Friday, February 29, 2008
No much to report on
I can't think of anything to add, but I do have a slight injury to my left ankle to report on. Tuesday I ran/jogged on the track for about 45 minutes at the DAHLC . If you've been there then you know that the track is very short--10 laps= 1 mile. The track is, for the most part, oval. Each end of the track is like a continuous turn then it straightens out on the long sides. That day the direction was counter clockwise so it was like running left turns. The only thing I can think of is that since the corners are not angled or burmed, I believe turning to the left while rounding the corners put too much stress on my inner foot/ankle.
Friday, February 15, 2008
CRANK SPORTS: e-Gels, and e-Fuel
DISCOUNT CODE: 348496
Website: http://www.cranksports.com/
These are the best gels and best drink concentrates on the market. I say that not only because they tast better than all others, but they cost less, create less waste, and go further. The average gel is around 100 calories. But e-gels are 150. They are slightly bigger, for the extra calories, but not so much bigger that you even notice it. That means you have to carry less gels to get the same energy. 2 e-gels=300 cals; 3 other gels=300 cals. As for the cost, they cost less per 100 calories than the leading gels (compared to GU and Clif Shot)--99 cents per 100 cals for e-Gels, $1.25, at least, for GU or Clif. They also have more electrolytes, amino's, antioxidants, and less sugar (they contain more maltodextrin for energy, thus reducing the amount of sugar). Why do e-Gels cost less? Because you've probably never seen a commercial or huge add in a magazine for them. You don't pay for the company to advertise. Sure, you may see a small add here and there, but for the most part, they are referred by people who use them.
As for e-Fuel, these look like really large gels, but contain a liquid that is diluted to regular strength with water. What's good about those is that you can fill your bottles before you go, take an e-Fuel packet with you and all you need to do is stop for water somewhere to make a fresh bottle of e-Fuel. You don't have to lug around extra bottles of your premade drink that ends up warm.
Check them out...
Website: http://www.cranksports.com/
These are the best gels and best drink concentrates on the market. I say that not only because they tast better than all others, but they cost less, create less waste, and go further. The average gel is around 100 calories. But e-gels are 150. They are slightly bigger, for the extra calories, but not so much bigger that you even notice it. That means you have to carry less gels to get the same energy. 2 e-gels=300 cals; 3 other gels=300 cals. As for the cost, they cost less per 100 calories than the leading gels (compared to GU and Clif Shot)--99 cents per 100 cals for e-Gels, $1.25, at least, for GU or Clif. They also have more electrolytes, amino's, antioxidants, and less sugar (they contain more maltodextrin for energy, thus reducing the amount of sugar). Why do e-Gels cost less? Because you've probably never seen a commercial or huge add in a magazine for them. You don't pay for the company to advertise. Sure, you may see a small add here and there, but for the most part, they are referred by people who use them.
As for e-Fuel, these look like really large gels, but contain a liquid that is diluted to regular strength with water. What's good about those is that you can fill your bottles before you go, take an e-Fuel packet with you and all you need to do is stop for water somewhere to make a fresh bottle of e-Fuel. You don't have to lug around extra bottles of your premade drink that ends up warm.
Check them out...
Sunday, February 10, 2008
METABOLIC TEST RESULTS
Due to the way the fitness eval at DAHLC turned out to be (an estimate of VO2 max based on age) I ended up having an actual metabolic test done at the RAC. The metabolic test is designed to bring you AT (anaerobic threshold) then back you off, thus estimating the rest. This is how most of them are done because the average person at a health club is there to lose weight and get in shape. The meta test accurately determines oxygen levels at certain heart rates so as to set up zones that are most efficient for training. Wes Emmert, who put me thru the test, took me a little beyond the usual parameters because I wanted to see what numbers I could hit in the short time the test takes.
Here's how it went... We set up on a LeMond Revmaster Indoor Cycle with the resistance pad just touching the wheel. I had to maintain a steady cadence of 92-95 while every minute Wes would crank the resistance on the bike one half turn. It took handful of turns before my HR started to increase--once there was a good amount of resistance on the wheel those half turns really started to take their toll. I went anaerobic at 178, but we went a couple minutes beyond. I don't know what the system said, but he eventually said he has to stop the test. My HR peaked at 185. I don't think I could have handled much more resistance on the wheel, but with the amount that was on there I could have went a couple more minutes. I think.... The results look like this:
VO2 max: 65.6 ml/kg/min
HR and the average calories burned per minute:
152-162: 11.6 cals with 6.2 of those as fat
162-170: 14.4 cals with 6.4 burned as fat
170-178: 16.7 cals with 3.8 burned as fat
(at 178 its estimated at 17.3 cals/min with 1.8 from fat)
178-185: 20.1 cals with only .1 burned as fat
Below 152 I burn a bigger percentage of fat for fuel, but not very many calories. I think at about 140-150 bpm about 60-75% of what I am burning is fat, but the total cals per minute are only around 8-9.
If you want to go thru a metabolic test yourself, give the RAC a call at 282-6000 to set it up. You'll know the about info plus get a 12 training program. The cost, for members, is $115 for the exercise test (bike or treadmill), the resting test is $100--I believe that one will tell you what amount of cals you burn per day which is good for calorie counting. If you want them both done, its $165. For a retest it's $75 because part of the cost for the initial testing is for the mask that you keep. Not sure about the cost for non-members. The testing is done on New Leaf equipment. Google New Leaf to get all the info you need so you know its a quality test. Just an FYI, the personnel at the RAC were trained by Angie Sturtevant, the fitness director of a little company called Saris. You may have heard of the CycleOps trainers and the Powertap... www.cycleops.com
Here's how it went... We set up on a LeMond Revmaster Indoor Cycle with the resistance pad just touching the wheel. I had to maintain a steady cadence of 92-95 while every minute Wes would crank the resistance on the bike one half turn. It took handful of turns before my HR started to increase--once there was a good amount of resistance on the wheel those half turns really started to take their toll. I went anaerobic at 178, but we went a couple minutes beyond. I don't know what the system said, but he eventually said he has to stop the test. My HR peaked at 185. I don't think I could have handled much more resistance on the wheel, but with the amount that was on there I could have went a couple more minutes. I think.... The results look like this:
VO2 max: 65.6 ml/kg/min
HR and the average calories burned per minute:
152-162: 11.6 cals with 6.2 of those as fat
162-170: 14.4 cals with 6.4 burned as fat
170-178: 16.7 cals with 3.8 burned as fat
(at 178 its estimated at 17.3 cals/min with 1.8 from fat)
178-185: 20.1 cals with only .1 burned as fat
Below 152 I burn a bigger percentage of fat for fuel, but not very many calories. I think at about 140-150 bpm about 60-75% of what I am burning is fat, but the total cals per minute are only around 8-9.
If you want to go thru a metabolic test yourself, give the RAC a call at 282-6000 to set it up. You'll know the about info plus get a 12 training program. The cost, for members, is $115 for the exercise test (bike or treadmill), the resting test is $100--I believe that one will tell you what amount of cals you burn per day which is good for calorie counting. If you want them both done, its $165. For a retest it's $75 because part of the cost for the initial testing is for the mask that you keep. Not sure about the cost for non-members. The testing is done on New Leaf equipment. Google New Leaf to get all the info you need so you know its a quality test. Just an FYI, the personnel at the RAC were trained by Angie Sturtevant, the fitness director of a little company called Saris. You may have heard of the CycleOps trainers and the Powertap... www.cycleops.com
Thursday, February 7, 2008
RAC Studio Cycling Schedule for February 2008
Click here to see the cycling calendar. Not on there is a metabolic test demo that Wes Emmert and I are doing on Saturday morning (Feb 9). We'll set up at 9:45am with the testing to begin at 10:15am.
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