Catalyst Fitness

Jim Liguori at Catalyst

Taoists practice a philosophy they call, "Beginner's Mind." In essence, they believe that every situation is unique, and should be approached with the open eyes of a beginner. There's education in everything, including scenarios you've seen a hundred times before, and especially in your rival. Jim Liguori is all that and then some. Jim's philosophy of inclusiveness is not only rare in the martial arts community, but also in the fitness world.

While we at Catalyst have always embraced different philosophies of fitness, only recently have we started sharing some of our influences with you, the reader. Jim, though, has always been very open about accommodating and incorporating different styles into his training. And now, it's really paying off for his athletes.

Paraphrasing one of his students: "When I came back to town, I went around to different clubs. I'm a wrestler, and Jim was interested in what I could add to the group, instead of trying to convince me that his way was best. I thought, yeah, this is the place for me."

Jim owns Ho Shin Sool Martial Arts and Fitness Centre. Ho Shin Sool is a Korean phrase, meaning "Protect Mind and Body." Even in choosing a name, Jim Liguori emphasizes balance in everything. From their website: ...but it is also important to keep an open mind through various cross-training programs and adapt the program to suit the individual as everyone is different and unique.

He's talking about martial arts, but couldn't the same be said about fitness, your career, or your life? To paraphrase Greg Glassman (another excellent coach,) in general, nature abhors the specialist. Specialization in one area, by definition, means the exclusion of another.

Jim is a fifth-degree black belt, father of two exceptional girls, and, as he puts it, "very lucky to have a wife who shares the same values." The martial arts community, and the city, are lucky to have coaches like Jim. Preamble over. Watch below:

Some additional thoughts on Beginner's Mind, from Jim Liguori in various emails to me:

A university professor went to visit a famous Zen master. While the master quietly served tea, the professor talked about Zen. The master poured the visitor's cup to the brim, and then kept pouring. The professor watched the overflowing cup until he could no longer restrain himself. "It's overfull! No more will go in!" the professor blurted. "You are like this cup," the master replied, "How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup."

This is the speach I sometimes use with my students. "theory of empty mind" or "beginners mind". In todays society it's sooo hard to keep that simple way of thinking. We are all overexposed to an abundance of theories, studies, ideas, etc. Sometimes less is more for sure.

...........
too much clutter? empty the mind
too much stress? empty the mind
too many worries? empty the mind
take time to stand back, and see things for what they are. a little swirl on the planet earth. the long lens of time will show the trivialness of all things.
meditation and peace - empty the mind
eternal joy - empty the mind
the rain drips outside. there is no fight. the laws of nature are as they are. be pliable. bend a little. the struggle will only snap you. be at peace.
empty the mind. empty the mind. empty the mind.
peace and oneness. back to the eternal zen state. one. all. unity. there is nothing else. oneness.
empty the mind. the mantra calls. empty. the. mind.
EMPTY. peace. balance. oneness. THE. eternal. tranquility. bliss. MIND.
the universe has spoken.
...........

Anyway, there are many variations of the "concept" - empty mind or beginners mind or simple mind etc, and many translations. I think the "just of it" is that "the more people tend to learn, the harder it is for them to learn, and harder it may be to teach them". If you remember my telling you that my instructor told me I was about to start learning upon receiving my black belt.....I think he was telling me to approach things with an "open mind". This is what he meant but I didn't quite understand it at the time. So now with my students, I use this concept in trying to explain that. I hand one(1) translation out to those who test for their black belt as well.

I've trained with many great people over the years and also with many people who thought they were great! The "great" ones keep in close grasp with their empty mind.....the "not so great" have some skills, but fail to see the full potential of ones life.

Breaking out of "the box" is sometimes hard, regardless of how hard you punch!

13 Minutes with Andre Riopel

How do I start an article about Andre Riopel? The guy's a visionary. He's built Back In Motion up to its current level; he's started Velorution and kept it thriving in a tough local market. He's perhaps best known for being the bee in some local bonnets who don't care much for cyclists. As Andre explains it in the video, "If you care about your health, you have to care about your community. And if you care about your community, you have to care about the world." Couldn't have said it much better than that.

I invited Andre to do this interview a couple of weeks ago. When he arrived on his bike, I should have started rolling tape immediately. Instead, 5 minutes later, I had to ask him to stop talking so that I could get the camera out. I was missing too much good stuff.

Andre and I share a similar philosophy: do hard work, make it an adventure, and keep it brief. My favourite new Riopel-ism: Live With No Dead Time. Beautiful.

This is his winter bike. The frame weighs around 2lbs. It was custom-made by Ian Dunlop at Andre's shop, Velorution (even the shop's name has a great story behind it.)

He's in great shape - and it shows if you watch the video - but he's really all about heart. The guy cares. He cares what happens to you, your family, and our Earth. It's obvious. Ok, that's enough; roll video.

Physiology and Runners with Jen Entwhistle

Jennifer Entwhistle is a mover.

To quote her: I run because I ken. <editor's translation: that's Nova Scotian for, "I run because I can.">

She's moved herself through 4 marathons now, with a PR time of 3:26; she's moved herself through the streets of Boston, running with the crowd in 2008. She's moved the local running community in a different direction. And, as you'll see in the video, you can't rope her down.

Jen's from Nova Scotia (notice the 'X' ring.) She's already making her mark as a valuable addition to the Sault Stryders. We're happy to have her around; her sentiments on resistance training, especially, parallel our thoughts. Listen and enjoy.

Jennifer Entwhistle on Running from Chris Cooper on Vimeo.

How To Get A College Scholarship

John Clement, head scout for National Scouting Report (Northern Ontario area,) gives you the secrets of that holy grail of sport: a college scholarship. It's not as easy as you think. John lays out his Top 10 Things that you've just gotta do to get there.

Inside Dom Deluca's Head

Dom Deluca looks like a rock star.

And he's loved like one, too. When we ask hockey players in the Sault to name their favourite coach of all time - one who really made a difference in their careers - they name Dom.

When we ask who taught them the most, they name Dom. And sometimes, when we ask why they're still playing, they name Dom.

We asked Dom to come in and open his mind about coaching, hockey, and letting kids be creative. The interview is attached in two parts below. In the long lead-up to this interview (it literally took months to get our schedules to line up,) I thought I'd be spending an hour with a real tactician; a scientist. Instead, I found myself talking to an artist.

Listening to Dom, you hear a guy talk about hockey like some guys talk about wine: they're familiar with their subject to the point of intimacy. He's immersed in it. You can't separate the two. But he's also a masterful coach: he can exude authority, but he can also be a whole lot of fun, and he knows when each is appropriate.

Listen for 40 minutes, and you'll see what I mean. In the first installment, Dom talks about his philosophy of coaching and leading, his background, and his value system. It's great stuff. In Part II, Dom gets into the gritty stuff: some stories from the road, some favourite memories of players, and the foundations of his coaching beliefs. It's not to be missed, but a word to the more sensitive listeners: you're going to hear a few bad words. Sure, we could edit them out. But who are we to censor art?

Enjoy.

Download domdeluca1.mov

Download domdeluca2.mov

The Lego Knights Coaching System

You want a unique way to get kids motivated for sport?  You want to encourage kids to keep playing throughout their whole life?  Coach John Clement is one of the best around.  Kids love this guy.  They love his system of addressing the 4 fundamentals of progress in sport: strength, speed, agility, and wisdom.  They love the game because of John, and they KEEP PLAYING.  That's most important.  Take it away, John!

An Adventure Comes To Town - Jeremy Paquin

By Jeremy Paquin

"On Sunday July 20th, 2003, under a blanket of dark clouds and pouring rain, adventure racers from across North America anxiously boarded the Algoma
Central Railway train at the Searchmont station. There would follow a scenic 3-hour long excursion through the rugged Algoma region of Northern Ontario.
My teammates Ian Dunlop, Isabel Sigouin, Neil Baker and I settled into the comfy chairs while removing our socks and shoes allowing our feet to dry. The
Race Course Designer, Rich Marshall, entered our railcar and handed us our collection of maps and instructions for the first half of the race. Now the fun
would begin. We quickly plotted out the first coordinate to find that the race would start right in the spectacular Agawa Canyon. On paper, the contour lines
indicating change in elevation were crammed together so tightly that we knew our legs would warm up real quick from the brutal ascent. Once we stepped off
the train there were towering cliffs, blanketed by tangled trees to the east and west, and at first glance it seemed there would be no easy way out.
Shockingly, the first check point was located nearly 50 kilometers away. And we had to get there by foot…
The Eco Challenge North American Championship was hosted by the city of Sault Ste. Marie five years ago. I was captain of Team Sault Ste. Marie during that
grueling but memorable event, difficult beyond words. My personal race journal was chronicled in Townies magazine, describing every agonizing discomfort,
and blissful eye-opening experience.

However that was then...and this is now. Frontier Adventure Racing is hosting an Adventure Challenge on Saturday, September 6th, at Searchmont Resort.
Teams of three guys, girls, or both, will bike, paddle, hike, trail run, and navigate an unmarked 40km wilderness course. A solo division has been added to this
event, and I signed up on impulse.

Funny how the announcement of an adventure race nearby can lure an old guy out of retirement!
The last decade or more has seen an extraordinary thing happen in sports. There is no doubting there is a new kind of athlete, participating in new kinds of
sports, not for fame, money, or career, but simply for the experience of living. Pleasure comes from pushing ones self to the boundaries of personal
strength and endurance. I have experienced this personally, and I have witnessed countless people push themselves in my running clinics and spin
classes. There is no greater reward than improving your own health and wellbeing, and there is no better motivation than committing to compete and
experiencing the racing culture first hand.

The Sault and area hosts a variety of annual races, primarily running events. The St. Joseph Island Triathlon is a welcome exception, now in its fifth year.
The 8 Hours of Superior Single Track at Hiawatha attracted nearly 100 mountain bike racers recently and was considered a raving success by event
organizers.
Now this is a call to all weekend warriors: invite a couple of friends, combine running with mountain biking, add some paddling (hey anyone can paddle
a canoe!), and you’ll be toeing the line at Searchmont Resort on September 6th! This will be unlike any other local race. Over the coming weeks I will
provide insight into my training and preparation for this event, offering tips and strategies to improve your mountain biking skills, trail running, paddling,
and navigation.

It’s not often an adventure race comes to town...

Adventure Racing II: Jeremy Paquin

This is the second article in a series on Adventure Race Preparation by Jeremy Paquin, a friend of Catalyst.  Jeremy's preparing for the daunting 1-man solo
event at the Frontier Challenge, Sept. 6, at Searchmont Resort.  You can read part 1 of the series here.                        -Chris
Adventure Racing was essentially the brain child of Frenchman and modern day explorer - Gerard Fusil. The first Raid Gauloises was held in 1989 in New
Zealand. All of the competitors were European, traveling as a co-ed team of 5 by various means, not only in and around the country, but from one side to the
other over a period of 10 days! Since then, races have been held in the most remote and unforgiving corners of the world including Oman, Borneo,
Patagonia, Madagascar, and Kyrgyzstan.

Early competitors were often long-distance athletes: mountaineers, cross-country skiers, triathletes, and of course, long distance runners.

It’s no surprise runners were drawn to adventure racing. Obviously all adventure races, no matter the format, include sections, often ultra-long sections, of
trekking.

Personally, I took up trail running in the coastal mountains of British Columbia in the summer of 1999. I was dressed in cut-off jean shorts, I swear this is true,
and hulking Brooks running shoes two sizes too big. I could go non-stop for a whopping 12 minutes! Regardless, pine needle-covered paths with multiple
stream crossings and incredible views had me hooked. I spent what I thought was an absurd amount of money for a pair of real running shoes. And I still
have them today, grip-less and torn. I use them as lawn mowing footwear.

No one ever says running is exceedingly fun, or easy for that matter. It tests your legs and lungs, your heart and mind, your will and determination.

In the past 5 years, I have coached perhaps 150 runners in a variety of different clinic formats. In my experience, there are essentially 3 glaring points to
highlight to all runners, from the true beginner to the more serious amateur competitor.
1 - Use Correct Pace

It never fails. Beginners always run too fast. Slow it down and set a comfortable pace. A good rule of thumb, is that when you’re out for a run, you should be
able to hold up your end of an on-the-run chat. Rookies often complain: "Running is too hard!" Well of course it is, if your heart rate is beating at 90%
theoretical maximum heart rate and your respiratory rate is through the roof. It’s no wonder many people who take up running quit after only a handful of runs.
Learn to use walk breaks whenever necessary. Believe it or not, I use them all the time (shhh, don’t tell anyone!). In 2006, at the Run the Great Lakes Half-
Marathon, my running clinic participants were surprised to learn that I had used 4 walking breaks during my personal best time of 1:26 (good for 4th overall). I
like to say "Walking is a runner’s best friend." So my advice is to use a slow and steady pace, that way you can keep running feeling pleasant, until you can
gradually build a stronger endurance base.

2 - Listen to Your Body

When I took up running nearly a decade ago, I was hardly in tune with my body’s cues. I had a bad habit of ignoring aches and pains and thought I could just
run through the discomfort. If pain begins to linger somewhere, rest immediately, and see a health professional such as a physiotherapist, to address the issue.
To learn more about my body’s physiology, I wore a heart rate monitor for the better part of a year while running, mountain biking, trekking, cycling, even
around the house and while I slept. By the time I was prepared to tuck the monitor away, I could guess my heart rate within 5 beats while doing anything, by
cueing into my breathing rate and by feel alone. A good strategy while training, is to adopt a hard / easy approach to your running. That is, run hard one day,
then run easy (or not at all) the next day. This way you can minimize the risk of injury and get the most out of your hard workouts. Learn to read your body’s
cues and you’ll learn to run more efficiently.

3 - Replenish

It never ceases to amaze me how active and seemingly intelligent people neglect their bodies after a solid workout. They may return from an hour long run,
or completely soak a spin bike during an hour cycle, then go the entire afternoon (perhaps 3 or 4 hours) without eating! It is imperative that you replenish
fluids and glycogen stores quickly after a training session. My personal rule of thumb is that within 30 minutes I am eating and drinking. Often I am taking in
fluids as soon as the shoes are off, and eating a high-carbohydrate meal immediately following a shower. Replenish your energy stores quickly, so that you
can get the most out of your next workout, and continue on the road to improvement.

One Man Army: Race Report

Jeremy's story

Team One Man Army: Race Report

Frontier Adventure Challenge

Searchmont Resort

By Jeremy Paquin



Paddle to Pedal

It was no surprise Race Course Director, Lawrence Foster, had racers on the water early. The logistics of having arranged for an army of inflatable kayaks
would dictate putting them to use early for all teams. A quick 1 km sprint on foot from Searchmont Resort to the Goulais River funneled eager adventure
racers onto kayaks and on route to a surprisingly scenic 7 km meander downstream to Check Point (CP) 1.

I was eager to avoid the bottlenecks that inevitably ensue at boat launch during adventure races, having learned from experience the hard way. I decided
to pack ultra-light from the start, carrying only mandatory gear, one gel, one bar, and perhaps 5 ounces of Gatorade. At the start, I positioned myself in
behind fellow solo racer Adrian Makurat from Team KURA, whom I correctly assumed would be my greatest threat on the race course.

At CP 1 / Transition Area (TA) 1, racers portaged boats up a narrow trail to awaiting bikes. Out of the water I was on the heels of Team KURA, had my
passport quickly signed by race staff, and up the trail I scrambled with kayak in tow. A full bottle of gatorade and a gel taped to my bike were a welcome
treat as I quickly found my ride laying amongst some 65 others in a semi-organized heap.

I watched helplessly as KURA inched further and further ahead on the 9 km long rolling gravel road to CP 2. In my mind, I hedged my bets on my map
skills and foot speed for the orienteering section yet to come.

CP 2 was decision time for teams. If teams arrived before 12:30, they could choose to complete the advanced route, an additional 12 km on bike to CP 4,
followed by approximately 8 to 10 km of trekking, and a final 7 km bike ride to the finish line back at Searchmont Resort. The regular route was a
shortened version of the bike and trekking portions. As many as 12 of the 26 teams chose the advanced option.

As KURA led the field of teams, he was tasked with making quick navigation decisions, or be caught by chase teams. Roads and trails not shown on maps
provided by race organizers made for some confusion. I managed to keep him within sight, never more than several hundred metres ahead, until we
reached CP3 and entered a short, but technical trail back to the Goulais River. And so, after nearly 3 hours of racing, we found ourselves neck and neck.



Pedal to Foot

We dropped our bikes and gingerly crossed the swift moving Goulais River, scrambled over the river bank, and entered CP 4 / TA 2 together. Side by
side, we removed bike gear (shoes, helmets, gloves) and prepared for the trekking and orienteering section ahead, including CP 5 to CP 10. In my
transition area duffel bag, I had a fresh litre of water, a tasty Snickers, fresh socks, and my favourite Nike trail running shoes. We proceeded to walk and
jog lightly in silence and single file south along a trail paralleling the river. Then the two hour bushwhacking and river fording began...

Never more than 20 metres apart, and hardly a word exchanged, we scoured the shoreline searching for CP 5, constantly keeping the other within sight. I
spotted the CP (a race jersey hanging from a tree branch) ahead of KURA, memorized the number on the jersey, and quickly darted out of sight - the last
time I would glimpse my adversary. Once back on the trail and jogging north towards CP 6, I pulled out my passport and pen and signed the jersey digits
to the corresponding CP number, without slowing my step.

The CP’s 6 through 8 were met quickly as I tried to use my foot speed to create as much distance as possible. From a narrow double-track road, I plotted
my bearing northwest towards what appeared to be small creek on the map. But as I descended the valley, to my surprise, I came upon what appeared to
be the wide and slow moving Goulais River. Then I spotted a clue - a beaver - swimming downstream away from me. The wide expanse of water used to be
a small creek, as shown on the map. However, an assortment of beaver dams had swollen the creek to make it look like the Goulais. (Afterwards, I would
learn that Adrian from Team KURA made this error, assuming he had stumbled upon the Goulais River, becoming disoriented and losing perhaps 15 to 20
minutes searching for CP 9).



Ride Home

After I captured all trekking CP’s from 5 to 10, I had no idea whether or not I was leading. I was becoming increasingly concerned as I had not gone pee
since an hour before the race had started (some 6 hours had already passed). I jogged dizzily into CP 11, the last checkpoint, and was met by Lawrence
and his joyful 3 month old boy. Here I learned for the first time that I was leading. I plunged into my duffel to retrieve fresh water (I had run out earlier and
was forced to refill my bottle from the river), quickly changed back to bike gear, and wolfed down a handful of M&M’s while moving out of the CP area.

I have been racing consistently for nearly a decade. It started with a half marathon, of all distances. I experimented with many 5K and 10K road and trail
races, mountain bike races, duathlons, a marathon, a triathlon, and probably a dozen adventure races. After these events, my young son always asked:
"Daddy, did you win?" No son, I would reply. Only to explain to him that I was out to have fun, to exercise and become more healthy, and that I had tried my
best.

You see, my secret goal was to win this race. Of course, only a handful of people knew of my intentions (including Mr. Cooper who was sworn to secrecy!).
Once on my beloved Specialized Stumpjumper, I realized I likely would not be caught. I could not help it, of course, to glance over my shoulder several
times during my final half hour ride home. As I rounded the last bend in the road to the parking lot at the resort and the finish was in sight, there my mom
and son were waiting. He said: "Daddy you’re first," and glancing back he confirms, "and there’s no one behind you!" I slowed and encouraged him to run
next to the bike. And we crossed the line together.

As is traditional in adventure racing, the Race Course Director meets the winner at the finish with a firm handshake and a bottle of champagne. I popped
the cork and savored the sweet taste of victory.

Moments later my teeth began to chatter, and I was off to enjoy the finer things in life - a warm shower, fresh clean socks, and food without sand.



Links:

http://www.far.on.ca/2008/Searchmont/index.php

www.sleepmonsters.ca