Training - a week of whatever with a Suunto Ambit

Since Expeditie Geluk, the let's-walk-around-the-Netherlands-epic I have a Suunto Ambit watch.
The watch does more then just show the time. It's an alti/barometer, compass, heart rate monitor, time keeper and most of all also a GPS watch that can be connected to the internet.
I got the thing for free for Expeditie Geluk. Free is always a good color.

Now the watch does some fun things that weren't possible in 'old style' running. Of which planning a tour is the most important one.
I haven't ran 'dicks' yet, but yes you can. Or flowers, or cars, or whatever figure you like to plan.
See also: http://runningdrawing.tumblr.com

So let's start with a short review and tell you something about my training and the watch.

The good points:
- you can now go out for a run wherever and always find your way back
- you can start to understand your heart rate in comparison with your run (like higher heart rate when going up hill)
- it actually motivates me to go out more often
- it's a nice and easy addition to map and compass
- easy plug and play computer connection

The bad points:
- pretty bulky
- the route is only a line on the screen, not very accurate
- battery lasts only a day when in full use for the whole day
- hard to find the advanced training options in the software program
- only online software
- sharp edges

Now I have an older version of the Ambit (the Ambit 1.) and I saw the newer version that have no sharp edges at all and are less bulky.
I don't know if anything to the battery life/software options changed.
The battery life is fine for any regular use, just when you'd do a multi-day alpine tour you'd get trouble with the battery life.
Also, when you get in more extreme temperatures the thing gets pretty slow (but still works) up to -25ºC. Below that it starts to get issues, the screen can fog up with -15ºC, it doesn't show the temperature anymore with -35ºC and it will completely stop working around -40ºC (figured this all on our last Alaska adventure this Spring 2014).
Not that any other 'smart-watch' will work with these temperatures though.

Oh, and it doesn't link up with your iPhone or any phone either. Which isn't needed anyway because anyone who brings their iPhone on a run or a climb isn't climbing/running anything serious enough anyway. I mean, running with our iPhone in your pocket is just not comfortable when you run more then 2km. Next to that, the route, your HR, timing and everything is in your watch, so the phone-with-running-app isn't needed anymore.
The newest version does link with your watch and you can read texts on your watch through Bluetooth or something.

So. What I use the watch for.
Every day things.
My work-out week:
Monday: up-hill + down-hill + klettersteig, drytool session
Tuesday: cycling to work + boulder session
Wednesday: cycling to work
Thursday: cycling to work + extreme drytool session
Friday: cycling to work + interval run
Saturday: yoga session and small hike
Sunday: rock climb
Monday: up-hill + down-hill + klettersteig, drytool session
Tuesday: cycle to work
ect...



I was pretty tired last week and it was raining almost every day so we really missed out on the outdoor climbing sessions. That's the thing of living here. We have the mountains "close" (1hr drive) but the closest good climbing gym is more then 1hr driving... And it costs money to drive/pay entrance and money is one of the things we hardly have...
So alternative training sessions. Cycling, running, bouldering, and on my free Monday I do a scramble + long run.

Interesting thing to see are the route, calories, recovery time and heart rates.



The route. As you can see somewhere in the upper middle of my run-hike-scramble I went the wrong way. The path I took to the hut wasn't pre-set in the map so I had to draw a line myself and guess the direction to the hut and the start of the viaferrata. I made a wrong guess and ended up a different route. After a while I realized it wasn't the right way and I had to go back. It would be useful to see more in the screen of the watch then just the line. Interfering roads, paths and landmarks for example. But my Ambit isn't that smart (yet?).
Also the map used to draw the route isn't super accurate (Google maps) for some complicated turns and altitude differences (for example when mountaineering/climbing) a more accurate map would be very useful.
This missing feature combined with the battery power (when in full use it lasts just a day) it still isn't the mountaineering watch it claims to be.

HR: When I do a really intense drytool session my heart rate doesn't go up to max, but my body gets really tired (I had muscle soreness after the Thursday drytool session). But following my watch I hardly have any recovery time after the session (my body tells a different story...).
Recovery: Last run + scramble took me just over 5 hours of non-stop movement. My watch told me I'd need 130hours of recovery. At the end of the day during the drytool session I was too tired to do full power movements. But today I felt okay again.
Calories: I always wonder who invented that thing. Did I really use over a 1000 kCal on that Monday run? And just a 300 kCal on the drytool session...?

Although these numbers aren't probably completely correct (for example sometimes the GPS signal gets lost or my heart-rate band disconnects) it's still a good thing to get a view on what my fitness level is.
Basically it tells me every time again that I can run faster, climb more and cycle longer.

To get a better view on what I mean with 'drytool training' here a little video of last week's session.
Watch my Suunto routes, profile and training on:
http://www.movescount.com/members/lavinia-marianne

Handy: use runs/training sessions of others around you to plan your own run.

Tips and tricks from an other Suunto user:
http://life.tomwright.me.uk/post/45754837411/interval-training-with-suunto-ambit


Drytool training July 2014 from Marianne van der Steen on Vimeo.

Because who is perfect?

A couple years ago I wasn't a freelancer yet.
I found it really hard to find a job in between all the climbing that I wanted to do and all I studied seemed useless.
So I started for a employment agency.

Once I got a call and they asked me if I was strong enough to sand mannequin dolls every day to get them ready for paint jobs.
It turned out to be one of the biggest mannequin factories of the world. And the thing I was doing was just manual labour in a dark small and super dirty dusty 'hutch'.
The attitude within the company was horrible. I was treated like a 'no-one' as I had one of the lowest jobs within the company. The one giving me the demands within the company was horrible. Arrogant.
I worked hard and breathe the unhealthy epoxy dust every day.
I was quite overwhelmed by the artificial perfection of the mannequin dolls. And wondered if this is what they want to have us see as perfect bodies.
I decided to make a couple pictures and write a post about my new job. Asked for permission before I posted the writing and pictures on my blog and the arrogant guy gave permission. I wrote about that it was hard work, but I'd get the job done.
A couple days later I got a ridiculous phonecall, they'd sue me, they'd blackmail me, they'd make sure I'd never get a job again, anywhere. And removing the post on my blog wouldn't be enough.
As you understand, this was the last day I'd worked there. I did remove the post though.

Through Facebook I just found this little documentary about mannequin dolls and the real human body.
It's a beautiful contrast to how I'd seen the mannequin dolls in that factory in the Netherlands.
Next time you watch a magazine or look at the mannequins in the windows, just remind yourself that those dolls are pure imperfection.
This is perfection:

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Ze Zermans

I've been in Germany for a week now. 

And so much can happen in one week time.

View from our new home in Kleinweiler

We arrived last Monday evening. Pulled everything out of the car and went to bed. 

The whole bedroom was filled with stuff and we realised that giving away furniture results in a lack of furniture... We should have more drawers, shelfs and cupboards to store all our gear. 

On Tuesday I went to look for a job and instantly found one. It's so nice when people keep their promises! As freelancer in the last three years so many people have promised me work and then suddenly when they were supposed to have work and I kept my agenda free for the job they canceled all. And then there I was again; no money and no job. 

But the Germans seem to be accurate and honest so here I am behind my laptop in an office. Strange to have an office job again, but one with benefits. And after one week I can clearly say I have super great colleagues!

Now what do I do?

I have to say, for as far as I know, I'm sponsored by Petzl. Although I haven't seen any new gear for a year now and haven't even tied a knot in the new Petzl ropes yet, I want to stay true to my brand: Petzl. 

But, work and sports is something that's hard to combine. Petzl doesn't provide me with a salary, so I have to work somewhere. 

And that somewhere has just become Edelrid. 

I'll be a 'manusje van alles' (jack of all trades) within the company and support the team wherever needed for three days a week. 

The culture within the company is open, friendly and colleagues become friends. 

A short sketch of this week: 

Tuesday: running to work, bouldering in the midday, coffee made on the gas stove in the office, and climbing again in the evening. 

Wednesday: Drive to work, meetings about work definitions and introduction to the Edelrid product range, climb in the evening. 

Thursday: drive to work, meeting about industrial gear, boulder a bit in the midday and go the the opeining of the Christmas-market in Isny with colleagues.

Friday: run to work, edit some vid's, and rest for a bit.

Saturday: Outdoor climbing with colleagues in Starzlachklamm

Sunday: Outdoor climbing with roommate/colleague Ritchi at Chinesische Mauer

Monday: Run to work (8km), boulder at work, climb in the evening

Tuesday: Skiing with colleagues :)

Wednesday: Drive to work, work... climb, drink gluhwein in the climbinggym

Thusday: Cycling to work, work till 20:00 and restday evening

Friday: Cycling to work, work a lot and go the the companies christmas party...

I guess my week is quite fine like this. 

Would love to climb on more regular basis and I still have to find the right balance between personal interest in climbing materials, work and sponsorship. But give me another week and I'll be happy. 

Though... I really miss my old climbing gym and friends/family are suddenly very far away again...

The very secret German Gluhwein recipe

Training with the Furnace DryIce tools

The famous tower of Isny 

Skiing in Damüls, Austria

We miss the Dutch St. Nicholas on Dec. 5...

How they celebrate St. Nicholas in Allgäu

Thank you Gertrude

The opening of the Christmas Market, with 'EngelenFliegen'

Mixed climbing at Starzlachklamm

Work readings

Next to wanting to be a climber I sometimes also have to earn money in other ways.
Teaching height safety courses for example.
A new safety guideline came out for work in the wind energy sector.

'Arbocatalogus Windenergiebedrijven'.

Preparing for January

.

Last year I wrote a post with exactly the same title.

And this year again we're preparing...for the big Winter trip.

Theres so much to do: administration, financials, training and of course...the van.

Dennis' still has his VW Syncro and tries to get it 'Winter proof' again. 'New' gearbox, 'new' engine, all the interior (new shelfs and cupboards).

Basically its a whole new van, the only thing that stayed the same is the outer (still bumpy big and white)

Hopefully we get it all done before January.

Just a blog post

These days I'm pretty busy with all kinds of things.

I have to work (money...) I need to climb and actually I should study (no time for it...) and I have to do administration things and make a movie about the STS and arrange all things for the first aid trainings (=part of my work) and I need

to....uhhh, it's just all a bit too much right now.

So I decided to do none of it all now and read and

knit. On my friends' the wish list: socks (Richard), a sweater (Eva) and a hat (Johannes). So enough to knit for the whole Winter.

Meanwhile Dennis tried to murder me, do I try to learn the basics of Chinese, manage to wash without as washing-machine, and I now will try to convince you that you should be in Monte Cervino tomorrow, in Monk on Sunday, in Nijmegen on Monday, Amsterdam on Tuesday...

Why? Five Ten (Brand of the brave) has the Test Event.

All nice five-tennies in all sizes to fit, feel, test, and climb with! The best excuse to buy new shoes, test them straight away and have your local Five Ten climbers to give you advice (all 5.10 Dutch team-members will be around) More info on the 5.10 Facebook page here.

And then, when work is done, administration done, climbing done, five ten tested, Chinese learned, socks knitted...then it's finally time for China!

3 weeks of climbing and adventure!

Because we'll be away, won't have e-mail, no phone reach, no postbox...we'll be busy...climbing! @Petzl Roc Trip in Getu Valley, China :)

this-is-an-automated-out-of-office-message-I'll-be-able-to-get-back-to-you-in-three-weeks-sorry-for-the-uncoveinance-over-and-out :)

Oh, don't worry about the murder...in fact Dennis just broke a bottle of beet-juice ;)

Ow, yes, and the video report of our STS trip, as promised, here:

Competition weekend

Back in the Netherlands.

With a really busy schedule.

From Bergschenhoek to Muiden to pick up my parents. They cycled over 2700km for their pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela! See here their report.

Then I went to Bussum (work, teaching a First Aid course) then on to Ommen (being First Aid volunteer on Dennis school camp) where I spent a night and morning in a hospital with a girl and then I drove on to Rockanje to work and then to Eindhoven for the last of the 3 boulder competitions in Monk bouldergym.

I sometimes have trouble with my mind...playing tricks on me... Then I can get nervous and very insecure about all I do: climbing, communication, how I look...about everything basically. I had that with teaching the First Aid course last week and now again with the comp. Then I can simply forget how to climb and I loose all my strength, or when teaching I forget all basic things I have to tell the students. Now when I write about it I'm pretty 'light' about it, but on such a moment I just feel so uncomfortable.

I decided not to climb the finals, as I felt so insecure. So I was 9th after the 8 finalists. I would have been 6th or 7th or some I guess.

The next day, yesterday, was the first Dutch speed competition in 'Arendse Health Club', Breda. A test for the upcoming Speed worldcup which will be in the Netherlands in a couple years. In Breda we gathered with a group of just 14 climbers. A small group, mainly Dutch team members who were all 'forced' to climb. The rest of the Dutch climbers stayed at home. (Why?)

For me speedsclimbing is not the 'real' climbing, the thing I live for, live of. But it's something fun, try to improve your speed, technique and set a better time.

It was an official 10m. wall with the IFSC speed holds as seen on the worldcup, placed in exactly the same way as on the worldcup wall.

Thanks to Dennis' drill and some screws the comp could go on. The end hold, a plate where you tap on to stop the time, got loose every time resulting in false times and failing time records. Luckily I had that drill with because the car, Dennis van, didn't start that morning and I used it to fix some things. I was just in time for the comp...

I'm naturally a really, really slow climber. Doing all moves static. Where all climbers dyno I take a heelhook, rock over and on tension and balance reach for the hold. So speedclimbing is not really my discipline I guess.

But with just Vera Zijlstra of the Dutch national team as serious competitor and three local girls I landed on a second place. I was slow, made a mistake in the top in my second run but actually expected to be worse then I was. So, not bad. With medal and a bottle of white wine I went home.

Now off to Fliegerhorst, Venlo for some drytool fun and work tomorrow.

For all the Dutch: interested in a First Aid course, height safety course or a specialised mountain safety and first aid course or any first aid products? Together with Ascent safety I give courses and sell all kinds of first aid products. Ever heard of Snogg, Sam Splint, or do you just need a new emergency blanket, check this website or mail me for more information :) der.steen[@]gmail.com

Pictures:

• my mum and dad on Schiphol, back from their big, big cycling tour
• the 'condom' climbing wall (the pole I work on...)
• Vera and Tim training for the speedclimbing competition

Climbing times :) Finally

Sorry, something went wrong with getting this post online.

I just lost all my text and pictures.

Nice.

So here agin. Shortly.

1. I'd been working. A lot. For a couple weeks I was just working, sleeping, eating, working and if I was lucky I had some time to climb. Frustrating, but I knew I had a goal: climbing. Finally some money to have a outdoor climbing chance. Even enough to go abroad for a whole month!

2. And that's what we just did. We drove off with our fixed van and are already in Austria. One day after the Messe (Fair) in Friedrichshafen. The 'Out Door' is the biggest outdoor fair of the world and the place to be as 'gear-freak'.

3. With success we went to the fair. Results: a new spork, I won the Teva wake-skate design competition, new 5.10 shoes, met these really cool 5.10 people (thanks Ivo, Charles, Bryan...) had such nice talks in Icelandic with 66 North, Cintamani and Fjallakofinn, saw the best backpack ever in the Crux stand, tried the new Petzl micro Traxion, lost all my businesscards (on purpose) to all new people I met, discusses new ideas for fruitboots with 5.10 and Petzl, I talked to Trango (nice girl) and got a top of Stone designs, figured the only and best clothing sponsor ever is Patagonia and best and coolest and most AMAZING of all: Dennis and I 'decided' to go to the Petzl Roc Trip in China!

4. Hey guys, you can actually all go to the Petzl Roc Trip, even when you're not a Chris Sharma or Daida, you're still welcome. The're over 250 routes bolted varying from 6a to 9b. Something for everyone. Sweet!

5. Now it's raining :( And we're on a climbing trip...in the rain. Something that doesn't really match. We're drinking coffee in the MacDonalds, enjoying free internet and weather forecasts.

Where should we go? Val di Mello, Bernina, Ailefroide, Chamonix...? Any suggestions?

On the pictures: working last week (ziplines, climbing, belaying, on the road, homemade bread and Friedrichshafen)

IRATA in the Zoo

Except from just climbing, climbing and climbing I'm also....working...

Although it was basically a 'high-class cleaning job' it was still better then most work I can imagine.

Together with Rob, Robert, Thimo, Sjoerd, Carl and Michel I was literary hanging around in the zoo.

Cleaning a big cloth that represented a sea view in the area called 'Ocean'. (Big fish tank full of tropical fish).

The climate was, guess what, tropical. So we were hanging there in our shorts.

It's sort of finished. And we we sort of finished as well :)

The little boy on the picture next to the 2m tall guy iz me...:)

The two guys cleaning are Robert and Rob

Iceland

Back home again, but not much time to write.

I'm completely broke so it's time to work after 2months of full time climbing in crappy Winter conditions...

But hey, it was fun!

And...check out my new 'for sale' page, as I have quite some things for sale :)

Here part 2. of the Iceland-video's.

Parrt 3. is also online, but I accidentally uploaded the wrong, short version...

Work is boring...but good for loads of climbing!

Sometimes work is boring, stupid and you hardly get paid for all your effort...But, with this tiny bit of extra money I can climb more :)

I was sanding dolls, preparing them for a paint job. I hope to make promotion soon... ;) But they're right: work less, climb more!

*** Uhhh, Hans Boodt doesn't want me to publish anything from their company, so I was forced to remove the video...***