Hello my friends. Lovely rain/snow/sleet/wind/cold out in Cow-town today. Not so bad in Edmonton but as you all know up north - us in Calgary like to give it to you Edmontonians! At least you got the first round draft pick. All we got is, well not much. I can't even cheer for the Habs...

As it could be three feet of snow here by Saturday, let's meet at Eau Claire for our 8 am trot around the downtown. Don't miss out on an opportunity to test the bounce of the Peace Bridge! See you in the Eau Claire YMCA by the pool.

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I have been thinking about our trotters and how difficult the days have been this spring for some. We have enjoyed some wonderful experiences as individuals, highs of marathon qualifications, trips, and finish lines. We have also experienced some lows; injuries, relationships, and reactions to name a few.

I am constantly reminded of the 10-80-10 rule that was shared many years ago by our friend Kara. 10% of the time your trot is outstanding-never better-world beater. 80% of the days are just okay. We survive with friendship, no injuries, and our lunch in its rightful place. And then there is that last 10%, those days where we wonder why we woke from that sleep, where we DNF'd, crashed, or just had a miserable day.

All of these days make up who we are as an athlete. Those perfect days are just as important as the awful to allow us an opportunity to grown and learn from success and failure. What makes you tick? Is it the person at your side that spreads the wealth of knowledge (and multitudes of gossip!), or perhaps the peer pressure of having a larger group that you can blend into and just allow the crowd to pull you along? Do we challenge or hinder your progress? Hmmm...

Age can definitely play a part of your performance. Ken Skea aside, most of us have experienced a slide in our ability as we have crossed thresholds of 20-30-40-50-60. I have definitely seen my body catch my age these last few years. Granted a desk role and our Marketplace treats have also been a factor in this decline!

Sample, sample, sample. Keep those students practicing!

When you are finding the day not working in your favour, catalogue it with a journal in a book, a calendar, FB, somewhere you will be able to track and recall your days. Think of your fluid and food intake, your workday stress, activity, injuries - anything that may have affected your day good and bad. By tracking both the good and bad of your day and training you will be able to more accurately predict your ability to repeat training with success.

My friends who are struggling right now, you know who you are, keep consistency as your guide and tweak out all those things that are causing you grief. Your days of old when you wer young will come back and not haunt but rather help you across that daily finish line.
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 Many of you have heard me chat about this tower climb. While 802 steps might sound daunting, it really is about 15 minutes of left/right repeat with many water stops, photo ops, and good people along the stairs. If you have never tried this before please join me and I guarantee you will enjoy the experience. Heck, you might even go up twice!

Don't think you have what it takes, read the latest news and the story of Phyllis Hart. She passed away last week but had done the climb every year until she was 93 years old. NOBODY I know doesn't have the ability! So please join Joy and me as we climb up the stairs and see the next wonderful art piece in the stairwell.
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I pulled this story from the Calgary Herald today. I personally am killing myself doing a TRX workout to work my core and balance, but here is a good description of some simple training techniques. This might help with the earlier issues...

ROB WILLIAMS IS A KINESIOLOGIST AND POSTURE SPECIALIST IN DOWNTOWN VANCOUVER: WILLIAMSHEALTHGROUP.COM ROB WILLIAMS

Core training builds balance

Moves help avoid injuries

If you’re counting on longer days and warmer weather so you can get outside to do your exercise, hopefully you don’t have too much longer to wait.

Photos, courtesy, Rob Williams In the sprawl twist, the core is engaged, building rotational movement under load.

For those who prefer running, cycling or swimming as their primary athletic activity, I hope you remember the importance of building balance within your body.
Whether it’s sitting at a computer, working in the garden, or riding your bike for hundreds of kilometres each week, too much of any single position or movement pattern isn’t a good thing. It can result in compromised posture and movement because of imbalances in your body, which result in dysfunction, pain and injury.
For example, if your daily routine and exercise efforts have you in a position of sustained forward flexion, you really need to do maintenance exercises that promote extension. If your conditioning activities are all linear (moving forward in a straight line, like running or cycling), you’d be well advised to start performing lateral and rotational movements to maintain balance.
Here are a few of my favourite exercises to help runners, cyclists and swimmers stay balanced and healthy. Remember to consult your physician before changing your exercise program, and always warm up properly before exercise.
One-legged squat, supported
An issue I often find in linear athletes is hip weakness, presenting as an inability to control the lateral stability of the pelvis under load. Often there is an ability to maintain a level pelvis while standing still on one leg, but the minute you ask them to engage their hip musculature and start to squat, they lose control of their pelvis.
The unsupported hip drops toward the floor; the supported hip juts out to the side, there is twisting of the supporting leg and knee, and unnecessary curving and twisting through the spine.
An easy way to build functional strength in these hip muscles is to perform controlled squats on each leg, supporting your balance with a wall or chair, and being absolutely committed to maintaining a square, level pelvis and neutral alignment of the spine and leg.
Stand with your left side to a wall, facing a mirror. Using the wall for support, raise your left foot off the floor by picking it up behind you. Perform slow, shallow squats on your right leg, keeping your entire body aligned and your right foot flat on the floor. Do as many as you can, then switch to the other side. Try two to three sets to fatigue, increasing the depth as you get stronger.

Sprawl twists
One area of functional movement that often becomes limited is rotation. There are many passive rotational stretches, and most are helpful, but it’s also important to make sure that you can perform active rotational movement while under load. This conditions the core musculature to stabilize and protect the spine during athletic activities, while ensuring that you maintain functional range of motion.
For the sprawl twist, start in a four-point sprawl position, with your body well aligned and your core engaged. From this loaded position raise one hand off the floor and turn to reach it upward toward the ceiling.
The initiation of the turning motion should come from your mid-section, turning your rib cage and upper torso first, with the shoulder, arm and head coming in sequence.
Try to keep your pelvis centred and level as you turn, with equal and consistent weight on both legs. Attempt five slow, controlled turns on each side.
Wall bridging
Active extension movements are essential for balancing the flexed positions of running and cycling, as well as posture. This modified wall bridge is helpful for the spine and shoulders, and is easily progressed to increase the level of difficulty.
Start with your back against a wall and feet flat on the floor. Hold your spine in neutral and your legs and hips slightly flexed as shown.
Reach your arms over your shoulders and place your fists on the wall, with your elbows bent. Maintain your body position and core engagement as you press through your fists to slowly lift your body from the wall.

Hold for five to 10 seconds and relax, repeating for 10 repetitions. Staying taller is easier. Try bending your legs for increased difficulty.

Simple enough?