Author Archives: Al

Self-Healing

Posted on January 14, 2015 by Al

I pride myself on “never getting injured”. By that I mean, I’ve never had to stand down from training for any prolonged time due to over use or acute strain injuries. (Of course, there was that one time when I … Continue reading →

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Inherent Vice

Posted on January 10, 2015 by Al

This is not the best movie you’ll see this year, or even this month. But it is the first, and possibly only screen adaptation of Thomas Pynchon’s unique style and viewpoint. Anderson has done a fair job of wringing some semblance of sense from Pynchon, and provided a workmanlike, un-romantic snapshot of that place and time that was the Santa Monica Bay 40 years ago. For that, I thank him for his service. Continue reading →

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Tips For The Time Strapped Triathlete

Posted on January 7, 2015 by Al

Now that I’m retired, I look back on the time I was working, expecially before 2011, when I was working close to full time, and wonder how I ever was able to train for Ironman triathlon. I was at a … Continue reading →

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A New Year, A New Me?

Posted on January 6, 2015 by Al

I started my “Out Season” – as distinct from “Off Season” (when we become slothful couch inhabitants)  and “In Season” (when we are training for specific races) – in mid December. Usually, my Off Season lasts about 10-14 days, then I start … Continue reading →

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Five Hour Power

Posted on January 4, 2015 by Al

Someone on the EN Forums asked this question: “There has been a lot of discussion of “5-hour power” lately. Most of this has been in the context of the importance of maximizing 5-hour power rather than FTP. Is this a … Continue reading →

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2014 Training Macro View

Posted on January 3, 2015 by Al

With the New Year, I trolled thru my training diary to summarize my workload for the past 8 years, to see if I could learn anything from a ten-thousand foot view: Yr   Swim#/hrs/dist Bike#/hrs/dist Run#/hrs/dist Wts#/hrs Ski#/hrs Totals 2007 … Continue reading →

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New Year’s Letter

Posted on January 2, 2015 by Al

[Written mostly by Cheryl] 2015! Today is the First Day of 2015. The temperature is chilly, but the light is clear and crisp. Here is our recap of 2014: In January last year (2014!), Al retired from medicine and hasn’t … Continue reading →

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The Bone Clocks

Posted on January 1, 2015 by Al

David Mitchell’s The Bone Clocks relies on facile prose and keenly drawn characters to distract the reader from the brief, but recurrent battles between transmigrating, immortal souls who wander in and out of the lives of his six narrators. Holly … Continue reading →

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The Essence of Swimming

Posted on December 30, 2014 by Al

An ENer posted some thoughts about swimming which neatly summarized its essence: …The only thing I consistently see [when looking at videos of top-flight swimmers] is streamlined body and forearm perpendicular to the floor/fingertips down (which I think is also … Continue reading →

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CompuTrainer vs The Wahoo Kickr

Posted on December 29, 2014 by Al

I’ve had a CompuTrainer since 2007, and I’ve been WAITING for it to crump so I could get a Wahoo Kickr. That happened on Saturday. For the uninitiated, a CompuTrainer is a bike trainer which is operated by a computer … Continue reading →

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