I was reading "Unlimited Power" by Tony Robbins, the chapter about food as fuel for energy. He touched on something I have become aware of over the last few months. Most diet recommendation that are doled out as the current best way to loose weight are actually marketing campaigns staged by a variety of food group lobbyist. It hard to find unbiased information on what is really best. Even the Doctors don't all agree on the same thing. There are some interesting coloration between the U.S. Government fight against heart disease starting around 1970 and the steady increase in obesity since. There also is coloration between the production of corn leading to surplus that was processed into cheap corn syrup. The last few years the dairy industry has been pitching dairy as a clean source of protein. Their current pitch to endurance athletes is chocolate milk as the perfect recovery drink. Let me point out I am not a Nutritionist I am only speaking from experience and observation. I do believe that when you eat and in what combination is important to mange. I have been doing intermittent fasting from 9:00 P.M. until somewhere between 9-12 A.M. and I try to work out in the morning in a fasted state. I was afraid of fruits and vegetables for a while do to the natural sugar "carbs" but have come full circle understanding the fiber offset and rapidity of digestion and assimilation in the colon. I have also read some claims that we Americans just need to eat less. Personally I have lost aprox. 20 pounds in around 8 months with steady exercise (triathlon training) and not eating highly processed starchy foods as well as some of the tips above. Shawn

I/m working on a book that is part autobiography and part journal of my escapades this summer. The point of the book is to encourage aging athletes to not let fear or self doubt keep them from going out and competing. Part of my story is about recovery so he book is a combo of aging athlete and recovery experiences. To that point I was listening to an Audible book during my 2 hour ride this morning, Matt Fitzgerald's "Life is a Marathon" at one point he was interviewing a race promoter asking "who is your typical customer"? to which the promoter answered people with "addictive personalities". I couldn't help but chuckle to myself. It was just after finding my longest stretch of sobriety in over 30 years that I started training for the San Diego Rock N Roll Marathon in June of 2018. It was also around that time that I did the 2018 Discovery Bay Olympic distance Triathlon that I referenced in an earlier blog. I have been training "addictively" ever since. My idea of a bad addiction is something you can't control and has negative consequences. At this point I don't consider training to have "negative consequences" so I'm going to keep it up. Also Matt mentioned that some people can be considered lazy but not. What that means to me is I'm having a hard time dragging my ars out to pull the weeds in that front yard, the ones I pass just before I go for a training session. So I think I fit that profile. Since I started training hard 2 years ago I have either been listening on audible or reading hard copy books that are motivational. Usually somebody else sharing their journey. That's what inspires me to write a book. I think there is plenty of material out there, some of which I'll mention along the way. In the meantime I believe my book has the potential to help at least one person, maybe you. Otherwise another book added to the list of hours of reading potential can't hurt. On a different note some Religions consider this Easter Sunday as the day of Resurrection. I can't help but think how wonderful it is that we all get second, third, unlimited chances to live our best life. As for me today I believe I am, I am still very flawed but am thankful for my redemption (in progress). Shawn

I finished the Discovery Bay Olympic distance Triathlon this past Sunday. That's 2 events down of the seven I have scheduled for this summer. My goal was to win, not just finish but compete. I have been training six days a week to accomplish my goal. I have put the individual times (swim, bike, run) that I have to achieve to meet my goals. I have posted those time goals on my home office desk and in my shower. I was not reaching those goals before the event but knew I must continue to try. I did run into a conflict in positive self talk and visualization and the reality of my daily performance. In the end I concluded that I needed to reset my mind back to the point that I reminded myself that I do Triathlon for the love of the sport. The joy I feel afterword and the satisfaction of the accomplishment is the desired outcome. I did not win my age group or podium but I bested my event last place time of last year by around 40 minutes. I still have 5 more Tris this Summer to improve on that time. That's enough to keep me motivated. It inspires me to go out and train at least 6 days a week. I've been reading a book by David Coggins called "You Cant Hurt Me". It is about a young Blackman that grew up with an abusive father and went on to overcome seemingly unsurmountable odds to become a Navy Seal and an ultra endurance athlete. I recommend this book for those of you who are looking for inspiration to overcome your own personal odds. By the way that is who I am trying to reach with this blog. If you want some more of this, like, share, invite a friend and most of all come back. Together we can do great things. Shawn

Two days away from my first Olympic distance Triathlon of the season is just 5 days removed from my half Marathon. One of the most important part of the process is proper recovery. First things first, the best recovery happens during sleep so its important to get the proper amount of sleep. I'm not going to tell you how much sleep you need, I can't even tell you how much I need. Personally some nights I get 6 and feel great others 9. For me I have not used an alarm or didn't wake up before the clock was set to go off for many years including race day and travel days. Point is I don't force sleep but I don't short myself sleep either. Next thing I have been doing is Cryotherapy. I have been doing it a couple times a week for at least the last 6 months probably longer. You stand in a stall with your head sticking out the top and the stall is flooding with liquid nitrogen vapors. I have been doing - 190 F for 3 minutes. There is a whole list of health benefits associated with cold therapy. My understanding is that it improves blood flow to damaged tissue, reduces inflammation and a few other attributes but those first two are enough for me. And as a Triathlete being in the extreme cold gives me a chance to acclimate to the cold environment. Every swim I've done has been in cold water. The next thing I do and have done twice this week is get a sports massage. I can explain the benefits of working toxins out of your muscles and increasing blood and lymph flow but suffice to say who doesn't love a massage. I'm not a nutritionist but for me protein post event or workout is important and quality carbs to restore the Glucose stores. I just realized I'm running late for the dogs vet appt. I'll catch you on the next blog. Shawn

4/8/19

I promised you I was going to review products, destination and events. Today I am reviewing the weekend I had in San Francisco where I participated in the Rock N Roll half marathon. The original forecast was for rain, but the weekend turned out nice sans the fog that lingered throughout the event but made for a comfortable run even though my close where wet at the end. Rock N Roll marathons is a class organization and they know how to manage an event (this is my second, San Diego last year). Check in was easy and the Health and fitness expo is always worth spending time visiting. The live music on the course always pumps you up and takes your mind off the task at hand. San Francisco could have used some more live music, but I can understand where the logistics of operating in the city and on the Golden Gate bridge was difficult. The best band in my opinion was the Uniformed (Navy?) Band at the turnaround and half way point at the Vista point on the Marin side of the bridge. I caught the last part of a Prince song and the beginning of a Heart song. Speaking of the bridge running across the bridge is what mad this a bucket list event and it lived up to the hype, how many people can say the crossed the G.G. on foot? San Francisco is just that, San Francisco. As a native Bay Area Nocal kid I am not totally impressed. I think the City is Crowded, Dirty and run down. Staying at the Sheraton Fisherman’s Warf is a good location and reasonably priced for the location that puts you within walking distance to Pier 39 and Fisherman’s Warf and most of the attractions. Its close to transit and the city is home to Uber so getting a right is easy. The product I would review is the GoPro camera I bought in January. For the second time I tried to record an event over time it shut off prematurely. Also, for some reason as I approached the finish line it would not go on and I believe it was a battery issue. I have not yet scoured the operating instructions but so far, I’m not sure it out performs a cheaper version of another brand. I got it for the water proof capabilities but have yet to use that function. Thanks for reading my blog and remember like it, Recommend it come back.    Shawn

4/5/19

Welcome to my blog for the “Aging Athlete” The purpose for this blog is to provide you with reviews from my experiences on, Products, Participant events (Triathlons, Marathons, Cycling etc.), Destinations, Books and anything that I think might help you in your decision making process and information collection and overall health and fitness. I am not a Doctor. Any advice I give are just opinions. I went back to school online last April and in the last year did 2 Biology classes as well as Psychology, College Algebra and Digital Communications. I am working on a degree in Health Sciences. I am a USA Triathlon Level 1 Certified Coach and a L+

evel 2 USA Cycling Certified Coach  I am 53 years old; my current level of fitness is good. I have lost 22 Lbs. in the last year and would like to lose another 15. I had I “minor” stroke 5 years ago and am lucky to not have any lingering effects. My stroke was probably brought on by AFib that was probably brought on by the 30 years of heavy drinking that I was able to finally get honest with myself and have been sober 2 years March 26^th. I did my first half Ironman Tri in 2007 and my first Marathon last year June 2018. After training since January of 2018, I am planning on doing an event packed 2019. It starts this Sunday with the Rock N Roll ½ Marathon in San Francisco, a charity run for St. Jude’s (email me if you want my donation website). I will do a review of the event and my overnight stay in San Francisco next week. From there next weekend April 14 I will be doing a local Olympic distance Triathlon here in Discovery Bay Ca. (Olympic is my distance unless otherwise mentioned) May 19^th is Bay to Breakers in San Francisco. June 2^nd is the Herbalife 24 Triathlon of Los Angeles (USA Triathlon West Coast Regionals). June 9^th is Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon in San Francisco, an event I had to win a lottery to gain entry. It is also a bit shorter nontraditional distance. July 14^th is California Triathlons Folsom event. July 20^th is the Legacy Triathlon in Long Beach (Sprint Distance), it is I trial event put on as a precursor to the 2026 Olympics in Los Angeles. August 10^th finds me in Clevland for the USA Triathlon Age Group Nationals. September 15^th is the Nautica Malibu Triathlon and I will wrap it all up with a Marathon on the Las Vegas Strip, at night November 16^th. From these events and my training throughout I will be bringing you reviews and tips. I hope you find this Blog helpful to you. I will also be posting Vlogs on YouTube occasionally. Look for Shawn Beddingfield on Instagram and Twitter as well as Facebook. And please invite a friend.  Shawn