As a former punk rock drummer, AJ’s background is very unique in the sport of triathlon. He spent much of his teenage years touring the US with his band, while living out of a van. When he was in his early 20s, a friend introduced him to the sport of triathlon. Triathlon gave AJ direction in his hectic life and it soon began to consume his life all together.
The Super Bowl event for triathlon is on it’s 10 day countdown to Saturday, October 8, 2016 in Kona,Hawaii. The Ironman World Championships are here and for those who compete in triathlon, it’s our special day. The pro field is stronger than ever, but the real stories are within the age group athletes and the industry related companies who help them. These athletes have demonstrated desire, determination and discipline to qualify for this epic event.
After spending the better part of last decade as a student of the sport of triathlon, it has become very apparent that I thoroughly enjoy sharing my wealth of knowledge with others. I have been incredibly lucky to learn from some of the best athletes and coaches in the sport. My knowledge, coupled with an innate desire to teach others, makes coaching the perfect fit for me. Coaching mixes two of my strongest passions, education and triathlon.
Karel and I had a dream in 2014 that we would both try to qualify for the 2015 Ironman World Championship at Ironman Wisconsin (2014). We planned out a season of race-cations including St. Croix 70.3 in May, Ironman Austria in June and then Ironman Wisconsin in September and made sure that our training had us peaking with top fitness come IMWI race day.
“Cross Training,” what is it? The simple definition of cross training is, simply put, training in activities that are different than your primary sport. Physiologically speaking, however..... “Physiological adaptations in response to physical training are highly specific to the nature of the training activity. Furthermore, the more specific the training program is to a given sport or activity, the greater the improvement in performance in that sport or activity.” - J.H. Wilmore, D.L. Costill, W.L. Kenney
In writing Novemberʼs article on endurance tips, it was hard to narrow down to just a couple of items that would be the most bang for the buck, so to speak. Therefore, I decided to continue last monthʼs theme and expound upon a few more components for great endurance.
What zone am I in? What’s my cadence? How many calories have I burned so far? I bet I can catch that cyclist in front of me. OH WAIT, I’m not wearing my heart rate monitor! Slight panic sets in before a headwind blast off the Hudson snaps me out of it. Tri season is over. I’m not supposed to be “training.” My therapist said I need to practice simply enjoying my occasional ride to work. Appreciate the views along the Westside highway, gaze at the changing leaves in Riverside Park, ride around the pedestrians with patience rather than anger. OK, I’m not REALLY in therapy for my type-A, rigid, all-or-nothing personality, but I’m sure many of you can relate. Now that we are entering winter, especially in the Northeast, what is your off-season plan going to be?