Hotel Fitness

Well, starting today I am on the road until June 29th, Yes that is correct, I get home the day before our big summer camp with Greg & Laura Derrett. John is not fond of me planning like this but it couldn’t be avoided. I am in Toronto for the weekend then off to Auburn, Washington to work with those wild and crazy westerners.

I like to work out in the mornings when I at home, but it gets more difficult on the road. So any of you out there that also travel a lot or have a special insight into fitness, do you have any ideas how to get a good workout while on the road?

At home I mix things up with cardio and weights (preferring my medicine & kettle ball work to machines). I used to deflate and re-inflate my exercise ball with every new hotel I got to, but lately I haven’t had room for a lot of extras in my suitcase since the airlines got tough with how much weight I can carry (dog equipment takes priority of course:)).  

So I throw it out to all of you, any ideas for me? You guys have never let me down yet when I have turned to you  for suggestions, so how about it?

Although my first 4 days on the road are at a “dog-less” event, I am grateful I get to take two dogs with me for the rest of my time away from home.

An Epidemic of “Buck Fever”

My observations from the Ontario regionals this week can be summed up by a comment I am borrowing from a friend. I was talking to a business colleague yesterday and he used the phrase “Buck Fever.”  He spoke about how a marksman on the practice range can hit any target in any situation or environmental stressor. However put that same shooter out in the bush with the adrenaline pumping and he can’t hit the broad side of a barn. Now as a vegan I may not be crazy about an analogy of hunting down a defenseless animal, however the point is a good one and one I saw played out a lot at the Ontario regionals this past weekend.

I saw many competitors, some my students, some just people I have seen at trials in the past that normally execute pretty well. Their handling choices are normally decent, decision making about “what to do if things do not go as planned” is generally instinctively good. However put these people in a “big event” such as the Ontario regionals and they are stricken with Buck Fever.

Suddenly handling becomes less sensible and more erratic, feet don’t move when they should and the mouth goes when it shouldn’t. At home or in an “regular weekend trial” this doesn’t happen. The biggest problem is that your dog counts on your calm, insightful direction to get him around the course. Once Buck Fever hits, your handling resembles someone juiced up on triple expresso swatting at an annoying mosquito in the dark. 

So what is the antidote to Buck Fever? This may be depressing for some of you but, the best antidote to Buck Fever is success. The more you rehearse being at a big event and handling the way you want the more likely it is that you will be able to do it again and again.  Of course immunity starts only with a solid understanding of dog training and handling. There is no cure without consistency away from the big events. Remember you need to be able to hit the easy targets at home first!

I still suffer from occasional minor bouts of BF myself, especially when I run a new dog for the first time. However just like your immune system, recovery is faster the more you have fought it off in the past. So this past weekend my standard, jumpers and Steeplechase runs with Feature where all pretty good.  I was completely relaxed (cold due to the weather but relaxed) going in. Even on Saturday where it was Day One and we were the first team on the line to start the competition, we ran well and she was only a few tenths of a second behind Encore who won the class. No BF for me here.

Where I did get hit a bit was in the Gamblers class. Quiet honestly it is because I rarely do Gamblers in Canada and it is a lot harder than anywhere else in the world (to start there is a minimum of 18′ distance challenge).

The first step to overcoming BF for all of us is to rehearse success.  Don’t wait for it, go out and create your own success. Since the judge won’t let us have a “do over” you need to rehearse this success in your mind before you go in.  Run your run many times before you step to the line. Then when you actually step into the ring you are on one of your “do overs.”  You should know exactly where every obstacle is, how you plan on executing,  what your next move is and when you need to leave to get there.

Recently someone posed a question to the blog about what to do when your visualization before a run turns to crap.  When you can’t seem to visualize your run without your dog going off course or knocking a bar. Here is a secret I learned from my good friend Greg Louganis. It is a good one, so take note. Allow it to happen. Don’t visualize only the perfect runs. If you brain needs to open the door where crap happens, go ahead and look in through that door.  Acknowledge that that scenario is one of many possible outcomes. How are you feeling? Did you cause the error?  How can you compensate for it?  Adjust and finish that run with your ‘blip’ in it. Acknowledge that you still love your dog just as much even though you didn’t run perfectly together. There is still no world peace and the outcome of your run hasn’t changed anything of any real importance in your life. Now you should be able to close the door of failure and go back to visualizing success. 

Learn from your struggles to visualize. I struggled visualizing my second gamblers runs this weekend with both Encore and Feature but I ignored it. Perhaps next time this happens I will look at possibly altering my opening plan until I could visualize it well and go with what I have succesfully run in my own mind. This is not, by any means, all the mental prep anyone needs to do well in sport, but it is a start.

 Realize that Buck Fever hits everyone hard at some point in their career but it is not fatal. It is a normal process for anyone putting themselves out there to be judged in any walk of life. It is simply an affliction that attacks our humility.  A full recovery can be expected.  You can build your immunity first by improving your handling and dog training skills.  However resistance to disease does come with continued exposure. So don’t step away from your chance to perform under pressure, you will get better eventually. Everyone that sticks with it does. Rather than judging yourself, learn from your experiences and as the slogan from this weekend says, learn to “enjoy the ride.”

Today I am grateful for the booster shot against Buck Fever that I received this weekend. Just like most inoculations, it often hurts at first, but the long term benefits are worth the momentary pain.

Positive Results from the Weekend

Another Ontario Regionals has been put to bed. The rain, wind, hail and 9 degree temperature made us all very grateful for the bit of blue sky we saw on occasion on Sunday afternoon.

Our championships up here in Canada are geared towards consistency across the Jumpers, Standard and Gamblers classes.  I tend not to work Gamblers too much at home, so my focus is always to do well in the regular classes. I have been doing more distance work at home but trying to balance with close work as to not lose what I have in my handling relationship with my dogs. Remember balance.

Well, we had an outstanding weekend in the regular classes with either Encore or Feature winning all of the 26″ Jumpers and Standard classes and Feature winning the Steeplechase finals as icing on the cake (Encore ran in 22″ and had a bar in the finals). 

However my lack of focus showed with Feature in Gamblers where I tried mini gamblers (not a good plan with a dog that has had less than 5 months of showing). If I had been more patient and just tried to accumulate points she would have been the overall winner as well. In the end she was 2nd place in the overall championship, 1 point behind Tiffany Salmon’s great (world team) dog “Rio”. In 6 classes Feautre had 2 1st place finishes, 2 fourths and only 1 fault (knocking one of the last bars of her last round of the weekend).

I didn’t bring along my re-charger for my video but Lynda’s husband, Johnnie-videographer-“Spielberg,” caught my runs for me.  This is one of my favourites  however there are a few more up on my youtube site (www.youtube.com/clickerdogs)

Last year I had to sit out the Ontario Regionals as my back went out and for a full week I couldn’t walk without the use of a cane. Even though this past weekend we had to ran in mud, rain, hail and freezing temperatures; I am happy and grateful to report all is well with my health. God is good:)!

Software Issues, Ontario Regionals and Baby Dee

No there is not connection between my software issues and the Ontario regionals (sorry if I scared any of you:)).  I was hoping to post the first installment of my latest 2×2 training webinar however my program crashed yesterday and I can’t figure out why.  

I can tell you I have divided the posts/questions into roughly 4 categories; speed, trial behaviours, failing and miscellaneous.  Oh yeah I did include another category on success stories so anyone reading the blog won’t think that EVERYONE has issues with 2×2 training! The miscellaneous category covers things like poles skipping, footwork, weight shift etc. Right now I have  total of 26 good weave pole questions. Sorry I couldn’t leave you with an installment here, but I promise one way or another I will answer then (even if just the old fashion way of typing:)) in the next two weeks.

I leave today for the Ontario Regionals in Ottawa. I am a bit sad as this my first regional event ever that I will not be running a mini dog. I made the decision to retire DeCaff from competition, likely all competition. She is only 9 years old but at 5 was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease and it was suggested then that her career was over. With the help of Prolo therapy we got 3 1/2 more years of doing agility together. I will definitely do a blog post on the “wow” factor of prolo therapy in the future. It is nothing short of miraculous (Encore has also had it for her hip that is a bit wanky).

It is difficult to make the decision to stop running DeCaff because she is still loving it and still winning. However I know it is the right thing to do so as difficult as it, is De-dog and I will be finding joy in our walks, swimming and just hanging out together (she is turning into a bit of a pork-pie though!)

Today I am so grateful for all the amazing runs DeCaff and I have shared together during her career in agility. In her seven years competing she made to the USDAA finals 6 times winning once, coming 2nd twice and placing in the top 5 every time except once. She place in the Steeplechase finals every year except one and was the  IFCS World Champion two times  with countless individual medals along the way. It has been a great journey but agility is only a small part of the life I share with my dogs and I don’t want it to jeopardize her quality of life as she grows older.  So now a new chapter of our life together will begin.

Food for Thought

Hmmmm. Some thought provoking statements in this article although alot goes against good sound science, I have to admit I do agree with much of what is written.

Check out this article  http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2009226383_dogs16.html

“Dogs are thinking animals,” Bekoff said. “They seek the outcomes they want. They avoid the ones they don’t. They solve problems. They have expectations. They have hopes.”  This is just shaping isn’t it? Reinforcement really does build behaviour!

Enjoy your day, we here in Alberton are having a blast with Susan Salo. Sorry but the weave pole webinar I am working on is looking like it may be a two parter. Stay tuned, will launch them, but likely not until next week.  Trust me it will be worth the wait!

Today I am grateful for some nice weather while Susan Salo is here to share her jumping magic!

Susan Salo Workshop At Say Yes

Susan Salo is here for the next week, although a few of us are sneaking out on the weekend to support our one and only USDAA trial in Ontario.  Susan has been coming around here so long now, I am sure our absence won’t be noticed!  We have a great group of “repeaters” here for Susan’s mid-week workshop.  “Repeaters” being, people that have worked with Susan on multiple occasions.

As usual Susan started off with a brief morning lecture. And again as usual, Susan had some profound logic to share with us all.  Often times Susan is just phrasing common sense in a

way that affects people differently that day. One comment she made yesterday  morning I felt necessary to really emphasize for all. I added that it was sage advise applicable to all of dog training when Susan said of jumping “it is important that you never have a static lesson plan. Read your dog after each repetition and know what he needs at that point. Be flexible and willing to adapt your plan for that session to suit the current needs of the dog.”   

I think of this statement as it relates to people following the 2×2 method of weave pole training. The DVD presents a lesson plan to train or re-train your dog. However it may not be in your dog’s best interest to try to keep up with the pace that I set with the dogs that use for I demonstrations.  You shouldn’t try to push a dog along if his actions and success rate is telling you he is not ready for a bigger challenge.

Another gem I got from Susan was when we were discussing the current popular practice of punishing dogs for dropped bars (something neither Susan nor I approve of). Susan’s comment was; “you can not prepare for peace while you are a planning for war” when she was describing the conflict of trying to build a jump education while using punishment. 

Those of you struggling with teaching your dogs to jump please know it is not an overnight or even an over-month fix. It is a career long process and perfection is elusive, all you can aim for is a constant improvement. For the sake of the dog, that has got to be enough for you. If you do not have a current jump education program for your dog, I strongly recommend Susan Salo’s Jumping DVD as a place to start.  When you get it, print of the PDF that is on the disc and follow along from that handout while you watch the DVD.  It is never to late to go back and give your dog a new beginning!

Today I am grateful for the continual improvement I have seen with my own dog’s jump education.

Keeping All the Balls in the Air

Hey guys, thanks for the awesome contribution of the motivational quotes added to Friday’s blog post. There are some real gems there I am for sure going to add to my growing list.

Encore, Feature and I spent the weekend at a CKC trial.  Saturday was cold and rainy, Sunday was windy and freaking COLD! I have admitted on this list that I am a fair-weather walker and I will now tell you since I have this beautiful indoor training facility I am definitely a fair-weather agility competitor. If the weather even hints at being nasty I just train inside. In spite of being cold and incredibly wind burnt on Sunday, I stuck it out to the end and did enjoy myself . . . I use the term “enjoy” loosely.

My girls didn’t seem to mind the inclement weather at all, but why would they, they were doing what them love best! I felt like a cross between the Michelin-Tire man and one of those big major league baseball mascots as I tried to maneuver around the courses (sorry, no video footage to entertain you).  Not being the swiftest, nor most agile competitor out there at the best of times, it doesn’t get any better when wearing 2 pair of pants and layers of winter clothing & coats!  All things considered my girls did have some nice runs but I came away with a bigger list of things I need to get to work on.

I have been doing a lot of juggling this year, working out how to fit in my normal responsibilities of teaching workshops, training my dogs, spending time with John and my family, exercising, cooking etc while mixing in the new tasks I have taken on with the building of the new house, sending out newsletters and writing in this blog. I think it comes down to organizing and better list building. I am not about to give up on anything, but this weekend it was obvious to me, my dogs both need more training than they have been getting (which has been very little lately).  So today I am going to spend the morning organizing, starting with my messy desk and then working on a task list to make sure important things like training my dogs doesn’t get pushed back any longer on my things-to-do-list. I know my girls will appreciate it! Any ideas on how you guys organize your responsibilities would be greatly appreciated, especially those of you that are still in college or have young kids or both!  That can’t be easy, you must be pros at prioritizing and multi-tasking!

This morning I watched out the window when I let my dogs out at 5:30 AM. They milled about doing their business then all of a sudden it was like someone just yelled “fire” and they all took off chasing each other. Stuff like really cracks me up, and it makes me even more grateful for the role dogs play in my life.

Send Them On

Hi all, just a quickie to let you know I am working on the weave pole webinar, hoping to have it completed for the blog on Wednesday. This is your last chance to post any 2×2 questions for me. John and I are leaving the house at o-dark-o-clock this morning to do (what I hope is) our last “home tour” with our builder. We are in the home stretch (pardon the pun:)). I am hoping we will be in the new house by my birthday at the end of the July (so test your powers of visualization and get us out of this apartment!).  Remember send on the questions.

Today I am grateful for all of the weave questions that have come in so far!

Rehearsing Success

When I was a kid I loved to play and watch hockey. As an adult, I rarely watch and haven’t had an opportunity to play in quite some time. Playoff hockey is pretty much on the TV all the time right now up here in Canada. John likes watching playoff . . . any sport. Being that we are still living in this one room apartment, I am osmotically forced to watch hockey again (while I work at my computer). The game has gotten a little less violent from what I remembered (possibly because it is the playoffs and no one wants to jeopardize their team’s chances by getting into a brawl). So it is still an awesome sport, but the fighting got to be way too much for me back when I did watch it more often.

Any sport at “crunch” time has more significance for the participants and often times makes it more exciting for the spectators.  Running agility is always fun, but when a championship is on the line, the excitement is that much more heightened.  Now I don’t have to be referring to  a World Championships here, it can be an special event, or possibly just a certain class, or venue, or certain people watching that causes your adrenaline to run a little high.  Learning to do your best at these times really is a matter of rehearsals. The way you get better at anything is to create opportunities to repeat those successful events over and over.

One thing that I like to do when I have some spare time is to re-run big events with my younger dogs. It all started about five years ago when we were in Hawaii teaching (now that was a seminar venue!).  I was doing some laundry and the laundry room was in the underground parking lot so I didn’t feel comfortable leaving our clothes unattended. I ended up having to sit around this tiny room all alone. After reading the 6 month old issue of Golf Digest cover-to-cover for the second time,  I made up this cool game that I have played many times since.

I started re-running important agility runs in my mind. I am a great visualizer, I actually get an increase in my breathing and heart rate when I visualize myself running agility. I just close my eyes and see my dog beside me at the start line and then I lead out and way we go! Anyway, after I was finished (and still had time to kill) back in Hawaii,  I decided to run all of those runs again with my puppy (who was “Encore” at the time). Now Encore back then was less than a year old and had never been on any real agility equipment, so I had no idea how she would look going over jumps or through weave poles. However I could see her little puppy face and had seen her run and jump while out on our walks, so I just put her at the start line in my minds eye and started to re-run all of those courses with her.  It was really cool. What ended up happening was by the time Encore had her first real run at an agility trial she had already run hundreds of runs with me in my mind. 

This may take some practice before you get really good at it but do try it. If you have no history of big events of your own, watch someone else on Youtube or on a Championship DVD.  Pick a handler that you can see yourself handling similarly to and try to see the run through that person’s eyes but it will be with your own dog. You end up rehearse success for yourself over and over and over and that is never a bad thing!

Today I am grateful for Mike and John H. showing up to help John clear out some of the downed trees this weekend. It was a little scary to have three men with chainsaws and a guy named Jason helping (ok he was my brother).  All we needed was a few hockey masks to complete the scene from a horror movie!  I am happy to report no such horrors occurred and the view behind the new house has improved dramatically!

Do You Wii?

Do you Wii? (no not wee, Wii). Just throwing it out there to you all, kind of an informal survey (hey btw thanks to everyone that has taken the survey from last week, winners to be announced at the end of this week). I bought a Wii “Fit” last year when we had the FCI world team practice here. I thought it would be a good team bonding thing. Those of us that played, did have a blast.  So I am asking you guys.  Do you have Wii Fit, if so, which activities to you enjoy the most and why?  Do you use it as an actual “work-out”?  I have my own opinion on how Wii ties into dog agility, I will share with you once you guys give me your thoughts.

I finalized all of the appliances for the new house yesterday.  Not many decisions left for John and I as this process is winding down. I am very grateful for the fact that, although we are still months away from moving in, most of the major decisions have been made so now it is just a matter of patience:).