There's a lot rolling through my mind on this rest-day Monday. Even with a recovery week last week, I had a pretty good weekend of training that left me run down, sore, and HUNGRY today. I try to take it a little lighter on days when I don't train, but today I just can't get enough food in me... AND my body is sore. IM training is finally here, folks.
So, here is just a smattering of thoughts I want to get out:
- I've been riding the bike a good amount. Slightly more than 2011 according to my training logs, but I'm going significantly slower. This is worrisome. I do have to take into account the area I'm riding now compared to 2011, I suppose (2hrs gives me ~2000+ft of vertical gain now as opposed to ~500ft gain in Philly), but I'm ever so slightly worried that I've been doing too much "easy" riding. This week I begin some hill repeats on the bike, so hopefully that will help me develop some power.
- My run has been labored. A lack of winter miles is definitely one cause, and another is without a doubt the brutal winter weather. Saturday I ran 40 minutes off a 2:20 bike and it hurt. My HR started climbing big time over the last 10 minutes or so - I think poor nutrition was to blame for that, though. Sunday I ran 1:05 after an hour ride and it hurt a lot. Temps were in the 30s (which is high compared to what we've had the rest of the winter!) and winds were pushing me on my way out and standing me still on the way back. It just wasn't fun.
- My swim has been (to no one's surprise) inconsistent. I will partially blame the pool I currently use - although it's less than 800m from my door, the chlorine levels are really high and it hurts my skin and throat by the time I get out. Maybe I'm just a wuss...but I think I have some sort of allergy. Nevertheless, my swim is just not going to get as good as I want it to be. And I'm starting to be OK with that.
- My weight is about where it should be. I'm between 150-154 right now. Perhaps a tad heavier than I would really like to be, but that's ok for now. I've been doing more strength training, so I'll blame that - not all the beer drinking I've been doing...
The next 2 weeks are still part of my base phase. The hours will increase, and I hope to get two solid weeks of 14-15 hours under my belt before taking a week to recover on vacation.
Do great work!
Thanks for reading.
PW
Monday, March 10, 2014
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Revamping my goals **fixed
**Looks like this didn't post correctly, so I made some corrections and added a little update below.
My goal after Ironman Lake Placid in 2011 was to qualify for Kona. There's a draw to the Big Island that is very easy to get swept up in. For some reason qualifying for Kona becomes the end-all be-all in triathlon. I remember going to roll-down the day after IMLP and even though I was tired, broken down, and didn't even want to think about racing another IM, I secretly hoped I qualified. It was as if I needed validation above and beyond the fact that I was in the best shape of my life and I just did an IM!
Thus, in reviewing my goals, I'm trying to rid myself of this need for validation.
I want to focus my goals on things that are within my control. And I'm going to layer them in tiers - the first tier being the most important, the second taking priority once the first goals have been met, and the third being the icing on the cake.
Tier 1:
- Be happy in my life and training finding a balance of work and play
- Be healthy and in control of my diet, weight, and rest
- Be fit and fast through following appropriate training and completing the workouts on the calendar
Tier 2:
- Build bike strength by riding upwards of 200 miles/week starting in May
- Improve running base and performance by adding purpose to each and every run
- Swim enough to be competitive
- Build overall through regular gym sessions through April and then with decreased frequency through July
Tier 3:
- Get damn close to 4:30 in the half ironman I will race June 1
- Get damn close to 9:30 at IMLP on July 27
The biggest thing I'm doing is taking priority away from results. I want to focus on what's closest to me and most important in the long run - being happy. What happens on race day happens. Time is just a number, and I won't allow myself to get caught up in it.
Also, because of some family and work obligations, I don't think I'll take a Kona slot this year even if it is offered. I've teetered on this for a while, but the cost and stress just isn't worth it. If I can make it in 2014, there's no reason I can't do it some other time. And that's that.
Lastly, I had a pretty good February. Much better than February of 2011 anyway. The foundation is coming together well. It's a recovery week this week, which I needed. I took Tuesday completely off because I was running a fever. I'll get some quality in this weekend and then back to it next week.
My goal after Ironman Lake Placid in 2011 was to qualify for Kona. There's a draw to the Big Island that is very easy to get swept up in. For some reason qualifying for Kona becomes the end-all be-all in triathlon. I remember going to roll-down the day after IMLP and even though I was tired, broken down, and didn't even want to think about racing another IM, I secretly hoped I qualified. It was as if I needed validation above and beyond the fact that I was in the best shape of my life and I just did an IM!
Thus, in reviewing my goals, I'm trying to rid myself of this need for validation.
I want to focus my goals on things that are within my control. And I'm going to layer them in tiers - the first tier being the most important, the second taking priority once the first goals have been met, and the third being the icing on the cake.
Tier 1:
- Be happy in my life and training finding a balance of work and play
- Be healthy and in control of my diet, weight, and rest
- Be fit and fast through following appropriate training and completing the workouts on the calendar
Tier 2:
- Build bike strength by riding upwards of 200 miles/week starting in May
- Improve running base and performance by adding purpose to each and every run
- Swim enough to be competitive
- Build overall through regular gym sessions through April and then with decreased frequency through July
Tier 3:
- Get damn close to 4:30 in the half ironman I will race June 1
- Get damn close to 9:30 at IMLP on July 27
The biggest thing I'm doing is taking priority away from results. I want to focus on what's closest to me and most important in the long run - being happy. What happens on race day happens. Time is just a number, and I won't allow myself to get caught up in it.
Also, because of some family and work obligations, I don't think I'll take a Kona slot this year even if it is offered. I've teetered on this for a while, but the cost and stress just isn't worth it. If I can make it in 2014, there's no reason I can't do it some other time. And that's that.
Lastly, I had a pretty good February. Much better than February of 2011 anyway. The foundation is coming together well. It's a recovery week this week, which I needed. I took Tuesday completely off because I was running a fever. I'll get some quality in this weekend and then back to it next week.
Friday, February 21, 2014
Solid start to IM training
Things are rolling here in PA despite the weather trying to keep me inside and unmotivated. Yes, we are covered with 6-8" of snow. Yes, the temps are frigid. Yes, the roads are icy and torn up from the salt and snow plows. And yes, the trails are covered with snow, extremely wet, and pretty much useless...
BUT I'm finding my groove. The motivation is back, and where there's a will, there's a way.
The training plan I'm using started on Feb. 11, and the first two weeks have been pretty good. Not perfect, but pretty good.
It's all about developing a good base so I can handle the higher stress later. I skipped a swim last Friday and couldn't handle the 3hr trainer ride as planned on Saturday. This week I missed a strength session Thursday. If I can hit the weekend work planned (3hr ride Saturday, 1hr ride and 1.5hr run Sunday) I'll be good. It looks like it will warm up enough to get outside tomorrow. Now I just need to decide if I trash my road bike on the chewed up pavement or if I get on the mountain bike again (which I don't really like riding on the roads because I'm just wearing away tread on expensive mtb tires)... We shall see.
Looking back on my training log, I haven't done a 10+hr training week since 2011! Yikes! I'm feeling the fatigue, but I'll get used to it. Comparing this year to 2011, I had a little more time/miles in the bank going into Feb. 2011, but the training is about the same. I feel like my running and swimming are behind where I'd really like them to be, but there's still plenty of time. I'm happy to put in a good bike foundation first.
I've been thinking a lot about my goals for this race season lately, and I'll write something up in a future post. The teaser is that I really focused on goals that were out of my control in 2011, and I rolled those goals into this year without really thinking about them. I want to get away from that. I can't control whether or not I get a Kona slot. If there are 4 soon-to-be professionals in my age group, there's just nothing I can do. I don't want to put myself in a situation where I could end up disappointed, so I've got to adjust my goals to things that are within my control. More later.
Happy Friday and thanks for checking in.
PW
BUT I'm finding my groove. The motivation is back, and where there's a will, there's a way.
The training plan I'm using started on Feb. 11, and the first two weeks have been pretty good. Not perfect, but pretty good.
It's all about developing a good base so I can handle the higher stress later. I skipped a swim last Friday and couldn't handle the 3hr trainer ride as planned on Saturday. This week I missed a strength session Thursday. If I can hit the weekend work planned (3hr ride Saturday, 1hr ride and 1.5hr run Sunday) I'll be good. It looks like it will warm up enough to get outside tomorrow. Now I just need to decide if I trash my road bike on the chewed up pavement or if I get on the mountain bike again (which I don't really like riding on the roads because I'm just wearing away tread on expensive mtb tires)... We shall see.
Looking back on my training log, I haven't done a 10+hr training week since 2011! Yikes! I'm feeling the fatigue, but I'll get used to it. Comparing this year to 2011, I had a little more time/miles in the bank going into Feb. 2011, but the training is about the same. I feel like my running and swimming are behind where I'd really like them to be, but there's still plenty of time. I'm happy to put in a good bike foundation first.
I've been thinking a lot about my goals for this race season lately, and I'll write something up in a future post. The teaser is that I really focused on goals that were out of my control in 2011, and I rolled those goals into this year without really thinking about them. I want to get away from that. I can't control whether or not I get a Kona slot. If there are 4 soon-to-be professionals in my age group, there's just nothing I can do. I don't want to put myself in a situation where I could end up disappointed, so I've got to adjust my goals to things that are within my control. More later.
Happy Friday and thanks for checking in.
PW
Sunday, February 2, 2014
January in review
Well I certainly put the blogging on the back burner in January. To be honest, I think that's how it will stay from here on out. I just don't have the mojo. I enjoy being able to look back on the training log and see how I was feeling during certain parts of the training, but there are just too many things going on to keep up with it. My new blog goal is just 1-2 times per month. I'll kick this one off with bullet points.
- January was a light training month, but I got into a better routine than I had been in. I am confident my body will be able to handle the 12-15 hours/week that February and March are calling for.
- I tried a juice cleanse that lasted all of about 12 hours. The biggest problem is that I don't have a juicer - I was just using my blender for everything. Maddy and I both tried it. We couldn't choke down the 3rd juice of the day. The goal was to get my weight down a little. It has come down, but I'm heavier than I have been in previous years. I (also optimistically) think I'll be down to a good training weight once things get going.
- I've gotten some good trainer rides in - 3 of 2+ hours. I have a group of buddies here all training for IM, so we line them up in a basement and slug through. It really does make the time go faster.
- I got a cardio-pulminary test on Jan. 31 to see how the ol' ticker is doing. Some interesting take-aways were:
- My VO2 max is a bit lower than I expected. 57.7 is all I could muster. I thought I would be in the mid 60s. It just shows what I have always known, though, I have a weak top end.
- The doc diagnosed me with exercise induced asthma. After the VO2 my lungs couldn't exhale nearly as much as before. I was prescribed an advair inhaler, and I'll go back next month to see if it helps.
- My aerobic threshold HR was 177 pushing 280 watts and my anaerobic (lactate) threshold HR was 187 pushing 315 watts. The HR's I can work with. I have no way of measuring watts, though, so besides an fun number, it means very little to me. I guess the W/kg is kind of interesting. Right now I'm about 153lbs, so 4.1W/kg. I'll take that.
- Lastly, I went for an AWESOME mountain bike ride this morning. I love that bike. The roads are snowy and salty, so there was no way I'd get outside on the road bike. Well worth the investment to keep me going through the cold winter months.
So, that's where I am.
Onward and upward.
Thanks for reading.
PW
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
The difference
This is going to be a few brief thoughts on what will make the difference between 2011 and 2014.
First is the goal - it's no longer about finishing an Ironman. It's about getting to the top of my AG and qualifying for Kona. But I can't just focus on outcome based goals. I need to instead focus on things I can control and let the outcome be what it may.
So, what will make the difference?
I hope it's just attention to detail. Simple as that. As a former co-worker who I really admired used to say, "take care of the little things and the big things take care of themselves."
What does that look like day-to-day?
- Going to the pool with a workout in hand rather than just winging it. And doing the whole workout! - which is a big problem of mine. In 2011 I did way too much "oh it's fine if I just do 2500 yards today, I'll make it up later in the week" and then I wouldn't make it up...
- Spending LOTS of time on the bike. I have 3 now, so there's really no excuse. I also cut a lot of rides short in the base phase of my training. The new training program is calling for a 3 hour ride as early as February 15. The bike is the "easiest" place to see major improvements and it's no secret that more time on the bike makes you faster.
- Adding striders to the end of my runs to focus on form and leg turnover. Just 5-10 short 20 second sprints with full rest have been shown to make runners more efficient without breaking down the muscles as much as a full track workout. Again, it's the little things.
- Strength sessions twice a week during my base phase. Not killing myself in the gym (or at least not all the time), but just adding some stability and core work. Hopefully this, as well, will pay dividends in my overall performance.
The underlining theme is focus on the little things. And as easy as it is to write down, I know it will be hard to put into practice. Especially when I get tired, things start to get cut short. And it could be my body trying to tell me that it's working too hard. But I hope I'll be able to tell the difference.
So bringing this into the New Year, I guess those are my resolutions... pay attention to the details. We shall see how it goes.
Happy New Year all! And thank you for reading.
DO GREAT WORK!
First is the goal - it's no longer about finishing an Ironman. It's about getting to the top of my AG and qualifying for Kona. But I can't just focus on outcome based goals. I need to instead focus on things I can control and let the outcome be what it may.
So, what will make the difference?
I hope it's just attention to detail. Simple as that. As a former co-worker who I really admired used to say, "take care of the little things and the big things take care of themselves."
What does that look like day-to-day?
- Going to the pool with a workout in hand rather than just winging it. And doing the whole workout! - which is a big problem of mine. In 2011 I did way too much "oh it's fine if I just do 2500 yards today, I'll make it up later in the week" and then I wouldn't make it up...
- Spending LOTS of time on the bike. I have 3 now, so there's really no excuse. I also cut a lot of rides short in the base phase of my training. The new training program is calling for a 3 hour ride as early as February 15. The bike is the "easiest" place to see major improvements and it's no secret that more time on the bike makes you faster.
- Adding striders to the end of my runs to focus on form and leg turnover. Just 5-10 short 20 second sprints with full rest have been shown to make runners more efficient without breaking down the muscles as much as a full track workout. Again, it's the little things.
- Strength sessions twice a week during my base phase. Not killing myself in the gym (or at least not all the time), but just adding some stability and core work. Hopefully this, as well, will pay dividends in my overall performance.
The underlining theme is focus on the little things. And as easy as it is to write down, I know it will be hard to put into practice. Especially when I get tired, things start to get cut short. And it could be my body trying to tell me that it's working too hard. But I hope I'll be able to tell the difference.
So bringing this into the New Year, I guess those are my resolutions... pay attention to the details. We shall see how it goes.
Happy New Year all! And thank you for reading.
DO GREAT WORK!
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Santa was good to me!
Race wheels! (the other one is still in the box)
Ok it wasn't Santa, it was me... But some awesome family members helped fund these :) Thank you!! I actually got them for a screaming deal on active gear up. Less than $800 for the wheelset. 80mm carbon clinchers with aluminum braking surface. A little heavier than full carbon wheels, but I don't need new special brake pads, and I don't have to worry about heating them up on that Keene descent.
It's a shame I haven't been better to myself this break! I started off with a good week last week. Got a nice run in Friday and a ride outside in unseasonably warm weather Saturday, but I hit the holiday binge hard after that... Lots of beers, bourbon, and BIG meals. I'm talking about the heavy appetizer, lick-my-plate 2000 calorie entree, and then dessert, because why not? Right? Some people put a weighted vest on to train, but who wants a vest? I'll just pack on some extra pounds...
In all seriousness, I should be back in a routine by this weekend. No real harm will be done, and, frankly, I'm having fun with family and friends, so it's worth it. I also found a delicious and funky beer during my binge. It was called something like "Sweet baby Jesus Peanut Butter Porter". The name really tells you everything you need to know. Now go out and find one.
As I reel things back in I'll have some good reading to help me along. Some nutrition and cooking books as well as a book on tips how to get faster. I'll let you know what I think of these in a later post, but the cookbooks (at first glance) are pretty sweet.
OK - that's all for now. Happy holidays! Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Putting the pen to paper
It's much easier for me to visualize the outline of a long training plan when I physically write things out. So, this morning (after getting some work done around the office) I got out some light reading materials and got to work!
This will be the basic schedule week to week. The key workouts have boxes around them.
Monday - rest day
Tuesday - quality bike or run (they will alternate week to week) with a swim
Wednesday - the opposite of Tuesday also with a swim
Thursday - Brick and either a swim or weight session
Friday - quality swim session (LONG set! 1-2 hours). Maybe a shorter second session during the day.
Saturday - long bike and short run
Sunday - bike and then long run.
Eat, tell my wife I love her, sleep, repeat for 6 months...
Fitzgerald called for a swim then run on Sunday, but I really liked biking and then running long. It really prepared me, I think, for the IM marathon. And I want to go faster than my 3:23 from 2011... Fitzgerald also had a hard bike session on Friday, which I switched to Tuesday. I want to make sure I'm relatively fresh for my Saturday ride. This time around I want to make sure I'm really focused during key sessions. It becomes very difficult when heavy fatigue sets in, but digging a little deeper and really finishing those workouts will, I believe, get me where I want to go.
It's a little messy... but I could spend the early morning cleaning OR on the bike. Guess which one I chose? And guess which one Maddy wishes I chose? (Just kidding - kind of).
Last note - coaching winter track has kept me pretty strong. I do a dynamic warm up with the kids everyday, and we do a lot of shorter sprint sets. With the snow covering the track, we've run A LOT of stairs in the academic buildings and we even hit the gym a little bit. Strength seems to be there, but, as I alluded to earlier, my aerobic fitness is way down. I know that I just need to be able to handle the training in February, so, for now, it's going to be kind of unstructured. I'll need to be able to run an hour, swim 3k, and ride 3 hours by Feb. 10. I'm not too worried.
Thanks for reading!
Happy holidays!
I'm going to blend what I did last time I went to Lake Placid with Matt Fitzgerald's Essential Week-by-Week Training Guide (Level 7/8) 24 week IM plan. There were certain workouts from the last plan that I know (mentally at least) prepared me for the race. I will also use a longer than planned taper, which I took from the QT2 Systems website. I really like the things they do, and I almost signed up for coaching from them, but I couldn't justify the cost. I'll write about my thoughts on coaching some other time. Anywho - this is what I came up with!
24 weeks divided into 3 meso cycles - base phase, build phase, and peak phase. The way Fitzgerald builds his programs, you kind of cycle through a run, swim, and bike focus every few weeks, so I'm really going to just stick to the plan and let it work. From now until Feb. 11 is when I really need to prepare myself for the program. My fitness kind of sucks right now, but I'm relatively strong compared to past winters. More on that later.
This will be the basic schedule week to week. The key workouts have boxes around them.
Monday - rest day
Tuesday - quality bike or run (they will alternate week to week) with a swim
Wednesday - the opposite of Tuesday also with a swim
Thursday - Brick and either a swim or weight session
Friday - quality swim session (LONG set! 1-2 hours). Maybe a shorter second session during the day.
Saturday - long bike and short run
Sunday - bike and then long run.
Eat, tell my wife I love her, sleep, repeat for 6 months...
Fitzgerald called for a swim then run on Sunday, but I really liked biking and then running long. It really prepared me, I think, for the IM marathon. And I want to go faster than my 3:23 from 2011... Fitzgerald also had a hard bike session on Friday, which I switched to Tuesday. I want to make sure I'm relatively fresh for my Saturday ride. This time around I want to make sure I'm really focused during key sessions. It becomes very difficult when heavy fatigue sets in, but digging a little deeper and really finishing those workouts will, I believe, get me where I want to go.
Despite my mojo being up, the weather is trying to hold me down! We've had a lot of snowfall (for PA) this time of year. I'm doing my best to work through it with strength sessions and pool sets. I tried to ride my mountain bike through the snow covered fields the other day and wow was it hard! I'll be on the trainer until this stuff clears (which might be soon bc it's supposed to hit 65 this weekend!).
It's a little messy... but I could spend the early morning cleaning OR on the bike. Guess which one I chose? And guess which one Maddy wishes I chose? (Just kidding - kind of).
Last note - coaching winter track has kept me pretty strong. I do a dynamic warm up with the kids everyday, and we do a lot of shorter sprint sets. With the snow covering the track, we've run A LOT of stairs in the academic buildings and we even hit the gym a little bit. Strength seems to be there, but, as I alluded to earlier, my aerobic fitness is way down. I know that I just need to be able to handle the training in February, so, for now, it's going to be kind of unstructured. I'll need to be able to run an hour, swim 3k, and ride 3 hours by Feb. 10. I'm not too worried.
Thanks for reading!
Happy holidays!
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