After Much Anticipation...the G-trainer!

Hello again!

After having been postponed for some time (i.e. procrastination) I can finally share with all of you the Anti-Gravity Treadmill, also known as the G-trainer. Located at Darwin Fogt's Evolution Physical Therapy in Playa Vista, CA, this machine does wonders for anyone and everyone. Included in this blog are pictures and videos. I apologize ahead of time for the echo-y audio on the first video...I'm no Scorsese!

One thing I failed to ask Darwin in the intro video was exactly what the G-trainer does! In a nutshell, it applies pressure inside the bubble which in effect lifts you up, thus minimizing your body weight. In other words, it allows you to have the same type of cardio workout you would otherwise receive on a regular run, but with a decreased amount of impact, because you are only running at a percentage of your body weight.

Onto the good stuff...

Darwin Fogt, MPT, President of Evolution Physical Therapy



I began using it because I had an excruciatingly painful patella tendinitis issue. In order to keep my running fitness up without further aggravating my patella, I would run workouts on the g-trainer at 65% my body weight. Slowly over a three month period, I increased my body weight to a point where I could restart my regular outdoor run training. I liked the g-trainer so much that I decided to incorporate it into my weekly training regimen as a precautionary measure. Now I use it twice a week – once for a medium paced run, and once for a hard effort run, both at 90% my body weight. As a result, I can thankfully say I have been injury-free since I started using this amazing machine a year ago!

G-trainer Prior to Inflation





G-trainer After Inflation





G-trainer in Motion



I wound up having a great session on the g-trainer. A ten minute warm-up at 6:15 pace, a ten minute push at 5:00 pace and then ramped it up to 4:45 pace for another ten minute push, immediately following the previous one. I ended with a ten minute warm down, slowly decreasing my speed while gradually bringing my body weight back up to 100% (from 90%).

Anyone interested in fighting back injuries while at the same time maximizing fitness, would be a fool not to try the g-trainer. At Evolution Physical Therapy, it's merely $30 for a 25 minute session and $60 for 55 minutes. Not a bad bargain considering the price tag for one of these puppies is $75K!!

I apologize again for taking so long to post about the g-trainer but good things come to those who wait, right???

Thanks for checking in!

Talk soon.

-H

First Pre-season BRICK

My 2010 season opener in Vine del Mar, Chile is just around the corner (Jan. 10) and I’m slowly starting to get back into race mode. I’m excited!

This morning was the first BRICK of the pre-season and for those that are unfamiliar with the term, BRICK, it normally refers to two consecutive workouts consisting of biking and running (in that order).

I rode my usual Thursday morning La Grange group ride around the Riviera Country Club in Santa Monica. About 25 miles, plenty of hills and good competitive biking got me jazzed up for my run right off the bike.

The run was roughly 4.5 miles in length and I was supposed to do 5 x 1 minute pick-ups at my 10k race pace. Going into it, I didn’t really know what to expect because one, I hadn’t done a BRICK since July and two, I hadn’t really been focusing on running speed as of late. To my surprise, I completed the two loops around the Brentwood Country Club in 26 minutes, averaging 5:45 per mile. I felt really relaxed and my pick-ups were smooth.

I am very pleased with the first BRICK of the pre-season, especially since my body has responded positively following the workout. Hopefully it will be a good predictor of things to come…

Tomorrow, the much anticipated G-trainer workout!

Thanks for checking in!

Talk soon.

-H

Another 4-workout Day...

If you recall the last time I blogged about my 4-workout day, it was a new thing on my schedule and I figured it would be something I’d revisit every once in a while. Apparently, my coach had other ideas…

In my schedule, a 4-workout day being unusual is now a thing of the past. Instead, it is something that I frequent 2, 3, even 4 times a week! The good thing though (if there is anything good that comes out of a schedule consisting of multiple 4-workout days per week) is that in the sport of triathlon, there are myriads of options as far as training is concerned. When I used to run at UCLA, often times, our training weeks consisted of running, running, and more running. Occasionally we would throw in some speed work on the track, but for the most part the training was predominantly focused on logging mileage. In triathlon training, as I’m sure you fellow triathletes will agree, you have the opportunity to mix it up as little or as much as you like.

Today’s workout consisted of 2 swims (yes I’m still in gill-growing mode), a 60 minute weight lifting session, and a 7-mile quasi-tempo run on my secret weapon the anti-gravity treadmill, also known as the g-trainer. By the way, I swear I had intended to document my workout on the g-trainer for all of you but completely spaced and forgot my camera at home! I’m back on the g-trainer on Friday and will happily report to you all, I promise.

The swimming went well, no major hiccups, except of course the hundreds of yards of butterfly thrown right into the middle of the workouts! Immediately following my swim, I headed for my lift session on campus at UCLA. Pretty straight forward, it consisted of a combination of injury prevention exercises, lower body, upper body, and core. The core being the longest portion of my lift session, completely kicked my butt, but as in any sport, the key to success is a strong mid-section!

After my lift session, I got a quick bite to eat and headed off to my g-trainer session at Evolution Physical Therapy in Playa Vista. I first have to say I love that machine! 40 minutes, 7 miles, 85-90% my bodyweight, and most of all, feeling great! I don’t want to dive into too much detail about this special contraption, because I want to save the good stuff for Friday! But I will say it is something that will be a part of my weekly training regimen indefinitely!

Check back Friday for a full write-up, pictures, and video! Thanks!

Talk soon.

-H

LA Tri Club "Speedster" Award

Hello All!

I should have written this sooner but my schedule has been incredibly hectic lately so I apologize!

Last Saturday I attended the LA Tri Club Year End Party (YEP) and it was a ton of fun! Getting a chance to reconnect with all my fellow LA Tri Club-ians, if I can say that, was supremely enjoyable. Triathletes can clearly have fun as well!

For me, the highlight of the night however was receiving the coveted "Speedster" award. Personally, it was the perfect ending to an incredible first season of triathlons and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. Even to be nominated in such a category was a real treat and it is simply an honor and a privilege to accept this award.

I'm going to cut myself off before this sounds anything more like a generic acceptance speech, but I want to thank you all again for the support, it truly means a lot. The way I see it, you keep giving me the support and I'll keep giving you the results!

Thanks again. Talk soon

-H

G-trainer Postponed!

Sorry for the delay, but my report on the anti-gravity treadmill has been postponed to next week due to technical difficulties!

Check back next Friday to find a full write-up and video footage of my workout at Evolution Physical Therapy, the home of the g-trainer.

Thanks for checking in!

Talk soon!

A day in the life...though, happily, not every day

I felt like I needed to report to all of you after yesterday’s epic day of training!

First of all, I’d like to preface this by saying that I hadn’t realized what a tough day had been scheduled. I only noticed this QUADRUPLE workout day the night before and thought to myself, “Ok, well, this will be interesting…!” It consisted of two swim workouts, bike-hill-repeats (BHRs), and a 7 mile run. The workouts didn’t need to be in any particular order, although I wanted to space out the swims.

There were two major differences about yesterday’s workout in comparison to other days. First, FOUR workouts. Had never done that before! And two, I swapped the order in which I completed my workouts. Instead of swimming and then running or biking, I chose to run before my morning swim and bike before my evening swim – a costly mistake I barely lived to tell about…

The day started at 7 with my typical breakfast, consisting of cereal that tastes like cardboard, and my cocktail – a concoction of vitamins and supplements prescribed by my nutritionist. My run began at 7:45 and immediately a feeling of nostalgia swept over me, as I reminisced about my morning workouts as a Bruin. For some reason, and I don’t know why, but since my triathlon training began a little over a year ago, I have always chosen to configure my training regimen with my run workouts in the afternoon. I guess since that is the most natural form of training for me, it feels like it’s the least daunting, and therefore should be done towards the end of my day.

The run was a relatively painless and routine 42 minute, 7 mile run. Afterwards, I felt refreshed and ready to take on the rest of this training day! I had a second breakfast (same as the first) and rushed off to my 10am swim at UCLA. I arrived on deck and glanced up at the workout written on the pool-side whiteboard. What are the chances that the day I’m given a quadruple workout schedule, is the day I happen to come across the heaviest swim workout I’ve seen yet!! FIFTY-FOUR-HUNDRED METERS (which mind you, I have to do twice)! My jaw wanted to drop to the floor but I caught it and quickly thought to myself, “I’ve got to suck it up because I’m a pro-triathlete now and this is how they train right…right?!”

I could not stay the full 90 minute session because I had an appointment in West Hollywood, though I was still able to swim 4,000 meters in an hour. As I said previously, I chose to swap the order in which I worked out which meant I had never swum directly after I had run. To say the least, my legs were surprisingly shot, even though the run wasn’t out of the ordinary. It’s clear I won’t be doing that again any time soon!

Two workouts down, two to go…

I got on the bike around 3:30 from my home in Rancho Park and headed to where the Pacific Coast Highway intersects with Temescual Canyon, which was my destination for BHRs. As I was riding towards Santa Monica to link onto to the PCH, I noticed a San Francisco-like fog bank rolling in pretty rapidly. With absolutely no layers on, I told myself, “Well, the only way to stay warm is if you ride harder and get a sweat going.” This would come back to haunt me in the subsequent swim workout…

I arrived at my intersection, and not only was I engulfed by wind and fog, but it was a thick, wet fog. So without any hesitation, I got right into my workout – 5 times up the Temescual hill (from stop light to stop light), keeping cadence at 60 and focusing on turnover and body position. It wasn’t supposed to be an incredibly challenging workout but one that focused on technique more than anything. The issue though was while patiently focusing on technique during this workout, it was working against my plan of keeping a sweat going to stay warm amidst this cold, wet fog! Finishing the workout felt great and I rode home on a high, ready to take on this swim, again!

I got back to my place with just enough time to scarf down some trail mix, throw on my suit and head to UCLA for the 6pm workout. I worked hard through the swim, fighting off cramps in every possible part of my legs. Eventually my flip turns morphed into side spins because every time I’d tuck my legs in, my hip flexors would cramp up! This swim also got cut short, to 4,000 meters, due to the fact that the workout went late and the UCLA women’s swim team needed the pool.

My day was done!! I was elated! It was my first quadruple workout day and I completed it without any major issues. I got home, made an enormous dinner and fell asleep only to wake up the next morning ready to tackle another big day of training! My next post will be Friday, on my secret weapon, the anti-gravity treadmill which has kept me injury free throughout my rigorous training regimen (knock on wood). Till then!

Welcome!

Welcome everyone to my website blog!

I'm very excited about the end result of my website and I hope you all are too!

As a service to all of you, I will make sure to update my website as frequently as possible so that you all can follow me as I embark in my triathlon career.

I want to thank everyone for all the support you have given me over the years. It is simply inspirational!

Don't be a stranger either! Any questions or comments you want to throw my way, feel free to get in contact with me through my "Ask Henry" tab on my website.

Thanks again for all the support!

Talk soon!

-Henry