Phillip Kriss, Athlete & Chiropractor

Riding bicycles is no doubt dangerous. You might think it is safe due to relatively slow speeds, but that is not true at all. Even with a high tech helmet, you have no protection upon impact with the ground or an object. There are no airbags, crash bars, or body armor to help. It disturbs me greatly to see what one intended to be a good thing for you resulting in being maimed for life. It has happened recently in our circles at RTB as it has for as long as I have been riding bikes. When you choose to throw your leg over the seat, you also assume the risk. The Hazards Big Gulpers:  What? Who? Us “southies” named aggressive drivers Big Gulpers. Big Gulpers typically are young males driving lifted, usually older Ford 4 door pick-up trucks, wearing camo, chewing tobacco, and have a problem with older guys riding in lycra at dawn on a rural road. Sometimes they toss the last of their big gulp on you as they pass, thus the name. The situation is made m...

Don’t Ride Like a Turtle! Many triathletes are uncomfortable riding their bikes for long distances. Not the expected too much time off the bike or I ate too much for the last several months uncomfortable, but the really uncomfortable stuff. Like, lots of neck and mid back pain. Inability to eat, drink and breath deeply. This is the turtle ride! Notice the humped back and the kinked neck? This turtle probably will have a sore butt, neck and mid back. It would be hard to eat and breath because all the tissues in the front are compressed. Notice this styling peep! Their back is flat (also more aerodynamic). There is much less acute angle in their neck. Breathing and digestion are much easier. As long as we’re at it, avoid scrunching your shoulders up towards your ears by allowing tension in your trapezius muscles. Force your shoulders down and pinch your shoulders together…let’s see your neck! As an extra additional benefit, this person’s butt feels much better and the pr...

Another by-product of being born prior to 1970 or a good reason not to run? Observation of patients in my office and association with my running/riding buddies determines this is a very common issue that is certainly no fun! Instead of boring you with details about it, I did some research and it appears the Mayo Clinic has a very accurate description of the cause. I do not support the medical treatment of it (steroids, surgery, and other anti-inflammatories) and will comment on that later. The link is here:  https://www.gstatic.com/healthricherkp/pdf/plantar_fasciitis.pdf The brief explanation of it is over time and due to pronation your arch falls causing the tissues on the bottom of your foot to over stretch. The simplest test to see of you have it is to press at the base of your arch in front of your heel. If it tender and/or feels bruised….Bingo! Here is what I found that does not work. These are my opinions based on experience with it and various articles I read ove...

Only one word to sum that up. Amazingfunhumiliatingexileratingconfusingenvious! Not all of us have the physical ability to perform as others do. Example being a Clydesdale probably is not going to have the same ability to run as someone weighing 160# with the same height and age. Subtracting that factor, I have the pleasure of witnessing what superior athletes do, which makes what they do seem easy. Hard working. The athletes realize they are parents, spouses, housekeepers, (multiple) job holders that realize they must do those things and still train. Sleep becomes the option. Her IPhone does not have a snooze button in it like my Samsung does. I don’t get it. Determined. There is that “be nice to everybody” spirit and attitude balanced with never, never quit or give up. Always push beyond uncomfortable and be happy about it. I do not get that. Balanced. Life is not all about the race or training. Parties, travel, turning off the TV and “making” others do things like play games ...

Goodlife Fitness Victoria Marathon Why? Heidi loves pacing, and was named the 3:55 pacer. I did not volunteer/get chosen to be a pacer for this event. I found I was going by and e-mail that said something like “congratulations! Your wife signed you up for another marathon. By the way, we hit your card for well over $100.” The Training What training? I had a combination of unfortunate things operating in symphony like a 3 week illness that hit me hard (I still have not fully recovered). A pain in my butt for the last month (a real one). 2 bad legs (likely from the same pair of shoes for almost 2 years) (oops). And a few weeks ago I did a series of box jumps and screwed my knee up. Since this is not my first marathon, and seemed to be recovering I decided to man up and get it done rather than run the half. We get up to Vancouver with our group of buddies, check in, and do all the stuff. A comment I heard on Saturday afternoon while eating a bison burger and sucking down the lo...

“The Tin Man” Why? In my head I have not yet performed well in an ironman race. Each one either had crummy conditions, or I had some issue that prevented me from performing to my expectations. I wanted redemption. I wanted to get through a race clean. I wanted to prove to myself I could do it. Last winter we were up skiing at Whistler with the Elton’s and Heidi fell in love with the place. While there she said “We are coming back next summer to watch our buddies’ race. Since you will be training with them anyway, you may as well sign up for the race”. That really meant she did not want to hear me complain about my buddies having more fun than I did. It didn’t take long for me to sign up and made the decision to upgrade my P5, which was replaced by Cervelo since my P4 had a frame failure. Several thousand dollars later I had my dream bike. I love toys! The Training I fumbled through doing what I could do to train based on the time I had available and the circumstances of li...

Phillip Kriss June 29, 2014 Why? I planned this race a year and a half ago knowing I was moving into a new age group. It was another opportunity to produce the goods and possibly earn a coveted Kona spot. My last 2 races did not go as well as planned with Lake Tahoe being high in elevation and freezing cold, and St. George being excruciatingly hot. This could be my big day! My fastest ironman time in the past was at CDA on the old course. The Training Training proved to be difficult. Heidi and I decided 18 months ago to open a Massage Envy. It was to open in October, but due to a series of delays it opened 2 weeks before the Ironman. So, I missed several key rides and runs due to meetings and a million other things to do. Special thanks to Heidi, Mark Casey and Eivind Naess for helping me during this long training process. Several other people also showed up consistently and helped make what others would term a miserable experience into something kind of pleasurable in a sick way. I...