Fin Camp!

I have two workouts to talk about for the week.

The first is Fin Camp. I call it that because I said I was going to Boot Camp for swimming and my buddy Scott said, "You are going to Fin Camp". Here's the workout:

300 warm up

400 - 300 -200- 100 - Swim -Kick - Drill 10 seconds rest

8 X (100 Swim Kick Drill/10 push ups + 50 fast/30 seconds plank + 25 underwater/10 dips or 10 cross overs with a heavy ball) the rest is the push ups-planks-dips on the deck.

4 X (90 seconds plank with variations of difficulty. We're talking wobbly hard. Then Lunge down the deck to the other end of the pool - swim back.)

4 X 50 cool down.

Total Swim distance 3000 yards

80 push ups

40 dips

40 cross overs

Lots and lots of planks with 100 yards of lunging.

On the 90 seconds plank with variation we had to finish the last 3 with a 5 second descend on a push up, hold at the bottom 1 inch off the deck for 5 seconds and then push back up.

I could not feel my arms after this workout.

My favorite workout was a 30 minute run with Marco. We ran the trail along the tracks. Then we headed to the school soccer field for some barefoot drills and strides. We finished up by playing catch with the football for 10 minutes. Just a great father/son morning.

It's a good life....

Dave

Mess of Me

"I am my own affliction" - Switchfoot

A Day In Colorado

I spent the last two days in Colorado. Yesterday was one to remember for a long time.

The day started with a run in Louisville. I headed up to the Mesa which has views of the valley below (Boulder) and the grand rockies on the other side of the valley. I stopped in my tracks when Long's Peak (Pictured above) came into view. I was introduced to Long's Peak by my cousin Julie. She lived in Colorado and loved climbing the 14's with Long's Peak being her favorite. Julie died at a very young age. Every time I see Long's Peak I think of Julie and yesterday was not different. I seemed a bit more emotional this time.

Then it was off to show shoes to retailers. The Boulder area is not just home to running stores. It's home to Legends. First up was Solepepper Sports owned by Alan and Shayne Culpepper. Alan is had a 2:09:41 debut marathon. He was fourth at Boston and 12th at the Olympics in Athens. Shayne is a 2 time Olympian on the track. And I got to talk shoes with Alan. Man what an honor.

Next up was the Boulder Running Company. The BRC is running. There is no other way to say it. They are an Icon in the running industry. The Owner is Johnny Haberstadt. Johnny would have run in many Olympics had his country South Africa not been banned. In the 70's and 80's Johnny was the best in that country winning virtually every important race in the country. Also at that store but not in my meeting is Mark Plaatjes. Mark was the first long distance World Champion Gold Medal winner for the USA. Mark won the 1993 Worlds Marathon in Germany. Again, what an honor it is to just be invited into that store.

Not a bad way to spend a day.

It's a good life...

Dave

Free Zoot Stuff

I was thinking about this idea. When I was at Road Runner Sports I received inspirational stories weekly that motivated me and motivated the entire Road Runner Sports team. I want to get back to new stories to get inspired and also to inspire everyone else. So the way I thought of doing this was to ask weekly for your swim, bike and run totals and the stories that go with them. Once a week I will pick a story at random, post in on this Blog and the person will get free Zoot stuff (or maybe just something free sitting in the Zoot office. We get lots of stuff).

I will post weekly reminders on my Facebook page. Invite your friends to be my friends so they can play along.

I'll remind everyone that you don't have to be a stud athlete to send me your results. You simply have to get outside and do. You will send your weekly results and stories to Dave@zootsports.com

It's a good life...

Dave

PS. Zoot does not sponsor me or this idea. It is simply the company I work for and maybe just maybe, this will morph into something we post on the Zoot website. Why not right?

Your story will shared with our o.k. only. Everything is for my eye's only unless you release it.

What Would Papi Do

WWPD

Last night I was handed yet another PU bracelet you know like the "Live Strong" bracelets. This one says WWPD. What Would Papi Do. I think it's an awesome way to live my life. With each and every decision think WWPD. Not a bad way to honor that great man who is my Father. I'm sure more often than not it will guide me to the right decision.

Today was endurance day. Get out on the bike and ride with a short run off the bike. I rode a classic route with a twist. The twist was after 90 minutes or so I climbed Double Peak. DP is a short nasty hill. You climb and climb straight up the main road just to get to the start of DP road. Once there it's roughly 10 minutes to the top. The issue is you are grinding the entire way. Half way up all you want to do is sit back on the saddle to catch your breath but you can't. You hit the water tank and know you are almost there, but almost seems like it takes forever. The views from the top are unreal. Ocean to one side, snow capped mountains to another and deep, dark canyons to another. Then you have to ride down that steep hill. If you are scared of down hills you might call for a cab.

It's a good life...

Dave

The Sun is Shining

Strange coming from a guy who lives in California but really this is the first sun I've seen in more than a week. Even if I would have been here I wouldn't have seen the sun. That was some rain this part of the country got this week.

My swim is struggling. No consistency and then just plain no form. Without form endurance and speed sucks. Today I jumped in Masters determined to finish the workout but 1500 yards into the workout I was done. I was chasing the people in front of me when I shouldn't have had to. By the way swim coaches are crazy. We did a set that looked like this. 100 easy, 75 breathing every 3,5,7 by 25 then another 75 breathing 5,7,9 by 25 and then 50 kick all out. We did that 4 times through. Let me tell you that breathing every 9 get's you one breath maybe 2 if you slow it down I think. Anyway I was chasing during this set and that's not good. Maybe I need to move down yet another lane.

Tonight we are going to Dad's house for dinner. It's the first time for the little Jewell family to eat there without Dad. I'm not sure how to handle it. Of course we will make the best of it but it's going to be weird. It's also the first meal Ani has fixed for anyone since Dad passed away. I'm sure it's an emotional night for her.

It's a good life....

Dave

Some Thoughts on the Day!

• If you are in a race don’t worry about who’s behind you even if they look fresh and fast. If you worry about them there’s a guarantee they will catch you. Look to the people in front and focus on them. You stand a chance of catching them probably because you look fresh and fast. If you are in for profit business, you are in a race.
• Focus on what you do well and do it. Don’t try to do everything.
• I’ve said this before and I’ll say it every time I hear it. Give the Ego a rest. You are not that important.
• For the love of humanity if you are going to be in front of important people, brush your teeth, suck a breath mint do something.

It’s a good life….

Dave

Wheels Up!

That's about what I know right now. I'm sitting in the airport waiting to board the 8th flight of this new year. I will have hit eleven by nest Tuesday. I used to like the idea of flying somewhere new but right now I'd rather maybe not be flying. I'm heading to Salt Lake City to meet with the magazines about new shoes. I did this exact same trip one year ago. Same City, same people, different brand and a much shorter flight. It's all a bit strange to me.

With all of this travel I'm missing stuff. I pride myself with getting stuff done and I'm far from that right now. The only thing that is getting done, is the sale of more shoes. If life were about that than I would be winning at life right now. Life however will never be about shoes. Shoes pay the bills but that's about it. I would hate to die tomorrow and have someone say "Dave was the best shoe man".

Salt Lake City here I come. Thank goodness I know the city well, know where all the 24 hour fitness centers are and know where the good food is. Home tomorrow night for 3 full nights in my own bed.

It's a good life....

Dave

You're Kidding Me!

I shout out to every guy on my friends list. Recently I've seen a man make a woman carrying a baby move to the side so he could take his seat on the plane. On that same flight another man holding his Carl's Junior cup stood and watched a young woman struggle to lift her rolling bag to the overhead bin. This was just one flight. It happens on every flight. So I shout out to all the men. These are the women who bare our children, who make sure the family gets fed and who more often than not push us to be better than we would be on our own. Help them out, open doors for them, give women with babies the right of way, and please stop sucking out of that straw next time and use your free hand to help the poor girl get that case in the bin.

It's a good life...

Dave

What's Your Story

Practice not-doing, and everything will fall into place-Tao

Welcome to the new decade. That seems to be the buzz this week. I'll play along but with a twist. Here's what I know about 2020, the start of the next decade.

Marco will be 21 and almost out of college.

I will be 55.

The Sun will shine in California.

Everything else will be part of my story. Think of the opportunities I have to create my story. This is the decade where I believe the biggest most important part of my life story will take place. I can't wait to get started.

It's a good life....

Dave