Coach's Tips

A Great Abdominal Exercise.

Try this great abdominal and Pelvic floor exercise.

Get a foam roller (found at local massage and back therapy stores).

Sit on the very edn of the roller.

Then, lie down on the roller with your roller in the middle of your back. Make sure you feel your whole back on the roller. No lifting your back or arching off of the roller.

Have your knees bent and place your hands on your stomach. If you need to support yourself, you can place your hands on the floor out to your sides.

Slowly, while thinking about contracting your stomach muscles (also your pelvic floor muscles), lift one foot off of the floor. Hold for a count of 3 seconds and then alternate the lift to your other leg.

Fit Ball Hamstring Curl Exercise

Here's a great workout for your Hamstring muscles. You don't even have to go to the gym for this one-although, because I do work in a gym, I think they're a good place to go for a good workout.

Take the ball and place it under your feet with your back on the floor.

Next, keep your knees straight, hands out to your sides, and lift your hips high into the air. Make sure you are contracting your Pelvic Floor muscles and abdominal muscles. Then, draw the ball back towards you, as far as you can.

Then, keeping your hips high in the air, roll the ball away from you back to the starting position.

When starting this exercise, you may not have enough core and leg strength to keep your hips high the entire movement. If this is the case, you can rest in between each one or rep.

If you want to make this a more advanced exercise, close your eyes, lift your hands and arms off of the floor and also you can do a single leg at a time.

The Perfect Floor Crunch

OK. So nothing new for a long time. More to come about the last couple of weeks tomorrow. But here is something to do in the meantime. Crunches-the correct way. For more on that you can go to the web site: http://www.ultracycling.com/index.html for more information. Should be some photos of exercises that help your Core - the muscles that surround our spine and allow us to hold ourselves uprights, bend over, and do just about anything.

Lie down on the floor (mat is fine) and bring your feet off of the floor. Then bend your knees. Place your hands behind your head and keep your elbows outward and parallel to the floor. Keep your chin away from your chest. Now, raise your shoulders off of the floor while trying to crunch your ribcage inward and towards your hips.

This is incorrect-see how my elbows come up and my chin is against my chest. No no no!

See. Here my chin has a space from my chest.

How To Stay Warm While Maintaining Winter Fitness

HOW TO DRESS FOR HIGH 30s-TO MID 40 DEGREE CYCLING, SKIING, HIKING, AND SNOWSHOE WEATHER.

I found all of these at the Performance Bike Shop web site. Bonus: I think all of them were on sale.

-Bra top-I wear whatever I grab out of the drawer.

-Base layer- Craft. I like Smartwool but you can't beat the fit of Craft.
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=20961&subcategory_ID=1223

-Cycling shorts-today I wore Pearl Izumi capris. But I also wear the Performance Ultra and Elite Short.
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=24344&estore_ID=1457
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=17565&estore_ID=1457

-Cycling long sleeve mid weight jersey
Not too bulky, not too thick. Something that works as a middle layer. S0metimes I'll wear a Smartwool mid weight top, if I don't need pockets, which if I'm wearing a jacket over it all , I don't.
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=23042&subcategory_ID=1211
OR
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=24365&subcategory_ID=1211
If the zipper in back is like a regular jersey pocket, good. Sometimes I can't get into a vertical back zipper.
OR
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=22999&subcategory_ID=1211
OR
the Performance http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=24397&subcategory_ID=1211

-Tights. I like the Performance Tri-Flex tight (http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=20998&item=10-5701&slitrk=search&slisearch- without the chamois, so I can use it for multi sports) and the other is the Pearl Izumi tights. Either is good.

-Jacket over jersey. I wore the Sugoi Invertor Jacket. A MUST HAVE!
OR
If the temperature will get into the 50s you can layer with the Sugoi Defiant wind jacket. What I would do is take that jacket with another wind jacket of same weight or slightly heavier and wear both of them until the weather got warmer. Then it's easy to stash one of them in a back pocket. http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=23006&item=10-9565&slitrk=search&slisearch
ALSO- http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=24613&item=10-0256&slitrk=search&slisearch

-The Sugoi Invertor Jacket is a bit large/bulky to roll up, although I have done that before.
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=22998&item=10-9570&slitrk=search&slisearch

- Lightweight Smartwool cap that came down far enough to cover the back of my neck BUT i usually wear a "Buff" neck, cap, face, thing under my helmet.

-Sunglasses- Rudy Project Wizzards
http://www.rudyprojectusa.com

-Gloves. I must have 100 pairs fo gloves. I am constantly looking for warm gloves. I have such a hard time keeping the hands and toes warm. I've actually considered getting electric/battery liners. But today I have no problem. I wore Pearl Izumi Inferno gloves with little air hand warmers inside.
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=22938&item=10-9453&slitrk=search&slisearch

And last but not least:

-Booties. If you have lighter weight booties you can always place your feet in plastic bags and then into your shoes. Of course, wear socks. I always wear Smartwool socks. All year long. No cotton for me.
Unless the weather is dry and above 50, I wear Performance Neoprene Booties. These work really well.
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=24344&item=10-0082&slitrk=search&slisearch
I have about 10 pairs of shoe covers. I wear them at different times.
If you want you can wear two layers of light to mid weight booties. I did that last week when the temperature was about 45 and it worked.

So there you have it. I hate being cold and I don't want to miss out on winter and early Spring riding so I have perfected the art of staying warm while doing cardio workouts, outside, when it's cold.

There just isn't a reason not to go and play outside. You can dress warmly. Companies are doing better and better jobs at making really good cold weather clothing.

If it's good enough for Jason Donald of Slipstream/Chipotle Racing Team....

.......Then, it's good enough for all of us. Yes, core strength workouts really do work.
It's time to get in the gym, and get on a functional fitness program.

You don't have to pick up big weights, or spend endless hours on a treadmill, but you've got to work on core function.

Best way, of course, to do this is to hire a trainer to learn the correct exercises.

Start with a good foundation of abdominal crunches, either on the floor or on a Fit Ball. Next , get creative and use a medicine ball for oblique workouts.

Even try a balance board for leg, abdominal, and muscle balance.

Get Ready For Fall

Now's the time to start getting yourself back into the gym, if you have not been there in months. To pick a gym that's right for you follow these tips: 1) What are you looking for? Special equipment, balance fitness training equipment, good machines, classes, and cardio equipment. 2) What do you have to pay extra for? Towels, lockers, classes, or cout time? 3) How hard is it to park during the time you will workout? 4) Do you really need the extras like child care, smoothie drinks, or large vases of daily cut flowers? After you pick your gym, start going at least 1-2 times each week, for about 45 minutes, so that by late Fall you are established a habit getting to the gym. By about October get your resistance training program into full swing and get the most out of your gym visits.

How To Articulate Your Needs

Everyone has a plan of where they want to ride, how they want to train, and who can be the best possible choice of training partners.

How do you set your racing, training, and riding boundaries? You do just that. You set up your own boundaries.

If you're training to progress and peak for a race or event, you know what you have to do, either what you're Coach advised or what you have planned out to facilitate the best possible outcome.

Try not to worry about what others might think about you if you need to decline their company and change training plans. Friends and supporters will appreciate your honesty, your decision, and goals.

Sometimes the best training is done alone and with your own in-the-moment- changes--after all, what better sign that you are learning your own body's needs and patterns.

Why let the wind bother you?

Don't let the weather get you down. Sometimes it can be easy to let the forecast put you into a bad mood. Whether it's changed from what you thought it would be or you haven't gotten outside in days, bad weather can be a bummer. How you percieve weather is relative! Try changing your perception. If it's raining, put on rain gear and go outside anyway, or go to the gym. If it's windy, focus on the fact that the air is cleaner and good oxygen is getting into your lungs. If you can learn to put a positive spin on the weather, this positivity will transfer into how you approach all of your workouts, your overall health and your outlook on life.

Make your workouts count--focus!

We live in a world that is moving faster than we can keep up with. We have iPods, cell phones, PDAs and carry our computers around on our backs. We barely have time for ourselves. As little as an hour a day away from all of these obligations will not only give us more physical strength, but will also give us a mental break. When we make time to work out, we should use the time to disconnect. Turn off cell phones, close the computer, even think about working out without the iPod occasionally. It's amazing how a little simple effort can have a positive impact on our health.

Spring into spring with a fresh outlook on nutrition

Eating right is important, but after a dull winter it's a great time to revive the diet with a fresh approach to spring fruits and vegetables. Getting enough fruit in your diet can be difficult for people on the go. Start by combing your local health food store for new and different varieties that can be easily grabbed or packaged to eat while driving or in between meetings. Fruits to start off the summer right include tropical selections, strawberries and blueberries. Apples and oranges are always good portable fruits. And by the way, don't forget to add a few almonds and other yummy nuts for variety.

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