weekly stats

Target was 15 hours, and I just barely got it in...

47run miles in 6 hours
5.5swim miles in 3.42 hours
111bike miles in 5.75 hours

not sure why I did so few bike miles - I guess I was trying to run in the sun / heat early in the week - my bike sessions were mostly hard efforts

My foot felt better today and I did 1 hour on the eliptical and 1 hour on the treadmill - good compromise to an outdoor 13 mile run that I had on the training plan.

busy packing

It is really tough to pack for a 10 day trip to Hawaii when you're doing an Ironman. My weekend was spent mostly on tuning my bike and packing.

My bike tuning included: replacing the chain, putting on a new cassette, replacing brake pads, replacing front derailuer cable and housing, cleaning, etc. I still have to take it apart and get it in the bike travel case. I also found out my race wheels aren't true, so I'll need to get that taken care of before I leave. The wheels came with a special truing tool, that I spent an hour trying to find. Finally found it with fairly detailed specs on the tension required. Sena is going to drop them off at the bike shop tomorrow.

My battery on my heart rate monitor seems to have died, so I'll want to replace that before I go. Hopefully it is just the battery. I'll probably want to clear the memory on my Garmin too, so I don't get that 'out of memory' message 40 miles into the bike. I only run out of memory maybe once a year, but I don't want to take any chances.

I put all my protein drink mixes into plastic bags - I just hope airport security doesn't mistake it for drugs! - it'll be in my carry on, so low likelihood.

There are hundred little things to remember - well I have a few days to get things in order.

Plantar Fasciitis strikes again!

I've been trying to manage the plantar fasciitis, but since the Philly Distance Run it has gotten worse. Taking most of the week off of running after PDR didn't seem to do the trick. It seems to be worst when I do fast runs, like my 5 mile tempo in Valley Forge yesterday - I think the fast down hills took a toll. I'm debating whether I should do my 13 mile run tomorrow - see how I feel - maybe on the treadmill.

I had a good 2.5 mile swim today - it was the first time I was actually able to control my speed going faster and slower throughout the workout.

I spent most of today working on my bike, and going to the bike store to get tools to do the job right. I'm pretty happy with it right now, but I put my race wheels on and noticed they are out of true. I'll take a shot at truing them, but if I have any trouble, I'll need to bring them to the bike store pronto.

I did a fast ride on Creek Road today (midway through my bike repairs). 2x12 miles at a pretty agressive pace. I'd like to do the same tomorrow, but if I have to cancel my run, I may do a longish ride instead.

My iPod went through the wash earlier this week, so I decided to go out and get another (long plane on Friday - to Hawaii!). Spent half the night last night getting decent music on it.

some hard stuff

Yesterday I ran 4x10minutes hard around Valley Forge (hills) with a 1 min rest. My calf muscles were really sore, so I tried not to over do it. Turned out to be about 8.5 miles with my warmup and cool down.

Last night I swam 25x100meters on 2mins. It got a little crazy because the pool was down to 1 lap lane due to swim practice and some old lady water exercise class. I was sharing the lane with a slower swimmer and a faster swimmer. I was pretty tired by the end of the set, but I suppose that is why I train. The faster swimmer caused me to pick up the pace a few times, which was good.

Today I did 5x5mins on the bike trainer in the am, big gear 110RPM with a 5 min rest. Very tough, but need to get that leg turn over elevated.

In the late afternoon I did a relatively easy 7 mile run - my legs felt pretty heavy, but with the warm weather, I wanted to get out there and sweat a little in prep for Kona.

weekly stats

Last week I had an easy week target of 8 hours, but somehow managed over 11 hours, as in...
13 miles of running (a bit over an 1.5 hours)
2.5 miles of swimming (a bit over 2 hours)
140 miles of biking (7.5 hours)

Still recovering from Philly distance run, my calf muscles couldn't really take much more running than 13 miles for the week, which included an 11 mile run on Saturday.

Blue Marsh

Sena and I loaded up the Kayak and headed to Blue Marsh for an open water swim, stopping to visit her grandparents on the way.

At the lake, I got to test out my new Blue Seventy skin suit while she paddled around, making sure I didn't get run over by a motor boat. Tippy sat in her lap and kept here company - I wish I had a camera.

It was nice to have Sena there. She told me my stroke was much better in the second half of the swim - I guess it was after I had warmed up a bit. I swam fairly straight which is a really good sign - something I've had a hard time with in the past. When I got tired, I started getting off course, something I'll need to watch for in the future.

Yesterday I rode and ran in my Ironman clothes and felt pretty good

So, a bit of a bike tune-up and a few more hard workouts and I think I'll be ready!

Kona, here I come!

Full Day

I realized last night that my drivers license had to be renewed by the end of today. Given the notorious reputation of long lines at the DMV, I decided to forego my normal early start and deal with the DMV. I took the convertible, and given the last weather forecast, I left the top down. I got there 10 minutes early and the line was already 50 people long. I met a woman in line who was thinking about moving back down to Guatemala - $300K gets you a nice place on the beach for 99 years... interesting conversation, but I digress.

After getting my number, I notice that it is pouring rain outside, and of course I left my top down, so I do the mad dash to the car in my Birkenstocks and get the top and windows in place. I race back to the DMV so I don't lose my place in line, and I arrive just as they call my number.

After getting home and drying out my car in the garage, I decide that I'll wait a while longer to start my bike ride since it is still raining on and off. Sena and I decide to use the time to hang pictures in the basement that we have delayed far too long. We follow this with a spirited game of foosball and a nice lunch (left overs from my birthday dinner the night before).

I finally start preparing for my long brick as the weather starts to clear. I decide 60 miles followed by a 10 mile run would be good if my calf muscle can handle it.

The weather is very close to Hawaii temps and humidity, so it should be a good day. The ride starts off slow, but eventually I get into a good groove. I neat little bug lands on my Bento box and keeps me company for the first 20 miles, trying to avoid what he probably thought was a mighty wind storm. At the first stop light he flies off and continues his life.

About 40 miles into the ride, on a fast, curvy downhill with a car not far behind, a bee gets under my shirt and starts to sting the crap out of my chest. My natural reaction was to whack my chest and yell - fortunately I didn't crash, however, the driver in the car behind me gave me a funny look as she passed.

After getting home after about 65 miles, I started my run. It was about 82 degrees and 66 percent humidity. I carried two 16 oz water bottles, one with Heed, the other just plain water. The run was really good and my calf didn't bother me too much. I wanted to speed up in the last 3 miles, but decided not to push my luck by straining my calf muscle any further.

When I got home, Sena asked me if I was in the mood for Sushi - I'm always in the mood for Sushi. We tried a new place and had a nice time.

When we got home we saw the end of the Tivo'd So. Carolina Game against #2 ranked LSU (my daughter Erika goes to So. Carolina). LSU won, but So. Carolina put up a good fight.

Bike Tempo

After work I did 4x20min on the bike, struggling a bit at first because my legs are still recovering from the Philly Distance Run 2 days ago.

I tried to run a mile afterward, but my calf muscles are shot and bagged it after less than a 1/2 mile.

I was trying to run the PDR conservatively, but I guess my legs weren't quite ready for the pace I ran. Oh well, I just hope I recover enough to do my last long run this week.

weekly stats

Last week was my last long week. The target was 19 hours, but I only hit 18.5. After the Distance run, I just didn't feel like swimming more than an hour.

Anyway, last week I...
ran 42.75 miles (including a 1/2 marathon race)
biked 170 miles (90 miles the day before my 1/2 marathon race)
swam 4.25 miles

this took...
a bit over 5 hours of running
9.5 hours of biking
almost 4 hours of swimming

good day at the races

I did the Philly Distance Run (Half Marathon) this morning, after riding 90 miles yesterday.

The race went better than expected. I guess it was the cool temperatures that kept my heart rate low. I expected to start at 7 minute pace and pick it up in the last 6 miles to 6:30 pace.

I hit the first mile marker in 6:15 pace and wasn't breathing hard. My heart rate was about 155 and I decided to stay in that zone for a while longer, which resulted in a fairly consistent pace between 6:15 and 6:25. At mile 9, I decided to run the last 4 miles with my heart rate above 160. It was difficult to get my legs moving faster, but I managed 6:05, 6:00, 5:58, and 5:45 in the last 4 miles, barely getting my heart rate beyond 160 until the last 1/2 mile, where I was in the red at 170+.

In the end, I somehow managed to run 1:21:30, which is a 1/2 Marathon PR for me by over 30 seconds. Nice to get a PR at my age ; ) I guess going out at a comfortable pace and picking it up in the end actually works pretty well.



<-- Passing one of the top female masters runners over the Strawberry Mansion Bridge - the bagpipe player (background) really got me going at this turn around point.

Discipline, Will Power, and Heart

When I was young I didn't have the discipline to train like I do these days. I had a lot of heart, but not the day to day discipline required to actually be competitive.

Once you get the discipline thing licked, you have to make sure you have enough energy left, so that when you get to race day, you're just itching to get out there, and once your out there, you're pushing through the pain, riding your legs off - that's about having heart.

Discipline and heart works fine for 1/2 IM races and below, but in a longer race, when there is nothing left, it's all about will power. Keeping yourself moving forward when your brain is convinced that there is nothing left in the engine.

I have had moments when Will Power carried the day, but it is an elusive mental skill that is difficult to test.

easy day

I'm taking it easy to day. Maybe a bit of swimming on my way home from work. I've had some good workouts this week and I'll be doing Philly Distance Run on Sunday - don't want to over do it. Tomorrow, weather permitting, I'll swim in the morning followed by a longish bike ride. Not sure if I'll hit my 19 hour target this week - kind of hard with a race at the end of the week.

Read a couple of articles last night. One was about a guy totally obsessed with endurance sports. He had some pretty good insights to what drives that kind of personality disorder ; ) My sister actually sent the article to me in my birthday card - she said it reminded her of me. uh-oh!

The other article I read was about training and racing - fairly practicle ideas. One that I particularly liked is that you should expect to feel bad, really bad during an endurance event. Unlike a 10 mile race for example, where you're sore and breathing hard and generally uncomfortable because you're pushing yourself - this is actually a pretty good feeling by comparison because endorphins coarsing through your system.

A long distance endurance event is different from the dead-legs feeling when you didn't fuel or pace yourself right and lactic acid has done so much damage that your legs are toast. The feeling I'm talking about is when you just have no energy left and can't go on, but of course you can if you have the will power to push yourself - it is all in the head at that point. All of the training is done and physically you are capable.

ear ache, closed track, Bill's first Tri

My left ear started bothering me on Saturday night, so I didn't swim on Sunday. Kept me up until I took some Ibuprofen. It's still kind of sore. I'll give it another day or so, then head to the doctor. Hopefully nothing serious.

I got up this morning and did 12x3min strength on the bike trainer - felt pretty good. I've only been doing 2min repeats until now - jumping to 3mins was tough, but I also increase the rest interval to 1:15 instead of 1min, which allowed my heart rate to get back into normal range.

I planned on doing a track workout tonight, but when I got to the track, there was a big sign saying that the track is now reserved for students - bloody hell! So I jogged over to New street and did 6 hill repeats, then jogged home and did 2 hard miles on the treadmill. Ended up with 10 miles for the day. Oh well, the say everything happens for a reason.

Pete stopped by to pick up some Recoverite and Endurolytes. He did a 6 mile 6:40 tempo run the other day - pretty impressive for an old guy with a bad leg ; ) - He'll probably kick my ass at Philly Distance Run this weekend.

Bill Dawson (president of our local run club) did his first Triathlon this past weekend with his sister and two sons. They all did really well for their first time out. He really seemed to enjoy the experience (I think he'll do another).

references

I'm starting to get lots of questions about training, fueling, equipment, race day strategies, etc.

Most of the questions I can answer based on experience, things other people had taught me, and research I have done, but here are a few references that I have found most useful...

Runners World
Bicycling Magazine
Triathlete Magazine
Triathlete Training Bible Book (Use it as a general guideline and a multi-year reference, but don't try to take it all in at once)
Hammer Nutrition Fueling Guide 2 (there are other useful resource materials on this site too)
Road Bike Review Forum (good for questions about bike equipment)
Triathlon Swimming Made Easy Book (Total Immersion - video is useful too)

I surf the web to get the best deals on equipment, clothing, etc.

I have other books on weight training, stretching, and even mental training, yoga - I've gotten these as gifts, but they tend to fall somewhat short of something I would recommend, so if you have something that you have found useful in these areas, please post a comment.

another epic training day

Today was my longest brick workout before Kona (and I don't want to work this hard again until the race itself!). The plan was to do 130bike followed by 13mile run. I've always thought that if I could pull off a brick workout at that distance I would really be ready for an Ironman.

I woke up with a tickle in the chest and not feeling quite right and the weather was going to be in the low 90s with high humidity. So I decided to do what I could and not beat myself up if I didn't quite do the full 130/13.

The plan was to ride to the Philly art museum and back (80 miles), refill my water bottles and then do the Western Loop of the Dog Daze Century (50 miles). It turned out to be 132+ miles since I had to get to the Western Loop from my house. I averaged 17.4mph which I was pretty happy with given my average heart rate was only 114 and it was supposed to be a long easy solo ride.

When I got home from the bike, I almost convinced myself to call it a day, but then I grabbed 2 water bottles and decided to run just a few miles. I started feeling pretty good a couple of miles into the run and thought I would go 45mins then turn around. I got to 30 minutes and started coming unglued, so convinced myself that I had enough water to go 40minutes, then turn around. Of course I ran out of water before I got home. I really had to push myself the second half of the run to finish, but when all was said and done, I completed 10miles!

These long bricks don't build much confidence, since I feel like crap after 10 miles on the run and I have no idea how I will be able to finish Kona in similar conditions.

I'm hoping that if I pour lots of cold water on myself and keep my core body temperature down, things will be better.

So I trained for 9 hours today! In 90+ degree temperature with high humidity. That is a new record for a long training day for me - and I never want to repeat it (except on Race Day in Kona)!

time management and flexibility

This week there have been a few obstacles to work around. My long run on Monday resulted in sore left ankle and shin - so I needed to pull back from running a few days. I found out yesterday that the local YMCA is closed for the week for maintenance. And there were a couple of last minute changes to work schedules that required me to be in Downtown Philly for 2 days.

So I rode to/from work on Tuesday and threw in three loops around / over Mount Joy on my way home. I did an hour Eliptical on Wednesday so I didn't have any pounding on my leg. I got up early today (Thursday) to do the Carmichael Time Trial Training video, extending the 12 minute endurance section to 24 minutes. And I went to the Upper Mainline YMCA and used their outdoor 50m pool on my way home from Philly today.

So, things have worked out, but it took a lot of last minute changes to what I thought I would be doing this week.

Time Trial

My commute into work isn't the best way to do a time trial, but it saves time and gives me an indicator of where I am in my training. Last time I did this was way back in where I predicted I would break 58 minutes this year - see: last time trial in June

I was so very close this morning, finishing in 58:05. I thought I would break 58minutes, but fumbled with my shoe removal while dodging a pedestrian as I approached my finish point.

Anyway, I'm pretty happy with the result. I'll probably do one more time trial before the race - we'll see what happens.

23 mile run

I decided to get my long run out of the way early in the week (labor day). I was looking to do about 23 miles in 3 hours. The hills made it a bit more challenging, with four 200 foot climbs and plenty of rolling hills giving me a total elevation gain of over 2300. I somehow managed 23.2 miles in 2:58 running conservatively early and pushing the last 5 miles.

Leaving early allowed me to avoid the heat of the day - I'll save that for my medium distance training runs and race day. I carried two 16oz water bottles, one with Heed and Hammergel, the other with 2 scoops of Perpetuem. It was a hassle carrying them, but better than not having anything out there. I did a water stop at Northbrook Orchards, about 2 hours into the run. I also skirted along Highland Orchards about 6 miles in and thought of a future course that covered both orchards - the Double Orchard run.

Comparing the elevation of today's run with Kona (left) makes me feel like I'll be ok on the hills. It looks like only a couple of 150ft climbs and a bunch of rollers.

It was a good course, basically an assembly of bits and parts of other run / bike courses that I know. Having a well placed water stop is key any long run. On a hot day, I would have needed water much sooner. Here is the course if you want to do it some day...

5 weeks out - need some luck!

next week is 5 weeks from race day - I'll need to be careful because this is the week I've had something significant go wrong in my last two Ironman training periods (parasite in the eye + a pulled achilles (2005), bike crash with a bruised tail bone and cracked ribs(2006))

So I hope my blog next week has nothing but good news! knock wood and all that...

cold swim + weekly stats

Cold Swim
Planned to do 5000 meters (50x100meters with an 8 breath rest) in the 50meter outdoor pool. Did my first 2200 and really had to take a pee break - so I took the long journey to the locker room - the outside air temp was in the low 80s and sunny, but I started to shiver and shake, so before re-entering the pool I took an extra 5 minutes and sat in the sun. When I got back in the pool I was still pretty cold, but I kept going until I got to 4000 meters and had to pee again!

This time I tried a hot shower before returning to the pool, but I couldn't get warm, so I laid in the sun again and totally crashed for about 30 minutes! I woke to a small child screaming and decided that 4000 meters was plenty.

I didn't feel like the water was excessively cold (I should have found out the actual temperature), but I wasn't working too hard, mostly concentrating on smooth, long strokes. I've had hypothermia before and I felt like I was in the early stages, and it was just smarter to pull out and save myself for another day.

I suspect Hawaii water temps will be warmer.

Weekly Stats
easy week, finishing 12.7 hours, as in...

4.03 run hours
2.83 swim hours
5.85 bike hours

thats...
32.25 run miles
4 swim miles
103 bike miles

it scares me that I think that this was an easy week!

'only' 19 hours the next two weeks - then it's taper city!

Downingtown HS Track

With WC HS tracks closed on weekends, I rode my bike to Downingtown to do my track workout. The track was empty, but had a sign that actually said "Visitors Welcome". There were few rules, one was to run in lanes 4 or higher. Ok, no problem, just a bit more challenging to know my mile splits. I ran 6x a little over a mile - my Garmin tells me I was doing around a 5:45 pace which seemed about right, but 4 laps was taking me around 6:05, so being in the 4th lane seems to add about 5 seconds per lap. I wonder if that's right? I guess it doesn't much matter - I wouldn't have wanted to go any faster or slower.

It was only a 10 mile ride home, and I took it easy most of the way. That was my shortest Saturday workout in a long time.

Came home and rode into Manyunk with Sena to check out Cadence Bike store to see if they had any good Triathlon gear. No luck, but was nice to walk around town and have lunch with my wife for a change - much better than guzzling Sustained Energy on a long bike ride!