Reddit mentions: The best sports & outdoors books

(1) Read, bruh. I can't vouch for it personally, but I've heard the book Watching Baseball Smarter recommended with high regard. And it's almost literally the exact thing you asked for. Here are some other good book recommendations:

• Moneyball by Michael Lewis. Hard to believe that the book is sort of old hat at this point, but it still serves as a very readable introduction to advanced statistics.
  
  
• The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract by Bill James (mostly). This book is good toilet reading, if you have a massive toilet on which to perch it, and your bowel movements are glacially paced. James ranks the best players at each position, and goes on a witty, decade-by-decade jog through the history of the game.
  
  
• The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball by Tom Tango. Are you a "math person"? Read this book, you'll like it. It's an introduction to sabermetrics that explains the important first principles of statistical analysis, builds an important statistic (wOBA) from the ground up, and then applies all of that knowledge to answer specific questions about baseball strategies and to debunk, verify, or qualify some of baseball's hoary "conventional wisdom."
  
  
• The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon. This book is not about baseball, but it's still great and you should read it.
  
  (2) You'll want to start watching the game more, if you can. Find a method (like MLB.tv or, you know, your television) to do so. Massive exposure does help you learn, and it's a fun, if inefficient, method. Osmosis. That's just science.
  
  (2b) Depending on the broadcast crew, it's sometimes addition-by-subtraction to mute the television.
  
  (2c) If you have MLB.tv Premium and intend to follow your favorite team, I recommend watching the other team's broadcast. You know enough about [TEAM X] already. Learn something new about [TEAM Y], instead. Unless, of course, (2b) applies, in which case maybe your best bet is MLB.tv's option to overlay the radio broadcast on the TV video. Barring that, the liberal application of the DOWN VOLUME button is always an option, and then, like, listen to Chopin's Preludes. Don't be That Guy and lean too heavily on No. 15, though. There are 23 others. Expand your horizons.
  
  (3) When you go to games, keep score. Sure, there's a guy a few seats over in a striped button-down and pre-faded jeans (Chad or something) who will mock you mercilessly for it. Sad for you, you've lost Chad's respect. But, oh, the things you'll gain. A free souvenir. A better grasp on the flow of the game. The priceless power to answer the "what did I miss" and "what the fuck just happened" questions that litter the air at ballgames, tragically disregarded and forgotten like the syllabi from Chad's last semester at Bromaha State. You can learn how to score ballgames here. Fuck Chad.
  
  (3b) Go to games alone now and then. Did I mention that, in some company, it's rightly considered rude to score a ballgame like a trainspotting anorak? Not in all company, mind you. But I like going to some games alone to avoid the messy politics of divided attention altogether.
  
  (4) Bookmark a few websites. Quick stat references include FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference, and Brooks Baseball. Grantland, Baseball Prospectus, Baseball America, and the Hardball Times are all good. FanGraphs and Baseball-Reference both have subscription options that allow you to access enhanced content for a small fee, which is worth it if only to support the yeoman's work that they do compiling and sorting our beloved numbers.
  
  (5) German chess great Emanuel Lasker is believed (incorrectly) to have said that "if you see a good move, look for a better one." Good advice. Too much of the history of baseball analysis is the history of people getting stuck in comfortable places and refusing to interrogate their own ideas about the game. Sabermetricians have made careers out of just pointing this out, and even some of them do it from time to time. Also, on the level of pure self-interest, baseball ignorance and bad teeth have this much in common: Keeping your mouth shut hides them both. If you have a good opinion about a baseball topic, look for a better one.
  
  (6) Watch a some decent movies about baseball. Sugar is excellent and disturbing. Baseball: A Film by Ken Burns is available on Netflix and worth watching. You drink his nostalgic Flavor-Aid at your own peril: At times, Baseball is about as edifying as having a good, 19-hour stare at a Norman Rockwell painting. It's still in a class all its own as a baseball documentary. You should also watch Ed, starring Matt LeBlanc, because it'll teach you not to take strangers on the internet seriously when they give you advice.
  
  (7) When you go to games, wear whatever the hell you want. This has nothing to do with understanding baseball, but it annoys me when people make a big deal out of policing the clothing that others wear to sporting events. Sitting front-row at a Yankees-Tigers game in your best Steelers jersey and a pink Houston Astros BP cap? Whatever. You be you. You be you. I once watched as a perfectly innocent college student was denied a free t-shirt from a Nats Park employee because he (the student) was wearing a Red Sox shirt with his Washington cap. That was pretty fucked.
  
  (8) Take the EdX Sabermetrics course. Others have recommended this, with good reason. It's a wonderful introduction to advanced analytics, and you get a taste of programming in R and MySQL as well. You don't need a CompSci background. I sure didn't.
  
  Hope this helped.
  
  Footnote: Chad-hating is actually too easy. Truth is, I've never really been mocked for scoring games. Once, I even bonded with a Chad-esque guy sitting next to me at a Braves-Nats game here in Washington. He was pretty drunk, but we talked Braves baseball while he drank and I drank and I scored the game and he drank more. He seemed utterly engaged by the scoring process in that guileless, doe-eyed way that only the drunk have mastered. That's the Chad I loved.

TRAAAAAAAIN!

Basically, if you want to climb mountains, you need to be fit. A weak person with the best gear and training money can buy is rolling the dice. A strong person with minimal gear and training is rolling loaded dice. A well trained person can move faster to avoid weather, is more resilient to heat and cold, can exert themselves for longer on minimal food, and can help their partner when their partner can't help themselves. Remember: fatigue makes cowards of us all.

Of course, you generally want to be strong and smart and well equipped. But the first thing to do is train. It's pretty simple right now - what you really need to do is build up your cardiovascular and slow-twitch muscle base - which means you need to go hiking a lot. Go backpacking or peakbagging on the weekends - or day hikes if you have constraints. During your day-to-day, walk and stand as much as possible. Go for a long run at least once a week, but keep a relatively low heart rate (if you have to open your mouth to breathe, you are going too fast). Do some core work, too - weightlifting or yoga are both quite good for this. For a far more complete description of how to train for hiking and mountaineering, I suggest picking up a copy of Training for the New Alpinism.

As for technical skills and knowledge - well, you can bag easy peaks with a minimal amount, but here's a list of skills that will get you started, in approximate order from least to most advanced:

Backpacking
You said you'd done day hikes before - have you been backpacking? If not, this is a crucial first step. There is a ton of information online, and it isn't terribly difficult or dangerous, so you should be able to learn on your own. Here is a pretty good gear list to get you started. Also, make sure you learn and abide by LNT.

Wilderness First Aid
This is obviously good to know if you plan on tackling difficult or remote peaks. While there are many resources online (and you could get a decent overview simply by going through the requirements for the Boy Scouts' First Aid Merit Badge, this is one of the few things where I recommend paying for professional instruction. Getting a wilderness first aid certification can be very informative if you don't already have the knowledge.

Light/Ultralight Backpacking
Lighter packs move faster. Moving faster is safer. Learn to pare down the weight of your backpack to the bare minimum. This can be accomplished mostly by improvising gear out of common lightweight items, or simply going without - though it is possible to spend quite a bit of money to shave those last few ounces. /r/ultralight is a good source, as is backpackinglight.

Sport Climbing
If you want to tackle mountains with technical climbing, you need to know how to climb. While you might find yourself under the wing of a crusty old mountaineer who will be having none of those sissy-ass bolts, the fact is that the easiest and most common path to learning technical climbing these days starts in the climbing gym and at the sport crag. Unfortunately, this is where things can start getting expensive. In order to start learning how to climb, you'll need a pair of rock shoes at the very least to boulder. In order to start roped climbing, you'll need a harness and a belay device. In order to be a fully fledged sport climber, you'll need a rope (70m is the new standard, get that) and around 12 quickdraws; I also recommend a helmet.

As far as actually learning, there are a number of routes you can take. The most common is to get a rock gym membership. This is probably the best way, since it will expose you to the greatest number of potential climbing partners and increase your movements skills as fast as possible. Just hanging around the gym is usually enough to make a few friends to get outside with, and then they can teach you how to set anchors and lead sport. Unfortunately, gym memberships are expensive and there aren't too many rock gyms in Wyoming. Another option is to find some sort of social club for climbing in your area - I'm sure there are quite a few in your area if you poke around a bit. You'll be able to make friends and learn skills, but you'll be limited since the only practice you'll get will be on sporadic weekends. A third option is to try to teach yourself - the others are easier, but this is a perfectly reasonable thing to do. I suggest picking up a copy of Climbing: Mastering Basic Skills if you choose to go this route. Just remember to double-check everything, because if you mess up, you could die. A final option, and the one I suggest least, is to hire someone to teach you. This is very expensive, and although most guides provide excellent instruction, I feel that most people are taught better by learning from peers and making their own judgements on what to and not to do, based on reason and evidence.

Skiing, Snowshoeing, and Avalanche Certification
Mountains have snow. You need to navigate that snow. Learning to ski and snowshoe is fairly straightforward, but learning how not to die in an avalanche is rather difficult. Again, pay for a course.

Trad Climbing
Sport climbing familiarizes you with the fundamentals of movement on rock, belaying, and climbing above your protection. Traditional, or "trad" climbing, teaches you to place your own protection. You'll need a set of nuts (DMM makes some good ones), about 10 alpine draws, and a set of cams (cha-ching!). Once again, you can try to find some friends to teach you, teach yourself (pick up either Long's or Luebben's book), or hire someone to teach you.

Finally, don't fall into the "couple trap". I assume you're going to want your boyfriend to join you when you go out - that's great! But don't let your boyfriend be your one and only partner. For one thing, you'll severely limit the amount of knowledge you'll be able to absorb. For another, you'll be limited in when you'll be able to get out to when you are both able to - while backpacking and bagging easy peaks on your own is fine, pushing yourself solo is not suggested. And finally, it just won't be as fun - joining a community of people who you literally trust with your life is truly fantastic, and the relationships you build climbing mountains are really as important as the climbs themselves.

As far as improving your headgame goes, leading easy but long runouts is super helpful, as well as falling onto (well-placed) gear. Alpine multipitch is an admirable goal, but it is a far cry from what most people think of as trad climbing. You should be confident on long runouts, with potential no-fall zones. There are a lot of skills that are important for alpine climbing that often are not learned in a typical trad climbing mentor relationship, such as self-rescue, alpine route finding, and depending on your goals, snow climbing skills. There are several ways to learn these skills such as books or hiring a guide. Ultimately, your safety is much more dependent on yourself when alpine climbing. I say this not to scare you away from alpine climbing, as it has been responsible for some of the most amazing memories I have, but it has also been responsible for some of the scariest.

Some books that you might find beneficial:

Climbing Self-Rescue - Just what it says in the title.

Vertical Mind - I found this book useful for improving my head space.

Training for the New Alpinism - Probably the best book to help a climber transition into the backcountry.

[Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills] (https://www.amazon.com/Mountaineering-Freedom-Hills-Mountaineers/dp/1680510045/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=freedom+of+the+hills&qid=1562736585&s=gateway&sr=8-1) - This book is excellent, but probably isn't extremely helpful until you are climbing more serious alpine routes.

As far as advice, just get as much mileage on lead outdoors as you can, with 1-2 indoor bouldering sessions per week. If it doesn't impact your bouldering, you could add a couple strength sessions as well. If you want to get into alpine climbing, or even just multipitch climbing, practice your systems at the top of single pitch routes. Belay your partner from the top, practice building an anchor at the top off of the bolts, set up simple pulley systems. Just spending 15 minutes per session will help you get muscle memory down for when it really matters.

Edit: As you get into more alpine climbing, you should increase the strength training and cardio. Climbing efficiently after four hours walking with a pack full of gear and food is harder than it sounds. Increasing your physical strength will reduce the mental load a lot, allowing you to think more clearly and be more confident.

Programming is a tool. I suggest finding another interest that you can apply it to. Robots, graphics, music, animation, sports, economics -- the possibilities are endless. Pick your favorite area, look at what kind of problems there are in that area that people use programs to solve, figure out how those sorts of programs work, and try to solve some of those problems yourself.

A few interesting examples:

• Project Euler has a set of challenges relating to both math and computer science that will stretch you to learn more about both.
  
• Python Challenge is basically a series of puzzles that challenge you to do new and interesting things with Python. Granted, several of the puzzles are quite similar and some of the libraries they reference are deprecated, but it's a place to start for programming challenges.
  
• Programming Computer Vision With Python talks all about using programs to do things like find objects in pictures and track them even at different sizes and angles. Lots of great examples.
  
• Programming Collective Intelligence talks about putting together data from different sources (primarily websites) and finding patterns. It deals with many machine learning concepts in ways that are practical and interesting. Things like modelling and predicting, optimizing, clustering (finding similarities), searching and ranking, and pattern recognition.
  
• Arduino Robotics describes many robots you can build with relatively common parts that can be programmed using the inexpensive, C-based Arduino microcontroller platform. I've made several of these myself.
  
• Digital Signal Processing is all about writing software that takes advantage of advanced math to manipulate signals in many ways. It's invaluable for audio, but you see it used with graphics, digital communications, and many other areas.
  
• There is a subset of sports fans that really enjoy statistics and software can be very valuable for them. Things like comparing players across eras, predicting future performance, and helping to find high-value players. The general field is called Sabremetrics. I looked deep into it in relation to major league baseball. Two books that I found valuable are The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball and Baseball Between the Numbers.
  
• Programmable games are cool too. Things like CROBOTS, CoreWar, RoboWar, and Robot Game. It's just as fun building the simulation environment as it is building the bots that compete within them.
  
• Pick up any book on algorithms. Learn to apply the basics like binary search, insertion sort, radix sort, memoization and linear programming, Dijkstra's algorithm, and Newton's method for root finding.
  
• Grab another book on data structures. Make sure you understand the differences between arrays, linked lists, hash tables, and trees. Learn about unique and useful things like binary trees, radix trees, heaps, and queues.
  
• Learn how to write better code. I recommend books like Code Complete and The Pragmatic Programmer.
  
  Whatever you do, as you clearly pointed out, you have to be interested in it or you'll grow bored and give up. Find something that is interesting to you and pursue it as wide and deep as you can.

Websites (Most are not active):

• Inside the Pylon - Videos may not load embedded, but you can copy the url. Pretty good look at base plays, position responsibilities, and other terms you run into.
  
• Breakdown Sports another place for looking at the above, less available though covered deeply. See article on Cover 1 for example.
  
• Football Study Hall More on the statistics side of football (old stomping ground of Bill Connelly), a bit more all over the place.
  
• Dan Casey's Twitter If you want to see clips of fun and interesting plays past and present, he's a good'un.
  
• Playbooks - Historic coaches' playbooks. You can get a pretty good understanding of things like read progression and play goals from these, as well as what the purpose of each player on the field for each play by reading through some of these.
  
  ---
  Books: These are the books most people recommend starting from.
  
  

1. David Seigerman's Take Your Eye Off the Ball This is a really good book for understanding the game holistically. From positions to managing a season to how you can pay attention to a play, a drive, and a game.
   
2. Chris B. Brown's The Essential Smart Football and The Art of Smart Football (read in order of printing) Fantastic book set for anyone ready to dive a deeper into how the game has and could develop. Seeing everyone raving about the wildcat is always a chuckle though.
   

• Tim Layden's Blood, Sweat & Chalk. Definitely worth the the purchase. Would recommend the above first, but this is a great go for the stories behind the plays. How they came to be and why.

First of all, there's nothing that can replace watching games. Watch football! I recommend NFL GameRewind so you can watch the games with no commercials, get the All-22 tape, and get basic access to DVR features. GamePass is expensive and unnecessary at first, and I watched my local team for years with no cable -- plain old over-the-air TV plus a local affiliate that broadcasts every Ravens game was enough. So watch football! I also recommend these sources:

=Books=

I watched two or three seasons of football before I read the following books, and I really wish I'd had the foresight to begin reading as soon as I became a fan. I recommend reading Take Your Eye Off the Ball by Pat Kirwan first, because it teaches you how to watch the games you'll be seeing this season, especially how to "read" a defense like a QB would. You'll begin to be able to see when a defense is "showing blitz" or an offense is "showing run". You might also want to get a fast-forward introduction to the history of the game so you understand where the current traditions come from. Scores of books and blogs dig into the history of the game but I think Jaworski et al's Seven Games that Changed the Game and Chris Brown's The Essential Smart Football are both great reads. The latter you can effectively preview by reading his work at www.SmartFootball.com .

=Blogs=

Nobody writes about football as well as the guys at Grantland; the article I've linked there is one of my favorites. It goes into the history of the game and helps you place the current game in context. Brian Burke's Advanced NFL Stats is a more analytics-focused look at the game; his greatest contribution to the game (in my opinion) is his evidence-based chart for 4th down decisions. A lot of other sites focus on Fantasy Football because that's where you can make a ton of money -- hundreds of thousands of hungry gamers every Sunday and Monday. Honestly, Fantasy Football scores have almost no relevance to the strategy of the real game, and I'll say no more about that hobby.

=Other References=

If you're trying to figure out whether a particular performance was mediocre, good, great, or execrable, you want to look it up at Pro Football Reference. If you're trying to understand a piece of football jargon, check out Wikipedia's American Football Strategy, which is a good read on its own and contains sub-articles on the differences between a 4-3 and 3-4. Pro Football Focus had a great piece on defensive personnel prototypes that will help you sort out what people mean by things like "He's a great 0-technique NT for a team that does hybrid 3-4." Ordinarily I'd say you want to know the rules before any of that, but honestly I watched the game for years before I ever needed to consult the rulebook.

Jack Daniels in Daniels' Running Formula on why easy running is benifitial:

> Easy running does a good job of developing the heart muscle, since the maximum force of each stroke of the heart is reached when the heart rate is 60 percent of maximum. As you run faster, the heart rate and the amount of blood pumped with each heartbeat (referred to as stroke volume) increases minimally. So fairly easy running is a good developer of the heart muscle, and although it doesn't feel as if you are working very hard, your heart is.

> Another benefit of Easy running is an increase in vascularization (opening of more tiny blood vessels that feed the exercising muscles) and the development of characteristics of the muscles themselves that are involved in running. Even during easy running, your heart id developing a good amount of blood and oxygen to the exercising muscles, and these muscles respond by making changes in the muscle fibers that allow the muscles to accept more oxygen and convert more fuel into energy in a given period. In fact, many of the benefits gained as a result of this process are a function of time spent stressing the muscle fibers. You will no doubt spend more time accomplishing this goal by running easily because it is easier to last longer at a comfortable pace than it is at a hard pace.

When I crossed over, my parents bought me a lot of outdoor gear. It was all exciting and cool and I loved it, but most of it was heavy, designed for car camping, and ended up going unused, like the snakebite kit and bright red fanny pack and campfire toaster. I’d encourage you to help support your new Scouts to go backpacking and go lighter - give them tools and knowledge and inspiration.

• A good-quality map of a backcountry area near you to help them plan an adventure, $20-$30.
  
  
• A pair of Darn Tough wool socks - they don’t stink, keep feet dry and warm in winter and cool in summer, and come with a lifetime guarantee, $15-$20.
  
  
• An annual pass to your local state park system, $20-$30.
  
  
• A practical how-to lightweight backpacking book, such as one by Mike Cleland, $10. (https://www.amazon.com/Ultralight-Backpackin-Tips-Inexpensive-Lightweight/dp/0762763841/ref=nodl_) Ray Jardine’s Trail Life is great as well, but may be a little advanced for some.
  
  
• A lightweight cathole trowel, like the Deuce of Spades, $20.
  
  
• Sewing lessons and some fabric to start with. Seriously. Get them on the path to making their own gear and they’ll be set for life. (h/t to /r/myog).
  
  
• A good wool watch cap from your local surplus store, $10.
  
  
• A wool Buff, $13-$22.
  
  
• A lightweight packable daypack, like REI’s Travel Stuff Daypack, $30. It’s boring-looking but larger, lighter and cheaper than its more popular cousin the Flash 18.
  
  
• A digital kitchen scale for weighing their gear, $10.
  
  
• A hammock is a great idea. Even if they have troop tents, hammocks add versatility and flexibility. You can find serviceable ones for $20 (don’t forget to add straps).

Here are the best resources I've found. I will say this though: Find a solid climbing mentor to teach you all the safety basics (belaying, knots, anchors, etc.). I've only been climbing a little over a year, and I've seen some of the dumbest/craziest stuff outside already. It's good to read books and watch videos, but always have someone who knows that they're doing to check and double check that you're safe. Ask lots of questions--you only have one life and you don't want to die (or kill/hurt someone) from a dumb mistake that could be prevented.

• The Self-Coached Climber - This is a great book on movement. It comes with a DVD that shows you drills to improve your footwork and technique. (Here's a link to some of the drills.)
  
• 9 Out of 10 Climbers Make the Same Mistakes - This book I read and re-read constantly in the bathroom. There are no pictures, but he has little advice and thoughts about training and climbing that really help. I've found it more helpful the longer I've climbed.
  
• How to Climb 5.12 - Excellent training advice for climbing. How can you argue when this guy's ten year old son put up a first ascent of a 5.14a in Maple Canyon?
  
• Rock Warrior's Way - This is a great book for mental training for climbing. It will help more if you ever get into lead climbing/trad.
  
• Freedom of the Hills - This is the Bible of climbing/mountaineering.
  
• Climbing Anchors - John Long's book is one of the best. Make sure you have a good mentor though to help you and check your systems.
  
• Improve Your Climbing with Neil Gresham - Great video for technique on overhangs. The full version is worth watching too if you can find it online.
  
• Mountain Project's School of Rock - Lots of general info and videos.
  
  Stay safe, find a mentor, and ask lots of questions.

Well, I have barely any experience with football but Football Manager is helping me learn about the sport.

Baseball is pretty easy to pick up though. It has some pretty obscure rules that rarely come up, but the basics are easy enough to understand. I highly recommend this book, if you want a crash course. The author does a great job of mixing humor and the facts, it's certainly not an exhaustive read. After reading this you'll be pretty well acquainted. If you get into it I'd check out Men At Work by George Will after that for a an even deeper look and another great read.

The game (OOTP) itself is great because baseball lends itself to compiling heaps of stats. Almost everything a player does on the field can be recorded and analyzed and this is reflected in the game. While there is a randomness to it, the hard, statistic numbers give it some grounding. Don't let this intimidate you though, everyone has their own stats they pay attention to, you don't have to get into the really complicated stuff unless you want to.

The game can be kind of daunting if you look at all the options available. You can create your own leagues tweaking almost every aspect or just play the regular configuration.

OOTP usually has a sale during the off-season to help die-hards bide their time till the next season. You can usually pick up a copy for $20, I did it with last year's 2013 version.

You need to get on Instagram, brotha.

I feel like I'm rehashing a lot of what's widely available on the webs, but you probably need to start by thinking through the complexity of your question.

Yes, you can train at low rep ranges with bodyweight. That's the goal, in fact, if you train that way. But it's a unique pursuit in that the leverages required of training with maximal intensity first require what we might call an intermediate/advanced mastery of technique, form, balance, and all that jazz. In the bodyweight-training community, the top-end movements are all considered skill movements: only after mastering handstands, planches, levers can you implement the patterns dynamically, i.e. handstand pushups, planche pushups, front lever rows, one-arm chinups.

Here are some good resources for you to explore:

• Jason Ferruggia writes about this a lot, but this is the best intro article.
  
• Al Kavadlo isn't a "power" guy, but is a great entry point.
  
• Baristi Workout is fantastic, and will direct you to tons of other people you should explore (like Frank Medrano, Barstarzz, etc)
  
• Battle of the Bars = badass
  
• Christopher Sommer runs the Gymnasticbodies.com training service, but this is the article that started it all and is highly informative.
  
• The /r/bodyweightfitness/ subreddit is a gold-mine resource, but beware the Crossfit-esque insider attitude.
  
• Overcoming Gravity is arguably the most comprehensive bodyweight training book around.
  
• I'm currently obsessed with Ido Portal's training methods - they're among the most unique on the planet.
  
  Ahhh, there's so much to explore. The problem is that there ISN'T (yet) a cohesive system for developing maximal power with bodyweight movements. IMO, Ferruggia has done the best job, merging bodyweight and barbell training for maximum development. In the end it just becomes an issue of personal preference - though you can develop immense strength and power with bodyweight training, it takes infinitely longer than barbell training. If you're a coach, and raw power is the goal, then BW training almost necessarily gets reduced to supplemental training.
  
  Good luck to you, have fun, and definitely consider reposting this on r/bodyweightfitness. They'll sort you out something proper.

Read Keep Your Eye off the Ball. Read The Essential Smart Football. Pay for NFL GamePass. Watch the Coach's Film (All-22). They've archives going back to 2011. It's especially helpful if you watch a game (or series of plays) you're already familiar with. Get pen and paper out and take notes. Watch what each player is doing, both before and after the snap, and be ready to rewind over and over and over and over.

There's a lot of good analysis on YouTube too, if you are a learn-by-watching type.

>Start here, on Brett Kollman's channel. He's a former NFL Network production assistant. Most of his videos are story heavy and analysis light, but that video is about how to watch film.
>
>Sam's Film Room, with Samuel Gold, a writer for the Athletic. Good for beginners. I think he started out at r/nfl.
>
>The QB School, with former Patriots QB, JT O'Sullivan. Focuses on quarterback play, both good and bad.
>
>Dan Orlovski's Twitter has a bunch of quick analysis videos, usually focusing on QB play.
>
>Peyton Manning's Detail is wonderful show, but is stuck behind a paywall at ESPN.com. There are two short videos free on YouTube. Resourceful people can find it elsewhere as well.
>
>Strong Opinion Sports, with Division III NCAA QB Zac Shomler. He has a lot of football video podcasts, but also a QB film analysis playlist.
>
>Baldy Breakdowns, with former Cowboys OLineman and current NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger. No true focus, but has great insight into offensive line play.
>
>Gamepass Film Sessions. NFL Players and coaches analyze their own plays. The full version is on NFL Gamepass. I'm a particular fan of the one with Joe Thomas.
>
>Voch Lombardi. Focuses on talent evaluation and line play. Funny as fuck.
>
>The New England Patriots YouTube channel has Belichick Breakdown and Coffee with the Coach. Breakdown is the more analysis focused of the two.

If you're REALLY interested, the resources are out there. Good hunting.

So, I have done Vancouver to Tijuana and used almost exclusively this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Bicycling-Pacific-Coast-Vicky-Spring/dp/0898869544/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323197410&sr=1-1

I ended up hating it, some things are wrong,it's hard to use a book while riding, etc. but it got the job done.

Another alternative that is really useful are the adventure cycling maps:
http://www.adventurecycling.org/routes/pacificcoast.cfm

Or like fayette said, ditch the preplanned route, it honestly is way more fun and feels more like you are on your own adventure. A lot of areas will have free bike maps of the region, like the Discovery Trail on the Olympic Peninsula. And you can just use road maps bought at a gas station. The downside to this is that many times you will take a big highway when there was a barely used country road that you could have taken.

Luckily for you there are hiker/biker sites in most campgrounds all the way up the coast. They normally cost around $5 a person and will have warm showers. Or, what it took me forever to learn was to bush camp. Go to a park and find somewhere hidden, get out your sleeping bag and sleep. Not having a car really helps hide in the park and it ends up saving a lot of money.

Also, I would consider taking Highway 1 up as far as you can. The grades are a little steeper and the shoulders a little smaller, but it is much better riding than the 101. Once you hit California(from Oregon), highway 101 turns into a highway, 4 fast lanes, wide shoulders and shallow grades. This comes at a cost, it is hotter, dustier and less scenic. While this doesn't sound so bad, it gets old quick.

For food I'm not sure what your plan is. I highly recommend getting a backpacking stove and lightweight pot. It will save you a lot of money and make you much more flexible. Usually you can go to most places and they will fill up your water or you can fill it up at their soda machines.

*This is from a layman's perspective on exercise science and physiology as it relates to amateur cycling training

I'd rank ways to measure the training load of intervals like this from least to most helpful:

4. Distance at RPE or Speed
3. Time at RPE or Speed
2. Time at HR

1. Time at a specific Power Rating
   
   My understanding is that Time and Intensity are what matter for training for specific physiological adaptations, so the more accurately you measure those two factors, the better quality your training will be. Distance tells you nothing about time it takes to complete a specific interval. It's related to time in that at a given speed on unvarying terrain different distances will take different times to complete, but we can't control for those variables on the road. On a track or a very flat course with no wind....maybe.
   
   Speed tells you very little about intensity because of the same factors as well as your level of rest and recovery.
   
   Rate of Perceived Exertion (how hard am I working on a scale of 1-5 or 10 or whatever) can be a really good training cue for yourself, but until you have something more objective to measure it against (heart rate or power) it doesn't necessarily tell you much.
   
   Heart rate is influenced by a number of factors outside of the intensity of a specific workout, including rest, hydration, health, recovery, etc. It does, however, control for a lot of environmental variances (gradient, wind, etc.)
   
   Power is probably the most accurate way to measure intensity, and when coupled with heart rate and RPE you can draw some pretty profound conclusions about physiological responses from your body.
   
   I train with heart rate since I'm too much of a peasant to own a power meter. Typically I try to do my intervals at different heart rate levels based on what I'm attempting to train (muscular endurance, power, etc.) and try to return to a baseline heart rate within a designated resting interval. If I can't recover in time, typically it means I'm not rested enough for the workout or I haven't done enough base training and I change my plans for the day or the week.
   
   I'd recommend the Cyclist's Training Bible by Joe Friel
   https://www.amazon.com/Cyclists-Training-Bible-Joe-Friel/dp/1934030201
   
   It certainly helped me.

I did pretty much this same trip last summer (a few months ago) except it was from Seattle to Santa Cruz. It was so awesome.

Here are the pictures: http://itsbiggerontheinside.imgur.com/all/

If you have every backpacked before, you just need the essential gear that you would bring backpacking. I camped everynight (about 5$ a night in california/oregon and then it gets ridiculously expensive ~$15 a night in Washington) so I brought my camping stove, hammock to sleep in along with a rain tarp, warm clothes... The essentials.

You say you're training on that bike, but not riding on it? And you said it's a fixed gear... It's not a fixed gear, it has gears. Do you know how many? I did my ride on a 1984 Miyata 1000, and it held up great. If your bike has good enough gears, and eyelets for paniers, you should be fine on it.


I don't know your route, but if you are going to go along the coast (which I recommend), there's a great book called bicycling the pacific coast. It tells you where campsites are, things to see, and it suggests how long you should travel for each day.

You said that you are planning on doing it in 2-3 weeks. I did it in 24 days, and that was about 50 miles a day with a few rest days. If you are walking at all (im a little confused about what you're really doing) it will take you longer.

I think that you have some superfluous things that you are bringing as well. A backpack, hiking shoes (if you aren't riding clip less, you should be fine without hiking shoes). You didn't mention that you are bringing rain pants in you packing list (unless i skimmed over it), and you may want to bring those in the spring months for the Northern Coast. It can be cold, and wet.

I hope you have a great time! I looks really rad. If you don't have your bike yet, check craigslist! You'll find some awesome deals for awesome bikes on there.

Also, feel free to ask anything.

Hello there, I'm relatively new as well but I can hopefully help! Firstly, on the sidebar is a very helpful book, Mastering Mountain Bike Skills This is the second edition, the first one is cheaper, I'm not sure how much has changed but it has a ton of helpful things, such as a few answers to your questions. They recommend deadlifts as a great exercise to build strength, I can imagine that would help a lot. Conditioning is also a big part of it, long rides focusing on pedal stroke and perfecting form to make sure there is no wasted effort.

As far as a trail bike, depends on how rough the trails are. I'm currently riding 2014 Giant Talon 4 and it's holding up fine on easy-moderate trails without too many large bumps or big rocks, I've done some pretty rough accidental off-roads and nothing has broken yet, so I'd say for your price range a hardtail would be the way to go, though for rougher trail a full suspension bike is recommended, though good ones of those start around $1600-$2000 range.

Also for what it's worth, I'm 220 pounds and ride with a 8-10ish pound backpack so I imagine you'd be a lot easier on the bike in that regard

In reference to your edit, I think a great beginner/intermediate running training book is Jack Daniel's Running Formula. Some stuff in it may already be familiar to you, but if you want to know enough about running training to plan/understand your own workouts (which I assume you do as a former good cyclist) it's a really good start.

I'm not going to go too indepth on training (that's what the book is for, plus I wouldn't even make a dent in really talking about training) but I will make a few points just from what you've said here.

> I've been doing around 3 miles a day for the past two weeks and can usually hold an 8 min pace for a 5k effort. My heart rate is through the rough and it doesn't seem like it is going to get any easier.

Slow down. I know, it's going to be a blow to the ego, but running is a fairly specific activity and it's going to take some time for your body to adjust. You'll still see improvements without grinding every single run. The good news is with your background, you should see quick improvement as your running economy begins to improve, as a lot of the cardiovascular base is already there. This will be a nice change after being elite at cycling (where so much work is required for even a minuscule improvement). If you want to go fast, set specific workout days, and even those should have an easy warmup and cooldown.

>rack up some serious mileage in the future months/years to come.

Just a warning to not do too much, too fast. A huge difference between running and cycling is the amount of wear that the impact of running can put on your body. Slowly ramp up your mileage over time, giving the joints and tendons time to adapt, or else you'll end up hurt (like me....). It's tempting to pour yourself into this new sport with as much intensity as you put into cycling, but you can't be running 100+ km weeks right off the bat.

>been doing around 3 miles a day for the past two weeks

I'd take a rest day once a week. Maybe go for a swim or bike on Sunday's instead. Even when I was running 8 times/week I still took Fridays completely off.

Feel free to ask if you've got any other questions I can try to help with!

You are going to need to increase your power (FTP) and introduce long intervals into your training. I"m talking about specific rides where your only goal is something like 3x20 minute intervals at 85-90% of your max power or heart rate. These are rides done by yourself, alone, and in some degree of pain towards the end of the session.

There's plenty of information on the internet on increasing your FTP, but essentially you want a decent (20 minute) warm up followed by 3 x 20 minute intervals at 85-90% of your max power or HR with 5 minutes of rest (riding super slow). You can start at 10 minute intervals first if you like. This has always worked very well for me in the past and I'm old school before Power Meters so it does work using HR, but most modern training is now done with power meters. It will still work with a heart rate monitor, but you need to know a few things about your heart rate zones, max hr, etc.

A good book that will probably get mentioned here is "The Cyclist's Training Bible" and it is highly recommended. Good luck, getting faster is hard work, but the rewards are worth it.

The New Rules of Marathon and Half Marathon Nutrition by Matt Fitzgerald is a good book that talks mainly about nutrition. Some people say it was written as a marketing ploy by Matt Fitzgerald, however there's still some great info in there about nutrition for training and race day.

Advanced Marathoning by Pete Pfitzinger is also a great resource for all things training. Ignore the training plans in the back as they're likely too advanced for your first marathon, but the rest of the book has amazing information about physiology, cross-training, recovery, nutrition, types of workouts... Highly recommend. Then, if you get to a point where you want to take your marathoning to the next level, you'll have some great plans to work off.

Another great online resource is fellrnr.com (i've linked you straight to the marathon section) -- this guys has compiled A LOT of data if you're a data nerd, and there's also a lot of good info in there.

Just a note on using different resources -- you'll see that sometimes they can contradict each other. For example, Matt's book and fellrnr both speak to the benefits of fat loading during your pre-race carb load phase, but Pfitz's book writes this off as not necessary. This is normal, and don't get too caught up in what's right and what's not. The point is that everyones different, and you need to find what works for you.

This sub-reddit is also a great trove of information, with many people willing to answer specific questions about anything running related, so never hesitate to ask!

Good luck with your training and race!

I would first follow several trad climbs and inspect your leader's placements. Then practice placing a ton of gear on the ground and practice making anchors on the ground. Get somewhat comfortable with placing cams and nuts, have your trad friends inspect them, and pull really hard on them while you're on the ground. Then do several mock trad leads where you're on top rope, but pretend you are leading. Connect yourself to your gear and jump on them while on top rope to test your placements. Then go lead a very easy single pitch route. Always have your more experienced friends give you critiques on your placements. When you feel comfortable leading pitches, building anchors, and belaying from the top, go lead a multipitch. Congrats, you're a multipitch trad leader!

These are basically the steps I followed, with my more experienced wife helping me all the way through, and it worked well for me. Now I'm leading 5.7/5.8 multipitch trad routes. I followed about 5 trad routes, mock lead about 5 routes, and placed a couple hundred pieces of gear on the ground before my first lead. Later on, I read through this book, and practiced the self rescue techniques, which was really helpful and made me more confident that I would be able to deal when the shit hits the fan someday.

Level 1 Squats require quite a bit of balance and upper body strength to maintain the position. While it is still beneficial to work on it, having that hold you up from progressing in actual squats doesn't make sense. I would suggest starting off at level 2 in the Squat progression, but still working on Level 1 when you can; it is nice for the mobility, balance and flexibility, but it's going to do very little for you strength-wise, at least in terms of the Squat progression.

Level 2 Pullups, as described in the book, are just ridiculously hard for most people who would be at that step in the progression. What I found worked for me was something I think I read on the Dragon Door forums: instead of working with a bar/table that is waist height, find a bar/table that is more sternum height (the bone between your chest muscles). That will make a huge difference in the level of difficulty and is a more natural progression between Levels 1 and 3.

Most of the other progressions should be good and slowly build you up to where you need to be for each step. Some here believe the number of repetitions is too high; the numbers the book has you do at times will have your muscles focusing on endurance more than strength. But I was starting it from a relatively low level of fitness, so I didn't have a problem if I mixed a little endurance training in with my strength training.

I also had a rule that I had to meet each Progression Standard three times before I actually moved on. It keeps you from moving too fast through the progressions, assures you didn't just have a fluke day or get any cheat reps, and makes sure your form can be nice and stable before moving onto the next step. If you are still feeling like you are making gains at a given level, don't be in a huge rush to jump ahead. I like to look at all the bodyweight exercises as a more long-term thing.

Also, feel free to add things to the exercises if you are interested and able to later on; I did the routine about 3/4 of the way through (getting to level 5-8 in the various exercises) before I started over with a weight vest for added difficulty. After going through back to the beginning with the vest, I'm now back to level 8-10 in everything but pullups and HSPUs, which I'm at 7 and 6 in HSPUs, and now I have been mixing it up with the gymnastic stuff from moderator eshlow's book: Overcoming Gravity

I definitely think you can get it or come pretty close. You clearly have some solid natural talent and those lifetime miles always help, even if its been a while. Plus the fact that you haven't put on weight helps too.

I think it depends on what type of training you respond to best, but from reading Daniels and Pfitz books recently, there are sort of the 4 types of training that are important for the 5K. Easy aerobic runs/long runs, tempo(about what you could run for an hour or so), interval/V02 max(3k-5k pace) and repetition/speed(about mile pace or so). I think tempo and V02 are more important than the speed in the 5k so those should be the focus.

For a 5k time of 17:00 you want to be hitting tempo workouts around 5:54. Things like 4-6x1 mile with 1 min rest, 2-3x2 mile with 2 min rest, or a 4 mile tempo run. For the V02 stuff you want to be at around 5:25 mile pace or 2:42 800 pace. Workouts like 8x800 with 2 minutes jog. 6x1000 with 2-3 min jog. 5x1200 with 3 min jog. The shorter faster stuff is around mile pace. so 75 and under for 400 or 37 and under for 200. Workouts like 200 repeats with 200 jog or 400 repeats with 400 jog.

Maybe try to do any two of those workouts each week and a long run and you can get there I think. One week do a tempo workout and speed. Then the next week V02 and tempo. The week after V02 and speed. Try to get all those systems working. I would say try to make sure you can get your long run up to 10-13 miles or so.

These are what you should be running for a 17 min 5K, so its fine that you work into it. If it means slower pace or less reps, cool. These are just some benchmarks that to shoot for as you get closer to the race. Obviously if you can't handle the 2 quality sessions and a long run right now, back off a little and stick to the tempo and V02 stuff once a week and alternate them maybe. You can always do strides after runs or 200s after tempo workouts to keep some turnover going.

Do yourself a favor and pick up a book if you are serious about it so you can understand why you are doing these workouts instead of listening to me on the internet haha.

http://www.amazon.com/Daniels-Running-Formula-3rd-Edition-Jack/dp/1450431836

http://www.amazon.com/Faster-Road-Racing-Half-Marathon/dp/1450470459/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1456842179&sr=1-1&keywords=pete+pfitzinger

Good luck. Keep us posted.

I'm a bit rusty on the science and don't have my trusty copy of Advanced Marathoning with me but I'll give it a shot!

>But what's the point of that mileage? I prob don't reach the fat >burning (over glycogen) point that I would from a long run
>(17+miler).

Becoming more efficient at burning fat can be important but it's not the purpose of most your long runs because if all goes well, you shouldn't have to burn fat in the marathon.

Really, marathon training is getting your body storing as much glycogen as possible while burning it at efficiently as possible. That's because when you run out you start burning fat (requiring a lot more O2) and you hit the wall.

>It's also not helping with speed.

Real speed work is barely featured in marathon training. In the last couple of weeks leading up to the marathon you'll see some 400s etc as a sharpening workout but otherwise it's pretty useless because you'll never see it i the race. Longer intervals like mile repeats, 2 mi, 5k are useful to improve aerobic efficiency. I'll usually do one workout a week like this.

>And intuitively, I would think that taking a day off would be better for >recovery than doing a short and easy run.

>Wouldn't I run better/smarter if I prioritized each of my workouts (my >long runs, intervals, tempo) and gave it 100% rather than struggle to >complete them b/c of fatigue for instance?

Ah but marathon training is about running when you're not fully recovered. How else do you teach your body to recover more quickly? How else do you encourage it to store more glycogen and use it more efficiently? How else do you learn to run on tired legs? Don't take me wrong, you shouldn't be struggling to complete them but you shouldn't feel fresh either.

edit: Check out the weekly marathon training thread over at LetsRun to see what type of training people are doing. You'll see guys who are OT qualifiers and others who are like you shooting for Boston. Pay attention to the easy mileage they're running compared to the workouts.

Given that you've been climbing for less than a year, my suggestion would be that the biggest thing that will boost your climbing is technique work, and endurance work, but especially technique work. If you haven't already, buy The Self Coached Climber, read it, and do all of the exercises contained therein to jump start your technique improvement.

As far as gaining muscle versus losing weight, since climbing is all about functional strength, I'd suggest that losing weight is going to have a much more rapid and prominent effect. In the long run though, both leaning out and gaining muscle (that helps with your climbing, not that doesn't help with your climbing) will probably help a little bit. Plus, losing weight helps with the endurance bit of things.

Of course, I'm sure you've noticed someone at the crag or gym who climbs much harder than you do, but isn't nearly as strong as you are, is about as heavy or heavier than you are, and might even be a bit shorter than you are. If not, really look around the next few times you're climbing. The difference is all in technique. This is pretty much why the best women climbers have climbed 5.14d (has anyone done a 5.15a yet?), and the best male climbers, despite obviously having more strength and height as well as a MUCH lower body fat percentage, have only ever climbed three letter grades harder than that.

I'm not an expert on 5K plans, but generally speaking, I like running 5-6 days a week, with 1 workout day, and 1 long run day. The rest are easy runs. For my schedule, I do workouts on Tuesday and long runs on Friday, but you should find what works for your schedule. So you don't want to suddenly increase to 5-6 days, but see about adding one easy day to what you're doing already. Make sure the effort is easy and I'd probably start it shorter than your normal runs. Sustain that for a few weeks and make sure you're doing ok, and if so, then either add another day (if needed), or start adding a little mileage on your easy days.

I saw someone say the other day that there are three key areas to think about when increasing your training...total volume, speed, and number of running days. At most, only increase one of those things each week as you build up. And feel free to hold for an extra week if you don't feel you're ready for another increase.

If you really want to get better answers and structured plans, I'd look into getting this book

I got into it through rock climbing, as many others have. The skills and tools of the rock climber are foundations for mountaineering. (Ironic, since I see much of rock climbing as a weekend sport created out of mountaineerss training.) Climbing is a very broad discipline that combines rock climbing technique, rope work, risk management, hiking and general athleticism to reach physical goals. (Mountain tops!)
As such, it can be transitioned into from a number of angles. I know a group from a yoga school that quickly excelled at rock climbing and eventually added two more mountaineers to the community. I also know several people from college hiking and outing clubs that have expanded into winter hiking and then mountaineering.
At some point, if you choose to pursue mountaineering and the more technical climbs to be found, you WILL find yourself in a gym or out on a crag rock climbing. Mountaineering is essentially rock climbing + winter hiking + OINK.

The fundamentals are learned from a lot of reading and studying the technical literature, and patient progression through practice. Other mountaineers (especially experienced ones) are invaluable, and a very important resource for learning and safety. I highly recommend getting involved with a community like MountainProject and looking for outdoor groups and climbing groups in your area.
The question is - what can you climb near where you live? If you're in Kansas, you're going to have a hard time of it. Seattle, Boston, Denver, Geneva, you're all set.
I live near the White Mountains of New Hampshire and am up there every other weekend pushing some new limit. A few years ago i did my first winter backpacking trip. Then, shortly after, my first winter hike on exposed summits with crampons and an ax. Last winter I bought ice tools and moved into multi-pitch technical climbing of ice, snow gullies and mixed routes. If you have mountains nearby to explore and practice on, there are years of fun to be had in them. Find local guidebooks. You'd be amazed how many cliffs and trails and gullies have been graded and compiled.
Lastly - buy a a couple books on mountaineering and start at home. The books are essential knowledge, you'll get an idea of what's involved, and they should whet your appetite and inspire you to seek out places to go and get your climb on.
Good climbing partners can be friends or people you get to know from the local climbing gym or forums. Having someone to learn and progress with and share the adventure is awesome. Finding like-minded people is surprisingly easy when all you need is passion and dedication. (And balls)

I have a 2008 Gary Fisher Marlin Disc, which is similar to your bike in a number of ways, though most of your components are higher-end. Though I got the bike 6 or 7 years ago, I didn't really start riding much until recently. So I'm still a noob, but I'll let you know the handful of changes I've made, and why, in case it helps. I do XC riding in the PNW for what it's worth.

Pedals - the platforms that came with my bike were not great. Trek's specs for both bikes list "alloy pedals" so I assume they're the same. I recently switched to clipless pedals (SPD) and it made a huge difference for me since I'm not sliding all over the place. Better platforms and good shoes are a good choice too.

Tires - Trek's site says we have the same tires, assuming you haven't changed them. I'm still rocking the original tires since they do the job, but they don't get good traction in wet and muddy conditions. Others online say similar things (http://www.mtbr.com/cat/tires-and-wheels/tire/bontrager/jones-xr/prd_416565_151crx.aspx). So picking up a set of new tires that match your riding style and trail conditions may be good. I will probably do this when mine wear out (soon).

Drivetrain - All I've done is dump my largest chainring, since I never use it, and put a bash guard in its place to protect my legs and help roll over logs and such more easily.

edit: you know what, I may have misinterpreted your question. If you're looking more for how to improve your skills I found this to be very helpful: https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Mountain-Bike-Skills-2nd/dp/0736083715. The tips in the threads toomuchdolphin linked are great resources as well.

I had a similar conversion about 10 years ago, also after a long hiatus (due to injury). Hauling big weight really starts to lose its charm as you age.

I used a scattershot approach (and it was rather hit and miss) until I got Mike Clelland's book, "Ultralight Backpackin' Tips", which had just been published. It's the smartest $14 I ever spent on backpacking gear, and it dropped weight from my BPW faster and better than I could have believed. He gives you a comprehensive approach that is not just about gear but also about mindset and technique. It showed me how to evaluate every single item in my pack from the perspective of a very experienced UL backpacker.

I was able to drop my BPW in half rather quickly -- without doing a lot of gear buying -- and then chip away at it one piece of gear at a time, picking and choosing what was next in a logical progression. Just about everyone one in transition finds that they achieve a "plateau" BPW that is not bad at all (well under 20 pounds) fairly quickly, and then it takes work to approach the "magical" 10 pound BPW.

It looks like you've already made some good choices. Keep up the good work.

A note on your pack; some years ago, UL backpackers often used packs that are considered to be "high volume" today -- about 60L, like your GG pack. You pack your bag/quilt, down puffies, and soft insulated items uncompressed, and that way they fill up the volume of the pack. It preserves the optimal shape of the pack for the best carrying behavior, it makes the entire pack soft and slightly squishy, and hence very comfortable to carry, and it makes packing up in the morning quick and easy. As a bonus, it makes your insulated gear last much longer; extreme compression is tough on gear, be it down or synthetic.

>I have also read that in some tests, climbers on average don't actually have much greater hand strength (in grip tests) than the general population, which supports the theory they are relying on nonmuscular structures. (I wish I could find/provide a source for that...)

This is true. However, it's not really non-muscular structures so much as it is specific angle and muscle length neurological adaptation.

In general, isometric strength is different from dynamic strength like grip. For example, your crimping strength with full crimp, half crimp, and open crimp will be different depending on how much you practice each of these because of the specificity of strength at a particular joint angle. Isometric strength tends to be very specific to the angle (about 15-30 degrees IIRC) of the particular joints.

Obviously, climbers have much stronger connective tissue than your average person, but the hand positioning still needs to be supported by muscular strength in order to hold the hand and thus the body in a specific position.

It's not so much that a lack of or too much grip strength contributes to tendon injuries but of overuse of a specific hand positioning in regard to high amounts of stress to where you can't recover from it. For example, if you have A2, A3, or A4 type of injury, full and half crimp climbing will tend to aggravate them because of the specific positioning of the hand. However, things like slopers will generally be fine to climb without incident because of the lack of stress on the pulleys at the specific hand angles.

Thus, your 'grip' could be weak or strong relative to whatever you want... but you could still overuse the hand in a certain position and get injured. Obviously, being stronger will generally signify you probably have more adaptations to forces which means you are less likely to get injured. But that's only a generality. It's better to think of injuries in terms of 'weak links' which may have potential contributing factors from other places.

I hope that makes sense.

Source: wrote this book and am a physical therapist.

If I could recommend one resource it would be "Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills." Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills https://www.amazon.com/dp/1594851387/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_a1fVzbRK7WTZR. Although honestly nothing can replace going out and getting outdoors in the mountains, either with a guide or a friend who knows what they are doing. Baker is a good starter mountain, but if you want to stay clear of crevasses, Mt. Adams is a really good option to learn crampons, ice axe and rope skills without the big risks. I'm on my phone or else I could go into much more detail, but feel free to PM me and I'd be more than happy to recommend guide groups, climbs, gear, etc. Welcome to the world of mountaineering, its beautiful!

There are a few ways to determine it.

Personally I go by heart rate, using a chest strap (the wrist based are too inaccurate to rely on IMO). Once you do a max heart rate test, you can use that to set zones 1 (easy) through 5 (hard). Zone 1 is too easy to really be used much except for recovery runs. Zone 2 is where I do the bulk of my training. It's a somewhat easy, conversational pace. For me this works well because I like to run on trails most of the time, and pace will vary depending on hills, sand, grass, rocks, etc. This way I can run off effort rather than a specified pace. My Z2 trail pace ends up averaging around 10-11 min/mile, even through my road 5k pace is 7 min/mile. On the road, my Z2 pace is around 9:30 min/mile. Z3 doesn't get used too much. Z4 is a threshold/tempo or other "comfortably hard" effort. Z5 I really only hit during intervals or a 5k where I'm going all out.

The other way would be off pace, if most of your running is done on relatively flat roads. Jack Daniels VDOT calculator gives some estimates of training paces. Based on your most recent 24 min 5k, assuming that was pretty much all out:

Easy: 9:48-10:46 (bulk of miles)

Workout paces:

Marathon: 8:44 (can be used for long run efforts)

Threshold (5-15min efforts): 8:10

Intervals (3-5min efforts): 7:31

Reps (1-2 in efforts): 7:07

Notice the big gap between easy runs (9:48) and the start of the workout paces (8:44). Between that are sort of "junk miles" and because they aren't targeting any system in particular, they don't increase fitness as well as other paces.

Keep in mind, these numbers are going to change pretty fast as you increase your race performances.

Lots of great books out there on running, and most tend to follow the same general approach, with the small details being the difference.

Matt Fitzgerald 80/20 - a good primer on why slower running mixed with hard efforts can work really well https://www.amazon.com/dp/0451470885

Jack Daniels - A much more specific book on figuring out a good training plan. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1450431836

The purpose of long runs is to build mitochondria and capillary beds. This takes time. You won't see immediate results. How long have you been running and how long are your slow runs?

A general rule of thumb is that 80% of your running should be at a slow pace. But this rule applies to runners who have built up their base mileage. You need to go base to square 1 and continue building base mileage by strictly running easy runs. Probably your 10 min per mile pace, but as long as it is in heart rate zone 2 (aerobic) or lower, you're good. These easy runs are critically important for building aerobic capacity and strengthening your skeletal system (including tendons/ligaments/joints). If you skip this base building phase, your risk of injury can be dramatically higher. All new runners should be running all of their runs at an easy pace. I can't stress to you how important this is. If you want to get faster or be a lifelong runner, the month or two this will take is a drop in the bucket in terms of time.

Speed work during this base building phase can be done as strides. Add them into your easy runs once or twice per week. Strides are 15-20 second bouts that are run at mile pace. They are NOT sprints. You won't be running on the balls of your feet. After each stride, you'll recover over the course of 90-120 seconds. Long enough that your heart rate settles. Then you can start the next one. Do the strides at the end of your easy run. Start with 5 strides once per week. You can begin increasing the number and frequency that you do them each week. These will help improve your running economy and get your body accustomed to running at faster paces.

You can safely add 10% more miles each week. Get your mileage up to 25 miles per week for a couple weeks, then you can begin doing other speed work like intervals and repetitions.

I'm speaking to you as someone who followed these rules to a T since May of this year. When I started in May I was slow. Frustratingly slow. But I stuck with the plan and got my miles up. Then I added speed work. Here's my progression since May.




Month | Mileage | Avg Pace (min/mi)
-----|--------|--------
May | 24| 11:18
June | 51| 11:02
Jul | 91| 10:22
Aug | 119| 9:44
Sept | 162| 9:43
Oct | 103| 9:01

Note that the average pace listed is the average for all miles run during that month. I just ran a 5k over the weekend in 19:46 (6:22 min/mile). I'm not young either, 36.

Be patient. Slowly add miles. Train smartly and you won't get injured.

If you want a book to follow, get Daniels' Running Formula. He lays everything out that you need to do. Once you get your base mileage down, he has speed workouts in there that will kick your ass and make you faster.

Cycling training, as you can imagine, is complex and there are many opinions on how to best train for races. I'm no expert on coaching/training but I have been a serious cyclist and racer for 25 years.

Today, the most common approach to training is to use 'periodized' training. The idea of periodized training is to structure your year so that you build a foundation of fitness over the winter (after an autumn break) and then tailor your workouts carefully in the spring and summer such that you peak in time for important races.

It is called 'periodized' training because your year is broken up into periods (and those periods are, in turn, broken up into smaller periods). The first of these high-level periods is a rest period around this time of year. Then, over the winter, you'll be in a 'base period' during which you develop a foundation for peak fitness next summer. Your spring and summer will have multiple 'build' and 'peak' periods designed to build your fitness ahead of important races (build) and then to taper off just a bit to reduce fatigue just prior to important races (peak).

Today's training methods (as opposed to training from 2 decades ago when I first started racing) is very scientific and prescriptive thanks to technologies that provide us with metrics on our performance. Specifically, heart rate monitors and, more importantly, power meters. Data from these can be used to maximize your workouts' impact and can be fed into physiological models of how bodies respond to and recover from workouts in order to predict and manage what's called your 'form' during the racing season. Because these model quantify your body's response to workouts, 'form' can be quantified and is defined as: form = fitness - fatigue.

Your goal is to maximize form on race days (so-called 'peaking'). But because your fitness is always dropping when you are not doing workouts and your fatigue is increasing when you do work out, managing your form is a dynamic and not so simple. Furthermore, each person is different and, as we age, our response to training changes. And, to add more complication, each type of race also demands different skills and abilities and so it all becomes complicated which is why coaches exist. Frankly, I find this fascinating though.

For amateurs like us who don't have coaches (or limited coaching), there are tons of online tools and books which can help. Book-wise, I recommend that you get a copy of a The Cyclist's Training Bible by Joe Friel. Check out www.trainingpeaks.com for nice training/planning tools including - if you get the paid version - preplanned workouts. And, for sure, get a power meter (I can't recommend one as I have Vector pedals which, although I like very much, are (too?) expensive and, for some reason, not widely liked) along with a hear rate monitor. For winter training, get a trainer whose resistance you can adjust from your handlebars. You can also get rollers too but don't unless you also get a trainer because a trainer is more versatile.

Frankly, equipment doesn't make a huge difference as long as your bike is reasonably light (and then, this is only important if your races have lots of climbing) and your wheels and components are at least reasonably decent. A Scott Foil 15 and Specialized Allez are both fine bikes.

One last comment. When doing your workouts be sure to follow the planned intensity. Especially in your base periods, many workouts will be at a low level of intensity which will be boring. Don't be tempted to go hard during these long, boring, low-intensity workouts as they really do pay huge dividends in preparing your body for the heavy-duty 'build' workouts that will come a few months later. The metaphor to a building's foundation is not just a trite description - it really is true.

I found a lot of great stuff in Ultralight Backpackin' Tips by Mike Clelland. The nice thing about a book is that it has a comprehensive set of information from a single point of view. That's also the bad thing about a book! I found it to be a really great complement to all the info that's available online. Plus it has funny cartoons.

You might also check out Ray Jardine's books. I haven't read them, but he's a really important figure in the recent history of ultralight backpacking and he has a lot of strong opinions that you can learn from even if you don't agree! (Just ignore anything that doesn't actually have to do with backpacking like his weird blood cleaner stuff).

I also enjoy reading/watching other people's trips that don't necessarily focus on gear or techniques. On YouTube I really like John Zahorian and Neemor's World. Book-wise, I loved "Thru-hiking Will Break Your Heart" by Carrot Quinn. This may not be exactly what you're looking for in terms of information, but if you're looking for some vicarious hiking to get you trough the winter it's good stuff!

Hello Aron156,

I noticed that you're still in high school, which means you've got the benefit of youth on your side. So it really comes down to what you want to get out of cycling.

The best thing you can do for yourself is to follow the three rules of the French.

1. Ride the bike
   
2. Ride the bike
   
3. Ride the bike
   
   If in doubt, check the rules again.
   
   The problem you're going to run into is that most cycling trainging programs are focused on road cycling, because that's where people make money.
   
   If you're serious about racing, then fitness should be your #1 priority. This site has some good information on nutrition and training, so you can get started for free.
   
   robbyking's suggestion is pretty good, but if you think you might want to make a career of cycling then, The Time Crunched Training Program will only get you started. TTCTP focuses on high intensity interval training, and that's good, but there's more to it than that. A more complete book on training and nutrition is The Cyclists Training Bible. This covers several of the techniques the pro road riders that I know use for their own training.
   
   Personally, I do HR zone training, but I'm a bit older, and I work in a job where I have to sit all day (read: I need fitness more than performance, and I get the most benefit from HR Zone training). A decent HR monitor can be had for relatively cheap. Get a heart rate monitor that can track your Max HR and Average for a ride. They can be had for about $50USD. Then you can start to figure out where you're at fitness wise.
   
   Hope this helps. :)
   
   *edit: formatting and clarity

there is tons of stuff that a new rider should know, too much to list generally, but if you search for older new rider threads and browse through them, you'll pick up a ton of info from people who have been in your exact position.

beyond that, the best investment you can make is in this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Mountain-Bike-Skills-Edition/dp/0736083715

it's huge but you don't have to read it all at once, just look up the relevant section when you start to wonder how you can do something specific better

also, this video is a bit long but it was and is still very helpful to me when it comes to basics

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiQGFX_RlW4

your brakes probably are a bit weak, as they were made to be that way so a beginner rider wouldn't fly over the handlebars if they braked too hard, but i wouldn't worry about them right now. at some point you may want to upgrade them, but i would focus on the basics for now.

your shifter might not be calibrated correctly which is causing the clicking- if you bought the bike at a shop, you could have them look at it.

as far as money to spend right now, assuming you already have a helmet (that's numbers 1 through 10 in priority) upgrade your contact points, the things that connect you to the bike-

better pedals like, say, these:

http://www.jensonusa.com/Deity-Compound-Pedals

and better grips like these:

http://www.jensonusa.com/ODI-Yeti-Lock-On-Grips

and gloves. i'm partial to these:

http://www.specialized.com/us/en/ftr/gloves/long-finger-gloves/enduro

and better shoes like fiveten mountain bike shoes

all these things will allow you to stick to the bike and spend less effort staying that way, which means more ability to just focus on the trail

Just got back from a Portland-SF ride, 14 days, 797 miles. I rode a Kona Dew commuter, my dad rode my Specialized Tricross, and we had zero bike issues whatsoever - not even a flat tire. The roads are in good shape, so you can do that ride on pretty much any bike. Just make sure its comfortable.

For breweries - we weren't as concerned with them as you seem to be, and didn't spend time at any of them, but would have if we had planned them out a bit more in advance. The North Coast Brewery in Fort Bragg is easily visited from Highway 1, they did tours and had a taproom and pub. If you can book in advance, the Anchor Brewery in SF offers tours for free on weekdays.

You'll meet lots of great people in the summer time. Most of the state parks along the coast offer hiker-biker campsites, $5 a head, which is great for catching up with other bikers. If you want an extremely detailed guide to these places and a route, you want Bicycling the Pacific Coast as your guide. We met a few others with this book and those who didn't have it were envious.

The Oregon coast was beautiful. Fog usually hung around until at least 11am. One night we went to bed under clear skies and woke up in a 2" deep puddle - the rain can hit at any time. The north California coast was all fog. When we split from 101 to follow hwy 1 along the coast, we didn't see the sun for three days. No rain though. Good luck!

There's a really good section on climbing in that stupid book I keep recommending.

Your height to weight ratio is fine, so don't worry about that. If you're a flabby 98, just keep riding and your body will get to where it needs to be. Don't worry about.

As for the climb, a couple things to remember are:

• Keep your weight over your bottom bracket
  
• If your rear wheel loses traction, try sitting down; the extra weight focused on your back wheel will keep it from spinning out.
  
• Pedal like a hummingbird: for really steep climbs, stay seated, shift to a low gear, lean forward (weight over the bottom bracket), and pedal with a fast, consistent cadence.
  
• Don't stop until you fall. I have friends who struggled with steep sections of trails for months, only to make them the first time I rode behind them and kept on them to not give up until they fell over.
  
  As for SPD (clipless) pedals, I love them, but it's mostly rider preference. Professional XC racers use them, and professional downhill racers don't, so you can use that as your guide. For me (XC racing with some freeride), I love riding clipless; you never have to worry about your foot position (which is great for climbs and rooty/rocky downhill sections), so all of your pedaling energy is focused where it should be.
  
  Of course, if you're a DH or DJ rider, clipping in will probably result in a broken collar bone. It really depends on how you ride.
  
  One quick note on terminology: "Clips" are the basket things you put your foot into. (It's short for "toe clip.") The pedals that attach to your specially made shoes don't have the basket (clip), so they're called "clipless," even though you clip into them. (So yes, you clip in to clipless pedals.) It's confusing if you don't know the history behind the terms, but pretty easy to remember once you do.
  
  Good luck!

If you are truly curious and you want to expand your knowledge such that you can more safely operate within a wider variety of top access scenarios, consider investing in some of these books:

• Rock Climbing: Mastering Basic Skills
  
• Rock Climbing: The AMGA Single Pitch Manual
  
• Rock Climbing Anchors: A Comprehensive Guide Book
  
  Sure, you may certainly get by in life perfectly fine with substantially less knowledge, but if you are posting here with a question as thoroughly written out as the one you have here, you are likely interested in having a larger "toolkit" to feel more confident when approaching these types of situations. These books (among others) will, without a doubt, greatly enhance your anchor building and risk management "toolkit".
  
  Consider, for instance, that if you are carrying a static "setup rope" for top rope anchors, there are numerous ways to leverage it to establish both a high master point (away from the edge) and an instructor tether to allow yourself to control your movement around, near, and over the edge without exposing yourself to the risk of falling while you establish a low master point over the edge for a top rope anchor. Sometimes this may be overkill and sometimes it may be precisely what you need to feel confident in this type of situation. Having this knowledge on tap allows you to make more informed decisions.
  
  Two examples of these types of systems are
  
  
• the backside system
  
• and perhaps more awesomely the three in one.
  
  If you want to learn more about those systems, the SPI manual has a reasonable primer on each of them. Personally, I like the Donahue/Luebben Mastering Basic Skills book a little bit more if I had to pick one of the two, but you cannot go wrong with either one.
  
  Best of luck.

You have to be careful with some analysis you find online, but two that I've seen that are usually spot on are:

http://smartfootball.com/#sthash.iqhVs74b.dpbs
This guy also wrote a book that can walk you through a ton of football jargon. http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Smart-Football-Chris-Brown/dp/1470125595/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404821713&sr=1-1&keywords=smart+football

http://fishduck.com/

There are several magazines we get including American Football Monthly and American Football Coaches Association.

If you're really looking to dive into some things, go on Amazon or even to the local library and check out books on specific topics you find interesting. Even reading "outdated" books you'll notice the pillars and fundamentals of football today.

Defenses have been changing pretty drastically the past two years, but this book was a great introduction to how many NFL teams were playing their defensive fronts.

Lastly, I have a great benefit of attending coaching clinics and networking events, however, go to your local college and watch a practice. Many of the practices are open to the public and the coaches, usually, are a very open bunch. Spring is usually the best time since that's when all the other coaches are trying to tweak routines and see what everyone else is doing.

There's other much more experienced than me here in this subreddit, but I'll post the two books that are always recommended for training tips and for learning more about mountaineering:

Training for the New Alpinism

Freedom of the Hills

Besides gaining experience from the bigger mountains, it's also a good idea to do some rock climbing, to gain experience with handling rope, knots, anchors, secure climbing etc.

Going to an indoor climbing center or heading out with some local rock climbing club if you have that nearby would be a great way to gain experience with those skills.

For gear, here's one interesting site I've found useful, Weigh my Rack: http://blog.weighmyrack.com/how-to-pick-the-best-carabiner-shape-for-rock-climbing/

A few pointers:

• Buy once, cry once. This is gear that your life literally depends upon. Do NOT cheap out here.
  
  
• Do some light reading followed by some heavier reading followed by some heaviest reading. FOTH in particular has a lot of good supplemental information on camp, clothing systems, reading terrain, etc.
  
  
• Read a little more if you end up getting more serious than toprope/bouldering/sport climbing. No one makes you go out there, and no one is required to risk themselves to bring you home. Personal responsibility is big here.
  
  
• Last but not least: Find out what YOU like. Do not buy cam brand X or rope brand Y or shoe brand Z because they look cool or your friend loves them. Try them yourself. There are pieces of gear I treasure that my partners hate and vice versa. Your gear needs will also vary by region. I use a completely different rack in the South West compared to the East Coast.
  
  
  Feel free to PM me with specific questions...I have over a decade of climbing/mountaineering and outdoor experience on everything outside of the Himalaya. Snowfields, Rock, Ice, Bouldering, Backpacking, summer, winter, poor weather, perfect weather...I've been there.
  
  As for costs:
  REI credit card may actually be worth looking into, and an REI membership is a one-time $20 fee that will pay literal dividends for life. Other than that, the standard online comparison shopping methods are your best friend.
  
  DO NOT purchase used life-critical equipment. Let me repeat that DO NOT purchase used life-critical equipment. You do not know how it has been stored, cared for, maintained and thus do not know if it will do it's job when you really really need it to.

The short answer is no, I would say that is not how Judo is usually taught. It could be that the instructors are inexperienced, or they may not try to invest too much time into new people until they are sure that you'll stick around. It's unfortunate but sometimes clubs do this because this sport is difficult and rough physically, so the turnover rate is a little high. That said it probably isn't grounds for leaving the club, as it may have a lot to offer. Try asking the instructors specifically what you want to work on, maybe they'll be more likely to help you.

Here are some resources to help you along. If you find a technique that looks interesting, write down the name so you can ask your instructor in class on how to do it.

The Difficult Way is a blog that has some really helpful stuff for beginners/intermediates.

JudoInfo Has a few basic resources such as lists of throws, descriptions and pictures of techniques and etiquette.

Here's a section on Basic gripping from Mike Swain, though the whole video is good. If you want more advanced gripping techniques, you should check out Jimmy Pedro's Grip like a World Champion DVD.

Edit: Also if you want more help in Ne-Waza (Ground Play) I would recommend the book Jiu-Jitsu University by Saulo Ribeiro, as it's very comprehensive.

Depends how much effort you want to put into it.

For general baseball knowledge and history:

• Watch all of Ken Burns Baseball (its all on Youtube).
  
• Read Moneyball for an understanding of how modern analytics revolutionized the game and upended the status quo. (Some people are still fighting this fight, but among MLB front offices the nerds have already "won" basically).
  
• Read Baseball Between the Numbers for a good primer on modern analysis (though there has been more progress since that book came out of course)
  
  
  For Dodgers specific history:
  
  
• Watch the ESPN 30 for 30 on Valenzuela (Fernando Nation).
  
• Read Jon Weisman's book about the Dodgers for a great overview of team history.
  
• Read Molly Knight's book for a good narrative look at the current team and ownership group. This is great context for understanding how we got to where we are now.
  
  For current news and analysis:
  
  
• Dodgers Digest is a great blog for level-headed, intelligent Dodgers analysis. The writers there know what they are talking about and aren't overly reactionary, as a general rule.
  
• True Blue LA, the Dodgers SB Nation blog, is run by Eric Stephen who is the most diligent Dodgers beat writer today. In the off season for example, he's writing a season review for every player who appeared for the Dodgers in 2015.

The easiest would be to just go to a local bike shop, ask them what needs to be done, and have them do it.

It sounds like you are interested in getting your hands dirty and doing the work yourself. In that case, the usual advice would be to get to your nearest bike coop, take one of their bike maintenance classes or rent space in their shop and have someone help you out figuring out what you need to do and how to do it. But it looks like your closest bike coop might be in Sacramento, which is a bit of a hike. There is apparently a guy in Chico who is in the process of starting a bike coop, so you might want to try contacting him.

Beyond that, you can try striking out on your own. A few good resources for learning about bike maintenance are Sheldon Brown's website (ignore the crappy 90's style design, he has tons of good information on his site) and the Park Tool website (they have lots of good repair info, and they will sell you all of the tools you might need). If paper is more your thing, then good beginning books would include Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance, Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance, or the Park Tool book. And I know you've already been redirected to /r/bicycling from AskReddit, but for bike repair questions, /r/bikewrench might be more helpful (check out the sidebar here on /r/bicycling for links to FAQs and other relevant subreddits).

As far as not riding like a douchebag, if you ask 10 cyclists you'll probably get 11 different answers (and if you ask non-cyclists, you will probably get a lot of dangerous advice). There will be endless debates as to whether it's OK to run red lights, whether you should pass on the right or split lanes, whether bike lanes are a good thing or not, whether you should wear a helmet, etc. Some of the more universal tips: ride with lights at night. Don't ride on the sidewalk. Don't be a bike salmon (riding the wrong way in traffic). Be predictable. I find that BicycleSafe.com has some practical tips on safety without getting too much into the endlessly debatable points.

And finally, welcome to cycling! I hope you enjoy it; it can be a lot of fun, get you some exercise without even really trying, and is so much cheaper and less hassle to deal with than driving a car.

I can only tackle a few of those questions - I'm entering my second season on a team, but I joined the team a month after buying my road bike and only did one race last season so may not be the best source on all of this....

1. First, where do you live? I live in northern California, and the Northern California Nevada Cycling Association (NCNCA) posts a pretty good calendar of races here. There will be time trials, road races, criteriums, and circuits posted once the calendar finalizes and different events announce their schedules. Time trials are classically solo events - you start off and ride by yourself, and ride against the clock. There are team time trials, but you're not going to see that as a starting racer (though i may be wrong about that). Road races are your longer races (the one I did last year was 49 miles). Criteriums and circuit races are shorter, much faster races (quick and tight turns, requiring good handling skills). I'll let someone else give details on those, though, since I havent raced in either type myself...
   
   
2. You'll start seeing some races in February, but I think the season in chief starts around April and will end in August or September. This is purely based on the calendar of races I'm looking at this year, though, so grain of salt. There's other bike racing events in the off months (namely, cyclocross) if you can't keep yourself off two wheels...
   
   
3. I cant speak to other races, but the road race I competed in (Cat 5) was won by a racer going an average of 18 mph over those 49 miles.
   
   
4. I think in the Cat 5 races you can probably be competitive riding solo... You'll have riders working together despite team affiliations, and it's not like youre going to see Cat 5 teams forming leadouts in the final stretches to launch their sprinters. Unless theyre taking it reaaaaaally seriously.
   
   Unsolicited, but think its helpful: read up on how to train up... Last season I rode when I felt like it, usually one long ride on the weekend and then a few commutes to work (28 miles roundtrip), and was in decent shape so thought I'd do okay. Racing was faaaaar harder than I expected. I picked up this book and read it cover to cover for this season, and am working on building up a base to start out this season stronger (and it's already made a big difference). You can also find a lot of the information in various locations online, but it'll help lay out the transition/base/build/peak cycles that are helpful in training for a race, and what kind of workouts to do to reach your goals.
   
   Beyond that, just enter a race or two and see how it goes and if you enjoy it - theres no need to go insane without knowing whether you're going to like it.
   
   But that being said, enjoy your first season!

A tool kit (or a good bike multi-tool) is fairly inexpensive, and is incredibly useful for maintaining, repairing, and upgrading bikes. It's not going to directly affect your ride to and from work, buthelp you keep your bike in top condition so that your ride is easy and safe.

Something like this kit, or this one would be a good place to start, and supplement with individual tools as you need them.

A fairly comprehensive multi-tool like this one would also work for infrequent repairs, though they can be somewhat cumbersome to use at times.

Lastly, a good repair book might not be a bad idea. I like Lenard Zinn's Zinn and the Art of (Road/Mountain) Bike Maintenance. However, there are also man great websites and youtube tutorials (park tools has some excellent guides on their site) that will fulfil the same role.

I echo the trekking poles suggestion (they're a lifesaver for me), and I'd say that practice will help you build confidence. I'm not sure where you are, but if scrambling is what you're interested, there might be courses that give you instruction and techniques to better move over rock and snow. I took my alpine scrambling course through the Mountaineers in Washington state, and it did wonders for my confidence on snow (I already felt pretty good on rock). A lot of the material covered is in the Freedom of the Hills book, which might be an interesting read, though it goes into alpine climbing and more advanced subjects as well.

• The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract This book will give you a great overview of the game from 1870 to 1999. Breaks the game down by decades and what the game was like and how it changed. Also ranks the top 100 players at each position. Really anything by James is an entertaining read, but this is the must have for baseball conversation.
  
• Baseball Prospectus - Baseball Between the Numbers A good introductory course into the newer sabrmetrics. It will answer many questions in depth about what was going on as far as player evaluation in Moneyball.
  
• Tom Tango - The Book Much more advanced sabrmetrics but very current and groundbreaking. The author started on the internet, and last offseason secured a job working for the Seattle Mariners.
  
  The next three are to give you a better view of the game from the players/owners perspective.
  
  
• Veeck as in Wreck Bill Veeck was one hell of a guy. His father was president of the Cubs in the 30's, and Bill would go on to own his fair share of teams. Always an individual, he stood against the baseball ownership cabal on many occasions. Spent the last years of his life watching the Cubs from the center field bleachers. His autobiography is humorous and insightful. A must read for any baseball fan.
  
• Buck O'Neil - I was Right on Time Called the soul of negro league baseball, Buck O'Neil recounts his playing days in the negro leagues, and covers many of the legends in a very matter of fact way.
  
• Jim Bouton - Ball Four Last but not least is former Yankee star, now washed up knuckleballer Jim Bouton recalling the inaugural season of the short lived Seattle Pilots. Baseball players in all their vulgar glory. Also will teach you the fine art of "shooting beaver".

>Do you think my initial goal (3:10) was unrealistic based on my mileage in training?

This question is based on the individual, however increasing your weekly mileage safely will not hinder your performance. There are plenty of people who run much faster on less mileage, but this does not mean that you can.

>Did I simply go out a bit too eager and pay the price?

The marathon is hard. Each race day is different, and with longer distances small things like a few degrees temperature difference take a toll later in the race. General consensus is that if you're running the second half slower than the first you went out too fast.

>If training could have yielded better results, would you put performance drop down to slight illness?

I'm sure getting sick didn't help, but knowing how much it may have slowed you is impossible to know.

>For next marathon, what would you recommend I do differently? I suppose more smart mileage.

Your previous PR times seems to scale pretty well, so I don't know what specifically you should do differently outside of the normal advice that more miles won't hurt.

The Higdon plans are pretty good and I've used them myself in the past. You'll find that many runners here in /r/AdvancedRunning "move up" to the plans in Advanced Marathoning , and Daniel's Running Formula. Advanced Running focuses more specifically on marathons, while the Daniel's book pretty deep into explaining the science being training.


Edit: spelling

Sure! I just picked up this book: https://www.amazon.com/Daniels-Running-Formula-3rd-Jack/dp/1450431836/

I read through most of it (there is a ton of information in the book), but the 40 mile 2Q marathon plan was the one I ended up choosing. It seemed to fit best with my current commitments and was also challenging for me without being too intimidating.

This also seemed like a good comparison between marathon plans: http://fellrnr.com/wiki/A_Comparison_of_Marathon_Training_Plans

I don't have experience with many of those plans, so I'm basically taking the author at his word. I assumed I would fit into the "Improver" or "Enthusiast" category and went from there (even though I had never run a marathon before).

Good luck!

Ones I have read and recommend:

Jack Daniels
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F0X7U2S/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Pfitz
https://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Marathoning-2nd-Pete-Pfitzinger/dp/0736074600/ref=sr_1_sc_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510544635&sr=1-1-spell&keywords=Pfitinger

Yessis
https://www.amazon.com/Explosive-Running-Science-Kinesiology-Performance/dp/0809298996/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510544911&sr=1-1&keywords=explosive+running

Noakes
https://www.amazon.com/Lore-Running-4th-Timothy-Noakes/dp/0873229592/ref=pd_sim_14_5?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=3QK52ZDHZVX4K6QW383Q

Fitzgerald (one of several)
https://www.amazon.com/Brain-Training-Runners-Revolutionary-Endurance-ebook/dp/B000VMHHBW/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510544985&sr=1-1&keywords=brain+training+for+runners

Ones I have not read but have heard good things about:

Hansons
https://www.amazon.com/Hansons-Marathon-Method-Your-Fastest-ebook/dp/B01C6FBGHW/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510544663&sr=1-3&keywords=hansons+running&dpID=51L6b5-M7OL&preST=_SY445_QL70_&dpSrc=srch


Bill Squires
https://www.amazon.com/Speed-Endurance-Bill-Squires/dp/0977250504

Peter Coe
https://www.amazon.com/Winning-Running-Successful-Racing-Training/dp/1852239972/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510544703&sr=1-1&keywords=peter+coe&dpID=51lmDYFDyLL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch

There is also an out of print (I think) book by Arthur Lydiard that is really good. And for that matter, I am not sure I linked the correct Bill Squires book. One is really good, while the other is an awful, watered-down version.

I have a pretty similar background. I ran in high school, then DIII in college, quit running for many years, got back to it as a pre-masters/masters runner. People kept asking me questions, so I started coaching for free. Then on a spare weekend, I got certified as a USATF level 1 coach, which is really fun. I really recommend it, since you're a T&F fan.

So - some of these are out of print but you should be able to find all of them on-line:


75 Classic Rides Washington Mike McQuaide


Biking Puget Sound: 50 Rides from Olympia to the San Juans Bill Thorness


Bicycling the Backroads of Northwest Washington Bill Woods, Erin Woods


Bicycling the Backroads Around Puget Sound Erin & Bill Woods


Bicycling the backroads of southwest Washington (OOP) Erin Woods


Bicycling The Pacific Coast Vicky Spring, Tom Kirkendall


Bakeries by bicycle: A guide to Puget Sound's Best Bakeries (OOP) Fred Wert


Biking the Great Northwest: 20 Tours in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana (OOP) Jean Henderson


Cycling Sojourner: A Guide to the Best Multi-Day Tours in Washington Ellee Thalheimer

Best Bike Rides Seattle: Great Recreational Rides in the Metro Area Gene Bisbee

Welcome!

I think discussions on power meters fit right into the purposes of /r/Velo. Why don't you tell us a little about your riding and training background? How long have you been training, and what sort of goals do you have? Have you read Friel's Training Bible or Allen and Coggan's Training and Racing with a Power Meter?

As far as power meters go, there are a few different types on the market right now (and others will chip in here if i'm forgetting anything, because reasons). Here I'm sorting them from closest to power generation down the driveline:

• Pedal-based meters measure at the foot, and can measure left and right separately (not a useful measurement...yet.). Examples here include Garmin's Vector pedal system and Look/Polar's Keos. PowerTap will be releasing their P1 pedals this summer as well.
  
• Crankarm power meters are newcomers at a lower pricepoint. Stages Power is a left-only power meter that pulled prices down with their introduction of power for $749. Additionally, 4iiiis has released a power meter that is just hitting the market — this is priced insanely competitively, like $350 or something, and it'll be interesting to see if it's a useful player.
  
• Next up is crank-based power, and there are a lot of players here. SRM has been considered the gold standard of power, with a price to match, but that is changing. Quarq (from SRAM) is also well known, Power2Max seems to be highly regarded and is very competitively priced, Rotor has a system, and Pioneer Electronics has a new model that's a little pricier but also quite advanced. PowerTap is also releasing a chainring power system this summer.
  
• Finishing up is hub-based power with the venerable PowerTap hub, which has been around for about forever and is a known quantity and still a solid value proposition.
  
  Head on over to DC Rainmaker and check out his reviews, because his is the gold standard on incredibly detailed information on all things electronics. His reviews are excellent, and he's getting a 4iiii unit to review so we'll know how it fairs. That'd be the best option if you're really price sensitive because their pricing promises to massively undercut all the other players on the market.
  
  So this should be a start.

Two books to buy:

1. The Supple Leopard. It is the best thing anybody involved in physical activity can own. You will get your money's worth x10. He says 10 minutes a day of mobility work is what you need.
   
   One of the best things you could probably do for yourself is start increasing your motor control and mobility. It helps tremendously to learn how to brace your spine and position your shoulders into a stable position. Once you learn that you will understand how to create the most force off your movements through torque and maintaining tension in your body.
   
   A lot of "good technique" in bjj or lifting or any sport starts with good bone/joint/spinal/body positioning. When you start practicing these proper body position and maintaining them through a full range of movement (i.e. the basic squat), you learn where your joints/muscles/spine need better range of motion and how to train that--your bjj technique will probably improve. An understanding of basic human movements translates into any physical activity through better performance.
   
   
2. Jiu Jitsu University Saulo Ribeiro breaks down the foundations of learning bjj in steps. Aka, learn how to survive first.
   
   That being said...I would say you don't really need weights or kettlebell swings until you've built a good base of physical strength/conditioning. Start with some general physical preparedness (GPP), bodyweight squats, pushups, situps, planks, chinups and pullups + add a little bit of good form running.

I started playing because I discovered the joy of football and wanted to get into it, and I figured fantasy would be a great way to learn about the sport/players/teams. It is. I've only been watching football for real for 3 full seasons, and I already know a lot about the sport. Obviously not compared to most or /r/nfl, but more than most people. So I'd say just jump right in.

One thing that was helpful during my first season was watching games with my roommate who knows a ton about football. We actually had free NFL Sunday Ticket at our place (for some reason, our landlord could add a second house onto his subscription? no idea but we didn't press the issue), so we'd sit there all Sunday and he'd explain things to me.

I've heard this book is great for learning more but I haven't gotten around to it.

Oh, also, when I first got into football (end of 2011 season), my friend played Madden with me and would explain things. That helped a ton. Before that I didn't really understand football. I knew about downs and stuff but nothing about the strategy, so playing Madden was really what made it click and that's when I fell in love with football. Actually, I just decided I'm going to pick up an Xbox so I can start playing Madden for real to get deeper into knowledge of routes and strategy, I feel like I've hit a wall based on what I learn watching games and reading about the game. I'm a girl so I never played football growing up except for just fucking around.

3 years later, I "have a football problem" according to my friends. And it's kind of crazy how much I've picked up in a short amount of time, but mostly that is because of fantasy.

Hey, I know I'm late to the party but I wanted to help. I highly recommend two things:

1. Purchase... or "find"... a copy of Daniel's Running Formula. There's currently a 3rd edition out, but there isn't much new stuff from the 2nd edition that would benefit you. So, if you can get a cheap 2nd edition, just roll with that. This will help you TREMENDOUSLY with your training.
   
   
   
   
2. Check out r/running. It's a great community and there are tons of posts that will help you with these kinds of problems.
   
   
   
   Good luck!

As far as position goes, you typically want to go "long and low" or "short and high." You can change your stem out for something longer/shorter and more/less rise, or you can swap out bars for something wider/narrower or more/less rise.

I'm pulling the following numbers and information from this book: If you're more XC and like to climb, you may want to go long (90-120mm) and low (0-10 degrees rise), but if you're more into descending and jumping, short (40-70mm) and high (10-15 degrees) may be better for you.

In addition to the stem, you can get a bar with rise if you'd like. For "long and low" XC, flat or 1" rise is good. For "short and high," 1.5" to 2.5" is better.

As far as bar width goes, it really depends on your build. If you have wide shoulders, you'll probably need wider bars. Basically, it should feel comfortable.

Since you say your frame is small, you'll probably need to go to the edges of the ranges above (e.g. if you like "long and low," you might try a 120mm stem rather than 90mm). I don't know enough to give you specifics for your bike, but it does sound a little small for you. Your LBS probably has hundreds of different stems in a drawer and could fit you pretty well.

Thorough this is not but it does go over the basics. Pleas don't use it solely as your means of learning to climb. Some of their videos showed improper technique. Climbing on lead is dangerous and subtle. a simple mistake can cost you your life.

For climbing rescue you should get the book from the mountaineers. It's very good and pretty damn cheap.

I personally don't care for the freedom of the hills as much as everyone loves it. It's good but not as deep as a specialized book is. For instance Long's book on anchors is excellent and the freedom of the hills only goes over some basic stuff regarding that.

I've done this route before. The Northern section is really great, but it can get a little hairy once you get into California. Take all the detours you can, it can be pretty heavily trafficked. The lost coast section near Klamath is really cool if your bikes can handle it. Stop off at casinos for free coffee. Bring a kite, they're a lot of fun. Get lost in the redwoods if you can, try to plan a couple days. There's a great swimming hole (or at least there used to be) along the avenue of the giants near Miranda with a big tree sticking out of the water that you can dive off of. You've got to be a little more serious about planning your days as you get south, it gets more built up.

There's a great book that lists routes, good hiker-biker spots, local history, and activities along the way.

Adventure cycling makes some maps with milages and elevations that list campsites, etc. They're expensive new, but you can get used copies.

Of those two I'd personally go with the Mets. Since you're just coming into baseball it would seem a little bandwagoner-ish to start rooting for the Yankees. No doubt the Yankees are a good team, but when a good percentage of their fans are already bandwagoners, I feel like you'd get a skewed perspective of baseball going to those games.

Also check out the Brooklyn Cyclones. They're the minor league affiliate of the Mets. The games are super cheap and the stadium is pretty nice. Start chatting up people in the seats next to you. You'll usually find someone who loves talking ball.

There's also a book called Watching Baseball Smarter. It's a good intro into the game.

I'd recommend picking up a few books. Ultralight Backpackin' Tips by Mike Clelland, and Ultimate Hiker's Gear Guide by Andrew Skurka for starters. These will help you a ton.

Then, what was just said, ask yourself with each item, "Am I packing my fears?" "Do I really need this?" and "What would realistically happen if I left this at home?" I'm seeing a ton of unnecessary and/or redundant stuff, not to mention all the heavy stuff.

For example, paracord, multitool, lantern, lots of heavy stuff sacks, an ultra-heavy water reservoir, full bottle of soap (you only need a few drops of that stuff), 3 heavy knives (a tiny swiss army classic or even a razor blade would do the trick), tons of excessive, heavy and redundant clothing (use a simple, versatile layering system with no redundancy), etc. Your first aid kit weighs almost 13oz! You can easily make a good one for under 3. You have a space blanket and two redundant fire starters (emergency only items) when you are carrying a gas stove and a sleeping bag (actual versions of the things your survival kit is supposed to improvise). The list is quite long.

Also, I'd take a serious look at some of the UL/SUL hammock guys on YouTube and get some ideas from their videos on how to dramatically simplify and lighten your hammock system. It seems incredibly complicated and heavy to me, esp. based on what I've seen online from other Hammock guys. For instance, a +6oz gear pouch? A suspension system that weighs more than your actual hammock? Yikes. Definitely take a look at lots of the lighterpack links you see in people's flairs on here too and just get some ideas for how to simplify, reduce, and eliminate items in your gear list. YouTube is your friend. There are tons of UL and SUL guys on there who camp in Hammocks. Learn from their experience and save yourself from having to re-live their mistakes.

Good luck and have fun! I know it probably seems overwhelming now, but just whittle down one thing at a time and you'll get there. You're already off to a good start with having all your gear in a list online to create accountability and show you the true weights of everything. It's fun to see how light you can go with your gear list and your back will thank you for it!

First, look on YouTube for basic info. You can find videos about positions and plays and even schemes like the spread pretty easily.

Second, I recommend looking up some film breakdowns. Bill Belichick does them weekly (I think it's weekly) on a local Boston channel, but you can find some of them on YouTube by searching for Belichick Breakdown.

Third, try to find some guides for how to watch football and how to breakdown a game. Articles like this can provide you with a greater understanding of what everyone is doing during a play.

Fourth, do some reading.

I highly recommend Take Your Eye Off the Ball: How to Watch Football by Knowing Where to Look to help you while watching the game, but be sure to get the paperback version so you get all the diagrams. It will teach you the progression of the reads, the route running, the blocking and everything that happens on defense as well.

To help you cut through some of the jargon announcers use, I recomment Blood, Sweat and Chalk: The Ultimate Football Playbook.

If you want to learn more about strategies, try The Essential Smart Football.

To learn more about evaluating players, Football Scouting Methods is a must read. It will take you to the football of another era, but with the foundation from all the other info I've provided you will be able to start putting the pyramid together and learn how the game became what it was today.

Read Freedom of the Hills, it's your textbook for everything mountaineering. Just start hiking and camping a lot and start climbing easy peaks and progress to bigger, higher, and more difficult ones. You might want to move somewhere with bigger mountains, like the western US to have better local training ground for the big mountains. Learning to ski or snowboard is a good way to get used to winter in the mountains and from there it's easier (and more fun) to progress to climbing steep snow and doing some actual mountaineering and dealing with things like avalanche danger. Also learn to rock climb and how to use ropes, and ice climbing is good too if you really want to get into hardcore mountaineering. Really you just have to progress little by little starting with hiking easy peaks picking up all of the skills along the way. It doesn't take as long as you would think if you dedicate a lot of time to it and love getting out there and learning. I was just doing very easy hikes 3 years ago and I already have plans to climb a few of the biggest peaks in the lower 48 next year, granted I've been skiing and hiking and camping for a long time.

Not specifically climbing but definitely a great resource for mountaineering is Freedom of the Hills
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1594851387

Love my copy, teaches you about self rescue, navigation, all the different techniques etc.
Defs worth having on your shelf!

Hmm, not sure how to describe all the techniques that you could be using, I would actually recommend reading a book or watching some videos on climbing techniques. Going from V0 to V1 is where things like turning your hips in and engaging your core really start mattering. It's actually harder to learn proper technique on V0 because a lot of the times you can get through them without proper technique. Try to work harder problems with someone who has good form, and try to get at least 2 or 3 moves at a time. If you can't do a pull-up yet, I would work on getting in at least 1 pull-up with proper form as well. One trick I found useful to get the "feel" of a move is hovering over the next hold with my hand before grabbing on to it. If you can reach for the next hold and hover over it for 2~3 seconds, it means you have established a proper base with your feet. Not always possible, but generally you want to be in balance so you conserve energy. Hope that helped, I mostly just climbed with other better climbers and wasn't shy about asking for technique tips, most were very willing to share beta and give me feedback. Good Luck!

I would agree with what people have been saying here. I just rode the Astoria to SF portion, and even in August the weather is pretty mixed.

As someone else posted, this is definitely the bible: https://www.amazon.com/Bicycling-Pacific-Coast-Complete-Canada/dp/0898869544

It maps out every day for you, with most rides being between 45-65 miles, which always felt manageable. The campsites are social places and cheap, which will be a nice start to your ride, but I imagine they will be a lot quieter at that time of year.

You could save this ride for the end of this world tour, if it has an end. It might be a nice way to see it out in spring/summer. Most people tend to go south to north, I met quite a few going the other way too. The winds aren't as bad as they are made out to be, though I believe the shoulders are often a little better heading South.

Maybe consider checking out Japan/S.Korea after Australia. That will be decent to ride from March going forward, wild camping is easy, scenery is beautiful, both countries are very safe (aside from the occasional low flying missile from North Korea...).

Best bet would probably be some kind of Wilderness First Aid course along with learning some rope rescue skills.

If you're in an area with lots of backcountry activities close by, finding a Wilderness First Aid course shouldn't be an issue. There's also tons of information online and in books to read up about, though book smarts are no substitute for putting those skills to the test in mock scenarios (which is hopefully the extent you'd end up using those skills in).

For rope rescue, depending on where you are, local guide companies, outdoor centres, etc. likely have rope rescue courses you could take.

In regards to rope rescue books, I can't personally recommend a specific one, but a bunch of books on the topic exist such as this one. Though I'm sure someone else here can recommend a book they've personally read.

Also based on your Canada flair, joining the Alpine Club of Canada would be a great idea. Your local chapter would likely offer tons of opportunities not only for courses such as first aid and rope rescue, but also organized climbing days along with various other activities.

Just bought this today:

How to Climb Harder.

Seems like it has a pretty nice package of information.

I also checked out Dave MacLeod's book and Self-Coached Climber at the store, but I found this one most interesting, because it seems to have clear instructions on a lot of lead climbing stuff too (should be starting course soon).

Might get the Self-Coached Climber later (it has a DVD too), but it looked a bit text heavy. Dave McLeod's book is about fixing mistakes, but I don't feel that I have gotten to a level yet where this might be of interest (still progressing decently, imo).

Also, see if there are technique lessons available at your gym or see if you can start climbing with someone you feel is (much) better than you. Advice from some one analyzing your climbing specifically might net you faster results. I did a course to get to 5.10 level and it was a lot of fun and very helpful. It also helps me a lot in explaining new climbers what they should be looking for or trying in a structured manner.

Sucks to hear about your broken arm. I go crazy when I'm hurt and can't get out to do things. You've definitely got the heart and drive to progress on a bike. Best advice I can give you is:

1- don't give up! Mountain bikes really are fun a great way to exercise once you get a little fitness and skill built up.

2- You just jumped right into, maybe not the deep end, but at least the end of the mtb pool where your feet can't touch. Riding off even small drop takes practice and technical skills take a while to learn. While you're recovering check out Mastering Mountain Bike Skills by Brian Lopes and Lee McCormack. By far the best break down of how to learn technical bike skills out there.

3- Even the best of the best still crash. It's a good idea to work on learning to "tuck and roll grandma!". I think I'd have way more broken bones than I do now if I hadn't learned how to fall. I took some entry level judo classes when I was young that taught me, but there's plenty of info online on how to break your fall properly. In the words of Wade Simmons:
>I’ve always said this, you’ve gotta be a better crasher to be a better rider.

Tim Layden's Blood, Sweat, and Chalk does a fantastic job of marrying scheme innovations with the stories behind them.

Same goes for Chris Brown's The Essential Smart Football and The Art of Smart Football. I really like his writing.

If you're into the college game, Mark Schofield's 17 Drives does a great job recounting pivotal drives from the last season. He does a great job describing the plays and you can basically imagine it playing out in your head.

I've also read Steve Belichick's Football Scouting Methods. It's pretty straightforward and dry but there's a lot of good information in there if you're looking to scout opponents. It's pretty amazing how much of the process from 60 years ago translates to today.

First, congrats on the babies. Double the fun!

Second, it sounds mostly likely that given your times, age, and 40 mpw, you can get below 40:00 for a 10K in 3 months. Mostly. You may need to change up your training a little bit.

You definitely need some VO2 workouts, track repeats. That's probably more important in a 10K training than tempo runs, but you want a healthy mix of both.

The most recommended books around here for generic training plans (which would suit you well I think) are either Faster Road Racing or Daniels Running Formula. You could probably tailor one of those workouts to your time/mileage needs and do very well.

This is all very generic advice though, I second /u/lostintravise's questions. Knowing where the 19:49 and 41:30 times came from, mileage/workouts/how recent, is the biggest indicator. That said, if you weren't following a structured plan, they were recent, and less than the mileage you want to hit, there's pretty good chance you can get to where you need to be.

Welcome to the best fanbase in football!

1. I really enjoyed the book Take Your Eye Off the Ball, sounds like what you're looking for.
   
2. This subreddit and Buffalo Rumblings are my go-tos. I also like to listen to WGR 550 (Buffalo's sports talk station) when I get the chance.
   
3. Need a little more clarification here - what do you mean by "keep an eye on"? Probably the biggest question a lot of fans have right now is what we're going to do at quarterback this offseason - will Tyrod start next year? Will we draft someone and/or sign a free agent QB, and if so, who? Etc.
   
4. For getting a feel for the team, watch the "Four Falls of Buffalo" documentary produced by ESPN. It's about Buffalo's famous four consecutive trips to the Super Bowl in the early 90's. As for specific games, The Comeback is one very famous example; others will have more suggestions I'm sure.
   
   Go Bills!

> So, couple of questions before I get going. Can one build sufficient muscle mass through just body weight exercises or do I need to be lifting too?


Yes, I build for example 8kgs of muscles + 3kg of fat/water over the past 6 months. You will never/hardly get to look like a bodybuilder. You will have lean muscles with a aesthetic look.


> Is some of this even achievable by mere mortals or is the truly impressive stuff out of reach for a guy who until recently, was in some pretty rough shape?


Yes, everything is possible. It's all about staying active and working on it regulary. If you want to learn a handstand for example, you just have to keep working on it. There are progression videos/tutorials wich explain you, how to approach to a new move, to learn it steady and slow and to have a good form.


> How does one go about building a routine around it?

• Check the Beginner Routine
  
• Read the Book Overcoming Gravity by Steven Low - The first chapter of the book is about, how to build the routine that fits to yourself - The author is also very active in this subreddit with /u/eshlow so he can even answer your questions, related to his book.
  
• 3rd possibilty: Here are some Routines , I have build before some time. Feel free to take a look at them.

Your legs will adapt to the stresses of running if you give them time and don't demand effort levels that they're not ready to provide yet. I agree with the "slow down" advice that others have posted. If you are a total beginner, you cannot expect to run with Meb Keflezghi levels of endurance. If you are feeling tired, slow down a bit to a sustainable pace. Mix in walking breaks if you feel like you need it.

However - and this has been really useful advice for me - slow running has its place, and fast running has its place. I'm going to take a page out of Coach Jack Daniels' book here: whenever you go for a run, you should know the purpose of the workout. Is the point of your run to develop a base for further training? to develop the heart muscle? to develop resistance to injury? to adapt to the stresses of running? Then run slow and easy. Is the point of your run to develop the ability of your aerobic system to utilize air? or to develop speed? Then run fast and hard (in a controlled way, of course).

The point is that running at an easy effort is very good for you and not something to be looked down upon. It is also a good idea to mix easy effort runs in with quality workouts (i.e., high-intensity interval workouts).

Given what you've said, it sounds to me like you're at the point where most of your running, if not all of it, should be at an easy effort level. Consider doing some sessions where you walk for a few minutes to warm up, then alternate running for a few minutes and walking for a few minutes to recover. After a while, that will get easy. Then you can gradually increase distance, pace, etc. Just build up slowly.

I ordered a set of cams and met up with my friend who taught me what a good placement vs bad placement is. Then I lead 3 short routes and he asked which of my placements I thought was best and worst. We agreed on them and then climbed a 5 pitch spire the next day. I drove home (we live in different cities ~2 hours away) and taught my newb friend. my newb friend and I have had a sketchy situation or two but nothing serious.
****
Best thing I can recommend is two books

1. Climbing anchors by John Long

2. Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills.

The biggest thing you'll learn from them is that Rock quality is the thing that will get you killed. As in don't place gear in a flake or anything that is going to move.
**
Place gear around ground level and hang on it. Learn what works. Find a super easy climb and lead it, You're going to fumble with sizes for awhile. Don't get discouraged. Soon you'll fall in love. Trad climbing is sweet.

A lot of people around here recommend Pfitzinger's Advanced Marathoning. I just started one of his plans so I can't speak too much on how much improvement I've made personally.

He lists specific heart rate zones for every type of workout that you will do on his plan. It takes out the guesswork of always trying to run a specific pace. Basically, your heart rate dictates the pace you run each workout.

I've noticed that I have to run slower than usual to keep my heart rate in the correct zone (just like OP says in his blog.) After just 4 weeks I've noticed that I'm running faster at a lower heart rate and my resting heart rate is almost 5% lower.

At the expense of feeling your pain over-and-over, I watched that sequence a few times to look for what you did wrong. I can't really see the jump from the quality/angle, but in terms of posture, your elbows looked pretty stiff as you went into that launch. As a result of this, I think you ended up distributing too much of your weight forward (putting weight on the bars, it looks like), which caused your front wheel to hit the ground at a non-preferential angle.

I'd suggest starting small: Find roots, moguls, dips, hell, even curbs. Manhole covers can also make a good small starting spot, but roots tend to be the best -- generally things that are only a few inches high.

Get yourself used to riding up to them and popping over them. Once that's comfortable, start learning how to launch off of them. Don't pull too hard on your bars, it should come fairly naturally once you're used to it -- you'll sort of loosen up your elbows, position yourself in 'attack position,' then naturally glide over the roots and get a few inches of air. It should feel reaaally natural once you're used to it, which is why I'm having a hard time explaining proper positioning. I'm sure someone can jump in with more technical advice.

As for how fast to go... that's a call that you'll have to make when there. It should sort of feel right when you're going a good speed - I can't really tell what the configuration of that huck is from the angle, though.

I learned everything I know from getting hurt ... a lot, but someone bought me this book last year and it taught me a lot. It's nothing revolutionary, but the book is loaded with timelapse photos that show exactly how a rider is positioned during corners, drops, hucks, jumps, etc. and should help you get started! Hope that helps!

Where was this, by the way?

Edit: I asked about 'how to fall' in this subreddit a while back. I found this video to be helpful, albeit tougher to do in a real scenario.

The first rule of being a jiujitsu beginner- and make no mistake, I am still very much a beginner- is to make your parameter for success showing up to class.

I cannot emphasize this enough. If you make it to class, great! Everything else is gravy. I would probably try to keep this outlook through to your blue belt, although it will definitely be a difficult attitude to maintain (but hey, you're in this to learn discipline, in my best Eric Cartman voice, right?).

Part of the reason for this is because you've got a long, frustrating road ahead of you, and you want to make the long haul. On the wall of my gym are HUGE letters spelling out, "a black belt is a white belt who never quit." At first I thought that was kind of cheeky, because, like any gym, my not quitting is lining someone's pocket... but now I get it; training is always frustrating, at any level. You think the frustration ends at blue belt? Well, now you have purple belts kicking your ass in ways you don't even understand yet. You think after purple the road is clear? A black belt will LOL at you. Part of what makes the experience and the journey so incredible is learning to deal with the frustration.

You'll have great classes, where you walk out with a goofy smile on your facing thinking, "I'm finally getting it!" ... and then the next class you feel like it's your first day again. You'll have to endure long periods of stagnation, or seeing people who joined after you progressing faster. But did you make it to class? Mission accomplished.

Even in the short time I've been at my school I've seen guys come and go within the amount of time you've been training (three to four weeks). I totally understand this; one month is just about the honeymoon period where you've picked up the basics, feel a little shine, and then see the long road ahead of you and say FUCK IT.

This will not be you. Why? Because your parameter for success is getting to class.

Try to find value in your shitty moments. You get thrown around for a half hour by a college wrestler (cheating bastards, that's NO FAIR lol), and a judoka who started BJJ to kick even more ass- which was my Friday night- embrace it. In the very least, getting your ass kicked makes you a tougher son of a bitch in the long run. Can't get a new technique down? I'm just starting to feel confident in my arm-bar/triangle/omoplata skills and it's been six months and 5-6 classes where we covered it. Very few people learn a new technique once and can implement it in rolling, much less remember it the next day.

Here are a few odds and ends off the top of my head:

• Rolling for you right now is learning survival and feeling comfortable in uncomfortable situations. Learn how to survive in mount/side-control, and even if you can't get out, you're developing a comfort in being under someone and having their weight on you.
  
  
• Buttttt, if you want to get out, start by learning one go-to escape for each position: mount, side-control, half-guard, and guard. Not that you shouldn't know more, but be sure to have HAVE really solid escape for each position in your arsenal.
  
  
• A good, highly regarded book for this is jujitsu university, but there are also countless YouTube channels like Chewjitsu (I happen to like his style).
  
  
• Tap often and early, which is a kind of meme on this subreddit for a good reason. At this stage in the game, the most you can do is defend, so you'll feel inclined to tap only when it's your VERY LAST OPTION- or, you know, rolling will be all of 30 second spurts of brutalization. I felt the exact same way, and kind of wanted to "earn the respect" of my partners by toughing certain grey area submissions out. This is stupid- for one, you earn their respect by showing up to class, and two, you will get injured that way. Whomever said this is "the injury free martial art" is clearly unfamiliar with BJJ, and since injuries are going to happen anyway, you don't want to encourage them. I usually tried to make my partner earn their choke on me, and if it wasn't under the chin, sunk in deep, I'd tough it out, and now there's this weird click when I open my mouth wide. Is that a huge deal? No. But it was my own damn fault, and totally avoidable.
  
  
• Get to class early and drill with your classmates. BJJ is all muscle memory, and being diligent with your submission/escape drills will pay off huge in the long run.
  
  
• Keep a journal. Seriously. Write down how your class went, what you did well with, what you struggled with, questions you may have, and the techniques you did that night (if you can, a step-by-step "how to" for each). I'll admit, I don't do this as much as I should because when I get home from class I'm usually wiped, but it really will pay off big time.
  
  I hope this helped! Good luck, and feel deep, horrifying shame if you quit! :)
  

I strongly suggest to pretty much anyone interested in climbing outdoors to read up on climbing rescue and self-rescue. Once you have a solid grasp on the techniques, test them out in a gym setting. Knowing how to properly lock off a belay device, take the tension off of it using a friction hitch above it, then escaping the belay to ascend the rope can literally save a life. I've heard that if a climber is unconscious and upside down, in general he has about 15 minutes to live. This means that a good grasp of these techniques is critical to ensuring the survival of the climber is such situations.

Suggested reading:

• Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills
  
• Climbing Self Rescue: Improvising Solutions for Serious Situations
  
  Be safe out there!

It does, but it isn't really significant. In Baseball Between the Numbers, James Click talks about running a series of simulations where "Changing a lineup from the industry standard to our ideal model [one where players are set in the lineup in descending order by their OBP] typically nets at most 10 runs over a whole season, or about 1 win. This small range of available improvement means that minor changes to the lineup for brief periods of time have virtually no discernible effect on run scoring." (from Chapter 1-3) He says earlier in the chapter that using a simulation where the pitcher bats leadoff and the best players are at the bottom of the order only yielded a 26-run difference over the course of a full season.

So while it's frustrating to see a replacement level hitter like Cesar Izturis hit second, in the end it isn't going to make a huge difference in producing runs. I just wish my favorite team's manager didn't do stuff like this that is flat-out nonsensical.

thank you very much for your detailed response, this totally sounds like me and wow your race times sound fantastic to me, I will be giving the 18/55 a try I think for my next serious marathon (phuket in June) perhaps I can cut the first week of the 18/55 plan to make the timeline fit.

i am assuming you are talking about this book here:

https://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Marathoning-2nd-Pete-Pfitzinger/dp/0736074600

I will get that and have a read and then probably do the 18/55 first before trying the 18/70

1 More question on a practicality side, I have tried plans from books before and have never found a simple system of transferring everything into a readable format that I could pin on the fridge. do you tend to create a excel spreadsheet of simply copy the page in the book (I am assuming sometimes dates and rest days have to be shuffled around cause life gets in the way) or do you not keep a log that way?

thanks again for your help :)

Hi from the US!

Have you dropped by a local bike shop? There might be some one more experienced with the route for this race and be able to give you a more specialized answer so you can be better prepared.

Make sure to check out /r/mtb and maybe /r/velo.

http://www.livestrong.com/article/275683-racing-bikes-vs-mountain-bikes/

My friends and I like to do uphill sprints, and intervals on a couple times a week, at least, in addition to a long road or gravel rides.

Honestly, I wouldn't hit the gym up much this close to a race- I'd focus on riding, with a long ride once a week plus a couple smaller ones later in the well, separated by intervals. And then a good full week of recovery before the race.

But, in general, medium intensity-medium volume (6 sets of 12) squats, deadlifts, leg press, never the same day or day before a long ride or race, worked best for us during the off-season.

I'd pack several snack bars, a first aid kit, a rear derailleur hanger, multitool with chain breaker, extra chain, tire levers, tubes and patches, paper currency, toilet paper or wet wipes, plenty of water. Maybe an extra tire.

Rest as needed. I wouldn't worry about time, so much as finishing and navigating the route.

There will be more races! Wait until you discover enduro... Until then, have fun, check out "The Cyclist Training Bible" and http://www.ridethedividemovie.com

There are a couple different levels to this question.

1. Do you need a new bike, or is it just your technique holding you back? If your bike is similar to this one, you should be ok. Just work on your technique - GMBN on youtube is a good place to start, as well as this book. If it's more like this one, then you're on the right track looking for something new for off-road riding.
   
   
2. Should you get a fat bike? Personally, I'm not a huge fan. They're on the heavy side, the tires act as undamped suspension (meaning that you bounce a lot), they accelerate very slowly, and they require constant effort to keep moving (i.e. they don't coast well at all). However, I ride with a few guys that love them. The main benefit is traction. Because you have so much tire in contact with the ground and the tire is run at such a low pressure (often under 10 psi), you can ride up stuff that an ordinary 2.0-2.4" tire would slip out on. You can also ride on surfaces like sand and snow that are unrideable on skinnier tires - some of my fatbiking friends have ridden between towns by following the river and staying on the sandbars. In general, they seem to be popular among riders who are into mountain biking for the adventure aspect rather than the go-fast aspect. If that sounds like you, then a fat bike might be just what you need.
   
   
3. Should you get a mid-fat/plus bike? I don't have a ton of experience with them personally, but the few rides that I've had have been positive. They offer more traction than a standard tire without the weight penalty and less of the rolling resistance penalty of a fat bike tire. Currently, most plus tires are a little on the thin side, which makes them more prone to sidewall tears and pinch flats than a standard tire, especially when riding in very sharp rocks, and they can feel a bit vague under heavy cornering load (mostly an issue for very fast/aggressive riders), but I think they strike a nice balance for a beginner rider between rideability and capability.
   
   I would lean away from getting a full suspension given your budget, and would STRONGLY recommend riding several different options before buying. If your shop doesn't offer trail demos/rentals, look for factory demo tours from Trek, Specialized, Giant, etc. They're usually going around the US this time of year offering free bike demos at trails all over the country. You may not get to ride the exact bike you're looking at, but it should give you at least an idea of what to expect.

There are a few bodyweight-based programs, all of them are fairly similar, but they take a different slant on things.

You Are Your Own Gym is built around military-style calisthenics. There are variations of all the different movements that are based around making them easier so you can do fifty of them and experience that brand of misery, or to make them more difficult and strength-focused. YAYOG has a very nice set of apps that go with it as well.

Convict Conditioning is another bodyweight program based around six different movements (handstand, pull-up, push-up, leg-raises, back-bridges, pistol squats). The progressions are pretty nice, but the way it's presented is like it was written for fifteen year-olds. 2edgy4u, and such.

Overcoming Gravity is a gymnastics-based program, but is also a huge firehose of information about fitness in general. It's a great resource for designing your own program, but if you're a beginner, I don't think the sheer volume of information would be helpful.

All of these would require a pull-up bar. There's the classic Iron Gym, or this thing if the Iron Gym ends up being too low, and if you can screw something into a wall somewhere, I suggest this one.

The important thing is to spend a lot of time training at a moderate heart rate... basically an intensity you can maintain for over an hour that is difficult but not actually painful. Lots and lots of hours riding at roughly that level (and harder) will improve your aerobic fitness which is the most important factor.

If you want to be more serious about it buy a copy of The Cyclist's Training Bible and put together a long-term training plan based on that.

Also for a climb like Ventoux make sure you've got some easy gears on your bike. A compact crank (or triple) will make it a lot easier.

I have this book and it has everything I wanted to know thus far. Plus it is pretty easy to read and understand. Good number of pictures as well if that helps you.
I have found that this channel is a great source also.

There are a few basic tool kits out there that should do the trick for you. Of course, I had to get a few additional tools along the way. I am just starting to learn how to do my own work as well, good luck!

Rock Warrior's Way (https://warriorsway.com/the-rock-warriors-way-mental-training-for-climbers-2/)

If you're interested in trad climbing: Climbing Anchors by John Long (https://www.amazon.com/Climbing-Anchors-Climb-John-Long/dp/0762782072)

Training for the New Alpinism (http://www.patagonia.com/product/training-for-the-new-alpinism/BK695.html)

Freedom of the Hills is rad, but I've found a little broad and hard to read continuously. For climbing technique, I've found YouTube videos a little more useful, I mostly use books for safety and mental techniques, though I've heard good things about the Crack Climber's Technique Manual (https://www.fixedpin.com/products/the-crack-climbers-technique-manual)

And if you're looking for something that's more of a fun read, I'd really recommend Valley Walls (https://www.amazon.com/Valley-Walls-Memoir-Climbing-Yosemite/dp/1930238630)

1. Books - Bought Faster Road Racing a few days ago. Hoping to gain some wisdom from the pros.
   
2. Training programs - In the past, whatever I found online that fit my schedule.
   
3. Reading - A while ago I read Eat and Run by Scott Jurek. I was amazed at how he made the best of whatever little he had growing up. Lots of good info about food and running.
   
4. Podcasts - I don't listen to any running related podcasts. I did listen to episode RA068 of Runner Academy podcast only because it featured Peter Sagal from NPR. I'm a big fan of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me.
   Edit: Words

Gotcha. Well, you have the benefit of not having a hard deadline to meet these goals, so that pressure is off!

1. Recommend you look into a book such as Daniels' Running Formula or something by Matt Fitzgerald. They will have plans and workouts you can follow to help you bring your 5k time down; these guys are life long professional coaches and, while I think some of their theory is overly complicated, the workouts are awesome. The Daniels' book has sample plans and weeks in there as well.
   
   
2. See above.
   
   
3. Check out this guide to swimming to 1 mile with no stops. I'm using this to build my initial swimming base for a half iron later this year. Despite having zero swimming background before this year, I'm up to week 5 and this plan is working for me even though I'm only swimming 2 days a week. Doesn't seem hard to add another week or two to extend to 2k, and there are links at the bottom of that page for workouts that you can do to increase your strength and speed.
   
   Hope that helps.

Sounds like you're ready for Pfitz. Many runners on here have used his book, myself included, to excellent results. Additionally you mention wanting longer runs than 16M, the backbone of Pfitz's plan is a LOT of long runs. He's known to drop "medium-long runs" on a Wednesday that are like 12-15 miles and then throw an 18-20 miler at you on the weekend.

The workouts aren't insane, but he definitely gets you with those long runs. If you stick true to the plan, choose the mileage that's right for you and come into the plan with the right base...you'll crush with Pfitz.

Advanced Marathoning by Pete Pfitzinger

Fun fact, I chose the name for this subreddit based on his book which I first read when I was 17 and training for the Marine Corps Marathon. Also a fun fact, I do not recommend getting into marathons at age 17. :)

I think the first order of business for you would be to work up to a frequency of 5-6 days a week and 25-30 MPW. Don't worry about higher intensity running until you have a base established.

Then you would benefit from finding a 5k program that you like. All of the stuff you are wondering about would pretty much have clear answers if you found a good program. A solid 5k program would improve both your 5k and your mile time. And it would also answer questions like how long on your long run, how to get your E mileage, when do to hills, how to do interval work, how fast, etc.

I'm a fan of Jack Daniels, and if I were in your shoes I'd be running one of the 5k plans from Running formula. Pfitzinger is also popular here. And Hal Higdon has some 5k plans posted online.

I really enjoyed Backpacking Light. The articles are okay but the forums are absolute GOLD. All of the users are super passionate about backpacking, especially about backpacking "lightweight." Aka, trying to carry as little as possible so you can walk faster and further/save your knees in the process.

It's a bit daunting to get into, I'll give you that. I also found this book to be super helpful.

> I am not sure if just running 5km each day and slowly getting faster is the best way to go?

This is a common mistake, since it seems like it should work. It won't. Training like this will lead you to plateau very quickly. If you do break 18 using this method, you probably could have gone much faster with smarter training.

Check out Pete Pfitzinger's Faster Road Racing: http://amzn.com/1450470459. Follow the section on building up a base and then choose a 5K training plan based on your goal mileage. Get a heart rate monitor and follow Pete's advice on run pacing. It's a lot of information to digest, but sub-18 is a pretty big ask and requires smart training. Even if you don't break 18, you'll know more about running and racing than most people.

Good luck!

So it really depends on your goals. Did you calculate your VDOT from your 5K time? Are you trying to run a marathon? Perhaps that indicates that you have speed, but aren't trained as well in endurance (in which case, you'd emphasize long runs, making sure you can complete them and less emphasis on pace for long runs).

I'd say work out a schedule (perhaps by reading a sample schedule), and try it out for a week or two. If you can easily complete the different types of workouts, then adjust it up. If you want a scientific way of making sure you're in the right zone, then you'd have to calculate % of maximum heart rate.

But yeah, maybe every few months or so, retest your VDOT number and readjust.

I highly suggest picking up a good book such as "Advanced Marathoning".

The Self-Coached Climber book shows lots of great drills for improving footwork precision and introducing twisting and flagging (counter balancing with your legs). The popular opinion is that you should dedicate some time to these drills as part of a warm-up. I believe you can check out the text in some detail on Google Books. Buying it also gets you the DVD, which shows the drills in real time.

As for the steep/roof climbing, it's a matter of pressing as much of your weight through your feet as possible by using - primarily - your core and hamstring muscles. Try this: Get yourself hanging on a couple of sizeable roof jugs with your toes in some equally huge footholds. Keeping your arms straight, pull your (mostly lower) body as close to the roof as you can. With your arms straight, you're engaging your legs/lower trunk rather than back/biceps - It transfers some weight to your feet and improves friction with the footholds. The more stable your foot positioning, the easier it is to initiate movement from your legs - even on a roof.

Nah man, just get the tap if you can get it. Just don't over think it. As a white I also tapped a lot of people who, as a blue now, I can't tap anymore. They lowered their game to allow me to develop my own. No more playing now, however.

When I started out, the first 3 months were hell while rolling. If you are doing better, that's good for you man! I just remember from my own experience that I had to survive against everyone but the higher belts gave me advice to get better. You should not give up on offence but you should also built a great foundation of defence. http://www.amazon.com/Jiu-Jitsu-University-Saulo-Ribeiro/dp/0981504434 Is a great book. The white belt chapter is completely about surviving. I like it a lot. I believe Slideyfoot (look at the faq) has a complete review.

For a derailleur hanger, go here: http://www.derailleurhanger.com/

I've ordered from them in the past and they were great. They even worked with me to exchange a hanger since I ordered the wrong one. Very painless.

For other parts, I just shop around via Google. Generally I go with Amazon since I have a Prime account but other times shops will pop up with better prices. I've ordered from most of the places /u/TallBobbyB listed (for the US) and have had good results. Probikekit is based in the UK but they usually have pretty great prices too.

If you want to learn how to fix stuff, you can find just about everything you need on Youtube or the Park Tool Website. If you want something to hold in your hands, Lennard Zinn wrote the bible.

Building anchors isn't rocket science, but it does hold a couple of important considerations (and why watching a video isn't going to be sufficient):

• There are a multitude of ways you can build a strong anchor and many more ways to mess it up. Messing it up obviously carries a high consequence. A video can't teach you all the right and wrong ways to build an anchor.
  
• Building anchors is not a strictly procedural process like cleaning a sport route where you can watch a video and follow steps 1 to 10 and it'll be 99% the same everywhere you go. Building anchors requires an understanding of concepts, not procedures (because what you encounter for an anchor placement will vary) - such as what qualifies as a bomber anchor, how to ensure you have redundancy throughout the entire anchor, limitations of gear, etc.
  
  Should you take a class? Maybe if you want some hands-on experience. I would suggest that you do your share of the reading first, you might not need the class, or if do take one you'll have a better understanding of what is being taught and be able to ask thoughtful questions.
  
  Some reading:
  
  
• Anchors in Earnest (PDF)
  
• Trad Anchors (4 parts) and Top Rope Anchors
  
• Climbing Anchors (book: John Long, Bob Gaines)
  
• For fun you can check out Jive-Ass Anchors for what not to do (sadly no new updates).

I haven't read it, but I would check this one out: https://www.amazon.ca/Koerners-Field-Guide-Ultrarunning-Ultramarathon/dp/1937715221

I have read "Daniels' Running Formula" which is very very good: https://www.amazon.ca/Daniels-Running-Formula-3rd-Jack/dp/1450431836/ref=sr_1_sc_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1469153523&sr=1-1-spell&keywords=Daniels+runnnig

I also recommend "Advanced Marathoning" which is a better all purpose "how to be a runner" book than Daniels, but a bit less scientific.

Both have training plans for beginners. And like people mentioned: getting good quickly is easy... it's not getting hurt that is tough!

A while back I bought a book in Kindle format called The Essential Smart Football. Reading Kindle books on PC is supported but unpleasant, so I recently bought a Kindle paperwhite, remembered a couple days ago that I wanted to read this, and am now about 3/4 of the way through the book. It's apparently copied from the author's blog, but that sort of thing doesn't bother me as much as it bothers some (I'm paying $3 for formatting and convenience).

Smart Football is a collection of essays about innovative coaches in both college and the NFL. Each essay describes one successful coach at the time of its writing (the essays are all dated, none newer than 2012) and most include play diagrams to illustrate the concepts he's discussing. It's a really engaging read, in part because each essay is short enough that I can't get bored. The topics don't feel repetitive or trivial, even though there's often a sentence or two to explain that, e.g., Cover 2 is a coverage with 2 deep safeties.

Highly recommend if you're looking for something to read while you're supposed to be working.

Depending on what she means by "slight idea of what's going on", that can be completely normal. Unless your academy has a special beginners program, it can often feel like you are being thrown in the deep end of the pool. With blinders on.

How do you keep going? Well, if you find it fun, that's a son enough, even if you have no clue what's going on. However, it might also help if you treat it a bit like a mystery where you slowly uncover clues and piece the big picture together in your head. Each little revelation can be a little reward in itself.

It may also help to pick up a book like Jiu Jitsu University so you can do a bit of study at home.

Congratulations! I think it's very cool that you're going to be setting out to do this. I've thought about it. I don't think very many people have thru hiked this trail. There's a book about a couple who did it that might be worth trying to hunt down. The name escapes me, but it obviously has "Bruce Trail" in the title.

I would really suggest trying to go light weight with gear. Check out r/ultralight. I've found it MUCH tougher to go ultralight with gear from Canada than the States. I suggest giving this book a read for consideration:

http://www.amazon.com/Ultralight-Backpackin-Tips-Inexpensive-Lightweight/dp/0762763841

Also, here's an interesting article about someone who thru hiked it:

http://www.thespec.com/news-story/2258732-walking-the-bruce-trail-end-to-end-in-30-days/

SO much more, but good luck!

That's one of the contributing factors of Football IQ, and the very basics. Other than that, you have to know what defender is going to do what in which system.
There are QBs who also determine blocking schemes for their line. They say which blocking scheme to apply for which play, and switch them up if need be.
Very, very basically, a spread offense spreads out the defense across the width of the field, instead of bunching everything together around the ball. If you spread the defense out, there are bound to be more holes. That could mean putting 4 or even 5 WRs out away from the Oline (hence, wide), for instance.
A lot of the times, they add in the read option in that play. If a certain defender goes into coverage or for the HB, the QB keeps the ball and runs through the gaps of the defense. If the defender stands pat, the QB hands it off to the HB (or throws).
There are some great books that explain a lot of these things. A few I would definitely recommend are (in order of how deep they go into stuff):

• Take Your Eye Off the Ball
  
• The Essential Smart Football
  
• Blood, Sweat and Chalk, which is slightly more advanced but the best out of the three. It dives into the history of the game. Absolutely fascinating!
  
  And Arians' book, The Quarterback Whisperer goes into the practicallities of making the jump from college to the pro's. It's a marvellous read!
  
  Edit: formatting
  

Welcome to the dangerous world of road bike racing. It is a deep hole and how far down you go depends on you.

A few tips below:

• Come check out /r/velo.
  
• Find a few local group rides and get used to riding in a pack
  
• Meet people that know more than you and ask questions
  
• Sign up for a race or two
  
• Get dropped in said races
  
• Start doing some intervals. An even simpler way to look at it is ride hard one day, ride easy the next.
  
• Maybe join a team, maybe ride unattached for now.
  
• Check out The Cyclist's Training Bible. Disclaimer: I still haven't read it.
  
• Look at TrainerRoad or get a coach (I can't afford a coach so I use TrainerRoad plans)
  
• Do more intervals
  
• Hang on and finish mid pack in race
  
• Repeat
  
  Hope this helps some :)
  
  Edit: Sponsorship. If you're racing road you'll end up joining a team if you choose to. That team will have sponsors and will get you deals. My current team has Specialized, a local shop, Stages power meters, Castelli, Selle Italia, Sidi, and a few more. Everything is pretty much 20-50% off. We put together a packet of why they should sponsor us, who the riders are, and what we plan to do to promote their brands. If you're looking to join a team then find one that you get along well with. Having people that will answer your dumb questions, that show you what a paceline is, and are focused on having fun is way more important than 20% off a tire.

It all depends on the kind of shape they're in. This included my own mother when she was sedentary and wanted to get into shape like the people I coached. She was overweight and about 60 at the time. In one year she went from couch potato to finishing a half marathon in 2:45ish with no injuries and maintained that on her own after for several years.

For someone who is healthy, active, and only 23: read up on the best way to race a 5k, then go run the 5k. You should feel like you are about to vomit and fall over right after you cross the finish line. From there you can put together a good baseline.

Check out Daniels Running Formula for a chart/graph that you could then use for all sorts of paces. It's one of the best books for medium distance I found. If you want to specifically go for marathons, after you've done your first transition to Advanced Marathoning for some amazing training schedules.

First of all, congratulations! I'm not sure it's necessary to take an entire week off, but it might be helpful to reduce your mileage and throw in some slow recovery runs for the next week or two.

Depending on what your goals are, it might be helpful to further build up your base level of aerobic fitness by increasing your weekly mileage before you begin training for your next half. I just bought a copy of Faster Road Racing by Pete Pfitzinger, which has a number of great training programs for building up base mileage (as well as for specific race distances).

First things first, go out and buy a copy of Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills.

That book will be a fantastic primer on all things mountaineering and alpinism, it's widely considered the bible of mountaineering and has been updated several times by top alpinists and guides. It should get you comfortable with climbing some less technical peaks near you. To find some peaks to climb and route information look at Summitpost.
And lastly for training for mountaineering buy a copy of Training for the new Alpinism. The book was written by Steve House, world renowned alpinist, and Scott Johnston, his training coach. The book only covers how to train your body to prepare for climbing and covers everything from diet, to mental training, to sports science.

Lastly, see if you can join your local mountaineering club and find a mentor.

Be safe. Have fun. Don't die.

Get a buddy and go indoor rock climbing first, second and third. I love PRG. There you will learn several important things like the basic tie in knot, how to trust the rope and how to belay with a grigri. You will learn to use your whole body without trying to do pull ups. Its really pretty easy to get people to go indoor climbing vs outdoor, and then you can find the people who like climbing and you trust with your life.


If you are the kind of person who likes to read about things before going out and trying them, try this and if you want to do trad (not pre anchored sport routes) this.


When I first started climbing, I almost took a class here. If you don't have a bunch of indoor climbing experience, some experienced friend, or just a mind for detail and a crap load of overconfidence - take the class. I learned as I went with a few good friends, but there were a few lessons that we almost learned the hard way. Have fun up there!

there's a training program in Training for climbing by Horst,

the self coached climber

and The rock climber's training manual

I like the 2nd and 3rd the best, the 2nd I'd recommend for newer climbers (the footwork drills are very thorough), and the 3rd I'd recommend because it has a chapter that focuses on bouldering.

I don't really think you absolutely need a book, there are plenty of resources online to put together a solid plan, but a book is nice too :)

The best plan for fontainebleau is to throw yourself at slopers. Just watch your wrists.

Pfitzinger Advanced Marathoning is what I base most of my training on. The first time I did one of his plans is the major turning point from me being "meh" to actually kind of decent at marathons.

Daniels' Running Formula is a staple, with a wider focus. I tend to lift specific workouts/weeks from his plans.

Hansons also has a great reputation, but I haven't used it personally. They mainly approach it as trying to train you to run the last part of the marathon.

Hal Higdon has good plans if your goal is to just finish and not die.

Most of these guys have plans for various levels of runner. The "easiest" Pfitz plan peaks at about 55 miles per week. Daniels is more "you pick your peak mileage, and then adjust according to a % for each week". It is pretty important to not bite off more than you can chew. As you learned, the most important thing is to get to the start line healthy.

This isn't going to be a popular answer: don't buy upgrades.
Ride your bike and save your money. Then replace your existing bike with something better later.

If something breaks/wears out, by all means, replace it with something a little better. But, the bit-by-bit upgrades thing doesn't dramatically improve the bike.

Instead of buying a power meter, how about finding two group rides a week that are vaguely competitive and reading Joel Friel's book? http://www.amazon.com/The-Cyclists-Training-Bible-Friel/dp/1934030201

The simple act of trying to go faster a couple of times a week will improve your performance. Friel's book will give you an idea how to structure a week. Remember that the number of hours/week in the book is very high for most.

If you really want to train with power, once you have a plan using Friel's book, find a stretch of road that you can easily and safely ride hard without stopping for about 5 minutes and has two landmarks to start/stop a stopwatch. Ride the stretch of road the same time in the week every other week and log the times. Over time, (many weeks) you should see increases in performance. There's your power meter.

I'm not saying power meters are useless. I'm saying there's quite a bit to learn before using one has definite benefits.

I'm no expert mechanic but this is a really good book.

Regular maintenance mostly includes stuff like lubing your chain, keeping everything clean, checking bolt tightness, and making minor adjustments to keep your drivetrain and brakes working smoothly. Occasionally you'll need to do something more in-depth like bleed your hydraulic disc brakes or replace suspension seals - your local shop will be happy to do that stuff if you don't want to mess with it.

I stared climbing because I wanted to be outside, and I don't buy it that people have to start in the gym and move outside when they are ready. As such, I climb outside every weekend and treat the gym like a gym.

That being said, I haven't taken the REI class, but, I suspect if you take that class, and read a book like this, you will be fine to start top-rope climbing outside (edit: take a class before you bother buying this book). Just make sure you feel comfortable. Most of outdoor climbing is being careful, thinking things though, not getting in over your head, and not overestimating your abilities (climbing and knowledge).

Meetup groups could also be a good idea, just be honest about your prior experience (for example, here is my local meetup group).

Also, some gyms offer indoor->outdoor transition classes.

Lots and more literature, but it basically breaks down to:

1. climbing (often trad)
   
   
2. anchor building (sometimes with bolts, sometime not)
   
   
3. belaying from either above or below
   
   
4. gear management (much more complex than single pitch)
   
   Seconded on Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills as a great overview of all of this (and much more).
   
   My favorite anchor management book is Rock Climbing Anchors: A Comprehensive Guide
   
   EDIT: and of course the usual caution. Don't try this without proper instruction.

Two great books with excellent marathon training plans are:

• Advanced Marathoning by Pete Pfitzinger and Scott Douglas
  
• Hansons Marathon Method
  
  Both have good intermediate plans in the ~50-55 mpw range that take 12-18 weeks. They also both contains tons of good info for a new marathoner.
  
  Good luck!

When I first started riding I was in the same position. I was good friends with a guy who'd been riding his whole life. (1) I asked him to teach me. (2) There was a bike shop that did free workshops and I would go to those. (3) Lastly I watched a lot of YouTube videos. (4) I'd also get a book like Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance. It will be trial and error at first, but eventually the basics become second nature and the more advanced repairs can be done with reference material, patience, and luck. Good luck.

You are right. SO MUCH OUT THERE.

The training bible is a great start/must read - https://www.amazon.com/Cyclists-Training-Bible-Joe-Friel/dp/1934030201

From there, I'd think about what worked for you as a rower and try to build out a plan that makes sense for how you individually enjoy training. Success is heavily tied to your happiness during the activity/training grind (as I am sure you know from rowing).

I am happy to try and give you tips as questions come up, feel free to DM me. I am not the best rider, but I've been fortunate enough to learn from some very smart riders.

Consider supplementing your classes with some books. Bob Gaines new AMGA Manual, the classic Luebben climbing book, and Luebben's anchor book are all excellent. John Long has a new Trad Climbers Bible, haven't read it though. I find him wordy and often not as clear as others.

Note that Luebben suggests to spend a day every year climbing with an expert guide to make sure you're solid.

If you want a specific recommendation: BEFORE YOUR CLASS: Pick up the three books above and read them. Take notes on what you don't understand. Look to online forums and videos for answers. Buy some gear and practice placing the gear outside. Have a piece of rope you keep on your couch. Practice knots while watching TV. FOR YOUR CLASS: Once you've done this, then take a class with an expert. Bring all the questions you've come up with. Take notes and get your guides contact info so you can stay in touch after. AFTER YOUR CLASS, continue reviewing the books (which will make more sense), start climbing easy single pitch stuff outside, email new questions to your guide. Take an anchors course if it's available, particularly before getting into multi-pitch.

Have fun & good luck!

EDIT: Check out r/tradclimbing and their excellent FAQ.

Here's a couple of books that i found useful when learning. For the cost of your class, you could buy some gear. I bought my rack and went out and started leading the easiest things i could find. I asked my partners to look at my placements and didn't climb anything where i wasn't at ease fiddling with my placements. After a season of this, i spent a day with a small group climbing with a guide and a pro climber. It was really useful then to have someone evaluate my placements and look at my technique. In short, spend the money on a rack. Get out and play with it.

http://www.amazon.com/How-Rock-Climb-5th-Series/dp/0762755342/ref=pd_sim_b_2/191-6286848-7768056

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0762782072/ref=pd_sim_b_1

These two will get you started. Once you're comfortable with your gear and are starting to think about multi-pitch climbing, it's a really good idea to read this one as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Climbing-Self-Rescue-Improvising-Mountaineers/dp/089886772X/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1395103810&sr=1-3&keywords=self+rescue+for+climbers

There are many books out there on these topics. I've read the three above and can vouch for their quality. When looking for the Jon Long books, be sure to get the latest edition.

Saulo Ribiero and Kevin Howell's Jiu Jitsu University is almost required reading. Click on "Search inside this book" under the book's cover pic to check out the contents.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Theory and Technique (by lots of big names) is also very well done.

Online, Stephan Kesting's Grapple Arts BJJ Techniques are very diverse and broken down incredibly well.

Cane Prevost's 20 week curriculum is some of the best fundamentals instruction I've seen. The focus on and details about posture alone are worth it for people of any rank.

In the end though, ask your instructor. He/she can explain it and then hopefully tell you how to drill a technique to integrate it into your game.

Side Note:

>Ari Bolden is a proven fraud

His early videos were a source of controversy. His newer videos feature big names (Keith Owen, Piet Wilhelm, others) and good technique breakdowns. I'm not defending his earlier actions in the least (I do not like people who misrepresent themselves either intentionally or through a smoke-screen), but I'm also willing to give him a some credit if his recent material is honest and productive for the community as a whole. The BJJ community never forgets, but that shouldn't get in the way of Keith Owen sharing his immense knowledge to a large existing audience. I'll defer to Keith if he has made the decision to give Ari some leeway.

/Side Note

Side Note 2: I just had a delicious sandwich.

I highly recommend it. I also STRONGLY recommend focusing massively on reducing your pack weight.

• 32lb-40lb - Old pack weight (minus food/water/fuel) when I brought stuff I forgot I brought, and took anything I thought I might need. Back pain, slow pace, tired as fuck, knees/hips hurt, "ugh let's just get to camp".
  
• 8.2lb - New pack weight when I bring exactly what I need, and can find everything I want in my pack easily. Definitely some tradeoffs. Quick pace, pain free, much happier, don't even care to take the pack off to rest half the time. I had people ask if I was there for just the night when on three week trips. That's less weight than most day hikers. I woke up later than everyone and got to camp first, it's awesome.
  
  Buy this book. It'll make you a much happier hiker. It's the single best thing I've ever done for my happiness hiking.
  
  If you guys have any questions while you're doing it let me know! If it's car camping....that's another thing entirely =) weight weight weight dranks dranks dranks steak steak steak

Eva Lopez's blog has a lot of good resources. But she does caution the use of her methods and products to those with "2 years of systematic training" and some proven level of finger strength.

Given your minimal experience, common wisdom suggests just climbing routes as the best means to develop both strength and technique. On that front, the Self Coached Climber spells out climbing movement.

When your ready, check out Mike and Mark Anderson's new site. These are the "rockprodigy" guys.

Here's some recommended reading:

• The Book - That's literally the name of the book. It's full of one-off chapters covering a variety of topics.
  
• Baseball Between the Numbers - This one is also a bunch of one-off type stuff
  
• Moneyball - Talks about how the 2002 Oakland A's capitalized on some offensive statistics that were being recorded but not heavily utilized to determine player values, and thus built a playoff team from undervalued hitters
  
• Big Data Baseball - Talks about the 2013 Pittsburgh Pirates and their use of big data strategies to find defensive value where other teams didn't (primarily in pitch framing, ground-ball pitching, defensive range, and shifting)
  
  The first two of those are heavily focused on the numbers and will probably teach you more about the whys and hows, while the second two are more about the narrative but still give you some insight into hard numbers.
  
  Also, I'd recommend just joining SABR. It's $60/year for most people, but if you're under 30 it drops down to $45/year. There are a lot of local chapters out there that have regular meetings. For example, the Twin Cities have the Halsey Hall chapter. There's a book club meeting on Saturday (to talk about Big Data Baseball), a hot stove breakfast in a few weeks (informal meeting to just hang out and talk baseball), a regular chapter meeting in April for people to actually present research, and the chapter occasionally has organized outings to minor league games.
  
  SABR also has a national conference and a specific national analytics conference, as well. Membership also includes a subscription to Baseball Research Journal, which comes out twice per year and contains a lot of really good stuff that members have been written both from a statistics and a history standpoint.

I'd suggest reading Watching baseball smarter by Zack Hample. It helped me tremendously when I first got into the game. Zack's even on here somewhere.

As for a team, I'd suggest watching a few games first. ESPN America will usually have one or two games a day, and there's the free game of the day on MLB.com if you're not ready to make the commitment to MLB.tv (which is actually great value, by the way).

As mentioned, Ken Burns' Baseball is great, and it's shown a few times per year on PBS if you've got Sky. You should be able to find it easy enough online, however.

And if you want to chat to other fans in the UK & Ireland, head over to www.baseballfan.co.uk

/u/LeeroyJenkins- has a good start in his post.

I would add Boys of Summer by Roger Kahn and Pull up a Chair The Vin Scully Story.
Not Dodger specific but Watching Baseball Smarter is also very good. It will help you appreciate the game you watch that much more.

The Baseball documentary by Ken Burns (as mentioned by /u/LeeroyJenkins-) is a must watch. It is long, around 20 hours including the 10th inning follow up, but it is well worth it. Available streaming on Amazon and Netflix.

The Pacific Coast bike tour is one of the most traveled bike tours in America. I'm a huge proponent of it. If you google pacific coast in this subreddit, you'll see a ton of results and information.

Not only that but there are maps and a book.

The maps: https://www.adventurecycling.org/

The book:
https://www.amazon.com/Bicycling-Pacific-Coast-Complete-Canada/dp/0898869544/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1517787322&sr=8-1&keywords=bicycling+the+pacific+coast

I recommend the book. My GF and I did the full tour in 6 weeks about 2 years ago - and we took our time. Many of the folks we met were doing it in 30 days. It's about 1800-2000 miles. We started in Vancouver, many start in Seattle.

I've ridden bits and pieces of the same route several times now. Feel free to ask me any questions - I love discussing the coast tour/best campsites/best routes, etc. (see my profile, that's all it is :-)

https://www.amazon.com/Take-Your-Eye-Off-Ball/dp/1600783910/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1536188603&sr=8-2&keywords=take+your+eye+off+the+ball&dpID=51ObJ6UtyzL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch

I haven't found any channels that do a good job of starting with the basics, but this book does a great job. It's an easy read, starts with the basics and goes into great detail

A superior book to CC and BtGB IMO is Overcoming Gravity.

To address the post, for upper body I believe bodyweight and weights are fairly similar in effectiveness. However if you are looking to strengthen connective tissue, it seems to be done better (and in particular it is necessitated) by straight-arm bodyweight holds.

In my experience, benching HAS carried strength over into bodyweight movements (planche and handstand pushup) which I did not expect given that many bodyweight training proponents state that this does not happen.

For lower body movements, free weights are just better. You just can't really disadvantage leverage sufficiently as far as I know to get a decent stimulus.

Nols offers a whole line of books on outdoors skills, most of which are pretty decent.

Also, it's probably a bit advanced for someone who is just getting into hiking, but at some point you're going to want to invest in Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills, published by Mountaineers Books. It's more or less the mountaineer's bible...

And finally, since you live in the Northeast, I highly recommend Forest and Crag, which is a history of hiking and recreation management NY and New England. Very informative and interesting read.

Maybe this is too practical - but I expect all my partners to at least know the basics of self rescue. This is a great supplement to taking a multi day rescue class. They can be expensive but worth EVERY dollar.

http://amzn.com/089886772X

I've never done a course inside, but I've done a couple of winter climbing courses outside (notes: course 1, course 2), and they were totally worth it. I had a great time and have used lots of the stuff I learned. A friend of mine did an "advanced movement" course at her local gym and claims it helped her technique a lot, particularly on steep terrain.

You might find the books The Self-Coached Climber and 9 out of 10 Climbers Make the Same Mistakes helpful. The first covers the nuts and bolts of technique and training; the second is more about how best to make use of the limited climbing time you have, and how to avoid getting stuck in a rut.

Two pretty popular programs around here are from Daniel's Running Formula and Faster Road Racing. As for philosophy it is pretty similar to good marathon training, a little less speed work and a longer long run. You can get away with less, but personally I think it is good to take your marathon mileage and hone it with the extra speed work in a 5k-10k program. Hope that helps!

I'm not sure how flexible your itinerary is, but I'd highly recommend reversing course and touring from Vancouver to LA. There are two main reasons, 1) Wind! Winds typically blow north to south during the best touring season and this can severely impact your milage. I can cross Oregon comfortably (not going for any records here, I'm an old man) in 5 or 6 days (but more is more fun) heading north to south, but I'd expect it to take at least 10 days in the other direction.

The second reason is that you'll get a very different experience with other people on tour. Especially through Oregon, where there are established hiker-biker camp sites at intervals designed for bike tour (always $5, no reservation necessary). If you are touring from North to South, you will inevitably meet many other folks touring the same route. The option to cycle solo and avoid the other tourers always exists, but if you are going the wrong direction, then you'll miss out on meeting some of the most interesting bike tourers I've met anywhere.

And a final bonus consideration, the view! If you are traveling south, you've got the ocean on your immediate right and the views are unimpeded by the road.

I found this book of limited use when I was actually on the road, but I got some great advice from it while I was in planning stages: http://www.amazon.com/Bicycling-Pacific-Coast-Vicky-Spring/dp/0898869544/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393962849&sr=8-1&keywords=cycling+the+pacific+coast

Don't feel bad if you'd feel more confident riding flat pedals rather then clipless. I used to be a clipless snob but ride flat now. Its worth considering.

You might want to get off your bike and scope out the line you want to take before hand. You can also session the obstacle to get more practice.

When riding a step down slowly its important to keep your wheels rolling, especially your front wheel. Do the majority of your breaking before the drop.

When you near the drop, get off the front break entirely. You can feather the back break but don't lock it up. Higher end brakes modulate better.

You want to get your butt behind the seat and down. I recommend you get a dropper seat post. It will make these types of moves so much easier. Keep in mind that the further back you get your weight, the more likely your front wheel is to get light and possibly move around on you. You'll need to experiment with how far back you need to get on your bike. Start with too far back since you tend to go over the bars.

If you can seek out in person training from a coach with a good rep that will help.

Here's a book to consider.

https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Mountain-Bike-Skills-2nd/dp/0736083715

As I Canadian who moved to Austin for grad school and learned to love football, I sympathize with the need to find something that covers the basics!

Here's a site I linked to below that covers some basics:
http://footballoutsiders.com/strategy-minicamps?page=2
... but even that might be too advanced.

If you're looking for complete basics, you might be better off with a book.
Take Your Eye Off the Ball is quite helpful for this, as it covers the basics of all the different positions and it gets into formations and a bit of strategy.:
http://www.amazon.com/Take-Your-Eye-Off-Ball/dp/1600783910/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1320168296&sr=8-1

Football for Dummies is even more basic, but it can be a good guide for the beginner:
http://www.amazon.com/Football-Dummies-USA-Sports-Hobbies/dp/1118012615/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1320168316&sr=8-1

haha. welcome to the grind my friend. there is so much to learn. yes, your experience is totally normal. get a copy of BJJ University.

it's a great book to help you get started.

A bit off-kilter for this sub, but for anybody who actually wants to train to race competitively, Daniel's Running Formula is invaluable. It covers training (speedwork, intervals, long runs, hills, fartleks, strength training), nutrition, and recovery for everything from the 800m-marathon. Chances are you won't have many clients seeking a sharp 800m or single mile time who didn't also run in high school or college, but the speed training info is invaluable, and substantially better/more detailed than the vague notion of "HIIT sprints", which I'm pretty sure 95% of beginners are doing at high injury risk and with terrible pacing anyway. Also, Jack Daniels and Steve Pfitzinger are leaps and bounds ahead of Hal Higdon for half and full marathon plans catered to people who actually want to have a competitive finish time.

Sure, I'm biased, but unless you're going to specifically be a strength coach, you might want to broaden your knowledge into fields that future clients might care about. You also might want to do some research into agility work (American football drills, soccer drills, sprinter/jumper plyos, etc.) in case some clients also have an interest in that. I vaguely know some sprint drills, but I'm mid/long distance so it's really not something I'm super knowledgeable about.

While I'm sure someone will jump in with their favorite, I've read through this one:

https://smile.amazon.com/Climbing-Self-Rescue-Improvising-Mountaineers/dp/089886772X?sa-no-redirect=1

Your library might even have a copy. Also, look for a copy of Freedom of the Hills. 8th is the latest, but 6th & 7th are not all that old.

For navigation, eventually you'll want to be able to pinpoint & track yourself along a bare hillside, no trail.

Simple comfort & awareness, especially, I have found consists of a lot of trial and error. Learning when to switch layers to stay warm but not sweaty. How to pack a heavy pack. Where to find water. Knowing when you're getting dehydrated. Plenty of this can be learned on ordinary hilly trails, no massive peaks required.

I know some of these skills will be quite difficult to work on living in the city, but they're a super important place to start, and you don't need to hire a fancy guide to teach you. Plus, if you do take a class like you linked, you'll get a lot more out of it if you've already learned a lot of the fundamentals yourself. Be the guy who already knows how to tie every knot, knows exactly where he is on the map, and is comfortable in the environment. Don't be that guy who is too busy learning how to tie munters and clove hitches to pay attention to crevasse rescue practice.

Mike Tanier (formerly of Football Outsiders, the Fifth Down Blog, and elsewhere, soon to be of Sports On Earth) is far and away the best wordsmith. He's one of the best analyzers, too.

Chris Brown is also great. Here is his "essentials" book. A great place to start if you don't know his work.

This book was pretty helpful. It isn’t too long and it’s not a bad read. It breaks down the basics of formations and play types. It helps you understand and figure out a teams game plan while you’re watching the game. I haven’t read it in a while so I don’t remember everything it gets into but you see the game differently after you read it. Definitely doesn’t get into everything but it’s a pretty good start.

https://www.amazon.com/Take-Your-Eye-Off-Ball/dp/1600783910/ref=nodl_

I haven't gotten all the way through it, but the Self Coached Climber is pretty good. Was free on Kindle a while back, but the physical book might be a bit better for the illustrations.

Glad to hear your making the transition to the outdoors. It's an amazing and well worth while endeavor.

Honestly, i would take a class or go with someone well experienced. I know this is what a lot of people say and i might seem redundant, but it really is true.

The reason I stand behind my opinion is that it's not very hard to learn how to set up a top rope on bolted anchors and master that skill. The hard part is knowing how to keep your self out of danger during the process and if you get into danger, how to bail yourself out.

The gym is a very controlled and regulated environment. The outdoors isn't. When climbing outside, there are always unexpected issues and problems that you need to make a judgement call on. I would just recommend that you have a solid foundation of knowledge and at least some first hand experience from someone that you trust, before you potentially get into a situation over your head.

When i first started, this book helped me a lot to fill in any small gaps of knowledge. It is not a supplement for first hand experience though.

http://www.amazon.com/Rock-Climbing-Anchors-Comprehensive-Mountaineers/dp/1594850062

• Walk. Seriously its like it flicks the on switch of your metabolism. Your energy levels go up and your appetite goes down. Do it regularly, for at least half an hour at a time (but any walking is good). Getting a pedometer and aiming for 10,000 step can really motivate you.
  
  These three books are about doing strength training at home. They are a fantastic to build up serious strength in a way that's actually better than doing it at the gym in a lot of ways.
  
  
• Overcoming Gravity
  
  
• Enter the Kettlebell
  
  
• Convict Conditioning

Stop watching the ball. But seriously though, I have some pretty successful sports writer friends who have a deeper knowledge of football than I ever will and that's the biggest piece of advice they give me. That book is pretty good, but to be honest, I still slip back into watching the ball and wonder why we don't call the "throw a touchdown play" more often.

Also, welcome to the journalism brotherhood. I cover politics, not sports, so hit me up should you need any advice on understanding the farm bill.

Edited for a typo that drove me crazy.

Look into it. I do know some people that learned to lead trad from friends. If so, make sure you do the following:

1. Follow a friend and inspect his placements as you clean them.
   
2. Practice placing pieces while standing on solid ground, and have an experienced friend check out and critique your placements.
   
3. If you can get two other people, try a "mock lead" on TR, with one person on TR belay and another person on lead belay. Make sure the TR belay is nice and loose and try hanging on a piece on your lead rope. Maybe even try a bit of a fall. If you can only get one other person, still do the mock lead, but trail the rope with no belay. You won't get the experience of weighting or falling on gear, but placing a piece while on the rock is still way, way different from placing a piece on solid ground.
   
4. Read Traditional Lead Climbing by Heidi Pesterfield. Cover to cover. http://www.amazon.com/Traditional-Lead-Climbing-Climbers-Taking/dp/0899974422/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1309779139&sr=8-2
   
5. Only after you have done all of the above, try a lead climb on something stupid easy. Have an experienced friend inspect your placement. Ask him if any cams walked or tipped out; if cams were undercammed; if nuts or hexes were too close to the edge and liable to blow; etc.
   
6. Read Climbing Anchors, by John Long. http://www.amazon.com/Climbing-Anchors-2nd-How-Climb/dp/0762723262/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1309779148&sr=8-1 This is must-know stuff; without a bolt line to follow, you could go off-route and need to build an anchor to bail off.
   
7. Read up on rock rescue; this is a good book: http://www.amazon.com/Climbing-Self-Rescue-Improvising-Mountaineers/dp/089886772X/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1309779184&sr=8-5
   
   Good luck, and climb on.

I rode from Newport, OR to San Francisco a few years ago. We used a book called "Bicycling the Pacific Coast."

I highly recommend it. I lays out some easy ride days (50-60 miles) and has useful information about the state camp grounds, and even some restaurants and stores along the way.

On a personal note, if you find yourself with some time in the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, make sure you see Fern Canyon. It was unbelievable. One of the highlights of my trip for sure.

Have fun and hydrate!!!

Freedom of the hill is very complete but mostly for mountaineering, less useful for general rock climbing. It can also be a bit dated in places. Still very useful to own, read and eventually assimilate if you ever head into the mountains.

For general rock climbing, I think your best option by far is The self coached climber. Very complete and it covers a lot more than the basics.

I personally think that the best way to be a better crossfit athlete is to gain as much knowledge of specific sports - gymnastics, weightlifting, track, powerlifting, etc. On that basis, I'd recommend https://www.amazon.com/Overcoming-Gravity-Systematic-Gymnastics-Bodyweight/dp/1467933120

I think Supertraining by Yuri Verkhoshanski is a great (super dense) read for any training.

Kelly Starrett has two notable books, most specifically becoming a supple Leopard.

I'll be going to graduate school in Statistics, so as an avid baseball fan, I'm also fascinated with Sabermetrics.

Here are some books I recommend

For a good first book, I recommend either Beyond Batting Average or Understanding Sabermetrics: An Introduction to the Science of Baseball Statistics or Baseball Between the Numbers.... All of those books provide good introductions to the subject

My favorite book would have to be, The Book: Playing Percentages in Baseball. Compared to the first three I mentioned, this book is a bit more complex, but I think it's the best because it's the most thorough.

I did seattle to Santa Cruz, I can tell you a bit about my trip. I did it a little differently than Ben I believe, by going along the coast the whole time.

• I really didn't plan my trip, and I liked it that way. I knew I was going to visit a friend from high school in Seattle, and visit a friend in Humboldt, but that was it. I bought a map for each state I passed through, and carried a book with me called 'bicycling the pacific coast': http://www.amazon.com/Bicycling-Pacific-Coast-Complete-Canada/dp/0898869544.
  
  
  -I mainly stayed on the 1/101. Sometimes you have, or want to, veer off onto smaller highways, just look at a map.
  
  -I used a jetboil, a handy backpacking cooking thing. Good for heating up liquid substances, bad for stir-frying and stuff like that. A common meal for me was bread, beans, and avocado.
  
  -I camped every night. I use a hammock for backpacking, and I love it because it is very comfortable and keeps you completely dry when it rains. For biking, it is a godsend. It stretched out my legs while I slept so my knees felt good in the morning. I slept one night on the ground, and it was awful.
  
  -Sunglasses, rocks and bugs are scary.
  Even thought these fit into the 'spare parts' category, bring extra screws. I never would have thought of that, I there were times where i was.... screwed.
  
  -Do it!

If you're looking into the more advanced stats I'd recommend the following:

A good place to get started is the Fangraphs resource pages. Just follow the tabs below the search bar/"follow us" section of the page. For my money, Fangraphs offers the most complete and well-rounded advanced stats out there and they don't use black box proprietary stats like Baseball Prospectus.

If you want to dive in a little more deeply, "The Book" by Tom Tango lays things out really well.

"Baseball Between the Numbers" by Jonah Keri is a solid read too.

Have fun getting started!

It sounds like you're taking enough recovery then. If I were you I'd also look into buying the Dr. Jack Daniels running book; https://www.amazon.com/Daniels-Running-Formula-3rd-Jack/dp/1450431836/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1502830279&sr=8-1&keywords=Jack+Daniels+running+book . This will give you a good idea of what splits should look like for certain paces across most workouts and races. Just seeing the runners world plan means you're just seeing basically one out of 70 plus columns from the book with no reference of what your splits are actually suggesting you are capable of. This book is truly a running bible and will help you better understand your training now and into the future.

First change is you need more variability both in your pace (easy runs should be A LOT easier), and you should vary your weekly mileage as well. Every 3rd week or so do a week of lower mileage to let your body recover.

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Plug your most recent 5k into this calculator https://runsmartproject.com/calculator/ , and you'll see your correct training paces.

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I'd keep ht monday 5miles with 3 at tempo (your tempo pace is close to where it should be based on your 5k time), but for sure add in some much slower easier runs (perhaps on non-recovery weeks you can do 1 longer (10+ mi) easy run and a few shorter runs instead of a bunch of moderately hard runs in the 5-8 mile range).

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Check out a book like Faster Road Racing (https://www.amazon.com/Faster-Road-Racing-Half-Marathon/dp/1450470459) for programs, or even an online program like Hal Hidgon if you want to do a half marathon with a training plan

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Just take up another hobby and try not to obsess about mat time you're missing out on. I started playing DnD, that is a great time. I read BJJ University. I've been back about 2 months now. Just being patient and diligent about physical therapy is tough. I've since transitioned to more of a overall strength and conditioning focus. There is this magical time after you get going at physical therapy where you'll feel really good. You'll be back to drilling and it'll be going great, you'll have all your range of motion back and you'll probably feel like you can do a light round. Just take it slow dawg.

PS. The time off actually I think has helped my game. Time off isn't so terrible.