Huge Surf in SoCal and Kelly Slater

My buddy from Hawaii is back from Bali, and hit me up about surfing. "A big south swell is coming in", he said. I didn't think anything much of it...and agreed to meet him at 10am this morning out in Malibu. I was coming form a friend's apartment so didn't have my board and didn't feel like braving Hollywood traffic to get it, so headed up the 101N to Kanan and out to Malibu. I checked out the surf before I went, and knew immediately this was a special swell. Dume was packed. "Everyone and their mother is here" I texted him. Cars were everywhere and surfers, like it was already Labor Day weekend. I went out to the cliffs that overlook this special spot. It was pumping and guys were getting rides all the way down.

I rented a board at Clout for $15 and headed back. My buddy hadn't shown up so I suited up and headed down the long path to the wiry staircase that leads down to the beach. It was really only then that I realized how big these waves were. They were huge and guys were watching them, people taking photos, the way they did at Sunset or Pipeline. It was crazy. Down below, on the beach, I watched the waves- trying to get a feel for the frequency of the sets. There was no way to paddle through any of these waves. You could be seriously hurt in the whitewater and one thing about Pt Dume are all the rock outcroppings by the shore. There's a cove off to the right (from the beach) that most people were launching out of. Some of the biggest waves were coming around that northern point. I watched for about 25 minutes before putting on my leash and making my move.



I haven't experienced anything like today since Hawaii- maybe the time in Haleiwa or Sunset Beach, when I got worked so hard I thought it might be game-over underwater. Paddling out was fine- and I hit a few snags but duckdived through them and carried on. There were a lot of guys in the water...and honestly, some of the waves coming around the point were behemoths, dwarfing the tiny riders- some of them sailing down the faces; others getting flipped around and going under or through the ferocious spray. The power of these waves was incredible- and I heard one guy say it was like Vietnam (the war, not surfing there). Sidenote- a guy drowned yesterday at Malibu pier. Luckily, I didn't know that going out- but I was aware of the conditions. Big and brutal.

In the line-up, you have to constantly reposition. The waves don't consistently break in one spot. Sometimes it'll break unpredicatbly 100 yard back form where you are. If you stay still, you'll be in the impact zone, where the wave will crash on top of you. (aka not cool). The goal, always, is to stay out of the impact zone- whether you're going for a wave or not. But more, the goal is to keep positioning yourself and reading the water, so you can grab a wave as it crashes, at its peak, and ride it, turning down the line, and surfing up and down its face. There were some good surfers out there today- and some less experienced ones too. Another note is that waves come in sets. Frequently guys skip the first wave of a set. If you miss it, you'll get worked by the 2nd, 3rd, and sometimes 4th wave of the set. That's what happened to me.

I went for the second wave of a large set- probably 10' face and double overhead. It was large, but I thought I had it. Also- oftentimes the waves don't seem as large as they are until they actually break- so it may have been larger. I didn't have it. The wave crashed over me, throwing me down its face, deep underwater, wrapping me up in my leash, diving for the surface, all at about 25mph. I coughed while grabbing my board just as I got nailed by another mammoth wave. I was in trouble and held onto my board- which must've bounced hard into my ribcage. I was going over and around and through the water- and worried about rocks, as I was closer to shore. ..before the next one nailed me. It's hard to explain how large these were- but I was seriously worried about drowning. I got on my board- and paddled towards shore. Normally you turn around and go back out..but this wasn't normal. On shore, a guy pointed to his buddy's board and told me the guy had gotten hit by the same...but hadn't come in. There are no lifeguards at Point Dume. It's pretty much you're on your own. Luckily, the guy swam in eventually. "I almost drowned", he said.

My ribs on my left side hurt badly and I wondered if I'd cracked one. I remembered a bigger guy in Hawaii at the hostel who spent his days on the couch watching sports and reading because he was waiting for his ribs to heal. I wasn't wheezing, but it hurt like a bitch. I waited about 45 minutes walking back to the staircase, and talking with some Peruvian guys. They said Peru pumps like that once a month. Meanwhile, the kid who I was with who had lost his board was getting ready to go back out. I had the rental board another two hours so I followed him out- and instantly got worked in the whitewater. The set had come quicker and my ribs were killing me. I turned and went back in to shore, watched a bit more, and decided to drive upthe coast to see if there were smaller waves there. There weren't.

All up the coast, it was banging. There were less surfers than in the morning and County Line was abandoned. Zuma was firing and closing out immediately. No one was attempting those. There were people just watching the waves, like they had the 3rd week in Hawaii. But overall, the best spot was Point Dume. I returned the board, changed, and went back to Point Dume to watch from the cliffs. This cool local guy named Mystic Pete was watching and telling me stories about the local spots and his time coming up, places he'd surfed in South America, and how certain big wave surfers that I've admired were total dickheads. It was a cool hang- and I offered to teach him guitar in return for surf lessons. No dice. But he did wax mystic on me and said this spot on the cliffs had a real special energy and the Chumash used to say it was a holy place. He took off and I watched the surfers way below in silence, hearing the wind, and watching the powerful waves. I looked over and, like a hallucination, there was Kelly Slater beside me, also watching. For a second, I actually did think maybe it was a daydream or a vision. But it was totally him, squatting down sizing up the waves. We were there in silence watching from the cliffs for about five minutes before I said something.

"You going in?" I said. He had sort of a Clint Eastwood-like presence.
"Not sure", he said. I looked out.
"It was huge this morning...I think I broke a rib"
His eyes didn't leave the ocean.
"Really?"
"Yeah, maybe."
"There's no shortage of swell out there," he said.

I watched the waves breaking in long lines and the wind swept through the grass near me. It was a peaceful and cool moment. I didn't want to be that fan-guy who bugs him. I know he gets mobbed for photos all the time. But I thought- when else are you going to meet him?

"You mind taking a photo?"
"Ok"

I stood up and went over. I took a selfie of us.
"I'm Gabe", I said and held out my hand.
"Kelly", he said.



Later, around 6pm, I saw him surf the Malibu pier- and he rocked it, gliding up and down the waves like a world champion. He even did (no joke) a 360 aerial. And he was a cool guy.

My ribs? Doing better....But I don't think I'll be out tomorrow. ;)

Anatomy of a Healthy Diet

So what should I eat, Gabe?

This is verbatim what I just bought at Trader Joe's. It's mostly Paleo. Some of the products have sugar in them or organic cane sugar. That's hard to avoid- though doable. If you've been doing Paleo for a while, you can tolerate some beers and some bread. I am guilty of both.

Here's what I just bought for the week for about $40.

Organic vegetarian fed eggs
Kerrygold unsalted butter
4% cottage cheese (dairy is not technically cool)
Organic ketchup
TJ's red salsa
Tj's vegetable tortilla chips (made form spinach and white corn- also not technically Paleo, but I'm eating a lot of straight up corn chips anyway these days)
2 bottled water jugs
bag of mixed greens- spinach and kale etc
individually packaged bags of nuts (includes cashews- also not Paleo because they are legumes, but they are de-lish)
1 lb turkey (for chili or burgers)
1 steak (also not grass-fed, but again, I'm eating alll this carne asada out and about that's like the lowest quality imaginable; figured what's the diff)
2 organic pears (ten cents more than regular- a real splurge)
1 box of TJ's organic tomato soup (also has some sugar)
1 can of stewed tomatoes (for chili)

That's about it. Might've missed something.

Main points here are:
1- It's not that pricey
2- It's protein based
3- There are carbs- veggies, fruits, and chips)
4- I cut corners but am overall 85% Paleo
5- Mix it up- try pears over apples, spinach chips, etc.
6- Be kind to yourself
7- Drink lots of water

Have a great week!
GPR

Veganism- Friend or Foe?

Spent some time at Barnes and Noble today in their Diet and Health section. It's an interesting place to visit- especially if you have a distinct view on nutrition. There are so many diet books out there and different ways of thinking. For me, it's almost unimaginable at this point to think that anyone still drinks soda and eats cheezits and expects to be thin. But moreover, I know people- specifically women- who are trying to be healthy and do the right thing by the planet and turn vegetarian or vegan. They eat fruit and vegetables- thinking they're equivalent; they eat a lot of soy products, eat "heart-healthy" wheat and oats; and a lot of dairy....and they're overweight.



I perused the book, Wheat Belly, which basically targets, yup, you guessed it, wheat as the culprit. Wheat has been grossly distorted and tampered with by modern geneticists and food labs and now our bodies can't process it. Cut wheat. Cut belly fat...says that author. Wheat is in way more products by the way than just bread, pasta, and beer. It's in everything from soups to sauces to... well, everything. If you cut wheat and you cut out products with added sugar or high fructose corn syrup (soda, even ketchup), you've eliminated 90% of processed American foods. Cut out hydrogenated oils and products with corn (or corn starch) and you basically have a Paleo diet. What do they eat? They shop around the perimeter of the supermarket- in the produce aisle, and the meats, eggs, and fish, and pick up a few staples like virgin olive oil, grass-fed butter, spices (need those spices), and maybe hit the middle for beef jerky, a pan, light bulbs (still need 'em), and nuts (though sometimes are in produce).



So is there a way to be Paleo and largely vegetarian? I went to the Diet and Health section to take a look if there were any books that adressed the issue. Nooop. I did see one about high-carb living (riiight), and also one about a vegan fireman who opposes meat consumption. But nothing on vegetarians who are Paleo. I tried vegetarianism btw for six months, and found myself eating a lot of beans, rice, quinoa, grains, and pre-made Indian curries. My friend, Joe, used to be a vegetarian for many years and found himself very overweight and not in good health. My little nephew who's five and being raised vegan had to see a GI about stomach issues. Apparently he has an occasional egg.

I would say it is possible to be Paleo and vegetarian if you include eggs, turkey, chicken, and fish. I think you could do it as a fish eater with bean based products (tofu, seitan, etc) but I don't think you'd see the benefits as much. The main thing, to my mind, is- As a vegetarian, couldyou live without bread and grain products? When you look at the back of those tofu and seitan products, many have wheat added. I'm not sure why- maybe to change the consistency? So if you actually based your diet on plants, could you survive and thrive and not be hungry. Also- plants are carbohydrates- which stoke your insulin levels and cause your body to retain weight. Could you do it with just eggs and no animals (fish, tukey, etc) killed? And what are these vegans eating that's fattening them up? I think gluten-free products have a lot of sugar and some starches like potato starch and corn starch...I know low-carb yogurts have a ton of sugar. I always check the back to see if carbs outweigh protein in grams. Typically they do unless there are no sweeteners.

Here's Primal Blueprint author, Mark Sisson, on Paleo...


It would be interesting to try a vegetarian version of Paleo. As is, I typically eat 3 eggs for breakfast, sometimes with spinach; 2 cans tuna and some salad for lunch, have a afternoon protein shake from Muscle Milk with water, and have a lb of lean turkey chili for dinner. I have been eating more burritos, more corn chips, and having more light beer. But overall, I've been good. Not sure. I remember when I became a vegetarian. I was shopping at Ralph's buying salmon and seeing it under the plastic wrap, just thought, man this is disgusting. All these fish are being killed and this doesn't even look like a fish. It's just some pink-orange material that I eat. Just gross. Slaughterhouses are horrible places. Cows are gentle creatures- totally innocent. Do they suffer? Do they feel pain? Yes. Is methane ruining the ozone layer? Yes. Are these beautiful yoga girls getting fat? Sometimes. Am I jerk for writing about this? Maybe.

This would be a good code to crack for them. Comments welcome oh ye silent reader.

GPR

Jiu Jitsu Intro

My two month Intro to MMA at Robot is in its 6th week as of today, and we have been working on takedowns and groundwork. I have about zero experience with wrestling of any kind- though I confess, I was into WWF as a 5th grader- like really into it. My friends and I used to have pillow fights and jump off the couch at each other. This is pretty much nothing like that. This is much more like learning chess moves, that you have to make with your body. They are precise moves and meant to be executed with force and quickness. Jiu Jitsu is not, however, a sport I'm familiar with. And there is no off the ropes action. Hitting someone with a steel chair is also not permitted.



So how does class go? I'm glad you asked....

We start with three 5 minute rounds of conditioning.
Round 1-
Shadow boxing (3min)
Mountain climbers (30 secs)
Sit ups (30 secs)
Squats (30 secs)
30 sec rest

Round 2-
Shadow boxing (combinations) (3min)
Push-ups (30 secs)
Jump Squat (30 sec)
Leg lifts (30 secs)
30 sec rest

Round 3-
Shadow boxing (boxing + kicks + blocks)
Mountain climbers (15 secs)
Push ups (15 secs)
Squat (15 sec)
Jump sqaut (15 sec)
Sit-ups/leg lifts (30 sec)

1 minute plank

Thia, for me, has been the best part of each class. I've definitely seen improvement in all these exercises- in capacity to do reps, in form, and in overall, strength.



Segment 2- Drills
Today we formed tow lines and worked on sort of a lunge attack that's meant to bridge Muay Thai boxing with Jiu Jitsu.
We followed that with a dive bomber type exercise called a sprawl in which you fall down to your stomach and spring back up.
After that we did some defensive maneuvers in which you are backing out of a hold or from a strike on your butt. You sort of slide back and can form an L- sort of hinge your way away from your oopnent.

Segment 3- One on One
We paired up and did two different holds that had about three parts each, sort of involving a slight choke, and a flip. It was a little weird at first grappling with guys you don't really know but you get used to it pretty quickly. It was definitely an intro, and I had some trouble with remembering the sequence of which knee goes where and when the leg comes over etc.



I thought back to my Dad though who used to wrestle in high school and college and was actually the captain of his teams. Our coach, Coach Robby, sort of has my dad's build from his college days- a smaller guy but in great shape. Wish there was a time machine to be able to see my Dad wrestle back then.

The Advanced guys came over to our class tonight and were saying they hoped some of the bigger guys kept going- as they need sparring partners. Oh boy...plot thickens.

Huntington Surf Session

I suppose I was inspired by the Vans US Open of Surfing...

I went down there on Sunday to check out the Men's Finals with my roommates. It was packed. Thousands of people crowded the pier and beach area. I got there just in time to see the two Brazilian finalists go head to head. When the guy in blue won (it was announced over the speakers), he put his hands to his head and his competitor in yellow pointed at him as they both caught a wave all the way into shore. Hundreds of people came into the water to congratulate him. He won a hundred thousand dollars. I think the other guy got some Vans. There were cool Vans too of every stripe- from high tops with Yodas to classic designs, a lot of hats and apparel. The surf industry almost seems more about style, fashion, and merch than surfing. It's sort of the bad boy, rebellious image that people relate to- and I think Dogtown and Z Boys showed that from the start, skating and surfing drew from that same well; guys that were rejected by society or from poor backgrounds, that devoted themselves to performing dangerous physical stunts. Guys like Kelly Slater, Laird Hamilton, and Rob Machado have brought it to a class of professionalism and athleticism. But even still, in the US, surfing is often looked at as an escape and not a destination.



The waves have been small all summer, though Huntington usually has a significant size. I was down there mid-week two weeks ago to see a different bit of the competition and it was tiny. So going back yesterday, it wasn't clear what I'd find, besides serious traffic. I left at 3:30pm but it took until about 6pm to actually get there. It was windy driving down from the north and there were a lot of kitesurfers- always a bad sign if you want to surf. But beyond the pier there were a few guys in the water. I parked and changed into my wetsuit and hit the water. It was nice to be in again. I think it'd been a few weeks- possibly since the Ocean Park surfing competition on 7/15. it was already late by the time I got in the water but also, the wave formation wasn't great. Waves would crumble before getting to you or split in different directions. They had size but it dissipated. There were probably three fields of waves to get through before the line-up (though only about ten of us there). One of the nice things about Huntington is how broad the break is. Waves seem to be the most competitive to catch near the pier, but they break all over.

For more than an hour I sat out there on my board, bobbing around, waiting for something. There was a current drawing me south away from the pier but I kept trying to stay somewhat near the other surfers. I had only put two dollars in the meter. As the sun started to set behind the pier, I was getting bored and thought- this was a dud...when I saw a nice set roll in. It's weird but I knew I would catch the first one. Normally you skip the first one so you don't get caught in the impact zone of the second one. They usually come in 3-4 waves. But I grabbed the first and it was large. There was a big drop- felt like 5' but not really sure. I was riding a 7'8 board and caught it and stood, and it moves so quickly when you're riding them. But I was able to turn some and ride it into shore almost like the Brazilians had done a couple days before. I was so stoked and psyched about the drop. That's normally where I fall. But I think all the MMA conditioning has actually improved my balance a lot. We've also been doing a lot of squats and jump-squats and core work, so all of that seems to be helping. I paddled back out enthusiastically- and the next one I caught was stronger. It had already broken actually- but was so big it was still breaking, and it felt like I was going about 90mph. I wasn't able to stand in time and ended up bodyboarding it. But the final wave was cool and made me feel good. I stood again on a good size drop and bottom turned, which is the first step towards real surfing.



It's amazing how long it takes to learn to surf. It takes real dedication too- just to get out to the waves on a consistent basis. But as I was in the water out there yesterday watching the sun set behind the pier, and the moon is out, and it's just me on this frontier of nature and society, it felt really beautiful and good. I remembered what I loved about surfing- because I got pretty negative on it for a while. I kept cutting my feet open on rocks or wiping out or just not getting good rides. But for me, it's really about that sense of unity with other things and that sense of peace and relief you have when you're out. You're tired in a good way and sort of proud. Changing back into normal clothes you're grateful or basics like water and heat, or a good song on the radio. It's just such an awesome feeling... and so rare that people feel that way in regular society- maybe because it's such a physical activity, and so many of us are in our heads all day. Find me on Instagram at @devastrado1 if you want to see more photos.

Cheers-
GPR

MMA update- August

So it's been about a month of Intro MMA at Robot Fight and Fitness twice a week with a couple Crossfit style strength sessions thrown in and some surfing. I have to say- I'm feeling in pretty decent shape. I'm back on Paleo for the most part but have been eating more carbs- specifically rice, with sushi and with Mexican food. Corn chips and beer also sometimes make an appearance- but I have to say, overall, I'm doing pretty well with the course.



While the first four weeks focused on the basics of Muay Thai: punches, combos, blocks, and kicks- as well as overall conditioning; now the training has turned towards Braziian jiu jitsu- specifically take-downs. The conditioning is still a factor and I notice my abs are stronger and I have lost some size in my shoulders and arms. Legs are feeling strong and we've been doing ample jump squats and squats which I think has helped my pop-up in surfing.



I've lost touch with Joe for the most part- who's busy with teaching and gigging and doing Crossfit. Sounds like he's had some brutal workouts. I'd recommend Robot Fight and Fitness in West LA. Good people, facilities, and the Intro package is only $75 per month, which is a lot less than Krav Maga was.



Beyond MMA:
Drink water. Watch your posture. Smile. Get enough sleep. Breathe deeply. Spend time with friends. De-stress. Make money. Cultivate health.

Best,
Gabe