Training during military coup

I just saw a post in my drafts that I had begun the day before the Mali coup on the 21st of March. Reading it sent me back at my week and a half of waiting patiently in my hotel room, while hearing gunshot fired not 10 block away.

I was there for a three weeks contract, and everything was going according to plan, even with my indigestion (which is never a surprise when working in Africa!). My training at that point was going down to nothing, I had to run for Iceland's ultra marathon, but everything seemed against me (the excuses we give ourselves for not training ...).

Then the coup happened ... we were in the ACI 2000 part of town, really near Bamako center and the  radio station, so when we heard gunshots, we heard them quite well. So I had to forbid exterior training, and Hotel Massaley did not have any Gymnasium ... so much for running, so I got quite serious about my Insanity program.

What we can learn about this:

• Never take the political stability of a developing country for granted

• Always have a plan B for training abroad, be it rubber bands, water filled weights, or training videos (subject to some review soon i guess ... that could be a good post would it not ?)

• Keep training, whatever happens, even if you have to shift from specific to general maintenance ... except if you get sick, then, take a reality check and some days off, at least until you are not at risk of shitting yourself while doing a power squat

• When people start shooting their guns in the air, don't stay in the open, Mali had around 15 deaths by stray bullets

I'll keep my political views out of my blog, I don't think I will comment what happened back there and what is still happening now, I feel really sad for the malians that I know to be good people, solution oriented and successful professionnals that are seeing the country the were so proud of being slowly driven to ruin and chaos...

Guiness, the quality drink in any environment, and the best recovery drink...

Running in Africa

*** Wow, a 5 months old post .. what  a good blogger I make ... time to right the wrongs and be active... ***

I'm currently in Bamako, Mali for business. my job is really nice for the adventure of getting off shore 4 to 6 times a year, but is one of the most sucky for maintaining a regular training regimen.

On top of that, the food, the water, even the air you breathe can make you sick ... but, it is most of the time worth it.

My 40K per week goal I had set myself onto is now getting farther away from my grasp. working hours and a remarkable lack of will are taking their toll. I'm still trying to weight whether I should give more place to the Insanity program in wich I have about three weeks left or run some 5 to 8 km stretch as much as I can in a week. 

Last week i got sick, my dinner, wich consisted in rice with a tar-like textured sauce that tasted weird, kept me in bed for 18 hours and left me weak as a puppy until saturday night. 

A bit pissed at the existence for the lost training sessions I headed for a long run on Sunday ... a grueling run under the oppressing sun. I could not run more than 20 minutes before having to walk or sit under a three to cool down, but I did good, running about 14 km without passing out. It put a strain on my already weak body, but I pulled tru, being tired of excuses for not training.

In the end, I think I experienced some dehydration effect, my stomach was bloated and I was quite fatigued. The air being so dry in Mali, I barely sweated during the run, it is weird to feel exhausted but not being drenched in sweat. I'll have to care a bit more for my hydration next Sunday.

Aiming high, and avoiding the lows

Last year i took a challenge with my friend and colleague Richard, to get out alive of the laugavegur ultra marathon ...


Overly enjoyed at the prospect of this new way to suffer, the gear I imagined myself buying and the mystery of the ultra underground I purposely avoided to ponder the required training for this kind of distance.


55 km is a lot for someone who never ran a full marathon, never the less, i keep the faith thinking about the XC Challenge I ran, 32 km in the mountain of Mount Tremblant in Quebec and the different attempt at glory in the white mountains (Presidential Traverse in one day and another trek which I don't recall the name).


January and February were dedicated to the Insanity training, reinforcing my weak abductors and subjecting my self to intense plyometric training. By the end of February I was running three times a week, long run included for about 35-40 km a week.


On March 9th, i am leaving for Mali, coming back around April 6th ... hoping to at least find the time to run three times a week, I promised myself that I would at least be training once a day, be it Insanity or homemade leg-blasting tabata or some such. I hope to raise my volume to around 50K by the time I return.


Thoughts of the ultramarathon sometimes overwhelm me and I find myself thinking "what the f*** am I trying to prove here ?". I doubt myself mostly after a long run of 26K that took me 3 hours and leaves my with a nag in the knees and a tightness in the abductors ...  


twice the distance, twice the pain ...


After these kinds of thoughts cross my mind, I rush on youtube and start some nice and classic inspirational tubes like this one. Or go on and repeat to myself one of my favourite quotes : 

“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” ― Theodore Roosevelt, Strenuous Life

This is, for now, how I cope with the doubts ...

Orbana Healthy Energy Review

I recently tried sample packets from Orbana Healthy Energy… I got them from a give away contest from the running and rambling (http://www.runningandrambling.com) blog.

First off, the idea to get reviews that way is in itself a testament to Orbana’s creativity and customer oriented practice … brilliant. The packets contain 50 g of fine powder which dissolves impressively well in 250 ml water. The powder, when added has a nice effervescent effect that insures a good mixing. The smell and taste present citrus and pineapple flavour. The drink itself is quite palatable and do not give the sickly sugary feeling when the water is not cold. Somehow the taste and smell were vaguely reminiscent of the McDonald’s orange juice I so liked in ages past. The citrus-pineapple taste is free from the usual acidic feeling from citric acid, although the taste is subtle, it was a bit much for me since I’m not a pineapple fan.

I am not a big sports drink fan since I usually have problem digesting them and experience gastric weirdness on long runs (gasses and balloon effect) from the caffeine and truck load of sugar, but the Orbana mix is pretty easy to digest, no burps and no upset stomach … sweet “nada”.

Each bag of Orbana powder carries a impressive load of vitamins, amino-acids and electrolytes, a nicely balanced ratio of carbs, sodium and potassium with a pinch of protein … who could ask for more ? Thanks to the nice mix of amino-acid and electrolytes, it is also a good hang-over remedy, drink one glass of water mixed with Orbana before going to bed after a big party … the morrow is less painful by far …

Pros :
- Effervescent powder help mixing
- No acid tasting effect
- No chalky sugary feeling while drinking
- Reminds me of McDonald’s orange juice
- Good hang-over remedy

Cons:
- Only one flavour available, not bad in itself, but since I’m not a big pineapple fan, I noticed

Bottom line is, Orbana offers a great product, really efficient, even for guys who are not really sports drink fan. If they were to offer a different flavour (like one that does not taste like pineapple) I would definitely buy a box.

Shaping up in West Africa

Now working in Mali for the next 2 weeks. Just when I started my motivation sequence and got up my ass, boom! a month off shore, a month of eating crap, sweating like a pig and thinking beer the most wonderful and bacteria free beverage in the whole wide world ...

What can a chap do to stay fit, and getting fitter ... i'll try to discover it !

For now, i'm armed with :

- P90X Cardio
- P90X Ab ripper
- 100 push up program
- A hotel near a really nice running track, in the Botanical Garden
- A kind of motivation to shed some unwanted pounds I accumulated while doing some autumn-procrastination


First night (18th october) was training free, arriving à 9 pm with a strong jetlag, a bit tipsy from the champain, wine and calvados i had while travelling in business class (lucky me), i opted for some stretching of calves and off to bed.

19th october : decided to check on the garden ... bummer, there is now a fee to access the training grounds, 500 francs for local and 1500 francs (3,50 $) for strangers and i only carried 2 $ ... i turned back, lost myself in the streets near Bamako's Stadium, got a bit spooked since the sun was coming down, used my "Navigate to start" feature from my Garmin ... what a beautiful life saving piece of technology. 4.5 km, 22 minutes ... kindda fast for running in my Merrel Barefoot, but like I said, i got spooked. I skipped supper, drank a meal replacement (Lean body) with cold water.

20th october : Got back from work a bit late and was'nt in a mood for running in the dust ... , did the P90X Cardio training and ended up eating Pizza at the "Relax" with colleagues and drank too nice, cold and big "Flag" (local beer).

21th october : Got news that Khaddaffi was dead, since Mali is full of pro-Khaddaffi population, I received the good advice of not playing smart by myself in the streets ... there goes today's run ... down the drain. Ankle stretching (Mobility WoD), 75 pushups, 75 crunches ... 2 cans of home-brought thai-tuna and two "'Flags" with my colleague.

The rest was pretty much a downward, i kept doing the P90X Cardio, but a weird injury in my left knee that prevented me from raising my left kept me from doing any serious work out ...

Merrell Barefoot Trail Glove Review and Giveaway

Another nice give away promoting bare foot running ... from the best blog around ...

Running And Rambling

New Balance Minimus Trail Review and Giveaway Contest

A nice review of the New Balance Minimus Trail on THE best website on minimalist running :

http://www.runningandrambling.com/2011/02/new-balance-minimus-trail-review-and.html




Also, a good book from the same author :