Rina took the “Climber of the day award” when she ascended her first 5.10a, a feat was quite impressive!

Here’s a quick video of our day at Mission Cliffs…enjoy!

Monkey’s @ Mission Cliffs from Shawn Cheatham on Vimeo.

I started using a 3ft foam roller about 2 months after starting to train for triathlons. I have no idea how I managed to overlook them as a recovery tool for so long but after a few weeks I was sold.

Rollers were originally used in Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine but have since migrated to the gym and beyond. Technically using a roller employs a technique called self-myofacial release (SMRT) which basically translates to a “self-massage”. Similar to heading down to the local massage therapist for deep tissue massage, using a foam roller allows you to massage out those knots that form from every day life as well as training.

I’m of the ’stretch before and after’ camp, so I typically plan 2-3 minutes on the foam roller regardless of the type of workout I have planned and on off days I’ll “roll” while watching TV. Careful though, after a few days/weeks of eliminating the tender spots, it can become quite addictive.

One of the best things about the foam roller is that it’s highly versatile. Over a short period of time you’ll find that the ‘knots’ begin to relax and you’ll need to move on to other problem areas.

Happy rolling…

“We are here to support our city’s amazing runners, cyclists, yogis and athletes with yoga, goal setting and of course, technical gear to keep Austin moving!” Monica Alas, local resident and lululemon’s Regional Community Manager for Texas.

The big top-themed opening weekend celebration includes complimentary classes, freakishly fit demos, and bizarre entertainment. Friday morning kicks off the celebration with a 9:30 a.m. outdoor yoga class led by lululemon ambassador Dean Mahan.  Then, guests are invited to work up a sweat on Saturday at 8:30 a.m. with a CrossFit session led by one of Austin’s fittest women, Carey Kepler and calm the senses on Sunday, November 16 with a 3:00 p.m. Flow Yoga session led by Zoe Mantarakis & live music by Oliver Rajamani.  The festivities continue throughout the weekend with face painting, acro yoga, healthy bites and other odd surprises. The grand opening ends on Thursday, November 20th when lululemon hosts a bazaar-like evening celebration at the store from 6-9 p.m.

lululemon’s vision is to elevate the world from mediocrity to greatness. The Austin store will do this by partnering with yoga studios and fitness clubs around the city to offer classes, demos and training clinics to guests. Ongoing complimentary weekly classes will be offered every Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. at the store.

Full Press Release

That said, I have to wonder whether the subscription market will backlash because let’s be real, how many $10-$40 subscriptions can your bank account handle? Personally, I tend to try to keep my subscriptions to a minimum because I tend to forget what I’ve subscribed to and could see myself ending up with more monthly fee’s than really necessary. On the other hand, I’m take full advantage of the low barrier to buying when it comes to breaking off bits of services that I deem ‘critical’…but what’s critical? Is SweetSpot or BizNik critical? Do I really need NetFlix, NYT Online, DirectTV or the rest? Perhaps not…I draw the line somewhere between personal and business by trying to keep personal stuff to a bare minimum and only subscribe to business stuff when I don’t like the alternative.

…hmph…i wonder… 

I’m gearing up to officially start training on Feb. 10 but my first triathlon of the season is tomorrow morning…indoors of course. I’ll be volunteering for the first half and participating in the last wave. I’ve never done an indoor, so it ought to be a good time.

The pre-training I’ve been doing the past few weeks has revealed even more rickety areas, so I decided to do something about it. For instance, I’ve always thought my right leg is stronger than the left which may in fact be true, however, I’ve been working on some stabilization movements and realized my right side is ridiculously sloppy. I can barely stand on one leg without my foot wobbling all over the place. Consider what this is going to mean when I’m running and riding for hours each week during the season. Or simple things like reaching down to pick up my dirty socks off the floor which typically is on one leg.

As humans we spend a lot of our time on 1 leg which means that balance and stabilization for us should be easy and to some extent it is, however, consider how much we sit vs. how much we walk. We become so deconditioned by sitting in the car, at the office, at the movie theater…the list goes on, that when we attempt to play a quick game of basketball our body doesn’t know how to respond. The next time you’re in the gym think about how much time you sit on a bench or chair lifting heavy weight and then ask yourself, how does this relate to everyday life. If you’re going to be in the gym working out you might as well make it useful to your everyday life, right? If you’re not sure about it, ask you’re local trainer for some help…they’ll know what I’m talking about and should be able to give you a few pointers.