Beatles - Long and Winding Road (personal video)

NOW -- ISN'T THIS A GREAT PLACE FOR A HALF MARATHON!!!

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Sports do not build character, they reveal it.

- Heywood Hale Brow

"Success is not measured by what you accomplish but by the opposition you have encountered, and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds."

- Orison Swett Marden-

As you can see by the photo I am starting to visualized in a big way for Japan -- already have my big Canadian Flag ready for signatures, and labelled - Suwa Ko Half Marathon 2007--- and a place for my time --- It all seems to be coming together - just 5 weeks from yesterday I fly out -- will be at race site the day before which will give me a day to peruse the area.....Plan to stay an extra 3 days at Suwa Ko and will probably walk the course a couple of days after the race and take pictures of the course -- this one I want a really good record of....

Had a great workout this morning -- 1km warmup and cool down --- and did a speed 5km in between -- 31:44 for the 5km which I am thrilled at -- the combined workouts seem to be having a positive impact -- legs feel much stronger and cardio much improved -- 4 weeks to go to maximize!!!

I posted last night a video from U tube with some great Core Exercises -- was thinking of you Steve when I saw them............

Last day at the Rosedale Clinic tomorrow -- 20k with the group and then we will meet John Stanton for the Friendship Run/Walk at the Commerce Court Running Room -- should know more about the Advanced Clinic by days end tomorrow

Synergy Fitness Ultimate Metabolic Core Training

Jefferson Perez (Osaka 2007) Tricampeon Mundial

Rosedale A Team -- Port Perry Half Marathon Fininshers

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Dream big and dare to fail." -

Norman Vaughn

"If you don't risk anything you risk even more."

- Erica Jong

"Pain is temporary. Quitting lasts forever."

- Lance Armstrong

It has been a week since my last post -- not because I have been in a negative frame of mind but I have been so busy that by the time I get home the last thing I want to do is spend more time in front of the computer.

Training has been going well for Japan -- in the two weeks since I have instituted the combined mileage training program I have done 130 kms walking and 140kms on the bike so I am on track...........I had a great tempo workout this morning --1:05:34 for 10k so I feel I am on track for my goal time -- a slow process of building up the endurance once again.........Feels good just to be focused on my own training now.....Taking a brief respite from the clinics has been a good thing--mentally in particular........

On the clinic front I have had continued discussions about a possible "Personal Best" walking clinic with the Running Room -- basically I am doing it either with or without them --serious competitive walkers are asking for it and this is something the RR will be missing if they do not provide it -- they provide it for runners so what is the problem????

Hopefully that will work itself out in the next little while

MISSION POSSIBLE - SUB 2:20:00 - SUWA KO HALF MARATHON - JAPAN - OCT 28/07

(this is the race course --if you click on the image you will see the timing points)

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

Eleanor Roosevelt

The registration has closed for the Suwa Ko Half Marathon in Nagano Prefecture in Japan -- actually closed about 3 weeks ago so I just found out -- capped at 7,000 participants - 6,999 runners and one walker -- guess who???

Everything I do now in my training is solely for the purpose of trying to break that magic 2:20 barrier in Japan -- I have upped the ante in my training as I mentioned before and the last two days have been great training day in particular -- yesterday, I tried something new to see how it may work as a race plan -- I did 2 minutes at marathon pace - 10 secs and one minute at 5 km pace -- I ended up doing 11.4 km in 1:12 and change so I was quite please -- now to build up my endurance to keep that up for another 10k and it should work -- fingers are crossed!! I followed up yesterday with 10km on the bike and this morning I did and easy 7k recovery walk and then pushed 15.2 km on the bike afterwards....Feels great..

Having a meeting with one of the management team from the Running Room this afternoon at her request about why I am not going to do any more clinics and my concerns.....Plans are moving ahead very well regarding the Ultimate A Team advanced clinic for November..

Steve -- hope you are on the road to recovery -- keep the faith my friend!!

Perez wins men's walk by nearly a minute

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat."

It has been great to get back in the grove doing my own training and focusing only on the Suwa Ko Half Marathon on Oct 28 -- that means only 5 weeks of hard training before a taper week....Did a relaxed 18k on Saturday with my Rosedale group and did a tempo 5 k yesterday followed by 10 on the bike..........Today I had a great morning workout -- 9.5 k in 58:30 -- that was my run/walk day -- I have found a cricket pitch near my house and that gives me a 500meter grass track around the outside to use -- much easier on the knees Stephen -- it makes an incredible difference -- no knee discomfort afterwards at all.........I ran one side, racewalked the other side and did recovery walks on the corners -- I really enjoyed this one................Now that I have had about an hour of recovery time, I am on my way out to do 15k on the bike -- I have set a program for Suwa Ko which aims to do 800km total mileage in the next 5 weeks -- 60-70km per week walking and then the remainder(90-100km) on the bike -- I have found the bike to be just a different type of cardio workout and it seems to be helping........

On the other side of my walking life - clinics --- here is the latest --- The Running Room, although I am meeting with one of the management committee on Thursday, still seems reluctant to do an Advanced Walking Clinic -- so I am branching out on my own -- it will be the "Ultimate A Team" Advanced Clinic -- already have 15 people committed to it, a large Toronto organization is donating space in their building as a meeting room and place to change, use washrooms etc. -- this will be for those who have taken clinics in the past, and want to get faster, stronger and who want to COMPETE!!! That is the key -- and the workouts wont be for the faint of heart......This clinic is open and NO COST -- just for love of the sport -- will begin in November after I return from Japan and will be Tuesday nights and Saturday mornings -- this way it will not conflict with the club walks at the Running Room for anyone who is involved with any of their programs.

If anyone is interested please email me at allanmedd@hotmail.com

Cheers all and have a great day

Race Walk Planet Television - Episode 1 (music)

Race Walking

The Racewalker

Band of Racewalkers

Oliver - Port Perry - 2:39:46
Glen - 2:36:12/Lin - 2:36:59

Port Perry Finish -- 2:28:29

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"I think Western culture has it backwards. We equate comfort with happiness, and now we're so comfortable we're miserable. There's no struggle in our life, no sense of adventure. I've found that I'm never more alive than when I'm pushing and I'm in pain and I'm struggling for high achievement. In that struggle I think there's magic. Unless you're pushing yourself, you're not living to the fullest. You can't be afraid to fail, but unless you fail you haven't pushed hard enough. If you look at successful people and happy people, they fail a lot, because they are constantly trying to go further..."

Tony Ladd

My dad used to say " Life is busy -- then you die!!" I guess I am not ready to be planted yet because I am far too busy and have miles yet to cover.......Port Perry Half Marathon last weekend -- a great performance by the members of the A TEAM as I call my clinics --- I was fortunate to get sort of back in gear and come in 2nd overall at 2:28:29 -- a very tough country course -- mostly gravel and more hills than you can imagine -- we hit Boston's Heartbreak Hill 5 times -- it was rewarding to hear my clinic folks say they knew after that race why I emphasize core and hills so much....................A total of 11 of us from Oakville and Rosedale completed the race upright and smiling and all in 3:10 or under -- two from the Oakville Running Room do not take my clinic but have trained on Sunday mornings with us..... including them in the results we had 6 in the top 9 and 8 in the top 20 -- here is a look at the A Team results

Allan 2:28:29

Alex 2:32:03

Tracey 2:32:10

Glenn 2:36:12

Lin 2:36:59

Oliver 2:39:46

Pina 2:50:47

Michelle 3:05:04

Sandy 3:05:34

Nadia 3:07:11

Dawn 3:10:13

CONGRATULATIONS TO AN OUTSTANDING GROUP OF ELITE ENDURANCE WALKING ATHLETES

I have decided that my career as an clinic instructor will come to an end with the completion of the current clinics -- I was at my happiest when I was training myself and following a very dedicated training regime -- I have gotten away from that with 4 days a week in clinic and have found that not everyone appreciates what is needed to either compete or complete a full or half marathon -- The Running Room does not want to do an Advanced Walking clinic as they feel they don't have enough instructors to do the initial clinics and suggested I do them together -- however this just exacerbates the problem that exist now in which some people feel I focus only on competitive athletes -- not realizing whether you are a competer or a completer you need the same training and skills -- one simply does it at a quicker speed!! So given that I have put together a group who will get together once or twice a week and do an advanced clinic in which everyone knows the bottom line -- we will push each other to bigger and better successes -- a group of supportive and competitive friends being there for one another -- to learn from each other and to "JUST DO IT"

A special thank you to those to have committed to supporting this!!!

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Don't wish it were easier; wish you were better. Don't wish for less problems; wish for more skills. Don't wish for less challenges; wish for more wisdom.

I borrowed this from my virtual friend Tammy's blog -- thanks Tammy -- it is a great read!!

In case you didn't know, the 50K racewalk is the longest footrace in the Olympic games, 8K (5 miles) farther than the marathon!

The world championships were in Osaka this week, and here's an article about the results.

FIFTY K WALK FOR DAILY YOMIURI

.By Elliott DenmanSpecial to the Daily YomiuriOSAKA –

Fifty-kilometer racewalkers consider themselves the toughest of the tough. Marathoners? They stop nearly eight kilometers early.Ten thousand-meter runners? Relative sprinters.To outsiders, fifty-kilometer men are the grizzled devotees of an event that seems to go on forever, an event that’s been the longest event in major championships since its debut at the 1932 Olympic Games, yet far too many people (a) understand, and (b) appreciate.To do what they do and for as long as they do it, fifty-kilometer men can’t be softies. But guess what? Deep down, they really are.Nathan Deakes proved that yesterday morning.With some 100 meters left to walk, as the finish line neared, the last of his 24 Nagai Park two-kilometer road loops behind him, and morning-long chasers Yohan Diniz and Alex Schwazer no longer a threat to catch him, the 30-year-old Aussie had himself a very good and public cry.By the time he crossed that line, three hours, 43 minutes and 53 seconds after he heard the starting gun at 7 a.m., those tears had turned to a gusher.Said Deakes, after he’d dried his eyes:“A lot of athletes make a lot of sacrifices along the way, and I’m one of them. I was thinking about everybody that ever helped me, my family and my wife, the support team that I’ve had around me..“If I had to split up my medal in pieces for everybody who’d ever helped me, I wouldn’t have much left for myself. This is something I’ve dreamed about forever, and now to have it actually come true…“ I tried to concentrate (on the final meters), but it was something I couldn’t help. It just started coming out.“To actually come to the finish line (first), I couldn’t believe it, and I still can’t. World champion? It’s amazing.”Amazing is the right word. Deakes, who set the world 50-kilometer record of 3:35:47 on home turf in Geelong last Dec. 2, then fought through a series of injuries on the road to Osaka, showed ultimate strategic sense.Others handled the early pace-setting: Spain’s Santiago Perez, China’s Yu Chaochong, Russia’s Vladimir Kanaykin.By the midway point, though, Deakes held a share of the lead, with Kanaykin and Japan’s own Yuki Kamazaki – to the utter delight of the many uniformed, fan-waving supporters in Nagai Park.Then Diniz of France crashed the party, only to see Deakes surge right back. And that’s the way it stayed, with Alex Schwazer of Italy’s late bid sufficing only for the bronze medal back of Deakes and Diniz.There were cheers for the special achievers – Russia’s Denis Nizhegorodov, finishing fourth when his heralded teammates were succumbing to heat-induced wobbles and heading to the sidelines; Canada’s Tim Berrett, the 19th placer, as the first man to compete in nine World Championships; Portugal’s Jorge Costa, the 27th-placer, age 46, as the oldest athlete in the whole meet.But there were only commiserations and the deep regrets of the organizing committee, for Japan’s Kamazaki, who held sixth place after 35 kilometers, only to be mistakenly waved into the stadium one two-kilometer loop early, then being relegated to the DNF (did not finish) list.It would have-should have-would have equaled the highest placing by a Japanese race walker in World Championships history, but it won’t.Fifty-four men started the race, just 31 finished it. Nine were disqualified, 14 were DNFs, several stretchered-
off.And, one more thing. The fifty-kilometer racewalk is the championships’ only event that doesn’t have a women’s equivalent. And the ladies, seeing what this event does to men, seem in no rush to demand equality of opportunithy.

DAVID AND LINDSAY
WEDDING PHOTOS

AUGUST 25/2007

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Success is never final and Failure never fatal. It's courage that counts."
-George F. Tilton

"Courage is the greatest of all virtues, because if you haven't courage, you may not have an opportunity to use any of the others."

- Samuel Johnson

The happy couple has returned from their honeymoon -- an awesome couple -- am I brimming with pride - YUP!!

Been a busy week again (I know Steve -- seems like I always am) and when I think I can't get busier, I take on something new to just add more to it........The clinics are gearing up for their first race weekend this weekend -- about 12 are doing the Port Perry half marathon with me and another 8 are doing the 60k Breast Cancer Weekend Walk for the Cure.................Watch for the results as the A TEAM storms Port Perry --- where there was only me from this area last year the team has grown and we should do very well taking everything into consideration.

My monthly total for mileage last month was 290kms -- giving me approximately 2300kms to date this year......I have added a new twist -- I have found that some hard biking outdoors has been a very different and supportive cardio and leg workout -- so I am trying to do 65km per week walking training plus 75kms on the bike per week just to see how this will impact my overall fitness level...........

Suwa Ko is only 8 weeks away......Port Perry this weekend and the Toronto half marathon on Oct 14 as warmups before then!!