Looks good.

Today I had another physio appointment and I feel great. I’m slowly making progress in my ability to fire the small, deep muscles and my imbalances are getting less severe. My leg is getting much better and I haven’t had any pain in about 2 weeks. There is pain in my leg, but it is in the locations where the cast presses on the leg for hours each day. Learning to distinguish between the stress fracture pain and pain from other factors like the cast and lack of movement has been crucial for me in determining recovery. Friday I’m scheduled to get the cast off, so I’m excited. Saturday morning I’ll start cycling even if the cast doesn’t come off. Cycling easy should put less stress on the tibia than walking in a cast, so I’m confident it’ll be fine.

I stumbled across this video the other day and now I really want to see it. The cinematography and viewpoint of the movie looks unique and in depth. Check it out. If anyone has seen it leave some feedback and let me know how it is.

A Ride With George Hincapie

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Just activate!

Yesterday I started the next step on my recovery back, Physio. I went down to Tower Physio in downtown Calgary. I was seeing Dr David Holmes about my leg and trying to get rid of any imbalances I have. He is one of the most amazing people I have met and I came out of the appointment knowing that this year I’ll be running faster than ever. He doesn’t rely solely on traditional techniques, but really  listens to you and tries to apply brand new research and technology. What we were working on yesterday was neural firing in key muscles. I have some imbalances and problems activating some muscles in my hip and leg, so I’m working on activating only those muscles. It’s tough and involves sitting on the toilet (with the seat down) to do one exercise, but I think it’s fantastic. I’ll update you on this later as things improve.

Have a great weekend,

G-Force

blueseventy Sponsorship

I am pleased to announce that this year I will be training and racing in blueseventy wetsuits. This year I will be swimming in the totally revamped helix suit. The blueseventy Helix is known for it’s flexibility and it’s great feel in the water. Blueseventy will introduce a new wetsuit to their lineup this year, the Axis, which is for weaker swimmers who are looking for added buoyancy. Along with wetsuits, blueseventy has a full line up of swimskins, goggles, neoprene hats and accessories.

Thank you to everyone at blueseventy and I look forward to working with your products this year.

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Losing my crutches

My armpits are sweating with joy today. Yes, it’ll take a couple days for the chafing to completely go away, but I’m can now leave the crutches in my car for emergency situations only. This morning I had a dr’s appointment and he was very pleased with how I’m healing. He wants me to try walking with my air cast and see how things go. It sounds like another 2 weeks before I’m out of the boot, but we are seeing progress. Tomorrow I start a rehab program at the U of C with my old anatomy proff.

Training today has been fantastic. My swim was an early one, starting at 5am, but was one of the best swims I’ve had in a while. My stroke seemed to be fluid, I was gliding, rolling and catching lots of water. Needless to say I felt fantastic. Then I hopped out of the water, coached the Talisman Tri Club for an hour and then hopped back in the pool for 80mins of water running. Again while running I was able to zone out and the time seemed to fly by. No pain in the tibia today and feeling great.

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Haile Gebrselassie in Dubai analysis

Fantastic article from The Science of Sport on Geb. He closed his marathon in a 2:36km! What is the most stagering thought, is that to run his world record marathon of 2:03:59 he has to hold a pace of 2:56/km!

The Science of Sport: Haile Gebrselassie 2:06:09 in Dubai

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Dancing in the rain

The other day a friend of mine, Alli, sent me this quote. The comment was in response to hearing about my stress fracture and it has really helped me over the past couple weeks. This is exactly the approach I’ve been trying to take with this newest injury and it has been extremely helpful.  Trying to find joy in all of life’s circumstances is not an easy task, but rather a lifelong commitment that I have made. Not everything is fun, easy or even what we want, but we can take something out of every circumstance to make our lives great.

“Life is not about surviving the storm, but learning how to dance in the rain.”

My kind of dancing in the rain.

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Olympic Torch Relay

This morning I got up early, like I normally do, but there was nothing normal about this morning. I made my way downtown with a bunch of friends to watch the Olympic torch relay. My very good friend Joshua Riker-Fox was running with the torch this morning at 6:58. We all ran by him cheering and enjoying the energetic atmosphere that always seems to surround the Olympics. After Josh’s 300m stint with the torch we all met up at Denny’s for a hearty breakfast before the day’s workouts and work. At Denny’s Josh had his picture taken countless times and will be the newest poster boy of the next Denny’s newsletter! What a great morning and I’m officially getting into the Olympic spirit.

If you have the opportunity try and take part in the torch relay festivities.

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Coolest podium shoes ever

A few months ago at Interbike I saw a tiny pic of these shoes and thought they were awesome. I think this year I’ll try and get sponsored by Mavic just so I can try and get my hands on a pair of these for the podium. They have the same upper as their incredible zxellium road shoes but with a rubber sole. Of course they are in Mavic yellow. Awesome.

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Hockey night in Calgary

Things have been going fairly well this week. On Monday I had a follow-up Dr’s appointment and he told me I needed to back off on the swimming and water running until I could do it without pain. This lasted all of the rest of the day and then I figured out a way to do both without pain. As long as I use a pull buoy almost the entire time while swimming my leg doesn’t hurt at all. When water running I tie my foot in a dorsiflexed position. This seems to work wonders and now I’m back tearing up the lanes at Talisman.

Last night I took a break from my working and training regime to enjoy some festivities at the Saddledome.  The Calgary Flames were playing the Pitsburg Penguins and I was fortunate enough to sit 8 rows off the ice behind the net. Now, I don’t normally follow hockey, but I won’t pass up tickets or spending time with some friends.

You’ll be happy to know that I didn’t make a fool of myslef and fall flat on my face with my crutches. As we were leaving the game, I found a crutch buddy waiting at the top of the icy stairs. So, I crutched over to him tapped his crutches with mine and called him my crutch buddy. He didn’t seem to really appreciate the situation and just muttered at the top of the stairs while I descended the stairs, praying I wouldn’t bail. Thanks Paul, that was a great night!

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Incredible movie and story

Yesterday I watched a fantastic movie, called The Blind Side. It is a story about a poor boy from the projects who is taken in by a family one night when he has no place to go. With the help of others he gets through school and begins to excel at football and life. The story and the actors are fantastic and it really made an impression on me. I have been so blessed throughout my life and have never had to worry about where my next meal was going to come or if it would be safe to fall asleep. For this I have to thank God and my family.

Considering I can’t really do that much, I seem to have more time to watch movies these days.

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