Steve in a Speedo?! Gross!

14 Days of Nothing: Day 14: Mother Nature Can "Suck It"

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:55:00 +0000

I hate my life.

(I don't really hate my life. That was just for effect. I am pretty pissed-off, though. [OK, not really - it's still just for effect.])

Throughout these past "14 Days of Nothing," the weather has been great. Remember when I played with my cousins on Thanksgiving? That was 2 weeks ago. It was WARM and GREAT. As we played "FumbleROOski," we actually had to avoid muddy spots in the lawn:

Less than 48 hours ago, Mother Nature knew I was ready to quit my bout of nothingness, and she decided to piss me off. It started lightly snowing 2 days ago. When I opened my side door yesterday morning, I had a 14 inch drift telling me to stay in the house:

I'm not happy. I LOVE to run in cold weather, but running on uneven packed snow does a number on my feet. And we know my feet can't take much more abuse.

What horrible timing for our first big snowfall. I was about to start up again, and clean, clear sidewalks in December are a treat. But no such luck now.

After shoveling and snow-blowing for an hour yesterday, I let my feelings for Mother Nature show:

F@ck you, Mother Nature.

F@ck.
You.

14 Days of Nothing: Day 13: Three Things

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 13:07:00 +0000

First thing: Yesterday, I had my biggest workout of these past 13 days. I went to the Y and did a quick lower body workout: leg presses, goblet squats, leg extensions, lunges, etc. My ass is paying for it this morning - I woke up with the outside of my glutes quite sore. Ahhhh, I’ve missed that feeling!

Second thing: I recently started posting little triathlon-related articles on Examiner.com. I’m the “St. Paul Triathlon Examiner.” I’ve written a few articles so far. They are not “blog style;” they are much more like an informative article. I just put up 2 more articles yesterday that I think some of you will like. When I posted about MY “7 Deadly Sins” last week, the wheels started turning in my head. So I posted 2 articles on Examiner.com that are about “A Triathlete's Seven Deadly Sins.” Click here for part 1 (wrath, greed, pride, and sloth) and click here for part 2 (lust, envy, and gluttony). You might get a kick out of it.

(While you’re there, you could sign up on my Examiner.com page to receive an e-mail each time I publish a new article. I get paid a few cents for every article of mine that is viewed. Actually, I get paid 1 cent for every few views. It’s not gonna make me rich, but if you stop by my Examiner.com page now and then, it will help. Thanks!)

Third thing: There's big, new, “giveaway" news coming on Monday. It’ll be my biggest giveaway ever. I’m talking about $500 of SWEET tri gear!! So mark your calendars and stop back on Monday!

14 Days of Nothing: Day 12: Finally, that MASSAGE!

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:13:00 +0000

Yesterday was day 12 of my “14 Days of Nothing” (my self-prescribed rest). And I finally got the massage I’ve been looking forward to for the last 11 days.

Mpls / St. Paul locals, listen up: if you need a place to go for a massage, I have a woman for you. Pharmie and I discovered her about a year ago. She’s not a “fru-fru, scented candles, tickle you until you fall asleep” sort of masseuse. She’s a “digger.” And she’s our favorite! She’s trained (or licensed, or certified, or something) in Shiatsu, but she mixes that with a form of Chinese Medical Massage called Tui Na. She digs with her forearms, elbows, and feet. Yes, feet. She worked out my hammys really well by standing on them and digging in with her feet. (I should note that most of the massage is “traditional” and done with her hands, but when she needs to, her other body parts are called into action.)

I asked her if I could post her info to the internet, and she thought that was great. She’s located near Central and Hennepin in the St. Anthony Main neighborhood of Mpls. Here’s her card. Give her a call or shoot her an e-mail if you’d like to schedule a massage:

Tell her Steve Stenzel sent you. She doesn't know me as "Steve in a Speedo," so you might get a strange look if you tell her someone in a Speedo sent you.... ;)

In other news, I’ve been doing pretty good at not doing anything over the last 2 weeks. I’ve been starting to get the itch to run and swim. And I NEARLY did some lunges and squats yesterday at the Y, but I held out. Here’s a recap of the last 12 days:

• Thurs, 11/26: Thanksgiving. Ran around with my cousins.
• Fri, 11/27: 20 minutes of core.
• Sat, 11/28: nothing
• Sun, 11/29: nothing
• Mon, 11/30: nothing
• Tues, 12/1: 16 minutes of core. Stretched and foam rolled legs.
• Wed, 12/2: Stretched and foam rolled whole body.
• Thurs, 12/3: 11 minutes of core.
• Fri, 12/4: 20 minutes of core. Taught a “CVA Tri Club” student a bunch of exercises at the Y.
• Sat, 12/5: nothing
• Sun, 12/6: nothing
• Mon, 12/7: 20 minutes of core. Then, that great massage!

p.s. Adrienne's massages are fully clothed. So I wore a t-shirt, pajama pants, and socks. Can you imagine if poor Adrienne had to see (not to mention TOUCH) my nasty, calloused, purple-toe-nailed feet? She'd probably throw me out! ;)

3 Winners of Signed Copies of "Trizophrenia"

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 11:43:00 +0000

There were 130 comments on my interview with Jef Mallett, who is the author of the new book “Trizophrenia: Inside the Minds of a Triathlete.” With the multiple entries that people could make, there were a total of 252 numbers in the drawing for 1 of 3 books.

Last night (while watching the Vikes lose [dang]), I got to work determining the 3 winners who would each get a signed copy of the book. I printed out all 130 comments, and gave them all a numeric value (with multiple numbers going to those who earned multiple entries):

(For example, the first commenter earned 1 entry, so he was #1. The second commenter earned 2 entries [because he followed Jef’s twitter feed], so he was #2 and #3. Etc, etc. It ended up going up to #252.)

I wrote out the numbers 0-9 on little pieces of paper:

I put the numbers 0, 1, and 2 in the hat (literally) to draw the FIRST number of the first winner. (#1 was really 001, #32 was really 032, etc.) I first pulled out a 0:

My nipple and I were excited.

Then I put all the numbers in, pulled out a 4, put that number back in, and pulled out a 7. So the first winner was #047. Looking on my list, that corresponded to “Anonymous (Jen from Ohio).”

I repeated that process, and I came up with #149 and #110. Those numbers corresponded to Jumper 2.0 and Colleen.

Jumper 2.0, Colleen, and “Anonymous (Jen from Ohio),” please contact me so we can get you your book!! Everyone else, you can purchase Jef's book here or ANYWHERE books are sold.

Thanks for the interview, Jef! Good luck with your book! I know I enjoyed it!

(p.s. Yesterday was my 11th Day of "14 Days of Nothing." We had Arby's for supper! Sweet! Today I hope to get in some good core work at the Y and GET A MASSAGE! And if you missed it, check out Saturday's post which shows an interview with a German urban sports magazine.)

14 Days of Nothing: Day 10: A Perfect “10”

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 14:57:00 +0000

Yesterday was Day 10 in my “14 Days of Nothing.” And Pharmie and I enjoyed it! I ate a whole frozen pizza for lunch. And then we had Chipotle for supper! AND THEN Pharmie brought home Café Latte cheesecake!! (Café Latte is our BEST local dessert place.) What a day! ;)

The title of “A Perfect 10” refers to the great level of success I feel regarding what I just did to my foot. I’ve been treating a plantar wart on my left foot for about 2 weeks. This morning, all the skin around it was so dead that it was ready to “peel.” So I peeled it off sooo carefully. I got to the far side of the wart, and then it started peeling off again from that side! This is what just got peeled off my body:

Here’s what my foot looks like now:

Sweet! What a great start to my Sunday! ;)

The time to enter the giveaway to win a signed copy of "Trizophrenia" is over! There are 130 entrants. I’ll draw the 3 winners today, and I’ll post them tomorrow! Check back to see if you’ve won!

14 Days of Nothing: Day 9: Nine Questions

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 10:22:00 +0000

Want to hear something random? Well, you're HERE, so of course you do. Here it is: I was recently interviewed by a German internet urban sports magazine called "eRYTHROPOETIZINUM." Random, I know. I was their "Sports Blog of the Month" for December.

They asked me 9 questions, so I figured it would go well on my 9th "day of nothing." Below is the interview. Click on either of the images to see a bigger (more readable) version:

(click image for larger view)

(click image for larger view)

I don't know about you, but I like the slightly broken-English intro...

If you'd like to check out the whole December issue of eRYTHROPOETIZINUM, click here and download the Dec 2009 PDF. Oh, but if you're a little squeamish, don't look at the spread that's just after my interview. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Remember: tonight (Sat) at midnight (central time) is the deadline for entering to win your signed copy of "Trizophrenia!" Click here for the details.

Friday Funny 65: 8 Random Funnies

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 12:19:00 +0000

This is also Day 8 in my “14 Days of Nothing” (my self-prescribed rest). So in the name of day 8, here are 8 random funny things. Some are a bit inappropriate. I’d apologize, but I’m not sorry...

You’ve got just under 2 days to go to this post and throw your name in the hat for 1 of 3 signed copies of "Trizophrenia!" The contest closes at midnight on Saturday. I’ll post the winners on Monday morning, so check back to see if you’ve won.

Happy weekend!!

p.s. I was just interviewed by a German internet "urban sports" magazine, and I'll post that broken-English interview tomorrow. Good stuff!

14 Days of Nothing: Day 7: Seven Deadly Sins

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 11:38:00 +0000

Wrath:
These “14 days of nothing” have landed right in the middle of a VERY mild stretch of late fall / early winter weather. I’m angry that I can’t be taking advantage of this great weather for some outdoor runs!

Greed:
At this moment, we own 6 bikes. Why do I still feel that I need more?

Pride:
Have I mentioned my “Steve in a Speedo” Fan Page on Facebook? Click the picture below to be taken to it. And become a member.

Sloth:
I’m in the middle of “14 days of nothing.” Need I say more?

Lust:
You all know my hot wife, Pharmie. Need I say more?

Envy:
You have a better bike than me. I want it. And I want your goggles, your racing flats, your aero water bottle, your tri suit, your bike shoes, your fancy laces, your Zipp wheels (BOTH pairs - I KNOW you have 2 sets), your wetsuit, your PowerTap, your hairless body, etc, etc.

Gluttony:
Why do I do all of this? (“All of this” meaning triathlons, duathlons, and road races.) So I can eat. Whatever I want. Whenever I want. Yum-a-dum-dum.

(Frazz comic from Jef Mallett, triathlete and author of "Trizophrenia")

p.s. Don’t forget to scroll 2 posts down to throw your name in the hat for 1 of 3 signed copies of "Trizophrenia!"

14 Days of Nothing: Day 6: Six Core Exercises

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 11:21:00 +0000

So I've been doing good about doing nothing during my self-prescribed 14 days of nothing. Since Thanksgiving, I've really only done something "physical" once: yesterday I stretched, foam rolled, and did some core exercises. And I just scheduled a massage for next week!

I want to show you 6 new core exercises that Andrea (from the Y) recently showed me:

1. "Dead bug" on the bosu
2. One-legged bicycles on the bosu (those SUCK)
3. Sideways oblique sit-ups on the bosu
4. Weighted bar curl-ups
5. Weighted bar curl-ups with a left/right twist
6. And the one that I always forget

So, like I said above, I WANT to show you these exercises, but there have been issues. Andrea was OK with me bringing my camera to the Y so we could take pictures of each other doing the exercises, but at the last minute, "important" people at the Y put the ka-bosh on that. Now, I'm trying to convince Andrea to grab a mat, a bosu, and a weighted bar, and meet me in the little park across the Y's parking lot. We could take photos there, and the Y can't be mad! But I haven't heard back from Andrea yet...

So leave a comment for Andrea and say that you NEED to see these new core exercises! Without them, we'll all get fat (and ugly, and hairy) this winter! Together, we can "guilt" her into giving in! (I grew up in Catholic School - I know A LOT about guilt! Ha!) And it's not that Andrea has a job, clients, or other commitments during the day. She's got all the time in the world to do this! ;)

And don't forget to check out yesterday's post which is an interview with the author of "Trizophrenia" and a giveaway of 3 signed copies!

14 Days of Nothing: Day 5: 5 Questions and a GIVEAWAY!

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 11:33:00 +0000

What better way to spend my “14 Days of Nothing” than reading about doing athletic things! I recently was asked to interview Jef Mallett, who just wrote “Trizophrenia: Inside the Minds of a Triathlete.” I was honored, so I asked Jef 5 questions about his book.¹ And be sure not to miss the end of this post where there’s a giveaway: Jef’s giving away signed copies of his book!

1. How long have you wanted to do a book like this? How long were you specifically working on this book?

The clichéd answer is, of course, that I’ve wanted to do this all my life. Like a lot of clichés, it’s true. I’ve always loved books. I’ve always loved sports, particularly outdoor endurance sports. I’ve always loved making people smile. I only recently realized I could make people a little smarter, so maybe that’s how long I’ve wanted to create a book like this: about two weeks. Haw, haw. The idea of a funny book about triathlon started to gel while I was illustrating “Roadie,” a similar but very different take on bicycle racing by Jamie Smith. That was a couple of years ago. As it happened, Jamie’s publisher, Velo Press, was having the same idea. I’ll save everybody the math: I wrote this book pretty fast. Not quite Sarah Palin fast, but pretty fast. I didn’t get a lot of sleep in 2008 and 2009.

2. What's the target audience for this book? Who do you hope it appeals to?

Now it’s really going to sound like I’m picking on Sarah Palin. Which readers do I think this can appeal to? All of ‘em! I know the perils of trying to please everyone, but I think this book will offer a little insight for outside observers, a little instruction for those new to or pondering the sport, a little something veterans can identify with, a little perspective for those of us who have wandered off the deep end and a few laughs for everyone. Honestly, you shouldn’t have to care about triathlon at all to get something out of this book. It’s really a book about life and lessons, which is a dreadfully boring topic unless you distort it with some kind of lens to make it relatable and exotic at the same time. And triathlon turns out to be a hell of a lens.

3. I love the "Q&A" section of the book (part 1, chapter 3, section 3). That's not a question, but I'd like a response.

Q: Is there a better way to write a chapter titled “How to Explain It”?

My answer: No, there really isn’t. FYI: That chapter is all in “Q&A” format, and it’s that conversation that we’ve ALL had with someone. You know the conversation. The one that starts with them asking “Why?...” and never ends with either side feeling satisfied. Jef finishes this chapter in a great way that takes it right back around to the beginning.

4. I like how you make fun of yourself a lot, and who doesn't like that?! What else ya got? Give us another embarrassing triathlon story. (Or sports related at least.)

You really have to work at it to embarrass yourself during a triathlon. Everybody else in the race can relate, and everybody watching has to squelch their laughter because you’re out there racing and they’re not. But I manage. I like the one where I’m being interviewed for an article in the New England Masters swimming magazine. Elaine Kornbau is asking about my swimming accomplishments, which are, to put it mildly, slim. In fact, I only have one pure swimming experience that has a chance at impressing anyone, and that’s crossing the Straits of Mackinac. That’s a 4-mile swim, shore to shore, a little more with the current, and I did it with 49 other swimmers on a nice day. So I haul that one out, because sometimes even the best pool swimmers are intimidated by that kind of open water. I didn’t do my research. Elaine had just swam across the Catalina Channel, was a veteran of the around-Manhattan swim, and would soon cross the English Channel, becoming only the 33rd person to complete the open-water triple crown. (Let me make it clear here that any embarrassment was prompted by me alone; Elaine interviews and writes as well as she swims, and she never made me feel like anything short of a star.)

5. Jeez, you sure are a fan of footnotes.² What's the story behind that?

I tend to digress. Every good story has a whole new batch of sideshows, like the way Vonnegut is always flitting about from one Kilgore Trout story to another. I actually met Vonnegut once, and let me tell you … Oops. Yeah. And the whole three-track-mind theme of the book just begged for that kind of disjointed bouncing back and forth. Doing it in footnotes is a great way to keep the asides as asides and guide the reader right back to the main theme. Much to the surprise of no one, I got carried away. The book, by word count, is roughly a third footnotes. The publisher actually had to change the shape of the book to accommodate them without forcing the reader to turn pages too much.

6. The appendix written by your wife is very heartwarming - I had a small smile on my face for the entirety of those few pages. Was that your idea or her idea?

Isn’t that wonderful? My wife, Patty, is a very good writer and even better editor, so her handiwork shows up in a lot more than just that appendix. It was actually friends of hers who suggested that her perspective on the sport would serve readers well, and Velo Press and I were all over that one. So now there’s yet another category where my life wouldn’t have been nearly as good without her contribution.

7. OK, we're all "numbers" people - what's your olympic, half IM, and IM PRs? Inquiring minds need to know! And any idea how many of each you've raced?

I’m almost as bad at keeping records as I am at setting them, but I’ll try. Ironman-distance PR is 11:02, at IM Florida. Half-iron, 5:09 at the Musselman in New York. Olympic, oh boy. I could be missing one, but best I can find is 2:14 at the Lansing Legislator, right here at home. I know I’ve done two IMs and five half-IMs. Probably a couple dozen Olympic-distances and a few more sprints than that.

8. And if you're taking applications, I'd love to join "Team Fast Pig." Like you, I need to get up super early on race morning, I can't swim a straight line, and I believe in "gravity clusters" even if science has yet to back us up on that. So I think those first 2 could be requirements for the team....

The concept of the Fast Pig (blatantly stolen from Steinbeck in “East of Eden,” but with he didn’t have the greatest sport in the world to apply it to) is possibly my favorite metaphor ever. What a team that would be! In retrospect, I should have named the book “Fast Pig.” People could pronounce that. Which, it’s Trits-o-FREE-nee-uh, like schizophrenia plus one.³ I seem to have a lifelong problem with pronouncability. Just so people know, my last name doesn’t rhyme with “shallot,” it rhymes with “a jet.” Which, going back to my personal best times, is probably not the best mnemonic device. Sure wish there was a breed of pig that rhymed …

And here’s a closing statement from Jef:

I wish I’d already committed to a 2010 race schedule so I could urge your readers to come out and say hi. I do know I’ll be at the Hawk Island Triathlon in Lansing, Mich., since I help organize that one. And I’m planning on doing Musselman again, and I’m about to sign up for the Rev3 full-distance race in Cedar Point, Ohio. It looks terrific. Then again, this could work out well – if the right race turns up at the right time, I’m a friendly guy with a book to push, and I’m open to invitation. Thanks, Steve – great questions. This was a blast.

__________________________

1. I know, I know. This was more than 5 questions. Leave me alone. I’m still on some sort of high from being stuffed with turkey, bacon, duck, ribs, pickle and ham and cream cheese rollups, and 3 different pumpkin-related desserts over the weekend. Cut me some slack.
2. These are footnotes. If you didn’t know, now you do.
3. THANK YOU! I really didn’t know how to pronounce “Trizophrenia” until you explained that.

Honestly, I REALLY enjoyed this book. I got through about 75% of the book on a 3 hour flight, so it’s a pretty quick, enjoyable read. You know how I know that I REALLY enjoyed it? I kept elbowing Pharmie to say “Hey, listen to what Jef says here!...” I was thoroughly amused! (And Pharmie was thoroughly annoyed with me.) It’d make a great gift for someone who’s CHEERED at a lot of triathlons, someone THINKING about getting into triathlons, someone TRAINING for their first triathlon, or someone who’s been COMPETING in triathlons for years. (Need a stocking stuffer?) It’s simply a fun book! Thanks for letting me interview you Jef, and thanks for giving away a few books to my readers!!

WIN A SIGNED COPY OF “TRIZOPHRENIA” FROM JEF:

It’s easy. Ready? Here it is. All you need to do is to comment on this post to be entered in this contest. But, if you want to “earn” more entries, you can follow Jef’s Twitter feed and/or become a member of the “Steve in a Speedo” fan page on Facebook. If you do 1 of those, you earn a second entry! If you do both of those, you earn a third entry!

So follow Jef’s Twitter feed and/or become a member of the “Steve in a Speedo” fan page on Facebook BEFORE commenting on this post, and then let me know what you did in your comment so I know to add your name 2 or 3 times. So, your comment might say “Hey Steve, this John Smith from Topeka. I joined your Facebook group (but I didn’t follow Jef’s twitter), so put my name in the hat twice! Thanks!”

Pseudo-legal stuff:
- ~~Contest only open to US residents. Sucks to live in Quebec right now...~~ UPDATE: The publisher just told me he can ship to Canada, Australia, and the UK (as well as the US). So if you live in any of those areas, you're eligible! I guess it DOESN'T suck to live in Quebec right now...
- You may comment now (on THIS post) through midnight Central time on Saturday, Dec 5th. The winner will be contacted on Monday of next week.
- The winner will be chosen at random by a random number generator. If you’ve earned multiple entries, you will get multiple numbers, thus bettering your chances at winning!
- Check back this Monday (Dec 7th) to see if you won! (Especially if you don’t have a blogger account because I have no way of contacting you.)

(p.s. You can learn more about Jef on his blog.)

14 Days of Nothing: Day 4: $4 for FumbleROOski

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 11:07:00 +0000

On Saturday, it was time to celebrate the Stenzel Thanksgiving. That means duck wrapped in bacon for dinner. And turkey. And pickles with cream cheese wrapped in ham. And date cookies.

And “FumbleROOski!”

FumbleROOski is a made-up game that I play with my cousins at Grandpa and Grandma’s house. We drive their golf-cart in the empty lot next to their yard. We hop on and off the golf-cart while it’s moving. We throw balls at the person (or people) driving the golf cart trying to inflict bodily harm. And at random points during the fun, we shout “Fumble-ROO-ski!!” Damn it’s fun.

We were running low on balls, so I taught my cousins an important life-lesson: There’s NO such thing as "too many balls.” So we ran up to the Dollar Store, spent a few bucks, and bought a small football, a few small balls, a Spiderman ball, and noisemakers (to make things more interesting).

Michael, Kelsey (hiding), Brittany, and me.

Kelsey laying the smack down on Michael and Brittany.

Normal looking photo (until you see how high my leg is!...).

Brittany taking a head-shot.

Brittany’s no longer so sure about my no-such-thing-as-too-many-balls theory...

We had to quit after Kelsey broke most of Michael’s ribs....

Oh, and last night, in the name of my “14 Days of Nothing” and eating whatever I want, I brought 3 kinds of cheese to the couch with crackers, and just went nuts while watching Sunday evening cartoons on Fox...

p.s. Check back tomorrow - I think I'll be starting a giveaway! (Or Wednesday at the latest...)

14 Days of Nothing: Day 3: Three More Meals

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 12:56:00 +0000

1. Saturday AM: “Tom and Jerry’s” at Grandpa and Grandma’s house. It’s like Eggnog, but SO MUCH better. It’s like sex in your mouth. But without the unpleasant KY aftertaste.

2. Saturday Noon: Thanksgiving meal at Grandpa and Grandma’s.

3. Saturday PM: Thanksgiving meal at Pharmie’s family’s house. (Steak and shrimp!!)

So I think all that eating counts as “rest.” Rest for everything but my fork arm...

Oh, and one last food-related thing: Chris at 10:10Wellness is revamping his site and his store. If you need some of his Monkey Shake (my “go to” recovery drink over the last 6 months), you can use the coupon code monkeysteve to get 20% off of any Monkey Shake order. Click here to learn more about the Monkey, and click here to order.

14 Days of Nothing: Day 2: “New Flavor” Gu

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 11:46:00 +0000

Another great package came in the mail from my new BFF (a PR person that works with SUGOi and Gu).

In the package was a GoLite DriMove BL-3 Longsleeve Zip, which should be a good for some cold weather MN winter running! (Once my “14 Days of Nothing” is over...)

There were also a few Gu gels at the bottom: some Roctane, some Gingerbread Gu, and 2 that looked like this:

Now I’ve been known to take risks, but when the Gu is labeled “New Favor,” I THINK I need more information before trying that. ;) I e-mailed my BFF from the PR company, and she wrote back:

The "new flavor" is called Jet Blackberry. You might be, outside of the GU and the PR crew, the first to get your hands on it. Welcome to the family bud.

Sweet!! I’m honored!! Even though I’m taking 2 weeks off from any real physical activity, I HAD to try it right away. It was a little thicker than regular Gu, but it tasted like candy!! Really!! So I decided that it was the boost I needed to go do some core work.

Thanks for the goodies, BFF!! As Fergie says, they’re “T-t-t-tasty, tasty!”

14 Days of Nothing: Day 1: One (Attempted) Good Deed

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 19:26:00 +0000

Yesterday (Thanksgiving), Pharmie had to work. So was planning on spending some time at my Grandma’s house in southern Minnesota.

Before heading south for the day, I got up early and headed to a nearby school. I thought I would help make Thanksgiving meals for “Meals-On-Wheels” for a couple hours. It turns out the meals were already boxed (and in MASSIVE rows at the edge of the parking lot) and they just needed people to deliver the meals. There were HUNDREDS of people waiting there to help:

The “line” didn’t start moving until about an hour before I had to leave, and I was pretty far back. There was nothing else that they needed help with, so I just had to leave without doing anything so I could get to my Grandma’s. I felt pretty bad that I couldn’t help. But I felt pretty good knowing that SO MANY people showed up to help on Thanksgiving morning. (Especially the St. Kate’s college girls next to me in line that kept talking about how they were still drunk. "...and look at how puffy my eyes are!..." They can been seen in the lower right corner of the photo.)

I sincerely hope EVERYONE had a great Thanksgiving! (Even if your Thanksgiving meal started off by being delivered by drunk college students!)

Friday Funny 64: Farm Animals Are Popping Up EVERYWHERE!!

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 06:18:00 +0000

Remember this from about 2 months ago? (Watch this if you haven’t seen it. It’s my 2 brothers-in-law and I cheering for the TC Marathon runners. I’m ~~not~~ the rooster.)

Direct link on YouTube.
Then, there was Tribeaner and Greyt Times who spoofed us at the 2009 Des Moines Marathon 5 weeks ago:

Direct link on YouTube.
Now, there’s a new video from the 2009 Richmond Marathon!! Kate wrangled up 2 friends to dance with her (I believe Kate’s the cow). Check this out:

Direct link on YouTube.
That’s a VERY GOOD copy of us at the TC Marathon!! Nice job, ladies!! Kate was able to shake her ass much like Matt in the cow costume. But it was STRANGE to see the SAME chicken suit on seomeone else! I kept thinking "But THAT'S not me! I don't remember doing that!"

But then they took it one step further: They also danced to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” (albeit not very well...). Take a look:

Direct link on YouTube.
Oh, it’s ON Kate! Matt, Mike, and I will bust out some GREAT moves in 10 months at the next Twin Cities Marathon, and you’ll SEE what we can do! It’s time to start practicing my moves!....

14 Days of Nothing

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:17:00 +0000

Thursday (Thanksgiving) will be the official start of my “14 Days of Nothing.” It’s my 2 week off-season where I’ll rest sore muscles, nurse minor injuries, and basically do as little physical activity as possible.

My self-imposed rules:

• No strength training. I’ve had a sore spot behind my right shoulder blade that flares up a bit when I lift weights, so hopefully some rest will help.

• No swimming. Again, for the sore shoulder blade.

• No biking or spinning. Cuz it sucks. ;) And my lower back is still sore from spinning so hard at the indoor tri.

• ~~No foam rolling.~~ That could be just a little too much during “complete rest” for my legs. Editors note: I've changed this one. I'll foam roll a few times a week to help "work out the kinks." I don't think that's overkill, right?

OK, I can’t just do ABSOLUTELY nothing for 14 days, so here’s what I’m allowing myself:

• Some core work. Doing core exercises has never really “hurt” anything else, so I figure I’m pretty safe doing some balance ball sit-ups, planks, Andrea’s exercises on the Bosu, etc.

• Some gentle stretching. This will be 3 days a week at the maximum. And it won’t be that intense.

• Maybe some lunges, leg presses, body-weight squats, etc. Again, this won’t be too much, but I might feel the need to do something more around days 10-14. And definitely NO calf raises because of my sore heels.

• Get a massage. Oh, that'll be a tough one... ;)

• 1 easy 2-4 mile run. No watch. Just nice and easy.

How does that look? Is that “off” enough? Do I need to rest more? Or should I throw in another easy run (or swim)? I’m new to “time off.”

So this will all start tomorrow (on Thanksgiving). Technically, since the indoor tri on Sunday, I’ve only stretched and foam-rolled once, so it’ll practically be 17 days of nothing once it’s all said and done. Today, I’d like to stretch and do a good core workout before starting “nothing” tomorrow.

Then, once the 14 days are over, I’ll ease back into it over 10 days or so. Then it will be time to be ramping up my miles in training for the Winter Carnival Half Marathon in January!

I’ll report back everyday with what I’ve been up to while I HAVEN’T been training.

What’s Better Than a “Top 3” Finish?...

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:03:00 +0000

... stealing the very top spot, that’s what! Chalk this up as my first “triathlon” win:

• 4th in the swim
• 2nd in the bike
• 1st in the run
• 1st overall by 1 point!

Hannah did GREAT too! Back in March, out of the same number of athletes (60), she finished 52nd overall. This weekend, she moved up to 46th overall! She did that with a great bike (33rd overall), and a solid run that was 0.21 miles better than in March!! (from 1.82 to 2.03 miles in 20 minutes) That’s a GREAT improvement! Congrats Hannah! You should be proud!

That triathlon, albeit “indoor” and seemingly non-threatening, really beat us up:

• Yesterday, my lower back was KILLING me!! Spinning at a cadence of 160 for 30 minutes and then going on a hard 20 minute run is a way to destroy your back! Walking up stairs and opening doors (or any kind of reaching out) hurt like a mother! Let’s hope it’s better today.

• Hannah said she bent down to pick up her cat and she got stuck in a squat. I laughed in her face without telling her how sore I was. Here’s the bruise from yesterday on Hannah’s leg from when she slipped out of the pedals on the bike:

• Here are my 3 wounds from the triathlon:

Where the pedal “bit” me as I was finishing the spin.
You can see it a little in the last photo of me running in my race report.

Somehow I did this while getting my bike set up while still in T1.

Yeah, my foot is one giant “hot spot.” And yeah, those are blisters.

(One last thing: my “internet buddy” Jill is a member of Team in Training, so she’s trying to raise $4000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Today [Tuesday] she’s blitzing every outlet she knows as she’s trying to raise $500 today alone. Click here to help her reach her goal! Thanks!)

Indoor Triathlon With Hannah

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:08:00 +0000

Yesterday was the Lifetime Fitness Indoor Triathlon in Lakeville. I told everyone from the CVA Triathlon Club that if anyone wanted to do it, I’d go do it with them. Hannah signed up right away, so I did too. We were the only ones from CVA to go race.

Hannah doesn’t have a car, so I figured that I’d pick her up and take her to the triathlon. A few days ago, I got this message from her confirming that thought:

I got ready on Saturday night by shaving my shoulders in order to get a little more speed in the pool:

I picked up Hannah yesterday morning, and we headed down to Lakeville. This indoor triathlon works like this: we swim for 10 minutes, take 10 minutes in T1, spin on a spinning cycle for 30 minutes, take 5 minutes in T2, and end with a 20 minute run on a treadmill. After the race, all the athletes are ranked in each swim, bike, and run, and then point values are awarded to each distance. Those numbers are tallied to determine overall ranking. Got it? Good.

Hannah was in wave 3, and I was in wave 5. So I was there to see her start. Here we are just before her wave started:

Sorry my hairiness is touching your shoulder, Hannah.

She hopped in a lane, and got ready to go:

We ran into Nick who was “officiating” over the swim! Here’s Nick giving a little pre-race meeting to Hannah’s wave (she’s in the foreground):

Nick shouted “GO!” and wave 3 was off! Hannah did 13 lengths at the indoor tri in March. She wasn’t sure if she’d do better or worse yesterday (she’d been sick a lot recently). Here she is breast-stroking in the near lane:

Well, yesterday, she was able to swim 13.5 lengths! That’s better than she did in March!! Congrats Hannah!

When she ran through the locker room, I ~~followed with my camera~~ ran upstairs to the spinning studio and got ready for her to start the bike. She came running in with 4 minutes to spare! (And that was even after she got lost twice trying to get our of the huge locker rooms! Really!) She grabbed a bike and we got it set up for her. A few minutes later, she started her 30 minute spin:

Well, I was back off to the pool to start my wave. I grabbed a middle lane thinking I could share with someone, but no one jumped in with me (must be the body hair). So I had the whole lane to myself. Nick shouted GO, and we were off!

SWIM:

I was surprised after 200 meters to see my splits weren’t horrible! (I haven’t been swimming a lot lately.) I was hoping to get 21 lengths or more. After 20 lengths, I knew I’d be able to get 22 lengths. But I thought if I pushed hard, I MIGHT be able to get 22.5 lengths. I gave it a shot, but I only got about 22 and one-third lengths, not 22.5, so I officially was credited with 22. (That's 550 meters, which is 1:49.0 / 100 meters.) Here are my 100 meter splits:

1:37
1:49
1:53
1:49
1:51
0:58 (last 50+ meters)

T1:

I was excited that my swim went so well! Now, I had to get ready to really power through the bike. I quickly got nude, threw on my bike gear, tried not to get too dizzy (does that happen to other people in T1?), and headed up to the spinning studio.

BIKE:

My main goal for the race was to push HARD during the bike (actually, that’s been my goal in the last 2 years of tri racing). So I was ready to go nuts. There was one big difference between this indoor tri and the other 4 indoor tris I’ve done: at the ones in the past, the resistance is pre-set, and the knob is taped down on the spinning bikes so it’s “equal” for everyone. At this tri, we could set the resistance to WHATEVER we wanted. So we could ride really loose and just hang on for the ride! And that’s what I did.

I checked my cadence over 15 seconds at 2 different points in the bike, and both times, I counted 40. That means my cadence was 160! Holy hell, my hips were quaking! After 5 minutes, I had gone just over 3 miles. So I figured I’d shoot for 18 miles over those 30 minutes (that’s NOT equivalent to road riding). I heard the wave before us finish up, and 2 guys were just over 18 miles. OK... new goal: shoot for 19 miles. ;) I was pushing hard.

Hannah came running up after she finished her run. She did GREAT!! In March at the indoor tri, she ran 1.82 miles. Yesterday, she ran over 2 miles, and she said it felt easy!! NICE!! Then she grabbed my camera and got a shot of me “ridin’ sweaty:”

Yay! The "vein of approval" on my forehead! AND a leg muscle!

I hit 19.1 miles by the time my 30 minutes were over, and I was happy with that effort. I didn’t let up, and pushed hard all the way through. The one problem was that because my legs were flying all over the place, my feet were sliding around in my bike shoes. So my second toe on my right foot was feeling pretty raw. Dang.

T2:

Ran out of the spinning studio, down the hall, and up to the treadmills. When I took off my bike shoes, I showed Hannah the little bit of blood on my sock from spinning so out-of-control. She said “Eww.” Oh, and we shared "battle wounds" on our legs from trying to stop the spinning cycle after our feet flew out. Oww.

RUN:

I started off at 9.0 mph, and that felt pretty good! Hannah snapped a photo early on, when I still looked “presentable”:

- Up to 9.5 mph at 4 minutes
- Up to 10.0 mph at 10 minutes
- Up to 10.1, 10.3, 10.5 around 15 minutes
- Ran the last 90 seconds at 11.0 mph - ouch... that was hard!

That first photo of me looked good: I was running upright and looked strong. Here’s another photo that Hannah snapped with just about a minute left, and here I’m a little hunched over, sweaty, and praying for the sweet release of death:

I out-did my previous indoor triathlon best by 0.04 miles on the treadmill: I covered 3.25 miles in those final 20 minutes. (That's 6:09.2 / mile.)

So both Hannah and I had a great day!! We drove back up to St. Paul and went on our ways. I took a photo of the bit of blood on my sock:

And yesterday evening, I snapped a photo of the bit of pus over the raw area that rubbed off during the bike:

Yeah... add that pus / blood to that dead toenail and those hairy toes, and you have the trifecta of “oh, there goes your appetite!” Ha! I’d apologize, but I’m not really sorry. ;)

I’ll be back with the results as soon as they’re tallied! I KNOW Hannah will place better than she did in March, and I’m hoping for top 3. We’ll have to see!

Workouts? Maybe.

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 12:01:00 +0000

I haven’t been doing much for workouts lately. It’s sort of “that time of year” where you’re supposed to take some time off and let your body heal up a little. The problem is that I like to race, so I end up taking some time off only to jump right into some race that my body might not be ready for. So that sort of un-does all of the good things that taking time off does for a body. D’oh.

My regular workouts over the last 2 weeks (since the Tesfa 5K and bike ride) have been mostly strength and core - those are a winter focus for me.

Mon, Nov 9: Upper body weights and core work.
Tues, Nov 10: Nothing.
Wed, Nov 11: Upper body weights, lots of leg work, and core work.
Thurs, Nov 12: Nothing.
Fri, Nov 13: Nothing.
Sat, Nov 14: 8 miles of running with Pharmie in Long Beach, California. Because I recently did those two 10 mile races, 8 miles is TOTALLY a fine distance for me to be running. However, without sounding mean, I can’t go that distance at Pharmie’s pace. My heel will get sore not because of MILES, but because of TIME running. Eight miles for me takes well under an hour. But with Pharmie, we were running for about 1:20, so that “angered” my heel a bit. Oops. But it was worth it to get out and explore Long Beach by foot!

Sun, Nov 15: Nothing.
Mon, Nov 16: Upper body weights and core work.
Tues, Nov 17: Nothing.
Wed, Nov 18: Upper body weights and core work. Then intervals in the pool (to get ready for the upcoming indoor tri). I did 10 x 50 (with 12 seconds rest) with a 41.3 / 50 yard average. Then I took a 3 minute break before finishing with 5 x 100 (with 22 seconds rest) with a 1:35.8 / 100 yard average.
Thurs, Nov 19: Nothing.
Friday, Nov 20: Just core.
Sat, Nov 21: Rest for today’s tri.

Yesterday, I taught an 8 hour “documenting your work” workshop for high-schoolers who needed to learn how to photograph (and then digitally “correct”) their work to apply to an art college. So I spent a lot of time awkwardly hunched over a camera, so my legs are tired and sore today. (Then again, when DON’T I do things “awkwardly?”) We’ll see how far I can go at the indoor tri!!

Hannah, from the CVA Triathlon Club, is going with me to the tri. She did an indoor tri in March, a 4 mile road race in July, and a sprint triathlon in July (all with the CVA Tri Club). Here’s Hannah half done with the run at the Chisago Lakes Triathlon a few months ago:

So she’s an old pro at all this by now, so I'm sure she'll do great! I’m off to pick her up in a few minutes. Wish us luck!! I’ll be back tomorrow morning with our race report!!

Friday Funny 63: Six Reasons I Hate Long Beach

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:05:00 +0000

#1: The food was terrible, so I had to hunt my own:

I better like Moose meat - I now have 15 moose to deal with...

#2: The local birds are hostile:

Little bastard.

#3: The public restrooms were scary to say the least:

No soap? What is this?... Canada?!?

#4: There were tampons in the street:

Gross.

#5: The sea life was horny:

Perverts.

#6: I got crabs:

Technically, it was just ONE very LARGE crab, but this dude is reeking havok on my pubes!! There’s not enough prescription “Crab-Be-Gone” shampoo in the WORLD to make him go away!

(Great. I’ve managed to piss off Californians and Canadians in the same post. I’m quickly adding to my list of “places I can’t go because the people there will kill me.” Dang.)

Hannah (a CVA Tri Club student) and I are doing another indoor triathlon on Sunday! So check back on Monday for our race report and photos! Wish us luck!

Nutrilite: Post 1 of 2

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:01:00 +0000

(Note: This is “Post 1 of 2” because the second post will be a follow-up post in a few weeks that will contain my results from my bloodwork and phone discussion with Dr. Duke. At that point, I’ll have much more insight.)

So my last post left a glaring omission from the weekend: our Saturday experience at the Nutrilite Center for Optimal Health...

When we got to our hotel room on Friday, both Pharmie and I had a sweet Nike bag that had some Nutrilite info, Nutrilite gear, and some Nutrilite food products inside:

Saturday morning, we hopped aboard a short bus with some Nutrilite Reps and 6 other bloggers:

Here are all of us at the Nutrilite Health Institute:

We all got to work filling out paperwork and making sure we agreed to what was about to happen to us:

What WAS about to happen to us? All of this:

- Body Fat Analysis
- Flexibility
- Height and Weight
- Blood Pressure
- Grip Strength
- Bone Density
- Blood Work, which will determine:
       - Vitamin D
       - Cholesterol
       - LDL Cholesterol
       - VLDL Cholesterol
       - HDL Cholesterol
       - Triglycerides
       - Cholesterol/HDL Ratio
       - Insulin
       - Glucose
       - Serum Iron
       - Iron Binding Capacity
       - Percent Saturation (Iron)
       - Serum Ferritin
       - Unsaturated Iron Binding Capacity
       - GGT (Gamma-glutamyl transferase)
       - Homocysteine
       - Folate
       - Vitamin B12
       - High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein
       - TSH

Pharmie getting her blood pressure checked

Pharmie getting ready to have blood drawn

WARNING: The next 2 photos below show me getting blood drawn! There is a needle sticking out of my arm!! If you are squeamish about that, scroll down quickly past the next 2 photos until you get to the photo of me trying to bend myself in half.

OK?

Ready for the needle in my arm?

OK, here it is...

You can see a tiny stream of blood squirting to the back of the tube.
Yes, I took that photo myself.

Getting ready to switch vials (they took 3)

I’m fine watching all that (even when it’s being done to me), but I DID get a little light-headed when she wrapped up. So I sat there for a bit as she ran to get me some OJ. The cool juice helped, and I was perfectly fine in 90 seconds.

Remember the good ol’ sit and reach? I really impressed this lady with my bendiness. Really. Ask Pharmie.

Grip test. Note “muscly” forearm as I squeeze.

Bone density test

Body fat testing: 11.3%

We had all been fasting for over 12 hours, so they immediately fed us a great breakfast. Here’s the other table just before we started eating:

Here was our view of some of the Nutrilite campus from our breakfast window:

Bob giving us a tour of the facilities

Pharmie walking up to the big double helix

Then we headed into their auditorium to hear from different speakers. First, Bob told us a lot about some of their ideas for complete health:

The idea behind the 5 colors shown in that slide is to get the proper amount of foods in each color:

- GREENS like soy beans, kale, and broccoli for cell health, lung health, and liver function.
- WHITES like onions, cauliflower, and garlic for bones and circulatory health.
- ORANGES like carrots, tangerines, and corn for eyes, immune function, and healthy growth and development.
- REDS like cranberries, pomegranate, and acerola cherries for prostate and DNA health.
- PURPLES like grapes, eggplant, and beets for heart health, arterial function, and antioxidant function.

(That’s not a complete listing of all the foods in each color or all the functions of each color, but it gives you the idea. And that idea of getting foods from those 5 colors each day is just one of many of their ideas for “complete health.”)

Dr. Duke Johnson spoke with us a lot about how they grow and process their supplements, and how they help the body:

One of the more interesting speakers for Pharmie and I was Micheline Vargas:

Micheline spoke on sports nutrition and the proper ways to “carbo load” before longer workouts or bigger races. She talked a lot about how the body responds to different foods before / during / after workouts. We really enjoyed her presentation and her information!

One thing we didn’t enjoy as much was the over-the-top energy of Diane Paetz. She DID have some great ideas for getting in a quick, full body 10-minute workout, but then she made us do it, and that was a little corny. Here she is during one of the moments when she wasn’t jumping all over the place:

(I don’t mean to pick on her. The info WAS good. It was just that the presentation didn’t do a whole lot for endurance athletes like Pharmie and I. Maybe she came across better to some of the other fitness / weight loss bloggers that were there.)

Finally we heard from Jenn Stuczynski, the top US female pole vaulter (and second in the world)....

(Jenn and Andy)

....and from Tom O’Rourke: Olympian, recent 4-time masters cycling World Champion, and current holder of 2 masters cycling World Records:

(Tom and Joel)

Both Jenn and Tom were VERY interesting! (You can read some about Jenn in my last post where Pharmie and I talked with her and Andy while eating ice cream.) Tom is GREAT at telling stories, and he’s led one of those lives where if at least HALF of what he’s said is true, then HOLY CATS!! What a guy!

We all had a great lunch, and that pretty much ended our day at the Nutrilite Center.

MY THOUGHTS ON ALL OF THIS: Here’s what I think so far, after hearing what they had to say and doing some of my own research.

- People who love it say: Their most popular supplement “Double X” contains all good things for your body.
- People against it say: I can get just as many vitamins and minerals (and sometimes MORE) in a cheaper multivitamin at Target or GNC.
- My 2 cents: I believe that Nutrilite has a good combination of “things” in their supplements. Yes, you CAN get more in some pills, but Double X seems VERY well balanced. During our tour, they actually showed us how it’s a good “all-around” supplement whether you’re male, female, pregnant, a senior, etc., without going too high on some of the nutrients.

- People who love it say: It’s all organic! (and Kosher and Halal)
- People against it say: So what. It’s too expensive.
- My 2 cents: Double X costs over $2 / day. It’s NICE that it’s organic, but really, if I was more concerned about my overall health, I should cut out the breadsticks I had for supper last night and nachos I had for dessert 2 night ago. A few organic pills each day won’t fix everything. That being said, it IS nice to know that their ingredients ARE good and pure. Especially if you’re taking them day-after-day.

- People who love it say: Nutrilite is a GREAT company that treats all it’s farmers well!
- People against it say: Dude, it’s f’ing Amway.
- My 2 cents: Nutrilite is owned by Amway, but I don’t care. Some people have had a bad experience with Amway due to some pushy uncle trying to peddle their products. My parents dabbled in Amway for about a year when I was younger. They decided it wasn’t for them, so they dropped it. No big deal. From what I’ve seen, Nutrilite treats their people very well.

FOUR FINAL THOUGHTS:

- The Nutrilite Center for Optimal Health was just that: a center for HEALTH. It’s GREAT that it was NOT a “center for supplements.” They told us how their supplements can fit into and enhance different lifestyles, but they never simply offered a miracle cure in pill form. They taught us how to be well-rounded, healthy people. Good on them.

- I feel like it was clear to everyone at the event that the people telling us about Nutrilite (from the company spokespeople to the athletes [Jenn and Tom]) were 100% convinced that it was the best products for you, hands down. There was never any sign of reservation from what they were saying. I could tell that THEY backed the company. That’s important to me.

- Jenn (the pole vaulter) told a story from a big track event (I don’t think it was the Olympics - I think it was a World Championship event, but I’m not sure). She said that Bryan Clay (American decathlete) had forgot to bring his Double X. Bryan ran up to Asafa Powell (former worlds fastest man), but Asafa had none to spare. Then he ran up to Jenn, but she had none to spare. That tells me 2 things about Double X. 1: some pros swear by it. 2: it must NOT contain any amounts of “bad things” because with all the testing these athletes have to go through, it would have picked up on it.

- One of the biggest endorsements for me was when Coach Liz commented on my last post that she’s be using Double X for 17 years. If you’ve been blogging for long, I’m sure you know of other bloggers whose advice means the WORLD to you. Coach Liz is one of those people for me. So when she said 17 YEARS, I thought “Wow, that MUST be good.” Her endorsement meant just as much to me as a whole day of information at the Nutrilite Center.

So, like I said, this is post “1 of 2.” I’ll have the second post once my blood work is in and I talk with Dr. Duke. At that point, I hope to have read his book as well, and I’ll have more questions for him.

(p.s. There’s a good “Friday Funny” coming tomorrow regarding our trip to Long Beach. And I just signed up on a whim to do an indoor triathlon on Sunday along with a CVA Tri Club student! So check back Monday to see how it went!)

60 Photos From Our California Trip

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:22:00 +0000

So Pharmie and I spent a great 3-day weekend in Long Beach, California!! We were contacted by Nutrilite and asked if we’d be interested in having a very individualized health assessment and tour the Nutrilite Center for Optimal Health. I didn’t know what to think at first. But after they answered all my questions and assured me that they weren’t going to try to sell me their products or turn me into a representative for them, I figured it was something to check out. They said they would pay for our flights, our transportation in Cali, many of our meals, and our nice hotel room, so we really didn’t have much to lose! In turn, they just hoped that we would write about our experience.

We were there from Friday AM through Sunday PM. Saturday morning and early afternoon was spent at the Nutrilite Center for Optimal Health, but other than that, we just got to explore a little that Cali had to offer.

My NEXT post will have photos and thoughts from the Nutrilite presentation, so check back for that. THIS post will be everything else from the weekend.

First things first: what NEEDS to happen before a trip to California?? You need to shave:

No, no, no... I mean REALLY SHAVE:

I’m not THAT hairy, but I DID need a touch-up

Leaving LAX just before noon

My attempt at photographing the Hollywood sign

Riding down THEE 405

Our SWEET hotel room

Our SWEET bathroom

Pharmie pointing to expensive nuts that I was NOT allowed to touch

Our rooftop pool (you can see the Queen Mary to the middle/right in the distance)

Our hotel from the side (pool area at the top left)

We got settled and looked for a place to grab a bite. Our hotel was on the edge of a complex known as “The Pike” which had all kinds of places to eat.

While eating, we got the most hilarious undecipherable text message from Pharmie’s Mom. What does this mean?

Maybe my mother-in-law was texting as she was having a seizure...

It was time to hit the beach:

My left nipple and I saying “hi” from Cali!

Lines in the sand from the waves

Putting my sandy feet back in my shoes

Pharmie and a palm tree

Pharmie and a pirate

Pharmie’s new favorite place in the world: a big taffy store!
(We had to stop back there again on Sunday!)

Walking the boardwalk

Pharmie and I were going to meet blogger-buddy Chic Runner for supper at the Yard House. We ate and chatted about training, racing, and (of course) blogging. Here’s a shot of the 3 of us after our meal:

It was great to meet you, Danica!

Ferris wheel at the Pike

Riding the Ferris wheel at night

So, the next morning (Saturday), we got up early to go tour the Nutrilite facilities, hear about their products, and hear from some guest speakers. All of that info will come in my next post, so for now, I’ll jump to the group run that we did back at the hotel after the tours. Here’s Pharmie cramming our room key-card in her little pocket in her running shorts:

Lucky key-card... ;)

Running around the harbor

Bob and Lindsay

Joel and Pharmie

Bob, Lindsay, Joel, and Pharmie

Turned around, and running back

We dropped off the other runners, and Pharmie and I continued on for a while on our own. We wanted to find our way over the channel to the Queen Mary.

Heading out to the lighthouse through the palm trees

As the sun was setting, we made our way over to the Scorpion Submarine and the Queen Mary

A submarine guy and me

Pharmie and the Queen Mary

Running back over the channel (Ferris wheel to the left, lighthouse to the right)

Queen Mary as it’s getting dark

So we logged about 8 miles as the sun was setting, and then we got back to our hotel room to shower. We met the other bloggers and Nutrilite folks, and we headed out for Sushi:

This was really good!

On the way back from the restaurant, Pharmie and I talked a lot with Jenn Stuczynski, the top pole vaulter in the USA (and the only US woman to clear 16 feet!). The intricacies of being a sponsored athlete are CRAZY!! She shared all kinds of stories: How meet organizers will set a height and say “if you break this height, I’ll give you $25,000. How her first time on the podium she wore the wrong shoes and immediately had to meet with her sponsors and meet organizers to work things out (and couldn’t enjoy her victory). How she trains in a Quonset hut with propane heaters, and because of the low ceiling in the hut, she now holds her pole low. How her longest runs are about 120 meters, and about two-thirds of her runs are done with her pole in her hands. It was SOO interesting! Here’s a photo of Pharmie, Jenn, and I back at our hotel after Sushi and Coldstone Ice Cream:

It was great talking with you, Jenn!

Sunday morning, we got up and walked to church. On the way, we spotted something funny. In the past, you’ve seen what my evil foam roller looks like. Well, we spotted a foam roller through the window of some sort of fitness club, and someone had drawn a smiley face on it:

The church was COVERED in mosic tile, and they had a painting of the Virgin Mary that they were adoring:

That’s not paintings on the walls - that’s all tile-work!

We checked out of our hotel room, and we still had 5 hours to kill. So we went to the Aquarium of the Pacific, which was just 2 blocks away.

Pharmie and Sea Lions

An adorable Harbor Seal who kept checking us out

Petting a 5 foot wide ray (just before dropping my camera bag in the pool)

Pharmie with some Lorikeet birds

Us with the Lorikeets

Petting a Lorikeet. It kept wanting to be pet harder.

Pharmie with an octopus

Me with a shark hat. I should have bought this. This a good look for me, right?

Tank full of “Nemos”

The Puffins were hilarious. Except for the one at the upper right who kept sharpening his beak on the rocks to get ready for his escape. Really.

Me with Jellies

We grabbed one last quick bite at a little Mexican restaurant, grabbed our bags back at the hotel, hopped in a sweet town car, and headed to the airport. On the way, I tried to get a better shot of the Hollywood sign, but I failed again:

Our flight was a little late (LAX seemed a little discombobulated), so we landed back in MSP around 12:30 am early on Monday morning (about 40 minutes late). We grabbed a cab, got home, showed our 2 cats some attention, and got to bed by about 1:30 am. We were both back to work that very same day. What a trip!! Thanks Nutrilite!

I’ll be back shortly with a post about my individual health assessment along with other things we learned at the Nutrilite facilities.

Letting My Feet Tell the Story of My Weekend

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:27:00 +0000

Friday, 6:45 am, my yard in Minnesota

30 minutes later, riding the Light Rail Train

2 hours later, aboard a Northwest airplane

3 hours later, standing in LAX while Pharmie used the restroom

10 minutes later, riding in a swank Lincoln Navigator

1 hour later, standing on the edge of the Pacific just off the boardwalk (by thousands of yachts)

30 minutes later, standing in the Ocean in Long Beach

1 hour later, relaxing in our posh hotel room with Pharmie

Meeting Jenn and Tom

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 02:54:00 +0000

If you’ve been around my blog for a while (like the last 3 years), you’ll remember a post titled “My Hot Wife and Female Pole Vaulters.” I showed a picture of US pole vaulter Jenn Stuczynski:

Click here to read the 3 short stories in that post.

Jenn Stuczynski is the only US woman EVER to clear 16 feet in the pole vault, and she’s ranked second in the world. And she picked up the silver in the Beijing Olympics. Well, it’s a LONG story (that I’ll tell over the next few days), but today, Pharmie and I got to meet Jenn Stuczynski!

We also got to meet Tom O'Rourke, a SUPER SPUNKY 75-year-old man who recently won 4 cycling world championships AND set two masters cycling world records!! He’s one of those old guys that can tell the best stories. He’s the kind of guy I could sit with and listen to forever. Here we are with him:

Don’t go anywhere... more to come in the next few days!...

Friday Funny 62: Google Suggestions

stevestenzelphotography@yahoo.com (Steve Stenzel) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:20:00 +0000

Now excuse me while I Google “Why are Americans afraid of dragons” and “Why does my husband wear panties.” Inquiring minds need to know! ;) Happy weekend!