Cool Stuff

Just a couple of quick updates before I put out a new Cooking Show podcast -

I'm big into both gadgets and human psychology, so these two things struck me as interesting. First, a "why didn't I invent that?"

LED Blinky Light Turn Signal Jacket

I've got an item myself that I'd love to put on the market. I need to get on that.

Ok, so here's a really cool one. Theres a campaign in the UK for cycling awareness going on that plays a neat optical trick on you. I had to rewind it to believe it. The real question is "Why don't we have these cycling awareness campaigns in the USA?"

Long Green Miles Podcast

Join me on this show as I run 10 miles to and from a 13.1 mile half marathon, totaling 33 miles. I recorded some audio jewels, such as running in the moonlight, calling Emily from the road, hitting 26.2 miles, and slowly melting down in the mid-day heat. If you're an ultra running fan, you will definitely dig this.

Don't forget, I registered for this race over the Internet, picked up the packet by bike, then ran 10 miles each way to do it. How green can you make your next race?

• Starting in the moonlight.


• Julien from In Over Your Head.


• Josue Stephens.


• Running in Kingwood, TX. rules.


• Equipment for running long and in the dark.

• Do I have Macca-Face?


• The difference between runners and triathletes. Odor?


• How I decided to run 33 miles today.


• Running 100 miles from College Station to Austin?


• How to mix in butterfly and "pencil drills" in your swimming.


• Emily is a mess.


• I call Emily from the road.


• I start the half marathon.


• I call Emily from the road again.


• I have an incident with a shopkeeper.


• How I raced a guy at the half.


• Red Bull starts making me crazy.


• Check out Garagepunk.com.


• "The Queen of the Cavemen" by Micra Girls from Finland.


• Get your McSalad on!


• You can get fruit and milk instead of chips and a coke at Subway.


• Swim, bike, and run your age on BfitBday!


• Patagonia really knows how to make clothes.


• Team Slipstream rules.


• Best quote by Coach Adam ever.


• A new way to be green - eat less!


• Is bottled water the new smoking?


• I need a drawing of a Buddha M-Dot.


• Which is worse, anthrax or burgers?


• April 12 is Shower with your Helmet Day.


• Check out Yield2Life.com


• Is Dean Karnazes the Jesus of Running?


• I gots tha plantar fasciitis.


• Will there be another Zentri style podcast from Pittsburg?


• I make it home, Emily says I look like a stud. (With my awesome sunburn)


• Voicemails!

Sugar!

Did you know that the average American eats over 150 lbs. of sugar a year? This podcast is a conference call with Christine Lynch and Coach Adam about how to survive and prosper in a sugar-loaded world. This is one of the most useful shows Zen and the Art of Triathlon has done and we cover the following subjects:

• How to identify all the sugars put in your food.


• Which sugars can be good for you.


• Cool sugar substitutes.


• How different foods can affect your body and mood.


• How "carb loading" can really just be "fat loading".

As promised, here are the links to some great info discussed during our talk:

• 20_reasons_why_sugar_ruins_your_health.doc


• Alternate Names used for Sugar on Labels.doc


• artificial_sweeteners.doc


• Extreme Food_Mood.doc


• natural_sweeteners.doc


• Sugar Blues Recipes.doc

Listen in and come away knowing more and able to make better choices for yourself and family!

The Long Green Miles

I just earned some Green Karma yesterday. I raced a local half marathon without using any gas. I signed up for it over the Internet, biked to packet pickup on Friday, then ran 10 miles each way to race it on Sunday. I totalled 33 miles running, and even though it hurt, I'll remember it for life.

Why run to and from a half mary? I want to become a better runner. Many ultra-runners get in extra miles by biking or running to races, running to work, or simply running whenever it's feasible instead of driving a car.

I did well for a while, but the joint pain from doing the Rocky Raccoon 50 miler trail run a few weeks ago started to creep in around mile 16. I was bursting with pride, wanting to tell everybody during the race that I had run there and still had to run home, but kept myself humble and only mentioned it in passing to a couple of ladies running together that were chatting about doing Ironmans. Besides, I'll save yapping about it to others during the race until I'm actually fast. I don't expect that to happen anytime soon!

I recorded a podcast along the way, so there's a show about it in the works. I felt like I could keep running aerobically, but the joint pain was a real limiter. I averaged 135 bpm hr and felt energetic most of the way, so my fitness is fantastic. I just need to lay off the leg work for a while and let everything recover. I guess it's pool time!

Losing Weight

Losing weight can be a tricky thing. Two things happened recently that may help you out with how to do it.

1. Dawn of The Dawn and Drew Show just announced that she lost 40 lbs. She hardly worked out at all. Dawn simply ate less.

2. Last year I was working out at insane levels, often burning 2000 to 4000 calories per day with excercise. I never lost weight until I actually told myself to hold back from eating just a bit. After that, I lost the optimal 2 lbs. per week for a month leading up to IM Wisconsin.

I have a couple of tips and a great link to help you achieve the same results. It's pretty simple, so here goes -

First off, you have to eat less. The above proves that working out alone will not shed pounds. What's the trick? I've been doing something different lately and I think I've figured it out - Eat slowly and pay very close attention to the first sensation of fullness. That sensation is delayed by about 20 minutes and nowdays we have the ability to cram food faster than what we were designed to, so you gotta slow it down!

When you feel that very first sensation of fullness, step away from the food. Develop this habit. You can assist this by putting less food on your plate in the first place.

Secondly, get an accurate digital scale and check it daily. You can follow your progress and quickly correct a bad couple of days. Dawn said this was essential for her weight loss.

That's about it. Here is a great link to a guy who has written up a simple guide to losing weight that further explains this simple process and adds much more utility.

Personally, I think the way you live your day can greatly assist your diet. Slow down your meals. Slow down your cooking time. Enjoy this time with family and friends like they do in (skinnier) Europe. Snack during the day and while you cook and you'll never be so hungry that you binge eat and blow your lean and healthy day out the window.