Week 0: Jan 26-Feb 1

Have you checked out the race details?  They’re online here.  Have you gone through the gear list?  Do you know what everything on the list is and what it means?  If not, now is the time to start asking these questions.  This is the week to figure out what gear you do have that you will be needing for training.  Things like shoes and mountain bikes are a great place to start.  If you don’t have these, then I’d suggest that’s the first thing on your list to take care of.

Similarly, if you’re planning on doing any training on your bike you should probably know how to use the tools that you’re required to carry.  In addition to making sure you know how to use your tire levers, allen keys and chain breaker, now is the time to get your bike in to the shop and get it serviced.  Nobody wants to start training on a bike that’s been in the garage or on the balcony all winter.

Finally, if you haven’t been training much you might need to go shopping for some food that you’ll use while training.  Lots of people use bars, gels, etc.  You should also think about what kind of energy drink you might want to be drinking.  It’s good to start now experimenting with food in training so that come race day you know exactly what you do like and more importantly what you don’t like!

In summary:

1. Check the gear list and understand what you have.
2. Get your bike in to the shop for a service.
3. Purchase some food you can train with.

Each week builds on the previous week’s activities.  Each week includes one hike/run, one bike ride and one “hill” session.  Unless otherwise stated, we’ve listed 3 separate workouts to do each week.

Week 1: Feb 2-8

This is the get back moving week, so get started slow.

1. HIKE/WALK – Get in  30 minute run this week.  If you need to walk more that’s okay, you’re just getting started.  Feel free to run 2 minutes, walk 1 minute if you have to.  The point is to get moving.
2. BIKE – Assuming you have your bike back from the shop, get in a 60 minute bike ride on dirt trails and paved paths.
3. HILLS – Lucky you, no hills this week, so instead of hills get in one more 30 minute run.

Week 2: Feb 9-15

This week we introduce hills.  Hill workouts are essential to build your lung capacity and strength.  If you do all the hill workouts in this training regimen you will be a powerhouse come race day!

1. HIKE/WALK – 45 minute run/hike.  Time to start running on trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
2. BIKE – 60 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.  Time to get away from the pavement.
3. HILLS – 3 hills.  Find a stretch of trail or pavement that climbs for 500 metres.  Warm up with a 10 minute jog.  Leave a water bottle at the top of the hill.  Head down to your start point.  Run at about 80-85% full effort up the hill. Your heart should be beating!  Sprint to get that water bottle.  Take a drink and take your time getting down hill.  Repeat this hill 2 more times.  Cool down with another 10 minute jog.

Week 3: Feb 16-22

Time to take it up a notch…

1. HIKE/WALK – 45 minute run/hike.  Stick to trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
2. BIKE – 90 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
3. HILLS – 4 hills.  Just like in Week 2, but one more hill.  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 4: Feb 23-March 1

Nice work – 4th week in.  You deserve a bit of a break

1. HIKE/WALK – 45 minute run/hike.  You can explore the pavement if you like or stick to the trails if you like as well.
2. BIKE – 60 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
3. HILLS – 2 hills.  Only two this week so make them count.  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 5: March 2-8

Rest was nice, but it’s back to it!

1. HIKE/WALK – 45 minute run/hike.  Stick to trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
2. BIKE – 90 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
3. HILLS – 5 hills.  Just like in Week 3, but one more hill.  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 6: March 9-15

Time to increase that run a bit!

1. HIKE/WALK – 60 minute run/hike.  Stick to trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
2. BIKE – 90 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
3. HILLS – 5 hills.  Duplicate last week’s effort!  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 7: March 16-22

You are a hill climbing machine!  Let’s drop the hammer!

1. HIKE/WALK – 60 minute run/hike.  Stick to trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
2. BIKE – 90 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
3. HILLS – 6 hills.  One more than last week!  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 8: March 23-29

Nice work – 8th week in – 4 to go.  You deserve a bit of a break!

1. HIKE/WALK – 45 minute run/hike.  You can explore the pavement if you like or stick to the trails if you like as well.
2. BIKE – 60 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
3. HILLS – 3 hills.  Only three this week so make them count.  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 9: March 30-April 5

It’s the home stretch.  Time to ramp it up!

• HIKE/WALK – 60 minute run/hike.  Stick to trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
• BIKE – 90 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
• HILLS – 7 hills.  You have no idea how powerful you are becoming! One more than week 8.  You can do it!  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 10: April 6-12

Let’s increase our distance a bit.

• HIKE/WALK – 75-90 minute run/hike.  Stick to trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
• BIKE – 120 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
• HILLS – 7 hills.  Duplicate last week’s effort!  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 11: April 13-19

The final big week!!!

• HIKE/WALK – 90 minute run/hike.  Stick to trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
• BIKE – 150 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
• HILLS – 8 hills.  This is the max we’re gonna do!  If you’ve made it this far race day will be a piece of cake!  Sprint to that water bottle!!

Week 12: April 20-26

Take it easy this week!  Go through your gear.  Make sure you’re set up.  Get your bike tuned if you need to.  Make sure you have the food you like and have been training with.

• HIKE/WALK – 60 minute run/hike.  Stick to trails.  They don’t have to be technical.  Walk the steep hills.
• BIKE – 60 minute bike.  Try to stick to as much off road trails as possible.
• HILLS – No hills this week, but you might want to replace your hill day with a 60 minute bike ride or 45 minute walk.  If your bike is in the shop getting serviced then make sure you’ll have it back in time before the race.

 RACE DAY: April 27

This is what you’ve done all of this work for.  The hardest thing is always to make it to the start line.  You are ready, you are prepared, so get out there have fun and enjoy the race!!

If you’d like more training tips or more detailed help you can contact me or contact Suburban Rush!

The good thing about goals, if you’re driven and you’re motivated by the “goal” then you’ll like succeed at achieving the goal.

The bad thing about goals, if you’re driven and you’re motivated by the “goal” then you’ll like succeed at achieving the goal.

Yeah I know, I just stated the exact same thing twice except replaced good with bad.  The reason I did that is because way too many people, myself included, set goals that are not necessarily in the direction or path that they should be going.  Unfortunately people will set goals in areas like the following - Relationships, Family, Friends, Business/Money/Financial, Professional/Career, Job, Health/Wellness, Fitness, Mind/Body/Spirit, Faith/Contribution, Fun, Growth, and Personal Development.  However, setting goals in so many areas can lead a person astray from the overall direction they want to be heading in.  Even more, the person can get so focused on the goal, they forget about the journey and when they achieve the goal they don’t know what to do with themselves.

Joshua Fields Milburn, of the Minimalists, wrote a great blog post about direction.  His post wrote about similar things that I’ve written about above and said many of the same things in different words.  What I really liked was how he explained the difference between habits, goals and direction.

A direction is where you are going.  For example, a few years ago Tanya and I stated that we wanted to live in the mountains near the water.  We didn’t know what that actually looked like, but we made choices to go in that direction when we moved to North Vancouver.

A goal is a method to get you where you’re going.  As long as you know your direction, goals can be useful to get you where you want. For example, in order to move to the mountains near the water I needed to quit my job in Edmonton.  The goal was set and achieved. Unfortunately without knowing your direction many of us set goals that don’t align with our direction and thus lead us along the wrong path.  Setting goals is only valuable when you are very clear on your direction.  However, when you’re clear on your direction, your habits may be more important than any goals.

A habit is something you do all the time.  Your habits define who you are and how you’re going to be along your journey in your chosen direction.  Your habits can include everything from how you wake up to how you answer emails.  Habits are hard to create and break.  I’ve read that both can take approximately 21 days though there are others that dispute this.  The real point is that it takes days or possibly months to change, create, break a habit but it is possible and typically you can only do one at a time.  So if you want to change many habits, it will take some time.

Once you’re habits are to your liking and you’re making decisions daily that are helping you head in the direction you want to be then goals some times fall off the table.  Goals aren’t always necessary once you’re on the path you want to be and moving along it in the way you’re most comfortable.

Look at me stranger. No hands (and I’m lovin’ it!)

How many of you adventure-minded parents out there have witnessed the ‘ol headshake-in-disgust, seared into your psyche by some overly-judgemental, too-cautious-for-words stranger watching you do something ‘dangerous’ with your baby in-tow? You know, the lady who rolls her eyes when she sees a toddler on the front of a paddleboard, or a kid climbing on top-rope at Burgers and Fries, or a tiny little baby sitting happily (and snuggly) her mother’s arms in a raft in a (gasp!) river with a few rapids. I don’t want to get too judgemental here either, but you’re gonna be hard-pressed convincing the adventure-blooded folk around these parts that adventuring with their children is putting your child at risk. Risk is a famously subjective a topic…how much is too much? What kind of risks should we be exposing our children to? Where should we draw the line?Well, we ARE parents after all and that means one thing. We DO know when to draw the line because on that board, and tied to that rope and in that raft is the most precious thing in our lives. We know that we are exposing them to adventure in some way, and that that exposure is a good thing. No matter how young the baby, he or she is developing some positive life characteristics simply by watching the water slide by or feeling what granite feels like in their little hands. We live in a safety-concious world now, where not having a helmet on your child is as risky as robbing a bank in some circles. When I first learned how to take a jump on my bike, my dad built a big ramp in our front yard and we launched off of it, helmetless and with the biggest shit-eating grins imaginable, until the cows came home. We bailed, cried, got up again and kept jumping. Then, a couple of years later my stepfather had the balls to take SEVEN KIDS (aged 12 and under), by himself, on week-long canoe trips in the Alberta wilds. There was no such thing as a sat phone if shit hit the fan. He put trust in his capabilities, taught us how a river works and we had the time of our lives.

1. Lesson 1: Newborns can travel too
2. Lesson 2: Toddlers are easier in the outdoors
3. Lesson 3: Tweens and teens bring challenges wherever they are
4. Lesson 4: The world is a natural learning environment
5. Lesson 5: Family life is more fun when you’re together
6. Lesson 6: You don’t need all that stuff. Really, you don’t
7. Lesson 7: Taking on new challenges boosts confidence
8. Lesson 8: Adventures create strong reminders of their childhood
9. Lesson 9: Getting out with the kids keeps you fit not fat
10. Lesson 10: Parenthood is short

The fist pounding coach, boss, leader (while needed once in a while, but never over a long term) was never the ideal situation for me or for my team members.  In athletics it was obvious because you’d see team mates just quit the team mentally.  They’d shut themselves out, do their own thing, and not listen to the yelling.  Similarly in the office, I’ve seen it so bad that a co-worker had an aneurysm, but just like in athletics, team members shut themselves out.

Know what you don’t know

As a consultant, I get the opportunity to visit several companies a month and since I typically am visiting companies with an engineering or IT background, quite often they have an engineer as the leader of their company.  Similarly, almost as often, the company is not running like a smooth machine.  Rather, it’s on the brink of collapse.  The employees don’t seem engaged and very little amount of systems or procedures are in place.  An article I recently read inspired this posting.

Engineers Rule The World – ERTW

The day I started in University I was indoctrinated with the ERTW mantra.  Everyone (well the engineers I was hanging around) thought it and was proud of it.  I wonder if this drove these engineers to create their own companies and develop their own business.  Probably a little bit.  I’m sure there are other factors, but that’s not the point.  The point is there is a seemingly high number of business (in particular engineering/IT business) with an engineer as the CEO.  Unfortunately, 99% of these CEOs have no business training whatsoever.  These engineers, thinking that they know “everything” are unfortunately running their businesses in to the ground.  They really need to sit back and look at what there education and background has taught them (technical expertise) and what it most likely didn’t not teach them (how to run a company).  They really need to know what they DON’T know.  For the sake of their company and their staff, they’d probably be better suited as a CTO and handing the reigns over to someone with an MBA who understands how to run a company.

Below is the full text of the article written by Micheal Kelly

One might be forgiven for thinking that Canadians are more interested in studying innovation than actually doing it.

Over the past several decades, we have been bombarded with studies from both government and non-governmental organizations on the importance of innovation to our productivity performance and how we need to improve our capabilities in this area. However, real progress on the innovation front over this period has been elusive and our productivity performance has actually worsened.

A decade ago, a parliamentary standing committee on industry, science and technology noted the Canadian innovation system at the turn of the 21st century was very much the same as it was at the end of the 1980s. Most would agree that little has changed in the past decade to change this observation.

Nevertheless, we continue to generate reports and studies. In the past two years, we have seen a new report on Canada’s innovation performance by the federal government’s Science, Technology and Innovation Council (STIC), as well as one from an expert panel chaired by Open Text chief executive Tom Jenkins.

How much each new study adds to our existing body of knowledge is debatable.

Most cover much of the same ground and provide very similar recommendations focused on increasing private-sector investments in R&D, providing support for venture capital, enhancing commercialization, creating a more supportive tax and regulatory environment, investing in science and technology talent, etc.

Yet, the studies are remiss in that they fail to acknowledge that one of the key factors in the lack of success among Canadian startups is a dearth of business acumen.

As far back as 1997, Statistics Canada pointed out that the main reason for the failure of small business was inexperienced management and that 71% of firms fail due to poor financial planning. There has been an average of 11,000 bankruptcies each year in Canada over the last 20 years, many of which could have been avoided had the leaders of these enterprises been better equipped with the managerial skills required to turn a great product or service idea into a profitable business. While many studies recommend better entrepreneurship training for engineers and scientists, other important business skills appear to merit little attention.

A prime example is the above-mentioned STIC report. Two-thirds of the way through the 76-page report, it states, without elaboration, that “management skills are a key complement to science and technology skills in a knowledge-based economy.” Nowhere else is there another reference to management skills. Similarly, while the Jenkins report talks about the importance of both “technical and professional soft skills,” its proposed innovation talent strategy clearly emphasizes the former.

Continually overlooked is a body of evidence suggesting that without equal attention to and investments in management skills and knowledge, we will not be able to realize the full benefits of the significant investments already being made in science and technology research and education.

A number of studies have highlighted that technology startups in Canada suffer from deficient business and management skills particularly compared to U.S. companies. A 2009 report titled Understanding the Disappearance of Early-stage and Start-up R&D Performing Firms focused specifically on the high failure rate of startup and early-stage R&D firms in Canada and attributed this to a lack of commerce skills.

Similarly, studies have found that one of the most significant challenges facing innovative firms in this country was access to managerial, as opposed to technical, talent.

Moreover, a key objective of a successful innovation policy is the growth of Canada’s technology-based firms into global competitors. Indeed, our relative failure to do this is seen as a key factor in our poor R&D and productivity performance. Many of the previous reports on innovation state this as a policy objective but don’t seem to recognize the skills needed to make this happen.

Achieving this goal will require the availability of a broad range of management skills and knowledge. Companies will need access to talent that can establish, grow and manage international operations and all their related activities, including outsourcing, production, supply chains, alliances, currencies, etc. In particular, the federal government’s focus on increasing Canadian trade with emerging markets will further increase the need for state-of-the-art management talent and knowledge to support these efforts.

Despite these needs, the Canadian education system continues to underperform in the production of business, as opposed to science and engineering, graduates. An  OECD report said that Canada does well in producing advanced degrees in science and technology but not quite as well in the development of business and entrepreneurial skills. Unless we redress this situation we will continue to have the same conversation on innovation that we have been having for the past three decades.

What might make it easier to get out in the rain?

Get the right clothing!  The priority when running/biking being active in the rain is not staying dry.  You’re going to get wet.  Rather it’s staying warm.  Especially in Vancouver where the temperatures don’t really drop that low, but the wet stuff does come out on occasion.  If you’re hiking or going fairly slow then having proper rain gear is important, but if you’re going at a steady pace, having a rain jacket will only keep the heat in and you’ll overheat.

So what’s the right stuff?

Merino Wool is the best option for running in the rain.  I just got back from a 2hr run in the rain on the North Shore trails with nothing but merino wool on and I was warm the entire time.  What was I wearing?

My base layer consisted of the Icebreaker Spring Boxers and Icebreaker GT Base Layer Sprint Crewe Long Sleeve.  These are the layers directly against my skin and the layers that wick the moisture from my body and away from my skin.

My outer layers are the Icebreaker Sprint Legless 3/4 length tights and the Icebreaker GT Spring Crewe Short Sleeve.  The tights really do a great job of keeping me warm when the temperature dips under 10 degrees and the short sleeve is fabulous as it has a pocket for my iPod with a hole so the headphones can stay inside my shirt.

Finally, my socks, and probably the most important gear I wear, are the Icebreaker Run Cushion Mini.  I’ve written about these socks before, but hands down for wet running they are the best socks anyone could wear!

Now this may sound like an advertisement for Icebreaker but it’s really not.  They just make the best stuff and I absolutely love wearing it and sharing about it.

The best thing about Icebreaker!

The best thing after all the moisture wicking, and keeping me warm, even in a torrential down pour is that I can take my clothes off, hang them up to dry and after a few hours once they’ve dried there is not a hint of stink or funkiness.  I can put the same clothes on the next day without anyone knowing I had ever worn them before.  That’s truly the best thing about Icebreaker!  That means I don’t have to own as much clothing, and instead of having a wardrobe I can spend my money wisely on the best gear available!

Thank you Icebreaker!

In Business

Because of the work I do I get to see many teams, organizations and companies.  Some are successful and others not so much.  What’s very common in the “not so much” companies, which is the majority in my opinion, is that many of its employees don’t seem to happy or they aren’t engaged.  This leads to things like mediocrity, procrastination, loss of good people and typically doesn’t allowed for any sort of sustainable growth.  When this happens, it’s imperative that leaders talk to their employees and understand what they really want before it’s too late.  Typically though, most leaders don’t look inward.

In Athletics

I’ve been involved on many teams, some with coaches, others without.  I’ve been in a leadership role and in the role of a follower.  Just like in business, when team mates start losing engagement or aren’t happy it typically means there was a breakdown in communication or a misrepresentation of the team’s goal.  Recently I saw this on an adventure racing team that I lead and ended up failing.

In Life

Just like in business and in athletics we all have teams of people around us typically in the form of our closest relationships.  This could be spouses or kids, it could also be close friends or neighbours.  If you feel that your personal team is losing its mojo, then it’s probably best to look in the mirror to see why any relationships might be failing.

The article that inspired this posting is copied below and focuses only on businesses but you can apply the exact same logic to your athletic and personal teams as well.

Your team at work was once the very model of efficiency and creativity. The room hummed when you were at it. Managers praised the results.

But over time, the team faltered. Members began to disengage; some felt like they were rowing upstream. The work was not getting done.

They had lost their mojo.

At this point managers might be tempted to conduct surveys, or go on a retreat, or buy expensive software to manage it all. But often poor leadership is to blame.

“I’ve seen it happen,” said Julie Giraldi, chief human resources officer at the Ontario Hospital Association. “Leaders are not really leading by example. Leadership to me is everything. You can really tell the organization by its leaders and that trickles all the way down to the front-line staff.”

A team with poor leadership might have these characteristics:

• Employees don’t know the team’s chief objective. They might become more interested in personal glory, a concept that runs contrary to teamwork, experts say.
• Too few members end up doing too much of the work. Focus goes out the window, as members argue about small matters that never result in achieving the ultimate goal.
• There is no accountability. Members miss deadlines. They ponder theoretical questions, they gather information with a bent toward procrastination. They dither.
• Nobody can make a decision. This should be the job of a strong leader who considers the facts, draws conclusions and then acts on them to reach the goal.

Even if teams understand the vision, the leader must translate that into a road map and state clearly why the team exists and the outcome expected, said Philip Wilson, a human resources consultant who spent more than 10 years with the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. It doesn’t matter if it’s a small team working on a single project, or a corporate team that’s providing service to a large group of employees, he said.

The team must also have a strong sponsor – someone who understands the vision. “If you look at any organization development model, sponsorship is probably the most important thing,” Mr. Wilson said.

In other words, the group needs someone who can clear hurdles, seek resources or financing when needed, and navigate the political environment in the organization, he said.

Other symptoms of trouble are employees who feel that they’re not being heard or understood, or they can’t make the connection between their work and the company’s strategic plan, Ms. Girardi said. “It’s all in the communication, and you need to over-communicate,” she said.

“Listening is really important,” she said. “Leaders must give team members an answer to their questions, even if it is something they do not want to hear.”

Mr. Wilson said he once had to help heal a “fairly dysfunctional” team that eventually became one of the best he has ever worked with. The issue? Personality conflicts.

After studying the team, he decided he had to remove one of its members. Then he brought other conflicted personalities together to help them understand that there was a real benefit to working together.

“Up to that point, they didn’t have a shared purpose,” Mr. Wilson said. “And once they did, they were able to get their heads around how they fit into delivering that purpose.”

He also subscribes to the 80/20 rule. If you can persuade 20 per cent of the people on a team to move in one direction, the other 80 per cent will follow, he said.

Generational differences can also affect teams, Mr. Wilson said. Younger people are more accustomed to working with a team because they’ve done it since they were in elementary school. Baby boomers, on the other hand, have been rewarded throughout their careers for their individual contributions.

Diversity is important, however. “Having a good mixture of young and old, and people of different races is only good for the team and for the business,” he said.