National Universitary Championships

Today I went to Gâmbia, near Lisbon, to the National Universitary Champs in a really fast map in an open area.

Middle distance, 8,4K, (100m), 28c, 42'04 - This time I messed up. I didn't start focused and two big mistakes in the beginning. To the 1st control I deviated to the right and then thought that the special trees line was the white area. In the 2nd control I was loosing more than 1min to the 1st. To the 18th huge mistake again. I lost my focus when crossing the small path that, in fact, was a big path in the terrain. I was 3rd overall and found many errors that will have to be corrected to the next weekend. I have realized that my mistakes are in chain: if i missed a control, I'll miss the next 2 controls too. I have to Stop and refresh after a mistake! And I also realized that I have to boost my self-confidence. Physically, even if I didn't took off the load to this weekend I felt really well running.

This week I'll have to give my best studying. Next weekend, National Absolute Champs. We'll see...

Everyday pains..

Almost everybody have their own everyday pains and problems during the trainings... Today I just wanted to share my crosses and wanted to know if there is any other way to heal these things.

Fasciitis Plantaris

It seems that there are many orienteerers with the same problem. My feet are a bit "cavus" (the middle part of them is higher) so sometimes (when training more on pavement) I have that anoying pain. Sometime ago I did custom made orthoses with an arch support in a shop that supplies the portuguese guys from athletics that really reliefs the pain. I avoid using them everyday because i don't want my foot tendons to get lazy (and me ending dependent on them) but they are an huge help. The other thing I do is rolling my feet over a Golf ball when my tendons ache. It's an excruciating pain, but I'm ready to train in the next day.


Meniscal pain
Yes, about 1-1/2 year ago I did a small meniscal fracture that prevented me from training about 4months (I wanted to avoid surgery). Sometimes I have those minor pains to which seem to have no treatment (except surgery). There is not a great scientific support to this, but with an increased hydration and with a supplement of Glucosamine (one of the constituents of the cartilage) my aches seem to get better. Even if I've talked with some doctors that tell me that Glucosamine is only for old fellows with arthrosis, there are some studies that support it:
...glucosamine supplementation can provide some degree of pain relief and improved function in persons who experience regular knee pain...The trends in the results also suggest that, at a dosage of 2000 mg 'milligrams per day, the majority of improvements are present after six weeks."
In British J. of Sports Med., vol. 37, 2003.

Muscle aches

My muscle aches have been relieved (and the lesions disappeared) since I've tried ICE. It's amazing! We sometimes do an ice bath after the intervaled trainings (there's a place to do it in the track) and I'm just a new guy in the day after. In the other hand there are some friends of mine that can't even handle 30sec in the tub because they're too sensible(so the 12min are impossible for them). Once again there is some controversy about it, but it seems to have some effect:
...intense exercise actually causes microtrauma, or tiny tears in muscle fibers. This muscle damage not only stimulates muscle cell activity and helps repair the damage and strengthen the muscles ( muscle hypertrophy), but it is also linked with delayed onset muscle pain and soreness (DOMS) , which occurs between 24 and 72 hours after exercise.
The ice bath is thought to:
- Constrict blood vessels (which should be bad)
- Decrease metabolic activity and slow down physiological processes
- Reduce swelling and tissue breakdown
But then, with rewarming, the increased blood flow speeds circulation, and in turn, improves the healing process.

And that's it! Fortunately, no more pains!

The next weeks will be tough... I'm already preparing some exams while training well.

This weekend National Universitary O-Champs. Next weekend National Absolute Champs. Then travelling to Finland to a 1week O-Camp. Can't wait for it!

Portuguese Sprint Champion

Last weekend was also the National Sprint Champs in Santarém, a fast map without many relevant details.



1st race, 3k, (90m), 12'00 - I started slowly. I just had to slow down when leaving the 5th because of a car that was closing the street. I won by a short advantage of 3 seconds to Marco Póvoa. You may find the results here


2nd race, 3k (60m), 11'33 - (my watch ran out of battery)I managed well the stress of starting in the lead. Anticipated well and had the 9th leg course in my mind when punching the 7th. Anticipation really resulted with me in this Champs. I've trained it with Bruno Nazário in the last training camps and it ended being really useful (as well as relying less in the compass and reading more the terrain in the middle).
You may find the results here

The overall results are here




Now it's time to manage the study to the next exam season and starting the preparation to the National Absolute Champs, NOC and selection races to WOC. We'll see...

Portuguese Middle Distance Champion

This weekend were the National Sprint and Middle Distance Championships in Santarém/Almeirim. I was able to win my first 2 national champs as a senior.


Sunday, Middle Distance, 6,8k, 28c (410m) 43'49 - I was glad to win, but I wasn't satisfied with my race. There were 3 controls in a row where I lost the control. To the 9th I lost time, once I should have gone by the path from the beginning, to the 10th I attacked the reentrance to the right, to the 11th, that deviation to the left of the path and to the 12th a bad option (the terrain was tough to run, the best option should be the path). I tought that I had lost too much time and that the race was spoiled there. Fortunately I was able to recover the brains and I did the last controls with self-confidence, winning the race only in the last controls by more less 30''.

Curiously, my everyday training mates were also 3rd (Paulo Franco) and 4th (Jorge Fortunato). I really have to thank them (we push each others everyday), to Bruno Nazário who is always there to support us and to our coach José Santos.

You may find the results of the weekend here and photos here





I'll post the sprint maps, courses, photos and results as soons as I get the maps...

We had to repeat it...

We liked yesterday training so much that today we did the same. 5 of us went to Quinta das Conchas, a park in the middle of Lisbon. The same method as yesterday: many starts, mass starts, different courses, except the last one that was the same to everybody. We particularly enjoyed the downhill course with 7 controls in the closed area (so much that we repeated it with different courses).

Downtown training in Lisbon

Today, in spite of the normal tuesday's intervaled training, me and other 4 orienteerers went to the downtown of Lisbon in order to train to the next Saturday's National Sprint Champs. I didn't know this map, but it's really amazing... The right part of it, around the Castle with lots of stairs is really challenging.
We quickly drawn many starts/finish. Then each of us drawn different courses. We switched the maps among us and started each course in mass start and waited ones for anothers in the next start. Between the traffic, the surprised tourists and under a 30ºC athmosphere, it was a cool training.


My menisci have been warning me lately, but nothing serious by now...

Compass...for what?

Last weekend I went to a training camp in order to train to the National Middle and Sprint Champs that will be held in Santarem in 2 weeks. 7 trainings in 2 days: 2 middle distance, 4 city sprint courses and 1 rocky sprint course.

In the first middle distance (where we also did multi-techniques) I had some difficulty with the map (and I wasn't the only one). There were lots of elements that weren't represented in the map correctly. The map of the competition will probably be similar.

Sunday we did some sprint maps. I just leave here an option that arised some questions. What would you do (from 39 to 41)? Left or right?
Powered by WebRoute - WorldofO.com

I did my first sprint at full speed (10'50, 1.6k (125m) 15c)in one of the best portuguese city maps.




In the afternoon we did a memory course at an easy speed. In other words, we did the course without map, training simplification. I just had an hesitation to the 7th, once the control was hidden in a corner of an house's door.



After that we did a chasing start in this map without compass. Tiago Aires started 5seconds after me but punched the 1st control before me. We had different combinations in both loops and it ended being a fantastic training. I felt more self-confident than ever. I realized that I do more compass orienteering than what I should do, resulting in deviations. Next races I'll rely more in reading the terrain than being concentrated in the direction of the compass.. It was an huge difference!




Once again, I'm really grateful to Bruno Nazário who organized the fantastic weekend's trainings and to Ori-Estarreja the host club.
Tomorrow I'll travel to Algarve in a Faculty's trip. I hope that I'll be able to train there properly.

I just leave here an interesting video that I found at the Internet. Is it possible to beat this Runner's Factory?

Training at Regional race...

Today I went to Sertã to a regional race in order to do some training with map.

4,9k (195m)18c, 29'02 - It was an easy map technically. I just had some hesitations to the 6th, in the valley with the greens. Me and some guys did the juniors course after, doing more 5k.



Physically, I'm feeling really well right now. Friday I did a long intervaled training under intense rain, with times that satisfied me and without suffering much. The track season is starting and I hope that I'll be able to do some PB's this year. In two weeks, there'll be the middle and sprint national O'Champs... We'll see...

Now is 10mila time, and today the plans for the evening are already made: listening to the 10mila radio and chat at WoO while working on a clinical history at the PC =)

32'04 at 10k at Easter's GP

Today I went to Constância's Easter GP. A Total of 10k: 5k + a return of 5k after a 180º turn.


I started in the front but the pace was really really slow. We passed the 1st km at 3'20. Nobody wanted to take the lead alone through the adverse wind. The pace was slow in the first 5k and I was expecting that everybody would bet in the return, after the 180ºturn so I tried to be in a good place in the turn. And so was it... 500m after the turn there was only me and other 2 athletes. The 1st one went away gradually. I ended with the 2nd in a last km of 3'02. I was 3rd overall and won a nice crystal cup =)



The strategy was not the best. I'm better in maintaining a constant rythm since the beginning. Maybe if I went away in the 1st km I could have won but I didn't have the balls to do it. Maybe in a next time... In the end, 32'04 with the first 5k at that pace, wasn't bad at all... and it was a nice morning with all the orienteerers that went to the race too...

You may find the results (SEN M) here

Training camp with Alexander Shirinian

From 4th to 7th of April I was in the training camp of the portuguese team with Alexander Shirinian and Bruno Nazário.

We did lots of trainings like Anticipation, Downhill, multi-techniques, night-O, chasing starts... I really enjoyed being back to the O-life.. I post here the main sessions...

Multi-techniques (slow pace)- It's evident the gross deviation in the azimut part


4x downhill ~=1k with previous uphill fatigue ~=500m - surprinsingly I did it well without major mistakes. I always thought that I was better in longer distances.


Chasing start, 7,9k, 32c - I started 1st (the order was made from the downhill session) but I was soon caught by the others who started less than 30sec after. It was an emotive race, with some mistakes. I enjoyed it a lot!


I ended concluding that I need to develop my compass technique. I realized that in many occasions I am reading the terrain and then, when there are no elements to read I just go away from the route (like in the example below).I do many unecessary deviations (mainly in the night session).


During these days I observed that my O-technique got better during the camp. I just need to have more and more Map sessions... some work to the future...


After that I went to Serra da Estrela, the highest portuguese mountains and did there some nice running session, this one with 1h10 and 700m vertical climbing. However I've been a bit worried with my asthma that has prevented me from giving my maximum lately. It's always the same in the Spring with its pollens.