SA All Blacks- Watson style !!!

This an article I came across the other day. I was so dumbfounded by what I read it has to be sent to the rest of the world.

Where and when will the Watsons stop ?

Is Cheeky's job to cause shit like Julius Malema, they clearly from the same test tube.

His comments at the end are too precious...

http://www.rugbyheaven.co.nz/4862393a22363.html

Training Hard vs Training Smart

I have recently been the guilty party of a bout of over training. Over training is a syndrome which can happen in any sport I suppose but I will stick with what I know and that's cycling.

Basically the syndrome is pretty self explanatory, you just train to much without giving your body time to recover and grow with the training. You run your system down instead of letting it recover and get stronger whilst doing so. It all came about due to my obsession with trying to get faster on the bike, thinking that smashing myself at high intensities week in and week out would eventually bring about a breakthrough in fitness. You know the old saying what doesn't kill you will only make you stronger. Baloney !!!

The results of all this training became evident when I started getting sick and battling to recover after the sickness. The other telltale signs were constantly sore muscles which are easily masked as just plain sore legs from a hard workout. But the biggest sign for me was on race days was that I just haven't felt the zing in my legs, the freshness of spirit and the old one raring to go. I was amped but the body wasn't willing. The Attakwas was an example of this, I felt good but the rerun from the race was poor and I know I am better than the result achieved.

So I went to see a Dr at the Sports Science Institute in Newlands. He specialises in cycling so he was my man. He did a full batch of bloods which is the best way of detecting something wrong with the old system.  So the bloods told him exactly what he already knew. 

Here for me and hopefully for you came the interesting part, I was to take two or three weeks off and let my system recover. Whhaaat ? Yip and then start working on a program which was about specifics not amounts of training. Lots of recovery rides which entail keeping my heart rate at around 130-140 bpm but in between that there are some seriously intensive rides. Try riding for 90 mins with your cadence below 50 and heart rate above 150 bpm.  That's not easy, a really intensive leg workout which left me wobbling home after the 45 minute warm down.

So this is just a small reminder about getting caught up chasing something, we seem to believe that putting our heads down and grinding away will achieve results in cycling and I suppose in life. Well it wont, there is no substitute for hard work but think about what you doing. Be smart about your time whatever it is you doing. Learn all the time. I have, its empowering.

Listening to my Dr talk about certain guys training regimes I was amazed, Christof Sauser a legend and World Marathon Champ never rides more than 4 hours a session. The new training way is all about specifics not bulk. I have adopted this  and have been working towards my 3rd Epic. I am amped for the race again after feeling very confused about things this year. Its another long story for another time.

So whatever you doing out there, do it smart. Go see a coach or some one you know for some training directions. It will help you and your mind focus knowing that you are doing the right thing in training. Its a good feeling, pursue it, trust me.   

TED ideas worth spreading...

Every now and then we sit with time on our hands and nothing to do with it, why, because we are mostly behind the desk at work. So if your are tired of reading crap on the net, do yourself a massive favour and go check out this site. Its basically a launch pad for some of today's finest minds in all sorts of fields. These are people doing amazing things and trying to make a difference in our world-now.

I have only just discovered it, but, I have watched a few things and if you are looking for inspiration and a change of mentality in these tough times, Change your mindset = changing times not tough, then check it out. Its far better than most of the mindless celebrity orientated crap we browse most days on the net.

www.ted.com

So do yourself a favour, it's worth it. Next time you don't have anything to add at a dinner table or party you can relive some of the stuff you saw on TED.

We can talk about it...

Joost another Hansie

What have we done now, caught with my pants down some witpoier in my nose and now my wyfie is screaming at me too. Oooh Schucks it's a fok up.

So another one of our sporting greats has fallen onto a bit of hard times. Mr Beckham aka Van der Westhuizen has never been far from the spotlight and now he finds himself really in it. He has been caught on a video tape with an unknown woman ( a stripper or erotic dancer ) using a bit of Charlie whilst copulating with her.

This presents him with a serious predicament, imagine if it's him. By the way he has already denied it and said it's all a load of shit to quote him. His numerous sources of income would be seriously considering empolying him after his name has been so severely tarnished. Joost was a good rugby player but like old Hansie from my armchair he seems to think of himself as more important than the next bloke. Hell we all back ourselves but these guys are bullets waiting to go off. The card they play when things like this go wrong is usually the "I've been wronged" and "this is a personal attack" and the hordes of hopeless folk in the cupboard come out in support of these crooks. Ok Joost is'nt half as bad as Hansie but the way the volk in Pretoria rally is pityful. Sure support the bloke if you feel like he has been falsely accused but coming out chirping all sorts about God this and to hell with them is your usual over the top blue bull supporting zealot. He probably still has AWB posters in his bar and wears pink underwear to church on Sundays.

Some special comments :

FIRST THE PIH STORY NOW THIS....WHEN IS ENOUGH ACTUALLY ENOUGH....people messing around with other peoples life is not on and i dont think that what is happening is at all right.i know Joost as a person and i can tell you now that he is not the one in that video. he has dedicated his life to God and lives his life for his family so something like this can only be false.

What Joost do's is his problem. It's amazing how many people get a kick out of watching others go through problems. There are allot of people that are ready to point their finger at Joost worry about your own life, check your life out before you judge him. I believe the Lord will bring the truth out

I can remember the smug look on Amor's face when she was flashing her engagement ring on TV two week after Joost got his divorce. They insisted that they were only friends. The weel has turned Amor.

To all the people telling "the press" to butt out of "famous people's lives"; to all those who think "private lives" shouldn't affect public reputations, I have a test for you. Substitute "Jacob Zuma" for "Joost van der Westhuizen" in this story and then see if your response is still the same. If it changes, then you're confused.

If he says it's not him then it's not him !!!! Technology is so advanced today that one can change images on video to suite your self ....come on we live in the 21 first Century !!!!!!! @$$%@#$%^&.... THE MAN !!!!!!

Amazing, some truly beautiful folk in good old SA. Lets wait and see what happens.

R20 says it's him any takers ?

Cape Town 10's

Well what a weekend it proved to be, some blokes are still trying to get over it. Three day hangovers are not good for productivity throw in a dash of pain from two days of rugby and you get what I mean. I feel for guys like the Donk, they really did produce the goods but they certainly have paid for it this week. It's in your head...

The Nadoes did fairly well, I think they performed best in the beer tent and showed true class at our beloved fines meetings. Throwing drinks at anybody who even resembled a celebrity. On the field they lost out in a quarter final clash to False Bay 1st's so it was'nt all bad.  I honestly thought we played the most attractive rugby on show and the game was alot different to what the squad expected. Stats were something like Played 5 Won 3 Lost 2. The moment for me was Meerkat Elley's pass into touch. Too good to be true. Players missed= The Jedi, no one would have loved it more than him. This is his bread and butter. Rugby, beers some ladies. Most of all it would have been about his beloved Nadoes.

Picked up this classic from www.overtohugh.co.za really funny bloke. Pretty sharp. You get a good feel of the vibe. Enjoy. Go check it out rather, these computers are killing me.

Marvellous stuff !!!

Something to Cheer about ?

Its almost Super14 time. Hectic how much rugby the players are playing these days. Oh well we'll worry about that argument at the end of year tour when half the guys are dead.

This weekend the Stormers kick off against the Sharks, is this going to be the season when everything clicks for us. Could we see a return to the glory years of the late 80's. The Stormers certainly have the players, the coach and the support to make a serious challenge. My only negative and this probably goes for most teams but I am looking at us now is our depth in the backs. If we lose any of our flyhalf or centres we could be looking at a serious headache. Back up has always been hard to hold onto granted and when quality like Dollie gets snapped up by the Brumbies academy B squad what can you do. What will the poor little ball Ashfak Mohammed write about now. Anyway hope are indeed high and rightly so, I came across this penned in Rugbyheaven and its nice to see others have taken note of what we achieved last year.

STORMERS:

In Rassie Erasmus the Stormers have one of the finest coaches in the Super 14 and the squad he has assembled for this year's competition is a pretty fine one.

Last year the Stormers missed out on a place in the semifinals to the Hurricanes on points difference. They should, if things go to plan, be able to make the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

The Stormers have a sprinkling of world-class players in their ranks, including Schalk Burger, Bolla Conradie, Conrad Jantjes, Jean de Villiers, AJ Venter and the ever-youthful Percy Montgomery.

With that kind of line-up it's no surprise they're being tipped in the Republic as the South African team with the best chance of taking the title.

The Stormers all seem to have overcome the perennial problem of being unable to win matches in Australasia, picking up three victories in this part of the world last season.

The team to watch this year.

NEW KID ON THE BLOCK

Nick Koster had an impressive Currie Cup and the No 8 was called into the Barbarians side for the game against Australia last year. While he's an exceptional backrower he's spent time playing on the wing during pre-season.

IN

Wicus Blaauw, Willem de Waal (Narbonne, France), Dewaldt Duvenage (Boland), Nick Koster, JC Kritzinger, Hilton Lobberts (Bulls), Percy Montgomery (Perpignan, France), AJ Venter (Sharks), Duane Vermeulen (Cheetahs).

OUT

Tony Brown (Sanyo, Japan), Isma-eel Dollie (Brumbies), Tiaan Liebenberg (Toulon, France), Ross Skeate (Toulon, France).

TAB odds: $14

Predicted finish: runners-up.

Thats right folks runners up, what ? Ya well lets not get over board yet, its a long Super14 but its nice to see. I will be in the stands come Saturday. 

The other classic I came across on my browsing was this pearler out of France, God they do things well. The cheerleaders for our teams are pretty good. The Sharks lead the way and the Bulls are'nt bad. The Stormers girls look like the just got out of a Bellville nightclub, aggg sies man !!! Seriously take a peek at these, you wont be let down. Its truly amazing.

 http://multimedia.stuff.co.nz/rugby/Slideshows/latestphotos/index.html

What did I tell you, no wonder Carter did his Achilles... get it ?

45 DAYS and Counting

Well its almost that time of year again, while the rest of you have been having a summer holiday and hopefully relaxing on some beautiful beach somewhere remote I have been training for another Epic. Which is now 45 days away.

This year has started rather oddly for me, I have been hammering myself constantly with some long hard rides,  swimming, surfing along with the odd morning run and circuit. Eventually my body said stop, sickness set in and I have had to take a two week enforced break to recover. We live and we learn. In other words I have over trained quite badly and just need to step back, relax and let the Epic come to me. No use chasing it down like a rabid dog.

This weekend I will start a program where I slowly fine tune my system for the rigours of the Epic, allowing plenty of recovery time and allowing the body to grab all the goodness it needs. Its like going hungry for weeks and then allowing yourself to eat and eat well. The body is just appreciating the goodness and loving the rest. I can feel the strength flowing back into my system. 

So I am very excited for kick off on March 20 on the slopes of Table Mountain. Its going to be a small adrenalin rush racing in my backyard with family and friends spurring us on. I am really sad about the race not starting in Knysna but hopefully it will be back there soon. But from now on its Gordons Bay or bust.

Climb every Mountain---

Rugby Fever

Morning All,

Well can you feel it ?  Rugby season has almost started again. In fact it has well it does. Tonight up at the Green Mile of UCT its a repeat of last years Varsity Cup Finals. Could be a cracker, here's hoping the Tigers can slip one past the Dutchmen. 

Along with the Varsity cup we see the arrival of the Cape Town Tens. It seems like its going to be a hit with some big names rolling into town to watch, play and be Ambassadors ( Dan Carter )

Fleckie and Bob have gone all out and hopefully Cape town come to the party too. The Nadoes have got a crack team in the Beer League and are looking like hot favourites to take the title. Lets get down there and support the lads. All the best okes.

Last but never least is the Super 14 which kicks off next weekend, there is the small matter of the Sharks coming to Newlands to play the Stormers who are looking better every year. I am still concerned about backline cover in certain positions with the nature of this tournament who knows how it will go. I will delve into more detail about things nearer the time. 

For anyone who hasn't heard about Dan Carter and his injury over in France here is a little article about the costs of his sabbatical on his club Perpignan. Shame, its an unlucky investment in a horrible financial time http://www.rugbyheaven.co.nz/4835767a22363.html

Read it and you can throw some numbers at DC when he is here this weekend.

Go IKEYS...