Plentiful QSM racing exploits

Last weekend it was time for Queensland's State ITT and Criterium champs.  Saturday saw Jane W (bronze), Corissa (gold) and Jane Y (gold) all accomplish medals in their respective women's masters ITT categories. 

This was achieved despite some tough competition, and the added bad fortune of an angry local deliberately trying to sabotage the event by throwing a large number of tacks on the road!  Unfortunately for some competitors, this resulted in damaged bodies, damaged equipment, and DNF's.

Sunday was a much windier day, and time for the Criterium champs at the Arundel circuit. 

For some grades, the wind meant that there were many attempts at breakaways, and often the winners were those who persevered the most.  The women's masters criterium race once again saw Jane Y, Corissa and Jane W each get GOLD medals!  They may be setting the bar too high.  :) 

In our particular race (Elite women), a very small field of girls competing meant that the wind actually discouraged any real breakaways...

it was just too tough to stay away by yourself... and this resulted in a bunch sprint. 

Gaining confidence again after her interstate crash earlier in the year, Jemma managed an awesome third place and a bronze medal.

Thanks to Matt Boyd, Jane Walker and Brad Gooda for the photos.

QSM success at Qld State Masters Champs

Congratulations to Jane Youdan, Corissa Smith and Jane Walker on each winning gold medals in their respective Women's Masters RR Categories on Saturday Aug 25th 2012!  Go QSM girls!

Stumbling around in the work-life wilderness

I have recently taken on full-time work again (in veterinary speak, that means 6-7 days a week, plus on-call every night) while a work colleague is on holidays.  How quickly it has reminded me of why I escaped to the world of part-time work about 4 years ago. 

It’s not that I don’t like my work.  I really enjoy it (even the very hectic times), and I am lucky to be in such a challenging, demanding and rewarding profession.  But at the same time, it is a career that simply gives you no “time out”.  I drive to work thinking about the difficult cases we have in hospital, and drive home again doing the same.  I get woken up at 2am by a distressed client who thinks their pet might be sick. 

For veterinarians all over the world, this routine is nothing unusual.  Having said that, the average day of a veterinarian doesn’t really resemble an episode Bondi Vet either.  What I realised is that it wasn’t good for my “mental health” to be doing this day after day, week after week, year after year.  Scuba diving and running became the outlets of my work stress initially, and then at some point this metamorphosised into mountain biking and then road cycling.  Right now, although I am still keen to get out and ride my bike, the cumulative stress of way too many ill animal patients is bearing down on me, and I am appreciating all over again why I changed to part-time. 

Taking the easy way out with part-time work?  Yes I might be, but I only get one chance at one lifetime.

Why it's gonna hurt...

Cunningham Classic... in 2012, it will be the 30th edition of this annual Qld road race.  We previewed the "hilly bits" of the course last weekend ( I had somehow managed to effectively block it from my memory bank after doing it in 2008, or was it 2007 ? ), and yes I remember now why it's such a tough race.

There are no "major" climbs, but the 'problem' is that it goes uphill for the first 45km or so.  No relief from constant pressure on the pedals.

And then once it is flat, you usually get a howling headwind for the remaining 50km or so to the finish.  Fun times ahead next weekend!

Santos North Western Tour

This is a quick "better-late-than-never" post...
(And I had to wait for cycling central's video to make this post complete)...

The QSM girls (Maddi, Claire, Jemma and Jane) braved the cold to attend the Santos North Western Tour two weekends ago...
and Jane W managed to demonstrate what an awesome sprint she has, by coming second on stage 4... super terrific work Miss Jane!  (Note how far back Jane starts her sprint and how much distance she makes up.)
http://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/video/2250669393/Santos-North-Western-Tour-Stage-4-Highlights

Altitude: part 2

I was fortunate enough to recently have the opportunity to attend a level 1 instructors course with ATS (Altitude Technology Solutions) held by Rob Darley (former UK track cyclist).  Although I am not a PT (personal trainer), I have a keen interest in all-things-altitude, especially with my background in veterinary science (lots of physiology!) and large amounts of previous scuba diving experience (altitude is almost the polar opposite).

The ATS course is designed to ensure that personal trainers and/or coaches attain a solid background in the where / why / who / what of altitude training.

Amazingly, intermittent hypoxic training (IHT) has already been around for over 40 years.  Some of the triggers for athletes looking into training at altitude included the high-altitude Mexico City Olympics (1968).  Surprisingly, even the cycling great Eddy Merckx experimented with altitude training at his home in Belgium while he was preparing to beat the hour record (1972).

As the media has often reported, more and more sports teams (AFL, rugby, other football codes, etc) utilize altitude training in their off-season, pre-season and sometimes even during the season.  It is no surprise to note that many Olympic sportspeople also integrate altitude training into their preparation.  But the health benefits of altitude are there for anyone.  In my health club (Breathe), I regularly see many 50-60 year olds (as well as 20-40 year olds) taking advantage of circuit classes held in the altitude room, as well as using the stationary gym equipment.

By stimulating the body’s metabolism in an hypoxic environment, altitude training allows changes to occur to the body’s normal glucose and fat breakdown methods.  The body has to make adaptive changes to become more efficient while exercising at low oxygen levels.  The “power house” of most cells in the body, the mitochondria, are heavily influenced by hypoxia.  Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) is a signaling factor in the body, and it plays a key role in activating a broad range of genes that help protect cells against hypoxia.  By stimulating the production of HIF, it is thought that altitude training can help re-program the body’s basal oxygen metabolism. 

It is hoped that current and future applications of altitude training will not only include performance benefits for the elite athletes, but general health improvement benefits for the general public, rehabilitation for patients after injury / illness, and enhanced fat loss and improved metabolism for the obese population.

So back to the course… it was both theory-based and practical-based.  Apart from learning more about the history of IHT, and how altitude influences the body’s physiology, Rob runs the course attendees through the pros and cons of mask and chamber altitude systems; how to use pulse oximeters; how to conduct baseline tests on new clients; and then goes through the how/when/where of exercise programs at altitude, and importantly how to integrate these with sea-level programs.  Rob has an easy-to-listen-to style of lecturing, and makes the day go quite quickly.  I would definitely recommend doing the course if you are a PT, or just wanting to learn more about altitude.

Altitude: a novice's experience

In the last few years, altitude training has become a lot more accessible to the Average Joe. In the Brisbane area alone, there is now a choice of at least 5 fitness facilities (Morningside, Milton, Gabba, Wellington Point, North Lakes) that offer altitude training (in a commercial chamber).
http://ats-altitude.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=27&Itemid=35

For some reason, even though anyone can now have access to this training, it still seems to be somewhat of a “secret society” type of training, and not as mainstream as I would have expected it to be by now. I remember a few athletes speaking to me about altitude back in 2009, convinced of its benefits.

So does it work?

There are certainly a few journal articles that are convincing.
http://www.jssm.org/vol10/n1/24/v10n1-24pdf.pdf

But like anything to do with cycling and increasing performance, what works for one person, may not work for another.

So has it worked for me (remembering that I am doing the train-high, live-low version, not the train-low, live-high version)?

I am not 100% certain yet. My power figures look considerably better than at the start of the year, but some other things have changed as well, which makes me unable to put all the improvements down to just the altitude. I am stretching more, and my diet is better. I have also lost weight and my thyroid levels are better regulated. Since my recovery sessions are now in altitude, my recovery sessions have also become (much) better quality sessions. And how many times have you heard it being mentioned that your recovery days are what allows improvements in fitness?

I have finished a ten week block of altitude, had a 2 week rest period, and have started again on my next block. For many athletes, the true “gains” are supposed to be seen during the 10-14 day period after stopping altitude. For me, I found I was absolutely “flying” in the last week of altitude, and then during the first week off. By the second week off, I didn’t have the same “unbeatable” feeling as I experienced the previous week. Again, everyone is different.

So can I offer any practical advice?

(1) consult your doctor BEFORE you start altitude training, even if you seem to be perfectly healthy. Altitude training is one more stress on your body, and you never know when something like this might be the straw that broke the camel’s back. Be sure you are in a good starting position to gain the benefits from altitude training.

(2) get your iron levels checked BEFORE starting. Athletes (males and females) are prone to iron deficiency in any case, and altitude training will put an additional strain on this part of your body’s physiology.

(3) only do recovery sessions in altitude for the first 6-8 weeks. This allows your body to acclimatise properly.

(4) be prepared for the excessive fatigue and tiredness that you will experience in the first 2 weeks of altitude. After this, you adapt and the fatigue goes away again. It can be difficult to explain to your work colleagues when you want to take a nap at 10am!

(5) consult someone who knows lots about altitude when putting together your program for increasing efforts at altitude.
http://ats-altitude.com/index.php?option=com_fabrik&view=form&fabrik=9&random=0&Itemid=18

(6) shop around for altitude centres and compare their pricing and advice / experience. Increasingly in Brisbane there are fitness centres that have installed an altitude chamber that allow unlimited access to altitude as part of your regular gym membership (for only a small increase in fees). Make sure they supply you with a pulse oximeter (to monitor oxygen saturation) for each session that you do. Be aware that the fitness industry in Australia is mostly self-regulated and although you should be able to trust most fitness professionals, you need to look after yourself as well.