Together we shed blood, shared tears and drowned in our sweat. One look at each other is enough. We know what we sacrificed and the sacrifices we asked from our loved ones.

The long practice hours; before work, after work, during the weekend. Waking up at 6 AM to do a light swim work out. Skipping after-work drinks, nights out with the boys or family obligation because you’re working on your bricks. Our idea of a nice weekend breakfast is first do a 80km bike workout, followed by a nice a lovely meal.

We don’t have to explain why. We know. We try to explain our passion to others, but we realize that there will always be people that ‘will never get it’. No, swimming in open water won’t kill you and yes we prefer a run work out above watching re-runs of Lost.

We track progress and we count. Calories. Watt. Heart rate. Speed. Carbs. Weight. Cadence. Transition times. VO2 max. We (try to) eat healthy, because we know that when the input is crap, the output will be too.

And we love our gear. It’s not only about the bike. A new taste of gel can get us stoked and eager to try out. We drool over running shoes, watches and the tiniest bits of equipment… because it will make a difference and make us faster (even if it’s only between our ears).

Because that’s what it’s all about. Be faster, stronger, better .

I’m your competition. I want to be stronger than you. I want to be faster. I want to kick your ass. I want my better to be better than your better. But I respect you. Because I know. You know.

This is the Band of Athletes.

And Crispin Crispian shall ne’er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remembered-
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother

- William Shakespeare in The Chronicle History of Henry the Fifth

It’s great to support others. To cheer for them. To applaud for them. To wish them the best of luck. To follow them during their quest. To be proud of them. To want to see them succeed. To celebrate their wins and to share their losses.

But please be inspired by the greatness of others and let it be your motivation to want to perform on that next level. Don’t be the sucker who only observes but doesn’t take action.

Visualize that you’re not the one who’s rooting but you’re the one they’re rooting for.

To watch greatness and history happen is nice. To be the one who’s doing it is brilliant.

June was an intense month with a lot of training mainly focussed on cycling while maintaining my current skill level of running and swimming. I tried to maintain a ’schedule’ of two shorts and one long ride a week combined with an occasional swim or run training.

I worked out 15 days in June (of the available 30) so that’s 50%. I should increase this metric although I sincerely believe it’s not about the total amount but also more on intensity.

The results

Swimming
Short said, I must do more mileage. I’m too weak of a swimmer and I’m completely exhausted after a good 2km swim. It’s a strong point of focus for the upcoming month.

Cycling
Can’t complain about this one. Good distance and strong rides; usually above 30km per hour. Happy about (distance and intensity) it because it was my main goal this month. Rewarded myself with a new bike!

Running
Just 3 runs this month; one coming of the bike. Can’t complain although it would be wise to increase the total of runs to 5 or 6 in ‘non-running’ months; a.k.a. more running of the bike.

Body statistics

Lenght: 1,95
Weight: 98 kg (-1,1 kg)
BMI: 25,9 (-0,2)
Heartbeat*: 53 BPM (-)
*measured after 2 minutes of complete rest during a 1 minute time span.

Looking forward

What I’m really struggling with is my energy level. The current workload, intense training sessions, busy personal live and the high temperatures are killing me. I must get more ‘active’ rest and sleep.

Concerning training I’m focussing on swimming and running this month. Furthermore some good, long and hard rides on my new bike so I can get used to it.

Goal
Swim 20km / Bike 250km / Run 150km

I will decide in the upcoming week if I will participate in my first (70.3) Ironman the 8th of August. I would love to it, but I’m not feeling fully prepared at this moment.

That’s it. So keep living hard and enjoy!

Once upon a time I was a fairly heavy coffee user drinking 8 to 10 cup of joe’s a day. It wasn’t the good stuff either, it was low quality / even worse taste coffee made from real coffee powder. Yeah! Then one day I decided to quit. Cold turkey. I suffered 3 days of headaches before giving in and getting a shot (which relieved me from my headaches). This was the moment I realized that drinking large amounts of coffee each day probably wasn’t the best thing to do. From that day, 1,5 year ago, I’ve started lessen my coffee consumption.

Recently I, once again, drastically cut down on my coffee. Two weeks went by without drinking a cup and… it felt really good. I was way more relaxed and could focus more easily. I had more real, raw energy, energy not coming from a coffee-buzz or high.

Looking for motivation to cut down on coffee? Look no further, hereby the 8 reasons to stop drinking coffee.

Dehydration

We need 8 glasses of water a day to stay hydrated and to let your body perform to an optimum. For each cup of coffee you drink you will be increasing that number and put yourself in a deficit from the get-go. Say goodbye to coffee and hello to water.

It’s expensive

Ever wondered why it’s called the latte factor?

Addicative

Coffee is a psychoactive drug, just like cocaine, heroin and LSD. Drink coffee and you can be troubled by headaches, nausea, fatigue, dowdiness, anxiety, irritability, inability to concentrate, irregular heartbeats, diminished motivation to initiate or to complete tasks and sometimes a mild depression. Good times!

Yellow teeth

Do you want to be that guy? And it’s true; it is called the Maillard Effect.

You’re hurting others

Most coffee farmers are getting oppressed and are being taking advantage of by global corporations. Stop drinking coffee and give more power to the farmers. Or at least drink Fair Trade Coffee.

Bad breath

Drink coffee = bad for your breath. Trust me. Or trust the expression of others when you just finished your cup of joe and are talking to them.

It’s crap

It really is shit.

Real, raw energy

Stop enjoying your coffee buzz and that fake, artificial energy. Go natural and unleash and enjoy your real, caveman energy. It’s stronger and way better.

You’ll enjoy it even more

If you only drink one cup of coffee a week you’ll really enjoy it. You will cherish every hot sip and get an active sense of every taste. So if you love coffee, stop drinking it and you will love it even more!

Enjoyed this article? Then don’t hold it back from your friends and share the love!

The whole movie is based on complex and intense dialogues  and possesses some great one-liners.

So hereby I present you an overview of the 7 inspirational quotes and lessons (in business and life) from Inglourious Basterds.

1.

Quote:

Adolf Hitler: [slamming his hand on a table] Nein nein nein nein nein nein!

Lesson

Learn to say no.

2.

Quote:

Lt. Aldo Raine: That’s what I like to hear. But I got a word of warning for all you would-be warriors. When you join my command, you take on debit. A debit you owe me personally. Each and every man under my command owes me one hundred Nazi scalps. And I want my scalps. And all y’all will git me one hundred Nazi scalps, taken from the heads of one hundred dead Nazis. Or you will die tryin’.

Lesson:

Make a plan. Take action. Commit to your action.

3.

Quote:

Major Dieter Hellstrom: That was the sound of my Walther pointed right at your testicles.
Lt. Archie Hicox: Why do you have a Luger pointed at my testicles?
Major Dieter Hellstrom: Because you’ve just given yourself away, Captain. You’re no more German than that scotch.

Lesson:

Authenticity rules. If you’re not authentic, it will kill you.

4.

Quote:

Lt. Aldo Raine: That’s Sergeant Donny Donowitz. But you might know him better by his nickname… the Bearrrr Jewwwwww… Now, if you heard of Aldo the Apache, you gotta heard about the Bearrrrrr Jewwww…

Lesson:

It’s all about word of mouth and reviews.

5.

Quote:

Lt. Aldo Raine: Well I speak the most Italian, so I’ll be your escort. Donowitz speaks the second most so he’ll be your Italian cameraman. Omar speaks third most, so he’ll be Donny’s assistant.
Pfc. Omar Ulmer: But I don’t speak Italian.
Lt. Aldo Raine: Like I said, third best. Just keep your fuckin’ mouth shut. In fact why don’t you start practicing, right now

Lesson:

Know your strengths and weaknesses.

6.

Quote:

Lt. Aldo Raine: [the Basterds are breaking Sgt. Stiglitz out of jail] Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz?
[Sgt. Stiglitz nods]
Lt. Aldo Raine: Lt. Aldo Raine. These are the Basterds, ever heard of us?
[Sgt. Stiglitz nods]
Lt. Aldo Raine: We just wanted to say we’re a big fan of your work. When it comes to killing Nazis…
Nazi Guard: Uggghhhhaahhh… [one of the Basterds shoots him]
Lt. Aldo Raine: …I think you show great talent. And I pride myself on having an eye for that kind of talent. But your status as a Nazi killer is still amateur. We all come here to see if you wanna go pro.

Lesson:

Work hard and you will be rewarded.

7.

Quote:

Lt. Aldo Raine: You probably heard we ain’t in the prisoner-takin’ business; we in the killin’ Nazi business. And cousin, Business is a-boomin’.

Lesson:

Find a niche and become an expert. Even better; become the expert.

Love it? Hate it? Looking forward to your feedback.

(The quotes were derived from IMDB.)

May was a month dominated by short breaks and big parties a.k.a. bad input for training. Although I’m very much committed on completing the Ironman I’m not planning on living a mormon lifestyle in which I don’t have the opportunity to exploit the wonderful pleasures in life.

Enjoy life and train/party hard. But do it both responsible and create the best of both world. Keep in mind that while you party at night you must be prepared to wake up at 08:00 am to kick some serious ass. That may sound as a bit much but trust me, I’ve been there, it’s all worth it.

Now lets continue with the breakdown.

Body statistics

Lenght: 1,95
Weight: 99,1 kg (-1,8 kg)
BMI: 26,1 (-0,4)
Fat %: unknown
Heartbeat*: 53 BPM (-2)
*measured after 2 minutes of complete rest during a 1 minute time span.

Training distance

Total km* swum - 1,5km / 40 minutes (but did do some serious surfing)
Total km* biked - none (-270km)
Total km* ran - 51,3 (+22,3km)
*in the month of june

The Feedback

The progress wasn’t what I imagined. Looking back on the schedule I saw there were to many periods of 2 or 3 days rest in which I could have done more  (procrastination is a bitch). Still don’t believe that I will be able to run 42,2 km in one day considering what I’ve done this month. I should train harder. I will train harder.

What I should mention that although I only swam once, I did surf 10+ times in may (went on an amazing surf trip for 5 days). So that counts for something and I noticed during my first swim in open water that I’m not a total loser in the water.

Goals for June: time to shift focus bicycling while picking up on swimming and maintaining my running. Aiming for 10/350/30.

Enjoy!

- from Wikipedia

Natural resources occur naturally within environments that exist relatively undisturbed by mankind, in a natural form. Natural resources are derived from the environment. Many of them are essential for our survival while others are used for satisfying our wants.

Find your natural resources

Most of them lay well hidden and deeply buried beneath the surface. Untouched and in complete rest. So don’t expect your quest to be easy.

You must create the circumstances in which they show so you can discover yours and derive them from your environment. They’re essential for your survival and used for satisfying your wants.

Okay, you won’t die if you don’t go looking or find them. But if you want to know what’s your true motivation, your strengths, what separates you from others and makes you smile then…. Digg in and strike gold!

The easiest thing to do is to start. In the beginning you’re motivated, eager and can’t wait for the change of lifestyle. You’re interested and soaking up knowledge while reading books and blogs. In the first few days and weeks the rapid progress keeps you going and motivated. And then, as Seth Godin has branded it, The Dip happens. The Dip is the part where it’s not new anymore and where the rapid and easy progress you were booking is taking more time and getting more difficult. You must invest a lot more hours to get the same increase in skill… and that sucks.

This is also the part where most people quit. After the initial burst of enthusiasm and skill they get bored and realize that the easy part is over. The fun part is over and it’s very temping to call it a day. The smart thing however is to stick (if you have choosen the right art to master) and to make change happen.

Now the good part: now you know that this moment is coming. The Big Bad Dip is looking for you. So be ready and when the going gets tough, the tough get going.

Read on to find how you can ‘easily’ cross The Dip.

As stated before in 6 Reasons To Take It Slow On A New Adventure, one of the most essential steps, if not the most important, in completing your goals is to stay motivated during the process. If you want to enjoy honing your skills and reaching your goals you’ve got to stay motivated.

Motivated training = Fun training

The question is how do you keep yourself motivated in the short term so you can complete your long term goals. How do you increase the short term pay off so you can achieve long term commitment. The first question one should ask now is: What is motivation?

You could argue that one is motivated when the perceived reward exceeds the perceived sacrifice / investment. Both element, investment and rewards, can be intrinsic (i.e. time,  pleasure) and extrinsic (i.e. money). So how can you maintain motivation after the drop-off which you will encounter shortly after the start a.k.a. The Dip?

Lower the initial investment

Over the course of a year I might be investing €4.000 in equipment, food and training; money I don’t have at this moment. I will be investing hundreds hours of training to get ready for the Ironman; time I don’t have at this moment.

Don’t set up high fences but start frugal and small. If you start running you don’t need new shoes, a personal trainer, fancy clothes, a GPS watch and more. Just start running, build momentum and take it step by step. In stead of watching re-runs of Lost, or TV in general, spend those hours training. I promise you will get a lot more in return.

Make sure your initial investment and effort are manageable, bite-size chunks.

Shift the focus

It is good to have a clear view off the big picture (complete the IronMan) but that shouldn’t be your focus on the short term. I’ve only completed a quarter of a marathon 3 months ago. Yet I am supposed to finish an IronMan in a year time. At this moment that looks like a near impossible task.

Shift your focus to the short term and see what you have accomplished and what milestones you can accomplish in a small period of time. Celebrate those small victories and cherish those achievements.

Increase the outcome

Don’t shoot for the moon the first time. Set deliberate, small milestones and celebrate. Every time you achieve a small, but new, goal celebrate and dance like noone is watching.

Try a different view

Stress the fact that you’re not spending your time / money / effort / energy at this project. You’re investing it in a higher cause.

Apply these methods and hold on to the momentum you’re building after the initial start. It’s a flywheel; the beginning is hard, but when it starts spinning you’ll be amazed by the effortless power.

An essential part of your strategy should be how to keep your self motivated during the process.

Enjoy!

Love what you read? Was it helpful? Spread the love!

This time I will reflect on week 17, 18 & 19 and I will take a look at the upcoming schedule for weeks 20 & 21.

It’s been a couple of weeks of practicing (a lot) and learning (a lot). A bunch of ups (some good sessions) and some downs (hurting, sick). What I’m noticing is that the time of quick wins is over; it now comes to putting in the hard work and the practice hours. Keeping my head down and try to rush through the dip.

Check out what I’ve been up to.

Reflection

Week 17

Monday - rest
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - ran 11km
Thursday - rest
Friday - rest
Saturday - rest
Sunday - rest

Week 18

Monday - ran 6,5km
Tuesday -
Wednesday - ran 7,5
Thursday -
Friday - sick
Saturday - sick
Sunday -

Week 19

Monday - ran 8km
Tuesday - surf
Wednesday -
Thursday -
Friday - ran 7,3km
Saturday -
Sunday - ran 7,8km

In the week 16 I overdid the bike training and rode 130km after just 2 short bike sessions. That messed up my knee (and my progress) which resulted in a very quiet week 17. That single sessions taught me a valuable lesson about taking it slow. I’m pretty happy about weeks 18 and 19 although my being sick was a bit of a bummer.

What’s obvious about this reflection that I’m focussing on the running part now. I’ve noticed that it is very difficult to ‘learn’ three different disciplines on the same time. That’s why I’m focussing on running right now and next month I will shift my focus to cycling (or swimming). By doing this I’m building momentum, seeing progress and staying motivated. It should be noted that during this stretches of specialization I, of course, will work out in the other fields to maintain the current level.

Let’s take a look at my IronMan training schedule for the upcoming two weeks.

Upcoming schedule

week 20

Monday - run 11,5
Tuesday -
Wednesday -
Thursday - surf trip
Friday - surf trip
Saturday - surf trip
Sunday - surf trip

Week 21

Monday - surf trip
Tuesday -
Wednesday -
Thursday - run 10km
Friday -
Saturday - bike 40km
Sunday -

I already finished my monday 11,5 km run and it felt great (especially after a 8km run yesterday). This schedule of upcoming weeks is dominated by a great surf trip to La Torche, France which I’m really looking forward to. Of course it will be fun but also intense and a good preparation / training for my swimming. The days building up and following this trip will be filled with rest.

When I come back I will do a 10km run on thursday and a 40km bike ride in the weekend. This also will be the end of the month where I will switch to different discipline.

Want to track my progress during the week? Then follow me on Twitter!

Keep on rocking!

Okay, you set your goals and you’re ready to change the world. To shock it. To be amazing. Ready to change your world. Your habits. Your methods. Your life.

I saying you should slow down. Take control and put yourself in slow motion. Don’t rush yourself, head down, into it. But relax and take small, but deliberate, steps towards your goal.

The last couple of weeks I embarked on a quest to become an IronMan and I want to share some key learnings with you guys. Faults I made (for you) so you won’t have to make them.

Hereby I present to you the 6 reasons to take it slow on a new adventure (based on my own experience).

Get adjusted

Don’t ask to much from yourself the first times you take on a new challenge. Give yourself and your body time to adjust to your new life style. This point affects both your physical en mental world. You spend days / months / years building up a habit and it’s very difficult to break the mold radically and to start over. Define your quest, timeline, set milestones, and gradually transform yourself into the defined role. This shouldn’t take months; a sense of urgency is necessary. Your change shouldn’t be radical, but should cover a natural flow to a new stage and style.

Personal experience
I’m taking on running, bicycling and swimming all at once and it’s just too much. Although it’s very tempting to do it all in once I’m noticing that it isn’t the way. I must take it easy and let my body adjust before shifting my focus to another element.

Adjust your patterns

This is based on two principles: you learn by doing and the law of diminishing returns. In the first steps it’s relative easy to grow, learn and progress. By acting upon your goal you will see significant results for the limited time you spend upon your task. In this first stage is critical to play, explore and adjust to find out what works for you. Try to have an open mind and to think out of the box. Later on in this process you will find that it is much harder to break with your routine then in the beginning.

Personal experience
It’s not only training for the IronMan that’s take a bite out of me. I’m learning that I’ve got pay more attention to eating and rest. Both aspects I didn’t really take in consideration when I started. Eat more and better. Train hard, but also take the time to recover. These are elements I have to explore and figure out what works for me.

Leave yourself wanting more

Don’t go all out from the start. Relax and enjoy. Stretch the experience and don’t overdo it. When you eat your favorite meal everyday it won’t take long before it isn’t your favorite anymore. It’s the same with training; build in deliberate moments of rest, try to pace the change and you will find yourself eager to perform. Take it easy and enjoy the ride. Don’t push yourself to the max every time. Build in light and short sets. If you do this you will look forward to each training and not only those in the first months.

Personal experience
Couple of days ago I went out on a run, just a short run of 7,5 which took me 38:38. I wanted more, I wanted to run more then 10km, but I didn’t. Now I felt good, energized and looked forward to the next time working out.

Read

Will Smith said it all: running and reading are the keys to life …. There’s been millions and millions, billions and zillions of people that has live all before of us. There’s no new problem you can have, with your parents, your school, with a bully, with anything. There’s no problem you can have that someone hasn’t all ready solved and wrote about in a book.

Personal experience
While I first thought that I wouldn’t read much into the subject, I’m taking back my words after the first weeks. You want to read more about others, their methods, achievements and struggles. There is so much knowledge and experience available; it’s a shame and a bit foolish if I wouldn’t learn from it.

Stay healthy

This should be your starting point for all the changes you want to make in your life. If you take it slow from the start you learn what your body and mind is capable of; its strengths and its weaknesses. You will explore, define and sometimes stretch your boundaries. If you don’t take it slow, there’s a pretty good change you are going to get yourself hurt.

Personal experience
Three weeks ago I started working out on the bike. After just 2 short rides I overdid it and rode 130km in one day. The following 2 weeks I was bothered with a sore and irritated knee which prevented me from training or otherwise progressing. It was a major set back in my training schedule and a severe demotivator. This brings me to my next point.

Stay motivated

For lots of people it is a great challenge to stay motivated if they do something new like pick up a new sport, write a blog or change a habit. If you follow the points as stated above you will create conditions which will facilitate your success. By taking small, but successful and enjoyable, steps you will create a positive momentum which helps you not to only begin, but also the take the next essential steps.

Personal experience
To begin something is the easy part, to hold on for the whole ride is the difficult part. It’s only been a couple of weeks but I had my struggles (I didn’t knew the above). I’ve set the bar high and I’m not living up to my standard, I want to go harder, faster and be stronger. I want to train harder and longer. I aimed high, but I’ve learned to set and celebrate small milestones. Your training is also a marathon (actually an IronMan) and not a sprint.

Practice, Explore, Adjust, Discover, Read, Learn.

Slow down, stay healthy and ENJOY!