Panama City Beach - November 7, 2009
I’m not sure why, but I’ve always made a habit of getting to transition early before races. I think Trevor suggested I do it during my first race, and even though since then I’ve realized I always end up just hanging around for an hour and a half with nothing to do, I do it anyway. The Ironman was even worse, since you bring over your transition bags (essentially plastic bags where you put everything you’ll need to get from swim to bike and bike to run) and your bike the night before. So it’s basically just show up with your wetsuit and get in the water.
But I got there at 5:15 anyway for the 7 a.m. start. I wandered around transition for a while, took my Sudafed, took my Lipodrene with about half an hour to go as the sun came up, and took in the scene. It really was quite amazing. They make all the athletes get in this giant holding pen on the beach, and from there you can go warm up in the Gulf. Looking back from the water, the beach was full of spectators, and people were out on their condo balconies to watch the swim start. I have honestly never participated in anything that this may people had watched. The pros went off at 6:50, then it was the other 2700 peoples’ turn.
Swim - 2.4 Miles
If you’ve never seen the swim start to an Ironman, it really is one of the great spectacles in sports. Nearly 3000 people all getting in the water at the same time, all headed in the same direction. Knowing I was one of the larger competitors, I thought I’d use this to my advantage. I put myself in the front of the middle, since that is about how I figure I swim in relation to everyone else, and then just dove in. You can run in the water for probably the first 100 yards since tide is low in the morning, but once I jumped in, it was war time.
Basically, anyone I saw in front of me I just tried to swim through if they were slower. Everyone. It was just this mass of people everywhere you went, and it was every potential Ironman for him or herself. So you just beat people up. And in the water you can’t differentiate between guys and girls, so, yeah, I was probably hitting a few girls as I went by. Just swimming like I play basketball: bruising. Not to say I didn’t get my shares of elbows to the nose and kicks to the face, but I’m fairly sure I gave a lot more than I got. But even if people get pissed, what are they gonna say? “Hey ref, this guy in a wetsuit and a red cap pushed me out of the way.” Yeah, that narrows it down.
I kept a good pace, swam straight, and about ¾ of the way to the first buoy it stopped feeling hard. It was just like stroke, stroke, kick someone in the face, stroke. And look at the throngs of jellyfish under me and pray I didn’t get stung.(My mother would have been very worries). Ended up doing the first 1.2 miles in just over 37 minutes. So faster than I’d expected.
I took some water and hit loop 2, still in throngs of people. I did notice I was going from pack to pack, meaning it seemed to me I was passing a good number of people. But it’s hard to tell in the water. As I slowed and looked up to site myself at the turn at the first buoy, I hear this female voice say “Hey man, you’re being kind of aggressive.” It made me smile. Yeah, ok, I was shoving girls out of the way, but if you wanna swim with the boys, you gotta play rough.
The rest of the swim was rather uneventful, though I felt like I was definitely passing more people than I was passed by. Ended up doing it in 1:17, 3 minutes faster than expected, but not far off.
T1 – Swim to Bike – 9:18
I ran out of the water and got my wetsuit stripped by a “peeler” (they can’t call them “Strippers” anymore, apparently) and sort of jogged barefoot over the concrete into the changing “tent.” A volunteer handed me my swim to bike transition bag, and I ran through this hotel ballroom to a partitioned off section for the men. It was very strange, like this makeshift locker room with plastic chairs, with Gatorade bottles and Clif bar wrappers and all; this shit all over the places. And dudes just walking around naked, putting anti-chafe butter and sunscreen on. It was very odd. Anyway, I took my time in there, put on all my gear, and ran out in my bike shoes to the bike. It’s very nice at the Ironman, too, they bring you your bike, even though you end up running like 150 yards from the “tent” to the start. But whatever. One down, two to go.
Showing posts with label swim. Show all posts
Showing posts with label swim. Show all posts
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
T109 - Welcome to The Big Leagues - Swim
Panama City Beach
Panama City, I guess, is usually a big party location. This weekend, though, it's a bit different. This weekend, the place has been overrun by ridiculously healthy, slightly insane people biking, running and swimming all over the streets and beached usually occupied by falling-down drunk college kids. It's very surreal. On the drive in, I saw no less than four SUVs with bikes on the back, and this morning the streets were lines with cars with 140.6 and M-Dot stickers on them. And bikes. Fucking bikes everywhere.
My parents have reserved a condo less than half a mile from the starting line, so this morning I decided I'd go and try out my wetsuit, and swim one lap of the swim course. Trevor had said it was a good idea as a confidence builder, and it gives you an idea of what you're up against in the water. Of course, within 50 feet of my front door I ran into this guy from Louisiana who was in town for the race, and we made triathlete small talk all the way to the Gatorade Bag Check on the beach, where probably 300 people were preparing to or doing or finishing the swim.
I walked through the athlete's expo on the way. Pretty surreal to see all the booths and tents and trophies and serious, $10,000 bikes in there. This is it. This is the pinnacle of triathlon insofar as non-championship events are concerned. And it definitely looked it. Not one person there looked like they couldn't finish. Everyone looked sinewy and weathered. Like the kinds of people who do Ironman's on a regular basis. I'm not one to get intimidated, mind you, but this crowd was definitely the big leagues.
I got down to the beach area where the swim was and everyone was in wetsuits. Conversations I overheard were all about past Ironman's people had run, or about the experiences people had had in Kona a few weeks before. Like I said, this is the big leagues. Everyone also felt the necessity to wear their finisher shirts from past races, be they full Ironmans or 70.3s. I'm not sure if this is bragging or just fitting in or what, but I thought it was pretty funny that pretty much every single person had some sort of M-Dot attire on. Ok. We get it. We're at the Ironman. I was in a nondescript muscle shirt and some USMC shorts just for the record. Yeah, we get it. I was in the Marines.
Swim - 1.2 miles
3 Sudafed
I put my wetsuit on, at least the leg part, over by the gear check. Which was fine until I got in the water and once again realized I had it on backward. Nothing says "This is my first Ironman" like putting on your wetsuit backward, does it? I'm not sure if anyone notices, but I quickly sat down in the water, took it off, and then put it on the right way. That Cooking Spray really does help a lot in getting it on and off.
I walked out about as far as I could and then began to stroke, and for some reason, just could not breathe. No idea why, but I stopped, turned around, went back to where I could stand, and breathed for about 30 seconds. False start. Got back in the water, started stroking, and didn't really stop except to site.
Which I did not do well.
Sighting has never been a real strength of mine, but today was [perhaps the most ridiculous example. I knew something was wrong when I saw a lot of people swimming back in as I was swimming out. The course was a loop, after all. I figured they were just pussies and didn't want to do the whole thing and were turning back. I figured wrong. When I ran, head on, into a lady who looked at me like I'd just insulted her mother, I knew I'd probably fucked up. I made it out to a guy on a surfboard, who informed me that I had just swim in a diagonal from the starting line to the far turn back, essentially bisecting the entire course. Well, I wanted to do a full 1.2 miles, so he told me to just swim to the other far turn (essentially the end of the initial swim out) and then come back. I later realized this ended up being more that 1.2 miles, but hey, more training, right?
Anyway, I managed to do that, and sighing on the way back was easy because there was a giant condo tower to sight off. I seriously hope the buoys are bigger on race day, or I may be fucked. Seriously, these things were so small, I couldn’t see them at all from the water. Of course, the 2000 other people in the water may help that direction too. But I really need some fucking Lasik.
So this was my last training day. This was it. I’m going to take Friday off to rest up fully, then Saturday is the big day. This is the end of the training road, and this is the body I’m going to do the Ironman with. Ready as I’ll ever be. This swim definitely made me believe the swim will not be a big problem (Challenging, yes, but not deadly unless one of those jellyfish I saw gets me) and I’m ready to go. Now it’s just 2 days of check in a bag packing, and the hardest 12-13 hours of my life.
Panama City, I guess, is usually a big party location. This weekend, though, it's a bit different. This weekend, the place has been overrun by ridiculously healthy, slightly insane people biking, running and swimming all over the streets and beached usually occupied by falling-down drunk college kids. It's very surreal. On the drive in, I saw no less than four SUVs with bikes on the back, and this morning the streets were lines with cars with 140.6 and M-Dot stickers on them. And bikes. Fucking bikes everywhere.
My parents have reserved a condo less than half a mile from the starting line, so this morning I decided I'd go and try out my wetsuit, and swim one lap of the swim course. Trevor had said it was a good idea as a confidence builder, and it gives you an idea of what you're up against in the water. Of course, within 50 feet of my front door I ran into this guy from Louisiana who was in town for the race, and we made triathlete small talk all the way to the Gatorade Bag Check on the beach, where probably 300 people were preparing to or doing or finishing the swim.
I walked through the athlete's expo on the way. Pretty surreal to see all the booths and tents and trophies and serious, $10,000 bikes in there. This is it. This is the pinnacle of triathlon insofar as non-championship events are concerned. And it definitely looked it. Not one person there looked like they couldn't finish. Everyone looked sinewy and weathered. Like the kinds of people who do Ironman's on a regular basis. I'm not one to get intimidated, mind you, but this crowd was definitely the big leagues.
I got down to the beach area where the swim was and everyone was in wetsuits. Conversations I overheard were all about past Ironman's people had run, or about the experiences people had had in Kona a few weeks before. Like I said, this is the big leagues. Everyone also felt the necessity to wear their finisher shirts from past races, be they full Ironmans or 70.3s. I'm not sure if this is bragging or just fitting in or what, but I thought it was pretty funny that pretty much every single person had some sort of M-Dot attire on. Ok. We get it. We're at the Ironman. I was in a nondescript muscle shirt and some USMC shorts just for the record. Yeah, we get it. I was in the Marines.
Swim - 1.2 miles
3 Sudafed
I put my wetsuit on, at least the leg part, over by the gear check. Which was fine until I got in the water and once again realized I had it on backward. Nothing says "This is my first Ironman" like putting on your wetsuit backward, does it? I'm not sure if anyone notices, but I quickly sat down in the water, took it off, and then put it on the right way. That Cooking Spray really does help a lot in getting it on and off.
I walked out about as far as I could and then began to stroke, and for some reason, just could not breathe. No idea why, but I stopped, turned around, went back to where I could stand, and breathed for about 30 seconds. False start. Got back in the water, started stroking, and didn't really stop except to site.
Which I did not do well.
Sighting has never been a real strength of mine, but today was [perhaps the most ridiculous example. I knew something was wrong when I saw a lot of people swimming back in as I was swimming out. The course was a loop, after all. I figured they were just pussies and didn't want to do the whole thing and were turning back. I figured wrong. When I ran, head on, into a lady who looked at me like I'd just insulted her mother, I knew I'd probably fucked up. I made it out to a guy on a surfboard, who informed me that I had just swim in a diagonal from the starting line to the far turn back, essentially bisecting the entire course. Well, I wanted to do a full 1.2 miles, so he told me to just swim to the other far turn (essentially the end of the initial swim out) and then come back. I later realized this ended up being more that 1.2 miles, but hey, more training, right?
Anyway, I managed to do that, and sighing on the way back was easy because there was a giant condo tower to sight off. I seriously hope the buoys are bigger on race day, or I may be fucked. Seriously, these things were so small, I couldn’t see them at all from the water. Of course, the 2000 other people in the water may help that direction too. But I really need some fucking Lasik.
So this was my last training day. This was it. I’m going to take Friday off to rest up fully, then Saturday is the big day. This is the end of the training road, and this is the body I’m going to do the Ironman with. Ready as I’ll ever be. This swim definitely made me believe the swim will not be a big problem (Challenging, yes, but not deadly unless one of those jellyfish I saw gets me) and I’m ready to go. Now it’s just 2 days of check in a bag packing, and the hardest 12-13 hours of my life.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
T107 - My Kinda Sprints - Swim, Run, Bike
Gainesville
Well, it's race week. I've got this kinda strange focus going on right now. Like I really don't want to talk to anybody or be too social. All week, just thinking about Saturday. It keeps occurring to me that a week from now, it'll all be over. And nice as it'll be to get back to a semi-normal life, I'm not looking forward to it at all. But more on that later.
My wetsuit came over the weekend. When I get up to Panama City Wednesday night, I'm going to do some wetsuit practice, then go swim a lap of the course Thursday morning. Until then, I'm just trying to get in some good meals and some good sleep. I took Monday off to recover from the weekend's strenuous events in Miami. I figured the short, keep-loose stuff the cards has scheduled wasn't overly crucial, and the rest would do met better. That being said, I still need to keep in constant training mode, as too much time off seems to have led to some bad workouts. But today's didn't look overly daunting.
Swim: warm up 5 minutes, 6 x 50 fast!, cool down 5 minutes
3 Sudafed
2 Lipodrene
The only concerning part about today's swim was when I did my traditional drop to the bottom of the pool when I got in. At about 1 foot down, my head started to feel like it was in a vice. Like one might if they don't eqaulize enough while scuba diving. But I was at 1 freaking foot! This is obviously a sign that I have some serious sinus congestion going on in my head, and the Sudafed, while making me breathe ok, isn't doing much to help that. Not that it's gonna keep me form doing the race, and the swim does not include a 30-foot underwater portion, but I do hope I get better.
The swim itself was fine. I definitely needed the warmup, and the sprints were hard. But short. And few of them. I can't keep that kinda pace for 100 yards, especially since I really haven't done much sprint work here in the last month and a half. Still don't like sprints, and even though I let up a little at the 40-yard mark of a couple of sets, my muscles felt good and I did for the most part what the card had instructed. Not my best swim, but I do like short sprints.
Run: warm up 5 minutes, 5 x 1 minute fast!, cool down 5 minutes (Treadmill)
Anything involving keeping a fast speed, I pretty much have to do on the treadmill. And, of course, I used the iPod. This section also felt fine. My legs needed a minute to warm up, but once the muscles got warm I made it through the sprint sections (which I only did at 8.0-8.3, depending on the song I had on) without difficulty. Holding a sprint for a minute is doable even for me, and my strides felt good. I think they just do these sprints to keep your muscles a little challenged without wearing them out. Good strategy, I think.
Bike: warm up 5 minutes, 5 x 2 minute fast!, cool down 5 minutes (trainer)
I briefly considered just doing this on the stationary, but I want to spend as much time in the saddle this week as I can. So I went home, had a sandwich, and got on the trainer. This was a bit more of a challenge, since the fast sections were 2 minutes long instead of one. For each one, I slowly shifted into my hardest gear, got into aero, and just went as hard as I could. I'd drop about 1-2 mph in speed by the end of the two minutes, but kept it over 22 the whole time. Again, I know speed isn't that relevant a stat, but it does give you something to show how you're doing relative to the rest of that workout. And my biking muscles felt challenged, used, but not worn out as I still felt fine after. I think all of this was a good first workout for race week.
Trevor told me today that I need to sleep by myself in my own bed the rest of the week. Obviously, that's not happening Wednesday on, since I'll be in PCB. And while I'm not sure I can keep to that tonight, I am promising myself that I'll be in bed by 12, to ensure a solid eight hours sleep. That's my minimum (at least attempted mimimum) for all but race night. When we know you never sleep. Other than that, a short bike and run tomorrow during the break, and then I'm off to Panama City. Hopefully these condos have wireless. Otherwise, I'll have to do the full report when I get back.
Well, it's race week. I've got this kinda strange focus going on right now. Like I really don't want to talk to anybody or be too social. All week, just thinking about Saturday. It keeps occurring to me that a week from now, it'll all be over. And nice as it'll be to get back to a semi-normal life, I'm not looking forward to it at all. But more on that later.
My wetsuit came over the weekend. When I get up to Panama City Wednesday night, I'm going to do some wetsuit practice, then go swim a lap of the course Thursday morning. Until then, I'm just trying to get in some good meals and some good sleep. I took Monday off to recover from the weekend's strenuous events in Miami. I figured the short, keep-loose stuff the cards has scheduled wasn't overly crucial, and the rest would do met better. That being said, I still need to keep in constant training mode, as too much time off seems to have led to some bad workouts. But today's didn't look overly daunting.
Swim: warm up 5 minutes, 6 x 50 fast!, cool down 5 minutes
3 Sudafed
2 Lipodrene
The only concerning part about today's swim was when I did my traditional drop to the bottom of the pool when I got in. At about 1 foot down, my head started to feel like it was in a vice. Like one might if they don't eqaulize enough while scuba diving. But I was at 1 freaking foot! This is obviously a sign that I have some serious sinus congestion going on in my head, and the Sudafed, while making me breathe ok, isn't doing much to help that. Not that it's gonna keep me form doing the race, and the swim does not include a 30-foot underwater portion, but I do hope I get better.
The swim itself was fine. I definitely needed the warmup, and the sprints were hard. But short. And few of them. I can't keep that kinda pace for 100 yards, especially since I really haven't done much sprint work here in the last month and a half. Still don't like sprints, and even though I let up a little at the 40-yard mark of a couple of sets, my muscles felt good and I did for the most part what the card had instructed. Not my best swim, but I do like short sprints.
Run: warm up 5 minutes, 5 x 1 minute fast!, cool down 5 minutes (Treadmill)
Anything involving keeping a fast speed, I pretty much have to do on the treadmill. And, of course, I used the iPod. This section also felt fine. My legs needed a minute to warm up, but once the muscles got warm I made it through the sprint sections (which I only did at 8.0-8.3, depending on the song I had on) without difficulty. Holding a sprint for a minute is doable even for me, and my strides felt good. I think they just do these sprints to keep your muscles a little challenged without wearing them out. Good strategy, I think.
Bike: warm up 5 minutes, 5 x 2 minute fast!, cool down 5 minutes (trainer)
I briefly considered just doing this on the stationary, but I want to spend as much time in the saddle this week as I can. So I went home, had a sandwich, and got on the trainer. This was a bit more of a challenge, since the fast sections were 2 minutes long instead of one. For each one, I slowly shifted into my hardest gear, got into aero, and just went as hard as I could. I'd drop about 1-2 mph in speed by the end of the two minutes, but kept it over 22 the whole time. Again, I know speed isn't that relevant a stat, but it does give you something to show how you're doing relative to the rest of that workout. And my biking muscles felt challenged, used, but not worn out as I still felt fine after. I think all of this was a good first workout for race week.
Trevor told me today that I need to sleep by myself in my own bed the rest of the week. Obviously, that's not happening Wednesday on, since I'll be in PCB. And while I'm not sure I can keep to that tonight, I am promising myself that I'll be in bed by 12, to ensure a solid eight hours sleep. That's my minimum (at least attempted mimimum) for all but race night. When we know you never sleep. Other than that, a short bike and run tomorrow during the break, and then I'm off to Panama City. Hopefully these condos have wireless. Otherwise, I'll have to do the full report when I get back.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
T104 - Half Ironman Weekend, Part One - Swim/Bike Brick
Miami
I realized that between Friday's workout and Saturday's half-marathon, I'd be basically doing a Half Ironman over two days a week before the big race. But it's over 2 days. So I think I'll be ok. I stayed up in Miramar Thursday night, and had to be up early as Klueber had to meet with his CIA rep or whatever it is he does, at like 7:30. So I drove down to Key Biscayne and parked my car at Bill Baggs park for the open water swim and bike brick. I thought this would be a good race simulation, even if it was a bit short.
Swim: 75 minutes - open water if possible.
Continuous swim. 1st 200m at RPE 9-10, then settle into race pace
2 Lipodrene
The training card actually only called for 45 minutes today. But the thing is, I don't wear a watch. So I looked at the clock on my car when I left to go to the water and it was 8:57, figuring I probably got in the water around 9. I got out in Biscayne Bay and just got into my stroke groove and was like "Shit, I can do this all night." I was actually swimming into the current, although the waves were still battering me from my right side. Because I breathe to the left, this was not such a big deal on the way out. So I get to a bend in the beach and see the first condo past the park isn't that far and decide to swim to it. Those condos look a lot closer from the water than they really are, let me tell you. I started swimming completely with the current, into shore, and it took a loooong time. But whatever. I got to the beach, stood up, pissed in the water, and headed back.
Now on the way back I had the current at my back, which I figured would make for a faster return trip. But what I didn't account for was the waves splashing into my face every other breath, as well as the waves knocking me around while I swam. There was some decent chop out Friday morning, even that early. Also, sighting became a problem. I kept looking up to sight myself to the lighthouse in the park (where I started my swim) and all I kept seeing was ocean. Like I kept swimming out into the bay instead of staying on the shoreline. Eventually I decided to hug the shoreline, and about 300 yards before the lighthouse all I could do was grab sand. Too fucking shallow. So I just got out and walked it. Got back to my car and it was 10:37. Accounting for time spent walking and getting my shit together, I figured the swim was around 75 minutes. Might have been longer, who knows, but it definitely made the bike a lot more rushed.
Bike - 3 Hours
2 Lipodrene
I had biked the Rickenbacker probably 25 or 30 times in the summer of 2008 when I was training for my first half-Ironman. So I felt like I knew the course well. It's very flat, and very windy, but I felt like since I knew it and I was stronger I'd do well. Well, I thought wrong. I'm not sure if it was me still feeling ill, or me being tired from lack of sleep, or the swim kicking my ass, but I got on the bike, did 19 for about 2 miles, then could not get much over 16 for a long time. Like I just wanted to put the energy into going faster but for some reason just couldn't. Didn't want to go fast. A couple of times I got up near 20 and just held back, and I don't know why. Maybe it was mental pacing myself, knowing I have the half-marathon Saturday morning. But that won't fly come Ironman day.
Basically, I did the first trip around the Rickenbacker and to Virginia Key in 1:19. That's distance of about 21 miles, BTW. Essentially, a shitty ride. A really shitty ride. Just could not get anything going at all, and a little distressing after the good Century ride and strong trainer session. Even when I hit the few sharp turns on this ride, which I usually navigated ok a year ago when I was a worse biker, I just stopped, unclipped, and turned because I didn't have the energy to try and navigate them. It was a very strange ride to say the least.
The second trip wasn't so bad. I got up to 18 heading out and kept that speed, going a little faster on the road out to Jimbo’s and obviously slowing at Mount Miami. But as I turned around to head back Tony, the guy who cuts my hair and the friend I was staying with that night (he's straight, don't get any fucking ideas) texted me to see when was the soonest I could come in. My appointment was at 4, but he really wanted to take the rest of the day off, and since he was letting me stay at his place before the half-marathon I figured I do him a favor. I got back to my car at 2:40, and decided to call it a day. Yes, I cheated myself out of 20 minutes of a really shitty bike ride (averaged about 16, a record low for anything, ever)and that time was instead taken up by increased time swimming in open salt water. Probably something I needed more practice in anyway.
The swim felt good, though it was mentally tough. But man, did that bike suck., I'm not sure why I had nothing for it, I've done swim/bike bricks before, and done races where that certainly did not happen. I'll chalk it up to a shitty day. And fortunately I have one more ride of significance before the race to get my confidence back up.
I realized that between Friday's workout and Saturday's half-marathon, I'd be basically doing a Half Ironman over two days a week before the big race. But it's over 2 days. So I think I'll be ok. I stayed up in Miramar Thursday night, and had to be up early as Klueber had to meet with his CIA rep or whatever it is he does, at like 7:30. So I drove down to Key Biscayne and parked my car at Bill Baggs park for the open water swim and bike brick. I thought this would be a good race simulation, even if it was a bit short.
Swim: 75 minutes - open water if possible.
Continuous swim. 1st 200m at RPE 9-10, then settle into race pace
2 Lipodrene
The training card actually only called for 45 minutes today. But the thing is, I don't wear a watch. So I looked at the clock on my car when I left to go to the water and it was 8:57, figuring I probably got in the water around 9. I got out in Biscayne Bay and just got into my stroke groove and was like "Shit, I can do this all night." I was actually swimming into the current, although the waves were still battering me from my right side. Because I breathe to the left, this was not such a big deal on the way out. So I get to a bend in the beach and see the first condo past the park isn't that far and decide to swim to it. Those condos look a lot closer from the water than they really are, let me tell you. I started swimming completely with the current, into shore, and it took a loooong time. But whatever. I got to the beach, stood up, pissed in the water, and headed back.
Now on the way back I had the current at my back, which I figured would make for a faster return trip. But what I didn't account for was the waves splashing into my face every other breath, as well as the waves knocking me around while I swam. There was some decent chop out Friday morning, even that early. Also, sighting became a problem. I kept looking up to sight myself to the lighthouse in the park (where I started my swim) and all I kept seeing was ocean. Like I kept swimming out into the bay instead of staying on the shoreline. Eventually I decided to hug the shoreline, and about 300 yards before the lighthouse all I could do was grab sand. Too fucking shallow. So I just got out and walked it. Got back to my car and it was 10:37. Accounting for time spent walking and getting my shit together, I figured the swim was around 75 minutes. Might have been longer, who knows, but it definitely made the bike a lot more rushed.
Bike - 3 Hours
2 Lipodrene
I had biked the Rickenbacker probably 25 or 30 times in the summer of 2008 when I was training for my first half-Ironman. So I felt like I knew the course well. It's very flat, and very windy, but I felt like since I knew it and I was stronger I'd do well. Well, I thought wrong. I'm not sure if it was me still feeling ill, or me being tired from lack of sleep, or the swim kicking my ass, but I got on the bike, did 19 for about 2 miles, then could not get much over 16 for a long time. Like I just wanted to put the energy into going faster but for some reason just couldn't. Didn't want to go fast. A couple of times I got up near 20 and just held back, and I don't know why. Maybe it was mental pacing myself, knowing I have the half-marathon Saturday morning. But that won't fly come Ironman day.
Basically, I did the first trip around the Rickenbacker and to Virginia Key in 1:19. That's distance of about 21 miles, BTW. Essentially, a shitty ride. A really shitty ride. Just could not get anything going at all, and a little distressing after the good Century ride and strong trainer session. Even when I hit the few sharp turns on this ride, which I usually navigated ok a year ago when I was a worse biker, I just stopped, unclipped, and turned because I didn't have the energy to try and navigate them. It was a very strange ride to say the least.
The second trip wasn't so bad. I got up to 18 heading out and kept that speed, going a little faster on the road out to Jimbo’s and obviously slowing at Mount Miami. But as I turned around to head back Tony, the guy who cuts my hair and the friend I was staying with that night (he's straight, don't get any fucking ideas) texted me to see when was the soonest I could come in. My appointment was at 4, but he really wanted to take the rest of the day off, and since he was letting me stay at his place before the half-marathon I figured I do him a favor. I got back to my car at 2:40, and decided to call it a day. Yes, I cheated myself out of 20 minutes of a really shitty bike ride (averaged about 16, a record low for anything, ever)and that time was instead taken up by increased time swimming in open salt water. Probably something I needed more practice in anyway.
The swim felt good, though it was mentally tough. But man, did that bike suck., I'm not sure why I had nothing for it, I've done swim/bike bricks before, and done races where that certainly did not happen. I'll chalk it up to a shitty day. And fortunately I have one more ride of significance before the race to get my confidence back up.
Friday, October 30, 2009
T103 - Tapering with Trainer Trance - Bike (Trainer), Swim
Gainesville
After three days off, I began my last tapering week before Race Week. Tapering is where you actually decrease your training hours, although the way I'm going it I still have some long workouts, just more days off. I'm not sure if this is the best method, but I've found my motivation on the shorter ones to be lacking, so I try and create a situation where I can maximize the training value.
Bike: 60 minutes (Trainer)
wu: 10 minute RPE3
main: 40 minutes RPE 7
cd: 10 minutes RPE 3
2 Lipodrene
I opted for the trainer since I did this workout on Wednesday, and Wednesdays don't leave much room for me to train before dark unless I want to wake up super early. And that wasn't happening. And given that this was a tapering week and I had 2 other bike rides scheduled (including a long swim/bike brick) I thought this would be a good time to use the trainer. It is still hot as fuck in Gainesville, and more humid that some parts of the summer. So this evening session on the patio was still especially sweaty.
I used the iPod and after the initial 10 minutes spend the better part of the 40-minute interval in aero with my eyes closed trying to get into the trainer trace. the trainer trance is pretty awesome because you really don't even feel your legs working at all, but you still go a lot harder than you would if you were looking up. I broke the trance several times, but the middle 40 felt strong. I still had some problems with saddle sores or hemorrhoids or whatever they are, and found myself shifting a lot every time I stood up in the saddle. but at the end I ended up averaging 18.8 for the hour. And even though Trevor says that's a meaningless stat, I really have nothing else to go by. One of my faster trainer sessions and despite the sweatiness and monotonousness, it was a good workout.
Swim
main: 200, 2x100, 200, 2 x 100, 200,
long intervals at RPE4, short at RPE 7-8
2 Lipodrene
I actualyl went pretty much straight from the trainer to my car and headed over to GHFC. I really should have looked up the warmup before I left, because the first 200 felt a little labored and my lats felt really sore. In addition, it was getting late and as such I started feeling dizzy and overheated. I have noticed that those symptoms really aren't too bad until about 7 or 8 at night, so I'm trying to avoid training that late the rest of the cycle. And fortunately, the race starts early.
Anyway, I wouldn't say I exactly crushed this swim, and I felt short of breath a LOT. the water also felt expecially cool, meaning I was getting that overheated feeling again. I took long breaks betwen sets and managed to get the workout done in the manner prescribed. But I did not feel good during most of it. I am learning how to manage whatever this weird illness is, and working out earlier seems to be a good solution.
I then proceeded to miss Thursday's workout, meaning I have 3 hard workouts in 3 days in Miami. And as we all know, Miami workouts tend to suck. Hopefully, I can reverse that trend in my last real week of training.
After three days off, I began my last tapering week before Race Week. Tapering is where you actually decrease your training hours, although the way I'm going it I still have some long workouts, just more days off. I'm not sure if this is the best method, but I've found my motivation on the shorter ones to be lacking, so I try and create a situation where I can maximize the training value.
Bike: 60 minutes (Trainer)
wu: 10 minute RPE3
main: 40 minutes RPE 7
cd: 10 minutes RPE 3
2 Lipodrene
I opted for the trainer since I did this workout on Wednesday, and Wednesdays don't leave much room for me to train before dark unless I want to wake up super early. And that wasn't happening. And given that this was a tapering week and I had 2 other bike rides scheduled (including a long swim/bike brick) I thought this would be a good time to use the trainer. It is still hot as fuck in Gainesville, and more humid that some parts of the summer. So this evening session on the patio was still especially sweaty.
I used the iPod and after the initial 10 minutes spend the better part of the 40-minute interval in aero with my eyes closed trying to get into the trainer trace. the trainer trance is pretty awesome because you really don't even feel your legs working at all, but you still go a lot harder than you would if you were looking up. I broke the trance several times, but the middle 40 felt strong. I still had some problems with saddle sores or hemorrhoids or whatever they are, and found myself shifting a lot every time I stood up in the saddle. but at the end I ended up averaging 18.8 for the hour. And even though Trevor says that's a meaningless stat, I really have nothing else to go by. One of my faster trainer sessions and despite the sweatiness and monotonousness, it was a good workout.
Swim
main: 200, 2x100, 200, 2 x 100, 200,
long intervals at RPE4, short at RPE 7-8
2 Lipodrene
I actualyl went pretty much straight from the trainer to my car and headed over to GHFC. I really should have looked up the warmup before I left, because the first 200 felt a little labored and my lats felt really sore. In addition, it was getting late and as such I started feeling dizzy and overheated. I have noticed that those symptoms really aren't too bad until about 7 or 8 at night, so I'm trying to avoid training that late the rest of the cycle. And fortunately, the race starts early.
Anyway, I wouldn't say I exactly crushed this swim, and I felt short of breath a LOT. the water also felt expecially cool, meaning I was getting that overheated feeling again. I took long breaks betwen sets and managed to get the workout done in the manner prescribed. But I did not feel good during most of it. I am learning how to manage whatever this weird illness is, and working out earlier seems to be a good solution.
I then proceeded to miss Thursday's workout, meaning I have 3 hard workouts in 3 days in Miami. And as we all know, Miami workouts tend to suck. Hopefully, I can reverse that trend in my last real week of training.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
T101 - The Yack and Rally - Swim
Gainesville
For Aaron Klueber...
I have this friend who likes to yack ("yack" is slang for vomiting, for the unaware). It is usually brought on by alcohol consumption, but this guy will generally empty the contents of his stomach into the nearest appropriate receptacle and/or sidewalk after drink 4 or 5. Sometimes multiple times in a night. But the guy never quits. He just yacks, picks his beer back up, and keeps drinking. And it's that kind of dedication that motivated me to fight through an otherwise uncomfortable swim on Friday.
Swim: speed day
wu: 3 x 200 - swim, kick, pull
main: 16 x 50 odds RPE 4, evens RPE 8-9
2 Lipodrene
This warmup was unpleasantly long. Especially for a day of sprints. Nonetheless, it felt fine (slow kicking, but that really is low on my list of things to improve at this point) until I got to the third lap of the "pull" section. It was at that point that I felt like my stomach had grown a garbage disposal blade and it was banging against my intestines. I somehow managed to make it through the last lap, and then just hightailed it into the locker room and let it rip into the toilet. And I get REAL loud when I'm yacking, like it sounds like someone is dying. I was just glad nobody stopped in asking if I was ok. I just stood over the bowl in my jammer spitting and yacking for about 2 or 3 minutes, gave myself a few minutes of sitting down by the pool to recover, then got right back at it. Yack and rally. It's the only way to go.
I did the 50s as one at race pace and one sprinting. This worked fairly well as the first set was a little shaky given the yacking, but after that I settled in to a solid pace. I did let up a few times on the last quarter lap of the sprints, maybe on some of the middle sets. Those were sprints where I'd give myself a nice long breather in between and then do pretty well on the next 2 or 3 sets of 50s. And as I got further along in the training day, the intervals got shorter. So the last sprints felt better than the first few. Again, maybe I just needed a sprint warmup, or, better still, needed to get further away from the yacking.
Either way I motivated myself with the yack and rally. Turning in a pretty solid swim after emptying my stomach in the GHFC bathroom is pretty fucking awesome. And maybe that was this illness' final exit from my body. I felt ok the rest of the day, which was good considering I had the Century ride on Saturday. Because the training card called for a 3 hour ride Saturday, I opted to give my legs a rest Friday and tack the 90 minute ride onto Saturday's workout, then add about another hour. Basically what I"m saying is I saw no point in tiring out my legs the day before a Centruy ride, and felt the 90 minutes of energy would be better spent elsewhere.
For Aaron Klueber...
I have this friend who likes to yack ("yack" is slang for vomiting, for the unaware). It is usually brought on by alcohol consumption, but this guy will generally empty the contents of his stomach into the nearest appropriate receptacle and/or sidewalk after drink 4 or 5. Sometimes multiple times in a night. But the guy never quits. He just yacks, picks his beer back up, and keeps drinking. And it's that kind of dedication that motivated me to fight through an otherwise uncomfortable swim on Friday.
Swim: speed day
wu: 3 x 200 - swim, kick, pull
main: 16 x 50 odds RPE 4, evens RPE 8-9
2 Lipodrene
This warmup was unpleasantly long. Especially for a day of sprints. Nonetheless, it felt fine (slow kicking, but that really is low on my list of things to improve at this point) until I got to the third lap of the "pull" section. It was at that point that I felt like my stomach had grown a garbage disposal blade and it was banging against my intestines. I somehow managed to make it through the last lap, and then just hightailed it into the locker room and let it rip into the toilet. And I get REAL loud when I'm yacking, like it sounds like someone is dying. I was just glad nobody stopped in asking if I was ok. I just stood over the bowl in my jammer spitting and yacking for about 2 or 3 minutes, gave myself a few minutes of sitting down by the pool to recover, then got right back at it. Yack and rally. It's the only way to go.
I did the 50s as one at race pace and one sprinting. This worked fairly well as the first set was a little shaky given the yacking, but after that I settled in to a solid pace. I did let up a few times on the last quarter lap of the sprints, maybe on some of the middle sets. Those were sprints where I'd give myself a nice long breather in between and then do pretty well on the next 2 or 3 sets of 50s. And as I got further along in the training day, the intervals got shorter. So the last sprints felt better than the first few. Again, maybe I just needed a sprint warmup, or, better still, needed to get further away from the yacking.
Either way I motivated myself with the yack and rally. Turning in a pretty solid swim after emptying my stomach in the GHFC bathroom is pretty fucking awesome. And maybe that was this illness' final exit from my body. I felt ok the rest of the day, which was good considering I had the Century ride on Saturday. Because the training card called for a 3 hour ride Saturday, I opted to give my legs a rest Friday and tack the 90 minute ride onto Saturday's workout, then add about another hour. Basically what I"m saying is I saw no point in tiring out my legs the day before a Centruy ride, and felt the 90 minutes of energy would be better spent elsewhere.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
T99 - Relapse - Bike, Swim
Gainesville
Bike: 120 minutes with hills. Solid effort ranging from RPE 3 to RPE 7
2 Lipodrene
441 and I have never been friends when it comes to the bike. I can honestly remember exactly one ride I've had on it that felt good, and I was hopped up on all kinds of Sudaed that day. Tuesday, I opted against the Sudafed, but still felt this was the course I needed to be biking to prepare for the wind on on the Ironman.
Heading down, I was not flying through Alligator Alley as I had been on my last trip, so I decided I would do a solid one hour down and another back. Simple enough. I felt a good combination of headwind and tailwind, meaning that the resistance should be about the same both ways. Even looked like a bit of a crosswind going through Payne's Prairie.
The fucking computer was still acting weird, registering speeds like 10 and 15 when I clearly knew I was going faster. I didn't so much mind, but it was a little disappointing when I saw my average speed on the way down was about 16, and I knew full well I was going faster. But this was only one factor that led to a very sbu-par ride.
It was close to the end of the day, meaning I was getting this ride in as late as possible, and didn't really want to be out there. I have also noticed my effort on short workouts has also diminished, because the long ones seem so much more relevant. I mean, if you're not going to put in any effort, why even bother training? It was sad, really. I also was feeling light headed and dizzy and sluggish again. I thought I'd given my body enough rest, but it appears that that didn't do the trick. I just have no motivation to kick it into high gear (no pun intended) and it showed on the way back.
I'm not sure if it's the realization that I'm going to have to not fight the wind super hard on the Ironman that has led to this, but when the wind kicked up in some spots I just flat out didn't give a shit. I just up-shifted and let it slow me down. then I'd look at my speedometer and see "10" (which was wrong) and not know exactly how much I"d slowed, and cared even less. Just a lackluster effort altogether, and what's worse was it didn't even bother me. This is a bad sign. I've now come to hate being on the bike, where until maybe a month ago I loved it. It's starting to feel like last cycle, and I don't like it one bit. But my body is just not responding and because the only way I can go faster is if my body can do it (as in I don't really push myself much. I need to start responding but I'm just lethargic all the time on bike rides. All I can do is hope I start getting back into it in the next few weeks.
Swim: race-specific
main: 3 x 750,
1 is RPE 3, 2 is RPE9 for first 100 then RPE5, 3 is RPE 5
2 Lipodrene
I figured maybe more stimulants would help make for a better swim. Now I"m starting to think this bottle of Lipodrene is just an ephedra-free knockoff that the ephedra outlet scammed me on. I'm really feeling nothing. Anyway, I headed out to GHFC after about half an hour at home. The first 750 was a little tough, as my lats were still a little sore form the previous evening's 2x2000. Understandable. So my first 750 took about 17 minutes, much slower than the night before, but again I wasn't overly concerned. The second one went well, but I still felt short of breath and found myself dogging it a few times. It wasn't the soreness, but more the tiredness. Again, bad sign.
Strangely, the third one went well and I did it in 15 minutes, which while slower than I'd like to be doing a 750 was still right on my race pace. I got out of the water and was immediately dizzy and wanted to sit down. I sort of dazed through the locker room, slugged to my car, and drove home.
This sickness isn't going away. I've come to realize that it has caused training to regress, and the more I think about it, the worse training gets. I don't know why I feel slower and less motivated now than I did a month ago. Maybe it's the fatigue of training. Maybe it's the cooler weather. Maybe it's whatever this is that makes me dizzy and short of breath all the time (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome would be cool just cuz it was on Golden Girls). But it seems here to stay. Now I have to deal with it.
Bike: 120 minutes with hills. Solid effort ranging from RPE 3 to RPE 7
2 Lipodrene
441 and I have never been friends when it comes to the bike. I can honestly remember exactly one ride I've had on it that felt good, and I was hopped up on all kinds of Sudaed that day. Tuesday, I opted against the Sudafed, but still felt this was the course I needed to be biking to prepare for the wind on on the Ironman.
Heading down, I was not flying through Alligator Alley as I had been on my last trip, so I decided I would do a solid one hour down and another back. Simple enough. I felt a good combination of headwind and tailwind, meaning that the resistance should be about the same both ways. Even looked like a bit of a crosswind going through Payne's Prairie.
The fucking computer was still acting weird, registering speeds like 10 and 15 when I clearly knew I was going faster. I didn't so much mind, but it was a little disappointing when I saw my average speed on the way down was about 16, and I knew full well I was going faster. But this was only one factor that led to a very sbu-par ride.
It was close to the end of the day, meaning I was getting this ride in as late as possible, and didn't really want to be out there. I have also noticed my effort on short workouts has also diminished, because the long ones seem so much more relevant. I mean, if you're not going to put in any effort, why even bother training? It was sad, really. I also was feeling light headed and dizzy and sluggish again. I thought I'd given my body enough rest, but it appears that that didn't do the trick. I just have no motivation to kick it into high gear (no pun intended) and it showed on the way back.
I'm not sure if it's the realization that I'm going to have to not fight the wind super hard on the Ironman that has led to this, but when the wind kicked up in some spots I just flat out didn't give a shit. I just up-shifted and let it slow me down. then I'd look at my speedometer and see "10" (which was wrong) and not know exactly how much I"d slowed, and cared even less. Just a lackluster effort altogether, and what's worse was it didn't even bother me. This is a bad sign. I've now come to hate being on the bike, where until maybe a month ago I loved it. It's starting to feel like last cycle, and I don't like it one bit. But my body is just not responding and because the only way I can go faster is if my body can do it (as in I don't really push myself much. I need to start responding but I'm just lethargic all the time on bike rides. All I can do is hope I start getting back into it in the next few weeks.
Swim: race-specific
main: 3 x 750,
1 is RPE 3, 2 is RPE9 for first 100 then RPE5, 3 is RPE 5
2 Lipodrene
I figured maybe more stimulants would help make for a better swim. Now I"m starting to think this bottle of Lipodrene is just an ephedra-free knockoff that the ephedra outlet scammed me on. I'm really feeling nothing. Anyway, I headed out to GHFC after about half an hour at home. The first 750 was a little tough, as my lats were still a little sore form the previous evening's 2x2000. Understandable. So my first 750 took about 17 minutes, much slower than the night before, but again I wasn't overly concerned. The second one went well, but I still felt short of breath and found myself dogging it a few times. It wasn't the soreness, but more the tiredness. Again, bad sign.
Strangely, the third one went well and I did it in 15 minutes, which while slower than I'd like to be doing a 750 was still right on my race pace. I got out of the water and was immediately dizzy and wanted to sit down. I sort of dazed through the locker room, slugged to my car, and drove home.
This sickness isn't going away. I've come to realize that it has caused training to regress, and the more I think about it, the worse training gets. I don't know why I feel slower and less motivated now than I did a month ago. Maybe it's the fatigue of training. Maybe it's the cooler weather. Maybe it's whatever this is that makes me dizzy and short of breath all the time (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome would be cool just cuz it was on Golden Girls). But it seems here to stay. Now I have to deal with it.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
T98 - Hope in a Sea of Chlorine - Swim
Gainesville
There was a girl I used to date who was always asking me, like most women do, what I was thinking. But this one had a particular interest in what I thought about during long training sessions with no music.
"Well, on swims," I told her, "I think about girls I've slept with, in order, to keep track of laps. Like lap one is my college girlfriend who was my first, and so on.."
"Really?!" she smiled, "So do you think about me?"
"I'll be balls deep in Ironman training before I get to you," I told her. Not sure she liked that response. This girl was #81, so today's 4000 meter swim would be as close as I would ever get to her getting a lap. Of course, I don't really employ that method anymore, so the point is moot. But it takes a swim where you do the same distance as the Ironman race to get that far in my sexual history. I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing.
Swim - 2x2000
2 Sudafed
2 Lipodrene
I had been feeling a little sniffley and drwosy, so I took some Sudafed to clear that up maybe an hour or so before the swim, then knocked back a couple Lipodrene before heading to the GHFC pool. I didn't even bother with a warmup, as it was already about 9 p.m. and I knew I was going to be in the pool for a while. So I hit the water strong and found myself keeping a nice form with a good push for a while. Stroke felt good, glide felt good. Everything felt good. I looked up around lap 12 of the first set and saw I had done 12 laps in 10 minutes, pretty much the reverse of how it had been up until this cycle. I was pleased.
The first set went well, and I managed to get through the whole thing at a fairly even pace and finished it in 38 minutes. So looks like I went real strong the first 500 meters or so, then settled into a good race pace. Which is probably exactly what I'll need to do during the race. I took a gel and some water after the first 40 laps, but my break was probably less than a minute. I feel like this is a good simulation for the "break" between laps on the course, since you have to get out of the water and start again. I didn't feel like running around the GHFC pool deck either. That mighta looked weird.
The second 40 laps also felt strong, and I never felt myself really let up at all. About lap 20 I started to feel a small cramp in my hamstring when I pushed off the wall, and by lap 25 I started to feel cramps in my lats and forearms. Not so much I had to stop, but definitely enough that I felt it. I'm not sure if salt tabs will help this, but I am mildly concerned since if I cramp up 1000 yards from shore during the race, I'm pretty fucked. Throw in a wetsuit that makes you sweat more, and I gotta definitely figure out how to mitigate this in the next couple of weeks.
But the swim felt strong the whole time, and I ended up finishing in 80 minutes, including my break. This is right where I wanted to be, and it was nice to have a training day where I actaully met a goal and felt strong for once.
I used my outdoor goggles, since I need to get used to having those on for long periods of time. They left deep caverns on my eye sockets, making me look about 10 years more weathered than I am. And about lap 60 I really started wanting to take them off. But otherwise they worked great. I also was wondering if I can put a gel in my wetsuit to take at the halfway point on the race. I'll definitely have to look into that once the wetsuit comes in the mail. But the main thing I thought as I got out of the pool, feeling a little tired but still energized was, "Ok, pal. You ready to go and get on that bike?"
There was a girl I used to date who was always asking me, like most women do, what I was thinking. But this one had a particular interest in what I thought about during long training sessions with no music.
"Well, on swims," I told her, "I think about girls I've slept with, in order, to keep track of laps. Like lap one is my college girlfriend who was my first, and so on.."
"Really?!" she smiled, "So do you think about me?"
"I'll be balls deep in Ironman training before I get to you," I told her. Not sure she liked that response. This girl was #81, so today's 4000 meter swim would be as close as I would ever get to her getting a lap. Of course, I don't really employ that method anymore, so the point is moot. But it takes a swim where you do the same distance as the Ironman race to get that far in my sexual history. I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing.
Swim - 2x2000
2 Sudafed
2 Lipodrene
I had been feeling a little sniffley and drwosy, so I took some Sudafed to clear that up maybe an hour or so before the swim, then knocked back a couple Lipodrene before heading to the GHFC pool. I didn't even bother with a warmup, as it was already about 9 p.m. and I knew I was going to be in the pool for a while. So I hit the water strong and found myself keeping a nice form with a good push for a while. Stroke felt good, glide felt good. Everything felt good. I looked up around lap 12 of the first set and saw I had done 12 laps in 10 minutes, pretty much the reverse of how it had been up until this cycle. I was pleased.
The first set went well, and I managed to get through the whole thing at a fairly even pace and finished it in 38 minutes. So looks like I went real strong the first 500 meters or so, then settled into a good race pace. Which is probably exactly what I'll need to do during the race. I took a gel and some water after the first 40 laps, but my break was probably less than a minute. I feel like this is a good simulation for the "break" between laps on the course, since you have to get out of the water and start again. I didn't feel like running around the GHFC pool deck either. That mighta looked weird.
The second 40 laps also felt strong, and I never felt myself really let up at all. About lap 20 I started to feel a small cramp in my hamstring when I pushed off the wall, and by lap 25 I started to feel cramps in my lats and forearms. Not so much I had to stop, but definitely enough that I felt it. I'm not sure if salt tabs will help this, but I am mildly concerned since if I cramp up 1000 yards from shore during the race, I'm pretty fucked. Throw in a wetsuit that makes you sweat more, and I gotta definitely figure out how to mitigate this in the next couple of weeks.
But the swim felt strong the whole time, and I ended up finishing in 80 minutes, including my break. This is right where I wanted to be, and it was nice to have a training day where I actaully met a goal and felt strong for once.
I used my outdoor goggles, since I need to get used to having those on for long periods of time. They left deep caverns on my eye sockets, making me look about 10 years more weathered than I am. And about lap 60 I really started wanting to take them off. But otherwise they worked great. I also was wondering if I can put a gel in my wetsuit to take at the halfway point on the race. I'll definitely have to look into that once the wetsuit comes in the mail. But the main thing I thought as I got out of the pool, feeling a little tired but still energized was, "Ok, pal. You ready to go and get on that bike?"
Monday, October 19, 2009
T97 - Easing Back In - Bike, Swim
Gainesville
With the long swim coming up Monday, I wanted to get a training day in before jumping right back in to Iron-distance training days. The Recovery week has a short bike and short swim scheduled for one of the days, so that looked like the perfect day to transition from rest into the final phase of real training. I felt better Sunday. Not 100 percent, but a lot better. And the weather has cooled off. A lot. So I actually had to bust out the long spandex.
Bike - 90 minutes
2 Lipodrene
As I said before, it was fucking cold Sunday. Maybe 70 degrees, which meant this was the first time I'd have to train in cold all cycle. And, after seeing the brutality of the wind on the PCB course, I decided that my rides from here on out need to be windy. I fucking hate wind, but what am I accomplishing by avoiding it during training? So I opted to head down 441 to Cafe Risque, my favorite 90-minute ride.
I knew I was in for some shit when I found myself doing a blissful 24 through Alligator Alley, and not really dropping below 22 the whole ride down to the Cafe. I mean, I thoroughly enjoyed the tailwind but at the same time, I knew that trip back was going to suck. Made it to the parking lot (pulled in the same time as one of the dancers. I hope she's into spandex) at 41:20, and figured if I made it back in under 90 minutes, good for me for going so fast.
Yeah, notsomuch.
The wind on the way back was brutal, and my speedometer, once again, decided to be sporadic. Like I would be going 17, then 12, then 7, then 19. It felt like 19 in most of those spots, but I'm starting to get massively frustrated at my computer doing this shit after every time I clean the bike (which I did before the PCB ride) and this time it didn't help my speed at all. The wind was tough, and cold, and I fought it with little effort. I've realized this is going to have to be my strategy on the Ironman course, as I can't just fight it hard the whole time. If it slows my speed, it slows my speed, but I need to finish and killing my legs to maintain 18 in a headwind is not going to help that.
I made it back in 1:33, taking me almost 7 minutes longer to get back than get down. My average speed ended up at 16.8, not exactly blazing. Yeah, the wind kicks my ass. But this is why I'm training in it. Hopefully I can improve it a little before the race. But thus far avoiding wind I think has been my major misstep in training.
Swim - 4x300 (300 easy, 300 kick, 300 easy, 300 kick)
1 Lipodrene
I wasn't feeling super energetic after the bike, but I had planned to separate the workouts anyway. I ended up passing out for about half an hour, then headed out to GHFC at about 7:30. The swim felt good, and I think mentally I'll be able to do the 2x2000. My muscles felt ok, but the long kick sessions were not fun. I think I even said out loud at one point "This is fucking ridiculous!" 12 laps of kick?! I mean, ok, I did it and it's a good training value, but while my swim times have gotten better, my kickboard times have not and as such I spent 2/3 of the time on that. But I felt ok in the pool, and when I got out. Agian, didn't crush the swim but it was good for a first day back.
All in all, a decent first day back, but I need to get back into that ultra-distance mode. Monday's swim will be telling, as will the Century ride Saturday. I have a lot of dual workout days this week as well, which will be tough to fit in given my scheudle. Seriously, no idea how anyone with a real life does this stuff.
With the long swim coming up Monday, I wanted to get a training day in before jumping right back in to Iron-distance training days. The Recovery week has a short bike and short swim scheduled for one of the days, so that looked like the perfect day to transition from rest into the final phase of real training. I felt better Sunday. Not 100 percent, but a lot better. And the weather has cooled off. A lot. So I actually had to bust out the long spandex.
Bike - 90 minutes
2 Lipodrene
As I said before, it was fucking cold Sunday. Maybe 70 degrees, which meant this was the first time I'd have to train in cold all cycle. And, after seeing the brutality of the wind on the PCB course, I decided that my rides from here on out need to be windy. I fucking hate wind, but what am I accomplishing by avoiding it during training? So I opted to head down 441 to Cafe Risque, my favorite 90-minute ride.
I knew I was in for some shit when I found myself doing a blissful 24 through Alligator Alley, and not really dropping below 22 the whole ride down to the Cafe. I mean, I thoroughly enjoyed the tailwind but at the same time, I knew that trip back was going to suck. Made it to the parking lot (pulled in the same time as one of the dancers. I hope she's into spandex) at 41:20, and figured if I made it back in under 90 minutes, good for me for going so fast.
Yeah, notsomuch.
The wind on the way back was brutal, and my speedometer, once again, decided to be sporadic. Like I would be going 17, then 12, then 7, then 19. It felt like 19 in most of those spots, but I'm starting to get massively frustrated at my computer doing this shit after every time I clean the bike (which I did before the PCB ride) and this time it didn't help my speed at all. The wind was tough, and cold, and I fought it with little effort. I've realized this is going to have to be my strategy on the Ironman course, as I can't just fight it hard the whole time. If it slows my speed, it slows my speed, but I need to finish and killing my legs to maintain 18 in a headwind is not going to help that.
I made it back in 1:33, taking me almost 7 minutes longer to get back than get down. My average speed ended up at 16.8, not exactly blazing. Yeah, the wind kicks my ass. But this is why I'm training in it. Hopefully I can improve it a little before the race. But thus far avoiding wind I think has been my major misstep in training.
Swim - 4x300 (300 easy, 300 kick, 300 easy, 300 kick)
1 Lipodrene
I wasn't feeling super energetic after the bike, but I had planned to separate the workouts anyway. I ended up passing out for about half an hour, then headed out to GHFC at about 7:30. The swim felt good, and I think mentally I'll be able to do the 2x2000. My muscles felt ok, but the long kick sessions were not fun. I think I even said out loud at one point "This is fucking ridiculous!" 12 laps of kick?! I mean, ok, I did it and it's a good training value, but while my swim times have gotten better, my kickboard times have not and as such I spent 2/3 of the time on that. But I felt ok in the pool, and when I got out. Agian, didn't crush the swim but it was good for a first day back.
All in all, a decent first day back, but I need to get back into that ultra-distance mode. Monday's swim will be telling, as will the Century ride Saturday. I have a lot of dual workout days this week as well, which will be tough to fit in given my scheudle. Seriously, no idea how anyone with a real life does this stuff.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
T95 - Signs that Something's Wrong - Swim, Run (aborted)
Gainesville
I was feeling a little dizzy Monday night before I headed to GHFC. It was a short swim and hour run, and I figured I'd knock both out late-night since I actually had to work all day. Again, I have no fucking idea how people with real jobs do this. Anyway, I was feeling a lot like I was the night before I went to Seattle, which is to say short of breath, dizzy and overheated. I also knew that I'd done a 3 hour run feleing much the same way a week ago, so even if this run wasn't spectacular, I was determined to get it in.
Swim: recovery swim
5 x 200 (50 Easy, 50 Build, 50 Easy, 50Hard)
2 Lipodrene
I knew something was off when I got in the water and it felt like a pleasant cool wave coming over my body. The GHFC never feels like that. A chilly cesspool, maybe, but never that refreshing kinda cold. I was mentally a little out of it, and ended up doing a 400 meter EBEH for the first set before recalibrating the math in my head and realizing I only had to do one lap of each instead of two. That was sign two that I was not doing well. Sign three came when I felt short of breath during the easy laps, and was dogging some short sections of them. Not much, as I don't really allow myself to do that much, but that kind of mental let-up is not something I've experienced in the pool in months.
The sets went ok, but it was not my strongest swim ever. I took long intervals in between to get my breath back, but couldn't shake the heavy-chested feeling I had. This is not cool. I finished the swim, changed over, grabbed my gel and my water and headed to the treadmill.
Run - Aborted
I got on the treadmill and programmed it as I always did. As it started to speed up, I felt my body being unable to keep up with even a 6.0 speed, and quickly brought it down to a walk in the hopes of getting in a good warmup. But as I walked, I realized I couldn't even breathe right walking. I was just tired and dizzy. I could have kept walking for an hour, but what's the fucking point of that. Better to save my energy and try to knock it out the next day.
But this is not a good sign. I have less than 4 weeks to go, and I can't rest too much going in. That being said, I understand the only way to shake this kind of illness is to rest. I honestly have no idea what to do. Hopefully this will go away on it's own, but every time I think, ok, that's over (like after the bike ride in Panama City) I have a workout like this where I keep feeling like I'm gonna pass out. Eating helps. I don't know. Hopefully I can use this week to rest up and finish up strong the rest of October.
I was feeling a little dizzy Monday night before I headed to GHFC. It was a short swim and hour run, and I figured I'd knock both out late-night since I actually had to work all day. Again, I have no fucking idea how people with real jobs do this. Anyway, I was feeling a lot like I was the night before I went to Seattle, which is to say short of breath, dizzy and overheated. I also knew that I'd done a 3 hour run feleing much the same way a week ago, so even if this run wasn't spectacular, I was determined to get it in.
Swim: recovery swim
5 x 200 (50 Easy, 50 Build, 50 Easy, 50Hard)
2 Lipodrene
I knew something was off when I got in the water and it felt like a pleasant cool wave coming over my body. The GHFC never feels like that. A chilly cesspool, maybe, but never that refreshing kinda cold. I was mentally a little out of it, and ended up doing a 400 meter EBEH for the first set before recalibrating the math in my head and realizing I only had to do one lap of each instead of two. That was sign two that I was not doing well. Sign three came when I felt short of breath during the easy laps, and was dogging some short sections of them. Not much, as I don't really allow myself to do that much, but that kind of mental let-up is not something I've experienced in the pool in months.
The sets went ok, but it was not my strongest swim ever. I took long intervals in between to get my breath back, but couldn't shake the heavy-chested feeling I had. This is not cool. I finished the swim, changed over, grabbed my gel and my water and headed to the treadmill.
Run - Aborted
I got on the treadmill and programmed it as I always did. As it started to speed up, I felt my body being unable to keep up with even a 6.0 speed, and quickly brought it down to a walk in the hopes of getting in a good warmup. But as I walked, I realized I couldn't even breathe right walking. I was just tired and dizzy. I could have kept walking for an hour, but what's the fucking point of that. Better to save my energy and try to knock it out the next day.
But this is not a good sign. I have less than 4 weeks to go, and I can't rest too much going in. That being said, I understand the only way to shake this kind of illness is to rest. I honestly have no idea what to do. Hopefully this will go away on it's own, but every time I think, ok, that's over (like after the bike ride in Panama City) I have a workout like this where I keep feeling like I'm gonna pass out. Eating helps. I don't know. Hopefully I can use this week to rest up and finish up strong the rest of October.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
T92 - If You Feel Light-Headed or Dizzy...SACK UP AND KEEP GOING - Swim, Run
Gainesville
S: race-specific
wu: 6 x 75, last 25 in each is backstroke.
main: 3 x 700, 1 is RPE 3, 2 is RPE4, 3 is RPE 5
2 Lipodrene
I made my return to the GHFC pool after nearly a week off Wednesday. Not for any particular reason, just only 2 swim seesions in this training week. Which has been longer than expected. I started out the warmup and was immediately concerned. I was stopping short of the wall and felt very lethargic. Like didn't even want to finish the sets of 75, and coasting into the wall. But that's why they call it a warmup, I told myself. The last 75 went ok, and the sets were satisfactory.
I say satisfactory because I knew I wasn't swimming as fast as I had previously. Even without a watch, I could just tell. My chest felt heavy, like I was never getting enough air, and I even felt dizzy in parts of set 2. I have gained about 4 pounds, which I blame on the extra rest days. This also happened last year when training for the Miami Man, when I got a little gut starting around October. I'm not so worried about that, but even though this swim went ok, and my form felt good and I felt some power and glide, it just didn't feel as fast as it had. In the water, you don't feel it as much as you do on land. But this feeling of lack of oxygen and lethargy became much more apparent later on.
Run - 3 hours
2 Lipodrene
1 Salt Tab
I did something I've rarely done and did a long, multi-workout day on a work day. My schedule allowed for it, so after teaching I set out on my almost-18-mile run. I used the iPod, and again, I just felt like I was going slow. I felt heavy. Yes, I've gained some wieght, but not enough that I really felt like it was slowing me down. The funny thing is, I was getting to the same spots on the run that I usually do in this running mix, so apparently I was not really going much slower at all. But I FELT like I was.
My gel fell out of my pocket when doing the first campus loop, which pissed me off as I felt super-hungry the last 2 miles back to my Saturn Aid Station in the Jefferson garage. I did the loop in about 1:16, which did end up being a little slower than usual. I feverishly downed a gel and a Gatorade when I got there, then did the 45 minute run for my second session, which is about 4.5 miles. As I headed out, I started feeling light headed. Almost like my teeth wanted to start chattering, and then really sleepy. I figured if I passed out, it would be a funny story. But I did not feel good.
The feeling came and went throughout the second leg, and by the time I got back I was ready for my last gel and another lipodrene. 2 more stadium-and-backs and I was done. But as I headed out again, I felt like I needed a nap. Maybe ths flu has had a little more effect than I thought. But I figured, hey, on race day you probably wont be sick. But you will be a LOT more fatigued. So this is how you're gonna feel for about 18 miles. Get used to it. And so I did.
The rest of the run wasn't fun, and the dizziness and light-headedness continued throughout the workout. Every time I had to stop, I knew that if I stopped for more than a minute I was going to stop alotgether. It allowed me to feel all the body aches and other things I don't when I'm still running. So I just kept lumbering away as long as I had to.
I ended up doing 18 miles in three hours and 20 minutes. Which is slow. But like the bike the day before, I had a route planned out. If I did it faster, good for me. If I did it slower, well, that's bonus training. I think in the next month I am going to do some more treadmill work, and I will also start including cookies and oranges at my aid station, to see how my stomach handles those. The Ironman offers them, and I'm wondering if they will help fuel the machine better. Maybe fight a little fatigue.
S: race-specific
wu: 6 x 75, last 25 in each is backstroke.
main: 3 x 700, 1 is RPE 3, 2 is RPE4, 3 is RPE 5
2 Lipodrene
I made my return to the GHFC pool after nearly a week off Wednesday. Not for any particular reason, just only 2 swim seesions in this training week. Which has been longer than expected. I started out the warmup and was immediately concerned. I was stopping short of the wall and felt very lethargic. Like didn't even want to finish the sets of 75, and coasting into the wall. But that's why they call it a warmup, I told myself. The last 75 went ok, and the sets were satisfactory.
I say satisfactory because I knew I wasn't swimming as fast as I had previously. Even without a watch, I could just tell. My chest felt heavy, like I was never getting enough air, and I even felt dizzy in parts of set 2. I have gained about 4 pounds, which I blame on the extra rest days. This also happened last year when training for the Miami Man, when I got a little gut starting around October. I'm not so worried about that, but even though this swim went ok, and my form felt good and I felt some power and glide, it just didn't feel as fast as it had. In the water, you don't feel it as much as you do on land. But this feeling of lack of oxygen and lethargy became much more apparent later on.
Run - 3 hours
2 Lipodrene
1 Salt Tab
I did something I've rarely done and did a long, multi-workout day on a work day. My schedule allowed for it, so after teaching I set out on my almost-18-mile run. I used the iPod, and again, I just felt like I was going slow. I felt heavy. Yes, I've gained some wieght, but not enough that I really felt like it was slowing me down. The funny thing is, I was getting to the same spots on the run that I usually do in this running mix, so apparently I was not really going much slower at all. But I FELT like I was.
My gel fell out of my pocket when doing the first campus loop, which pissed me off as I felt super-hungry the last 2 miles back to my Saturn Aid Station in the Jefferson garage. I did the loop in about 1:16, which did end up being a little slower than usual. I feverishly downed a gel and a Gatorade when I got there, then did the 45 minute run for my second session, which is about 4.5 miles. As I headed out, I started feeling light headed. Almost like my teeth wanted to start chattering, and then really sleepy. I figured if I passed out, it would be a funny story. But I did not feel good.
The feeling came and went throughout the second leg, and by the time I got back I was ready for my last gel and another lipodrene. 2 more stadium-and-backs and I was done. But as I headed out again, I felt like I needed a nap. Maybe ths flu has had a little more effect than I thought. But I figured, hey, on race day you probably wont be sick. But you will be a LOT more fatigued. So this is how you're gonna feel for about 18 miles. Get used to it. And so I did.
The rest of the run wasn't fun, and the dizziness and light-headedness continued throughout the workout. Every time I had to stop, I knew that if I stopped for more than a minute I was going to stop alotgether. It allowed me to feel all the body aches and other things I don't when I'm still running. So I just kept lumbering away as long as I had to.
I ended up doing 18 miles in three hours and 20 minutes. Which is slow. But like the bike the day before, I had a route planned out. If I did it faster, good for me. If I did it slower, well, that's bonus training. I think in the next month I am going to do some more treadmill work, and I will also start including cookies and oranges at my aid station, to see how my stomach handles those. The Ironman offers them, and I'm wondering if they will help fuel the machine better. Maybe fight a little fatigue.
Monday, October 5, 2009
T90 - Feelin' Sluggish - Swim/Bike, Run
Gainesville
Swim - 30 minutes continuous
2 Lipodrene
As this was a swim/bike brick day, I opted to head down to Campus Lodge and train with Justin. It always makes for good bike rides, and they have a nice outdoor pool there that;s perfect for training days like this. I woke up about 11, on maybe 8 hours sleep (not enough after my cross-country odyssey to Seattle)and was a little lethargic in getting over there.
I still made it early, and Justin didn't join me in the pool until I was about 5 minutes into the swim. Lacking a watch, I just went for 30 laps, figuring I do about a lap a minute. I'm not sure if the pool there is exactly 25 meters though. It's close, but it feels about one stroke short. Anyway, I was able to keep my regular, good pace, but my breathing felt labored. Like I had a weight in my chest. This may be ok for a 1500 meter swim, but is not promising for longer ones. I think this may be a remnant of the "flu," such as it was. But even though the swim went fine, I wasn't overly thrilled with how it felt.
Bike - 90 Minutes
I'm not a fan of drafting, but I thought today I'd let Justin ride out so I could go balls out the 45 minutes back. Well, Justin hadn't been cycling sine our last workout a month or so ago, and was understandably a little slow. I didn't mind, as I wasn't exactly dying to push it going out on 441 with all the fucking wind. But we averaged about 17 on the trip down to Cafe Risque and the Country store on 441. (Our usual turnaround). Granted, there was a serious headwind, and I definitely felt it when I took over the front at the road to Cafe Risque. Justin enjoyed the increased speed, and I led the rest of the way.
I took gels 15 minutes and one hour in, despite not having a lot of time left. I just do it to keep in practice, ya know?
We hit the Country Store at about 43 minutes, so I thought we'd end up making it back at about 1:24-ish. Short, but not horribly short. Well, as it was we had a nice tailwind, and despite my shoulders being insanely jammed and not being able to drop into aero for very long, we still made it back in about 1:17. So I cheated it by 13 minutes. I'm not going to get too upset over that, but not something I need to make a habit of. Justin also pointed out that doing 112 miles in 6 hours or less is going to require a lot of aero time. I just hope my shoulders get conditioned like the rest of my body over the next month.
Run - 45 minutes
1 Lipodrene
I took about 2 hours in between these workouts, as the training card suggested. This was another day where I was just realyl fitting this workout in between other things. Well, getting it all in before I went up to Jacksonville for the Silversun Pickups Concert. So I got on the road, and just felt heavy. I can tell I've gained a few pounds the past few weeks, since my workouts are less frequent. But sans iPod and in regular gym shorts I just felt sluggish and heavy. I kind of lumbered the run at my usual pace. Which always feels like it's good until I look at myself in a window or someone passes me and I realize I look like a heavy guy just kinds shuffling. Whatever. I wasn't laboring on the run, and made it through well. But there wasn't much of a spark.
My concerns here are two today: First, I think I may have some residual after effects from whatever sickness I had. Which I am going to just have to deal with and thank God it wasn't worse. But I've never been good at pushing it when I'm really not feeling it. And I think it's too late for that kind of attitude adjustment. Second, I really need to take advantage of days when I have nothing scheduled. Workouts where I have to fit it in around anything else just are never as good. Period. So aside from ym training trip to Panama City this week, I am staying home as much as possible on my off days. I need to have these workouts count.
Swim - 30 minutes continuous
2 Lipodrene
As this was a swim/bike brick day, I opted to head down to Campus Lodge and train with Justin. It always makes for good bike rides, and they have a nice outdoor pool there that;s perfect for training days like this. I woke up about 11, on maybe 8 hours sleep (not enough after my cross-country odyssey to Seattle)and was a little lethargic in getting over there.
I still made it early, and Justin didn't join me in the pool until I was about 5 minutes into the swim. Lacking a watch, I just went for 30 laps, figuring I do about a lap a minute. I'm not sure if the pool there is exactly 25 meters though. It's close, but it feels about one stroke short. Anyway, I was able to keep my regular, good pace, but my breathing felt labored. Like I had a weight in my chest. This may be ok for a 1500 meter swim, but is not promising for longer ones. I think this may be a remnant of the "flu," such as it was. But even though the swim went fine, I wasn't overly thrilled with how it felt.
Bike - 90 Minutes
I'm not a fan of drafting, but I thought today I'd let Justin ride out so I could go balls out the 45 minutes back. Well, Justin hadn't been cycling sine our last workout a month or so ago, and was understandably a little slow. I didn't mind, as I wasn't exactly dying to push it going out on 441 with all the fucking wind. But we averaged about 17 on the trip down to Cafe Risque and the Country store on 441. (Our usual turnaround). Granted, there was a serious headwind, and I definitely felt it when I took over the front at the road to Cafe Risque. Justin enjoyed the increased speed, and I led the rest of the way.
I took gels 15 minutes and one hour in, despite not having a lot of time left. I just do it to keep in practice, ya know?
We hit the Country Store at about 43 minutes, so I thought we'd end up making it back at about 1:24-ish. Short, but not horribly short. Well, as it was we had a nice tailwind, and despite my shoulders being insanely jammed and not being able to drop into aero for very long, we still made it back in about 1:17. So I cheated it by 13 minutes. I'm not going to get too upset over that, but not something I need to make a habit of. Justin also pointed out that doing 112 miles in 6 hours or less is going to require a lot of aero time. I just hope my shoulders get conditioned like the rest of my body over the next month.
Run - 45 minutes
1 Lipodrene
I took about 2 hours in between these workouts, as the training card suggested. This was another day where I was just realyl fitting this workout in between other things. Well, getting it all in before I went up to Jacksonville for the Silversun Pickups Concert. So I got on the road, and just felt heavy. I can tell I've gained a few pounds the past few weeks, since my workouts are less frequent. But sans iPod and in regular gym shorts I just felt sluggish and heavy. I kind of lumbered the run at my usual pace. Which always feels like it's good until I look at myself in a window or someone passes me and I realize I look like a heavy guy just kinds shuffling. Whatever. I wasn't laboring on the run, and made it through well. But there wasn't much of a spark.
My concerns here are two today: First, I think I may have some residual after effects from whatever sickness I had. Which I am going to just have to deal with and thank God it wasn't worse. But I've never been good at pushing it when I'm really not feeling it. And I think it's too late for that kind of attitude adjustment. Second, I really need to take advantage of days when I have nothing scheduled. Workouts where I have to fit it in around anything else just are never as good. Period. So aside from ym training trip to Panama City this week, I am staying home as much as possible on my off days. I need to have these workouts count.
Friday, October 2, 2009
T88 - H1N1, You Better Come Stronger than That - Swim
Gainesville
I had planned to do the long swim Wednesday night. But as I was teaching my last class I started to feel really overheated and dizzy. And by the time I walked home all I could do was get in bed and stay there. I spent the night tossing and turning and cooling myself off, and praying that I did not have the flu. Because I can't afford to get sick. Not now. It wasn't unlikely that I had it, but I also knew that my immune system managed to keep my from getting sick almost all the time.
So I took some Tylenol PM and fell asleep about 1 a.m. I woke up probably 5 times over the next nine hours, each time feeling my bed completely soaked in cold sweat. Like the whole fucking thing. I have no idea how I sweat that much, but I did. I got up each time and drank water to replace the fluids, and by the time I woke up, I felt 100%. I felt better than 100% actually. I felt better than I had in a few weeks. Apparently the virus had gotten into my system, but my immune system managed to kick its ass out all night long, leaving it a beaten mass of sweat on the sheets, as impotnent and useless as the activity stains it was blending into. And so I decided to go swimming before flying to Seattle.
S: long day
wu: 200swim, 200kick, 200pull, 200swim
main: 1900 ladder. Do a set of 300, then 275,...
2 Lipodrene
I'm not gonna lie. As pumped as I was about my immune system's convincing victory over What Might Have Been H1N1 But Probably Wasn't, during the warmup I felt like my lats were going to die. I guess dehydration and body aching from flu symptoms will do that. And the kicks didn't feel a lot better. But by the time I got to the main set, I was just coasting along. Every set felt short, although I did note I was going slightly slower than normal on the first 2 sets. I picked up the normal pace by the 250 set, and was doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing: Focusing on getting my strokes turned over faster, and keeping my form good. I'm using that swim move that Justin recommended for my right arm, as I think I'm just now really figuring out how to get the most out of it.
I took a gel after the set of 225, and continued on with a fantastic swim. Really, felt better than I had in a while. The only thing I notcied was that my quad cramped up when I got out of the pool, not something that usually happens after a swim. But if that's the only lingering effect from a night of sweating through my bed, I'll take it. I'm sure the rest helped, but maybe in addition to the virus I sweated out some toxins that had been holding my muscles back. Who knows? All I know is that my immune system kicks fucking ass, and that I am definitely ready to tackle this last month of training head on.
Flew accross the country immediately afterward, and was still wired when I got to Seattle. Its amazing the energy and motivaiton a great workout, and demolishing a flu in one night, can give you.
I had planned to do the long swim Wednesday night. But as I was teaching my last class I started to feel really overheated and dizzy. And by the time I walked home all I could do was get in bed and stay there. I spent the night tossing and turning and cooling myself off, and praying that I did not have the flu. Because I can't afford to get sick. Not now. It wasn't unlikely that I had it, but I also knew that my immune system managed to keep my from getting sick almost all the time.
So I took some Tylenol PM and fell asleep about 1 a.m. I woke up probably 5 times over the next nine hours, each time feeling my bed completely soaked in cold sweat. Like the whole fucking thing. I have no idea how I sweat that much, but I did. I got up each time and drank water to replace the fluids, and by the time I woke up, I felt 100%. I felt better than 100% actually. I felt better than I had in a few weeks. Apparently the virus had gotten into my system, but my immune system managed to kick its ass out all night long, leaving it a beaten mass of sweat on the sheets, as impotnent and useless as the activity stains it was blending into. And so I decided to go swimming before flying to Seattle.
S: long day
wu: 200swim, 200kick, 200pull, 200swim
main: 1900 ladder. Do a set of 300, then 275,...
2 Lipodrene
I'm not gonna lie. As pumped as I was about my immune system's convincing victory over What Might Have Been H1N1 But Probably Wasn't, during the warmup I felt like my lats were going to die. I guess dehydration and body aching from flu symptoms will do that. And the kicks didn't feel a lot better. But by the time I got to the main set, I was just coasting along. Every set felt short, although I did note I was going slightly slower than normal on the first 2 sets. I picked up the normal pace by the 250 set, and was doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing: Focusing on getting my strokes turned over faster, and keeping my form good. I'm using that swim move that Justin recommended for my right arm, as I think I'm just now really figuring out how to get the most out of it.
I took a gel after the set of 225, and continued on with a fantastic swim. Really, felt better than I had in a while. The only thing I notcied was that my quad cramped up when I got out of the pool, not something that usually happens after a swim. But if that's the only lingering effect from a night of sweating through my bed, I'll take it. I'm sure the rest helped, but maybe in addition to the virus I sweated out some toxins that had been holding my muscles back. Who knows? All I know is that my immune system kicks fucking ass, and that I am definitely ready to tackle this last month of training head on.
Flew accross the country immediately afterward, and was still wired when I got to Seattle. Its amazing the energy and motivaiton a great workout, and demolishing a flu in one night, can give you.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
T84 - IDGAF Day - Bike/Run Brick, Swim
Gainesville
This is becoming a disturbing trend. IDGAF, for the unaware, stand for "I Don't Give a Fuck," which was completely my attitude today. Again, this felt like one of those workouts I was squeezing in, even though I had all of Sunday free to do it. I just didn't much feel like getting off the couch.
Bike - 60 minutes
2 Lipodrene
I took my bike into the shop Sunday morning at the crack of 2 p.m. and had it back in an hour, realigned and retaped and ready to roll. So when I got home I was actually pretty motivated for the workout. So much so that I decided half an hour down Waldo-Williston would be a good trip. It's a little more hilly than Hawthorne, but not too bad. It was also the site of my worst ride ever last cycle, the one where I couldn't sleep so I decided to ride early, found it freezing cold, and ended up averaging about 15. But that was in February. It was cold. I was perpetually stressing out about my girlfriend leaving. And I wasn't sleeping. And oh yeah, I'm a little better of a cyclist now. So I figured no big deal.
One again, I figured wrong. I knew something was wrong when I was going 24-26 the whole way down Waldo. As I said before, you really don't notice when you have the wind at your back, and I looked for flags or trees or something and everything looked still. But whatever, I just figured this showed how much I'd improved. Notsomuch. I turned around and for some reason just lost all motivation. The trip back is all uphill, into the wind. Not something I'm a fan of. It didn't help that I couldn't drop down into Aero because of the massive wound on my right forarm, and my shoulders were jamming up, still residual from the accident.
Basically, I was pissed, felt like shit, and didn't want to be there. So even though I averaged about 20 on the way down, I was going a steady 13 a lot of the trip back and ended up averaging 17 for the ride. That's 1 mph slower than I did on my 5 hour ride, which included the crash. Not only that, I turned around at 28 minutes, and made it back in 1:05. Meaning the return trip, of about 9 miles, took 7 minutes longer than the trip down. So maybe that road really is that bad, and it wasn't just my poorer conditioning and stress that led to that awful, awful ride back in February. But who knows. Maybe the run would go better.
Run - 30 minutes
Alright, so get off the bike, have another spoiled yogurt PowerGel and do a nice run to the stadium and back. Can't fuck that up, right? Well, again, I started out strong, but by the time I got to the stadium I was fucking starving and didn't really want to run back. Again, just started chopping my steps, and by the time I got to about 11th St., I decided to say fuck it and walk the rest. Just didn't want to finish. I really don't know why. I'm not sure if the accident took a lot out of me, or I just had a shitty attitude today, but workouts like this need to be few and far between
Swim - 12x100. Practice bi-lateral breathing every other set. Do much later or earlier, but not within a few hours of the brick session
1 Lipodrene
I got back around 5 from the wasted Bike/Run and followed the advice on the card. Headed over to the pool about 9 p.m., which was nice because nobody was there. I was supposed to practice breathing every other set of strokes, but after about one lap (50 meters) of doing this, I said "Fuck this." Lung capacity is one thing I really haven't worked on, and since I was in a shitty training mood I wasn't about to push it. No excuse, I just didn't give a fuck. So I went back to normal breathing as I went through the motions to get this done. I didn't even time myself. I didn't care.
I think around set 8 I actually started pushing it, either because I was warmed up, or the Lipodrene kicked in, or because I saw a light at the end of the tunnel, but the last four sets actually felt really good. So at least I ended a shitty day on a high note.
But I can't afford many more bad workouts during training weeks. I got a month of balls-out training to go before I taper, and I need to make the most of it. Sometimes a couple of bad workouts in a row motivates you to crush the next one, and I hope that's the case here. This trend cannot continue.
This is becoming a disturbing trend. IDGAF, for the unaware, stand for "I Don't Give a Fuck," which was completely my attitude today. Again, this felt like one of those workouts I was squeezing in, even though I had all of Sunday free to do it. I just didn't much feel like getting off the couch.
Bike - 60 minutes
2 Lipodrene
I took my bike into the shop Sunday morning at the crack of 2 p.m. and had it back in an hour, realigned and retaped and ready to roll. So when I got home I was actually pretty motivated for the workout. So much so that I decided half an hour down Waldo-Williston would be a good trip. It's a little more hilly than Hawthorne, but not too bad. It was also the site of my worst ride ever last cycle, the one where I couldn't sleep so I decided to ride early, found it freezing cold, and ended up averaging about 15. But that was in February. It was cold. I was perpetually stressing out about my girlfriend leaving. And I wasn't sleeping. And oh yeah, I'm a little better of a cyclist now. So I figured no big deal.
One again, I figured wrong. I knew something was wrong when I was going 24-26 the whole way down Waldo. As I said before, you really don't notice when you have the wind at your back, and I looked for flags or trees or something and everything looked still. But whatever, I just figured this showed how much I'd improved. Notsomuch. I turned around and for some reason just lost all motivation. The trip back is all uphill, into the wind. Not something I'm a fan of. It didn't help that I couldn't drop down into Aero because of the massive wound on my right forarm, and my shoulders were jamming up, still residual from the accident.
Basically, I was pissed, felt like shit, and didn't want to be there. So even though I averaged about 20 on the way down, I was going a steady 13 a lot of the trip back and ended up averaging 17 for the ride. That's 1 mph slower than I did on my 5 hour ride, which included the crash. Not only that, I turned around at 28 minutes, and made it back in 1:05. Meaning the return trip, of about 9 miles, took 7 minutes longer than the trip down. So maybe that road really is that bad, and it wasn't just my poorer conditioning and stress that led to that awful, awful ride back in February. But who knows. Maybe the run would go better.
Run - 30 minutes
Alright, so get off the bike, have another spoiled yogurt PowerGel and do a nice run to the stadium and back. Can't fuck that up, right? Well, again, I started out strong, but by the time I got to the stadium I was fucking starving and didn't really want to run back. Again, just started chopping my steps, and by the time I got to about 11th St., I decided to say fuck it and walk the rest. Just didn't want to finish. I really don't know why. I'm not sure if the accident took a lot out of me, or I just had a shitty attitude today, but workouts like this need to be few and far between
Swim - 12x100. Practice bi-lateral breathing every other set. Do much later or earlier, but not within a few hours of the brick session
1 Lipodrene
I got back around 5 from the wasted Bike/Run and followed the advice on the card. Headed over to the pool about 9 p.m., which was nice because nobody was there. I was supposed to practice breathing every other set of strokes, but after about one lap (50 meters) of doing this, I said "Fuck this." Lung capacity is one thing I really haven't worked on, and since I was in a shitty training mood I wasn't about to push it. No excuse, I just didn't give a fuck. So I went back to normal breathing as I went through the motions to get this done. I didn't even time myself. I didn't care.
I think around set 8 I actually started pushing it, either because I was warmed up, or the Lipodrene kicked in, or because I saw a light at the end of the tunnel, but the last four sets actually felt really good. So at least I ended a shitty day on a high note.
But I can't afford many more bad workouts during training weeks. I got a month of balls-out training to go before I taper, and I need to make the most of it. Sometimes a couple of bad workouts in a row motivates you to crush the next one, and I hope that's the case here. This trend cannot continue.
Monday, September 21, 2009
T83 - Ironman Swim, Interrupted - Swim
Gainesville
S: long day-mental toughness day!
8 x 500, odds are RPE3, evens RPE 5
2 Lipodrene
Do the math here and you see today's swim is actually a little longer than the Ironman swim. Of course, you don't get to take a nice little breather after every 500 yards there, nor do you have an entire swimming pool to yourself. But it was good to get the distance in anyway.
My first set I did in under 10 minutes, closer to 9 actually. I kept up a solid stroke despite the perpetual soreness in my shoulder from the accident (really feels more jammed than anything else) and the fluid buildup in my right forward. Like it feels significantly heavier than it used to. I kept up this sub-10 pace for the first three, then hit about 10 even on the fourth set. I then took a quick bathroom break (why does swimming always make me have to piss?) has a Vanilla PowerGel (tastes vaguely like spoiled yogurt) and did my second four sets.
The second four were, predictably not as fast. I tried to keep up the intensity of the strokes, but I think my frequency started to die down as I got more tired. My last set ended up being about 12 minutes. The card has this workout listed at 2 hours, and I did it in 85, including the piss break and about 45 seconds between sets. I'm not sure why exactly the guy who wrote this though 4000 meters would take 2 hours, but the timing on swims always confuses me anyway.
At any rate, I felt pretty good after the swim. not terribly tired, but like I'd had a solid workout. I know this is in a totally controlled environment (swimming on Saturday night at an indoor pool means that there are zero other people to deal with) and I had breaks. But it was good to see that my body can handle this muhc swimming this far out. Very encouraging workout.
S: long day-mental toughness day!
8 x 500, odds are RPE3, evens RPE 5
2 Lipodrene
Do the math here and you see today's swim is actually a little longer than the Ironman swim. Of course, you don't get to take a nice little breather after every 500 yards there, nor do you have an entire swimming pool to yourself. But it was good to get the distance in anyway.
My first set I did in under 10 minutes, closer to 9 actually. I kept up a solid stroke despite the perpetual soreness in my shoulder from the accident (really feels more jammed than anything else) and the fluid buildup in my right forward. Like it feels significantly heavier than it used to. I kept up this sub-10 pace for the first three, then hit about 10 even on the fourth set. I then took a quick bathroom break (why does swimming always make me have to piss?) has a Vanilla PowerGel (tastes vaguely like spoiled yogurt) and did my second four sets.
The second four were, predictably not as fast. I tried to keep up the intensity of the strokes, but I think my frequency started to die down as I got more tired. My last set ended up being about 12 minutes. The card has this workout listed at 2 hours, and I did it in 85, including the piss break and about 45 seconds between sets. I'm not sure why exactly the guy who wrote this though 4000 meters would take 2 hours, but the timing on swims always confuses me anyway.
At any rate, I felt pretty good after the swim. not terribly tired, but like I'd had a solid workout. I know this is in a totally controlled environment (swimming on Saturday night at an indoor pool means that there are zero other people to deal with) and I had breaks. But it was good to see that my body can handle this muhc swimming this far out. Very encouraging workout.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
T82 - The Problem With Miami Workouts- Swim, Run
Miami
I went down to Miami for the UM - Georgia Tech football game which was, hands down, he most fun I've had a sporting event in a long time. Definitely an experience worth the five hour drive. That being said, the 3-hour tailgate followed by the 3 hour game followed by a night out at the Tavern led me to feeling a little on the dehydrated and awful side when I woke up Friday morning. I took some Advil and drank some Vitamin Water, and by the time I decided to hit the beach at 2:30 I thought I felt alright. But Miami workouts, they're rarely that good.
Swim - 40 minutes (out of 75 assigned) Open Water
2 Lipodrene
Since I was going to be a place with ample opportunity for open water swimming, I decided to switch around the workout order this week and do this open water swim first. Made sense. So I went over to Key Biscayne with Lindsay, Lauren and Nat, who were nice enough to watch my stuff while I went to train in Biscayne Bay. It was a pleasant Friday, so they got a nice beach day, while I got in my open water swimming.
The problem with swimming off Crandon Park is that the water is so damn shallow. It's great for going to the beach with your family, shitty for open water training. Like I'd go for about 100 years or so, and then all of a sudden I'm grabbing sand on every downstroke, It didn't help that the scab on my right forarm was burning or that my shoulders were still feeling jammed from the accident three days prior. So the strokes were tough, I was constantly having to get up and walk to deeper water, and the water was fucking hot.
Eventually, I got out to water that was deep enough to swim pretty far. The training card called for me to practice sighting, which I did none of, constantly ending up swimming in towards shore because that is where the current was going. I fought the current pretty well for most of the swim, until I hit the end of the park. The end of the park was about a mile from where we set up on the beach, and I thought it would make a good turnaround. But as soon as I decided to turn it around, I started to feel like yacking. Not like on the bike, where it lasts a few minutes and goes away. I mean I seriously felt like sitting down and ralphing for a while.
Sadly, I was out way too deep to do so, so I swam in towards shore to a spot that was shallow and tried to puke. Almost did it, but not quite, so I just sat there hoping it was just the Lipodrene hitting my stomach and that it would wear off. I started feeling better, but as soon as I started swimming again, I wanted to yack. I'm not sure if it was the saltwater or the motion of the waves (the current wasn't bad, but it was definitely knocking me around)or the hangover or the fact that the water was hotter than the air, but I was not feeling up for the rest of the swim. So after a few more attempts, I decided this was now officially counterproductive and swam in to shore and walked the just-under-a-mile back to the towels.
As it was I ended up doing about 1.2 miles, I think. Which isn't bad. but was just over half what the workout called for. I ended up swimming for about 40 minutes, which again is a decent training value, but I wish I'd have done more. Really, the alcohol and lack of sleep in Miami make for some shitty workouts here. Like I'm just trying to get them in instead of focusing on the training value.
Run - 60 Minutes
I was out of gels, and didn't really feel like having a Cliff bar before running, so all I was working off was the Tropi Chop Max I'd had for lunch. Which was enough. Lindsay was nice enough to give me her 3 mile run route in Coral Gables. Which of course completely confused me. I had done a run by their house last time I was down in August, just for fun, and remember not being able to see which street was which because of the fucked up Gables street signs on the ground. I also remember them living in a numbered section where the numbers turned to names, making it doubly confusing.
So I hit the road with no iPod and no nutrition or supplementation, and spent most of my time trying to figure out which street was which so I didn't get lost. In other words, I couldn't really focus on going fast, just on knowing where I was going. And I hate doing runs where I don't really know how far I have to go or have any landmarks, because all you can think is "Where am I? How far have I gone? How much time have I been out here?" And, honestly, I wasn't feeling my best anyway.
The first lap of this course I felt like I ran ok, aside from having to stop a lot to look at street signs and figure out where I was. The second lap was pure apathy. Just getting it over with so I could hurry up and get to Happy Hour. Yeah, I know i said I had to prioritize training. And it's easy to do in Gainesville because I'm not seeing people I don't see every day. And it wasn't so hard in New York because I scheduled it in, and visited people around that schedule. But in Miami, I guess it's tough. I not only have a lot of people I want to see there, but a lot of old habits that I'm used to insofar as going out.
So that all being said, I think I'm going to only have one more Miami trip before the Ironman. Probably for a half-marathon in October. I just can't stay disciplined enough when I'm down there, are I also end up spending too much money, even when I barely go out. Sad, but then again I'm moving back in December. After the Ironman, and plenty of time to slip back into old habits then.
I went down to Miami for the UM - Georgia Tech football game which was, hands down, he most fun I've had a sporting event in a long time. Definitely an experience worth the five hour drive. That being said, the 3-hour tailgate followed by the 3 hour game followed by a night out at the Tavern led me to feeling a little on the dehydrated and awful side when I woke up Friday morning. I took some Advil and drank some Vitamin Water, and by the time I decided to hit the beach at 2:30 I thought I felt alright. But Miami workouts, they're rarely that good.
Swim - 40 minutes (out of 75 assigned) Open Water
2 Lipodrene
Since I was going to be a place with ample opportunity for open water swimming, I decided to switch around the workout order this week and do this open water swim first. Made sense. So I went over to Key Biscayne with Lindsay, Lauren and Nat, who were nice enough to watch my stuff while I went to train in Biscayne Bay. It was a pleasant Friday, so they got a nice beach day, while I got in my open water swimming.
The problem with swimming off Crandon Park is that the water is so damn shallow. It's great for going to the beach with your family, shitty for open water training. Like I'd go for about 100 years or so, and then all of a sudden I'm grabbing sand on every downstroke, It didn't help that the scab on my right forarm was burning or that my shoulders were still feeling jammed from the accident three days prior. So the strokes were tough, I was constantly having to get up and walk to deeper water, and the water was fucking hot.
Eventually, I got out to water that was deep enough to swim pretty far. The training card called for me to practice sighting, which I did none of, constantly ending up swimming in towards shore because that is where the current was going. I fought the current pretty well for most of the swim, until I hit the end of the park. The end of the park was about a mile from where we set up on the beach, and I thought it would make a good turnaround. But as soon as I decided to turn it around, I started to feel like yacking. Not like on the bike, where it lasts a few minutes and goes away. I mean I seriously felt like sitting down and ralphing for a while.
Sadly, I was out way too deep to do so, so I swam in towards shore to a spot that was shallow and tried to puke. Almost did it, but not quite, so I just sat there hoping it was just the Lipodrene hitting my stomach and that it would wear off. I started feeling better, but as soon as I started swimming again, I wanted to yack. I'm not sure if it was the saltwater or the motion of the waves (the current wasn't bad, but it was definitely knocking me around)or the hangover or the fact that the water was hotter than the air, but I was not feeling up for the rest of the swim. So after a few more attempts, I decided this was now officially counterproductive and swam in to shore and walked the just-under-a-mile back to the towels.
As it was I ended up doing about 1.2 miles, I think. Which isn't bad. but was just over half what the workout called for. I ended up swimming for about 40 minutes, which again is a decent training value, but I wish I'd have done more. Really, the alcohol and lack of sleep in Miami make for some shitty workouts here. Like I'm just trying to get them in instead of focusing on the training value.
Run - 60 Minutes
I was out of gels, and didn't really feel like having a Cliff bar before running, so all I was working off was the Tropi Chop Max I'd had for lunch. Which was enough. Lindsay was nice enough to give me her 3 mile run route in Coral Gables. Which of course completely confused me. I had done a run by their house last time I was down in August, just for fun, and remember not being able to see which street was which because of the fucked up Gables street signs on the ground. I also remember them living in a numbered section where the numbers turned to names, making it doubly confusing.
So I hit the road with no iPod and no nutrition or supplementation, and spent most of my time trying to figure out which street was which so I didn't get lost. In other words, I couldn't really focus on going fast, just on knowing where I was going. And I hate doing runs where I don't really know how far I have to go or have any landmarks, because all you can think is "Where am I? How far have I gone? How much time have I been out here?" And, honestly, I wasn't feeling my best anyway.
The first lap of this course I felt like I ran ok, aside from having to stop a lot to look at street signs and figure out where I was. The second lap was pure apathy. Just getting it over with so I could hurry up and get to Happy Hour. Yeah, I know i said I had to prioritize training. And it's easy to do in Gainesville because I'm not seeing people I don't see every day. And it wasn't so hard in New York because I scheduled it in, and visited people around that schedule. But in Miami, I guess it's tough. I not only have a lot of people I want to see there, but a lot of old habits that I'm used to insofar as going out.
So that all being said, I think I'm going to only have one more Miami trip before the Ironman. Probably for a half-marathon in October. I just can't stay disciplined enough when I'm down there, are I also end up spending too much money, even when I barely go out. Sad, but then again I'm moving back in December. After the Ironman, and plenty of time to slip back into old habits then.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
T79 - Swimming, Manhattan Style - Swim
New York
The highlight of this workout may have come before it even started. Maureen was nice enough to bring me as a guest to 24 Hour Fitness - Derek Jeter somewhere in midtown. Sadly, no Derek Jeter inspirational comments ala 24 Hour-Shaq in Miami.But the gym was nice enough, and when we went in she scanned her card and told the guy at the desk I was coming in as a guest. And he just told us to go ahead. As in no guest fee, which is unheard of at a 24 Hour Fitness unless you have guest prvilages. Which Maureen does not. Anyway, I saved myself the $20 guest fee. And really, it was that kind of weekend.
It was funny though, people asked me what I wanted to do while I was in New York, and "swim" was my first answer (after the Maruy Show, the Mets Game and the Race for the Cure). Like I had a free Saturday in Manhattan, and despite not getting out of bed until noon, the pool at the Derek Jeter Sport was my #1 destination. Training is awesome!
S: long day
wu: 200swim, 200kick, 200pull, 200swim
main: 1900 ladder. Do a set of 300, then 275, 250, etc…until 25
10 x 100 (descend 1-5, 6-10)
2 Lipodrene
I was excited about this free swim, until I saw the pool. Like so many things in New York, it was about a tenth the size of what a normal person would expect. There was exactly one full lane, with some floaty lane next to it that wasn't more than ten yards long, and a jacuzzi. The whole room would have fit in about half the pool at GHFC. Fucking Manhattan, there's just no fucking space.
So I did the warmup, thinking by eyeing the one lap lane was a half-lane. Like 12.5 yards. So I did 8 laps instead of the usual 4 for each set, and the fucking thing took half an hour. I felt like I was swimming pretty strong, so I asked the lifeguard how long the pool was. 20 yards. I thought for a minute about just saying "Fuck it" and waiting for Maureen to finish her wokrout while I watch college football while walking on a treadmill, but I then realized I had to get this swim in. It was a long day and not something I could skip. So this would require some math.
What I essentially did was calculate the distances before each set and figure out how many 40-yard laps it would be. Obviously, they did not all divide envenly. So I rounded up 2 laps, and rounded down one. Like the 250 set would have been 6 and a quarter laps, so I just did 6.5, Then the 225 set would have been Five and a three quarters laps, and I just did 5 and a half. It all worked out in the end, and actually the shorter laps made this easier, believe it or not. I wasn't able to get up as much speed, but because the turnaround was shorter, I swam harder each length.
Now, I'm not going to go out and to and find a mini-pool anywhere. The Olympic-sized pools are good by me. But this swim went surprisingly well, despite the Manhattan-sized swim area. Yet another reason I really don't understand how anyone in a city like this ever trains for Ironmans. Like where the fuck are you supposed to bike? You can only do that Central Park loop so many times before you go nuts, and the idea of taking my bike downstairs to a subway is just not appealing. This was a thought that came to my mind when I was vaguely considering spending the summer in Chicago last March, actually. And I won't lie when I say that the logistical difficulty of training (and vicious wind) was one of the many factors that made me realize Chicago was a dumb idea.
So I now have a newfound respect for triathletes from super-urban cities like New York. It's a whole different level of dedication when you can't just bike out your door to a nice bike trail, or find an empty, olympic sized pool.
The highlight of this workout may have come before it even started. Maureen was nice enough to bring me as a guest to 24 Hour Fitness - Derek Jeter somewhere in midtown. Sadly, no Derek Jeter inspirational comments ala 24 Hour-Shaq in Miami.But the gym was nice enough, and when we went in she scanned her card and told the guy at the desk I was coming in as a guest. And he just told us to go ahead. As in no guest fee, which is unheard of at a 24 Hour Fitness unless you have guest prvilages. Which Maureen does not. Anyway, I saved myself the $20 guest fee. And really, it was that kind of weekend.
It was funny though, people asked me what I wanted to do while I was in New York, and "swim" was my first answer (after the Maruy Show, the Mets Game and the Race for the Cure). Like I had a free Saturday in Manhattan, and despite not getting out of bed until noon, the pool at the Derek Jeter Sport was my #1 destination. Training is awesome!
S: long day
wu: 200swim, 200kick, 200pull, 200swim
main: 1900 ladder. Do a set of 300, then 275, 250, etc…until 25
10 x 100 (descend 1-5, 6-10)
2 Lipodrene
I was excited about this free swim, until I saw the pool. Like so many things in New York, it was about a tenth the size of what a normal person would expect. There was exactly one full lane, with some floaty lane next to it that wasn't more than ten yards long, and a jacuzzi. The whole room would have fit in about half the pool at GHFC. Fucking Manhattan, there's just no fucking space.
So I did the warmup, thinking by eyeing the one lap lane was a half-lane. Like 12.5 yards. So I did 8 laps instead of the usual 4 for each set, and the fucking thing took half an hour. I felt like I was swimming pretty strong, so I asked the lifeguard how long the pool was. 20 yards. I thought for a minute about just saying "Fuck it" and waiting for Maureen to finish her wokrout while I watch college football while walking on a treadmill, but I then realized I had to get this swim in. It was a long day and not something I could skip. So this would require some math.
What I essentially did was calculate the distances before each set and figure out how many 40-yard laps it would be. Obviously, they did not all divide envenly. So I rounded up 2 laps, and rounded down one. Like the 250 set would have been 6 and a quarter laps, so I just did 6.5, Then the 225 set would have been Five and a three quarters laps, and I just did 5 and a half. It all worked out in the end, and actually the shorter laps made this easier, believe it or not. I wasn't able to get up as much speed, but because the turnaround was shorter, I swam harder each length.
Now, I'm not going to go out and to and find a mini-pool anywhere. The Olympic-sized pools are good by me. But this swim went surprisingly well, despite the Manhattan-sized swim area. Yet another reason I really don't understand how anyone in a city like this ever trains for Ironmans. Like where the fuck are you supposed to bike? You can only do that Central Park loop so many times before you go nuts, and the idea of taking my bike downstairs to a subway is just not appealing. This was a thought that came to my mind when I was vaguely considering spending the summer in Chicago last March, actually. And I won't lie when I say that the logistical difficulty of training (and vicious wind) was one of the many factors that made me realize Chicago was a dumb idea.
So I now have a newfound respect for triathletes from super-urban cities like New York. It's a whole different level of dedication when you can't just bike out your door to a nice bike trail, or find an empty, olympic sized pool.
Monday, September 14, 2009
T78 - It's Called Being Resourceful - Run, Swim
New York City
I think the best part about Ironman training is the fact that even on vacations, you have to make sure you get in your training. Such was the case on Thursday. When the good folks at Delta decided to move my flight back from 8 a.m. to 6 a.m., I was a little pissed I would have to get up at 3 to catch my flight. That all being said, I realized this would also give me an opportunity to get in my second-longest workout of the week during my first day in the city.
I found a gym on 43rd and 9th called The Manhattan Plaza Helath Club, that featured an Olympic-sized pool and full cardio equipment. It also had a locker room and showers, so it gave me a place to store my luggage all day, in addition to providing a training ground for my run and swim. All this for only $25, which thought was a pretty good deal for training and bag storage. The weather was absolute shit (another reason to never live north of I-10: It sometimes gets cold before Summer is even officially over) and since I had to do 2 hours at Tempo, I thought it might be fun to do 150 minutes on a treadmill.
Run - 150 minutes tempo (Treadmill)
15 Minutes RPE 2-3
2 Hours RPE 4-5
15 Minutes RPE 2-3
2 Lipodrene
I have to say, this was kinda fun. Yeah, the MPHC treadmill was dinky and looked like I could break it with one step that was too hard. And it looked out on a cement path between the cardio rooms and the pool (so nothing to look at but E!'s look at the top 10 Best and Worst Celeb. Beach Bodieas) but I used the iPod and even my slow run I was doing at 6.0
I opted to do like I would at home on this treadmill, doing an hour first, then three half hour sets with brief breaks (like under a minute) for Powerade in between. The breaks all ended up being shorter than expected, which was good. The first hour flew by, as I cranked it up to 6.6 after the first 15 miuntes. Then I maintained at 6.7 the rest of the run, dripping sweat everywhere and getting a few odd looks from the daytime crowd at this gym. No matter. I kept to my gel pattern of every 45 minutes, and aside from the iPod freezing with 25 minutes to go, the run went well.
The one issue I had was that I had so much adreneline going from the music and the ease of runing on the treadmill, that when the iPod broke, I just was like "Oh, fuck this..." I kept my speed up to the final 15 minutes, where I then speed-walked for about 5 minutes before going into a slow trot at about 5.2. I was a little disapointed in my premature cooldown there, but I think this is probably a product of my using the iPod more than anything else.
I was slated to meet with a couple of editors from Cosmo for lunch at 1:15, and oddly I saw one of them on the E! special talking about how bad Tara Reid looked in a swimsuit. It was a little surreal, I have to say, to see someone you were about to go and visit on TV while you get in your morning run, but I can't say it didn't give me a litte extra push.
Swim: Warmup - 6x75
Main - 3x700
1 Lipodrene
Lunch went well, as I rushed through my shower and got a cab up to the Hearst building for lunch. The food at their cafeteria up there is amazing, but knowing I had a long swim that afternoon, I opted for a light sandwich so I wouldn't die on the swim. I got back to the gym about 2:30, put on my jammer and walked over to the rooftop retractable roof pool deck they had. Immediately passed out for about 45 minutes ona deck chair. I'd been up since 3, for chrissakes.
Anyway, I was lucky enough to get my own lane for the warmup and about half the first set. Then some girl came in to swim with me, which was fine. But then another person came in the lane. And another. Fucking ciricle swimming. Then I remembered I was in New York City, not Gainesville. You want your own swiming lane? At 4 p.m.? Ok, you want your own 1-bedroom apartment too? Hou 'bout your own subway car? There's 18-fucking-million people in this city, and 4 swimming lanes. Good luck with that. I accpeted the unfortunate fate of circle swimming and sucked it up for the second set and half of the third.
I was swimming well when I could get some speed up, but I was constantly having to pass people, and then tread water so I didn't run into someone coming the other way. Much like New York, just constantly dodging people. So I guess the swim went well, such as it was. But not being able to really get in a groove was frustrating. You can't just knock people out of the way like you can during a race. Or when you're going fore a subway.
I think the best part about Ironman training is the fact that even on vacations, you have to make sure you get in your training. Such was the case on Thursday. When the good folks at Delta decided to move my flight back from 8 a.m. to 6 a.m., I was a little pissed I would have to get up at 3 to catch my flight. That all being said, I realized this would also give me an opportunity to get in my second-longest workout of the week during my first day in the city.
I found a gym on 43rd and 9th called The Manhattan Plaza Helath Club, that featured an Olympic-sized pool and full cardio equipment. It also had a locker room and showers, so it gave me a place to store my luggage all day, in addition to providing a training ground for my run and swim. All this for only $25, which thought was a pretty good deal for training and bag storage. The weather was absolute shit (another reason to never live north of I-10: It sometimes gets cold before Summer is even officially over) and since I had to do 2 hours at Tempo, I thought it might be fun to do 150 minutes on a treadmill.
Run - 150 minutes tempo (Treadmill)
15 Minutes RPE 2-3
2 Hours RPE 4-5
15 Minutes RPE 2-3
2 Lipodrene
I have to say, this was kinda fun. Yeah, the MPHC treadmill was dinky and looked like I could break it with one step that was too hard. And it looked out on a cement path between the cardio rooms and the pool (so nothing to look at but E!'s look at the top 10 Best and Worst Celeb. Beach Bodieas) but I used the iPod and even my slow run I was doing at 6.0
I opted to do like I would at home on this treadmill, doing an hour first, then three half hour sets with brief breaks (like under a minute) for Powerade in between. The breaks all ended up being shorter than expected, which was good. The first hour flew by, as I cranked it up to 6.6 after the first 15 miuntes. Then I maintained at 6.7 the rest of the run, dripping sweat everywhere and getting a few odd looks from the daytime crowd at this gym. No matter. I kept to my gel pattern of every 45 minutes, and aside from the iPod freezing with 25 minutes to go, the run went well.
The one issue I had was that I had so much adreneline going from the music and the ease of runing on the treadmill, that when the iPod broke, I just was like "Oh, fuck this..." I kept my speed up to the final 15 minutes, where I then speed-walked for about 5 minutes before going into a slow trot at about 5.2. I was a little disapointed in my premature cooldown there, but I think this is probably a product of my using the iPod more than anything else.
I was slated to meet with a couple of editors from Cosmo for lunch at 1:15, and oddly I saw one of them on the E! special talking about how bad Tara Reid looked in a swimsuit. It was a little surreal, I have to say, to see someone you were about to go and visit on TV while you get in your morning run, but I can't say it didn't give me a litte extra push.
Swim: Warmup - 6x75
Main - 3x700
1 Lipodrene
Lunch went well, as I rushed through my shower and got a cab up to the Hearst building for lunch. The food at their cafeteria up there is amazing, but knowing I had a long swim that afternoon, I opted for a light sandwich so I wouldn't die on the swim. I got back to the gym about 2:30, put on my jammer and walked over to the rooftop retractable roof pool deck they had. Immediately passed out for about 45 minutes ona deck chair. I'd been up since 3, for chrissakes.
Anyway, I was lucky enough to get my own lane for the warmup and about half the first set. Then some girl came in to swim with me, which was fine. But then another person came in the lane. And another. Fucking ciricle swimming. Then I remembered I was in New York City, not Gainesville. You want your own swiming lane? At 4 p.m.? Ok, you want your own 1-bedroom apartment too? Hou 'bout your own subway car? There's 18-fucking-million people in this city, and 4 swimming lanes. Good luck with that. I accpeted the unfortunate fate of circle swimming and sucked it up for the second set and half of the third.
I was swimming well when I could get some speed up, but I was constantly having to pass people, and then tread water so I didn't run into someone coming the other way. Much like New York, just constantly dodging people. So I guess the swim went well, such as it was. But not being able to really get in a groove was frustrating. You can't just knock people out of the way like you can during a race. Or when you're going fore a subway.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
T77 - Wind is Like Privilege - Swim/Bike Brick, Run
Gainesville
Strange title, I know, but I'll get to it. Today was a run-bike session together which mandated that the run be done several hours later. So as it was I called Justin to see if he wanted to train, since I can do a swim/bike brick from Campus Lodge and he only wants to do short workouts in preparation for his Sprint Tri this weekend. So I met him a little after 5 and we got started.
Swim - 30 minutes, 1500 meters
2 Lipodrene
They have a nice outdoor pool at Campus Lodge, and today it happened to have some music going for the after-work tanning crowd. Justin was doing some sprints, but I kept a solid pace and got in the full 30 laps I'd aimed to do in the allotted half hour. Or so Justin told me. He also told me that I was bringing my right arm out way too far on my strokes, something I am consciously doing. So I'm going to have to try and modify this a little during my short swim in New York. Maybe bringing the arm forward and bending the elbow as I come back to eliminate the drafting effect while still keeping the arm in.
Bike - 1 Hour
Did a nice transition at my car and headed down Williston on the bike. I hadn't done this road in a while and I remember why, it's just all trucks and a very narrow bike lane. Not exactly prime biking conditions. I also have some bad, bad associations with terrible rides on that road as well. But after I crossed I-75 I settled into Aero and was doing a solid 22-25, even after yesterday's grueling bike effort. I mean, I know I have to show off a little when I train with Justin, since he destroys me in the run and is a slightly better swimmer too, but I was just straight flying. He kept up, but I was thinking "Damn, I"m just crushing this today." I looked at the plants for any sign of wind and saw none, thus assuming I was just that good.
Then I turned around. Justin had bailed at the 20 minute mark as he'd wanted to do a shorter ride, but at 30 minutes I turned around, having averaged about 22 on the way down. Crushing a short ride, I thought. Well, notsomuch. Despite my thinking there wasn't much wind, I couldn't manage to muster much over 18 at the beginning of the way back. I even slowed to around 16 before I said "Fuck this, I'm averaging 20 on this bitch" and pushed it all the way to the end. Made it just over 20 miles in just over 1 hour, averaging exactly 20. The gel I took at the 15 minute mark helped, but during the ride I sarted to think, ya know, wind is a lot like societal privilege. Could be racial, gender, socioeconomic, whatever. But here's my thoughts...
Like wind, when you have privilege working for you, you don't even notice. You breeze through not realizing that you have a great force working behind you. You usually just think you're doing awesome all on your own. Or, for some, you realize you have it and decide to take full advantage, pushing as hard as you can to get the best possible result. But really, you never notice it until it is working against you. When wind, or privilege, is not in your favor everything becomes twice as hard as it usually is. You spend a lot of time saying "This isn't fucking fair. This looks so easy but for some reason I just can't do as well as I want to." Then you either decide to let the force against you win and perform poorly (as I did most of last cycle), or say fuck it, work a lot harder, and get the result you want. Like I did on my ride today. Last cycle I was a nigger sitting in jail. This cycle I'm Barack Obama. You see what I mean?
Deeper than usual? Sure. But it can't all be gels and Cliff Bars.
Run - 45 minutes (treadmill)
In continuing with my theme of improving my speed with treadmill work, I opted to do today's short run on the treadmill at 6.4. Which was too fast to maintain, so I dropped it to 6.2 and did ok. My stomach started feeling a little weird, which I found odd since I hadn't had any more Lipodrene and had only a Cliff bar and PB&J. I felt a little strained going at that speed for 45 minutes, which some might call sad, but I think its an improvement that needs to be made. Yeah, this run was kinda pathetic, but I need to keep doing treadmill work on shorter runs until my speed improves. I did get to watch the end of the Mets-Marlins game. But for some reason the bullpen only seems to like to close out games quickly when I'm tryingto watch them during a workout.
Strange title, I know, but I'll get to it. Today was a run-bike session together which mandated that the run be done several hours later. So as it was I called Justin to see if he wanted to train, since I can do a swim/bike brick from Campus Lodge and he only wants to do short workouts in preparation for his Sprint Tri this weekend. So I met him a little after 5 and we got started.
Swim - 30 minutes, 1500 meters
2 Lipodrene
They have a nice outdoor pool at Campus Lodge, and today it happened to have some music going for the after-work tanning crowd. Justin was doing some sprints, but I kept a solid pace and got in the full 30 laps I'd aimed to do in the allotted half hour. Or so Justin told me. He also told me that I was bringing my right arm out way too far on my strokes, something I am consciously doing. So I'm going to have to try and modify this a little during my short swim in New York. Maybe bringing the arm forward and bending the elbow as I come back to eliminate the drafting effect while still keeping the arm in.
Bike - 1 Hour
Did a nice transition at my car and headed down Williston on the bike. I hadn't done this road in a while and I remember why, it's just all trucks and a very narrow bike lane. Not exactly prime biking conditions. I also have some bad, bad associations with terrible rides on that road as well. But after I crossed I-75 I settled into Aero and was doing a solid 22-25, even after yesterday's grueling bike effort. I mean, I know I have to show off a little when I train with Justin, since he destroys me in the run and is a slightly better swimmer too, but I was just straight flying. He kept up, but I was thinking "Damn, I"m just crushing this today." I looked at the plants for any sign of wind and saw none, thus assuming I was just that good.
Then I turned around. Justin had bailed at the 20 minute mark as he'd wanted to do a shorter ride, but at 30 minutes I turned around, having averaged about 22 on the way down. Crushing a short ride, I thought. Well, notsomuch. Despite my thinking there wasn't much wind, I couldn't manage to muster much over 18 at the beginning of the way back. I even slowed to around 16 before I said "Fuck this, I'm averaging 20 on this bitch" and pushed it all the way to the end. Made it just over 20 miles in just over 1 hour, averaging exactly 20. The gel I took at the 15 minute mark helped, but during the ride I sarted to think, ya know, wind is a lot like societal privilege. Could be racial, gender, socioeconomic, whatever. But here's my thoughts...
Like wind, when you have privilege working for you, you don't even notice. You breeze through not realizing that you have a great force working behind you. You usually just think you're doing awesome all on your own. Or, for some, you realize you have it and decide to take full advantage, pushing as hard as you can to get the best possible result. But really, you never notice it until it is working against you. When wind, or privilege, is not in your favor everything becomes twice as hard as it usually is. You spend a lot of time saying "This isn't fucking fair. This looks so easy but for some reason I just can't do as well as I want to." Then you either decide to let the force against you win and perform poorly (as I did most of last cycle), or say fuck it, work a lot harder, and get the result you want. Like I did on my ride today. Last cycle I was a nigger sitting in jail. This cycle I'm Barack Obama. You see what I mean?
Deeper than usual? Sure. But it can't all be gels and Cliff Bars.
Run - 45 minutes (treadmill)
In continuing with my theme of improving my speed with treadmill work, I opted to do today's short run on the treadmill at 6.4. Which was too fast to maintain, so I dropped it to 6.2 and did ok. My stomach started feeling a little weird, which I found odd since I hadn't had any more Lipodrene and had only a Cliff bar and PB&J. I felt a little strained going at that speed for 45 minutes, which some might call sad, but I think its an improvement that needs to be made. Yeah, this run was kinda pathetic, but I need to keep doing treadmill work on shorter runs until my speed improves. I did get to watch the end of the Mets-Marlins game. But for some reason the bullpen only seems to like to close out games quickly when I'm tryingto watch them during a workout.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
T75 - Cruisin'...On a Sunday Afternoon - Swim
Gainesville
The school year has presented a whole new set of challenges. This week has gotten totally fucked by 1) Having to get up early on Monday and Wednesday to teach, 2) Various social invitations that for some reason are harder to turn down in Fall than in Summer and 3) The Football Games. Now, I am no big Gator fan, but it seems as though if you are in Gainesville, and have access to a ticket, you should go. So I do, and this of course involves standing for at least 2 hours, which is not the best thing when your legs need to recover from a 13-mile run. Yes, a full night of drinking followed b a football game (I only drank water at the tailgate, though) does not really make for ideal recovery time.
So I decided to take a 3rd rest day this week (Saturday) leading into a long swim Sunday and the long bike Monday. I still have ten extra days to spend in the next 2 months, so it's not a huge deal, and with the holiday Monday this makes some sense. But I am going to need to figure out what I'm doing with Mondays and Wednesdays as both require and early morning and a full day of work. Meaning, of course, I didn't train on either day this week, and really won't be able to do bikes on either of those days at all. Fucking Fall, I don't know what I was thinking saying I would teach early classes. At any rate, Sundays are still free and clear, and I took today's to do a nice, long swim.
Swim: long day
wu: 200swim, 200kick, 200pull, 200swim
main: 2 x 1200, RPE 3 , even pace on both
1 Gel
2 Lipodrene
I took the gel early because of how ridiculously hungry I'd gotten on the last swim I did with only breakfast in my stomach. I took it on the way to GHFC, then got in the pool for the long workout. I really do like these long warmups because by the time you hit that second set of 200 meters, it's almost full speed ahead. Today was no different.
I kept my stroke pretty consistent today, as instructed, and just felt like I was cruising the whole time. The swim was not overly difficult, nor did I feel like I was going slow. I was just cruising along at a nice clip, and kept the effort strong through both sets. I took a chocolate gel and even took a little bathroom break between the two swim sets, so the long rest may have helped that. But it was nice to give my legs a little break while still getting in a solid long workout day.
Tomorrow is going to be my longest bike ride ever, and my longest training day thus far. So I am glad I am pretty rested up.
The school year has presented a whole new set of challenges. This week has gotten totally fucked by 1) Having to get up early on Monday and Wednesday to teach, 2) Various social invitations that for some reason are harder to turn down in Fall than in Summer and 3) The Football Games. Now, I am no big Gator fan, but it seems as though if you are in Gainesville, and have access to a ticket, you should go. So I do, and this of course involves standing for at least 2 hours, which is not the best thing when your legs need to recover from a 13-mile run. Yes, a full night of drinking followed b a football game (I only drank water at the tailgate, though) does not really make for ideal recovery time.
So I decided to take a 3rd rest day this week (Saturday) leading into a long swim Sunday and the long bike Monday. I still have ten extra days to spend in the next 2 months, so it's not a huge deal, and with the holiday Monday this makes some sense. But I am going to need to figure out what I'm doing with Mondays and Wednesdays as both require and early morning and a full day of work. Meaning, of course, I didn't train on either day this week, and really won't be able to do bikes on either of those days at all. Fucking Fall, I don't know what I was thinking saying I would teach early classes. At any rate, Sundays are still free and clear, and I took today's to do a nice, long swim.
Swim: long day
wu: 200swim, 200kick, 200pull, 200swim
main: 2 x 1200, RPE 3 , even pace on both
1 Gel
2 Lipodrene
I took the gel early because of how ridiculously hungry I'd gotten on the last swim I did with only breakfast in my stomach. I took it on the way to GHFC, then got in the pool for the long workout. I really do like these long warmups because by the time you hit that second set of 200 meters, it's almost full speed ahead. Today was no different.
I kept my stroke pretty consistent today, as instructed, and just felt like I was cruising the whole time. The swim was not overly difficult, nor did I feel like I was going slow. I was just cruising along at a nice clip, and kept the effort strong through both sets. I took a chocolate gel and even took a little bathroom break between the two swim sets, so the long rest may have helped that. But it was nice to give my legs a little break while still getting in a solid long workout day.
Tomorrow is going to be my longest bike ride ever, and my longest training day thus far. So I am glad I am pretty rested up.
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