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There is so much that can be done to help the environment and the countless humanitarian issues that tend to be overlooked. It’s definitely worth a mention when we see a company stepping up and trying to make a difference.

A couple of college cross-country runners launched Janji, a performance clothing company aimed towards bringing attention to humanitarian rights in Haiti and Kenya.

“Janji’s shirts and shorts are both made out of 100 percent polyester fabric,” Janji told Competitor Magazine. “Although the feel of the fabrics are very different, they’re all moisture-wicking and incredibly light. We’re working with a producer, located in China, which has shown a commitment to fair wages, proper working conditions and ethical labor practices.”

Thanks to both runners from Washington University, a portion of the proceeds will aid starving families in Haiti and Kenya. Incorporating the national flags of each country, food, water, and medical supplies will be purchased using revenue generated by Janji sales.

A few dozen retailers are interested in offering Janji products, and that number will surely grow as they receive even more press.

The west side of the Golden Gate Bridge (GGB) has been closed for the last 5 months. It is finally scheduled to reopen on 5/18/12. The work is scheduled to end a week or two before the 75th anniversary of the the bridge.

The West side of the GGB is open, for bicycles only, on weekends. It can be scary riding on the west side of the bridge because so many people fly across the span. It is worse when all of the cyclists are on the east side. When I jog across the bridge on the east side the tourist were always difficult to navigate through. The cyclist are terrifying. They don’t care how fast they are going when they buzz by you, inches away. I hope that I am not like that when I ride across the bridge.

I have been avoiding the bridge for a couple of months now. Let the tourists have their fun. I can wait for the west side to open.

Here is the news release from the GGB recreational department.

GGB West Sidewalk Reopens May 18, 2012

First and foremost, your patience and cooperation during the recent construction work is much appreciated, and the end results will be enjoyed by all of us. The end is in sight as the west sidewalk will reopen on May 18!

Here is the status of the GGB sidewalks for the period from May 1 through May 17:

WEST SIDEWALK STATUS

Remains closed for construction through Thursday, May 17
Reopens Friday, May 18 and will remain open for the foreseeable future

EAST SIDEWALK STATUS

Open now for both pedestrians and cyclists
The 400-foot section of fixed scaffolding at mid-span is targeted to be removed by Wednesday, May 9, pending weather conditions, prior to Bike to Work Day on May 10
East sidewalk will serve as the access for May 10, Bike to Work Day with an Energizer Station at the Vista Point entrance to the east sidewalk

I went to the foot care lecture at REI on Saturday morning.  As you know, 11:00 A.M. on Saturday is a bad time for runners and a lousy time for cyclists.  Us runners are usually doing our post-run socializing until about 11:00 and the cyclists are right in the middle of their Saturday workouts.

The people training for a triathlon don’t even have a chance at making it.  I was there because an injury had me resting for the weekend.  Parking is also tough at the Berkeley REI.  There is plenty of meter parking around the store for $1.50 per hour.  The streets look a little rough but I have never had any problems with parking in that area.  Take standard precautions, I don’t leave stuff in my car.

Enough with the logistics,  I appreciate REI for putting on events like this.  John Vonhof knows his stuff and he has a good website .  John is not a podiatrist; he is a foot care specialist with a goal of keeping us moving on healthy feet.  When things go wrong, he helps us perform first aid and teach prevention techniques to keep us moving.  That being said, the lecture started with a talk about the benefits of shoe inserts.

He held up Superfeet in one hand and Sof Sole inserts in the other hand.  I am a firm believer in high quality inserts, and I think they help me keep my running mileage up.  I used to get all types of injuries before I started wearing inserts.  John pointed out the different types of inserts, shoes and feet.  We should try different things until we get things sorted out.

After insoles he moved on to talking about socks and blister prevention.  I found it interesting that he passed around some Injinji toe socks.  I used to get a lot of blisters on the hilly trail half marathons until I started wearing the Injinji socks.

He spoke about different types of socks and ways to prevent blisters.  One of the hikers mentioned using duct tape to help keep you going after a blister and for blister prevention in general.  John broke out some kinesiology tape and gave us some pointers on how to use tape to patch up our wounds and prevent injuries.  After primary prevention, he went on to discuss first aid for various injuries and types of prevention.  Visit his site for prevention tips.  It has a lot of good information for foot care.

I love to see companies like REI doing all of this community stuff.  These lectures are really informative and helpful.  REI is not a store where I buy running, biking or swimming stuff but they are a great store for warm stuff and stuff you want to try.  They have a good selection of electronics and are one of the few stores that let you return your electronics goods.  Sometimes, you can spend $500 for something and just hate it when you try it out.  Give their classes a try.  The free class was good.  I am thinking about taking the bike repair class for $150.  It seems like all of the pay classes are $20 less for REI members.  I wonder if the REI memberships cost $20?

Mike’s Note:  The street parking isn’t too bad in the immediate vicinity around REI, but don’t stray too far down San Pablo… parking in one of the residential neighborhoods can also be ideal.  Also, feel free to take a look at the REI membership perks, which should be great depending on your likelihood of shopping there.

I recently saw a few tweets from people looking for online stores to purchase their running, cycling and outdoors gear. I also have a friend simply looking for a pair of bike shorts and a tech shirt to wear during spin classes, but these sites have more than that to offer.

This is a short and sweet post highlighting a handful of sites you may want to visit.

LeftLane Sports (you have to register with the site) –road bikes, cycling gear, hiking daypacks, sleeping bags, bodyboards, and other outdoors products. Really good prices and a decent variety, so worth a look.

BlueSky Cycling — An online outfit that has a small selection of products, including cycling apparel, sunglasses, shoes, and shin guards and body armor. BlueSky also offers a variety of different accessories, ranging from helmets and hydration to skins and pumps.

Aero Tech Designs — manufactures bike shorts and cycling jerseys out of their western PA-based facility. In addition to regular cycling and mountain biking gear, Aero Technologies also makes jackets, fitness shorts, and cold weather gear.

Peak 1 Sports — a quality retailer for custom cycling jerseys and apparel. Unlike many other stores, Peak 1 Sports offers quality wind jackets, vests, arm and knee warmers, which can be harder to find than other cycling clothing.

Bike Nashbar — An old school favorite among cyclists and mountain bikers… Bike Nashbar has been around much longer than most online outlets, and provides a wide variety of products from high-quality vendors for a good price.

Feel free to get in touch if you have other sites you’ve had good shopping experiences with.

Happy shopping!

Now that bicycling season is upon us here in California, it is time for bicycle ideas.  It is the beginning of March so a lot of us are starting to go farther and faster on our bikes.  New riders take heed in what I say.  For you veterans, this is a reminder to do a pre-ride check.

Go say hi to your bike.  While you are there, take a good look at it.  The cob webs should be off by now.  If not, give the bike a bath.  Get some degreaser and clean the chain and sprockets real good.  Use a chain brush or a tooth brush will work.  It is important to keep your chain and sprockets clean because dirt and debris stick to the greasy buildup on your chain and act like sandpaper.  The abrasive action will wear out your chain and sprockets.  You will be amazed at how much it cost to replace your sprockets.  Most casual riders just buy a new bike.  It cost $200 to $300 for the parts and $100 to $200 to have a bike shop install them.  Be nice to your bike.  If you keep it clean and lubricated, it will last a long time and rarely need tuning.

Now that your bike is nice and clean give it a close look and make sure everything is tight.  Make sure your brakes still work and the tires are in good shape.  If you have any doubts about the tires, replace them.  If you look at your tires and think “they look worn but they will be okay” replace them.  Don’t go cheap on the tires.  Get good performance or Continental tires.  I am sure there are other good tires but I have had good luck with these brands.

Learn how to fix flats and replace the tires yourself.  There is nothing wrong with taking your bike to the shop to have the tires changed.  It is good to know how to do basic repairs yourself.  We do strange things on our bikes.  We will drive 100 miles out into the country then ride our bikes another 50 miles farther into the country.  If something happens in a remote place, you could be in for a long walk back to your car.  Be prepared.

I carry a bike pouch under my saddle.  I did an inventory today see what I really carry.  Here is my list of essentials:

• Spare tube – Tubes are easy to replace and I don’t have to mess around with finding the hole and fixing it.  Every now and then, you will stumble across some poor soul with a flat and no spare tube or patch kit.  It is easy to give someone a tube and be on your way.  If you give away your patch kit, you are giving away some insurance.
• Tire levers – Plastic tire levers make it easy to remove and install the tire in the event of a flat.  I like to carry plastic levers because they are flat and do not puncture my spare tube.
• Patch kit – I am currently carrying a small glueless patch kit with 6 patches.  I usually carry a patch kit with glue but I am random when I buy a new kit.  I like to replace the kit every 1-2 years in the event the glue dries out.
• Small tire pump – I have a push-pull style pump that pumps air in both directions.  The pump is good for both Schrader and Presta valves.  A lot of people like co2 pumps but I don’t like the idea of having one or two chances at repairing a flat.
• ID in two pockets – In case I fall, it good for the paramedics to know where to send the bill.  I have about 5 road id tags but decided that it would be better to lose them then keep them in my bag.
• Allen wrenches – 3mm and 5mm.  These are the main tools I need for my bike.  Most clamps and bolts are one of these sizes.
• Roctane gels – 2 packages, in case I need some calories.
• First aid kit – If you fall and get some skin flaps, it is so nice to be able to clean the wound and put a band aide on it.
• $70.25 – It is good to carry some cash in case you want to buy some lunch or cool socks.  I usually carry $20.  I don’t know how I managed to get an odd number in my bag.
• Spare car key
• Safety pin
• 2 twist ties
• 2 zip ties

There are a lot of different opinions on what you need to carry.  You can to a web search for seat bag tire repair kits for more suggestions.  You can buy the stuff from an online retailer or your local bike shop.  I prefer the local bike shops.  A lot of times you can catch someone from the store to tell you about how to stock your pouch.  If the store is crowded, you might catch someone passing by to ask their opinion.  Either way, it is more fun to go look at the items in the store.

Life is full of choices.  Most people who visit this site are people who choose to go do things.  Sometimes, we need to slow down and think about the consequences of our actions.  Here are two recent examples of my choices.  One good and one bad.  Neither of them are too terribly bad because I am here to talk about it.

Good Decision:
Now that winter is in full force, a lot of runners have to decide if they should run or rest because of illness.  I prefer to rest when I am sick.  I always read about the serious runners who never miss a run no matter what.  They get out and run with a fever of 102 f.  I am not a fan of running when I am really sick.  I mention this because I was not feeling well yesterday and slept for over 12 hours last night.  I got up this morning feeling a bit off but good enough to go for a run.  I got out for a 6-7 mile run with the run club and felt great afterward.

Bad Decision:
I also went out to run a marathon when I was not feeling well.  I knew I was sick, the day before the run.  I trained hard for the marathon and finally showed up for a big race healthy.  I was not healthy but I was not injured either.  At mile 22, I ran out of gas.  When the paramedic tried to check my blood sugar by pricking my finger, he could not get any blood.  I asked him how many times that has happened to him.  He told me it was the first time.  He then proceeded to tell me that my body was shutting down from the extremities in, that was why I could not run or walk any more.  Perhaps, I should have stayed in bed on this day.

I tend to err on the side of “Just do it”.  I knew that I should have stayed in bed on marathon day.  I chose to run and had a predictable race result.  Having your body start its shutdown process is not a good idea.  At least there was a lot of support on the marathon course.

In both cases, I knew what I should do.  My body tells my subconscious what is right or wrong.  Unfortunately, my conscious does not always listen.  Pay attention to your subconscious and rest when you need it.  I want you to come back and read my blog again.  I also like it when you complain about me not writing enough.

The new year is here.  I hope everyone is working on their base training for the next running season.

Upcoming races:
Coyote Hills (Fremont) – 1/28/12.  This is the biggest race of the year for alamedarunners.com.  We will be out in force for our local run.  Come join us, we will be out there rain or shine.  Sign up early because this one sells out.

Oakland Running Festival – 3/25/12.  I will be there leading the 2:15 group again for the half marathon.  Unfortunately, my photographer moved to Pennsylvania so we will not have a nice photo page this year.  I have my training plan here.  If you have any questions about the training plan, send me a message through the contact us link above.

I will be doing other events throughout the year.  These are my big two for the winter.  I will be out taking pictures at some Brazen events and riding my bike all over Northern California in preparation for the triathlon season.

I have been hitting the weights pretty hard in an attempt to build up my strength.  I am always sore from my sessions in the weight room.  It is amazing how quickly you can add weight to your sets in the weight room.  I am getting stronger and the time off from running is letting my legs heal.  It is nice to go out for a run and not be in pain.  I have been sticking with the off season training plan  and adding some P90X sessions in at night to keep things interesting.

Sport specific training takes practice on the specific sport you are training for.  Cross training is great for the rest of the body.  I spent six months training for a Half Ironman triathlon this year.  I took a couple of weeks off, and then started training for a marathon.  I took it easy on my marathon training because of my knee issues that started to scare me on the second to last long run in my marathon training. 

Since I had a scare, I started tapering a week early.  Since I had all of this extra time on my hands, I went out and did a 90-minute Vinyasa yoga session.  I struggled to make it through the session and I was sore for 5 days.  All of the pain led to the realization that, I am getting out of shape.  I spent most of the year training for endurance with little time spent on strength and speed.  I jumped on the scale and saw that I weighed in at 153 pounds.  Not fat for a guy who is 5’ 7” tall but certainly not lean.

If you are reading this, you are probably not a couch potato.  If you are a couch potato, you are thinking about changing.  Here are some thoughts:

• Athletes are in better shape than most people.
• Athletes tend to develop sport specific muscles.
• Sport specific muscle growth causes muscle imbalances.
• Muscle imbalances lead to injuries.
• Being an injured athlete with imbalanced muscles is better than being a couch potato.

I found that I am in a rut.  I can see how I got into the rut.  Things in life happened and I let things happen.  As soon as I realized these things were happening, I set about changing them.  I could have easily told myself to wait until after the marathon to change things up.  I did not do that.  I took charge and started changing things that were in my control. 

I looked at my life and told myself that I was in a rut and I had to get out of it.  Because of the upcoming marathon, I am not making big changes but I have already changed my routine and started doing light workouts just to break up the routine. 

Life is full of people who tell you not to do something or you can’t do something.  Those people are followers.  We must all lead our own lives.  Do not worry about other people.  Get out and lead the way.

This post is a list of things on my desk as I clean up.  First thing on my desk is my cool Vineman 70.3 medal.  Since I am so proud of it, I had Jasmin at Brazen Racing engrave the medal.

It took a lot of work to complete a half ironman triathlon.  I am proud of that medal.  Brazen racing charges $10 to engrave a medal at the race and $15 to engrave a special medal.  The price difference is because the machine is set up to engrave all of the race medals on race day.  Different medals require a different machine setup.  It also cost about $2 to mail the medal out.

Most of my medals wind up in a drawer.  Special medals make it to the wall.  Really special medals get engraved.

Strutz Sole Angel arch wrap with cushion support.  I am not reviewing these for an article but I love them.  I have high arches that can be protected with orthotics but it is really hard to get something for the metatarsal area up by the ball of the foot.  These things wrap around the foot and stay where you put them.  There is something about the feet that can cause the whole leg to ache.  These supports help alleviate that pain a little.

Arctic Ease.  Another one of those cool gadgets that work.  It is basically a gauze pad that you wrap around a sore part of the body and it magically cools it off.  I don’t know how it works but I know that it does.

When the wrap starts to dry out, you add a teaspoon of water and return it to service.  I don’t use it very often but it is nice to have in my work locker for when I get sore during my morning or lunch time workouts.  If you use seran wrap to hold it in place, your clothes won’t get wet.

Earbuds.  I had enough ear buds on my desk to fill up a zip lock bag and have some left over.  I only write about the stuff I like.  If I’m not a big fan, I simply tell the company and move on with life.  Mike’s Note:  I have some neat earbuds and audio products that should get some attention sometime here in the near future (hopefully).

Chap Stick Classic.  All people who spend a lot of time outdoors should protect their skin.  Soft lips and soft skin are important if you want to get a hug and a kiss.

Moving up from international (Olympic) distance to half Ironman distance triathlons is a big leap.  It can sometimes mean going from 2 ½ to 3 hours for the event up to 6 to 7 hours for the event.

When you are training for a half Ironman or 70.3, you can do an international distance triathlon on Saturday and still have to go do a long training day on Sunday.   To maintain a happy family life, I had to make a deal with my wife that Saturdays would be my training day and Sunday would be my day for her.

The time commitment is huge.  I had to invest a lot of time and effort to finish in 6 ½ hours.  If I want to finish in 5 ½ hours, I would have to make another huge time investment.  Make sure your significant other and family understand the time and dedication required to successfully complete a 70.3 event.

Finishing in 6.5 hours was a big success for me.  I started serious training six months before the triathlon.  When I started training, I could do all of the events individually.  I could not do them back-to-back but I could do them.  I started out by building for three weeks and resting for one week.  The rest week would be about 50% of the total workout time of the training week.

Swimming – A typical week would entail of mornings swims four or five times a week varying between distance and speed work for a total of four swim miles per week.  I would occasionally add a weekend long swim in the bay to keep the open water swimming skills up.

Running – I would run at lunch from Monday to Thursday varying the distances from four-to-eight miles per day.  Some weeks, I would forgo the long run and do a faster tempo run instead.  On Saturdays, I would do a long run of 6-10 miles followed by a short bike ride of less than 50 miles.  Some weeks, I would do a half marathon with no bike ride after.

Cycling – I am a reluctant cyclist, so I always looked for an excuse to get out of riding but I forced myself to do a long bike ride on Saturdays.  I usually did 50-100 miles per week on the bike.  I never did speed work.  I just got on the thing and rode.

There is a lot to training for a half Ironman.  I woke up before 6:00 AM, almost every day of the week.  Some Saturdays, I would leave my house at 8:00 AM and get home at 8:00 PM.  During the week, I was in bed before 10:00 PM.

To learn how to train for a long triathlon, I read a lot of books on training and nutrition.  My physiology likes to stop eating while I am doing long distance training.  Poor nutrition on long training days has bad side effects.