego Rosero and Max Presti in the marathon. I will write a recap on the entire trip when i get home. Thanks for the patience!

Don't forget, www.pronsc.com on november 9! Live feed will be available to watch the sickest speed skating production ever put on!

Dinner Last Night & Breakfast Today

2009-10-29T12:17:00.000-07:00

Last night i was stuck in a hotel in atlanta because there was a flight delay, regardless, i was hungry and looking to order a pizza. I decided that would take too long and it was too expensive anyway (im really cheap) so i walked out of the hotel only to find KFC right next door; could my night possibly get any better?! YES... I look to my right and what do I see? WAFFLE HOUSE! Now, anyone that knows me, knows that i'm a fat kid that loves to eat; more specifically, i love to eat food that isnt good for me haha.

Bacon, egg & cheese melt on texas toast
hash browns
biscuits and gravy
waffle
water (gotta keep it healthy)

Breakfast was Qdoba at the airport:

chicken queso burrito
water

I guess im taking a few days off, not that i need them, i haven't been doing a damn thing for training apart from some easy indoor practices... that's all going to change really soon though, along with my impeccable diet!

Yesterday & Today - The Ketchup (get it?) haha

2009-10-28T11:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday i skipped breakfast, had lunch at mongolian grill with water

i had some pineapple and strawberries before practice

Indoor Practice:

pace line warm up

30 lap staggered start open
pyramid relay 1 to 5 to 1
50 lap open

Ive been vague with the entries lately, that will get better soon, i've been absolutely swamped with a LOT of things. Mainly, NSC, it's a lot of work to put on an event like this. We need as much help as we can get to get the word out and make the event a success, so im asking everyone that reads my entries to go to ProNSC and participate in the forum polls (there is a link to the forum all the way on the right side of the menu bar up top). Also, our first event is november 9, which is right around the corner, we will have LIVE FEED available on our website, which means even if you cant make it in person, you can watch the most exciting night of racing you've ever seen sitting exactly where you're sitting right now! Spread the word on your facebook, on your myspace, on your twitter, GET IT OUT THERE! When our sport has the ability to provide a legit career for ALL the professional athletes, you can say you helped get it there. Thanks guys, i really appreciated it!

dinner was cinnamon life and apple cinnamon cheerios again

Today, im traveling to venezuela for a world cup, im hella stoked for some warm ladies and hot weather... wait, switch that, reverse it haha.

Breakfast was wendy's in the airport:

sausage egg & cheese biscuit
biscuit and gravy
hash browns

OJ

Right now im sitting in salt lake city because we had to stop (was supposed to be going to atlanta), apparently there was a problem with our plane so we had to stop and change planes, should be back in route soon...

Again, go to the site, check out the interviews, register on the forum, spread the word- it would be a huge favor to myself and to the sport we all love

Yesterday

2009-10-27T19:02:00.000-07:00

Skipped Breakfast

Lunch was chicken katsu with fried rice and 2 egg rolls
water

Dinner was pizza from pizza hut, some chips and gatorade

Indoor practice:

pace line on small track

pace line - big track, small track

passing drill, 5 open at the end

1 leg glides through corner

Yesterday

2009-10-26T17:20:00.000-07:00

i gotta get caught up! haha

skipped breakfast

indoor practice:

pace line

slow pace:
exaggerated arm swings
right arm swinging only
10 laps open

5x pace 5 sprint 3

double backs

triple nickle 3 person

Lunch:

Chicken fajita quesadillas
water

Dinner @ burger king:

8 chicken nuggets
double bacon cheeseburger
fries
dr pepper

IM FAT! diet starts when i get back from venezuela, im NOT looking forward to it what so ever... i might have to check myself in somewhere to clean up the diet haha

Show Your Support!

2009-10-25T16:33:00.000-07:00

NSC FORUM

Go to the link, register, and VOTE!

Vote for who you think will be there sprint champion and who will be the distance champion at NSC1 Intiation set to take place November 9th!

You can find the polls under the National Speedskating Circuit forum... NOW GO!

Yesterday

2009-10-25T15:12:00.000-07:00

Breakfast was cinnamon life and apple cinnamon cheerios

Gym workout:

100 bar squats- 10 reps, 10 off the bottom

2 sets of 20 slow ducked squats

leg press 4 plates (180lbs)- 20 slow squats, 20 throws in and out, 10 reps with 5 slow off the bottom each time

decline sit ups touching toes - 2 sets of 20

10 reps of specials

10 reps each side crunches

Lunch was orange chicken and fried rice, with egg rolls

water

Dinner was french fries and beer (again, i dont condone drinking)

Yesterday

2009-10-24T09:17:00.000-07:00

Breakfast:

cinnamon life

Lunch:

3 sushi rolls
water

i went to the rink after session, trying to put as much time as i can in on my skates, trying to get comfortable on the new boots indoor. I just skated circles and laps.

Dinner:

fruit
chips
gatorade

Yesterday

2009-10-23T09:06:00.000-07:00

Breakfast:

Apple cinnamon cheerios and Cinnamon life

Lunch:

orange chicken
fried rice
2 egg rolls
water

Dinner:

Peanut butter & jelly
roast beef sandwich with pepperjack cheese and mayo

Indoor Practice:

pace line 1 lap in front
burn pace with opens
15 lap straight race
starts
right foot left foot
one food glides
high speed passing
30 lap open

Back On The Fresh Coast

2009-10-21T20:50:00.000-07:00

Back in WA setting everything up for NSC on nov 9th.

Last night we made a trip to jack in the box-

spicy chicken sandwich
medium fry
sausage egg cheese biscuit
hash browns
lemonade

Lunch today was taco bell-

nacho cheese chalupa
1/2 pound burrito
chicken quesadilla
empanada

I went to the rink and skated about 35 minutes (it was just open laps) and worked on some circles and tried to dial in my frame position before practice tomorrow at pattisons

Today Was A Good Day

2009-10-20T18:33:00.000-07:00

Woke up and went for a little skate with dave simmons and his buddy bryan; they were both on bikes, I was on skates. I had a brand new boot that dave just made me on and its been a long long long time since I've felt so much of my push, I was giddy like a little kid on christmas. We skated about 13 miles and I just wanted to keep going. I did a few accels and the response from the boots was incredible. All I can say is wow.

Breakfast was eggs and toast with water

Lunch was a smoothie from smoothie king and a cheeseburger

I'm sitting in the airport right now, waiting for my flight to seattle to prepare for NSC 1.

Dinner was airport chinese- yum yum... Fried rice, orange chicken, and 2 egg rolls with water.

Indoor & Dinner

2009-10-19T20:03:00.000-07:00

Off Skates Squats:

shoulder width, straight feet - 1 min

shoulder width, ducked - 1 min

wide, straight feet - 1 min

wide, ducked - 1 min

shoulder width, straight feet - pyramid - 5 squats, 5 off the bottom, 5 sec hold, 4 squats, 4 off the bottom, 4 sec hold, and so on down to 1 and back up to 5

back to back wall sits - 2sets x 2 min

Skating:

right foot left foot

starts into a large double back, finish the lap and hawk

1 leg glides- gliding around the corner on one leg, switch each corner

duck walk

walk trot walk

walk trot run

laps working on technique

Sushi (4 rolls) and water for dinner

Breakfast & Lunch

2009-10-19T14:51:00.000-07:00

Scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast

Pepperoni pizza and water for lunch

After lunch I went out with dave on the boat and cruised around for an hour or so- had a couple of drinks.

When I come back to florida, I'm looking for a house.

Indoor, Lunch & Dinner

2009-10-18T19:53:00.000-07:00

Indoor practice with Renee was fun today; like outdoor, i spent most of it dialing in my equipment and learning how to skate again.

open warm up

right foot left foot
squat drills
duck walk
walk trot walk
push starts
starts
30 laps - very slow, only technique
2 line relay

my ideas from this morning revolve around weight and the transfer of it... just like i've been dissecting since i started this journal. Ive been so focused on the hip load that i didn't pay attention to the fact that unlike classic mario, i live in a 3 dimensional world; moreover, there are more options than pushing my weight left or right. I have the option, using my torso (angle of upper body), to distribute weight from my heals to the the balls of my feet. I stumbled upon a huge mistake i have been making for the past year or so... ive been skating with my back too vertical in the corners. So to fix this, I used my belly button as general point of my center of gravity- it sounds weird, but if u had a string with a weight on it and it was attached to your belly button, where ever that weight found itself at rest, is where your general center of gravity is (where your weight is). My goal is to have my center of gravity directly behind the ball of the foot that i'm stepping onto, which in turn, creates instant pressure and stability as soon as the wheels hit the floor. I was able to get there by bending more at the torso and leading with my whole body, instead of just my hip going into the corner. Instantly, it was easier to turn, and much more efficient each push.

If you feel like there is never anything behind your pushes or you're fighting the corner, give this a shot and see if it works for you (no promises, but it did wonders for me)

Lunch was a chicken cesar from chilis with water

Everyone needs a jennifer simmons to cook for them- she made some awesome chicken with cheese and bacon on top, it was unreal! Add some corn and thats what i had for dinner.

Outdoor Practice

2009-10-18T07:59:00.000-07:00

Wow, I left colorado because I was trying to get away from the cold, but apparently the cold likes me way too much! Still getting over the plague, I took it really easy and only worked on fixing my corners - doing circles.

I'm learning more and more about how to control my body weight and all the different tweaks there can be to fix problems. I've been so focused on lateral wight shift that I completely forgot about there being any other dimensions. I will test some theories indoor and write about them tonight.

Breakfast Of Champions

2009-10-18T05:02:00.000-07:00

Yesterday for dinner I had buffalo wings and water

Today for breakfast I had a chicken biscuit, hash brown and OJ. I saw the olympic rings on the side of the bag and knew this was the stuff that would get me to the olympics, why else would the rings be there? Hahaha

IM ALIVE!!!!

2009-10-17T09:55:00.000-07:00

The doctor said a bunch of medical stuff i didn't care to remember and sent me with a prescription for a z-pack. I started feeling much better yesterday evening, but my sinuses were killing me- headaches and sneezing.

Last night we went to carrabbas for dinner:

calamari for appetizer

bread

pasta weezie, no mushrooms

water

my appetite has been terrible lately, im barely eating, but thats kind of typical considering.

Today i woke up and went to indoor practice; i coached. I was relaxed because 1. technique is the important thing to be doing right now, not racing & 2. i'm not yet fully recovered from the plague

right foot left foot

right foot left foot hold

circles:

right foot only

crosses keeping right foot on the floor

push starts

reaction starts

dry land: 10 reps each

leg kicks

wide steps

step cross

dynamic crosses

baby steps

stretch

came back to the house and had a few eggs and toast

SICK- Swine Flu?

2009-10-16T08:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I passed out at 4ish and slept til 9... Woke up coughed a lot, passed back out until 10 today

Had a couple eggs and some toast.

Been drinking pedialyte, trying to stay hydrated.

Now at the doctor

Dinner & Breakfast w/ A Difficult 20k

2009-10-15T11:35:00.000-07:00

Last night when i got in to florida, we went to bonefish grill. I had bang bang shrimp and coconut shrimp, with water.

I have been coming down with some kind of cold or flu, today i felt like garbage. I woke up at like 630 and had about 4 glasses of apple juice and 2 bananas.

20k - Despite feeling like crap, i wanted to go out and skate because it usually makes me feel better; this time was an exception. I got half way and started coughing my brains out, to the point i started gagging. By the time we got back to the house i was so tired i just took a cold shower and relaxed.

For lunch i had fish and chips and water.

The Countdown Begins

2009-10-14T09:07:00.000-07:00

Last night I had sushi again with a couple beers- I don't condone drinking so don't think u need to drink beer to skate well lol.

This morning I woke up and felt like garbage, between my body being drained from the spin workout yesterday and me being sick AND having to catch a 630 flight...

Right now I'm sitting in dallas on a layover, eating a chicken cesar and drinking water.

The countdown is how many days I have left to eat junk food- I'm going to go with 20. I get back from venezuela on the 4th, so that's about a good time to start because its really really hard to stick to fruits, veggies, and lean meats while traveling.

Band Work

2009-10-13T15:16:00.000-07:00

Active warm up

No set number of reps, working on my left stroke on the cross- paying specific attention to where the weight is on my right foot when I cross it over (should be in the middle). Locking the hip and staying low is also very important. Trying not to turn my hips, despite the band yanking me back. Did this for about 30 min.

Went to sports med and iced my shins for 30 min.

Spin bike out of the saddle, light tension 1 hour

Specials

Side crunches

Stretch

False Start

2009-10-13T13:35:00.000-07:00

Last night i wasn't really hungry after my workout so i didn't eat, i guess lunch could have been considered dinner.

This morning i woke up and packed to head to florida for a week- meeting with dave simmons and schankel. I'm not as sore as i thought i was going to be, my butt and hamstrings are a little bit tight. I missed breakfast so i went right to lunch; my flight didnt take off until 230. We ordered subs from jimmy johns:

italian with guac
bbq chips
powerade

i headed to the airport, only for them to tell me that the first flight was delayed so i would end up getting stuck in dallas; i had them just put me on a flight tomorrow. I did get first class out of the deal, so thats pretty cool.

I have been setting up clinics all over the world- i have one in colombia nov 25-26. There are a handful others in the works including india, canada, florida, and pennsylvania.

Im super pumped about going to florida to train for the winter, we should have a really good group of people out there.

Stretch Armstrong

2009-10-12T17:35:00.000-07:00

After making my legs burn just about as bad as they could have today, I was able to stretch much farther and deeper than normal; now they're shaking from fatigue

Lunch & Workout

2009-10-12T17:24:00.000-07:00

Lunch was 2 philly cheese steaks, pudding with strawberries, cake and chocolate milk

Active warm up

Baby steps w/ 30lb in each hand

7x Static squats @ 15 seconds with 30lb in each hand, 5 seconds between each

5eax one leg squats hold for 5 seconds at bottom on bosu ball w/ 30lb in each hand switching legs each rep

12x one leg squats on bosu, straight through with each leg

Squats with 45lb bar- 10 deep squats, 10 pumps off the bottom x5 without rest = 100 reps

Squats with 45lb bar- wide stance targeting butt, 5 deep squats, hold for 5 seconds down x10

(That last one hurt way way way more than I wanted it to)

Stretch

Do What You Set Out To Do

2009-10-12T11:54:00.000-07:00

Today i woke up at 10 and went straight to the gym to work on technique.

Active Warm up

30 min on slide board- roughly min on min off

i have a bad hesitation on my left stroke, i need to work on making each side symmetrical. The arms are feeling good, starting to be more and more natural.

stretch

i ate 2 bananas, a boost and powerade

The title of this post means a lot, no matter how big or small the scale. If you set out to do a technique drill and you know you're supposed to do it with certain criteria, then DO IT; you have no interest in changing it just because you want it to be easier. Keep in mind sometimes you do things in technique drills that over exaggerates the normal skating technique, this is the goal. Technique drills are painful, they are supposed to hurt; if the drills you're doing don't hurt, you should revisit your process and make sure your actually getting low enough.

I have a few personal rules that i never break when i really want to get better:

1. do each lap of each drill like it is the last, when the pain comes, learn to deal with it
2. never change the drill or workout for the easier, never stop short of what you set out to do
3. don't cheat

(dont over analyze these rules, just keep them simple)

Speed is NOT important right now. Take a step back and look at the BIG picture. If you do all the technique drills following the 3 rules above, you will be strong enough to race without having to do speed work.

TECHNIQUE TECHNIQUE TECHNIQUE!

Lunch & Dinner

2009-10-11T22:58:00.000-07:00

Lunch was wendys AGAIN (i gotta stop this)

10 nuggets w/ bbq
double stack
homestyle go wrap
large fry

vanilla frosty
water

Dinner was sushi, i polished off 4 rolls and drank water

not a very eventful day

Dinner Last Night, Breakfast This Morning

2009-10-11T10:48:00.000-07:00

Last night I went to chilis and had country fried steak, mashed potatoes, corn, and garlic bread

Today I woke up and looked out my window and up there is what I saw... Colorado weather sucks! That's why I'm going to florida...
Breakfast was a belgian waffle and milk
Today is my day off, so there won't be anything exciting goin on... At least not related to skating

Clinic Teee & Lunch

2009-10-10T19:53:00.000-07:00

Been working on the clinic tee, rough draft...

For lunch i had a BLAST - its like a BLT on steroids:

Bacon, lettuce, avacado, swiss cheese, tomatoe
sweet tea

Today has been a pretty chill day, just gettin some work done

Dinner Last Night & Slideboard Today

2009-10-10T13:12:00.000-07:00

last night i was a heifer and went to wendys, they screwed up my order, but food is food, so i ate it haha:

spicy chicken go wrap
double stack
classic double
large fry

lemonade

Today I woke up about 10 because i forgot to close my curtains, only to find that the weather outside was frightful... i think about 20 degrees and misting/snowing. Skating was kind of out of the question, so i went to the gym to work on... you guessed it, technique.

Active warm up

slideboard- a lot of people have been asking me what kind of sets im doing on the slideboard; right now it doesnt matter. What i have been doing is setting up the camera for a 45 second delay, going about 45-60sec and then watching my playback on the monitor looking for flaws. I then just try to fix the flaws while capitalizing on my strengths.

Again, today was mainly focusing on arm swing and loading my hip. Each day, it comes together a little more. I need to really pay attention to the recovering leg and what kind of motion its making. I need a more complete circle and should be driving the knee in through the back door.

After slideboard i did baby steps with 30lb in each hand. I focused on keeping the butt down, proper weight transfer, and really taking my time to strive for perfection. I only went about 15 feet on each set (2 sets), but when you do it absolutely correct, thats all you need with a 60lb load.

Stretch

Lunch:

boost
powerade

3 pieces of spicy cajun chicken
pizza casserole

Slideboard, Lunch, Dryland

2009-10-09T18:09:00.000-07:00

active dynamic stretch warm up

stretch

There are still a TON of things im not doing correctly in that video, but the main focus today is arm swing. I try to tackle one flaw at a time, master it, and move on. This is the key to perfection.

All i had for lunch was a boost and some powerade

I went back to the gym and did an active warm up then drylands:

dry skate - 2x 1 min
squat jumps knee-to-chest - 10
static kicks - 10ea
dry skate jumps - 10ea
static circles - 10ea
squat jumps w/ static bounce - 10
static side extension - 10ea
squats - 100
static cross - 10ea

i then did some work with a fixed band, working on my left push of the cross. Started off with all my weight on the left and held the band close to my body. As i began to push i extended the arm that was holding the band to allow for motion; the focus was to not put any weight on my right until i was completely done pushing with the left

stretch

Breakfast

2009-10-09T13:04:00.000-07:00

woke up today at about 10 and expected to be really sore from all the slideboard work yesterday, but i wasn't... which is great news because 1. being sore sucks 2. im in better shape than i thought

i went to ihop and punished some food today:

stuffed french toast with strawberries
2 pancakes
3 sausage link
3 pieces of bacon
hash browns
2 eggs scrambled with cheese

water

Dinner

2009-10-08T21:04:00.000-07:00

I destroyed so much sushi tonight, i probably won't need to eat again until november.

I'm feeling really good about how things are going and how this year is going to pan out. My main focus for the next 3 or 4 months is not how fast i can go, but how close to perfect i can get my technique. The older i became, the less importance i placed on the things that made me who i was as a skater; these things will not be overlooked this year. I started having issues with my skates and instead of using the tools i had and continuing to work on perfecting my form, i just became discouraged because it wasn't fun when i couldn't skate to my ability. Now i'm comfortable, happy, and completely focused on what is important. I'm stretching multiple times each day and discovering new ways to better my skating, which in turn is providing me with peace of mind and some much needed motivation.

Ground Breaker

2009-10-08T17:23:00.000-07:00

For me personally I just discovered a far more efficient way to swing my arms, I need to see if it will work on skates. Leading arm comes down as close to the recovering leg as possible right as the foot is coming in the back door. As the leading arm is swinging back, the leading leg can now occupy the space the arm just swung through, and you can stroke. The trailing arm comes directly across the front and as close to the legs as possible, finish across the body. The timing is crucial here, you want the momentum of the arms to match that of the legs. I'll try to make a video of this soon.

Slideboard

2009-10-08T16:52:00.000-07:00

We have this awesome camera system at the training center that allows you to use multiple angles on a designated delay. Video is a great way to pick out the flaws you didn't see in the mirror.
I did an active warm up and have just been doin 30-60 second sets working on arm swing and really focusing today on not puttin any weight on the other foot until I have completely finished the stroke.

baby steps with 30lb in each hand

Dirty 30's
Knee lifs with 10lbs - 20
Stretch

Lunch!

2009-10-08T12:48:00.000-07:00

so I've been stuck in the batcave again, just working! I have a ton of stuff on my plate right now, the best of it being what you see up there haha... Sponsors, blog, nsc, clinics, the list goes on and on and on, so I'm just gonna enjoy this here chicken and taters and relax for a minute

Dinner Last Night & Breakfast Today

2009-10-08T10:06:00.000-07:00

Last night's nutrition consisted of 3 dunkin donuts and taco bell:

nacho cheese chalupa +guac
1/2 lb nacho cheese burrito + guac
cheesy fiesto potatoes
chicken quesadilla
carmel apple empanada

nestea

i stayed up until about 3am workin on the internet haha, which has got to stop

i woke up at about 10:15 surprisingly, went down to get some breakfast:

2 fake eggs w/ onions, tomatoes, and ham
lemon lime powerade

I plan on going to sports med to take care of the psoas/groin strain ive been fighting, as well as asking about this nasty cough i seemed to have picked up in asia (thanks china, so nice of you haha)